I had the opportunity to read this for ANN reviews. Oddly, at the end of speed-reading 6 volumes of the light novel series, I was still enjoying it. ^_^ So check out my review on ANN. 

While I would not call this a Yuri series in any meaningful way, it had enough Yuri decoration to make it worth mentioning here on Okazu. 

A privileged and absurdly young talented Japanese woman gets on to a plane with a bunch of otome game otaku and is never seen again. Reborn into the the game world, with a new name, she is raised by a single mother who is – so obviously – the former Saint. After her mother dies, the girl decides to fully engage in the one thing she actually cares about – being a maid. As Melody Wave, she takes on the rehabilitation of an impoverished family of nobles with her even more absurdly overpowered Maid Magic. 

Completely unaware that the entire game revolves around her, Melody’s Saintly powers are spent on clothes and cleaning and occasionally creating portals through space and time. While the otaku on the plane, now reborn into the game world as nobles good and bad, flail to understand who the main characters are and why the game plot has gone off the rails. The author, Atekichi, is not above inserting comments, both about maids and Melody, and also is having so much fun with the story that it ends up being fun to read.  The translation is likewise rather amusing. Matthew Jackson includes some banger lines, like the “legally distinct-from-Doraemon Everywhere Door. ” Absolute perfection.

While the story could not be sillier if it tried (it does try), the characters are mostly likable. Melody’s powers are just too, too much  – like creating life out of nothing so she can have help in the house that isn’t just one of her 50 clones… so the family she serves has a meeting to try and explain why she should she tamp them down. 

As for Yuri, Melody’s mistress and she have a pleasantly intimate friendship, but the Yuri tends to be scattered about as Melody and later her disguise, Cecelia (and of course, her true form,) gain male and female admirers. The Prince’s potential fiancée, Anna-Marie, is said to be interested only in women. Later, we are introduced to a Princess from the neighboring country who acts as if she is a Prince and is not above seducing women if it serves her purpose.

The only downside, as I say in my ANN review, is that the art and story are wholly, irreparably, not in sync. We are repeatedly told that Melody is magnificently beautiful, as Cecilia  she is even more so, and as her truest form, she is beyond gorgeous, so of course all we see is a blob-face moe girl. It is, frankly, enraging. Good art would elevate the books, but no. Blob faces it is. 

There is a hefty amount of hand-waving needed to make the plot move, but the author has no compunction about just making a thing happen to have it happen, so as long as you are comfortable with that, this is a very fun light novel series.

Ratings: 

Art –  5.84 Not bad, but just not good for the words on the page
Story – 9.75 It’s ridiculous
Characters – 9.75 
Service – For maid obsessives 10 otherwise, .62
Yuri – 3.03

Overall – 8.26
 

To get right to the point, Unsung Epics of the Hero’s Journey, Volume 1 was good. Like, really pretty decent.

Rhuys Ferme is a cleric with an important, but secret, mission. The Hero’s Party is out hunting the Demon King, and she needs someone with serious skills to help achieve her goal. To that end, she commissions Araignée Les, an adventurer with a reputation for having mad skillz.

Unsure and terrified, Rhuys undertakes this dangerous mission with Araignée, whose nonchalance confuses Rhuys. As they travel together, they begin to open up to one another. They find they share a lot of similar baggage; both women having a past filled with rejection and exile. They draw closer, as they move towards a climactic battle with a powerful foe. Will they have enough trust in one another to achieve their goal? 

The story was reasonably well-constructed with characters one could sympathize with. This included some of their opponents, a tack I appreciated. The way contracts and commissions were serious business in this world gave it a bit of “real life” flavor. Araignée’s story, while interesting, was the most predictable, with two important reveals, one of which was telegraphed from the beginning of the book. She was still a solid character. Rhuys was a more complicated character. Her backstory made her actions and beliefs stand out as fully fleshed out. By the end of the book, I was wholly behind these two as a partnership, both in adventuring and life. 

The writing was, for a light novel, rather decent. Hachigatsumori clearly thought things through. All of the fighting was both interesting and sensible, as well as being clever at times. I love when writers get creative within their own rules. An extra point for the bad guy pulling the strings in the background actually just being punished. That was novel.

 NAT’s illustrations had our protagonists fully clothed, with armor that made sense! Points off for Araignée wearing shorts, but I’ll allow it. since her armor covered her chest in a way that might actually protect her.  And! the art is not moe. It was a nice change of pace, having characters that look as they are described. Thank you, NAT.

Ratings: 

Story – 9
Characters – 9
Art – 8
Service – 2
Yuri – 7

Overall – 9

Overall, I found Unsung Epics of the Hero’s Journey, Volume 1 to be an entertaining read, with strong characters, good action, some clever touches and a nice bit of Yuri. Volume 2 is headed our way in August, I’ll definitely be reading it.