Chibi Vampire

Chibi Vampire (Karin) is a story that was created by Yuna Kagesaki. Kagesaki is a manga artist who does both computer drawings and drawings for manga. Chibi Vampire was first released in 2003. It was adapted in 2004 into a series of mystery novels by author Tohru Kai, and was turned into an anime in 2005. Only recently, in 2007, has it been licensed for release in America. The manga is also known by the name Karin, but is known in the United States as Chibi Vampire.

Synopsis

Karin was born as the middle child into a family of vampires. Her family has been around for a long time, immigrating to Japan two centuries before the story starts. Most of her family drinks blood to survive, but Karin is different. Karin actually produces too much blood. Because she is not lacking blood, as most of her family is, she can act as a normal school girl would, going outside in the daylight and going to high school. She has no allergy to sunlight, and her family believes her to be odd because she actually enjoys it. Things change, though, when a transfer student named Kenta Usui starts at her high school.

Every time Karin goes anywhere near Kenta, her blood seems to multiply even faster than it normally does. She believes that she can avoid him, and that the problem will disappear, but Kenta and she both have the same class, and work at the same restaurant, so it becomes a futile operation. Kenta finally snoops around enough to figure out the secret that Karin is hiding. Ren, Karin’s older brother, decides that he is going to help his sister by erasing Kenta’s memory, but Karin’s younger sister, Anju, talks him out of. She believes that Kenta will be able to help Karin, as most of them can’t, because he can walk outside in the day time.

Eventually the two become friends. Just when things start to calm down, Winner Sinclair transfers into their school. Winner believes that Karin is the only girl for him, which complicates things for Karin, because he is a vampire hunter. As the series continues, Karin and Kenta become close, becoming extremely attached while dealing with the interesting problems that arise when you live in a vampire family.

Characters

• Karin Maaka – Karin is a vampire who produces blood. Because of this, she gives blood to her victims, leaving both she and her victim feeling happy and refreshed.

• Kenta Usui – Kenta is a transfer student that discovers Karin’s secret. He ends up falling in love with Karin, and eventually declares himself to her.

• Anju Maaka – Anju is Karin’s younger sister. She is very soft-spoken and controls a group of bats that she sets to watch over Karin during the daytime hours.

• Ren Maaka – Ren is Karin’s older brother, and believes that Karin is not truly a vampire.

• Henry Marker – Henry is the children’s father. He becomes an extremely overprotective father when he learns that Kenta is falling in love with Karin.

• Carerra Marker – Carerra is the matriarch of the family, and keeps things in line.

External Links

• Karin Website

Manga created in Japan or by Japanese mangaka.