Meca Tanaka's third English release – Tokyo Pop translated Pearl Pink and CMX released Omukae desu. – isn't really a stand-out in terms of shoujo plotlines, but it's still totally adorable in its goodhearted joy. The story follows bad-luck magnet Hako, a high school first year whose head appears to attract things to fall on it. Cleaning the schoolyard nets her buckets from windows, walking around outside turns her into a bird toilet, balls are inexplicably drawn to her skull...the poor girl is in constant danger and those around her often suffer accidents. (Perhaps this is why she wears her hair in a bun – she's cushioning the top of her skull.) Her friends have convinced her to join the Occult Club in hopes of lifting her curse, and one day during a ritual to summon a demon, something unexpected arrives from the sky: a beautiful naked boy. He's Io, prince of the planet Yupita, and as is the custom of his people he has come to a different planet to mate with the one who has the exact same wavelength as him. And guess what? That's Hako.

To say that this causes alarm and confusion would be putting it mildly, and Hako's best friend Matchan immediately goes into crisis mode. Io's ready to push Hako onto the floor and do the deed the moment he arrives, even threatening Matchan's life if she tries to interfere, which understandably alarms everyone...except Hako, who, while confused, still appears to be mostly taking things in stride. She fends Io off, but she's much more nonplussed by the situation than her friends, which definitely feels unusual. The question of how much danger she's actually in doesn't really arise, and her friends' panic (as well as Io's actions) are clearly meant to be treated as funny rather than frightening. Mostly it is the personalities of Hako and Io that allow this to work; Hako is very difficult to alarm, given her lifelong history of attracting trouble, and Io is happy-go-lucky in a simple way, appearing to live in the moment rather than worrying about the future. In a different series, this opening scenario could be very upsetting; here it manages to be played off as goofy, although it may not sit well with everyone.

That's Tanaka's default mode in this first volume – goofy. It defuses a lot of situations, such as the dangers inherent in Hako's bad luck and the dogged pursuit of her by Io. Io, who goes to live with the Occult Club's (male) president, learns about Earth mating rituals and relationship conditions through the president's sister's shoujo manga, which as you can imagine leads to mixed results. As he learns about the concept of love, and the idea of falling in love, we can see him mature as a character without losing the winning simplicity that makes him both lovable and amusing, and Hako's default state of outward calm also works towards keeping the story light and fluffy. We do have hints of darker undertones – Hako's former boyfriend dumped her because of her bad luck, making her leery of romantic relationships and she worries about what could happen to her friends and family. Matchan is incredibly protective of Hako due to bullying when the two were younger, making her defense of Hako from Io less about a stereotypical jealous response and more about actual worry for her friend's well-being. And Io, we learn, comes from a warrior clan on his planet, and as we see demonstrated a couple of times, he is not above threatening people with violence. That his typical demeanor is so friendly makes this all the more alarming.

Tanaka tells us that she is stretching herself as an artist with this series, specifically with Io's nudity. (She has a particularly difficult time obscuring his groin without it being obvious and drawing his backside, she says.) There are no obvious anatomical flaws, however, and there's a charm to her soft art style, especially Io's simple facial expressions and Hako's body, although Tanaka does have to point out that Hako is a little “chubby;” I would never have noticed otherwise. There's a good balance of gray and white spaces with very little black and on the whole the art is easy to read. There are two small typographical errors in the book, one a name misspelling and the other a missing word, but otherwise Viz has done a good job localizing the volume.

Meteor Prince's first book is a fun story that manages to be sweet and silly rather than slightly dangerous, which it very easily could have been. If you're in the mood for some romantic shoujo fun with an alien prince, this is a pleasant read, and as it is complete at two volumes, there isn't a huge investment to make. It isn't perfect, but as a fluffy treat, it fits the bill nicely.