The Everlasting Influence of Mia Ikumi

I remember being in 6th grade excitedly sharing my copies of Tokyo Mew Mew with my friends in the cafeteria. I was the biggest anime nerd in elementary and middle school, and I just loved bringing TMM to school and letting my friends read through it too. The manga was ADDICTING. TMM was everything I wanted in my life; best friends who would go to war for you, a sickly-sweet romance, ah-mazing outfits???? I was in heaven every time I flipped a page. Ichigo was not my favorite kind of main character, but she was earnest and had a good heart. She wasn’t as huge a crybaby as Usagi from Sailor Moon, but she did have an outfit just as cute, if not more so. My favorite Mew was Zakuro, who had a bitchin’ purple magical girl outfit and wolf ears (Her powers came from the DNA of a gray wolf that she was infused with). The coolest ‘Mew reveal’ for me was Lettuce; it had a major Carrie/old-school horror set-up. I am in my late twenties, and I can still remember how hungry I was for each book; how excited I was when each Mew was revealed, the multiple love triangles, the super cute maid outfits, and the adorable romance between Ichigo and Masiya. Every time I saw the gorgeous covers on the shelves at Barnes & Noble or Borders, it set the stage for an epic reading time for young little Oona.

via Nautiljon

Mia Ikumi was the illustrator of Tokyo Mew Mew. She, along with the creative writer Reiko Yoshida, brough five spunky gal pals to life in this original 7 volume series. With delicio…