Manga series Sorry For My Familiar (or Uchi no Tsukaima ga Sumimasen) is a captivating and hilarious story that draws readers in and keeps them guessing! First published in 2018 by Seven Seas Entertainment, with a story and art by Tekka Yaguraba, the series provides an endearing plotline while maintaining a high level of action and unique surprises.
The story follows Patty, an uncommonly sweet devil girl, and her shocking human familiar, Norman. A daemon expert and researcher, Norman’s eccentric and over-the-top character directly contrasts with Patty’s humble and introverted personality, leading them into some hilarious situations. Their adventure begins when Patty’s dad goes missing, and Patty enlists Norman’s help to allow him to explore the devil world.
Hilarity ensues right from the beginning of the series! Within the first few pages, readers are drawn in by the gentle humor, which quickly escalates into full-blown comedy. Each volume of Sorry For My Familiar also maintains the humor and doesn’t disappoint the laughter either. The comedy becomes an integral and expected part of the series. The humor also varies in style, from cringe-inducing, embarrassing moments to snort-worthy scenes. These varying styles keeps Sorry For My Familiar light-hearted while also keeping readers entertained. However, the humor also serves another purpose: to develop the characters. This is where the varying styles really come into play and help showcase the many personalities. Some characters are sarcastic yet good-hearted, others are passionate and prone to outbursts, and yet others are just simpletons who aren’t the brightest but mean well. Each humorous moment serves some purpose, whether it’s to show character personality or even to add a light-hearted touch to an action-packed situation.
The action scenes in Sorry For My Familiar are not skimpy throughout this series! Every step of Patty and Norman’s adventure is filled with immersive and intense situations that either leave viewers shocked or shaking with laughter. There are constant surprises and sudden developments that keep the action consistent but not overwhelming. The action sequences are also not horribly long, so readers don’t feel like they’re stuck and the story is not being drawn out unnecessarily. They’re just the right length to keep readers intrigued while feeling like it’s happening in real-time. Despite the manageable length, the action scenes are still riveting and sometimes even absurd, so readers will certainly not get bored when reading any volume.
The world of Sorry For My Familiar itself also feels highly developed and unique. Norman is an expert daemon researcher, and Patty is basically a sheltered country girl. We learn about the devil world through their simplified yet understandable points of view. There are often interesting and sometimes funny details about devils, their familiars, and even daemons, which are basically the world’s animals. Each location they visit is also unique in its own way, with its own devil and daemon variants, so we don’t often see the same types of beings over and over again. This really helps create distinctive locations and immerse the reader in the travel experience along with Patty and Norman.
Quite a bit of this immersive experience is due to the highly detailed and well-drawn art style author Tekka Yaguraba utilizes throughout the series. Each character is designed and detailed to match their personality style and purpose within the story, from their hair, to their clothing, to the shine on their horns. Every devil drawn, even in shadow or within a crowd, has a distinctively unique shape that identifies them as something other than human. The type of devil is even drawn to match the character they play, so they perfectly fit their role in every way.
Overall, Sorry For My Familiar is an intriguing and fun casual read. While the series is action-packed, it’s not overly intense or too dramatic. However, readers should know it has a few slightly gory and censored scenes, though nothing overly sensitive or explicit. The Teen rating of the book keeps the art and plotline in a limited range but helps to maintain a general light-heartedness that is quite enjoyable.
Sorry For My Familiar has eight volumes released, with a ninth scheduled for January 25, 2022. This reader eagerly awaits the new volume to see what else is in store for Patty and Norman, along with their band of friends, enemies, and unique characters!
