Manga Monday: Bunny Drop

Bunny Drop (Volume 1)
Yumi Unita

Bunny Drop is a moe manga where, like Yotsuba&, a little girl is raised by a young man, in this case a thirty-year-old.  Jason Thompson wrote an interesting article on moe manga at ComiXology worth checking out if you'd like to know more about this side of manga.  But while Yotsuba& is a humor series that focuses on a young girl's funny interactions with the world around her as she grows and learns, Bunny Drop aims for something a little more dramatic.  There's plenty of humor involved in the title, but it has a much more serious edge as Daikichi, the young bachelor, takes in his grandfather's secret six-year-old daughter Rin after he dies (because no one else is willing to, given the scandal), and has to grow up quickly, making responsible decisions to raise her, such as stepping down at work so that daycare will work with a more reasonable schedule.  He has a lot to learn about children, but with Rin's help, is able to make a good deal of headway very quickly.  Rin herself is very quiet and bashful in the beginning, but Daikichi, with his silly, loving ways, helps her to slowly lower her guard and trust somebody again, and as the book progresses, bond and make connections with other people as well.  It's a really nice, heart-warming story as the two learn and grow together, Daikichi into adulthood and Rin into a functional child in society.  This book subtley addresses some pretty intense questions, and while the book is overall pretty emotional and character-focused, Daikichi is enough of a funny "loser" type of character to keep the tone from becoming too serious.  Unita found a really nice balance there from the very beginning, pairing the perfect personalities together for this type of a story.  I really enjoyed spending time with the characters she created for this world, and found myself invested in them very early on.  A wonderful first volume.