Gahi-chan! Vol 1 [Manga] Review - Simple and Enjoyable Ecchi Comedy

8:00 AM October 29, 2022

Manga Review [Category]
Romance Manga, Comedy Manga, Sexy / Ecchi Manga, Demon Manga [Genres]

Honey's Manga/LN, Honey’s Anime Pickup, Sensitive Topic,

“Simple and Enjoyable Ecchi Comedy”

Mangaka : Tirotata
Publisher : Comedy, Ecchi, Fantasy, Romance, Shounen, Slice of Life
Genre : Yen Press
Published : October 2022

Let’s get one thing out of the way—Gahi-chan! is the type of ecchi comedy that you’re reading purely for the overt fan service alone. If you’ve no interest in scantily-clad girls of questionable age, then Gahi-chan! isn’t going to be your cup of tea; but if you enjoy smutty humor and loli-style characters, Gahi-chan! offers a silly premise that’s rather enjoyable.

If you’re a fan of Yuragi-sou no Yuuna-san (Yuuna and the Haunted Hot Springs) or more mature series like Sundome!! Milky Way, there’s plenty of busty youkai love to be found in Gahi-chan!

Join us today on Honey’s Anime as we discuss Gahi-chan!, Vol 1!

Contains Spoilers

Our Hottest Cosplay Ever!

Discussion Time

The main premise behind Gahi-chan! is simple—struggling mangaka Kurehito Higa finds his life uprooted when a youkai (a supernatural being) appears naked at his doorstep and demands to live with him. This particular youkai is a ‘gahi’—a creature described in Classical Chinese stories, and best approximated as a skinwalker in Western culture.

In Gahi-chan!, a gahi can eat a drawing and “wear” the skin of that drawing for a limited amount of time, before returning to a vaguely octopus-shaped monster form. After having found some of Higa’s manga, one gahi adopts the persona of Ruki, the main character of that manga, and decides she wants to live with Higa since his drawings taste nice to her, and she enjoys wearing Ruki’s skin.

The comedic beats—and ecchi moments—practically write themselves after this. Ruki is hopeless at pretty much everything, but her overwhelming passion (and cute charms) shake up Higa’s monotonous life. There’s a little body-horror humor injected too, since Ruki can’t hold her shape for long, and reverts back to her normal youkai form at all the worst moments. Throw in a petty landlord (also a busty loli-shaped girl) and one of Ruki’s friends (a gahi who’s concerned Higa is a closet pervert), and you’ve got the perfect setup for an enjoyable first volume.

Artistically, Tirotata manages to strike a nice balance amidst the chaotic humor, with indulgent fan service and clean linework. It’s also worth noting that the first volume is surprisingly long, clocking in at just over 180 pages, with two bonus chapters in the tankoubon edition, for a total of 10 chapters—a nice surprise!

Why You Should Read Gahi-chan!

1. Ecchi Humor, Just Slightly Restrained

As we mentioned earlier, Gahi-chan! knows its target audience well. There’s definitely a huge market for ecchi humor and beautifully-drawn girls, and Gahi-chan! slots nicely into that space, albeit with a fair amount of careful restraint on behalf of the mangaka.

You can expect lots of boob-groping and accidental-crotch-face-planting, but Tirotata does stray away from anything more adult-rated than exposed nipples and panty-shots. If you want a manga you can (somewhat) safely leave around the house, Gahi-chan! (probably) won’t get you in as much hot water as, say, Sundome!! Milky Way or Shuumatsu no Haremu (World’s End Harem).

2. Smol Girl, Oppai Included

We’re not judging anyone here at Honey’s Anime. If it’s not hurting anybody, then you’re free to enjoy whatever you want to enjoy. Gahi-chan! is consistently willing to poke fun at itself for having a roster of young girls, and makes a lot of self-referential jokes about their “oppai loli” appearance (don’t Google that on the office WiFi, folks).

Again, that’s not going to be everyone’s cup of tea, but the artwork and characterization in Gahi-chan! works brilliantly for small girls with big assets and even bigger personalities. Tirotata knows exactly what they’re working with, and pulls it off with style.

Our Hottest Cosplay Ever!

Why You Should Skip Gahi-chan!

1. All Com, No Rom

We’re not going to criticize Gahi-chan! for being what it is—a self-indulgent ecchi monster-girl-fest—but compared to some of its contemporaries, Gahi-chan! is sorely lacking in direct plot motivation.

Recent series like Haite Kudasai, Takamine-san (Please Put Them On, Takamine-san) have proven that overtly ecchi series can carry an engaging narrative at the same time. There doesn’t need to be a line drawn between “fan service” and “story”—there’s a way to incorporate both to create a series that exists beyond just being ecchi, but sadly, Gahi-chan! misses the mark.

It’s not a deal breaker, but for us, it’s a missing piece of the puzzle.

Final Thoughts

Dumb, smutty, ecchi reads exist for a reason—to entertain. They don’t need to be anything but pure entertainment for the specific audience they’re intended for. Gahi-chan! promises big boobs on small monster girls, and it delivers in style.

We wish there was a little more substance to Gahi-chan! beyond the central premise, but it’s an entertaining slice-of-life ecchi nonetheless.

Are you going to check out Gahi-chan!, Vol 1? Let us know down in the comments below, and as always, thanks for reading!

Writer

Author: Brett Michael Orr

I'm a writer, gamer, and reviewer of manga & light novels, from Melbourne, Australia. When I'm not creating a new world, I'll be absorbed in a good JRPG, watching some anime, or reading up a storm!

Our Hottest Cosplay Ever!