Now this is a really old manga from back in the day. Princess Knight is not a title that I was ever familiar with but it made for a fun read. It plays out a bit like some of the old TinTin comics at least when it comes to the atmosphere and art. The series was not afraid to drastically change the status quo either and so every chapter would really keep you on your toes. You never really knew what was about to happen next. I got to read the series as one giant omnibus so it really felt like a journey.

The story starts off with an angel named Tink messing up during the ceremony to give people hearts so they can be born on Earth. Now a girl named Sapphire has ended up with both the girl and guy hearts. This doesn’t work out very well for her kingdom where girls are not allowed to rule. As a result Sapphire has to pretend to be a man and serves the kingdom as Prince Sapphire. Deep down she wants to just be able to live as a girl though and the charade is difficult to keep up. Additionally, the Duralumin and his trusted right hand man Nylon have their doubts. They think Sapphire is actually a lady and seek to expose her. Can Sapphire continue to evade them and how will Tink take back the extra heart?

Tink’s official mission is to take the male heart away because Sapphire was originally supposed to be a girl. It’s also why the villains are able to suspect that something is up. For all intents and purposes Sapphire is still a girl. She feels like one and all but the male heart gives her more courage and strength than she would otherwise have. Sapphire has a strong commitment to her duties as the prince and so that is why she continues to fight hard all the way to the end.

The character cast isn’t particularly big so this allows each of them to really make their mark in the story. I’d say that Nylon was easily the best villain. He’s one of those bumbling types who is always trying to get the jump on Sapphire but is rarely up to the task. It really shows just how persistent he is though and you just have to respect that. It’s not easy to constantly get up to fight again when you are always losing every fight. I’d even say that the story rewards him a bit as he gets a happier ending than some of the other characters. It’s not like he gets away completely free or anything but at least he has a chance at a solid future.

His boss Dualumin doesn’t actually appear quite as much but worked well enough as the mastermind. He’s just more the type to stay in the background and lets the chips fall where they may. Ultimately this is the kind of series where you have to be proactive though so that plan didn’t work out very well for him. Then you’ve also got the demonic witch who is trying to get her daughter Hecate to the throne. She tries several traps to end Sapphire’s life with so there would be no competition.

It’s pretty rough for her though because in general she is one of the stronger fighters. Unfortunately for her, Angels are a complete counter to her abilities. So Tink who isn’t much of a fighter is able to dispatch her every time. It was nice to see Tink getting some respect there because he started off in a bit of a rocky position. He’s still a rookie after all and isn’t much of a fighter but he was ready to help Saphire out when needed. At first he would only get in the way but then by the end he did well.

I also enjoyed Hecate as a villain. She was certainly a lot more reasonable than her mother. Hecate was no hero by any means but she ended up helping out when their goals aligned. It is something that happens more than once during the adventure. Additionally, she does have real abilities like shapeshifting which comes in handy for all kinds of situations. I would have liked her to have had a bit more screentime.

There was one villain with less screentime though. A goddess shows up near the end who is extremely petty and becomes jealous of Sapphire’s beauty. She is quick to turn people into animals and complain a whole lot. Fortunately Tink is able to talk back to her and rat her out to the elder god. Otherwise she would have crushed everyone since the humans can’t really do anything to a goddess.

So for Tink, with the wins I mentioned earlier I suppose I’ll give him a passing grade. He’s not the most interesting character out there but showed up when it counted. He is overshadowed by Prince Franz though. That guy is essentially the main rival of the series. He helps Sapphire out a whole lot and fell in love with her female disguise. Since Franz thinks that Sapphire is a guy, they have a friendly rivalry at first until they become bitter enemies due to a misunderstanding. Franz is a really upstanding guy and the kind of prince that you want to have in your corner. He continues to fight in order to find the girl that he loves and is the most earnest character in the series.

It was always a blast whenever he would show up. We get another rival in the form of Captain Blood who is also a pretty solid character. He couldn’t help but fall for Sapphire’s charms as well but just has way less screentime. You sort of know that he’s doomed from the start but it was still nice to see another quality character at the ready. He was a strong fighter and even gets a big plot twist by the end of the series. This guy certainly became more important than I would have expected.

Finally we got a third rival in Friebe but she had even less time to appear. In this case she fell for Sapphire when she thought that the knight was a man so that was definitely a big disappointment to her. Still, she handled this like a champ and continued to be helpful instead of spiteful. She became a really good character right away so it’s a shame that she barely got to appear. There was definitely a ton of potential right there for her to have continues to appear.

As for Sapphire, she is a decently good character but loses to the 3 rivals. Some of this may be a bit out of her control but Sapphire’s personality changes a whole lot based on the heart(s) that she is using at the time. As a result there are moments where she is way too helpless. Nylon was actually overpowering her when Sapphire had temporarily turned back into a girl. The personality shifts are a big part of the plot so it may seem a bit harsh to really attack her on this but you definitely need to be a more consistent ruler to rise to the top.

Sapphire was also a nice character from the start but a little too timid. She could have avoided a whole lot of drama if she had told Franz who she was from the start. I’d say that Sapphire is also a bit too easygoing like when she gave all of her riches away to the corrupt soldier that put her in prison. It just felt like she could have fought back a whole lot more if she had really wanted to. None of this makes her a bad character by any means but it does prevent her from being a better one.

The art is solid enough. It definitely does look old and while it is a very authentic style, it doesn’t hold up to any of the modern titles. It has that Sunday Newspaper kind of vibe which is why I compared it to old western comics. This one still has way more plot progression compared to those even if each chapter has more of a slice of life vibe. They just remember to pick up where the last one left off and each plot development really sticks. I’d call this a good comfort read that just about anyone could enjoy. It’s just nice and pleasant all around with a solid amount of humor, action, and adventure.

Overall, If you haven’t heard of Princess Knight before, I can safely say that it is worth a read. The writing is solid and I enjoyed the cast of characters. It all really goes by in the blink of an eye even though the series is close to 700 pages long. The pages are just very clear and easy to read through. Additionally, the concept is pretty interesting. I imagine some modern retellings will give Sapphire a bit more agency so hopefully she can win more important battles and not falter whenever she loses a heart. I wouldn’t mind some more big fights as well.

Overall 6/10