Sweet as Devil’s Candy: First Look at a VIZ Original
The world of comics has undeniably expanded since I was a kid. Thanks to the vast expanse of the internet, artists and writers have been able to connect and spread their stories easier than ever thanks to the rise of the webcomic. If you enjoy comics like I do, you’ve undoubtedly read at least one of them at some point, be it Homestuck, Penny Arcade, CTRL+ALT+DEL or VG Cats. For me, I’ve only dabbled in webcomics, with some of my favorites being Spinnerette and Ava’s Demon. However, that all changed after I played River City Girls (RCG) on the Nintendo Switch. One of the things that initially drew me to RCG was its stylish, charming 2D artwork and cutscenes, which I later discovered was all done by an artist calling themselves Rem. So, you can imagine my excitement when I later learned that Rem had their own webcomic, full of their breathtaking artwork co-created with an author called Bikkuri. This is Devil’s Candy, a beautiful, extremely creative comic that VIZ Media graciously allowed me to preview to talk about with you fine folks today.
Kazu Decker
Devil’s Candy follows the escapades of an Imp boy known as Kazu, who has created life, a demon girl he names Pandora. Together with his best friend Nemo, Kazu works to teach Pandora about this supernatural world he’s brought her into at Hemlock Heart Academy. Along the way, they run into all kinds of trouble with other students, including mad scientists, drama queens and ghosts! The world surrounding Hemlock Heart Academy is unapologetically gothic, with ornate buildings and creepy technology, like transportation that functions using living brains. The world has its own mythology, claiming all demons owe their defining physical traits to an elder demon known as The Giver, who gifted the various races with sharp teeth, gleaming eyes, wings, tails or some combination of those features. This kind of lore makes Devil’s Candy an incredibly creative and well-realized universe, with so much to it that it actually can’t be contained in the limited pages of the story. After every chapter of the comic, there is an additional section of notes, explaining various aspects of the world and how it works. Some could say that this isn’t effective world-building as the details are only found after the story, but I believe putting such details in the story proper would drag the pacing down. As it stands, Devil’s Candy is a delight to read, with a sense of humor reminiscent of Jhonen Vazquez’s work, such as Invader Zim. Its jokes are dark without ever being gory or off-putting, a perfect read for teenagers and those that love a darker twist on a kid-friendly story.
As the protagonist, Kazu is an interesting character. He’s an imp that’s smart enough to create life, but not smart enough to know how to talk to girls. He’s a staunch believer in science, and refuses to believe that ghosts exist, despite living in a land where demons walk about. All this to say that Kazu is a person of unique contrast, and one that still has a lot to learn himself. He also lives alone, the reason for which will keep you guessing until the very end of the volume.
Nemo is another genius student at Hemlock Heart Academy, but one that’s far more street smart than Kazu. The Grindylow boy provides much of Devil’s Candy’s comic relief, and even presents some potentially fourth wall breaking moments, with him sneaking out of a chapter at one point. He’s easily one of the most hilarious characters in this story and I look forward to learning more about him as the series continues.
Fans of anime will really enjoy Devil’s Candy. The darker, supernatural setting is very reminiscent of Soul Eater’s Death City, and characters certainly fall into various anime tropes. Take for instance, the cyclops girl Hitomi. She has feelings for Kazu, but is constantly worried she isn’t good enough for him. This character type is familiar to many, like Hinata in Naruto. However, Hitomi distinguishes herself from a simple trope as the story goes on, playing against type as a cyclops by being a gifted seamstress, something no cyclops has ever done before. She also grows to understand the relationship between Kazu and Pandora more as the series continues, initially mistaking them for boyfriend and girlfriend.
Pandora is easily the standout character of Devil’s Candy, as you could argue the entire plot revolves around her. Initially silent, Pandora’s personality develops more and more over the course of the series, emulating the Super Sentai show “Devilizer” that she and Kazu watch on television, parroting others words before making them her own and displaying an immense amount of physical strength. She is also on a quest to figure out just what kind of demon she is, a question even her own creator can’t answer. Pandora’s character development is subtle, but one that readers will appreciate upon re-reading this volume. She’s definitely an anchor for the series and a character I look forward to seeing more of.
The first volume of Devil’s Candy is primarily concerned with the fallout from Pandora’s creation. From the very beginning, we see other students having tried to create life for a student project, and a rival student causing chaos out of jealousy that Kazu was so successful. Following that, there’s another escapade that happens as a direct result of the aftermath of the first story. Another element is the aforementioned “relationship” drama between Hitomi, Pandora and Kazu. Every chapter in the story flows into the next, making for a highly enjoyable, seamless read. The first volume of Devil’s Candy does a lot to firmly establish our core cast of characters, and I absolutely loved each and every one of them by the book’s end.
A while back, Rem and Bikkuri took to Kickstarter to fund the production of the first volume in print of their work, and being a fan of River City Girls, I backed it. While the Kickstarter version of this volume sports some advantages like a larger print size and color pages, VIZ Media’s new printing sports its own advantage – an exclusive side story. While only a few pages long, it’s still more content, more time with these lovely characters, which is always a great thing. Additionally, VIZ Media provides something that Kickstarter can’t – stability. While most webcomics rely on a Kickstarter project for each individual volume they want to be released in print, having a deal with VIZ allows Rem and Bikkuri’s work to be reliably distributed month by month, and allows it to be read by a much, much wider audience.
I for one am glad to be a part of that audience, and I eagerly await the continuing story of Devil’s Candy. You can discover this weird, wild and wonderful world for yourself when Devil’s Candy, Volume One hits bookshelves July 13th, 2021.
