Ballad of a Shinigami #3

The third volume of this bittersweet supernatural manga brings together the series' two most distinctive figures: a silver-scythed shinigami with flowing pale-blue hair and striking blue eyes, her ethereal white-and-teal dress accented by vivid red shoes, and a small dark cat wearing a red collar — both rendered with delicate elegance by artist Asuka Izumi, adapting K-Ske Hasegawa's original story. There's a quiet tension in the image, the great scythe arcing overhead while the shinigami's expression carries something closer to sorrow than menace. Fans of thoughtful, beautifully illustrated supernatural manga will find this 2010 volume a genuinely moving addition to the series.