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Title: Moon Child Vol 9

Author: Reiko Shimizu

Publisher:  CMX

ISBN:  9781401214241

May Contain Spoilers

Gil Owen’s accident has become front page news, and both Holly and Art are dragged into the headlines.  While the press speculates on which of the dancers is Gil’s lover, the reporters are hounding Art.  When Jimmy causes some strange occurrences, Art slowly begins to connect some of the weird events to the young child.  At first not believing that Jimmy could be responsible for the mishaps, he soon finds himself afraid of his charge.  Is Jimmy some kind of monster, and should she be allowed to live?

This volume is notable because Art finally catches a clue.  Sort of.  He finally makes the connection between the beautiful Benjamin and Jimmy, but has a hard time accepting that they are the same person.  He is so consumed by what’s on the outside, instead of just accepting someone for what’s on the inside.  When Jimmy is in her mature form, Art muses about how enchanting she is, while he considers Jimmy’s child form a bit of a nuisance, and now even someone to be afraid of. 

I don’t like Art and how shallow he is.  He is also lacking in any common sense.  After determining that Jimmy is responsible for injuring the photographers that were chasing after him, Art starts comparing Jimmy to a dog that he once owned.  When the dog attacked a neighborhood child, he took matters into his own hands and took responsibility for his dog’s actions.  Now he’s thinking of doing the same with Jimmy!  Art, you idiot!  Jimmy may not be human, but she’s not a monster, either.   It’s really frustrating that Jimmy is so devoted to someone who treats her so badly. 

The Russia trip and Teruto’s plans for destroying Jimmy were put on hold in this volume.  Instead, Art and Jimmy’s relationship was made even more confusing for Art.  Now that Jimmy is in her mature form, Art seems to be chasing after ghosts, unable to reconcile his little friend’s new appearance.  Jimmy never seems to catch a break, as even Seth is unsure of his feelings for his sibling.  Like Teruto, does Seth want to see Jimmy die so he’ll be the one to mature and he can pair with Shonach?  I love all of the complex relationships in this series.

Grade: A-

Rated for Teen