Ludwig Manga Review

Manga Cover

Of course I picked up Ludwig to read because it was by Kaori Yuki. I love her artwork and she did not disappoint me with Ludwig. I had no idea what the manga was about except that it was about a prince named Ludwig who was a womanizer. I was in for a nice surprise when I read the manga. It was  based after certain older fairy tales such as Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, Red Riding Hood. Only in Kaori Yuki's manga, messed up things always happen.

Ludwig Plot

Manga Page

Prince Ludwig is next in line to take over his father's throne. His father on the other hand is reluctant to hand over the kingdom to his son until he marries. He is forced to leave the kingdom with his attendant, Wilhelm, to find a suitable princess. Along the way he runs into various fairy tale legends such as Snow White, Little Red Riding Hood, Sleeping Beauty, Hansel and Gretel, and various others. Here is a summary of each Fairy Tale Chapter.

Ludwig and Snow White

Ludwig and Snow White

Ludwig's first encounter is with the famous Snow White. Her mother is very jealous of her because her father loves her so much. Yes, so much. Her mother attempts to kill Blanche (Snow White) by having a servant kill her and bring her liver back. Blanche gets away and finds the Dwarves. While her mother is attempting to assassinate her, Blanche uses them as shields. Finally her mother gives her the poisoned apple and she fell asleep. Ludwig wakes her up and takes her home. Ludwig's father takes over her country and even takes her away from Ludwig. Soon Blanche finds out Ludwig's real secret, he is a necrophiliac.

Ludwig and Little Red Riding Hood

Little Red Riding Hood

Lisette was a young girl from Wilhelm's village. She always wanted a red hooded cape. She was Wilhelm's best friend until Ludwig came along. Wilhelm always did stuff for her and Ludwig was mad at the fact that she used him. He sets her up by scaring her into to thinking her parents sold her. She goes back to her house and ends up killing her parents. She gets the name Red Riding Hood and follows Ludwig around attempting to kill him. She is a hired assassin by profession.

Ludwig and Sleeping Beauty

Sleeping Beauty

Ludwig comes across Sleeping Beauty, or Friederike, during his travels. When she was born her parents invited twelve witches to the shower to give their blessings. There were actually thirteen and the last witch was not invited because they only had twelve plates. Ludwig Finds her and wishes to make her his wife. He finally realizes it is impossible because when she awakes, she will be her proper age... dead. Here Ludwig meets the witch, Dorothea, whom falls madly in love with him. She follows Ludwig around, trying to get him to fall in love with her.

Ludwig and Bluebeard

Bluebeard

Bluebeard is a fearful prince looking for his princess. The only thing is, he wears a fake beard to scare others. He is really a very sensitive prince, but the beard gives him the illusion he is strong. He too i in search of a bride. He has been writing one princess but sent her a picture of Ludwig saying it was him. Ironically when he received a picture of her, the face was ripped off in a carriage accident. Ludwig agrees to meet her but only if Bluebeard eventually tells her the truth. The princess has a few tricks up her sleeve as well.

Ludwig and Rapunzel

Rapunzel

Ludwig finally goes to princess Rapunzel. Here he meets Dorothea again posing as a different person. She has actually imprisoned Rapunzel here after taking her from her parents. She keeps Rapunzel locked away in the tower. Rapunzel has secretly sneaked a prince in from a neighboring country everyday. He is madly in love with her and intends to marry her. Soon he and Ludwig eventually find out why Dorothea locked Rapunzel in the tower.

Ludwig and Maid Maleen

Maid Maleen

Maleen and her maid have been trapped in a tower for years now awaiting her father to release her. When Ludwig and Wilhelm finally arrive at the tower they release Maleen and her maid. Ludwig thinks Maleen is perfect for him, but there is one problem... Maleen is dead. Her father's kingdom was overtaken and destroyed years ago. Maleen and her maid both died in the tower.

Ludwig and The Frog Prince

Frog Prince Ludwig

Ludwig is now in the company of not only Wilhelm, but Dorothea as well. Curious he places a frog puppet on his hand that he happened to find in Dorothea's belongings. Dorothea explains that he can only get it off with a kiss of the first girl that saw him after he put it on. As he searches for the girl that happened to run into him right after he put the puppet on, Wilhelm is mistaken for a criminal called Iron Heinrich. The two are separated for a while during this chapter.

Ludwig and The Goose Girl

Julius and Ludwig

Ludwig's father has fallen in love and will soon be remarried. He has also decided to give the kingdom to his soon to be adopted son, Julius. This news has yet to reach Ludwig and he is still on his journey to find a wife. Julius and his mother have a secret they are hiding though. Julius has hired assassins many times over to kill Ludwig and become king.

Ludwig and Hansel and Gretel

Hansel and Gretel

Hansel and Gretel's mom left them in the woods for dead. When they finally figured out what happened, they ran into a house that smelled good. By this time, they were both so famished that they could not see that well. Gretel was nursed back to health while Hansel was tortured. A witch had killed the previous owner and was posing as her. They get away and take revenge on their parents. They came across Ludwig and became friends, of course they were young children at that point. They are both assassins now hired to kill their former friend Ludwig.

Ludwig and Cinderella

Cinderella

Aschen lives with her three older half sisters. They boss her around all day and she loves it! Ludwig comes to her house to stay while he is in the town. The prince in that kingdom is holding a ball and has invited every female to attend. The three half sisters leave Aschen behind with Ludwig. Ludwig takes it upon himself to make Aschen go and meet the man of her dreams. Ludwig soon finds out that the prince is really trying to get a hold of Aschen to harm her.

Ludwig and The Goose-Girl Well

Goose Girl at the Well

After hearing that his father is going to be remarried and is planning to give the kingdom to another child, Ludwig makes his way back home. He gathers Red Riding Hood and Hansel and Gretel and now even his mother, yes his mother, to take back the kingdom from the new pests. Julius and his mother, Petronella, have plans to take over the kingdom. While Petronella's reason is a bit more evil and drastic, Julius has a more personal reason.

Ludwig and The Blue Light

Blue Light

Ludwig travels to the Kingdom of the Blue Light to save Dorothea's soul. She once saved him and gave her life so he could live, now he is repaying her. He travels to the kingdom made of solid gold to find a spoiled king. He sets Dorothea free from this king and makes her human. Now she can live a normal life and maybe even get the prince to fall in love with her.

Ludwig is a really good version of fairy tales. While they are twisted and brutal at points, this is just a more realistic ending to the happy tales. Kaori Yuki really captured something with this manga. Her art style is really amazing and nothing more could have been done. She knows how to keep the audience's attention with not only her art, but her story. I recommend Ludwig to anyone who loves manga's! It really has a surprising ending and it is even opened for more stories.

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Overall Grade 10/10