In this gentle and episodic comedy, teenage android Odette has just entered her second year of high school and is joined by fellow android Chris, a former attack bot now reprogrammed by Odette’s creator, Hiroaki. Although Odette has learned much from being among humans, some concepts still elude her, like why a girl’s heart would beat faster near a particular boy or why some combinations of food taste better than others. Chris also receives some development, as he’s forced to consider personal preferences for the first time.
While each individual chapter is amusing, the real charm of Karakuri Odette is Odette’s continuing quest to understand humanity and her calm sorrow when she fails to do so. When she emulates something she saw on TV by putting an egg on Hiroaki’s ramen, for example, she experiences happiness that something she made pleased him. Further culinary experiments don’t fare so well, though, leaving Odette unable to recapture that feeling until she seeks out special tutelage from a friend. The concept of romantic love is also baffling, causing Odette to feel left out when so many of her friends have someone they like.
I continue to appreciate the approach this series takes with its subject matter; it’s definitely funny, but not in a frenzied way, and is frequently touching.
Review copy provided by the publisher. Review originally published at Manga Recon.
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