The very first time I heard of Vampire Knight was when it appeared in Shojo Beat magazine. I always found myself picking it up when I went to the book store. The final issue of Shojo Beat I was able to pick up contained the very first chapter of Vampire Knight. It quickly caught my attention and I wanted to read more of it. Unfortunately, my local bookstore was going out of business and no longer sold the magazine. It wasn’t until years later, I thought about Vampire Knight again. I found the anime on Netflix and suddenly was reminded of the manga that I could not seem to find anywhere when I was younger. After watching the anime, I was disappointed by the outcome of the story. Finally, I went to my local library and there I saw it. Vampire Knight was sitting on the graphic novel shelf. I quickly picked it up, knowing that a lot of times the anime doesn’t finish out the entire story. I thumbed through the final chapter of the final book and noticed the endings were not the same. I instantly shut the book to keep from spoiling the ending and brought it home.
Vampire Knight follows Yuki Cross, a girl who attends a private school named Cross Academy. Cross Academy is not your average school. There are two separate classes in attendance, the Day Class and the Night Class. The Day Class is filled with humans and the Night Class secretly consists of nothing but vampires. Since Yuki is the Headmaster’s adoptive daughter and was attacked by a vampire ten years before, she was given the job as a disciplinary committee member. With the help of her classmate Zero Kiryu, a vampire hunter, they must protect the Day Class from finding out the Night Class’ secret.
In my opinion, it is hard to find cons to this manga. I love the art style and I feel it totally fits the atmosphere of the story. The ability for Vampire Knight to draw the reader in emotionally was one of the story’s best charms. The characters are impossible not to become attached to in a way. I found myself laughing out loud as well as crying as I progressed through the story. Both Kaname and Zero were impossible not to fall in love with for different reasons. Although I preferred one to the other, it was hard not to like both of them. The side characters all have their own individual personalities. The pacing of the story was great. The writer didn’t try to make too many things happen at once. It was very easy to follow and always left me wanting more.
The only con I can seem to find with Vampire Knight is that the ending was rushed. After the final showdown, everything just seemed to go way too fast. There were some things that were not explained well. I had to go back and read a few more times to understand, and even then I missed a few key points. Although it does show the epilogue of most characters, some were lacking in detail. The one that sticks out the most is Zero’s epilogue. Zero’s closing is a complete let down especially for being a main character of the series. I don’t want to go into too much detail because I do not want to ruin anything for those who wish to take the time to read the manga.
Overall, I would recommend a million times over to anyone who adores the romance manga genre. If the story itself isn’t enough to keep the reader interested, then the emotions delivered through the characters will keep the reader wanting more. Maybe I will go back and do a comparison between The manga and the anime. Or maybe I will do a comparison of Kaname and Zero. Who knows? Hope everyone stays around to find out!
DJ's World 
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