Mecha, love, gender distortion, debt, love, media mayhem, and the Unifon Alphabet are all a part of the strange manga inspired world of Rumble Girls. Set sometime in the future, this series takes place around a young girl named Raven Tansania Ransom. She attends the academie Juliet, and is studying to become a HardSkin pilot. Hard Skins resemble mecha suits used in manga and anime. The HardSkins are personal armors used in combat, and Raven is a top pilot.

     Raven is an orphan, who is poor. When this is discovered by an evil classmate, named Carmen, Raven becomes the laughing stock of academie Juliet. Carmen for some reason has a real problem with Raven, and loves to nearly kill Raven in Hard Skin battles.

     Enters coach Yugi, trainer of the Hard Skin pilots at the academie Juliet. Yugi has a secret (quite a few actually), he is the beloved Rumbler, Crimson August, star of one of the most popular shows on television. All the females love Yugi and Crimson August, especially Raven. Unfortunately the ratings for his show are falling, and the producers of the show, EnTeCo, are looking for something to spice it up. During one of his contract meetings, academie Juliet contacts Yugi about a recent scuff between Raven and Carmen. Yugi agrees to take the call in front of his EnTeCo producers, who see Raven and agree she should be Crimson August's new love interest. But Yugi is vehemently against such an idea (and to find out why you must read the series!), and prohibits the producers from even going near Raven. But EnTeCo notes that Raven will be eighteen in a few months, and the decision will be hers.

     I am totally in love with this series. It is has a great leading character that many can identify with. Manga fans will definitely love this series, as it takes a lot from the genre, and does it great justice. There is a clear story development, with interesting characters, whose lives and personalities keep the reader guessing, awing, and wanting more.

     My only complaints about the series are that I was confused by the use of the Unifon Alphabet, which is an alternative to the current US alphabet. Creator and Artist of Rumble Girls, Lea Hernandez, in her monthly Rumblings in issue 3, explains why she chose the Unifon system of writing. "Unifon was developed by Chicago economist John Malone in 1959 to simplify our spelling system(Unifon) isn't a perfect solution, since the pronunciation guides for each letterform don't take into account regional accents. But I enjoy using it to lend my near-future world a bit of strangeness that's not impossible to penetrate." I also was confused by the frequent interruptions of the hosts of RealHardTVCopy. I am not quite sure what their purpose is, but they do say some funny things. But other than these two issues, I am a fan for life of this series.

     I believe Raven Tansania Ransom has the potential to become one of the legendary comic characters of the new millenium. Yes, I see even an animated series, tons of merchandise, and even people bearing HardSkin costumes at conventions. It is just an all around great series, something males and females alike can enjoy. I encourage all of you die hard comic book fans to try this series, you will not be disappointed.

     Send comments and questions about this article to Cosmic Nerd Girl. Fans and foes of the series are encouraged to please send their opinions as well.