Tachibana, Cover Art, Firefly Wedding, Comikey Media.
Firefly Wedding – Information
Author of Story: Oreco Tachibana
Chapter Count: 79 digital chapters / 7 physical English volumes (11 in Japanese)
Status: Completed
Content Warnings
These content warnings do not reflect the contents of the review below; only the literary work itself.
- Illness
- Death
- Graphic depictions of violence and blood
- Weapons
- Mature content
- Graphic depictions of SA
- Disturbing plot content
- Depiction of SH / SI
- Substance usage
- Many topics of body image
Spoiler Disclaimer
This recommendation post may contain small plot spoilers for review purposes. Any major spoilers are hidden by default and are able to be revealed via click or tap.
Plot Summary
Firefly Wedding (known as Hotaru no Yomeiri in Japanese) is a unique historical fantasy and josei romance manga set in the Meiji Era (which was around the year 1868 to 1912, for context). The main heroine, Satoko Kirigaya, is an incredibly beautiful maiden with an unfortunate illness of the heart—one that her doctors claim will shorten her lifespan.
Satoko’s only wish is to one day help her family by marrying a good man before she dies. With her condition, she feels it is the only thing she can do for her family, and more importantly, the only way to repay her father’s kindness. However, she cannot bring herself to lie to her suitors about her condition.
This story’s main plot begins when Satoko (and her guard, Kotaro) take a stroll in the city. Unfortunately, while left alone for just a moment, Satoko is kidnapped and taken to a strange place with dangerous men.
One of the scariest men of them all—a wild-eyed, blood-covered assassin by the name of Goto Shinpei—is ordered to kill her at a specific time that afternoon. In a last-ditch effort to save her own skin, she offers her hand in marriage to the assassin in exchange for her safety!
Hopefully you will have seen the yandere tag, but in case you didn’t, I’ll go ahead and say that Firefly Wedding is not your average romance. It is rather unlike the fluffy, innocent shoujo mangas I typically recommend, containing lots of violence and an obsessive male lead.
However, this story is also incredibly suspenseful and engaging with an action-packed plot and an obsessive, heavy type of love. The romance is unique, but you may find yourself very intrigued as I did!
Why I’ve Enjoyed Firefly Wedding
Plot:
If you are unbothered by sensitive topics and are ok with a sort of insane romance manga…this manga fits the bill! Firefly Wedding takes two very unique characters and brings them together for a wild, exciting, romantic, and sort of bittersweet story.
This isn’t the type of romance I typically find myself reading, but boy was it engaging! From the beginning, Satoko has to use her quick wit to save her own skin, but then finds herself stuck with a crazed assassin who kills without hesitation.
I wasn’t sure how the romance would work at first because of this strange dynamic. But although the story really starts out suspenseful and wild, but it surprisingly has very cute and romantic moments.
The plot really brings you through a tons of wild experiences and emotions. One moment you’re tense from the action and fighting scenes, the next moment you’re being creeped out by the yandere character, and the next you’re excited by romantic progress.
Actually, the male lead may give you the most whiplash. He’s terrifying, strange, powerful, and weird, yet also sweet, sincere, and giddy about experiencing a romance.
I also like the way the story addresses the yandere topic. It doesn’t shy away from the morality of it all, and this even becomes an important central theme of the plot. I like that as readers, we aren’t forced to just accept the horrible things that the male lead does.
Outside of romance, action, and yandere-like moments, this manga actually manages to bring in a bit of humor, too. Mostly due to how insane the male lead is and how different the main characters are. Their contrasting personalities are often comedic, and this helps to balance the whirlwind of emotions that the plot takes you through.
There’s never a dull moment in Firefly Wedding, and I think this manga is a great read for those who enjoy unique, exciting mangas with a suspenseful romance.
Characters:
I always love a good opposites-attract sort of trope, and boy are these two quite the opposite!
Satoko is a very ladylike individual who was brought up in a rather well-off household. She seems elegant, but her character is actually super cool. She has self-respect, an impressive maturity for her age, and determination.
Of course, she has her limits due to her sheltered upbringing and illness, but she is clever and brave enough to keep going and even fights to survive. I also like that she stays true to herself throughout the series.
I really liked seeing her character break free of certain physical and emotional restraints, and getting to experience life in a different way. I also like that although she appeals to Goto in order to save herself, she doesn’t cling to him or resign to a life of lies. She stays wary of him and considers all her options for survival.
Overall she’s a very strong character and I really liked her! (Major spoilers here) Some people seem to be frustrated that she continued to try and benefit her family later in the series, which is understandable, but I like that her character was so strong-willed and determined to make her dream come true.
Tachibana, Volume 2 Cover Art, Firefly Wedding, Shogakukan.
Then we have Goto, the assassin. He is definitely a very interesting character, as he flips back and forth between terrifying and bloodthirsty to sweet and compassionate. He has a background story that is predictable, but also still pretty fitting for his character.
Although he is violent and reactive, he begins to care a lot about Satoko as the story progresses. He even has his moments where he almost seems like a normal male lead. Eventually he really starts to grow on you, and you’ll begin to hope the two can have a true romance!
But Firefly Wedding stays true to the yandere tag, often switching things up the moment you get comfortable. I really liked this aspect of the story!
Art:
The art style of this manga is very well done and pretty consistent from beginning to end. Despite there being a lot of action and gruesome imagery in this story, the art can often appear very pretty—particularly when Satoko is involved.
The art also has an impressive level of detail, whether it is the beauty of the female lead or the disturbing detail of the male lead’s violence. The creator of Firefly Wedding clearly has a talent for art no matter the genre! Even the environments and clothing look well done, and really help shape the overall story.
Any Cons?
I don’t have many negatives for Firefly Wedding, but I will say that there are other male leads that come into the story—which I know many readers may not like. However, I think these parts of the plot are incredibly important for the development of the relationship between Goto and Satoko.
These moments help prove the feelings that are present between the main two as well as help shape other plot points and character growth. I don’t usually feel as though secondary love interests are necessary, but I do like how they were used in this manga’s plot.
Additionally, I will warn that many readers seem to absolutely loathe the ending of this manga. Personally, I feel sort of in-between about it. I talk about this more in the in-depth review portion below, but take caution as that area does contain major spoilers.
But regardless, I wouldn’t listen to those who say the story isn’t worth trying simply because of the ending. I think there’s plenty to enjoy about Firefly Wedding, even if you may not like how it ends.
Other than these few aspects, I don’t think there are many cons considering it is meant to be a josei with a mature plot, mature content, and a yandere character. It has a lot of mature or disturbing content that can be uncomfortable for some. Obviously, readers who hate these aspects or yandere tropes should consider a different manga.
More In-Depth Review (Warning: Spoilers!)
I don’t read yandere stories often, but Firefly Wedding really captured my attention. I really enjoyed the back-and-forth of sweetness and suspense, particularly from Goto. Despite the gore and creepy possessiveness we often see in this manga, the relationship between Goto and Satoko is often very sweet and heartwarming.
These two sort of save each other from their strange circumstances. Satoko may have had the determination to help her family in the way she could, but deep down she was hoping for someone who would love her regardless of her illness. Goto needed someone to bring happiness and meaning in his life, and quell his worries of being abandoned once more.
Their relationship was often very wholesome, even though Goto often took extreme measures to protect it.
I don’t typically go for yandere stories as I prefer romance to be mutual and feel this genre doesn’t often achieve that, but this series made it work in unexpected ways. Additionally, Goto doesn’t always act purely out of malice. We get to learn about his backstory (and therein, his motivations), and he even has a good side that cares for Satoko in the way she needs.
He often shows a surprisingly sincere and thoughtful side out of pure love for her, which was enough to help me keep rooting for the two. I really liked the “we’re both bad people but we’ll go to hell together” part of the plot, as it brought a lot of emotion to the romance and story overall, and was pretty fitting for a yandere romance.
Understandably, many people don’t like the ending for this manga. Personally, I’m only mildly conflicted about it.
When reading the ending, I actually cried over Satoko’s death. Especially after they had finally gotten the chance to be together, and even tried creating their “normal” together, just for her life to end there.
I was just thinking how brave the author was to create a true bittersweet tragedy—until the final chapter, where we see she’s actually been alive this whole time.
Part of me was glad to see a happy ending, but the other half of me was disappointed that the story felt the need to wrap it up that way.
Many readers have expressed frustration over the very long parting, but I sort of feel like that aspect wasn’t such a bad thing. I feel that Goto’s character growth and backstory up to this point sort of warranted a “normal life experience” for him.
So overall, I didn’t hate the ending, and I didn’t really love it, either. It leaves an impression for sure, but I feel like maybe a different conclusion could have better suited this manga. I still enjoyed reading the series regardless.
Final Thoughts
Overall, this manga is such an exciting, unique, and surprisingly romantic read. Firefly Wedding portrays a crazy, sweet, and engaging romance, and a story with a meaningful theme that you may not expect from the yandere genre.
I tried this story because I wanted to be able to give a yandere manga recommendation for readers who enjoy that genre, and was very surprised by how much I enjoyed it. There are tons of unexpected developments, which gave me a continued feeling of suspense—making me wonder what in the world could possibly happen next!
If you are craving drama, romance, and action, this manga checks all the boxes!
Disclaimer: Any images used for this blog are for illustrative purposes only, are not owned by me, and are under ownership of the artist or publisher.
Images Credit: Tachibana, Oreco. Firefly Wedding, Comikey Media, 2023. Shogakukan, 2023.
