REVIEW: I’m the Catlord’s Manservant Volume 2

I’m the Catlords’ Manservant is a title I picked up based on name and cover image alone, and I’m glad I did. Now in Volume 2,  I’m the Catlord’s Manservant is created, written, and illustrated by Rat Kitasuni, published by Yen Press, and localized in English by Square Enix. The English volume features translation from Alexandra McCullough-Garcia and Lettering by Rochelle Gancio. If you don’t know the premise of the manga, well it’s simple.

In the series, Yukiharu Izumi just wants to be a normal high school student. But he’s homeless, penniless, and has absolutely nobody else to rely on. To make it, he finds himself begging on his knees in front of…shape-shifting cats. Yes, shape-shifting cats that go from adorable feline friends to very attractively drawn guys ala Penguin Gentlemen. In Volume 1, Izumi is taken in by the clowder of cats but only if he waits on their every whim. In I’m the Catlords’ Manservant Volume 2 the hijinks continue and get even more BL-adjacent. With each chapter serving as smaller vignettes, I’m the Catlords’ Manservant Volume 2 features Izumi dealing with a food-stealing ghost, a clingy Susumu, and a major clash with the Kyuo that comes to a head.

To be completely honest, I’m the Catlords’ Manservant is a manga series that is hard to review. It’s simple and wholesome and also filled with all the tropes you’d expect from this comedy slice of life. However, that’s what makes this manga series a heartwarming laugh. While the volumes have relatively been mostly the same notes, the way Kitasuni has been developing characters over their interactions with Izumi is what makes everything special.

Sure each of the cat-boys manages to fit the different tropes associated with a reverse harem-esque story. That said, this volume develops Kyou’s prickly personality in a way that pushes the story and Izumi to grow. Not to mention the clingy Susumu shows his more mischievous side. As much as the dialogue works to build the characters, the art style is what solidifies them. With emotive faces and adorable changing of scenes from cat to cat-boy to human form set to comedic timing, I’m the Catlords’ Manservant Volume 2 is pure fun.

Overall, I’m the Catlords’ Manservant Volume 2 is just good fun. It’s wholesome, funny, and offers up a sweet story filled with cat-boys that is the perfect manga to read between heavier stories. With two volumes out from Yen Press, now is the time to jump in. And I mean, just look at that cover art, that should be enough to click “add to cart” once you click out of this review.

I’m the Catlords’ Manservant Volume 2 is available wherever books are sold both digitally and physically.