The Fall 2023 Manga Guide

Sheep Princess in Wolf's Clothing

What's It About? 

Aki Rikujo, a Wolfa, works as a butler at the royal castle in the land of Sheepa. Her quiet and peaceful days get shaken up when she saves the life of Princess Momo Shiudafaris. The shy sheep princess immediately latches onto Aki who, before she knows it, becomes the princess's private tutor. Momo wants more than just math lessons from Aki, and even sneaks into the wolf-woman's bedroom to seduce her! Aki soon realizes that, under the timid woolly exterior, Momo is a wild animal!

Sheep Princess in Wolf's Clothing features art and story by Mito. The English translation is by Jan Cash and lettered by Rian Mapa. Published by Seven Seas Entertainment (November 14, 2023).

Is It Worth Reading?

Christopher Farris

Rating:

From its initiating idea through its opening chapter, Sheep Princess in Wolf's Clothing starts strong. As far as I'm concerned, a cool-looking but easily flustered wolf-woman butler in a suit is a slam dunk of a character concept, and the tension in Aki's early interactions with the fluffy sheep princess Momo is delightfully realized. It catches you off-guard, in a good way, when you've been conditioned to think this will be a simpler, sweeter yuri love story before Momo entices Aki with uncompromising thirst and lines like "I want you to tear me apart." It's a hard horny turn for this animal-girls'-love manga, marking it as something a lot of people will like in its particular way.

It's also an impactful first impression that the rest of the volume never tries to live up to. Once that steamy incident has initiated the central relationship, Sheep Princess in Wolf's Clothing is a sheep in wolf's clothing. The story settles right into the simple, fluffy romance it appeared to be from the beginning. Ostensibly, this is due to Aki's anxieties causing her to stand off and ease into her less-official interactions with the Princess instead of jumping straight into some full-moon-fueled frank funtimes. And a couple of gags tossed in remind us of Momo's less-than-sheepish nature regarding her desires. But for the most part, this remains a very cutesy slice-of-life budding romance story. That isn't necessarily bad; it's just an oddly noticeable restraint after the impact of that opening chapter.

As long as it embraces the less-thirsty side of its story, Sheep Princess in Wolf's Clothing does fine illustrating its other elements. There's a palpable focus on how the relationship is good for our fluffy friends, particularly Momo, and how it helps her work up to being more open and sociable. There are some somewhat developed side elements, too, especially in how head maid Bluebell turns out to be a cunningly wonderful wingwoman. Also, Mito's art is great at rendering these pretty girls and their cute reactions to each other; plus you know I'll never argue with art heavily featuring cool wolf women in suits. There's also a variety of backdrops on display even before we get to see our characters leave the castle for a date. It's a nice book that starts strong and then coasts in a way that's still entertaining and was enjoyable enough that it felt like this first volume was over way too soon. I wouldn't mind following future volumes to see if Aki and Momo get up to anything else in the future.

Rebecca Silverman

Rating:

If nothing else, Mito has a talent for creating adorably fluffy queer romances. Sheep Princess in Wolf's Clothing is the second of their works to be translated into English, following the BL series Manly Appetites: Minegishi Loves Otsu, and it's a genre shift from BL to GL, to say nothing of going from an office romance to a fantasy one. (I'm working with the chronology of the English releases.) If you're not picky and you enjoyed the first series, there's just as much to like here as well: sheep princess Momo is in love with her wolf butler/tutor Aki, and she has zero compunctions about showing it, while Aki is pretty sure that a romance between a princess and her servant isn't something that's okay. Aided and abetted by Bluebell, Momo's lady's maid, the poor wolf finds herself forced to throw away her reservations because Momo is going to get what Momo wants.

To say Momo is the more aggressive half of the potential couple isn't saying much. Yes, she has the power in the relationship because of her royal status, but Aki likes her right back, and when push comes to shove, she's not afraid to show it. Although there are some sexy shenanigans early on in the book, with Momo deciding that out-and-out seduction is her best method, the heart of the volume is when the two women spend time together. Momo's not averse to a physical relationship, but mostly, she wants to spend time with the object of her affection, which Aki has a harder time saying no to because she enjoys it too. Their in-castle date and in-town date are both highlights of the book, showing how everything is wonderful when they're together. Discussing a play is just as fulfilling as holding hands, and that's a well-rounded approach to a romance.

The art is also a definite attraction here, with animal ears and tails looking appropriately fuzzy and both women exuding different kinds of beauty. We don't get a great feel for the world, such as why sheep rule over wolves or if other animal people are present (there's a bunny in the background of one panel, but that's not enough of a clue). If you're looking to understand the setting, you'll probably be disappointed. But if you're just here for two animal women falling in love and being cute together with excellent art, I don't think you'll be disappointed.