Life as a wizard certainly isn’t easy, and if you’re in the same position as Kazuki Shikimori, it’s going to be the death of you. First he has three beautiful women lusting after him because of his bloodline, but after using up his magical powers, he’s turned to dust. That’s not the worst of it however, and now he’s a ghost with possibly no way to get back to the realm of the living. “Surprises and Suspicions” is the sixth volume of the hilarity that Maburaho has to offer, and being dead isn’t getting any easier.

There aren’t any major development is Kazuki’s search to regain his human body, but there are quite a few laughs to be found, and it all starts with Kuriko possibly taking on the lifestyle of a kogal. She’s off on a date for money, at least that’s what it appears, and the gang has overheard her accepting a marriage proposal. Elizabeth is the one that is the most disturbed by this turn of events, but it could just be a simple misunderstanding.

You’ll find Elizabeth also trying to help Kazuki as much as she possibly can. He still hasn’t found himself quite accustomed to being a ghost, so he can’t do things like make his body solid enough to hold objects. The trick we learn is to not be distracted by other thoughts. Kazuki is still the target of Shino as well, but as we’ve seen time and time again, she ends up failing in her attempts to add Kazuki to her collection of spirits.

But, what would happen if there was a mistake and Kazuki actually wasn’t the person with the right genes to create a powerful magician? Well, you’re about to find that out in this volume, and it is revealed that Nakamura is actually the right one. It’s all just a big joke on him, but this shows the true colors of the girls. It’s already very well established where Yuna’s loyalty lies, but Kuriko isn’t ready to just give up on Kazuki, and Rin claims that she’s was going to go against her family’s wishes anyway, so the three are still trying to gain Kazuki’s undivided attention. I still say; go for all three.

The final episode on this disc is possibly one of the funniest, and we find Rin squaring off in a battle against a family rival. The two classmates honestly don’t harbor any animosity towards one another, but the class has decided to put some money on who would win. This also changes location briefly and the gang is all on a trip to Kyoto. If you’re studying Japanese, you also might note the Kansai accents showing up in this episode. But, why not leave everyone with a cliffhanger to round out the volume? I’m not going to let you know exactly what that is, but things have taken yet another unexpected turn.

If you’ve stuck with Maburaho to this point, there are probably a number of reasons that you’ve been enjoying the series, and the art would certainly have to be one of them. ADV has thrown an art gallery into the extras section as well as an interview with Fumihiko Chino, the graphic artist for the US releases of Maburaho, and I have to say that this series really has been outstanding when it comes to the artistic approach of the DVD’s. The clean versions of the opening and closing animations can be found here as well.

While this volume doesn’t do much for pushing the story along, Maburaho is an anime where this is completely forgivable. Throwing Kazuki, Yuna, and everyone else into unpredictable and hilarious situations is really at the top of list on why the series is so fun to watch. However, it does look like the final few episodes are definitely going to be pushing the story into a much different direction, and hopefully one that offers a good sense of closure (something that often can be the undoing of a fantastic series.) As always, this volume of Maburaho shows that this isn’t your garden variety magic user series, and you can easily mix sex and sorcery together for ideal comedy.

Episode 16 – We Snooped

Kuriko hasn’t been showing up for after school activities and the gang finds her off on a date. It turns out to not be exactly what they thought, and the real truth is that she has agreed to get married. The one who is having the biggest problem with it though is Elizabeth, but they soon discover something else is going on that Kuriko isn’t even aware of.

Episode 17 – They Decided

Word has reached everyone that it was never Shikimori that had the genes that would father the greatest magician the world has ever seen; it’s Nakamura. Now he’s taking full advantage of his position while Kazuki has decided that it might just be better to leave the world of humans behind. But, something just isn’t right here, and there seems to be a brother and sister team behind this recent development.

Episode 18 – They Set It Up . . . Ya See

The class makes a field trip to Kyoto, and things are already getting out of hand. Many of the class members are trying to do anything they can to make a little money but when a family rival of Rin’s, Sayumi Morisaki, is found to be extremely powerful, they decide to put together the fight of the century.