About "Olga, the daughter of circus" (サーカスの娘オルガ)

Overall information:

Name: Olga, the daughter of circus / サーカスの娘オルガ / Ольга, девочка из цирка / 马戏少女奥尔加 / Olga - Cô con gái của rạp xiếc

Author: Yamamoto Lunlun

Volumes: 3

Summary: The manga is about Olga, a Russian girl who joins a circus after the death of her father which leads to her family's poverty. There she met Tanya, a performer and also her cousin who trained Olga to become a tightrope walker. The triangle love among Olga; Yufi Jimidoff, a young artist from a noble family and Leo, a talented magician is also a highlight.

About the art style:

 I really like Yamamoto Lunlun's unique art style and in this manga, her art successfully expresses the settings of the story which is Russian in the beginning of the 20th century. The color palettes of the covers are also very pretty with colorful red, blue and green shades in the first two volumes and soft brown and white shades in the last volume. I really like this since in volumes 1 and 2, Olga was a kid so the way she views the world is bright and colorful but in volume 3, she is now an adult and also married so the white shade of a bride gown is suitable. 

My thoughts about some of the characters:

1. Olga

 From my point of view, Olga is a relatable character with admirable passion in performing and love and also a bit of stubbornness. I really admire how hard she worked to perform perfectly and also her empathy towards Milon, her monkey pet. My favorite chapter was chapter 9, when witnessing Fisha, a worker behind the wings let Fialka, the girl he has feelings for go on a date with another guy, Olga told him he was a dumbass. In my opinion, this chapter demonstrated Olga's passion for love. It showed the readers that she is not the type to hide her feelings, to let her love go which I believed is a good trait. I also agree with her choice to be with Yuri in the end instead of Leo despite my bias towards this magician (I love him so much 😔).

2. Tanya

 Tanya is probably my second favorite character (after Leo). She was passionate in her work, straightforward and honest about her feelings. Despite her cold demeanor towards Olga in the first volume, Tanya did care about her and was also her inspiration to become a tightrope walker. In chapter 2, Tanya traded the pin her lover gave her to buy Milon for Olga after she found out that guy was already engaged. This does not only show her care for Olga but also her straightforwardness in love. Although she still loved him, she wouldn't bother him and herself with negative feelings. She chose to let go for the sake of them both. In volume 3, Tanya was said to have married a man who was 20 years older than her and had 3 kids. She finally found happiness beside the life of a circus performer.

3. Yuri

 Yuri Jimidoff or Yuri was a young noble with his passion in art and circus. If Tanya is Olga's inspiration, Yuri is her motivation. He admired the carefree life of a circus performer which was completely different from his life. He could not stand the expectation of his father, the responsibility of being a noble while seeing the life of the destitute around him. In volume 3, Yuri decided to leave his noble life behind to join the army. Despite the hardship afterwards, Yuri ended up being with the love of his life in a small circus. I believed that Yuri deserved a life of freedom to pursue his love, to chase after his dream.

4. Leo

 Leo is my favorite character. He is carefree, he is brave, he is passionate and confident. However, I doubt his feelings for Olga. He asked to marry her in volume 3 yet I doubt whether his feelings were love for her or for popularity. Leo's popularity is important to himself. He wanted to use fame to frame a world of freedom where there was no social status. In the end, when Olga left with Yuri, Leo let her go. I think that he does like Olga; however, Leo likes his work, his popularity and his ideals more. (I believe this is a red flag.)

5. The difference between Yuri and Leo

 I really like the difference between Yuri and Leo. In terms of appearances, Yuri has light hair with a cold face feature while Leo has dark hair with bright eyes and wears a smile most of the time. In terms of personality, Yuri is reserved and calm. He is used to bottling up his feelings and thoughts meanwhile Leo is friendly and clever. He expresses his thoughts, his feelings through performances. I also really like the cover of volume 3 (the inside cover) which has the illustration of Yuri and Leo with their backs facing the other's. While Yuri is in his military coat with his back curled up and his head lowered, Leo sits relaxingly with his head raised, seems to be more carefree. However, I noticed that they are both smoking which was a similarity between them just like how they both chose to express themselves through arts (Yuri chose painting and Leo chose performing). The differences between the two male leads were used in many manga to create the diversity which I could not help but find amusing.