This story was very melodramatic (especially towards the end and during the beginning), but I loved how it focused on the girl's career and life in general rather than the typical love-love scenarios. The art was indeed "classical," and definitely took me awhile to get used to... In fact, the art is so off-putting that I wanted to slam my computer every time one of those dramatic thunder-eyes showed up.

Unfortunately, I disliked the main character a lot. Her insanity is not inspiring to me... and her strange expressions make it hard for me to pity her. I mean, what normal child drools when she goes to the theater? And who looks so drunk every time she opens her eyes?! Ayumi was the one I was drawn to throughout the manga, and she is the girl who I found more inspiring than anyone else.

The main character just scares me.

Other than the art, the story was entertaining and I finished the whole thing in 2-3 days! The love relationships can get a bit confusing though.... I've already forgotten who the girl ended up with.

... Last updated on June 10th, 2014, 1:42pm

One, the art. I love the classic art as much as I like contemporary designs; and the art was definitely no downer for me. But really, it's always that narration. The thought processes. They're so blatant and contrived. I didn't feel that the plot was too great. I'm in 15 volumes- not even half way there. To be honest, despite all the flaws I might have found in the series, it's been OK - an average read. And wha- it's still ongoing? I usually complete what I've started but investing time on 38+ volumes of this mediocrity is even a little extreme on my case.

I don't got the hots for Skip Beat and this manga is like its predecessor. That could explain my distaste for it.

... Last updated on September 8th, 2013, 3:07pm

Glass Mask is one of my all-time favourites. Surprisingly stupid I was to keep it at distance at first. With the plot, drawing style and long run I thought it would be a ginormous drag, but the contrast couldn't be much greater. From the first volume I was hooked. Somehow this manga claws itself onto you and doesn't let go.
Story:
The synopsis doesn't even slightly grasp the epic story Glass Mask is. It's all about dreams, love, talent, hope, friendship, family, tragedy and the ability to fight for what you want and never give up. Here we see a girl with no credit on whatever subject besides acting, in acting her soul lives and thrives. You get pulled in, rooting for Maya's dreams, Hayami's love, Ayumi's ambitions, Tsukikage's blissful afterlife. The never-ending plot-twists, plays, adventures, hurdles and accomplishments keep you interested and not once did I lose my patience (which for me is rare).
Art:
I still prefer modern-drawings more, but so far I haven't been truly bothered by it. The catch is that the artist doesn't really improve with time, in my humble opinion.
Long-run:
This story never bores me and despite running for so long it still feels so short. I can't wait till they bring out some more scanlations (I'm at vol. 38)
For other matters such as character development and story development, I can say they are prominent, Maya grows stronger and stronger, and not only in her acting skills.

To conclude: Glass no Kamen is a classic and must-read for shoujo fans, it manages to stay fresh and exciting even after 38 volumes.

(ps. For those who have read Ashita no Ousama, Skip Beat!, The One, Ingenuo and Paradise City, I highly recommend this. It has somewhat the same feeling at points, plus it revolves around a career/talented orientated (showbiz) plot too.)

This is a fantastic, gorgeous, well structured, simply stunning manga. Melodramatic/warped at times, but I love it.
I was referred here after SWAN was dropped by CMX.. I had heard lots of people comparing it to this "Glass Mask" thing, and I kind of just shelved it somewhere in my brain, until I *being unproductive and terribly depressed at school at that point* decided to read it. It was as amazing as it promised, and truly comparable to SWAN by Kyoko Ariyoshi ! (psst, go check that out if you haven't already. Scans are slow but its on the rise. It was my first shoujo love~!) in its scope and beauty. I enjoy the plays-within-mangas, the hilarious chibis, and the realistic romance. The painful romance between two main characters is one of the best you will ever encounter, and the parallels to Tsukikage's own past are wonderfully portrayed. The art is a bit old and odd at first, certainly, but give it a try. It's certainly inspiring and ridiculously motivating <3 I love it so much I can't bear the wait till 211... =) there I go sounding sappy! I've probably used the word "beautiful" way more times than usual, but it's true. Glass Mask is beautiful~

... Last updated on March 21st, 2013, 10:34am

Welp, my first classic shoujo. The characters did appear to conform to cliche tropes initially: the clumsy, happy-go-lucky, rags-to-riches heroine, the talented, indifferent rival etc. However, Maya (the main protagonist) has particularly good character development throughout the course of the story, maturing into quite a likeable character unlike some of the more shallow shoujo heroines.

Another aspect I particularly enjoyed was the acting/drama stuff. Unlike a few other manga which use showbiz as a pretext to romance, I found it the opposite in Glass Mask, which is very centred around the character development and storyline. The romance is there too, but it's quite subtle and progresses extremely slowly in comparison. The classic art style did take me a while to get used to though, although it's not an overly big distraction, and you do tend to get used to it after a couple of volumes.

Actually, to be honest I'm still surprised at how good this series is even compared to more modern shoujo manga. Despite the cliches present, it has surprising depth.

... Last updated on October 19th, 2013, 11:33pm

Glass Mask is truly an enjoyable read. I would have never imagine myself to read such manga with girly art, but upon having to start with the first chapter, I was truly absorbed by both art and the characters. For those of you who have ever read 'Daddy-Long-Legs' (literature novel by Jean Webster), you would find a slight resemblance to 'Mr. Fan'. I love this tiny detail since I am a fan of 'Daddy-Long-Legs' but the affection displayed by 'Mr. Fan' in Glass Mask was refreshing. Instead of having the female protagonist to be the one who writes to the unknown male protagonist and display innocent honesty to highlight her feelings, 'Mr. Fan' shows HIS affection by consistently giving her roses and short messages as a form of motivation. In return, Maya brings about great effort in honing her skills as an actress. Oh my god *fans self* But putting all of that aside, I do find it horrifying how the Mangaka loves to exaggerate the facial expressions of 'stunned' characters. They looked terrified instead of being 'amazed'. However that didn't stop me reading this series. The story is well balanced and it is getting even more interesting as Maya progresses and advances her skills in drama.

Glass Mask deserves a round of applause.

Holy shmucks this manga is an enjoyable mess. Glass Mask, how I regret not reading you earlier!
Glass Mask is about an extremely talented young girl who starts discovering her abilities on the stage. It's funny, dramatic, and at times heart breakingly romantic. It's a lot of fun watching Maya realize her talent and learning her character in every role she plays. She's a naive character but her pure love and enthusiasm for acting makes her a great character to read about.
Sometimes I felt like there was quite a bit of rinse and repeat and some of the training she went through me go through made my eye twitch because it was just so ridiculous, but reading on the story plays out quite nicely without too many bumps in the road. Some people are put-off by the old drawing style, but there's nothing wrong with the art itself so I don't mind at all, heck, I've seen some really bad art drawn in the present time. The romance is slow and daddy long leg style, which I can live with because it adds so much suspense to this series that makes you want to find out what happens next.
Someone who commented below complained about Maya saying she's not a prodigy, saying "every one goes either "Scary!!" or "she's different, not maya anymore". Gimme a break.". That's something we call 'getting into character'. Some actors are better at it than others, Maya is gifted for understanding and creating a character so realistic that you almost forget that Maya is acting. Maya can bring the audience from a stage into a whole new world with her acting and if that's not talent, then I don't know what is.
When you first start the series, you might think wow, the character is a bit... much and things might feel exaggerated but keep on reading dang nabit, soon the story will pull you in and hold you in a choke hold so strong you'll not be able to escape- in a good way. Happy reading~

This manga has been there for as long as I can remember.
Like Doraemon this manga is something legendary some 20 years ago and btw the artwork is a lot better after a few vol so do not drop it after reading a few pages.

What's with her maniacal expression? She crossed the line of being passionate and is in the region of craziness. Is the 1st vol. s'posed to show her passion? She came off as a loon with no common sense. Dumb droolin' expressions whenever she watches a drama, idiotic thinkin' pattern, repetitive expression and dialogues..there is no end to it! And she deserves half the bullyin she got for actin like a dumass. Ayumi was comparitively SO much better. A strong spirit and competitive. Now that is the kinda gal I wanna see, someone like kyouko. Maya is lame! An acting prodigy?? Puhleez! Spare me! Every time she acts, every one goes either "Scary!!" or "she's different, not maya anymore". Gimme a break. How many times

All in all, you can read the manga if your manga supply is exhausted but you'll end up killin Maya in your mind a hundred times, especially if you like girls like tsukasa (TCP), Sunako (Wallflower) and Kyouko
(SB).

I highly highly recommend this. I love it very much. I am becoming some blundering, ineloquent idiot just trying to find words to describe this masterpiece. I love classic mangas that withstand the test of time. This one has definitely proved its worth. The art is a bit of a turn-off (to me, too). I even put it off for several years because Skip Beat! was out and it had nice art, fantastic, and an acting-oriented manga nevertheless. I thought Skip Beat! was the worthier choice. Was I wrong. The two are so different. It's as if I saw some Glass Mask in Skip Beat!
The romance is so heart-warming. As an age gap romance fanatic I definitely would give this a two thumbs up. The emotions are quite realistic, but what is keeping me from taking off 0.03 points off the rating from a 10 is because I feel like it gets dragged out with drama (not fully theatre) of misunderstandings and such. But it all proves to such a wonderful ending, or near to it, at least.
Not many mangas could move me to the point where I am lifted up into the clouds of cloud nine, or sunken so low into the pits of darkness.

(I also truly love Ayumi, also. She's one of the biggest reasons why I didn't give this a straight out 9)