Brocken Blood

More dangerous than he looks.

Brocken Blood is a Seinen Manga by Etorouji Shiono.

Kenichi Shurutsu, a 15-year-old high school student of German ancestry living in Japan, turns out to be descended from German alchemist Johan Schultz, whose bloodline confers magical abilities. So his (female) cousin Rena forces him to crossdress, so he can act as a Magical Girl and fight evil. And make lots of money. No, it doesn't even make sense in context, but that's OK, because this is a gag-driven parody that runs strictly on Rule of Funny.

Licensed in English by J Manga (digital only).

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Tropes used in Brocken Blood include:

• All Part of the Show: Kenichi (as Sakurako) is on a "variety show" TV program, which is broadcasting live. While they're on-air, the villains attack, and Kenichi has to transform and fight. The resulting battle is broadcast to the entire audience, but the viewers think it's part of the program (one viewer is shown commenting "what a weird show"), and it becomes one of their highest-rated episodes.
• Attractive Bent Gender: Around volume 3, the author (or his editors) seem to realize that there's a certain audience for pretty boys in dresses, and start playing up Kenichi's "cute little thing in a very short skirt" appeal.
• Bifauxnen: Rena sometimes dresses in a gender-ambiguous way, and in those moments would be this, if she weren't quite so buxom.
• Bishounen: Carlo the magician, who causes Rena's "good-looking man sensor" to go off big-time, with much squeeing. Also Kenichi, Hanyuu, and Fukano, in the rare cases where they're seen in men's clothing.
• Boyish Short Hair: Rena.
• Berserk Button: Kenichi really doesn't like being mistaken for a girl. Unfortunately for him, most of the time he has to keep up the disguise.
• By the Power of Grayskull: Transformations (Kenichi's and other's) are triggered by the Gratuitous German Amgestaltung!
• Classy Cat Burglar: In her youth, Rena battled the "Impossible Sisters", three chicks in Spy Catsuits, who only steal "art created by Bloodline techniques". Of course, by the time we see them, they're old, fat and ugly. But still wearing skin-tight spandex. Fukano, the son of the middle sister, is a Wholesome Crossdresser Classy Cat Burglar In Training.
• Cleavage Window: Kenichi's original "magical girl" costume, also worn by Asuka, although neither of them has any cleavage.
• Comic Book Fantasy Casting: The appearance of some of the villains is based on real actors; the author's notes mention Michael Ironside and Tom Berenger, among others.
• Creepy Crossdresser: Several of the male villains.
• Dragged Into Drag: Rena likes putting Kenichi into lots of cute (and humiliating) girls' outfits. It must run in the family; Rena's daughter Asuka is very much in favor of seeing Kenichi in drag.
• Expressive Hair: A lock at the top of Rena's hair stands up when she's shocked, forms into a heart when she's drooling over a hot guy, etc. At one point she refers to it as her "good-looking man sensor".
• Fashion Victim Villain: Discussed in-universe. Almost all of the villains wear Impossibly Tacky Clothes, and someone usually comments on their costumes.
• Fun with Acronyms: TATU, or "The Tokyo Alchemist Task-force Untouchably", who also hunt evil alchemists but mainly get in Kenichi et al's way.
• Gag Series: Don't expect anything to make sense, or any plot developments to stick.
• Gratuitous German: All the magical words.
• Idol Singer: Rena decides that Kenichi, er, Sakurako Neushwanstein, will have this as "her" cover story. The fact that Rena, as "her" manager, gets a fat paycheck from the deal has nothing to do with it, we're sure.
• If Its You Its OK: A surprisingly large number of the villains seem quite interested in Kenichi, even after they find out he's not a cute girl. Played mainly for laughs.
• Impossibly Tacky Clothes: Kenichi's original "magical girl" costume, to his great distress, and anything else designed by Rena (but especially Hanyuu's old costume; he still breaks down at the memories). As well as almost all the other hero/villain outfits. After the fanservice gets ramped up, Kenichi's original costume is usually replaced by Stripperific versions themed after whatever the context of the chapter is; they still tend to be... unique.
• Improbable Weapon User: Kenichi's "weapon" is a huge heart-shaped wand. He uses it as a combination quarterstaff and club.
• I'm Taking Her Home with Me: Several of the villains try to do this to Kenichi. He's not cooperative.
• Incompatible Orientation: A three-way pileup. See under Unwanted Harem.
• Incredibly Conspicuous Drag: All the Villainous Crossdressers. Also Saionji's bodyguard and her "maid guards".
• In the Blood: Kenichi, Ai and Asuka get their powers from the "Brocken Bloodline, carried by descendants of Johan Schultz, a 17th-century German alchemist who turned himself into a witch to prove his critics wrong.
• Killer Rabbit: Kenichi is an adorable little Moe-bait thing; as "Sakurako" he's even cuter and more defenseless-looking. He's not that defenseless.
• Lady Looks Like a Dude: A couple of the female villains, in the "so ugly they look like men" flavor.
• Lawyer-Friendly Cameo: A couple of "big-shot Hollywood directors" make a cameo appearance at one of Sakurako's shoots.
• Long-Haired Pretty Boy: Both Hanyuu and Fukano, although they usually look like Longhaired Pretty Girls.
• Magical Girl: A parody of the whole genre. Played straight with Ai, Kenichi's little sister, and Rena in her youth.
• Meido: Kenichi, or rather Sakurako, has to dress like this for some of "her" parts, and some of the Creepy Crossdresser villains wear maid costumes.
• Mercury's Wings: Kenichi and Asuka's original costume has tiny ornamental wings attached to their heads, over their ears; on their gloves, at the elbows; and on the front of their shoes. Yes, it looks ridiculous.
• Monster of the Week: A few repeating villains show up and traces of overarching plot starts to develop as the series goes on, but mostly it's "discover new badguys, change into Magical Boy, kick butt, never see them again" every chapter.
• Nosebleed: Rena's daughter Asuka, whenever she sees Kenichi in a particularly revealing costume.
• Otokonoko Genre: Only sort-of-kind-of an example of the genre, but the fanservice bump-up is catered to appeal to fans thereof.
• Panty Shot: Kenichi's panties, natch. At first, mostly played for gags, but around volume 3 starts to be played for fanservice.
• Recursive Crossdressing: Kenichi, as Sakurako, gets a part where "she" plays a boy who is Disguised in Drag. Everyone marvels at "her" amazingly convincing portrayal. "It's as if you actually were a boy who's been forced to crossdress!"
• Secret Identity: In a slight switch-up on this trope, the Secret Identity is the "normal" one, and Kenichi's real identity is the superpowered one. Kenichi ends up with lots:
  • Meet Sakurako Neushwanstein, Japan's hottest new idol! But then Sakurako is tarnished by a (fake) scandal, so:
  • Meet Kaede Hohenzollern, Japan's hottest new weather girl! And he needs another one sometimes, so:
  • Meet Christine Kouda, cute middle-school girl of mystery!
• Shout-Out: One of the villains is "Edmund Dorae, famous Japanese-American investor". In the Japanese name order, that's Dorae Edmund.
• Step Three: Profit: All of the villains have a plan. Few of them are even remotely plausible, and most haven't got beyond "infiltrate a popular band/movie/TV show, and we'll become famous / get rich / control the masses".
• Strange Minds Think Alike: In Chapter 3, both Rena and early antagonist Professor Oonuma independently decide that a pattern of magical energy in the Tokyo region is supposed to resemble a giant portrait of "Shimada ***saku" (probably actor Shimada Kyusaku).
• Stripperific: Many of Sakurako/Christine's costumes. Played for humor and a gradually increasing amount of Fan Service. Also several of the Villainous Crossdressers, played strictly for Fan Disservice.
• They Called Me Mad: His contemporaries laughed at Johan Schultz for believing in alchemy. So he proves them wrong by not only mastering magic, but "imprinting" it into his bloodline.
• Transformation Sequence: At least once per chapter.
• Transformation Trinket: As originally established, a neck-ribbon. Falls to the wayside pretty quickly.
• Unsettling Gender Reveal: Kenichi-in-drag meets Hani, another Magical Girl, and more or less immediately develops a crush. The it turns out that "she" is actually Hanyuu, a boy. And working for the other side. Kenichi's much more upset about the former.
• Unwanted Harem: Hani/Hanyuu the crossdressing Magical Boy gets a crush on Kenichi-in-drag, without realizing he's a guy; after Hanyuu's revealed to be male, he confesses his love and swears to become a man worthy of "her". And then the same thing happens with another crossdressed boy, Fukano. And all three of them end up infiltrating the same (all girl) idol group, with the two other "girls" swearing to protect "her". Hilarity, of course, ensues.
• Wholesome Crossdresser: Poor Kenichi, very much against his will. And then Hanyuu and Fukano. Eventually they start appearing as a Power Trio on the covers.