Living with the unknown

A recent AP poll showed that a chunk of the population believes in ghosts. To be more precise, a third of those surveyed accept the existence of things that go bump in the night.

The line between this world and the next can be very thin, according to some folks. Now imagine if you can actually see and feel the supernatural. (Cue spooky music.)

That is the dilemma facing Shizuru and her younger sister, Mizuki, in "Mokke." Shizuru can see ghosts, specters, etc while her sister gets possessed by them.

These traits are the very reason why the two are now living in the country with their grandparents. Their stern but loving grandfather apparently knows his way around such things and is called upon by folks to exorcise or placate these apparitions. Of course once doesn't really get a sense of what their grandpa does for a living since viewers see him mucking about in the garden a lot or helping the farmers with their vegetables.

Their bespectacled parents visit now and then. Mother apparently cannot handle even talking about the supernatural and flew off the handle at grandpa when Mizuki casually mentioned she was raising a creature that brings its owner luck.

Grandpa means well but he's not exactly the cuddly type. He told his grandkids one time they will have to learn how to handle some creatures on their own. Poor girls.

"Mokke" started life seven years ago as a manga by Takatoshi Kumakura. The characters are drawn way better in the manga than in the anime which began airing last month in Japan. This isn't an action-packed show, neither is it scary. I look at it as a primer on Japanese supernatural beings and concepts presented in a kid-friendly package. It's not a bad way to while away 25 minutes.