Sumire 16 sai!!

is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Takeru Nagayoshi. A two-volume first manga series, titled Sumire 17 sai!!, was serialized in Kodansha's shōnen manga magazines Weekly Shōnen Magazine and Magazine Special from March 2005 to March 2006. Nagayoshi decided to reset the story's timeframe one year earlier and rewrite the story from scratch. Sumire 16 sai!! was serialized in the same magazines from May 2006 to January 2009, with its chapters collected in five tankōbon volumes. A 12-episode television drama adaptation was broadcast on BS Fuji from April to June 2008. Synopsis The series chronicles the days of Sumire, a lively 16-year-old girl. However, Sumire is not a common girl: she is a life-sized ventriloquist's dummy, controlled by an old man in black clothes. Sumire's character acts unaware of her puppet nature, or of the old man controlling her movements, although the rest of the cast are very aware that she is a puppet, but they become more or less accustomed to her weird nature. Characters A full-sized puppet, resembling a mannequin, designed to look like a 16-year-old girl, with enough points of articulation to assume almost any pose. The puppet has a hole in her back where the puppeteer places his hand to control facial features. Beyond being a puppet, the character that is played through Sumire is that of a supposedly normal schoolgirl. Her character refuses to acknowledge the puppeteer, even when directly asked. She has trouble making friends due to her situation, but her strong will wins over many people. She was originally a smaller puppet that also attended grade school years beforehand. After years pass and she finally attends the next year of education, she seemingly forgets classmates from years ago. The Old Man reacts instead by crying in happiness upon encountering old classmates years later. At times, her appearance becomes softer and fewer indications that she is a puppet are visible. In the manga, this is evidenced by fewer joints being drawn; while in the TV drama, her mannequin form is replaced with her actress.