Dan's dream is to be a dancer. He has plenty of heart, but his ability doesn't quite live up to his passion. Despite this, he looks up to his upperclassman Steven McRae, who is worlds beyond him...literally. Using a magic mirror, Steven travels to a fantastical world, where he acts as a Ballet Hero! When Dan accidentally ends up following him, Steven quickly realizes that Dan being here is no coincidence.

Ballet Hero Fantasy: Dan's Adventure has a story and art by Takafumi Adachi. English translation is done by Robert Harkins and lettering by Brandon Bovia. Published by Manga Mavericks Books (August 25, 2026). Rated A.

Rebecca Silverman
Rating:

Ballet – and dance in general – isn't gendered. You can be a dancer no matter who you are, and that goes for all forms of dance. I know that everyone knows this, but all too often “dance is a girl thing” gets more traction than “dance is for everyone,” and that goes double for ballet, with its tights and tutus. My favorite thing about Ballet Hero is that it eschews that – the eponymous heroes are two male dancers (ballerini) who are also ballet-based super sentai fighters, traveling to Dance World through a mirror in their dance studio, where they have to fight to save classic ballet worlds from corruption.

Also, one of them is Steven McRae.

While I often look askance at celebrity cameos in manga, in this case, I think it works in Ballet Hero's favor because it gives readers a real-life person they can aspire to alongside the fantasy aspects. I don't think Steven McRae traveled through a mirror with a kid named Dan when he was a student, but I do know that all of the steps they perform to save the worlds of The Nutcracker, Swan Lake, and Don Quixote are real, and for a dance student or aspiring dancer, that's enough. McRae is there to support Dan's journey, to help him understand the world of ballet more, and to see that he can pull off steps that he thought he couldn't if he practices. He's basically the grounding element of a story where perfectly executed dances can destroy evil villains.

There is a definite formula to this, where McRae and Dan venture into a different ballet world, discover that someone, usually a villain (the Rat King, Rothbart), has become possessed by the mysterious Void, and use the power and beauty of ballet to save the world. While none of the stories are explained, there's enough for an interested reader to find out more about each one, and the same goes for the dance moves. Each of those is named, and a translation into French is provided alongside a basic explanation of how each works. Again, it's enough for a curious reader to head over to YouTube to look up how to do a fouetté, for example, or see one in real life. It's not an educational manga per se, but it provides the groundwork for readers to learn more on their own.

The art for this is very nice. Adachi is best known for his Beyblade manga, and this does have that look, but the dance moves and costumes are clearly well-researched. (In fact, Adachi mentions that McRae sent him videos of each specific step mentioned.) There are a lot of footnotes, which are a little rough on the artwork, but overall I'm pleased this book exists. As a former dancer myself, I'm in favor of anything that gets kids interested in it, but more than that, it's a fun story about the power of dance – and believe me, a well-placed jêté can be a powerful weapon indeed.

Bolts
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I'm surprised there aren't more stories about ballet, given its growing popularity over the past couple of years. The specific, iconic movements associated with the art form can genuinely lead to striking imagery, especially in an artistic medium like manga. But even I wasn't expecting someone to take the performing art itself and translate it to what feels like an old battle shounen. You would think those two things wouldn't go together, but Ballet Hero Fantasy definitely surprised me by showing that it can work by leaning into the absurdity.

A young boy named Dan discovers that his ballet classmate has been traveling to another world, using his ballet techniques in combat to defeat monsters. He just decides to join him, and the following chapters are about them progressively taking on new threats that pop up. What I love about this series is that it feels very self-aware in the same way that Kamen Rider does with the poses and explosions. But much like Kamen Rider, there is a deep love and respect for the art form here. Not only are a lot of the finisher moves actually based on real-world ballet moves, but a lot of the enemies are based on characters from popular ballets. These references aren't there only to attract ballet fans, either; they are just the icing on a solidly presented cake.

This whole story feels like a throwback, and while that means it is as narratively shallow as a rain puddle, I do appreciate that it wears its heart on its sleeve. The artwork actually does communicate some pretty fun choreography; the designs of all the creatures are very fun, and while there doesn't seem to be much in terms of narrative progression until the end of this first volume, I was fine just enjoying this as a solid romp on its own. I feel like I could recommend this to people who want something a little bit different from what we typically get from these guides or recommendations. It's not redefining anything, but it's taking a unique idea and just playing around with it, much like how these characters feel like they're just playing in a fantasy playground of their own creation.