Yusuke Urameshi is still a ghost. Volume two picks up where volume one left off. A big-headed punk from a different junior high school has decided that Yusuke's old friend, the pretty Keiko, is his new girl. Keiko went with him because he would have taken her two girl friends if she hadn't. Dai is only 14 years old, but has the face of a man. He's even got the beginnings of a mustache. He's no animal, though -- he's got class (his opinion). That means he'll go first before he lets his friends go down on Keiko.

Yusuke still has temporary use of his body, but he'll have to rescue Keiko without talking to her. I got a chuckle out of his method. I got a bigger chuckle out of his pre-battle daydream. His classmate, Kuwabara, also on his way to save the day, has a funnier daydream.

As with volume one, this volume includes stories that weren't adapted for the TV series. Shota, the little boy who lost his beloved dog in the first volume, is facing a potentially greater loss this time around: his own life. The ghost threatening that loss is a pretty little girl who had a sad life full of illness. Sayaka proves to be tougher to deal with than Yusuke expected.

The second unadapted story involves the terrifble pressure put on students to succeed. Of the three students involved, one is the ghost of a boy who killed himself because of that pressure. The other two are best friends in competition for a scholarship to a prestigious high school. One girl is sweet and hopes the best for her friend. The other has parents who insist she best her friend. The girls' teachers care more about the good having one of his pupils win that scholarship will do for his reputation than the girls' well-being. The sweet girl's teacher even resorts to a despicable threat. Will either of the girls have a breakdown as the poor ghost boy did?

If you remember the episode about the arsonist, this version has the addition of the ghost child, Sayaka, wanting to evaluate Keiko's worth as a girlfriend for Yusuke. (Yusuke's reactions to Botan's replies to Sayaka's questions about Keiko made me laugh.)

This volume introduces the rather homely Kuwabara's pretty big sister, Shizuru Kuwabara. (Kuwabara takes Keiko to his house to clean up after the fire.) Luckily for Keiko, Shizuru wants to be a beautician. Meanwhile, Botan tells Yusuke what Koenma 's intervention cost him. The phrase she used cracked me up because it was once a euphemism for a girl or unmarried woman losing her virginity.

The last of the new stories involves another 'bully-magnet,' a boy Yusuke knew in grade school, but who goes to a different junior high. Matsuo has worked hard to take up boxing. He's still being bullied, though. Yusuke takes over Matsuo's body after three punks beat him unconscious. Matsuo is not grateful. He sneers at street fighting.

Matsuo dreams of winning the city-wide junior high boxing tournament. He's been chosen as the second-year representative for his school. The other contender wants to make sure he takes Matsuo's place. If Matsuo makes it past that jerk, he'll face an student known for severely injuring his opponents. Sadly, Matsuo's self-confidence is holding him back. Can Yusuke get through to his old friend? (Loved the example of tough attitude Yusuke demonstrated -- but not nearly as much as Koenma's assessment of Yusuke's character. HA!)

The volume ends with Yusuke's chance to make it back to the world of the living. The fact that I'd already seen some of the plots on TV didn't matter. I enjoyed reading it. ( )