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Ao Haru Ride, Vol 11

Ao Haru Ride Volume 11 by Io Sakisaka Throughout this series, nostalgia and feelings of being haunted by the past have come up in a variety of ways, and this volume shows a bit of movement forward on Kou’s part as he goes to visit various sites from his past. He ditches during a school trip where he used to live and induces Futuba to come along with him “as friends.” She comes along, knowing in the back of her mind that she’s lying to herself. Together they visit Kou’s old apartment, middle school, and his mother’s grave. Kou seems much more emotionally resilient, coming out of this nostalgic trip with a greater sense of certainty about what he wants to do and who he wants to spend time with…

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Suppose a Kid from the Last Dungeon Boonies Moved to a Starter Town, Vol. 2

By Toshio Satou and Nao Watanuki. Released in Japan as “Tatoeba Last Dungeon Mae no Mura no Shonen ga Joban no Machi de Kurasu Youna Monogatari” by GA Bunko. Released in North America by Yen On. Translated by Andrew Cunningham. The good news is this is still a very fun series with a lot of laughs and big goofy characters doing silly things. The bad news is that it is not a series that lives and dies on its character development, so I can see myself having trouble stretching reviews out to 500+ words as we go along. Lloyd is still stupidly strong and overpowered and completely unaware of it. He gathers yet more women into his orbit in this book, without remaining remotely aware of it, of course. Marie,…

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Bookshelf Briefs 7/3/20

Akashic Records of Bastard Magical Instructor, Vol. 9 | By Hitsuji Tarou, Tsunemi Aosa and Kurone Mishima | Seven Seas – Forgot to review the previous volume of this, and may have even forgotten to read it. Honestly, it doesn’t matter, as we begin a new story this volume, finally giving us the backstory of Celica, Glenn’s adopted mother figure and resident mysterious older sister sort. Unfortunately, she quickly learns why we shouldn’t wander into portals that will trigger guardians that want to kill everyone, and it’s up to Glenn and company to save her. This remains decent but not great magical school fantasy. Also, apropos of nothing, Rumi looks a lot like Yotsuba from Quintuplets, right down to the ribbon. – Sean Gaffney Black Clover, Vol. 21 | By…

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The Hidden Dungeon Only I Can Enter, Vol. 1

By Meguru Seto and Takehana Note. Released in Japan by Kodansha Lanove Books. Released in North America by Seven Seas. Translated by Tiva Haro. Adapted by Cae Hawksmoor. As I was commenting on Twitter about reading this book, I kept calling it “trash”. And it really is. But wait, it’s not actually bad. In fact, you could do far worse than this kind of trash. But – it’s still trash. The lead is a stock light novel hero, the sort referred to these days as “Potato-kun”. He gathers together a group of young women, all gorgeous, all who are either already in love with him or fall for him almost instantly. His powers essentially rewrite reality to a certain extent, and aren’t powered by MP but rather LP, which means…

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The Asterisk War: The Steps of Glory

By Yuu Miyazaki and okiura. Released in Japan by MF Bunko J. Released in North America by Yen On. Translated by Haydn Trowell. There’s good news and bad news in this new volume of The Asterisk War. The bad news is that this is the start of the series’ THIRD tournament arc, and with a few exceptions, battle scenes are what we’re going to get. The good news is that this author is quite good at writing battle scenes, particularly with a lot of young men and women kicking ass in various kinds of ways. We do get more at the start of the book showing the growing relationship between our villain, Madiath Mesa, and Ayato’s mother Sakura, whose real name seems to be Akari. It’s no surprise by now…

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Manga the Week of 7/8/20

SEAN: Well, while things are not yet back to normal in the world around us, they’re back to normal in regards to manga. Which means there’s a LOT next week. ASH: Woohoo, manga! SEAN: Drawn and Quarterly have a collection of stories by feminist manga pioneer Kuniko Tsurita, called The Sky Is Blue with a Single Cloud. A single-volume collection of her best works, this sounds absolutely amazing. ASH: It really does; I’ll definitely be checking it out. MELINDA: Wow, yes, this sounds fantastic. SEAN: J-Novel Club has a number of print releases coming out. We get An Archdemon’s Dilemma 6; the 9th and final volume of If It’s for My Daughter, I’d Even Defeat a Demon Lord; the 7th Infinite Dendrogram; the 3rd Marginal Operation manga; and the 2nd…

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The Saga of Tanya the Evil: Ut Sementem Feceris, ita Metes

By Carlo Zen and Shinobu Shinotsuki. Released in Japan by Enterbrain. Released in North America by Yen On. Translated by Emily Balistrieri. This book came out just before the anime began in Japan, and right about the time the manga started. As such, it’s the first one to be possibly influenced by both of those sources. I’ve talked before about how I don’t think Tanya’s pragmatism is usually as evil as the author wants us to believe, but sometimes he digs deep and shows us that there really is a difference in the way she (and her soldiers) think and everyone else. This book has an Ildoan Colonel observe her unit during a Federation attack, and is horrified that the soldiers not only plan to attack a town but also…

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My Next Life As a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom!, Vol. 6

By Satoru Yamaguchi and Nami Hidaka. Released in Japan as “Otome Game no Hametsu Flag Shika Nai Akuyaku Reijou ni Tensei Shite Shimatta…” by Ichijinsha Bunko Iris. Released in North America by J-Novel Club. Translated by Marco Godano. At last, our cast has managed to graduate from school and become real adults. That said, working at the Ministry seems to be giving Katarina and company the same opportunities that they had in the 3nd and 4th books, which is to say going around investigating magical problems. More importantly, though, Katarina has discovered that Fortune Lover had a sequel that came out after her death (courtesy Sophia’s still unconscious memories – Sophia herself sadly seems to function only as a plot device this book) which features the return of villainous, one-note…

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Deathbound Duke’s Daughter: Erika Aurelia and the Seafarer’s Ruins

By Terasu Senoo and Munashichi. Released in Japan as “Shini Yasui Koushaku Reijou to Shichi-nin no Kikoushi” by M Novels (Futabasha). Released in North America digitally by J-Novel Club. Translated by Roy Nukia. We’ve had isekais for years now, and are used to “so what is the slight difference that makes this one worth reading”. Otome Game Villainesses, though, is still a relatively recent genre. That said, the fact that it seems to be exploding in popularity means that we can start to compare and contrast them that much faster. So, for those who would like a far more intelligent protagonist than Bakarina, or for those who want less emphasis on the romance aspect of these sorts of books, here’s a really nice choice for you. That said, Erika lacks…

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