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Archives for May 2010

One Thousand and One Nights, Vols. 1-6

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One Thousand and One Nights, Vols. 1-6 | By Han SeungHee and Jeon JinSeok | Published by Yen Press | Rated OT (16+) – Loosely based on the original tales told by Scheherazade to her mad Persian king, in this version of One Thousand and One Nights (originally published in English by ICE Kunion, later picked up by Yen Press), “Scheherazade” is a bookish young man named Sehara who has joined Sultan Shahryar’s harem in his sister’s place, in order to save her from being raped and beheaded like a string of young women before her. When Sehara’s gender is revealed, Shahryar has him thrown into a prison cell, where Sehara meets the long-imprisoned Emir Jafar, former friend and confidante of Shahryar, who tells him the story of how the sultan went mad after discovering his beloved queen Fatima’s infidelity. Shahryar banished Fatima, and soon after began the daily execution of virgins from his harem. As Jafar finishes his tale, Shahryar bursts into the cell, along with his bodyguard, Maseru, promising to have them both killed for mocking him. It is then that Sehara asks to be allowed to tell Shahryar a story, after which Shahryar may kill him as he pleases. After listening to the story, Shahryar brutally beats Sehara but does not execute him, and instead declares him a bard of the court, thus beginning the thousand and one nights.

Before becoming the court bard, Sehara made his living translating books from China, India, and Greece, so he draws his stories from many sources, telling tales of Turandot and Calaf, Cleopatra and Caesar, and Socrates and Alcibiades, as well as fairy-tales and fables well-known in many cultures, such as “The Angel and the Woodsman.” Each tale is told beautifully, if with questionable historical accuracy (the story of Cleopatra, for instance, portrays her in an unusually gentle light, particularly as concerns her relationship with her younger brother and husband, Ptolemy XIII), but more importantly, Sehara’s stories, and indeed Sehara himself, begin to teach Shahryar how to love again, rescuing him slowly from the madness that has overtaken him. Shahryar may believe himself merciful for allowing Sehara to live, but it is Sehara’s mercy that will ultimately save Shahryar. Eventually, Shahryar begins to realize this, finally confessing to Sehara in volume five, “Jafar protects me from sly politicians, and Maseru protects me from enemies and assassins. You, Sehara, protect me from myself.” Their relationship is reminiscent of that between Ash Lynx and Eiji Okamura in Akimi Yashida’s classic shojo manga, Banana Fish (though more overtly sexualized), as both stories feature a pure, open heart coming to the rescue of a man with too much blood on his hands.

Though One Thousand and One Nights is clearly a love story between Sehara and Shahryar, it is first and foremost a good story, raising it above the ranks of trite romance. The many stories-within-a-story told by Sehara provide endless variations on the theme of love, with much attention given to the cultural differences between each story’s place and time. Cleopatra, after all, was required to marry her own brother by law, a practice still accepted in Sehara’s Persia, while Socrates’ relationship with his male lover, Alcibiades, though commonplace in ancient Greece, would be reviled by Persian custom of Sehara’s day. Sehara’s stories are told with a melancholy beauty, dark and sweet, and emerging from one of them is much like waking from a deep, hazy dream. It is the overarching story, however, that provides the heart that makes this series special. Its primary characters are richly drawn and idiosyncratic, and their relationships with each other are complex and delicately nuanced. There is very little black-and-white in these characters’ lives, despite what they may think, and it is a pleasure to watch their stories unfold, even when they are their worst selves.

In older versions of this tale, though Sultan Shahryar was ruler of the Sassanid Empire, which pre-dates the Islamic conquest of Persia, the stories made frequent reference to the teachings of Islam. In One Thousand and One Nights, writer Jeon JinSoek draws Sehara’s stories from all over the world and from many different eras, while preserving the Islamic focus in the main story. Though JinSeok is careful to portray a balanced view of Islam, particularly as it concerns women, he does not shy away from the inherent sexism and brutality of the time period, in which a mad ruler may indiscriminately murder his female subjects, who he rightfully (by law of the time) considers to be his property. Women are second-class citizens in this world, and this is not something even Sehara can change. He strives gamely to break through Shahryar’s damaged heart and re-establish in him respect and compassion for women, but, as Shahryar reminds him early on, if his own sister had been discovered to not be a virgin, it would have been Sehara’s duty by law as her brother to behead her. Not that there aren’t consequences for Shahryar’s misogynistic behavior. He faces threats from both inside and outside his empire during the course of the story, and volume six ends with his rule (and Sehara’s life) in peril, mainly thanks to his own weaknesses and poor decisions. Ultimately, however, the story has less to say about sexism than it does about the corruptive power of absolute rule.

Despite the unattractive covers of these volumes (unfortunately carried over from the original ICE Kunion editions), each page of One Thousand and One Nights is a pleasure to behold. Han SeungHee’s artwork is intensely beautiful and drenched in romance, from the period settings to the thick strokes of the character’s eyelids. All the characters, both male and female, are lovely to look at, though many lack beauty on the inside, which is what this story is about. SeungHee captures the story’s lush sensuality and fiery drama perfectly, as well as the unexpected moments of humor which crop up with increasing frequency as the series goes on.

One Thousand and One Nights is a beautiful, compelling series that is pleasurable both to read and to look at. With at least five more volumes coming, it has the potential to become a classic of its kind, as long as it continues with the same strength JinSeok and SeungHee have displayed so far.

Review copy provided by the publisher. Review originally published at PopCultureShock.

One Thousand and One Nights, Vol. 7

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One Thousand and One Nights | By Han SeungHee and Jeon JinSeok | Published by Yen Press | Rated OT (16+) – Volume six ended with storyteller Sehara facing English invaders alone as Sultan Shahryar was lured away from Baghdad by his brother’s calculated betrayal. This volume picks up with Shahryar who races back to Baghdad to save the city (and Sehara) even though he must reveal an important secret to an enemy to do so—one that will threaten his own life from here forward. Meanwhile, Sehara does what he can to influence the invading king by telling him a story from the future about another western power invading Muslim land to “liberate” its people from a tyrant.

Any existing pretense of a linear timeline is thrown away completely in this volume and though this is a bit jarring at first, the payoff is substantial. This is also the first overtly political volume in the series, and though the rhetoric is simplistic and far from new (“Christians and Muslims differ in language and culture,” Sehara says, leading into his story, “but we call the same God by a different name and go to war over it.”), Sehara’s true message is clear. It is not the innocent who profit when countries go to war, though it is they who bear the heaviest burden and suffer the greatest loss.

This volume’s modern story is moving and well told, just as all of Sehara’s tales have been, though with so much momentum having built up in the primary storyline it is hard not to feel impatient by the time the volume approaches its end. The end itself, however, is wonderfully heart-wrenching and perfectly crafted to make the wait for the next volume excruciating for us all.

With its gorgeous art, fantastic storytelling, and emotional (and now political) resonance, One Thousand and One Nights continues to be a manhwa series well worth recommending.

Review copy provided by the publisher. Review originally published at PopCultureShock

Pig Bride, Vol. 1

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Pig Bride, Vol. 1 | By KookHwa Huh and SuJin Kim | Published by Yen Press | Rated Teen – Si-Joon is the spoiled son of a wealthy politician and his heiress wife, who, after torturing all the chickens at his summer camp, gets lost in the woods where he encounters a young girl wearing a pig mask. As though in a dream, he finds himself at the girl’s house, where he is enticed by a tableful of delicious food into agreeing to marriage with the girl, Mu-Yeon, despite the fact that he is only eight years old. A sudden attack prompts the girl to send Si-Joon back to where he came from, but not before she makes a promise to find him on his sixteenth birthday in order to consummate the marriage.

Jumping forward eight years, Si-Joon’s sixteenth birthday approaches, and fortunately he has grown up be be slightly less obnoxious than he was as a child. With his good looks and wealthy background, he is pursued relentlessly by the girls at his elite private school, leading him to declare that he dislikes strong women. Instead Si-Joon has his eye on demure Doe-Doe Eun, a blushing member of the school’s cross-stitch club who organizes a lavish birthday party for him. Convinced that the memory of his child bride in a pig mask is nothing more than a recurring dream, Si-Joon is shocked when, on the stroke of midnight as he turns sixteen, his now grown-up bride appears in his dormitory bedroom, ready to do the deed. With help from his best friend and roommate, Ji-Oh, Si-Joon manages to keep his dreaded fate temporarily at bay, but it soon becomes clear that not only can Mu-Yeon not be ignored, but that she may actually be protecting him from some greater horror—perhaps even death.

It’s difficult to see just where Pig Bride is going at this point, but though its first volume is a bit scattered and more than a bit confusing, there is a lot of potential to be found. Si-Joon’s character is maddening and sympathetic all at once. Seen obviously as a commodity by the girls he knows (as explained cooly to him by Ji-Oh, who points out that even if he never does anything with his own life, he’s still valuable for his connections and inheritance), he is easily taken in by sweet, ladylike Doe-Doe, whose unassuming manners are only a front for her real personality (ruthless, controlling psychobitch). It’s hard to feel too sorry for him when his desires are so shallow—after all, despite his talk, he fails to value the same girlish modesty in his potentially unattractive masked bride—though obviously raised by his parents at a distance, it’s not hard to see how he turned out that way.

Not that Mu-Yeon is necessarily a catch, either. Though she’s obviously doting and eager to protect him, she apparently thinks nothing of stalking Si-Joon or putting him to sleep with hallucinogenic drugs. As much a product of her strange, twisted upbringing as Si-Joon is of his, perhaps the real story here will be about both of them learning to be stronger, truer versions of themselves who can one day break free of the rigid, superstitious world they’ve been forced to be a part of.

One particularly interesting supporting character is Si-Joon’s friend, Ji-Oh. As the only character truly able to hit conniving Doe-Doe where it hurts (by stating that he does not dislike her, but simply has no interest) it’s hard not to love him, though he’s a complete cold fish around everyone other than Mu-Yeon, with whom he seems to really hit it off. One of the most charming scenes in the entire volume is one in which Ji-Oh reveals an unexpected gentle side while showing Mu-Yeon how to use the internet. On the other hand, a character who should be intriguing but so far is not, is Mu-Yeon’s sister, Mu-Hwa, a warrior with the power to exorcise spirits with her (possibly stolen) sword. Serving as the protector of both her sister and Si-Joon, her cold demeanor betrays no actual personality at this point.

Though the story in this volume is somewhat muddled, the visual storytelling is not. The art is clean, lovely, and easy to follow, with a nicely restrained use of elaborate backgrounds and imaginative panel layouts. The character designs are pretty, distinct, and occasionally even creepy, as with Mu-Yeon’s eternally smiling mask. The overall look is undeniably “manhwa”—a draw for some and a turn-off for others.

Attractive, mysterious, and above all, odd, Pig Bride is definitely worth a try.

Review copy provided by the publisher. Review originally published at PopCultureShock

Totally Captivated, Vol. 6

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Totally Captivated | By Hajin Yoo | Published by NETCOMICS | Rated 16+ – Ewon Jung is a 23-year-old scholarship student in Seoul, whose curiosity over whether or not it is possible to have great sex without love (“It was possible.”) leads him to cheat on his boyfriend, Jiho. Devastated and yearning for revenge, Jiho persuades his new boyfriend, a small-time loan shark named Mookyul Eun, to force Ewon into service at his office where he is expected to run errands, clean, and balance the books, all without payment. Unfortunately for Jiho, Mookyul soon develops an interest in Ewon, and it isn’t long before Jiho ends up shunted aside once again. Mookyul is controlling and occasionally violent, and Ewon is far from a pushover, but they eventually reach a mutually beneficial arrangement and begin living together. Things do not continue peacefully for long, however, as Ewon becomes aware that he is falling harder for Mookyul than he intended and experiences his first real taste of jealousy. Though the story’s premise initially seems contrived, its real function is to provide a stylish, humorous background to what is essentially a very moving story about two deeply damaged men learning how to love.

In volume five, Ewon finally broke off his tumultuous relationship with Mookyul, unwilling to continue as his lover while Mookyul was still providing sexual favors to his company’s CEO—a man who had long ago rescued a young Mookyul and raised him as his own child. Unable to withstand the separation from Ewon, Mookyul confronted his father figure, breaking all ties with him and his company, and as volume six begins, he sets out to find Ewon and win him back. Ewon consents, but their reunion is short-lived, as Mookyul’s former business rival sets up a plot to ruin him now that he is no longer in the CEO’s favor. Mob madness ensues, Ewon is kidnapped, Mookyul is injured, Mookyul disappears, Ewon runs away, all leading up to the real drama of the volume, in which Ewon begs Mookyul to leave him so that he may be free of the constant terror of losing him. This is the real crux of the story, and ultimately provides the emotional payoff for the series.

It has been hinted throughout the series that Ewon’s absent parents were likely still alive, and this is finally confirmed in volume six, along with the sickening story of how he was abandoned as a child in the middle of the woods, essentially left to die. It is interesting to note that while both Ewon and Mookyul have serious abandonment issues, they have learned to deal with them in completely different ways. While Mookyul grew up to become controlling and possessive, determined to cage anything that might run from him, Ewon learned to avoid any real human connection, carefully protecting himself from the possibility of ever being abandoned again.

One of the things that has always been refreshing about Totally Captivated is that it is not a coming-out story. Ewon never agonizes over or apologizes for his sexuality (something he’s been aware of since the sixth grade), and he is completely comfortable with himself and unusually self-aware for his age. He knows what he likes and who he is sexually, and is completely up front about that with his partners (as they generally are with him). The dramatic benefit of this is that instead of having to focus on the characters’ feelings about being gay, the story is free to explore much further. Though the series does not shy away from the characters’ sexuality, its real focus is on emotional intimacy, and it is this that drives the story forward, especially in the final volume.

This series also avoids the thinly-veiled homophobia that is paradoxically present in so much of the boys’ love genre. “I don’t want some stinking homophobe to buy me a drink,” Ewon says to a co-worker early on in the series, and this attitude is never compromised at any point. The story never avoids specifics about the characters’ sexuality, neither does it portray its primary relationship as “forbidden love” nor insinuate that it is fundamentally inferior to heterosexual love—themes that are unfortunately common in many popular boy’s love stories.

Thankfully, this volume is free of the one discomfiting boys’ love cliché that is too often present earlier on, namely Mookyul’s habit of bullying Ewon for sex that is more frequent or rough than he is comfortable with (made tolerable only by the fact that Ewon proves many times over that he is capable of extracting himself from any situation he truly does not want to be a part of). After some shaky moments in the middle of the series that came uncomfortably close to romanticizing Mookyul’s controlling (even sadistic) tendencies, volume five brought Ewon back into control (despite the fact that he still calls his lover “boss”), with the two men finally reaching equal ground in volume six. Considering the extensive damage both Ewon and Mookyul bring to the table, it’s not surprising that they would fall into unhealthy patterns with each other as their relationship develops, but rooting for them became difficult during those middle volumes while the relationship was clearly abusive. With this in mind, volume six is a balm for the reader, as both characters shed their most destructive habits and are finally able to provide the emotional security each other requires.

The character designs in this series have never been anything special, but with characterizations so strong, they almost don’t have to be. What is lacking in design is made up for in substance, and though more distinctive art would certainly enhance the story’s effect, the series is not gravely damaged without it. The visual storytelling is clear and easy to follow and if the designs are merely serviceable, they at least do not get in the way. All the characters are visually expressive when they need to be, and many are downright poignant, particularly Ewon’s ex, Jiho, and his long-time friend, Dohoon Moon, who puts aside his own feelings to protect Ewon when he most needs it.

In its early volumes, Totally Captivated was smart, sexy, and fabulously dramatic. Now at the end of its final volume, it has also grown into an unexpectedly satisfying love story, rivaling the best of its genre.

Review copy provided by the publisher. Review originally published at PopCultureShock

Jack Frost, Volume 1

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Jack Frost, Vol. 1 | By JinHo Ko | Published by Yen Press | When Noh-A Joo is decapitated on her first day at Amityville Private High School, she isn’t terribly surprised. After all, it’s the same recurring nightmare she’s been having since she started high school. This time, however, the dream doesn’t end, and Noh-A finds out that not only has she died and left her real world forever but that she’s stuck for eternity in a burned-out wasteland where blood-thirsty creatures live in perpetual war. …

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Legend, Volume 5

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Legend, Vol. 5 | By Kara & Woo SooJung | Published by Yen Press – As this volume begins, No-Ah is still recovering from his nearly lethal encounter at the end of the last volume, and as she watches over his sleeping form, Eun-Gyo wonders for the first time just how difficult No-Ah’s path has been. Though No-Ah’s poison-induced injury seems to heal with miraculous speed, Eun-Gyo has found a new determination to protect him instead of the other way around. Refusing to be protected, No-Ah stubbornly heads off on his own, unfortunately leaving the window open for a new enemy to sweep in and capture Eun-Gyo. The enemy takes the form of deceased customs officer Sook-Chung Park, but his true identity is far more disquieting.

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Legend, Volume 6

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legend6Legend, Vol. 6 | By Kara & Woo SooJung | Published by Yen Press – As the confrontation between No-Ah and Toh (the fourth blade of the Seven Blade Sword) continues, Toh reveals his true mission–to keep the blades of the Sword from being collected together, thus preventing world chaos, a consequence of which No-Ah was previously unaware. When Eun-Gyo arrives in the middle of it all, it becomes clear that she is not herself but instead Joo-Ji, the central blade of the Sword, who chose to be reborn as human in order to be reunited with her lover, which unexpectedly turns out to be No-Ah. When No-Ah meets her, however, he is only concerned about what has happened to Eun-Gyo, whom he is determined to protect in this life. Meanwhile, Ho-Dong searches frantically for Eun-Gyo, revealing his own past-life agenda–to reunite with Joo-Ji before No-Ah can steal her away from him again–as well as his current allegiance as a spy working for the same side as trickster Poong. Horrified to discover that No-Ah has reached her before he could, Ho-Dong reverts into a young man, the true form he has been hiding all along. As the volume continues, the web of past loves becomes even more tangled when the true identity of No-Ah’s sister, Seo-Hee, is revealed.

This volume is simply packed with new revelations, each contributing to this series’ sudden burst of new life. After several somewhat tepid volumes, this series is finally coming together and the effect is quite stunning. Each of the characters has gained new depth with further revelations regarding their past lives, particularly No-Ah and Ho-Dong who are being pulled in multiple directions by the often-conflicting motivations of their past and present selves. No-Ah’s lack of clear memory makes his position particularly complex, while Ho-Dong’s clear, painful memories make his especially poignant. “You must be more furious than sad,” teases the ever-smug Poong upon Ho-Dong’s return to his original form, “Isn’t that why you’ve decided to stop being a spy? You want to try to steal Miss Eun-Gyo from No-Ah, right?” adding cruelly, “Didn’t have the confidence to seduce her as a kid?”

Both No-Ah and Ho-Dong are in unenviable positions–No-Ah becoming more and more aware of the fact that the quest necessary to save his sister may have grave, far-reaching consequences and Ho-Dong being continuously faced with the same heartbreak time and time again–and with the lines between “sides” blurring further with each chapter it’s difficult to judge either of them by their choices. That the story’s creators have managed to paint all of this in such varied shades of gray is largely responsible for the success of this volume, and though their decision to withhold so much until this far in may have cost them some readers earlier on, the payoff is substantial. Even Eun-Gyo’s dense single-mindedness has taken on a newly rich tone as it becomes clear that she is, on some level, being manipulated by emotions generated by her past life. Only No-Ah, from his unique perspective of being both aware of and detached from his past life, is able to truly separate the feelings of his past self from his own, giving him a peculiar advantage over most everyone else.

After waffling on this series for so long, it is a pleasure to be able to finally recommend Legend. Though it gets off to a slow start, this series is a great choice for fans of shojo adventure manga and may appeal especially to those who have had difficulty embracing the art style in much of Yen Press’ manhwa catalogue. Though I personally prefer the clean, solid look of manhwa titles like Goong and One Thousand and One Nights, or even the quasi-alien look of something like 13th Boy, many manga fans consider those style to be hard or flat–words that could not possibly be used to describe Kara’s artwork here. With its flowing, wispy, undeniably cute art style and new air of romantic drama, Legend finally establishes a strong place for itself in Yen’s current lineup of girls’ manhwa.

Review copy provided by the publisher.

One Fine Day, Vol. 1

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One Fine Day, Vol. 1 | By Sirial | Published by Yen Press – “Our fine day starts here. Would you like to join us?”

One cold, dreary afternoon, a rain-soaked cat is invited home by a mischievous young mouse and a big-brotherly dog. Their green-roofed house is difficult to find, they say, “At the end of the path of blue and red bricks,” where a young man named No-Ah soon discovers that his pair of house pets has become a trio. This sweet, simple scenario serves as a short prologue to the first chapter of One Fine Day, perfectly establishing the series’ whimsical tone and showcasing its greatest strengths from the get-go. As the volume continues, No-Ah, along with cat (Guru), dog (Nanai), and mouse (Rang) tackle life’s daily challenges, such as picnics, baking cookies, and the common cold.

Make no mistake, One Fine Day is a mess. From uneven world-building to a complete absence of plot, it lacks nearly everything required for coherent storytelling, even on the most basic level. Fortunately, it is an utterly delectable mess, poised to enchant would-be critics with the power of children, puppies, and frolicking teapots.

Much of the cast is made up of animals who resemble humans (like Guru, Nanai, and Rang) or people who resemble animals, such as No-Ah’s bird-like friends, Mr. and Mrs. Raspberry. A few are furniture. In fact, the only decidedly human characters of any consequence are No-Ah and a much-feared magician, Aileru (whose relationship with No-Ah is complicated to say the least). Like many aspects of One Fine Day, its anthropomorphic landscape is only marginally explained, which diminishes its effectiveness, if not its charm.

The series’ supernatural elements are no less confusing. No-Ah is either a “novice magician or a “monster magician” (depending on when you ask) who, by the author’s own admission, “gets younger every chapter.” His magical abilities (largely undefined) are in some way related to the infamous Aileru, No-Ah’s childhood friend/bully/other, who is able to do things like turn people into animals and even summon fairies under the right circumstances. Beyond that, the universe’s supernatural ground rules are anyone’s guess.

Not that any of this matters in the slightest. The story’s real magic is in its most ordinary events, as seen through the eyes of its four-legged protagonists. Everything their father-figure does is magical from their perspective, and this “magic” is is a product of unabashed love. While the anthropomorphic appearances of Guru, Nanai, and Rang are undeniably adorable, the real purpose of their portrayal as human children seems to be that No-Ah views them as such. One of the series’ sweetest moments, for instance, is an early chapter in which No-ah teaches his “children” how to bake cookies. While No-Ah’s back is turned, both Rang and Guru mark the dough with their footprints (in blatant disregard of accepted kitchen hygiene). Though Nanai is desperate to join in, canine duty prevails, leaving him with nothing to do but whimper pathetically at the untouched dough before him. Recognizing Nanai’s predicament, No-Ah’s response is to place Nanai’s paws in the dough himself. It’s a small thing, as is nearly everything that happens in this story, but it is exactly this kind of playful affection that makes up the heart of One Fine Day.

Perhaps the series’ most consistently delightful aspect, however, is its artwork. Alternating between crude sketches and elaborate fancies, Sirial’s drawings overflow with warmth and whimsy, matching the story’s tone perfectly. From No-Ah’s comically unmanageable hair to Rang’s footie pajamas, everything that could be labeled as “cute” is also an essential tool for expression, contradicting the series’ haphazard feel.

At its best, One Fine Day is a trippy little stroll through the lives of its mostly-anthropomorphic family and friends. At worst, it is a jumble of incoherent anecdotes that somehow manages to be both visually appealing and intensely heartwarming even in its clumsiest moments. Either way, it’s a bit irresistible.

Review copy provided by the publisher.

One Thousand and One Nights, Volume 8

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One Thousand and One Nights, Vol. 8 | By Han SeungHee and Jeon JinSeok | Published by Yen Press – At the end of volume seven, Sehara sacrificed himself to save his sultan by offering to accompany the crusaders out of Baghdad as Lord McCloud’s bard in exchange for the safety of Shahryar and company. This volume begins as the events are being relayed to Sehara’s sister, Dunya, revealing further details of the exchange including an unexpectedly touching (and unusually erotic) good-bye from Sehara in which he kisses the end of Shahryar’s sword. Devastated and filled with self-loathing over his inability to keep Sehara with him, Shahryar prepares to fulfill his promise to allow Ali to finally take his revenge. After hearing of Sehara’s departure, however, Ali’s desire for vengeance has been swallowed up by regret over his own inability to protect the woman he loved and he instead flees the palace, leaving Shahyar with these words: “Take him back if he is that precious to you.” This call to action shakes Shahyar out of his pitiful wallowing and he departs immediately to seek out the Caliph with the intention of raising an Islamic alliance to defeat the crusaders in Jerusalem. The rest of the volume follows Shahryar as he faces new treachery from his brother Shazaman, while also hearing, finally, the true story behind his wife’s betrayal.

Taking a step back from the previous volume’s political message, volume eight once again focuses on the story’s emotional center by reminding Shahryar what’s really important, and by that, of course, I mean Sehara. Sehara is the heart of this story both for Shahryar and for us, and though he barely appears in this volume after the first few pages, those pages are honestly luminous. The scene in which he kisses the end of Shahryar’s sword (yes, I really do mean his sword) is erotic–probably intentionally so–yet the purity of Sehara’s intentions keeps it from becoming at all lascivious. This quality of Sehara’s is actually the secret to the series’ real beauty as it washes over all of Shahrayr’s ragged anger and pointless cruelty, restoring what is best in everything it touches. The kiss is a perfect example of this–an act of love pacifying an instrument of violence. It is a powerful image, truly, besides being one of the most romantic things I have ever seen.

Though the volume as a whole suffers a bit from Lack of Sehara (a potentially deadly condition) the story of Shazaman and Fatima is important indeed, leaving Shahryar in an uncertain place on every level–something that seems necessary if he’s to ever become a man worthy of Sehara’s devotion. It’s difficult to feel the level of sympathy I think is intended for Shazaman and Fatima, even after their story has been told, since vengeance is rarely an attractive quality. But revenge is a staple of this story’s setting and of course Shahryar’s own hands are soaked in more blood than anyone’s.

This series’ art continues to capture my heart, with its elaborate costuming, lush backgrounds, and dreamy character designs. The characters’ potent beauty and expressive, thickly lined eyes are undeniably characteristic of Korean comics–a style clearly not to everyone’s taste, though I’ll never quite understand why.

Despite the fact that this volume’s greatest impact is made in its first few (glorious) pages, it is by no means uneven and remains thoroughly compelling to the end. With just three volumes yet to come, One Thousand and One Nights continues to be one of my greatest reading pleasures–intensely moving and gorgeous to look at. No fan of storytelling or dramatic romance should miss this series.

Volume eight of One Thousand and One Nights will be available on August 4th, 2009. Review copy provided by Yen Press.

For more of my ramblings on this series, check out: One Thousand and One Nights, volumes 1-6, Ash vs. Shahryar, and One Thousand and One Nights, volume seven.

One Thousand and One Nights, Vol. 9

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1001nights9One Thousand and One Nights, Vol. 9 | By Han SeungHee & Jeon JinSeok | Published by Yen Press – With the disgraced sultan Shahryar on the run and brother Shazaman hot on his trail, the Caliph names Emir Jafar as temporary sultan of Baghdad, passing on to him the task of taking back Jerusalem from the western invaders. Though he has no choice but to comply, Jafar has other matters on his mind such as uncovering the truth about Shazaman and Fatima. Thankfully, with a bit of luck and a bit more stealth, Jafar stumbles upon a horrifying secret which reveals that Shahryar is, stunningly, the sane brother, despite his history as a misogynistic serial murderer. Meanwhile, Shahryar and Shazaman face off in the desert as raging storms turn the terrain into a flash flood zone. Over in the western camp, King MacLeod is putting the moves on Sehera, by which I mean giving him books, namely 14th-century Chinese historical novel The Romance of the Three Kingdoms which becomes this volume’s story-within-a-story.

Like volume eight, this volume suffers a bit from the affliction I like to call “Lack of Sehera,” but there is plenty of plotty goodness to fill the void, particularly concerning the history of Shahryar and Shazaman’s relationship with each other and with their childhood friend Jafar. With current events juxtaposed against scenes from their childhood, it’s hard not to feel pain for both brothers and impossible to avoid the question of just how both of them became so irretrievably twisted as adults. Though, thanks to Sehera’s influence, Shahryar has begun to seek a kind of personal redemption, Shazaman’s emotional wounds remain open and untreated, infecting him to the core.

Aside from this volume’s drama between brothers, a real highlight is Sehera’s retelling of The Romance of the Three Kingdoms, which ends the volume with a painful lesson for MacLeod who may be about to learn that despite Sehera’s devotion to duty, his loyalty ultimately belongs to another. Though what appears here is obviously just a tiny fragment of the original Chinese epic (which stands at 800,000 words and 120 chapters) it is more than enough to entice readers to seek out the source material for more. This was, apparently, a strong motivation for its inclusion in the story, as the volume’s endnotes reveal writer Jeon JinSeok’s desire to introduce the testosterone-heavy novel to a new generation of female readers who may not have been otherwise encouraged to check it out. Though I’m unable to speak for the young women of South Korea, I can certainly confirm that his plan has worked on me.

With several characters’ lives hanging in the balance (really) by the end of the volume, the tension in this series shows no sign of letting up anytime soon, and with only two volumes remaining, readers face a single burning question: how to survive the wait until the next volume.

Review copy provided by the publisher.

One Thousand & One Nights, Vol. 10

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One Thousand and One Nights, Vol. 10 | By Han SeungHee & Jeon JinSeok | Published by Yen Press – While reading Sehara’s translation of The Romance of the Three Kingdoms, it becomes clear to McLeod that Sehara is leaving him, though this realization comes too late for him to stop it. Unfortunately, as Sehara rushes back to Baghdad, he is met with the news of Shahryar’s death, throwing him into a state of deep despair. Meanwhile, Shahrayr (not quite dead) finds himself in the care of the Nauar Gypsies, one of whom beseeches him to travel east to seek out his “other half,” whom Shahryar now recognizes to be Sehara.

Though Sehara and Shahryar spend the entirety of this volume apart, the volume is a gift to BL fans and anyone else who might be hoping against hope that their highly eroticized relationship actually turn to romance. Not that anything happens, of course, but there is a sense that if our story’s heroes ever manage to find their way back to each other, it will be a warm reunion indeed.

Fortunately, the romance is well-earned and should hold up nicely, even with Shahryar’s bloody past as an obvious moral obstacle. “You were already dead, drowned in a whirlpool of sin,” a gypsy tells Shahryar. “And then someone brought you back to life.” It’s a tricky business–letting a character with so much blood on his hands realize happiness–but writer Jeon JinSeok has worked hard to create a situation in which this could be palatable. Now with only one volume remaining, we’ll soon find out what Jeon really has in store for the characters he’s so carefully tortured. Er. Nurtured.

With the stakes so high in the main story line, it might be easy at this point to dismiss Sehara’s stories-within-the-story, but fortunately The Romance of the Three Kingdoms (even in such an abridged state) is far too compelling to allow it. Part of what makes this series work so well is the fact that Sehara’s stories consistently move the primary tale forward, rather than acting as diversions. And part of the series’ charm is the fact that these stories are at least as important to their storyteller as they are to the sultan they are meant to entertain–a truth delightfully accented at the end of this volume as Shahryar sets out disguised as a bookseller in hopes of luring a distraught Sehara out of hiding.

Every aspect of this series remains engaging–storytelling, plot, characterization, artwork–crafted into a kind of ultimate fantasy with its lush, period settings and unapologetic violence. Fans of escapist romance could hardly find an escape more delicious than One Thousand and One Nights.

Review copy provided by the publisher.

Reading Club, Vol. 1

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Reading Club, Vol. 1 | By Cho Ju-Hee & Suh Yun-Young | Published by Udon Entertainment | Rated: Older Teen (16+) – Eun-Sae is thrilled when dreamy bookworm Kyung-Do asks her to volunteer with him to clean up their school library. Unfortunately, a couple of surprises await her as she takes on this new task. Though Kyung-Do is clearly interested in reading everything in the library’s sprawling collection, he shows very little enthusiasm for actually organizing the place. Secondly, the collection includes a book with some sinister supernatural qualities that may have played a part in several tragic deaths, including that of Kyung-Do’s father. Can Eun-Sae save Kyung-Do from meeting the same fate?

Reading Club is billed as “Korea’s first horror comic for girls,” and while I can’t speak to the accuracy of that statement, I can vouch for it being very effectively geared to its target audience. The first volume favors story over romance, but with an intimate feel reminiscent of the plotty romance novels that drew me in most as a teen, like Mary Stewart’s Touch Not the Cat or The Gabriel Hounds. Her stories were always favorites of mine, marrying heart-stopping fear and heart-pounding romance, all experienced through the tight POV of her sophisticated heroines. Though Reading Club does not stick with Eun-Sae’s POV for the entirety of its first volume (nor is Eun-Sae the equivalent of Stewart’s snappy young ladies of leisure) the effect is the same. Plot is the focus of the volume throughout, but it is Eun-Sae’s feelings that drive the story, whether she’s fighting off ancient evil or boldly taking the initiative with her new crush.

One particularly refreshing aspect of the story, especially for young female readers, is the reversal of traditional heroine and hero roles. While Kyung-Do is portrayed as a passive beauty who sparkles only in the presence of good books, Eun-Sae is all action, vowing to protect her delicate boyfriend from coming to a tragic end. This reversal is never played as parody and Eun-Sae in particular is wonderfully nuanced, despite limited “screen time” in this volume. She’s sometimes brave, often lazy, occasionally dishonest, and definitely driven by hormones, just like any teen. Kyong-Do is more of a mystery, both to Eun-Sae and to us, which is exactly as it should be so early on in this kind of story.

Reading Club‘s greatest weakness at this point is its length, or rather its lack thereof. Though the series’ first volume effectively introduces both its cast and major plot points, so little is understood about the book’s sinister powers (let alone the mysterious “Reading Club”) even by the end of the volume, there is a sense of shallowness to the story’s supernatural elements that could be avoided by revealing just a bit more. Presumably deeper insight is yet to come, but it would be nice to have a stronger taste early on to better whet the appetite for future volumes. Though the volume delivers a sufficiently spooky premise along with some genuinely frightening imagery, the connection between the two is not yet solid enough to hold up under scrutiny. Why does one of the book’s victims commit suicide, while another is simply found dead with a creepy severed tongue? The story’s mythology has not yet been explored deeply enough for us to know, keeping real terror safely at arm’s length.

The series’ artwork is sparse yet vivid, helping to set the story’s dark, tense tone right from the start. Its character designs are unremarkable yet nicely distinctive from one another, helping to shape characters immediately within the story’s plotty framework. Unfortunately, the volume’s text is less easy on the eyes, printed in a small, cramped font that is sure to force some readers into squinting from page to page.

As the first of Udon’s manhwa catalogue I’ve had the pleasure to read, this volume fortunately leaves me wanting more. For smart teen romance paired with genuine chills, Reading Club is a promising choice.

Review copy provided by the publisher.

Roureville, Vols. 1-3

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rourevilleRoureville, Vols. 1-3 | By E. Hae | Published by NETCOMICS – Evan Pryce is a an acclaimed reporter for the New York Times, whose most recent story has earned him a spot on a terrorist hit list. When coworkers at the Times make it clear they want him out of the vicinity until things cool down, he is shipped off to the middle of nowhere to investigate a tabloid-esque ghost story tip, very much against his will. Having spent ten days searching vainly for an off-the-map town called Roureville, Evan is about to throw in the towel when luck appears suddenly in the form of a flustered priest who unintentionally leads him straight into the town. Though the ghost story appears to be unfounded, Roureville is fishy from the start and after Evan manages to score a place to stay with a quiet young local named Jayce, the townspeople make it very clear that they wish for him to leave, enough even to resort to attempted murder. As the series continues, Evan becomes closer both to his reticent host and to the town’s carefully protected secret, ultimately discovering that he shares more in common with them than he ever would have suspected.

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Sarasah, Volume 1

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Sarasah, Vol. 1 | By Ryu Rang | Published by Yen Press – High school student Ji-Hae has an obsessive, long-time crush on her classmate Seung-Hyu. She pursues him relentlessly–so much so that she’s pushed him to the point of utter disgust. When her elaborate birthday scheme (involving an enormous banner, a hall full of floating feathers, and a note reading, “You are mine. You can’t get away.”) finally pushes him to the brink, he accidentally pushes her down the school stairwell to her probable death. Ji-Hae finds herself waking in a new world, where she is told that it is not yet her time to die and that she must return to the living world. Horrified by the prospect of returning to a life of humiliation and unrequited love, Ji-Hae begs to be able to just stay dead, but instead is granted the opportunity to return to a former life–the original source of her discord with Seung-Hyu–to rewrite her soul’s own history in hopes of earning a second chance at love.

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Sugarholic, Vol. 1

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Sugarholic, Vol. 1 | By Gong GooGoo | Published by Yen Press | After the house she lives in with her mother and grandmother is destroyed in a landslide, twenty-year-old slacker Jae-Gyu is sent away from her rural hometown to live with her older brother in Seoul. With little money and even less optimism, she gets off the bus in the big city, only to lose her money and make an enemy (a good-looking but arrogant guy whose shirt she accidentally tears) right off the bat. Things get no better once she finds her brother, who is obviously engaged in shady business and really doesn’t want her around. She does find some refuge in her best friend, Hyun-Ah, whose family moved to the city a few years back, but even that is marred by the re-emergence of Hee-do, a childhood playmate Jae-Gyu bullied repeatedly, who is now an up-and-coming pop star harboring a long-held crush on her. Then to top things off, she gets embroiled in the middle of some kind of dangerous family trouble involving the torn-shirt guy (a martial artist named Whie-Hwan) who insists they pretend they are in love with each other in order to save himself from being sent out of the country.

From the very beginning of its first volume, Sugarholic is the perfect example of the girls’ manhwa formula at work. A plucky, outspoken heroine is thrust into unfamiliar territory with a couple of good-looking but complicated guys, at least one of whom she initially despises. At least two other manhwa series I’m currently reading (both Goong and Comic spring immediately to mind) have roughly the same setup, for the most part. Thing is, despite the formula, each one of them is wholly engaging and a lot of fun, and Sugarholic is no exception.

Jae-Gyu is slovenly and unfocused but also unconcerned with her appearance and utterly without guile, which makes her an extremely appealing heroine. Her relationship with Hee-do (the childhood playmate) reveals some of her particular quirks, for though she’s terrified of the “revenge” she’s sure he’s planned for her the one thing that never occurs to her is to apologize (at least not sincerely) for all the awful things she remembers doing to him. She is also completely oblivious to his feelings for her, both past and present, which admittedly he has never expressed with much skill. Still, the most touching scene in the entire volume is a memory of their childhood in which Hee-do, heartbroken over seeing Jae-Gyu cry, attempts to comfort her by kissing her on the forehead. Hee-do’s awkwardness is nearly pathetic (in preparation for confessing his feelings, he inexplicably finds it necessary to balance his latte on Jae-Gyu’s head, causing an inevitable mess for her and thwarting his efforts completely) yet unexpectedly believable and quite sweet. It’s hard not to root for Hee-do, in all his blundering sincerity, though Jae-Gyu seems indifferent to his adorable personage (which, paradoxically, makes her more interesting and likable as well).

The obvious trouble brewing, both for Jae-Gyu and Hee-do, is the situation with Whie-Hwan who has managed to convince Jae-Gyu (or at least himself) that she actually owes him on some level. Though the volume ends without resolution, it seems likely that Jae-Gyu will find herself going along with his fairly insane proposition, whether by choice or otherwise. Though Whie-Hwan’s backstory is definitely compelling, it’s difficult to like him much at this point in the story, especially when it seems unavoidable that he will end up getting in the way of whatever chances Hee-do (who is much more sympathetic and appealing) might have with Jae-Gyu. That said, he’s also likely to provide some of the story’s best conflict and future plot twists, so it’s valuable to have him around.

Gong GooGoo’s art is very much in the typical style for this kind of manhwa, with the characters’ exaggerated lips, “floofy” hair (as Jae-Gyu describes Whie-Hwan’s), and heavily-outlined eyes, along with its shojo-style backgrounds and panel layouts. There are many who profess a distaste for manhwa art, but I must say I have quite a strong affection for it. There is a solid feel to manhwa art I can’t quite put my finger on that draws me in consistently, and Sugarholic absolutely achieves that feel.

Ultimately, the best recommendation I can give for Sugarholic is that when I finished this volume, I immediately wanted to read the next. The characters are attractive and idiosyncratic, the story is engaging despite its predictability, and above all, it is just a lot of fun. If you love girls’ manhwa, Sugarholic is a must-read.

Volume one of Sugarholic will be available in August of 2009. Review copy provided by the publisher.