Manga Bookshelf

Discussion, Resources, Roundtables, & Reviews

Sean Gaffney

From Two-Bit Baddie to Total Heartthrob: This Villainess Will Cross-Dress to Impress!, Vol. 5

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By Masamune Okazaki and Hayase Jyun. Released in Japan as “Mob Dōzen no Akuyaku Reijō wa Dansō Shite Kōryaku Taishō no Za wo Nerau” by TO Books. Released in North America by J-Novel Heart. Translated by Caroline W.

All otome game villainess stories are, by definition, somewhat metatextual. It has characters who are trapped in a world based on a game, trying to avoid Bad Ends. Even if they don’t talk to others about their choices, they narrate to the reader about them. But Two-Bit Baddie is even more meta than most. We have two people who’ve both played the game and know what’s coming, and discuss it with each other. We have a narrative that occasionally tries to lure them back into canon, even if they both want to disregard it. More to the point, the entire reason Elizabeth dresses and acts the way she does is to avoid a bad end that’s already passed. There’s no need to keep doing it. So when Richard asks why she’s dressed as a man, she answers “because I like it”, and I think not only does this surprise her but she means it. This is who she is now.

The book picks up where it left off last time. Elizabeth, Christopher, Edward and Lilia have to stay a little longer than planned. Sure, thanks to Lilia accidentally turning Diana into a BL fangirl, the marriage seems to be off the table. But there’s the troubling information that people are kidnapping nobles, and then giving them back the next day. What’s going on there? Meanwhile, Elizabeth and Lilia get an opportunity to explore a dungeon, and while they don’t find any monsters, they do come across some very human villains. When they are finally allowed to go home, after everyone finally realizes that Elizabeth is a woman and her brother is rejecting the marriage proposal, Elizabeth finds new problems. Yoh, the villain from the last book, has joined the knights and become a masochist. And worse, the plot of the second fandisc is beginning… four years too early!

The otome game mechanics are not the only things analysed in this volume. There’s an extra bonus route involving Lilia getting romanced by her teacher, a forbidden love sort of thing, and while Lilia is not interested in anyone but Elizabeth, Elizabeth is furious at the very concept of the route’s existence. She delivers a multi-page takedown of “teacher/student romance” as a concept, stating that anyone who would take advantage of a student in real life is the worst of the worst. Lilia finds this baffling, but that’s because Lilia is still caught up a bit too much in thinking in terms of tropes and fiction – to her, teacher/student romance is hot because of the forbidden aspects. It’s a very interesting diversion in what ends up being a solid but typical volume in the series. Elizabeth remains handsome and seductive but unable to see the very obvious affection anyone has for her – except Lilia, who had to literally confess. Subtlety is not gonna fly here.

The main drag on this volume is that it ends not even 2/3 through, and the rest is taken up with other POV stories and side stuff. It’s the equivalent of a LaLa volume, and I hate it. But the bulk of this is still pretty good.

Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End ~Prelude~

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By Mei Hachimoku and Tsukasa Abe, based on the manga by Kanehito Yamada. Released in Japan as “Sousou no Frieren: Zensou” by Shogakukan. Released in North America by Yen On. Translated by Jenny McKeon.

It’s another tie-in novel, and by now I think we know what to expect with these. The title says “Prelude” because it’s the safest place to play around it. You can’t change the story the original author is still getting to, and sometimes you can’t even tell stories set at the same time as the manga. But things that take place before the manga starts, or in the past, are fair game, provided you don’t change the future. As such, it’s no surprise this is a short story collection, and honestly of the five short stories three of them are really obvious: seeing Fern and Stark before they met Frieren is a gimme, and seeing Frieren with Himmel and party is also unsurprising. The other two stories are more interesting choices, and they’re also both pretty strong. I usually talk about whether a short story collection is front or backloaded, and this is the latter, which is good, as that means it gets better as it goes.

The five stories: 1) A young Fern practices her magic and worries about Heiter, who is not only very old but is also down with a cold, so she decides to go searching for herbs; 2) Stark is at the village with the dragon, which he “drove off” by being in its face when it decided to go away, and frets about his reputation, while also saving the one guy who doesn’t like him when he goes missing; 3) Kanne and Lawine are taking the test to prove they’re mages back in their hometown, but have to deal with a bratty rich girl mage and a stronger than usual monster; 4) Aura the Guillotine runs into the hero’s party and lives to regret it; while recovering from her wounds, she talks with other demons around her, most of whom are familiar to us; 5) Frieren wakes up on a wagon headed for… well, somewhere, and is distressed to see her friends getting off it and leaving her behind.

Fern and Stark’s stories aren’t bad, but they’re both very predictable and stay in their lane. Kanne and Lawine’s story is surprising in that it happens at all, but I enjoyed seeing them again, and their teamwork and bond is in full force here. Aura’s story may be the best in the collection. She’s a terrible… well, demon, not person, but you know what I mean. But the story is designed to poke around Frieren’s “all demons are evil and you need to kill them on sight” philosophy, as we see some demons trying o understand why humans do things and failing, and some continuing to make the effort regardless – we’ll be getting to that in the 3rd anime season late next year. Finally, the Frieren story is basically an “all things must one day pass” metaphor, but it’s well written and emotional, and works well with Frieren, who is coming to terms with people she cares about passing, bit by bit.

So yeah,k this is a solid book. Fans of the manga will definitely enjoy it. Casual buyers… read the manga first, OK?

Pick of the Week: New Aya Kanno

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KATE: So many manga… so little that interests me. I’d sit this week out, but I feel morally obligated to point out that there’s a new omnibus edition of Dragon Head, a stylish apocalyptic horror story that Tokyopop published back in the aughts. Volume two arrives in stores on Wednesday.

MICHELLE: Yeah, I’m not really inspired, either. I suppose a new Aya Kanno series wins by default.

SEAN: I too am sort of meh about this week, so I’ll pick an ongoing favorite. The Tanaka Family Reincarnates is a delightfully silly light novel series AND it has giant cats.

ANNA: I’m with Michelle this week, new Aya Kanno is what I’m finding most interesting.

ASH: The debut of Aya Kanno’s Fruit of the Underworld is my pick as well, seeing as I’ve thoroughly enjoyed much of her previous work. However, I’d also like to highlight He Rolled Me Up Like a Grilled Squid considering the recent passing of Yoshiharu Tsuge. His work can be quite powerful and I’m so glad to see it being translated.

Though I Am an Inept Villainess: Tale of the Butterfly-Rat Body Swap in the Maiden Court, Vol. 10

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By Satsuki Nakamura and Kana Yuki. Released in Japan as “Futsutsuka na Akujo dewa Gozaimasu ga: Suuguu Chouso Torikae Den” by Ichijinsha Novels. Released in North America by Airship. Translated by Tara Quinn.

Something we’ve seen throughout this series but especially in this volume is the idea of what an “ideal” woman is in this Court Intrigue series. The series began by showing us that Reirin was delicate, fragile, and good at all the things that men prized in a woman, whereas Keigetsu was boorish, clumsy, and the one thing she’s really good at she has to keep hidden. Of course, we now know that delicate flower is not the word anyone would use to describe Reirin – except maybe Seika, and even she, by the end of this volume, has had the Reirin pedestal in her mind taken down. Here we also get a foreign delegate who explicitly regards all Ei women as weak and unable to fight back, and Seika (who among the five maidens has been the most feminine one) has to come to the realization herself, and then tell him, that in fact the Maidens all learn to be silk hiding steel. No more so than Reirin.

After the events of the last two volumes, everything is seemingly back to normal, and the maidens are back to learning how to be consorts. However, a foreign prince is visiting the country, and Seika is in charge of the welcome. She decides to rope in Reirin (because she adores her) and Keigetsu (because Reirin won’t go without her) to help her with the ceremony, which is mostly ceremonial – they roll out the red carpet and the prince says he is content, and everyone is happy. Unfortunately, it turns out that Seika, especially after torturing and starving the consort and effectively moving up in the power structure, is battling family who very much want to bring her down. What’s more, Seika’s seaside city is a lot less happy and content than she thought when she grew up there. And the prince, who has his own agenda, is far from content. Worst of all, I used the word “seemingly” at the start of the paragraph for good reason.

When I started this volume I was a bit puzzled. The last book ended with such a dire cliffhanger for Reirin, what happened to it? As it turns out, I had reckoned without Reirin’s powers of trying to make everyone around her think things are totally fine. We’ve had lingering in the background the fact that the bodyswaps seem to be affecting Reirin’s health to a degree, but it’s only to a degree – and after the last extended swap, she’s actually worse than before. Reirin has a chronic unknown illness that no one can find a cure for. She has been dying for years, and it feels much closer now. And she just cannot quite work up the strength to tell Keigetsu about it. Unfortunately, that means that when Keigetsu, trying to protect Leelee by being brash as usual, ends up in a dire situation., a bodyswap means that Reirin is now in the dire situation. Reirin, who has come very, very close to accepting this is how she dies.

Keigetsu, needless to say, is utterly devastated when she finds out, especially when she realizes that she doesn’t have the power for several days to swap them back. Keigetsu still has a tendency to feel that everything she has achieved is thanks to Reirin, and even more so, that everything bad that’s happened to Reirin is her fault, leading to her literally saying “let’s stop being friends” at one point. Keigetsu, of course, fails to realize that she is the best thing in Reirin’s life right now. One of the funnier scenes in this book is seeing Gyoumei trying his damndest to talk to Reirin via Keigetsu’s fire every day, and realizing, as does Keishou, that Reirin honestly is just not that into him – or anyone, really. Again, this isn’t yuri, but if there’s anyone Reirin is interested in most at the moment, it’s Keigetsu.

Fortunately, the fact that there’s been another body swap, as well as Keigetsu literally begging Reirin to live, makes things better for the moment. Though I’ve no doubt that Reirin’s chronic illness is the series’ final boss. In any case, next time, it’s Reirin’s time to fight back. And we all know what that means. There’s going to be utter chaos. Highly recommended, and I hope the anime is good.

Too Many Losing Heroines!, Vol. 7

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By Takibi Amamori and Imigimuru. Released in Japan as “Make Heroine ga Ōsugiru!” by Gagaga Bunko. Released in North America by Airship. Translated by Matthew Jackson. Adapted by Hayame.

The strength of this series does tend to be the fact that, in regards to everything except his own attractiveness to women, Nukumizu is a pretty savvy guy. While you want to beat his head in with a shovel during casual, downtime moments, when the chips are down and you’re having a crisis, he will be the one that’s there to offer the best thing to say that will make all your problem feel like they’re in focus. Unfortunately, it won’t make all your problems go away, and in other respects, as the girls note, Nukumizu is the worst. Not only is he absolutely a sucker for a pretty face, something his matter-of-fact narration denies but is obvious regardless, but he has hung out with all these insane losing heroines for so long that he will naturally assist them even if the idea is not only lunacy but literally illegal. If their teachers weren’t there this would be the final volume as they’d be expelled.

It’s the start of the new school year, and the literature club is in trouble. After a disastrous club presentation, none of the first years will give them the time of day, and without a fifth member they’re disbanded. Fortunately, their advisor has a first-year who will join… except somehow she’s already serving a two-week suspension. Riko Shiratama is cute and nice, and the guys love her, while the girls… don’t love her as much, but don’t despise her yet. Unfortunately, she has a problem. You see, her childhood crush is getting married, and it’s not to her, so she’s actually… a losing heroine! As such, Nukumizu is quick to offer the club’s help to let her get over her issues. Even if that means breaking and entering. Which she’s already been arrested for once already.

Riko makes a good addition to the cast, essentially being Kaju only without the incest, and she also reminds me of the new first-year in Chitose Is in the Ramune Bottle, in that she’s a lot more straightforward and honest about her feelings than the rest of the cast, and that means she’s going to make a lot of them very unhappy. Elsewhere, assuming your favorite isn’t Lemon, who’s barely in this because she had the last book, you should be pretty happy. Chika is a wreck, Kaju is obsessed and creepy, Shikiya is going to try to airhead her way into being married to Nukumizu, etc. As with a lot of these “balanced harem” series, though, the balance can be off, and if your favorite isn’t Anna, you may not like how I suspect this series would end if the author weren’t a coward. Anna gets several long scenes, both comedic and serious, with Nukumizu, and she identifies so much with Riko’s crush that she even genuinely loses weight in order to help. You could argue she and Nukumizu would be very bad for each other, but I mean, what series are you reading again?

All this plus the student council president seducing women while dressed as a man. Next is the eighth….. no it’s not. Short story collection? Short story collection.

Reforming an Icy Final Boss: Getting Back at the Self-Proclaimed Villainess with the Power of Friendship, Vol. 2

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By Takamedou and Nemusuke. Released in Japan as “”Jishou Akuyaku Reijou” ni Korosareta Last Boss no Yarinaoshi: Bocchi na Reitetsu Koujo wa, Dai Ni no Jinsei de Riajuu wo Mezashimasu” by DRE Novels. Released in North America by J-Novel Heart. Translated by Sheldon Drzka.

The famous Bible quote “the sins of the father are visited upon the son” can apply to daughters as well, and it certainly does here. Milly may be doing her best to make friends, show off, and live her best second life, but her father Kyle is still regarded by everyone as the absolute worst, and he is certainly not above destroying families because he’s in a bad mood. As such, no one wants to be close friends with Milly except those who know her really well – why risk it? What’s more, it turns out that her life is still in danger, mostly because there’s someone else trying to change the current timeline. Not, I hasten to add, because they’re another person who remembers the otome game. No, they just remember the first timeline, and they think the country is headed to ruin and Milly is helping it.

Milly is a bit stressed. She still hasn’t made friends beyond the Student Council and the girls she saved from Angelina’s evil plan in Book 1. And since final exams are upon them soon, there’s no time to make them. Fortunately, she’s good at studying, so can help the others, even if they may not really want her to. And then there’s her class, who are still terrified of her… at least until they see how adorably socially awkward she is, whereupon they fold like card tables. She’s even getting closer to her father, who she still sees as evil incarnate, but who we the reader see is simply very overprotective and even more socially awkward than she is. Will she be able to take first place in exams and get the First Dance at the next ball? Wait, isn’t Angelina still around? And is she the ONLY villain?

Last time I said I wanted to see more of Kyle, Milly’s father, and we do get a lot more of him here. The reason this plot is happening at all is that he’s got so much power, and the future shows him betraying the country, which almost destroys the country. Unfortunately, Milly is not really dealing with that end of the problem, focusing instead on not having everyone at school not care if she gets brutally murdered. She’s also still not great at picking up social cues. She gets that Ike hates her, and wants to fix it, but she hasn’t noticed that there’s someone else in the Council who remains cool to her, and that becomes a big issue. Also, the Council very quickly learns that “we want to keep this quiet so we’ll just keep her under house arrest” is not a great move if she, y’know, escapes. On the bright side, possibly as this is mostly not from the webnovel, Milly’s characterization is more consistent – not too stoic or too goofy.

This is a Dre Novels series, so I assume it will end with Vol. 3, which I don’t believe is out yet. Milly, talk to your father.

Manga the Week of 4/1/26

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SEAN: It’s a Marchey, Apriley sort of week.

ASH: That it is.

SEAN: Airship’s print title is the 13th volume of Failure Frame.

For early digital we debut Classroom of the Elite: Year 3 (Youkoso Jitsuryoku Shijou Shugi no Kyoushitsu e: 3-Nensei-hen), the sequel to the first two years, which explores what to do when the protagonist is now your enemy.

Also early digital: Betrothed to My Sister’s Ex 2 and She Professed Herself Pupil of the Wise Man 16.

Cross Infinite World has a new one-shot, The Brooding Duke’s Guide to the Lie-Detecting Lady (Fukigen na Koushaku-sama wa Uso Hakkenki Tsuki Reijou no Torisetsu wo Goshomou desu: Ophelia ni wa Uso wa Tsukenai). A girl who can tell is someone is lying… and thus her life among petty nobles is a living hell… is recruited by her crush the Duke to ferret out vice.

ASH: I feel like I’ve read something else along these lines recently, but can’t quite recall what it was.

MICHELLE: Usotoki Rhetoric, perhaps?

ASH: Oh, right! That’s the one.

SEAN: CIW also has Breaking Up Was the Plan, the Duke Falling For the Villainess Was Not! 2 and Dinners with My Darling 3.

Drawn and Quarterly has a 5th volume in their Complete Yoshiharu Tsuge library. He Rolled Me Up Like a Grilled Squid collects stories from the mid-late 1970s.

ASH: This series has been so good.

SEAN: Ize Press has the 3rd volume of the Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint novel, as well as Radio Storm 4.

No debuts for J-Novel Club. For light novels we get DUNGEON DIVE: Aim for the Deepest Level 12, Long Story Short, I’m Living in the Mountains 5, Peddler in Another World 12, and The Tanaka Family Reincarnates 6.

And for manga, we get Demon Lord, Retry! R 10, Fushi no Kami 9, The Invincible Little Lady 12, A Late-Start Tamer’s Laid-Back Life 9, and What’s with the Bag, Kamiyama-san? 2.

Kodama is putting out Sun-Ken Rock: Perfect Edition. The digital version had come out here years ago, but now it’s in print. Delinquent Japanese guy chases a girl to Korea and winds up in the Korean mafia. This is classic Boichi.

ASH: This should make some people happy.

SEAN: They also have Baki the Grappler 13 and 14 and Me and the Alien Mumu 2.

Kodansha Manga debuts Fruit of the Underworld (Meiou no Zakuro), the latest title from Aya Kanno. This runs in Champion Cross. A young man fell into a well as a child, and since then has been cursed with bad luck. But when he tries to get rid of what he thinks led to the bad luck, he finds himself in a much worse situation.

MICHELLE: Huh. Aya Kanno does shounen.

ASH: I’m looking forward to giving it a try!

ANNA: I’m curious!

SEAN: There’s also Dragon Head Omnibus 2, Honeko Akabane’s Bodyguards 8, Omega Megaera 3, Senpai is an Otokonoko 5, The Seven Deadly Sins: Four Knights of the Apocalypse 21, Shangri-La Frontier 21, That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime 29, and Wistoria: Wand and Sword 12.

ASH: I should really give Dragon Head a re-read.

SEAN: Digitally we get The God-Tier Guardian and the Love of Six Princesses 17.

Seven Seas’ one debut is When a Clueless First-Person Shooter Player Falls into Another World (Manuke na FPS Player ga Isekai e Ochita Baai), a seinen manga from Young Ace Up! based on the light novel they’re releasing digital only. The manga has print, though. Gun guy ends up in RPG fantasy world.

Other manga from Seven Seas: CALL TO ADVENTURE! Defeating Dungeons with a Skill Board 11, Chillin’ in Another World with Level 2 Super Cheat Powers 12, Drugstore in Another World 12, DUNGEON DIVE: Aim for the Deepest Level 8, Dungeon People 6, Grand Metal Organs 2, Headhunted to Another World 10, His Majesty the Demon King’s Housekeeper 12, Hokkaido Gals Are Super Adorable! Omnibus 2, The Lying Bride and the Same-Sex Marriage Debate 2 (the final volume), Made in Abyss 14, Magic Artisan Dahlia Wilts No More 8, The Masterful Cat Is Depressed Again Today 11, Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid: Elma’s Office Lady Diary 10, Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid: Kanna’s Daily Life 14, Nakamura-san, the Uninvited Gyaru 5, and Reborn as a Space Mercenary 10.

ASH: That’s a fair amount!

SEAN: Titan Manga has Villain Actor 2.

Tokyopop has a 2nd volume of Fated NOT to Meet.

And Udon Entertainment has Hidetaka Tenjin’s Artistry of Gundam, an artbook.

ASH: Udon’s artbooks are generally solid, quality-wise.

SEAN: And that’s it for a very Marchey, Apriley sort of list. Did something catch your eye?

MICHELLE: Not much, honestly.

ANNA: Yep, more time to get caught up on things!

Even Exiled, She’s Still the Beloved Saint! St. Evelyn’s Weird and Wonderful Friends, Vol. 2

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By Harunadon and Kurodeko. Released in Japan as “Tsuihousareta Seijo desu ga, Jitsu wa Kunijuu kara Aisaresugitete Kowain desu kedo!?” by Earth Star Luna. Released in North America by J-Novel Heart. Translated by Camilla L.

It can be difficult for me to do a review of a title that relies so much on just being funny. We aren’t really going to get much in the way of ongoing plot, and while there is character development, it’s not really why folks would want to read this book. This book is read for the laughs. Watching Evelyn suffer, seeing her misunderstand, seeing everyone else just completely losing their minds when she supposedly vanishes, and of course everything about the curse and its aftereffects that we get in this volume. The translator must have had a ball, as there a whole lot of puns that will make even the most inveterate jokester feel a bit sheepish. (Ahem.) Fortunately, there is a dramatic nugget to grab a hold of here, and it’s actually very interesting. It also involves a new character who is, rest assured, just as weird as the others, but can also give Evelyn something she desperately needs – a mother figure.

Evelyn is going through some tough times. She’s trying to learn how to be a proper noble lady, after years of only having to be The Saint. The problem is, she’s not very good at dancing, posture, etc. The bigger problem is all her tutors insists she’s perfect, they have nothing to teach her, and then they quit. Kira is the only one who seems to recognize that she’s upset at all this. So she decides to run away for a bit, taking Kira with her and leaving a note to explain things. Unfortunately, she tried to write the note in poetic language, which means folks think she ran off to commit suicide. She actually ends up at the shore of a lake, one with gorgeous scenery, a mysterious curse, and Europa’s mother, who has a tendency to pass out at the drop of a hat but is otherwise exactly what you’d expect from a light novel mother. She’s called Mamaropa, because of course she is.

There’s some other interesting things in this book, particularly the unexpected friendship (and maybe more? Yuri?) between Theodore’s younger sister Karin and Evelyn’s evil sister Mary, who is still a bit of a brat but is now far less evil thanks to Karin’s tutelage. But the main reason I enjoyed this is seeing Evelyn and Mamaropa interact. Evelyn’s issues in this book stem from one very specific problem – almost everyone in her life puts her on a pedestal, and refuses to tell her she’s doing anything wrong. She needs family guidance, and her family are either dead or mostly still bad people. Mamaropa is very silly (it is a comedy book), and the Mommy jokes can wear a bit thin, but she doesn’t talk to Evelyn like she’s The Beloved Saint, and may even manage to teach her – we’ll see, a third book is coming. Technically there’s also Kira, and he does function as a little brother, but he has to be there to be the tsukkomi when Evelyn can’t do it herself, so he’s too busy.

I think I enjoyed this a bit more than the first book. Assuming you don’t mind – I emphasize once more – this being very, very silly, it’s a fun read.

The Trials and Tribulations of My Next Life As a Noblewoman: A Ray of Hope, Part 1

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By Kamihara and Shiro46. Released in Japan as “Tensei Reijo to Sūki na Jinsei o” by Hayakawa Shobo. Released in North America by J-Novel Heart. Translated by Hengtee Lim.

The one thing that I think has surprised me most about this series is its dedication to the “My Next Life” part of the title. Let’s face it, in a LOT of these types of series with, if not a villainess, at least a villainess shape, the actual reincarnated from Japan part sometimes gets forgotten. Deliberately so, in many cases – like the male counterparts, a lot of writers write villainess books because people will read that. Trials and Tribulations, though, has quietly continued to point out Karen and Ern’s isekai life, even when it already has a ton of other plot that it could more simply focus on. Last time we saw that Ern was bringing modern guns and gunpowder into a world not ready for it, and the genie really isn’t going back into that bottle. This time, we see there was a country of reincarnators. It even talks about how the original soul “dies” and is replaced with the otherworld one. This series remains a LOT.

As you’d expect, Karen is not doing well after the events of the last book, and ends up in her bedroom basically falling deeper and deeper into depression. Fortunately, she has an angry but kind-hearted tsundere to drag her out and force her to deal with life again. And she also has Reinald, who is not angry or tsundere but is still quietly very interested in her, though she does come far behind his ultimate goal. Karen, though, has far TOO much to deal with. Ern’s parents are being banished for being the parents of a traitor, and while they understandably are a bit pissed at Karen, they also give her a secret message. This allows Karen to discover Ern’s legacy, which can be seen on the cover art but which we’re not quite sure what’s it’s for yet. Six definitely seems to think it’s for him, though. Oh yes, and she’s getting honored by the Emperor for blowing her best friend’s brains out. As one does.

This book is filled with my favorite thing in the series, which is Karen’s matter of fact narration about herself and everything else, followed by someone asking if she could possibly have reactions like a real person. They’d love to see the part early on when she finally gets a delivery of rice, and she’s so overjoyed when she eats she starts to cry. Again, this series has not forgotten its isekai beats. As for Karen and Reinald, I do still think the series is working its way towards them being, if not married, at least engaged by the end. But wow, it’s making me work for that, as that’s quite a Napoleonic goal Reinald has. And it’s so very, very Karen for her advice to him being “why stop there?”. These two absolutely deserve each other. And that’s terrible.

The main flaw of this book is that it is, of course, only half a book. Presumably the subtitle will make more sense after the second part. Still great, though.

The Tiny Witch from the Deep Woods, Vol. 3

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By Yanagi and Yoh Hihara. Released in Japan as “Mori no Hashikko no Chibi Majo-san” by TO Books. Released in North America by J-Novel Club. Translated by Nathan Macklem.

There’s a famous early episode of M*A*S*H where Hawkeye tries to save a patient but fails, and is despondent about it. Henry Blake, in a rare serious turn, says that the first thing he learned in the war was two rules. Rule #1: Young men die. Rule #2: Doctors can’t change Rule #1. This third volume of Tiny Witch is very much about teaching Misha that lesson, as she goes through all the worst things a doctor – sorry, apothecary – can go through. There’s a pandemic that she finds near impossible to solve, people blame her for it and even attack her at one point, and even once she helps to find an answer, some people still die from it and her relationship with the survivors will never be the same. Being an apothecary is not just handing out magic medicine that makes everyone better. Sometimes people die. Misha does learn this lesson, but there are a lot of tears and breakdowns afoot here.

Misha is having a lot of fun at the Kingdom of Redford. She’s helped the princess regain some of her health, she’s made friends with the local children, and she even gets to walk around a town festival. Unfortunately, then those same kids come to tell her that one of them is sick. Along with her grandmother. And the sickness turns out to be very familiar – it’s the plague that almost destroyed the kingdom a generation ago. Now she has to try to solve what others couldn’t before, and without any other help… or so she thinks, but fortunately, some allies arrive to remind her that while the elves (cough) sorry, People of the Forest are loners who tend not to get involved in other people’s business, they will actually help her if she needs help. Even more fortunately, friends she made along the way in the first book turn out to be more valuable than she thought.

This is very much both a “Misha grows up” volume and also a reminder that Misha is not grown up yet, and also has had a lot of trauma in the past. As it turns out, and I’m sure this won’t become relevant in a later book, the woman who set up the death of Misha’s mother, who was confined to an asylum, has escaped. Her friend tries to ask if it’s OK to tell her the information, but the mere reminder of the incident sends Misha into a panic attack. Because she’s good at remaining outwardly nice and friendly, it’s hard to tell sometimes how she’s barely holding it together, and the plague absolutely does not help. By the end of the book, she’s the definition of sadder but wiser, especially with the children she made friends with, who now see her and can’t help but think “she promised to save my granny but did not”. Misha, think of those you did save as well.

The end of this book suggests that we will spend the next several books stuck in the People of the Forest’s closed-off village, and I am 100% sure that’s not going to happen, so it will be interesting to see how that gets derailed. Till then, this is a very solid fantasy.

Pick of the Week: Bible Studies

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SEAN: No question, my pick this week is The Manga Bible, the new nonfiction coffeetable book by Helen McCarthy. It looks terrific, and is no doubt a treasure trove of lore.

MICHELLE: I agree; it looks amazing.

ANNA: Absolutely the release to highlight this week!

KATE: I’m excited to pick up a copy of The Manga Bible, but I’ll also make a pitch for Rock Is a Lady’s Modesty, a manga that doesn’t break all the rules, but recognizes that even demure young women like REALLY LOUD MUSIC. As a late-in-life metal fan, that’s a message I can get behind.

ASH: I can get behind that message, too! And also The Manga Bible, which should be excellent. (Although, I personally would have gone with a different title for the work, to avoid being conflated with the various other manga bibles out there…)

The Villainess Speaks Not: The Awoken Genius and the Once-Lost Pawn

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By Kei Yose and Ruria Miyuki. Released in Japan as “Akuyaku Reijou wa Shaberimasen” by Overlap Bunko. Released in North America by J-Novel Club. Translated by Adam.

I always find it very interesting when J-Novel Club puts a villainess title in their “main” imprint rather than in the romance-oriented J-Novel Heart line. The implication is that the romance is not the point in this series, and that’s certainly true in this first volume, where our pre-teen villainess does her best to try to avoid becoming the official fiancee to the crown prince. But more to the point, this is one of those villainess series that runs entirely on politics and intrigue, and that places it squarely in the main line of books. Liliana has assassins try to kill her over and over again in this book, and she’s only six years old for most of it. The kingdom is being torn apart and a coup may be imminent. There’s an aggressive mage running around simply starting chaos on behalf of someone unseen. Then again, give the sheer OP capabilities of Liliana, maybe everyone is right to worry.

I need you to bear with me while I write the next sentence, because I promise this book was really good. Liliana Clarke wakes up from a week-long fever to find that she now remembers her past life from Japan, and also that this is the world of an otome game where she is the villainess. (You can’t be too surprised, given the title and the genre.) She also finds that she can’t speak anymore, due to the illness… or due to a curse. This is not good news, because magic here requires spoken incantations. She can’t even call for help in case assassins attack her. Which, given that her dad is one of the biggest power brokers in the country, is a problem. Fortunately Liliana already knows that most magic is not “ironclad rules” put “power of imagination” Which means she has no need for speaking. Also, she can do literally almost anything.

It’s a rare villainess book that has almost no humor at all. What’s more, while her life is truly terrible, Liliana does have allies in her corner (including the crown prince – she may want to break off their engagement, but not if he has anything to say about it). This is important, because danger lurks around every corner here. Possibly the most chilling moment in the book is when, after a monster stampede that destroyed a town and killed dozens, which she managed to stop but passed out from mana loss, her father happens to be passing my in the aftermath and murmurs “what, still alive?”. Fortunately, Liliana really is OP, and her allies are fun, especially mage Petra (who may treat Liliana too casually but knows her stuff) and mercenaries Gildo and Olga (whho marvel at the fact that she’s not like those other nobles). By the end of the book she’s regained her voice but decides to hide it to fool her enemies. It’s a good plan, especially as the apple-eating bad guy who doesn’t have a name but certainly has a mission to wipe her out continues to hang around.

The webnovel has finished for this, and there are five volumes so far in Japan, so we’ve barely gotten started. What’s more, this was 380 pages, so it’s a beefy book. I felt rewarded, though. Thrilling stuff.

Repeated Vice: I Refuse to Be Important Enough to Die, Vol. 2

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By Kuroakawa Hitsugi and Kushiro Kuki. Released in Japan as “Repeat Vice: Akuyaku Kizoku wa Shinitakunai node Shitennou ni Naru no wo Yamemashita” by HJ Bunko. Released in North America by J-Novel Club. Translated by piyo.

This series has one big selling point that makes it a lot better than most of the “reincarnated as some dude who dies” series I’ve been reading lately. Lofus starts this book angry, goes through the book angry, and ends the book angry. He is a perpetually frowning, bitching twelve-year-old, even when he’s rescuing slaves, helping to extend the life of dying wyverns, or helping one of the heroines escape from his family’s deadly crypt. Why does he have to do all this? Why can’t people just leave him alone to get on with escaping his pointless fate? An escape that seems like it might be harder than it sounds, as when the main bad guy of the series shows up to invite Lofus to join his Council of Evil, Lofus really has to struggle to say no. The narrative wants what it wants. Well, mostly. SOMEONE besides Lofus is able to twist the narrative to serve their own devices. I wonder who?

We pick up where we left off last time, as Lofus and his bodyguard Yusurika find themselves teleported to where the slaves are being sent. They find Norn, Faltiana’s friend, almost too quickly, though she’s been raped and tortured by her abusive owner. He also finds Warm, who is another “character” who was part of the Council of Evil (not its real name) and who is, at the moment, just some guy who loves his wyverns – though Lofus feels a need to fight him anyway, as in the previous world he was intensely jealous of Warm. Finally returning home, he’s immediately sent by his dad (another of those “I think he’s horrible but the reader sees he’s just awkward” dads) to investigate a break-in of the family crypt… and finds another “heroine” like Faltiana, who has triggered a trap and is now surrounded by monsters, as this crypt is basically a dungeon.

Setting aside the part that annoyed me first – I accept the author did not want this to be a series that realistically covered the aftermath of a rape and abuse victim, especially if she’s not going to show up much going forward, but “I was told to get over myself” is not really how I wanted her to recover either. Honestly, this series is a bit too quick to have rape as a threat to begin with, because it’s trying to show a tonally dark setting. On the bright side, the new love interest, Lilka, is an absolute hoot, being one of those “bright, talkative, has no sense of personal space or noble customs” girls. The funniest part of the book is where he realizes she must also have knowledge of the game, and tests her… but no, she has no idea what the hell he’s talking about. She *is* different from the game, but not, as far as we can tell, because she’s from Japan.

The book ends with a cliffhanger, but I’ve no doubt that Lofus is going to save the day, have ludicrous amounts of cool magic tricks, and be very, very grumpy. I’m here for it.

Re: ZERO -Starting Life in Another World – Ex, Vol. 6

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By Tappei Nagatsuki and Shinichirou Otsuka. Released in Japan as “Re: Zero Kara Hajimeru Isekai Seikatsu Ex”by Media Factory. Released in North America by Yen On. Translated by Kevin Steinbach.

I know a lot of this review might sound like I’m complaining about the dead dove I found in the bag labeled Dead Dove: Do Not Eat. But it’s been harder lately to forget just how incredibly, punishingly bleak Re: Zero can get when it’s firing on all cylinders. The middle third of this volume is just getting punched in the face by the author over and over again, and I’ll be honest, I did not enjoy it at all. Part of it is that I don’t really enjoy seeing characters suffer – that was the me of thirty years ago – but I think a lot of it is that this is still a side story that talks a lot about how awesome Theresia is and then proceeds to not really show us any of that. Most of this book Theresia is unable to fight for one reason or another, and even though the author lampshades it a bit it’s still annoying. I hate damseling.

After a few volumes that examine other side characters, we’re back to the backstory of Wilhelm, who is now happily married to Theresia. Unfortunately, there’s a problem, which is that Stride and Eight-Arms Kurgan are still at large, and are not likely to simply go back to the Empire empty-handed. As it turns out, Stride has an absolutely epic plan that revolves around the fact that, despite being a country that the dragon will supposedly protect in times of peril, the dragon never appeared during the ten years of their civil war. Was this because it didn’t involve other countries? Or is the dragon thing a lie? To find out, Stride decides to kidnap, murder, and turn into mind-controlled puppets a good part of the cast, and it’s up to Wilhelm, his best friend Grimm, and Roswaal J. Mathers (note the middle initial) to try to save the day.

I’ve talked before about how the way these come out in Japan and here is screwed up, because Yen started late and can’t release this book with Vol. 39 of the main series, as it did in Japan. So there’s some subtext here that will no doubt make sense when we do get that book in 2029 or so. On the other hand, sometimes it does match up with other volumes accidentally quite well. This book comes out here right after Short Stories 4, a book with a large amount of Carol and Grimm, who are old but still powerful folks in the main series and are young powerful folks in this side story. Carol really goes through the wringer, and I am grateful that the “you were mind controlled but you still killed all those people including my dad” plotline is absolutely ignored. This was bad enough without that. And we also say a fond farewell to the Roswaal Mathers of the past, who if nothing else I liked a lot more than the Roswaal Mathers of the present.

This had good fights, and lots of interesting lore. But, like a few other Re: Zero books I’ve read lately, I can sum it up thusly: A Slog.

Manga the Week of 3/25/26

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SEAN: The end of March is nearing, and will it be a lion or a lamb?

ASH: Seems pretty lion-ish of late.

SEAN: Yen On has two spinoff debuts. Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End -Prelude- (Shusetsu Sousou no Frieren ‑Zensou‑) is a short story collection that, despite the word prelude, does cover folks from the present day. The author is best known for The Mimosa Confessions, though I’ve no doubt the Frieren author supervised.

So I’m a Spider, So What? Ex (Kumo Desu ga, Nani ka? Ex) is the long-delayed companion volume to the light novel series that ended here in 2023. It has short stories, character profiles, some artwork, etc.

ASH: That’ll be nice for fans to finally have.

SEAN: Yen Press has the bulk of its March titles out this week. Bad Girl is a Manga Time Kirara Carat series, so you know there’s a limit to how bad she can be. Our bad girl heroine is only being bad as she has a crush on the public morals club president, and this way she can see her all the time! The trouble is her attempts at being bad are… cute. This got an anime recently.

ASH: I am actually delighted by this premise.

SEAN: Battlefront of the Great Powers (Rekkyo Sensen) is a sci-fi action series from Comic Zenon. It’s a battle royale-style manga, where if you lose a tournament arc not only do you die, but so does everyone you care about! Needless to say, not a comedy.

ASH: I have been known to enjoy tournament arcs from time to time.

SEAN: How to Love a Loser (Dame Ningen no Aishikata) is a Web Comic Apanda title that was originally a doujinshi. Our hero is a complete loser, but he has a wonderful girlfriend who loves him. Why does she love someone like him? He resolves to find out. I think this will go badly for him, but hey. I was told this is “for masochists”.

ANNA: No thank you!!!!

SEAN: A Pen, Handcuffs, and a Common-Law Marriage (Pen to Wappa to Jijitsu-kon) is a seinen manga from Young Animal. A detective finds that his witness on a case can’t speak, but she can draw, which is good enough for him. Wait, she wants to marry him?

MICHELLE: I was intrigued by the pen and the detective, but now I think I’ll pass.

SEAN: Soulless: The Complete Omnibus is an OEL steampunk manga with vampires and werewolves, which should come as no surprise once you saw the “OEL”.

ASH: Nice to see this staying in print for a bit longer.

ANNA: I enjoyed the books!

SEAN: Also from Yen Press: Agents of the Four Seasons: Dance of Spring 4, The Anemone Feels the Heat 3, Apocalypse Bringer Mynoghra 5, Be My Worst Nightmare! 4, Blend-S 4, Common-Sense Monster 2, Death March to the Parallel World Rhapsody 18, The Demons Are Planning Something Good! 2, Elden Ring: The Road to the Erdtree 8, Excellent Property, Rejects for Residents 5 (the final volume), The Fiancee Chosen by the Ring 7, Gals Can’t Be Kind to Otaku?! 2, Game of Familia 8, Hollow Regalia 2, If It’s You, I Might Try Falling in Love 3, In the Heavenly Prison, the Devil Enchants Me 3, It’s All Your Fault 3, I’ll Become a Villainess Who Goes Down in History 4, Kunon the Sorcerer Can See 2, Lycoris Recoil Official Comic Anthology: Reload 2, Me and My Beast Boss 4, mono 4, My Dear, Curse-Casting Vampiress 7, My Mate Is a Feline Gentleman 4, No Game No Life Chapter 2: Eastern Union Arc 3, Re:ZERO -Starting Life in Another World-, Chapter 4: The Sanctuary and the Witch of Greed 10, Reincarnation Coliseum 3, Rock Is a Lady’s Modesty 2, Sacrificial Princess and the King of Beasts Heir 3, Secrets of the Silent Witch 5, Spy Classroom 3rd Period: Forgetter 2, Stray Cat & Wolf 4, A Terrified Teacher at Ghoul School! 17, The White Cat’s Revenge as Plotted from the Dragon King’s Lap 5, and With You, Our Love Will Make It Through 4.

MICHELLE: Somehow, I missed that a sequel (?) to Sacrificial Princess and the King of Beasts was coming out.

SEAN: Viz Media would like to remind you that only one author has ever written horror manga in Japan ever. Or at least make it seem that way. Statues: Junji Ito Story Collection is stuff from the early 90s, and ran in Monthly Halloween, a shoujo magazine.

ASH: I mean, I do like Junji Ito’s work, but it’s good to mix it up sometimes, too.

SEAN: Viz also has JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Part 7–Steel Ball Run 6.

ASH: I’ve got some catching up to do!

SEAN: Tokyopop gives us The Margrave’s Daughter & the Enemy Prince 7 and Wild Beast Forest House 3.

Steamship has the 4th volume of Sweet Heat Before Falling in Love: The CEO and His Fated Omega.

Square Enix Manga has Always a Catch! 6, Dragon Quest: The Mark of Erdrick 3, Just Like Mona Lisa 8, and On and Off: Work-Life Imbalance 3.

Seven Seas has, in danmei, the 11th and final volume of The Husky and His White Cat Shizun, which also has a Special Edition filled with postcards and such.

ASH: Nice.

SEAN: And there’s a 4th deluxe hardcover of Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation: Mo Dao Zu Shi.

ASH: Also nice.

SEAN: The first manga debut is Fluffy Café in Another World (Isekai Mofumofu Cafe), a josei series from B’s-Comic Log which has a light novel also coming out soon from SS. A man dies saving a cat, who turns out to be a god. The god gives him the powerful tamer skill in his next life, which he uses to… open an animal cafe?

ASH: It pays to be nice to cats.

ANNA: I strive for this daily.

SEAN: And we get His Little Amber, a BL manga from the magazine Nuude. What if a yakuza found a leopard cub that turned into a hot young man?

ASH: What if, indeed!

SEAN: Also from Seven Seas: The Barbarian’s Bride 6, HOOL!GAN’S 2 (the final volume), I Think I Turned My Childhood Friend Into a Girl 10, It Takes More Than a Pretty Face to Fall in Love 5, The Legend of Dororo and Hyakkimaru 11, Skeleton Knight in Another World 14, and Time Stop Hero 14.

Prestel, an imprint of Penguin Random House, publishes The Manga Bible, which is a history of the genre by the legendary Helen McCarthy. If you wanted a new coffee table manga book, this is for you.

ASH: This should be excellent! Helen McCarthy’s work is great.

ANNA: Nice, this sounds great.

SEAN: No debuts for Kodansha Manga. For print we have Anyway, I’m Falling in Love with You 10, Blue Lock 28, A Condition Called Love 17, Kei X Yaku: Bound By Law 11, Nezumi’s First Love 3, Tune In to the Midnight Heart 6, and Versus 5.

MICHELLE: Someday, I will read more Blue Lock.

SEAN: And digitally we get Even Given the Worthless “Appraiser” Class, I’m Actually the Strongest 16 (the final volume) and Shangri-La Frontier 24.

No debuts for J-Novel Club. On the light novel end, we get From Two-Bit Baddie to Total Heartthrob 5, The Goddess Says, “Kill the Tsundere Witch!” 3, Goodbye, Overtime! This Reincarnated Villainess Is Living for Her New Big Brother 7, Now I’m a Demon Lord! Happily Ever After with Monster Girls in My Dungeon 15, The Poison King 7, and Scooped Up by an S-Rank Adventurer! 3.

And on the manga end they have The Brilliant Healer’s New Life in the Shadows 5, The Eternal Fool’s Words of Wisdom 8, A Livid Lady’s Guide to Getting Even 7, and The Water Magician 6.

Inklore has a 6th volume of My Love Story with Yamada-kun at Lv999.

Ghost Ship has Becoming a Princess Knight and Working at a Yuri Brothel 5 (the final volume).

Dark Horse Manga has Lone Wolf and Cub Deluxe Edition 2.

ASH: I am so tempted.

SEAN: Airship’s print debut is My Girlfriend Cheated on Me, and Now My Flirty Underclassman Won’t Leave Me Alone (Kanojo ni Uwakisareteita Ore ga, Koakuma na Kouhai ni Natsukareteimasu), whose title is the plot.

ASH: At least you know what you’re getting?

SEAN: Also in print: Reincarnated as a Dragon Hatchling 13.

And in early digital we get Loner Life in Another World 14 and Witch and Mercenary 6 (part 1).

That seems like a lot, but I think that’s mostly Yen Press’s fault. What interests you?