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Discussion, Resources, Roundtables, & Reviews

arisa

My Week in Manga: January 13-January 19, 2013

January 20, 2014 by Ash Brown

My News and Reviews

There were three posts at Experiments in Manga last week, only two of which were mine. First up was my review of Negi Banno’s S.S. Astro, Volume 1, a yonkoma manga about a group of young, twenty-something high school teachers. Sadly, the series was canceled before a second volume could be released. The review is the second manga for my Year of Yuri review project. My other post last week is a part of my continuing efforts to track down manga podcasts. Discovering Manga: Podcasts, Part 3 takes a look a three ongoing podcasts that started in 2013. Also last week, I was happy to welcome Jocilyn Wagner as a guest to Experiments in Manga with her review of Hiroki Ugawa’s Shrine of the Morning Mist, Volume 1.

On to interesting things found online! Alexander Hoffman posted a Lessons from the Crater Project over at Manga Widget, which is a great summary of the events surrounding the Kickstarter project for Osamu Tezuka’s The Crater. The Daily Dot has an excellent overview of the debate over Zoë Hange gender in Attack on Titan, which has apparently become rather heated in some circles. Opening Ceremony took time to talk to the wonderful folks behind Massive–New-to-OC Brand MASSIVE on Husky Gay Asian Erotica. I also particularly enjoyed reading Tony Yao’s post The Beautiful Negativity of Seinen over at Manga Therapy.

One last thing: Usamaru Furuya’s birthday is on January 25. In honor of that, I’m declaring this week Usamaru Furuya Week at Experiments in Manga. Basically, it’s an excuse for me to get around to reviewing the rest of his manga, which I’ve been meaning to do ever since I hosted the Usamaru Furuya Manga Moveable Feast a couple of years ago. So, I’ll be posting a whopping five reviews this week! I hope you enjoy.

Quick Takes

Arisa, Volume 12Arisa, Volume 12 by Natsumi Ando. Since its beginning Arisa has gone through so many disconcerting twists and turns, how is it possible that the twins look so utterly happy on the cover of the final volume? For the most part, I was satisfied with the ending of Arisa. Things aren’t resolved as happily as the cover might imply, which I find appropriate considering the darker aspects of the story. And I wouldn’t want everything to be tied up neatly. Once again though, some of the plot twists are a little ridiculous and over-the-top. I’m all for heightened drama, but I also like it to at least make some logical sense. Admittedly, Arisa can be a bit of a mess. Even so, I really enjoyed reading the series. Also included in this volume is a rather silly side story that takes place before the events of the main series. In this case it’s Arisa posing as her sister instead of the other way around. The results are amusing though not particularly believable. Granted, at this point I’m not expecting Arisa to be particularly believable anyway.

Eyeshield 21, Volume 28Eyeshield 21, Volumes 28-31 written by Riichiro Inagaki and illustrated by Yusuke Murata. I’ve discovered that, for some reason, I really like sports manga, even when that sport is something that I’m not particularly interested in in real life. For example, American football. Yet here I am thoroughly enjoying Eyeshield 21, completely caught up in the Deimon Devil Bats’ fight to reach the Christmas Bowl. And a fight it is. These volumes focus on the game between the Devil Bats and the Hakushu Dinosaurs with an emphasis placed on football as a combat sport. (I’ve actually never really thought of football that way before, so that was an interesting take on the sport for me.) The Dinosaurs have a habit of intentionally sending their opponents to the hospital, so it’s a fairly rough game. The face-off between the two teams also shows just how far Sena has come as a player since the beginning of the series. Once a weakling pushover, he’s now become much more confident in his abilities and in himself. I’m very excited to read more of Eyeshield 21.

Hetalia: Axis Powers, Volume 4Hetalia: Axis Powers, Volumes 4-5 by Hidekaz Himaruya. I know just as many people who absolutely hate the Hetalia franchise as I do people who absolutely love it. I wouldn’t necessarily call myself a rabid fan, but it is a series I follow. I do, however, generally prefer the anime adaptation over the original manga. For some reason, even though the anime and the manga both make the same jokes, I find the anime to be funnier. There are times that I just can’t seem to figure out what the punchline is supposed to be in the manga. The manga still can make me laugh, though, and I even occasionally learn a bit of history in the process, which I appreciate. The number of countries involved in Hetalia continues to grow with these volumes, including more female personifications which is nice to see. The Netherlands in particular seems to get a fair amount of page time this time, too. Hetalia does rely heavily on stereotypes for its humor, but I don’t get the feeling that they’re being used maliciously or to be deliberately offensive.

White BrandWhite Brand by Youka Nitta. Although I didn’t realize it until reading the afterword, apparently White Brand was Nitta’s first collection of boys’ love short stories. I’ve now read several of Nitta’s manga, but it seems that they tend to be fairly hit-or-miss for me. Despite Embracing Love actually being one of my favorite yaoi series, none of Nitta’s other works have really grabbed me. That hasn’t especially changed with White Brand, though I did like it more than The Prime Minister’s Secret Diplomacy. White Brand collects five short boys’ love manga. I’m not sure if it was an intentional or not, but a recurring theme throughout most of the stories is opposites. “White Brand” is about cousins with different color skin tones. “Teal End” is about two men from different countries. “Exhibition Painting” features men from very different classes and walks of life. “One Size Fits All” is somewhat frivolous story about a tall model and a much shorter man. “Hasta la Vista, Baby” is the only story that this play on opposites isn’t immediately obvious.

MushishiMushishi: Sun-Eating Shade directed by Hiroshi Nagahama. I won’t lie–I love both the Mushishi manga and the anime. I was very excited when the special episode was announced and thrilled when Crunchyroll picked it up so that I could actually watch it. Although about twice as long as the individual episodes of the anime series, Sun-Eating Shade matches the tone, atmosphere, and ambiance perfectly. I was very happy to see that the same animation style was kept for the special episode. The backgrounds are still gorgeous, the music is still haunting, the pacing is still relaxed and unhurried. Mushishi has always been a rather episodic series, but I liked how Sun-Eating Shade made references to and loosely tied together several stories adapted in the first season of the anime. If someone didn’t enjoy the original anime series, there is nothing in Sun-Eating Shade that will change their mind. But established Mushishi fans (like me) probably won’t be disappointed with the special episode. I’m looking forward to the second season of Mushishi a great deal.

Filed Under: FEATURES, My Week in Manga Tagged With: anime, arisa, Eyeshield 21, Hetalia, Hidekaz Himaruya, manga, mushishi, Natsumi Ando, Riichiro Inagaki, Youka Nitta, Yusuke Murata

Manga Giveaway: Arisa Giveaway Winner

October 2, 2013 by Ash Brown

Arisa, Volume 1Arisa, Volume 11And the winner of the Arisa manga giveaway is…Ana Death Duarte!

As the winner, Ana will be receiving copies of the first and most recent volumes of Natsumi Ando’s manga series Arisa to be released in English. (Namely, the first and eleventh volumes.) Because Arisa features a set of twins, for this giveaway I asked that entrants tell me a little about the twins that they’ve encountered while reading manga. Do check out the giveaway comments for all of the responses. And thank you to everyone who shared and participated!

Now, because I use giveaways as an excuse to compile lists, here are some of the manga licensed in English that feature twins:

Another written by Yukito Ayatsuji, illustrated by Hiro Kiyohara
Arisa by Natsumi Ando
Ax: Alternative Manga by Various
Basara by Yumi Tamura
Black Lagoon by Rei Hiroe
Blue Exorcist by Kazue Kato
Bond of Dreams, Bond of Love by Yaya Sakuragi
A Bride’s Story by Kaoru Mori
Cage of Eden by Yoshinobu Yamada
Deadman Wonderland written by Jinsei Kataoka, illustrated by Kazuma Kondou
Chobits by CLAMP
Clover by CLAMP
D.N. Angel by Yukiru Sugisaki
A Drunken Dream and Other Stories by Moto Hagio
Fushigi Yûgi: Genbu Kaiden by Yuu Watase
Ghost Hunt by Shiho Inada
Goth written by Otsuichi, illustrated by Kendi Oiwa
Grand Guignol Orchestra by Kaori Yuki
GTO: 14 Days in Shonan by Tohru Fujisawa
Hayate X Blade by Shizuru Hayashiya
Higurashi: When They Cry written by Ryukishi07
Jiu Jiu by Touya Tobina
Jyu-Oh-Sei by Natsumi Itsuki
King of Thorn by Yuji Iwahara
Knights of the Zodiac by Masami Kurumada
Mars by Fuyumi Soryo
Miracle Girls by Nami Akimoto
Monster by Naoki Urasawa
MW by Osamu Tezuka
No. 5 by Taiyo Matsumoto
Ouran High School Host Club by Bisco Hatori
Pandora Hearts by Jun Mochizuki
Papillon by Miwa Ueda
Pretty Face by Yasuhiro Kano
Revolutionary Girl Utena by Chiho Saito
Tokyo Babylon by CLAMP
Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle by CLAMP
The Twin Knights by Osamu Tezuka
Utahime by Aki
Utsubora by Asumiko Nakamura
Vampire Knight by Matsuri Hino
Vassalord by Nanae Chrono
xxxHolic by CLAMP
Zatch Bell by Makoto Raiku
Ze by Yuki Shimizu

The above list is mostly made up of manga that I have either read or that were mentioned by those participating in the giveaway. Although lengthy, it is by no means comprehensive; there are many, many more manga with twins (licensed and unlicensed) that could have been named. Thank you again to everyone who entered the giveaway! I hope you’ll stop by again when it’s time for the next one.

Filed Under: UNSHELVED Tagged With: arisa, manga, Natsumi Ando

My Week in Manga: September 23-September 29, 2013

September 30, 2013 by Ash Brown

My News and Reviews

There were a few different things going on at Experiments in Manga last week. First off is the Arisa manga giveaway. The winner will be announced on Wednesday, so you still have a little time to enter for a chance to win the first and eleventh volumes of Natsumi Ando’s Arisa. The most recent Library Love feature was posted last week, too, which is basically a collection of quick takes of manga that I’ve borrowed from my local library. My quest to read all of Edogawa Rampo’s material available in English also continued. This time I took a look at The Edogawa Rampo Reader, which is a nice introduction to his life and work. The volume collects eighteen of his short stories and essays from over a span of thirty years.

A few interesting things found online: Brigid Alverson interviewed Charles Brownstein of the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund about its new manga guide which will be released later this year. (I reviewed Manga: Introduction, Challenges, and Best Practices not too long ago and found it to be a great resource.) And speaking of the CBLDF, Keiji Nakazawa’s Barefoot Gen was recently highlighted as part of the Using Graphic Novels in Education feature. Finally, Vertical made some licensing announcements at Anime Weekend Atlanta: Tetsuya Tsutui’s manga Prophecy (interestingly enough, Tsutui approached Vertical directly about the license) and Shinobu Hashimoto’s biographical novel Compound Cinematics: Akira Kurosawa and I.

Quick Takes

Arisa, Volume 8Arisa, Volumes 8-11 by Natsumi Ando. The true King has been revealed! As has that person’s motivations and back story, which are suitably dark and dramatic. Arisa and its characters are all pretty twisted–the King isn’t the only one with serious issues. The most stable character in Arisa is probably Tsubasa, but sometimes I wonder about her, too. It’s not just anyone who would pretend to be someone else, after all. At times Arisa can be extraordinarily over the top with its action and melodrama, but that’s probably one of the reasons I find the series so absorbing. Some of it comes across as unintentionally ridiculous, though. But for every development that’s laughable, there’s another that is effectively disturbing. Arisa is a series that’s really easy to tear through. Despite all of the twists and turns in its plot (or maybe because of them) the manga reads very quickly. With only one volume left to go in the series, I’m very curious to see how things will play out.

Black Jack, Volume 7Black Jack, Volumes 7-9 by Osamu Tezuka. Every once in a while I get the urge to read a bunch of Black Jack. Since the series is fairly episodic, it’s easy to pick up even if it’s been a while since I’ve read any of the manga. There were a couple of things that particularly struck me about these volumes. First of all, Black Jack should really stay away from cliffs as he seems to have a habit of falling off of them. Secondly, since Black Jack is an unlicensed doctor, it probably shouldn’t be too surprising that he would have a tendency to become involved with criminals. Often this works out quite well for him–he is able to demand his high prices and the other parties want to keep things quiet, too. However, on occasion Black Jack’s association with organized crime comes back to bite him and he ends up a little worse for wear. As always, I adore Black Jack as a character. I enjoy how much of a bastard he can be while still maintaining a strong sense of integrity.

Cyborg 009Cyborg 009 written by F. J. DeSanto and Bradley Cramp and illustrated by Marcus To and Ian Herring. Working closely with Ishimori Productions, Cyborg 009 is a single-volume, hardcover graphic novel adapting Shotaro Ishinomori’s Cyborg 009 manga with a Western audience in mind published by Archaia. The comic is in full-color with updated character designs closer to some of the more recent anime adaptations than the original manga. Actually, the artwork was one of my favorite things about the Cyborg 009 graphic novel. Story-wise it would have benefited from either being a little more focused or a little bit longer. As it is, the graphic novel is very compressed and not all of the plot lines introduced are adequately developed. But it is fun and quickly paced, not to mention beautifully presented; hopefully it will encourage readers to seek out the original material. Also of note: the back cover indicates that Cyborg 009 is “Ishimori Universe Book 1.” I know that I’d be very interested in seeing more collaborations between Archaia and Ishimori.

The Day I Become a ButterflyThe Day I Become a Butterfly by Sumomo Yumeka. Although The Day I Become a Butterfly was released under Digital Manga’s Juné imprint, two of the six collected stories aren’t at all boys’ love and a few of the others could be argued not to be as well. Yumeka describes the short manga in The Day I Become a Butterfly as inexplicable (she also admits to not liking them), but I think I would call them poetic. Instead of being straightforward narratives, the stories are quiet and almost impressionistic. They tend to be fairly introspective and melancholy; the desire for acceptance from others is a recurring theme throughout the volume. Yumeka’s artwork is lovely, although some of the character designs seem to be reused from one story to the next. Normally this might not be much of a problem, but because some of the stories in The Day I Become a Butterfly are interrelated it was sometimes confusing when the characters from an unrelated story looked like some of the recurring characters.

AkagiAkagi, Episodes 1-13 directed by Yuzo Sato. I love mahjong and Akagi is one of the mahjong series. I was thrilled when Crunchyroll picked up the anime for streaming. (I hold no illusions–mahjong manga and anime is very niche and unlikely to ever receive a physical release in North America.) Watching Akagi has actually improved my game a bit. It has also taught me how to cheat…not that I would. People who are at least vaguely familiar with mahjong will probably get more out of Akagi than those who aren’t, but it’s not necessary to understand the minutia of mahjong to enjoy the anime. The series can be surprisingly brutal at times and the games are intense–high stakes, crooked cops, yakuza, violence, manipulation. A huge emphasis is put on the psychological elements of the game. Akagi is a brilliant player and absolutely ruthless, both at the table and away from it. He seems to be afraid of nothing and is extremely ballsy. I’m really looking forward to watching the series’ second half.

Filed Under: FEATURES, My Week in Manga Tagged With: Akagi, anime, arisa, black jack, Bradley Cramp, comics, Cyborg 009, F. J. DeSanto, Ian Herring, manga, Marcus To, Natsumi Ando, Osamu Tezuka, Sumomo Yumeka

Library Love, Part 17

September 27, 2013 by Ash Brown

Support manga, support your library!

Here’s what I’ve been reading:

Arisa5Arisa, Volumes 5-7 by Natsumi Ando. As ridiculous and unbelievable as Arisa can be, I’ll have to admit that I actually am rather enjoying the series. The number of plot twists that Ando works into the manga is astounding. I know that they’re coming, but I have no idea where Arisa is going. I’ve learned not to stress out about it and just sit back and enjoy the absurdity as it develops. However, I can’t help but wonder where all the adults are in all of this. Occasionally a teacher, parent, or guardian is seen, but none of them seem very involved in the students’ lives at all. But then again, that might be part of the point of the series. The students in class 2-B have issues (they have a lot of issues) and King Time began in part because their needs and concerns weren’t being addressed elsewhere. More and more of their secrets are being revealed, but I’m not sure we’re any closer to actually learning who the King really is. Arisa continues along its dark and twisted path and I can’t help but be oddly mesmerized by the whole thing.

Cowa!Cowa! by Akira Toriyama. Cowa! had completely slipped under my radar until just recently. It’s a shame that I didn’t read it sooner because it is a terrific and highly enjoyable manga appropriate for kids as well as adults. The first few chapters are fairly episodic and start out with Paifu, a young half-vampire/half-werekoala, and his best friend and ghost José Rodriguez getting into all sorts of trouble. But then the manga develops a continuing story–Paifu’s hometown of Batwing Ridge is suffering from an epidemic of the Monster Flu. It’s up to Paifu, José, their not exactly friend Apron, and Maruyama, a grumpy ex-sumo wrestler, to save the day. Together they travel in search of the cure and it ends up becoming quite an adventure. There’s action and danger, bad guys and monsters. The interactions between Maruyama and the youngsters are simply marvelous. The manga is a lot of fun and funny, too. It may be silly at times, but it’s also heartwarming and has a good message. Cowa! is an absolute delight and definitely worth a look.

Slam Dunk, Volume 7Slam Dunk, Volumes 7-10 by Takehiko Inoue. I am a huge fan of Inoue’s manga. While Slam Dunk isn’t my favorite of his series, I still find it to be a great manga. Slam Dunk was Inoue’s breakthrough work and is immensely popular and influential. The basketball games in Slam Dunk are extremely well done, but so far what appeals most to me about the series is the characters. I particularly enjoy all of the delinquents that show up in the series and on Shohoku’s basketball team. The guys are just as capable in a fist fight as they are on the court. Granted, Sakuragi still has a lot to learn about basketball. He has some natural ability and potential, but I’m not sure anyone has actually taken the time to explain all the rules to him. Realistically, this is somewhat unbelievable, but it does provide a certain amount of humor. In general, Slam Dunk is much more comedic than Inoue’s other manga available in English. However, there’s still some seriousness and plenty of heartfelt passion in the series, too.

Time LagTime Lag written by Shinobu Gotoh and illustrated by Hotaru Odagiri. I didn’t realize it at first, but Odagiri is also the artist for Only the Ring Finger Knows, which I quite enjoyed. Time Lag is a slightly older work, and not quite as memorable, but still enjoyable and rather sweet. Satoru and Shirou used to be very close growing up, but after junior high they’ve grown apart despite Satoru repeatedly professing his love for the other young man. Satoru can’t seem to figure out what went wrong, but when a letter from Shirou arrives three years late he may have one last chance at setting things right. However, complicating matters even further is a love-triangle involving Seichii, another classmate. Plots that revolve around a giant misunderstanding often annoy me, but in the case of Time Lag I think it was handled very well. Some of the smaller misunderstandings were still frustrating, though. Granted, those deliberately created by Seichii and his jealousy make a fair amount of sense in the context of the story and the resulting drama is understandable.

Filed Under: FEATURES Tagged With: Akira Toriyama, arisa, Hotaru Odagiri, manga, Natsumi Ando, Shinobu Gotoh, slam dunk, Takehiko Inoue

Manga Giveaway: Arisa Giveaway

September 25, 2013 by Ash Brown

It’s just about the end of the month, which means it’s time for another manga giveaway here at Experiments in Manga! This month’s giveaway is for not one, but two volumes of Natsumi Ando’s manga series Arisa–both the first and the most recent volumes published in English. (I’ll explain my odd thought process for this below.) As always, the contest is open worldwide!

Arisa, Volume 1Arisa, Volume 11

Okay, so why the first and eleventh volumes? Because Arisa has a set of twin sisters. Volume 1, because it’s the first volume. (In general, I like to give away first volumes.) And what do you get when you have two 1s? 11. And there you have it. (I told you I’m a bit odd.) Anyway.

People are fascinated by twins. It’s probably not too surprising that twins, both fraternal and identical, make frequent appearances in manga, often with an important role to play in the story. Naoki Urasawa’s Monster, Yumi Tamura’s Basara, and Rei Hiroe’s Black Lagoon are just a few examples off the top of my head. It wouldn’t take me long to come up with even more. (And I will next week.) In Arisa we have Tsubasa Uehara and Sonoda Arisa, identical twin sisters who have been separated by their parents’ divorce. Tsubasa takes Arisa’s place at school to try to discover why her sister would attempt to commit suicide, uncovering some very disturbing goings-on in Arisa’s class in the process.

So, you may be wondering, how can you win a copy of Arisa, Volumes 1 and 11?

1) In the comments below, tell me a little about a set of twins that you have encountered in manga and in which manga they appear. (If by chance you’ve never come across twins, simply mention that.)
2) If you’re on Twitter, you can earn a bonus entry by tweeting about the contest. Make sure to include a link to this post and @PhoenixTerran (that’s me).

It’s as easy as that. For this giveaway, each person can earn up to two entries. As usual, there is one week to submit comments. If you have trouble leaving comments, or if you would prefer, you can e-mail me your entries at phoenixterran(at)gmail(dot)com and I will post them in your name. The giveaway winner will be randomly selected and announced on October 2, 2013.

VERY IMPORTANT: Include some way that I can contact you. This can be an e-mail address (which if you submit through the comment form won’t be publicly displayed), a link to your website, Twitter username, or whatever. If I can’t figure out how to get a hold of you and you win, I’ll just draw another name.

Contest winner announced–Manga Giveaway: Arisa Giveaway Winner

Filed Under: FEATURES Tagged With: arisa, manga, Natsumi Ando

Pick of the Week: Expect the Unexpected

January 23, 2012 by Katherine Dacey, Michelle Smith, Brigid Alverson, Sean Gaffney and MJ 6 Comments

There’s plenty of good manga coming in to Midtown Comics this week. Check out picks from the Battle Robot below!


KATE: I think I was the only person in the mangasphere who liked Nao Yazawa’s Moon and Blood, so I was happy to see the second volume on Midtown Comics’ shipping list this week. What charmed me the most about this jokey horror-romance was its retro vibe: Yazawa’s characters seem to have stepped out of a shojo manga from the late 1980s/early 1990s. There’s an imperious, handsome boy who’s an ace at everything (and looks like the lead in Itazura na Kiss); a ditzy but energetic heroine with long, curly hair; a dumb but kind thug who’s loved the heroine since childhood; and a child-vampire who looks like a refugee from an early Rumiko Takahashi story. The script won’t win any prizes for originality, but it’s brisk, funny, and — most importantly — never takes itself too seriously. For folks who have OD’ed on angstful horror-romances — and I count myself among that number — Moon and Blood is a great palate cleanser.

MICHELLE: There’s actually quite a bit on this list that I can see myself picking up at some point in time. Perhaps the most obvious pick is the third volume of Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon, but I think I’ll choose volume six of Arisa this time, for a little variety. Even though I’m not entirely convinced that mangaka Natsumi Ando knows where her story is going, it is nevertheless the fast-paced and suspenseful tale of a girl masquerading as her twin sister to find out what made her attempt suicide. I don’t know a lot about Nakayoshi, the magazine in which this is serialized, but it’s darker fare than I’d generally expect to find there, all while looking as stereotypically shoujo as can be. An interesting mix, to be sure!

BRIGID: I’m going to go with Michelle’s choice and pick up vol. 6 of Arisa. I find Natusme Ando’s manga strangely addictive, despite her wholesale embrace of shoujo manga cliches. I think it’s because she throws in a twist now and then to keep me guessing. I’m really enjoying Arisa, even more than Kitchen Princess, so this week’s choice is an easy one for me.

SEAN: It’s tough for me as well, as this week features volumes of two of the most essential shoujo series available in English. Tempted as I am to pick Sailor Moon – which is awesome – I’m going to make my pick the third omnibus of Cardcaptor Sakura. Back in the days when CLAMP didn’t need to confuse its audience, this is still one of their best and most heartfelt series, and Sakura is still one of the quintessential shoujo heroines. This omnibus begins the second half of the series, where the reader wonders where the manga can go now that she’s collected all the cards (answer: quite a long way), and also begins to move forward her cute romance with Syaoran. Great stuff, and Dark Horse’s package is wonderful.

MJ: It’s not too often that I choose a BL title for this column, but I admit I’m pretty psyched to see the second volume of Kai Asou’s Only Serious About You finally making its way to Midtown Comics. I enjoyed volume one immensely, and I’ve been eagerly anticipating its continuation. Good romance is so difficult to write, and in a genre where shoddy writing is so widely-tolerated, it’s no wonder few writers really make the effort. Fortunately, Asou is one of the few. She’s the kind of skilled writer who is able to make standard genre tropes feel fresh again, and perhaps even reminds us why they became”standard” to begin with. Though this was officially released in December, Midtown and I are equally behind the times, as I hadn’t realized it was already available. It’s just become this week’s must-buy manga! My only regret is that it isn’t yet available by way of DMP’s iPad app.


Readers, what looks good to you this week?

Filed Under: PICK OF THE WEEK Tagged With: arisa, cardcaptor Sakura, moon and blood, only serious about you

Off the Shelf: Girls & Monsters

May 25, 2011 by MJ and Michelle Smith 6 Comments

MJ: Well, hello again, my friend! Does it seem possible that we’ve been writing this column together for nearly a year?

MICHELLE: Because I’m so proud of what we’ve accomplished and all the series we’ve covered, I’d say it does, actually, but it’s certainly gone by swiftly!

MJ: Indeed it has! So to continue being swift about it, I’ll get right to business. What have you been reading this past week?

MICHELLE: Heaps and heaps of good stuff, actually! In particular, the latest volumes of two shoujo series that were originally published by Del Rey and which have emerged from a long, gloomy hiatus into the optimistic sunshine of Kodansha Comics!

First off, there’s volume two of Arisa by Natsumi Ando. I’d heard good things about Ando’s Kitchen Princess—I’ve yet to read it, though this will soon be rectified—so it didn’t actually come as a surprise that Arisa is a lot of creepy, suspenseful fun, but that doesn’t diminish my gladness at all. The gist of the story is simple: Tsubasa Uehara and her twin, Arisa Sonoda, were separated by their parents’ divorce and haven’t seen each other in three years. They’ve been writing letters, though, and Arisa’s always depicted her life as close to perfect, with lots of friends, a cute boyfriend, and a successful school career. Imagine Tsubasa’s surprise, then, when soon after meeting up again, Arisa attempts suicide.

Tsubasa is determined to get to the bottom of what’s bothering her sister, and so attends Arisa’s school in her guise. At first, all seems normal, but she soon learns about a bizarre weekly ritual in which the students submit wishes to “the King,” who will choose one to grant. No wish is beyond the King’s power, and Tsubasa witnesses him/her successfully “disappear” a pervy gym teacher in fulfillment of a student’s wish. Her investigation suggests that the King is the class bad boy, Manabe, and volume two picks up with a twist about the King’s actual identity and the revelation that someone knows who Tsubasa really is and wants her to back off, else they’ll do something to still-comatose Arisa.

I’m a big fan of sheer atmosphere, and Arisa has it in spades. No one is what they initially seemed to be, and Arisa’s supposed best friend, Mariko, is shaping up to be positively unhinged. Then there’s her mild-mannered boyfriend, who really can’t be that benign, can he? It’s twisty and turny and suspenseful in an extremely delightful way, and I am quite glad that Kodansha’s got it on a bimonthly schedule because I am honestly going to dive into volume three the moment I get the tape off the box.

MJ: Wow, you know, I’d read a little bit about this series, but your description is the first that’s made me want to run to the bookstore and grab it up for myself. I’m especially interested in all this atmosphere you rave about.

MICHELLE: Now I worry I’ve overstated its brilliance, but it really is both entertaining and unique. If I had to liken it to anything, it’d be After School Nightmare, which has a similar “who among my classmates is the one I seek” sort of thing going on, at least in the one volume I’ve read.

How about you? Read anything good?

MJ: I have! My week has had a distinctly different flavor than yours, but also publisher-specific. It’s been a Vertical week for me, beginning with the fourth and final volume of Nobuaki Tadano’s 7 Billion Needles, one of my favorite new series last year. Adapted from Hal Clement’s 1950 novel, Needle, this series follows a sullen teenager named Hikaru whose life has changed forever thanks to an alien parasite (later two of them) who takes up permanent residence in her body.

Though I complained here a few months ago that the series’ third volume had taken an unfortunate turn, leaving behind its striking tale about human connection in order to explore new, less-coherant themes, I’m pleased to report that this is far from fatal. Though the story’s new plotline involving a planetary macro-evolution persists in its final volume, the series’ real focus turns back to Hikaru, whose personal journey really is what makes the whole thing work.

Contrary to anything she might have believed just a few volumes ago, Hikaru’s got people worth saving in her life, and save them she does, without anything more than her own desire. Sure, she’s got superpowers of a sort, what with all those aliens rumbling around inside, but her real strength is her own, and it’s a strength that she’s discovered by simply being human.

With all the excitement and chaos of final battles and whatnot, Tadano’s horror-tinged artwork really shines in this volume, particularly in its most esoteric moments. I’d even go so far as to say that the “macro-evolution” business is actually saved by the artwork, which manages to express itself more clearly than the narrative in those sections. Another treat is “Hikhikomori Headphone Girl,” the short comic that provided the template for Tadano’s Hikaru, which is included at the back of the volume.

7 Billion Needles isn’t a perfect series, but at just four volumes, it’s one of the few short manga series I personally can see myself voluntarily rereading. Given my preferences for epic storytelling, that’s no small praise.

MICHELLE: I’ve always planned to read this series, but after two or three volumes of a four-volume series have come out, one begins to think, “Well, maybe I’ll just wait and read it all in one swell foop.” I’m glad to hear, though, that it comes to a satisfying conclusion!

MJ: It really does, and I think it probably reads even better all at once. I plan to try it that way myself.

So what else have you got for us this week?

MICHELLE: The latest volume in a series that I know you adore, Shugo Chara!. After having meant to do so for ages, I’ve finally caught up on this charming magical girl series, just in time for Kodansha to release volume ten. And what an important volume this is!

When the story left off, heroine Amu Hinamori and her friends were infiltrating the headquarters of a sinister corporation known as Easter, who had finally acquired the Embryo, the magical wish-granting egg (long story) for which they had recklessly been searching. Although I found the big reveal of Easter’s boss to be predictable, his/her reasons for acquiring the Embryo are not at all what I expected. Amu works her Shoujo Heroine Magic upon him/her as well as upon his/her chief minion, who happens to be the stepfather to her love interest, Ikuto.

This, in turn, leads to some resolution in Ikuto’s home life, as he is finally freed of his obligation to help Easter and gets the chance to fully explain himself to Tadase, Amu’s other love interest, who has hated him the past two years. This is the best part of the volume for me because, as I read earlier volumes, I started to question exactly what Ikuto’s Guardian Character, the cat-like Yoru, said about him. Guardian Characters are supposed to have some quality the child would like to possess, and what was there about sweet but kind of cartoony Yoru that a brooding high schooler like Ikuto would desire? And then it came to me… freedom. Yoru is free. He can sleep when he likes, eat when he likes… No one can make a cat do something it doesn’t want to do. Freedom is something Ikuto has never had, until now. And now that he does have it, he’s going to put it to good use.

And then Amu and her classmates, most of them sixth graders, prepare to graduate. Honestly, there is so much resolution here, I began to seriously wonder what kind of material Peach-Pit could find to fill in the final two volumes! I needn’t have been concerned, however, as the final handful of pages serve up a shocking development that will, I suspect, ultimately compel Amu to make real progress on discovering what kind of person she really wants to be.

MJ: I’m so pleased that you are enjoying this series! Yes, I do adore it, and I’ve spent pages and pages of webspace explaining exactly why, so I won’t go into a lecture now, but yes. You’re so much on the nose regarding Ikuto and Yoru. And, okay, I will go on slightly about one thing. What I especially love about Amu as a heroine is that unlike so many shoujo heroines these days, she’s not an “ordinary” girl with no particular special qualities other than just being the heroine of the manga. She’s confused and unsure of who she is and who she even wants to be, but she’s got a multitude of possibilities in front of her. And though she’s interested in boys, certainly, her real journey is about choosing her own path, not choosing who to walk with. If that makes sense.

MICHELLE: It makes perfect sense, and that’s a great point about Amu! As a result, it doesn’t present as false when several boys are interested in her, like it does when the heroine is sort of hopeless. The series is magical girl done right, and I’m a bit sad that Peach-Pit hasn’t written more in this genre, though I’m now interested in checking out Zombie-Loan, another of their series (released in English by Yen Press).

So, you said it was a Vertical night, eh? What else is on the menu?

MJ: My second Vertical read this week was Usamaru Furuya’s Lychee Light Club. Adapted from a theater piece of the same name, Lychee Light Club is the story of a group of middle school boys who have created their own secret society sort of dedicated to their general rejection of the adult world.

As the story begins, they’ve just completed construction of a lychee-fueled humanoid machine (much in the mold of Dr. Frankenstein’s monster) apparently for the purpose of kidnapping pretty, young girls. After some trial and error, as the machine learns what things like”pretty” and “young” actually mean, they manage to capture one in particular whom they intend to imprison indefinitely as their own personal idol.

There are a couple of parallel plots going on here. When the boys are out at night, the girl ends up befriending the monster, tapping into its desire to become more human. Meanwhile, the boys are fighting amongst themselves over the morality of what they’re doing, who’s in charge, who’s devoted to whom, and so on. The overall point of it seems to be that the boys become monsters while their monster becomes human, though some of the specifics along the way get a bit muddled.

Let me begin by saying that I found this manga really fascinating and incredibly striking, visually. The whole thing feels like a theater piece, more than any comic I’ve ever read, and it’s honestly stunning. I am thrilled to have read it for this element alone.

That said, I also think it’s kind of a mess. Though the boys’ inner society is decently fleshed out, what I’m really missing here is a sense of context. I get what they’re doing, but I don’t get why. They’re rebelling against a world we never really see, and as a result, we can’t understand who these boys are. Where do they come from? What’s sickened them so much about the grownup world? And what kind of society do they live in where they can carry on with heinous crimes like kidnapping, mutilation, and murder without anyone even noticing?

There’s a lot here I can take on faith as a reader. I don’t need to know how they built a monster that runs on lychee fruit, for instance. It’s incredible, but well within what I’m willing to accept as premise. But the lack of context for the boys’ self-made way of life keeps me from being able to embrace Furuya’s universe fully, and that’s enough to keep the story from becoming truly engaging.

There are a lot of things that could be said here, too, about the manga’s extreme violence and treatment of women–issues that have been covered quite beautifully already by Kate and David. Overall, though, my biggest personal obstacle with this story was its lack of context for the boys’ actions. Without that, I found it difficult to commit as a reader.

MICHELLE: Believe it or not, this actually reassures me that I will find something to like about it! I haven’t read it yet, and therefore haven’t read Kate and David’s piece, but just the premise alone made me a little wary. I can deal with a few flaws if I get something stunning out of the deal!

MJ: I hope that you will find something to like about it. I certainly did. And I’m quite interested now in reading more of Furuya’s work.

Well, wow, talk about swift, nine-thirty and we’re already done? Whatever will we do with ourselves?

MICHELLE: My sink is full of dirty dishes, so it seems my fate is predetermined.

MJ: Well, that’s depressing. Godspeed?

MICHELLE: Well, I have got a dishwasher, at least.

MJ: My pity has turned to sheer envy.

MICHELLE: You poor soul.

MJ: *snif*

Filed Under: OFF THE SHELF Tagged With: 7 billion needles, arisa, lychee light club, shugo chara!

Pick of the Week: A Bride’s Story & Others

May 23, 2011 by Katherine Dacey, Michelle Smith, David Welsh and MJ 8 Comments

New manga from Kaoru Mori (unsurprisingly) steals the show at Midtown Comics this week, but check out our recommendations for additional picks as well!


KATE: A new Kaoru Mori manga is always cause for celebration, so I’m getting this week’s party started by recommending A Bride’s Story, which debuts on Wednesday. Like Emma and Shirley,A Bride’s Story is as much about the historical period — its customs, its social hierarchies, its clothing — as it about the characters. In this case, the setting is the Silk Road in the nineteenth century, and the characters are Amir, a twenty-year-oldwoman, and Karluk, her twelve-year-old husband. Their union is one of political expedience, but their growing respect for one another suggests that their marriage has the potential to evolve. Not a whole lot happens in the first volume, but the artwork is lovely, and the gently meandering storylines allow us to see just how capable and complex Amir really is. I’m already pining for volume two!

MICHELLE: I’m keen to read A Bride’s Story myself, but my pick this week goes to the second volume of Natsume Ando’s Arisa, back from a long hiatus as publishing rights shifted from Del Rey to Kodansha Comics. Volume one served up delicious shoujo creepiness as a tough girl named Tsubasa disguised herself as her more refined twin to figure out what in her school life caused her to attempt suicide, and ended just as she was on the verge of discovering the identity of “the King,” a mysterious person with the ability to grant any wish. Not only is the series back, it’s also on a bimonthly schedule from this point on.

DAVID: I’m going to have to second Kate’s pick of A Bride’s Story. I’m such a fan of Mori’s Emma that it would seem treasonous to do otherwise. (Though I’m also very much looking forward to Arisa.)

MJ: You can add me to the list of Manga Bookshelf-ers eagerly anticipating A Bride’s Story, but I’ll also take this opportunity to give a shout-out to one of my favorite shoujo series, Peach Pit’s Shugo Chara!. Kodansha Comics brings out volume 10 this week, following its long run with Del Rey Manga, and I can’t wait to pick it up! I’ve written a lot about this series (including a heartfelt plea for lowering its age rating) much of which can be accessed via my Shugo Chara! Evangelism post. After all that, can I pass up the chance to recommend it one more time? I think not!


Amazon.com Widgets


Readers, what looks good to you this week?

Filed Under: PICK OF THE WEEK Tagged With: a bride's story, arisa, shugo chara!

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