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Manga Bookshelf

Discussion, Resources, Roundtables, & Reviews

milk morinaga

My Week in Manga: August 14-August 20, 2017

August 21, 2017 by Ash Brown

My News and Reviews

It’s been a while since there have been two features posted at Experiments in Manga within the same week in addition to the usual My Week in Manga, but that’s exactly what happened last week. First there was July’s Bookshelf Overload which, minus the replacement copies for some of my recently water-damaged books, provides a list of the manga and other media that I picked up last month. (Normally I post the Bookshelf Overload feature in the second week of the month, but I switched things up a little in order to post my review of Kazuki Sakuraba’s A Small Charred Face sooner rather than later.) Last week was also Experiments in Manga’s seven-year anniversary! I wrote a little about the past year and, with some amount of sadness, also announced my upcoming (semi)-retirement from manga blogging. I’ll continue to post here at Experiments in Manga for the rest of 2017, but once 2018 arrives most of my short ramblings on manga will be found over at Manga Bookshelf (and probably at my Twitter account, too).

Quick Takes

H. P. Lovecraft’s The Hound and Other StoriesH. P. Lovecraft’s The Hound and Other Stories by Gou Tanabe. While I am very aware of Lovecraft’s work and influence (the Cthulhu Mythos in particular was tremendously popular among a certain segment of my friends for quite some time), I’ve actually only ever read a single collection of his short horror stories. I largely enjoy their bizarre creepiness, and so I immediately took note when I learned that Dark Horse would be releasing a volume of some of Tanabe’s manga adaptations of Lovecraft stories. Plus, I was simply happy to see more mature horror manga being licensed. The Hound and Other Stories collects the adaptations of three of Lovecraft’s stories from the early 1920s: “The Temple,” “The Hound” (the only one of which I had read the original), and “The Nameless City.” Of the three, “The Temple” was the most successful for me, Tanbe’s deliberately disconcerting artwork perfectly conveying the narrative’s dark and increasingly claustrophobic sense of dread. The Hound and Other Stories is actually the first volume in a series. Nothing official has been announced regarding the translation of future volumes, but Dark Horse has indicated that the possibility is there. I know I’d certainly be interested in reading more of Tanabe’s work, Lovecraftian or otherwise.

Hana & Hina After School, Volume 2Hana & Hina After School, Volume 2 by Milk Morinaga. I’m not as interested in schoolgirl yuri manga as I am in those that feature adult women–which seem to be very few and far between in translation–but I will still happily read them. Which is probably a good thing seeing as most of the yuri manga that has been published in English tend to be set in either middle or high school. (To be fair, that can be said of numerous other genres as well.) Hana & Hina After School definitely falls into that category, and I certainly have been enjoying the manga. While it’s clear that Hina and Hana care for each other a great deal, the romance in the series is actually a little slow to develop, though it does feel more natural that way. Hina recognizes that she has a crush on Hana, and has known for some time, but Hana tends to be a little more oblivious. Hana & Hina After School concludes with the next volume; I would be incredibly surprised if the ending isn’t a happy one, but both Hina and Hana will need to fully come to terms with their feelings before that happens. In general, Hana & Hina After School is a cute and sweet series, but I do appreciate that Morinaga also incorporates some of the real-world concerns faced by people in non-heterosexual relationships.

Samurai Crusader: The Kumomaru Chronicles, Volume 1Samurai Crusader: The Kumomaru Chronicles, Volumes 1-3 written by Oji Hiroi and illustrated by Ryoichi Ikegami. At this point I’ve read most of the manga available in English with which Ikegami has been involved, Samurai Crusader being one of the few exceptions up until now. Hiroi is probably best known as the creator of Sakura Wars, which I’m not particularly familiar with. (I believe Samurai Crusader is the only other manga of Hiroi’s to have been released in English.) Samurai Crusader is currently out-of-print and can be a little tricky to find, but the series can usually be found for a fairly reasonable price. (Note that the individual volumes aren’t numbered and after the first are given unique subtitles instead; Samurai Crusader is followed by Way of the Dragon and Sunrise Over Shanghai.) Taking place in the 1930s with the Second World War looming on the horizon, Samurai Crusader is an tale of action and adventure spanning the globe and featuring Ernest Hemingway as the a sidekick to the series’ protagonist Kumomaru, a noble young man who finds himself fighting against those intent on world domination. Samurai Crusader is admittedly outrageous and over-the-top, but that’s also a large part of why the series is so highly entertaining.

Filed Under: FEATURES, My Week in Manga Tagged With: Gou Tanabe, Hana and Hina After School, manga, milk morinaga, Oji Hiroi, Ryoichi Ikegami, Samurai Crusader

My Week in Manga: March 27-April 2, 2017

April 3, 2017 by Ash Brown

My News and Reviews

As regular readers of Experiments in Manga know, on the last Wednesday of every month I host a giveaway of some sort (usually manga-related) for which participants have a week to submit their entries. This time around the monthly giveaway is for the first volume of Coolkyousinnjya’s surprisingly delightful Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid. The winner will be announced this coming Wednesday, so you can still enter for a chance to win if you haven’t already. Also later this week, look for another guest review by my friend and fellow yuri manga fan Jocilyn. Elsewhere in the Manga Bookshelf sphere of blogs, The Manga Critic has started a monthly manga review index. There have been similar features in the past, perhaps most notably at MangaBlog, and I’ve always found them incredibly useful and valuable, so I’m glad to see Kate Dacey taking it on. Also in general, I highly recommend the content at The Manga Critic–Kate’s actually one of my major inspirations when it comes to manga blogging.

As for other interesting things I’ve come across recently: Chic Pixel’s Anne Lee has posted a really fantastic list of bibliographic resources for those curious about the academic study of boys’ love. (I’ve read quite a few books and articles myself, and even reviewed Jeffery Angles’ Writing the Love of Boys: Origins of Bishōnen Culture in Modernist Japanese Literature at Experiments in Manga a few years ago.) And if that’s not enough of BL studies for you, J. R. Brown has posted the slides from her Anime Boston panel “Boys’ Love, Otome Culture, and Gender” which covers everything from the origin of shoujo manga to gay comics and more. On their own the slides are fairly informative, but I’m looking forward to seeing the annotated version, too.

Also at Anime Boston, Viz Media made quite a few licensing announcements. Some were digital-only while others were digital-first or print-only. Here’s a quick list of the books that will eventually make their way into print: Kenta Shinohara’s Astra Lost in Space, Abi Umeda’s Children of Whales (I’m particularly curious about this series), an omnibus edition of Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata’s Death Note collecting the entire series and a bonus epilogue in a single volume, Nisioisin’s Hikaru Nakamura’s novel Juni Taisen: Zodiac Warriors (I’m not familiar with the novel, but the creators involved have certainly caught my attention), Kenji Taira’s Naruto: Chibi Sasuke’s Sharingan Legend, Kaiu Shirai and Posuka Demizu’s The Promised Neverland (which is supposed to be fantastic), a collection of nine Junji Ito stories and accompanying material selected by Ito himself called Shiver (always glad to see more Ito being released in English), Maki Enjoji’s SP Baby, and Sui Ishida’s artbook Tokyo Ghoul Illustrations.

A couple of Kickstarter projects recently launched which may be of interest as well: All the Anime/Anime Limited is joining forces with Studio 4°C to create a home video release of Masaaki Yuasa’s directorial debut Mind Game. Digital Manga has entered the fray again with a campaign to release more of Osamu Tezuka’s manga in print: Ambassador Magma, Dust 8, The Euphrates Tree, Metamorphose, Say Hello to Bookila, The Thief Inoue Akikazu, Wonder 3, and Yakeppachi’s Maria. It looks as though the print runs will be very limited and Kickstarter may be the only way to get a hold of some of the titles. (I have to admit, I certainly have my qualms about Digital Manga’s business practices in general and over-reliance on crowdfunding specifically. The quality of Digital Manga’s releases has really gone downhill over the last few years, too. Honestly, I’ve lost most of my confidence in the company as a publisher, but it’s managed not to completely go under yet.)

Quick Takes

Dawn of the Arcana, Volume 1Dawn of the Arcana, Volumes 1-6 by Rei Toma. I generally enjoy epic fantasy of the shoujo variety, so I’m not entirely sure why it’s taken me so long to finally get around to reading Dawn of the Arcana. So far, I’m enjoying the manga tremendously. Nakaba is a princess who has been married off to a prince of the neighboring kingdom despite her questionable ancestry in a half-hearted attempt to secure peace between the two countries. But instead, gifted with the ability to see both into the past and into the future, Nakaba may find herself in the unlikely position of leading a revolution. Dawn of the Arcana does come across as a rather typical example of high fantasy–all the way down to the heroine’s fiery red hair–but even though it hasn’t really made itself stand out yet, the manga is a solid series. I greatly enjoyed the manga’s mix of court and political intrigue, action, and complicated interpersonal relationships. Much like the story, the artwork tends to be somewhat standard although attractive. Toma’s backgrounds are generally fairly sparse, but the details put into things like the characters’ clothing is lovely. I definitely look forward to reading more of Dawn of the Arcana in the very near future.

Hana & Hina After School, Volume 1Hana & Hina After School, Volume 1 by Milk Morinaga. I believe that Morinaga is currently the most well-represented yuri manga creator available in English. So far, five of Morinaga’s manga have been translated, the most recent being Hana & Hina After School. Interestingly, in Japan the manga was serialized in a magazine aimed at a general audience rather than one specifically catering to yuri fans. The titular Hana and Hina are two young women working part time at a store specializing in cute character goods even though their high school forbids its students from holding jobs. The story follows their relationship as they become friends and slowly realize that their feelings may evolve into something else. Like most of Morinaga’s other manga that I’ve read, Hana & Hina After School tends to be rather cute and sweet. The series is enjoyable and pleasant even if it is at times a little silly and somewhat unbelievable. However, the end of the first volume does introduce some sobering concerns when Hina is confronted by a few of her classmates homophobia, an unfortunate reality that many yuri manga tend to gloss over or ignore entirely in favor of pure fantasy. (Granted, that fantasy is important to have, too.)

Scum's Wish, Volume 1Scum’s Wish, Volumes 1-2 by Mengo Yokoyari. I wasn’t initially planning to pick up Scum’s Wish, but after reading a few positive reviews of the series I decided to give it a try after all. The cover art of the first volume is deliberately provocative, but the manga isn’t nearly as salacious as it might imply. In fact, the series can actually be surprisingly contemplative. Scum’s Wish is a manga about unrequited love. Almost every character in the series is pining for someone with whom an involved romance would seem to be impossible or at least inadvisable, resulting in a complex web of personal relationships fraught with loneliness and anguish. (There is one heck of a love polygon going on in Scum’s Wish and nearly everyone who is introduced is connected to it somehow.) Hanabi is in love with Narumi, her childhood friend who now also happens to be her homeroom teacher. Mugi is in love with Akane, a music instructor who used to be his tutor. Recognizing that they are suffering under very similar circumstances and hoping to ease some of the pain, Hanabi and Mugi agree to find comfort in a relationship together. Neither one of them is in love with the other, but they are both aware of and take advantage of that fact.

Deep RedDeep Red by Hisashi Nozawa. Although perhaps best known as a screenwriter, Nozawa was also recognized as an accomplished novelist. Deep Red, which earned Nozawa an Eiji Yoshikawa Prize in 2001, is his first novel to be released in English. Kanako is the only survivor of the mass murder of her family, simply because she happened to be away on a school trip when her parents and two younger brothers were killed. Understandably, their deaths have left a great wound, but Kanako isn’t the only one left troubled and hurt–the life of Miho, the daughter of the murderer, has also been irrevocably changed. At times, Deep Red is uncomfortably voyeuristic and there’s a peculiar fixation on Kanako’s body and sex life with her boyfriend. I was never entirely convinced by Kanako as a character, either. However, Deep Red does provide an interesting psychological exploration of hate, anger, and misplaced revenge. The novel is instantly engaging. However, the middle portion of the narrative is repetitive and does drag a fair bit; I admittedly started to lose my interest and patience with the story. But once Kanako becomes obsessed with and decides to pursue Miho, Deep Red picks up speed again and the novel’s ending is very satisfying.

Filed Under: FEATURES, My Week in Manga Tagged With: dawn of the arcana, Hana and Hina After School, Hisashi Nozawa, manga, Mengo Yokoyari, milk morinaga, Novels, Rei Toma, Scum's Wish

Manga Giveaway: Seven Seas Sampler Winner

December 3, 2014 by Ash Brown

A Centaur's Life, Volume 1Dictatorial Grimoire, Volume 1: Cinderella
Gakuen Polizi, Volume 1Kashimashi: Girl Meets Girl, Omnibus 1

And the winner of the Seven Seas Sampler manga giveaway is…Karen Swartz!

As the winner, Karen will be receiving A Centaur’s Life, Volume 1 by Kei Murayama; Dictatorial Grimoire, Volume 1: Cinderella by Ayumi Kanou; Gakuen Polizi, Volume 1 by Milk Morinaga; and Kashimashi: Girl Meets Girl, Omnibus 1 written by Satoru Akahori and illustrated by Yukimaru Katsura. Over the last couple of years, Seven Seas has really taken off, adding more licenses than ever before and diversifying its catalog. So, for this giveaway, I asked people tell me a little about some of their favorite manga released by Seven Seas. I’ve compiled a list below (those with an asterisk were mentioned by more than one person), but be sure to check out the Seven Seas Sampler comments for more details.

Some favorite Seven Seas titles:
Afro Samurai by Takashi Okazaki
Alice in the Country of created by Quin Rose
Amazing Agent Luna written by Nunzio DeFillippis, Christina Weir, illustrated by Shiei
Blood Alone by Masayuki Takano
Boogiepop created by Kouhei Kadono
A Centaur’s Life by Kei Murayama
A Certain Scientific Railgun written by Kazuma Kamachi, illustrated by Motoi Fuyukawa
Citrus by Saburouta
*D-Frag! by Tomoya Haruno
Dance in the Vampire Bund by Nozomu Tamaki
*Devils and Realist written by Utako Yukihiro, illustrated by Madoka Takadono
Dragonar Academy written by Ran, illustrated by Shiki Mizuchi
Freezing by Kwang-Huyn Kim
Gakuen Polizi by Milk Morinaga
*Girl Friends by Milk Morinaga
*Gunslinger Girl by Yu Aida
*Haganai: I Don’t Have Many Friends written by Yomi Hirasaka, illustrated by Itachi
Haven’t You Heard? I’m Sakamoto by Nami Sano
Hayate X Blade by Shizuru Hayashiya
Inukami! written by Mamizu Arisawa, illustrated by Mari Matsuzawa
Kisses, Sighs, and Cherry Blossom Pink by Milk Morinaga
Kokoro Connect written by Sadanatsu Anda, illustrated by CUTEG
*Lizzie Newton: Victorian Mysteries written by Hey-jin Jeon, illustrated by Ki-ha Lee
Love in Hell by Reiji Suzumaru
*Lucifer and the Biscuit Hammer by Satoshi Mizukami
Magical Girl Apocalypse by Kentaro Sato
Strawberry Panic written by Sakurako Kimino, illustrated by Takuminamuchi
*Toradora! written by Yuyuko Takemiya, illustrated by Zekkyou
Witch Buster by Jung-man Cho
*Young Miss Holmes by Kaoru Shintani
Zero’s Familiar written by Noboru Yamaguchi, illustrated by Nana Mochizuki

Thank you to everyone who participated in the giveaway and shared some of your favorites; I hope to see you all again for the next one!

Filed Under: UNSHELVED Tagged With: Ayumi Kanou, Centaur's Life, Dictatorial Grimoire, Gakuen Polizi, Kashimashi, Kei Murayama, manga, milk morinaga, Satoru Akahori, Yukimaru Katsura

Manga Giveaway: Seven Seas Sampler

November 26, 2014 by Ash Brown

The end of the month draws near, so it’s once again time for another manga giveaway at Experiments in Manga! As is tradition, November’s giveaway features multiple volumes. This month you will all have a chance to win a sampling of some of Seven Sea’s manga releases, both old and new: A Centaur’s Life, Volume 1 by Kei Murayama; Dictatorial Grimoire, Volume 1: Cinderella by Ayumi Kanou; Gakuen Polizi, Volume 1 by Milk Morinaga; and Kashimashi: Girl Meets Girl, Omnibus 1 written by Satoru Akahori and illustrated by Yukimaru Katsura. And as always, the giveaway is open worldwide!

A Centaur's Life, Volume 1Dictatorial Grimoire, Volume 1: CinderellaGakuen Polizi, Volume 1Kashimashi: Girl Meets Girl, Omnibus 1

It used to be that I didn’t pay much attention to Seven Seas. It had a smallish catalog and I wasn’t particularly interested in most of the series it was publishing at the time. But with the success of Monster Musume and the various Alice series, Seven Seas has really taken off in recent years. And increased sales mean even more manga licenses. Seven Seas has been making a particular point to diversify its offerings lately. It has helped revive interest in yuri manga in English. A range of genres are being released, including slice-of-life, comedy, fantasy, horror, mystery, and science fiction among others. There are otome manga as well as quirky shounen series.  Ecchi and fanservice manga features heavily, but there are more wholesome titles, too. Seven Seas really is trying to have a little something of everything and a little something for everyone. I might not personally be interested in every license the publisher picks up, but I do like seeing the variety of works. You’ve caught my attention, Seven Seas. Now show me what you can do.

So, you may be wondering, how can you win a Seven Seas Sampler?

1) In the comments below, tell me a little about your favorite manga released or licensed by Seven Seas if you have one. (If you don’t have a favorite or haven’t read any of Seven Seas manga, just mention that.)
2) If you’re on Twitter, you can earn a bonus entry by tweeting, or retweeting, about the contest. Make sure to include a link to this post and @PhoenixTerran (that’s me).

It’s as easy as that. Each person can earn up to two entries for this giveaway. As usual, participants will have one week to submit comments. Entries can also be sent via e-mail to phoenixterran(at)gmail(dot)com which I will then post in your name. The giveaway winner will be randomly selected and announced on December 3, 2014. Happy feasting!

VERY IMPORTANT: Include some way that I can contact you. This can be an e-mail address in the comment form, 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: Seven Seas Sampler Winner

Filed Under: FEATURES Tagged With: Ayumi Kanou, Centaur's Life, Dictatorial Grimoire, Gakuen Polizi, Kashimashi, Kei Murayama, manga, milk morinaga, Satoru Akahori, Yukimaru Katsura

Gakuen Polizi, Volume 1

July 16, 2014 by Ash Brown

Gakuen Polizi, Volume 1Creator: Milk Morinaga
U.S. publisher: Seven Seas
ISBN: 9781626920309
Released: June 2014
Original release: 2013

I greatly enjoyed the first two manga series by Milk Morinaga to be released in English–Girl Friends and Kisses, Sighs, and Cherry Blossom Pink–and so was happy to see Seven Seas license one of her most recent series: Gakuen Polizi. The first volume of Gakuen Polizi was originally published in Japan in 2013 while Seven Seas’ edition was published in 2014. Currently, Morinaga is likely the best-represented yuri creator in English in that she now has the most titles available in translation. Granted, considering how few yuri manga have been released, especially when compared to other genres, that really isn’t too difficult. Still, her work has generally been well-received. Gakuen Polizi is a bit different from Morinaga’s other manga in English. She describes it as a “high school police drama” which is more or less accurate. The series has more of a buddy cop feel to it than it does romance or drama and is inherently more comedic as well.

Ever since she was young, Sasami Aoba has wanted to be a champion of justice, dreaming of crushing evil and helping the weak, and now she finally has her chance as an assistant police officer. Specifically, Sasami has been assigned to Hanagaki Girls’ High School as one of its polizi–a young undercover cop sent to investigate issues at problem schools. The only thing is Hanagaki doesn’t actually seem to have any problems. There’s no bullying, the students and staff are all very pleasant, and even the school’s newspaper has difficulty finding juicy material to report on. Hanagaki is actually the second assignment for Sasami’s partner Sakuraba Midori. Before Sasami’s arrival, and because the school is so peaceful, Sakuraba has had plenty of time on her hands, quite a bit of which she would spend distracting herself by drawing yaoi manga. But now with the less-experienced and overly eager Sasami constantly on the verge of blowing their cover as polizi, Sakuraba has more than enough to worry about.

Gakuen Polizi is kind of a strange mashup of genres. Since nothing much happens in the way of crime at Hanagaki, there’s not much for Sasami and Sakuraba to be doing in regards to police work. The series is generally lighthearted and often silly, especially towards its beginning. At first the cases at the school are fairly inconsequential–a dog with a penchant for stealing things, small squabbles between classmates, and so on. The second half takes a more serious turn, dealing with gropers and stalkers, but even then the humor in Gakuen Polizi is a prominent feature. Most of the comedy revolves around Sasami. She is very enthusiastic and passionate, but somewhat lacking in common sense. Sakuraba, in stark contrast, is more serious and reserved. According to the afterword, readers should expect more romance-related drama to come in the series, but there is very little of that to be seen in the first volume of Gakuen Polizi, though a chemistry between Sasami and Sakuraba has begun to develop.

It is fairly obvious that Morinaga is personally having a lot of fun with Gakuen Polizi. I found the first volume to be entertaining, but readers approaching the manga hoping for a series similar to Kisses, Sighs, and Cherry Blossom Pink or Girl Friends will most likely be disappointed. Though Gakuen Polizi has the potential for some drama and romance, so far the series tends towards the absurd and ridiculous. Morinaga’s artwork and character designs are cute, with particularly dynamic facial expressions that add to the series’ silliness. While I like the characters in Gakuen Polizi, I’m not attached to them in the same way that I was to the characters in Morinaga’s other manga. I do find Sasami, Sakuraba, and their friends to be amusing though. Gakuen Polizi isn’t meant to be taken too seriously. The emphasis is definitely more on the series’ comedy than it is on its believability. Overall, Gakuen Poilizi, Volume 1 was largely an enjoyable, fluffy read. Although I may not be desperate for more, I do look forward to reading the next volume.

Filed Under: REVIEWS Tagged With: Gakuen Polizi, manga, milk morinaga, Seven Seas, Year of Yuri

Kisses, Sighs, and Cherry Blossom Pink

March 14, 2014 by Ash Brown

Kisses, Sighs, and Cherry Blossom PinkCreator: Milk Morinaga
U.S. publisher: Seven Seas
ISBN: 9781937867317
Released: June 2013
Original release: 2012

Kisses, Sighs, and Cherry Blossom Pink is the second yuri manga by Milk Morinaga to have been licensed in English. The first, and my introduction to her work, was her series Girl Friends. I quite enjoyed Girl Friends and so was looking forward to reading more of her manga, in this case one of her earlier series. Kisses, Sighs, and Cherry Blossom Pink was released in English by Seven Seas in 2013 in a single-volume omnibus edition. Morinaga first began creating the stories included in Kisses, Sighs, and Cherry Blossom Pink in 2003. In Japan, the earlier stories were collected into a single volume in 2006. However, Kisses, Sighs, and Cherry Blossom Pink was later released again in 2012 in two volumes that collected additional stories, including some that were previously unpublished. This two-volume edition of Kisses, Sighs and Cherry Blossom Pink is the one upon which Seven Seas’ omnibus is based. As such, the English-language edition of the manga collects nearly a decade’s worth of material into a single volume.

Nana and Hitomi were best friends who grew up together and attended the same elementary and junior high schools. Nana was looking forward to becoming a student at Sakurakai Girls’ High School, but that was when she thought Hitomi would be enrolling as well. However, Hitomi was accepted at Touhou Girls’ High School. Finding it too painful to continue to suppress her love for Nana after being rejected, Hitomi chooses to attend Touhou instead. Despite how close the two of them used to be, Nana finds Hitomi drifting away and she misses her terribly. But recognizing her own feelings is only the first step in mending their relationship as is begins to evolve into something more than just friendship. Similarly, several of the other young women at Sakurakai and Touhou are faced with their own first loves and crushes on classmates. It isn’t always easy to confess their feelings and falling in love with a person of the same gender often brings along challenges that other couples don’t have to deal with.

The stories collected in Kisses, Sighs, and Cherry Blossom Pink follow a vague chronological order, but many of them aren’t directly related to one another. They share the same setting and to some extent the same characters, but only Nana and Hitomi are the focus of multiple stories in the volume. I actually really enjoyed Morinaga’s structural approach to Kisses, Sighs, and Cherry Blossom Pink. Nana and Hitomi’s relationship provides a more developed, ongoing narrative, creating a framework which supports the supplementary side stories about their classmates and friends. Overall, I feel this gives the manga slightly more depth. Also included in Kisses, Sighs, and Cherry Blossom Pink is a diagram that visually shows how all of the different stories and characters overlap and are connected to one another. Although they are interrelated and occasionally make references to previous developments and chapters, most of the stories do stand perfectly well on their own in addition to contributing to the manga as a whole.

Kisses, Sighs, and Cherry Blossom Pink tends to be very cute, sweet, and romantic, which is not to say that every story is a happy one. I appreciated that some of the chapters in Kisses, Sighs, and Cherry Blossom Pink have touches of angst, sadness, and bittersweetness to them. Nana and Hitomi’s relationship, despite having its ups and downs, does have an ending that seems to tie everything up a little too easily and nicely, but I won’t deny that it made me smile. Morinaga also addresses some very real issues and concerns, such as homophobia, that are encountered by same-gendered couples, but many of the feelings expressed are relevant for any romantic relationship. The manga may be a bit melodramatic at times, but it is emotionally resonant. Kisses, Sighs, and Cherry Blossom Pink also incorporates a fair amount of humor. It’s a highly enjoyable and charming collection of short manga with likeable characters, a generally optimistic outlook, and a satisfying amount of realism to go along with its sweetness.

Filed Under: REVIEWS Tagged With: manga, milk morinaga, Seven Seas, Year of Yuri

Off the Shelf: Kisses & Crosses

June 8, 2013 by MJ and Michelle Smith 3 Comments

MICHELLE: Hey, MJ! What did the water say to the boat?

MJ: Um. I got nothin’.

MICHELLE: Nothing. It just waved.

MJ: Okay, that actually made me giggle a little bit.

MICHELLE: Victory! While I wallow in this feeling, care to introduce our first selection? (I note this is another week in which MJand I have two mutual reads instead of just one.)

kissessighs_vol1_fullMJ: Sure! Hmmmm… now the question is, which one? I guess I’ll start with the book I read last, since it’s freshest in my mind, and that would be Kisses, Sighs, and Cherry Blossom Pink, a double-sized volume of yuri short stories from Milk Morinaga, creator of Girl Friends, a five-volume series that we discussed in this column last year. Though Girl Friends was released here first, Kisses predates it, and it’s easy to see how one grew out of the other.

The volume’s opening chapter, “Not Friends Anymore,” begins the story of Nana and Hitomi, long-time best friends who are about to start high school together—or so Nana thinks. When Hitomi abruptly announces that she’s decided to attend a different school, Nana struggles with feelings of hurt and loss, until she finally realizes that it was her own rejection of Hitomi’s stronger feelings that drove her away. Eventually, Nana comes to terms with her own feelings and the two begin to explore a romantic relationship. Initially they are relieved to have ended up at different high schools, since they’d have a harder time concealing their romance as classmates, but over time they become dissatisfied with living in secrecy and find themselves longing for friends with whom they can share the truth about their relationship.

Though the book is a series of short stories, Morinaga uses Nana and Hitomi’s story to thread the collection together; each story is set at one of the two girls’ schools, utlimately bringing things back to their romance by the end. The stories are lovingly woven together, creating a feeling of real cohesion unusual in the short manga I’ve read. Since short stories aren’t my favorite format for manga, I found this quite gratifying.

MICHELLE: It was that sense of cohesion that kind of threw me, actually, since Sean’s comments about it for the last Pick of the Week column had led me to expect more couples, and more sad stories.

It’s not that I disliked Nana and Hitomi, though I did find them a little dull. More, I liked the stories with ambiguous or less cheery endings, like “Remember This Love Someday,” in which a girl confesses to her boyish friend, only to be kindly rejected by her, or “My True Feelings,” which ends with one girl declaring that she’ll make another like her. It doesn’t really seem likely, in my eyes, so I like it for that, even if it’s played a bit comedically.

MJ: I wouldn’t say that I found Nana and Hitomi dull, but the volume as a whole did really make me aware of just how much I crave more grown-up (or at least more complicated) romance. Like Girl Friends, Kisses is nothing if not sweet, but there’s a sameness to even the less overtly happy stories that makes me long for something more. Kisses‘ various romantic protagonists are all nice, pretty girls, carrying on relatively uncomplicated relationships in relatively comfortable environments. Even Hitomi and Nana’s brief stint as runaways is stunningly uncomplicated, as the two shack up in a hot springs resort before heading home to discover that all their problems have magically been resolved. The whole thing is, as I mentioned, unambiguously sweet, and though that’s often enough for me, I couldn’t help wishing for something just a bit meatier.

MICHELLE: “Sweet” is generally enough for me, too, but I think “sameness” aptly describes the aspect that left me feeling a bit blah. Nobody really stands out. None of the background characters is particularly significant. There’s nothing in these girls lives except other girls. It’s like they’re just drifting along, occasionally fancying each other, and not engaging with anything else.

MJ: Well said, Michelle. It’s a lovely little collection, don’t get me wrong, just… not much more than that.

So, shall we move on to our second selection?

MICHELLE: Okay!

CrossManage1Cross Manage is a relatively new Weekly Shonen Jump series in Japan, beginning in 2012, but we’ve already got a taste of it here, courtesy of VIZ’s digital manga site. (I have no idea whether there are plans for a print edition of the title.) Given that I generally adore sports manga, I really wanted to like this, and though I was kind of disappointed by its first half, it won me over in the end.

Tsunenori Sakurai used to be the star of the soccer team, but after a knee injury resulted in doctors telling him he’d never play again, Sakurai quit the team and has been adrift ever since, trying multiple clubs in the hopes of finding something that interests him. One day, he comes upon Misora Toyoguchi, who is enthusiastically practicing lacrosse by herself. Eventually, his innate sports sensibilities (or something) enable him to see where she is going wrong, and he is able to coach her through a breakthrough in her technique. When he accidentally touches her chest, Misora decides to exploit the situation and get him to manage the girls’ lacrosse team, of which she is captain, despite her lack of skills. At first, Sakurai resists, but can’t help responding to Misora’s passion for the sport, and ends up unashamedly giving it his all.

I just couldn’t get into Cross Manage at first, and kept seeing it ticking off items on, like, the Hikaru no Go checklist or something. Pro jock who has lost his own chance to play who is now mentoring someone else? Check? Underdog school club that has to undergo last-minute recruitment for a game? Check! First game against the most renowned school, with its super-refined, untouchable ace? Check! Gradually, though, I found myself won over. I like that Sakurai can tell Misora frankly how amazing he thinks she is, and of course the whole “I’ve finally found it” (regarding a place to belong) revelation pushes my buttons in a big way. And though Misora herself is somewhat of a cipher at this point, I like some of her teammates quite a lot, especially chubby, shy Noto, who is actually the most skilled player on the team.

MJ: In general, you’re a much bigger fan of sports manga than I, so I’m surprised to report that I had no problem whatsoever getting into Cross Manage from the beginning. Now, I’ve actually been following the series for a while, by way of Derek Bown’s Weekly Shonen Jump Recaps, so it may be that his increasingly positive impressions predisposed me to cut it some slack early on, but I liked both Sakurai and Misora right away and felt invested in their stories from the start. Also, I enjoyed the story’s examination of the difference between Misora’s initial raw enthusiasm for lacrosse and her growing seriousness, and how this progression affects her ability to play without caring about playing well.

Since you’ve brought up Noto, though (who is, indeed, awesome), I’ll take this opportunity to mention my one real issue with the series so far. I’ve complained before about overweight manga characters being portrayed as lacking normal facial features, and while this applies to Noto to a small extent (though even Misora’s facial features are pretty basic, Noto’s are disproportionally tiny in comparison to her over-round face), there is another heavy member of the girls’ lacrosse team whose physical features… well… I can only ask “WTF?”

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I mean… Yeah. I don’t know what to else say.

MICHELLE: I don’t either. I kept being reminded of Kurita and Komusubi from Eyeshield 21, who are also large and fat and small and fat, respectively. Both have very simple facial features compared to the other characters, but they’re male instead of female. (They’re my favorite characters in that series, actually.)

I guess we could look on the bright side and note that (in both cases) they’re portrayed positively, and their characterization is not based on weight at all.

MJ: I guess so? It really bothered me, though, I’ll admit. Not enough to keep me from continuing with the series, but enough to cause persistent discomfort, which is disappointing considering how much I enjoyed the volume otherwise.

MICHELLE: Possibly One Piece has inoculated me against being too distracted by strange body types, since that series is full of them. Granted, it feels much more out of place for just one character to look so weird. In One Piece, there’s a bevy of folks looking weird.

MJ: Yeah, I know that odd-looking manga characters are nothing unusual, but my discomfort in this instance is specifically related to the portrayal of fat people as having less complete or less “real” facial characteristics than other people, which implies that they are less complete or less real themselves. It’s a thing.

That said, Cross Manage has a lot going for it, and I’m likely to stick with it.

MICHELLE: Yeah, me too!

Filed Under: OFF THE SHELF Tagged With: Cross Manage, kisses sighs and cherry blossom pink, milk morinaga, yuri

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