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Discussion, Resources, Roundtables, & Reviews

stepping on roses

Off the Shelf: Armada, Roses, Crazy for You

November 10, 2012 by MJ and Michelle Smith 4 Comments

MICHELLE: Hey, MJ! What did Geronimo say when he jumped out of an airplane?

MJ: Hm, I don’t know, what did he say?

MICHELLE: “Me!!!!”

MJ: I guess I should have seen that coming.

MICHELLE: Yeah, probably. So! What’ve you been reading this week?

MJ: My solo read this week was the debut volume of MiSun Kim’s Aron’s Absurd Armada, a Korean webtoon published in English by Yen Press. This series has been running since August of 2010 in the online incarnation of Yen Plus, and I checked out the first chapter for this column back when it debuted. Since it’s been quite a while, I’ll take a moment to refresh the premise.

Aron is a young nobleman and heir to a prominent dukedom with dreams of becoming a pirate. Thanks in part to his mother’s delusions regarding his intelligence and cunning (she believes he aspires to piracy in order to keep a rival family’s military influence in check), he is allowed to do so, accompanied by his pretty-boy bodyguard, Robin, whose reluctant participation hinges entirely upon his unapologetic greed. Though Aron is a fairly ridiculous pirate, random luck and Robin’s skills as a swordsman actually manage to win them a small crew, and the two embark on their journey to conquer the seven seas. Members of Aron’s ragtag crew include Ronnie, a young woman rescued from a shipwreck who is consistently mistaken for a man; Mercedes, a swanky transvestite who claims to be a hairdresser but is actually a deadly assassin; hulky Vincent, the world’s worst chef; and underlings Anton and Gilbert, whose primary function seems to be complaining and making jokes about other people’s sexuality.

True to its name, Aron’s Absurd Armada is devoted to humor rather than plot, and in this it largely succeeds. Though translating foreign comedy tends to err on the “miss” side of “hit-or-miss,” Kim’s sense of humor easily bridges cultural barriers—most of the time, at least. Only two or three jokes rely too heavily on Korean pop culture references to translate effectively in this first volume, which is a fairly good track record when compared to much of the Japanese 4-koma that’s been licensed for English-language release. In fact, the biggest cultural disconnect is the unfortunate volume of gay jokes that crop up, a large number of which originate in the series’ deliberate BL overtones. As a general rule, however, the series is genuinely funny, light, and satisfyingly whimsical.

Having originated as a webcomic, Absurd Armada is in full color, and Yen has thankfully preserved this in its print volumes as well. While, as a manga fan, I often find that full color comics result in sensory overload, in this case, color pages just enhance the series’ cartoonish feel, which is really quite effective. On top of that, both Kim’s comedic sense and her clear, expressive art style remind me of nothing more than Hiromu Arakawa’s omake strips for Fullmetal Alchemist, which, coming from me, is definitely a compliment.

MICHELLE: Since I generally don’t like consuming stories on a chapter-by-chapter basis, I’ve been waiting to read any of Aron’s Absurd Armada until it was finally collected, so I was very excited to see that a tangible copy is finally available. I’m kind of dubious about comedies a lot of the time, but this one sounds like it could be right up my alley.

MJ: I think it could be! Actually, I’d theorize that the best way to consume this series would be as a daily webcomic, one strip at a time, but it’s enjoyable in collected form as well.

So, what have you been reading this week?

MICHELLE: I’ve spent the last week catching up on Rinko Ueda’s Stepping on Roses in order to talk about its eighth volume, which came out early last month.

I knew going in that Stepping on Roses wasn’t going to be a masterpiece, but ye gods, is it ever dumb! The basic premise is that pauper Sumi Kitamura agrees to marry rich Soichiro Ashida in order to provide for the orphans her ne’er-do-well brother, Eisuke, keeps bringing home. Soichiro needs to be married in order to inherit his grandfather’s fortune, but schemes to have his friend Nozomu fall in love with Sumi with hopes of causing a scandal that’ll allow Soichiro to triumph in business somehow. He succeeds wildly, causing Nozomu to essentially go insane with his love for Sumi and become the series’ main antagonist. Meanwhile, Soichiro and Sumi fall in love for real. In volume eight, they’re living together in the slums until Soichiro gets ill and Sumi decides to yield to Nozomu’s aggressive courtship as a means to provide for her husband’s treatment. Misunderstandings, manual labor, and jumping from cliffs ensue. (Really.)

Being dumb doesn’t preclude Stepping on Roses from occasionally being entertaining. In particular, I’m fond of Soichiro’s manservant, Komai, and the best moment in the series so far is the super-short flashback side story in which he introduces his young charge to commoner cuisine in the form of riceballs. The series is also an extremely fast and easy read, with large, uncluttered panels and uncomplicated dialogue. Unfortunately, “uncomplicated” is pretty much the theme of the day. Despite the dramatic goings-on, the story lacks oomph and I find it hard to care about the characters. Sumi is mostly a passive heroine, and whenever she musters some gumption to do something about her plight, it’s usually something dangerous that requires one of the men in her life to rescue her. Soichiro is the classic misunderstood rich boy who’s never known love, and all of the villains are so obvious that they might as well be twirling mustaches. Speaking of obvious, the plot twist that will presumably be unveiled in the ninth and final volume was telegraphed so strongly in volume seven that it’s now just a matter of waiting for the pieces to fall into place.

That said, I undoubtedly will read the last volume to see how it all wraps up.

MJ: You are a lot more patient with this series than I have been. I gave up on it many volumes ago, for most of the reasons you mention here. Somehow it managed to eclipse my tolerance for brainless shoujo. I hadn’t realized that was possible, really, until Stepping on Roses. Though I have enjoyed Sean’s repeated wish that it would turn into a shogi manga. Sumi’s unexpected skill at shogi is pretty much all the series has going for it, in my view. Heh.

MICHELLE: I would much prefer it as a shogi manga!

Anyways, I think it’s your turn this time to introduce our tandem read!

MJ: Indeed it is! Our mutual read this week was the first two volumes of Crazy for You, a recent addition to the JManga catalogue from Karuho Shiina, best known in North America as the creator of Kimi ni Todoke.

Okay. So, Sachi is a shoujo everygirl—physically and intellectually unremarkable—whose best friend, Akemi, sets her up on a group date with a bunch of her boyfriend’s classmates. Though the boyfriend, Yuuhei, has been charged by Akemi with not letting any questionable guys latch on to inexperienced Sachi, he somehow lets known womanizer Yuki chat her up for the entire evening. Sachi predictably falls for Yuki and, despite Akemi’s alarmed disapproval, continues to pursue him even though she knows that most of what he says are lies. Thanks to Sachi’s sweet, guileless nature, she actually manages to befriend Yuki for real (to the dismay of both Akemi and Yuki’s more straightforward friend, Akahoshi), but their friendship’s unbalanced nature only spells doom for Sachi’s romantic heart. Just when Sachi begins to believe that her feelings might be returned, it becomes clear that Yuki harbors feelings for Akemi (and vice-versa), shattering relationships on all sides.

Though the typical love-triangle (or double-triangle?) setup and Sachi’s downright eagerness to be jerked around by Yuki becomes quickly wearying in the series’ early chapters, Shiina’s talent for exploring teen emotion eventually shines through. Early on, I’ll admit that my assessment of the series was pretty much, “not as good as We Were There,” to which it bears a number of similarities in terms of romantic setup, but Shiina adds some appealing touches later on.

First, I’m quite taken with the friendship between Sachi and Akemi, which (for once) is portrayed as being at least as important as their romantic aspirations—something Shiina perfected later in Kimi ni Todoke. Also, while Akahoshi could easily be set up as the ill-fated, stalwart “nice guy,” there’s actually quite a bit of doubt about just how “nice” he actually is, which makes his attachment to Sachi more interesting than tragic. Emotional complication is the real key to good romance, and there’s just enough here to make Crazy for You an engaging read.

MICHELLE: Nicely put! I was thinking that this really is the opposite of Stepping on Roses in terms of complicated versus uncomplicated!

Although I’m usually the first one to get riled up at female leads who don’t assert themselves, somehow I felt fairly tolerant of Sachi’s eagerness. Not the way she agrees to be duped, but how, even after Yuki and Akemi’s illicit smoochies shatter the group of friends, she still considers meeting Yuki—and experiencing a whole new world of love and heartbreak—the luckiest thing that’s happened to her. It’s almost as if she appears weak, but is actually strong, determined not to deny the love she feels, no matter what else is happening with other people. She’s glad that detached Yuki is able to feel love after all, and simply being capable of such an emotion herself is sustaining. If that makes sense.

And man, yes, the similarities with We Were There are pretty striking. Not so much the plot, but Yuki and Yano are so much alike they’re practically interchangeable. And the discoveries our heroine makes about their romantic pasts are rather similar, as well. I wonder if that’s part of why VIZ hasn’t licensed it.

MJ: Oh, you may have a point! One thing I’m glad of is that at least Akahoshi is not as straightforwardly awesome as Takeuchi, which I’m hoping means that I won’t have to be heartbroken over his inevitable rejection by Sachi. Heh.

MICHELLE: Yeah, he’s a really interesting character! Just another example of Shiina’s flair for developing her supporting characters in unexpected ways. Who could tell from the first couple of chapters that he would wind up being so important to the story? It’s hard to tell whether he genuinely wants Sachi to “save” him in a way, bestow upon him the faith she had for Yuki, or if this is another deliberate attempt to seduce a girl on his part. Is she a challenge? Does he genuinely like her?

MJ: In any case, I’m dying to find out! Which I guess means that I’m hooked.

MICHELLE: Me, too! Thanks again, JManga (and Shueisha)! I seriously was not getting far with my German editions and Google Translate! I hope we get more volumes of this (and Pride) in the near future.

Filed Under: OFF THE SHELF Tagged With: aron's absurd armada, crazy for you, stepping on roses

Bookshelf Briefs 4/18/11

April 18, 2011 by David Welsh, MJ, Katherine Dacey and Michelle Smith 6 Comments

This week, MJ, Kate, David, & Michelle take a look at slew of comics (and one light novel) from Viz Media, Oni Press, Yen Press, and TOKYOPOP.


Book Girl and the Suicidal Mime | By Mizuki Nomura | Yen Press – “Warmly despondent – that’s the kind of story I hope it will be,” Nomura says in this light novel’s afterword. Her hope is fulfilled, and she manages to add healthy doses of humor and suspense along the way. It’s about a high-school literature club that consists of a fetching goblin who literally eats prose and a boy who keeps her in snacks in the form of handwritten stories. They’re drawn into the romantic woes of a classmate, and their efforts to help her take some darkly unexpected turns that force the boy to confront painful events from his own past. It’s a quirky, thoughtful celebration of the power of stories, and it features interesting, well-developed characters with complex problems. I haven’t read many light novels, but I’m looking forward to reading more installments in this series. – David Welsh

Karakuri Odette, Vol. 6 | By Julietta Suzuki | TOKYOPOP – After the introduction of Travis, an advanced robot who wants Odette for his bride, in volume five, I was a little worried about this, the final volume of the series. Happily, I needn’t have been. Manga-ka Julietta Suzuki avoids any semblance of hijinks, framing her story instead around Grace, an earlier model of robot made by Travis’s creator, and the pain she feels over no longer being considered Papa’s precious masterpiece, and the relationship between Odette and her protector and friend, Asao. This leads to many poignant and bittersweet moments, as Odette realizes for the first time that nothing stays the same forever. It’s a lovely end to a lovely series. -Michelle Smith

Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan, Vol. 2 | By Hiroshi Shiibashi | Viz Media – Until someone licenses GeGeGe no Kitaro for the US market, yokai lovers will have to make do with this solid, if uninspired, story about a teenage boy who’s caught between the demon and human worlds. The second volume finds Rikuo tapping more readily into his yokai powers in order to save his friends — a marked improvement over the first volume, in which Rikuo spent more time trying to deny his abilities than make use of them. Rikuo’s yokai pals also get more screen time in volume two, giving the story a much-needed jolt of humor and weirdness. Much as I like the artwork and the concept, however, I’m still not taken with Nura; the stories follow all-too-predictable predictable patterns, and the main characters — the human ones, at least — aren’t well-rounded enough to be genuinely memorable. -Katherine Dacey

Pandora Hearts, Vol. 5 | By Jun Mochizuki | Yen Press – Everyone knows by now that I think Pandora Hearts is stylish, and to some extent that’s its greatest weakness. Though Jun Mochizuki uses her obvious Carroll/Tennial influence to create much beauty on the page, it is exactly that influence that encourages her least effective impulses. While the story she’s created is wonderfully compelling, she risks losing the thread, time and again, by tangling it up in useless references that don’t serve the series at all. The Cheshire Cat? The Mad Hatter? These names are not only meaningless in the context of her story, but actually harmful to it, making it appear as if she doesn’t trust it to stand up on its own. Fortunately, in volume five, Mochizuki steps back from the Wonderland-heavy muddle and remembers to tell her story, in all its beautifully twisted, heart-rending glory. Still recommended. – MJ

Salt Water Taffy: The Seaside Adventures of Jack and Benny: Caldera’s Revenge Part 1 | By Matthew Loux | Oni Press – If you haven’t treated yourself to any of the previous installments of Loux’s series, I’d recommend you correct that at your earliest convenience. Young brothers Jack and Benny are spending the summer at the deceptively peaceful seaside town of Chowder Bay. A potentially dull family vacation is saved by the fact that Chowder Bay is weirder than Key West and Provincetown combined, with totally true tall tales of giant lobsters, ghosts, and hat-stealing eagles lurking around every corner. This time around, the boys try and help a giant squid reunite with his parents, complicated by the interference of a determined sperm whale and an ominous ghost ship. Loux’s style is a joy, lanky, witty, and evocative, and this chapter is a real treat for anyone who’s having a hard time waiting for their own summer vacation to start. -David Welsh

Stepping on Roses, Vol. 5 | By Rinko Ueda | Viz Media – “I really enjoy drawing Stepping on Roses as it continues to have this stereotypical, melodramatic storyline,” says mangaka Rinko Ueda in her author’s notes for volume four. And, sure, I get where she’s coming from. There’s something cozy and comforting about by-the-book romance that I’m certainly not immune to. There’s a reason why that structure works, and it only takes a single spark of real personality to ignite the fire of heart-pounding romance. Trouble is, there’s no spark here to be found. Ueda has perfected the structure and she draws very prettily indeed, but she fails to make it personal, leaving our hearts to beat quietly on. Volume five has a few interesting moments thanks to a sub-plot involving the Ashidas’ devoted butler, but the series’ primary romance remains as empty as ever. Not recommended. – MJ

Time and Again, Vol. 5 | By JiUn Yun | Yen Press – Exorcist Baek-On is full of haughty scorn when he encounters a farmer who believes that his beautiful new wife is really an angel. When he forces the man to see the truth, it results in the husband killing his wife then belatedly realizing she did truly love him. This outcome leaves Baek-On reeling—was he wrong to interfere? has he been living his life the wrong way?—and sends him to a family friend for some advice. Although the volume is a little light on our main characters and doesn’t provide the same kind of character development as the previous volume, it still fleshes out the world well, filling in bits of Baek-On’s family history while offering twisty takes on traditional Asian folk tales. I’m looking forward to the sixth and final volume very much. -Michelle Smith

Filed Under: Bookshelf Briefs Tagged With: book girl and the suicidal mime, karakuri odette, nura: rise of the yokai clan, pandora hearts, salt water taffy, stepping on roses, time and again

Quick Takes: Shojo Beat Edition

August 15, 2010 by MJ 8 Comments

Welcome to the second edition of Quick Takes here at Manga Bookshelf! This week I take a look at some recent releases from Viz Media’s Shojo Beat imprint. Enjoy!


Dengeki Daisy, Vol. 1 | By Kyousuke Motomi | Published by Viz Media | Rated T+| Buy this book – As orphan Teru Kurebayashi’s older brother prepared to pass from this world, he gave her the gift of a cell phone–one which she could use to contact his mysterious friend “Daisy” who he promised would protect Teru in his absence.

Now in high school, Teru faces bullies of all kinds, including the surly school custodian, Kurosaki, who indentures her into servitude as repayment for breaking one of the school’s windows. But is Kurosaki more than he seems?

Though the mystery of “Daisy” is not maintained for long (at least for the reader) there is some real charm to this volume. Both Teru and Kurosaki are likable characters who are very easy to root for (individually and as an inevitable couple) which makes the romantic drama fun to follow.

Unfortunately, this series insists on perpetuating the sad shojo trope of a young woman who can only survive with the protection of a man–a concept that is becoming more and more tiresome for this reviewer. It’s really a shame, too. Teru appears to be a pretty tough cookie, which makes it even less believable that she’s so dependent on the fantasy she’s constructed around Daisy.

That said, this is a strong first volume containing all the essential elements for addictive high school romance: hateful antagonists, emotional drama, and just the right amount of attractive brooding. How can it be wrong?


Rasetsu, Vol. 6 | By Chika Shiomi | Published by Viz Media | Rated T+ | Buy this book – This is an emotionally heavy volume for Rasetsu, who tries to get over her feelings for Yako at the same time as she’s confronted with new truths about Kuryu (and his feelings for her). Meanwhile, Yako faces some very old spirits who mistake him for the person he most needs to forget.

What keeps this series compelling is that it is profoundly unsettled, and this applies to both the hearts of its characters and to their individual circumstances. There’s more to everyone than meets the eye. Furthermore, though each of the story’s characters is deeply conflicted, they still manage to band together into an unexpectedly warm, self-made family unit.

The love triangle between Kuryu, Rasetsu, and Yako may not be anything new to shojo manga, but it is played out in an unusually poignant manner. Each party’s strengths and weaknesses is being brought painfully to the fore, with no obvious resolution in sight.

Though this series gets off to a lukewarm start, over the course of six volumes it has become one of my favorite of Viz’s shojo series currently in release. Recommended.

Read previous reviews of this series.


Butterflies, Flowers, Vol. 3 | By Yuki Yoshihara | Published by Viz Media | Rated M (Mature) | Buy this book – In this installment, Choko and Masayuki take their first overnight trip together, with the intention of finally consummating their relationship. Of course the weekend is crashed by a collection of family and friends, though the two eventually find some time alone to do the deed.

The thing (the only thing) that saves this series is its humor. If it was not genuinely funny, chapter after chapter, it would be nothing more than the sad tale of deeply controlling man desperately working to get into his girlfriend’s pants. Is that too harsh? Maybe. It’s possible I’m still holding a grudge over “strict but warm,” which ranks right up there with “I get the message” and “Men have dreams that women will never be able to understand” on my list of Great Moments in Imported Sexism.

To be honest, though, not much has changed in this volume. Sure, Choko stands up for herself early on, accepting a date with another childhood acquaintance to show Masayuki that he does not, in fact, own her. But when the date goes awry, Masayuki is there to save the day and (more importantly) remind her how foolish she is to defy him. “This is what you get for not listening to me.” Yes, that’s actually what he says.

Fortunately, the smart humor that hooked me on this series’ first volume is still very much in play. That alone keeps me hanging on.

Read previous reviews of this series.


Stepping on Roses, Vol. 2 | By Rinko Ueda | Published by Viz Media | Rated T+ | Buy this book – The plot thickens in this volume, as it is revealed that Soichiro’s plan for success revolves entirely around manipulating his friend, Nozomu, into falling in love with his new wife, Sumi. Meanwhile, Sumi’s brother has already frittered away the money she sacrificed herself for, leaving the kids in the care of a slovenly drunk.

This volume is more engaging than the last, though that’s not exactly high praise. The story has become no less predictable (and no more believable) than it began, and it’s still difficult to watch its weak-willed heroine smile gratefully as she’s tossed around like an object by the series’ sad lineup of fairly repulsive men.

Some revelations about Soichiro’s past begin to offer up a bit more dimension, both to him and to the story overall, but can the payoff ever be great enough to make up for what’s lacking? Thankfully, Sumi’s country-bumpkin bumbling has been toned down in this volume, which does help a little.

Though I’m far from sold on Stepping on Roses, I’m at least beginning to feel mildly entertained. But can romance between these characters ever truly deliver?

Read previous reviews of this series.


Review copies provided by the publisher.

Filed Under: QUICK TAKES Tagged With: butterflies flowers, Dengeki Daisy, rasetsu, stepping on roses

Stepping on Roses, Vol. 1

March 11, 2010 by MJ 10 Comments

Stepping on Roses, Vol. 1
By Rinko Ueda
Published by Viz Media
Rated T+ (Older Teen)


Buy This Book

Sumi Kitamura is in a bind. Her older brother (a happy-go-lucky male escort with a gambling problem) has a habit of bringing home orphaned children for her to take care of. Unfortunately, what he rarely brings home is money. With the landlady looming and loan sharks at her door, Sumi decides to sell herself in order to keep her family alive and together. The buyer is Soichiro Ashida, a wealthy, jaded young man who must marry immediately in order to inherit his grandfather’s business empire. Soichiro promises Sumi all the money she needs in exchange for her hand in (loveless) marriage. Desperate, Sumi agrees, but is she really prepared to give up everything she loves for a the life of a lonely society wife?

When it comes to frothy romance manga, there are allowances most readers are always prepared to make. Realism? Unnecessary. Depth? Optional. Cliché? Bring it on! In return, these readers ask for just one thing: Romance–heart-stopping, unrestrained, no holds barred romance. Unfortunately, though Stepping on Roses takes full advantage of its readers’ generosity, it fails to deliver on its end of the bargain.

Though Sumi and Soichiro are positioned perfectly for their roles as the plucky commoner and guarded aristocrat who unexpectedly find love while trapped in a marriage of convenience, neither is interesting enough for them to develop any real chemistry. Soichiro is cold and controlling like so many of his ilk, but without any real sense of mystery with which to attract readers, let alone Sumi. Meanwhile, Sumi is bland, dense, and surprisingly shallow–more distraught over having lost out on a chance with Soichiro’s charming best friend than she is about the family she left behind (or even the calculated erosion of her individuality). Gags involving Sumi’s lack of social refinement repeatedly fall flat. And without any context provided for the story’s Meiji Era setting, it’s hard to know what conclusion to draw when her ignorance of western manners and customs is characterized as near-barbarianism.

Rinko Ueda’s artwork, a highlight of her series Tail of the Moon, feels tired and lifeless here. The work is nicely detailed and generally attractive (especially its period settings and dress), but offers little character or passion, much like the story itself. Even opportunities to engage readers in the unique dynamics of the period, visually or otherwise, are passed by with little enthusiasm.

Though it’s tempting to hope that subsequent volumes may offer something more to grab onto, even dedicated fans of romance manga may find their optimism hanging by a string. With all its trappings carefully in place, Stepping on Roses simply lacks heart.

Review copy provided by the publisher.

Filed Under: MANGA REVIEWS Tagged With: manga, stepping on roses

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