Manga Bookshelf

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Archives for September 2011

Hayate the Combat Butler, Vol. 18

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By Kenjiro Hata. Released in Japan as “Hayate no Gotoku!” by Shogakukan, serialization ongoing in the magazine Shonen Sunday. Released in North America by Viz.

We have arrived at the end of “The End Of The World” arc, and just as predicted, things quickly turn sour. This is not a fairy tale with a happy ending, but a story of two children getting broken, one by supernatural happenstance, the other by his own “loving” parents. Hata has said he had this arc planned nearly from the start, but it kept getting put off. My guess is Sunday’s editors wanted to wait till the series was popular enough that it could withstand 10 chapters that are nothing whatsoever like what has come before it.

These three final chapters to the arc are heartbreaking. I’ve gone on about Hayate’s parents before, so won’t do so now (they’re loathsome monsters, FYI). The rift between Hayate and Athena, though, is that of two six-year-olds who find that sometimes you say things you can’t take back. We don’t know exactly what happened to Athena’s parents, though certainly we can guess based on her reaction here. And so they fight (and Athena seems to be possessed by evil at some point), and she tells Hayate to leave. Which he does. And again, words you can’t take back. There’s a nice mirror of both children looking up desperately to hope the other has returned, only to find cold reality instead.

We have no idea how Athena left the castle, but we do get Hayate’s aftermath – and we also meet his brother! Yes, a family member of Hayate’s who is not hateful and deceptive. While you’re left wondering why his brother leaves Hayate with those parents, his advice is certainly good… though it comes a little too late. And so Hayate is resolved to become the best he can be, but also closes off his heart to a certain degree. He’s also resolved, if he ever meets Athena again, to tell her that she was right and he was wrong, at least in regards to his parents.

And hey, what a coincidence! Athena is now 10 years older, and in Athens! And dressed entirely in black – not suspicious at all! But I doubt we’ll see her again. After all, it’s not like the entire cast is going to wind up in Greece anytime soon…

So we have the rest of the volume, which is devoted to the entire cast, in various ways, ending up on a holiday in Greece. We’re not there yet, of course, so it’s also an excuse to catch up with characters shoved to the side by the enormous Hayate/Athena story. (Nagi and Maria lampshade this, in one of the funnier parts of the book.) Maria in particular gets a rare focus here, as she goes on a pretend date with Hayate, who is being stalked by a mysterious girl who is obsessed with him and wants him dead. (Well, no, not really.) They’re cute together, but you’re reminded that Maria still sometimes sees Hayate as a toy to dress up rather than as an actual male – she’s far less comfortable when reminded of that.

And then there’s Ayumu and Hinagiku, who continue to bond here – in fact, Hina makes a big sacrifice in order to advance her cause in a contest (the winner of which gets two tickets to Athena – subtlety went back out the window once Athena left the manga, in case you weren’t aware). And Nagi seems to be starting to learn the value of money – very slowly. And of course, there’s Fumi, who in a manga composed entirely of eccentrics manages to outdo them all – her answer for the ‘what is a fire station symbol’ question makes your jaw drop.

Casual readers will get nothing out of this, as it’s entirely dependent on knowing the characters. But longtime Hayate readers will enjoy it, and may be happy we’re back to the standard comedic antics after a long hiatus of drama. And Volume 19 is only 5 months away, rather than 6! Progress!

Some Sailor Moon Links!

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First, a plug…

Shortly after my reviews of Codename: Sailor V and Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon were published, I was invited by Scott Spaziani of Otaku in Review to participate in a podcast about the series. And here is the result! It was my first time ever on a podcast, and nerves made me babble a bit, but all in all it turned out pretty well. (My bit starts around 32:30.)

Next, some art!

Sailor MMM is a site where members can submit fanart inspired by the series. Some of the submissions are quite stunning, like this one of Sailors Saturn and Pluto. The shoes and weapons, in particular, capture Takeuchi’s style very well.

Lastly, some silliness!

Ask a Pretty Soldier is a Tumblr where readers can submit questions for Sailor Moon characters and possibly receive an answer in illustrated form. The results are usually pretty amusing.

Enjoy!

License request Day: Amai Seikatsu

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Work has been extremely busy lately, and yet my yearning to read more workplace manga only seems to increase. What’s that about? Whatever the psychology behind it, I find myself turning to Shueisha’s Business Jump for this week’s license request.

Now, among the professions I’ve considered over the course of my lifetime, I cannot say that “lingerie designer” has ever even hovered on the periphery. Would I want to do that for a living? No. Would I want to read a seinen manga about someone who does? Oh, yes, my friends. Hence, we arrive at Hikaru Yuzuki’s Amai Seikatsu.

Now, the likelihood of this being published in English seems extraordinarily slim, certainly slimmer than the models who work in the lingerie industry. If you click on “Enter” on the Shueisha page above, you should probably make sure you don’t do so at work, because here be nipples. So we’re definitely talking about a manga for legally adult males, which isn’t synonymous with it being a manga for a mature audience, but it looks like it might be amusing.

It’s about a young designer, Shinsuke Edo, who works with a lot of women at a lingerie company. Based on the little animations and sample panels, Shinsuke seems to find himself in the kind of wacky circumstances that come with being in a seinen comedy manga set in an at least partially clothing-optional milieu. He also seems to be surrounded by the usual mix of harridans, temptresses, and good girls, so we probably have a harem vibe in play. (I know. Duh.)

Honestly, this is more of a dare than a license request. I’ve often thought that there’s a fine line between American comics readers who like to read about women who appear to be wearing underwear and posing suggestively and American comics readers who like to read about women who actually are wearing underwear and pose suggestively. There’s generally a heroic narrative providing a veil of “I read it for the ass-kicking” respectability that Amai Seikatsu simply doesn’t seem to possess.

It’s also really, really long. In fact, it’s the longest-running series currently in Business Jump, having recently hit the 40-volume mark. So that limits the chances even more. But it never hurts to throw out a little reminder that seinen can be cheesy and smutty and ridiculous and possibly sweet and funny at the same time.

 

Ninja Papa, Vol. 1

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By Yasuto Yamamoto. Released in Japan by Futabasha, serialized in the magazine Manga Action. Released in the United States by Futabasha on the JManga website.

Just as we see here in the West, a lot of Japanese manga thrives on ‘fantasies’, and having the reader imagine a world in which they (or rather, the character they are meant to identify with) were really awesome. For boys this could be ‘what if I was a super ninja?’. For teenagers it could be ‘what if I was surrounded by various girls all trying to get into my pants?’. And for 35-year-old salarymen, married with kids but balding, bullied at work, and dealing with disrespectful in-laws, the question might be ‘what if I had been born a ninja?’.

This is the problem that our hero, Nobuo Matsuri, is dealing with. He was raised by his clan to be a ninja, an instrument of secret death. But then he met Aya and fell in love. Now he’s abandoned his ninja ways and is trying to make it in the world as a lowly salaryman. He’s not attractive, he tends to back down from any conflict at work, and he is generally seen as a goofy screw up. But all this is to conceal his old life from his wife and kids, and his old clan are still sending enemies out to kill him at every turn. Luckily, he still has his ninja skills.

At times, this manga almost reads like a parody. The situations can be ludicrous, though they’re always taken seriously. Nobuo not only has his gorgeous wife, who’s devoted to him and with whom he has amazing sex (which we see several times – this is a mature title), but a co-worker at work was rescued by his ninja self, and has unknowingly fallen for him. She’s cute too. The contrast between Nobuo wanting to have a simple, everyday life yet being constantly beset by insanity can be a bit head-spinning – at one point he’s trying to save his daughter from a sadistic teacher (who in turn it’s revealed was sexually abused by his own mother) who believes that all children are just dolls, and then he is at a party where rich guests decide to set a lion on him and see how much fun can be had watching him get eaten. As I said, you’re wondering if it’s meant to be this serious.

But yes, of course it is. The ninja scenes are played with the utmost seriousness, and Nobuo may be overweight and balding but that doesn’t mean he’s past it as a ninja. He tries to avoid killing his enemies, but will do so if pressed. And the ninja combat scenes do look pretty badass. As for his family, his daughter seems to have unknowingly inherited some of his ninja talents, as seen in the arc with the teacher, and his hateful mother-in-law, who belittles him every chance she gets, may have a dark secret of her own. As for his wife, well, she’s unaware he’s a ninja (so far – there’s a cliffhanger) and generally sees him as this lovable but great guy. Her character is therefore a bit flat. Her strongest scene comes when she’s rejecting the old high-school lothario who’s now trying to hit on her since he’s rich and successful and her husband is a loser. Needless to say, she stands by her man.

JManga’s translation is fine, but the lettering does pose a problem. A lot of the series takes place in the evening, and features Nobuo’s inner monologue as he thinks about true love prevailing and why must all this happen to him. Unfortunately, the text is also black, with a very fine white border. This makes it very hard to read, especially as it’s presented next to the unaltered Japanese text (just for the inner monologues, the dialogue uses standard word balloons) which has a much stronger white border and is much easier to read. I realize that there’s space issues involved here with the translation, but hopefully it’s something that can be fixed in future volumes.

Parody or no, Ninja Papa is not a manga to be taken seriously. However, if you like watching ninjas get waylaid at every corner, taken on many assassins at once, and then return to their hot wife and beautiful family, well, you are likely the audience Ninja Papa is going for. Fight on for love, Nobuo!

BL Bookrack: September 2011

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Welcome to the September installment of BL Bookrack! This month, MJand Michelle take a look at three offerings from Digital Manga Publishing’s Juné imprint, An Even More Beautiful Lie, Only Serious About You, and Private Teacher.

An Even More Beautiful Lie | By Kei Kanai | Digital Manga Publishing/Juné | Rated YA (16+) – It was an impulsive decision on Kurosu Keiichiro’s part to attend Teio Art University, but he believes that meeting genius painter Yukari Yohito proves that it was the right choice. Kurosu is in awe of Yukari’s works, and when he spots the other boy sleeping on the train and about to miss his station, he wakes him up and makes sure he doesn’t forget his umbrella, at the cost of forgetting his own and getting left behind by the train.

This leads to an offer from enigmatic Yukari to spend the night at his place, after which Kurosu comes around more often, making sure Yukari remembers to eat and bathe. Yukari is so completely obsessed with painting that he doesn’t “have any time to think about today, tomorrow, how to live.” Gradually they grow closer, even though Yukari insists that he’d never be able to care for someone more than he does painting. When his home and studio is randomly invaded by thieves, however, and Kurosu gets seriously hurt while single-handedly subduing the culprits, Yukari is unable to paint at all until his friend is fully recovered and discharged. Once he assures himself that Kurosu is fine and will stay by his side, he is finally able to start creating again. Theirs is a quirky love story, and an interesting one.

On the negative side, the narrative occasionally feels disjointed and self-consciously “artsy,” thanks to some obtuse dialogue (“Excessive bias makes me stop thinking about the essential nature of things”) and abrupt flashbacks which, while they provide useful information about characters’ motivations, also require flipping back a few pages to figure out where and when they’re supposed to occur. This issue pales in comparison to the true head-scratcher of the volume, however—the scene in which one of Yukari’s attackers engages in a brief daydream about raping his victim. It’s tonally dissonant, completely gratuitous, and takes one out of the story. I’d still recommend An Even More Beautiful Lie, but it’s too bad the mangaka (assuming it wasn’t an editorial mandate) found it necessary to include that scene.

– Review by Michelle Smith

onlyseriousOnly Serious About You | By Kai Asou | Digital Manga Publishing/Juné | Rated YA (16+)- Nao Oosawa is a busy guy. Juggling a demanding restaurant job and life as a single dad, he’s barely keeping his head above water. So when his daughter comes down with a fever, Oosawa can’t possibly turn down help, even when the offer comes from an overly-familiar customer, Yoshioka, who never stops flirting. Having observed Yoshioka’s endless stream of boyfriends, Oosawa’s got him pegged as a pretty careless guy, but as Yoshioka becomes more a part of Oosawa’s life, things start to look a bit different.

There’s a lot about this manga that looks like the same-old, same-old—the “straight,” serious uke, the playboy with a heart of gold, the double helping of hurt/comfort—not the worst of the genre’s overused tropes, perhaps, but gratingly familiar (much like Yoshioka). Fortunately, these bits of cliché are fleshed out with a level of warmth and thoughtfulness generally associated with the very best romance.

Both Oosawa and Yoshioka’s characters have been crafted with real care, and from authentic human stuff. They’ve both got baggage, which is neither easy to let go of or the sum of who they are. Oosawa’s holding his little family together, running between home, work, and daycare (fans of Yumi Unita’s Bunny Drop will sigh adoringly), completely devoted to his daughter even as he worries that she might be happier without him. And Yoshioka’s a mess, but the kind of mess that manages to prop up everyone around him when it looks like they might fall.

Asou’s got it right on the romantic front too, even with the straight guy and the somewhat contrived means of throwing the characters together. She builds the relationship slowly on a surprisingly solid foundation, and even by the end of this first volume, all she’s really shown us is the evolution of a friendship. Sure, we’ve yet to see how she handles Oosawa’s realization that he’s fallen for a man, but given the series’ maturity so far, I’ll give her the benefit of the doubt.

Artwork is the least exciting element of this series, but in some ways that may be for the best. It’s always refreshing to read a BL manga where character design feels unimportant, and that’s certainly the case here. The designs are serviceable and the visual storytelling is competent, but Asou gets the most mileage out of dialogue and a handful of very expressive visual moments.

Overall, Only Serious About You is exactly the kind of BL I hope to see much more of. Now how to get by until the release of volume two?

– Review by MJ

Private Teacher, Vol. 1 | By Yuu Moegi | Digital Manga Publishing/Juné | Rated M (18+) – Rintaro is a high school student being tutored by a college student named Kaede.

That’s the shortest summary I’ve ever written for a manga review, but Private Teacher may have the least interest in its own plot of any manga I’ve ever read. There’s some banter back-and-forth about Rintaro’s test scores and so on, but the entire thing is a stunningly transparent excuse for younger boy/older boy porn, and nothing else is even remotely on the table.

Now, I have no objection to pure pornography, but I’ll admit that it’s not what I was hoping for from this manga (there’s seriously another volume of this?). More importantly, however, it is simply Not For Me. Not only is this manga obsessed with its age gap (this is even more pronounced in the book’s second story, where the characters are younger), but also with obsessive love, which is not at all my cup of tea, at least not when it’s presented with such uncomplicated romanticism.

In each of the three stories in Private Teacher (seriously, the main story only lasts three chapters, and there is still a second volume?) the driving force behind the relationships is jealous obsession. “I get jealous when you laugh and talk with anyone but me.” That’s a frequently expressed sentiment in this manga, and it’s always received with love and gratitude. The message being delivered is loud and clear. Isn’t it wonderful to have someone feel so possessive of you? Aren’t you happy that someone wants to own you?

As I said, this manga is really Not For Me. Your mileage may vary.

– Review by MJ

Review copies provided by the publisher.

Disclosure: MJ is currently under contract with Digital Manga Publishing’s Digital Manga Guild, as necessitated for her ongoing report Inside the DMG. Any compensation earned by MJin her role as an editor with the DMG will be donated to the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund.

The Favorites Alphabet: D

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Welcome to another installment of the Favorites Alphabet, where the Manga Bookshelf battle robot ruthlessly assess the titles in our respective collections to pick the manga title from each letter of the alphabet that makes us feel all floaty, whenever possible. We’re trying to stick with books that have been licensed and published in English, but we recognize that the alphabet is long, so we’re keeping a little wiggle room in reserve.

“D” is for…

Dominion | By Masamune Shirow | Published by Dark Horse – Appleseed is the most ambitious, and Ghost in the Shell the most popular, but I have to admit that I find Dominion and its alternate universe sequel Dominion Conflict One to be my favorite Shirow manga, and one I keep going back and rereading.  It’s the funniest of his works, particularly Conflict, and the Puma Sisters were a major influence on “catgirls” in the Western fandom.  The environmental message is also strongest in these works, with the plotting devoted to ecoterrorism, and set in a future so miserable that if you go out without an oxygen mask, you die.  Most of all, though, Dominion revels in its property damage, and it may rival the Dirty Pair in sheer amount of destruction seen in a series.  Leona is a hothead who does not know the meaning of the words “Stand down”, and in Conflict, where her love interest and morality chain Al is missing, she’s even worse.  Dominion is just sheer fun, and a title I hope that Shirow eventually returns and wraps up some day.  – Sean Gaffney

Dororo | By Osamu Tezuka | Published by Vertical, Inc. – I could very easily have given this slot to Moto Hagio’s A Drunken Dream and Other Stories (Fantagraphics), but if I’m going to be completely honest, the title for this letter that I can read over and over again and take near-complete delight in is this truncated bit of action-fantasy lunacy from Tezuka. It’s about a guy whose greedy father sold all of his body parts to demons to get power, and now the kid has to use his prosthetic body and mad swordsman skills to go get his limbs and organs back. He’s also got a spunky kid thief tagging along, as one does in these circumstances. I could have read about a dozen volumes of this story, but there are unfortunately only three, probably because Tezuka was always doing a million things at once and one must prioritize. It’s hardly Tezuka’s most ambitious work, but, for my money, it’s a prime rendering of his defining qualities: passionate social critique and eye-popping entertainment. – David Welsh

Dororo | By Osamu Tezuka | Published by Vertical, Inc. – Once upon a time, when I was a brand new reader of manga, I was terrified of Osamu Tezuka. I found his status as a master so intimidating, I was actually afraid to read his work lest I be forced to face my own incompetency as a reader. Then, in a moment of madness, I bought Dororo, and less than a chapter in, I realized what it actually meant to be a master. Not only were my fears unfounded—Dororo was a truly thrilling and emotionally affecting manga—but it was Tezuka’s mastery of the craft that made the work so accessible, even today.  Dororo may not be my very favorite of Tezuka’s works, but it will always be special. – MJ

DVD | By Kye Young Chon | Published by DramaQueen – Even though DramaQueen has only managed to release two of DVD’s eight volumes so far, I’ve seen enough to deem this my favorite manga/manhwa starting with the letter “D.”  When Ddam’s boyfriend dumps her, sick of her quirky attributes like the ability to see illusions, her suicidal plans are thwarted by a bizarre pair of fellows, boob fetishist Venu and punk DD, who proceed to attempt to cheer her up in their own inept way. The story is playfully told, with various amusing excursions, and the mystery of Ddam’s gradually solidifying illusions is tantalizing. I continue to buy DramaQueen’s new releases, in hopes that this will help fund more DVD, but really, I am not very hopeful. Thankfully, TOKYOPOP Germany finished the series, so there’s always the Google Translate route. – Michelle Smith

What starts with “D” in your favorites alphabet?

Thinking about Manga in Four Dimensions

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I don’t think people realize just how much online manga sales data I’ve collected, or how I’ve managed to collate and correlate it. : ProfessorBlind, Twitter, 9 September

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I have a lot of data.

I also check in weekly at online books sales [looking at manga, specifically] across numerous sites. Sometimes, while churning through all that data, I get a hunch — an impression that one title is trending, or that something isn’t quite right. There’s no way to specifically call out what is different or odd about the charts [unfortunately] without a lot of extra work — like I said, it’s just a hunch.

But sometimes it’s worthwhile to dig into the data to confirm that hunch.

This past spring, something seemed to be going on with Fruits Basket. Of course, it’s an older title, dare-I-say a Legacy manga title. Seems like it’s been around and talked about forever — Heck, we even did an MMF on it. But even given it’s evergreen popularity, I got a hunch that something else was going on.

Please note, this did not show up in the top 10 bestseller lists. This was way down on the charts. In fact, when I actually compiled the data, I was surprised – and it took a bit of work to figure out all the various aspects, and provide at least a few theories on why.

I’ll have to clarify quite a bit here, but there’s nothing for it but to get started:

The flat horizontal lines are Benchmarks, average annual sales for some perennial manga titles — from the bottom, they are Lone Wolf & Cub 1 (grey ~2), the Azumanga Daioh Omnibus (green ~18), Buddah vol 1 (yellow ~38), Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind 1 (blue ~49), and Naruto 1 (orange, top line, ~133; yes, kids are still buying into Naruto)

The vertical lines correspond to dates – from left:

  • 13 Jan – Tokyopop announces distribution deal with Diamond, cancelling previous distribution through HarperCollins
  • 1 Mar – Tokyopop lays off majority of editorial staff
  • 26 Apr – Tokyopop’s website closes, and redirects all links to their Facebook page
  • 31 May – Official end of all publishing for Tokyopop in North America

Actually, there was also the announcement that Tokyopop would cease operation, on 15 April, but it seems we all knew it was coming at that point, and the press release didn’t affect online sales one way or the other, quite yet.

The two troughs visible in the chart above correspond to:

First, A lack of supply in February, as Tokyopop changed distributors,

and then, a lack of [online] demand in July, as we all ran into Borders to pick up manga on clearance.

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The spikes in the chart? Oh, I think most of us can guess why demand spiked — Casual fans of Fruits Basket who happen to also follow manga news online knew: it’s time to finish up this one. Volume 23 was released in 2009, so it was likely a matter of laziness… “Well, it’s a Tokyopop title; I’ll pick up the Ultimate Editions, or maybe wait for a box set…” [one was announced but never materialized]

But suddenly, not only was there not going to be a box set, the publisher was gone – so we snap up what we can find in stores, and start filling in the holes by purchasing online. Based on my chart, and on immediate demand in August – it looks like volume 17 is going to be the hard one to get.

See Also:

End of an era: Tokyopop shutting down US publishing division
MMF: Why Fruits Basket?
Tokyopop Website Replaced by Facebook
Tokyopop shutdown, CLAMP launch

Manga the Week of 9/28

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Our long national nightmare is over: Sailor Moon is hitting comic shops. Not Midtown, of course: they have not had a Kodansha release (bar one or two tiny exceptions) in months. But I have my own shop’s list of what’s coming in for me, and it has Kodansha stuff.

I’m not sure of exactly what’s shipping, as I haven’t ordered every Kodansha title for the month, but you should see Sailor Moon and Sailor V 1, Shugo Chara 12, Arisa 4, Negima 31, and Deltora Quest 2. No, not the releases actually due out in bookstores next week – that would be too logical. Only the stuff that’s running 1-3 weeks late. Still, Sailor Moon! And Negima! And Arisa!

In other release news, Bandai has the second volume of Kannagi, with more wacky antics about the girl who already had a boyfriend before the story started and somehow offended an entire otaku species. Oh, and it’s about supernatural shrine maidens as well. :)

Dark Horse has another volume of Berserk, one of their biggest manga series, and one which has caught up with Japan, so a new volume is a treat. If you like dark, gritty violence. Which, let’s face it, many do. It doesn’t hit NYT bestseller lists, but sells very briskly via Diamond.

NBM has the long-awaited Stargazing Dog, a Futabasha title which is the company’s first manga! It looks adorable. (I note the title is also one of the ones JManga offers, though with a different translation.)

Seven Seas is putting out the second volume of A Certain Spinoff Franchise, and I still wait with bated breath to see if Yen will pick up the original. In the meantime, Misaki is fun, and can zap things.

Vertical has the new Tezuka book. No, not Princess Knight, which is a rather nontraditional Vertical title. This is The Book of Human Insects, which is a VERY traditional Vertical title. Provided you don’t mind dealing with horrible people doing horrible things, this promises to be another hefty slice of seinen masterpiece.

And Viz has a new Pokemon book, which will thrill and delight Pokemon fans everywhere! Or possibly be awful. Dunno, have never sampled the series. But it sells like Pokemon, so it has some people who think it’s great.

So what, aside from Sailor Moon and V of course, is appealing to you?

Welcome Matt!

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Today, I’m pleased to welcome Rocket Bomber‘s Matt Blind to Manga Bookshelf’s roster of contributors!

Matt is especially known for his wonderfully meticulous Manga Bestsellers charts, and happily he’s agreed to have them hosted here. He’ll also be contributing other manga-related musings as he sees fit, and since we love Matt’s perspective, we hope that will be often.

You can check out this week’s charts here (always available in their new, dedicated space on Manga Bookshelf’s front page). And if you’re wondering how this statistical magic happens, I recommend reading Matt’s “About the Charts.”

Please give Matt a warm welcome! We’re thrilled to have him on board!

Manga Bestsellers: Week Ending 18 September 2011

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Comparative Rankings Based on Consolidated Online Sales

last week’s charts
about the charts

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Manga Bestsellers

1. ↔0 (1) : Sailor Moon 1 – Kodansha Comics, Sep 2011 [434.3] ::
2. ↔0 (2) : Sailor Moon Codename: Sailor V 1 – Kodansha Comics, Sep 2011 [421.5] ::
3. ↔0 (3) : Black Bird 10 – Viz Shojo Beat, Sep 2011 [415.3] ::
4. ↑7 (11) : Dengeki Daisy 6 – Viz Shojo Beat, Sep 2011 [391.8] ::
5. ↑3 (8) : Sailor Moon 2 – Kodansha Comics, Nov 2011 [385.1] ::
6. ↔0 (6) : Bleach 36 – Viz Shonen Jump, Sep 2011 [384.3] ::
7. ↔0 (7) : Maximum Ride 4 – Yen Press, Apr 2011 [365.3] ::
8. ↑16 (24) : xxxHolic 17 – Kodansha Comics, Sep 2011 [328.0] ::
9. ↑33 (42) : One Piece 58 – Viz Shonen Jump, Sep 2011 [327.5] ::
10. ↓-5 (5) : Black Butler 1 – Yen Press, Jan 2010 [318.7] ::

[more]

Top Imprints
Number of volumes ranking in the Top 500:

Viz Shojo Beat 90
Yen Press 86
Viz Shonen Jump 76
Kodansha Comics 38
Viz Shonen Jump Advanced 29
Vizkids 29
Del Rey 17
DMP Juné 16
Viz Shonen Sunday 15
Dark Horse 13

[more]

Series/Property

1. ↔0 (1) : Sailor Moon – Kodansha Comics [960.6] ::
2. ↔0 (2) : Naruto – Viz Shonen Jump [746.8] ::
3. ↔0 (3) : Maximum Ride – Yen Press [739.6] ::
4. ↔0 (4) : Black Butler – Yen Press [700.8] ::
5. ↑2 (7) : Negima! – Del Rey [690.1] ::
6. ↔0 (6) : Bleach – Viz Shonen Jump [688.2] ::
7. ↓-2 (5) : Black Bird – Viz Shojo Beat [688.0] ::
8. ↑2 (10) : Dengeki Daisy – Viz Shojo Beat [651.4] ::
9. ↓-1 (8) : Vampire Knight – Viz Shojo Beat [563.8] ::
10. ↑3 (13) : Finder Series – DMP Juné [537.5] ::

[more]

New Releases
(Titles releasing/released This Month & Last)

1. ↔0 (1) : Sailor Moon 1 – Kodansha Comics, Sep 2011 [434.3] ::
2. ↔0 (2) : Sailor Moon Codename: Sailor V 1 – Kodansha Comics, Sep 2011 [421.5] ::
3. ↔0 (3) : Black Bird 10 – Viz Shojo Beat, Sep 2011 [415.3] ::
4. ↑7 (11) : Dengeki Daisy 6 – Viz Shojo Beat, Sep 2011 [391.8] ::
6. ↔0 (6) : Bleach 36 – Viz Shonen Jump, Sep 2011 [384.3] ::
8. ↑16 (24) : xxxHolic 17 – Kodansha Comics, Sep 2011 [328.0] ::
9. ↑33 (42) : One Piece 58 – Viz Shonen Jump, Sep 2011 [327.5] ::
12. ↑27 (39) : Negima! 31 – Kodansha Comics, Sep 2011 [313.7] ::
13. ↑14 (27) : Finder Series 4 Prisoner in the View Finder – DMP Juné, Aug 2011 [310.2] ::
19. ↑83 (102) : Fullmetal Alchemist 26 – Viz, Sep 2011 [272.2] ::

[more]

Preorders

5. ↑3 (8) : Sailor Moon 2 – Kodansha Comics, Nov 2011 [385.1] ::
35. ↓-1 (34) : Finder Series 5 Truth in the View Finder – DMP Juné, Dec 2011 [214.9] ::
37. ↑36 (73) : Sailor Moon 3 – Kodansha Comics, Jan 2012 [203.5] ::
40. ↑45 (85) : Sailor Moon 4 – Kodansha Comics, Mar 2012 [201.8] ::
44. ↑17 (61) : Sailor Moon Codename: Sailor V 2 – Kodansha Comics, Nov 2011 [191.6] ::
135. ↑91 (226) : xxxHolic 18 – Kodansha Comics, Dec 2011 [102.3] ::
138. ↓-37 (101) : Negima! 32 – Kodansha Comics, Nov 2011 [99.7] ::
143. ↑93 (236) : Vampire Knight 13 – Viz Shojo Beat, Oct 2011 [95.9] ::
149. ↑180 (329) : An Even More Beautiful Lie – DMP Juné, Jan 2012 [92.8] ::
172. ↑203 (375) : Black Butler 7 – Yen Press, Oct 2011 [81.0] ::

[more]

Manhwa

145. ↑157 (302) : Jack Frost 4 – Yen Press, Dec 2010 [94.0] ::
190. ↑ (last ranked 28 Aug 11) : Jack Frost 3 – Yen Press, Jul 2010 [74.9] ::
237. ↑497 (734) : Angel Diary 13 – Yen Press, Dec 2010 [62.3] ::
293. ↓-89 (204) : March Story 1 – Viz Signature, Oct 2010 [51.3] ::
339. ↑485 (824) : Laon 3 – Yen Press, Sep 2010 [43.5] ::
380. ↑224 (604) : Jack Frost 2 – Yen Press, Nov 2009 [39.5] ::
435. ↓-17 (418) : Evyione: Ocean Fantasy 2 – Udon, Sep 2008 [35.8] ::
450. ↑1199 (1649) : Laon 5 – Yen Press, Apr 2011 [34.8] ::
454. ↓-116 (338) : Bride of the Water God 8 – Dark Horse, May 2011 [34.6] ::
456. ↑250 (706) : 13th Boy 4 – Yen Press, Jun 2010 [34.6] ::

[more]

BL/Yaoi

13. ↑14 (27) : Finder Series 4 Prisoner in the View Finder – DMP Juné, Aug 2011 [310.2] ::
35. ↓-1 (34) : Finder Series 5 Truth in the View Finder – DMP Juné, Dec 2011 [214.9] ::
94. ↓-4 (90) : Maelstrom (Kindle ebook) 1 – Yaoi Press, Jun 2011 [132.5] ::
147. ↑190 (337) : Sky Link – DMP Juné, Sep 2011 [93.4] ::
149. ↑180 (329) : An Even More Beautiful Lie – DMP Juné, Jan 2012 [92.8] ::
191. ↑37 (228) : Finder Series 3 One Wing in the View Finder – DMP Juné, Mar 2011 [73.7] ::
194. ↓-44 (150) : Maelstrom (Kindle ebook) 3 – Yaoi Press, Jul 2011 [71.7] ::
200. ↓-39 (161) : Maelstrom (Kindle ebook) 4 – Yaoi Press, Jul 2011 [71.1] ::
209. ↓-8 (201) : About Love – DMP Juné, Nov 2011 [69.3] ::
239. ↓-9 (230) : Secrecy of the Shivering Night – DMP Juné, Dec 2011 [62.0] ::

[more]

Internet Archive Link: http://www.archive.org/details/MangaRankingsWeekEnding18September2011

I Am Not a Serial Killer by Dan Wells

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From the back cover:
John Wayne Cleaver is dangerous, and he knows it. He’s spent his life doing his best not to live up to his potential.

He’s obsessed with serial killers but really doesn’t want to become one. So for his own sake, and the safety of those around him, he lives by rigid rules he’s written for himself, practicing normal life as if it were a private religion that could save him from damnation.

Dead bodies are normal to John. He likes them, actually. They don’t demand or expect the empathy he’s unable to offer. Perhaps that’s what gives him the objectivity to recognize that there’s something different about the body the police have just found behind the Wash-n-Dry Laundromat—and to appreciate what that difference means.

Now, for the first time, John has to confront a danger outside himself, a threat he can’t control, a menace to everything and everyone he would love, if only he could.

Review:
It’s hard to resist a book with a title like I Am Not a Serial Killer, at least for me, and when I picked this up I figured I was in for something akin to “Dexter: The Early Years.” But that was before Wells pulled a genre switcheroo.

Fifteen-year-old John Wayne Cleaver is a markedly self-aware sociopath, in that he is fully cognizant of his lack of empathy and bizzare compulsions and narrates about them in an articulate manner that I wouldn’t be surprised to learn is uncommon in others of his kind. He’s seeing a therapist and trying to keep “the monster” at bay by following a series of strict, self-imposed rules (a what-to-avoid list gleaned from intensive serial killer research) designed to keep him from going down a dangerous path. When mutilated bodies start showing up in his small town, John is excited and fascinated, but the more he learns about the crimes and the fact that the killer never intends to stop, the more he comes to realize that he may be the only person who can prevent the deaths of more innocents by letting “the monster” out to kill the perpetrator.

Soon it becomes clear that John is dealing with something supernatural. Ordinarily, it would bug me when a “real world” mystery suddenly veers into the supernatural for its resolution, but it actually kind of works for me here. John is such a broken person that he can’t understand why the culprit is doing certain things, and eventually realizes that even a demon is more capable of genuine human emotion than he is. This ties in some with the depiction of John’s family life—an absentee father who never follows through with promises and a mother who loves with desperate urgency to try to make up for her ex-husband’s shortcomings—since one of the most important moments of the book occurs when John is finally able to achieve a bit of real understanding with his mom instead of just faking it.

I guess the book is somewhat gross. None of the descriptions of the crimes bothered me, but the mortuary scenes—John’s mom and aunt run a funeral home and allow him to assist sometimes—are clinical and grim. They made me think of my late grandmother and made me want to call my parents. That said, I appreciate how familiarity with the mortuary layout and equipment pays off later in the story.

Ultimately, I Am Not a Serial Killer is pretty interesting. Though I’m not sure I buy the extent of John’s self-knowledge, he’s still an intriguing protagonist, and I thought Wells did a decent job of making him simultaneously sympathetic and abnormal. When I picked up the book I didn’t realize it was the first of a trilogy, but it was a pleasant surprise. Look for a review of book two, Mr. Monster, in the near future.

Cardcaptor Sakura, Vol. 2

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As it was with the first two-volume collection of CLAMP’s Cardcaptor Sakura (Dark Horse), so it is with the second: pretty much pure delight. I may not be the biggest CLAMP fan in the world, but I love this series.

Our titular heroine continues to collect the powerful, magical Clow Cards that give her control of various elements and let her… well… collect more Clow Cards. She protects her friends, wins over dubious rivals, generally enjoys everything about her life, and wages an unstoppable charm offensive in the process. Sakura is a terrific, terrific heroine. I love that CLAMP can portray her as being inexperienced without seeming stupid or clumsy, and that they can portray her as being instinctive and resourceful without eliminating any element of risk.

The already engaging supporting cast is enhanced even more by additional focus on Kaho Mizuki, a knockout of a substitute teacher who has a history with Sakura’s brother and a lot of secrets that may or may not relate to Sakura’s mission. In my experience, CLAMP tends to enjoy portraying enigmatic moments and behaviors without necessarily making them pay off later. (I’m a patient reader, but enigmas are annoying if they don’t ultimately mean something.) Mizuki is a wonderful example of that kind of mystery reaching satisfying closure while being a lot of fun along the way. I hope she comes back, if only for the pleasure of seeing her accurately assess the relationship dynamics of the other characters but being too polite to spoil things for them.

I’m ceaselessly amused and even a little moved by the romantic geometry in evidence. Boys crush on boys. Girls crush on girls. Boys and girls commiserate over their shared crush on the same boy. There’s a school festival, an event that rarely distinguishes itself, but CLAMP even manages to liven up that old saw with emotionally urgent peril and cross-dressing.

There’s just nothing to dislike about this book. It’s got great characters, a fun plot, art that’s just the right kind of cute, and tons of energy and good will. I may never forgive CLAMP for not finishing Legal Drug or for the song lyrics and angel dredge in Clover, but they will always be in the win column thanks to Cardcaptor Sakura.

 

Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon Volume 1

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Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon Volume One by Naoko Takeuchi

Sailor Moon is back in print! When I was reading these new editions from Kodansha I decided to start chronologically, so I read Sailor V first and Sailor Moon second. It is interesting seeing the contrasts in character present from the first few pages. In Sailor V, Mina gets in trouble for attempting a daring gymnastics move. In Sailor Moon, Usagi is running off to school with tears in her eyes from dismay at being late. Usagi is presented as the typical not very bright, somewhat ditsy shoujo heroine that most manga readers will be familiar with. But part of the reason why I like Sailor Moon so much is that Takeuchi does manage a couple subtle spins on the well-worn formula that she’s working with.

Usagi has a fateful encounter with a mysterious cat, then goes to school for a typical day. She gets punished and gossips with her classmates about Sailor V. She visits the jewelry store belonging to the family of her friend Naru. Outside, she throws one of her abysmal school papers into the face of a boy wearing a tuxedo and sunglasses. She thinks he’s a pretentious jerk for being so dressed up during the day, and he tells her to “study harder Miss bun-head!” IT IS TRUE LOVE! Later that evening the mysterious cat Luna visits Usagi and tells her that she’s been chosen to be a guardian. She gets her magical girl accessories and the phrase that triggers her transformation sequence (Moon Prism Power Make Up!) and she is off to fight the forces of evil at the jewelry store. This first chapter shows how Takeuchi’s storytelling has improved in contrast to Sailor V. By starting out with an enemy that could be directly hurting one of her friends, there’s more dramatic tension in Sailor Moon as opposed to the endless progression of pop idols that Sailor V fights. Of course, Usagi as Sailor Moon barely fights at all on her first outing. She halfway thinks that she’s dreaming and is surprised that she’s getting hurt, then she reacts to the fight by throwing a tearful temper tantrum. Fortunately her tiara boomerang vanquishes her enemy, and she finds out that she’s being watched by a mysterious man who introduces himself as Tuxedo Mask and says “Sailor Moon, I’ll certainly take note of you.”

Now that Usagi’s general situation is set up, she has to deal with Luna’s demands that she train and gather allies. There are other sailor scouts out there and Usagi has to collect them all (like Pokemon!) while struggling with her feelings for Tuxedo Mask and her own ineptitude. Usagi’s companions are generally in some way more capable than her, but you can see how their different personality traits would contribute to the formation of a good team. Sailor Mercury is a teen genius. Sailor Mars has the moral certainty of a shrine maiden. Sailor Jupiter is strong and brave. The sailor scouts are going after the “Legendary Silver Crystal”, as are their mystical enemies and Tuxedo Mask. Usagi is uncertain if Tuxedo Mask is an enemy or an ally, because while he certainly seems to appear often if she’s in the need of a rescue his motivations are unclear.

Takeuchi’s art seems to have grown a bit smoother when comparing Sailor Moon with Sailor V. The paneling is slightly more complex, although it is still a manga the focuses most on the faces of the characters without much attention paid on setting scenes or background images. The battles and team building in Sailor Moon seem to owe a lot to shonen manga, but being as girly as it is the battles involve costume changes and awesome battle cries instead of violence. While it might be pretty silly for girls to don sailor suits to fight evil, there’s a certain exuberant girl power vibe about the scenes when Sailor Moon and her allies line up to announce that their enemies are about to be punished. I do not know how it is possible not to love a manga that features a girl yelling “You will refrain from underestimating women! And with Mars Power, you will burn! These high-heeled legs will deliver your punishment!”

A Preliminary NYCC/NYAF Schedule

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So Comic-Con has released their panels and events schedule, and I’ve given it an initial glance. My first thought was that the folks who scheduled SDCC also scheduled this: it’s really top heavy, with Friday being insane and Saturday and Sunday being far more normal. And I’ll be there this year as Press, covering the event for Manga Bookshelf, A Case Suitable for Treatment, and freedom.

So here is what I have scheduled, bearing in mind that I’ve no doubt missed something important, I will have to eat at some point (veal parm sub lunch with Erica!), and that a couple of these will be “Sorry, already full” turned away at the door sort of panels.

FRIDAY

11am – 12 noon: Unusual Manga Genres

12:15pm – 1:15pm: Yen Press Industry Panel

1:30pm – 2:30pm: Dark Horse 25th Anniversary Panel

2:45pm – 3:45pm: Funimation Industry Panel

4:15pm – 5:15pm: Venture Brothers Panel

6:30pm – 7:30pm: Kodansha Industry Panel (with Hiro Mashima)

7:45pm – 8:45pm: XX: The Women of Queer Comics

8:45pm – 9:45pm: Vertical Industry Panel

As you can see, after this schedule I will basically be DEAD. Karaoke? Hah. I also fully expect I will be unable to get into the Venture Brothers panel. And I’ll see if I can feel out Dark Horse: if they have few to no manga announcements, I may go to Del Rey’s book panel instead. But hey, I have an hour for dinner! Bonus!

SATURDAY

10:45am – 11:45am: Bandai Industry Panel

1:30pm – 2:30pm: Archie Comics Industry Panel

5pm – 7:15pm: Fairy Tail Panel

7:30pm – 8:30pm: CBLDF: Defensing Manga

As you can see, a much saner day, with loads of free time to actually do other things. As with last year’s Durarara!! panel, if the FT panel is just cosplay and videos and squee, I may skip out. Also, I will do my best this year to avoid the hyper guy at the Bandai panel demanding moe blobs (no, I’m not exaggerating).

SUNDAY

FUNNY CARS!

10:45am – 11:45am: Viz Media Industry Panel

2pm – 3pm: Classic Warner Bros./Hanna-Barbera Cartoons Going Blu-Ray

As you can see (gotta have it in threes or it’s not jazz), this is the quietest day, which is good as I expect I will need to conserve ergs and rest my ankle which has only just healed and which no doubt I will be re-aggravating all weekend. That last panel, btw, is my one non-negotiable one.