Before I get to this week’s links, a quick programming note: next week’s Manga Review will be my last of 2022. On the following Friday–December 30th, to be exact–I’m going to do something I haven’t done since 2017: compose my own list of the year’s best manga. Regular link-posts will resume on the first Friday in January.
NEWS AND VIEWS
This week’s must-read essay comes to us courtesy of Kayleigh Hearn, who uses Rumiko Takahashi’s short story “The Laughing Target” as a jumping-off point for reflecting on Takahashi’s artistry. In particular, Hearn emphasizes the idea that Takahashi’s versatility and creativity are best appreciated in her shorter works. “As sprawling as her work is — Inuyasha, her longest series, ran 40 volumes – I find myself drawn to her shorter titles, like the macabre Mermaid Saga or the one-shot (ha) The Laughing Target,” she observes. “Their sheer brevity gives them extra power, a sunburst of raw creativity that never overstays its welcome or crumples under oversized expectations.” [The Gutter Review]
Erica Friedman recently shared clips from her November book signing at Kinokuniya in Manhattan, where she was interviewed about By Your Side: The First Hundred Years of Yuri Anime & Manga. [Okazu]
If you’re looking for a complete list of all the new manga and light novels coming out in December, Bill Curtis has you covered. [Yatta-Tachi]
Brett Michael Orr compiles a list of the five “most surprising” manga of 2022. [Honey’s Anime]
Laura Grace adds a new letter to her Shojo Alphabet series: F! [Beneath the Tangles]
The Reverse Thieves name Wandance their manga of the month. “Manga-ka Coffee uses a fresh, frenetic line style that gives movement, energy, and a fast pace to the dance sequences,” Kate explains. “Plus, Wandance integrates plenty of dance theory, ways of approaching dance, and instructional sections into the story in a way that feels natural and helps you see each character more clearly.” [Reverse Thieves]
On the latest Chatty AF podcast, Dee, Vrai, and Alex discuss how Sex Ed 120% addresses “subjects like consent, gender identity, and abortion.” [Anime Feminist]
The crack team at No Flying No Tights compiles a list of teen-friendly graphic novels in which “art plays a significant role in the story.” [No Flying No Tights]
Jocelyne Allen highlights the feminist storytelling of Peko Watanabe, praising her latest work Koi Jaa Nee Kara for its frank exploration of two forty-something women’s lives. “Watanabe’s a great storyteller who treats her characters with real empathy,” Allen notes. “While she often deals with difficult subject matter, she handles it in a seriously sensitive manner, so that you feel she is trying to dig in and understand and make us understand deeper truths, rather than merely show readers some tragedy porn. Her art is expressive, and she’s skilled at leading us through the mazes she creates with minimal backgrounds, so that our focus remains on the people who are at the heart of the story.” [Brain vs. Book]
Danica Davidson interviews Alex Dudok de Wit about translating Shuna’s Journey for English-speaking readers. When asked what he liked best about Hayao Miyazaki’s story, he answered, “The mystery. Miyazaki often introduces surprising elements into his plots, not necessarily explaining them, but integrating them into the story in a way that makes some kind of intuitive sense. He does this a lot with Shuna’s Journey: the sea whose level rises and falls dramatically, for instance. This is the language of symbolism, of visual metaphor.” [Otaku USA]
REVIEWS
File this under Better Late Than Never: Helen Chazan’s most recent Comics Gridlock column focuses on three horror titles: Cat-Eyed Boy, Be Very Afraid of Kanako Inuki, and The Town of Pigs. If you’ve been disappointed in the latest crop of Junji Ito manga, let Helen steer you towards a great book by Kazuo Umezz or Hideshi Hino instead. Also worth a look is Megan D.’s excellent review of Yamada Murasaki’s Talk to My Back. “Murasaki was apparently one of the first women to find success in gekiga, and her career took off around the same point that josei manga first came into being,” she notes. “Talk To My Back is kind of the perfect intersection of the two in how it combines gekiga’s more literary structures and frank confrontation of societal norms with josei’s willingness to explore the hearts and minds of adult women.”
New and Noteworthy
- Ayakashi Triangle, Vol. 1 (Brett Michael Orr, Honey’s Anime)
- Be Very Afraid of Kanako Inuki! (Megan D., The Manga Test Drive)
- Blitz, Vol. 1 (Grant Jones, ANN)
- Cat + Gamer, Vol. 1 (Megan D., The Manga Test Drive)
- Catch These Hands!, Vol. 1 (Megan D., The Manga Test Drive)
- Choujin X, Vol. 1 (Kate Sánchez, But Why Tho?)
- Coffee Moon, Vol. 1 (Adam Symchuk, Asian Movie Pulse)
- Dandadan, Vol. 1 (Joseph Luster, Otaku USA)
- Daughter of the Emperor, Vol. 1 (Sara Smith, The Graphic Library)
- The Executioner and Her Way of Life, Vol. 1 (Justin, The OASG)
- The Gay Who Turned Kaiju (Kate Sáchez, But Why Tho?)
- The Gay Who Turned Kaiju (Adam Symchuk, Asian Movie Pulse)
- Helck, Vol. 1 (Brett Michael Orr, Honey’s Anime)
- The Hunters Guild: Red Hood, Vol. 1 (Rebecca Silverman, ANN)
- The Hunters Guild: Red Hood, Vol. 1 (Harry, Honey’s Anime)
- Last Gender: When We Are Nameless, Vol. 1 (Demelza, Anime UK News)
- Matcha Made in Heaven, Vol. 1 (Rebecca Silverman, ANN)
- MoMo The Blood Taker, Vol. 1 (Danica Davidson, Otaku USA)
- My Dear Detective: Mitsuko’s Case Files, Vol. 1 (Helen, The OASG)
- Orochi: Perfect Edition, Vol. 1 (Megan D., The Manga Test Drive)
- Rainbow Days, Vol. 1 (Rebecca Silverman, ANN)
- Rainbow Days, Vol. 1 (Kate Sánchez, But Why Tho?)
- Rainbow Days, Vol. 1 (Joseph Luster, Otaku USA)
- Rainbow Days, Vol. 1 (Adam Symchuk, Asian Movie Pulse)
- Shonen Note: Boy Soprano, Vol. 1 (Sara Smith, The Graphic Library)
- Shuna’s Journey (Tom Shapira, The Comics Journal)
- Shuna’s Journey (Linda Codega, Gizmodo)
- Shuna’s Journey (Betsy Bird, School Library Journal)
- Sky, Vol. 1 (Krystallina, Daiyamanga)
- The Snake Who Loved a Sparrow (Sarah, Anime UK News)
- The Titan’s Bride, Vol. 1 (Megan D., The Manga Test Drive)
- Tales of the Kingdom, Vol. 1 (Megan D., The Manga Test Drive)
- To Strip the Flesh (Megan D., The Manga Test Drive)
- Tokyo Aliens, Vol. 1 (Nick Smith, ICv2)
- Tomb Raider King, Vol. 1 (Noemi10, Anime UK News)
- Touring After the Apocalypse, Vol. 1 (Kate Sánchez, Vol. 1)
- The Town of Pigs (Megan D., The Manga Test Drive)
- Tsubaki-Chou Lonely Planet, Vol. 1 (Demelza, Anime UK News)
- The World After the Fall, Vol. 1 (Adam Symchuk, Asian Movie Pulse)
- The World After the Fall, Vol. 1 (Noemi10, Anime UK News)
- The Wrong Way to Use Healing Magic, Vol. 1 (King Baby Duck, Boston Bastard Brigade)
Complete and Ongoing Series
- The Apothecary Diaries, Vols. 5-6 (Rebecca Silverman, ANN)
- BOFURI: I Don’t Want to Get Hurt, So I’ll Max Out My Defense, Vol. 5 (Josh Piedra, The Outerhaven)
- Catch These Hands!, Vol. 3 (Erica Friedman, Okazu)
- Daughter of the Emperor, Vol. 2 (Noemi10, Anime UK News)
- The Devil Is a Part-Timer!, Vol. 19 (Krystallina, The OASG)
- Don’t Toy With Me, Miss Nagatoro, Vol. 13 (King Baby Duck, Boston Bastard Brigade)
- Dr. Stone, Vol. 23 (King Baby Duck, Boston Bastard Brigade)
- The Great Jahy Will Not Be Defeated!, Vol. 4 (Demelza, Anime UK News)
- Hikaru in the Light, Vols. 2-4 (Rebecca Silverman, ANN)
- I Think Our Son Is Gay, Vol. 4 (Sarah, Anime UK News)
- line (Erica Friedman, Okazu)
- Lost Lad London, Vol. 2 (Rebecca Silverman, ANN)
- Magic Artisan Dahlia Wilts No More, Vol. 3 (Justin, The OASG)
- Mashle: Magic and Muscles, Vol. 8 (Sheena McNeil, Sequential Tart)
- Mieruko-Chan, Vol. 6 (Josh Piedra, The Outerhaven)
- My Hero Academia: Vigilantes, Vol. 13 (King Baby Duck, Boston Bastard Brigade)
- New York, New York, Vol. 2 (Rebecca Silverman, ANN)
- One Piece, Vol. 101 (Sheena McNeil, Sequential Tart)
- Orochi: Perfect Edition, Vol. 3 (Rebecca Silverman, ANN)
- Shadows House, Vol. 2 (Sarah, Anime UK News)
- Summertime Rendering, Vol. 4 (Sara Smith, The Graphic Library)
- Yuri Espoir, Vol. 3 (Erica Friedman, Okazu)