Anna N

SEAN: Next week is Anime NYC and also Yen Press week. Yikes!

ASH: Here we go!

SEAN: Several debuts for Yen On. Hell Is Dark with No Flowers (Jigoku Kura Yami Hana mo Naki), a horror title about a boy who can see monsters getting room and board in exchange for sending those possessed by yokai… to Hell!

ASH: Well, now, that sounds exactly like something I would read.

ANNA: That does sound charming.

SEAN: My First Love’s Kiss (Watashi no Hatsukoi Aite ga Kiss Shiteta) is a yuri light novel series from the creator of Adachi and Shimamura. Our heroine is annoyed when her classmate and her mother are now living with them. It doesn’t help that the classmate is so pretty. But where does she go at night?

ASH: Glad to see more yuri novels being licensed.

SEAN: Re:ZERO -Starting Life in Another World- Short Story Collection is what it sounds. This collection takes place after Vol. 3 of the main series, and also is the introduction of a character we were supposed to already know from the 5th arc. The dangers of licensing short story collections.

Sword Art Online Alternative Clover’s Regret is the second in the Alternative series, now that we’ve caught up with Gun Gale Online. This series follows the adventures of the Sleeping Knights in a Japanese-themed game.

Also from Yen On: Alya Sometimes Hides Her Feelings in Russian 5, Blade & Bastard 2 (a JN-C print release), The Ephemeral Scenes of Setsuna’s Journey 4, Hell Mode 5 (a JN-C print release), The Hero Laughs While Walking the Path of Vengeance a Second Time 7, High School DxD 14, I Kept Pressing the 100-Million-Year Button and Came Out on Top 8, Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? 19, King’s Proposal 5, Magical Girl Raising Project 18 (the final volume), The Misfit of Demon King Academy 4-1 (a J-NC print release), My Happy Marriage 7, My Instant Death Ability Is So Overpowered, No One in This Other World Stands a Chance Against Me! 5 (a JN-C print release), Rascal Does Not Dream of Santa Claus (the 13th in the series), Riviere and the Land of Prayer 2, Sabikui Bisco 8, Sentenced to Be a Hero 3, That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime 19, and Your Forma 6.

ASH: So many books.

SEAN: As for Yen Press, they also have debuts. The Hachioji Specialty: Tengu’s Love (Hachiouji Meibutsu Tengu no Koi) is a shoujo title from Asuka. A young man returns to his home village… where he has to marry a tengu demon he met as a child! He doesn’t want this, but she won’t let that stop her.

ASH: Interesting, that plot is more commonly encountered the other way around.

ANNA: Hmmmm.

SEAN: In Another World, My Sister Stole My Name (Isekai de Ane ni Namae wo Ubawaremashita) is a shoujo title from Flos Comic. A girl has been communicating with a boy from another world via a magic hand mirror… then her older sister and the mirror disappear. Now her sister has stolen her life in another world?

ASH: Uh-oh!

SEAN: The Magical Girl and the Evil Lieutenant Used to Be Archenemies (Katsute Mahou Shoujo to Aku wa Tekitai Shite Ita) is an omnibus containing the entire series before the author’s unfortunate death. She also wrote Inu x Buku SS, and this is getting an anime. It ran in Gangan Joker, and is another one of those “good guy and bad guy fall in love” series.

Rejected by the Hero’s Party, a Princess Decided to Live a Quiet Life in the Countryside (Shin no Nakama ni Narenakatta Ohime-sama wa, Henkyou de Slow Life Suru Koto ni Shimashita) is a spinoff of Banished from the Hero’s Party, showing what Rit was up to between the first time she met Red/Gideon and the second. It runs in Shonen Ace Plus.

ASH: I highly recommend the quiet countryside life when dealing with rejection. Or anytime, really.

SEAN: Strategic Lovers is a shonen title from (oh dear) Dragon Age. The son of a wealthy businessman and his mistress, our hero didn’t think he was in the line of succession… but he is! Now he’s been kidnapped by young women, all of whom are after his body! This is basically softcore porn, for that sort of audience.

ASH: It does have that vibe, doesn’t it.

SEAN: Also from Yen Press: Breasts Are My Favorite Things in the World! 8 (the final volume), Bungo Stray Dogs 24, Cheeky Brat 11, Friday at the Atelier 2, I Got a Cheat Skill in Another World and Became Unrivaled in the Real World, Too 5, I Kept Pressing the 100-Million-Year Button and Came Out on Top 6, The Illustrated Guide to Monster Girls 4 (the final volume), My Youth Romantic Comedy Is Wrong, As I Expected @ comic 22 (the final volume), She Likes Gays, but Not Me 2, The Summer Hikaru Died 4, The Tiger Won’t Eat the Dragon Yet 2, and Witch Life in a Micro Room 3.

ASH: The Summer Hikaru Died is definitely the one that interests me the most out of that batch.

SEAN: Onward. Debuting from Viz this week is I Wanna Do Bad Things with You (Kimi to Warui Koto ga Shitai), a romcom from Shonen Sunday. A girl offers to help a jealous younger brother derail his perfect older brother’s student council campaign. But is he just a “villain”?

Also from Viz: Hirasuyumi 2, Jujutsu Kaisen 23, Magilumiere Magical Girls Inc. 3, Mission: Yozakura Family 12, The Way of the Househusband 12, and Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead 15.

ASH: Oops, I’ve got some The Way of the Househusband catching up to do.

ANNA: Me too!

SEAN: Steamship has a 3rd volume of Revenge: Mrs. Wrong.

From Square Enix we get Mr. Villain’s Day Off 5 and Ragna Crimson 13.

Seven Seas has two debuts. Hate Me, but Let Me Stay (Kiraide Isasete) is a BL title from Be x Boy Omegaverse. Yes, that’s now an entire magazine. I… look, it’s A/B/O. You know what the premise will be, I don’t need to summarize it.

And Too Many Losing Heroines! (Make Heroine ga Oosugiru!) is the manga version of the light novel we’ve talked about, and runs in Ura Sunday.

Also from Seven Seas: 365 Days to the Wedding 4, Black Night Parade 4, Cat on the Hero’s Lap 3, Don’t Call it Mystery 9-10, How NOT to Summon a Demon Lord 19, My Girlfriend’s Child 5, Orb: On the Movements of the Earth 5-6, A White Rose in Bloom 3, and You Like Me, Not My Daughter?! 4.

MICHELLE: I’ll never not cheer for Yumi Tamura!

ASH: Ditto!

ANNA: Yes, although I’m so far behind!

SEAN: One Peace Books has the 5th and final volume of It Takes Two Tomorrow, Too.

KUMA gives us Even if There’s No Rainbow Tomorrow (Ashita Niji ga Denakute mo), a one-shot title from On Blue. An online romance between a drag queen and a sleepy salaryman.

MICHELLE: This looks really interesting!

ASH: I am likewise intrigued.

SEAN: The print debut from Kodansha Manga is Kusunoki’s Flunking Her High School Glow-Up (Kusunoki-san wa Koukou Debut ni Shippai shite Iru), a josei title from Comic Pool. A new high school boy is determined to be rid of his horrible middle school life and remake himself. Unfortunately, one classmate from his middle school knows the real him… and she’s trying to do the same thing! For those who enjoy seeing introverts attempt to change.

ASH: Hooray for josei!

ANNA: Indeed!

SEAN: Also in print: Bakemonogatari 22 (the final volume), I Was Reincarnated as the 7th Prince so I Can Take My Time Perfecting My Magical Ability 13, Ogami-san Can’t Keep It In 6, and Welcome Back, Alice 7 (the final volume).

And digitally we get Issak 9, Medalist 10, and WIND BREAKER 16.

No new volumes for J-Novel Club, as they had so many last time. But we do see The Crown of Rutile Quartz 2, Duchess in the Attic manga volume 3, The Frontier Lord Begins with Zero Subjects manga volume 5, The Invincible Little Lady manga volume 4, Private Tutor to the Duke’s Daughter 13, Sweet Reincarnation 10, Taking My Reincarnation One Step at a Time: No One Told Me There Would Be Monsters! 6, and VTuber Legend: How I Went Viral after Forgetting to Turn Off My Stream 7.

Ghost Ship debuts an omnibus of a previously released title with Do You Like Big Girls? 1-2. There’s also the 7th and final volume of JK Haru is a Sex Worker in Another World. And in mature Seven Seas stuff, we get The Husky and His White Cat Shizun: Erha He Ta De Bai Mao Shizun 6.

Apologies to Drawn & Quarterly, who I missed in last week’s list. They’ve got another Yoshihara Tsuge title, Oba Electroplating Factory (Nejishiki), a collection of short stories from Garo.

ASH: I just picked up my copy!

SEAN: Airship, in print, has Free Life Fantasy Online: Immortal Princess 7 and I’m the Evil Lord of an Intergalactic Empire! 7.

And digitally we see a one-shot debut, An Autumn in Amber, a Zero-Second Journey (Kohaku no Aki, 0-byō no Tabi), another book by Mei Hachimoku, Seven Seas’ resident “bittersweet sci-fi teen romance” author. Not sure if this is bittersweet, but there’s sci-fi and teens. A boy who hates being touched and a snarky delinquent girl find time has stopped for everyone but them.

And there’s also Kuma Kuma Kuma Bear 19.

I’m so tired. So very, very tired after writing all that.

ASH: You’ve more than earned you rest. Thank you for your service.

SEAN: Typing out Manga the Week of in the short break between killer thunderstorms.

ASH: There have been a few, haven’t there?

SEAN: Debuting in print for Airship is Too Many Losing Heroines! (Make Heroine ga Oosugiru!), whose anime is currently getting a very large animation budget. It’s a romcom about (sigh) a plain, boring guy who suddenly finds that all the hot, popular girls in his class are confessing to the guys they like… and being shot down! What’s going on here?

ASH: Only time will tell, I’m sure.

SEAN: Also in print: Reincarnated as a Dragon Hatchling 7, Trapped in a Dating Sim: The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs 12, and The Weakest Tamer Began a Journey to Pick Up Trash 7.

And for early digital we see 7th Time Loop: The Villainess Enjoys a Carefree Life Married to Her Worst Enemy! 6 and There’s No Freaking Way I’ll be Your Lover! Unless… 5.

Denpa Books has a 5th omnibus of Nana & Kaoru.

From Ghost Ship, 2.5 Dimensional Seduction 11 and Inside the Tentacle Cave 3. And, in Mature Seven Seas titles, we get Killing Stalking: Deluxe Edition 7.

ASH: I really need to get around to giving Killing Stalking a try.

SEAN: There’s a GIANT PILE of J-Novel Club debuts for next week, all light novels. We’ll start with The Fake Hero Crashes the Party (Kono Hi, “Itsuwari no Yūsha” dearu Ore wa “Shin no Yūsha” dearu Kare wo Party Kara Tsuihōshita) stars two boyhood friends, one of whom is the hero… and one of whom is, unbeknownst to anyone else, “Fake Hero”. After the obligatory banishing from the hero’s party, can this “bad guy” find a way to do good?

The Hero and the Sage, Reincarnated and Engaged (Eiyū to Kenja no Tenseikon) stars two soldiers who fought for years for their respective nations, but the rivalry was never resolved as one passed away. Now they’re reincarnated, and really want to fight to resolve their rivalry! Clearly, the best way to do that is to get engaged.

The Poison King: Now that I’ve Gained Ultimate Power, the Bewitching Beauties in My Harem Can’t Get Enough of Me (Doku no Ō: Saikyō no Chikara ni Kakusei shita Ore wa Biki-tachi wo Shitagae, Hatsujō Harem no Ō to Naru). A boy inherits a curse from his late mother, which means everyone except one loyal maid despises him. When a doctor examines him and shows him how to overcome the curse, he discovers his other true power: get every woman he knows to want to have sex with him. This is one of THOSE books.

ASH: There have been a few, haven’t there?

SEAN: The Reincarnation of the Strongest Exorcist in Another World (Saikyō Onmyōji no Isekai Tenseiki) is… um,. honestly, the title should tell you exactly what’s going to happen. Reincarnated as a noble, supposedly no magic, but he has SORCERY, which is so much more powerful. I bet he goes to a magic academy too.

The Royal Hostage Has Vanished: The Black Wolf Knight Yearns for the Persecuted Princess (Hitojichi Hime ga, Shōsoku wo Tatta. Kuro Ōkami no Kishi wa Rinkoku no Shiitagerareta Hime wo Zenryoku de Aishimasu) is the one J-Novel Heart title in this list. A knight goes to retrieve a princess offered up as war reparations, only to find she’s been abused most of her life, and is also now dead. Stunned, he returns home… to find a mysterious young woman who looks a lot like this princess.

ASH: Unsurprisingly, it’s the Heart title that interests me the most out of those.

ANNA: yeah.

SEAN: There’s also a pile of ongoing titles. We see Butareba -The Story of a Man Turned into a Pig- manga volume 3, DUNGEON DIVE: Aim for the Deepest Level 8, Enough with This Slow Life! I Was Reincarnated as a High Elf and Now I’m Bored 7, The Faraway Paladin manga volume 12, Goodbye, Overtime! This Reincarnated Villainess Is Living for Her New Big Brother manga volume 2, Holmes of Kyoto 19, The Invincible Summoner Who Crawled Up from Level 1: Wrecking Reincarnators with My Hidden Dungeon 2, Management of a Novice Alchemist 2, Now I’m a Demon Lord! Happily Ever After with Monster Girls in My Dungeon manga volume 7, Peddler in Another World: I Can Go Back to My World Whenever I Want! 8, and A Surprisingly Happy Engagement for the Slime Duke and the Fallen Noble Lady 2 (the final volume).

ASH: That list really does keep going.

SEAN: Kodansha has no print debuts, but we do see The Fable Omnibus 3, Gazing at the Star Next Door 3, The Iceblade Sorcerer Shall Rule the World 10, Medaka Kuroiwa is Impervious to My Charms 8, Pass the Monster Meat, Milady! 5, Quality Assurance in Another World 9, Saving 80,000 Gold in Another World for My Retirement 8, The Seven Deadly Sins: Four Knights of the Apocalypse 13, Sketchy 3, Wandance 10, Welcome to Demon School! Iruma-kun 9, and Wistoria: Wand and Sword 8.

MICHELLE: Insert obligatory remorse for not yet having read Iruma-kun.

ASH: It feels like it’s been a while since we’ve seen so much print from Kodansha all at once.

SEAN: The digital debut is That Beauty Is a Tramp (Sono Bijin (Otoko) Fushidara ni Tsuki), a josei title from Comic Tint. A woman traumatized by a past incident wants a boyfriend, but any man who touches her causes her to reject them. Then she meets an androgynous model. Can he help her out? This is from the author of Such a Treacherous Piano Sonata.

Also digital: Gang King 20, Giant Killing 44, I Have a Crush at Work 5, Medaka Kuroiwa is Impervious to My Charms 13, and Tokyo Tarareba Girls Returns 2 2.

One Peace Books has Usotoki Rhetoric 8.

MICHELLE: I need to get back on this series.

ASH: I’ve been enjoying it!

SEAN: Seven Seas has, in their danmei line, the 3rd and final volume of Guardian: Zhen Hun. There’s also a special edition with posters, stickers, etc.

MICHELLE: Over already?! Waah.

SEAN: Two debuts from Seven Seas. The Concierge at Hokkyoku Department Store (Hokkyoku Hyakkaten no Concierge-san), a seinen manga from Bic Comic Zoukan. A new employee finds that her department store caters to talking animals!

ASH: This looks like it could be fun.

ANNA: Sounds amusing!

SEAN: Killer Shark in Another World (Isekai Kuimetsu no Same) is a seinen title from Comic Valkyrie. A young girl is a terrible summoner who everyone mocks… till she summons a monster that can transform into B-movie sharks. This is one of THOSE books, though in a different way than The Poison King.

Also from Seven Seas: CANDY AND CIGARETTES 9, Classroom of the Elite 11, Failure Frame: I Became the Strongest and Annihilated Everything With Low-Level Spells 8, How Heavy are the Dumbbells You Lift? 15, Life with an Ordinary Guy Who Reincarnated into a Total Fantasy Knockout 4, Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation 19, My Cat is Such a Weirdo 4, and Yokai Cats 8.

Square Enix Books has The Girl I Like Forgot Her Glasses 11, The Ice Guy and the Cool Girl 6, and My Isekai Life: I Gained a Second Character Class and Became the Strongest Sage in the World! 14.

ANNA: I need to read more Ice Guy and Cool Girl.

SEAN: Steamship has a manga debut. Alpha Wolfgirl x Omega Wolfboy (Oukami α-san to Oukami Ω-kun) is a josei title from Jour that asks “what if A/B/O but het?”.

ASH: Hmmm.

ANNA: I dunno.

SEAN: SuBLime has Don’t Be Cruel: plus+ 3 and Given 9 (the final volume).

ASH: Given is another one I’ve been enjoying but need to catch up on.

ANNA: Same!

SEAN: Udon Entertainment has a debut. More than a Married Couple, but Not Lovers (Fuufu Ijou, Koibito Miman) is a seinen series in Young Ace. A school forces its students to do mandatory couples training, where they have to prove – under surveillance – they can live with another person. But our hero’s other person… is a gyaru! Horrors! This is an omnibus of the first 2 volumes.

ASH: Oh, my!

SEAN: Debuting from Viz is Deadpool: Samurai—The Official Coloring Book. It is what it says.

They’ve also got Akane-banashi 7, Demon Slayer: Kimetsu Academy 3, I Want to End This Love Game 3, Kaze Hikaru 32, My Hero Academia: Team-Up Missions 5, Pokémon: Sword & Shield 10, Sakura, Saku 4, Sleepy Princess in the Demon Castle 25, Splatoon 3: Splatlands 2, and Star Wars: The High Republic: Edge of Balance 3.

MICHELLE: It’s time for the annual rejoicing about Kaze Hikaru!

ASH: Huzzah!

ANNA: Yay!!!!

SEAN: And Yen Press has three J-Novel Club titles for print. We get Ascendance of a Bookworm Part 3 Volume 2 (that’s the manga), By the Grace of the Gods 11, and Seirei Gensouki: Spirit Chronicles 11.

So it turns out the cat titles are here, not in the last Manga the Week of. Rejoice!

ASH: Woo!

SEAN: The Dog Days and Cat Manga of August are here.

ASH: How? How is it August already??

MICHELLE: I truly do not know.

SEAN: No debuts for Viz Media, but we do see Blue Exorcist 29, Boruto: Naruto Next Generations 20 (the final volume, though the continuation to this is still going), The Elusive Samurai 12, In the Name of the Mermaid Princess 3, My Special One 7, Neighborhood Story 3, Rainbow Days 11, Spy x Family 12, and You and I Are Polar Opposites 2.

MICHELLE: I’ve really gotta read Neighborhood Story.

ASH: I’ve been collecting them, but I really need to read them at some point, too.

ANNA: I read the first volume! I’m glad it is coming out in English.

SEAN: Tokyopop has the 4th and final volume of Since I Could Die Tomorrow.

And Square Enix Manga has Daemons of the Shadow Realm 5.

Debuting from Seven Seas next week is The Strange House (Hen na Ie), a horror/mystery manga based on a novel, that runs in Ichijinsha’s Comic HOWL. A supernatural consultant runs up against a creepy house with a very creepy room.

MICHELLE: Ooooh.

ASH: I’m very curious about this one.

ANNA: Sounds interesting!

SEAN: A spinoff also debuts, Tokyo Revengers: A Letter from Keisuke Baji (Tokyo Revengers – Baji Keisuke kara no Tegami). This Magazine pocket title is, I’m going to guess, about one of the supporting cast of the main series.

On the danmei front, Seven Seas has The Disabled Tyrant’s Beloved Pet Fish: Canji Baojun De Zhangxin Yu Chong 2.

ASH: I am still very pleased by the danmei trend.

SEAN: Also from Seven Seas: Chronicles of an Aristocrat Reborn in Another World 10, Crossplay Love: Otaku x Punk 9, Kemono Jihen 12, The Knight Captain is the New Princess-to-Be 4 (the final volume), The Most Notorious “Talker” Runs the World’s Greatest Clan 7, and Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou: Deluxe Edition 5 (the final volume).

ASH: Gotta get caught up with that one, as well!

SEAN: One Peace Books has the 6th manga volume of The Death Mage.

One print debut for Kodansha Manga: Pupposites Attract (Seihantai na Watashitachi), a shoujo/josei title from Comic Pool that started as a Pixiv title. A man and a woman with opposite personalities meet when they walk their dogs… who also have opposite personalities! Will romance follow? (Hint: yes.)

MICHELLE: This title made me think it was going to be about puppet romance.

ASH: Haha! I’m sure there must be one of those out there somewhere.

ANNA: Maybe it will be on next month’s list!

SEAN: Also in print: The Fragrant Flower Blooms With Dignity 2, My Lovesick Life as a ’90s Otaku 4 (the final volume), That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime Omnibus 3, Tying the Knot with an Amagami Sister 6, and WIND BREAKER 7.

MICHELLE: I definitely want to read the ’90s Otaku manga!

SEAN: On the digital side, we see Abe-kun’s Got Me Now! 13 (the final volume), Chihayafuru 45, Life 17, and Those Snow White Notes 20.

There’s only one debut for J-Novel Club, and it’s a manga adaptation of a light novel they already had. Stuck in a Time Loop: When All Else Fails, Be a Villainess (Loop kara Nukedasenai Akuyaku Reijou wa, Akiramete Suki Katte Ikiru Koto ni Kimemashita) is a Drecomi title about a villainess who’s also looping, and who finally decides “screw it” and takes charge.

ASH: Someone has to!

SEAN: J-Novel Club also has This Art Club Has a Problem! 4, Butareba -The Story of a Man Turned into a Pig- 4, the 4th Hell Mode manga, I Parry Everything: What Do You Mean I’m the Strongest? I’m Not Even an Adventurer Yet! 6, Min-Maxing My TRPG Build in Another World 9-1, the 5th My Daughter Left the Nest and Returned an S-Rank Adventurer manga, Record of Wortenia War 25, Welcome to Japan, Ms. Elf! 9, and Zilbagias the Demon Prince: How the Seventh Prince Brought Down the Kingdom 2.

The debut from Ghost Ship is She’s the Strongest Bride, But I’m Stronger in Night Battles: A Harem Chronicle of Advancing Through Cunning Tactics (Isekai Saikyou no Yome desu ga, Yoru no Tatakai wa Ore no Hou ga Tsuyoi you desu – Chiryaku wo Ikashite Nariagaru Harem Senki), which runs in Futabasha’s Gaugau Monster. An isekai’d guy with a nerdy interest in military history is now the husband of the demon queen… and also terrific in bed, as this is a Ghost Ship series.

ASH: Well, of course.

ANNA: That’s some combo of interests and skills right there.

SEAN: Also from Ghost Ship: Might as Well Cheat: I Got Transported to Another World Where I Can Live My Wildest Dreams! 8 and World’s End Harem: Fantasia 12.

Denpa has three titles listed from retailers as coming out next week: Heavenly Delusion 7, Today’s Menu for the Emiya Family 6, and Vampeerz 5. (I suspect Emiya Family is wrong, but the other two are more likely).

ASH: Hmmm.

SEAN: And Airship gives us Classroom of the Elite: Year 2 9 in print, and She Professed Herself Pupil of the Wise Man 11 in early digital.

Hey, there was no cat manga at all. Boo! Anything else interest you?

ASH: I was waiting for the cat manga!

ANNA: Me too!

SEAN: It was the end of Julys, it was the beginning of Augusts…

We start off with Airship, which has print for Though I Am an Inept Villainess: Tale of the Butterfly-Rat Body Swap in the Maiden Court 7.

And the early digital debut is I’m the Heroic Knight of an Intergalactic Empire! (Atashi wa Seikan Kokka no Eiyū Kishi!). As the title might suggest, it’s a spinoff of I’m the Evil Lord of an Intergalactic Empire!. It seems to star a knight? I suspect things will go badly for her, given the parent series.

ASH: Seems accurate.

SEAN: And there’s also Free Life Fantasy Online: Immortal Princess 7.

Cross Infinite World has two debuts. The Former Assassin Who Got Reincarnated as a Noble Girl (Moto Ansatsusha, Tenseishite Kizoku no Reijou ni Narimashita) is sort of a villainess reversal, as a former killer is now nobility… but this is still Villainess nobility, so she can’t just relax.

Let’s Get to Villainessin’: Stratagems of a Former Commoner (Saa, Akuyaku Reijou no wo Shigoto wo Hajimemashou: Moto Shomin no Watashi ga Idomu Zunousen) is one of those “modern-day Japan” stories rather than fantasy Europe world, but the plot remains the same: our heroine has to survive three years pretending to be an elite at a rich academy. The catch: this is an otome game, and the girl she’s replacing is the villainess. Great title, if nothing else.

MICHELLE: I gotta admit, “Villainessin'” definitely caught my eye.

ANNA: Amazing.

ASH: So many villainesses these days! Villainii?

SEAN: Also from CIW: The Abandoned Heiress Gets Rich with Alchemy and Scores an Enemy General! 3.

Hanashi Media has a debut. Observation Records of My Fiancée: The Misadventures of a Self-Proclaimed Villainess (Jishou Akuyaku Reijou na Konyakusha no Kansatsu Kiroku) is a light novel whose manga came out from Alphapolis a while ago. A crown prince is somewhat baffled by his fiancee telling him she’s a villainess who is reincarnated, and she’s trying her hardest to be evil. There’s one slight issue. She’s an idiot.

MICHELLE: Snerk.

ANNA: Ooops!

SEAN: They also have the 2nd volume of Tsukimichi: Moonlit Fantasy.

A quiet week for J-Novel Club. No debuts, but we get The Diary of a Middle-Aged Sage’s Carefree Life in Another World 3, Moon Blossom Asura: The Ruthless Reincarnated Mercenary Forms the Ultimate Army 3, Through the Viewport: Child of a Ruined World 2, The Unwanted Undead Adventurer 13, Villainess Level 99: I May Be the Hidden Boss but I’m Not the Demon Lord 6, and You Were Experienced, I Was Not: Our Dating Story 4.

No debuts for Kodansha Manga either, but we get As a Reincarnated Aristocrat, I’ll Use My Appraisal Skill to Rise in the World 11, A Condition Called Love 9, Fire Force Omnibus 11, The Great Cleric 10, I See Your Face, Turned Away 2, ORIGIN 5, Seraph of the End: Guren Ichinose: Catastrophe at Sixteen 5, and Witch Hat Atelier Kitchen 4.

MICHELLE: A couple of nice shoujo titles in there!

ANNA: I keep meaning to check out Witch Hat Atelier Kitchen!

ASH: I’ve been collecting them! (But still need to read them…)

SEAN: And for digital, we see How to Treat a Lady Knight Right 6, Our Bodies, Entwining, Entwined 8 (the final volume), Saint Cecilia and Pastor Lawrence 13, and Saving Sweets for After-Hours 4.

Seven Seas has a danmei novel debut: Peerless. It’s set in the universe of Thousand Autumns: Qian Qiu, and has two rival cops fight to solve a case and get over their sexual tension.

MICHELLE: This sounds fun.

ANNA: What if the case just increases the sexual tension??????? What will they do?????

ASH: You’ll never guess!

SEAN: Noss and Zakuro is a comedy that runs in East Press’ Matogrosso. It’s a comedy about a vampire mom and her vampire daughter.

Seven Seas also has The Summer You Were There 5, The Titan’s Bride 4, and Yakuza Reincarnation 6.

Steamship debuts I’ll Never Be Your Crown Princess! – Betrothed (Outaishi-hi ni Nante Naritakunai!! Konyakusha-hen), a sequel to the first book which runs in Comic Zero-Sum. It basically sounds like a continuation.

Also from Steamship: Healer for the Shadow Hero 2 and Sundome!! Milky Way 10 (the final volume>.

Tokyopop has A Gentle Noble’s Vacation Recommendation 8.

Yen On has the 7th volume of Sasaki and Peeps.

Meanwhile, Yen Press’ July was so huge that half the titles got bumped a week. There are no debuts, but we get (deep breath) 15 Minutes Before We Really Date 3, Associate Professor Akira Takatsuki’s Conjecture 4, Banished from the Hero’s Party, I Decided to Live a Quiet Life in the Countryside 8, The Demon Sword Master of Excalibur Academy 6, I Want a Gal Gamer to Praise Me 2, In Another World with My Smartphone 12, Kiss the Scars of the Girls 3 (the final volume), Konosuba: God’s Blessing on This Wonderful World! 17, Minato’s Laundromat 3, My Instant Death Ability Is So Overpowered, No One in This Other World Stands a Chance Against Me! —AO— 5 (a JNC print title), The Reformation of the World as Overseen by a Realist Demon King 4, The Saga of Tanya the Evil 23, Saint? No! I’m Just a Passing Beast Tamer! 4, Shy 7, Sword Art Online Progressive Canon of the Golden Rule 2 (the final volume), To Save the World, Can You Wake Up the Morning After with a Demi-Human? 7, Touge Oni: Primal Gods in Ancient Times 4, Trinity Seven Revision 2, The Vampire and His Pleasant Companions 5, and When I Became a Commoner, They Broke Off Our Engagement! 3.

ASH: Dang! At some point every week is going to be a Yen week.

SEAN: Assuming you’re still reading after that block of text, what are you getting?

SEAN: All English manga will be in French for this week only. After that, your copies will return to English.

MICHELLE: Does that mean that manga I own in French will be in English this week? *hurries off to read some Mitsuru Adachi*

ANNA: Sacre bleu!

ASH: Ah, if only!

SEAN: We start with Airship. In print, they give us The Case Files of Jeweler Richard 8 and Reborn as a Space Mercenary: I Woke Up Piloting the Strongest Starship! 9.

The digital early debut is Ripping Someone Open Only Makes Them Bleed (Hara o Wattara Chi ga Deru Dakesa), the latest trauma from the creator of I Want to Eat Your Pancreas. A high school girl has what seems to be the perfect life… and she’s made sure her every move and utterance is done to help that along. Then a boy shows up who looks just like the main character of her favorite book, and bad things start to follow.

ASH: I’ll admit to being curious.

SEAN: Also out in early digital: I’m the Evil Lord of an Intergalactic Empire! 7 and The Most Heretical Last Boss Queen: From Villainess to Savior 7.

Apologies to Dark Horse, I was distracted by the Lovecraft and missed that the 5th Cat + Gamer manga came out this week.

ASH: It was pretty distracting. But Cat + Gamer is definitely worth mentioning, too.

SEAN: Next week they have a debut: Captain Momo’s Secret Base (Momo Kanchou no Himitsu Kichi), a Rakuen Le Paradis story about a starship captain dealing with remote work and bureaucracy. It’s from the creator of Wandering Island and Emanon.

ANNA: Ca peut être intéressant.

ASH: Oooooooh.

SEAN: Denpa, according to retailers, has the 2nd volume of Mobile Suit Gundam: Char’s Counterattack.

ANNA: Char Aznable est très cool.

ASH: Oui.

SEAN: Ghost Ship has the 8th volume of The Witches of Adamas.

J-Novel Club also snuck out a release this week, so you should be able to get the 4th Blade & Bastard light novel as you read this. To be fair to me, this wasn’t announced till about 5 days ago.

ASH: That is entirely fair (or unfair, depending on how you look at it).

SEAN: From J-Novel Club next week, we get the 4th 8th Loop for the Win! With Seven Lives’ Worth of XP and the Third Princess’s Appraisal Skill, My Behemoth and I Are Unstoppable! manga volume, The Conqueror from a Dying Kingdom 7, the 2nd Death’s Daughter and the Ebony Blade manga volume, Making Magic: The Sweet Life of a Witch Who Knows an Infinite MP Loophole 8, and the 2nd A Wild Last Boss Appeared! manga volume.

No debuts for Kodansha Manga, but we see in print I’m Giving the Disgraced Noble Lady I Rescued a Crash Course in Naughtiness 6, Kei X Yaku: Bound By Law 2, Ninja Vs. Gokudo 2, Parasyte Full Color Collection 7, and When Will Ayumu Make His Move? 16.

And for digital we get Anyway, I’m Falling in Love with You 8, The Beast Player 3, Hozuki’s Coolheadedness 21, I Left my A-Rank Party to Help My Former Students Reach the Dungeon Depths! 5, and Our Fake Marriage 14.

From One Peace Books we get Farming Life in Another World 10.

The debut from Seven Seas is a yuri manga, Throw Away the Suit Together (Kimi to Shiranai Natsu ni Naru) features two young women, bowed down by societal expectations, throwing it all away and moving to an island. Of course, life is not that easy…

ASH: If only it was!

SEAN: We also see The Duke of Death and His Maid 13, Mysterious Disappearances 2, No Longer Allowed In Another World 6, Sheep Princess in Wolf’s Clothing 3, The Skull Dragon’s Precious Daughter 4, The Villainess Who Has Been Killed 108 Times: She Remembers Everything! 3, and The World’s Fastest Level Up 3.

We have a debut from Square Enix, Just Like Mona Lisa (Seibetsu “Mona Lisa” no Kimi e), from Gangan Online. In a world where people are genderless till they’re 12, and over 2 years become the gender they wish to be, our protagonist is 18 and yet still genderless. Will confessions – from a boy and a girl – help them decide?

ASH: Hmmm.

SEAN: And we see The Great Jahy Will Not Be Defeated! 9.

Tokyopop debuts both a light novel and a manga, the same title. My Beautiful Man (Utsukushii Kare) is a Chara title (the manga, at least) about a guy with a stutter who tends to be used by the popular group as a dogsbody… but that’s OK, because the most popular guy is SO HOT.

MICHELLE: Snerk.

ANNA: Snerk (en Francais!)

SEAN: Tokyopop also has the 7th and final volume of The Fox & Little Tanuki.

Debuting from Udon Entertainment is My Stepmom’s Daughter Is My Ex (Mamahaha no Tsurego ga Moto Kanodatta), whose light novel J-Novel Club has been releasing. A boy and a girl who dated in middle school… then broke up badly… now find they’re stepsiblings. It runs in Dra-Dra-Sharp#.

Debuting from Viz is Battle Royale: Enforcers, the 3rd in the Battle Royale manga series, which runs in Bessatsu Young Champion. You know the plot.

We’re also getting Haikyu!! in 3-in-1 volumes, with the first shipping next week. This is a Shonen Jump title about volleyball. You know it.

MICHELLE: Omnibus editions are very nice for sports manga!

ANNA: Mais oui!

Also from Viz: Dandadan 8, Dark Gathering 8, Persona 5 12, Record of Ragnarok 11, Seraph of the End 30, Snowball Earth 2, Steel of the Celestial Shadows 3, and Undead Unluck 16.

ASH: I really ought to give Steel of the Celestial Shadows a try.

SEAN: Lastly we have Yen Press, who are sneaking two releases out ahead of the deluge the week after next. Penguin Highway is a manga adaptation of the novel of the same name, which ran in my nemesis, Comic Alive. Yen is releasing it as one complete omnibus.

ASH: Oh, I actually just saw an early copy of this! And I really enjoyed the original novel.

SEAN: And we get an artbook: Yana Toboso Artworks Black Butler 4.

Does anything here appeal?

SEAN: This list is being written for you in the small, brief moments between terrible bouts of WEATHER.

ASH: I’ll take whatever relief I can get!

SEAN: As I mentioned last week, J-Novel Club has now moved all its print releases to be distributed by Yen Press. So Yen has Ascendance of a Bookworm 25, Full Metal Panic: Short Stories 2 and Otherside Picnic Omnibus 4 in print. For those who haven’t been following Otherside Picnic, this is the one that made Tumblr go absolutely batshit.

ASH: In a good way, bad way, or both?

SEAN: Viz Media has a debut, another Naruto manga adaptation of one of the light novels that came after the main manga series. If that makes sense. This is Naruto: Konoha’s Story—The Steam Ninja Scrolls: The Manga (Naruto: Konoha Shinden – Yukemuri Ninpouchou) and it ran in Shonen Jump +.

Also from Viz: Devil’s Candy 4, Disney Twisted-Wonderland: The Manga – Book of Heartslabyul 4, Fly Me to the Moon 24, Helck 10, Kirby Manga Mania 7, Komi Can’t Communicate 30, and Yashahime: Princess Half-Demon 5.

ASH: I just recently got my hands on some more of Devil’s Candy.

SEAN: Tokyopop has If My Favorite Pop Idol Made It to the Budokan, I Would Die 7 and Watch Dogs Tokyo 2.

SuBLime debuts My Dearest Patrolman (Boku no Omawari-san), which runs in the magazine moment (with the small letter, apparently). Ex-cop who now runs a shop is beloved by his junior, who is still a cop. What happens when they get into a relationship?

They also have a 2nd volume of Engage.

From Square Enix we get Otherside Picnic 10 and The Strongest Sage with the Weakest Crest 19.

Seven Seas has one debut, Re-Living My Life with a Boyfriend Who Doesn’t Remember Me (Shi ni Modori no Mahou Gakkou Seikatsu wo, Moto Koibito to Prologue Kara (※Tadashi, Koukando wa Zero)), an adaptation of the light novel series released by Cross Infinite World. A girl and her beloved are killed, and she returns to her 7-year-old body with all her past memories… except how she was killed. Worse, the same thing did not happen to her boyfriend, and he thinks she’s a pain! This runs in Flos Comic.

ASH: To be fair, a lot of seven-year-olds can be a bit of a pain from time to time.

SEAN: Also from Seven Seas: Bite Maker: The King’s Omega 11 (the final volume), Cinderella Closet 6, Daily Report About My Witch Senpai 3, Delinquent Daddy and Tender Teacher 4, MoMo -the blood taker- 9 (also a final volume), Soara and the House of Monsters 3, and Uzaki-chan Wants to Hang Out! 11.

And from their danmei line, we get Thousand Autumns: Qian Qiu 5, the final volume. It also has a special edition with postcards, stickers, etc.

ASH: Sweet.

SEAN: Kodansha Manga have a box set out next week, Hitorijime My Hero Manga Box Set 1, which has the first 6 volumes.

Also in print: The Darwin Incident 6, In the Clear Moonlit Dusk 7 and Shikimori’s Not Just a Cutie 17.

MICHELLE: I should check out In the Clear Moonlit Dusk at some point.

SEAN: Just announced at AX, digitally we get the debut of Tokyo Tarareba Girls Returns 2, Vol. 1. (Not to be confused with Tokyo Tarareba Girls Returns, the one shot that came out here four years ago.) Same author, different characters, same premise. It ran in Kiss.

MICHELLE: !!!!!

ANNA: Woah!

ASH: Oh, very nice!

SEAN: Also digital: Because I, the True Saint, was Banished, that Country is Done For! 4, Drops of God: Mariage 7, Gang King 19, The God-Tier Guardian and the Love of Six Princesses 13, and MF Ghost 19.

Kaiten Books has a debut, in both print and digital. Blue Archive: Problem Solver 68 Business Diary (Blue Archive: Benriya 68 Gyoumu Nisshi) is a spinoff of the popular smartphone game, and it runs in Comic Bushiroad Web. It seems to be an “a day in the life” sort of title.

ASH: Huh!

SEAN: J-Novel Club has one debut. The Death of the Skeleton Swordsman: Dominating as a Cursed Saint (Kotsugai no Kensei ga Shi wo Togeru: Noroware Seija no Gakuin Musō) is a new light novel in the subgenre of “I’m a skeleton” titles. Though apparently this guy doesn’t stay a skeleton for long, but instead ends up at… sigh… a magical academy. Where he’s the strongest one of all. Yeah.

ANNA: Funny how that keeps happening.

ASH: Staying a skeleton would have made it more interesting, I think.

SEAN: We also see: Ascendance of a Bookworm 32, Ascendance of a Bookworm Fanbook 4, the 16th Black Summoner manga, I Surrendered My Sword for a New Life as a Mage 7, A Livid Lady’s Guide to Getting Even: How I Crushed My Homeland with My Mighty Grimoires 2, Magic Stone Gourmet: Eating Magical Power Made Me The Strongest 6, and Reborn to Master the Blade: From Hero-King to Extraordinary Squire 11.

Ghost Ship has I’m Not a Succubus! 5 and Please Go Home, Miss Akutsu! 6.

Dark Horse Comics has a deluxe, hardcover, 630-page edition of its HP Lovecraft’s At the Mountains of Madness manga, which they released normally in two volumes in 2019.

ASH: It is an excellent adaptation which should benefit nicely from the deluxe treatment.

SEAN: In print titles, Airship has Loner Life in Another World 9 and Reincarnated Into a Game as the Hero’s Friend: Running the Kingdom Behind the Scenes 2.

And for early digital we get Trapped in a Dating Sim: The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs 12 and The Weakest Tamer Began a Journey to Pick Up Trash 7.

So, what do you — oops, tornado warning and hurricane warning. Gotta go.

SEAN: Is the year really half over? Years aren’t what they used to be.

ASH: They really aren’t.

SEAN: Airship has one print title, the 6th volume of Raven from the Inner Palace.

ASH: I really need to catch up on this series before I get any further behind.

SEAN: Debuting digitally – the same week as its anime adaptation – is Too Many Losing Heroines! (Make Heroine ga Oosugiru!), a romcom about (sigh) a plain, boring guy who suddenly finds that all the hot, popular girls in his class are confessing to the guys they like… and being shot down! What’s going on here?

Also in early digital: Classroom of the Elite: Year 2 9 and Reincarnated as a Dragon Hatchling 7.

Cross Infinite World debuts Soup Forest: The Story of the Woman Who Speaks with Animals and the Former Mercenary (Soup no Mori: Doubutsu to Kaiwa Suru Olivia to Moto Youhei Arthur no Monogatari). A woman who can hear the inner thoughts of humans and animals has spent her life either shunned or avoiding people, but then she meets a young man while working at her restaurant in the forest…

ASH: Okay, I’ll admit, that premise does check quite a few boxes for me, though not necessarily in a combination I was expecting.

ANNA: Does her forest restaurant also have jam? This is what I want to know.

SEAN: Cross Infinite World also have The Inconvenient Life of an Arousing Priestess 2 and Lovestruck Prince! I’ll Fight the Heroine for My Villainess Fiancée! 3 (the final volume).

Per retailers, Denpa Books has a 3rd volume of Baby Bear’s Bakery.

From Ghost Ship, we get Booty Royale: Never Go Down Without a Fight! 13-14 and Creature Girls: A Hands-On Field Journal in Another World 10.

J-Novel Club has one digital debut (actually, no more print for JNC, as they finished moving all their print titles over to Yen Press to distribute). To Another World… with Land Mines! (Isekai teni, Jirai-tsuki) is a manga adaptation of the light novel they’ve been releasing for a while, as a sensible guy gets isekai’d with his classmates, and tries to stop them accidentally being really stupid. It runs in Shonen Ace Plus.

ASH: Oh, I had missed that bit of news, though I’m glad the partnership with Yen Press is going well.

SEAN: Also from JNC, The Banished Former Hero Lives as He Pleases 2, the 2nd manga volume of The Banished Former Hero Lives as He Pleases, I’m a Noble on the Brink of Ruin, So I Might as Well Try Mastering Magic 2, In Another World With My Smartphone 29, and When Supernatural Battles Became Commonplace 11.

No debuts for Kodansha Manga, but we see, in print, A-DO 3, Anyway, I’m Falling in Love with You 3, Bless 2, A Brief Moment of Ichika 2, Medalist 3, Rent-A-Girlfriend 25 (it got bumped), and To Your Eternity 20.

And digitally we see Blue Lock 26, How to Grill Our Love 9, LIFE 16, Matcha Made in Heaven 9, Those Snow White Notes 19, and Tying the Knot with an Amagami Sister 14.

One Peace Books has I Hear the Sunspot: Four Seasons 2.

MICHELLE: I really want to read this. Someday. Sigh.

ASH: I have been greatly enjoying I Hear the Sunspot.

ANNA: I need to get caught up too!

SEAN: No debuts for Seven Seas either, but we see Berserk of Gluttony 10, Dragon Goes House-Hunting 10 (the final volume), The Hidden Dungeon Only I Can Enter 11, Homunculus 9-10 (also a final volume), Malevolent Spirits: Mononogatari 7, Modern Dungeon Capture Starting with Broken Skills 2, My New Life as a Cat 6, The Saint’s Magic Power is Omnipotent: The Other Saint 4 (also also a final volume), and Servamp 20.

ASH: This would be a good time for me to actually give Homunculus a try, then.

SEAN: Square Enix has The Angel Next Door Spoils Me Rotten 2 and Victoria’s Electric Coffin 2.

Viz Media continues the trend of no debuts. But we see Blue Box 11, Kimi ni Todoke: From Me to You: Soulmate 2, Like a Butterfly 7, Marriage Toxin 3, Moriarty the Patriot 16, One Piece 106, Tamon’s B-Side 4, Wolf Girl and Black Prince 8, and World Trigger 26.

MICHELLE: I’m looking forward to more Soulmate (though perhaps I’m in the minority there) and eager to catch up on Tamon’s B-Side, as well.

ANNA: Oooh, more Like a Butterfly!!

SEAN: And that’s it! Has there been a shorter week lately? I don’t think so.