Manga Bookshelf

Discussion, Resources, Roundtables, & Reviews

Anna N

Manga the Week of 2/6

by , , and 6 Comments

SEAN: I knew there would be a pile this week, and indeed there is a pile. I already talked about the Kodansha stuff last week, as I anticipated this, so to sum up: Fairy Tail 23, the third and final Genshiken omnibus, the last Miles Edgeworth: Ace Attorney Investigations, the penultimate Negima, and a new and fantastic Sailor Moon.

Meanwhile, that still leaves a lot. Dark Horse has Vol. 26 of Gantz, which no doubt is filled with latex, boobs, and blood-soaked gore. I like one of the author’s other works a whole lot, but this series just never grabbed me.

MICHELLE: I was kept away from this one by reviews, and will probably be staying away.

MJ: Same here. It’s sad, too, because I generally like to support Dark Horse manga. I wish I thought I could like it.

SEAN: Udon has a title that is not via Capcom (to my knowledge), but still seems to be video-game based: Sengoku Basara: Samurai Legends Vol. 2. It’s like Son Goku, only with an e! And… probably not a lot like the shoujo manga Basara at all.

MICHELLE: Probably not.

MJ: Heh.

SEAN: Vertical has Vol. 7 of GTO: 14 Days in Shonan, which is now in its last third. The twins arc may be wrapped up here, but that doesn’t mean things are back to normal. In fact, we may be getting even more serious than before.

MICHELLE: I am several volumes behind on this now. Bad me.

MJ: My eyes are filled with little hearts as I read this. Oh, GTO: 14 Days in Shonan, how I love thee! Thankfully, my crush on Eikichi Onizuka is slightly less embarrassing than the one I had on Morimoto Rockstar.

aiore8

SEAN: And the rest is GIANT PILE O’ VIZ. First off, Vol. 8 of Ai Ore!. The series apparently doesn’t end here, but as Mayu Shinjo is busy with many other projects, it’s on hold right now, so this will be the last for a while.

MICHELLE: Oh, really? Crap. I was hoping I could be finished with it once and for all.

MJ: Some nightmares never end.

ANNA: I feel like the lone apologist for Ai Ore!, but really the later volumes of the series that I’ve read have been pretty funny. And Demon Love Spell is a hoot. I seriously wish more Mayu Shinjo titles were translated over here. Oh! Maybe Viz will put Sensual Phrase on the iPad, that would be awesome.

SEAN: I generally like Ai Ore more the more that it comically abuses its hero. As for Sensual Phrase, I suspect it’d get M-rated off the tablet devices, unfortunately.

Bleach has an omnibus of Vols. 10-12, which if I recall are right in the middle of the Soul Society arc, so should be a lot of fun.

MJ: Oh, I really miss those days!

SEAN: Bleach also has Vol. 55 of its current run, which is the start of this current arc, I think. Kubo said a while back this would be the last arc, but that doesn’t mean he’s not taking his own sweet time about it as always.

Dawn of the Arcana hits Vol. 8, meaning I’m farther and farther behind. Ah well. At least digital manga doesn’t go out of print. (Yet – I don’t want that thrilling new trend anytime soon.)

MICHELLE: I’m planning to get caught up on Dawn of the Arcana this week, as a matter of fact.

MJ: I’ve suddenly gotten hooked on this series, so I’m quite happy about this!

ANNA: I like the way Dawn of the Arcana seems to be a bit more concerned with world building and geopolitics than romance, it makes it a little different from the average shoujo title.

SEAN: Devil and Her Love Song 7 its right in the exact middle of the series, and so things are clearly only going to get worse for our heroine. I do hope Anna sticks around, though, as I know there’s a good friendship with Maria buried somewhere deep deep DEEP down in there.

MJ: This is also a shoujo series I can’t seem to get enough of, though of course it’s very different.

ANNA: Always good to see another volume of this quirky series!

SEAN: Kamisama Kiss hits a dozen volumes, twice that of Karakuri Odette! This one’s still going strong, though, and apparently features cutie Himemiko, who finds dating is even harder when you’re a yokai.

MICHELLE: Here are a couple more shoujo series that I like but am behind on.

ANNA: Yay! Kamisama Kiss is one of my never-fail feel good shojo reads.

SEAN: Naruto also has a 3-in-1 with Vols. 10-12, which I’m sure I will catch up with ANY DAY NOW.

And as for Naruto 60, well, Sasuke’s back. That pretty much sums it up. Talk amongst yourselves.

Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan left a lot of things hanging last time, and this volume… at least gets a little closer to them. Don’t expect the arc to end here, though. Shiibashi is no Kubo, but he’s still slow.

One Piece is one omnibus ahead of its fellows, as we get Vol. 13-15, which is starting the Baroque Works arc. These volumes have Mr. 3 and Miss Golden Week, two of my favorites from that group of villains. As well as Vivi, of course.

Pokemon Diamond and Pearl Platinum has hit 7 volumes, and I still know nothing about it.

And Skip Beat! has hit Vol. 30! Does this make it the longest running shoujo series from Viz? Red River was only 28… In any case, the danger of method acting rears its ugly head again.

MICHELLE: Nope. Boys Over Flowers was 37 (including Jewelry Box).

MJ: I can’t believe I read the whole thing…

ANNA: I do not regret reading 37 volumes of Boys Over Flowers and I will not regret reading 30+ volumes of Skip Beat!

SEAN: Do you realize there are only 6 more volumes of Slam Dunk to go? How has this snuck up on us all?

MICHELLE: I am all too aware of it! I like to save the series up and read it in chunks, so when I finished volume 26 for last week’s briefs I realized that the next chunk would also likely be the last chunk! I’m already going through withdrawal.

steppingonroses9

SEAN: Stepping on Roses has come to a close with Vol. 9. One day I will get an awesome shoujo manga series about a girl who is forced to chose between two men and shogi, and chooses shogi. This is not that day.

MICHELLE: Oh, I forgot about this one! It’s pretty dumb, but I might as well finish it.

MJ: I gave this series up ages ago, and I don’t regret a thing! I am sad to hear, however, that it never turned into a shogi manga.

ANNA: I am sad that Stepping on Roses wasn’t as good as Tail of the Moon, because I love that series so much.

SEAN: Tegami Bachi: Letter Bee adds Volume 12 to its arsenal, and I add another shonen series I never really kept up with to my long, long list.

MICHELLE: I have a bunch of volumes I intend to read one of these days.

SEAN: Tenjo Tenge hits is final omnibus with Vol. 11, meaning it’s finally completely out uncensored. Though I suspect most of the guys who complained about CMX are merely clutching their scanlations to their bosoms and muttering “But the font wasn’t the right type! BOYCOTT!”

MJ: This seems certain.

SEAN: Lastly, Vol. 14 of Toriko introduces a new pretty boy into the cast – one who’s really good with knives! There’s something a bit strange about this pretty boy, though…

MICHELLE: …. aaaaand the same thing I said about Tegami Bachi applies to Toriko as well.

SEAN: Isn’t that a lot of manga? What’s in your pile?

Harlequin Manga: Angus’s Lost Lady and The Seduction Bid

by

Although I’ve read a bit of manga on the Kindle app for my iPad, I haven’t actually read any manga on my newest toy – a Kindle Paperwhite. When I discovered that there were actually several Harlequin manga for sale for .99 cents on amazon, I wasted no time in purchasing them. I was particularly interested in these two titles, because I’d previously read another title adapted by Kazuko Fujita, Sale or Return Bride. I tend to assume that the art for these Harlequin adaptations is going to be fairly rushed, but either Fujita’s art is among the best that I’ve seen in a Harlequin manga. Her character designs are attractive, and she manages to convey a great deal of nuance in their facial expressions, with the end result that she ends up elevating the stories in these volumes. Backgrounds are sparse, and if you read Fujita’s manga one after the other you will notice that she only draws one basic hero, but she does draw him very well.

Buying Harlequin manga on the Kindle is a bit confusing because there are multiple editions for each title, but I’m linking to the editions that I bought and read here.

Angus’s Lost Lady by Kazuko Fujita and Marie Ferraella

Angus’s Lost Lady is the story of a PI and single father named Angus who is surprised to see a woman with with a lost shoe and amnesia on his doorstep. The only clue to her identity is the fact that she’s clutching his business card, but she hasn’t met him before. She has a head injury as a result from being grazed by a bullet. Since this is a romance manga Angus promptly moves the lost woman into his apartment, introducing her to his daughter Vikki and trying to jog her memory by giving her a phonebook to read. The woman decides to adopt the name Rebecca. Rebecca and Angus investigate her accident and missing memories, and along the way struggle with their attraction for each other. The old “woman in danger with amnesia” is not a novel plot device, but Fujita does a good job portraying the chemistry between Angus and Rebecca, and Rebecca isn’t as simpering and weak as many Harlequin amnesia ladies usually are.

The Seduction Bid by Kazuko Fujita and Amanda Browning

Perhaps it is due to my own anger management issues, but I generally enjoy it when women in romance manga yell a lot. In this case, the heroine of The Seduction Bid barges into an office and starts to chew out an incredibly handsome man who she thinks is an unscrupulous reporter for a local tabloid. Carrie is determined to defend one of her friends from scandal. While she is momentarily distracted by the stormy grey eyes of the man she is yelling at, she ends up storming out of the office ranting about “garbage journalism”. The man with the mysterious grey eyes decides that he wants to be yelled at forever and vows to marry her. Later, as Carrie is hanging out at the house belonging to the parents of her late husband she is introduced to the object of her rant and he turns out to be Lance, cousin of the gutter journalist. Lance then proceeds to relentlessly pursue the reluctant Carrie, and his charm gradually begins to wear down her well developed defense mechanisms.

The attractive art makes these volumes a pleasure to read, and the stories are basically what you’d expect from Harlequin. Reading these on the Kindle was fine – the size of the manga to fit the Kindle screen is about what you’d see in a Japanese tankobon, and since the backgrounds of the manga weren’t particularly detailed, the smaller reading size for the manga didn’t make much of a difference. At only a dollar a pop, buying these is a no-brainer for anyone who enjoys Harlequin manga.

Pick of the Week: Guardians, Schoolgirls, & Brides

by , , and Leave a Comment

Mori_A-Brides-Story-v4-205x300MJ: Midtown’s list this week includes a mix of genuinely new releases and a few Yen Press titles that most stores received a while ago, and I’m going to use that as an excuse to once again take up the call for Kaoru Mori’s A Bride’s Story, volume four of which is hitting Midtown’s shelves this week. This is a particularly fun volume, featuring two new characters who contribute considerable pep to this generally quiet series, without compromising any of its wistful charm. As a result, this is probably the series’ warmest volume so far—which is always a draw for me. And of course, it’s beautiful to look at as always.

sailor9MICHELLE: Because I am a terrible person and haven’t even started A Bride’s Story, I’m going to go off-list and note that Amazon lists volume nine of Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon as coming out this week. And can I ever resist the chance to pick Sailor Moon? No, I cannot.

SEAN: Yeah, given that this and Vol. 10 are my favorite parts of the Sailor Moon manga entirely, there’s no way I’m not picking it. It has chapter focuses for each of the Inners, and tops it off with a chapter devoted to the Outers that is flawless and perfect (it was so perfect the anime had to put it in the Stars anime sort of retroactively as it was simply impossible to not adapt). And it has the Amazoness Quartet, some of my favorite mini-villains. It is simply fabulous, limig3you will all buy it.

ANNA: I’ll just go with Limit #3. Since volume two ended on a bit of a cliffhanger I am particularly anxious to see what is going to happen next to the schoolgirl bush crash victims.

Readers, what looks good to you this week?

Happy Mania, Vols. 1-5

by

This is a post for the Moyoco Anno Manga Moveable Feast.

Some series I take to right away, and other manga series end up being second chance reads. Happy Mania is one of those series that is better the second time around for me. I read the first couple volumes several years ago and didn’t really get into it because I found the main character incredibly annoying. Since then I’ve read several other manga by Moyoco Anno and have long suspected that I needed to give Happy Mania a second shot. I’ve pieced together the out of print series from paperbackswap.com and some good bargain manga outlets. I was hoping to read the entire series for the Manga Moveable Feast, but I wasn’t able to start reading it until much later than I planned. I was able to read a decent chunk of it though!

The heroine as a ditsy, hopeless woman who decides to “live for love” is quite the stereotype in shoujo and josei manga. Her life gets romanticized and she ends up getting saved by her ideal man. Anno’s approach is to show just how horrible a life someone like this would actually lead. Shigeta is a young woman who works in a bookstore. Her career’s nonexistent, but she’s fixated on the idea of meeting a man who will save her from the drudgery of her daily life. Unfortunately Shigeta’s main method of dealing with men is to fixate on someone totally unsuitable, sleep with him extremely quickly, and then wonder why he’s suddenly not interested in her. While she chases bad boys, her hapless co-worker Takahashi is pining for her. He is usually drawn with tears streaming down his face, sighing Shigeta’s name.

Shigeta goes through jobs and men in quick succession, hooking up with a womanizing younger DJ, the son of a cult leader who rapidly turns psychotic, a stoic ceramics artist, and a married man. Whenever Shigeta’s in crisis, Takahashi is there for her, and even though he goes overseas to study their relationship gradually progresses into a semi-dysfunctional engagement. If Shigeta exhibited absolutely no personal growth through these volumes the series would be a bit tedious, but she does gradually realize that her goals and behavior are not making her happy. This isn’t really enough to prevent her from seeking her self worth in the knowledge that a man might be interested in her, but she isn’t entirely without self awareness. When she pauses to think about a couple of the men pursuing her, she thinks “What’s wrong with these guys? If they like me that much…there must be something wrong with them!”
Shigeta is always pursuing the next unattainable man. Being stuck in a behavioral pattern like Shigeta’s seems refreshingly realistic for a manga heroine, and Anno certainly doesn’t shy away from the more sordid aspects of her life. Happy Mania isn’t romanticized at all.

Anno’s art is distinct and fluid. She has a unique ability to draw characters that are simultaneously attractive and slightly grotesque. Shigeta looks like a limpid-eyed, slightly crazed goblin half of the time. Takahashi shifts from being slight and nerdy to being more attractive as Shigeta’s view of him changes. There always seems to be a metatextual element to Anno’s manga. Happy Mania might be a manga about a love-starved twentysomething woman, but it is also a cynical commentary about manga about love-starved twentysomething women at the same time.

I’m glad that I gave this series a second chance. Shigeta’s antics didn’t really sit very well with me the first time I tried this series, but in the intervening years I’ve read a bunch more manga, and right now I find a manga about a woman finding unhappiness through her pursuit of men much more interesting than a more typical manga that is going to head towards a happy ending after a series of wacky misunderstandings.

Manga the Week of 1/30

by , , and Leave a Comment

SEAN: Let’s see if I can sort out this week, given my recent habit of taking Midtown’s list and then ignoring it horribly.

First of all, they’re finally getting in the Yen Press books that most of us got last week or this week. I’ve gone over those already, but FYI they are Black Butler 12, Black God 18, Book Girl and the Undine Who Bore a Moonflower, A Bride’s Story 4, The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-chan 3, and Soul Eater 12.

Udon has a Super Street Fighter series debuting, with what seems to be Korean artists and American writers. Um… a must for Street Fighter fans? I dunno, I got nothing. How Do I Capcom?

MICHELLE: Yeah, sorry Udon, but this just doesn’t appeal to me.

MJ: I always want to like things with Korean artists, just on principle, but… meh.

limit3SEAN: Vertical has the 3rd volume of Limit, their shoujo experiment that is not selling all that hot so MORE PEOPLE should buy it as it’s excellent. Come on, doesn’t that cute young thing on the cover scream adorable shoujo? I bet there are some wacky misunderstandings in this volume!

MICHELLE: And probably it is Valentine’s Day!

ANNA: I like to think of Limit as a lovely violently cynical sorbet that cleanses the palate of manga readers who have been reading too much shoujo with wacky misunderstandings.

MJ: Mostly I’m just entertained here by all your commentary, but I’ll also note that I’m really looking forward to volume three of Limit.

SEAN: Meanwhile, Kodansha is releasing a lot of stuff next week via Amazon that’s not hitting comic shops till February or later. Given next week also has a pile of Viz, why don’t we run down Kodansha now? If nothing else, it will broaden the Pick of the Week a bit.

First off, Bloody Monday was out this week. It’s up to Volume 9 of about 11, which wraps up the ‘First Season’. I think, when asked about the Second and Third Seasons of the series, Kodansha made ‘well, buy more’ noises. So buy more if you want to read more of ’24: Japan’.

MICHELLE: I really do mean to read this one of these days.

MJ: I enjoyed the first volume, but I guess not enough to propel me further on. Should I feel regretful?

SEAN: Fairy Tail is starting to get ready to speed up, which means more volumes online on its digital Apple-only thing that I don’t use as I don’t have Apple (this grump brought to you by Android), but also print volumes about once a month or so. It hadn’t sped up quite yet, though. In the meantime, we’re still in Edolas, though we may be about to wrap that arc up.

MICHELLE: I occasionally forget that Fairy Tail exists, even though I’ve read 14 volumes of it.

MJ: I’ve never had any interest in Fairy Tail, yet I’d really like to develop some, if only because Hiro Mashima was so incredibly charming at NYCC a couple of years ago. Convince me?

SEAN: Um… it’s good solid shonen, and has finally, I think, stopped trying to be One Piece only for Kodansha. It has a few good female characters, though it waffles quite a bit on how strong they get to be (but that’s typical for most Japanese shonen). It’s quite funny at times, and not in a “boobs!” way. (That said, there are many, many stacked girls here.)

Mostly, though, I think it’s the sort of title that you start of hoping gets better and really improves by the time you’re 16 volumes in and invested in the world. It rewards long-term investment. Which can be a pain, I know.

MJ: Actually, that’s pretty persuasive. Thank you!

SEAN: Genshiken finishes off its Omnibus Releases with the 3rd, covering Vol. 7-9. Nice timing, as I suspect the new anime of Genshiken 2nd Season coming up may spark interest in the first again.

Another series bites the dust, as Vol. 4 wraps up Miles Edgeworth: Ace Attorney Investigations. Barring the appearance of an Apollo Justice manga (don’t hold your breath), this may be it for this franchise for the time being – at least in manga form.

Speaking of series almost being finished, 37 is the 2nd to last volume of Negima. I’ll have a lot to say about this volume and the next. A whole lot. That said, if you like an overabundance of fanservice in the best old-fashioned Akamatsu ways, this is the volume for you.

sailormoon9MICHELLE: Pass!

MJ: Thank goodness we have Sean to care about Akamatsu on our behalf.

SEAN: Aheh. Let’s just say that my comment that Negima should have ended with Vol. 36 will be followed up on. My *least* favorite part of Negima is the naked antics.

SEAN: Lastly, Pluto graces the cover of Sailor Moon Vol. 9, and I think she actually even shows up in this, though not till the end. In the meantime, we’re really delving into the Super S arc now, which means dreams, and mirrors, and unicorns, and lots of Chibi-Usa (though less than you’d expect).

MICHELLE: Yay, Sailor Moon! I might’ve said this last time—probably I did—but the manga version of Super S differs from the anime in that the outer senshi are in it, so it’s worth reading even if that season of the anime wasn’t your favorite. The next volume of the series also includes something nifty that was missing from the anime.

ANNA: More volumes of Sailor Moon are always a thing to celebrate!

MJ: Agreed!

SEAN: There you go, that’s plenty of manga to chew over. What’ve you got?

Clair Voyance, Vol. 1

by

clair

Clair Voyance Vol 1 by FSc
Available from jmanga.com

This is one of those unique non-commercial titles that makes me feel glad that jmanga.com exists in the current manga market. I decided to take a look at this title solely because of the cover image. I thought the art looked whimsical and quirky, and the inside of the volume matched with my initial impression of the cover. Clair Voyance doesn’t have much of a detailed plot, as it mostly deals with a relentless, classic science fiction novel quoting girl named Pi who fixates on a mysterious classmate named RueRune who goes around wearing a sarong and styles his hair in a bun anchored by random botanical specimens. Pi stalks RueRune, and sees him wander about, talking to the air, buying food, and getting violently ill. Eventually she realizes that his odd behavior is due to the fact that he’s talking to invisible creatures.

Where this title stands out from other monster of the week manga is the art and slice of life approach to the material. This title is published by Ohta Publishing Company, which I believe is the publisher of the magazine Manga Erotics F, home of beloved to manga bloggers authors like Natsume Ono, Usamaru Furuya, and Inio Asano. Fsc’s art reminds me a bit of a Natsume Ono, if Natsume Ono was inclined to draw spirits that look like odd hybrids between botanical illustrations and Where the Wild Things Are. Each chapter is basically a short episode where Pi indulges in her curiosity over RueRune by following him around and pestering him, and while RueRune is able to relate much easier to the creatures that surround him, Pi represents the potential for his first true human friend.

There were a few typos here and there in the translation for this book. Fans of Natsume Ono would likely appreciate the gentle atmosphere of Clair Voyance, and if you enjoy monster of the week manga but would like to try a title with a laid-back, unconventional sensibility, this is the manga for you.

Electronic access provided by the publisher.

Kekkaishi, Vols. 10-15

by

I absolutely adored the first few volumes of Kekkaishi. It is rare for me to find a shonen series that I like that features art that is both clear and visually arresting combined with plenty of character development, adventure, and the occasional bit of humor. But even though I liked what I’d read when I started reading the series back in 2010, the length of the series at 35 volumes made me a bit hesitant to commit to collecting it. I’ve had volumes 20-25 stockpiled for future reading for some time now, but the Viz digital sale during the holidays and my rapidly diminishing bookshelf space prompted me to pick up 10-19 for my iPad.

These volumes feature Yoshimori in the middle phases of his shonen hero journey. He’s a little bit more self-assured and more confident and slightly less goofy around girl next door and fellow Kekkaishi Tokine. There are glimmerings of great power that make the suggestion that he’s “the chosen one” seem plausible, but he hasn’t yet fully grown into his abilities. Tanabe does a good job fitting in more episodic adventures into the larger mystery that Yoshimori is pursuing as he tries to find out the truth behind the mystical Karasumori site he is sworn to protect.

Volumes 10 and 11 deal with a powerful attack and the aftermath when powerful opponents visit the Karasumori site. Gen, Yoshimori’s new ally who is uneasy in his skin due to his half akashi nature, but he tries to help out Yoshimori as best he can. A fox princess and her retainers are visiting the site so she can gain power, which gives Tanabe the chance to create some lovely scenes where a pavilion is transported via gianty dragonfly ships, piloted by a spider-like woman, and accompanied by ninjas who drop out of the black clouds filling the sky.

Yoshimori’s brother is away on Night Troops business, casually flying through the air on a translucent Kekkai cube, talking strategy to Gen on his cell phone. Yoshimori, Tokine, and Gen band together to defend their site, with more strategy and skill than their opponents expect. Gen finds more acceptance than he anticipates from Yoshimori when he reveals his true powers, but he’s surprised by a sneak attack. The Fox Princess, expecting to find rejuvenating power, starts getting sick instead from the site. One of the reasons why I enjoy Kekkaishi so much is that it is able to portray a variety of emotional states in just a few pages, without ever feeling rushed. Yoshimori grieves the loss of his friend, then decides that he’s determined to exact revenge and become stronger. There’s a funny sequence where he tries to join forces with Tokine’s grandmother, and since she’s trying her best to dodge him, he brings a secret weapon – not a new mystical power but a skateboard. Tanabe’s akashi designs are always interesting – one of the foes the Night troops fight when they attack Kokuboro is a giant blobby monster baby.

Yoshimori’s unique powers cause him to be kidnapped and taken hostage by the Kokuboro, something that he doesn’t seem to mind all that much because he wants to destroy the akashi who took out Gen. Volumes 12 and 13 center on the battle with Kokuboro, as Yoshimori travels through his enemy’s castle in search of Kaguro. Yoshimori runs into Sen and an old friend of his grandfather’s along the way. Kaguro likes to toy with his opponents and play mind games with them. While he taunts Yoshimori, the young hero manifests a new power of destruction – a zekkai. The Night Troops come to the rescue just as the world of Kokuboro begins to crumble, and Masamori has to help deal with the aftermath of the odd power his younger brother suddenly manifested. In Kekkaishi each battle prompts moments of emotional revelation, and a big one occurs when Tokine confronts Yoshimori about his actions when he finally returns home. There are then a few stolen moments of normalcy, as Tokine goes back to her usual lectures while the friends walk to school, and Yoshimori escapes into the kitchen once again for his dessert experiments.

In volumes 14 a new ally named Takeshi appears, on the hunt for an evil spirit named Jaren who destroyed his master. Takeshi’s enthusiasm and explosive personality almost make him a parody of a shonen hero, but things quickly turn serious when the new friends confront Jaren, whose proclivities towards psychological manipulation make battle difficult. Things can’t be all doom and gloom and angsty battles, so when Yoshimori is visited by a crow goblin seeking help because his master has grown overly flirtatious, Yoshimori finds himself drawn into an odd adventure. Things take a turn for the surreal when odd black boxes start popping up that serve as portals to the home of a very disturbed man. A young, timid member of the night troops is trapped, but she ends up being remarkably resourceful with her very specific powers.

Revisiting this series reminded me of just how enjoyable shonen manga can be when it is really well done. The pacing in Kekkaishi is excellent, as Tanabe swings back and forth between epic battles and shorter episodic encounters. The fights in Kekkaishi are rarely just for the sake of fighting, as each confrontation generally leads Yoshimori into a little bit more knowledge about either the nature of the site he is protecting or how best to manage his own powers. There are plenty of manga that sacrifice clarity for looking cool – producing action scenes that are difficult to follow or overly detailed panels that end up distracting from the story. Kekkaishi’s art is easy to follow, but many of the character designs and scenes remain in my mind after I’ve finished reading a volume. I’m a little annoyed at myself for waiting so long to continue reading this series, but I’m glad that have so many volumes waiting on my to read stack now.

JManga the Week of 1/24

by , and 3 Comments

ningenSEAN: It’s getting harder, I admit, to find things to say every week, mostly as JManga’s really sped up some releases ridiculously. As such, there’s new Crazy for You and Pride! Excited, but I’ve talked about those so much already.

ANNA: I can’t believe I’m two volumes behind with Crazy For You now! Crazy for You and Pride are for sure the titles I’m most excited about this week. I really really hope that they are doing well enough that we’ll see some similar titles coming out soon.

SEAN: There’s also a new Ekiben Hitoritabi manga, where the ongoing question has been “which cute young thing will he travel around with this time around?”

MICHELLE: I’ll definitely be reading the latest volumes of Crazy for You, Pride, and Ekiben Hitoritabi, but I admit I’ve kind of run out of new ways to say “Yay!” about them, too. Definitely glad to see them continuing to come out, and this’ll be the penultimate volume of Crazy for You, as well, which is pretty insane in terms of getting the whole series out in record time!

SEAN: Mythical Detective Loki has reached Vol. 3, which is also the last English release that came out back in the day via ADV. (Remember ADV?) From here on, it’s chapters new to North America…

The debut this week is another BL title from Fumiko Shusai. Ningen no Ichiban Muboubi na Bubun, aka Where a Person Is Most Vulnerable. It’s from Libre Shuppan, and I’ll be honest, its cover looks quite cute. More covers like this, please!

Anything catch your appetite?

Manga the Week of 1/23

by , , and 2 Comments

SEAN: It’s a quiet week at Midtown, which to my surprise still doesn’t have the Yen Press titles that I got this week and, um, apparently no one else did. This does not mean that nothing is being released there, however.

flowersofevil4Vertical has the 4th volume of Flowers of Evil, aka Baudelaire for Shonen Manga. The covers have turned black and so has the story, with its three protagonists going to darker and darker places. Who’s for joining them?

MJ: *raises hand* Out of everything on this short list, Flowers of Evil is really the only thing that interests me.

MICHELLE: I keep saying that I’m not sure I’m going to continue with this series, but then I keep continuing with it.

SEAN: And Viz has its Signature Series, which makes this Blogger Love week. Afterschool Charisma has hit Vol. 7. I must admit I’ve lost track of it, but, um… clones!

ANNA: Oh, Afterschool Charisma! I really enjoyed the first three volumes or so. I should get caught up.

MICHELLE: I intend to get caught up soon, too. Maybe I can even manage to talk about the series on Off the Shelf, finally!

SEAN: There’s the penultimate volume of Jormungand, which is filled with action, gunplay, awesome moments and likely a huge pile of grey and grey morality amongst its cast.

MJ: I am ashamed to say that I don’t read either of these. Um.

21stcenboys1

SEAN: And just when you thought it was safe to stop buying 20th Century Boys, Viz brings us 21st Century Boys! This one’s only 2 volumes, though. Still, 21st Century Boy doesn’t scan! You’re making Marc Bolan sad!

MJ: Heh.

ANNA: I loved 20th Century Boys but just fell way behind on that series. One of these days…..

MICHELLE: I literally laughed out loud at your Marc Bolan reference, Sean! I’m a fairly serious Bolan/T. Rex fangirl, so was filled with glee when the opening pages of the manga feature the protagonist playing “20th Century Boy” over the morning announcements.

Anyway, I too fell way behind but it was kind of on purpose. I did the same with Urasawa’s Monster, reading the first couple volumes and then just waiting until all the rest of it was out before indulging in a huge marathon. Soon, I’ll do the same with this series.

SEAN: Any picks from you folks? Aaron, if you pick Gunslinger Girl for a 3rd straight week, I’m sending you to the corner…

07 Ghost Winner

by

It was fun seeing what manga people got (or got themselves for the holidays) in the comments on my 07 Ghost Givewaway. I was especially happy to see that some people were buying series that I enjoy like House of Five Leaves, and Basara. I was glad I wasn’t the only person tempted by Viz’s digital holiday sale, and Right Stuf sales also seemed to inspire plenty of manga shopping.

The winner according to Random.org is commenter number 5, Myrah, who got Pluto and Real. Good choices!

Jiu Jiu, Vol. 3

by

Jiu Jiu Volume 3 by Touya Tobina

Sean wrote in the latest Bookshelf Briefs column that Jiu Jiu is a title that he feels he should be liking more than he is, and that’s exactly how I was feeling after putting down the third volume. Jiu Jiu has many elements in place that I look for in a manga. Tobina’s art style is quirky and detailed, and I generally like supernatural/fantasy shoujo titles. The third volume features some more background information about the Hunter clans that Takamichi is ultimately going to be in charge of, along with the sudden appearance of her ex-fiance, and plenty of emotionally anguished violence.

The central refrain of Jiu Jiu that gets repeated again and again is “We’ll always be together,” as with each volume Takamichi and her familiars Snow and Night reaffirm their commitment to the odd little family unit that they’ve built for themselves. Unfortunately for me, there isn’t enough story to hang on to for me to really be all that engaged in what happens to the characters. Takamichi and her Jiu Jiu’s fight against change and growing older is not engaging me as much as other manga. I’m much more interested to find out in Demon Love Spell Volume 2, and that’s after reading only one volume. If three volumes of Jiu Jiu aren’t making me feel interested in what’s coming up next, I’m not sure if the next one will make me more invested in the story. This is a bit of a shame, because with a slightly more engaging plot or more nuanced characters I think I would enjoy this title much more. The art and hints of a darker sensibility at work do make Jiu Jiu stand out from other shojo titles, but I’m not sure if that’s enough for me.

Review copy provided by the publisher.

Manga the Week of 1/16

by , , and 2 Comments

SEAN: I’ve noted before that Midtown doesn’t always (or even often) use Diamond Distribution to get their orders. As a result, sometimes you get weeks like this. The titles on Midtown’s list for next week arrived most places today. While Diamond is shipping Yen’s stuff to most stores (including mine) next week, but not Midtown. (Again, a reminder that I use Midtown’s list mostly as it’s first, rather than most accurate.)

With that in mind, here’s a fusion of both lists.

Kodansha has the second volume of Missions of Love, which continues to feature a hero and heroine who really aren’t very likeable, and a love rival who is headed that way. It’s fun seeing the reader having to work harder at identifying with everyone. Fun stuff.

MJ: Yeah. Fun…

MICHELLE: Sometimes my need to like characters prohibits me from enjoying shows/books that other people swear are great. This might be one of those times.

ANNA: I really have had no urge to check this out, and I suspect those feelings will continue.

SEAN: I did mean fun in a genuine and non-sarcastic sense, by the way. I quite enjoy this series.

Seven Seas has a slew of titles (most of which, as I noted, arrived today everywhere else). The one I like the best is the 2nd and final omnibus of Girl Friends, which I already praised in my Pick of the Week. Cute yuri fluff/angst.

MJ: I also adore Girl Friends, though I’ve only read it at JManga.

MICHELLE: Same here.

SEAN: Gunslinger Girl is almost finished with its run, which must mean it’s running out of people to kill off. Expect more of that in this omnibus, which contains the Japanese Vol. 13-14.

I Don’t Like You At All, Big Brother!! has an omnibus out as well. with Vols. 3-4. I can’t think of anything funny to say here that isn’t slanderous. Moving on…

MJ: Heh.

SEAN: I know nothing about Jack The Ripper: Hell Blade, a manwha series also from Seven Seas, but the covers to Vol. 1 through 3 (which is out next week) at least reassures me that it isn’t moe. Yay! (Is there a moe Jack the Ripper 4-koma series? Maybe with his sister Jill the Ripper having a tsundere crush on him? Sounds like a winner to me.)

cvr9781421543543_9781421543543

SubLime has Vol. 3 of Punch Up!, whose cover art is complete and total win. Don’t care if it’s horribly offensive within. I can’t decide if it’s the cat with the ‘yay!’ face, or the glasses-wearing guy’s befuddled “now what was I doing again?… oh right, him” expression. It’s probably both. I do wish that SubLime provided bigger cover images, though…

MJ: From what I understand, Punch Up! is win all around! I gotta start reading this manga.

MICHELLE: I need to continue it! Loving the kitty footprint on the face, too.

SEAN: Yen Press, meanwhile, has a bevy of January releases. Black Butler has hit an even dozen, and continues to apparently be filled with supernatural antics and almost-but-not-quite-BL. But damn, it looks cool.

MJ: I think I am one of maybe three people who really can’t stand Black Butler. Sad, but true.

MICHELLE: I think it’s okay. It falls on the “worth reading” side of the scale for me, but doesn’t manage the heights of “worth rereading.”

ANNA: I did read the first volume of this and decided that was enough.

SEAN: Black God is up to Vol. 18. I know absolutely zilch about it, but now at least I have a group of people I can tag to gush about it for me. Michelle, MJ, gush away!

MJ: Well, hm. Collecting full series without reading them is usually Michelle’s MO, but I have to admit with shame that though I have the entire available run of Black God sitting in my shelf, I have yet to read any of it. This just change!

MICHELLE: Hey now, are you calling me out on my hoarding tendencies?! :) Actually, I’m doing far less of that these days, though I regret nothing when it comes to stuff from ten years ago that I’m very thankful to have snagged. Anyway, I too must admit that I have never read Black God. I do not have a good excuse. Sorry we have failed to provide the gushing you requested!

SEAN: A Bride’s Story is up to Vol. 4, and no doubt will continue to look lush and gorgeous, and feature a heroine that every other blogger in the world except me seems to connect with.

MJ: Though I do connect with the heroine, one thing I appreciated about volumes three and four, is that they are focused heavily on other characters. This is particularly poignant in volume three, but it doesn’t hurt volume four either. You might find more in it for you now?

MICHELLE: I haven’t started this one yet, though I was pondering doing so soon as there’s a new volume to discuss. So far, the only Mori I’ve read has been the first two volumes of Emma and her recent short story collection.

ANNA: I haven’t read volume 3 yet! But I did love Emma and will be catching up on this series eventually. I do love the fact that the editions are so nice.

SEAN: The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-chan continues to struggle with its slow start, something that is allowed in Japan but not North America, which is far more unforgiving to manga that take a while to get there. We’ve got one volume to go till the good stuff. Till then, enjoy the sweet fluff.

Soul Eater has reached a point where I can’t really divide it into arcs anymore. Disasters just pile one upon another until they seem to reach the sky. I presume the same thing will happen here. But it will look cool, the characterization will be magnificent, and the abstract art style will amaze me. (This is just a prediction, but I’m usually right.)

MICHELLE: This is the first description that’s ever made me want to read Soul Eater.

BookGirlv6Final

SEAN: Lastly, in the “not manga” category, Book Girl and the Undine Who Bore A Moonflower is out, the 6th in the series and the final stand-alone novel before the two-part finale. The title may be a mouthful, but this is probably the best light novel series I’ve seen brought over here to date. And for those who missed Maki in the last book, the ojou with a thing for our Book Girl heroine, she apparently features prominently in this one.

MJ: I haven’t read these either, and I really should, given that both you and Erica are fans.

MICHELLE: Now, here is an instance of a series where I’ve collected all the volumes so far without reading them. I swear I’ve got good intentions!

ANNA: I am slightly ashamed that I have not tried out any volumes of this series because usually as a librarian I would be all over any series with the phrase “Book Girl” in the title. One day I will read it!

SEAN: So what are you combining 3 different release lists to get?

07 Ghost Vol 1 Giveaway

by

I have an extra copy of 07 Ghost #1, so I thought I would start off the new year with a giveaway!

To win, just comment on this post with your favorite manga or reading related gift you got (or got yourself) for the holidays!

One of my favorite self-gifted manga was the Nausicaa Box Set from Viz, it is a real treat. It isn’t often that manga feels like a luxury item, but this is a definite “treat yourself” type of item.

I also treated myself during the Viz Digital Sale and bought myself a large portion of the middle volumes of Kekkaishi, which is an excellent series that I’ve always meant to read more of.

I got a kindle paperwhite for Hanukkah, and I have been enjoying reading ebooks on it! I have a first generation iPad and the contrast in weight between the two devices is really quite staggering.

Giveaway will be open for one week!

This giveaway is now closed.

Strobe Edge, Vol. 2

by



Strobe Edge, Vol 2 by Io Sakisaka

I liked the first volume of Strobe Edge well enough, but I was hoping that the second volume would be a tiny bit more interesting, in order to justify my wanting to keep following the series. I wasn’t disappointed, as the second volume dropped the emphasis on the heroine Ninako’s naivety in favor of some standard shojo plot elements with an emphasis on the characters’ emotions and just enough of a twist to produce some unexpected moments.

Ninako is back at school after summer vacation, wondering how to deal with the fact that she confessed her feelings to laconic yet secretly super-nice heartthrob Ren on the last day of school. Ren turned her down nicely, mentioning his girlfriend. Ninako practices how to say hello to him and reflects that their first encounter will likely be as difficult for the rejector in addition to the rejectee. Unfortunately word of Ninako’s daring has spread and she is known throughout the school as “girl who confessed to Ren on the train platform.” Her friends try to comfort her, but Ninako finds a slightly unwelcome distraction in the person of Ando, a flighty womanizer who seems fascinated by her indifference to him and her continued love for Ren even after being rejected. The unlikely trio gets thrown together in doing some committee work for school, and while Ando might have a habit of trying to collect as many girls’ cell phone numbers as possible, he does exhibit some genuine friendship and sensitivity to Ninako when she’s placed in an awkward situation.

Strobe Edge isn’t the type of shojo manga that challenges conventions, but it is extremely well-executed. I couldn’t find anything to quibble with the artwork, and the pained expressions Ninako sometimes makes as she navigates the storm of teenage romance offsets some of the expected shojo prettiness. There were plenty of humorous elements too, as Ninako is initially embraced by a secret society at school that is comprised solely of girls that Ren has rejected. I continue to enjoy the fact that most of the characters are genuinely nice and sympathetic. A bonus story in this volume focuses on the way Ren and his girlfriend Mayuka began their relationship, and it was fun to see a different aspect of those characters told from Mayuka’s side. I wish more manga had side stories that served as a supplement to the main plot, as opposed to publishing unrelated short stories by the same author in the back of a volume just to fill it out. Strobe Edge is perfect comfort reading for anyone who wants to read a well-done shojo manga that keeps things on the light and fluffy side.

Review copy provided by the publisher.

Pick of the Week: Girl Friends, Loveless, 07-Ghost

by , , and 1 Comment

girlfriends_vol2_fullSEAN: There’s nothing that really inspires me on this week’s Midtown list, so I’ll go with something that my own comic shop is getting but Midtown isn’t. The second and final omnibus of Girl Friends completes the collection, and I am pleased that we got a print release of it from Seven Seas even with JManga releasing it digitally earlier in 2012. This is a different and more fluid translation, but mostly I enjoy just having this coming-of-age yuri story in my hands as a book. There aren’t many yuri stores that make it over here, so I cherish each one. And they’re a cute couple, too!

ANNA: I will pick the second volume of 07-Ghost. I enjoyed the first volume more than I expected to, and I’m hoping that the interesting world building and mystical action continues to entertain in the second volume.07-ghost2

MJ: There are a couple of things I’d like to pick up this week, enough that it’s difficult to choose, but in the end I’ll give my vote to the second omnibus of Loveless. From my review of omnibus volume one: “There’s so much going on … that it comes close to being a train wreck, but if there’s one thing I’ve learned over the past few years, it’s that there is no train wreck I love more than a Yun Kouga train wreck. And this, I think, really comes down to characterization. Like a couple of my other Kouga favorites, Crown of Love and (the very different) Gestalt, the strength of the story is that everyone is really interesting. Even when she’s adhering to standard tropes (in this case, BL and shoujo tropes), Kouga doesn’t write standard characters. Everyone in Loveless is kind of a weirdo, in the same way as most actual people are weirdos. They have layers of sometimes-contradictory issues, little idiosyncrasies, both attractive and unattractive flaws—and these are all a real part of the story.” More, please.

loveless3-4MICHELLE: I’m also going to cast my vote for Loveless. I’d heard a little about it when TOKYOPOP was releasing it, but mostly it was all the potentially squicky bits. I was pleasantly surprised to enjoy it as much as I did, and that’s entirely due to the endearing characters. In the Off the Shelf column MJlinked to, I compared its strong characterization and somewhat hazy plotting to Pandora Hearts, and I continue to stand by that comparison. It’s not just any manga that can make me stop worrying about things making sense, but these two series manage it!

Readers, what looks good to you this week?