Anna N

SEAN: June’s busting manga out all over. Let’s see what’s fallen in front of us.

Airship has two print releases: Adachi and Shimamura 5 and ROLL OVER AND DIE: I Will Fight for an Ordinary Life with My Love and Cursed Sword! 3. They also have an early digital release of I’m in Love with the Villainess 3.

ASH: Oh, that means I still have some time to catch up before it’s released in print!

SEAN: Cross Infinite World has a new novel, Romance of the Imperial Capital Kotogami: A Tale of Living Alongside Spirits (Teito Kotogami Romantan Kinrо̄ Otome to Oshikake Jūsha), about a young woman living as a caretaker to a bunch of handsome yokai. This certainly sounds like a couple of recent Viz shoujo manga titles…

MICHELLE: Definitely conjures some Demon Prince of Momochi House vibes.

ASH: That it does, and thus intrigues me.

SEAN: J-Novel Club has several new digital releases, as we get The Apothecary Diaries 2, Discommunication’s 7th manga volume, Girls Kingdom 3, Marginal Operation’s 7th manga volume, My Instant Death Ability is So Overpowered, No One in This Other World Stands a Chance Against Me! 5, and The World’s Least Interesting Master Swordsman 6.

J-Novel Club also has print titles. We’ll see By the Grace of the Gods 4, How a Realist Hero Rebuilt the Kingdom’s 2nd manga omnibus, In Another World with My Smartphone 16, and Marginal Operation 6.

Kodansha sees the print debut of The Summer of You (Kimi wa Natsu no Naka), a BL story about two teenagers loving to hang out and watch movies, and the love that develops between them. The author is also known for The Two Lions, just licensed by Seven Seas, and about 70 billion Gintama doujinshi.

MICHELLE: I’ve been looking forward to this one!

ASH: I wasn’t previously aware of this series, but now that I am, so am I!

SEAN: Also out in print: Chi’s Sweet Adventures 4, The Heroic Legend of Arslan 14, Hitorijime My Hero 10, Rent-a-Girlfriend 6, Sweat and Soap 6, Wave, Listen to Me! 6, Weathering with You 3 (the final volume), and With a Dog AND a Cat, Every Day is Fun 4.

MICHELLE: I need to catch up on Wave, Listen to Me! and With a Dog AND a Cat, Every Day Is Fun; I enjoyed both a lot for very different reasons.

ASH: I’m definitely here for Wave Listen to Me! . I’ve been meaning to give Sweat and Soap a try, too.

SEAN: Kodansha’s digital debut is Ya Boy Kongming (Papiri Koumei), a shonen title from Comic Days about a Three Kingdoms general reborn into modern Japan.

We also get Chihayafuru 26, Girlfriend Girlfriend 3, GTO Paradise Lost 14, My Dearest Self with Malice Aforethought 5, and With the Sheikh in His Harem 2.

MICHELLE: Insert traditional “yay!” for Chihayafuru.

ANNA: Yay! Also I’m so far behind!

SEAN: Seven Seas debuts The Tale of the Outcasts (Nokemono-tachi no Yoru), which ran in Weekly Shonen Sunday. This tale of a young orphan girl and a beast immortal should appeal to fans of Girl from the Other Side and similar titles.

ASH: Oooh, you have my attention.

SEAN: Seven Seas also has New Game! 11, Peter Grill and the Philosopher’s Time 5, Reincarnated As a Sword 6, and the 15th and final volume of Shomin Sample.

Viz debuts Yakuza Lover (Koi to Dangan – Dangerous Lover), a shoujo title from Cheese! spinoff Premium Cheese!. College girl meets yakuza boy, and despite trying to avoid “bad boys” she’s irresistibly drawn to him. Given it’s Cheese!, I suppose this is more in the “shousei” genre – expect a spicy story.

ANNA: I’m stoked for this and Cheese! spinoffs.

SEAN: There’s also a pile of other Viz. Chainsaw Man 5, Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba 22, Dragon Ball Super 13, Jujutsu Kaisen 10, My Hero Academia 28, One-Punch Man 22, Seraph of the End 21, Takane & Hana 17, Twin Star Exorcists 22, Vampire Knight: Memories 6, We Never Learn 16, and Yona of the Dawn 30.

MICHELLE: So much good stuff.

ANNA: Indeed.

ASH: A very good Viz week.

SEAN: Yen On has some May remainder titles that got bumped to June: the 10th Haruhi Suzumiya novel in paperback (it’s actually Books 10 and 11 in one big book), High School Prodigies Have It Easy Even in Another World! 4, Overlord 13, and Strike the Blood 18.

Yen Press likewise has a LOT of “this used to be May” titles. We get As Miss Beelzebub Likes 12 (the final volume), Eniale & Dewiela 3 (also a final volume), Happy Sugar Life 9, If Witch, Then Which? 2, IM: Great Priest Imhotep 9, Love of Kill 2, Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-kun 12, Overlord 13, Shibuya Goldfish 9, Teasing Master Takagi-san 11, The White Cat’s Revenge as Plotted from the Dragon King’s Lap 3, and A Witch’s Love at the End of the World 3 (another final volume).

ASH: Wait, did you say Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-kun?! Hooray!

SEAN: There’s a lot of series in this list I love to bits. What are you getting?

SEAN: The end of May brings us a few more books to check out. And by a few I mean a lot.

ASH: So many books! I love it.

SEAN: Airship has an early digital debut (the print is out in July): Accomplishments of the Duke’s Daughter (Koushaku Reijou no Tashinami). We’ve already seen several volumes of the manga over here… in fact, it was one of the first “oh no, I’m reincarnated as a villainess in an otome game” titles seen here. Let’s hope folks won’t think it’s old hat by now.

ASH: While I liked the manga, I think I might enjoy the novels more.

SEAN: Also out early digitally: Classroom of the Elite 8 and Skeleton Knight in Another World 9.

In print, we see the 6th Reincarnated As a Sword.

Ghost Ship has two titles: World’s End Harem Fantasia 4 and Yuuna and the Haunted Hot Springs 14.

J-Novel Club has no debuts, but we do see By the Grace of the Gods 7, Dungeon Busters 2, Holmes of Kyoto 5, Lazy Dungeon Master 14, Monster Tamer 4, and Slayers 8. Note Slayers 8 is the final novel that Tokyopop released back in the day, so from Vol. 9 on it’s new to English.

ASH: Nice! I love seeing these license rescues making progress.

ANNA: Where’s Demon Sacred!!!!???

MICHELLE: And Silver Diamond! Now that we’ve successfully had Rose of Versailles, someone rescuing Silver Diamond is my dearest licensing wish.

SEAN: Well, Slayers is a light novel, which is more J-Novel Club’s ballpark.

Kodansha’s debut in print (and digital) is highly anticipated. Boys Run the Riot is a story about fashion and gender identity, and is a must-read for LGBTQ readers. It originally ran in Weekly Young Magazine, then moved online.

MICHELLE: I’m very excited for this one!

ASH: Absolutely! Me, too! I’ve heard very good things.

ANNA: Sounds good!

MELINDA: Yes, this!!

SEAN: Also in print: CITY 11, Fairy Tail’s 4th manga box, which has Vol. 34-43, and What Did You Eat Yesterday? 15.

MICHELLE: Also looking forward to this.

ASH: Any week that brings more Fumi Yoshinaga manga is a good week.

MELINDA: What Ash said.

SEAN: Debuting digitally is Back When You Called Us Devils (Kimi ga Bokura wo Akuma to Yonda Koro), a Magazine Pocket series about a young man who can’t remember six months of his life running into people who certainly do remember it… and say that he was a monster. More psychological thrillers, yay?

ASH: Hmmm, I am intrigued.

SEAN: Also out digitally: Am I Actually the Strongest? 4, And Yet You Are So Sweet 2, Harem Marriage 5, Saint Young Men 11, Those Snow White Notes 5 (yeah, I give up, sorry), What I Love About You 6, and When We’re in Love 8.

MICHELLE: I feel like this is my last chance to catch up on Those Snow White Notes before it completely gets away from me.

SEAN: One Peace has a 5th volume of The New Gate.

Seven Seas has one debut. Bite Maker: The King’s Omega (Bite Maker -Ousama no Omega-). Yes, A/B/O Dynamics is not just an AO3 tag anymore. Our hero is an Alpha, admired and adored by Betas, but seems unsatisfied… till he meets the Omega of his dreams. This is a Shogakukan shoujo title, running in Flowers’ online magazine &Flowers, and its author is known for pushing at boundaries.

MICHELLE: Yeah, no thanks.

ANNA: I will pass on this one.

MELINDA: “Pushing at boundaries.” Yeah, no.

SEAN: There’s also Berserk of Gluttony 2, GIGANT 5, Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid: Elma’s Office Lady Diary 4, Saint Seiya: Saintia Sho 13, and Species Domain 10.

Square Enix has Cherry Magic! Thirty Years of Virginity Can Make You a Wizard?! 3 and Ragna Crimson 2.

ASH: I’ve been enjoying Cherry Magic!.

SEAN: Tokyopop debuts Like Two Peas in a Pod (Nitamonodoushi no), a BL one-shot from Mag Garden. Two boys in school are very alike – they’re even both named Tanaka! But when both take an interest in the same girl, are they jealous of each other, or of the girl?

And A Gentle Noble’s Vacation Recommendation 3.

Yen On has a debut that’s actually a sequel. Durarara!! SH takes place 18 months after the end of the main series, and features three new protagonists. (The SH stands for Snake Hands. Don’t ask.)

And there is Bungo Stray Dogs 6, Date a Live 2, The Demon Sword Master of Excalibur Academy 3, Do You Love Your Mom and Her Two-Hit Multi-Target Attacks? 9, a paperback reprint of Haruhi Suzumiya 9, My Youth Romantic Comedy Is Wrong As I Expected 11, and Wandering Witch 5.

Yen Press has one debut and one finale. The debut is Hard-Boiled Stories from the Cat Bar (Sake to Namida to Otoko to Nyanko), a one-shot from Kadokawa’s Young Ace Up. If you love dark grimy noir stories, but also love cats, this is the title for you.

MICHELLE: Hm. Maybe!

ASH: I’m looking forward to giving it a try.

ANNA: I’m curious about this.

MELINDA: Same here!

SEAN: Ending at 18 volumes (and honestly I forgot it was still coming out, it’s digital-only) is Crimson Prince. The author fell ill several years ago, and so 17 (which came out last month) and 18 had a long delay. It was a good shonen supernatural romance.

Any May flowers you’re picking?

SEAN: As the days get warmer, why not try some manga to cool you off?

Airship debuts a new release, out next week digitally and in print next month. I Swear I Won’t Bother You Again! (Kondo wa Zettai ni Jamashimasen!) features a somewhat familiar plot – a villainess who is in prison for the crimes she has committed ends up in her past self, and is determined to do things right this time. As with many of these stories, I suspect bothering will, in fact, occur.

ASH: Ha!

SEAN: There’s also an early digital for Kuma Kuma Kuma Bear 6.

In print, we debut I Have a Secret, from the author of I Want to Eat Your Pancreas. There’s also the 2nd volume of Trapped in a Dating Sim: The World of Otome Games Is Tough for Mobs.

MICHELLE: I still need to read my digital copy of I Have a Secret. Soon.

ASH: I’ll probably be picking it up in print, myself.

SEAN: Dark Horse has the 3rd and final volume of Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair.

J-Novel Club debuts its Pulp imprint, showing us that German novels can be just as bonkers as Japanese ones. The first of these is John Sinclair: Demon Hunter (Geisterjäger John Sinclair). Scotland Yard in the 1970s hunts demons. Imagine The Sweeney but less violent.

ASH: I’m curious to see how this imprint develops!

SEAN: There’s also The Magician Who Rose from Failure 2 and Welcome to Japan, Ms. Elf! 6.

No print debuts for Kodansha, but we do see Blue Period 3, Cells at Work: CODE BLACK 7, Drifting Dragons 8, Fairy Tail: 100 Years Quest 7, Living-Room Matsunaga-san 6, A Sign of Affection 2, Something’s Wrong with Us 6, and Those Not-So-Sweet Boys 2.

MICHELLE: The shoujo titles beckon to me.

ASH: Indeed! I’ve also been enjoying Drifting Dragons.

SEAN: The digital debut is Medalist, a figure skating manga from Kodansha’s Afternoon that is much acclaimed.

MICHELLE: Sports + seinen = yes.

ANNA: Oooh, I’m intrigued.

MELINDA: I need it.

SEAN: Also digital: Blue Lock 3, A Girl and Her Guard Dog 4, The Honey-Blonde Beauty & Her Vampire 2, Hop Step Sing! 3 (the final volume), We’re New at This 6, and Will it Be the World or Her? 5.

Seven Seas’ debut is the comedy Dungeon Toilet (Isekai no Toire de Dai o Suru), an Akita Shoten title from Young Champion Retsu, and if, like me, you flee in terror when you see the words “Young Champion”, you may have already stopped reading. It’s about a reincarnated kid in search of the perfect toilet in a fantasy world. Laffs no doubt ensue.

ANNA: No thank you!

MELINDA: Oh no.

SEAN: Also from Seven Seas: Didn’t I Say to Make My Abilities Average in the Next Life?! Everyday Misadventures! 2, How NOT to Summon a Demon Lord 11, The King of Fighters: A New Beginning 5, and Wonder Cat Kyuu-chan 2.

No debuts from Viz, but we do get BEASTARS 12, Hell’s Paradise Jigokuraku 8, Levius/est 8, No Guns Life 10, Urusei Yatsura 10, The Way of the Househusband 5, and Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead 2.

MICHELLE: I look forward to getting caught up on The Way of the Househusband!

ANNA: I’m actually not behind on that series!

ASH: It’s one of my favorites at the moment.

SEAN: Yen On has been doing so much shuffling of release dates lately that it’s hard to get a handle on what is due out next week, especially as the print and digital dates differ. We should definitely have the 3rd Banished from the Hero’s Party, I Decided to Live a Quiet Life in the Countryside and the 2nd Interspecies Reviewers.

Yen Press has similar release date blues, but definitely debuting next week is I’m the Hero, but the Demon Lord’s Also Me (Boku ga Yuusha de Maou mo Boku de), a title from Media Factory’s Comic Alive, my old nemesis. A young man is approached by a beautiful woman to be the Hero… and another beautiful woman to be the Demon Lord. Turns out it could go either way. Hard to get past that boob-laden cover, though.

Also debuting is Sex Ed 120% (Seikyouiku 120%), which runs on ASCII Mediaworks’ @Vitamin site. This seems to combine comedy and actual sex ed, as a teacher who thinks she can teach sex ed better than the modern sex ed texts tries to teach her class about various subjects. I’ve actually heard this is pretty good.

ASH: Same!

SEAN: Does this list cool you off or warm you up?

SEAN: Happy Mother’s Day! Let’s look for some manga that you can safely show to Mom.

Airship has two early digital releases, Adachi & Shimamura 5 and Failure Frame 2.

Debuting in print is Drugstore in Another World: The Slow Life of a Cheat Pharmacist. And we get the 2nd Muscles Are Better Than Magic as well.

ASH: I didn’t pick it up digitally, but am still vaguely intrigued by Drugstore in Another World.

MELINDA: I’m intrigued by the title alone.

SEAN: Dark Horse has a 6th omnibus volume for Gantz.

J-Novel Club has a few digital manga titles that I missed last time that are out this week. Apologies to An Archdemon’s Dilemma 5, Bibliophile Princess 2, and Record of Wortenia War 2. This is the danger of not adding “LLC” to your searches.

ASH: It can make a difference.

SEAN: As for this week, in terms of manga we have Ascendance of a Bookworm 7 and Mapping 2.

In terms of digital light novels, we get The Greatest Magicmaster’s Retirement Plan 9 and In Another World with My Smartphone 22.

Kodansha has a few print volumes next week. We get Don’t Toy with me, Miss Nagatoro 7, Sachi’s Monstrous Appetite 2, and Yuzu the Pet Vet 5.

MICHELLE: I still need to check out Yuzu.

ASH: I’ll have to admit the same.

MELINDA: And I.

SEAN: Digitally the debut is The Springtime of My Life Began with You (Kimi to Aoi Haru no Hajimari), a shoujo title from Dessert. The author’s had a lot of titles out over here, some from Kodansha (The Dorm of Love and Secrets, The Prince’s Romance Gambit) and some via Media Do’s many and varied company names (Heart Break Club). A popular guy is forced, as a punishment game, to ask out the quiet, shy girl in front of the whole class. The trouble is… he insists he really likes her!

ANNA: Those popular guys and their shenanigans!

MICHELLE: I know this concept is not the greatest, but I think the cover is pretty and enjoyed The Dorm of Love and Secrets, so I’ll be giving this a shot.

SEAN: We also get Ace of the Diamond 32, My Roomie Is a Dino 5, Nina the Starry Bride 2, Peach Boy Riverside 7, Saint Young Men 12, and Those Snow White Notes 4, voted “series most likely to get behind on” by Manga Bookshelf.

ANNA: I haven’t read the first volume so I’m sure I’m behind.

MICHELLE: Gah, so behind. It’s coming out especially quickly for some reason! I’m also in need of a mini-marathon on Ace of the Diamond.

SEAN: One Peace has the 2nd volume of isekai harem title Farming Life in Another World.

Seven Seas has FOUR debuts next week. We’ll start with My Alcoholic Escape from Reality (Genjitsu Touhi Shitetara Boroboro ni Natta Hanashi), the latest biographical manga from the creator of My Lesbian Experience with Loneliness, which promises to be as riveting as the previous book’s she’s given us. It ran in Matogrosso, put out by small publisher East Press.

ANNA: Oh wow.

ASH: They’re good but hard-hitting manga.

SEAN: Ride Your Wave (Kimi to, Nami ni Noretara) is a one-volume manga adaptation of the movie of the same name, and ran in Shogakukan’s Deluxe Betsucomi.

MICHELLE: Hm. It’s sports-adjacent, seems like.

SEAN: School Zone Girls is a title from Mag Garden’s MagComi about two troublemaking girls who’ve been together forever, but are they more than just friends? This seems to emphasize the comedy over the yuri.

Lastly, we get Thigh High: Reiwa Hanamaru Academy (Reiwa Hanamaru Gakuen), a Kodansha title from good! Afternoon, and is about an all-girls school… populated entirely by gorgeous crossdressing men. This one also seems to emphasize the comedy.

ASH: This could be hilariously good or hilariously bad – I’m not sure that I can resist finding out which.

MELINDA: I really don’t know what to expect from this.

SEAN: Also out: Dungeon Builder 4 and Uzaki-chan Wants to Hang Out! 5.

Square Enix debuts I Think Our Son Is Gay (Uchi no Musuko wa Tabun Gay), a Gangan Pixiv title about a mom who has realized that her son is keeping a secret. This is supposed to be very good.

ANNA: I’m curious.

MICHELLE: Same.

ASH: Really looking forward to this one.

MELINDA: I’m excited to read this one!

SEAN: They also have By the Grace of the Gods’ 2nd manga volume.

SuBLime wins the title of the week competition with the debut of Dick Fight Island (8nin no Senshi), a long-running title from Libre Shuppan’s Be x Boy Gold. The synopsis… is pretty much not work safe, but can probably be guessed from the title.

ANNA: I don’t think anyone could buy that manga and be confused about what they’re getting.

MICHELLE: Snerk.

ASH: I likewise suspect that it is unlikely.

MELINDA: I mean. Well.

SEAN: They also have Vol. 2 of Don’t Be Cruel: plus+.

Speaking of BL, Tokyopop has a one-shot title, The Treasure of the King and the Cat (Ou to Neko no Himitsu), about a king investigating a series of disappearances who gets caught up in magic.

They also have Ossan Idol 3.

No debuts for Viz, but we get Fly Me to the Moon 5, Fullmetal Alchemist: Fullmetal Edition 13, Pokemon Sun & Moon 10, Rin-Ne 39, Splatoon 12, A Tropical Fish Yearns for Snow 7, and Yo-Kai Watch 17.

ASH: Some great ongoing series in that list!

SEAN: That’s it. See anything maternal? I Think Our Son Is Gay looks like the best choice. I’d avoid Dick Fight Island. Unless your mom loves BL.

SEAN: May Comes In Like a Tiger! What manga do we have next week?

Airship has an early digital release of Hello World, a one-shot SF novel about a boy whose future self returns to help him save his future girlfriend… or so he says. This sounds like it’s for fans of I Want to Eat Your Pancreas and others in that genre.

MICHELLE: Sounds interesting!

ASH: I’m intrigued!

MELINDA: Same here!

SEAN: They’ve also got Monster Girl Doctor Zero (a prequel), an early digital volume of Mushoku Tensei 11, and print volumes for The Saint’s Magic Power Is Omnipotent 3 and PENGUINDRUM 3 (the final volume).

ASH: One of these days I’ll actually read PENGUINDRUM.

SEAN: Cross Infinite World has a 2nd volume of Reincarnated As the Last of My Kind.

In print, J-Novel Club has Ascendance of a Bookworm 5 (manga), I Shall Survive Using Potions 5, Infinite Dendrogram 12, and My Next Life As a Villainess 7.

Digitally, they debut a new light novel in their Heart series, Culinary Chronicles of the Court Flower (Ikka Koukyuu Ryourichou). It sounds, honestly, a lot like The Apothecary Diaries only with food replacing medicine.

ASH: That sounds like a good combination to me!

SEAN: Also digitally is Altina the Sword Princess: Loose Threads (aka Vol. 7.5) and Altina the Sword Princess 8, Ascendance of a Bookworm 12, and Cooking with Wild Game 12.

Kaiten Books has a 4th volume of the Loner Life in Another World manga.

No print debuts for Kodansha Manga, but we do get Attack on Titan 33, Boarding School Juliet 14, Eden’s Zero 11, and Weathering With You 3, a final volume.

Digitally the debut is With the Sheikh in His Harem (Sheik-sama to Harem de), a Nakayoshi title. That cover, featuring the palest sheikh ever. That synopsis (girl is proposed to by rich man, who won’t take no for an answer). Remember when Nakayoshi was far younger in focus than it seems to be now? Recommended for Harlequin fans.

We also get the 2nd and final volume of Araki Won’t Be Tamed (whose cover I just have to link to, because YIKES), The 2nd Girlfriend, Girlfriend, My Dearest Self with Malice Aforethought 4, and My Unique Skill Makes Me OP even at Level 1 5.

ASH: That cover, my goodness!

SEAN: Seven Seas has The Dungeon of Black Company 6, Manly Appetites: Minegishi Loves Otsu 2, Skeleton Knight in Another World 6 (manga), and SUPER HxEROS 2.

ASH: I’m really looking forward to reading more of Manly Appetites; the first volume was delightful.

SEAN: Udon Entertainment has the 5th and final volume of The Rose of Versailles, including extra manga short stories Ikeda wrote in the 80s. Thank you so much for finally giving us this title in English.

ANNA: Yes. I’m still pinching myself about this.

MICHELLE: Me, too!

ASH: I continue to be absolutely thrilled we finally have this in translation.

MELINDA: Again, same here!

SEAN: Viz has a Shonen Jump debut, with Undead Unluck. A girl whose luck is so bad it kills people tries to kill herself, only to run into an undead man who can’t die. Together they discover they’re being hunted by a secret organization. Despite the worst possible 2-page opening spread I’ve seen in the history of Jump, I have heard this is quite good.

ASH: I have likewise heard good things.

MELINDA: I have heard nothing, because apparently I live under a rock, but this sounds kind of great.

SEAN: There are also three long-runners coming to a close next week. JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure has the 9th book of Arc 4, so we finish off Diamond Is Unbreakable. Worry not, Golden Wind is coming. Daytime Shooting Star and Shortcake Cake, meanwhile, both end with a 12th volume.

ANNA: I like Shortcake Cake and Daytime Shooting Star for entirely different reasons.

MICHELLE: Me too. I look forward to finishing both.

SEAN: We also get Black Cover 25, Boruto 11, Haikyu!! 44, Kaguya-sama: Love Is War 19, The King’s Beast 2, Love Me, Love Me Not 8, The Promised Neverland 19, Snow White with the Red Hair 13, and World Trigger 22.

ANNA: Looking forward to The King’s Beast and Snow White.

MICHELLE: I’m following (or attempting to follow) most of these! Penultimate volumes for Haikyu!! and The Promised Neverland, also.

ASH: Ditto all of the above!

SEAN: Yen On has a light novel debut with The King of the Dead at the Dark Palace (Kuraki Kyuuden no Shisha no Ou), a dark fantasy about a sickly boy who dies and reincarnates… as a sickly undead who must obey his master.

They’ve also got Reign of the Seven Spellblades 2, which has a lot to live up to to top its excellent first volume.

On the Yen Press tip, we get manga debuts for the two light novels that came out in April, as we see Bofuri: I Don’t Want to Get Hurt, so I’ll Max Out My Defense 1, which runs in Comp Ace, and Hazure Skill: The Guild Member with a Worthless Skill Is Actually a Legendary Assassin 1, which runs in, believe it or not, Dengeki Playstation.

Lastly, Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? On the Side: Sword Oratoria’s 15th manga volume.

Mayday! Mayday! Throw me a manga!

SEAN: The end of April and there’s still so much going on.

Airship has two digital-early debuts. I Have a Secret (Kakushigoto) is the latest one-shot by the author of I Want to Eat Your Pancreas, and is not related to the manga and anime series Kakushigoto. It’s all about unspoken feelings in high school.

MICHELLE: Ooh. This sounds my speed.

ASH: I’ve enjoyed the manga adaptations of this author’s works; I really need to make a point to read some of the originals.

SEAN: The Strange Adventure of a Broke Mercenary (Kuitsume Youhei no Gensou Kitan) is a fantasy series about a man, the sole survivor of a battle that killed off all those important to him, who hires himself out as a merc. Sadly, most people just want to use him. Can he find an ally? This is a long-running LN series in Japan, with 15 volumes to date.

We also get the last of the deluge of Alice in the Country of digital editions, the light novel Alice in the Country of Diamonds: Bet On My Heart. Lastly, there’s a 3rd volume of Roll Over and Die out early digitally.

Denpa Books’ website says they have the debut of Shino Can’t Say Her Name (Shino-chan wa Jibun no Namae ga Ienai), a one-shot from the creator of Flowers of Evil, Happiness, etc. that promises to be a bit lighter in tone than those titles. It ran in Ohta Shuppan’s Pocopoco, and is about a girl with severe social anxiety. This seems to take a less comedic take than Komi Can’t Communicate.

MICHELLE: I will likely check this one out.

ASH: Same!

SEAN: Ghost Ship has Destiny Lovers 6, Parallel Paradise 5, World’s End Harem 10, and Yokai Girls 13.

J-Novel Club has a quartet of titles, as we get Invaders of the Rokujouma!? 36, Record of Wortenia War 10, Seirei Gensouki: Spirit Chronicles 14, and Sorcerous Stabber Orphen: The Reckless Journey 3 (manga).

Debuting in print for Kodansha is Chasing After Aoi Koshiba (Kyou, Koshiba Aoi ni Aetara), a yuri manga from Ichijinsha’s Comic REX. It’s got the writer of Masamune-kun’s Revenge (ehh…) and the artist of Bottom-Tier Character Tomozaki (yay!). A girl hopes to meet up with her first love at a reunion. (Yes. Yes, I know. It got bumped at the last minute.)

ASH: I thought that sounded familiar!

SEAN: They’ve also got the 8th Bakemonogatari manga and the 8th Kino’s Journey manga, which is also the final volume in the adaptation.

The digital debut is And Yet, You Are So Sweet (Na no ni, Chigira-kun ga Amasugiru), a Dessert title about a girl who just got rejected and the popular guy who hears about this and offers to help with her problem. But will she fall for him?

MICHELLE: Sounds a bit like Say I Love You., but I’m totally down for it.

ANNA: Me too, if only it wasn’t a digital only title because I will likely forget that it exists.

SEAN: We also get The Dawn of the Witch 2, DAYS 23, Harem Marriage 4, Those Snow White Notes 3, What I Love About You 5, and When We’re in Love 7.

MICHELLE: Yay for more DAYS! Also, how am I this far behind on Those Snow White Notes already?!

ASH: It does seem to be on a quick release schedule!

SEAN: One Peace Books has The Rising of the Shield Hero 19.

Seven Seas’ debut is Dai Dark, the latest series from the creator of Dorohedoro. It runs in Shogakukan’s Monthly Shonen Sunday, and should appeal to all fans of her previous work, and likely will be just as violent as her previous work.

ASH: I am so looking forward to this one!

SEAN: Also out: Alice & Zoroku 8, The Ancient Magus’ Bride 14, The Demon Girl Next Door 2, The Legend of Dororo and Hyakkimaru 3, Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid: Kanna’s Daily Life 8, My Room Is a Dungeon Rest Stop 4, and Syrup: A Yuri Anthology 3.

MICHELLE: I look forward to getting caught up on The Ancient Magus’ Bride!

ASH: I’ve some catching up to do, too, but I really do enjoy the series.

SEAN: Square Enix has the 6th Hi Score Girl.

Yen On’s debut next week is a two-fer light novel adaptation of a Makoto Shinkai work: 5 Centimeters per Second + Children Who Chase Lost Voices. Now you can be depressed but also moved in prose!

ASH: I somehow missed that there were two 5 Centimeters per Second novels – Vertical released another one a couple years ago, too.

SEAN: Also out: Accel World 24, The Alchemist Who Survived Now Dreams of a Quiet City Life 6, Baccano! 16, The Eminence in Shadow 3, The Genius Prince’s Guide to Raising a Nation Out of Debt (Hey, How About Treason?) 6, High School DxD 3, The Irregular at Magic High School 16, King of the Labyrinth 2, Torture Princess 7, Wolf and Parchment: New Theory Spice & Wolf 5, Woof Woof Story 6, The World’s Finest Assassin Gets Reincarnated in Another World as an Aristocrat 2, and You Call That Service? 3. Some long awaited titles there: Irregular at Magic High School and You Call That Service haven’t had a volume out in over a year.

Four Yen Press debuts. After School Hanako-kun (Houkago Shounen Hanako-kun) is a comedy spinoff of Toilet-Bound Hanako-kun. It runs in PFantasy, which I can only assume is like a spinoff of Shonen Panpan? No, that just sounds like a dirty Japanese schoolboy. Anyway, it’s probably an online spinoff of the main magazine.

ASH: I like the main series, so will likely give this one a try, too.

SEAN: I Was a Bottom-Tier Bureaucrat for 1,500 Years, and the Demon King Made Me a Minister (Hira Yakunin Yatte 1500-nen, Maou no Chikara de Daijin ni Sare Chaimashita) is the manga adaptation of the light novel we saw last month. It ran in Gangan Online.

I’m the Catlords’ Manservant (Boku wa Oneko-sama no Geboku desu) is about, as many manga are, a child having to pay off their parents’ massive debt. This one does so by serving shapeshifting cats. This runs in GFantasy, which means it’ll interest Melinda, probably.

ANNA: I am just amused by the description of this manga.

ASH: New cat manga!

MELINDA: I HAVE BEEN SUMMONED. Also, yes. Yes. BRING IT TO ME.

SEAN: Your Turn to Die: Majority Vote Death Game (Kimi ga Shine -Tasuuketsu Death Game-) reminds us that death game manga are still apparently a thing. It’s based on a game, runs in Shonen Ace, and… well, it’s a death game manga. Come on.

Also coming out next week: Golden Japanesque: A Splendid Yokohama Romance 2.

MICHELLE: Yay!

ANNA: I was slightly underwhelmed by the first volume but maybe the second volume will sell me on the series.

SEAN: That ended up being quite a bit. Anything you’re picking up?

SEAN: The end of April, and the daffodils are blooming. What manga do we have?

Airship gives us a print version of the 10th Mushoku Tensei novel and digital versions of The Hidden Dungeon Only I Can Enter 4 and PENGUINDRUM 3 (the final volume).

ASH: I still need to read PENGUINDRUM.

SEAN: J-Novel Club has new digital volumes, as we get Full Metal Panic! 11, The Great Cleric 2, The Master of Ragnarok & Blesser of Einherjar 15, and My Friend’s Little Sister Has It In for Me 2.

In print… theoretically… Kodansha Manga has the 7th volume of My Boy, a former Vertical title. It’s nowhere on their website, but all the major outlets list it.

The digital debut is The Honey-blood Beauty & Her Vampire (Mitsugetsuhime to Vampire), a shoujo title from Palcy about a vampire and his charge, a girl whose blood tastes amazing. This comes with the usual “lead guy is pervert and sadist” warning that a lot of these shoujo titles do. I’m sure he will get better, it’s only 4 volumes.

MICHELLE: I’ll be passing on this one.

ANNA: Me too.

MELINDA: Ugh.

SEAN: There’s also Blue Lock 2, Dr. Ramune -Mysterious Disease Specialist- 4, A Girl & Her Guard Dog 3, Orient 11, We’re New at This 5, and Will It Be the World or Her? 4.

The big debut for Seven Seas is SUPER SENTAI: Himitsu Sentai Gorenger. This manga ran in Weekly Shonen Sunday in the mid-1970s, and almost every sentai series since owes a debt to it. You may recognize the author from Cyborg 009 or Kamen Rider. It’s in one big deluxe hardcover, containing the whole manga.

ANNA: Sounds cool, I’m glad that we’re getting more retro manga!

ASH: I really enjoyed what we got of Cyborg 009, and I’m likewise excited to see older titles being licensed!

MELINDA: Same here!

SEAN: The other debut also involves heroics, but in a more yuri way. Superwomen in Love! Honey Trap and Rapid Rabbit (Hero-san to Moto Onna Kanbu-san) is a Yuri Hime title about a villainess who can’t defeat her arch-nemesis… as she finally sees her face and is in love! Cast out of her villain society, she ends up moving in with the hero. I’ve heard very good things about this.

ASH: I’m not particularly interested in superheroics, but my curiosity is piqued.

MELINDA: I’m intrigued!

SEAN: Digitally we get Alice in the Country of Joker: The Nightmare Trilogy, which as you might guess is three volumes.

There’s also the 4th Arifureta Zero manga, Blue Giant Omnibus 3-4, Magika Swordsman and Summoner 14, PENGUINDRUM 4 (the manga this time), and Tamamo-chan’s a Fox! 2.

ANNA: I still have the fist volume of Blue Giant sitting on my bookshelf unread but I’m looking forward to reading it!

ASH: I actually have read the first omnibus and am definitely looking forward to reading more of Blue Giant.

SEAN: Tokyopop has three debuts. I Was Reincarnated as the Villainess in an Otome Game but the Boys Love Me Anyway! (Akuyaku Reijou Desu ga, Kouyaku Taishou no Yousu ga Ijou Sugiru) is from TO Books’ Corona Comics, is based on a light novel, and the plot you can probably guess. That said, it’s surprisingly serious-minded.

Laughing Under the Clouds (Donten ni Warau) is a new shoujo series from Mag Garden’s Comic Avarus. This historical tragedy has spawned many sequels, and deals with three brothers hired to bring criminals to a prison.

The last debut is Our Not-So-Lonely Planet Travel Guide (Bokura no Chikyuu no Arukikata), another Mag Garden title about two men taking a vacation around the world before they marry each other. The vacation is the point of the manga.

MICHELLE: Huh. That might be interesting.

MELINDA: This does sound interesting.

SEAN: The debut for Viz is a new Junji Ito story collection, this one called Lovesickness. it’s a 400-page hardcover of more of the author’s scariest works.

ASH: I’m always here for Junji Ito manga.

MELINDA: Count me in!

SEAN: Also coming out: Asadora 2, the 3rd and final novel for Bleach: Can’t Fear Your Own World, Blue Flag 7, Golden Kamuy 21, and Ultraman 15.

ANNA: I need to get caught up on Blue Flag.

ASH: I just recently caught up on it myself; it’s good!

SEAN: Yen On has reprints of Haruhi Suzumiya 7 & 8, the third and final volume of A Mysterious Job Called Oda Nobunaga, and Our Last Crusade or the Rise of a New World 6.

Yen Press debuts Hana and the Shape of the World (Hana-chan to, Sekai no Katachi), a one-shot collection revolving around a young girl exploring her town. This ran in Comic Beam.

ASH: I’m expecting this one to be good – it was one of the jury selections from last year’s Japan Media Arts Festival.

MELINDA: This sounds lovely.

SEAN: There’s also a 2nd Cirque du Freak omnibus, The Dark History of the Reincarnated Villainess 2, Mint Chocolate 2, Plunderer 7, RaW Hero 4, Sasaki and Miyano 2, So I’m a Spider, So What? 9, and Yowamushi Pedal 17.

Vampires? Sentai? Villainesses? Vacationing gay men? What holds your interest the most?