Manga Bookshelf

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Anna N

Manga the Week of 5/27

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(This is late. Very late. I’m so sorry.)

SEAN: The final week of May brings us a manageable and tasty selection. If this week is too much manga, next week is juuuuuust right.

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When the Evangelion Comic Tribute came out, one of the more popular contributing authors was Tony Takezaki, who long-time manga fans may recall from a manga called Genocyber. His take on Evangelion, though, which Dark Horse puts out next week, is pure gag format.

Technically this is out this week rather than next, but as always I never know when a Fantagraphics title comes out till I get a shipping notice. But who cares if it means an 8th volume of Wandering Son, woo hoo!

MICHELLE: I feel like a poseur for saying “Woo!” when I am so far behind, but “Woo!” nonetheless.

ASH: I just got my copy! It makes me so happy that this series is being translated.

ANNA: I will join Michelle in also saying “Woo!” and being behind in reading this very worthwhile series.

SEAN: Kodansha keeps putting out Air Gear omnibuses, here is the 5th.

And there is also an 8th volume of The Seven Deadly Sins.

The big debut from Kodansha, though, is the first volume of coming of age story A Silent Voice. I reviewed the first volume here, and will definitely be reading the whole thing.

MICHELLE: Interesting. I wasn’t aware of this one, at all. Not sure I could stomach that many hard-to-like characters, though.

ASH: I’ve heard very good things about this series.

SEAN: One Peace has a 2nd Aquarion Evol, which is spelled correctly and also not a villain after all.

ANNA: The first one for sure seemed like it would appeal to fans of the anime, but the volumes are a bit slim on the page count.

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SEAN: Meanwhile, Ponent Mon has another Jiro Tanaguchi volume, this one set in the Edo period, called Furari. Every Tanaguchi release should be greeted with joy. (I could swear this has come out before in some way, shape or form. Am I wrong? Ponent Mon does tend to re-release…)

MICHELLE: I’m not sure. I know it’s been sitting in my Amazon cart for ages, but possibly that was because it was supposed to come out a while back, but never actually showed as “In stock.” In any case, yay for more Taniguchi!

ASH: I believe it was initially planned to be released last year or the year before and that we’re only now just seeing it after a significant delay. Should be good, though!

SEAN: Seven Seas gives us another Alice volume, this one with the Twins as the boyfriend du jour. I hated the last volume focusing on them; hopefully this will be an improvement.

They also have an 8th volume of gaming fantasy World War Blue.

Vertical has a new Attack on Titan novel, Kuklo Unbound. This one will seem more familiar to those reading the Before the Fall manga.

ASH: Yeah, I’ll probably be reading this one.

SEAN: Lastly, there’s a 6th volume of Cardfight!! Vanguard, still filled with teenage youth and exclamation marks.

What leaps out at you from this list?

Harlequin Manga: His Virgin Mistress and Night of Love

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I recently read several Harlequin manga, and there was not a single kidnapping, secret baby, or case of amnesia in any of the titles! Despite my disappointment, there were a few manga in this batch that were entertaining. I’ll have another Harlequin manga post soon!

His Virgin Mistress by Anne Mather and Kazuko Fujita

This title seems very logistically complicated, or perhaps not very useful, because it seems like having a virgin mistress would be counter to the purpose of having a mistress in the first place. In this case, Joanna has agreed to pretend to be the mistress of a Greek tycoon who is struggling with a horrible illness. He’s returning home for his daughter’s wedding and doesn’t want his family distracted with the knowledge that he’s suffering from an incurable disease, so he decides to distract them with a beautiful young fake English mistress instead. Does he have a handsome son? If you have to ask you have never read a Harlequin romance! Demitri is incredibly perplexed when he meets Joanna, because she seems far too serious and intelligent to be a mistress. He’s instantly attracted to her, and horribly conflicted because he doesn’t approve of his father having a mistress.

The art in this title was a few steps above what I come to expect from a Harlequin manga. The character designs are attractive and distinctive, and Fujita illustrates the interactions between the characters with great fluidity. Demitri stomps around in the throws of angst, and Johanna is much more disposed to dealing with her turmoil inwardly. I’d recommend this title if you enjoy romances with a Mediterranean setting or virgin mistresses.

Night of Love by Diana Palmer and Harumo Sanazaki

I bought this title because the cover made me think that it would be a good example of the 80s manga style Harlequin manga adaption that I find particularly delightful. However, when I started reading I was a bit distracted because all the male characters were strongly afflicted with a case of triangle face. Most of the illustrations of men in this book basically gave them the facial structure of a guitar pick, with insect-like eyebrows. I did find this title entertaining because the heroine Meg was a prima ballerina with an injury who is forced to return home to recuperate. She’s spunky and still carries a torch for Steven, a businessman who she used to be engaged to. Their families conspired to break off the engagement for both of them. There is much emotional trauma when Meg and Steven meet again and their attraction to each other is immediately rekindled. There are many panels of sad people with flowing hair with roses in the background, which always adds that special touch to any Harlequin manga adaptation. There’s a lot of “I hate you but I love you!” in the relationship between Meg and Steven, and they gradually realize that they’ve both been making incorrect assumptions about each other’s feelings. There’s a random prince from the Middle East and a spy-related subplot to add additional suspense to the story. I have to say that I found the ending of this book a bit disappointing, because Meg demonstrates plenty of spunkiness throughout the book, yet towards the end of the book she just decides to give up so many of the things she’s been invested of for so long. This isn’t uncommon in Harlequin titles, but it is a little too old fashioned for my taste.

Pick of the Week: Three By Yen

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potwgoongSEAN: Let’s see… Goong, Emma, Emma, Goong… so I’m the tiebreaker, huh? Good thing I pick first! Won’t be breaking the tie, though, because it’s time for Sean to highlight another of his pet series. Umineko: When They Cry is technically halfway done, at least in terms of arcs – in terms of actual volume count we have a bit more to go. I’m particularly excited for End of the Golden Witch, as most Umineko fans agree that it’s the best of all the manga adaptations.

MICHELLE: Predictably, I pick Goong, especially since it’s my final chance to do so. I’m in the midst of a reread of this series, and it’s pretty much the quintessential manhwa, with plenty of arguments, true feelings concealed, and true feelings revealed, along with its own special blend of “sweet moments interrupted by really unfunny comedic bits with ugly art.” Really, it can’t be missed.

ASH: No question about it, my pick this week is Emma. Ever since Yen Press started releasing Kaoru Mori’s A Bride’s Story in a gorgeous hardcover edition, I’ve been hoping for a rescue of Emma. And now it’s here! My local library had a run of most of the old CMX volumes, so I’ve read the series before, but I’m thrilled that I’ll finally be able to own it. And in a beautiful deluxe omnibus release, no less!

ANNA: I have to agree with Ash, it is time to celebrate the rerelease of Emma. I’m thrilled for the folks who weren’t able to collect the series before, especially since Yen does such a great job on their deluxe editions.

SEAN: MJhas been busy moving into a new home, but trust me, if she were here to pick she would agonize between Emma and Goong but pick Goong. We all know this.

What looks good to you this week?

Kiss of the Rose Princess Vol. 4

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Kiss of the Rose Princess Volume 4 by Aya Shouto

This series continues to be a ridiculous fantasy reverse harem manga, and I enjoyed this volume mostly because it features evil idol singers.

The first half of this story delved more into the very Cardcaptor Sakura-like plot where Anise and her Rose Knights have to capture Arcana cards in order to reinforce the seal to the underworld and defeat the demon lord, as you do. Of course, the only way to do this is to enter an all boys idol competition at school, where Anise ends up cross-dressing as a boy, because the arcana card is second prize and their group is in danger of winning it all if the cutest Rose Knight Seiran enters the contest. In keeping with the long-cherished shoujo tradition of male models or idols being secretly evil, the duo Rhodecia are revealed to be artificial Rose Knights created by Anise’s evil (but HOW evil?) father. The battle for school supremacy involves magic tricks, even more cross dressing, and a horribly awkward comedy act.

While all of this is going on, the Black Rose Mutsuki is struggling with some dark emotions stirred up by a mysterious outside influence. Anise makes a new acquaintance at school named Mikage who asks Anise to set up a date between her and Kaede, which Anise does because she is an idiot who is absolutely unaware that Kaede is in love with her. The date ends up taking place at a Gothic carnival, where Anise and the other Rose Knights tag along in order to sleuth out the location of another arcana card.

Kiss of the Rose Princess is a super silly shoujo manga, but it is really just the thing if you happen to be in the mood for light entertainment. The art continues to be attractive, with all the cool poses one would expect from a reverse harem manga. I’m intrigued by the hints of psychological struggle that Mutsuki is starting to exhibit, which does create a bit more interest than the more typical “gotta catch them all” arcana card collecting plot that is currently developing.

Manga the Week of 5/20

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SEAN: Did you enjoy this week’s small week? Good. That isn’t next week.

Dance in the Vampire Bund’s Scarlet Order may have ended (somewhat surprisingly) in Japan, but Seven Seas still has more of it to bring you here, with Vol. 2 arriving next week.

Lucifer and the Biscuit Hammer’s third omnibus takes us over halfway through this highly underrated superheroes story.

ASH: I’ve largely been enjoying this rather peculiar series.

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SEAN: Satoshi Kon gets a collection of his short stories from Vertical Comics, called Dream Fossil.

ASH: This should be good. (And unlike Dark Horse’s Kon releases, aren’t unfinished works.)

ANNA: Good to know! I hadn’t realized that the Dark Horse releases were unfinished works.

SEAN: Dorohedoro has reached Volume 15, and things are continuing to get darker and darker in this already dark manga.

ASH: Always happy to see more Dorohedoro!

SEAN: In fact, it’s a depress-o-rama from Viz this week! We also get a 6th volume of Gangsta, a 4th Resident Evil, and a 6th volume of Terra Formars. If you like action and people dying and having bits of them cut off, you should be very happy indeed.

ASH: Oh, more Gangsta, too? Excellent.

ANNA: Gangsta is great. So stylish, so violent, so seinen.

SEAN: Well, I was wrong, it was a short wee—oh right, Yen Press. I knew I was missing 17 or so titles. First off, we have the third A Certain Magical Index light novel, and the one most everyone agrees is one of the best in the entire series.

The other novel is a debut. Kagerou Daze began life as a series of Vocaloid songs about a group of friends with powers, and has now become a fairly large franchise, of which the light novel is one part.

Back to manga, we have the third volume of Ani-Imo, which is shoujo in that odd way that only Aria titles can be shoujo.

A 6th Blood Lad omnibus. I’ve become really fond of this series, and always enjoy seeing more of it.

MICHELLE: I was pleasantly surprised that the sixth omnibus is out so soon, given that we’re essentially caught up to Japan.

SEAN: And a 10th volume of BTOOOM!, a series of which I am far less fond. Honestly, once you do the bomb bouncing off the breast thing, where else is there to take a story? It’s the pinnacle.

If you’d rather have a manga version of the Magical Index novels, then Yen Press is here to help you, as here’s the first manga volume.

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One of the most exciting license rescues ever, Yen is releasing the seinen classic Emma in omnibus hardcover format. It will be read by everyone. (glare) I said, everyone.

ASH: I’m absolutely thrilled; I’ll actually be able to buy the series this time around!

MJ: Same here! This is honestly thrilling!

MICHELLE: I am clutching my CMX editions tightly!

ANNA: Nice. This is a series that deserves to be in print, and the deluxe Yen editions are always a treat. I might buy it again!

SEAN: Well, everyone except the Manga Bookshelf team, who may be distracted by the 18th Goong omnibus.

MJ: Also, THIS.

MICHELLE: Not only is it new Goong, it’s also the end, as this omnibus contains the final volumes (27-28 by the original Korean numbering) of the series!

ANNA: I need to get caught up on Goong, it is such a great soap opera.

SEAN: The Manga Bookshelf team is unlikely to be distracted at all by the 3rd Gou-dere Sora Nagihara volume.

If you’d rather have a manga version of the Is It Wrong To Try To Pick Up Girls In A Dungeon? novels, then Yen Press is here to help you, as here’s the first manga volume. (Have I typed this before?)

After seven volumes of No Matter How I Look At It, It’s You Guys’ Fault I’m Not Popular!, I’m beginning to think she needs to take some responsibility here.

ASH: Heh.

MICHELLE: Srsly.

SEAN: It has been a common complaint that Sword Art Online features Kirito, occasionally Asuna, and not much else. So those readers should enjoy the spinoff Girls’ Ops, which focuses on the rest of the female cast getting involved in new MMORPG adventures.

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Another debut for the more action-oriented crowd, we have the first volume of fantasy series Trinity Seven, which is also a harem series if the cover art and blurb don’t deceive me. I admit I know little about it.

On the darker fantasy side, there’s a 3rd Ubel Blatt omnibus, helpfully called Vol. 2.

ASH: Very helpful.

SEAN: Umineko: When They Cry’s new omnibus, End of the Golden Witch, sees the series shaken up with a new detective, who arrives on the island. Will things continue to be horribly tragic as we continue the adventures of manga’s most toxic family? Even this level of reasoning is possible for Furudo Erika. (Please note: Furudo Erika, Frederica Bernkastel, and Furude Rika are totally different people. Honest.)

Lastly, we get a 9th omnibus of Until Death Do Us Part, another series I’ve fallen incredibly behind on.

Is this too much manga? Or just right?

Pick of the Week: Ancient Love

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potwASH: This may be one of the smallest shipping weeks for manga that we’ve seen this year, but there are still some interesting releases coming out. In particular, I’m curious about the debut of the award-winning series The Ancient Magus’ Bride which, if nothing else, has beautiful artwork.

MICHELLE: I suppose I’ll go for Love Stage! this week, as it’s been ages since I’ve read anything by Eiki Eiki and Taishi Zaou.

ANNA: There isn’t a ton to choose from, I will also pick The Ancient Magus’ Bride as the most interesting release this week.

SEAN: Yeah, of all the titles, Ancient Magus’ Bride is the one that leaps out at me.

MJ: I’m definitely interested in The Ancient Magus’ Bride, but for the sake of balance here, I’ll join Michelle in anticipation of Eiki Eiki and Taishi Zaou’s Love Stage!. I was a big fan of their collaboration Color when it came out here in 2009, so I’ll certainly give Love Stage! a try!

What looks good to you this week?

Manga the Week of 5/13

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SEAN: I haven’t seen a week this small since Christmas. It’s sort of creepy.

First of all, right after I posted Manga the Week of last week, Dark Horse did a classic date slip, so Drug & Drop 2 is here again. Dark Horse is famous for release date slips, though they’re better than they used to be. If nothing else, it gives the MB team an opportunity to pick it two weeks in a row.

MJ: And since I flaked last week, it gives me the opportunity to get excited about it this week!

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SEAN: The other Dark Horse release is of a very different nature. Panty & Stocking with Garterbelt was a manic anime series from a couple years back, and like many anime had a tie-in manga as well, this one running in Kadokawa’s Young Ace. It’s complete in one volume.

The Heroic Legend of Arslan has its third volume – the series has slowed somewhat (as has Silver Spoon by the same author) due to family emergencies, apparently. Still should be good high fantasy.

ANNA: I keep meaning to check this out! One day!

SEAN: Seven Seas debuts two new series. The Ancient Magus’ Bride is from Mag Garden’s Comic Blade, which we haven’t seen stuff from in years. It’s also a Taisho award winner with gorgeous art. The genre, as you can likely guess, is fantasy/romance, like half the titles licensed recently.

ASH: I’m intrigued by this series and look forward to giving it a try.

ANNA: I am always interested in fantasy/romance. This does sound intriguing.

SEAN: Evergreen is from the author of Toradora!, and from what I hear is something of a similar series, starting out as a sweet romance but introducing darker themes as it goes on. It runs in Dengeki Daioh.

Another debut, this one from SubLime, Viz’s BL imprint. Love Stage! runs in Asuka Ciel, which is what Asuka readers turn to when they’re looking for the harder stuff. It’s also by Eiki Eiki and Taishi Zaou, who I assume most BL fans have already heard of.

MJ: I’m looking forward to this, I admit.

MICHELLE: I haven’t read anything by Eiki Eiki and Taishi Zaou in ages! I might have to check this out, too.

SEAN: Lastly, 07-GHOST inches ever closer to completion with its 16th volume.

ANNA: One day I will read it all! ONE DAY!

MICHELLE: Me, too. Every time there’s a new volume, I think, “Oh, I am terribly remiss!” but then I just get waylaid by other things.

SEAN: Anything exciting you for next week?

Pick of the Week: Late again?

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potwSEAN: There’s a lot of good stuff out this week, but I have to go with the continuation of JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure, giving us its retro 80s over the top ridiculousness. Now with added immortality.

MICHELLE: I’m very intrigued by Drug & Drop, though I confess I haven’t read volume one yet. But, as ever, my heart belongs to What Did You Eat Yesterday?. I just can’t help it.

ANNA: There’s a ton of great manga coming out this week, and if Sean hadn’t picked JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure I would probably have gone with that. But instead I will pick Spell of Desire, hooray for weird witchy romance!

ASH: Wow, this is a tough week to choose! Lots of great manga are being released that I’ll definitely be picking up. But since JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure and What Did You Eat Yesterday? have already been mentioned, I’ll take the opportunity to highlight The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past. It’s a rare, full-color manga and it’s by Shotaro Ishinomori. Even if you’re not interested in video games, this should be worth a look.

MJ: JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure is obviously a no-brainer. I’m also pretty well enamored of Drug & Drop. But since there’s plenty of support for the former, and I happen to know that I have another chance at the latter coming up soon, I’ll throw my vote alongside Michelle’s and go for my beloved What Did You Eat Yesterday?. This series remains a touchstone for me, and I’m always simultaneously thrilled and comforted to see a new volume cross my threshold. Definitely my pick of the week!

What looks good to you this week?

Magi by Shinobu Ohtaka Vols 1-3

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I know that Magi is a favorite shonen manga among the MangaBookshelf crew, so I’ve been meaning to read it for a long time. I finally set aside some time to read the first three volumes, and I’m glad I did!

The first volume introduces Aladdin, a young boy with mysterious powers. Aladdin seems to be obsessed with food, boobs, and making new friends. He has a magical flute through which he can summon the body of a djinn whenever trouble comes. The catch is that only the body, and not the head of the djinn manifests, so since Aladdin wears the flute around his neck, often it looks like his head is perched on a giant muscly body that then proceeds to take care of whatever danger threatens Aladdin. Aladdin says that the djinn Ugo helps him out because instead of using his wish to ask for gold or any other typical wish, he simply asked the djinn to be his friend. Aladdin is a bit of a cipher at first, but he quickly decides to help out a local caravan, meeting a caravan girl and her best friend who turns out to be an undercover bandit. Ohtaka plays with proportion a great deal as she shows the djinn appearing to help out Aladdin. There’s plenty of slapstick humor, but as one might expect Aladdin’s seemingly simple personality is a bit of a distraction from his true mystical power.

Even though there are plenty of references to Arabian Knights, Magi isn’t a straightforward adaptation. Soon, a teenage Alibaba shows up and when he gets a glimpse of Aladdin’s power, he promptly decides to use his new friend to raid dungeons! The dungeons are a bit of a more typical shonen manga monster of the week type plot convenience, as they mysteriously pop up in various places in the desert landscape, filled with treasure, monsters, and traps. Only a great hero can expect to venture into a dungeon and come out alive with plenty of riches. Aladdin tends to get exhausted after any sort of battle involving the djinn, and he passes out after he and Alibaba have entered the dungeon. Alibaba realizes that he’s gone into danger with a boy he knows little about, and is determined to find out more about his new friend when he wakes up. The adventures are interrupted by the despotic ruler of the local town, Jamil who kidnaps the sleeping Aladdin and forces Alibaba to walk in front of him as a dungeon trap detector. Jamil is accompanied by a slave girl named Morgiana with super strong legs and a bodyguard called Goltas. Alibaba uses his trademark cleverness to ditch Jamil and reunite himself with Aladdin again, and as they explore the dungeon they discover an entire underground kingdom.

Aladdin isn’t an ordinary boy, and it becomes clear that he has magical abilities way beyond someone who can only summon a djinn. He’s a fabled sorcerer or Magi who has the power to crown a king, and Jamil is disappointed when Aladdin doesn’t find him worthy. Aladdin, Morgiana, and Alibaba get sent out of the cleared dungeon by the resident djinn, and while Alibaba and Morgiana end up back in their town Aladdin is far away. Alibaba uses his newfound fortune to free the slaves of the town and sets off to find his friend.

The first couple volumes set up a possible team of adventurers in Aladdin, Morgiana, and Alibaba, and the third volume delves more into some background aspects of Aladdin’s power. He wakes up in a faraway land with a horse tribe who promptly adopts him as one of their own. The shaman of the village is a wise woman named Baba who tells Aladdin that she can also see Rukh, the force that binds souls together. Ohtaka does a good job at establishing new characters in a quick way that still carries a great deal of depth. The horse tribe is represented mostly by a brash young warrior named Doruji who conspicuously deflates whenever he’s around Baba’s serene granddaughter Toya. The horse tribe is about to encounter an invading force, but the Princess Hakuei Ren who is the acting general is determined to pull a country together by winning hearts and minds and not by force. Her views are not shared by her underlings, which leads to complications.

It turns out that Hakuei Ren is another dungeon conqueror, with her own djinn. One mysterious part of Magi is the way the djinns seem to get together to gossip a bit whenever they see each other, and Aladdin isn’t able to make out what they are saying. There are flashbacks now and then to Aladdin’s time trapped with his djinn in a room, and while Baba tells Aladdin some of the legends of the Magi that she knows, he still has a lot of gaps about his own background that he wants to fill in.

The first three volumes set up this series well, there are plenty of concrete plot details and humor to enjoy and at the same time there’s a general sense of Ohtaka’s world building gradually unfolding as more information about the Magi are slowly revealed. Aladdin’s bluntness and naivete combined with his power makes him an interesting leading character, and his overwhelming desire for friendship and need to understand his own history when he already possesses plenty of mystical power makes him very sympathetic. Ohtaka has plenty of humorous moments, even if many of them rely on the sight gag of a djinn running around the countryside with a flute for a head. I enjoyed the first three volumes of this series very much, and I’ll be reading onward to see if the adventurers end up together again.

Manga the Week of 5/6

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SEAN: May, and the manga volumes coming out are not letting up in any way. Let’s see what we have in next week’s pile.

I’m not entirely sure if Dr. Makumakuran And Other Stories is coming out this first week – Amazon’s site says “May 2015” in an unhelpful way. But it’s from Bruno Gmunder Verlag, so you know what that means. Fans of Massive should check this out.

ASH: Definitely! Especially as Takeshi Matsu was one of the artists who was featured in Massive. This will be his second collection of manga released in English. I rather enjoyed his first, More and More of You and Other Stories, so I’m looking forward to it.

SEAN: Dark Horse brings out a 17th volume of popular manwha title Bride of the Water God.

And a second volume of Legal Drug continuation Drug & Drop, now with added plot and deeper characterization!

ASH: Woo!

MICHELLE: Huzzah!

ANNA: I haven’t checked out the first volume of this yet, but I intend to!

SEAN: Kodansha has a fourth omnibus of Tsubasa, still in its excellent period before its plot brambles became too strong.

Hopefully the 2nd volume of Yamada-kun and the Seven Witches will give us some actual witches.

ASH: And more kissing.

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SEAN: I admit I rarely talk Perfect Square books here, but the Legend of Zelda manga they have coming out next week looks awesome. Called A Link to the Past, it’s in full color and should appear to all LoZ fans.

ASH: This should be great.

SEAN: Seven Seas gives us a new Devils and Realist (Vol. 5) and a new Dragonar Academy (Vol. 6), both of which will interest their prospective audiences, which sadly are not me.

And Vertical has an 8th volume of What Did You Eat Yesterday?, which has lost me, but still enchants the rest of Manga Bookshelf.

ASH: It’s true!

MICHELLE: I’ve been so pleased with the speed with which this series has been coming out, but I’m already sad that we’ll soon be caught up with Japan.

SEAN: Viz, as always, has most of its releases this week. There’s a 4th volume of Black Rose Alice, the story of a touching romance between a body and the spiders within it.

ASH: Actually, that’s not entirely inaccurate.

MICHELLE: Heh. Here’s another series where I’m already dreading being caught up to Japan.

ANNA: I enjoy this series a bunch. Each volume is a bit of a surprise. Also, spiders.

SEAN: The 11th Bleach 3-in-1 omnibus finds the cast in the middle of the Hueco Mundo arc, one of the most beloved and uncontroversial arcs in all of Bleach.

If you thought that JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure had reached peak ridiculousness with the first hardcover, be advised it only gets weirder from here. The 2nd hardcover ships next week.

ASH: Dioooooo!

ANNA: YAY!

SEAN: I haven’t enjoyed Kiss of the Rose Princess as much as He’s My Only Vampire, but it’s good enough, and a 4th volume should be decent reading.

MICHELLE: Yeah, I’ll keep reading the former but actually keep the latter. There’s the distinction for me.

ANNA: I enjoy it for what it is.

SEAN: If you were waiting for the 2nd Millennium Snow omnibus to keep your shelves neat and tidy, here it is.

ANNA: I’ve been meaning to do a complete reread of this after only reading the first early volumes.

nisekoi9

SEAN: Nisekoi’s ninth volume. The subtitle is still False Love, reminding those of us who enjoy the balanced harem aspect of it that there’s still one main heroine.

Ranma 1/2’s eighth omnibus gives us two of the series’ most memorable (and silliest) one-shot villains, The Gambling King and Picolette Chardin II.

Rosario + Vampire Season II Volume 14 still has too much punctuation and numbers in its title.

Spell of Desire continues to be edgy in ways I don’t like, as opposed to edgy in ways I like (which Midnight Secretary was).

MICHELLE: I had high hopes for Spell of Desire, possibly chiefly because the male lead was kind to a kitty, but now I find that I don’t like it as much as Midnight Secretary after all. I kind of can’t explain how that happened.

ANNA: I like it just as much, but I’m not a very critical paranormal romance manga reader.

SEAN: Lastly, there’s a second Yu-Gi-Oh! 3-in-1 omnibus. It’s based on a card game. Many people don’t know that bit of trivia.

ANNA: My kids have now moved on from Pokemon cards to Yu-Gi-Oh cards, and let me tell you how thrilled I am that there is yet another card game that they want to collect.

SEAN: Something for everyone? What’s for you?

Master Keaton, Vol 2

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Master Keaton Volume 2 by Naoki Urasawa

I enjoyed the first volume of this series a lot, but I was hoping that the second volume would be a bit more consistent, without some of the pacing issues that I noted in the first volume. My expectations were met, as the stories in the second volume had a good balance of mystery of the week, background on Keaton, and just enough crazy wilderness badassery.

The pacing of the chapters in this volume was more episodic, and I enjoyed the faster pace as Keaton moved from case to case. He investigates a stolen Olympic medal only to uncover a complicated friendship between two champion runners, then moves on to investigating an insurance case that manages to touch on the legend of William Tell. “Red Moon” features more of a medical mystery, and the male equivalent of a Black Widow. Keaton’s personal life is touched on as well. The second volume feels more settled, without needing to frantically introduce both his academic and military background. The fallout of Keaton’s tendency to travel instead of teach is followed up on, with him losing his previous position. He’s now serving as a guest lecturer in another university that is about to close its doors, but he manages to convey his passion for education and reconnect with a long-lost mentor.

Keaton’s military background is showcased in a couple stories. In “Black Forest” he helps the object of a manhunt by building improvised weapons drawing upon his knowledge of archaeology and in “Little Big Man” he crosses paths with a group of bounty hunters, only to singlehandedly deal with his job and expose them as amateurs. There are a couple scenes showing more of Keaton’s family, as his daughter shows up to visit for one story, and an entire chapter is devoted to Keaton’s father solving a case of a missing rare dog.

Overall, this volume just felt more self-assured in the storytelling throughout the manga, with the pacing and variety of the stories just right in terms of exploring the variety of situations Keaton can find himself in. With chapters exploring murder, survival, the value of higher education, and the strained relationships among the folks who end up as the subject of an insurance investigation, the second volume of Master Keaton made me more interested in picking up the rest of the series.

Pick of the Week: So much Kodansha!

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potsANNA: Kodansha! So many things coming out from Kodansha this week! What Kodansha or non-Kodansha title do you have your eye on? Personally, I am going to go for the latest volume of Gundam: the Origin from Vertical.

MICHELLE: I really need to get caught up again on Say I Love You., so that is definitely my pick of the week!

ASH: I’m actually really curious to see how Maria the Virgin Witch continues to develop. There were a few things about the first volume that bothered me, but overall it was a very intriguing, and occasionally endearing, start to the series.

SEAN: I’ll go with the new Attack on Titan Junior High, because it will be hilarious.

MJ: I suspect my pick is a little bit obvious. You all should know by now that I can’t get enough of xxxHolic, and that includes the recent sequel/reboot/whatever-the-hell-it-is xxxHOLIC Rei. The truth is, CLAMP could continue to put stories about Watanuki in front of me for the rest of my life and I’d probably never get tired of him. That’s just the way things are. So, yeah. xxxHOLIC Rei. Bring it on.

What looks good to you this week?

Manga the Week of 4/29

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SEAN: The last week of April is pretty much KODANSHA WEEK, with only two exceptions.

There’s a 3rd Attack on Titan Junior High omnibus, which is highly recommended for those who enjoy seeing how far an adaptation can go, those who enjoy seeing their favorite characters being very silly indeed, and those who like to quote one-liners on Tumblr.

Maria the Virgin Witch is a title I was very conflicted about after reading the first volume, but I’ve heard that it improves, and it’s a short series, so I will give Vol. 2 a try.

ASH: The series has a lot of potential, so I’m curious to see how it develops.

SEAN: There’s a 4th volume of supernatural comedy Noragami.

And a 7th of addictive shoujo potboiler Say “I Love You”. (I will never let go of those quote marks. It would be like leaving the ! out of Skip Beat!.)

MICHELLE: I have fallen behind on this one. Must rectify!

holicrei3

SEAN: Lastly, a 3rd volume of xxxHOLIC Rei, which I will continue to read as long as there’s a possibility of more Himawari/Doumeki/Watanuki OT3 shenanigans.

MICHELLE: I still have not managed to finish the original xxxHOLiC. Bad manga fan!

ASH: I was glad to see it recently announced that CLAMP is resuming work on this series after its hiatus.

MJ: This! I will be reading this.

ANNA: When will they finish X/1999? WHEN?

SEAN: In non-Kodansha news, there’s a new Alice in the Country of Clover from Seven Seas, this time focusing on Elliot: The March Hare’s Revolution.

And Vertical Comics gives us a 9th deluxe hardcover edition of Gundam The Origin.

ASH: There was a delay on this volume’s release to address some printing errors, so I’ll be happy to see it finally arrive!

ANNA: Need to get caught up on this!

SEAN: Still catching up from last week? Or does something here leap out at you?

Bookshelf Briefs 4/20/15

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This week, Sean, Anna, & Michelle look at recent releases from Seven Seas & Viz Media.

gakuenpolizi2Gakuen Polizi, Vol. 2 | By Milk Morinaga | Seven Seas – I had wanted Gakuen Polizi to get a bit less insubstantial, but I’m not sure this is what I meant. After fairly swiftly dealing with the evil rival who showed up for last volume’s cliffhanger, and who’s not all that evil after all, the final arc delves into the world of racy photos for money and spirals into teen prostitution. This includes a teacher whose talk about artistry of innocent half-nude schoolgirls trumping petty legality does not sound far off from some yuri fans. Oh yes, and there is a bit of yuri in here after all, though due to Aoba’s denseness we get a confession and kiss AND it doesn’t go anywhere. Fans of yuri will likely still enjoy this, but the last volume was far too moodswingey for me. – Sean Gaffney

foodwars5Food Wars, Vol 5 | By Yuto Tsukuda, Shun Saeki, and Yuki Morisaki | Viz Media – Volume five of this series is a bit of a transitional one, as the big storyline centered around the competition at the Totsuki Resort gets wrapped up and Soma finds himself with a chance to go home for a little break. Unfortunately, there’s a culinary crisis at the street market near Soma’s family restaurant, with a new corporate fried chicken chain threatening all the businesses. Soma digs in and comes up with a solution with his childhood friend Mayumi and he even imports meat expert Nikumi from school for extra help. This made for an entertaining interlude right before the next competition at cooking school starts. Food Wars has grown on me a bit with each volume and now I’m finding it consistently entertaining. – Anna N

meteorprince2Meteor Prince, Vol. 2 | By Meca Tanaka | Viz Media – Meteor Prince comes to a close in this volume, though not before a couple more aliens (Tania, Io’s rather obnoxious and clingy “true mate,” and Yuro, his ruthless younger brother) show up to erect obstacles to our lead couple’s happiness. I was a little disappointed that the origin of Hako’s spectacularly bad luck was never revealed, but there were other good things, like her awesome parents and protective little brother, and an ending that had just the right smidge of a drama for a two-volume series but rectified it all pretty swiftly and sweetly while still showing us Hako determined to take more control of her own destiny. If you miss the breed of shoujo that CMX used to release, you really ought to check out Meteor Prince; I have a feeling it’ll be on your wavelength. – Michelle Smith

Meteor Prince, Vol. 2 | By Meca Tanaka | Viz Media – Despite taking place after the main couple gets together, I thought this was the stronger of the two volumes of Meteor Prince, as we see all the various fallout that comes from this decision, and Io’s insistence that in the end he doesn’t care. Given this is a manga that began with predestined soulmates connected by wavelengths, the decision to show how in the end it’s people’s own choices that are important is an excellent one. Of course it’s not very original – there’s a comedic fiancee, a jealous little brother, and the choice between duty as a prince and romance. But for a series that is only two volumes long, Meteor Prince wraps everything up nicely, and the size feels just right. – Sean Gaffney

mylovestory4My Love Story!!, Vol. 4 | By Kazune Kawahara and Aruko | Viz Media – I have to admit, we finally hit something in this manga that I was less than satisfied with. I did not like Hayato, and felt his behavior, which involved getting his crush to resolve her feelings for Takeo so she can move on to him, was creepy and far too sympathetically told. That said, it’s hard for even that to penetrate the fuzzy adorable feeling anyone gets reading this. We get more here of Takeo thinking over and over again that people just don’t like him in ‘that way’, and seeing time and time again that it isn’t true. Which is cliched, yes, but also helps to point out how negative reinforcement as a child or teen can have major self-worth consequences down the road. Thank goodness he has Suna and Rinko. – Sean Gaffney

roseking1Requiem of the Rose King, Vol. 1 | By Aya Kanno | Viz Media – I have now sampled three series by Aya Kanno, and they’re so different from one another that I am quite impressed! Based on Shakespeare’s Henry VI and Richard III, Kanno’s latest retells the story of The War of the Roses—with plenty of bishounen in significant roles—but instead of perpetuating the “hunchback” version of Richard, gives him a different body image problem (and quite a nifty character design!) that should affect the familiar tale in fascinating ways. My main complaint is that I don’t remember my history well enough to know if some actions attributed to Richard here, like the almost seductive way he cajoles his father into not giving up the fight for the crown, actually happened, or if Kanno is writing him somewhat inconsistently. In either case, I am definitely on board for volume two! – Michelle Smith

toriko27Toriko, Vol. 27 | By Mitsutoshi Shimabukuro | Viz Media – The power of positive thinking is what drives the first half of this volume, which is still devoted to a serious of battles at the shattered remains of the Cooking Festival. It takes Toriko a long way, to the point where we think that he’s going to be able to take out Starjun, but… in the end, all of our current heroes may not be enough, and not even Setsuno and company can turn the tide. Luckily, there’s a few more old-timers who’ve yet to arrive that may help out. There’s been a lot of fighting and very little food lately, and I am looking forward to seeing the outcome of this battle, even if things aren’t looking all that good for Toriko or Komatsu right now. – Sean Gaffney

Pick of the Week: Too much manga

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potwSEAN: There’s a lot. Far, far too much. Railgun. Two SAO books. Intriguing debuts galore. Some of Viz’s most critically acclaimed series. Really, we are totally spoiled for choice here. I’ll go with the debut novel of Log Horizon, though. The manga was OK, but felt (as many adaptations do) like something that only readers of the original book would appreciate. I look forward to getting lost in yet another game world.

ASH: Oh, this is a tough week to choose! With so many great releases, it’s difficult to pick just one. In the end, I think I’ll go with Gyo. I’m always happy to see more of Junji Ito’s manga released (or in this case re-released) and the new deluxe edition should look great next to my copy Uzumaki.

ANNA: There’s plenty of manga coming out this week, but I have to go with the latest VizBig volume of Vagabond. That’s first on my to-buy list!

MJ: Okay, I’m definitely interested in all the SAO stuff coming out this week, but I gotta admit that the thing drawing me most strongly is the call of Zero-Sum. That is to say, Clay Lord: Master of Golems, gimme, gimme. The premise is a little questionable, in terms of my personal taste, but I need to see it to find out. That magazine pretty much has my number, and there’s no denying it.

What looks good to you this week?