Ash Brown

SEAN: July is here, in full force, with all the manga you can handle.

ASH: Here we go!

And light novels, of course. Airship debuts Distorted I Love You (Waikyokuzumi I Love You), another one-shot from the creator of I Want to Eat Your Pancreas. A livestream channel announces the end of the world… and people start to believe it when weird things begin to happen.

ASH: Apocalypse stories are in right now.

SEAN: Also in print: Magic Maker: How to Create Magic in Another World 2, The Misdeeds of an Extremely Arrogant Villain Aristocrat 3, My Status as an Assassin Obviously Exceeds the Hero’s 5, The Too-Perfect Saint: Tossed Aside By My Fiancé and Sold to Another Kingdom 6, and Witch and Mercenary 6 Part 2.

And for early digital we get 7th Time Loop: The Villainess Enjoys a Carefree Life Married to Her Worst Enemy! Short Story Collection, The Devil Princess 4, and Reincarnated as a Sword 19.

Dark Horse Manga debut The Credits Roll into the Sea (Umi ga Hashiru End Roll), a shoujo series from Mystery Bonita. A recently widowed woman goes to a theater as she and her husband used to, and bonds with a young man in film school. Deciding to enroll in the same school, she finds herself dealing with a generation much younger than herself. This looks fantastic, to be honest.

ASH: It really does! I’ve been looking forward to this series.

SEAN: Ghost Ship gives us Imaizumi Brings All the Gals to His House 6.

Graphix has the 4th and final volume of Hikaru in the Light!.

ASH: I feel like I was supposed to read that series.

SEAN: Inklore gives us Heaven Official’s Blessing (The Comic) 2.

Another quiet week for J-Novel Club. For light novels, they have Formerly, the Fallen Daughter of the Duke 6, The Tanaka Family Reincarnates 7, and Worthless at Home, Whiz to the World 5.

For manga, we see D-Genesis: Three Years after the Dungeons Appeared 8, The Invincible Little Lady 13, Isekai Tensei: Recruited to Another World 13, A Late-Start Tamer’s Laid-Back Life 10, Oversummoned, Overpowered, and Over It! 11, and This Alluring Dark Elf Has the Heart of a Middle-Aged Man! 3.

Kodansha Manga’s big debut is Blue Summer Haze (Ao to Kagero), a BL baseball manga from Honey Milk. A pitcher and his childhood friend are a great pitcher-catcher duo, but one moves away, and they promise to reunite at Koshien. Which they do, but on different teams… and with repressed teenage feelings.

MICHELLE: Could this be more my thing?! I don’t think it could.

ASH: A sports manga, you say?

SEAN: Also in print: Flying Witch 14, Parasyte Reversi 7, Rent-a-Girlfriend 37, The Seven Deadly Sins: Four Knights of the Apocalypse 22, Shimazaki in the Land of Peace 9, Spacewalking with You 5, and Tune In to the Midnight Heart 8.

ASH: I had forgotten about Parasyte Reversi! I loved the original series, so I should probably give this one a try at some point.

SEAN: Digitally they have Giant Killing 56, How to Grill Our Love 21, Manchuria Opium Squad 13, Shangri-La Frontier 26, and Wind Breaker 25.

Mahjong Pros have all the stuff I already mentioned back in April and May. It got bumped. It may get bumped again. Sorry, Koizumi.

ASH: It’s okay, I’ll still read them all.

SEAN: Nakama Press have Infini-T Force 8.

The lone Seven Seas debut is History of the Kingdom of Orcsen: How the Barbarian Orcish Nation Came to Burn Down the Peaceful Elfland (Orcsen Oukokushi: Yaban na Orc no Kuni wa, Ikanishite Heiwa na Elf no Kuni wo Yakiharau ni Itatta ka). A manga adaptation in Comic Nova of the light novel we just talked about a couple weeks ago.

Also from Seven Seas: The Barbarian’s Bride 7, I Got Caught Up in a Hero Summons, but the Other World Was at Peace! 10, I Want to Escape from Princess Lessons 5, Killer Shark in Another World 7, The Lady Knight and the Beast-Eared Child 6, Mocha the Cat and His Forever Family 3, Skip and Loafer 12, Sword of the Demon Hunter: Kijin Gentōshō 9, and When a Clueless First-Person Shooter Player Falls into Another World 2.

Square Enix Books gives us The Prince’s Keeper 2 and Smoking Behind the Supermarket with You 7.

Tokyopop has one item, the one-shot A Boring Man and an Extraordinary Man (Saenai Ore no Ijou na Kouhai), a BL title that is in from RED. A dull office worker is reunited with his handsome former classmate, who wants to deepen their relationship? Why? He’s just a boring guy!

ANNA: Maybe he’s secretly not so boring to the right person????

ASH: Whatever do you mean?

SEAN: Udon Entertainment has another massive artbook coming out, The Art of Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty.

ASH: I’ve not played the game, but Udon does release some nice artbooks.

SEAN: Viz Media debuts Hima-Ten!, a Weekly Shonen Jump romantic comedy. A guy has a part-time job cleaning apartments. Then he finds the next apartment he cleans is that of new transfer student and hot model Himari! This is a Weekly Shonen Jump series, and therefore the fanbase is perfectly sensible and it has a romantic ending everyone agrees on.

ASH: Sounds about right.

SEAN: Also from Viz: The King’s Beast 18 (the final volume, with a Limited Edition as well), My Hero Academia: Team-Up Missions 8 (the final volume), Not Your Idol 4, Nue’s Exorcist 7, One Piece 112, Otaku Vampire’s Love Bite 8, Phantom Busters 4, Snow White with the Red Hair 27 (the first volume in two years), Super Psychic Policeman Chojo 4, Thus Spoke Rohan Kishibe 3, and Yona of the Dawn 46.

ANNA: Always hyped for more Yona, and one day I will get caught up on Snow White with the Red Hair.

MICHELLE: Ooh, a bit of Yona would go down smooth, about now.

ASH: That it would! I’m also interested in reading more about Rohan.

SEAN: That’s it! Some promising stuff! Beginnings! Endings! What interests you?

SEAN: It’s that awkward, not-quite June, not-quite July week.

ASH: July is so close and yet so far away.

SEAN: Tokyopop has the 7th and final volume of Our Not-So-Lonely Planet Travel Guide.

Titan Manga debuts Geniearth, a Weekly Shonen Champion title. A new genetic mutation leads those with it to declare themselves the homo superior and demand everyone else make way. Can one of the “old humans” save the day?

MICHELLE: I saw what you did there.

ASH: Oh, ho!

SEAN: Seven Seas has some danmei. The third volume of Mistakenly Saving the Villain and the second and final volume of Twin Jades of Jiangdong.

Seven Seas has some debuts. Al the Adventurer: That Magic Shouldn’t Work! (Boukensha Al: Aitsu no Mahou wa Okashii) is a manga based on a light novel which… well, see below. It runs in Comic Corona. A boy is rescued from a kidnapping my his grandfather’s magic, and devotes himself to leaning it. But… did he learn it properly? Or is he using magic in a completely bizarre way?

ASH: I read that as A.I. at first, but that’s a different series.

SEAN: How to Survive as a Maid in a Horror Game (Gongpo Game Maid-ro Saranamgi) is a Korean manhwa/webtoon. A game has you control a devil who has to kill as many people as possible. Then one day a grumpy player goes to sleep… and wakes up in the game as the devil’s maid! Can she survive being the first victim?

ASH: I feel like there may be a chance.

SEAN: Remnant: The Beastmen Omegaverse Saga (Remnant: Kemonohito Omegaverse) is an Omegaverse title about twin siblings who are both omegas. That said, it’s an omegaverse title, you know who’s getting the focus. When his sister goes into heat, our hero discovers that the omegaverse… is corrupt! Only an aloof, uncaring alpha can save them now!

Also from Seven Seas: Black Night Parade 10, Chronicles of an Aristocrat Reborn in Another World 14, He Craves to be Teased by His Favorite ASMR Streamer 2, My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom! 12, Reborn as a Barrier Master 9, A Stepmother’s ‏Märchen 6, and The Strange Adventure of a Broke Mercenary 5.

Mahjong Pros debuts Vermilion Stella: Illustrated Memoir of Arisa Date. This is another autobiography of a woman mahjong player. However, all their books I mentioned in April and May are now scheduled for July. So take with a massive grain of salt.

ASH: I’m here for the mahjong manga whenever it is they’re actually released.

SEAN: Kodansha Manga’s debut is What If I Said, “I Love You”? (Ore ga Sukitte Ittara Dou Suru?), a BL title from Honey Milk. Two boys are childhood friends, but when one realizes his feelings are turning romantic, he starts pulling away, and by high school the two are almost strangers.

MICHELLE: Hm.

ASH: I feel like I’ve heard good things about this one, but I can’t quite recall.

SEAN: Also in print: Blue Lock Omnibus 3, Cells at Work! Lady 3, Fall In Love, You False Angels 5, How to Treat a Lady Knight Right 2, I Have a Crush at Work 4, and Nina the Starry Bride 16.

Digitally we see Anyway, I’m Falling in Love with You 13, I Left my A-Rank Party to Help My Former Students Reach the Dungeon Depths! 8, and Saint Young Men 22.

Kodama has Baki the Grappler Perfect Edition 19 and 20 and Smile! 4.

ASH: I really need to check out Kodama’s releases.

SEAN: J-Novel Club has light novels, and manga. The light novels are An Archdemon’s Dilemma: How to Love Your Elf Bride 21, I’m a Noble on the Brink of Ruin, So I Might as Well Try Mastering Magic 10, Looks like a Job for a Maid! The Tales of a Dismissed Supermaid 3, Now I’m a Demon Lord! Happily Ever After with Monster Girls in My Dungeon 16, and Pens Down, Swords Up: Throw Your Studies to the Wind 6.

And for manga we get Ascendance of a Bookworm Part 3 Vol. 6 and A Livid Lady’s Guide to Getting Even 8.

Hanashi Media has several light novels, including two debuts. Reincarnated as a Poor Farmer in Another World: I’ll Use My Modern Knowledge to Build My Own Kingdom (Isekai no Binbou Nouka ni Tenseishita node, Renga wo Tsukutte Shiro wo Tateru Koto ni Shimashita) is a “title is the plot” book.

ASH: I don’t read much isekai, but I have been known to enjoy farming manga.

SEAN: Reincarnated Onmyoji: Empowered by the King of Hell, I’ll Never Return to the Underworld (Tensei Onmyouji Kamo Kazuki: Nido to Jigoku wa Gomen nano de, Enma-daiou no Shinki de Musoushimasu) is the other one. A young man is accidentally sent to hell, and has to purify his soul of corruption. He soon attracts female demons who love corruption.

ASH: That could present a problem.

SEAN: Also from Hanashi Media: The Fruit of Evolution 13, GATE: Thus, the JSDF Fought There 1-B, and Tsukimichi: Moonlit Fantasy 17.

Ghost Ship has Parallel Paradise 26.

Cross Infinite World has Breaking Up Was the Plan, the Duke Falling For the Villainess Was Not! 3 and Love & Magic Academy: Who Cares about the Heroine and Villainess? I Want to Be the Strongest in this Otome Game World 3.

Two print titles from Airship: Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation Deluxe Edition 2 and ROLL OVER AND DIE: I Will Fight for an Ordinary Life with My Love and Cursed Sword! 6.

Airship has a digital-only debut. Al the Adventurer: That Magic Shouldn’t Work! (Boukensha Al: Aitsu no Mahou wa Okashii). See above for the synopsis.

In early digital, we see The Case Files of Jeweler Richard 12 and Reincarnated Into a Game as the Hero’s Friend 7-1.

Very odd set of books. What are you getting?

SEAN: School’s out for most kids by this point, so let’s give them some manga reading!

ASH: The time has come!

SEAN: Airship has print releases for I Like Villains, so I Reincarnated as One 2 and I’m the Evil Lord of an Intergalactic Empire! 11.

And for early digital we get a 17th volume of She Professed Herself Pupil of the Wise Man.

Retail sites say that Denpa Books has the 8th volume of Heavenly Delusion.

ASH: I should probably try to catch up since I enjoyed the earlier volumes.

SEAN: Ghost Ship gives us The 100 Girlfriends Who Really, Really, Really, Really, REALLY Love You 18.

ASH: Still actually need to start this series.

SEAN: Hanashi Media has a 4th volume of I’m Just a Villager, So What?.

J-Novel Club have two print debuts, with the manga version of The 100th Time’s the Charm: She Was Executed 99 Times, So How Did She Unlock “Super Love” Mode?! (99-kai Danzaisareta Loop Reijō Desu ga Konse wa “Chōzetsu Aisare Mode” Desutte!?: Shinno Chikara ni Mezamete Hajimaru 100-kaime no Jinsei). A falsely accused noble is on her hundredth try to not be executed. Only now… she can hear their thoughts!

ASH: The title does ask a very pertinent question.

SEAN: They also have the manga version of Safe & Sound in the Arms of an Elite Knight (Doinaka no Hakugai Reijou wa Outo no Elite Kishi ni Dekiaisareru). It’s a Drecomics title. Not isekai’d or reincarnated, but the heroine is still abused by her family. When she runs away and is rescued by a knight, will things improve?

ASH: Perhaps they will. Likely after they get worse, first.

SEAN: Digitally there’s no manga! There’s also no debuts! But there’s plenty of ongoing titles. We get Blade Skill Online 5 (the final volume), Chivalry of a Failed Knight 10, The Frontier Lord Begins with Zero Subjects 14, Let This Grieving Soul Retire 10, Long Story Short, I’m Living in the Mountains 6, The Tiny Witch from the Deep Woods 4, To Another World… with Land Mines! 13, The Trials and Tribulations of My Next Life as a Noblewoman 4 Part 2, and The World’s Least Interesting Master Swordsman 11 (the final volume).

Kodansha Manga has one debut, Whoever You Are, I Love You (Kimi ga Daredemo Aishiteru), a josei title from Be Love. A 32-year-old woman has it all. A successful career, and she’s engaged to a successful guy. Then she starts to find all is not as it seems, and is forced to figure out how much she’s been manipulated.

MICHELLE: Potentially interesting!

ANNA: We’ve had so much josei coming out recently, it is great.

ASH: It really is!

SEAN: Also in print: Blue Lock 31, Don’t Tempt Me, VP! 4, GAEA-TIMA the Gigantis 6, Hitting Rewind With You 3, and Kirio Fan Club 2.

Digitally we see Bootsleg 6, The Girl, the Shovel, and the Evil Eye 5 (the final volume), The Great Cleric 16, Hozuki’s Coolheadedness 31, I Want To Hold Aono-kun So Badly I Could Die 14 (the final volume), and Love, That’s an Understatement 8.

Retailers say KUMA has a debut: Indomitable Zono (Fukutsu no Zono). This one-shot BL manga from B’s-LOVEY recottia features rival delinquents. One finds out the other’s secret – when touched in the right spot, he moans erotically!

ASH: I tend to enjoy delinquent BL manga.

SEAN: One Peace Books has a 12th volume of Farming Life in Another World.

Pantheon debut Fish and Water (Uo to Mizu), a gay manga from Web Action. It’s by Gengoroh Tagame, which is why I’m not saying BL. Pantheon describes it as “What if The Odd Couple were living during COVID-19, and were gay?”.

MICHELLE: Interesting!

ANNA: It does sound interesting!

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

SEAN: Seven Seas debuts Workin’ the Night Shift at Akumart (Konbini Yakin no Akuma-chan). It’s a 4-koma from Manga Time Kirara Max about a demon manager who tries to keep her convenience store normal despite its staff and clientele.

ASH: I can appreciate her efforts.

SEAN: Also from Seven Seas: The Eccentric Doctor of the Moon Flower Kingdom 13, It Takes More Than a Pretty Face to Fall in Love 6, Kemono Jihen 21, The Most Notorious “Talker” Runs the World’s Greatest Clan 11, My Darling Devilish Daughter 2, My Dear Detective: Mitsuko’s Case Files 6, My Stepmother and Stepsisters Aren’t Wicked 8, Mysterious Disappearances 9, A Prince of a Friend 2, Punch Drunk Love 5, Ripples in the River 3, and Wait, I Love You 2.

MICHELLE: I have been meaning to read My Dear Detective.

SEAN: Square Enix Manga gives us Dragon Quest: The Mark of Erdrick 4 and Otaku x Gal 2.

Steamship has a third volume of Winter Wolf.

Titan Manga have ATOM: The Beginning 14.

Udon Entertainment has Blue Archive: Comic Anthology 2.

Viz Media debuts Set Sail: The Art and Making of One Piece, the artbook for the live-action Netflix series.

They also have Insomniacs After School 14 (the final volume) and Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead 20.

Yen On has one release, not technically a light novel. It’s Konosuba: God’s Blessing on This Wonderful World! TRPG Advanced Rule Book.

ASH: I find it interesting that Yen is starting to release games of various types now.

SEAN: Yen Press has STUFF. We’ll start with The Daughter of the Demon Lord Is Too Kind!! (Maou no Musume wa Yasashi Sugiru!!), a comedy manga from Manga Park that had a recent anime. A demon lord worries about his sweet as pie daughter, and assigns an underling to instruct her on how to be evil. Sadly, the daughter’s sweet as pie nature rolls over any possible attempt. This is apparently cute as hell.

ASH: It sounds like it!

See You There, Beyond the Ocean (Mao Yu Hai de Bi Duan) is a baihe manhua (Chinese version of yuri manga) about an introvert and extrovert who bond over drawing comics. This is done in one, and has my Bridge to Terabithia alarms tingling, but we shall see…

ASH: There’s at least one way to find out!

SEAN: There’s also Sentenced to Be a Hero: The Prison Records of Penal Hero Unit 9004 (Yuusha-kei ni Shosu: Choubatsu Yuusha 9004-tai Keimu Kiroku), the manga version of the LN already released by Yen. It runs in Dengeki Comic Regulus.

Thank You for Taking Care of Our Boy Banri (Uchi no Banri ga Osewa ni Narimasu) is a shoujo manga from LaLa. A college girl gets a job as temporary manager of her idol… only to find he’s actually a complete asshole. Sadly for both of them, this is a romance manga from LaLa.

MICHELLE: A less charming Tamon’s B-Side.

ANNA: I don’t know, I hope for her sake he reveals that he’s secretly charming very quickly.

ASH: One can hope.

SEAN: The last debut is A Timid Lady Was Turned into an Ugly Cat, but on the Verge of Fainting Is Picked Up by the Most Fearsome Military Duke (Busa Neko ni Kaerareta Kiyowa Reijou desu ga, Sai Osore no Gunjin Koushaku ni Hirowarete Kizetsu Sunzen desu). Based on an as-yet unlicensed light novel, this runs in GA Comic. Not only does the evil sister steal our heroine’s boyfriend, she curses her to become a cat and leaves her to starve on the street! Fortunately, the obligatory duke who has a bad reputation but is just waiting for the right woman rescues her.

ASH: That title took several unexpected turns. I suppose it counts as a cat manga?

SEAN: Also from Yen Press: Animan 2, April Showers Bring May Flowers 5, Blade & Bastard 4, Bungo Stray Dogs: Wan! 13, Corpse Knight Gunther 2, Dara-san of Reiwa 3, Dead Mount Death Play 15, Divine Incursions 2, Double the Trouble, Twice as Nice 3, Even a Replica Can Fall in Love 2, The Fake Alchemist 2, The Hitman Stans 3, I Made Friends with the Second Prettiest Girl in My Class 3, Konosuba: Even More Explosions on This Wonderful World! 3, Level Up with the Gods 3, Lycoris Recoil 5, A Misanthrope Teaches a Class for Demi-Humans 3, Please Look After the Dragon 2, The Ragnarok System of the Desperate Reincarnated Demon Lord and the Seven Aggressive Maidens 3, Shadows House 11, The Skeleton Enchanted by the Cursed Blade 3, Skull-face Bookseller Honda-san: The Complete Omnibus, Strategic Lovers 5, Super String: Marco Polo’s Travel to the Multiverse 3, A Terrified Teacher at Ghoul School! 18, Trinity Seven 32, Tsubaki-chou Lonely Planet 12, and Übel Blatt Deluxe Edition 6.

ASH: That’s quite a bit! Glad to see Skull-face Bookseller Honda-san again; I really enjoy that series.

SEAN: Good old Yen, always making the end of the month terrifying. What are you buying?

SEAN: We’re finally officially hitting summer, despite it feeling like we’ve been here a while. What’s up in the world of manga?

ASH: Hopefully less humidity.

SEAN: Viz Media have two debuts. Assassin’s Creed Shadows: Tales of Iga runs in Young Magazine Web, and is, well, a video game spinoff. For those who like ninjas.

cocoon is a one-shot josei historical manga that ran in Elegance Eve, and is based on the true story of the student nurses pressed into service during World War II.

MICHELLE: Ooh! That is very much my kind of thing.

ASH: This one’s been on my radar! Looking forward to reading it.

ANNA: This sounds cool!

SEAN: Also from Viz: Fool Night 9, Haikyu!! 3-in-1 9, Kingdom 8, Magilumiere Magical Girls Inc. 13, Mission: Yozakura Family 23, One Piece 3-in-1 36, Rainbows After Storms 10, Seraph of the End 34, Steel of the Celestial Shadows 10, and Undead Unluck 25.

Tokyopop debuts Beneath the Falling Camellia Blooms (Koizome wa Ochiyuku Tsubaki no Shita de), a josei manga about a man tortured by the mysterious death of his parents getting a job caring for a young girl whose family may have been involved.

MICHELLE: Intriguing!

ASH: I am likewise intrigued.

ANNA: Me too!

SEAN: Also from Tokyopop: Ayaka is in Love with Hiroko! 3 (the final volume) and Touched by Twilight 2.

Titan Manga debut The One. Later On… (Sono Mono. Nochi ni…), based on an as-yet unlicensed light novel. A guy rejected by the hero’s party goes off to get stronger, and returns to find the girl he grew up with engaged to his tormentor. Time to go off and learn what else has changed in the world. This runs in Comic Earth Star.

ASH: I suspect a few things might be a little different at this point.

ANNA: Things are tough in Battle Arenas.

SEAN: Square Enix Manga gives us By the Grace of the Gods 14, Mechanical Buddy Universe 1.0 2, and Wash It All Away 8.

One danmei for Seven Seas, the third volume of Thrice Married to a Salted Fish.

Two manga debuts. Gladiator Battle Life (Teikoku Kizoku no Kentoushi Seikatsu) is a Young Animal Web series. A guy is determined to control his own fate in the Battle Arena, even if this means being a despicable person.

ASH: I’ve known people who have made worse life decisions.

SEAN: Wild Love: A BL Guide to the Animal Kingdom (Ikimono BL Zukan: Sekai wa XX ni Michiteiru) is a done-in-2 omnibus that ran in Pureri. If you love animals but wish they looked like hot guys who have lots of sexual tension and desire for each other, great news.

MICHELLE: Huh.

ASH: It’s filled with ecology trivia!… among other things.

SEAN: Seven Seas also has Aharen-san is Indecipherable 3-4, Berserk of Gluttony 14, Chainsmoker Cat 3, Fluffy Café in Another World 2, Get Married So I Can Curse Your Firstborn and Finally Be Free! 2, I’m the Heroic Knight of an Intergalactic Empire! 3, The Invisible Man and His Soon-to-Be Wife 7, Let Me See the Real You, Senpai! 3, This Is Screwed Up, but I Was Reincarnated as a GIRL in Another World! 19, and Too Many Losing Heroines! 5.

One Peace Books has a 2nd volume of Tamer: Trash-Tier to Top-Tier.

Kodansha has a big print debut next week: MARS 30th Anniversary. This classic shoujo manga, as Kodansha points out, was once as beloved as Nana, but has been out of print forever. Broken girl meets broken boy, in the best 90s shoujo tradition. This is coming out in 2-in-1 omnibuses, print only (Kodansha released it digitally in 2019) and hardcover, with new covers and a new translation.

MICHELLE: Nice! I still have my original editions, but this is tempting.

ASH: I’m so glad to see this series in print again!

ANNA: I have the original series too, it is so good. Great that this is coming back in print.

SEAN: Also in print: Nezumi’s First Love 4 and Parasyte Paperback Collection 7.

ASH: Parasyte is still one of my favorites.

SEAN: And for digital they have Blue Lock 38, I Have a Crush at Work 14, and My Home Hero 25.

No debuts for J-Novel Club. We do get, for light novels, The Boy Who Ruled the Monsters 6 (the final volume), Dahlia in Bloom 12, and The Diary of a Middle-Aged Sage’s Carefree Life in Another World 10.

And for manga there is The Eternal Fool’s Words of Wisdom 9 and The Water Magician 7.

Dark Horse Books have The Art of Star Wars: A New Hope–The Manga. Going back to the original storyboards, this is both a manga and an artbook, and a must for Star Wars fans.

Dark Horse Manga have the third and final volume of Adabana.

ASH: I should get around to reading this.

SEAN: Airship debuts The Confession Strategy (Kokuhakugeki), another angsty light novel from Yoru Sumino. A woman is getting married, but before she does, she wants her old friend, who she knows is in love with her, to confess and get rejected, so he can move on. So she plots to have this happen… and it goes as well as you’d expect.

MICHELLE: Hm.

ASH: Drama!

SEAN: Also in print: Magical Buffs: The Support Caster is Stronger Than He Realized! 2.

There’s one early digital debut: History of the Kingdom of Orcsen: How the Barbarian Orcish Nation Came to Burn Down the Peaceful Elfland (Orcsen Oukokushi: Yaban na Orc no Kuni wa, Ikanishite Heiwa na Elf no Kuni wo Yakiharau ni Itatta ka). The orcs and the elves are at war, and you’d expect the elves to be the good guys, but they’re doing ethnic cleansing of the dark elves. So one dark elf decides to join the orcs and get her revenge.

ASH: Good for her!

SEAN: Also in early digital: I Got Married to the Girl I Hate Most in Class 3 and A Tale of the Secret Saint ZERO 5.

And that’s it! Happy for a smaller week?

SEAN: It’s another week of manga! What do we have next week?

Airship has two ongoing print series: Heroine? Saint? No, I’m an All-Works Maid (And Proud of It)! 6 and Virgin Knight: I Became the Frontier Lord in a World Ruled by Women 3.

And for early digital we see The Condemned Villainess Goes Back in Time and Aims to Become the Ultimate Villain 8, My Girlfriend Cheated on Me, and Now My Flirty Underclassman Won’t Leave Me Alone 2, and Witch and Mercenary 6 Part 2.

Ghost Ship have a 2nd volume of Lilia’s Pregnancy Spells the World’s End and a 5th volume of She’s the Strongest Bride, But I’m Stronger in Night Battles.

J-Novel Club have a bunch of print. We get Ascendance of a Bookworm (manga) Arc 4 Part 4, Black Summoner 7, The Brilliant Healer’s New Life in the Shadows (manga) 4, Campfire Cooking in Another World With My Absurd Skill Omnibus 6, Invaders of the Rokujouma!? Collector’s Edition 14, Isekai Tensei: Recruited to Another World (manga) 6, My Quiet Blacksmith Life in Another World 7, My Quiet Blacksmith Life in Another World (manga) 3, and Reborn to Master the Blade 9.

ASH: That is a bunch! And some good stuff in there, too.

SEAN: Their digital calendar next week is light. We get Backstabbed in a Backwater Dungeon 12, Private Tutor to the Duke’s Daughter 20 and Scooped Up by an S-Rank Adventurer! 3.

No debuts for Kodansha Manga, but we get print volumes for The Fragrant Flower Blooms With Dignity 13, Love Out on a Limb 2, A Kingdom of Quartz 5, Mobile Suit Gundam: THE ORIGIN Deluxe 6 (the final volume), OMORI 2, A Sign of Affection Omnibus 4, and Shugo Chara! Jewel Joker 2.

ASH: I really need to read more of Sign of Affection.

SEAN: And digital volumes are Giant Killing 55, My Wife is a Little Intimidating 14, Otherworldly Munchkin: Let’s Speedrun the Dungeon with Only 1 HP! 13, and WIND BREAKER 24.

One Peace Books has a 2nd volume of The B-Rank Adventurer with a Scary Face Becomes a Father for the Hero and His Friends.

ASH: I actually rather enjoyed the first volume.

SEAN: Seven Seas’s danmei volume is Silent Reading: Mo Du 3.

Seven Seas has two debuts. The Babe at My Back Has Her Eye on Me. I’m Done For (Ushiro no Seki no Gyaru ni Sukarete Shimatta. Mou Ore wa Dame Kamo Shirenai) runs in Comic Dengeki Daioh G. A gloomy otaku sort jumps into a ditch to rescue a beautiful classmate who fell into it. Now she’s talking with him all the time. Is kindness all it takes?

ASH: It certainly doesn’t hurt!

SEAN: Let’s Run an Inn on Dungeon Island! (In a World Ruled by Women) (Dungeon Tou de Yadoya wo Yarou! Souzou Mahou wo Moratta Ore no Hosoude Hanjouki) is a Comic Rex title coming out in omnibuses. Another overworked office worker dies. Another isekai’d guy has a fantastic new power. Another potato-kun protagonist tries to live a quiet life, but there’s just all these women!

MICHELLE: Snerk.

ANNA: Wow, why does this keep happening????

ASH: It is rather curious.

SEAN: They also have BL Game Rebirth: My New Life as the Hero’s Younger Brother 4, The Dangerous Convenience Store 7, Grim Night Tales 2, I Can’t Stand Being Your Childhood Friend 3 (the final volume), Night of the Living Cat 7, A Ninja and an Assassin Under One Roof 3, No God in Eden 4, Reincarnated as a Sword 17, and The Tale of a Little Alchemist Blessed by the Spirits 2.

Square Enix Manga has The Ice Guy and the Cool Girl 11, My Isekai Life 25, My Favorite VTuber Is Scary IRL 2, and Ragna Crimson 15.

SuBLime Manga debuts Bride of the Shark Clan (Samezoku e no Sasagemono), a BL manga from Moment. A guy is tired of sacrifices to the guy with shark attributes who’s really strong. But he’s really strong, and kind of nice… provided he doesn’t see blood.

ANNA: I wonder if he’ll see some blood.

ASH: I initially read that as the Snark Clan, but that’s a different sort of blood thirst.

SEAN: And they also have The World’s Greatest First Love 19.

Titan Manga have a big debut for sports manga fans. Aoashi is a soccer manga that ran for a decade, mostly in Big Comic Spirits. It also got an anime. Titan is releasing it in 3-in-1 omnibuses. A kid is destined to get into a really good high school for soccer… till he gets in a fight in his final middle school game and is blackballed. What now?

MICHELLE: Ooh.

ANNA: Nice, always happy to see more sports manga coming out.

ASH: Always!

SEAN: Titan also has Saint Seiya: Dark Wing 3.

Tokyopop debut Strobe in the Dark (Kurayami ni Strobe), a one-shot BL manga from Cab. A guy takes photos of his attractive and sporty childhood friend, while hiding his growing attraction.

No debuts for Viz, but we get Dandadan 19, Fly Me to the Moon 32, Fushigi Yûgi: Byakko Senki 4, Girl Crush 7, Kamudo 2, Kill Blue 7, Marriagetoxin 13, Minecraft: the Manga 6, Pokémon: Scarlet & Violet 5, Sakamoto Days 22, Sleepy Princess in the Demon Castle 30, and Vagabond Definitive Edition 5.

MICHELLE: I’m always happy to see more Byakko Senki!

ANNA: Absolutely!!!!

SEAN: Yen On debuts Melody of the Boundary (Kyoukai no Melody), a one-shot that is in the favorite Yen On genre of “heartwarming tragedy”. Two musicians are poised to make their debut… then one dies in an accident. Three years later, his ghost appears to try to get his friend to love music again. This got an anime.

ASH: Music-related tragedy? Sounds like something I would read.

SEAN: Also from Yen On: Before the Tutorial Starts 4, Days with My Stepsister 7, Demon Lord 2099 5, Kusunoki’s Garden of Gods 4, The Magical Revolution of the Reincarnated Princess and the Genius Young Lady 9, New Game Plus After Defeating the Last Boss 2, Once Upon a Witch’s Death 3, The Only Thing I’d Do in a No-Boys-Allowed Game World 4, and Re:ZERO -Starting Life in Another World- Short Story Collection 5.

And Yen Press has Everyone’s Darling Has a Secret 4 and Pink & Habanero 5.

Yay, manga!

SEAN: It’s June, and a young man’s fancy lightly turns to thoughts of what manga is coming out next week, because young men are idiots like that.

MICHELLE: Snerk.

ASH: I mean…

SEAN: Yen Press have one straggler from May, the 5th volume of Is the Order a Rabbit?.

Two debuts for Viz Media. I’m No Angel (Tenshi Nanka ja Nai) is an ancient shoujo manga from the early 90s written by someone named… oh, right, Ai Yazawa. It’s even earlier than Neighborhood Story, and ran in Ribon. Viz is releasing it in omnibus format. A girl runs for student council when she hears her crush is also doing so, but once they’re on the council she discovers he likes… their teacher? This is very Ai Yazawa.

MICHELLE: Ooh.

ASH: I am thrilled that we’re getting even more of Yazawa’s work!

ANNA: Nice!

SEAN: Shinobi Undercover (Shinobigoto) is the newest “successful enough to get a print release” Shonen Jump series. A ninja is assigned to attend high school, which is a shame, as he’s great at being a ninja but terrible at being a social animal. Now he’s got to guard a girl beset by assassins.

ASH: These things happen sometimes.

SEAN: Also from Viz: Astro Royale 6 (the final volume), The Bugle Call: Song of War 7, Chainsaw Man 21, Dark Gathering 18, The Elusive Samurai 20, Ichi the Witch 3, Let’s Do It Already! 9 (the final volume), Magical Girl Dandelion 2, Nana 25th Anniversary Edition 4, Pink Candy Kiss 5, A Star Brighter than the Sun 6, and Tamon’s B-Side 11.

MICHELLE: Some good shoujo, here!

ASH: Forsooth!

ANNA: Always nice to have a good shoujo week!

SEAN: Udon Entertainment have the 5th volume of Daigo The Beast: Umehara Fighting Gamers!.

Tokyopop debuts I Picked Up a No-Good, Useless Prince (Danzaisareta Dame Ouji, Hiroimashita), a Comic Gardo title based on an as-yet unlicensed light novel. A spoiled young prince finally pisses off too many people, and is reduced to being a commoner. Now he’s met a young woman who adores royal drama and fangirls him. (Yes, I know. The digital debuted a week earlier and I misread it. Print is this week.)

It also gives us Boyfriend, Sometimes Girlfriend 3. (See above.)

Steamship have Healer for the Shadow Hero 4.

Square Enix Manga have the 7th volume of Always a Catch!.

Seven Seas have a danmei debut, Golden Terrace. This apparently came out from a smaller publisher in 2022, but Seven Seas is redoing the translation and it has new illustrations. Two rivals are forcibly engaged, but they’ve got a secret backstory.

MICHELLE: Oh, yes! I have the Peach Flower House edition of this.

ASH: Nice!

SEAN: Also danmei: Run Wild: Sa Ye 5

And in “Japanese novel but not Airship”, we get The Twelve Kingdoms Book 5 – A Thousand Miles of Wind, the Sky at Dawn.

ASH: Still very in love with this series.

ANNA: I need to get caught up!

SEAN: And in “Not danmei but Korean”, we get Lout of Count’s Family 8.

Seven Seas’ manga debuts start with The Delinquent and the Transfer Student (Sukeban to Tenkousei). This Web Action yuri series stars a yanki girl and a cute smol bean who enjoys making her say cute things.

ASH: Sounds like a series I would enjoy.

SEAN: The Exiled Heavy Knight Knows How to Game the System (Tsuihousareta Tensei Juu Kishi wa Game Chishiki de Musousuru) is based on an as-yet unlicensed light novel, and also had an anime. It runs in Young Magazine Web, and is coming out in 2-volume omnibuses. Our hero… sigh… get the wrong gacha job when he comes of age, and is disowned and exiled. But… sigh… it’s secretly the STRONGEST gacha job!

Sea Melt Lover is a BL one-shot from a magazine called Equal. In a world where beastmen keep humans as pets and sex slaves, one escapes, and is protected by an honorable beastman.

Also from Seven Seas: The Beast King: Master of Medicines 2, The Feisty Omega and His Twin Mates 4, Ghost and Witch 2, I Got Married to the Girl I Hate Most in Class 6, and Low Tide in Twilight 2.

Kodansha Manga have one print debut. Secondhand Sisters (Kemutai Ane to Zurui Imouto) is a josei title from Kiss. An older sister whose younger sister has “borrowed” everything from her and never given it back – including, years ago, her boyfriend – sees her again at their mother’s funeral and finds things starting up all over again. Expect DRAMA here.

MICHELLE: Always here for josei, though!

ASH: Josei drama is great.

ANNA: Very interested in this!

SEAN: Also in print: The Iceblade Sorcerer Shall Rule the World 13, Initial D Omnibus 10, Shugo Chara! 20th Anniversary Edition 2, Welcome to Demon School! Iruma-kun 20, and You Can’t Bluff the Sharp-Eyed Sister 4.

MICHELLE: And Iruma! This is a good week!

SEAN: Kodama have Baki the Grappler Perfect Edition 17 and 18, Me and the Alien Mumu 3, and Sun-Ken Rock Perfect Edition 2.

Kana have a debut folks have wanted for years. Billy Bat is a seinen manga from Weekly Morning by the legendary Naoki Urasawa. A Japanese-American artist in the late 40s worries he plagiarized his popular bat detective from a drawing he saw in Japan, so he goes there to find the original artist.

ASH: I’m a fan of Urasawa’s work in general and am aware of the demand for this series in particular.

ANNA: Wow, I’m excited for this.

SEAN: They also have a 2nd volume of Blades of the Guardians and a 3rd City Hunter omnibus.

ASH: Excellent.

SEAN: No debuts for J-Novel Club. In light novels, they have Even Exiled, She’s Still the Beloved Saint! St. Evelyn’s Weird and Wonderful Friends 3 (the final volume), How a Realist Hero Rebuilt the Kingdom: Short Story Chronicles (the final volume?), and I Parry Everything 10.

For manga they have The Coppersmith’s Bride 7, Looks like a Job for a Maid! The Tales of a Dismissed Supermaid 4, Private Tutor to the Duke’s Daughter 5, and The Reincarnation of the Strongest Exorcist in Another World 9.

Ink Pop debut Our Aimless Nights (Yoru no Manimani), a sweet romance from Web Action. Outgoing girl. Shy boy. Every night, they meet at the convenience store.

ASH: There are worse places to meet.

SEAN: And they have the 4th and final volume of I Wanna Be Your Girl.

That’s it, as Airship are taking a week off, apparently. What manga is there to distract you from life?

SEAN: The end of May and time for summer to be icumen in. Seems like it’s a bit early this year.

MICHELLE: I understood that reference!

SEAN: Airship has print volumes for Easygoing Territory Defense by the Optimistic Lord 7, Reborn as a Space Mercenary 15, and Sword of the Demon Hunter: Kijin Gentōshō 13.

And for early digital there is The Misdeeds of an Extremely Arrogant Villain Aristocrat 3 and Roll Over and Die 6.

Cross Infinite World has The Drab Princess, the Black Cat, and the Satisfying Break-up 6 and Welcome to Olivia’s Magic Jewelers 3 (the final volume).

Crossed Hearts (which I admit has been releasing print-only manhwa I have been missing) has a manga debut, You’re Way Too Cheeky, Chigaya-kun! (Namaiki Sugiru yo, Chigaya-kun). This runs in Ganma!. Why is this hot guy only in a teasing mood around her? Also, archery.

MICHELLE: Probably this is the sort of thing I’d read and think “needs more archery.”

ASH: Always more archery. Always.

ANNA: I’m not opposed to more archery!

SEAN: Dark Horse Manga has a 2nd omnibus volume of Innocent Rouge.

ASH: I haven’t read any of Innocent Rouge yet, but I have been reading Innocent. If nothing else, the artwork is incredibly striking.

SEAN: And retailers say Denpa Books has the 4th volume of Nana & Kaoru: Black Label.

ASH: Maybe, maybe not. Hard to tell with Denpa.

SEAN: Ghost Ship gives us Rebel Hero: I Will Use My Skills to Control the Scheming Princess’s Heart and Body 3 and Survival in Another World with My Mistress! 9.

A debut from Hanashi Media: The Disfavored Prince is a Genius Alchemist: All I Want is to Spoil My Little Siblings (Fuguu Ouji wa Tensai Renkinjutsushi: Koutei Nante Gara ja Nai node Teimai wo Kawaigaritai) stars a guy reincarnated as the first prince, but politics force him to step aside. Now he’s going to be an amazing alchemist… who ends up influencing the politics far more than he would have if he’d stayed prince.

ASH: I like alchemists.

SEAN: They also have Tsukimichi: Moonlit Fantasy 16.

J-Novel Club has their last debut for a while (they’re saving their new licenses for AX). The Reincarnated Mastermind: Sundering Fate with Magic Swords (Monogatari no Kuromaku ni Tensei Shite ~Shinka Suru Maken to Game Chishiki de Subete o Nejifuseru~) stars a guy who is delighted to clear the game he’s playing before anyone else… then finds himself reincarnated in the game as the villain. Dammit, he’s just going to live a slow life and avoid the cast, then. (cough) Good luck with that, dude.

ASH: He’ll need it.

SEAN: Other light novels from JNC: The Apothecary Diaries 16, My Stepmom’s Daughter Is My Ex 13, Nia Liston: The Merciless Maiden 9, and Repeated Vice: I Refuse to Be Important Enough to Die 3.

ASH: Yay, Apothecary Diaries!

SEAN: Other manga from JNC: My Tiny Senpai 5, Sometimes Even Reality Is a Lie! 7, and Zero Damage Sword Saint 3.

Kodansha Manga has… three print debuts? Maybe? Omega of the Divine (Aijitsu to Hanayome) is an omegaverse manga from Gateau that was announced for print and digital, but the print seems to be AWOL at the moment, so here’s the digital. A sick boy is chosen as the sacrifice to the local god, but the god may be nicer than suspected.

That’s Not Love (Koi ja Nee kara) is a seinen manga from Morning Two. A middle-aged woman goes to see a sculpture exhibit by her old teacher, and finds one sculpture looks a lot like her old middle-school friend… right down to the scarring. Was something happening in school she didn’t know about?

MICHELLE: Intriguing!

ASH: Oh, ho!

ANNA: Hmmmm.

SEAN: Wicked Spot is a yuri manga from CandleA, from the creator of Ayaka Is in Love with Hiroko. A witch discovers the powerful world of social media, and ends up crossing paths with a young woman who’s not a fan of witches.

Also in print: GALAXIAS 2, Go! Go! Loser Ranger! 17, Honeko Akabane’s Bodyguards 9, Kaijin Fugeki: Kindled Spirits 3, Kei X Yaku: Bound By Law 12, Omega Megaera 4, and Shangri-La Frontier 22.

And for digital we have I Left My A-Rank Party to Help My Former Students Reach the Dungeon Depths! 7, Saint Young Men 21, and Shangri-La Frontier 25.

MICHELLE: I had entirely forgotten that Saint Young Men exists.

ASH: I had not! (But am still behind in my reading…)

ANNA: I am glad it does exist!

SEAN: Crybaby Mermaid : Illustrated Memoir of Yumi Uotani is a new series from Mahjong Pros, assuming it doesn’t get bumped like Koizumi did. It’s a biography of the emotional ups and downs of a woman who plays professional mahjong.

MICHELLE: Neat!

ASH: I’ll happily read it.

ANNA: Sounds cool!

SEAN: Getter Robo High is Getter Robo, mahjong style.

ASH: Honestly, I’d read that, too.

SEAN: And yes, they also have Reform with No Wasted Draws: The Legend of Koizumi, which I discussed last month. It got bumped.

ASH: This is the one I’m really here for.

SEAN: One Peace Books gives us I Was Sold Dirt Cheap, but My Power Level Is off the Charts 5, Nukozuke! 6, and the 26th The Rising of the Shield Hero manga.

There’s a Korean novel from Seven Seas not in the Airship line. Beacon of Light in the Dark Sea stars a dentist hired to work at an undersea research facility… but when he arrives he finds everything starting to get creepy.

And for danmei, Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation: Mo Dao Zu Shi finishes its deluxe hardcover release with Vol. 5.

Two manga debuts. My Cat’s Aura is Strong Today (Kyou mo Neko-sama no Atsu ga Tsuyoi) is a cat manga, which means technically, like all cat manga, it’s josei. Have you ever wondered if cats are really sarcastic to you in their heads? Wonder no more.

ASH: I’m assuming they are, but I guess I’ll find out!

ANNA: I assume that they may be sarcastic, but are also all perfect angels.

SEAN: The Scum Laugh is a full-color seinen series (I can’t find magazine info on either of these, they’re both Kadokawa). Have you ever wondered about the thoughts of beastmen as they’re about to rip you to shreds? Wonder no more.

ASH: Full-color we don’t see very often.

Also from Seven Seas: Breakfast with My Two-Tailed Cat 4, Easygoing Territory Defense by the Optimistic Lord 7, Even Dogs Go to Other Worlds 6, Free Life Fantasy Online: Immortal Princess 13, Gap Papa: Daddy at Work and at Home 6, Ichi the Killer Omnibus 4, Kitayama and Minamiya 2, Soara and the House of Monsters 6, and You Like Me, Not My Daughter?! 6.

Tokyopop debuts I Picked Up a No-Good, Useless Prince (Danzaisareta Dame Ouji, Hiroimashita), a Comic Gardo title based on an as-yet unlicensed light novel. A spoiled young prince finally pisses off too many people, and is reduced to being a commoner. Now he’s met a young woman who adores royal drama and fangirls him.

It also gives us Boyfriend, Sometimes Girlfriend 3 and In So Deep, It’s Love Already 2.

Viz Media has Cosmos 5 and JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Part 7–Steel Ball Run 7.

ASH: Excellent.

SEAN: And we’re done!… no, we’re not. Here’s Yen Press and its 11 billion titles.

ASH: It feels like it’s been a while.

The Adventure of Black Cat Nyango (Kuroneko Nyango no Bouken) is a shonen title from Dragon Age. A young boy (kitten?) is trying to join a famous adventuring party… but they’re away, so instead he goes into research. This looks cute.

ASH: It does.

SEAN: Every Adventure Needs a Weapon!: The Blacksmith Life of Rudy the Obsessed (Bouken ni wa, Buki ga Hitsuyou da! Kodawari Rudy no Kajiya Gurashi) stars a young woman (Rudy) who is obsessed with weapons, and testing weapons. It runs in Monthly Action.

ASH: That seems like something I would read.

SEAN: Four in Love is a Taiwanese comic anthology, in full color, showing the agonies of love.

Kuro: The Complete Edition collects all three volumes of this monster/horror title from Tonari no Young Jump. A cute girl loves playing with her adorable cat Kuro. To everyone else, the cat is a nightmarish beast.

ASH: I love the cat/monster design of Kuro.

SEAN: Love from the Tip of the Tongue (Shitasaki kara Koi) is a … sigh… Cakeverse title about a young man who is hiding his forkness until he meets an irresistible cake… I’m sorry, I can deal with Omegaverse, but I draw a line here. It’s BL, OK? It runs in Comic Marginal &h.

MICHELLE: Today I learned Cakeverse exists.

ASH: I was likewise unaware.

ANNA: I wish to go back in time when I was unaware.

SEAN: Monster Eater: A Delicious in Dungeon Board Game is what it sounds like.

ASH: I want this to be good!

On the Boundary’s Road: The Works of Suzuka Morino is also what it sounds like, a one-shot from Harta featuring an author known for beast and human manga.

Redeem: Only One Forever (Redeem: Tatta Hitotsu no Eien, Redeem) is a BL manhwa. A man who sees his older lover die in an accident finds himself ten years in the past… but getting his lover to fall for him again may be difficult.

ASH: I’m intrigued.

SEAN: Sailor Zombie: Complete Omnibus is a massive 900-page volume collecting this series from Monthly Hero’s. High school girls try to survive in a world overrun by zombies and also by assholes. Guess who’s the greater danger.

ASH: A giant omnibus can pose a legitimate threat.

SEAN: Shino & Ren (Shino to Ren) is a yuri series – again, can’t find the magazine, but it’s Kadokawa. Loud brash tomboy. Quiet, reserved girly girl. They’re in love. And very attracted to each other.

ASH: Awww.

SEAN: Toxy Noxy Foresty Forest (Doku Doku Mori Mori) is another Monthly Hero’s series. It’s a violent gory horror manga… only they’re all mushrooms.

ASH: I will admit to being curious.

Void: No. Nine (Void: No. Nine – 9-banme no Utsuro) is a seinen manga from Comic Beam. Scavengers search the post-apocalyptic underground depths, hoping to find treasure, but more likely to get killed.

ASH: That is a thing that happens sometimes.

SEAN: In addition to those… TWELVE debuts, we also have Assorted Entanglements 9, Bocchi the Rock! Comic Anthology 3, Bride of the Barrier Master 6, The Girl Past the Filters 2, Handyman Saitou in Another World 9, Hazure Skill: The Guild Member with a Worthless Skill Is Actually a Legendary Assassin 8, I Cannot Reach You 9, I’ve Been Killing Slimes for 300 Years and Maxed Out My Level 16, Immortality and Punishment 2, Isekai Samurai 3, Kowloon Generic Romance 11, Magical Midlifer 2, Monster-Colored Island 2, Nights with a Cat 7, The Saga of Tanya the Evil 28, Scenes from Awajima 2, So What’s Wrong with Getting Reborn as a Goblin? 10, Sword Art Online Ordinal Scale 4, Takahashi from the Bike Shop 4, This Monster Wants to Eat Me 6, Tougen Anki: Legend of the Cursed Blood 5, The World’s Strongest Rearguard 9, and Yotsuba&! 16 (the first volume since 2021).

MICHELLE: Some good stuff here! (But mostly Scenes from Awajima.)

ASH: Indeed!

SEAN: So clearly I saved the big surprise for the very end. Are you getting Yotsuba&…?

MICHELLE: I guess I should. I haven’t read any since volume 14 in 2018!

ANNA: Wow, what a big surprise!

SEAN: School is almost done for the year! But not yet. What manga do you buy sad kids who should be studying?

ASH: Minecraft and Kirby are the ones currently in demand at my house.

SEAN: Viz Media starts us off with Assassin’s Creed: Forgotten Temple 3, Battle Royale: Enforcers 5, Centuria 2, Choujin X 12, Hirayasumi 9, Hunter x Hunter 3-in-1 6, Kingdom 7, Mujina into the Deep 4, and One-Punch Man 33.

ASH: I really do need to start reading Kingdom.

SEAN: Tokyopop debuts Nagi & Hayasaki (Nagi-kun to Hayasaki-kun), a one-shot BL title that ran in from RED. I really don’t want to break down the summary of this one, so let’s just say rivals who hate each other find spicy common ground!

MICHELLE: Yeesh. Good call on skipping the summary.

SEAN: Shinjuku 69 Heaven is also a from RED BL title. A reporter shares a night with a sex worker, then when they become roommates is upset to discover the sex worker is only nice and open when he’s on the job and being paid!

MICHELLE: Okay, when one of the characters is described as “snarky” and “sneering,” I’m in. I choose not to examine what this might say about me, personally.

ANNA: I feel like people don’t have to be self-reflective all the time!

SEAN: Also from Tokyopop: Eternal Covenant 4, Monster and Ghost 2, and The Tale of Luvelia Kingdom 2.

Titan Manga has Farewell, My Odin 2 and Sanda 3.

ASH: I’ve not read the first volume yet, but I have been eyeing Farewell, My Odin as it does seem to be up my alley.

SEAN: Steamship has Outbride: Beauty and the Beasts 9.

Square Enix Books gives us Final Fantasy IX Picture Book: Vivi and Grandpa’s Memories for the Sky, which is self-explanatory. For the kids!

Square Enix Manga has a 2-in-1 one-shot, A Cat Is a Cat in Any Life (Tenseishitemo Neko wa Neko). This Gangan Online title has a cat reincarnated into a fantasy isekai-style world… that has no cats!

ASH: Hmmm.

SEAN: They also have Just Like Mona Lisa 9 and 10 (the final volumes) and The Otaku Love Connection 4.

Seven Seas starts us off with danmei, as they have Joyful Reunion 4.

There is a giant pile of Seven Seas, but no debuts. They have Choking on Love 5, The Demon King is Way Too Overprotective! 3 (the final volume), Dinghai Fusheng Records 3, Hope You’re Happy, Lemon 3, Level 1 Demon Lord and One Room Hero 11 (the final volume), Magical Buffs: The Support Caster is Stronger Than He Realized! 6, My Kitten is a Picky Eater 8, No Longer Allowed In Another World 11, Otaku Elf 11, Our Dining Table: Seconds, Please! 2, The Princess I Loved in My Past Life is Now a Middle-Aged Dad 3 (the final volume), She Professed Herself Pupil of the Wise Man 14, The Too-Perfect Saint 6, What It Means to Be You 4, and A Yuri Love Story That Begins with Getting Dumped in a Dream 2.

MICHELLE: I look forward to more of Our Dining Table: Seconds, Please!.

ASH: I almost missed seeing that in there!

SEAN: One Peace Books has the 9th volume of The Death Mage manga.

Noir Caesar has the 2nd volume of Deep 3.

KUMA has a one-shot, Only My Psycho, a BL title from iHertz. A guy who is recruited to be an assassin makes fast friends with another guy… but is there more going on?

ASH: Signs point to yes.

SEAN: Kodansha Manga debuts Dragon Circus, which runs in Hero’s. This is actually “Volume 0”, but it does seem to be the first released here. Dragons appear in the skies, and a motley crew has to be sent to battle them!

Magical Karina is another dark take on the magical girl drama, with a girl being called upon to save the world when she’s barely able to cope with the death of her grandmother. It runs in Comic Days.

ANNA: Ok, I’m a little curious about this!

SEAN: Also in print: Am I Actually the Strongest? 10, Blue Lock 30, How I Met My Soulmate 7, Kusunoki’s Flunking Her High School Glow-Up 6, Ninja Vs. Gokudo 13, Parasyte Paperback Collection 6, Senpai Is an Otokonoko 6, Tank Chair 8, Welcome to Demon School! Iruma-kun: IruMafia Edition 4, and Whisper Me a Love Song 11.

The digital “debut” is Pink, the legendary Kyoko Okazaki manga that came out in print 13 years ago. It’s a one-shot, and ran in NEW Punch Zaurus. A young woman moonlights as a sex worker in order to be able to afford her pet crocodile. But it’s so much more than that. Go read it.

MICHELLE: Somehow I never read this one!

ANNA: I think I did read it back in the day? But I’m not sure. More Okazaki in print is a good thing!

ASH: Pink specifically and Okazaki’s work more generally are excellent.

SEAN: Also digital: The Café Terrace and Its Goddesses 21, Elegant Yokai Apartment Life 33 (the final volume), Killing Line 5 (the final volume), Matcha Made in Heaven 14, and Medaka Kuroiwa is Impervious to My Charms 21.

MICHELLE: Somehow, I was expecting Elegant Yokai Apartment Life to never end.

ANNA: I need to get caught up on Matcha Made in Heaven!

ASH: I still really appreciate the title.

SEAN: J-Novel Club has more debuts, as their May is filled with Volume 1s! Miss Medic’s Diary at War (TS Eiseihei-san no Senjou Nikki) is a dark reincarnation series, as a young woman with recovery magic who loved playing FPS in a previous life finds it’s not as fun when the battlefield is real.

ASH: I’m assuming that became pretty clear pretty quickly.

SEAN: The Path of an S-Rank Adventurer: From Deadweight to Weapon Master (S-kyuu Boukensha ga Ayumu Michi: Party wo Tsuihou Sareta Shounen wa Shin no Nouryoku “Buki Master” ni Kakusei Shi, Yagate Sekai Saikyou e Itaru) is another “thrown out of the hero’s party” book. You know how those go. This is on the “revenge” end of the spectrum.

ASH: I tend to enjoy a good revenge tale, but the the “thrown out of the party” stories aren’t usually a draw for me.

SEAN: Sister Mafioso (Gisou Shishita Moto Mafia Reijou, Nidome no Jinsei wa Zettai ni Ikinobimasu) stars a woman who fakes her death and starts over, but sadly her previous life is not going to leave her alone.

ANNA: I hate it when that happens!

ASH: Right?!

SEAN: Tearmoon Empire Short Story Collection 1 is what it sounds like. Mia antics in short form.

ASH: Marvelous.

SEAN: Unsung Epics of the Hero’s Journey (Yuusha no Tabi no Uragawa de) doesn’t star the hero, who has an unfortunate prophecy that she’ll die, but rather two people who have to change fate and stop the prophecy. I have heard this is yuri?

ASH: I could be convinced to find out.

Other light novels out next week from JNC: The Fearsome Witch Teaches in Another World 3, The Greatest Magicmaster’s Retirement Plan 19, In Another World with Household Spells 5, Isekai Walking 6, The Misfit of Demon King Academy 12 Part 1, My Quiet Blacksmith Life in Another World 12, Revenge of the Soul Eater 5, Royal Spirits Are a Royal Pain! 3, and Seirei Gensouki: Spirit Chronicles 27.

For manga they have The Invincible Summoner Who Crawled Up from Level 1 7 and Sometimes Even Reality Is a Lie! 7.

Ize Press has no debuts, but they do have Beware the Villainess! 7, The Boxer 13 (the final volume), I Love Amy 2, Kill the Villainess 6, Lady Devil 5, Overgeared 10, Revenge of the Baskerville Bloodhound 2, and See You in My 19th Life 10.

Hanashi Media has a 4th and final volume of The Abandoned Reincarnation Sage.

ASH: There are so many publishers to keep track of these days! (I keep forgetting about Hanashi Media …)

SEAN: Ghost Ship gives us 2.5 Dimensional Seduction 18, Let’s Make a Harem in a Zombie World! 2, and A Reincarnated Carrier’s Strategy for Another World 2.

Alien Books has Kinryo Rock – Code Amrita 2.

Airship has print books! The debut is Venus Mission: I Was an Assassin-for-Hire Who Died, Now I’m Hunting Heroes in Another World (Venus Mission: Moto Koroshiya de Youhei no Chuunen, Yuusha no Ansatsu wo Iraisare Isekai Tensei!), about an assassin who can kill anything except the cancer that he has. When he dies, he wakes in another world… where he has to hunt down heroes!

Also in print: She Professed Herself Pupil of the Wise Man 16 and A Tale of the Secret Saint 10.

Early digital has My Status as an Assassin Obviously Exceeds the Hero’s 5 and The Too-Perfect Saint 6.

And ONLY digital has When a Clueless First-Person Shooter Player Falls into Another World 2.

There’s something for everyone here, I think. Am I wrong?