Ash Brown

Pick of the Week: Light & Rich

October 13, 2014 by Michelle Smith, Ash Brown, Anna N, Sean Gaffney and MJ Leave a Comment

MICHELLE: There are a few things I’ll be checking out this week, and while Say I Love You. and Blue Morning are certainly good enough to earn my pick, I must say that I am most looking forward to volume eight of Magi: The Labyrinth of Magic, a compelling shounen adventure with some well-developed characters.

ASH: This is a good week with all sorts of manga releases that I’m interested in reading, but the manga I’m most curious about is Ajin. I’ve heard good things about the series, and dark seinen manga dealing with immortals and immortality sounds like it should be right up my alley.

ANNA: I just finished Say I Love You Volume 3 in preparation for the 4th volume coming out this week, so that is my pick! This series delves into some more realistic details about teen sexuality than many shoujo series. The characters also have much more frank discussions about the issues they are grappling with than I tend to expect. It is romantic, but much more grounded in reality than most of the shoujo that gets released over here.

SEAN: I’ll go with the 2nd omnibus of Whispered Words. It really is one of the best yuri stories to come out of Japan in the last few years, and manages to be in Comic Alive and yet not have a ton of fanservice. I greatly look forward to delving into Sumika and Ushio’s angst-ridden destiny some more.

MJ: Since many of this week’s releases have already been named, I’ll give my vote to the fifth volume of Shoko Hidaka’s Blue Morning. It’s been a long time since I had the opportunity to enjoy a plotty, multi-volume BL series like this, and it’s a real pleasure. Though aristocratic intrigue isn’t perhaps my romance genre of choice, Blue Morning is just idiosyncratic enough to charm me. This is perhaps my favorite of SuBLime’s licenses so far. Count me in for volume five!

What looks good to you this week?

My Week in Manga: October 6-October 12, 2014

October 13, 2014 by Ash Brown

My News and Reviews

Last week Experiments in Manga saw the introduction of a new feature–Adaptation Adventures. Basically, the feature is intended to explore and compare different versions of the same story, which I think should be an interesting approach. I specifically had things in mind like the Parasyte anime adaptation that recently began airing (readers of Experiments in Manga have expressed interest in some sort of Parasyte comparison in the past), but I quickly realized that the feature provides nearly endless options. For the first Adaptation Adventures column, I took a look at Udon Entertainment’s Manga Classics, a line of manga-style graphic novel adaptations of classic literature. I was pleasantly surprised by the Manga Classics editions of Pride & Prejudice and Les Misérables and look forward to seeing future releases. I also posted an in-depth manga review last week of Yaya Sakuragi’s Bond of Dreams, Bond of Love, Volume 4, the last volume in the series. Sakuragi was my introduction to boys’ love manga and I’m always happy to see more of her work available in English. Bond of Dreams, Bond of Love isn’t my favorite Sakuragi manga, but I did enjoy its goofiness.

Elsewhere online, I was extremely happy to see that the one and only Manga Critic (Katherine Dacey) has come out of “retirement” and joined forces with Brigid Alverson at MangaBlog. Kate was one of my major inspirations for starting Experiments in Manga, so I’m very happy to see her return and look forward to reading her commentary. This also means that MangaBlog will be updated more regularly again, which will be great. In other news: Sean Gaffney at A Case Suitable for Treatment has a roundup of Seven Seas recent license announcements. Over at Comics Forum, the most recent Manga Studies column has been posted–Takeuchi Osamu and Manga Expression pt. 1: Tezuka Osamu as Manga Locus by Nicholas Theisen. Also, October’s issue of Sparkler Monthly is now available. It includes the launch of the third and final volume of Tokyo Demons as well as some additional bonus stories for the series. (Since I love Tokyo Demons, I’m particularly excited for and dreading the beginning of the end.)

The New York Comic Con took place over the weekend, and there was plenty of excitement to come out of that. Sean was there this year and has written up some notes on the panels he was able to attend. Vertical is spinning off Vertical Comics as a separate imprint to focus on manga and related material while Vertical continues to release prose and nonfiction. Vertical also licensed more Attack on Titan light novels, which will probably do pretty well. Viz Media also had a few new licenses to announce, as did Kodansha Comics. In addition to several other licenses, Yen Press has rescued Kaoru Mori’s Emma for a deluxe hardcover omnibus release! I only discovered Emma after CMX’s edition went out of print (and became extremely expensive), so I’m thrilled that I’ll finally be able to own the series in such a lovely format. (If you’re curious about Emma, I recommend checking out the archives for the Emma Manga Moveable Feast.)

Quick Takes

Attack on Titan: Before the Fall, Volume 2 written by Ryo Suzukaze and illustrated by Satoshi Shiki. I have largely been enjoying Attack on Titan‘s prequel manga Before the Fall, but I think I like it even more now that I have read the first Before the Fall novel that was recently released by Vertical. (My review of that volume can be found here.) Other than both being prequels to Attack on Titan, the stories of the novel and the manga aren’t directly related, but small references are made to the novel’s plot and characters in the manga. Which makes a fair amount of sense since the Before the Fall manga series is based on the second and third Attack on Titan light novels written by Suzukaze. In the second volume of the Before the Fall manga, Kuklo and Sharle have made their escape–Kuklo from the dungeons and Sharle from her overbearing father–but they are now faced with surviving among the common people. They actually make a pretty good life for themselves at first, but then Kuklo becomes obsessed with wanting to see a Titan for himself which, as anyone who is familiar with Attack on Titan will know, is an absolutely terrible idea that probably won’t end well for anyone involved.

My Love Story!!, Volume 2 written by Kazune Kawahara and illustrated by Aruko. I absolutely adored the first volume of My Love Story!!, so much so that I was actually a little afraid to read the second volume since my expectations had been set so high. However, I am very pleased to report that I also loved My Love Story!!, Volume 2. The entire series just makes me so extremely happy to read. Takeo and Yamato’s love is incredibly pure and sweet and the two of them are utterly endearing and charming together. Misunderstandings do happen on occasion, but forgiveness is quick in coming and no harm is done. My Love Story!! has the potential to be sickeningly sweet, but the romance and characters are handled with such humor and lightheartedness that, at least for me, the manga hasn’t reached that point. There isn’t much nuance or subtlety to the characters–Takeo is a manly many with a sensitive heart, Yamato is adorable and earnest, Suna is cool and aloof–but I like them all so much that I don’t mind. My Love Story!! is ridiculous and over-the-top and I love it. I’m still not sure how the story will be able to be sustained for an entire series now that the basic conceit has been so well-established, but I look forward to finding out.

A New Season of Young Leaves written by Venio Tachibana and illustrated by Akeno Kitahata. Ever since reading the two-volume boys’ love manga series Seven Days (which I loved) I have made a point to seek out more of Tachibana’s work available in English. And so I was very excited when A New Season of Young Leaves was licensed. I’ll admit, at first I was actually a little disappointed with A New Season for Young Leaves. I simply didn’t understand the relationship and odd power dynamics between the super popular Mariya and the socially awkward Nachi. But then about halfway through the volume, during an extensive flashback that explores the evolution of their strange friendship, the manga finally clicked for me. I found it to be incredibly compelling and I immediately wanted to read it again, which I take as a very good sign. I didn’t realize it when I initially began reading A New Season for Young Leaves, but it’s actually the first manga in a series that is at least three volumes long. While there were definitely a few plot lines introduced that were left unresolved, for the most part A New Season of Young Leaves does tell a complete story. But I really do hope more of the series is licensed; I am very curious to see how things continue to develop between Mariya and Nachi and the rest of their classmates.

Bond of Dreams, Bond of Love, Vol. 4

October 10, 2014 by Ash Brown

Creator: Yaya Sakuragi
U.S. publisher: Viz Media
ISBN: 9781421552354
Released: May 2013
Original release: 2011

Ever since reading and enjoying Yaya Sakuragi’s Hey, Sensei?, I’ve made a point to follow her work as it’s translated into English. Sakuragi’s boys’ love manga tends to make very heavy use of the genre’s tropes, but generally with a slight twist or unexpected approach that make them just a little bit different. I enjoy that aspect of Sakuragi’s manga, her somewhat quirky sense of humor, and the lanky designs of many of her characters. I also appreciate that she includes important female characters in her stories. Taking all of that into consideration, I was pretty happy when Sublime Manga, the boys’ love imprint associated with Viz Media, licensed one of Sakuragi’s more recent series Bond of Dreams, Bond of Love. The manga is tangentially related to another of Sakuragi’s series–Tea for Two released by Tokyopop’s Blu Manga imprint back in the day–and Sublime has also licensed Hide and Seek, which is a spinoff of Bond of Dreams, Bond of Love. The fourth and final volume of Bond of Dreams, Bond of Love was originally published in Japan in 2011 while the English-language edition was released in 2013.

After strong urging from his brother, mother, and grandmother, Ao has finally made up his mind to bury his own feelings about the matter and live with his mother and twin. He does have some regrets though, especially considering that the move will mean he won’t be able to see his beloved Ryomei very often anymore. But although Ao has made a decision, he is still torn and uncertain. To make the situation even more complicated, Ryomei has started to return Ao’s feelings and has even begun to express them physically. But thanks to some miscommunication on both of their parts, Ao believes that Ryomei is acting out of pity rather than genuine affection. Mostly because he finds it embarrassing, Ryomei has never been particularly forthcoming about his developing feelings for Ao, whereas Ao has never felt the need to hide his love for the older man and doesn’t hesitate to be very vocal about it. Now that Ryomei is showing his interest only after Ao has announced his decision to move, the younger man can’t help but feel confused.

Throughout Bond of Dreams, Bond of Love it has always been obvious that Ryomei cares very deeply for Ao. He looks out for him and his well-being and even goes out of his way to do things to make him happy–granted, more often than not Ryomei does so in secret. However, I was never entirely convinced that those feelings were of a romantic nature; even Ryomei seems to have to work to convince himself that they are. Ultimately he is able to show and declare his love, but it feels less like natural growth and more like a convenient plot development. It is kind of cute to see a grown man so completely flustered and embarrassed, though. And then there’s Ao, who I’m pretty sure is incapable of embarrassment and is completely lacking awareness of socially acceptable behavior and conversation, which can be pretty entertaining. He’s very much a horny teenager, so in the fourth volume of Bond of Dreams Bond, Bond of Love it’s nice to see him start to really become aware of the emotional aspects of his and Ryomei’s relationship in addition to his fixation on the physical ones.

After a fair amount of teasing on Sakuragi’s part, Bond of Dreams, Bond of Love reaches its climax with the fourth volume. Dreams–wet dreams, daydreams, and even the occasional nightmare–have been a part of the series from the beginning, but now those dreams (the better ones) are becoming a reality for Ao. This more or less means that he and Ryomei finally have sex. Actually, there’s quite a bit of sex in Bond of Dreams, Bond of Love, Volume 4. The series has been building up to it and the scenes, like the rest of the manga, have a somewhat ridiculous sense of humor to them. Bond of Dreams, Bond of Love is not at all a serious series. What it lacks in believability and realism it makes up for with its slightly absurd characters, their clashing personalities, and their amusing interactions and relationships. I admit it: the manga managed to make me laugh on a regular basis. Bond of Dreams, Bond of Love can be a bit uneven at times, and the series isn’t my favorite manga by Sakuragi, but for the most part I ended up enjoying its silliness. And I do still look forward to reading Hide and Seek.

Manga the Week of 10/15

October 9, 2014 by Sean Gaffney, Ash Brown, Michelle Smith, MJ and Anna N Leave a Comment

SEAN: With only ten new volumes, this is the lightest week of the month. Let’s all enjoy it.

First off, one I missed from last week, mostly as Amazon just announced they were shipping it early a few days ago. The second Whispered Words omnibus, containing Vols. 4-6, is out this week. If you like a well-written yuri story with lots of fun and angst and romance, this is the book for you.

ASH: The story is great! And it has karate, too! (I just hope the copy editing has improved with this volume…)

MICHELLE: Me, too. It was seriously bad.

SEAN: Now for next week. We’ll start with Dark Horse, who have the 16th Bride of the Water God volume, which is on my list of “I always forget this exists” titles.

MICHELLE: I actually forgot Whispered Words existed, so don’t feel bad.

MJ: I’d almost forgotten both, and that makes me sad!

ANNA: I didn’t know anything about Whispered Words, but if more high quality yuri is being translated into English, that can only be a good thing.

SEAN: Kodansha releases the quotation mark challenged Say “I Love You”, so I will put them back in. This is Volume 4.

ANNA: I really enjoyed the first two volumes of this. Time to get caught up!

ASH: I’m enjoying this series as well.

SEAN: SubLime has a new Blue Morning volume, a series that I believe our Manga Bookshelf team has enjoyed in the past.

MICHELLE: I really enjoy both of these series, and will be reviewing both of these in brief form in the coming weeks.

MJ: Blue Morning is definitely on my list for the week.

SEAN: Vertical has a new series debut with Volume 1 of Ajin. You can also see this on Crunchyroll’s manga site. It’s from Kodansha’s good! Afternoon magazine, and seems to be quite dark. I suspect this is more in the Wolfsmund vein than the Chi’s Sweet Home one. One of the creators also has High-Rise Invasion coming out via Manga Box.

MJ: Interesting!

ASH: I’m very curious about Ajin and am looking forward to giving it a try.

SEAN: And we also have the 11th and final Flowers of Evil, which proved to be a lot more popular than anyone had expected, I think, though never an easy, friendly read.

MJ: I fell out of this a while back, but I kind of miss it.

ASH: I’ve been saving up all of the volumes of the final arc to read all at once, and here it is, the series end. I’m preparing to be devastated in one way or another.

SEAN: With the 52nd volume of Case Closed, you now have one volume for each week of the year if you want to do a reread.

Deadman Wonderland has a 5th volume, and I suspect the plot has really begun to pick up by now. (Look, sometimes these are generic. I can’t read everything.)

I do read Magi though, and love it to bits. Buy Volume 8. If not for me, then for Viz, who needs another big Shonen Sunday title.

MICHELLE: Magi is excellent, with capable storytelling and character development. I think MJ, in particular, should read this one! :)

ANNA: I have a couple stray volumes of this sitting around my house, and need to fill in a bit before starting to read this series. I’ve only heard good things though, and I look forward to reading it!

SEAN: Lastly, we have another big series ending, as the 19th volume of Vampire Knight is so important that Viz released it apart from the other Shojo Beat titles. It also comes in regular and deluxe versions, with a mini-artbook for the latter. I enjoyed this a lot more than I expected to, but I’m glad it’s ending, as it was running out of plot.

MICHELLE: I think the last volume I read was 13, but I think I’ll make a push and finally finish this one up. For the sake of completeness, if nothing else.

ANNA: It might seem odd to people who are familiar with my love of vampire-based shoujo manga, but I haven’t read this complete series. I started reading it, got about 5 volumes in, stopped, and have been piling up sporadic volumes here and there with the intention of doing a big series read at some point. One day, this will happen!

SEAN: Anything strike your fancy here?

Adaptation Adventures: Udon Entertainment’s Manga Classics

October 8, 2014 by Ash Brown

One day long ago when I was still very small my parents brought home for me a box filled with Great Illustrated Classics–small, compact adaptations of classic literature with illustrations on almost every other page intended to introduce younger readers to some of the great, influential stories of the Western canon. I devoured them. It’s largely thanks to that series that I became so well versed in the classics. When I was older I would go on to read the originals of some of my favorites. And even those that I never got around to, I became familiar enough with their stories that I could hold my own in conversation and understand references made to them.

Literacy is something that I care very deeply about. Closely related to that, I also feel that exposure to the classic stories that have gone on to become such an integral and influential part of Western culture and world literature is important. However, I realize how intimidating those classics can be, especially for those who are reluctant readers to being with, or who simply don’t enjoy the authors’ styles of writing or find the length of some of the originals to be formidable. Because of that, I believe that efforts to adapt these stories in a way that is more approachable and appealing to a larger audience can be extremely valuable, which brings me to Manga Classics.

Manga Classics is a line of graphic novel adaptations jointly released by Udon Entertainment and Morpheus Publishing. Their aim is to present faithful, high-quality adaptations of classic stories in a format intended to be especially appealing to young adults–that is, full-length, manga-style graphic novels. Udon isn’t the only publisher to attempt something similar to this. Recently I’ve seen other comics, graphic novel, and manga adaptations of classics released by publishers like Marvel and One Peace Books (to provide just two examples) with varying levels of success.

Strong adaptations can be notoriously difficult to achieve. Purists will often outright shun adaptations as they almost never carry the same nuance and complexity found in the source material or because they may stray too far from the original. Adaptations are especially challenging when trying to present a story in an entirely different medium, such as adapting prose into comics or film. For me, I consider an adaptation to be a great one if it is entertaining and engaging in its own right while at the same time inspiring readers (or viewers) to seek out the original stories. I feel that Manga Classics’ first two adaptations have accomplished this.

The Manga Classics series debuted in 2014 with adaptations of Jane Austen’s Pride & Prejudice and Victor Hugo’s Les Misérables. Out of the two, I am most familiar with Pride & Prejudice. I’ve read the original, I’ve seen many of its film and television adaptations (if you’ve not already discovered the recent webseries The Lizzie Bennet Diaries, I highly recommend it), and back in high school I was actually even a main cast member in a Pride & Prejudice stage production.

The original Pride & Prejudice was first published in England in 1813. The story follows Elizabeth Bennet, the second-oldest daughter of an English family with a country estate outside of London. Elizabeth’s mother is determined to see her five daughters married, and married well, so when the wealthy (and young) bachelor Mr. Bingley moves into the neighborhood, her scheming immediately begins. Fortunately, Bingley and Jane, the eldest Bennet daughter, hit it off. Unfortunately, due to some misunderstandings and interference from Bingley’s best friend Mr. Darcy, their romance is cut short. And because of that, Elizabeth’s opinion of Darcy suffers greatly, not that she held him in very high regard to begin with. To add to the awkwardness, Darcy, to his dismay, seems to have developed feelings for Elizabeth. Things get even more complicated from there as manners, social standing, morals, and some very strong personalities come into play before the Bennet daughters find their way in life and love.

Elizabeth Bennet and (blushing!) Mr. Darcy

Reading the Manga Classics version of Pride & Prejudice reminded me how much I enjoy the original novel, its story, and its characters. I was also struck by how perfectly Austen’s work is suited for shoujo. The story has been adapted by Stacy King and illustrated by Po Tse. The narrative has been slimmed down and largely focuses on Elizabeth and the ups and downs of her delightfully antagonistic relationship with Darcy. All of the major plot points are still there although some of the other characters (such as Elizabeth’s younger sisters) aren’t as fully developed. But the story still works and works quite well. The only thing I didn’t really like about Manga Classics’ Pride & Prejudice was the portrayal of Mr. Collins, the heir to the Bennet estate. To some extent he serves as the story’s comic relief, but he comes across as too much of a caricature in the graphic novel (visually and narratively) which clashes in style from the rest of the comic. Generally though, Po Tse’s artwork is quite lovely and occasionally even stunning. Elizabeth and Jane’s hair is gorgeously drawn and particular attention has been given to Regency period clothing and architecture as well. (A preview of the first chapter is available here!)

I am much less familiar with Les Misérables. Although I know the basic story of the novel, I’ve never actually read the original. Nor have I seen any of its direct adaptations. However, I have listened to multiple sound recordings of the musical many, many times. I’ve seen the recent 2012 film adaptation of the musical as well, but that’s a couple steps removed from Hugo’s original.

Les Misérables was first published in France in 1862. The novel (one of the longest ever written) is an epic work of historical fiction set in the first half of the 19th-century, a rather tumultuous time in France. The novel begins in 1815 after the defeat of Napoleon Bonaparte and, following a large cast of characters, digressions, and subplots, climaxes with the June 1832 uprising in Paris. The most well-known story out of Les Misérables is that of the ex-convict Jean Valjean, the officer Javert whose goal is to recapture Valjean, and a young orphan girl named Cosette who becomes Valjean’s charge. Those three individuals and their relationships and connections to one another and the rest of the characters form the core of Les Misérables. Politics, religion, economic and social conditions, philosophy, morality, redemption, and love all have an important role to play in the novel as well.

Cosette and Jean Valjean

Because I’m not as familiar with the original Les Misérables it’s difficult for me definitively say how the Manga Classics’ adaptation directly compares. However, I can say that it reads very well. Most of the subplots have been dropped in favor of the main storyline following the Valjean and Cosette and those who are directly involved with them. The adapter, Crystal Silvermoon, has taken great care to consider other adaptations of Les Misérables in addition to the original in the creation of the graphic novel. Because Les Misérables is so lengthy and complex there would be no possible way to include everything, but the most iconic scenes are all present in the Manga Classics adaptation. Stacy King provided additional assistance with the scripting and SunNeko Lee served as the volume’s illustrator. Stylistically, the art is a little simpler than that found in the Pride & Prejudice adaptation. However, it is more even in tone which suits the story’s serious and dramatic nature. Once again, particular attention has been given to the setting. I found the Les Misérables graphic novel to be engaging and, perhaps more importantly, it’s the first adaptation that has really made me interested in picking up the original.

Because it is so easy to create an unsatisfying adaptation of any work, let alone a work that is well-loved or held in high esteem, and after seeing so many poor adaptations, I’ll admit that I approached Manga Classics with some apprehension. However, I was very happy to discover that the line’s first two adaptations were very well done. Though I might have a small nitpick here or there, I sincerely enjoyed both volumes. I could easily see Manga Classics being used in a classroom setting, but I think the graphic novels will appeal to readers outside of that context as well. I am very pleased that new audiences will have the opportunity to be introduced to some of the classic works of literature in such an approachable format. Hopefully, like Great Illustrated Classics did for me, Manga Classics will inspire new generations to seek out those original stories.

Spring 2015 will bring three more adaptations to the Manga Classics line, graphic novel versions of Jane Austen’s Emma, Charles Dickens’ Great Expectations, and Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter. So far, Manga Classics has approached the source material of its adaptations with care and respect; I can honestly say that I’m looking forward to seeing future Manga Classics releases.

Thank you to Udon Entertainment for providing copies of Pride & Prejudice and Les Misérables for review.

My Week in Manga: September 29-October 5, 2014

October 6, 2014 by Ash Brown

My News and Reviews

Last week at Experiments in Manga there were three posts in addition to the usual My Week in Manga feature. To start with, the winner of the Triton of the Sea manga giveaway was announced. The post also includes a list of some of the manga available in English that feature mermaids and/or mermen. Next was my review of Ryo Suzukaze’s novel Attack on Titan: Before the Fall, which is a prequel to Hajime Isayama’s original Attack on Titan manga series. I liked the premise of the novel much more than I did its execution, but it should still be pretty interesting for Attack on Titan fans. And finally, over the weekend, September’s Bookshelf Overload was posted. As for other interesting things online…I’ve been so busy at work lately that I’ve not really been able to keep up with all that’s going on. However, I do know that Seven Seas is currently in the process of revealing seven new licenses via Twitter. I’m pretty sure that Sean will be doing a wrap-up at A Case Suitable for Treatment soon which I’ll link to, but in the meantime you can always check out Seven Seas’ Twitter timeline. (There have been some really interesting choices so far!)

Quick Takes

My Little Monster, Volume 3 by Robico. I have been thoroughly enjoying My Little Monster and its cast of rather quirky characters. However, the third volume doesn’t seem to really move the plot along much, nor does it really develop the characters further. If anything, the series has lost its forward momentum and undoes some of the progress that has been made. After the various confessions of love from the previous volumes, Haru and Shizuku spend most of the third going through it all again. Shizuku has once more decided that she doesn’t have time for friendships or romantic relationships and wants to focus on her studies. Haru is fitting in a little better at school and is actually able to put the fact that everyone except Shizuku is terrified of him to good use, although he’s still fairly volatile and his behavior and obliviousness of others occasionally causes some real problems. So overall, not much has really changed in My Little Monster except that a few more hints have been dropped about Haru’s brother, whom I’m very curious about. I’m still enjoying the series and find its deadpan humor amusing, but I do hope to see more plot and character development in future volumes.

The Seven Deadly Sins, Volume 3 by Nakaba Suzuki. As can be safely assumed from the cover, the third volume of The Seven Deadly Sins heavily features the newly introduced Ban, the Fox Sin of Greed. I’m okay with this because, well, I actually like Ban as a character. Despite being one of the Seven Deadly Sins and therefore being one of the series’ heroes (or at least one of its protagonists), Ban’s really not that nice of a guy. Frankly, he’s an unapologetic jerk (with a very nice set of abs and a fondness for alcohol, though he really can’t hold his drink). But, like the other Sins, Ban has a tragic past to go along with his arrogant personality. He’s also kind of a goofball. One of the things that I particularly enjoy about The Seven Deadly Sins is the ridiculously overpowered battles between the ridiculously overpowered characters. The action can sometimes be a little difficult to follow, but the resulting destruction is quite obvious. I’m also rather impressed by how well Suzuki visually handles Diane, the giantess of the Seven Deadly Sins. She’s huge, but her presence always seems very natural on the page and Suzuki does a nice job of incorporating her into the artwork.

The Shadow Hero written by Gene Luen Yang and illustrated by Sonny Liew. Initially I wasn’t planning on picking up The Shadow Hero, most likely because I’m generally not that interested in superheroes. Fortunately I realized that was a very silly reason not to read the comic, especially considering that Yang is a fantastic writer and I really like Liew’s artwork and use of color. Long story short, I absolutely loved The Shadow Hero. The story of The Shadow Hero was inspired by an obscure superhero from the 1940s called the Green Turtle which was created by Chu Hing, one of the first Asian Americans to work in American comics. (The volume also contains a reproduction of the first Green Turtle comic, which was a nice addition.) The Shadow Hero serves as the Green Turtle’s origin story. Hank Chu is the son of a Chinatown grocer who looks forward to taking over his father’s store. His mother, however, has much bigger plans for her son and has decided that he will become a superhero, despite the complete lack of any superpowers. With a great story and great art, and plenty of humor to balance the more serious aspects of the comic, The Shadow Hero is definitely recommended.

Sleeping Moon, Volumes 1-2 by Kano Miyamoto. I tend to really enjoy Miyamoto’s work, so I was pretty excited when SuBLime licensed her short boys’ love series Sleeping Moon. I was particularly looking forward to it due to its supernatural elements, but in the end I didn’t find it as compelling as some of her other manga which are more firmly based in reality. Part of that is probably because much of the romantic relationship between two of the leads felt as though it was tacked on simply because the series was supposed to be boys’ love. Still, there were parts of Sleeping Moon that I enjoyed, and Miyamoto’s artwork is as lovely as ever. Akihiko’s family is cursed–the male heirs all die young, never making it past their thirties. And since his thirtieth birthday is fast approaching, Akihiko has a vested interest in discovering the truth behind the curse in order to prevent his own death and the death of his cousin. And that’s when the time slips begin–Akihiko finds himself spontaneously traveling to the Meiji era where one of his distant relatives is trying to unravel the same mystery. The moody supernatural and horror elements work better than the manga’s romance and the time traveling is handled quite well, too.

Pick of the Week: Shoujo & Slaughter

October 6, 2014 by Sean Gaffney, Ash Brown, Michelle Smith, Anna N and MJ Leave a Comment

SEAN: There’s an embarrassment of riches to pick from this week, but there’s one title that will be an obvious immediate read ASAP: Oresama Teacher. It’s simply the funniest shoujo manga out there, and I hope that anime fans who enjoyed Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-kun, a shounen series also by Izumi Tsubaki, will give this one a try and see why the silliness may be partly biographical.

ASH: Any other week and I probably would have picked Vinland Saga, but I’ll stand with Sean this time in going for hilarious shoujo. Except my must read for the week is My Love Story!! I adored the first volume and am extremely curious to see how the manga works as a series.

MICHELLE: Despite a few of my favorites also on this list (it does give me a pang not to pick Natsume’s Book of Friends, given how much I’ve been loving it lately), the fact that volume two of My Love Story!! has been in my Amazon cart for at least a month makes it the obvious choice this go ’round.

ANNA: I love both hilarious and heartwarming shoujo. However, with autumn coming I find myself thinking that it would be fun to read manga where the main characters are bundling themselves up in furs, trudging through snow, and slaughtering the innocent. Therefore, the excellent Vinland Saga is my pick of the week.

MJ: I suppose I also come down on the side of slaughter, for though there are a number of interesting releases on the way this week (and, like others here, I’m very enthusiastic about the second volume of My Love Story!!), but it’s hard for me to look elsewhere in the wake of a new volume of Knights of Sidonia. This is still one of my favorite series currently running, and not just for its compelling mix of romance, sci-fi, and horror. I love its artwork so much, that if Vertical stopped releasing it today, I’d continue buying it in Japanese just so I could look at it. Definitely my must-buy title for the week.

What looks good to you this week?

Bookshelf Overload: September 2014

October 5, 2014 by Ash Brown

The number of September acquisitions was definitely more reasonable than August’s, which is a good thing especially since it looks like October will be pretty rough on my wallet. What was unusual about September was the arrival of a nicely sized box of Japanese manga that I had shipped to me from Japan. I wanted to read the endings and side stories of a couple of series that sadly were never finished in English–Kaori Ozaki’s Meteor Methuselah (aka Immortal Rain) and Nari Kusakawa’s Ryuu no Hanawazurai (Two Flowers for the Dragon)–and I had some coupons that were almost ready to expire. I also ended up with a random box full of mostly out-of-print hentai. As for the preordered manga that I was particularly looking forward to in September, Vertical made a good showing with What Did You Eat Yesterday?, Volume 4 by Fumi Yoshinaga (which I reviewed not too long ago) and Yoshikazu Yasuhiko’s Mobile Suit Gundam: The Origin, Volume 7: Battle of Loum (review to come soonish). Vertical released Before the Fall, Ryo Suzukaze’s light novel prequel to Hajime Isayama’s Attack on Titan manga series, too. (I recently reviewed that one as well.) September also brought Haikasoru’s Phantasm Japan anthology and Peter D. Shapinsky’s Lords of the Sea, which I was very happy to see.

Manga!
Alice in the Country of Hearts, Omnibus 1 by Soumei Hoshino
Angel Sanctuary, Volumes 1-20 by Kaori Yuki
A Centaur’s Life, Volume 4 by Kei Murayama
Domin-8 Me! by Sessyu Takemura
The Four Immigrants Manga by Henry Yoshitaka Kiyama
From the New World, Volume 6 written by Yusuke Kishi, illustrated by Toru Oikawa
Juicy Fruits by Yumisuke Kotoyoshi
Kamen, Volume 1 by Gunya Mihara
Kinou Nani Tabeta?, Volume 1 by Fumi Yoshinaga
Meteor Methuselah, Volumes 9-11 by Kaori Ozaki
Misty Girl Extreme by Toshiki Yui
Mobile Suit Gundam: The Origin, Volume 7: Battle of Loum by Yoshikazu Yasuhiko
The Original Bondage Fairies, Volumes 1-2 by Kondom
Ryuu no Hanawazurai, Volume 7 by Nari Kusakawa
The Spirit of Capitalism by Tuna Empire
Terra Formars, Volume 2 written by Yu Sasuga, illustrated by Ken-ichi Tachibana
Touhou Shinigami: Meteor Methuselah Gaiden by Kaori Ozaki
What Did You Eat Yesterday?, Volume 4 by Fumi Yoshinaga

Comics!
DAR: A Super Girly Top Secret Comic Diary, Volumes 1-2 by Erika Moen
Family Portraits, Issues 1-3 by Sam Orchard
Impatience by Kori Michele
Megahex by Simon Hanselmann
Les Misérables adapted by Crystal Silvermoon, illustrated by SunNeko Lee
Musashi adapted by Sean Michael Wilson, illustrated by Michiru Morikawa
Portals by Kori Michele
Pride & Prejudice adapted by Stacy King, illustrated by Po Tse
The Rise of Aurora West written by Paul Pope and J. T. Petty, illustrated by David Rubín
Speculative Relationships by Various

Light Novesl!
Attack on Titan: Before the Fall by Ryo Suzukaze
Boogiepop at Dawn by Kouhei Kadono
Boogiepope Returns: Vs. Imaginator, Parts 1-2 by Kouhe Kadono
Cold Light by Narise Konohara

Anthologies!
Phantasm Japan edited by Nick mamatas and Masumi Washington

Nonfiction!
Attack on Titan Guidebook by Hajime Isayama
Lords of the Sea by Peter D. Shapinsky

Anime!
Arakawa Under the Bridge, Seasons 1-2 directed by Akiyuki Shinbo.

Attack on Titan: Before the Fall

October 3, 2014 by Ash Brown

Author: Ryo Suzukaze
Illustrator: Thores Shibamoto
Translator: Ko Ransom
U.S. publisher: Vertical
ISBN: 9781939130860
Released: September 2014
Original release: 2011

Hajime Isayama’s manga series Attack on Titan has become extraordinarily successful not only in Japan but worldwide as well. The series has inspired numerous manga spinoffs, anime, games, and more. Attack on Titan: Before the Fall is the first of three light novels written by Ryo Suzukaze and illustrated by Thores Shibamoto which serve as a prequel to Isayama’s original series. The second and third novels have been adapted as the manga series Attack on Titan: Before the Fall, illustrated by Satoshi Shiki, which is being released in English by Kodansha Comics. The first Before the Fall novel, however, was licensed and released by Vertical in 2014 with an English translation by Ko Ransom. Currently the novel, which was originally published in Japan in 2011, is chronologically the earliest story set in the Attack on Titan universe. I’m fascinated by the Attack on Titan phenomena and the large fanbase that it has developed, not to mention the series itself, so I was very interested in reading the Before the Fall prequel.

Angel Aaltonen may be young, but his ingenuity is impressive. A master craftsman, he and the others at the workshop he is a part of strive to design, create, and improve the weapons used in humanity’s fight for survival against the Titans. Except that Angel has never actually seen a Titan. Neither has most of the human population which seeks safety within a series of enormous walls. But while for a time they may be safe, they are also trapped by their own defenses. Only the members of the Survey Corps and Garrison forces have directly confronted the Titans, gigantic monstrosities that devour humans and bring destruction and terror. Even more dire is the fact no one knows how to stop or defeat the Titans. Angel and many others fear that one day the unthinkable will happen and the walls will fail. They are determined to discover the Titan’s weaknesses before that can happen, but the existing political and religious situation will make that prospect even more difficult than it already is to accomplish.

Most of the stories in Attack on Titan as a whole follow those characters who serve in the military–the people who are on the front lines directly fighting the Titans. Before the Fall, however, focuses on those who work behind the scenes to make those battles possible–the scientists, craftsmen, and engineers. (Granted, by the end of Before the Fall, Angel has become fairly hands-on himself.) It’s an interesting approach, giving a slight spin to an already familiar story, and one that I particularly liked and appreciated. Among other things, Before the Fall shows the development of some of the most iconic technology in Attack on Titan, the three-dimensional maneuvering gear. But as intriguing as the story is in Before the Fall, sadly the writing itself isn’t particularly engaging and the novel ends up being fairly slow going despite several intense action sequences. There were also a few frustratingly obvious oversights made by the characters; I found it difficult to believe that their logic would have been so flawed. Ultimately, I liked the premise of Before the Fall much more than its execution.

Although the writing might not be the best, where Before the Fall excels is in providing Attack on Titan with more thoroughly grounded worldbuilding, backstory, and lore. Suzukaze not only explores the development and creation of the equipment and weapons that will be used to fight the Titans, he also shows the beginning of the unrest between the general population, the military and government, and the religious cults and factions. There is enough of a basic introduction to the world that even readers who aren’t familiar with Attack on Titan should be able to easily follow Before the Fall, but the novel will appeal most to those who already know and enjoy the franchise. Before the Fall doesn’t tend to have the overwhelmingly bleak atmosphere of the original manga series, but it is still definitely a part of Attack on Titan, meaning that there are many casualties and several gruesome and horrifying turns of events. The air of dark mystery generally found in Attack on Titan remains in Before the Fall, as do the desperate punctuations of human hope and determination in the face of annihilation.

Manga the Week of 10/8

October 2, 2014 by Sean Gaffney, Ash Brown, Michelle Smith, Anna N and MJ 3 Comments

SEAN: Manga. Lots. Let’s go.

It wasn’t on Amazon 2 weeks ago, but now I see there is a release for Volume 9 of Ze. A series whose release dates are almost as convoluted as its content.

ASH: I was wondering what was going on with Ze‘s releases.

SEAN: Sadly, Kodansha did not stick with the original title for this series, GDGD-DOGS. But Manga Dogs works just as well, and for fans of Missions of Love it’s by the same author, and has another reverse harem.

MICHELLE: Huh. While Missions of Love was not for me, I kind of liked Toyama’s I Am Here!. Still, I dunno… the temptation is pretty faint.

ANNA: I like reverse harem as much as the next gal, but this isn’t really on my radar.

SEAN: And there’s also the 9th volume of Missions of Love as well, featuring the most likeable, well-adjusted cast in all of shoujo.

ASH: Ha!

SEAN: And the 5th volume of Vinland Saga, which is unlikely to get a shoujo spinoff in Aria anytime soon, unless Ylva ends up going to high school in Japan or somesuch.

ASH: I… would actually read that. (And I’m definitely reading Vinland Saga!)

ANNA: I would also read that! Vinland Saga is so well-executed, each new volume is a treat.

SEAN: Seven Seas has the first volume of Magical Girl Apocalypse, which seems to be for folks who thought Madoka Magica to be too light-hearted and cheerful. But hey, Akita Shoten license! A rarity these days.

And there’s a 2nd Strike Witches: 1937 Fuso Sea Incident.

Vertical has an 11th volume of Knights of Sidonia, which I hope will have more cute romance and action sci-fi (and perhaps a bit less tragic horror?).

ASH: One can never tell with Knights of Sidonia.

MICHELLE: I absolutely must get caught back up on this series. Looks like we’ll be caught up to Japan fairly soon, too.

ANNA: I need to get caught up too! I am so pleased that we have so many manga titles set in SPACE!

MJ: This!!

SEAN: The rest is Viz. If you didn’t pick up the 2nd Food Wars! When it came out digitally, it’s now available in print. I’m hoping for slightly less naked food reactions, but I know there will be some.

ASH: I still prefer my manga in print, so I’ve been waiting to pick up the second volume until now.

MICHELLE: I’m actually kinda looking forward to this.

ANNA: I thought that there were glimmerings of an interesting title here, but I have to admit when I read the first volume I was put off by all the upskirt panels and naked food reactions.

MJ: I’m cautiously optimistic.

SEAN: Happy Marriage?! continues to be a very ironic title as we hit Vol. 8.

MICHELLE: This series has grown on me, so I’ll definitely be checking out volume eight.

ANNA: I think it has gotten a bit meandering as the series go along, but I’ll still read every volume shortly after it comes out.

SEAN: Then there’s Honey Blood, which (say it with me, folks) has vampires in it! The cover art makes me go >_> a bit, but I’m hoping that the relationship in this series is not as unequal as it first seems.

ANNA: Did someone say supernatural shoujo!? I hope this is more like Midnight Secretary than Black Bird. Will be checking it out for sure.

SEAN: Heartwarming supernatural shoujo #1: Kamisama Kiss, which has gotten up to Vol. 16, and shows no sign of ending anytime soon.

MICHELLE: Yay! I like it, but I think I still prefer the author’s Karakuri Odette.

ANNA: I actually like it more than Karakuri Odette! This series is consistently charming.

SEAN: I was a huge fan of the first My Love Story!!, despite the multiple exclamation marks, and look forward to seeing where it goes from here.

ASH: I absolutely loved the first volume of My Love Story!! So much so, here are a few extra !!! for good measure.

MICHELLE: My Love Story!! is a glorious thing. Volume two has been in my Amazon cart for a few weeks now.

ANNA: I have read this volume and loved it just as much as the first!!!!!!!!!

MJ: Definitely looking forward to this… so sweet.

SEAN: Naruto seems to be finally grinding to a slow halt, but that still leaves several volumes to go. And several more times for Sasuke to turn evil.

Heartwarming supernatural shoujo #2: Natsume’s Book of Friends, which has gotten up to Vol. 17, and shows no sign of ending anytime soon.

MICHELLE: Yay! I suppose this means I am a sucker for heartwarming supernatural shoujo.

SEAN: Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan has started its final arc, but that’s going to be a few volumes as well. Here’s the 23rd.

If you missed One Piece the first time around, the 3-in-1 is the perfect catchup, and it’s at Vol. 10.

Oresama Teacher is not supernatural, and I wouldn’t call it consistently heartwarming, but if you want funny shoujo, this is the manga for you, and I adore it. Here’s Vol. 17.

MICHELLE: Maybe it’s the lack of heartwarmitude that makes me only like this one. I catch up on it periodically, but I don’t love it.

ANNA: I do love it, just because it is so ridiculous. This is the only long-running comedy title that has consistently captured my interest.

SEAN: The new arc in Toriko will apparently focus on Komatsu rather than Toriko, as it’s a cooking battle. Should be fun.

Voice Over: Seiyu Academy is over halfway done, and I’m hoping we see a bit more fleshing out of the male lead soon beyond “CATS”.

MICHELLE: *snerk* I do like the cat bits, though. And, surprisingly, I’m rather enjoying Voice Over.

SEAN: Lastly, we get the debut of a new Jump title as well as its 2nd volume, as Viz pushes a fast start to World Trigger. It’s at 8+ volumes in Japan, so has broken the “early Jump cancellation” curse. Should be interesting.

ASH: I’ve recently heard some good things about World Trigger. And two volumes at once? I may have to check it out.

MICHELLE: Whereas I have heard precisely zero things about it! I’ll wait for Ash’s review to decide.

ANNA: I know nothing about this but I will be reading it!

MJ: I’ll be checking this out for sure.

SEAN: Are you exhausted yet? What manga here makes you want to take it home?

Manga Giveaway: Triton of the Sea Giveaway Winner

October 1, 2014 by Ash Brown

And the winner of the Triton of the Sea manga giveaway is…Haley S.!

As the winner, Haley will be receiving a copy of the first omnibus in Osamu Tezuka’s series Triton of the Sea. About a year ago, I came to the realization that I had read quite a few manga that featured merfolk of one sort or another. And so for this giveaway, I was interested in learning about all of the mermaids and mermen that other people had come across while reading manga. I’ve complied a list below of manga that feature merfolk, but be sure to check out the giveaway comments for more details on some of them.

Some of the manga in English featuring merfolk:
Castle of Dreams by Masami Tsuda
Children of the Sea by Daisuke Igarashi
A Centaur’s Life by Kei Murayama
Berserk by Kentaro Miura
The Earl and the Fairy by Ayuko
Legendz written by Rin Hirai, illustrated Makoto Haruno
Mermaid Saga by Rumiko Takahashi
Monster Musume: Everyday Life with Monster Girls by Okayado
Moon Child by Reiko Shimizu
One Piece by Eiichiro Oda
Pichi Pichi Pitch written by Michiko Yokote, illustrated by Pink Hanamori
Princess Mermaid by Junko Mizuno
Selfish Mr. Mermaid by Nabako Kamo
Triton of the Sea by Osamu Tezuka
Tropic of the Sea by Satoshi Kon

I was a little lenient with the definition of merfolk above (mostly because I wanted an excuse to include Daisuke Igarashi’s Children of the Sea) and I’m certain that it’s not a comprehensive list, either. But, it should be a good place to start if you’re looking for some mermen or mermaids in manga. Thank you to everyone who participated in this month’s giveaway; I hope to see you all again for the next one, too!

Pick of the Week: Priapus & more

September 29, 2014 by Ash Brown, Sean Gaffney, Michelle Smith, Anna N and MJ 2 Comments

ASH: It’s a very small shipping list this week for manga, but it also contains one of the volumes that I’m especially excited to see being released in English—Mentaiko Itto’s Priapus. After Gengoroh Tagame’s work, Priapus will be the first gay manga to receive a wide release in English as Bruno Gmünder expands its Gay Manga line. Itto’s work will probably appeal to a broader audience as well, seeing as Tagame’s can be rather…intense.

SEAN: It’s not really in my wheelhouse, but I can’t deny that Priapus should definitely be the pick of the week. That said, I’ll go with a title I will actually be reading, which is the new volume of My Little Monster, a fun shoujo series from our friends at Kodansha.

MICHELLE: I’m in the same boat as Sean. Priapus could be awesome, but the one I’m guaranteed to buy is the latest installment of My Little Monster. It’s in my Amazon cart as we speak!

ANNA: It is cool that more gay manga is being made available in English! That being said, I’m excited for the latest volume of Gundam: The Origin. I’m looking forward to setting aside a long afternoon soon to get caught up on all the space battles and Char Aznable being all Aznably.

MJ: I’ll bring things full-circle here, because the only thing on my list this week is Priapus. I’m thrilled that it is being released, and even though I realize I’m not its intended audience, I’m pretty psyched to read it as well.

What looks good to you this week?

My Week in Manga: September 22-September 28, 2014

September 29, 2014 by Ash Brown

My News and Reviews

Last week unintentionally turned into an Osamu Tezuka Week at Experiments in Manga…sort of. First of all, this month’s manga giveaway features Tezuka’s Triton of the Sea. Tell me a little about the merfolk you’ve encountered in manga for a chance to win the first omnibus of the series. (The winner will be selected and announced on Wednesday, so you still have a little time!) I also reviewed Dororo, Volume 3. Out of all of Tezuka’s manga that has so far been released in English, Dororo is one of my personal favorites. It’s currently available from Vertical in an omnibus edition which contains the entire series, however it may not be reprinted. I highly recommend picking up a copy sooner rather than later if it seems like a series you’d be interested in. And then for something completely different, over the weekend I reviewed the tenth-century classic The Tale of the Cavern (also known as The Tale of the Hollow Tree) which has absolutely nothing to do with Tezuka, but everything to do with music, love, and Heian-era court life.

In other news, the second volume of Lianne Sentar’s Tokyo Demons is now available for purchase as an ebook from the Sparkler Shop, which means the print edition will be released in the near future as well! (If you missed my early review of the novel, I loved it.) And speaking of Sparkler, the membership drive is still going on. If Sparkler Monthly doesn’t get at least 1,000 subscribers it most likely won’t be able to continue beyond its second year, which would make me extraordinarily sad. Please consider supporting Sparkler Monthly, if you can!

Elsewhere online, Shonen Jump is soliciting questions for Takeshi Obata, who will be a guest at New York Comic Con this year. If, like me, you can’t make it out to NYCC, Obata’s panel will thankfully be streamed live online. (Hopefully it will also be recorded.) In London, the Cartoon Museum is currently showing the exhibit Gekiga: Alternative Manga from Japan. To coincide with the exhibition, The Cartoonists’ Club of Great Britain wrote a brief introduction to gekiga. Finally, Vertical released a particularly interesting post on its Tumblr account about manga’s English-language market and specifically about the pricing of books.

Quick Takes

Battle Angel Alita: Last Order, Volume 19 by Yukito Kishiro. Last Order was my introduction to the Battle Angel Alita universe. It’s probably best described as an alternate ending to the original series. While I was never as taken with Battle Angel Alita as much as other people seem to be, there were parts that I really enjoyed: interesting characters and character designs, martial arts, great action scenes, and so on. But the plot just never seemed to pull together in a way that satisfied me. I didn’t realize or expect that the nineteenth volume would be the final volume of Last Order. It’s also one of the most frustrating volumes as Kishiro seems to rush through the story in order to bring everything to some sort of conclusion and, in my opinion, fails to do so. Even more disappointing is the fact that Alita doesn’t even really make much of an appearance in it. Apparently there is yet another Battle Angel Alita series that will soon be starting in Japan, but I have no idea how it relates to Last Order. There was certainly enough left confused and unresolved in Last Order that there’s plenty of material for Kishiro to choose from.

Devils and Realist, Volume 2 written by Madoka Takadono and illustrated by Utako Yukihiro. Although I mostly enjoyed the first volume of Devils and Realist, I was unsure how far I wanted to pursue the series and so decided to read at least one more volume. After reading the second installment, I can say that I’ll probably be reading even more of Devils and Realist in the future. Generally stronger than the first volume and more even in tone, the second volume takes a slightly more serious and dramatic turn. The series’ humor is still present though, interspersed among the more life-threatening events of the manga and the story’s other dangerous mysteries. Yukihiro’s artwork and character designs are very attractive, and as a whole there are some definite homoerotic undertones to the manga as well. Readers’ enjoyment of Devils and Realist will probably largely depend on how well they like the lead and his personality. I, for one, am greatly amused by William’s refusal to believe in the supernatural despite it staring him in the face as he stubbornly tries to come up with any other possible explanation for the strangeness going on in his life.

Fairy Tail, Volumes 40-42 by Hiro Mashima. I’ve only read two series by Mashima–Fairy Tail and Monster Soul–but out of those two, I find that Fairy Tail is the better manga. The long Grand Magic Games tournament arc has now finally reached its conclusion with the fortieth volume. While I did find some of the Games enjoyable, for the most part I’m happy to be moving on to battles that actually have some real purpose and meaning behind them beyond securing bragging rights; I tend to enjoy Fairy Tail more when it feels like there’s something at stake. I’m glad to see the beginning of a new story arc that promises just that–things are starting to get a bit more serious again. (Granted, there was the whole dragon invasion during the Games arc; the possibility that the world will be destroyed is a pretty big deal.) It also looks like Gray will be getting some significant page time, too, which I’m not going to complain about. The Fairy Tail Guild’s latest mission requires Gray to confront his painful memories and past tragedies. It isn’t a pleasant experience for him, but he is also able to draw incredible strength from it.

Hetalia: Axis Powers, Volume 6 by Hidekaz Himaruya. Perhaps by this point I should no longer be surprised, but I always seem to unexpectedly learn something new whenever I read Hetalia. Sometimes it’s a historical tidbit, and sometimes it’s actually something more closely related to current events. This particular volume of Hetalia features micronations and Molossia makes an appearance among several others. (I had never even heard of Molossia before, and it’s in Nevada!) The Nordic states are also an important part of the sixth volume, which includes Iceland. (Ever since writing a report on Iceland in the sixth grade, I’ve always been interested in and fond of the country, so I did get a kick out of that.) Often the humor in Hetalia does require some familiarity with or prior knowledge of world history and politics to really appreciate it, so in the process of trying to make sense of some of the jokes I find that I’m learning about all sorts of interesting things. Admittedly, Hetalia frequently makes use of stereotypes as part of its gags, which some people may find offensive and has generated a fair amount of controversy.

The Tale of the Cavern

September 27, 2014 by Ash Brown

Author: Minamoto no Shitagō
Translator: Ziro Uraki
Publisher: Shinozaki Shorin
ISBN: 9784784104376
Released: 1984
Original release: 10th Century

While reading The World of the Shining Prince: Court Life in Ancient Japan, I encountered quite a few references to a work of fiction called Utsuho Monogatari. Written in the late tenth century, most likely by the famous scholar and poet Minamoto no Shitagō, it is considered to be one of the first, if not the first, long-form narratives of Japan. That in and of itself caught my attention, but I became even more interested in reading Utsuho Monogatari (sometimes written as Utsubo Monogatari) when I learned how important of a role music played in the tale and that it was an immediate precursor to and major influence on The Tale of Genji. However, I did have a bit of trouble finding a translation of the complete work. Thankfully, with some help from other readers of classic Japanese literature, I discovered Ziro Uraki’s 1984 English translation from the Japanese publisher Shinozaki Shorin The Tale of the Cavern. (Somewhat unusual, as the title is more often translated in English as The Tale of the Hollow Tree.) Uraki was also the first person to translate Utsuho Monogatari from tenth-century Japanese into modern Japanese.

During the reign of Emperor Saga lived a young nobleman named Toshikage who was admired for his beauty, talent, and learning. At the age of sixteen he was ordered to join the embassy to China. However, the three ships that set sail for the continent encountered a large tempest and Toshikage, shipwrecked on the coast of Persia, was the only survivor. It would be many, many years before Toshikage would be able to return to Japan, bringing with him impressive musical skill and a collection of mystical koto gifted to him by the Heavens during his wanderings. These koto and the secrets to playing them–songs that could cause great storms and make the earth tremble or heal those who heard them–would be kept and cherished by his family for four generations. Toshikage’s descendents and their musical abilities were highly sought after, bringing them both strife and fortune in politics as well as love. Their lives would become closely entwined with those of the other nobility in the capital and even with those of the members of the Imperial family itself.

While the beginning of The Tale of the Cavern contains many fantastical elements, the rest of the novel tends to be much more realistic, following the political and romantic affairs of its many characters. However, the magic never entirely disappears from the tale and the novel both begins and ends with the magnificence and marvel of music. Proficiency in the arts–music, calligraphy, dance, poetry, and so on–was a highly desired quality among Heian-era nobility. Those who had such skill in The Tale of the Cavern were rewarded for their diligent study and natural talent, rising quickly through the ranks and securing advantageous marriages and promotions for themselves and their relatives. In addition to music, poetry in particular was a very important part of both court life in Heian-era Japan and in the novel iteself. The Tale of the Cavern is filled with poetry and numerous declarations of love–skillful wordplay was appreciated nearly as much as a person’s status and influenced the regard and esteem in which they were held by others.

As a story of music and love, I couldn’t help but be drawn to The Tale of the Cavern. I don’t think it will necessarily appeal to a general, modern audience, but readers who are interested in classical Japan and Japanese literature would be fortunate to read the novel. (If they can find it, that is.) The narrative does wander a bit, and the plot of the story isn’t especially driving, either. The individual chapters and the characters and events in them are related, but they aren’t always closely tied together; it can sometimes be difficult to tell just exactly how much time has passed between one and the next. Even so, The Tale of the Cavern provides a fascinating glimpse into Heian court life and all of the social and political maneuverings involved; granted, with a heavy dose of romance and just a touch of the fantastic and supernatural added to the novels’ more realistic elements. But I, for one, was glad to have the opportunity to read Utsuho Monogatari in its entirety.

Dororo, Vol. 3

September 26, 2014 by Ash Brown

Creator: Osamu Tezuka
U.S. publisher: Vertical
ISBN: 9781934287187
Released: August 2008
Original run: 1968-1969
Awards: Eisner Award

Osamu Tezuka was an extraordinarily prolific and influential creator of manga and anime. So far, only a small fraction of his total output has been released in English. Out of those, one of my personal favorites is his short manga series Dororo. With yokai, an accursed swordsman, and the inclusion of historical elements, I can’t help but like Dororo. Although eventually releasing an omnibus containing the entire series, initially Vertical published Dororo in three separate volumes which earned an Eisner Award in 2009. Dororo, Volume 3, released in 2008, contains the portion of the series that was originally serialized in Japan between 1968 and 1969. It was also during that time period that Dororo went on hiatus. Tezuka abandoned the manga for a year, leaving it without an ending, before returning to it when the Dororo anime series began. The manga was then given a proper conclusion, albeit a much shorter one than was first envisioned. The finale admittedly ended up being a bit rushed, but I love Dororo anyway.

Chased by demons and in turn chasing them down, Hyakkimaru is slowly regaining his forty-eight missing body parts one at a time; each demon he defeats brings him closer to becoming whole. Often it’s not the terrifying supernatural beings that Hyakkimaru must really worry about, though. Humans–with all of their failings, greed, and lust for power–can be just as dangerous as any monster. Hyakkimaru’s father, who selfishly sacrificed his own son’s body in exchange for demonic aid, has become an oppressive warlord. Hyakkimaru isn’t the only one suffering because of his father’s ambitions. The country is being torn apart by war and it’s the farmers and commoners who are being forced to support and fight for leaders they didn’t choose. Dororo, Hyakkimaru’s young traveling companion, also has a family legacy left to deal with. The diminutive thief’s late father was a bandit who amassed a significant amount of wealth. The map to the location of his treasure was tattooed upon his child’s back and now Dororo is pursued by those who want the riches for their own corrupt purposes.

Dororo is one of Tezuka’s transitional works as he began to develop more mature, adult-oriented stories in contrast to his more lighthearted manga generally intended for younger audiences. Dororo addresses serious issues like war and discrimination, but it also incorporates charm, humor, and bittersweet joy. One particular bright spot to balance the darker elements of the series is the titular Dororo. The small thief has led a hard life and can empathize with others and their misfortunes, becoming an exuberant and enthusiastic champion for their causes, while somehow remaining optimistic and cheerful in the face of all the unfairness and tragedy. Hyakkimaru, on the other hand, has an even more dire past than Dororo and has grown weary of the injustices in the world. But the time Hyakkimaru has spent with Dororo as they travel across Japan has changed him. Dororo’s positivity has rubbed off on Hyakkimaru and he has come to care for the youngster immensely. Whether Hyakkimaru realizes it or not, he desperately needed someone like Dororo in his otherwise bleak life.

The relationship that develops between Hyakkimaru and Dororo is only one component of many that makes me appreciate what Tezuka is doing with the series, even if it did end up being truncated. I was initially drawn to Dororo because of Hyakkimaru’s horrifying origin story and his fight to regain what he lost, searching for somewhere to belong and wanting nothing more than to live in peace. His specific situation may be unique, but that desire to be accepted by others is nearly universal. I also liked the supernatural elements in Dororo and how Tezuka slowly shifts the focus of the series to issues more firmly based in reality. The demons and monsters never completely disappear from Dororo, but as the manga progresses the historical influences and more realistic aspects of the manga become increasingly prominent. Among other things, Tezuka’s artwork and storytelling in Dororo takes inspiration from traditional legends and tales, samurai films, and events from Japan’s Warring States period, but he also incorporates his own touches and imagination and pulls it all together in a way that only Tezuka can.