Ash Brown

Bookshelf Overload: January 2016

February 7, 2016 by Ash Brown

Another month has passed and my manga collection continues to grow and evolve. The nice thing about December and January is that I usually end up with at least a few gift cards (and gifts), so I can splurge a bit even though I’m actively reducing the number of manga and books I’m buying at the moment. There are a few things that I definitely didn’t want to miss out on though, such as Requiem of the Rose King, Volume 3 by Aya Kanno (review to come soon!) and Orange, Omnibus 1 by Ichigo Takano, which at the moment is a strong candidate for becoming one of my favorite series of the year. Also released in January, though I’m not sure when I’ll be able to actually get around to reading it, was Casey Brienza’s Manga in America: Transnational Book Publishing and the Domestication of Japanese Comics, one of the very few works about the North American manga industry. I also managed to snag an early copy of Tokyo Decadence, a “best of” collection of short stories by Ryu Murakami due to be released in March. (I recently posted my review of the volume which, though engaging, definitely won’t be to everyone’s taste.) Also arriving in January, though technically I believe it was released in December, was one of Chromatic Press’ most recent paperbacks, KaiJu’s delightful Mahou Josei Chimaka . (Unsurprisingly, I reviewed that one, too!)

Manga!
Aldnoah.Zero: Season One, Volume 1 by Olympus Knights
Brave Dan by Osamu Tezuka
Clockwork Apple by Osamu Tezuka
Even So, I Will Love You Tenderly by Kou Yoneda
A Girl on the Shore by Inio Asano
Kamisama Kiss, Volumes 2-4 by Julietta Suzuki
Kaze Hikaru, Volumes 8-11 by Taeko Watanabe
My Love Story!!, Volume 7 written by Kazune Kawahara, illustrated by Aruko
Natsume’s Book of Friends, Volumes 4-8 by Yuki Midorikawa
Of the Red, the Light, and the Ayakashi, Volume 1 written by HaccaWorks*, illustrated by Nanao
Orange, Omnibus 1 by Ichigo Takano
Requiem of the Rose King, Volume 3 by Aya Kanno
The Tyrant Falls In Love, Volume 9 by Hinako Takanaga

Comics!
Bug Boys, Volume 1: Welcome to Bug Village by Laura Knetzger
Mahou Josei Chimaka by KaiJu
Shades After by T. A. Kimpton
The Tipping Point edited by Various

Novels!
A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara

Anthologies!
Biogenesis by Tatsuaki Ishiguro
Tokyo Decadence: 15 Stories by Ryu Murakami

Nonfiction!
Manga in America by Casey Brienza
Sake Confidential by John Gauntner

Anime!
Ouran High School Host Club directed by Takuya Igarashi

Tokyo Decadence: 15 Stories

February 5, 2016 by Ash Brown

Author: Ryu Murakami
Translator: Ralph McCarthy
U.S. publisher: Kurodahan Press
ISBN: 9784902075786
Released: March 2016
Original release: 1986-2003

Ryu Murakami is a fairly prolific and multi-talented creator. In addition to being an author, he is also a filmmaker and has been involved in the music industry as well. Several of Murakami’s novels have been translated into English, many of them by Ralph McCarthy, including Audition and Popular Hits of the Showa Era which were my introduction to Murakami’s work. McCarthy is also responsible for compiling and translating Tokyo Decadence: 15 Stories, a sort of best-of collection bringing together fifteen of Murakami’s short stories originally published in Japan between 1986 and 2003. Nine of the stories had previously been translated and released in a variety of different periodicals, but the translations have been revised for their inclusion in Tokyo Decadence. The remaining six are being published in English for the first time. Published by Kurodahan Press in 2016, I was fortunate enough to be selected to receive an advanced copy through LibraryThing’s Early Reviewers program.

The fifteen stories included in Tokyo Decadence are selected from five of Murakami’s short story collections and are presented chronologically. “Whenever I Sit At a Bar Drinking Like This,” “I Am a Novelist,” “It All Started Just About a Year and a Half Ago,” and “Each Time I read Your Confession” are from Run, Takahashi! and are all at least tangentially related to the baseball player Takahashi Yoshihiko. (It was this collection that seems to have ignited McCarthy’s passion for Murakami’s work.) The stories from Topaz—”Topaz,” “Lullaby,” and “Penlight”—are about call girls while the stories from Ryumiko’s Cinematheque—”The Last Picture Show,” “The Wild Animals” and “La Dolce Vita”—would appear to be at least semi-autobiographical. “Swans,” “Historia de un Amor.” “Se Fué,” and “All of Me” are taken from Swan, and most have something to do with Cuban dance and music and even share a few characters. Tokyo Decadence closes with the titular story from the collection At the Airport.

Having previously read some of Murakami’s work, I was rightfully prepared for Tokyo Decadence to be engaging while revealing a viciously dark sense of humor and dealing in gut-churning blood and gore. What I didn’t expect was that some of the stories, or at least parts of those stories, would be legitimately charming, compelling, and even occasionally heartwarming. Among the tales of gruesome murder, insanity, lust, obsession, and a myriad types of abuse are moments of love and humanity. That being said, Tokyo Decadence is very much a graphic and explicit collection of mature short stories, often disturbing and dark with very few characters who are anything but self-absorbed or self-indulgent. The stories are well-written, but the warped depravity and intensely twisted psychology exhibited will certainly not be to every reader’s taste and will likely offend or be found off-putting by many.

Surprisingly, Tokyo Decadence starts in a fairly lighthearted vein before delving into its more devastating and grotesque aspects. The portrayals of the various characters in the collection aren’t particularly flattering. Many of them are rather disturbed individuals, making Murakami’s use of first-person narration especially discomfiting. Interestingly, quite a few of the stories are actually seen from a woman’s perspective. This of course doesn’t soften the seedier nature of Tokyo Decadence which is quite frank in its exploration of sex and violence, the two subjects often closely intertwined with each other. Although some of the stories arguably lose some of their impact out of context from their original collections, overall I found Tokyo Decadence to be an interesting, engaging, and varied anthology; I would be very curious to read more of Murakami’s short fiction in translation.

Thank you to Kurodahan Press for providing a copy of Tokyo Decadence for review.

Manga the Week of 2/10

February 4, 2016 by Sean Gaffney, Ash Brown, Michelle Smith, MJ and Anna N 1 Comment

SEAN: Next week and the week after are blissfully small, allowing most of us to recover from the hideous amount of manga that we still have to read. This does not mean there are not some interesting things coming out, however.

Fans of Berserk might be interested in the new science fiction manga by its creator, called Giganto Maxia. Kate Dacey already gave it a review here.

ASH: As a fan of Berserk, I’m definitely interested in this, but Miura’s other manga have been pretty hit-or-miss for me.

SEAN: Seven Seas has a third volume of fantasy parody-ish manga 12 Beast.

Their new title this week is Angel Beats! Heaven’s Door, based on the visual novel by Key. Whenever I see the words ‘visual novel’ and ‘Key’ together, I know I’m in for some tear-jerking, heartwarming tragedy, and I suspect that will be the case here as well.

There’s a 2nd volume of fantasy Mushoku Tensei.

SubLime, which has been awfully quiet recently, has a 5th volume of Awkward Silence, which is what happens when I ask out loud why they’ve been so quiet recently.

ASH: Not my favorite Takanaga manga, but it does have it’s charm.

SEAN: Udon gives us the debut of the Persona 4 manga in North America, and get ready for me to be saying ‘Persona’ quite a bit this year, as other companies are also dipping their toe into those waters.

ASH: I know quite a few Persona fans, so I’m actually rather curious about this release despite never having played the game myself.

SEAN: Viz time. We have reached the end of Deadman Wonderland with the 13th volume, and I can only assume they’re out of prison at last?

Hayate the Combat Butler continues to not sell well enough to have more than 2 volumes a year, but well enough not to be cancelled. Here’s a 27th volume.

Lastly, there’s a 16th volume of one of my favorites, Magi.

MICHELLE: I guess this is the only thing I’m buying this week. This’ll make my pick of the week easy!

MJ: And I guess I’ll just have to live vicariously through you. Wow.

ANNA: Magi is also the only thing I’m enthusiastic about this week. I’ve even started reading through some of my stockpiled volumes, although I have a long way to go before I get to the 16th volume.

SEAN: What’s your manga valentine?

Manga Giveaway: Love at Fourteen Giveaway Winner

February 3, 2016 by Ash Brown

And the winner of the Love at Fourteen Giveaway is… wandering-dreamer!

As the winner, wandering-dreamer (whose writing I happen to follow at both Narrative Investigations and TheOASG) will be receiving a copy of Fuka Mizutani’s Love at Fourteen, Volume 1 as published in English by Yen Press. Love at Fourteen features a sweet story of first love, so for this giveaway I asked participants to tell me a little about some of their favorite romantic manga. Be sure to check out the giveaway comments for the detailed responses!

Some favorite manga love stories released in English:
Apothecarius Argentum by Tomomi Yamashita
Black-Winged Love by Tomoko Yamashita
A Bride’s Story by Kaoru Mori
Emma by Kaoru Mori
Hide & Seek by Yaya Sakuragi
Horimiya written by HERO, illustrated by Daisuke Hagiwara
Kare Kano: His and Her Circumstances by Masami Tsuda
Kamisama Kiss by Julietta Suzuki
Love at Fourteen by Fuka Mizutani
My Love Story written by Kazune Kawahara, illustrated by Aruko
Nana by Ai Yazawa
Orange by Ichigo Takano
Sand Chronicles Hinako Ashihara
Strobe Edge by Io Sakisaka
Tramps Like Us by Yayoi Ogawa

So, if you’re looking for something a little romantic to read, the above manga may give you a good place to start. Thank you to everyone who shared your favorites with me; I hope to see you all around again for the next giveaway!

Pick of the Week: Selling the Drama

February 1, 2016 by Sean Gaffney, MJ, Michelle Smith, Anna N and Ash Brown Leave a Comment

SEAN: As always with Viz weeks, there’s a terrifying amount of stuff coming out I’m interested in. But as a drama major, I’d be remiss if I did not pick Behind the Scenes!!, Bisco Hatori’s new shoujo series about a college drama club. I’m a sucker for Hatori anyway, so the drama club is just the icing on the cake.

MJ: Considering the fact that I train young people in the performing arts for a living, I feel like my pick this week is a bit of a betrayal. But though I’m definitely interested Behind the Scenes, I find that I can’t resist the draw (drawings?) of one of my favorite artists, Takeshi Obata. Though I’ve had issues with his collaborations of late, I admit to having high hopes with Tsugumi Ohba out of the picture this time. I guess we’ll see! Meanwhile, count me in for School Judgment. I wouldn’t miss it for the world.

MICHELLE: Both of the above are my most intense desires this week, but I am going to give the edge to the shoujo goodness of Behind the Scenes!!. I also harbor a secret desire that Tamaki turns up in some capacity.

ANNA: Shoujo for the win! Behind the Scenes!! is also my pick of the week. Drama club hijinks from Bisco Hatori sounds like just the thing to beat the wintertime blues.

ASH: While Behind the Scenes!! is definitely of great interest to me, I’ll have to admit that I’m actually more in the mood for some epic over-the-top face-punching ridiculousness this week (January was rough), so bring on the next volume of Battle Tendency for me!

My Week in Manga: January 25-January 31, 2016

February 1, 2016 by Ash Brown

My News and Reviews

A couple of different things were posted at Experiments in Manga last week in addition to the usual My Week in Manga feature. First up was the first manga giveaway of the year, and there’s still time to enter for a chance to win Fuka Mizutani’s Love at Fourteen, Volume 1. Last week I also reviewed the first omnibus of Hiroaki Samura’s Die Wergelder, which is brutal and intense to say the least. The manga is greatly influenced by violent, erotic Japanese films from the 1970s and it shows. And speaking of explicit manga, Digital Manga’s Project-H imprint is currently running a Kickstarter campaign to publish Yamatogawa’s Vanilla Essence hentai collection. It seems like Digital Manga is now relying on Kickstarter projects for just about everything, and I have no idea how long the publisher will be able to last like that; it’s a bit concerning.

Quick Takes

The Ancient Magus’ Bride, Volume 3 by Kore Yamazaki. I continue to love The Ancient Magus’ Bride and look forward to future volumes a great deal. The series has this sort of atmospheric melancholy to it that I really like along with touches of horror and darkness that have yet to become overwhelmingly bleak. In large part, The Ancient Magus’ Bride seems to be dealing with loneliness and the intense longing and need to belong somewhere. It’s only after being purchased by Elias that Chise feels as though she’s actually wanted and that is a dangerously enticing feeling to have. Their relationship is a peculiar one, but it is also compelling. For better or for worse, Chise still knows very little about Elias. He seems very reluctant to reveal his true nature to her, whether out of fear that he will be rejected or for some other reason entirely. What is clear is that Elias is very powerful, very dangerous, and not entirely honest. Despite this and despite the warnings of others, Chise remains devoted to him. She, too, is powerful and dangerous, though she has yet to learn how to completely control and claim that power for her own.

Dog X Cat, Volume 4 by Yoshimi Amasaki. I believe Dog X Cat is up to six volumes or so and still ongoing in Japan, but it seems unlikely that more of the series will be released in English any time soon if ever. It’s been a few years since I read the first three volumes of the boys’ love series, but it didn’t take very long to get reoriented with the manga. The fourth volume is actually a fairly self-contained story, too. Atsu and Junya used to only be best friends but now they’re also well-established lovers. Junya is the more adventurous and demanding when it comes to sex to the point of ignoring Atsu’s needs and desires which is unfortunate; otherwise their relationship is quite good and they obviously love each other. Keeping with the rest of the series, Amasaki finds plenty of opportunities to include sex scenes. However, their vacation-cum-research trip to the mountains takes an extremely unfortunate turn when an earthquake traps them under a burning building. Though there are sweet moments, most of the forth volume of Dog X Cat deals with this traumatizing event and its lasting aftermath.

Library Wars: Love & War, Volumes 11-14 by Kiiro Yumi. I’ll readily admit to enjoying Library Wars and its dramatic and fantastical portrayal of librarianship. I don’t think that librarians will militarize themselves any time soon in the fight for freedom of expression and information, but it does make for an interesting story that does actually explore some of the complexities of the debates surrounding censorship. Library Wars has two sides to it that don’t always mesh with each other very well, but I do like them both. There’s the romantic and comedic side of things as many of the characters come to terms with their evolving feelings for their colleagues and then there’s the more action-oriented part of the story, complete with shootouts and attempted kidnappings. These particular volumes have some pretty exciting developments on both fronts. Although Iku’s ineptitude is often emphasized, which is something that I dislike about the series, she continues to prove her reliability in dangerous situations when it really counts. I didn’t realize that there is only one more volume left in this series, but I’m really looking forward to it; it should be a good one.

Die Wergelder, Omnibus 1

January 29, 2016 by Ash Brown

Creator: Hiroaki Samura
U.S. publisher: Kodansha
ISBN: 9781632361950
Released: December 2015
Original release: 2013-2015

I was very excited when Kodansha Comics announced that it would be releasing Die Wergelder in English. At the time, I actually didn’t know much about the manga series beyond the fact that it was created by Hiroaki Samura, but that was more than enough to capture my attention—Samura’s long-running, award-winning series Blade of the Immortal was one of the first manga that I ever read and it remains a personal favorite. I’ve also throughly enjoyed Samura’s two short manga collections that have been translated, Ohikkoshi and Emerald and Other Stories. As Blade of the Immortal was drawing to a close in Japan, Die Wergelder was just beginning, the first volume being published in 2013. The second volume was released two years later in Japan in 2015. The first installment of Kodansha’s English-language edition of Die Wergelder, also published in 2015, collects both of those volumes.

Shinobu has made a mistake that may very well cost her life. After attempting to run way with a low-ranking yakuza member, along with a rather large sum of his syndicate’s money, the two of them are caught and Ro’s boss isn’t particularly happy with them. Normally Shinbou would likely have been killed without a second thought, but her background happens to make her uniquely qualified for a job that Ro’s boss needs done. She’s more or less forced into accepting and so suddenly finds herself embroiled in the schemes and rivalries of multiple groups. The world of organized crime is fraught with danger and made even more so with the appearance of Träne, an assassin hellbent on revenge against those who have done her tremendous wrong. And then there’s Jie Mao, an opposing bodyguard whose deadly combat skills make her a formidable foe. Shinobu does have the guts and brash attituded needed to survive, but that’s also a large part of why she’s in such trouble to being with.

Die Wergelder is heavily inspired by or at least influenced by 1970s Japanese pink films—theatrical releases steeped with eroticism, nudity, and sex. More specifically, Samura is taking cues from Toei’s Pinky Violence series of films. (Träne’s dark long coat, wide-brimmed hat, and tale of vengeance would appear to be a direct reference to the Female Convict Scorpion films in particular.) Likewise, Die Wergelder contains fairly extreme content, including gratuitous sex and explicit violence. Women and men, although to a somewhat lesser extent, are brutalized and degraded both sexually and physically throughout the story. Die Wergleder is true to its lurid and exploitative roots and the series seems to be self-aware of that. With an additional heavy dose of sadism, it’s certainly not a manga to be lightly recommended to just anyone, though what it does it does well.

By far the most interesting and compelling characters in Die Wergelder are the women. They are easily the most sexualized and objectified as well, but they’re also powerful and terrifying forces to be reckoned with. In comparison, the men of Die Wergelder aren’t particularly memorable, even when they are impressively powerful their own right. Träne and Jie Mao are stunning to watch as they fight. As I’ve come to expect, Samura’s action sequences are dramatic and dynamic. The martial skills shown may frequently be unbelievable, but they are devastatingly effective. With all its brutality and torture, Die Wergelder can be exceptionally violent and gruesome even while being beautifully drawn. It’s a deliberately uncomfortable series, Samura pushing the boundaries of acceptability. Rape, murder, abuse, and unethical medical experimentation are all regular occurrences, and that’s just scraping the surface of the despicable, thrilling, disturbing, titillating, and vicious world that Samura explores in Die Wergelder.

Manga the Week of 2/3

January 28, 2016 by Sean Gaffney, Ash Brown, Anna N, MJ and Michelle Smith Leave a Comment

SEAN: It’s a busy February, so let’s jump right into next week’s releases.

Dark Horse has a 4th volume of Oreimo spinoff Kuroneko.

Kodansha has a 3rd volume of the reluctant reverse harem manga Kiss Him, Not Me!.

ASH: I largely enjoyed the first volume of Kiss Him, Not Me!, but I’ve somehow already managed to fall behind in the series!

SEAN: Seven Seas has a couple of releases. Magika Swordsman and Summoner has reached Vol. 3, which means, given I think the hero is supposed to get a harem of 72 women, it has a ways to go.

And Monster Musume has reached Volume 8, but has not even begun to run out of Monster Girls.

I apologize for leaving out a book last week. Vertical has the first novel of Seraph of the End, whose manga has been coming out via Viz. I think Anna will be interested in this title.

ANNA: I think you are right! Thanks for the heads-up! I am interested in this light novel series, because it features Guren Ichinose, who people have seen in the manga as a more established authority figure. I think the light novel series focuses more on a prequel to the story that’s established in the manga, so it should be really interesting to existing fans of this franchise.

MJ: I’m definitely more interested in this than the manga, so count me in for that, too.

SEAN: There’s also a 3rd omnibus of Tokyo ESP.

MICHELLE: Yay!

MJ: And this!

SEAN: And Viz has its traditional giant pile. There’s an 8th Assassination Classroom, with more wacky death shenanigans. Not that the teacher has ever been killed.

Behind the Scenes!! is the new manga by the creator of Ouran High School Host Club, and it also runs in LaLa. It’s about a shy guy who ends up pulled into a wacky drama club.

MICHELLE: I’m looking forward to this one! Or perhaps I should use two!!

ANNA: Me too!!!!!!

MJ: This is *so* on my list!

SEAN: Bleach has a 14th 3-in-1, which if I recall correctly has some of the best scenes in the entire series for IchiHime shippers like me.

Food Wars! has hit double digits, but the food battle carries on regardless.

MICHELLE: I will always rejoice over more Food Wars.

ASH: I enjoy it as well.

SEAN: JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure has a 2nd volume of its 2nd arc, Battle Tendency. Expect great faces.

ANNA: I really have not much to say about this other than JOJO!!!!

ASH: JooooooJoooooo!!!

SEAN: And Kamisama Kiss is at Volume 20! I really hadn’t expected it to last this long. It’s still great, though.

ANNA: It is a rare series that manages to be so consistently great for so long.

SEAN: Maid-sama! has a 3rd omnibus, and is as problematic yet readable as ever. Hope you like lots of words.

MICHELLE: And yet I like it enough to keep reading.

ANNA: It has moments of charm despite being problematic.

SEAN: And superhero school manga My Hero Academia has a 3rd volume.

Naruto has another of those epilogue light novels, this one called Shikamaru’s Story. My guess is it stars Shikamaru.

One Piece is up to Volume 77, and yes, it’s still in Dressrosa. But who cares, it’s One Piece, it will be awesome.

MICHELLE: I actually never read 76. Must rectify.

SEAN: QQ Sweeper finally gets a 2nd volume. I had wondered where it was.

MICHELLE: I’m looking forward to more of this!

ANNA: Super excited for this!

ASH: Same!

MJ: Yes, yes!! So much yes!

SEAN: School Judgement is a new Weekly Shonen Jump series by the artist who did Bakuman and Death Note, this time paired with a new writer. It’s Ace Attorney meets Jump, I hear?

MICHELLE: And to this!

ANNA: I’m going to check this out for sure.

ASH: I somehow completely missed hearing about this until now.

MJ: I was so surprised to see this, considering the intensity of my Takeshi Obata fandom. I’m so on this.

SEAN: So Cute It Hurts!!!!! now gets 5 punctuation marks for its 5th volume.

MICHELLE: But not so much this.

ANNA: I like it, but it is a middle of the road title. Fun disposable reading though.

SEAN: Toriko has no punctuation parks after its title, and thank God, as it’s Vol. 32.

Lastly, the original Yu-Gi-Oh has a 5th 3-in-1.

What are you going to get from this list?

Manga Giveaway: Love at Fourteen Giveaway

January 27, 2016 by Ash Brown

January is almost over so here it is, Experiments in Manga’s first manga giveaway of the year! Let’s get right to it: For this giveaway you will all have the opportunity to enter for a chance to win Love at Fourteen, Volume 1 created by Fuka Mizutani and published in English by Yen Press. And, as always, the giveaway is open worldwide!

Had I been thinking about it thematically, a giveaway for Love at Fourteen—a sweet and somewhat nostalgic story of first love—would have been nicely suited for a February or March giveaway because of Valentine’s Day or White Day, respectively. Then again, my love of manga and my love of spreading that love cannot be contained or limited to a single month! Looking at it that way, and following a peculiar train of logic, a manga giveaway featuring a love story would be more than appropriate any time of the year. Thus, Love at Fourteen! Because, why not?

So, you may be wondering, how can you win Love at Fourteen, Volume 1?

1) In the comments below, tell me a little about your favorite manga love story. (If you don’t have one, simply mention that!)
2) If you’re on Twitter, you can earn a bonus entry by tweeting, or retweeting, about the contest. Make sure to include a link to this post and @PhoenixTerran (that’s me).

And there you have it! Each giveaway participant can earn up to two entries and has one week to submit comments. Entries can also be emailed directly to me at phoenixterran(at)gmail(dot)com if needed or preferred. I will then post the comments here in your name. The giveaway winner will be randomly selected and announced on February 3, 2016. Best of luck to you all!

VERY IMPORTANT: Include some way that I can contact you. This can be an e-mail address in the comment form, a link to your website, Twitter username, or whatever. If I can’t figure out how to get a hold of you and you win, I’ll just draw another name.

Contest winner announced–Manga Giveaway: Love at Fourteen Giveaway Winner

Pick of the Week: Orange Crush

January 25, 2016 by Michelle Smith, Sean Gaffney, Ash Brown, MJ and Anna N Leave a Comment

MICHELLE: Decisions, decisions! I love My Little Monster and it’s almost over. Orange has definitely got me intrigued. But, if I’m honest, what I’m most eager to experience is the second volume of surprise delight Horimiya. Go buy eet!

SEAN: My pick this week is definitely Orange, and I really enjoy it when Seven Seas picks up a series like this that’s out of their usual wheelhouse. A touching, sweet, somewhat tragic teen romance with time travel overtones. What’s not to love?

ASH: Orange is my pick, too! Although I plan on reading reading several of this week’s releases, the debut of Orange is the one I’m most interested in. I’ve heard good things about the series, so I’ve been looking forward to it.

MJ: I’m interested in Orange for sure, but this week I’ll hop on board with Michelle and the second volume of Horimiya! So, so charming, I honestly can’t wait.

ANNA: Out of everything coming out this week, I’m most interested in Orange, so that is my pick!

My Week in Manga: January 18-January 24, 2016

January 25, 2016 by Ash Brown

My News and Reviews

Two in-depth reviews were posted at Experiments in Manga last week. The first was of The Fall of Language in the Age of English by Minae Mizumura, a fascinating and immensely readable work of nonfiction about literature and language. (Mizumura’s A True Novel also greatly impressed me, so at this point I’ll basically read anything written by her; if only more would be translated!) The second review was of KaiJu’s Mahou Josei Chimaka, one of Chromatic Press’ most recent paperback releases and a delightfully entertaining parody of and a loving homage to the magical girl genre. The comic is playful, humorous, and a lot of fun.

Elsewhere online: The Toronto Comic Arts Festival has announced its first round of featured guests. The list includes Rokudenashiko, whose manga What Is Obscenity? will be making its English-language debut at the festival. Bruno Gmünder will be bringing The Passion of Gengoroh Tagame back into print later this year in a newly revised and expanded edition. Ryan Holmberg’s most recent What Was Alternative Manga? includes a translation of a discussion between Hayashi Seiichi and Sasaki Maki. And on Twitter, Digital Manga is hinting at a launch of another classic manga Kickstarter, only this time it won’t be Tezuka.

Quick Takes

Bug Boys, Volume 1: Welcome to Bug Village by Laura Knetzger. Although I’ve read and enjoyed a few of Knetzger’s short autobiographical comics, I picked up Bug Boys more by chance than anything else. I’m so glad that I did, because I’m absolutely loving this comic. Originally a series of self-published mini-comics, the first book was recently released by Czap Books. The hefty volume collects all of the previously released Bug Boys comics in addition to new, never-before-seen content. The comics are mostly black-and-white, but Knetzger also occasionally uses color. The story follows Rhino-B and Stag-B, two young beetles and best friends living in Bug Village, as they grow up, go on adventures, and explore their world. It’s all incredibly cute and touching, even when the two of them are dealing with some fairly big, weighty issues. Friendly enough for children, but also thoroughly enjoyable for adults, Bug Boys is one of the most wonderfully delightful and charming comics that I’ve read in a very long time. I’ll definitely be keeping an eye out for more of the series and for more of Knetzger’s work.

Butterflies, Flowers, Volume 1 by Yuki Yoshihara. Once wealthy aristocrats, the members of the Kuze family have fallen on hard times. They no longer have any servants and have instead become the masters of a soba noodle shop. Choko is now searching for separate employment, only discovering after the fact that her new boss, Masayuki Domoto, is the son of the family’s old chauffeur. Butterflies, Flowers is a somewhat peculiar romantic comedy that’s hard to take seriously. Granted, I don’t think that the manga is really intended to be taken seriously. And I’ll admit, the first volume of the manga made me laugh on several occasions. The power dynamics in Butterflies, Flowers are all over the place, so it’s difficult to know what to expect from one page to the next, especially where Choko and Domoto are involved. At first Choko doesn’t have much confidence—working in an office is a new experience for her—but every once in a while she’ll take charge of the situation. As for Domoto, he frequently switches from being an overbearing and demanding boss to being completely subservient to the woman and family that used to employ his father.

Terra Formars, Volumes 5-8 written by Yu Sasuga and illustrated by Ken-ichi Tachibana. It’s been a while since I’ve read any of Terra Formars, but it wasn’t too difficult to pick it up again where I left it—even considering the various plot twists, the series is pretty easy to follow and tends to be fairly action-oriented. By far the best thing about Terra Formars for me are the over-the-top battles between super-powered combatants. Not only have humans been crossed with insect genetics, there are examples of those who have been crossed with birds, mammals, aquatic creatures, plants, and even bacteria, giving the individuals a wide variety of incredible abilities. Realistic? Perhaps not, but the resulting battles are epic. (Surprisingly, Terra Formars has actually taught me quite a few things about plants and animals.) The political maneuvering back on Earth, while being portrayed in a very dramatic fashion, frankly doesn’t interest me that much. However, it is that drama that largely propels what little story the series has. It also means that the modified humans end up having to fight each other in addition to the Martian inhabitants.

Mahou Josei Chimaka

January 22, 2016 by Ash Brown

Creator: KaiJu
Publisher: Chromatic Press
ISBN: 9781987988017
Released: December 2015
Original run: 2014-2015

Mahou Josei Chimaka, or Magical Woman Chimaka, is the second long-form comic by KaiJu, a creative team made up of Kate Rhodes and Jennifer Xu, that I’ve had the opportunity to read. The three-chapter comic was originally serialized online in Sparkler Monthly between 2014 and 2015 before being collected and released in both digital and print book editions by Chromatic Press later in 2015. I love everything that Chromatic Press is involved with, but I was especially looking forward to Mahou Josei Chimaka for a number of reasons. Most notably, I was greatly impressed by KaiJu’s previous comic The Ring of Saturn (which also released by Chromatic Press) and have been closely following the team’s work ever since. It also didn’t hurt that in large part Mahou Josei Chimaka is a loving homage to and parody of the magical girl genre. That and it also it ends up being a sweet romance between two women.

Fifteen years ago Shimmer Shimmer Skypatcher Chimaka faced her greatest nemesis and lost, failing to protect her city. While Chimaka was able to temporarily repel the threat, a large portion of the city was laid to waste and left a giant, lifeless crater. Now her enemy has returned, intending to finish the job, only Chimaka isn’t a magical girl anymore. Her life fell apart after that fateful, disastrous encounter and, although she’s back on her feet again, the magic is gone. Chimaka now spends her days working as a scientist at Squid Petroleum and nights drinking with her colleague Pippa with whom she has become very close. But with the return of her old enemy, along with the persistence of a certain government agency which uncovered her past, Chimaka needs to find a way to regain her powers. The ever cheerful Pippa is determined to do all that she can to help Chimaka, but the task that the two of them face is a difficult and daunting one—Chimaka must once more become Shimmer Shimmer Skypatcher if she wants to save the world.

Mahou Josei Chimaka is crafted to especially appeal to readers who are fans of the magical girl genre (or, in this particular case, the magical woman genre) and who are interested in a slightly different approach than is often seen. While it’s not absolutely necessary to be familiar with the common tropes and themes of the genre—Mahou Josei Chimaka is completely enjoyable as a story in its own right—readers who are will be in a better position to truly appreciate the entirety of the comic and its satire. The elements one would expect to see in a magical girl story are all present in Mahou Josei Chimaka, including but certainly not limited to animal companions, transformation sequences, dazzling accessories, and an emphasis on the power of love. But these have all been slightly skewed through the lens of Chimaka’s growth into cynical adulthood. And yet, while KaiJu’s interpretation of the magical girl genre is honest and mature, it doesn’t become dark and depressing.

Mahou Josei Chimaka is a delightfully funny and charming comic. Much of this comes from the contrasting but complimentary personalities of the comics’ two leading women and the sweetness of their blossoming relationship, but as a whole Mahou Josei Chimaka is very playful. KaiJu has a great sense of humor which comes through not only in the story and characters, but in the artwork as well. The artists alternate between using more realistic illustrations and those that are exaggerated for great comedic effect. The final chapter does perhaps rush the story’s climax a bit as the creators pull out all the stops for the epic final battle, but it’s a sort of intentional ridiculousness that’s highly entertaining. Although preventing the end of the world is serious business, Mahou Josei Chimaka mixes in silliness in the best sort of way. I enjoyed the comic on my first read but I find that I like it even more after reading it again; Mahou Josei Chimaka is a great deal of fun.

Manga the Week of 1/27

January 21, 2016 by Sean Gaffney, Ash Brown, Michelle Smith, Anna N and MJ 1 Comment

SEAN: It’s time to bury you in manga releases once more, folks. What do the companies have up their sleeves?

ASH: All right, let’s do this!

Kodansha has the 12th and penultimate volume of My Little Monster. I can’t believe it’s ending so soon.

MICHELLE: I know! Thankfully, Say I Love You. is still ongoing.

SEAN: Noragami has hit double digits, likely to the delight of Kodansha.

ASH: I’m a few volumes behind, but I have been enjoying Noragami.

SEAN: And there’s a 12th volume of The Seven Deadly Sins.

Seven Seas has a bunch of stuff for us. Akuma no Riddle intrigued me more than I was expecting, so I look forward to the second volume.

MICHELLE: I need to investigate this one.

SEAN: Magical Girl Apocalypse does not intrigue me at all, but it has its fans who will enjoy this 6th volume.

And possibly the polar opposite of that title, Non Non Biyori has a 3rd volume.

Lastly, there’s an omnibus Vol. 1 release of the manga Orange, which has been up digitally on Crunchyroll, but Seven Seas now gives us a print release. It originally ran in Betsuma, then moved to Manga Action, showing it can be both shoujo and seinen. I think this is the first half.

ASH: I’ve heard good things and am looking forward to this one!

ANNA: Huh, I think I’m now officially intrigued.

MICHELLE: Me, too!

MJ: I’m always surprised when I’m interested in a Seven Seas release, but here we are!

SEAN: Vertical gives us another omnibus of Chi’s Sweet Home, with Vol. 4-6. Adorable kitties!

MICHELLE: Yay, kitties!

MJ: Chiiiiiii!

SEAN: And now it’s time for the Yen deluge. First up is Yen On. The Isolator was a new series by the author of Sword Art Online and Accel World, new enough so that it’s been a year since the first volume. Vol. 2 should be interesting.

And there’s a third volume of somewhat surreal teenage superpowers novel Kagerou Daze.

Yen Digital has a bunch of new titles coming out, and I’ll just note the complete volumes. Aphorism 2, Crimson Prince 2, Renaissance Eve 2, Scarlet Empire 3, and Sekirei 2. For those who enjoy tablet reading, try one of these series out.

On to actual print manga titles from Yen Press. There’s a 6th Accel World manga, which should be in the middle of one of the angstiest arcs.

Akame Ga KILL! reaches Vol. 5, continuing to try to excite us with capital letters and exclamation points.

Alice in Murderland 3 doesn’t have capital letters or exclamation points, but it has murder. Isn’t that enough?

A Certain Magical Index 4 decides it’s best to skip the boring vampire girl and move right to what readers really want, the sister clones.

The Devil Is A Part-Timer! 4 also adapts the novels for those who prefer exciting artwork with your plotting.

Final Fantasy Type-0 Side Story Volume 3 still remains very difficult to say.

First Love Monster’s 3rd volume will remind its readers of the discomfort they felt while reading Bunny Drop, I suspect.

Horimiya’s first volume was absolutely terrific, and I am delighted to see the 2nd one out next week.

MICHELLE: Me, too! The first volume was a lovely surprise!

ANNA: I’m intrigued again!

MJ: This is the volume I’m looking forward to most this week, I think!

SEAN: How to Raise a Boring Girlfriend (aka Saekano) is based on a light novel Yen doesn’t have the license for. It seems to feature an otaku hero and his collection of eccentric female acquaintances, just like every single other light novel ever.

Kagerou Daze also has a 4th manga volume out.

Log Horizon has a manga spinoff coming out, The West Wind Brigade, focusing on bishonen guild leader Sojirou.

Puella Magi Madoka Magica has a 2nd volume of its manga adaptation of the Rebellion movie.

So I Can’t Play H! has a 4th volume.

Sword Art Online has a 2nd volume of its side story Girls’ Ops, focusing on the female characters who get progressively ignored by the novels.

And it also starts to adapt a new arc, with the first Sword Art Online: Phantom Bullet volume.

MJ: I wish I was more interested in the manga adaptations of SAO, but they haven’t thrilled me.

SEAN: Taboo Tattoo is the other new title from Yen this month, running in my old nemesis, Media Factory’s Comic Alive. I have low expectations, but we shall see.

Triage X has reached Volume 11, despite all the prayers to the gods and curses I’ve attempted to put on it.

There’s a 5th Ubel Blatt omnibus, helpfully called Ubel Blatt 4. You know, if it had a light novel series, which Yen licensed with the same numbering, Amazon might literally explode into shards trying to keep track.

ASH: Ha! (It probably would.)

SEAN: Umineko When They Cry finishes up another arc, and if it helps this is definitely the low ebb of the series. From here out, things can only get better. Well, mostly better. Somewhat better?

And lastly, there’s an 11th omnibus of Until Death Do Us Part. Or its British version, Until Death Us Do Part.

MICHELLE: Aaaand now I have The Kinks in my head!

SEAN: Aside from staring at me blankly for that last obscure joke, what’s everyone doing next week?

The Fall of Language in the Age of English

January 20, 2016 by Ash Brown

Author: Minae Mizumura
Translator: Mari Yoshihara and Juliet Winters Carpenter
U.S. publisher: Columbia University Press
ISBN: 9780231163026
Released: January 2015
Original release: 2008
Awards: Kobayashi Hideo Award

Currently, only two major works by Minae Mizumura have been translated into English. The first, and one of the best works of literature that I’ve read in recent years, was A True Novel. More recently, the English-language edition of Mizumura’s first nonfiction work, The Fall of Language in the Age of English, was released, published in 2015 by Columbia University Press with a translation by Juliet Winters Carpenter (who was also the translator for A True Novel) and Mari Yoshihara. The Fall of Language in the Age of English is actually a revision of its Japanese counterpart, Mizumura rewriting portions of the book, most notably the final chapter, to better suit a non-Japanese audience. The Fall of Language in the Age of English caused something of a stir when it was originally published in Japan in 2008—the work won a Kobayashi Hideo Award, became a commercial success, and even sparked some amount of controversy.

Mizumura opens The Fall of Language in the Age of English with a personal account of her participation in the University of Iowa’s International Writing Program in 2003. Afterwards, Mizumura, who studied French and French literature at Yale, proceeds to outline the rise and fall of French as one of the world’s universal languages. She then discusses the concept and role of universal languages, the development of local languages into national languages, and the relationships among the three in general before specifically turning to the emergence of Japanese as a national language. From there Mizumura describes what she calls the miracle of modern Japanese literature, shedding further light upon its peculiar evolution and how it came to be considered a major world literature. Mizumura then addresses the current prevalence of English and its spread before closing with what she sees as the possible futures in store for non-English languages in the digital age.

The Fall of Langauge in the Age of English is an immensely readable and engaging work examining the place of literature, national languages, and translation in a world in which English increasingly dominates. In addition to the main text, The Fall of Language in the Age of English also includes a newly-written preface by Mizumura specifically for the English-language edition of the work, an introduction by the translators, notes, a selected bibliography, and an index. The volume is written in a very approachable manner and is intended for a general audience, Mizumura presenting ideas and concepts clearly and eloquently. I happen to already have a particular interest in the subject matter of language (I even once seriously considered pursing a career in translation or linguistics), but no specialist knowledge is needed to read, understand, or enjoy The Fall of Language in the Age of English.

I found The Fall of Language in the Age of English to be utterly fascinating. The work deftly combines many differing elements together into a single, coherent whole—autobiography, history, linguistics, literary criticism, and so on. Mizumura begins by examining language and writing from a very personal perspective before placing her experiences within a greater context. She shows how geopolitical circumstances allowed Japanese language and literature to initially develop and flourish and how those circumstances now place them in danger of becoming obsolete in the worldwide arena. Language, culture, and power are all inherently and inextricably intertwined. Though The Fall of Language in the Age of English warns of what could be lost if national languages and literatures are allowed to decline unabated, Mizumura doesn’t come across to me as fatalistic or alarmist, believing there is still time to establish efforts to nourish and ensure the preservation and importance of non-English languages, cultures, and literatures.

Pick of the Week: Teenage Kicks

January 18, 2016 by Sean Gaffney, Ash Brown, MJ and Anna N Leave a Comment

SEAN: Intellectually, I know that A Girl On The Shore is the obvious choice here, but I know I’m going to wince and cringe all through its highly realistic and painful depictions of teenage life. So instead I will pick the 5th volume of A Silent Voice, which… will do the same thing, to be fair.

ASH: Well, since I’ll still have a couple of opportunities left to pick A Silent Voice and since Sean has already picked it himself, I’ll choose A Girl on the Shore this week. Inio Asano’s work can be difficult and certainly isn’t always the most comfortable to read, but it does tend to be compelling.

MJ: I’ll also go with A Girl on the Shore. I expect this will, indeed, be painful, but I kinda like that quality in a manga. My own teen years are still pretty vivid for me, which I think tends to draw me to this kind of work, so my expectations are high.

ANNA: I feel like any new Inio Asano work should be an automatic Pick. A Girl on the Shore is my choice as well.