Katherine Dacey

MICHELLE: I struggle to decide between the two Tsukasa Hojo debuts, but a trio of sisters in unitards (with scarves for unnecessary belts) is really serving up ’80s nostalgia for me, so Cat’s Eye it is!

SEAN: I am very familiar with the City Hunter manga, as I got the original Japanese volumes years ago so I could look at the art and wonder what they were saying. As such, I too will pick Cat’s Eye, which I am far less familiar with. Sexy girls, I hear!

ANNA: I can’t decide! I’m picking both Cat’s Eye AND City Hunter.

KATE: I might just have to come out of semi-retirement; it’s rare that we get TWO eighties classics in a single week! I second Anna’s picks.

ASH: Who am I to go against the trend? I am absolutely here for City Hunter and will definitely be reading Cat’s Eye, too. It’s an exciting week!

SEAN: I didn’t even know it existed till two weeks ago, but Miss Ruki is absolutely my pick this week. It’s wonderful to see titles like this come out over here.

ANNA: I agree, I was similarly unaware, but have preordered this and am looking forward to reading it!

MICHELLE: I agree 100%.

KATE: Add me to the Miss Ruki fan club—I just ordered myself a copy!

ASH: I actually did know about Miss Ruki—mostly because New York Review Comics releases some really interesting things, so I make a point to keep an eye out for them—but there’s no way I’m going to miss out on 1980s josei regardless of the publisher.

MICHELLE: I’m very intrigued by Adabana, but I can’t pass up the yearly opportunity to pick Kaze Hikaru!

ASH: Kaze Hikaru is always a worthy pick! But I’ll go ahead and make the debut of Adabana my official selection this week. I haven’t read the creator’s other work, but I have heard good things about this one. (I also happen to really like the cover.)

ANNA: I cannot resist the opportunity to celebrate the annual release of Kaze Hikaru!

SEAN: I admit I am about 30 volumes beyond on Kaze Hikaru, but I am in agreement with it being the pick.

KATE: I only have eyes for Kuma Kuma Kuma Bear this week… NOT! (Remember that annoying tic from the 90s?) Like everyone else, I’m naming the latest volume of Kaze Hikaru as my official POTW, but I’m also delighted to see that there’s a new installment of Skip & Loafer.

SEAN: Generally my Villainess novels tend to be on the Japanese end – Chinese villainesses tend to be villains, and thus danmei. Less familiar with Korean villainesses, so I will enjoy a rare light novel from Ize Press, Villains Are Destined to Die as my pick this week.

MICHELLE: I am all about Farewell, Daisy. Sometimes my heart just wants sparkly retro-style shoujo, and this book appears poised to deliver on that.

KATE: My pick is the final volume of Leviathan, which comes out this week as well. It’s a great sci-fi/horror story that shamelessly borrows elements of Memories, They Were 11! and The Drifting Classroom, but manages to breathe new life into the haunted spaceship genre. Best of all: it’s short—just three volumes—making it perfect for commitment-phobes.

ANNA: I’m going to go with the latest volume of Nina the Starry Bride, because I’m always up for fantasy shoujo!

ASH: Well, based on Kate’s recommendation, I should apparently read Leviathan! As for debuts, I actually am curious about Futari Switch, though I’m not sure a have a lot of confidence in that pick being the right one.

SEAN: Look, I get that Ichi the Killer is a big deal, but it’s just not my genre at all. So yeah, I’m picking Planetes. Again. You can never pick it enough.

MICHELLE: I hope this doesn’t diminish my manga cred, but I never managed to finish Planetes! I read the first three volumes back in 2010 and then life intervened, I guess. All of which is to say, I am going to buy these fancy hardcovers and read them, dangit!

KATE: Will no one think of the poor animals on this list? I’m going to throw my weight behind Cat + Crazy (Nekottake!), as everyone can use a little cuteness in their life right now. (But yes, Planetes is worth a look if you missed it.)

ANNA: I do cherish my old Tokyopop editions of Planetes, and am always happy to celebrate this series!!!!

ASH: I adore Planetes, so I’ll take this opportunity to make the fancy hardcover my official pick. (I’ll probably need to get around to reading Ichi the Killer at some point, though…)

MICHELLE: There is no way I would *not* pick something by the creator of The Stellar Size of Gingacho, so it’s Suzuki-kun’s Mindful Life for me!

ASH: I’ve been looking forward to reading Neighborhood Craftsmen: Stories from Kanda’s Gokura-chou ever since I learned about the manga. It might not be high drama, but the artwork I’ve seen has been stunning.

KATE: I’m with Ash: Neighborhood Craftsmen: Stories from Kanda’s Gokura-chou checks just about all the right boxes for me.

ANNA: I’m with Michelle, totally excited to check out Suzuki-kun’s Mindful Life!

SEAN: Technically I should break this tie, but I have to admit, the title I’m most looking forward to is the new Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-kun.

SEAN: There are a number of Very Important Authors releasing works this week, which are all no doubt excellent, but I know I won’t be touching them, alas, as I am me. Instead, I’ll go back in time and pick the first volume of Magic Knight Rayearth II, the series that introduced “why can’t she just date both of them?” to many anime and manga fans.

MICHELLE: Having already picked The 13th Footprint a weeks ago, I suppose I’ll go with Tower Dungeon this time. I don’t really care about rescuing a princess, but Nihei does well with labyrinthine landscapes, in my experience, so the art might be worth a look.

ASH: The release I’m most curious about this week is Brain Damage. Shintaro Kago’s work is definitely not for everyone, but I’m glad to see more of it being translated.

ANNA: There’s quite a few interesting things coming out this week, but I’m going to take the opportunity to highlight the rerelease of Red River with the latest 3-in-1 volume. Do they make shoujo adventure like this anymore???

KATE: I’m also curious about Tsutomu Nihei’s latest, so I’m going to back MIchelle’s play and pick Tower Dungeon.

KATE: I admit this is one of those weeks when the sheer amount of new titles impressed me, but nothing screamed, “Buy me!” If I had to pick one title from the bunch, though, it would be Teppeki Honeymoon, as I have a soft spot for Meca Tanaka—not least because Omukae desu was the first manga I ever reviewed! (It was pretty mid, if memory serves.)

SEAN: I can’t pass up a light novel in one of my favorite genres. My choice is To Sir, Without Love: I’m Divorcing You.

MICHELLE: Teppeki Honeymoon has undeniable appeal, but my heart belongs to Therapy Game Restart this week!

ANNA: Teppeki Honeymoon for me, as I also have s soft spot for Meca Tanaka.

ASH: I’m not sure that I’ve actually read any Meca Tanaka manga before. Maybe I should give one a try! I’ve someone never read a Gosho Aoyama manga either, though, and Yaiba: Samurai Legend has caught my attention, so I’m making that my pick this week.

SEAN: Lotsa good stuff in a busy week, but I mist admit I Wanna Be Your Girl leapt out at me as an obvious pick, despite the award winning Who Killed the Hero? and the license rescued The Twelve Kingdoms glaring at me from offstage.

MICHELLE: I am definitely interested in I Wanna Be Your Girl, but the one on this list that made me gasp and rush to pre-order it was volume two of Fushigi Yûgi: Byakko Senki. That seems like pretty strong evidence for making it my pick of the week.

KATE: I’m putting The Colour Out of Space at the top of my to-buy list; I could use a good spooky manga right now.

ASH: I’m looking forward to reading The Colour Out of Space and I Wanna Be Your Girl, too, but I’m so excited that Twelve Kingdoms is getting another chance, I’m making that my pick.

MJ: Seeing I Wanna Be Your Girl on the list has made me interested in a new manga more than I have been in years (I already pre-ordered!) so let’s hope it’s part of a trend!

ANNA: I’m extremely excited for Fushigi Yûgi: Byakko Senki, I didn’t even realize it was about to come out!

KATE: As a ride-or-die Shostakovich fan, there’s really only one choice for me: Snegurochka of the Spring Breeze. It has everything a student of the old USSR could hope for: political intrigue, real historical actors, and a character whose code name is Bielka (that’s “squirrel” in Russian). Here’s hoping Dmitri Dmitrievich makes a cameo!

SEAN: I will never say no to more manga from Mitsura Adachi, so my pick this week is Short Game: Mitsuru Adachi’s Baseball Short Story Collection.

ANNA: Short Game For me as well, always happy to read more Adachi.

MICHELLE: I am very intrigued by Snegurochka of the Spring Breeze, but it’s gotta be Adachi for me, too, this week. I’ve had this pre-ordered for a while.

ASH: While Short Game is certainly of interest to me, Snegurochka of the Spring Breeze is a manga that I’ve been anticipating since was licensed. I will always give a new Samura manga a try.

SEAN: I cannot decide between The 100 Girlfriends Who Really, Really, Really, Really, REALLY Love You 14 and Medalist 12, two series whose venn diagram of readers who love both may be just me.

KATE: This is one of those weeks when I’m torn between two very different titles: the part of me that likes streaming crime procedurals is intrigued by The 13th Footprint, while the part of me that has fond memories of reading Richard Scarry’s What Do People Do All Day? is excited about Cats With Jobs.

MICHELLE: My official pick would be The 13th Footprint, but if we’re doing auxiliaries, then I’ll say the swanky reissue of Codename: Sailor V.

ASH: I fully support all the picks that have been mentioned , but I’ll go ahead and highlight two more releases that have caught my attention: Senpai is an Otokonoko (which I’ve heard a few good things about in passing) and Shout Loud, My Heart (because I can’t resist a music-related BL).

ANNA: It is Codename: Sailor V for me!

MICHELLE: I had no idea that I Didn’t Mean to Fall in Love had a sequel, so I’ll choose that very pleasant surprise for my pick this week!

KATE: What’s that you say—a Tezuka title that I haven’t read? In that case, I’m making Neo Faust my Pick of the Week! (C’mon… I’m very, very predictable.)

SEAN: I’m going to go with the final volume of Sketchy, which will hopefully nag me to catch up with this underrated series.

ANNA: I’m going to go with the latest volume of Nina the Starry Bride, even though I’m a bit behind, I am very fond of that series.

ASH: Now that Issak will be available in print, I plan on finally getting around to reading it.