Michelle Smith

SEAN: It’s only the end of May but the heat here is making it feel like mid-July. What about the manga? Well…

The debut from Yen On is Warlords of Sigrdrifa Rusalka, a light novel based on the popular anime series. As with a lot of other anime series, humanity is under siege and only badass but also very attractive women can save us.

ASH: I mean, I do like badass women…

SEAN: Also from Yen On: The Girl I Saved on the Train Turned Out to Be My Childhood Friend 2, High School DxD 7, High School Prodigies Have It Easy Even in Another World! 6, I’ve Been Killing Slimes for 300 Years and Maxed Out My Level 12, Magical Girl Raising Project 13, The Saga of Tanya the Evil 10, and A Sister’s All You Need 12.

Yen Press had a lot of its print releases which had been delayed due to the ongoing problem with getting print books done come out next week, so we have SEVEN debuts. Let’s break them down.

I Got a Cheat Skill in Another World and Became Unrivaled in The Real World, Too (Isekai de Cheat Skill o Te ni Shita Ore wa, Genjitsu Sekai o mo Musou Suru – Level Up wa Jinsei o Kaeta) had its light novel mentioned in last week’s Manga the Week of, so I can’t even make the same sad snarky jokes. It runs in Dengeki Comic Regulus.

In the Land of Leadale (Leadale no Daichi nite) runs in the horribly titled Dengeki Playstation, and is, of course, based on the light novels Yen is also releasing.

Let’s Go Karaoke! (Karaoke Iko!) is a one-shot manga from Comic Beam. A boy from the school choir ends up with a scary job… he’s giving voice lessons to a yakuza! This is apparently not BL but is BL-adjacent.

MICHELLE: Hm. This is the first on the list to interest me even moderately.

ANNA: I mean, I enjoy singing, BL-adjacent manga, and yakuza.

ASH: Same, same!

MELINDA: Okay, what, I think I need this. Like. Delivered directly to my brain.

SEAN: Lost Lad London is also from Comic Beam, and is a mystery about a detective and a college student trying to track down a murderer. This is award winning AND Comic Beam, so even more of a must-read than usual.

MICHELLE: Okay, now this is up my street.

ANNA: Also curious about this!

ASH: Me, too!

MELINDA: Oooooooh.

SEAN: The Magical Revolution of the Reincarnated Princess and the Genius Young Lady (Tensei Oujo to Tensai Reijou no Mahou Kakumei) is based on a light novel I really enjoyed. I wonder how the manga compares? It runs in Dengeki Maoh. Lotsa Dengeki this week.

MonsTABOO is a Big Gangan series about a girl who recklessly tries to find monsters – reckless ever since her mother was killed by one. That makes it all the more weird when she comes across one, she asks to date the monster instead.

ASH: I am at least vaguely curious.

SEAN: The Wolf Never Sleeps (Ookami wa Nemuranai) is from Young Ace Up!, and it’s an isekai, but at least he’s a grizzled veteran and swordsman who already fights monsters, and not random Japanese dude.

Yen Press also has Cheeky Brat 3, Cirque Du Freak: The Manga Omnibus 6, The Dark History of the Reincarnated Villainess 5, The Devil Is a Part-Timer! 18, Final Fantasy Lost Stranger 7, Karneval 13, Mieruko-chan 5, Murciélago 19, Play It Cool, Guys 3, Smokin’ Parade 10 (the final volume), and Trinity Seven 25.

Viz has some titles out this week, likely due to those same printing issues. We see Fullmetal Alchemist: Fullmetal Edition 17, JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Part 5–Golden Wind 4, Star Wars: The High Republic: Edge of Balance 2, and Urusei Yatsura 14. And, digitally, WITCH WATCH 2, which I continue to shill for.

ASH: Still need to give that series a try (and catch up on a few of these others, too.)

SEAN: Tokyopop has a new BL one-shot, this one from Gush. Tomorrow, Make Me Yours (Ashita Kimi no Mono ni Shite) is about an average boy who loves the cool, confident kid in his class. Sadly, a girl has a crush on said cool kid, so he tries to distance himself. But when he does confess, the other guy does as well!

Seven Seas debuts The Weakest Contestant of All Space and Time (Zenjikuu Senbatsu Saijaku Saiteihen Ketteisen), a survival manga that runs in Comic Earth Star. There are other interesting points about it, but survival manga, so meh.

ASH: I can sometimes go for an intriguing survival manga.

SEAN: Seven Seas also has Headhunted to Another World: From Salaryman to Big Four! 3, The Masterful Cat Is Depressed Again Today 4, and Seaside Stranger 3.

MICHELLE: I really need to read Seaside Stranger.

ASH: Likewise.

SEAN: One Peace Books gives us Hinamatsuri 15.

The print debut for Kodansha Manga is Phantom of the Idol (Kami Kuzu ☆ Idol), a Zero-Sum Online title about a lazy, surly idol and his meeting with a peppy, happy, and dead girl.

MICHELLE: Well, I am sold by this description.

ANNA: This sounds amazing.

MELINDA: Oh, hello.

SEAN: We also get the first volume of A Silent Voice Complete Collector’s Edition, which collects the first half of the series in a large hardcover which also has drafts, interviews, and other bonus content.

ASH: I’m really looking forward to this release and the extra content; the series is so good.

SEAN: Also in print: Cardcaptor Sakura: Clear Card 11 and The Seven Deadly Sins: Four Knights of the Apocalypse 3.

MICHELLE: I legitimately did not realize that Clear Card was still going.

ANNA: Me too, I’m just going to sit here in a corner and lament never getting an ending to X/1999.

MICHELLE: FOR REAL.

ASH: Right??

MELINDA: *heavy sigh*

SEAN: Two digital debuts. Koigakubo-kun Stole My First Time (Koigakubo-kun ni wa Hajimete wo Ubawaremashita), a Palcy shoujo series about a gamer girl who is rather annoyed that all her gamer friends are getting married and having kids. Is her hot new work colleague the answer? This is by the author of With the Sheikh in His Harem.

Our Fake Marriage: Rosé (Usokon Rosé) is, of course, a spinoff of Our Fake Marriage, and runs in Ane Friend. Our heroine is determined to reject her family’s attempts to set her up with this guy… but…

Also digital: Back When You Called Us Devils 13 (OK, *this* is the final volume), DAYS 29, Harem Marriage 17, Nighttime for Just Us Two 2, Otherworldly Munchkin: Let’s Speedrun the Dungeon with Only 1 HP! 5, Saint Young Men 18, Shojo Fight 18 (we seem to have caught up, given this is 11 months after 17), What I Love About You 9 (the final volume), and WIND BREAKER 2.

MICHELLE: How did Harem Marriage get up to volume seventeen already?!

SEAN: Kaiten Books gives us the 6th manga volume of Loner Life in Another World.

Lotsa print from J-Novel Club. We get An Archdemon’s Dilemma: How to Love Your Elf Bride 12, Ascendance of a Bookworm 12, both Vol. 2 and 3 of The Faraway Paladin’s novel, How NOT to Summon a Demon Lord 14, I Shall Survive Using Potions’s 7th manga volume, Infinite Dendrogram 15, My Friend’s Little Sister Has It In For Me! 4, Tearmoon Empire 5, and The Unwanted Undead Adventurer’s 5th manga volume.

ASH: I feel like just got my hands on the first volume of Faraway Paladin!

SEAN: As for digital, we get Altina the Sword Princess 14 (not the final volume, but the series has not had a new book in years), Chillin’ in Another World with Level 2 Super Cheat Powers 5, I’ll Never Set Foot in That House Again! 4, Lazy Dungeon Master 16, Perry Rhodan NEO 8, Prison Life is Easy for a Villainess 2 (the final volume), and Private Tutor to the Duke’s Daughter 3.

Ghost Ship gives us Manga Diary of a Male Porn Star 2 and The Witches of Adamas 2.

And we get Airship, which has, in print, Kuma Kuma Kuma Bear 10.

And digitally we get Kuma Kuma Kuma Bear 11 and Loner Life in Another World 2.

Oooof. A double dose of Loner Life. That’ll be fun. What else are we having?

SEAN: It’s May, but the winds are blowing here like it’s March. What manga is blowing our way?

Airship debuts The Tunnel to Summer, the Exit of Goodbyes (Natsu e no Tonneru, Sayonara no Deguchi), the latest in a long line of “kind of depressing romance novels with a sci-fi bent” light novels that have been out here lately. For once it’s not based on a film, though one is coming soon.

ASH: I’ll admit, it’s a subgenre I frequently enjoy.

SEAN: Also in print: Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation 16 and Reincarnated as a Sword 10.

We also get early digital volumes of Adachi and Shimamura 9 and She Professed Herself Pupil of the Wise Man 4.

From Cross Infinite World we get The Dragon’s Soulmate is a Mushroom Princess! (Ryuu no Ban no Kinoko Hime – Unmeida to Konyaku Hakisaretara, Kinoko no Hentai ga Yattekimashita). If you can imagine Kinoko Komori from My Hero Academia as the heroine of a romance novel, you pretty much have this one. Expect mushroom puns.

ASH: I do love mushrooms. And puns.

SEAN: Ghost Ship has a 10th volume of Parallel Paradise.

A very tiny week from J-Novel Club, which only has The Master of Ragnarok & Blesser of Einherjar 20 and My Instant Death Ability Is So Overpowered, No One in This Other World Stands a Chance Against Me! 10.

In print from Kodansha, the debut is a box set, as we get Cells at Work! Complete Manga Box Set!. It is what it sounds like.

ASH: I really enjoyed this series as it was first being released.

SEAN: Also in print: Bakemonogatari 13 and Sayonara, Football 10, the manga that I always forget to mention because Kodansha doesn’t list it on their website.

Digitally we get two debuts. The Untouchable Midori-kun (Midori-kun ni wa Sawarenai) is the latest josei series, this time from Kiss. A woman goes to meet her new neighbor… and finds they went to school together! Can romance develop? Unlikely. He’s an idol singer, and she’s an adult film actress! Kodansha says this is for fans of Tokyo Tarareba Girls.

MICHELLE: Huh. I guess that means me, then.

ANNA: I might check it out.

ASH: Pretty sure I’m one of those fans, too.

SEAN: When a Cat Faces West (Neko ga Nishi Mukya) is from Afternoon, and is from the creator of Mushishi. That really should be enough, but it’s apparently about a woman trying to find out why she’s 35 years old but has the body of a tween.

MICHELLE: I’m excited to see more by this creator!

ANNA: This sounds so wacky.

ASH: Mushishi is one of my absolute favorites, so I’m likewise excited to see more of the creator’s work being released in English!

SEAN: Also digital: Blue Lock 13, Boss Wife 4, GTO Paradise Lost 17, I Guess I Became the Mother of the Great Demon King’s 10 Children in Another World 5, Irresistible Mistakes 2, and Piano Duo for the Left Hand 3.

One Peace gives us The Music of Marie (Marie no Kanaderu Ongaku), a Comic Birz title from the creator of Short Cuts, Lychee Light Club, Genkaku Picasso, and many more. It’s a fantasy about a world watched over by Maria, a mechanical goddess. What’s her secret? This is complete in one omnibus.

ASH: Speaking of favorites, I am also a fan of Usumaru Furuya’s work, so I’m very happy to see this release.

SEAN: From Seven Seas: COLORLESS comes from an artist called KENT. The story itself is from LEED’s Comic Border, and is a post-apocalyptic sci-fi story where the world has lost all colors.

ASH: Count me curious.

SEAN: We also get My Next Life as a Villainess Side Story: Girls Patch. Did you read the Bakarina novels/manga and get frustrated that there wasn’t enough yuri? Read this anthology. You will still think it does not go far enough, but it’s certainly more than the main series.

Also coming from Seven Seas: Arifureta: From Commonplace to World’s Strongest ZERO 6, Classroom of the Elite 2, and The Hidden Dungeon Only I Can Enter 6. There’s also the 2nd novel of Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation: Mo Dao Zu Shi.

ASH: Here and actually ready for the second volume of Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation!

SEAN: Tokyopop debuts Mame Coordinate (Mame Code), a Comic Ryu series about a girl trying to be a model but failing due to her rural manners. Can a new manager help?

Viz Media debuts Crazy Food Truck, a Comic Bunch series about a man driving his food truck through – you guessed it – a post-apocalyptic desert. He runs into a naked girl and takes her onto his truck… but she has people after her! Honestly, I’m interested just for the title.

ASH: Same. I’ll bite.

SEAN: Also from Viz: Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End 4, Golden Kamuy 26, Mashle: Magic and Muscles 6, Undead Unluck 7, the 21st and final volume of We Never Learn, and Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead 6. Well, now we know why Viz was so quiet two weeks ago – its Jump stuff got moved here. Also, RIP We Never Learn, a series that managed to face off against The Quintessential Quintuplets, which infuriated its entire fanbase, and STILL come in second.

Yen On’s light novel debut is I Got a Cheat Skill in Another World and Became Unrivaled in The Real World, Too (Isekai de Cheat Skill wo Te ni Shita Ore wa, Genjitsu Sekai wo mo Musou Suru ~Level Up wa Jinsei wo Kaeta~), a title that makes me tired just reading it. The synopsis does as well. A bullied kid finds a doorway to another world, and gets the standard isekai package… which he can also bring home with him. Not gonna lie, I will be avoiding this with great avoid.

Also from Yen On: Baccano! 19, Dragon and Ceremony 2, Eighty-Six 10, The Genius Prince’s Guide to Raising a Nation Out of Debt (Hey, How About Treason?) 9, No Game No Life 11, Spy Classroom 3, Suppose a Kid from the Last Dungeon Boonies Moved to a Starter Town 9, and Wandering Witch 8.

Yen Press debuts I Want to be a Wall (Watashi wa Kabe ni Naritai), a josei title from Enterbrain’s B’s-LOG Cheek. He’s gay and has a crush on his childhood friend. She’s asexual and being pressured by her parents. Can a marriage of convenience solve their problems? I’ve heard good things about this.

MICHELLE: I’m thrilled by the consistent stream of josei we’ve been getting lately!

ANNA: Me too! I just have to read, like, any of it!

MICHELLE: Same.

ASH: Also same, but I’m particularly interested in this particular title!

SEAN: Yen also has I Cannot Reach You 4 and No Matter How I Look at It, It’s You Guys’ Fault I’m Not Popular! 19.

There’s quite a lot I want to read this week. How about you?

SEAN: The week of Mother’s Day, and what manga will moms be reading?

Yen On has a 5th volume of Bofuri: I Don’t Want to Get Hurt, so I’ll Max Out My Defense.

The Yen Press debut is Mizuno and Chayama, a Comic Beam title that is done in one 2-volume omnibus. It’s Romeo and Juliet, only they’re both teenage girls, and the setting is corporations vs. the government.

MICHELLE: Hm. Potentially interesting!

ANNA: This does sound interesting.

ASH: I agree!

MELINDA: What everyone else said!

SEAN: Also being released: Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? II 2, The Saga of Tanya the Evil 16, Solo Leveling 4, and Star Wars Leia, Princess of Alderaan 2.

Viz Media has Death Note Short Stories, which is exactly what it says.

ASH: It’s been quite a while since I’ve thought about Death Note; the series is among the earliest manga I read.

MELINDA: Wow, what could this possibly be? I’m actually a little curious.

SEAN: We also see Dragon Quest: The Adventure of Dai 2, Fly Me to the Moon 11, Mao 5, Pokémon Adventures: X•Y 2, and Requiem of the Rose King 15.

MICHELLE: I’m quite far behind on Requiem of the Rose King now!

ANNA: Alas, me too.

ASH: I’ve been saving up volumes to read all at once.

MELINDA: I am also behind, but omg!

SEAN: Tentai Books sees a print release for From Toxic Classmate to Girlfriend Goals 1, I Kissed my Girlfriend’s Little Sister?! 1, and There’s No Way a Side Character Like Me Could Be Popular Right? 3.

SEAN: Three new titles from SuBLime: Change World 2 (the final volume), Finder Deluxe Edition 11, and His Favorite 12.

ASH: Oh, somehow I didn’t realize His Favorite was still ongoing!

Square Enix manga has the 5th volume of My Dress-Up Darling.

ASH: Another series that I’m behind on, but I really enjoyed the early volumes.

MELINDA: I’ve heard good things about this, and I feel like I need to get into it!

SEAN: From Seven Seas we get The Ancient Magus’ Bride: Wizard’s Blue 4, the 14th and final volume of Magical Girl Spec-Ops Asuka, Mushoku Tensei: Roxy Gets Serious 7, and Wonder Cat Kyuu-chan 5.

ASH: I’ve mainly focused on the main series, so far; I need to catch up on the spinoffs of The Ancient Magus’ Bride.

SEAN: Kodansha has a print debut, coming from the ever popular Shuzo Oshimi. Devil Ecstasy is an early Young Magazine title about a brothel filled with women who may be killing men with their sexy skills. It’s also a two-volume omnibus.

ASH: Oshimi’s work is frequently disconcerting, but generally worth taking a look.

MELINDA: I’ll let Ash be the one to take a look, haha.

SEAN: Also in print: Battle Angel Alita 6, Ciguatera 2, My Boy 9 (the final volume), The Seven Deadly Sins: Four Knights of the Apocalypse 3, and The Seven Deadly Sins Omnibus 4.

Digitally our debut is This Vampire Won’t Give Up! (Vampire-sama ga Akiramenai!), another josei title from Comic Tint. Our heroine has to work with a handsome but rude man, but then finds out he’s also the author of her favorite childhood book about vampires. What’s his secret? (Take a guess.)

MICHELLE: Snerk.

ANNA: I don’t know what the secret is, I might have to read it and find out.

ASH: Ha!

MELINDA: The title is kind of hilarious, right? It’s the exclamation point…

SEAN: There’s also Ace of the Diamond 37, Apple Children of Aeon 3 (the final volume), The Fable 2, A Kiss with a Cat 3, Our Bodies, Entwining, Entwined 3, Police in a Pod 12, and Ya Boy Kongming! 7.

ASH: Ya Boy Kongming! is now more fully on my radar since I’ve been hearing good things about the anime.

SEAN: From J-Novel Club we see The Apothecary Diaries 5, Black Summoner’s 6th manga volume, Campfire Cooking in Another World with My Absurd Skill 11, My Daughter Left the Nest and Returned an S-Rank Adventurer 4, and Sorcerous Stabber Orphen: The Wayward Journey 17.

Ghost Ship debuts It’s Just Not My Night! – Tale of a Fallen Vampire Queen (Yo ga Yorunara!), a Magazine Pocket series, shows us a hard-luck vampire queen forced to find part-time work – some of which is very sketchy!

They’ve also got SUPER HXEROS 7.

Already out from Denpa, who just put it on their website, is Black Tights: WIDE, an artbook featuring, well, girls in tights. It features “some of the best artists in Japan” and also a lot of good-looking gams.

Dark Horse Comics debuts Cat + Gamer (Neko Gurashi Gamer-san), from Shonen Sunday S. the gamer is Riko, an office lady who doesn’t have time for socializing when there’s games to be played. Then she picks up a stray cat. Can games help her figure out how to deal with a pet?

ASH: This is supposed to be pretty good.

MELINDA: I mean, it has a cat, so it automatically wins.

SEAN: Dark Horse also has Gantz’s 9th omnibus.

Lastly, Airship has, in print, Classroom of the Elite 11 and How a Realist Hero Rebuilt the Kingdom 14.

The digital-first debut is Modern Villainess: It’s Not Easy Building a Corporate Empire Before the Crash (Gendai Shakai de Otome Game no Akuyaku Reijou wo Suru no wa Chotto Taihen), whose gimmick is that our reincarnated villainess is not in a world of nobles and princes, but in Japan at the height of the economic boom! Can she use her future knowledge to avoid her fate and avoid the upcoming bursting of the bubble economy?

ASH: Too soon?

SEAN: And also in early digital: Classroom of the Elite 11.5 and The Haunted Bookstore – Gateway to a Parallel Universe 4.

What are you getting mom? Devil Ecstasy? Tales of a Fallen Vampire Queen? Or perhaps something more wholesome?

SEAN: It’s May! A time to smell the fresh air, get outside, and continue to wear a mask.

ASH: Pretty helpful for seasonal allergies among other things.

SEAN: Airship has a pile of new light novel titles (that we have seen in early digital releases already). The debut is Survival in Another World with My Mistress!, a classic ‘arrogant girl and harried guy’ fantasy.

Airship also has print for Classroom of the Elite 11, Disciple of the Lich: Or How I Was Cursed by the Gods and Dropped Into the Abyss! 3, Drugstore in Another World: The Slow Life of a Cheat Pharmacist 5, The Haunted Bookstore – Gateway to a Parallel Universe 3, and Reincarnated as a Dragon Hatchling 3.

We also get early digital volumes for Accomplishments of the Duke’s Daughter 5 and Trapped in a Dating Sim: The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs 6.

Dark Horse gives us the 8th volume of Mob Psycho 100.

ASH: Oh! I’ll need to catch up with that.

SEAN: Ghost Ship debuts Survival in Another World with My Mistress! (Goshujin-sama to Yuku Isekai Survival!), which may be familiar from a few lines up. This runs in Micro Magazine’s Comic Ride.

They’ve also got Fire in His Fingertips: A Flirty Fireman Ravishes Me with His Smoldering Gaze 3.

MICHELLE: Snerk.

ASH: It’s an amazing title.

ANNA: Incredible.

SEAN: In print, J-Novel Club has the 7th manga volume of I Shall Survive Using Potions!.

Digitally, we see An Archdemon’s Dilemma: How to Love Your Elf Bride 13, Ascendance of a Bookworm’s 12th manga volume, Full Clearing Another World under a Goddess with Zero Believers 3, Jessica Bannister 5, My Quiet Blacksmith Life in Another World 2, My Stepmom’s Daughter Is My Ex 2, To Another World… with Land Mines! 2, and When Supernatural Battles Became Commonplace 2.

Kodansha is releasing a new version of Sailor Moon. This will have larger page counts and yet another updated translation. it seems to be print only.

MICHELLE: Huh.

SEAN: Kodansha, in print, also has the 2nd volume of Blackguard (that was fast), The Hero Life of a (Self-Proclaimed) “Mediocre” Demon! 4, When Will Ayumu Make His Move? 5, and a reprint of the classic Tezuka manga Ode to Kirihito in one 825-page tome.

ASH: That was fast! So I don’t feel as bad about already being behind. Also, still glad to see these Tezuka reprints coming out!

ANNA: Also glad for Tezuka reprints.

SEAN: Kodansha’s first digital debut is Changes of Heart (Honnou Switch), a josei series that ran in Kodansha’s Comic Tint, and is from the creator of A Witch’s Love at the End of the World. A woman who just got dumped ends up sleeping with her childhood friend, who surprises her by telling her he loves her. But her ex wants her back! The words “smutty potboiler” were made for series like these…

MICHELLE: Hm. It might be fun!

ANNA: I’m intrigued for sure.

The other debut is Oh, Those Hanazono Twins (Hanazono-sanchi no Futago-chan), a shonen title from Magazine Pocket. I would give a synopsis, but it’s a harem comedy describing the male lead as “so average it hurts”, so will not bother.

Also digital: The Abandoned Reincarnation Sage 2, A Couple of Cuckoos 7, Kounodori: Dr. Stork 23, the 6th and final volume of My Darling, the Company President, My Master Has No Tail 5, Sakura’s Dedication 2, Shangri-La Frontier 6, and Tying the Knot with an Amagami Sister 3.

One Peace has Farming Life in Another World 5.

The debut for Seven Seas is Witches: The Complete Collection (Majo), a manga from the creator of Children of the Sea. It ran in Shogakukan’s Ikki back in the day, and is a collection of award-winning and unsettling stories.

ASH: I am very excited for this one!

ANNA: Me too, although I don’t know if I want to be unsettled.

SEAN: Seven Seas also gives us Accomplishments of the Duke’s Daughter 8, Dance in the Vampire Bund: Age of Scarlet Order 6, Happy Kanako’s Killer Life 4, Made in Abyss 10, Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid: Elma’s Office Lady Diary 5, and Reincarnated as a Dragon Hatchling 3.

MICHELLE: I should really read Happy Kanako.

ASH: I suspect it’s one that I’d enjoy, too, once I get around to it.

SEAN: Tokyopop has a 3rd volume of Double.

Udon Entertainment has the 3rd and final volume of Persona 5: Mementos Mission.

Viz has a relatively quiet May, with a lot of its main series on an off month. The debut is Kubo Won’t Let Me Be Invisible (Kubo-san wa Boku (Mobu) wo Yurusanai), another in the genre of ‘teasing girl and nondescript boy’ manga. It runs in Weekly Young Jump.

Viz also has Blue Exorcist 27, Boruto: Naruto Next Generations 14, Dr. STONE 21, The King’s Beast 6, One Piece 99, and Prince Freya 6.

MICHELLE: I should really read The King’s Beast, too, having enjoyed the creator’s other work.

ASH: Same! I’ve a few volumes of the series on hand already; I just need to read them.

ANNA: I’ve read some of them and find it a bit too sad, but as expected very well done.

SEAN: There’s a pile of Yen On. The debut is Ishura, a light novel about the war to determine the next demon king. It sounds very shonen.

Also from Yen On: The Executioner and Her Way of Life 4, The Hero Laughs While Walking the Path of Vengeance a Second Time 2, Magical Explorer 2, Rascal Does Not Dream 7, Reign of the Seven Spellblades 5, Sabikui Bisco 2, Sword Art Online 24, and Torture Princess 8.

Lastly, Yen Press has Can’t Stop Cursing You 3, Kingdom Hearts III 2, Tales of Wedding Rings 10, and That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime: The Ways of the Monster Nation 7.

SEAN: The end of April means the end of innocence, getting ready for the boys of summer, and other things that are not Don Henley songs.

We start with Yen On, who have Cross-Dressing Villainess Cecilia Sylvie 2, In the Land of Leadale 5, and Orc Eroica 2.

Yen Press has a whooole lot. We see A Certain Magical Index 25, Days on Fes 5 (the final volume), Dead Mount Death Play 7, Goblin Slayer 11, Golden Japanesque: A Splendid Yokohama Romance 5, Hinowa ga CRUSH! 6, I Was a Bottom-Tier Bureaucrat for 1,500 Years, and the Demon King Made Me a Minister 3 (also a final volume), In Another World with My Smartphone 5, I’ve Been Killing Slimes for 300 Years and Maxed Out My Level 8, Laid-Back Camp 11, Love of Kill 7, Please Put Them On, Takamine-san 3, Plunderer 9, The Royal Tutor 16, Sacrificial Princess and the King of Beasts 15 (also also a final volume), Sasaki and Miyano 5, Shibuya Goldfish 10, and Toilet-bound Hanako-kun 13. I am getting… well, two of those.

MICHELLE: I’m at least getting Sasaki and Miyano!

ANNA: Not much there for me, since I’m not super into bureaucrats for the Demon King killing slimes after their levels are maxed-out.

ASH: I really ought to catch up with Sacrificial Princess and the King of Beasts; I’ve enjoyed the volumes that I’ve read. Also Toilet-bound Hanako-kun!

SEAN: Tokyopop debuts Yagi the Bookshop Goat (Honya no Yagi-kun), a BL title from Chara about a goat boy who loves to read books… and eat books! No one trusts him in a bookstore, can he convince the wolf manager to give him a shot? Honestly, this looks damn cute.

ANNA: I don’t care how cute it is!

ASH: Tokyopop keeps trying to tempt me.

MELINDA: Must… not… look… no. no.

SEAN: Tentai Books has a print light novel debut. You Like Me, Don’t You? So, Wanna Go Out With Me? (Kimitte Watashi no Koto Suki Nandeshou?), another high school romance between a mopey guy and the perfect girl. This genre has gotten popular lately, though usually with more irony than this has. The author also writes Are You OK with a Slightly Older Girlfriend? and When Supernatural Battles Become Commonplace.

Square Enix has a 4th volume of Cherry Magic! Thirty Years of Virginity Can Make You a Wizard?!.

MICHELLE: I need to resume this series; the first volume was very good!

ASH: It’s true!

SEAN: Seven Seas debuts The Most Notorious “Talker” Runs the World’s Greatest Clan (Saikyou no Shien-shoku “Wajutsushi” Dearu ore wa Sekai Saikyou Kuran o Shitagaeru), based on the light novel also released by Seven Seas. It’s one of those “everyone says I’m weak but I’m secretly strong” series, and runs in Comic Gardo.

Seven Seas also has Cat Massage Therapy 2, The Dangers in My Heart 4, The Dungeon of Black Company 7, Headhunted to Another World: From Salaryman to Big Four! 3, Kingdom of Z 5, Our Teachers are Dating! 4 (the final volume), Skeleton Knight in Another World 8, and Time Stop Hero 4.

KUMA has two new titles. sick is a BL oneshot about a young college student. He’s handsome, popular, has all the girls he wants. So why can’t he stop teasing the shy boy in his class? This ran in Takeshobo’s Opa.

Also one volume is Boys of the Dead, which KUMA describes as ZOM-BL!, and I can’t top that. It ran in Canna.

MICHELLE: I am potentially here for ZOM-BL.

ANNA: Me too!

ASH: Honestly, I’ve enjoyed most of KUMA’s releases, so far.

MELINDA: Okay, also count me in as possibly here for ZOM-BL.

SEAN: Kodansha has some print debuts. First we see Blackguard, a horror series from the creator of Devils’ Line. A mysterious virus called shojo is attacking people and… no, it’s not turning them into shojo manga, it turns each person into an identical carrier. Presumably our hero fights back. Also, given the title, presumably he’s not very nice.

ASH: Count me as curious.

SEAN: We also get A Galaxy Next Door (Otonari ni Ginga), a new series from the creator of Sweetness and Lightning. A young manga artist struggling to feed his family finds himself a new assistant, who’s almost otherworldly… and also says they’re engaged. This runs in good! Afternoon.

MICHELLE: I can’t say I’m wild about the premise but there’s enough residual goodwill left over from Sweetness & Lightning that I’ll check it out.

ASH: Sweetness & Lightning was such a delight.

MELINDA: Hm, yes maybe.

SEAN: And then there is Sensei’s Pious Lie (Sensei no Shiroi Uso), an 18+ series that ran in Morning Two. A young teacher is raped by her friend’s fiance, and struggles to keep it from her friend and also connect with her students. This has won awards, but as you might guess, is pretty intense and not for everyone.

MICHELLE: Sounds heavy but good.

ANNA: Way too heavy for me.

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

MELINDA: Cautiously interested.

SEAN: Also out in print: EDENS ZERO 16, Hitorijime My Hero 12, and Something’s Wrong With Us 8.

The digital debut is WIND BREAKER, a new manga from Magazine Pocket. I can’t believe, 20-odd years after WORST bombed in English, we are finally getting another delinquent manga about beating the shit out of other students. Awesome.

ASH: Ha! I’ll admit, I do like delinquent manga.

MELINDA: I mean.

SEAN: Also digital: Back When You Called Us Devils 12 (the final volume), Bootsleg 2, Even Given the Worthless “Appraiser” Class, I’m Actually the Strongest 4, Getting Closer to You 2, and Harem Marriage 16.

Kaiten Books has a digital release, the 3rd and final volume of My Dad’s the Queen of All VTubers?!.

J-Novel Club has the 9th and final volume of Can Someone Please Explain What’s Going On?!, Fantasy Inbound 2, Maddrax 3, and Saint? No! I’m Just a Passing Beast Tamer! 2. On the manga side, we see Der Werwolf: The Annals of Veight -Origins- 6, Villainess: Reloaded! Blowing Away Bad Ends with Modern Weapons 4, and Welcome to Japan, Ms. Elf! 5.

Ghost Ship has a 3rd and final volume of Shiori’s Diary, as well as Yuuna and the Haunted Hot Springs 19.

Cross Infinite World gives us a 2nd volume of I Reincarnated As Evil Alice, So the Only Thing I’m Courting Is Death!.

Finally, Airship has the print debut of The Most Heretical Last Boss Queen: From Villainess to Savior, as well as Kuma Kuma Kuma Bear 9, Reborn as a Space Mercenary: I Woke Up Piloting the Strongest Starship! 4, and Reincarnated as a Dragon Hatchling 3.

And we see early digital volumes for Kuma Kuma Kuma Bear 10 and The Most Heretical Last Boss Queen: From Villainess to Savior 2.

Want to buy manga? Or all you want to do is dance?

SEAN: Are you buying manga, or eating the ears off your easter bunnies?

ABLAZE Comics has a Collected Edition of the Space Pirate Captain Harlock comics they released with the artist Jérôme Alquié. It’s a hardcover and comes with extras.

ASH: Oh! I had completely missed this when it was first being serialized. A good time to check it out, it would seem.

SEAN: Airship has but one title, an early digital release of Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation 16.

Cross Infinite World has the 3rd volume of Apocalypse Bringer Mynoghra: World Conquest Starts with the Civilization of Ruin.

Danmei has the 2nd volume of The Scum Villain’s Self-Saving System: Ren Zha Fanpai Zijiu Xitong.

MICHELLE: Alas, I haven’t even finished the first one yet!

ASH: Same, although it is the next one on my list. Better get reading!

ANNA: Me either! Already behind!

SEAN: Ghost Ship has a 2nd volume of 2.5 Dimensional Seduction and also a 2nd of Cat in a Hot Girls’ Dorm.

J-Novel Club has a bunch of print. The debut is The Faraway Paladin, which is getting a hardcover edition. Also in print: By the Grace of the Gods 8, Her Majesty’s Swarm 3, I Shall Survive Using Potions! 7, In Another World With My Smartphone 21, Seirei Gensouki: Spirit Chronicles Omnibus 5, Slayers Omnibus 2 (also a hardcover), and The Unwanted Undead Adventurer 5.

ASH: I have been waiting for the print edition of The Faraway Paladin! Glad to see it finally coming out.

SEAN: Digitally, meanwhile, we see Ascendance of a Bookworm 18, Holmes of Kyoto 9, and John Sinclair: Demon Hunter 6.

Kodansha has a new omnibus edition of Apollo’s Song out next week. From the God of Manga, Osamu Tezuka, this is definitely more on the adult side of his career. Apollo’s Song explores the meaning of love by depressing the hell out of you. It originally ran in Shonen Gahosha’s Shonen King.

ASH: The fact that publishers other than DMP are releasing (or re-releasing) Tezuka manga again can only be a good thing.

ANNA: I agree.

MELINDA: Yes.

SEAN: Also in print: The Seven Deadly Sins Omnibus 3 and Toppu GP 8.

The digital debut is Irresistible Mistakes (Ano Yoru Kara Kimi ni Koishiteta), a josei title from Comic Tint based on an otome game. A girl flees a hotel room after a one night stand with no memory of the night before. Who did she sleep with?

Also digital: Am I Actually the Strongest? 6, I’ll Be with Them Again Today 2, The Lines that Define Me 4 (the final volume), Medalist 4, Mr. Bride 5, Our Fake Marriage 9, Piano Duo for the Left Hand 2, The Prince’s Romance Gambit 10, and Tesla Note 4. Everyone should read Medalist.

MICHELLE: I really should.

ASH: I have heard very good things.

MELINDA: Oh? I’ll have to check it out!

SEAN: One Peace has the third manga volume of Higehiro: After Being Rejected, I Shaved and Took in a High School Runaway.

Seven Seas debuts Magic Artisan Dahlia Wilts No More (Madougushi Dahlia wa Utsumukanai – Dahlia Wilts No More), the manga version of the light novel released here as Dahlia in Bloom: Crafting a Fresh Start with Magical Tools. The manga runs in Mag Garden’s Comic Blade.

ASH: I initially misread “fresh” as “flesh” and that’s an entirely different manga.

SEAN: We also get Bite Maker: The King’s Omega 4, Kageki Shojo!! 5, Magika Swordsman and Summoner 15, My Senpai is Annoying 7, Necromance 3, The Savior’s Book Café Story in Another World 2, Skip and Loafer 4, Tamamo-chan’s a Fox! 5, and Trapped in a Dating Sim: The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs 4.

MICHELLE: I also really should read Kageki Shojo!! and Skip and Loafer.

ASH: I likewise have some catching up to do…

ANNA: Me too!

SEAN: Square Enix has The Great Jahy Will Not Be Defeated! 2.

Tokyopop debuts Alice in Kyoto Forest (Kyouraku no Mori no Alice), the 179th title that ends in “no Mori no Alice” that I know of. A girl runs away to Kyoto to try to become a geisha, but finds it’s totally different than what she remembers! This was originally a webcomic, and was picked up by Mag Garden’s MAGKAN.

Also from Tokyopop: Assassin’s Creed Dynasty 2.

Udon Entertainment has Persona 5: Mementos Mission 2.

Viz has the 4th and final volume of No. 5, as well as Asadora! 5 and Record of Ragnarok 2.

ASH: So happy to have the entirety of No. 5 in print this time!

Yen On has two debuts. The Holy Grail of Eris (Eris no Seihai) has a young girl about to be framed for a crime she didn’t commit. She allows the ghost of a former noblewoman to possess her to solve the problem. Unfortunately, the ghost is now out for revenge on the ones who killed her a decade ago, and won’t give up her new body!

ASH: I am intrigued.

MELINDA: Okay, so am I.

SEAN: The other debut is The Vexations of a Shut-In Vampire Princess (Hikikomari Kyuuketsuki no Monmon) is about, you guessed it, a shut-in vampire princess. Weak and reviled by her peers for not drinking blood, now she has to lead an army of miscreants.

Also from Yen On: Bottom-Tier Character Tomozaki 8, The Devil Is a Part-Timer! 21 (the final volume), and Konosuba: God’s Blessing on This Wonderful World! 16.

Finally, Yen Press has A Bride’s Story 13 (yay!) and Overlord: The Undead King Oh! 7.

ASH: Yay, indeed!

ANNA: Woo!!!

SEAN: Easter is here and A Bride’s Story has risen from its hiatus! What are you buying?

SEAN: Spring has sprung, the grass has ris’, I wonder where the manga is?

MICHELLE: Wings?

SEAN: Yen On has only one title, but it’s a debut. The Magical Revolution of the Reincarnated Princess and the Genius Young Lady (Tensei Oujo to Tensai Reijou no Mahou Kakumei) is a title whose wordplay sadly gets lost in English. Our heroine is useless at normal magic, but can use magic when she adds ideas from her past life. Then one day her brother dumps a noble who has “evil villainess” written all over her. Our heroine has a suggestion, though… the two of them should move in and research magic together! For fans of Maria and Katarina pairings.

Viz Media has Call of the Night 7, Case Closed 82, Fullmetal Alchemist: The Valley of White Petals (another light novel that is a reissue from 2006), Komi Can’t Communicate 18, Pokémon: Sword & Shield 3, Sleepy Princess in the Demon Castle 17, and Splatoon 14.

ASH: I really need to catch up with Sleepy Princess; the volumes I’ve read so far have been delightful.

ANNA: Me too!

SEAN: Tokyopop has the 2nd and final volume of Alice in Bishounen-Land.

SuBLime has two debuts. Links is a single-volume collection of four stories about handsome young men and their half-baked lovers. The creator is famous for her Haikyu!! and Kuroko’s Basketball doujinshi. This title ran in Be x Boy Gold.

MICHELLE: Sounds potentially interesting!

ASH: That it does!

ANNA: I agree!

MELINDA: Ahhhh okay!

SEAN: Scattering His Virgin Bloom (Takane no Hana wa Chirasaretai) is nothing like that OTHER Takane and Hana. We’re back in the Omegaverse here, where an alpha who works at a cafe with a regular who also SEEMS to be an alpha… but is actually an omega! And a virgin! This ran in Dear+.

MICHELLE: Aaaaand definitely not.

ANNA: No thank you!

MELINDA: …

SEAN: Square Enix has a 5th volume of Ragna Crimson.

Seven Seas has two debuts. The Idaten Deities Know Only Peace (Heion Sedai no Idatentachi) is a manga adaptation of a popular webcomic, and runs in Young Animal. The artist of the manga version is best known for Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid. The author is well known (infamous?) for Interspecies Reviewers. Some gods who’ve had 800 years of peace have to fight… but they’ve forgotten how!

ASH: I find the premise intriguing, at least.

SEAN: My Brain is Different: Stories of ADHD and Other Developmental Disorders (Hattatsu Shōgai to Issho ni Otona ni Natta Watashi-tachi) is oa one-volume anthology from Takeshobo about the everyday struggles of people with developmental disorders. Based on true stories, including one from the artist.

ASH: I’m rather curious about this one!

SEAN: Also from Seven Seas, Akashic Records of Bastard Magic Instructor 14, Arifureta: From Commonplace to World’s Strongest 8, CALL TO ADVENTURE! Defeating Dungeons with a Skill Board 4, The Case Files of Jeweler Richard 2, The Demon Girl Next Door 5, GIGANT 7, Harukana Receive 10 (the final volume), Level 1 Demon Lord and One Room Hero 4, No Matter What You Say, Furi-san is Scary! 4, and The Strange Adventure of a Broke Mercenary 3.

ASH: I still need to read the first volume, but I’m glad to see more of The Case Files of Jeweler Richard out so soon.

SEAN: One Peace Books has the 3rd volume of Multi-Mind Mayhem.

Kodansha has no print debuts, but we do get Attack on Titan Omnibus 4, Don’t Toy With Me, Miss Nagatoro 10, Knight of the Ice 10, Rent-A-Girlfriend 12, and The Seven Deadly Sins Manga Box Set 2.

Digitally there are three debuts, but you’ve seen one before if you’re an older manga fan. The Wallflower (Yamato Nadeshiko Shichihenge) came out in print starting in 2004. Now you can get Volume 1-36 – the entire series – digitally. Enjoy this shoujo title about four super hot guys trying to transform a girl into a perfect young lady… if only she can stop being drawn in chibi style!

ASH: Glad to see this series becoming more readily available again.

ANNA: Nice, I think I lasted 11 volumes or so but I enjoyed it.

SEAN: Also debuting: The Fable is a Young Magazine title about a hitman who’s told he has to lay low for a while… and that’s hard! This has won awards, and seems like very Manly Manga.

Nighttime for Just Us Two (Yoru no Shita de Machiawase) is a Betsufure series from the author of My Boy in Blue. Our drab heroine is rather surprised to find the hottest boy in school wants to be her friend! Then he explains he’s an alien.

MICHELLE: My Boy in Blue didn’t seem especially distinctive, but this one looks really neat! Very much looking forward to checking it out.

ANNA: Aliens!!!!

MELINDA: I don’t know if this actually sounds good to me, or if I just like Sean’s, “Then he explains he’s an alien.” But in any case, count me in!

SEAN: Other digital releases from Kodansha: Apple Children of Aeon 2, Giant Killing 30, A Kiss with a Cat 2, Medaka Kuroiwa is Impervious to My Charms 2, Police in a Pod 11, Saint Young Men 17, Tokyo Revengers 25, and We Must Never Fall in Love! 9 (the final volume).

MICHELLE: Giant Killing is another Kodansha sports series due a marathon catch-up read, always a delightful prospect.

SEAN: A quiet week for J-Novel Club. We see The Great Cleric 7, Hell Mode 3, My Friend’s Little Sister Has It In for Me! 6, Reborn to Master the Blade: From Hero-King to Extraordinary Squire ♀ 4, and the 7th Record of Wortenia War manga.

Ghost Ship has the 2nd volume of better-than-it-sounds The 100 Girlfriends Who Really, Really, Really, Really, REALLY Love You.

ASH: I’ve been meaning to give this series a try.

SEAN: Airship has, in print, My Status as an Assassin Obviously Exceeds the Hero’s 4, The NPCs in this Village Sim Game Must Be Real! 3 (the final volume), and A Tale of the Secret Saint 2.

And Airship also has early digital. Reincarnated as a Dragon Hatchling 3 and Survival in Another World with My Mistress! 2.

Deceptively small, but don’t forget The Wallflower is 36 volumes at once. Will you re-read it all?