Manga Bookshelf

Discussion, Resources, Roundtables, & Reviews

Michelle Smith

Durarara!!, Vol. 1

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Story by Ryohgo Narita, Art by Akiyo Satorigi, Character Design by Suzuhito Yasuda | Published by Yen Press

Here is the sum total of my Durarara!! knowledge prior to reading volume one of the manga:

1. It is based on light novels.
2. There is an anime.
3. People were really excited about the license.

It turns out that those light novels are by the creator of Baccano!, another exclamatory property with an anime that I’ve never seen, but which has been praised by various reputable sources. So, even though I knew nothing about Durarara!! itself, I was definitely curious.

In the space of six pages, three concepts and one narrative conceit are efficiently introduced. Time for another list!

1. Inside a pharmaceutical laboratory, a speaker (presumably male) promises a girl in a tank that he will “get us out of here.”
2. A trio of anonymous hands chat about the Tokyo neighborhood of Ikebukuro and the twenty-year-old urban legend of the Black Rider.
3. Timid fifteen-year-old Mikado Ryuugamine moves to Ikebukuro to reconnect with a childhood friend and attend high school.

Each of these threads will be developed and expanded upon in the volume to come, with some slight overlap but so far not much. Because of that, I’ll address them separately.

1. We learn the least about this subplot in this volume, but it appears to have something to do with Seiji, a boy in Mikado’s class, who lives with his possibly evil sister. Seiji briefly has a stalker who sees something she shouldn’t, and I wonder if that doesn’t tie in with the next item on our list.

2. We see the anonymous chatters a few times throughout the volume and it soon becomes clear that Mikado is one of them and I’m pretty sure the Black Rider is another. Seriously, the Black Rider is the most awesome thing about the volume. A competent fighter with a body seemingly comprised of shadows, the Black Rider takes courier jobs around Ikebukuro, dispatches thugs efficently, and lives with a “shut-in doctor” who would not be averse to a romantic relationship even though the Black Rider has no head.

3. Mikado, alas, is not so interesting, though the fact that he came to town because he wanted something strange and exciting to happen to him is at least somewhat encouraging. He reconnects with his friend, Kida, meets some of Kida’s otaku friends, and is warned against associating with various unsavory people, including someone named Shizuo, who hasn’t really appeared yet but looks kind of awesome, and Izaya, an informant with bleak ideas about the afterlife who extorts money from those who intend to kill themselves.

There are some series that bombard one with so much information that one ends up frustrated. If I were more astute, I might be able to pinpoint how, exactly, the creators of Durarara!! manage to avoid this pitfall, but they do. Granted, there is a lot going on, but the exposition is sure-handed, leaving one with the expectation that all will eventually make sense. Perhaps it’s the light-novel foundation that inspires this confidence, though that is certainly no guarantee of quality.

“Weird but intriguing” is my ultimate verdict for this volume, and I look forward to the second volume very much. It’s a stylish title, one that’s more cool than profound at this stage, and I realize that won’t be everyone’s cup of tea, but it pushed the right buttons for me so I’ll definitely be back for more.

Durarara!! is published in English by Yen Press. The series is complete in Japan with four volumes.

Review copy provided by the publisher.

Pick of the Week: Farewell, Bandai

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The pickin’s are somewhat slim this week at Midtown Comics, but the Battle Robot is able to find a few comics worth buying.

SEAN: … I’ll be honest, nothing thrills me from this week’s manga list. Instead, my vote goes to Vol. 3 of IDW’s Best of Dan DeCarlo, another in their line of Archie Comics series devoted to classic authors. Admittedly, it would have been nice to see the fine folks at Archie show love to these artists while they were still alive, but we can’t have everything. The first collection of Dan’s work focused almost entirely on his Betty and Veronica classics, and that makes sense: Dan is most famous for the way he drew the female form, and those comics best show that off. Now that we’re three volumes in, I’m wondering if we’ll see some more variety. Plus this collection likely means even more scripts by Frank Doyle, who was simply the best writer Archie ever had in its classic years.

BRIGID: I probably wouldn’t do this if there were a stronger selection to choose from, but my pick is vol. 3 of Kannagi, both because it’s a nice series and as a tribute to the publisher, Bandai Entertainment, which is closing up shop next month. That means there will be no new volumes of Kannagi. That might be a good thing. The first volume was a pleasant surprise, the second volume a bit weaker. Still, I enjoy Eri Takenashi’s elegantly simple art, and Bandai did a nice job with production on these books. I’ll miss Kannagi.

MJ: I’m going to follow Brigid’s example here, and throw my vote to Kannagi. I enjoyed the series’ first volume quite a bit, and was disappointed by the second, but I’ve held out hope that the third might steer the story back to its original trajectory. I’m sorry to see Kannagi and Bandai go. Manga was never the compay’s focus, but they worked hard to do well by it and learned from their mistakes. It’s a shame this series won’t be completed in English.

KATE: My choice is the final volume of Hyde & Closer. At seven volumes, the series never overstays its welcome, offering readers an enjoyable mixture of comedy and horror, with a sprinkling of life lessons. The crisp, imaginative artwork is another plus; Haro Aso had a talent for transforming seemingly benign toys — a kokeshi doll, a teddy bear — into lethal weapons. (Do I really need to say more than “teddy bears with chainsaws” to sell you on the concept?) It’s a pity the series was saddled with an Older Teen rating, as it’s a perfect choice for younger teens who’ve outgrown material like BakeGyamon: Backwards Game but aren’t quite ready for the more mature shonen titles in VIZ, Yen Press, and Kodansha’s catalogs.

MICHELLE: Ordinarily, I’d cast my vote for volume five of Bokurano: Ours, but as I’ve done so at least once already, I’ll focus instead on volume 41 of Case Closed, which I talked about in a recent Off the Shelf column. I realize it’s unlikely that anyone new to a series would decide to start with volume 41, but Case Closed is the rare example of a manga where one could legitimately do this, not be lost, and enjoy it. All it takes is being in the mood for a mystery that features gadget-assisted sleuthing and convoluted murder puzzles. If this were seinen, no doubt the series would be more grim and realistic. Because it’s shounen, though, readers are in for uncomplicated fun.

Readers, what looks good to you this week?

Bookshelf Briefs 1/9/12

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This week, MJ, Michelle, Kate, & Sean take a look at new releases from Vertical Inc., Viz Media, Kodansha Comics, and Dark Horse.

Chi’s Sweet Home, Vol. 7 | By Konami Kanata | Vertical, Inc. – One might imagine that a manga series about the life of a cute cat would eventually become… boring. Fortunately, the appeal of Chi’s Sweet Home endures, adding to the internet’s growing body of evidence suggesting that the human fascination with feline behavior is essentially endless. In volume seven, Chi spends some time out of the house with stray cat Cocchi, who introduces her to the neighborhood’s best food sources, for better or worse. This series remains as fresh and charming as ever, and also stands as one of the few currently-running manga that can be successfully picked up at pretty much any point. This volume works as well as a stand-alone set of cute cat comics as it does as part of a heart-warming series, so there’s no excuse for passing on it, even if you’ve missed what’s come before. Still recommended. -MJ

Chi’s Sweet Home, Vol. 7 | By Konami Kanata | Vertical, Inc. – As a cat owner, I read Chi with a certain amount of sympathy for all parties concerned. This is especially true in this volume, wherein Chi eats something strange while exploring outside and ends up being whisked to the vet for treatment by her frantic owners. (Barf is such a ubiquitous part of cat ownership I’m actually pretty amazed that it took until chapter 127 for Kanata to get around to depicting it!) True, sometimes her owners still do very unwise things (like bring a new goldfish into their home), but Yohei continues to be adorable, as do Chi’s outdoor pals. I’m especially fond of Cocchi, a kitten without a home who plays gruff but secretly enjoys cuddling with Chi. His sad story—and Chi’s brush with danger—also serve to show that this series doesn’t need to rely on cuteness to affect its audience. Perennially recommended. – Michelle Smith

No Longer Human, Vol. 2 | Based on the novel by Osamu Dazai, Adapted by Usamaru Furuya | Vertical, Inc. – I’m of two minds about No Longer Human. On the one hand, Usamaru Furuya’s sense of pacing and narrative has never been stronger; working from Osamu Dazai’s text, Furuya has crafted a grim but compelling story about a young man’s fall from grace. On the other hand, Furuya’s interpretation of the lead character, Yozo, is less nuanced than Dazai’s; Yozo has been transformed a young man paralyzed by his own self awareness to a garden-variety narcissist who thinks only of himself. That small but important change gives the material a bitter aftertaste, making No Longer Human a difficult manga to read — not because bad things happen, but because the hero’s apathy makes him seem like more of a jerk than a wounded soul. An uneven but worthy introduction to Dazai’s work. -Katherine Dacey

Negima! Magister Negi Magi Omnibus, Vol. 3 | By Ken Akamatsu | Kodansha Comics. – This third omnibus, containing Vols. 7-9 of Negima, sees Akamatsu shuffle plot points into position, dot i’s and cross t’s, and generally prepare for the next big arc, the fighting tournament. Most of Vol. 7 is taken up with a fight between Negi and Asuna, who is at her most Naru-esque here, a trait she’ll lose as the series goes on. Vol. 8 reintroduces Kotaro, but on Negi’s side and becoming a much needed “male friend”. The translation by the Nibleys had less to alter here – Trish Ledoux was not as free as Peter David was – so it’s not as absolutely necessary a buy as 1 and 2 were. Still, those re-reading will enjoy the foreshadowing of things that happened years later Akamatsu throws in here, as well as casually dropping in his first big villain – one of Negi’s own students! There’s also less service here (though still quite a bit), leading me to think this is where Akamatsu gained control over Kodansha’s editors.-Sean Gaffney

Oh My Goddess, Vol. 40 | By Kosuke Fujishima | Dark Horse Comics. – If you skip to the Letters column of this very short volume, you’ll see Carl apologizing – it was only 112 pages in Japan as well, for unknown reasons. It’s supposed to be a one-time thing. Still, we do get some action in these 5 chapters, as Keiichi and the three goddesses begin their journey into Hell to battle Hild’s usurpers. Keiichi’s place in the group is brought up a few times, and we get a few good reasons why he’s there – he’s genuinely good at strategy and thinking on his feet, something we’ve seen before but tend to forget because it’s balanced with so much of him waffling and not shtupping Belldandy. Speaking of whom, Bell’s jealousy is really starting to get lampshaded in these chapters – Hild’s farewell kiss causes Bell to lose control of her powers, and when a demon threatens Keiichi, she’s quick to break in with a pointed threat. Those who have read the series all along will still enjoy this volume, small though it may be.-Sean Gaffney

Psyren, Vol. 2 | By Toshiaki Iwashiro | Viz Media – The second volume of Psyren is a minor improvement on the first, thanks in large part to the introduction of a second memorable female character, Matsuri Yagumo, a motorcycle-riding concert pianist who also wields a mean kitana. Though we’re treated to a few moments of Matsuri strutting her stuff, her primary role — in this volume, at least — is to explain the rules of Psyren to newcomers Ageha and Hiryu. Those exposition-dense passages dominate the volume, slowing the narrative to a crawl while Matsuri lectures the boys on how to use their psionic powers and what they can expect to see within the game. With the basic groundwork for the story laid, one can only hope that the talk-to-action ratio in volume three will cant more strongly towards the latter. -Katherine Dacey

Off the Shelf: Fullmetal Alchemist

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(Warning: contains minor spoilers for the full series.)

MJ: As most of you probably know, December saw the end of one of my very favorite manga series, Hiromu Arakawa’s Fullmetal Alchemist. This is a series I’ve praised at length, and one of just two long-running shounen series to make my personal top ten list.

For the uninitiated, Fullmetal Alchemist is a 27-volume shounen fantasy epic set in a world not unlike industrial revolution-era Europe. In this universe, the quasi-science of alchemy is actually the world’s real science, bordering on magical power. Its practitioners acquire the ability to transmute physical objects into other objects by breaking them down into their elemental forms and rearranging them from the core. The science operates on the principle of “equivalent exchange,” demanding that nothing can be created without the sacrifice of something of equal value.

The story centers on two young brothers, Edward and Alphonse Elric, who follow their absent father’s footsteps into the study of alchemy, eventually attempting to use it to resurrect their dead mother, a practice made virtually impossible by the requirements of equivalent exchange and forbidden by alchemic law. Their attempt results in the loss of Ed’s arm and leg, and Al’s entire body, forcing him to live as a disembodied soul attached to a suit of armor. Inspired by the legend of the Philospher’s Stone—a gem capable of amplifying an alchemist’s powers and defying the law of equivalent exchange—the two embark on a quest to find it in order to become whole again.

(click images to enlarge)


MICHELLE: Their first significant lead is Dr. Marcoh, a man responsible for creating philosopher’s stones at one of the military’s secret laboratories. He tips them off about his research notes, and after some difficulty in finding them followed by significant trouble deciphering them, the boys learn the horrifying truth: philosopher’s stones are made by sacrificing living human beings.

From there, they begin to unravel the truth about not just the military but about the very founding of their homeland, Amestris, all while continuing to pursue their personal goal of regaining their original bodies. Loss of life and loss of innocence ensue.

MJ: As a point of interest, while it might seem obvious that the title of the series references Al’s metal body, this is actually not the case at all. In order for the boys to gain access to the country’s alchemic research, Ed (the only one of them with a passable human form) must join the Amestrian military as a State Alchemist, each of whom is given an official title appropriate to his person and special skills. It is Ed who is given the title, “Fullmetal Alchemist,” referring not so much to his automail (metal) limbs, but his stubborn personality.

MICHELLE: This, in turn, makes him a target of an assassin named Scar, who has sworn vengeance against State Alchemists, whom the military employed as human weapons in the civil war against his people, the Ishbalans. Little by little, the scope of the story widens until, in the best nature of fantasy epics, the entire world is in peril.

MJ: At the time that Michelle and I decided to feature Fullmetal Alchemist for Off the Shelf, she’d only read a few volumes, so while I could go on and on here about why I think it’s so great, I’d actually rather listen to her talk first. Where would you like to start, Michelle?

MICHELLE: I hardly know where to begin. I’m still digesting the details of the story so haven’t had much opportunity to sit back and evaluate it as a whole. One thing I did realize fairly early on, though, is that Fullmetal Alchemist shares two qualities with another fabulous shounen series, One Piece—namely, a carefully considered storyline and indelible, endearing characters. Although there are a few moments in the story that made me go “Huh?” the tale builds logically while making time for the sure-handed characterization that really ties the story together. All of the supporting characters are memorable, and readers are trusted to remember small details—Kimblee’s opinion of Winry’s parents, for example—and recall them when they inform the character’s future actions. Too, I love that significant events that occurred early on continue to be referenced and motivate characters to the very end. I’m big on continuity, and FMA has it in spades.

MJ: You’ve immediately hit upon some of the points I think best illustrate what is special about Fullmetal Alchemist. I don’t know what kind of editorial process this series went through, but unlike many long-running series, it has the feeling of having been plotted out as a whole from the very beginning. There are no wasted details in this story, or wasted characters for that matter. The series’ supporting characters are as integral to its plot as its leads, and I don’t think I’ve ever read any series (manga or otherwise) as successful at fleshing out multitudes of supporting characters without duplicating or cluttering things up. These characters are so precisely and lovingly created, not even one feels superfluous, nor do we need to be reintroduced to anyone if they’ve been absent from the story a while. Each of them feels as real as if we’re remembering them from our own lives.

And the plotting… just wow. Everything in this story is important to the plot, and it all comes together so seamlessly… I kind of want to send a copy of the series to, say, JK Rowling, as an example of how effective storytelling is done, without skimping or becoming sloppy. Hiromu Arakawa is an incredibly disciplined storyteller, with the imagination and depth to back it up. Her sense of humor doesn’t hurt either.

MICHELLE: It was pretty early on, when Brosh and Ross were assigned as Ed’s bodyguards, that I suddenly realized how distinct the supporting cast was shaping up to be. I have no idea how Arakawa instantly makes these characters so memorable, but she does. Towards the end, there are various illustrations with upwards of twenty people in them, and I found that I could name them all, even when their only appearance was a hand holding a cigarette. And I like that some stick around for a really long time, like Yoki, the corrupt officer whom Ed ousts as the owner of a mine back in volume one. Heck, he even gets a moment to be cool way down the road!

MJ: Maria Ross is one of my favorite characters in the series, and that’s saying quite a bit. She’s also one of a fairly spectacular number of genuinely awesome female characters in the series, which is not something one generally counts on from manga for boys. I’ve meant for a while to do some kind of “Women of Fullmetal Alchemist” feature for Manga Bookshelf, but what’s held me back, really, is that there are so many terrific characters, I fear I’d never be able to do them all justice.

MICHELLE: There really are a ton of them. In addition to Maria, who very stoically bears her exile after near execution for a murder she didn’t commit, there’s Riza Hawkeye, the devoted sharpshooter dedicated to protecting Colonel Mustang; Izumi Curtis, the incredibly intimidating housewife; Major General Olivier Armstrong, who inspires the devotion of her men at Ft. Briggs; Lanfan, the kickass bodyguard for Prince Lin; and of course Winry, who doesn’t have super abilities but who is very strong in her own right and who, by her example, inspires Scar to set aside his hatred of the Amestrians which really, in a way, makes saving the world possible. And still I feel like I’m forgetting someone important.

MJ: A few more spring to my mind immediately, like the young alchemist from Xing, May (and her adorable pet, whose expression when she was wounded in volume 26 actually made me cry). Also, I’m extremely fond of Winry’s grandmother, Pinako, who trained her as an automail engineer. I kind of love that the best engineers, the most impressive marksman, and the most feared military commander are all women. Arakawa doesn’t let traditional gender roles push her around. I like the smaller characters, too, like Sheska and Rose. Hell, even the homunculous Lust is kinda kick-ass. She’s the closest thing we see to the typical voluptuous fanservice, too, which speaks well for the series, considering that she’s dressed in a long gown all the time.

MICHELLE: I love Xiao Mei (May’s pet panda) unreservedly.

And yes, you’re right about Lust being the extent of the fanservice in the series. Most of the women are realistically proportioned. I was particularly happy with Major General Armstrong’s figure—she looks tough yet feminine—and distinctly remember a little mini comic about Arakawa assuring her assistants that Hawkeye doesn’t actually have a skinny waist, it’s just that her broad shoulders and hips of a certain age make it seem so.

This reminds me that I was also delighted to discover that Hawkeye’s motivation for protecting Roy doesn’t seem to be romantic in nature. Okay, yes, sure, I think there is something there, but it’s more like a kind of atonement for her. She’s responsible, ultimately, for him learning the flame alchemist skills that took so many lives in Ishbal, and now wants to see to it that he is able to fulfill his goal of protecting as many people as possible. I love that Arakawa doesn’t take the easy route here.

And, in fact, she does this again many times. I’m thinking about General Graman now, who gets to be president ultimately and whom most series would present as a good guy, but we see his scheming, “let Roy take all the risks” side, as well. Arakawa is not afraid of presenting young readers with complex ideas and flawed people.

MJ: And I couldn’t be more grateful for that. So many authors underestimate children, as though they aren’t living in the same world as adults. I remember years ago when I worked with Maurice Sendak, he was adamant that children understood and were interested in the darker parts of their world often more than the adults in their lives. The stories I remember best from my youth were those that treated me as an equal.

MICHELLE: I think Fullmetal Alchemist definitely does that. That said, I felt there were a few cases where the explanation for what was happening just wasn’t sufficient. Like, say, when Ed is fighting Pride in volume 26 and there’s a line like “he turned himself into a Philosopher’s Stone.” I was like, “Um, what? Did I miss something?” And then it’s not mentioned again so I have no idea what happened. Eventually I just had to go, “Well, whatever, Ed got some sort of advantage there, obviously. Let’s move on.” Maybe there just weren’t enough pages for every little detail to make it in.

MJ: I don’t remember feeling confused at that point, but you know I’m less detail-oriented than you are, so perhaps I glossed over something. I don’t actually remember being confused at any point in the series, which is pretty incredible for me, since I can almost never follow the fights in shounen manga, and generally end up kind of mentally checking out during them. That never happened to me while reading Fullmetal Alchemist, which I always considered to be a minor miracle. Heh. It’s actually this series that first helped me draw the conclusion that I have an easier time following fights in shounen manga when they are drawn by female artists. This is a fact! A weird fact!

MICHELLE: Arakawa is great at drawing fight scenes. I remember that first fight scene with Ed and Greed just blowing me away with how easy she made it all look. I suppose I was less confused by other things and more “Oh, whatever” like some hypothetical musings about alchemy and Al’s situation that were eventually sort of accepted as fact. Unimportant things, really, but yeah, I’m kind of anal. (You don’t want to know how many pages of notes I took while reading this series.)

So. I said it. I said the most heartbreaking and wonderful part of the series. “Al’s situation.” I think the time has come to talk about Al. Do you love Al as much as I do?

MJ: I would have to have a heart of *stone* not to love Al. It’s Al. I mean, okay, I love Ed with the fire of a thousand suns. It’s possible I love him more than Al (if we’re measuring these things, which is a little pointless) because he’s more of a flawed person, and I tend to find flawed things more beautiful than perfect things. But there’s a purity about Al that is just… luminous. And here he’s paid the cruelest price ever just for wanting his mom back too much. Really, nobody has paid as heavily as Al, and it’s just heartbreaking.

MICHELLE: “Luminous” is the perfect word to describe Al.

I found Ed a little hard to like at first, but I thought Arakawa did an excellent job at gradually revealing the more noble sides to his character. At first, for example, Al is the “smoother” in many situations while Ed is more prickly, perhaps trying not to feel softer emotions lest they undermine what he is trying to accomplish. Gradually, though one realizes the soul-crushing depth of responsibility that he feels for what has happened to Alphonse, and this in turn makes Ed very lovable.

I’m also a big fan of his relationship with Winry. He’s such a typical boy, the way he’s kind of a git to her face sometimes, yet is fiercely proud of her abilities when discussing her with others. And though he wants to protect her from some of the terrible things she might see or learn from association with him, it’s never out of a sense that she’s too frail to cope but more like… she’s got a purity that is better unsullied. If that makes sense. It’s not a chauvinistic impulse, which I applaud. And that awkward promise scene in the final volume is so wonderful.

MJ: I absolutely adore Winry, and I adore her with Ed, for all the reasons you mention. There’s never any question that Winry can take care of herself, and she’s at least as protective of him as he is of her, so it’s more like mutual concern than anything else, and sometimes they’re both wrong when it comes to wanting to protect the other, for both flawed reasons and great ones. Their relationship feels very genuine to me. And I think I always identify easily with characters like Ed who kind of spaz their way through emotional difficulty, so I loved him right away.

Al, though, is just a gem, and it’s clear that in many ways, he’s the strong one, and that his big brother would be pretty much lost without him. Probably what I love most about Al, though, is his wealth of compassion. He’s naturally empathetic, and it’s something he’s able to hang on to, despite the fact that he’s been more physically damaged than nearly anyone they meet. Of course, I say “nearly” anyone, because that level of damage is not uncommon in this series. I’m pretty sure the fate of Nina Tucker scarred me for life.

MICHELLE: I think the fate of Nina Tucker scarred a lot of people. But it scarred the brothers too, and I’m glad that Nina gets a mention in one of the final scenes of the series.

You’re right about Al’s empathy and strength, and when he does have moments of weakness, it’s pretty jarring. There are a couple of times when Number 66 (aka “Barry the Chopper”) says something that gets into Al’s brain and won’t let go. Perhaps, since Number 66 (whom I suprisingly came to enjoy quite a lot) is in a similar situation, Al is inclined to take his comments to heart, and when he gets into his dark moods about whether he’s actually really Al at all, or whether his body will soon reject him, it’s genuinely distressing.

And I love love love Al at the end of the series. So clear-eyed and full of purpose.

MJ: I really, really agree. I hesitate to say much more, lest we give away the big stuff to potential readers, but yes.

Al’s identity is so emotionally complicated, much of which is really brought into focus for us by his interactions with Number 66, and actually thinking about that leads me to thinking about how much everyone’s identities are complicated by alchemy in some way, from all the victims of Amestris’ horrific human experiments to the alchemists themselves. I was rereading some of the Ishbalan war sections yesterday, which reminded me just how much even the regular Amestrian soldiers feared the State Alchemists (and for good reason, given what they were witnessing), including characters we’re originally introduced to in much lighter ways, like Roy Mustang. And Arakawa never comes down clearly on one side or another on the subject of being a “dog of the military,” preferring to leave it as a murky gray area, like many of the series’ moral issues (which I love her for).

MICHELLE: I’d say redemption is probably the hugest theme in the series, and I definitely love Arakawa for allowing her characters to have done such dreadful things, to regret them bitterly, and to take action to make up for it in some way. Roy enters the series with this ambition, and Hawkeye with the resolve to support him, but it’s something that Dr. Marcoh and Scar eventually come to seek as well. Very few people in the series are without some sort of sin or great failing, but they’ve got to consciously let go of the bitterness towards each other—which at one point Envy, I believe, attempts to resuscitate to no avail—in order to work together effectively. Victory couldn’t have been achieved without everyone doing their part.

MJ: You’re right, redemption is this series’ main theme, and it’s interesting that I like it so much, since that’s not usually a theme I care for. But I think what makes it really work for me here, is that Arakawa’s idea of redemption is all about taking personal responsibility for your own actions. She’s not suggesting that you can (or should) be forgiven for your sins, or that it’s necessarily possible to really make up for them, but she’s pretty adamant that we have to own them, which is something too many philosophies gloss over, in my opinion.

MICHELLE: Definitely. It’s like with Scar… you’d think that after turning himself around and embarking upon a path to making the world a more positive place, as his brother wanted, that he might reclaim his name and go from there. But by continuing to remain nameless, it’s like he’s saying, “All those things I did are still there. I can work toward making things better now, but I can’t forget.”

MJ: Oh, well said, Michelle! Yes, that’s exactly the kind of thing I mean.

I have a lot of issues about the way our society views the concept of “morality,” and this series actually stands as a great example there, too. I remember a few years back, there was a kerfuffle involving a statement Patrick Macias made to a reporter about manga being a kind of “moral-free zone.” He was taken out of context and the article the reporter wrote was awful on a lot of fronts, so it wasn’t something to take seriously. But the whole thing just highlighted the fact that our culture thinks of morality almost purely in terms of sexual desire, which personally I see as fairly trivial. Certainly there are times when matters of sexual desire can become real moral problems, but in general there are much more pressing issues at hand when it comes to how we discuss and think about morality.

For my money, Fullmetal Alchemist addresses questions of morality with more thoughtfulness and honesty than much of the entertainment I see coming out of our culture, and it gets to the stuff that really matters.

MICHELLE: I agree. In addition to being full of characters who have questioned whether it was right to follow orders that they knew in their heart to be reprehensible, you’ve also got the Elric brothers who are adamant about not using a philosopher’s stone to rectify their own mistake, despite being given several opportunities to do so. It was simply something they’d promised each other never to do, and they upheld that vow.

This makes me think of Major Armstrong, who torpedoed his career advancement opportunities when he questioned the validity of the Ishbalan war. He alone could not put his duty to follow orders above personal feeling. When the time comes later to engage an enemy that is unquestionably evil, however, he gives it his all.

MJ: Major Armstrong is a really interesting case to look at, I think, because on one hand he’s used for a lot of comic relief, with all his overblown emotions and his sparkly physique, but he’s actually a fairly dramatic figure when you look at him over the course of the series. I’m really glad that Arakawa makes it clear that there are often genuinely negative consequences for doing the right thing. You know, I remember when David Welsh listed Armstrong as one of his Valentine’s Day manga crushes and at the time I found that kind of hilarious. But really, it’s the best choice ever, now that I think about it.

MICHELLE: I ended up liking him quite a lot, too! Despite his bulk, he’s really a softie, and perhaps the next most compassionate-toward-others character after Al. Plus, his silly posturing becomes endearing and I love the instantaneous rapport he develops with Izumi’s hulking husband, Sig, and how they communicate through manly handclasps.

MJ: Another character whose moral dilemmas helped me to get to like him is Lin Yao, the prince of Xing who initially really rubbed me the wrong way. Characters whose top objective is achieving immortality tend to really grate on me. But during the period when he shares his body with the homunculous Greed, I actually got to really like him, which helped me develop real respect for Lan Fan too.

MICHELLE: Same here. I felt that he acquired more depth once we saw what he was really willing to do to achieve his goal, and also gave us an “in” to the personality of the most fascinating (to me) homunculus, Greed. I hadn’t found the “fainting from hunger” Lin Yao to be much of an addition to the story, but after he melded with Greed, I looked forward to his appearances.

I wish Lan Fan got more screen time, but I like her a lot, too. And, again, the way in which Winry led Scar by her example to set aside his hatred, Dr. Knox inspires Lan Fan to beseech the prince to protect all the clans, not just his own, probably not realizing that she also gave back to Dr. Knox by showing him that he needn’t be a coroner forever, but still had the right to treat living patients after the atrocities he committed for the military.

MJ: I feel like with all our enthusiasm over things like “redemption” and “morality” we’re making the series sound like one big after school special, but it really couldn’t be further from it. It’s also a really exciting adventure story, a gripping fantasy, a moving tale of brotherly devotion, an often scathing political commentary, and really, really funny.

MICHELLE: The first time I tried to read the series, I was surprised by how funny it was, so I definitely had gotten an impression of it as being something serious and epic. Which, of course, it is. But then you have characters like Armstrong, and the wonderful four-panel strips at the back, and chibified super-deformed Al, which never fails to elicit a giggle from me.

On the topic of scathing political commentary, another thing I liked is that even the good guys use spin to their advantage. One of Roy’s subordinates, Breda (who looks like a grunt but who is actually extremely clever), concocts a way to portray the big battle at the end to the public, making one realize that even our heroes are having to play the public relations game to some extent. They have to take public opinion into consideration, if they ever hope to have the power to steer the government and country into a better direction, which makes the whole story feel more complicated and realistic.

MJ: Heh, yes, definitely. And there’s really no sense that politicians, even the “good” ones, are necessarily upright people. Roy, for instance, who is set up as an ally pretty early on, is portrayed pretty consistently as a super-ambitious womanizer. And though he mellows over the course of the series (and certainly we’re made aware of his deeper, more virtuous motivations), it’s not like he changes into a different person. He’s still that guy, and I feel like it’s made clear that “that guy” is the kind of person who goes into politics. Even if some of his motivations are genuinely righteous, he’s also in it for himself.

MICHELLE: Yeah, there’s a certain amount of ego involved in seeking public office, methinks. I do wonder, though, how much of the womanizing was actually genuine. I was under the impression that the ladies are his personal information network, and the lothario reputation is a ruse to cover his meetings with them.

MJ: Well, I kind of got the impression that it was a little bit of both. :D Perhaps I’m being unduly influenced by the omake strip in which he declares that female officers should be required to wear miniskirts.

MICHELLE: Ha! Well, I wouldn’t be surprised if it was both!

So, this is kind of abrupt, but one character we’ve not really talked about yet is King Bradley. Arakawa handles his introduction so brilliantly, because I could just feel the creepy waves coming off of him even before his origins were revealed. It was telling that Al was more terrified of him than Greed, for example, and even shielded one of Greed’s minions from him during the raid on Devil’s Nest. But like the best villains, he does have a past that one can sympathize with, and is a victim of “Father” in his own way.

MJ: Oh, good call, Michelle. He really is a great villain, because he’s so complex, and honestly he surprised me to the end. His final words in the series actually made me tear up, and that just shocked me. I wouldn’t have thought that could happen, yet it felt completely natural and real in the moment.

MICHELLE: I think I’ll remember best the scene where he’s talking to Hawkeye about how his life has been planned out for him, and how the only thing he ever chose for himself was his wife. Maybe he’s the embodiment of someone who follows orders without question, because he could’ve rebelled like Greed, but instead walked the path he was assigned, with only really one connection that he had forged himself.

MJ: And he chose well, too. I really liked his wife.

MICHELLE: Me, too. I kind of wish we could’ve seen at least one unguarded demonstration of his love for her, but perhaps that would’ve made him too sympathetic.

Another character who loved his wife dearly but had an odd way of showing it was Von Hohenheim. His story was handled somewhat opposite to King Bradley’s, in that he is presented at first as someone suspicious, especially considering his resemblance to “Father,” but who is revealed to be the one person who knew what was coming and sacrificed his personal relationships in an effort to do something about it. He kind of reminds me of Wesley from Angel in that respect, actually. He’ll do the right thing and be hated for it because it’s what he believes must be done.

MJ: And he’ll even do the right thing while also doing the wrong thing, which makes him more interesting. I mean, yeah, you can look at him as someone willing to sacrifice his personal relationships for the good of all, but he’s also making that choice for his family. He’s deciding that it’s okay for them to have to sacrifice having a husband and father so that he can do the right thing. It’s not actually wrong of Ed to hate his father for abandoning them, after all. He really did that, and it really hurt them, to the point that his sons were so desperate to get back their only parent that they’d cross a line and destroy themselves to do it. His choice isn’t simple in any way, and Arakawa doesn’t let him off the hook for it either. I love that.

(click images to enlarge)


MICHELLE: Yes, exactly. That’s why I likened him to Wesley, whose “I’m the only one who can save them” complex led him to take actions on his own that were ultimately ill-considered. Though it’s clear that Trisha understood Hohenheim’s decision, communicating this to the boys would’ve been meaningless because it still meant their dad had chosen to do something else besides be with them. Only his sincere regret later on allows Ed to want to get to know him.

And while we’re on the subject of Whedon shows, am I the only one to get an occasional yet strong Firefly vibe from the series? At first it was all the trains. Trains coupled with dusty towns and advanced human experimentation by the military. And then you’ve got the relationship between Roy and Hawkeye, which reminds me a lot of Mal and Zoe. Especially when you’ve got Roy saying things like, “In the end, the people who understand and support us the most seem to always be the comrades we once fought alongside.”

MJ: Heh, I hadn’t thought of that! I know people have speculated about Firefly being influenced by things like Cowboy Bebop. I wonder if Fullmetal Alchemist was an influence as well. Is Whedon a manga fan?

MICHELLE: Not that I’m aware of, but I suppose it’s possible!

Anyway, once I hit upon the Mal and Zoe parallel then of course it made sense that Hawkeye and Roy were devoted to one another, an incredible team, but not destined to be together romantically. Considering how thorough the ending was otherwise in terms of letting one know what happened to everyone, if they had gotten together, I feel like Arakawa would’ve included that. Maybe Hawkeye just needs to meet a guy who bothers her. :)

MJ: Well, part of me ‘ships them desperately, and another part of me declares, “She doesn’t need a man! She has a dog!”

MICHELLE: He is an awesome dog.

MJ: So, thank you, Michelle, for indulging me in marathoning this series! I hope the experience was rewarding.

MICHELLE: Oh, definitely! Though now I’ve got one more day of vacation left and I’m somewhat at a loss with what to do with myself, since I’ve been so absorbed in FMA for the rest of it!

MJ: Well, you could always watch the anime!

MICHELLE: Believe me, I plan to!

More full-series discussions with MJ & Michelle:

Moon Child | Paradise Kiss | The “Color of…” Trilogy | One Thousand and One Nights| Please Save My Earth
Princess Knight | Fruits Basket | Wild Adapter (with guest David Welsh)

Full-series multi-guest roundtables: Hikaru no Go | Banana Fish | Gerard & Jacques | Flower of Life

Dead to the World by Charlaine Harris

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From the back cover:
It’s not every day that you come across a naked man on the side of the road. That’s why cocktail waitress Sookie Stackhouse doesn’t just drive on by. Turns out the poor thing hasn’t a clue who he is, but Sookie does. It’s Eric the vampire—but now he’s a kinder, gentler Eric. And a scared Eric, because whoever took his memory now wants his life. Sookie’s investigation into who and why leads straight into a dangerous battle among witches, vampires, and werewolves. But a greater danger could be to Sookie’s heart—because this version of Eric is very difficult to resist…

Review:
I think I’d been lulled into a false sense of “hey, this series isn’t that smutty” by the previous book, Club Dead, in which Sookie’s vampire beau Bill is missing and in which the closest thing to a sex scene is Eric’s… enthusiasm when Sookie drinks his blood at one point. But now that Sookie and Bill are good and broken up (yay!), she is free to pursue other opportunities, which manifest in the form of an amnesic Eric who has been cursed by a witch for spurning her advances as well as for owning a profitable nightclub she’d like to take over. He ends up hiding at Sookie’s place while he’s not himself and though she resists his charms for a while, she eventually goes “to hell with thinking” and then we get way too much detail about what they get up to together.

Anyways, aside from the “Sookie hooks up with Eric” plot, there are two main things going on: the big bad coven of witches is attempting to take over various supernaturally owned businesses and eventually the vampires and werewolves ally together to take them out. Sookie gets involved in the attack and it’s not a pleasant experience. Secondly, Sookie’s brother has been abducted and she spends most of the book thinking that his disappearance is somehow connected to the witches. Of the two, I preferred the Jason storyline, as it has far greater potential for interesting complications down the road. The witches were rather dull, really.

I seem to like the endings of these books more than what comes before, and that’s no exception here. I like where Sookie and Eric are at the end of the volume, I like Bill’s menacing return (I actually went “ohhhhh shit”), and I like the ultimate fate of Debbie Pelt. This last possibly frees Sookie to hook up with Alcide the hunky werewolf next, and while part of me cringes at the idea of this series becoming something akin to the works of Laurell K. Hamilton, the other part appreciates that Harris doesn’t keep her heroine tied down with notions of true love.

And really, that’s about all I have to say about Dead to the World. It was fluffy and pleasantly diverting. I’ll keep reading more. I’ll keep going “ooh” at certain things and “ew” at others. I still haven’t summoned the fortitude to give the TV adaptation another shot, but that might be only a matter of time.

Pick of the Week: Manga & More

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It’s a new year, and Midtown Comics gets things started with a hefty shipment of new manga. See what Michelle, Sean, Kate, and MJare looking forward to this week!

MICHELLE: It’s the first pick of the new year! There are actually several likely candidates on the list of manga due to arrive this week, including Kimi ni Todoke, One Piece, and Oresama Teacher. But I am going to have to award my pick to a shoujo manga that I continue to love even as it approaches its 30th volume: Skip Beat!. In practically any other series, the fact that the heroine, Kyoko, is still oblivious to the hero’s feelings for her would be series-droppingly annoying by this point, but somehow, Skip Beat! makes it work. It helps that Kyoko is spirited, determined, and focused on her career, and the funny moments (pretty much any time Kyoko wears a chicken costume) are also worth the price of admission.

KATE: I’m just getting up to speed with Skip Beat!, so my vote goes to Government Issue: Comics for the People, 1940s – 2000s. This anthology has actually been available for a couple of months, so it’s a little surprising to see it appear on the Midtown Comics list this week. But if you missed it when it was originally released in November, now’s your chance to see how the American government has harnessed the comics medium to educate its constituents about a range of topics, from nuclear war to AIDS. The book is divided into four sections: comics about the military; comics about employment and economics; comics about civil defense, safety, and health; and comics about landscapes and lifestyles. Though the contextual essays are a little too brief to be truly revelatory, the comics speak for themselves, offering readers a fascinating window into twentieth-century history.

SEAN: It’s getting so that every new volume of Oresama Teacher is making me even happier than the last. The author has a flair for writing very dumb characters in such a way that you not only like them but root for them, and yet at the same time your jaw drops every time they miss the blatantly obvious. It also manages to ride a very fine line, not quite being supportive of young teenagers being in gangs, but at the same time showing the deep bonds of friendship that exist within such structures. As for Mafuyu’s various relationships with the various males in the series, I can honestly say I have absolutely no idea who she’ll end up with, if anyone. Which is a rarity for most manga both shonen and shoujo, where the end pairing always seems set in stone from the very beginning. And she kicks everyone’s ass as well. Fantastic series.

MJ: Though this week is chock full of (mostly Viz) goodness, I find myself drifting to a book I picked up from last week’s list, volume two of Takako Shimura’s Wandering Son from Fantagraphics. I absolutely loved the first volume of this series, and I was thrilled to see this pop up a couple of weeks ahead of what I’d thought was its official release date. This is one of those highly-anticipated series that turned out to be even better than I expected, which is a pretty rare treat. Though its beautiful hardcover presentation puts it in a higher price bracket than most manga, it’s required reading as far as I’m concerned, deserving of a nice, long shelf life. Definitely worth saving up for.

Readers, what looks good to you this week?

Bookshelf Briefs 1/2/12

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This week, Sean, Michelle, & MJtake a look at recent releases from Viz Media, Yen Press, and Del Rey Manga.

Blue Exorcist, Vol. 5 | By Kazue Kato | Viz Media – The revelation from Volume 4 continues to reverberate in this volume, as now that Rin is known to be the son of Satan most of the class is treating him differently – even Shiemi, much to his dismay. To her credit, she at least realizes that what she’s doing is wrong. Still, it was nice to see Izumo step up and show she doesn’t think anything has changed. A lot of this volume deals with what Rin is supposed to be because of his heritage versus what he actually is in real life – as Rin notes, he did not personally destroy entire families, so why is he being blamed for it? Meanwhile, we meet Ryuji, Renzo and Konoekomaru’s families, and get into the next big plot point, involving the theft of demonic artifacts. As always with Jump titles, a lot of the time the resolution comes down to shouting at other people. But that’s OK, it’s still a lot of fun.-Sean Gaffney

Kamisama Kiss, Vol. 6 | By Julietta Suzuki | Viz Media – Much of tis volume has another old, tried-and-true trop from shoujo manga. We meet a girl, Kayako Hiragi, who would appear to be a new rival as well as a horrible person who sneers at Nanami and has no idea how she could possibly get anyone to follow her… then spend the next few chapters showing how this attitude is a facade and she’s really broken and terrified deep down. It works here because Suzuki is a good writer and because Nanami does not let lack of raw power interfere with her basic niceness. Of course, she also DOES show some awesome new power here. One thing to note: the scene with the black tar spider demon attempting to possess/eat Nanami was bad enough, but Nanami’s cry of “don’t come inside me” gave it an even creepier feeling I wasn’t expecting from a cutesy Hana to Yume manga.-Sean Gaffney

Kobato., Vol. 5 | By CLAMP | Yen Press – The fifth volume of Kobato. provides some long-awaited details concerning how supernatural being Iorogi found himself chaperoning human Kobato on her heart-healing journey while stuck in the body of a stuffed animal. Unfortunately, despite this information and some truly gorgeous illustrations, I still just cannot connect with this series. I just don’t care that Kobato has fallen in love with Fujimoto, the hardworking part-time employee of Yomogi Kindergarten, and I just don’t care that her failure to complete her mission and have her wish granted has some sort of unfortunate consequence for Iorogi and his former underlings, who spend most of this volume standing around telling each other things they already know in order to fill in background for the reader. The most intriguing aspect of the series continues to be the yakuza, Okiura, but he’s only around for a few pages. Still, I’ll read the final volume to see how it wraps up. – Michelle Smith

My Girlfriend’s a Geek, Vol. 5 | By Rize Shinba and Pentabu | Yen Press – There’s nothing too exciting about the conclusion to My Girlfriend’s a Geek, but I think it’s probably better that way. Instead of manufactured drama, there are chapters about Taiga allowing the BL story he wrote for Yuiko’s eyes only to be posted to a website, the continuing effort to figure out whether Taiga’s friend Kouji has picked up on his sister’s otaku interests or is just really dense, and the final story, in which Taiga concludes that, though Yuiko is kind of bizarre and manipulative, being her boyfriend is “not such a bad life really.” It’s a pretty satisfying ending, though I could’ve done without the side story, in which a BL fanboy coerces his roommate to partake in his hobby with lines like, “You will do as I say, or I will sell your soiled underwear to dirty old men!!” What a charmer! – Michelle Smith

My Girlfriend’s A Geek, Vol. 5 | By Rize Shinba and Pentabu | Yen Press – I really enjoyed Volume 4, feeling that it finally managed to give Yuiko enough depth so that we could accept why Taiga would continue to be with her despite simply liking her looks. I was hoping for more from this, the final volume, but instead it seems a bit more like “we’ve run out of plot, do a few more chapters then wrap it up.” Not to say there’s not interesting material here – I was highly amused at finding that Kouji sees his sister in such a set way that he doesn’t realize that in reality she’s MUCH WORSE – but the chapter focusing on two roommates who are a BL version of Yuiko and Taiga felt very tacked on and pointless. Luckily, the last chapter was rather sweet – it stems from Yuiko’s fujoshi tendencies, and intimacy is still some ways away, but I’m happy we got to know this couple, and pleased we got to read this amusing if cynical look at BL fans and the men who put up with them.-Sean Gaffney

Natsume’s Book of Friends, Vol. 10 | By Yuki Midorikawa | Viz Media – This volume was a more slice-of-life turn from Natsume, as we see his attempts to help an old classmate who has fallen for a spirit, and impersonating a harvest god so that a local festival can go on. The latter is the far more dangerous task, and we get to see several action sequences that I’m not really used to seeing in this manga that’s usually more mellow about its yokai. This story also involves Natori and Hiragi as well, and I enjoy the way that Midorikawa-san draws their relationship. I also like the fact that the yokai are still not used to Natsume’s basic kindness and concern. Everyone continues to try to see an ulterior motive. Luckily, we have other characters to be the flawed types in this manga. Natsume’s just the upright noble lad – and we’re glad to see that.-Sean Gaffney

Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan, Vol. 6 | By Hiroshi Shiibashi | Viz Media – I generally try to avoid letting my shipping biases affect my reviews of any manga, so I will limit my discussion of the first chapter of Nura 6 to a brief SQUEE! and a note that Yuki-Onna really gets to be utterly badass. That said, the rest of the volume is not without its pleasures as well. The Tamazuki arc finally comes to an end, but not before he gets to show off exactly why he’s never going to beat Rikuo – the scene where he starts sacrificing his own Night Parade is chilling. The second half of the manga shows off Rikuo and his classmates investigating a rumored yokai at a coastal village, and features some chilling art – Shiibashi is particularly good at drawing good guys revealed to be bad guys in a creepy way. Nura is nice, solid Shonen Jump, and will appeal to those who enjoy Jump-type relationships and a more active yokai series than Natsume’s Book of Friends.-Sean Gaffney

Toriko, Vol. 7 | By Mitsutoshi Shimabukuro | Viz Media – After wrapping up their search for jewel meat (and saving Rin, who was not quite dead, as I suspected when I read Vol. 6), the majority of this volume shows Toriko on his own, accompanied only by his battle wolf Terry. Though it’s odd seeing him separated from pint-size best friend Komatsu, we do get a few character moments here and there – most notably Toriko’s hard love towards Terry, who has a tendency to try to protect Toriko from lethal creatures that Toriko doesn’t necessarily need protecting from. As always, though, the main reason to read this is to see what ludicrous food the author will come up with. BB Corn may look normal, but proves to be anything but – and we hear for the first time about what Toriko plans to make his entree. God. That is to say a food named God, before people start to panic. Still dumb fun.-Sean Gaffney

xxxHolic, Vol. 18 | By CLAMP | Del Rey Manga – One of several metaphysical themes that runs through the entirety of xxxHolic is the idea that time and place for are not things to be taken for granted. The series is filled with searching and waiting for that right time or place, and it tirelessly urges its characters to be patient as they endure. And though the series proper ended a couple of volumes ago, I find I’m grateful that it did not quite end, because watching someone like Watanuki actually learn how to wait has been a very special joy for me. To hear some factions of fandom tell it, I shouldn’t be enjoying this series anymore, but if anything, I’m enjoying it more than ever. Readers should not expect the kind of dramatic tension one usually finds in a series’ penultimate volume—that moment passed several volumes ago—but this postscript is well worth reading. Still recommended. -MJ

Roundtable: Sailors Moon & V, first volumes

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MJ: Back in March, the Manga Bookshelf Battle Robot got together to share some squee about Kodansha Comics’ announcement regarding their upcoming re-release of Naoko Takeuchi’s Sailor Moon. nine months later, this re-release is well underway. The debut volumes of of both Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon and its predecessor, Codename Sailor V dominated Matt Blind’s Manga Bestseller charts for months, with preorders of later volumes hitting the top charts well before they’ve been released.

As a newcomer to the series, I’ve been anxious to reconvene the Battle Robot’s original discussion now that I’ve had some real exposure to the series, so I’m quite pleased to say that Michelle, David, and Sean (a newcomer to the Bookshelf since our first go-around!) have agreed to join me once more!

I’ll talk about my impressions of the series in a moment, but first, I’d like to ask the rest of you–all fans of the series previously to one extent or another–how well the series has held up for you since your first experiences with it. Has this re-read stood up to your expectations?

SEAN: Oh, definitely. I’ve always liked the manga better than the anime, even though I’ve enjoyed both immensely. And since I’ve been involved in the fandom since 1996 or so, I did not have any issues with Usagi’s characterization the way that some people have. Honestly, the re-read of Vol. 1 of both Moon and V just made me realize how much I wanted to read the rest.

MICHELLE: I actually liked it *more* than I thought I would, because I was unprepared for what a difference actually reading it in English would make. There’s an immediacy to having understandable words on the page that you just don’t get when looking back and forth between a physical book in Japanese and a translation on a screen. Like Sean, I have loved Sailor Moon for a long time, so Usagi was exactly what I expected her to be at this early stage. It must help having advanced knowledge of her more competent moments!

DAVID: This is actually my first time around with the manga. I’ve seen a lot of the anime, though. This is really rare for me, but I actually like the anime more, and I think it’s because of what Michelle just said about Usagi’s competence. I’m reading a lot of titles right now that feature spunky, can-do heroines, and this early evolution of Usagi strikes me as a huge, can’t-do whiner. Is that blasphemy? I love the other sailors, though.

SEAN: This is an issue that I’ve thought about for some time. I discussed it a bit in my reviews of Teru Teru x Shonen as well. When you have a story where your goal is to take a very flawed heroine and gradually make her grow up and improve, how annoying can you make her at the start without losing your audience? I know with both Sailor Moon and TTxS, I had people tell me, “I don’t care if she gets better, I found her so aggravating I don’t want to read how it happens.” As David noted, the process might be helped here by the addition of the other senshi, who the reader can identify with as well. (Ami was the most popular senshi in many polls in both Japan and North America, for reasons that should be obvious.) It also might not be helped by seeing the Sailor V manga as well, as Minako is flawed in different ways, and I think Western fans approve of ‘shallow ditz’ more than ‘whining crybaby’ by default.

I also read the Super S manga first, so had exposure to Usagi’s epicness before I went back to read the early stuff.

DAVID: I think the comparison with Sailor V definitely doesn’t help, because her reaction to the circumstances feels more natural. She’s excited that she can become glamorous and powerful and, to a lesser extent, help people. If Usagi had something compelling going on in her life, the added responsibilities might actually seem like a burden, but she seems put out because it’s cutting into her nap time. It reminds me of how right Joss Whedon got this dynamic so right with Buffy, whose destiny was really gruesome and dangerous, and Cordelia, who went from being very shallow to really enjoying making a difference. Usagi is a very “Math is hard!” type. I’m looking forward when manga Usagi catches up with anime Usagi, who was a lot more likable and credible.

MJ: This might sound crazy, but I was actually really surprised after I read volume one and then saw everyone describing Usagi as annoying. I get that she’s slow to embrace her destiny and complains about it a lot, but it didn’t affect me the same way. I guess maybe I’m used to working with teens who complain that you’re ruining their lives if you ask them to practice between lessons or enunciate when they sing. By comparison, Usagi’s whining seem pretty reasonable. She doesn’t strike me as overly immature for her age, and I thought her little mental freak-out near the end of the volume over the fact that she’s supposed to be the leader of this group of girls, each to whom she feels stunningly inferior, read as very natural and relatable. I actually kind of…. like Usagi. I wonder what that says about me! Heh.

SEAN: I’m trying to think of comparable heroines… Miaka from Fushigi Yuugi, if I recall, had a similar issue with fans calling her a ‘whiner’. It seems to be far more of an issue here than in Japan… impulsiveness is not as much of a sin as reluctance or running away.

MICHELLE: Oh, maybe consuming the story out of order has a hand in my feelings, too, since my exposure to Sailor Moon was the third season of the anime. I guess all we can really do is assure people that Usagi does mature while still essentially remaining herself.

SEAN: Actually, while we’re discussing the anime, and how some of us saw that first, I wanted to mention the only character who is noticeably different between her anime and manga incarnations: Rei Hino. Rei in the manga tends towards the cool and collected, and might occasionally be grumpy or irritated with people, but for the most part is meant to show ‘aloof’ more than anything else. Rei in the anime, is, well, a hothead, who is contrasted with Usagi – and also compared, as the fights the two of them get into (and the arguments over Mamoru) make us realize their similarities. At least in this first volume, Usagi does not really have this – the other three senshi we meet are all more together or have better attitudes. I do wonder if the manga might be better presented in five huge volumes, one for each arc – I think Usagi grows a LOT in future volumes, and seeing this is easier once you get Vol. 2 and 3 down as well. And as I said earlier, I wonder why Rei was the only one gives major changes for the anime. (You can argue Minako was made flakier, and to an extent that’s true, but Rei’s seems DIFFERENT in a way that Minako does not.)

MJ: I’ve never seen the anime, outside of maybe one episode, so I came to the first volume of the series (and Sailor V too, of course) without really knowing what to expect. Even though Sailor Moon is iconic, I never had a clear sense of why people really loved it, even when friends would try to tell me. So I feel like I came to it with no expectations at all.

Honestly, I was charmed from the very first pages. It helps of course that I adore older shoujo art styles, but it wasn’t just that. There is a sense of, oh… girlish joy woven into the fabric of these books that I haven’t experienced to this extent since my pre-teen years when I was consuming things like Maida’s Little Shop and the Betsy-Tacy books as rapidly as I could acquire them. Of course Maida Westabrook and Betsy Ray weren’t fighting evil, but theirs were the kind of books that, even in their dated settings, seemed to take for granted that girls were brilliant, capable people with nothing to be ashamed of. They could run their own businesses or become famous writers, but they could also angst over friendships and romantic prospects, make mistakes, hate cooking, and leave their family’s religion, without tarnishing their awesomeness as girls in the slightest.

Sailor Moon and Codename: Sailor V are the same kind of books for me. The short skirts and concern over prettiness that I worried might be a problem for me, ultimately are exactly the opposite. These girls are allowed to care about feeling pretty and other typical teen things, but there’s never the sense that they need to care about these things in order to please boys, or for any reason other than because they enjoy it. In a way, this may even be related to why I like Usagi. She doesn’t feel terribly ashamed for wanting to nap instead of being ordered around by a cat with big claims on her destiny, and on some level I’m with her on that.

MICHELLE: MJ, I’m so glad that you love these books. I remember in our first roundtable attempting to reassure you that the girls calling themselves pretty really makes all the difference in the world; it’s like an empowerment thing. As I read your comment, I wondered whether people who approach this manga will fall into two camps: those who love it while spewing copious hearts and those who wonder what all the fuss is about. Is there a middle ground of people who simply kind of like it? I’m not sure.

Sean’s point illustrates why I’d recommend reading the manga and watching the anime. Personally, I like the manga version of Rei a lot more, and her squabbles with Usagi in the anime are kind of irritating. But there’s more humor in the anime, more fleshing out of character relationships (or at least more flirting when Haruka and Michiru come along), and more time for the villains. Several of Queen Beryl’s henchmen are dispatched in the first volume of the manga but stick around for dozens of anime episodes. Some of the villains are fun characters so it’s nice to have the opportunity to spend a little more time with them.

DAVID: I definitely feel like I fall into the middle ground that you theorized about, Michelle. I like a lot of these girls, and I like the fact that they still get to be teen-aged girls with specific lives and interests outside of their shared destiny. I tend to be of the belief that a little vanity and a little glamor should be a universal quality in super-hero fiction, which Sailor Moon certainly is. There should always be moments when the protagonists kind of step back and realize that their lives are pretty fabulously cool in a lot of ways, and I definitely get that vibe here.

I also really like the fact that none of the Sailors, even Usagi, are shrinking violets when the time for battle comes. They might not know exactly what they’re doing yet, but they know it has to be done, and they don’t tremble. After some awkward moments in the first volume of the generally wonderful Princess Knight where Osamu Tezuka seemed to be suggesting that a girl can’t be feminine and tough at the same time, Sailor Moon is definitely a tonic in that regard.

MICHELLE: Your first paragraph reminds me of a great exchange between Buffy and Faith (and for once I am not the first person to inject Buffy into a conversation!) in season seven where they’re commiserating about their dangerous destiny and Faith says, “Thank God we’re hot chicks with super powers.” “Takes the edge off,” Buffy agrees.

That sentiment definitely manifests in Sailor Moon, as I can think of several painful or pivotal moments for Usagi during which she has transformed into a serene and lovely version of herself.

SEAN: That’s a key thing about the series: Mamoru may give encouragement, or tell her not to doubt herself, He never saves her. She’s always the soldier, even when she’s the princess. In fact, that’s the unique thing about this incarnation as opposed to past lives: she *is* a soldier, as well as the princess to be protected. And this is one of the main reasons why they don’t die again (well, OK, they do, but they get better.) Mamoru may be a dashing prince and boyfriend, but he loves her strength. (Also, note how the series shows that a) you don’t need a boyfriend to validate yourself, but also b) if you get one, that having a handsome and understanding boyfriend IS great.)

MJ: So to switch gears a little, let’s talk about Sailor V. I read this first, and though I liked it quite a lot, I did get pretty weary of its string of similar villains, whose only purpose in villainy seemed to be making people their slaves. After a while, it almost seemed like a running joke. Is it just me?

SEAN: Sailor V is a bit schizophrenic simply due to how it was conceived and played out. The magazine it ran in (Run Run) came out, I think, only 6 times a year. This necessitated every single chapter reintroducing the basic plot for new readers. (You see that a lot in some Hakusensha shoujo, such as Natsume’s Book of Friends or S.A.). Then once she was told to create Sailor Moon, she drew V sporadically for the next 7 years. And by sporadically I mean ‘about 5-6 chapters in the entirety of 7 years’. I think as she did this, she realized she wanted to wrap it up in such a way that it could end with V joining the cast of Sailor Moon (as indeed she does). Thus, Volume 2, which comes out everywhere but comic shops this week, has a much stronger plot and is slightly more serious than Volume 1 is.

As for the one-shot villains being a running joke, Takeuchi doesn’t come close to the creators of the anime. How can one top Doorknobdar, for example? XD Most shoujo magical girl genres feature incredibly silly one-shot minor villains, and stronger major villains who are not as silly. We’ll meet Minako’s main nemesis in Volume 2 as well.

MICHELLE: I had forgotten the doorknob one! I remembered “Hurdler,” who is basically a tennis shoe imbued with demonic power who menaces a bunch of runners. Probably I remember that one because it appears in the episode depicting how Haruka and Michiru met which I *may* have watched about four times as often as the rest of the series.

So yeah, I’m not sure if Takeuchi intended the enslavement plot to be a joke or what, but you’re definitely not the only one to wonder what the point of it all was, MJ. Not only that, they’re all singing sensations. Was Takeuchi making a dig at the idol biz?

DAVID: I have to admit that I found myself favoring the low-rent cheese of V. it doesn’t speak well of me, and I can see why Takeuchi was asked to do a proper version of the story, but I just… like it.

MJ: I think Takeuchi’s “low-rent cheese” is some of the most fun I’ve seen, so I can get on board with that, David.

So, other than Usagi’s character development, what should I be looking forward to in future volumes of Sailor Moon?

DAVID: Well, I’m not sure what’s on the horizon exactly, but I know that it will involve lots more Sailors and sidekicks, and, in my book, the more crowded a super-hero book is, the better.

SEAN: As you’d expect, you’ll see Minako and Artemis join the cast. Get ready for a lot of destiny talk, as well as epic fantasy flashbacks. There will also be some bloodshed – Takeuchi is not afraid of violence when it suits her plot. Vols. 2 and 3 will be less episodic and more serious – though there will still be humor. And a very interesting – and controversial – plot will drop in as the first arc ends. Literally.

MICHELLE: Ha. I’d say *that* particular plot is even more controversial than Usagi herself!

I am tempted to squee about the eventual debut of the Starlights (volume eleven), but they’re around so briefly in the manga that I’m not sure you’ll love them as much as I do after prolonged anime exposure. Actually, they bring around a controversial plot in their own way, or at least something that’s controversial among the fandom…

SEAN: Are there still Seiya/Usagi fans? Sheesh…

MICHELLE: Yep. There was some big brouhaha at Ask a Pretty Soldier just recently having to do with that pairing.

MJ: Oh, fandom. I’m not sad to have missed out on all of that.

Thanks to all of you for joining me here. I look forward to reading both series’ second volumes!

Pick of the Week: Old & New

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There’s a small but substantial haul coming in to Midtown Comics this week. See what Kate, MJ, Sean, & Michelle are planning to pick up!

KATE: This week’s shipping list is short, but includes one of my favorite new series of 2011: The Drops of God. Drops is, in essence, shonen manga for the over-21 crowd. The plot revolves around a brash, arrogant young beer executive who inherits a rare wine collection from his father, a leading expert on viniculture. The catch? Shizuku can’t claim his inheritance until he correctly identifies and describes thirteen legendary wines that are mentioned in his father’s will. Helping him is a sommelier-in-training, Miyabi, and an assortment of oddball oenophiles, each with a strong opinion about how and when to drink wine. The series is pure edu-tainment, striking the perfect balance between Dynasty-style intrigue and Wine 101 lessons; even more experienced wine tasters will learn something from the characters’ ecstatic conversations about terroir and vintage.

MICHELLE: Yeah, though this list may be short there are definitely some goodies on there. I’m going to cast my vote for volume 27 of Fullmetal Alchemist despite the fact that I, as of this very moment, have not read beyond volume two in this reportedly epic series. The reason for my enthusiasm is that MJand I are planning to devote our final Off the Shelf column of the year to FMA, which means I am going to be eating, sleeping, and breathing the series for the next two weeks. Stay tuned, and don’t miss this long-awaited finale!

SEAN: Christmastime brings the fifth volume of my favorite Ikki license, Dorohedoro. There has been some talk of weak plotting, which may or may not be true, but I don’t really care if it is: this is a series that is less a manga than a WORLD, one you want to immerse yourself in despite the inherent dangers. And Caiman journeying to the Sorceror’s World promises to try to shake things up a bit. Though I hope he’s not separated from Nikaido too long – the banter and friendship between the two, as well as between Shin and Noi, is another highlight. Recommended for those who want an ‘alternative’ manga that makes you want to walk around in its setting, even if you’d die almost immediately.

MJ: It’s unusual for a slow week to present me with such a difficult decision, but I’ll admit I’m squirming over the prospect of having to choose. I think everybody here knows how much I love Fullmetal Alchemist, and it kind of kills me not to choose it. But since Michelle has already taken care of that, I probably should lend my support to the penultimate volume of xxxHolic, out this week from Del Rey. I know some readers have given up this series, but I am emphatically not one of those readers, and I’m very anxious to see where things go now that it’s so close to the end. So, you know I’ll be out there grabbing up the final volume of Fullmetal Alchemist, but I won’t be missing out on xxxHolic!

Readers, what looks good to you this week?

Off the Shelf: Beer, cheese, & a bit of fluff

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MJ: Hi! Hi. Um… hi. I had a beer.

MICHELLE: I had string cheese!

MJ: Have you had manga?

MICHELLE: I have had! Relatively “fluffy” manga, comparatively, but manga all the same!

MJ: Tell me more!

MICHELLE: Well, one thing I read was the fourth volume of Kakifly’s moe comedy, K-ON!, which is about as fluffy as it gets.

I’m not sure how it happened, but K-ON! has gradually won me over. When I read the first volume of this four-koma series about a group of girls who form a pop music club at their high school, I was not impressed, finding the fanservice awkward and some of the characters gratingly stupid. Now, true, some of the characters are still gratingly stupid, but I seem to have become more accepting of the less-than-perfect aspects of this manga. Or perhaps I’ve simply lowered my expectations. In any case, I have finally come around.

This volume finds the four original band members studying for college entrance exams in an effort to attend the same school. For two of the girls, this isn’t a challenge—in fact, the wealthy girl is never actually seen studying and there’s a subtle implication that she might have a secret “in” on account of her status—but the other two are not very good students, so there is a lot of focus on their comical failures. Meanwhile, the youngest member of the group, Azusa, drops her stoic demeanor and gets weepy at the thought of being alone but is joined by a couple of new bandmates right at the end of the volume.

Okay, you know what? This isn’t the most original stuff out there. There’s also a high school festival involving a performance of Romeo and Juliet, and another instance of the girls giving a concert that happens entirely off-panel. But I kind of don’t care anymore. I like Azusa and I like “seemingly cool yet easily flustered” Mio and, Heaven help me, I even like the slashy potential in this series. (There must be mad troves of K-ON! fanfic!) Reading it cheered me up, and that’s what a comedy is supposed to do.

I guess what I’m saying is that I’ve done a 180º on this series.

MJ: I’m actually pretty glad to hear you say that! I’ll admit that I haven’t yet gotten into the manga (I missed the first volume, and never caught up after that), but I was pretty well enamored with the anime series, so I come to it all with a pro-K-ON! bias. I’m probably still more in touch with my young teenaged self than a lot of women my age (this is likely not a good thing), so I can still relate to these girls, and I suspect I wasn’t much less stupid, even if I was more school-smart than most of them. In any case, I’m happy this has turned into something enjoyable for you!

MICHELLE: Me, too. I’m still sad that we never actually see them playing anything, but a segment in which various members try their hand at writing song lyrics was pretty amusing. I’m not sure whether there’s more of the series or not—I’d originally thought it was complete in four volumes, but it doesn’t seem like it from how this volume ends.

Anyhoo, what’ve you been reading?

MJ: Well, I suppose you could classify my first read as “fluff” as well, but it’s classic fluff, so it has a very different feel. I’m talking about volume one of Osamu Tezuka’s Princess Knight, finally released in this country by Vertical, much to the delight of us here at Manga Bookshelf. I had a good idea of what to expect from this series, especially after Kate’s Manga Artifacts tribute last year, but my own reaction to it was still a bit of a surprise.

As Kate’s article makes clear, this is a lively, swashbuckling fantasy, and it’s very enjoyable as such. She covered the premise too, in which Princess Sapphire is born as a girl being raised as a boy, thanks to a pre-birth snafu that gave her both a girl’s and boy’s heart. I’ll admit, I wasn’t quite prepared for my own reaction to this.

I’m perfectly capable of viewing this manga in the context of its time, yet I’m still jarred by the notion that Sapphire’s strength and bravery are due only to her accidental ownership of a boy’s heart. I get that this may have been the only way Tezuka (or his readers) could deal with the idea of a swashbuckling heroine, but I wish he didn’t feel the need to keep bringing it up. There’s even a fight scene in this volume where Sapphire’s boy’s heart is momentarily removed, rendering her suddenly weak and afraid. Then her bravery and skill returns as soon as she gets the heart back again. That really bothered me, I have to admit.

Fortunately, the issues I’m having with the manga’s discussion of gender roles are largely overshadowed by the likeableness of its lead character. I really like Sapphire, and though she dislikes having to live as boy while her girl’s heart longs for everything she’s not allowed to have, she doesn’t reject the qualities that make her able to pass as male. She wants to wear dresses and she wishes she could crush on the neighboring prince a little more openly, but it’s hard to imagine her enjoying a life without the adventure her “male” role offers her.

Things take an interesting turn in the last few chapters of this volume, and I expect I might enjoy the second volume more than the first, if those chapters are any indication. But even if the premise continues to bother me, I suspect I’ll continue to enjoy this series. Sapphire is just too much fun to let go of.

MICHELLE: Oh man, that fight scene you speak of seems guaranteed to make steam come out of my ears. But still, this is a title I long wished for, despite not knowing very much about it aside from its premise. (I’ve been waiting for the release of volume two so I could read the whole series at once.) I suppose I will try to overlook this aspect, or at least consider it a sign of the times.

MJ: It really is worth making the attempt, and honestly I’m looking forward to volume two. I hope your experience is the same!

So what else have you been reading this week?

MICHELLE: Well…. it’s something I have to be in the mood for, but when I am, it can really hit the spot!

I am talking about Gosho Aoyama’s long-running shounen mystery, Case Closed. This series is pretty unique because its Shonen Sunday stylings—by which I mean largely episodic but with a story-spanning arc that will only really be resolved at the conclusion of the series—make it an ideal candidate for “popping in to see what’s going on.” The first volume I ever read of Case Closed was volume 25, then I went back and read some of the beginning, and then this week was inspired to check out the current happenings in volume 41.

Immediately, one can drop right in and figure out what’s going on. The basic premise of the series is that hotshot teen detective Jimmy Kudo had a run-in with some mysterious “men in black” and is now trapped in the body of a first grader who goes by the name Conan Edogawa. He’s not as able to help the bumbling local police force in this form, but with the help of some handy gadgets, he makes do.

As the volume begins, Conan’s mom (a famous actress) has been sent by her husband to help solve the case of a wealthy widower who’s been receiving threatening letters under his pillow. The culprit is revealed within a few chapters and, as is usual for Case Closed, used an incredibly elaborate murder method. Next, some dude is stabbed. After that, some dude is garroted in a Porsche. Conan always happens to be nearby and always manages to use an adult as mouthpiece for the solution he devised.

If you’re looking for a gritty, compelling murder mystery, you’re not going to find it here. Go read some Elizabeth George or something. Case Closed consistently treats death like a puzzle, and no one is ever too distraught about what has befallen their loved ones. It’s a game, and usually not one that the reader has any chance of figuring out on their own. But man, I really had fun with this volume! I liked that the cases were short and that the volume was nicely seasoned with some stalking courtesy of the “men in black.” Because the series is up to volume 73 in Japan and still ongoing, I don’t really believe anything big will happen with them soon, but that doesn’t prevent me from being really keen to read volume 42!

MJ: I’m not often a huge fan of truly episodic storytelling, but I admit this does sound kind of fun!

MICHELLE: Like I said, it’s all about being in the right mood for it. Really, it’s another manifestation of the “everything is simple” brain-balm effect that I enjoy from some shounen manga.

Anyhoo! Thus concludes my fluff. What else have you got?

MJ: My second selection can’t rightly be called “fluff,” though it does have a slow, gentle quality to it that is perhaps a completely different kind of brain balm. This week, I read the second volume of Kaoru Mori’s A Bride’s Story, beautifully produced and packaged in hardcover by Yen Press. I know I brought up Yen’s production values when I discussed the series’ first volume, but it just has to be mentioned again. This is a gorgeous book, and that alone gives it an air of gravity. Still, there is a lightheartedness here that makes this a really smooth read.

Things take a dramatic turn in this volume, when Amir’s clan returns again to take her back with them in order to remarry her into another tribe. It’s an ugly scene, and not lacking tragedy, but the real outcome of all of it is that Amir begins to view her very young husband as a man, which, interestingly, is more uncomfortable for her than it is for the reader.

Despite the characters’ jarring age difference, the author is clearly allowing them a romance, and is executing it so deftly, it actually doesn’t feel jarring at all. Amir’s new feelings for her husband are really… sweet. It’s quite lovely to watch their relationship grow, and I found that surprising.

The author also has a real gift for teaching us about the story’s setting without becoming didactic or distracting from the story in any way. There is a lovely section in this volume that is entirely about the importance of cloth and embroidery in the lives of the tribe’s women, and it may even be my favorite part of series so far.

Though we’re not allowed into the mind of any one character, there’s an intimacy with the tribe as a whole that reveals the author’s affection for them and helps to draw us in to their lives. Despite the distance in our POV, this is probably one of the warmest comics I’ve read, and more compelling in its quietness than I would ever expect.

Really, I love this series.

MICHELLE: That sounds so lovely. Maybe over Christmas break I’ll actually have the opportunity to read these two volumes, which have been sitting here beside me for ages now. And I definitely think it’s worth mentioning when a publisher has excellent production values; they should be praised for doing something well that other entities (*cough*Kodansha*cough*) can’t seem to manage.

MJ: It’s nice when a beautiful package like this is just as beautiful inside as well. A Bride’s Story was the perfect choice for this kind of treatment.

MICHELLE: Indeed!

Off the Shelf: Grown-up grumbling

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MICHELLE: This being a grown-up thing is for the birds; I take it back.

MJ: I am so there with you. Revolt against adulthood! Irresponsibility now!

MICHELLE: Clean none of the things!

MJ: Hallelujah!

MICHELLE: Oh, but if we abjure all responsibility, Off the Shelf won’t get done.

MJ: Oh. Crap.

MICHELLE: Maybe we can clean *one* thing.

MJ: *sigh* I guess so.

MICHELLE: You go first. I’ll provide moral support.

MJ: Hmph. Fine. Well, I finally got a chance to read the latest from CLAMP, volume one of Gate 7, out recently from Dark Horse.

CLAMP is, perhaps, an acquired taste. Most people I talk with either love them dearly or roll their eyes heavily at the mention of their name. I’d classify myself in the “love them” category, though I certainly have preferences among their titles. I love Tokyo Babylon more than X. I love xxxHolic more than Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle. I love Legal Drug, but I’m lukewarm on Kobato. Most of the series I like best share quite a bit in common, and fortunately for me, Gate 7 falls very much in line with the titles I most enjoy.

Chikahito is a high school student with a keen interest in Japanese history and folklore. On a solo trip to Kyoto—something he’s dreamed of since he was a child—a chance encounter with three supernaturally-talented personages brings him in touch with an aspect of ancient history he definitely wasn’t looking for. There’s a lot of plot here that I won’t get into, but suffice it to say that it’s all very, very…CLAMP.

The Kyoto group features a number of CLAMP staples, including two beautiful young men with an ambiguous relationship and an adorable, androgynous youth who can’t get enough of Chikahito, whom (s)he manipulates into becoming part of their daily lives. Chikahito is eerily similar to xxxHolic‘s Watanuki, in both looks and personality, but with Watanuki’s spastic tendencies drastically dialed down. It’s as though CLAMP was simply not done with Watanuki, and found themselves embracing the opportunity to recreate him in a new and improved form. As always, there is a lot of ominous-sounding language and pretty, pretty artwork.

Frankly, this works really well for me. I’m not inclined to object to being given too much of a good thing, nor am I repelled by familiarity in such a cozy form as this. For me, Gate 7 is the sequential art equivalent of a grilled cheese sandwich with a bowl of tomato soup—unsurprising but deeply comforting and delicious.

There are definitely weaknesses in this series’ first volume. Like most of CLAMP’s supernaturally-enhanced universes, this one requires quite a lot of exposition, and the pace and plot suffer for it, especially early on. But after all this time, CLAMP’s style is undeniably solid, and it’s hard not to feel that the story is in good hands, even in its uneven first chapters. I know my kind of CLAMP when I see it, and Gate 7 is unquestionably my kind of CLAMP.

MICHELLE: I’m happy that you liked it so much! I haven’t closely read other reviews, since I still need to read it myself, but I had the distinct impression that folks were unenthused by it. It’s good to know that’s not a universal reaction.

I must ask… if there’s a Watanuki stand-in, is there someone else who functions as his Doumeki?

MJ: No, at least not yet. Interestingly, Hana (the character who clings to him from the start), latches on to him because of their similarities, not their differences. So he doesn’t yet have someone who serves as his complement in that way. I’ll be interested to see if that remains the case.

I realize I’m an easy target for a series like this, since it caters to some of my particular tastes in CLAMP, but I’m sure I’m not alone!

So what have you been reading?

MICHELLE: A couple of very different things!

First up is the debut volume of Shugo Chara Chan!, a four-koma series starring the guardian characters from Shugo Chara!. I misspoke on a recent Pick of the Week, in which I stated that this manga is by Peach-Pit, because it actually isn’t. It turns out that various other shoujo mangaka at Kodansha have contributed to it, including Ema Toyama, whose I Am Here! has been mentioned in this space before.

Like Shugo Chara! before it, Shugo Chara Chan! is rated teen (13+), which is even more inexplicable in its case because all of the material in would be fit for—and perhaps best enjoyed by—a seven-year-old. Sample plots include:

* Su discovers a secret box containing photos of Amu’s crush.
* Amu threatens to boil the guardian eggs for oversleeping.
* Ran eats all the bread at the picnic.
* Miki makes an ice statue of Amu for her birthday and then it melts in gross fashion.

Hilarious, no? Lest it seem as if I read all of this with a curmudgeonly grimace plastered on my face, there actually were a couple of things that made me smile, but they’re completely random and may appeal to only me, like, “The guardian characters meet a cute slug.” It’s certainly not brilliant fare, but it was kind of fun and I will probably keep reading it.

One thing I did want to point out is that while the main body of the volume is mostly immune from Kodansha’s questionable editing practices, the notes in the back of the book are oddly messed up. There are loads of missing letters, resulting in sentences like:

“The person in the last panel is AI O STA UST, also known simply as AI O. He is the vocalist for the rock band “B EAK .” Gee, how helpful!

MJ: My. Well. I admit I’ve been iffy on whether to spend my money on this series. I’m a huge fan of Shugo Chara! as you know, but I wasn’t sure that a 4-koma for little girls would resonate with me as well as a series for little girls apparently still does.

MICHELLE: Yeah, if you’ve got a choice between spending your money on this short little volume or, say, picking up the second volume of Princess Knight, I’d say the choice is clear.

What else have you been reading?

MJ: My second read this week was volume one of Rei Toma’s Dawn of the Arcana, the latest from Viz’s Shojo Beat imprint.

As the volume opens, red-headed Princess Nakaba is being introduced to the kingdom of her new husband, Prince Caesar, an arrogant, possessive ass, to whom she’s been married in order to maintain the tense peace between their societies. Always devalued, even amongst her own, for the color of her hair, Nakaba is pretty much resigned to an early death, finding comfort only in the company of her longtime servant, Loki, who was born to a race even more reviled than redheads. Is the devoted Loki her one true love, or can she find happiness with her hard-hearted prince?

Like Gate 7, much of this will sound familiar to even occasional fans of shoujo manga. The setup is so standard, in fact, that there is hardly any question at all that we’ll soon discover the soft side of Nakaba’s husband, who is almost undoubtedly her ultimately destined love interest. And did I mention that she’s got a secret, supernatural power? Seriously. On the surface, this thing reads like paint-by-numbers pseudo-romantic shoujo, along the lines of dubious current titles like Stepping on Roses. Fortunately, there’s some real freshness to the series that isn’t immediately apparent from a snarky plot summary.

Though the first volume’s focus on Nakaba’s “power” is not the author’s strongest choice, there are some nuances to the characterizations (particularly that of asshole prince Caesar) that keep things from sinking into pure cliché. Princess Nakaba is fearless and coldly stoic, without an ounce of typical shoujo optimism. And the political aspects of the story offer the potential for some heroine bad-assery and possibly civil war, which is always welcome in my book.

Despite its surface familiarity, there’s a real spark of life in Dawn of the Arcana. I’m looking forward to more!

MICHELLE: I always love political scheming in a fantasy series, so I look forward to seeing what Toma is able to make of it. Too, I especially look forward to a “coldly stoic” heroine. There aren’t enough of those!

MJ: Agreed! We see both spunky and ditzy in many variations, but “stoic” is rare indeed!

So what else have you got for us?

MICHELLE: An odd yet interesting one shot from One Peace Books! Breathe Deeply, by husband-and-wife manga team Yamaaki Doton, promises on its back cover to “force you to forget what you know about manga.” That’s not exactly true for the widely read manga fan, but the story does have a general-audience appeal and could help dispel the notion that manga is all big eyes and spiky hair.

Yuko Kazama is a very sick girl with two boys in love with her. To one, Sei, she has confided that, when her health fails, she doesn’t want a transplant (believing it would cause suffering to the donor) and would prefer to simply disappear. To the other, Oishi, she has revealed her desire to live and her fear that Sei will think poorly of her if she changes her mind. When Yuko passes away, Sei insures that her wishes are carried out, only to have Oishi blame him for her death.

Fast forward fifteen years, and now both men are scientists with different approaches to curing heart ailments. Sei has developed a synthetic gel that mimics heart functions while Oishi has made stem-cell discoveries. There is much talk about the validity of each approach (ethics versus progress), and quite a few shady hospital administrators who are depicted as fudging the line between “brain dead” and “could recover” in an effort to harvest organs for donation. In addition, both men have their moment as the genius in the spotlight, and we see how quickly such status can be lost due to personal conflicts.

Because of the pace of the story and the obsessive focus of the leads, it’s a bit difficult to get to know the characters and as a result the story is less emotionally affecting than it might otherwise be. Revelations that could be shocking are taken in stride, and readers never really feel the anguish in certain key moments. It’s like the story’s being told from a distance.

I do have to mention an irksome flaw in the script: it’s full of run-on sentences. When a speech bubble contains a complete thought, it’s not really noticeable that it’s lacking a period. But when two sentences collide without warning the results can be jarring. Here’s an example:

True success relies not only on intelligence, but on our humanity as well we can expect great things from you, Takano.

Ultimately, Breathe Deeply is likely to leave an impression, but not liable to leave you sniffling.

MJ: The run-on sentences sound truly irksome, but I admit the story sounds interesting. I enjoyed One Peace Books’ earlier release, Tenken, and it’s nice to see them putting out more manga, even if it’s not quite the game-changing release the back cover promises.

MICHELLE: I’d be curious to see what you’d think of it. I’m sure you could explain its appeal more eloquently than I can. :)

Tales of the Gilbreth Family

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Mention the title Cheaper by the Dozen and most folks know it refers to a story about a family with twelve children. Before there were completely unrelated movies starring Steve Martin, however, there was the original book about the unique Gilbreth family, written by two of the children. This was followed by Belles on Their Toes, set after the death of the family patriarch, and later by several others, including Time Out for Happiness, a more serious family biography, and Rings Around Us, in which Ernestine writes about her own married life. Three out of the four are quite charming, and those aren’t bad odds!

Cheaper by the Dozen by Frank B. Gilbreth, Jr. and Ernestine Gilbreth Carey
When I embarked upon reading Cheaper by the Dozen, I figured I was in for a warm-hearted memoir about the clever antics of twelve mischievous kids living in the early 20th century. And I did get that. There are stories here about playing pranks on the psychologist evaluating their intelligence and about young boys saying impertinent things to guests at dinner, about rousting a peeping tom from a tree and manipulating the family council system in order to get a dog.

What I didn’t anticipate, however, was that the real purpose of the book is to lovingly depict the Gilbreth parents, Frank and Lillian. I am a sucker for awesome dads, and have loved quite a few, but Mr. Gilbreth might just take the cake. He’s voluble, loud, and charming, with a zest for life and learning that leads him to devote his career to developing time-saving measures for various industries. He teaches his kids all manner of things, from languages to Morse code to nifty multiplication tricks, and at first it seems like he’s doing this just to satisfy his own curiosity—and, yes, that’s part of it—but in reality, it’s so that they’ll be able to get along without him and not be a burden to their mother when he is gone. For, you see, he hasn’t told them that he’s got a bad heart.

There is much to smile and laugh at in this book, but the end had me sobbing. In a good way. In the way that makes you want to read the book again so that you can love it even more intensely. I feel like fans of this book could meet each other and exchange a single word—mumblety-peg—and understand each other perfectly.

Belles on Their Toes by Frank B. Gilbreth, Jr. and Ernestine Gilbreth Carey
Where Cheaper by the Dozen serves as loving tribute to Frank B. Gilbreth, Sr., Belles on Their Toes is “primarily the story of Mother.” Overshadowed somewhat by her charismatic husband in the previous book, Lillian shines here as a strong and capable mother defying social conventions and attitudes by taking up the reins of her husband’s business in order to secure sufficient income to not only keep the family together but send each child to college, as Frank wanted. There’s a marvelous passage early on that explains how Lillian overcame her timidity that left me sniffling.

There was a time when Mother wept easily, when she was afraid of walking alone at night, when a lightning storm would send her shuddering into a dark closet.

All that ended the day Dad died. It ended because it had to end. It ended because of the realization that what she really feared was that something would separate them.

Well, what she feared had happened, and tears would not wash out a word of it. So she gave his speech in London and presided for him in Prague. And she was not afraid any more.

I get a bit verklempt now, just typing that.

Belles on Their Toes also focuses a lot on the oldest daughters, as they develop into women and eventually bring beaus home to meet the family. I’m particularly fond of sensible Martha, who has no idea she’s become shapely and sought-after and devotes herself to principles of frugality. That’s not to say that pranks and mischief are entirely absent, however! Near the end, the pace of the story picks up a great deal, skipping over some of the middle children to cover the high school graduation of the youngest (Jane), followed by a family reunion in which three of Lillian’s grandchildren are christened in the same church as their parents.

It’s a very satisfying conclusion and most people would probably feel content to stop here. With a little research and a couple of interlibrary loans, however, I’ve unearthed a couple of other books about the family that are less well known.

Time Out for Happiness by Frank B. Gilbreth, Jr.
Whereas the first two books “stressed the comical aspects of raising a big family by Motion Study methods,” Time Out for Happiness puts the emphasis on Frank and Lillian’s work in the field of “scientific management.” You might think this sounds dull, but actually there are enough amusing anecdotes and big personalities (like “plump and boisterous” Frank) to make for quite an absorbing read.

Time Out for Happiness also dwells more on the family backgrounds for Frank and Lillian, as well as the early days of their courtship and marriage. Some of the material is familiar, but most of it is new. (Interestingly, a few small details are different here, like which child made what remark or what handyman Tom named his cats. Were those embellished the first time around?) I welcomed the insight into what Frank and Lillian were hoping to accomplish with Motion Study, especially the fact that Lillian was very much an equal partner.

Indeed, while gregarious Frank initially captures one’s heart, by the end one realizes how truly remarkable Lillie was. For a woman to get a Master’s degree in 1902 (followed by a PhD in 1914) was no small feat, and she was the first woman to receive honorary membership in several influential engineering societies. After Frank’s death in 1924, Lillie continued to espouse the Gilbreth method for over 40 years, eventually earning the public recognition of their endeavors that she’d long been seeking.

The one drawback to reading this book is that it makes one feel a serious underachiever. There were so many opportunities to think and do new things in the early 20th century that I don’t know now whether such chances simply don’t exist anymore or if I am just not personally bright enough to see them.

At any rate, this may be a more factual account of the family history, but it’s no less entertaining.

Rings Around Us by Ernestine Gilbreth Carey
Out of the four books on the Gilbreth family that I read, I liked Rings Around Us—the story of Ernestine’s married life—the least. I found it to be lacking the warmth of the earlier books, and I’m not sure whether to attribute that to the lack of Lillian or to the lack of Frank, Jr. as writing partner. Probably it’s a combination of both.

In September 1929, when she is a 21-year-old working girl in New York City, Ernestine Gilbreth meets Charles Carey. They hit it off immediately and are married in 1930. The book recounts their many apartments in the city, the many nurses they hire to take care of their daughter while Ernestine works, and the eventual decision to move to Long Island, where the kids have plenty of friends and room to roam and where the Carey parents experience the joy of tending a garden and the sorrows of home maintenance.

The problem is… Charles (called “Chick” by Ernestine) is a product of his time, in that he is a sexist git. He frequently makes comments about women and though he occasionally condescends to help Ernestine with meals and dishes, his attitudes eventually begin to wear off on his son. Ernestine chafes at his notions, but doesn’t get her dander up as much as I would’ve liked. But no matter, because she herself is sizeist. Many, many times she describes a person by their weight, be it the nurse whose bosoms she compares to watermelons or the dance teacher her daughter adores, “all two hundred pounds of her.” This attitude, too, wears off on the kids, as a later chapter dwells upon a game they invent wherein you score points for spotting fat people on the beach. The game is called “Whale.”

Nice. Really nice. Thanks for leaving me with a sour taste in my mouth, Ernestine.

The Documents in the Case by Dorothy L. Sayers (with Robert Eustace)

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From the back cover:
The grotesquely grinning corpse in the Devonshire shack was of a man who had died horribly—with a dish of mushrooms at his side. His body contained enough death-dealing muscarine to kill thirty people. Why would an expert on fungi feast on a large quantity of this particularly poisonous species? A clue to the brilliant murderer, who had baffled the best minds in London, was hidden in a series of letters and documents that no one seemed to care about, except the dead man’s son.

Review:
The Documents in the Case is the one full-length mystery novel penned by Dorothy L. Sayers that doesn’t star Lord Peter Wimsey. Before I’d read it, I knew of it merely as “the one with the mushrooms.” Now I’ll know it as “the really boring one with the mushrooms.”

For the most part, this is an epistolary novel in which letters written by the residents of a particular Bayswater address depict the state of family life before the death of patriarch and mushroom enthusiast, George Harrison (yes, really). Sayers expertly and efficiently depicts the character of each correspondent through their writing, including George himself; the young, flighty, and discontented lady of the house (Margaret); her deluded-to-the-point-of-insanity companion (Miss Milsom); the dashing artist tenant (Harwood Lathom); the deep-thought-having novelist tenant (John Munting); and George’s son from an earlier marriage (Paul), who has gathered the documents together in a bid to prove that his father was too much of an expert on mushrooms to have died from accidentally ingesting a poisonous variety.

Some of this is fairly interesting, some is irritating—seriously, although one can sympathize with Margaret for her repressive husband, she is still frequently too insincere and manipulative to bear—and some is downright tedious. Munting’s letters to his fiancée often lapse into pseudo-philosophizing, but the cake is taken by an extremely long and self-indulgent scene near the end in which Sayers uses a bunch of random professorial types as mouthpieces through which to espouse some theories on the origins of life. If I had a paper copy instead of an audiobook I would quote some of the dialogue from this section, but it will have to suffice it to say that my impatience caused me to hurl profanities at my innocent cassette player.

Eventually, this rambling conversation produces the means of proving the death was no accident, and then there’s a very brief postscript about how the culprit was hanged. The end.

Ultimately, I conclude that this one is only for completists. Completists, I wish I could say this was better, but perhaps it will be some small comfort to know that it is at least quite short.

Pick of the Week: Balanced Diet

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We’ve got a hefty haul at Midtown Comics this week, ranging from classic staples to contemporary 4-koma. Check out the Battle Robot’s picks below!

MJ: Heavy shipping weeks like this are nearly as tough for me as the bleak ones. From such a bounty of manga, I hardly know what to choose. As a bit of a completist, though, I admit I’m drawn to big finishes, and we have a pretty spectacular one this week. I’m speaking, of course, of the final volume of Osamu Tezuka’s Black Jack, arriving at Midtown Comics this week from Vertical. Based on the Akita Deluxe Edition mapped out by Tezuka before his death, along with three additional stories in the hardcover special editions of the first three volumes, Vertical’s collection is one of the most comprehensive in any language to-date. Above all, though, Black Jack is just a really great comic, and it’s pretty thrilling to have so much of it available in English, produced with the kind of loving care that Vertical gives to all its licenses. This final volume also features an appendix at the back, containing the original publication dates of the stories contained in Vertical’s editions, as well as a chronological listing of every story in the series, including those that were “sealed” by the author. For any fan of the series, this volume is a must-buy.

DAVID: I can’t say that this particular arc of Eiichiro Oda’s One Piece has been my very favorite ever, but a middling patch of One Piece is still superior to the vast majority of comics. I suspect that the 59th volume will be one of those heartbreakers that Oda can pull off when one least expects it. And I’m sure there will be some callback to it about six or seven volumes down the road that will break my heart all over again. For those who aren’t up to date, Luffy has been fighting like a demon to save his brother from execution, and, being Luffy, he’s ignited a huge war between the navy and pretty much every pirate in the world without even trying. We’re nearing the conclusion of that and – hopefully – the return of the regular supporting cast. I miss the Straw Hats something awful.

KATE: Though I heartily second MJ’s choice of Black Jack, my pick goes to Dawn of the Arcana, a new Shojo Beat title. Most early reviews were tepid, with critics grousing about the pace, the poor integration of the fantasy elements, or the author’s over-reliance on types (e.g. Brash Jerk with Heart of Gold, Fawning Admirer Who Would Throw Himself in Front of a Bus for You). Those are fair criticisms of Arcana, but I liked it nonetheless, as it features the kind of steely, smart heroine who can think her way out of a tough situation, rather than relying on her fists or her feminine wiles. I also happened to like the story’s brisk tempo; the author allows important information to be revealed through the natural unfolding of the story, rather than assaulting the reader with lengthy monologues about the setting or the characters’ histories.

MICHELLE: My pick this week goes to the seventeenth and penultimate volume of Bisco Hatori’s Ouran High School Host Club. I’m not blind to the flaws of this series—I groan often at the episodic hijinks—but I still nurture very fond feelings for it, and each volume usually contains just enough romantic progress from the two leads to leave me satisfied as I begin the long wait for the next installment. I can only assume that as the series draws nearer to its conclusion we will see less comedy and more romance, which will make me happy indeed. I love Haruhi and I really love Tamaki, so I want to see those kids work it out already!

SEAN: And I will likewise pick a final volume, though this series does not quite have the blogger cred that Black Jack does. But K-On! has been improving volume by volume, and in the 4th and final volume (for now) of the cast’s exploits, we see the cast trying to deal with passing their exams, getting into the right colleges, playing their final school concert, and dealing with the worst horror of all – the school play! There’s still plenty of laughs here (I love the chapter where everyone thinks Ritsu has a secret boyfriend), but the emphasis is on adorable and heartwarming, with a few tears sprinkled throughout. It probably won’t change anyone’s mind if they hadn’t liked what came before, but for those who did, this is the best of the four volumes. See you in University!

Readers, what looks good to you this week?

Bookshelf Briefs 12/5/11

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This week, MJ, Michelle, & Kate look at new releases from Viz Media, Digital Manga Publishing, and Vertical, Inc.

About Love | By Narise Konohara and Tomo Ootake | Digital Manga Publishing – The unconventional cover on this one led me to expect a quirky story, but About Love is calm and melancholy as it depicts the friendship and romance between Asaka, a wedding planner, and Sasagawa, one of his first clients. What I found striking about this story was the lack of optimism from its protagonists—Sasagawa is convinced that Asaka only wants to be friends while Asaka is in love but has no intentions of ever revealing the relationship to his friends and family. Misunderstandings and work obligations conspire to keep the two apart and… I don’t know… usually one assumes a BL couple will ride happily off into the sunset, but I honestly am not sure that’ll happen here. Which is probably a good thing, right? Bucking convention and all that. In any case, it was an interesting read and I recommend it if you’re in the mood for something different. – Michelle Smith

Bakuman, Vol. 8 | By Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata | Viz Media – Bakuman‘s romantic entanglements have never been its strength, and unfortunately this volume is saddled with more than its fair share. Even more unfortunate is the authors’ portrayal of young novelist Aiko Iwase, a brilliant former schoolmate of our heroes, whose ambition is apparently driven entirely by romantic feelings for Takagi, but is presented without any of the genuine insight or sympathy granted to similarly love-obsessed artist Nakai. And while it’s admittedly pretty satisfying to see Nakai finally get smacked in the face (twice!) later in this volume, it’s even more of a relief to see Ohba and Obata turn the plot back to the craft and politics of the manga publishing biz, which is what really makes this series work. I’ll cross my fingers in hopes that we see more of this in the next volume. Still cautiously recommended. – MJ

Black Jack, Vol. 17 | By Osamu Tezuka | Vertical, Inc. – The final installment of Black Jack includes a mixture of good, great, and outstanding stories, the best of which feature Pinoko. I’d be the first to admit that Pinoko is my least favorite character of the series, as she’s always struck me as a nasty caricature of the Japanese housewife. In volume 17, however, Pinoko is forced to confront her liminal status as an adult — first when Black Jack tries to give her to a childless couple, then when her sister enters Black Jack’s life again. Both stories are an appealing mixture of humor, suspense, and pathos that cast this problematic character in a more sympathetic light; we feel Pinoko’s pain as she struggles to reconcile her eternally youthful appearance with her more mature feelings for Black Jack. As an added bonus, Tezuka stuffs these last stories with cameos from Phoenix, Ode to Kirihito, and Swallowing the Earth (to name a few), a lovely reward for his most devoted fans. – Katherine Dacey

I’ll Give It My All… Tomorrow, Vol. 4 | By Shunju Aono | Viz Media – After the crushing resignation of the editor who believed in him, Shizuo’s new editor—the embittered, no-nonsense daughter of a failed novelist—cuts him no slack, describing his work as self-indulgent justification for his own lifestyle. Surprisingly, Shizuo actually seems to listen, at least by the end of the volume, providing hope that the promised “Tomorrow” might actually be at hand. I’ve become frustrated with this series from time-to-time, as it vacillates between latching on to a real narrative and settling into the perpetual sitcom feel so common in comedic manga. But I do have some hope of it finally leaning towards the former, especially after this very strong volume. As usual, the series’ side characters are more interesting than its protagonist, but finally it seems like that protagonist might actually care. It’s fascinating to watch this series evolve in a way not dissimilar to our hero’s own journey, which may simply prove how brilliant it’s been from the start. Recommended. – MJ

The Innocent | By Avi Arad, Junichi Fujisaku, and Yasung Ko | Yen Press – I was initially baffled by the presence of quotes from Stan Lee and Sam Raimi on the back cover of The Innocent until a little research revealed that Arad is actually some kind of Marvel bigwig. Apparently, this is why he has the likes of Nicolas Cage proclaiming that his work “shows like an esoteric haiku by way of anime and Lichtenstein and achieves comic book poetry.” To which I say, “Um, what?” And also, “Were we reading the same book?” I found The Innocent to be uninspired, with unsympathetic characters, incredibly paper-thin villains, and incoherent action scenes. It’s possible that this could have been a cool story—it does feature a wrongly executed guy who comes back to life with a body made of ash, which he can manipulate in various nifty ways—but the flaws listed above prevented me from giving a hoot about any of it. – Michelle Smith

Real, Vol. 10 | By Takehiko Inoue | Viz Media – It’s been a long wait for the tenth volume of Real, but I am happy to report that the wait is well worthwhile! This volume maintains the sort of shounen-esque feel of volume nine, with a mixture of grand declarations, gritty determination, and talk of achieving one’s dreams, but without losing any of the realism that makes this series so compelling. It’s gratifying, really, to see a character like Takahashi discover a glimmer of aspiration at long last, and it’s surprising how possible Noyima’s seemingly unrealistic dream suddenly appears, now that his moment of trial has arrived. Inoue’s craftsmanship is as stunning as ever, and I’m constantly impressed by his ability to shift focus from character to character without ever losing the tension in even one of his delicately-overlapping storylines. Heavy as it can be, this series is always a pleasure to read, which is a true feat for any writer. It seems clear that this series will always be worth waiting for. Highly recommended. – MJ