Michelle Smith

It’s a Vizstravaganza!

Assassination Classroom, Vol. 10 | By Yusei Matsui | Viz Media – First of all, yay, Kayano got to do something! The giant pudding detail was very well done, and there was a minimum of the usual tiny chest jokes that normally surround her. The other important detail to note in this volume is how much other forces from outside the classroom are also trying to kill Koro-sensei, and how their methods are very much “by any means necessary.” Indeed, Shiro may end up being this manga’s Big Bad. What he does to Itona is appalling, and I was pleased that, after suitable recovery and the appropriate tragic backstory, he was able to join the class. This continues to be a top-drawer Jump series, and is now so popular that the author will be at NYCC this fall. – Sean Gaffney

Food Wars!: Shokugeki no Soma, Vol. 12 | By Yuto Tsukuda and Shun Saeki | VIZ Media – I always enjoy Food Wars!, but this was an especially good volume. The three-way battle in the final round of the Fall Classic gets underway, but Soma is at a disadvantage when it comes to selecting the best pike (the theme ingredient) for his dish. Of course, he comes through with an innovative workaround after having been dismissed as a threat by his two competitors, though we’ll have to wait until the next volume to see how the judges react to his final flourish. I especially liked that the art has evolved some, and Soma appears to have aged a bit since the start of the series, and that the over-the-top reaction shots leaned more towards musclebound dudes than scantily clad ladies this time around. Eagerly looking forward to volume thirteen! – Michelle Smith

Kamisama Kiss, Vol. 21 | By Julietta Suzuki | Viz Media – I was rather surprised to see that Tomoe’s plight is not so easily resolved, and indeed not resolved at all this volume. But that allows us to focus more on Nanami, who is struggling hard to get her happy human-sized lifetime with her love, but the question remains how long her life is going to be, especially with Yatori, who’s always been sort of creepy and villainous but ups his game a great deal here. Things are so bad that Nanami is even offered an out, when she arrives at Mount Kurama and reunites with her (slightly older) friends, who tell her she can stay there for the rest of her life, and see Tomoe on occasion. But that’s not good enough: Nanami loves Tomoe, and has to fix this. Still recommended. – Sean Gaffney

Paradise Residence, Vol. 2 | By Kosuke Fujishima | Kodansha Comics – This is just the one volume, and because Fujishima’s volumes are slim, it looks like a lot less compared to its predecessor. I’d say that the content also felt a bit light compared to its predecessor, but that implies that the previous volume had a heavy amount of content, which it doesn’t. This series is fluffy even for Fujishima, who takes the time when he’s relaxing from wrapping up Oh My Goddess (most of this ran concurrently with it) to give us amusing school situations, amusing beach situations, a lot of pretty girls, and of course a brief race with a souped-up car, because we know what the author REALLY cares about. If you love Fujishima, this is definitely worth a read. If not, totally skippable. – Sean Gaffney

QQ Sweeper, Vol. 3 | By Kyousuke Motomi | Viz Media – I wasn’t aware that this was the final volume of QQ Sweeper until right before I read it, and it came as a surprise. That said, what it’s actually doing is changing its title and rebooting itself, something that usually happens when a title changes publishers, but no, it’s still going to be in Betsucomi. This is probably why very little is actually wrapped up here, though at least we now have confirmation that Fumi is indeed a very special girl, and she and Kyutaro become closer. This is just as dramatic as the previous volume, with some bullying at the start and major suicidal focus in the second half, so it may not be for everyone. For me though, it was fantastic, and I really hope Viz licenses Queen’s Quality soon. – Sean Gaffney

QQ Sweeper, Vol. 3 | By Kyousuke Motomi | VIZ Media – This is the final volume of QQ Sweeper under this name, but the story doesn’t actually end here. Rather, it just sort of pauses, continuing in Queen’s Quality, which I am hopeful VIZ will license soon. Because, in the end, I really came to like Fumi a great deal. When a manipulative bug-handler coopts a karaoke outing to create hysteria over Fumi’s supposed curse, which in turn leads to bullying followed by insincere friendliness, she comports herself throughout with dignity yet doesn’t shy away from expressing her anger. Furthermore, she’s able to graciously accept Kyutaro’s help when one of the mean girls is further compelled to attempt suicide. It’s nice to have a lead who isn’t spazzy! In fact, I’ve grown to care about both lead characters very much and hope we see more of them soon! – Michelle Smith

School Judgment: Gakkyu Hotei, Vol. 3 | By Nobuaki Enoki and Takeshi Obata | Viz Media – Sometimes you read a series and you know the only reason it was licensed at all is the name recognition, and that’s certainly the case with School Judgment, which would never have even sniffed these shores were it not drawn by Takeshi Obata. We meet our third colleague of Abaku, and if you enjoyed Franziska Von Karma but wished she wore a leather bustier and was twelve years old, you’re in luck! For the rest of us, the fanservice falls flat, and the volume reads like a classic ‘cancelled’ Jump series, i.e. the ending is quite rushed and unsatisfying. If you absolutely must have anything Obata writes, you can get this, but otherwise Ace Attorney is still miles better (and indeed Miles better). – Sean Gaffney

School Judgment: Gakkyu Hotei, Vol. 3 | By Nobuaki Enoki and Takeshi Obata | VIZ Media – In this volume, one last classroom session for class 6-3 leads to the discovery of the identity of the fourth student to survive the massacre five years before. I’ve always felt rather “meh” about School Judgment, but with the introduction of Yui Kijima (the third survivor), my feelings shifted to outright dislike. Not only does she have a sadistic personality, the hyper-sexualized depiction of her as a leather-clad, twelve-year-old dominatrix is really gross. Still, the promise of resolution to the aforementioned massacre kept me reading. Too bad that turned out to be pretty lame, as well. Enoki’s original one-shot, with its craptastic art, rounds out the volume. I’m left with profound gratitude that this series is over. – Michelle Smith

Toriko, Vol. 34 | By Mitsutoshi Shimabukuro | Viz Media – I will hand it to Viz, there was absolutely no way they could censor out the fact that Toriko and company have to get the testicles of the Monkey King to save Komatsu, or all the many, many ball-jokes that follow, and they don’t even try. For the most part, though, this is setup to a big upcoming battle, complete with ignominious defeat to begin with (complete with fake horrific death scenes), and difficult but amusing training sequences. As for the Monkey King himself, he honestly seems like a lot of fun, and I’m hoping that things might be able to be resolved without his death. Until then, though, it’s a giant tag-team wrestling match with our heroes. Toriko is still not about food, but as a Jump title, it’s good. – Sean Gaffney

Inu x Boku SS, Vol. 11 | By Cocoa Fujiwara | Yen Press – The finale of this series gets a few more extra pages to be able to show the final battle and all of the villainous tragic backstory that precipitates it. It ends up tying in with the time-traveling tree we’ve seen in prior volumes, but honestly, I wasn’t as interested in the villains as I was in seeing our heroes be cool. All the appropriate couples end up together (though surprise, the supposed lesbian isn’t so much in the end), and we even get some closure from the future-that-wasn’t cast as well. I enjoyed this series a great deal, with several of the plot twists taking me totally by surprise (though sometimes, as with the fate of Kagerou, there is utter non-surprise). I’ll miss it. – Sean Gaffney

Kamisama Kiss, Vol. 21 | By Julietta Suzuki | VIZ Media – I have consistently enjoyed Kamisama Kiss, but now that we’re moving into the endgame, it’s gotten even better. Tomoe has decided to become human, but his first attempt has left him in fox form instead. Nanami is supposed to stay behind while Mikage seeks treatment, but of course she doesn’t, and her shortcut leads to a run-in with one of Kirihito’s minions who reveals that her life force has been so diminished by what happened between her and his master in Okinawa that she’s got at most six months to live. I am absolutely sure a shoujo manga won’t allow its heroin to die—though I can think of one notable exception—so the parts that I actually found most interesting involved Kirihito’s schemes coming nearer to fruition along with inter-minion power plays. I love the darker atmosphere Suzuki evokes in their scenes; I hope there are many more of them to come! – Michelle Smith

Non Non Biyori, Vol. 4 | By Atto | Seven Seas – I was a bit irritated with the last volume of this slice-of-country-life series, but luckily things are a bit better this time around. Natsumi’s irritating qualities are kept to a minimum, and we get more of Renge, possibly due to reader demand as she is the young, cute (and very strange) one. Of course, you could argue the entire cast is strange in its own way, and the series is at its best when it’s at its silliest, such as the Koshigaya Sisters playing around with persimmons, or a flashback to the day baby Renge was brought to school and caused total havoc. There are some sweet moments as well, of course, such as the trek to see the New Year’s sunrise, but for the most part you read this for good, if mild, laughter. – Sean Gaffney

orange: The Complete Collection, Vol. 2 | By Ichigo Takano | Seven Seas – Given how deeply I loved the first volume of orange, it would’ve been hard for the second to surpass it, so the fact that I liked it a little less shouldn’t be construed as disappointment. I merely thought the ending was a bit rushed, with Suwa giving up on his feelings for Naho seemingly without much angst and an argument between Naho and Kakeru that felt somewhat forced. (Surely Naho is intelligent enough to see where her future self went wrong before essentially repeating the mistake!) There are many intensely lovely scenes between the group of friends, however, including a memorable sports festival, and I’m very fond of all the characters. To top it all off, I actually really liked the bonus story, too. This is a manga I will be rereading and foisting on friends for sure. – Michelle Smith

A Silent Voice, Vol. 7 | By Yoshitoki Oima | Kodansha Comics – Those who were wondering if the two tormented leads would ever get together at the end of this may be a bit disappointed by the ending to A Silent Voice, where the closest we get to romantic resolution is Naoka showing off a ring a tall, hot model gave her—which turns out to be from Miyoko. (OK, that’s not romantic resolution, it’s yuri tease.) What is resolved is the film everyone was making, which doesn’t get any awards but ends up being personally satisfying, and Shoko and Shoya, who are both able to come to terms with their past and move on. After a series that dealt repeatedly with abuse and suicidal thoughts, this comes as something of a relief, and I am delighted with the finish. – Sean Gaffney

Yamada-kun and the Seven Witches, Vol. 8 | By Miki Yoshikawa | Kodansha Comics – The first half of this is pure setup, as they learn what the power of the seventh witch is (the cliffhanger from last volume being totally wrong), realize what will happen if they figure out who said witch is, and have contingency plans to deal with said fallout. And then, naturally, everything goes horribly wrong. The second half of this volume can be very painful to read, especially for anyone who’s always secretly wondered if maybe their friends all have more fun whenever they aren’t there. Yamada-kun puts a brave face on things, which leads to hilarious scenes of him trying to clean his way to happiness, but an emotional breakdown isn’t far off, and I suspect things will get worse in the next volume. – Sean Gaffney

Yotsuba&!, Vol. 13 | By Kiyohiko Azuma | Yen Press – It’s been a long time since the last volume of Yotsuba&! came out, but after reading a few pages it feels like we’ve never really been away. We get Asagi being bemused at Yotsuba’s childlike logic, Fuuka suffering from the same, and Yanda getting just plain abuse. But the majority of this book is about Yotsuba’s grandmother, who comes to stay with her son for a few days. She’s new to the reader but not to Yotsuba or Koiwai, which leads to many familiar yet unfamiliar situations. She’s also naturally got a dour face, even if her mood is not matching, so we get amusing contrasts between dialogue and expression. But, most importantly, we discuss Yotsuba sleeping on her own for the first time! Will time actually move forward? – Sean Gaffney

Cage of Eden, Vol. 20 | By Yoshinobu Yamada | Kodansha Comics – Cage of Eden ditches the rape threats and infighting, thank goodness, and gets back to one of its two big strengths—exploring things and discovering horrifying secrets. This also leads to a death, and we haven’t gotten a character death in a while, so it would almost be a surprise if it weren’t telegraphed heavily beforehand. Meanwhile, it’s always been apparent that our heroes are not just on some J. Random Dinosaur island, and it’s also becoming very clear that something else is involved. The unrecognizable cars and robots are also a clue. The next volume is the final one—will it have answers? More to the point, can it possibly resolve everything in that short a space? – Sean Gaffney

A Certain Scientific Accelerator, Vol. 3 | By Kazuma Kamachi and Arata Yamachi| Seven Seas – The setup of the first two volumes leads to the chaos that I said would occur, and it’s certainly chaotic, as we are introduced to yet ANOTHER group of overpowered teens and tweens who hover between sociopathic and just needing a hug. Railgun readers should already be familiar with this sort of thing; Index novel readers will have to wait a while for it to make sense. That said, anyone familiar with Aiho Yomikawa will love this volume, as she shows off both what an incredible badass she is and the compassion and love that drives it—though admittedly, in the world of Index, those who say “no, they really are using us as guinea pigs” are always correct. Sorry, Yomikawa. – Sean Gaffney

Oresama Teacher, Vol. 20 | By Izumi Tsubaki | Viz Media – This is a transitional volume, as we wrap up, for the moment, Hayasaka’s family and the manipulations of Momichi. If nothing else, this should show the average reader not to mess with mind control, as Hayasaka’s memories, combined with the trauma of his well-meaning but also somewhat appalling father and Momochi’s hypnotism, are something resembling swiss cheese. (The funniest moment of the volume, if only as it’s so unexpected, features Saeki going to Momochi’s room every day. We expected the rug to be pulled from under us, but not that way.) So naturally, now that he’s finally recovering, is the time when he may finally realize the truth about Super Bun. Always recommended. – Sean Gaffney

Requiem of the Rose King, Vol. 4 | By Aya Kanno | Viz Media – There’s far less Henry and Richard having ambiguous sexual tension here, but that’s only because the political machinations of almost everyone comes to the fore. Everyone wants the throne or wants to influence the power behind it. George is pitted against Edward, and poor Anne refuses to be used as a pawn, but is unfortunately overheard and misunderstood in exactly the worst way. Throughout all this flits Richard, who honestly is at his best when being a stereotypical shoujo hero for Anne, but we all know that’s not what’s going to happen, and so does he. Of course, this assumes that he can survive the latest coup attempt to take out his family. Shakespeare and shoujo go together amazingly well. – Sean Gaffney

Requiem of the Rose King, Vol. 4 | By Aya Kanno | VIZ Media – After Richard flies into a rage and nearly kills his beloved Henry, not yet knowing that he and the former king he blames for his father’s death are one and the same, he is sent off to stay with Warwick for a while. He spends time with Warwick’s eldest daughter, Anne, and is relieved that he can feel romantic thoughts towards a woman, and hurt when he mistakenly believes she was faking it on her father’s orders. It’s a hardened Richard who observes Warwick and George’s uprising against Edward and coolly considers whose side it would be more advantageous to join. If it sounds like a lot happened this volume, it does, and that’s my only real complaint. Everything is fascinating and dramatic, but it all happens so fast. I feel like it’d have more emotional impact if we just slowed down a little bit. – Michelle Smith

Say “I Love You,” Vol. 13 | By Kanae Hazuki | Kodansha Comics – I could have done without the author’s afterword saying that Megumi needed to be “punished” because she was so mean in prior volumes, as I think it’s conveyed well enough as being simply what the business is: Megumi’s big in Japan, but that means nothing in France. We’ll see how trustworthy her patron is—I’m not sure I trust him just yet. In the non-Megumi part of this volume, which is much smaller, we get the ever popular “I don’t care if you don’t love me just go out with me” appeal, which is a horrible idea and literally everyone knows it. But hey, this is what happens when the main couple have worked out all their issues. Still recommended, but we’re in extra innings here. – Sean Gaffney

Yotsuba&!, Vol. 13 | By Kiyohiko Azuma | Yen Press – It’s been over two years since the last volume of Yotsuba&! came out, and I struggled a bit with getting back into the swing of things. Either that or I’ve turned into a curmudgeon, because seeing Yotsuba’s bossy behavior go uncorrected was starting to seriously bug me. Happily, Azuma picks this moment to introduce Grandma (unless we’ve seen her before and I’ve forgotten since it’s been so long!), who imparts many valuable lessons and life skills onto Yotsuba that her dad hasn’t thought to address. It’s wonderful to watch Yotsuba go from a kid who just wants Grandma’s souvenirs to one who would give them up if only Grandma would stay. And then we get a few moments showing how she and her dad are great together, as well. It’s a strong finish, and one that leaves me ready for volume fourteen already. – Michelle Smith

Arpeggio of Blue Steel, Vol. 7 | By Ark Performance | Seven Seas – Arpeggio of Blue Steel is thankfully more about the submarine battle thriller more than harem antics, but there’s no denying that this volume is about Takao trying to prove her worth to the man she’s fallen in love with, even if that means sacrificing her own life. It’s just as battle-oriented as the last one, so there’s lots of depth-charge explosions and tactical maneuvering, and luckily some more mental models who haven’t quite decided what side they’re on yet and get to have ambiguous morality. As for our heroes, they don’t do much except fire one shot—but what a shot! It looks like they’ve attracted even more attention, though—will Yamato get involved? Still hideously underrated. – Sean Gaffney

Blue Exorcist, Vol. 15 | By Kazue Kato | Viz Media – Izumo’s plot is wrapped up here, and even though it involves some personal sacrifice, at least there’s no horrible permanent damage. And we get to see Nori again! Remember her? In any case, the bulk of this book deals with the revelation that Renzo was actually a double agent all along, and by his own choice. This is hardly surprising for the reader—Renzo is simply not the character type to be secretly evil, just secretly chaotic—but it does lead to a lot of soul-searching for our heroes, and a few explanations by Mephisto. Of course, Renzo is still a bit of a manipulative dick, and he knows something’s going on with Yukio. I suspect that may be the next major plot arc, but we shall see. – Sean Gaffney

The Heiress and the Chauffeur, Vol. 1 | By Keiko Ishihara | Viz Media – This is a very short (two volumes total) series that ran in LaLa, so there’s not much time to build up much other than the main plotline, which is a strong-willed but physically weak heroine and her cool chauffeur who clearly has a thing for her but nothing is being done about it because FORBIDDEN ROMANCE. This takes place at a girls’ school, so please enjoy the brief not-yuri that exists there, but for the most part this is a two-hander between Sayaka and Shinobu. They’re both likeable, so I look forward to seeing them hook up next time. There’s also a cute short story about a pair of twins and a thief who steals things that move his heart. Good value for money here. – Sean Gaffney

Kimi ni Todoke: From Me to You, Vol. 24 | By Karuho Shiina | VIZ Media – In general, I am pretty much over school festival stories in manga, but when Karuho Shiina does it, it ends up making me verklempt. It’s now been a year since Sawako and Kazehaya started dating, and though their relationship moments in this volume are poignant (Kazehaya’s desire for Sawako to be happy and attend the university of her choice is at war with his instinct to cling to her), the most affecting part for me was seeing Sawako voted class MVP. Not only that, but this volume is full of mono no aware, as she realizes that “getting closer to the future means the present is ending.” She tries to capture certain moments in her mind to remember forever, and it really gives me a sense that the series could be ending soon. I don’t necessarily want it to, but it would be a satisfying spot to wrap things up. – Michelle Smith

My Hero Academia, Vol. 4 | By Kohei Horikoshi | Viz Media – The tournament arc continues, as you can likely see by the huge pile of cast members on the front cover. We see Todoroki’s tragic past and resolve to not knuckle under to his jerkass father, Midoriya realizing that once you’re on the top it’s very difficult to actually stay there (especially in an event like this), and various other heroes big and small showing off what makes them tick and how important it can actually be. (One hero’s power is actually illegal to use except in certain circumstances!) It looks like the cliffhanger will give us Uraraka vs. Bakugo—while I’d like to see a female lead defeat a male in a tourney like this, I suspect the plot will drive Bakugo to the final. But we shall see. – Sean Gaffney

Nisekoi: False Love, Vol. 15 | By Naoshi Komi | Viz Media – Remember when I wrote off Haru from the harem battle, saying that the author was beginning to winnow the candidates down? Yeah, sorry about that. The last half of the volume is one giant Haru fiesta. (Also, is it me or is her best friend completely in love with her?) As for Raku and his high school age girls, they continue to trundle along, with the added chemistry that Yui brings to the mix now. We get a “King Game” with lots of amusing humiliation, and Marika placing far too much value on advice from love magazines for comfort. Still, Nisekoi is starting to spin its wheels a bit, as it’s popular enough to continue along but really needs to resolve its romance soon. Even if, being a harem title, that likely means a huge drop in popularity. – Sean Gaffney

One Piece, Vol. 78 | By Eiichiro Oda | VIZ Media – Is anyone else beyond ready for the Dressrosa arc to be over? Unfortunately, that doesn’t happen in this volume. What does happen, though, is that events become more epic, and although I didn’t quite get swept up in them to the degree I might wish, my enthusiasm for this arc was somewhat rejuvenated. Even while one female character is relegated to pristine/protected status, Robin gets a badass moment shielding her from an enemy attack. Zolo’s up next, with a spectacular finish to his fight against Pica. The supporting characters continue to be great, too. The real show, though, is Luffy versus Doflamingo. What I like best about their faceoff is that Doflamingo has more interesting and critical comments for Luffy than past foes have had. It seems he gets under Luffy’s skin more, and that’s a welcome sight. Now I can say I’m genuinely excited for volume 79! – Michelle Smith

One-Punch Man, Vol. 6 | By ONE and Yusuke Marata | Viz Media – Another volume, another giant pile of cast members added to the pile—this time the top heroes of the city. The most interesting ones include Tornado, who is short, curt, and tends to go superdeformed just like Saitama; King, who everyone seems to respect despite apparently being useless; and Metal Bat, who makes me think of Paranoia Agent if it ended up being about superheroes. Despite them all showing off some awesome stuff, though, as always it’s about Saitama and his mind-numbing ability to one-hit every enemy. Of course, we may have met the first persona that actually does require more than one punch here—naturally, Saitama’s reaction is understated. Hilarious shonen fun. – Sean Gaffney