Michelle Smith

Pick of the Week: Three By Yen

May 20, 2015 by Sean Gaffney, Michelle Smith, Ash Brown and Anna N 6 Comments

SEAN: Let’s see… Goong, Emma, Emma, Goong… so I’m the tiebreaker, huh? Good thing I pick first! Won’t be breaking the tie, though, because it’s time for Sean to highlight another of his pet series. Umineko: When They Cry is technically halfway done, at least in terms of arcs – in terms of actual volume count we have a bit more to go. I’m particularly excited for End of the Golden Witch, as most Umineko fans agree that it’s the best of all the manga adaptations.

MICHELLE: Predictably, I pick Goong, especially since it’s my final chance to do so. I’m in the midst of a reread of this series, and it’s pretty much the quintessential manhwa, with plenty of arguments, true feelings concealed, and true feelings revealed, along with its own special blend of “sweet moments interrupted by really unfunny comedic bits with ugly art.” Really, it can’t be missed.

ASH: No question about it, my pick this week is Emma. Ever since Yen Press started releasing Kaoru Mori’s A Bride’s Story in a gorgeous hardcover edition, I’ve been hoping for a rescue of Emma. And now it’s here! My local library had a run of most of the old CMX volumes, so I’ve read the series before, but I’m thrilled that I’ll finally be able to own it. And in a beautiful deluxe omnibus release, no less!

ANNA: I have to agree with Ash, it is time to celebrate the rerelease of Emma. I’m thrilled for the folks who weren’t able to collect the series before, especially since Yen does such a great job on their deluxe editions.

SEAN: MJhas been busy moving into a new home, but trust me, if she were here to pick she would agonize between Emma and Goong but pick Goong. We all know this.

What looks good to you this week?

Manga the Week of 5/20

May 14, 2015 by Sean Gaffney, Ash Brown, Anna N, Michelle Smith and MJ 2 Comments

SEAN: Did you enjoy this week’s small week? Good. That isn’t next week.

Dance in the Vampire Bund’s Scarlet Order may have ended (somewhat surprisingly) in Japan, but Seven Seas still has more of it to bring you here, with Vol. 2 arriving next week.

Lucifer and the Biscuit Hammer’s third omnibus takes us over halfway through this highly underrated superheroes story.

ASH: I’ve largely been enjoying this rather peculiar series.

SEAN: Satoshi Kon gets a collection of his short stories from Vertical Comics, called Dream Fossil.

ASH: This should be good. (And unlike Dark Horse’s Kon releases, aren’t unfinished works.)

ANNA: Good to know! I hadn’t realized that the Dark Horse releases were unfinished works.

SEAN: Dorohedoro has reached Volume 15, and things are continuing to get darker and darker in this already dark manga.

ASH: Always happy to see more Dorohedoro!

SEAN: In fact, it’s a depress-o-rama from Viz this week! We also get a 6th volume of Gangsta, a 4th Resident Evil, and a 6th volume of Terra Formars. If you like action and people dying and having bits of them cut off, you should be very happy indeed.

ASH: Oh, more Gangsta, too? Excellent.

ANNA: Gangsta is great. So stylish, so violent, so seinen.

SEAN: Well, I was wrong, it was a short wee—oh right, Yen Press. I knew I was missing 17 or so titles. First off, we have the third A Certain Magical Index light novel, and the one most everyone agrees is one of the best in the entire series.

The other novel is a debut. Kagerou Daze began life as a series of Vocaloid songs about a group of friends with powers, and has now become a fairly large franchise, of which the light novel is one part.

Back to manga, we have the third volume of Ani-Imo, which is shoujo in that odd way that only Aria titles can be shoujo.

A 6th Blood Lad omnibus. I’ve become really fond of this series, and always enjoy seeing more of it.

MICHELLE: I was pleasantly surprised that the sixth omnibus is out so soon, given that we’re essentially caught up to Japan.

SEAN: And a 10th volume of BTOOOM!, a series of which I am far less fond. Honestly, once you do the bomb bouncing off the breast thing, where else is there to take a story? It’s the pinnacle.

If you’d rather have a manga version of the Magical Index novels, then Yen Press is here to help you, as here’s the first manga volume.

One of the most exciting license rescues ever, Yen is releasing the seinen classic Emma in omnibus hardcover format. It will be read by everyone. (glare) I said, everyone.

ASH: I’m absolutely thrilled; I’ll actually be able to buy the series this time around!

MJ: Same here! This is honestly thrilling!

MICHELLE: I am clutching my CMX editions tightly!

ANNA: Nice. This is a series that deserves to be in print, and the deluxe Yen editions are always a treat. I might buy it again!

SEAN: Well, everyone except the Manga Bookshelf team, who may be distracted by the 18th Goong omnibus.

MJ: Also, THIS.

MICHELLE: Not only is it new Goong, it’s also the end, as this omnibus contains the final volumes (27-28 by the original Korean numbering) of the series!

ANNA: I need to get caught up on Goong, it is such a great soap opera.

SEAN: The Manga Bookshelf team is unlikely to be distracted at all by the 3rd Gou-dere Sora Nagihara volume.

If you’d rather have a manga version of the Is It Wrong To Try To Pick Up Girls In A Dungeon? novels, then Yen Press is here to help you, as here’s the first manga volume. (Have I typed this before?)

After seven volumes of No Matter How I Look At It, It’s You Guys’ Fault I’m Not Popular!, I’m beginning to think she needs to take some responsibility here.

ASH: Heh.

MICHELLE: Srsly.

SEAN: It has been a common complaint that Sword Art Online features Kirito, occasionally Asuna, and not much else. So those readers should enjoy the spinoff Girls’ Ops, which focuses on the rest of the female cast getting involved in new MMORPG adventures.

Another debut for the more action-oriented crowd, we have the first volume of fantasy series Trinity Seven, which is also a harem series if the cover art and blurb don’t deceive me. I admit I know little about it.

On the darker fantasy side, there’s a 3rd Ubel Blatt omnibus, helpfully called Vol. 2.

ASH: Very helpful.

SEAN: Umineko: When They Cry’s new omnibus, End of the Golden Witch, sees the series shaken up with a new detective, who arrives on the island. Will things continue to be horribly tragic as we continue the adventures of manga’s most toxic family? Even this level of reasoning is possible for Furudo Erika. (Please note: Furudo Erika, Frederica Bernkastel, and Furude Rika are totally different people. Honest.)

Lastly, we get a 9th omnibus of Until Death Do Us Part, another series I’ve fallen incredibly behind on.

Is this too much manga? Or just right?

Pick of the Week: Ancient Love

May 13, 2015 by Ash Brown, Michelle Smith, Anna N, Sean Gaffney and MJ Leave a Comment

ASH: This may be one of the smallest shipping weeks for manga that we’ve seen this year, but there are still some interesting releases coming out. In particular, I’m curious about the debut of the award-winning series The Ancient Magus’ Bride which, if nothing else, has beautiful artwork.

MICHELLE: I suppose I’ll go for Love Stage! this week, as it’s been ages since I’ve read anything by Eiki Eiki and Taishi Zaou.

ANNA: There isn’t a ton to choose from, I will also pick The Ancient Magus’ Bride as the most interesting release this week.

SEAN: Yeah, of all the titles, Ancient Magus’ Bride is the one that leaps out at me.

MJ: I’m definitely interested in The Ancient Magus’ Bride, but for the sake of balance here, I’ll join Michelle in anticipation of Eiki Eiki and Taishi Zaou’s Love Stage!. I was a big fan of their collaboration Color when it came out here in 2009, so I’ll certainly give Love Stage! a try!

What looks good to you this week?

Manga the Week of 5/13

May 6, 2015 by Sean Gaffney, MJ, Anna N, Ash Brown and Michelle Smith 1 Comment

SEAN: I haven’t seen a week this small since Christmas. It’s sort of creepy.

First of all, right after I posted Manga the Week of last week, Dark Horse did a classic date slip, so Drug & Drop 2 is here again. Dark Horse is famous for release date slips, though they’re better than they used to be. If nothing else, it gives the MB team an opportunity to pick it two weeks in a row.

MJ: And since I flaked last week, it gives me the opportunity to get excited about it this week!

SEAN: The other Dark Horse release is of a very different nature. Panty & Stocking with Garterbelt was a manic anime series from a couple years back, and like many anime had a tie-in manga as well, this one running in Kadokawa’s Young Ace. It’s complete in one volume.

The Heroic Legend of Arslan has its third volume – the series has slowed somewhat (as has Silver Spoon by the same author) due to family emergencies, apparently. Still should be good high fantasy.

ANNA: I keep meaning to check this out! One day!

SEAN: Seven Seas debuts two new series. The Ancient Magus’ Bride is from Mag Garden’s Comic Blade, which we haven’t seen stuff from in years. It’s also a Taisho award winner with gorgeous art. The genre, as you can likely guess, is fantasy/romance, like half the titles licensed recently.

ASH: I’m intrigued by this series and look forward to giving it a try.

ANNA: I am always interested in fantasy/romance. This does sound intriguing.

SEAN: Evergreen is from the author of Toradora!, and from what I hear is something of a similar series, starting out as a sweet romance but introducing darker themes as it goes on. It runs in Dengeki Daioh.

Another debut, this one from SubLime, Viz’s BL imprint. Love Stage! runs in Asuka Ciel, which is what Asuka readers turn to when they’re looking for the harder stuff. It’s also by Eiki Eiki and Taishi Zaou, who I assume most BL fans have already heard of.

MJ: I’m looking forward to this, I admit.

MICHELLE: I haven’t read anything by Eiki Eiki and Taishi Zaou in ages! I might have to check this out, too.

SEAN: Lastly, 07-GHOST inches ever closer to completion with its 16th volume.

ANNA: One day I will read it all! ONE DAY!

MICHELLE: Me, too. Every time there’s a new volume, I think, “Oh, I am terribly remiss!” but then I just get waylaid by other things.

SEAN: Anything exciting you for next week?

Pick of the Week: Late again?

May 6, 2015 by Sean Gaffney, Michelle Smith, Anna N, Ash Brown and MJ Leave a Comment

SEAN: There’s a lot of good stuff out this week, but I have to go with the continuation of JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure, giving us its retro 80s over the top ridiculousness. Now with added immortality.

MICHELLE: I’m very intrigued by Drug & Drop, though I confess I haven’t read volume one yet. But, as ever, my heart belongs to What Did You Eat Yesterday?. I just can’t help it.

ANNA: There’s a ton of great manga coming out this week, and if Sean hadn’t picked JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure I would probably have gone with that. But instead I will pick Spell of Desire, hooray for weird witchy romance!

ASH: Wow, this is a tough week to choose! Lots of great manga are being released that I’ll definitely be picking up. But since JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure and What Did You Eat Yesterday? have already been mentioned, I’ll take the opportunity to highlight The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past. It’s a rare, full-color manga and it’s by Shotaro Ishinomori. Even if you’re not interested in video games, this should be worth a look.

MJ: JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure is obviously a no-brainer. I’m also pretty well enamored of Drug & Drop. But since there’s plenty of support for the former, and I happen to know that I have another chance at the latter coming up soon, I’ll throw my vote alongside Michelle’s and go for my beloved What Did You Eat Yesterday?. This series remains a touchstone for me, and I’m always simultaneously thrilled and comforted to see a new volume cross my threshold. Definitely my pick of the week!

What looks good to you this week?

Manga the Week of 5/6

April 30, 2015 by Sean Gaffney, Ash Brown, Michelle Smith and Anna N 3 Comments

SEAN: May, and the manga volumes coming out are not letting up in any way. Let’s see what we have in next week’s pile.

I’m not entirely sure if Dr. Makumakuran And Other Stories is coming out this first week – Amazon’s site says “May 2015” in an unhelpful way. But it’s from Bruno Gmunder Verlag, so you know what that means. Fans of Massive should check this out.

ASH: Definitely! Especially as Takeshi Matsu was one of the artists who was featured in Massive. This will be his second collection of manga released in English. I rather enjoyed his first, More and More of You and Other Stories, so I’m looking forward to it.

SEAN: Dark Horse brings out a 17th volume of popular manwha title Bride of the Water God.

And a second volume of Legal Drug continuation Drug & Drop, now with added plot and deeper characterization!

ASH: Woo!

MICHELLE: Huzzah!

ANNA: I haven’t checked out the first volume of this yet, but I intend to!

SEAN: Kodansha has a fourth omnibus of Tsubasa, still in its excellent period before its plot brambles became too strong.

Hopefully the 2nd volume of Yamada-kun and the Seven Witches will give us some actual witches.

ASH: And more kissing.

SEAN: I admit I rarely talk Perfect Square books here, but the Legend of Zelda manga they have coming out next week looks awesome. Called A Link to the Past, it’s in full color and should appear to all LoZ fans.

ASH: This should be great.

SEAN: Seven Seas gives us a new Devils and Realist (Vol. 5) and a new Dragonar Academy (Vol. 6), both of which will interest their prospective audiences, which sadly are not me.

And Vertical has an 8th volume of What Did You Eat Yesterday?, which has lost me, but still enchants the rest of Manga Bookshelf.

ASH: It’s true!

MICHELLE: I’ve been so pleased with the speed with which this series has been coming out, but I’m already sad that we’ll soon be caught up with Japan.

SEAN: Viz, as always, has most of its releases this week. There’s a 4th volume of Black Rose Alice, the story of a touching romance between a body and the spiders within it.

ASH: Actually, that’s not entirely inaccurate.

MICHELLE: Heh. Here’s another series where I’m already dreading being caught up to Japan.

ANNA: I enjoy this series a bunch. Each volume is a bit of a surprise. Also, spiders.

SEAN: The 11th Bleach 3-in-1 omnibus finds the cast in the middle of the Hueco Mundo arc, one of the most beloved and uncontroversial arcs in all of Bleach.

If you thought that JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure had reached peak ridiculousness with the first hardcover, be advised it only gets weirder from here. The 2nd hardcover ships next week.

ASH: Dioooooo!

ANNA: YAY!

SEAN: I haven’t enjoyed Kiss of the Rose Princess as much as He’s My Only Vampire, but it’s good enough, and a 4th volume should be decent reading.

MICHELLE: Yeah, I’ll keep reading the former but actually keep the latter. There’s the distinction for me.

ANNA: I enjoy it for what it is.

SEAN: If you were waiting for the 2nd Millennium Snow omnibus to keep your shelves neat and tidy, here it is.

ANNA: I’ve been meaning to do a complete reread of this after only reading the first early volumes.

SEAN: Nisekoi’s ninth volume. The subtitle is still False Love, reminding those of us who enjoy the balanced harem aspect of it that there’s still one main heroine.

Ranma 1/2’s eighth omnibus gives us two of the series’ most memorable (and silliest) one-shot villains, The Gambling King and Picolette Chardin II.

Rosario + Vampire Season II Volume 14 still has too much punctuation and numbers in its title.

Spell of Desire continues to be edgy in ways I don’t like, as opposed to edgy in ways I like (which Midnight Secretary was).

MICHELLE: I had high hopes for Spell of Desire, possibly chiefly because the male lead was kind to a kitty, but now I find that I don’t like it as much as Midnight Secretary after all. I kind of can’t explain how that happened.

ANNA: I like it just as much, but I’m not a very critical paranormal romance manga reader.

SEAN: Lastly, there’s a second Yu-Gi-Oh! 3-in-1 omnibus. It’s based on a card game. Many people don’t know that bit of trivia.

ANNA: My kids have now moved on from Pokemon cards to Yu-Gi-Oh cards, and let me tell you how thrilled I am that there is yet another card game that they want to collect.

SEAN: Something for everyone? What’s for you?

Bookshelf Briefs 4/28/15

April 28, 2015 by Sean Gaffney and Michelle Smith Leave a Comment

This week, Sean and Michelle look at recent releases from Kodansha Comics, Viz Media, and Yen Press.

Genshiken: Second Season, Vol. 6 | By Shimoku Kio | Kodansha Comics – I’m still not quite sure which direction Kio is taking this manga – something that I’m sure is quite deliberate on his part. After resolving the long-running Saki plot last time, she hints that Madarame is gathering a harem of his own, and this volume is happily content to riff on that for all it’s worth (as well as fracturing his wrist, possibly for daring to be a harem protagonist). But it doesn’t shy away from Hato’s gender identity issues either, with him trying to distance himself from both Madarame and BL while feeling completely miserable about everything. There’s plenty of humor here as well, as you’d expect given it takes place mostly during Comiket. Solid, but a bit too diffuse – impossible as that is. – Sean Gaffney

Magi, Vol. 11 | By Shinobu Ohtaka | Viz Media – It can be very difficult to deal with the fact that the world can sometimes be a cruel, unjust place – we see this every day of our lives. And in this volume of Magi, we see how it can turn an adorable young princess into a power-crazed villain. And just because you’ve been getting more powerful every day does not mean you’re going to waltz in and save the day – after winning the dungeon, our heroes get the crap kicked out of them by some powerful villains, and require a rescue by the cavalry from Sinbad’s country. In fact, this may be the most graphic, violent volume of Magi that we’ve seen to date. It’s a harsh but powerful read, and reminds you why we want people like our heroes to triumph over injustice. – Sean Gaffney

Skip Beat!, Vol. 34 | By Yoshiki Nakamura | Viz Media – A lot of this volume focuses on Kyoko’s view of how love makes her a terrible person, for not only does she become an idiot, but she also hates herself for taking comfort in the fact that Ren’s belief that he doesn’t deserve love means that she won’t have to worry about someone else snagging him. The President tries to help adjust her thinking on this, and gives her a break from her role as Setsu, but soon enough she and Ren are back on location in Guam for a shoot, only Kyoko has arrived early and encountered Ren looking like Kuon. And then there’s a super-cruel cliffhanger that we have to wait until September to see resolved. Argh! As much as I look forward to these rare treats of Skip Beat!, they really do keep the agony of waiting for the next dollop of story fresh. – Michelle Smith

Sword Art Online: Progressive, Vol. 2 | By Reki Kawahara and Kiseki Himura | Yen Press – I usually don’t pick up the manga adaptation after I start reading the light novel, but this was a very good example of how adaptations change the source to fit better within the manga genre. There’s more goofy humor here, Asuna’s POV is given a lot more workout than Kirito’s, and the plot is streamlined. That can also work against it, as we miss Kirito and Argo’s side story, and the loss of seeing the blacksmith working on a sword before Asuna’s makes the cliffhanger ending more of a surprise than it was in the book. Also, Kirito is a lot more into Asuna here than he is in the novel. Still, if folks want to pass up the novel for the manga, this is still very good, with likeable art. – Sean Gaffney

Voice Over: Seiyu Academy, Vol. 10 | By Maki Minami | Viz Media – I was sure that this would be the volume where Shiro’s secret finally came out, along with the inevitable fallout. But no, we’re keeping things going right until the end, even as Senri is getting more and more suspicious that SOMETHING is going on, and Hime is finding it harder and harder to keep the two sides separate. On the acting front, there’s some great discussion of how an actor should try their best not to listen to what the fans want or recommend when performing – in particular, don’t go to forums! The rest of the cast take a back seat to Senri and Hime here, but that’s what you’d expect – next volume is the last, and they’re the main couple, so let’s keep them hanging for one last cliffhanger. – Sean Gaffney

Voice Over!: Seiyu Academy, Vol. 10 | By Maki Minami | Viz Media – Hime, in her guise of Shiro, has a role in a new anime but fans of the character are so far displeased by her performance. While she works hard to figure out what she’s doing wrong, Mizuki—coming off as creepily controlling—suggests Shiro’s friendship with Senri will jeopardize Hime’s dream of becoming a top voice actor, so she abruptly pulls away from Senri. Lots of great moments of professional and personal growth ensue, with one particular scene making me go all sniffly. True, Hime does continue to be awfully careless at protecting her secret when Senri is around, but the scene in which he appears to maybe figure it out is done about as well as it could be. With only two volumes left, I find myself hoping for a romance-free ending. None of these characters is ready for that, anyhow! – Michelle Smith

Pick of the Week: So much Kodansha!

April 28, 2015 by Anna N, Michelle Smith, Ash Brown, Sean Gaffney and MJ 1 Comment

ANNA: Kodansha! So many things coming out from Kodansha this week! What Kodansha or non-Kodansha title do you have your eye on? Personally, I am going to go for the latest volume of Gundam: the Origin from Vertical.

MICHELLE: I really need to get caught up again on Say I Love You., so that is definitely my pick of the week!

ASH: I’m actually really curious to see how Maria the Virgin Witch continues to develop. There were a few things about the first volume that bothered me, but overall it was a very intriguing, and occasionally endearing, start to the series.

SEAN: I’ll go with the new Attack on Titan Junior High, because it will be hilarious.

MJ: I suspect my pick is a little bit obvious. You all should know by now that I can’t get enough of xxxHolic, and that includes the recent sequel/reboot/whatever-the-hell-it-is xxxHOLIC Rei. The truth is, CLAMP could continue to put stories about Watanuki in front of me for the rest of my life and I’d probably never get tired of him. That’s just the way things are. So, yeah. xxxHOLIC Rei. Bring it on.

What looks good to you this week?

Manga the Week of 4/29

April 23, 2015 by Sean Gaffney, Ash Brown, Michelle Smith, MJ and Anna N 1 Comment

SEAN: The last week of April is pretty much KODANSHA WEEK, with only two exceptions.

There’s a 3rd Attack on Titan Junior High omnibus, which is highly recommended for those who enjoy seeing how far an adaptation can go, those who enjoy seeing their favorite characters being very silly indeed, and those who like to quote one-liners on Tumblr.

Maria the Virgin Witch is a title I was very conflicted about after reading the first volume, but I’ve heard that it improves, and it’s a short series, so I will give Vol. 2 a try.

ASH: The series has a lot of potential, so I’m curious to see how it develops.

SEAN: There’s a 4th volume of supernatural comedy Noragami.

And a 7th of addictive shoujo potboiler Say “I Love You”. (I will never let go of those quote marks. It would be like leaving the ! out of Skip Beat!.)

MICHELLE: I have fallen behind on this one. Must rectify!

SEAN: Lastly, a 3rd volume of xxxHOLIC Rei, which I will continue to read as long as there’s a possibility of more Himawari/Doumeki/Watanuki OT3 shenanigans.

MICHELLE: I still have not managed to finish the original xxxHOLiC. Bad manga fan!

ASH: I was glad to see it recently announced that CLAMP is resuming work on this series after its hiatus.

MJ: This! I will be reading this.

ANNA: When will they finish X/1999? WHEN?

SEAN: In non-Kodansha news, there’s a new Alice in the Country of Clover from Seven Seas, this time focusing on Elliot: The March Hare’s Revolution.

And Vertical Comics gives us a 9th deluxe hardcover edition of Gundam The Origin.

ASH: There was a delay on this volume’s release to address some printing errors, so I’ll be happy to see it finally arrive!

ANNA: Need to get caught up on this!

SEAN: Still catching up from last week? Or does something here leap out at you?

Shades of London, Books 1-3 by Maureen Johnson

April 23, 2015 by Michelle Smith

The actual title of this post should be “Books 1-3 plus that novella that came out in 2014,” but that was rather inelegant.

The Name of the Star
When Louisiana native Rory Deveaux’s professorial parents take a sabbatical in the UK, Rory jumps at the chance to attend boarding school in London. The early chapters of The Name of the Star depict her acclimation to life at Wexford, befriending her new roommate (Jazza) and developing a flirtation with one of the male prefects (Jerome). Because the phrase “boarding school in London” is totally my cup of tea (har har) and because Rory is amusingly snarky, I was already loving the book at this point, and that’s before I even got to the part with Jack the Ripper and ghosts!

A copycat of the notorious killer is on the loose, and since Wexford is located in Whitechapel, many of the crime scenes are nearby. After a near-death experience by choking grants Rory the ability to see ghosts, she actually witnesses the perpetrator (who has mysteriously failed to show up on any CCTV recordings of the murders) which brings her to the notice of a special secret police squad tasked with controlling any unruly members of the spectral population.

Several more fun characters are then introduced, and here I must compliment the narrator of the unabridged audiobook, Nicola Barber, whose facility in accents made me feel like I was listening to a BBC show. (I especially liked that Callum, a former football hopeful now dispatching meddlesome ghosts on the Underground, sounded rather like Lister from Red Dwarf!) In fact, I think this would make a pretty great BBC show, with its mildly diverse cast and the fact that the heroine is not merely brave (she eventually assists the squad in their ghosthunt), but funny, too. Admittedly, there were a couple of moments where Rory did some dumb things, but one could argue she didn’t really have better alternatives.

I haven’t loved a book this much in quite a long time, and I am both happy and bummed that there are two more (only two more!) in the series currently.

The Madness Underneath
It is with true regret that I must report that The Madness Underneath suffers from an unfortunate case of Middle Book Syndrome. A crack created at the end of the first book seems to be providing a way for the buried dead of Bedlam to make it to the surface, and Rory’s newfound skills as a human “terminus” are effective in dispatching one murderous ghost, but this plotline fizzles out partway through. (Sidebar: it’s a crazy coincidence that this article comes out the very day I finish this book!) Then Rory falls in with a cult whose philosophy and goals don’t make a lot of sense, and shortly after her costly rescue, there’s suddenly a cliffhanger ending. If I had to wait for book three, I would probably be peeved that that’s all there was.

That is not to suggest that nothing of merit happens, however. I actually really liked how Rory’s return to Wexford was handled—how she was just simply incapable of caring about things she used to care about. So far behind in schoolwork that it’s overwhelming, she can’t muster the desire to try, and yet is blindsided when it is suggested that perhaps she ought to withdraw prior to exams. So caught up in the ghosthunting gig, boyfriend Jerome’s suspicions (and then guilt over same) become just another nagging problem, so she ends their relationship. I liked that Callum feels more antagonistically towards ghosts than the others do, and yet everyone seems to respect each other’s point of view. I liked the Marc Bolan reference. And, of course, before the more serious stuff starts to happen, there are at least a dozen lines of dialogue that made me laugh. (There’s also a dream featuring ham lunchmeat that I think might be an homage to the Buffy the Vampire Slayer episode “Restless.”)

Even though this particular installment was kind of disappointing, I continue to look forward to subsequent books just as much as before.

The Boy in the Smoke
This short novella visits four defining moments in the life of Stephen Dene, leader of the ghost police, offering insight into the thoughts and background of a notably reticent character. Some of these incidents have been referred to in previous books, but not in this much detail.

“The Forgotten Boy” recounts a time when Stephen’s parents forget to fetch him from school at the end of term. (They’ve gone to Barbados instead.) His sister Regina comes to his rescue, determined to save him from a life doing what their parents expect, but she’s erratic and Stephen soon figures out that she’s using drugs. In “The Break in the Chain,” Stephen is attending Eton when he gets word of Regina’s death by overdose. (His parents “worked out their grief at a resort in Switzerland.”) He manages to carry on for several years, determined to fulfill his duty of succeeding at Eton and carrying on to Cambridge, until a visit from his unfeeling family leads him to commit suicide (in a scene that is absolutely riveting).

“The Specialist” find Stephen recovering at a psychiatric hospital and being recruited by Thorpe to lead the reformed team. And in “The Boy in the Smoke,” Stephen has finally achieved his dream of becoming a police officer. Practically the first thing he does is search for Regina’s ghost, only to find she did not return. Lastly, he fulfills his promise to come back to visit the ghost who saved his life and this slim little book comes to an end that left me rather verklempt.

Is this book essential to understanding the Shades of London series? No, but I’d say it’s essential to understanding Stephen, and very definitely worth the time.

The Shadow Cabinet
What do you get when you take a series that first beguiled me with London, boarding school, Jack the Ripper, and ghosts, and then remove half of those things? A book that is reasonably good but which I just cannot love with anything approaching the ardor I originally felt.

The Shadow Cabinet offers a lot more information about the cult and their goals, introduces the concept of powerful stones that prevent London from being overrun by spirits as well as a secret society tasked with protecting them, and unleashes creepy, evil siblings Sid and Sadie upon the world. More attention, though, is devoted to Rory’s personal plight. Now in hiding from family and friends after running away from Wexford, she and the team are searching everywhere for one of their own who they believe has become a ghost.

The resolution to book two’s cliffhanger is pretty satisfying, I must admit, and I found that I did care a lot about whether certain characters made it out of Sid and Sadie’s proximity unscathed. I also really liked getting to know more about Thorpe, the group’s MI-5 overseer, and that Rory apparently receives permission to tell her two closest friends from Wexford what’s really been going on. And then there’s also the part where Stephen asks the bad guys, “Do you want to test that theory?” which surely must be another Buffy reference, right?

I’m still looking forward to the fourth book, which I believe is going to be the last in the series, but I must admit that my expectations are lower now than they once were.

Bookshelf Briefs 4/20/15

April 20, 2015 by Sean Gaffney, Anna N and Michelle Smith Leave a Comment

This week, Sean, Anna, & Michelle look at recent releases from Seven Seas & Viz Media.

Gakuen Polizi, Vol. 2 | By Milk Morinaga | Seven Seas – I had wanted Gakuen Polizi to get a bit less insubstantial, but I’m not sure this is what I meant. After fairly swiftly dealing with the evil rival who showed up for last volume’s cliffhanger, and who’s not all that evil after all, the final arc delves into the world of racy photos for money and spirals into teen prostitution. This includes a teacher whose talk about artistry of innocent half-nude schoolgirls trumping petty legality does not sound far off from some yuri fans. Oh yes, and there is a bit of yuri in here after all, though due to Aoba’s denseness we get a confession and kiss AND it doesn’t go anywhere. Fans of yuri will likely still enjoy this, but the last volume was far too moodswingey for me. – Sean Gaffney

Food Wars, Vol 5 | By Yuto Tsukuda, Shun Saeki, and Yuki Morisaki | Viz Media – Volume five of this series is a bit of a transitional one, as the big storyline centered around the competition at the Totsuki Resort gets wrapped up and Soma finds himself with a chance to go home for a little break. Unfortunately, there’s a culinary crisis at the street market near Soma’s family restaurant, with a new corporate fried chicken chain threatening all the businesses. Soma digs in and comes up with a solution with his childhood friend Mayumi and he even imports meat expert Nikumi from school for extra help. This made for an entertaining interlude right before the next competition at cooking school starts. Food Wars has grown on me a bit with each volume and now I’m finding it consistently entertaining. – Anna N

Meteor Prince, Vol. 2 | By Meca Tanaka | Viz Media – Meteor Prince comes to a close in this volume, though not before a couple more aliens (Tania, Io’s rather obnoxious and clingy “true mate,” and Yuro, his ruthless younger brother) show up to erect obstacles to our lead couple’s happiness. I was a little disappointed that the origin of Hako’s spectacularly bad luck was never revealed, but there were other good things, like her awesome parents and protective little brother, and an ending that had just the right smidge of a drama for a two-volume series but rectified it all pretty swiftly and sweetly while still showing us Hako determined to take more control of her own destiny. If you miss the breed of shoujo that CMX used to release, you really ought to check out Meteor Prince; I have a feeling it’ll be on your wavelength. – Michelle Smith

Meteor Prince, Vol. 2 | By Meca Tanaka | Viz Media – Despite taking place after the main couple gets together, I thought this was the stronger of the two volumes of Meteor Prince, as we see all the various fallout that comes from this decision, and Io’s insistence that in the end he doesn’t care. Given this is a manga that began with predestined soulmates connected by wavelengths, the decision to show how in the end it’s people’s own choices that are important is an excellent one. Of course it’s not very original – there’s a comedic fiancee, a jealous little brother, and the choice between duty as a prince and romance. But for a series that is only two volumes long, Meteor Prince wraps everything up nicely, and the size feels just right. – Sean Gaffney

My Love Story!!, Vol. 4 | By Kazune Kawahara and Aruko | Viz Media – I have to admit, we finally hit something in this manga that I was less than satisfied with. I did not like Hayato, and felt his behavior, which involved getting his crush to resolve her feelings for Takeo so she can move on to him, was creepy and far too sympathetically told. That said, it’s hard for even that to penetrate the fuzzy adorable feeling anyone gets reading this. We get more here of Takeo thinking over and over again that people just don’t like him in ‘that way’, and seeing time and time again that it isn’t true. Which is cliched, yes, but also helps to point out how negative reinforcement as a child or teen can have major self-worth consequences down the road. Thank goodness he has Suna and Rinko. – Sean Gaffney

Requiem of the Rose King, Vol. 1 | By Aya Kanno | Viz Media – I have now sampled three series by Aya Kanno, and they’re so different from one another that I am quite impressed! Based on Shakespeare’s Henry VI and Richard III, Kanno’s latest retells the story of The War of the Roses—with plenty of bishounen in significant roles—but instead of perpetuating the “hunchback” version of Richard, gives him a different body image problem (and quite a nifty character design!) that should affect the familiar tale in fascinating ways. My main complaint is that I don’t remember my history well enough to know if some actions attributed to Richard here, like the almost seductive way he cajoles his father into not giving up the fight for the crown, actually happened, or if Kanno is writing him somewhat inconsistently. In either case, I am definitely on board for volume two! – Michelle Smith

Toriko, Vol. 27 | By Mitsutoshi Shimabukuro | Viz Media – The power of positive thinking is what drives the first half of this volume, which is still devoted to a serious of battles at the shattered remains of the Cooking Festival. It takes Toriko a long way, to the point where we think that he’s going to be able to take out Starjun, but… in the end, all of our current heroes may not be enough, and not even Setsuno and company can turn the tide. Luckily, there’s a few more old-timers who’ve yet to arrive that may help out. There’s been a lot of fighting and very little food lately, and I am looking forward to seeing the outcome of this battle, even if things aren’t looking all that good for Toriko or Komatsu right now. – Sean Gaffney

Uninvited by Sophie Jordan

April 20, 2015 by Michelle Smith

book description:
When Davy tests positive for Homicidal Tendency Syndrome, aka “the kill gene,” she loses everything. Once the perfect high school senior, she is uninvited from her prep school and abandoned by her friends and boyfriend. Even her parents are now afraid of her—although she’s never hurt a fly. Davy doesn’t feel any differently, but genes don’t lie. One day she will kill someone.

Without any say in the matter, Davy is thrown into a special class for HTS carriers. She has no doubt the predictions are right about them, especially Sean, who already bears the “H” tattoo as proof of his violence. Yet when the world turns on the carriers, Sean is the only one she can trust. Maybe he’s not as dangerous as he seems. Or maybe Davy is just as deadly.

Review:
We meet Davina (Davy) Hamilton in March 2021, when she is about to graduate from her prestigious prep school and proceed on to Juilliard. Davy is a special snowflake musical prodigy who is also gorgeous, with a studly boyfriend many other girls covet. She’s also not shy about congratulating herself for these things.

Her privileged existence comes to an end when routine screening reveals that she carries the gene for HTS—Homicidal Tendency Syndrome. She is promptly uninvited from her swanky school and sent to a class for “carriers” at the local public school, where some of the kids are obviously creeps but others seem as normal and harmless as Davy insists she is. Carriers are treated poorly by society, and when an angry group of them perpetrates a mass shooting, all carriers are rounded up and sent to detention camps. Davy and a couple of classmates, however, are diverted into a program where they train to kill on government command.

While there were a few things I liked about Uninvited, I must admit that it was not especially good. Original-flavor Davy is not a sympathetic character, but she does eventually realize that she used to be a pretty crappy person and that her friends and boyfriend never truly cared about her. I also found the repeated references to music in her head puzzling—as a musician myself, it’s true that I usually have a song (or at least unformed noodling) in my head, but I thought this was normal for everyone, and not a sign of genius as we are evidently supposed to believe here.

Too, the writing is sometimes weirdly choppy, and I’m not sure what the point of that was. Is it simply bad writing or is it an attempt to convey how grim the situation is? If that’s the case, why use it during a scene where Davy’s boyfriend seems to accept her, kill gene and all?

I need this. So much. His arms. His love.

That’s just one example. I confess that I eventually started internally reading these in a flat robot voice to amuse myself. Jordan sometimes seems to mix up musical terms, too, like when Davy refers to the “pitch” of an aria, or that her body sways to the “harmony.” Plus, there were two instances of “y’all” being spelled “ya’ll.” Can you become an editor without understanding how contractions are formed? Apparently, at Harper Teen you can!

So, irritating main character, bizarre writing style… what is there to like? Well, the concept itself is kind of interesting, and because I didn’t particularly care about anyone, their misfortunes didn’t cause me any anxiety. The portion of the novel set in the training program is the strongest, with Davy becoming determined not only to become strong in her own right, but buying into the claim that if she does well enough, the government will have the neck tattoo proclaiming her as a violent carrier removed.

In the end, I find myself interested enough to read the sequel, Unleashed, though I am very grateful that this series is not a trilogy.

Manga the Week of 4/22

April 16, 2015 by Sean Gaffney, Michelle Smith, MJ, Anna N and Ash Brown 2 Comments

SEAN: I feel that the “Yen Press” week of every month is just going to be like this now, and we will simply have to accept it.

Before Yen, though, there’s also enough from other publishers to make it a big week anyway. Gantz is still not over, as the 35th volume from Dark Horse will attest.

Kodansha debuts two new series. The first, Let’s Dance a Waltz, is from shoujo master Natsumi Ando, and I reviewed it here.

MICHELLE: This was not on my radar, but I think from your review that I might give it a pass. Thanks for the warning about the “overweight girl transforms to find love” trope.

MJ: Yeah, that’s a deal-breaker for me, too.

ANNA: And me as well.

SEAN: There’s also Your Lie in April, whose anime recently finished. Will folks pick up the manga even though they know how it ends? Come on, how can you resist those adorable faces on the cover?

ASH: I’m a fan of music manga, so I’ll be following it. In fact, I’ve already reviewed the first volume!

MJ: Now, this I’ll give a try!

SEAN: Seven Seas’ A Certain Scientific Railgun has reached double digits, but can it last much longer with Misaka in this much trouble? Or will a certain guy come to her rescue again? I think we know the answer to that, but read it anyway, it’s good.

Clay Lord: Master of Golems is probably the debut with the least buzz this month, but it’s a Zero-Sum title, so I know MJwill be interested if no one else. It’s about, unsurprisingly, a young man who can create golems.

MJ: Yes. Yes, yes. “Zero-Sum” is pretty much all it takes. And it’s interesting to see this coming from Seven Seas, whom I generally count on to publish manga I would not like at all. So I’m anxious to be proven wrong about that.

SEAN: Udon is putting out another “Manga Classics”, this time of Dickens’ Great Expectations. Pip pip, cheerio!

MJ: I could get interested in this.

ANNA: I need to check out a Manga Classics one day!

SEAN: Vertical gives us the 4th volume of Witchcraft Works, which I’ve fallen 3 volumes behind on, alas.

It has been almost 5 years since the last Black Lagoon volume, and the author insists that it was not “put on hiatus” or anything like that. (The author is notorious for not finishing his series, and may be worried he can’t do the same here.) In any case, for those who forget, the last volume ended with Rock being reminded how far his moral sense has fallen. Can he recover? I talk about that here.

MICHELLE: Wow. I kind of forgot about Black Lagoon.

ASH: It’s been a long time!

SEAN: Viz is re-releasing the manga Gyo in a 2-in-1 omnibus, and I recommend it for all seafood lovers.

MICHELLE: But will it still include the amazing short story, “The Enigma of Amigara Fault”?!

SEAN: And there’s also the 4th Perfect Edition of Monster, which is not quite as body horror as Gyo but is disturbing enough anyway.

There are two flavors of Vagabond next week. We have Volume 37 for regular readers, and the 12th VizBIG edition for newbies.

ASH: I’m a VizBIG reader myself, but either way this is a great series.

ANNA: I also like the VizBig editions of this series very much.

SEAN: Yen On has been trickling out new titles for some time now, but this is the biggest month yet, with 6 different novels all out next week. We start with The Devil Is a Part-Timer!, a comedic fantasy which seems to lean heavier on the comedy, at least so far.

ASH: The anime adaptation was surprisingly entertaining, so I’ll definitely be giving the original series a try.

SEAN: Just in time for the anime debut, we have the 2nd volume of Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? The first volume wasn’t terrible, but also didn’t knock me out. We’ll see how the 2nd fares.

MJ: I’ve been considering giving this one a try.

SEAN: Log Horizon is another light novel whose manga made its debut last month, but I understand the plots aren’t too similar. I’m interested in seeing how different this experience is from Sword Art Online.

No Game No Life seems like one of those titles that I will do much better with as a novel – the manga intrigued me, but man that fanservice was rampant. It’s easier to ignore in textual format if nothing else. I want to read this for the codependent heroes, really.

Spice & Wolf has no truck with these newbie Vol. 1 novels. It’s already at Vol. 14, a mature, fully developed title.

Lastly, Sword Art Online wraps up its Fairy Dance arc, which I’m sure will relieve many of its readers. Will Kirito defeat the world’s smuggest villain? What do you think?

MJ: I suspect he will, and I’ll be there to find out.

SEAN: Now on to Yen proper. Akame Ga KILL! has its second volume out, and I suspect will get even darker than it already began.

And on a slightly milder note there’s also the 4th Barakamon.

MICHELLE: I plan to get caught up on this soon.

ASH: Barakamon grows on me a little more with each volume.

MJ: Same here.

SEAN: I’ve been enjoying Inu x Boku SS quite a bit, so am sad to see that its author passed away recently. We have a few volumes to go still, though. Here’s the 7th.

Kagerou Daze is another ‘release the manga a month before the novel’ title, and I believe may be tangentially tied into the Vocaloid franchise, being based off a series of songs that tie together. Its plot is far more serious than you’d expect from that description, though.

If you ever wondered whether Joan of Arc was a magical girl, why not try new Puella Magi spinoff, Tart Magica? (Spoiler: it won’t end well. Is that even a spoiler for this franchise? Or this historical figure?)

If you enjoy busty shinigami, lecherous leads who are prevented by plot circumstances from actually doing anything, and more harem comedy than you can shake a stick at, then you’re the right audience for So I Can’t Play H!. Unlike many other recent titles from Yen, only the manga is licensed at this time.

The second Sword Art Online: Progressive manga should wrap up the first ‘arc’ of the novel, and give Kirito and Asuna fans a lot to be happy about.

Lastly, we get the 7th Tena on S-String, much quicker than we got the 6th volume.

What in this giant mound of manga and novels makes you most excited?

Pick of the Week: Seki & more!

April 14, 2015 by Ash Brown, Michelle Smith, Sean Gaffney, Anna N and MJ Leave a Comment

ASH: As usual, there are a few things that I’m looking forward to among this week’s manga releases, but choosing just one as my pick is surprisingly easy this time. The first volume of My Neighbor Seki was an absolute delight, and the second volume should be as well. Sometimes I just need to read a manga that makes me happy, and My Neighbor Seki is one of those series.

MICHELLE: I’m sure that I will love My Neighbor Seki when I read it, but the fact remains that I don’t love it quite yet. What I do love, however, is Shinobu Ohtaka’s Magi: The Labyrinth of Magic, so I’m happy to see volume eleven out already!

SEAN: Just a moment, have to get my Tatewaki Kuno mask on… (does so) SEKI?! MAGI?! I CANNOT CHOOSE! I MUST HAVE YOU BOTH!!!!!

ANNA: There’s a bunch coming out this week that’s on my to-read list, like My Neighbor Seki, but I haven’t even read the first volumes yet! Is there a newish volume of One-Punch Man out? I’m going to pick that because tax season makes me want to read about punching.

MJ: Okay, yeah, yeah, I’m into Seki, and I’ll admit I never really got into Junjo Romantica, but despite that (and despite the “scared uke“-style cover, I’m still irresistibly drawn to Shungiku Nakamura’s The World’s Greatest First Love. There’s just something about BL manga set in publishing that lure me in like no other. Definitely my pick this week.

What looks good to you this week?

Bookshelf Briefs 4/14/15

April 14, 2015 by Sean Gaffney, Michelle Smith and Anna N Leave a Comment

This week, Sean, Michelle, & Anna look at recent releases from Seven Seas, Yen Press, and Viz Media.

Arpeggio of Blue Steel, Vol. 4 | By Ark Performance | Seven Seas – A step down from the previous volumes, mostly as we take a brief break from the thrilling action scenes to focus on a) a naval captain having erotic dreams about a 17-year-old girl, and b) the fetishization of Takao, who’s even using phrases like “I’ll let you see my engine’. Thankfully, the majority of the volume remains excellent. In particular, the odd friendship between Haruna and Makie, as the former realizes that they have far more in common than you’d expect. Meanwhile, we see something happen to Gunzou that we hadn’t expected – he’s defeated, and it doesn’t sit well with him at all. Oh, yes, and is his childhood friend not quite dead? Despite the fanservice, still very recommended. – Sean Gaffney

Food Wars!: Shokugeki no Soma, Vol. 5 | By Yuto Tsukuda and Shun Saeki | Viz Media – Tempted as I am to have this review simply say ‘Note: Food Wars! is a cooking manga’, I will add that this is quite a strong volume. We see Soma learn the value of TPO (Time, Place, Occasion) in his cooking and survive the hotel contest. We see him return to his old restaurant and get help from his childhood friend (remember her? from Chapter 1?) and Ikumi to take down a fast-food chain. And perhaps most importantly, we see Megumi Tadoroko: Ping Pong Goddess. It does sound as if we’re going to head into a longer arc starting with the next volume, though, complete with a new arrogant jerk for Soma to take down. All this, and Erina was in it as well. Remember her? The supposed heroine? – Sean Gaffney

Food Wars!: Shokugeki no Soma, Vol. 5 | By Yuto Tsukuda and Shun Saeki | Viz Media – It’s perhaps the highest compliment I can give a series to say, “I could happily marathon fifty volumes of this series,” and that is precisely how I am feeling about Food Wars!. While I liked the chapters in which Soma helped his hometown neighborhood market compete with a fried-chicken chain, what I liked best was the conclusion to the intense cooking camp, which saw timid Megumi achieving greater confidence, and actually performing better than Soma in a grueling challenge. Yes, we saw him rise to the occasion and pull out an impressive win, but I liked that he easily admitted that he’d made a mistake and was determined to learn from it. And then he reflected that he was glad he’d come to culinary school after all. You guys, the cock protagonist is evolving! This is hitting my sports manga buttons, big time, and I love it. – Michelle Smith

He’s My Only Vampire, Vol. 2 | By Aya Shouoto | Yen Press- As this series is coming out concurrently with Shouoto’s Kiss of the Rose Princess, I am unable to resist comparing them. I’d have to say that, despite my vampire fatigue, this one is far superior. It’s a later effort from Shouoto—a bit darker (though the tone veers a bit lighter in this second volume), more mature (earning an OT rating), and better plotted, with several story threads in play from the start. It does still seem to be shaping up to be a male harem sort of series, but the introductions of new guys are better paced. Too, Shouoto seems to have developed a better sense for comedy, and I encountered no jarring goofy gags disrupting dramatic moments. Okay, yes, there are some standard shoujo tropes, and Aki’s possessiveness of Kana is plenty creepy, but there’s enough about this series to recommend it. Consider me pleasantly surprised. – Michelle Smith

My Love Story!!Vol. 4 | By Kazune Kawahara and Aruko – Every time I pick up this manga, I’m reminded that intense soap opera plots and meanness aren’t necessary ingredients for a captivating shoujo manga. Ai comes back home with Hayato, a friend from school who is determined to learn the identity of the Takeo Goda that she has a crush on. Hayato then encourages her to confess her feelings to Takeo, so she will get some closure. Takeo and Yamato’s relationship is too strong for any attempts at breaking them up, and they are both too naive to pick up on the undercurrents of emotion surrounding them. Later, there are more problems when Takeo’s assumption that he’s unpopular turn out not to be true. There’s something that is just so sweet about the unlikely love story portrayed in this manga, and the humor contrasted with the bits of drama that only serve to make Takeo and Yamato more and more in love with each other ensures that My Love Story!! makes me smile whenever I read a volume. – Anna N

Skip Beat!, Vol. 34 | By Yoshiki Nakamura | Viz Media – Lory’s Love Me group isn’t there to help his wannabe actresses find true love, it’s there to help them realize that they can’t simply shut off that part of themselves and expect their acting to reach the next level. As a result, his confrontation with Kyoko about her love for Ren feels more like a catharsis than anything else, and it’s beautifully done. Of course, his plotting and scheming is about to be taken down by one thing he is unaware of, which is the past that Kyoko has with “Corn”. While I have some issues with Ren taking advantage of her naivete about fairies to keep his identity a secret, this can’t help but be utterly adorable – or should I say corny? Still top-tier shoujo. – Sean Gaffney