Manga Bookshelf

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Sean Gaffney

Pick of the Week: What Did You Eat In 2019?

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ASH: Although there are a few manga being released this week that I’m interested in, without a doubt my pick goes to the latest installment of What Did You Eat Yesterday? in English. The series is such a delight and it’s been more than a year since the last volume was published, so I’m really looking forward to reading more.

SEAN: What Did You Eat Yesterday? never gelled for me, so I’ll go with the latest Monogatari as my pick. Owarimonogatari: End Tale is one of many times that Nisioisin has said that he’s ending the series, and it does actually wrap up the main plotlines, to be fair, if not the books themselves. This is the first of three volumes, dealing with Araragi’s first year in high school and the mysterious Ogi Oshino.

MICHELLE: I’m very much looking forward to more 10 Dance and Waiting for Spring, but given that my spirits had a noticeable uptick when I noticed this volume on the calendar, it’s gotta be What Did You Eat Yesterday? for me!

MJ: I’m interested in a few titles in the upcoming New Year’s batch, but I’m going to have to go with Ash and Michelle. Fumi Yoshinaga always wins with me, and I’m thrilled that we’re finally seeing more of What Did You Eat Yesterday? this week!

Bookshelf Briefs 12/29/19

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As Miss Beelzebub Likes, Vol. 8 | By Matoba | Yen Press -Aside from the cute slice-of-life aspects of the series, much of it revolves around the fact that everyone seems to have a crush on someone in the cast, but it’s either the wrong person or they’re too shy/tsundere/unable to see it to do anything. I was reminded of that in this volume, which literally has Beelzebub and Mullin going on a date to the aquarium… but they’re still not actually a couple, even if they are treated as an eventual one. We see this again with a mixer that Mullin is forced to go to, where we see a girl who a) is so cute she even gets Mullin’s brain briefly off his boss for a bit, and b) has a great meet cute scene with Samyaza… who it turns out has a crush on Eurydice, the shotacon. Sigh. That’s the manga. – Sean Gaffney

Komi Can’t Communicate, Vol. 4 | By Tomohito Oda | Viz Media – One thing I really like about this series is that, while Komi has trouble communicating and is trying to improve, the series never shows it as a bad thing per se, and never really judges her for it. Her family is the same way, with the exception of her talkative mother, who we get more of here. A bulk of the story is devoted to the athletic festival, where, as you might expect, both Komi and Tadano are in a position to save the day and win for their group. There’s a bit of selfishness, mostly courtesy of Yamai, who is still around, but for the most part the series really runs on sweet kids doing their best, and also finds the time to be funny. I admire that. – Sean Gaffney

My Father Is a Unicorn | By Monaka Suzuki | Seven Seas – Sometimes you get a book that falls between two stools, and it can be even more disappointing than if it was too much of one thing or the other. This wants to be a funny comedy about a guy trying to live with his out-of-touch stepfather who is really a unicorn, bad at transforming at the worst of times, and also a big flake. This also wants to be a series about found family and giving new people a chance when they mean well and are trying. Unfortunately, too often it tries to do both at once, and the tone is wrong. There’s also a number of times when, even for the broad comedy this is sometimes going for, the characters are so stupid they beggar belief. If you like silly monster “guy” manga you may like it, but… eh. – Sean Gaffney

One-Punch Man, Vol. 18 | By ONE and Yusuke Murata | Viz Media – Another volume that is very funny when it’s trying to be, but isn’t trying 3/4 of the time anymore, so it’s just serious fighting stuff. The best bits were the restaurant and the dining and dashing, which felt a lot like the OPM of old. We’re also making Garo into less of a villain by having him do more protecting of a kid, which is fine but does remind you that everything about this world is absolutely terrible—in the end, the kid even ends up captured anyway. Now, arguably you could call this a pastiche of the tendency in modern comics, especially superhero comics, for “grim and gritty,” but this isn’t a parody anymore—it’s just a lot of serious fighting with more gore. My Hero Academia is looking better by the day. – Sean Gaffney

Saint Young Men, Vol. 1 | By Hikaru Nakamura | Kodansha Comics – It’s a Christmas miracle! Despite great interest in the series, Saint Young Men has been unlicensable in North America for years, at least in part due to concerns over how more conservative Christian groups in the United States might react to the manga’s blatantly irreverent humor. The premise is simple enough—Jesus and Buddha are taking a break from their heavenly duties and are sharing an apartment together in Japan. Hilarity ensues as they live their day-to-day lives while trying to keep their identities a secret. Readers who already have some familiarity with Christianity and Buddhism—and to to some extent Japanese culture, as well—will likely appreciate and get the most out of the series, but Kodansha has included plenty of notes after each chapter of this release to help along those who aren’t. Personally, Saint Young Men brings me great joy and laughter; I’m thrilled it’s being translated. – Ash Brown

Seven Days: Monday→Sunday | By Venio Tachibana and Rihito Takarai | SuBLime – Handsome Toji Seryo has a reputation for agreeing to go out with the first girl to ask him on Monday morning and then breaking up with her on Sunday evening, saying, “I’m sorry I couldn’t fall for you.” Impulsively, Yuzuru Shino (also popular with girls due to his looks) asks Seryo out and is surprised when he agrees. From there, their week as a couple unfolds, during which each guy develops feelings for the other, with Seryo convinced that Yuzuru is not going to seriously return his feelings and Yuzuru convinced that what’s happening between them has also happened with all the other girls Seryo has dated. It’s sweet and angsty and features some poor communication, and I enjoyed it a lot. They each finally found someone who loves them for who they really am and I am totally happy for these fictional boys. Strongly recommended. – Michelle Smith

Yuri Is My Job!, Vol. 5 | By miman | Kodansha Comics – Despite the events of the last volume, this one is devoted to showing us that nothing is really solved. Hime is trying a bit harder but is still too much of a flake to really be a good waitress (though she’s better as a schweister), Kanoko is still really in love with Hime, a situation not helped by them going out on a shopping “date” and Hime giving Kanoko a special present. Most importantly, Mitsuki is still tortured and tormented, and it’s coming out by her lashing out at Hime whether she deserves it or not. This is a good story in a tortured sort of way, but I have to admit this specific volume was not so much “fun to read” as “crawling across broken glass.” But the glass *is* very pretty and shiny, and there is hope things will get better. – Sean Gaffney

Invaders of the Rokujouma!?, Vol. 27

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By Takehaya and Poco. Released in Japan as “Rokujouma no Shinryakusha!?” by HJ Bunko. Released in North America digitally by J-Novel Club. Translated by Warnis.

Another “short-story” volume of Rokujouma, although honestly it’s more three short stories and a half-novel, as the story written especially for the book is a continuation of the previous book and not really skippable. The three short stories are all essentially character pieces. The first focuses on Nana, who has been slowly drawn into the secondary orbit of the main cast, although she’s not in the Koutarou sweepstakes. It involves making changes to her mostly cyborg body to have her look more of her actual age… as well as various other members of the cast envying how Koutarou interacts with each of them. The slightest of the three stories has Shizuka and her “dragon” uncle going to a hot springs. The third involves an eating contest that all the cast enters, but it’s mostly about Sanae and Theia, along with making Yurika the butt monkey again, because, well, we’re back on Earth. All three stories are the same as we’ve seen in previous volumes – nice character pieces, but slight.

The final story is more significant, and starts with an obvious problem: Koutarou being on Forthorthe is ruining the economy, as anywhere he goes is automatically where everyone else wants to go, and everything he buys, everyone else does… meaning all the competitors are being ruined. This is a tad ridiculous, but serves to give him an excuse to quietly go back home with everyone except the main Forthorthe cast. That said, they’ve been away from Earth a LONG time. Various people on the magical girl side have been pretending to be them in class, but that’s not helping their actual studies, so they have to take a test to prove that they’re up to date… and failure means repeating a year. You can imagine who panics most about this, but Sanae and Koutarou are also not great students.

Now, I will partly hand it to Yurika, despite whining and moaning the entire time, she really did seem to earnestly study. That said, I do like how this book shows that all the studying effort in the world can’t help you when you start from so far behind. I also liked how Maki kept Yurika motivated – yes, Koutarou would still let her stay there if she had to repeat a year, but he’s be so disappointed… as you can imagine, the thought horrifies Yurika. The other main plot here involves the cast being followed around by various guys in suits and sunglasses who look straight out of Urusei Yatsura. This was amusing, but feels more like a setup for next book, where I expect Forthorthe is going to have to go public. In fact, the author said there’s a lot of setup for the next book in this story.

So overall not bad, and sets us up nicely for the next two books, which are the final ones in the “main” storyline, though the series continues after that. Rokujouma fans should be happy.

Baccano!: 2002 [Side A]: Bullet Garden

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By Ryohgo Narita and Katsumi Enami. Released in Japan by Dengeki Bunko. Released in North America by Yen On. Translated by Taylor Engel.

The first volume of this two-parter reminds me very much of the fist volume of the last two-parter we had, The Slash. It’s very short, almost all setup, and seems to be saving all its tricks for the back half. It also features a new character I don’t care for, and once again brings up Firo’s paralyzing fear of sexuality, which is not a plotline I like either. Adding this all together makes it one of the more “average” volumes in the series, and it feels sort of like the first volume in a DRRR!! arc as well – you’re reading along waiting for fun, only to be told the fun is four months from now. Fortunately, there is a BIT of fun to be had here – Claudia and Charon *are* new characters I like, being genderswapped carbon copies of their great-grandparents, Czes gets a lot to do an an ominous foreboding about what’s going to happen, and Illness is a treat, though her terrifying backstory reminds me of Huey and Elmer – deliberately, of course.

Firo and Ennis, we are told, married somewhere around 1980, fifty years after they first met, but have never had a honeymoon – or indeed consummated their relationship. On finding out about this, the Camorra bosses pay for him and Ennis to travel on an ocean liner’s maiden voyage – and, Firo still being extremely wary of what comes with a honeymoon, he invites Czes to come as well, much to Czes’s frustration. The cruise also features Claudia and Charon, great-grandkids to Claire and Chane (who, while not immortal, are both still alive and active in their nineties), who are in the film industry; Angelo, a sniper who is out for revenge on the terrorists who wiped out his South American gang; said terrorists, the Mask Makers, whose name seems awfully familiar to Firo and who have a love of modern cinema; and Bobby Splot and his gang, who stow away on the boat to get revenge on people because… well, because Bobby is terrible. He’s a disgrace to his great-grandfather Jacuzzi.

I am aware that Bobby will likely improve in the next book, but, like Maria in the first Slash volume, I have to rate him based on this book alone, and boy, he grates. To be fair, this is deliberate, as the book wants to have him NOT be his great-grandfather, in contrast to Claudia, but still. The plotline going on here seems complex, and you get the sense that we’ve barely seen the start of it. Someone seems to want to recreate the 1931 train incident, only without Isaac and Miria (who briefly appear, but are not on the boat). The Mask Makers are clearly a reference to the same group we saw in the 1705 novel, which makes you wonder what they’re doing here almost 300 years later. And, to make things even more interesting, the terrorists’ plan involves meeting up with the SISTER ship of this huge luxury liner, which is going in the other direction and scheduled to pass them.

We briefly hear what’s happening on the other liner, and honestly it sounds a lot more interesting than events here. As such, I suspect that the 2nd and final book in this 2002 arc will be far more exciting and interesting. Till then, enjoy Claudia, Charon and Illness, who are a lot of fun.

The Genius Prince’s Guide to Raising a Nation Out of Debt (Hey, How About Treason?), Vol. 2

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By Toru Taba and Falmaro. Released in Japan as “Tensai Ouji no Akaji Kokka Saisei Jutsu ~Sou da, Baikoku Shiyou~” by GA Bunko. Released in North America by Yen On. Translated by Jessica Lange.

I had a lot of fun with the first volume of this series, and am pleased to report that I liked the second volume even better. For one, it’s a relief to be living in a world of political intrigue and mind games, one where our protagonists actually are people born in that world and have not been transported from modern day Japan. There is no adventurer’s guild… or indeed adventurers at all, nor do we appear to have any magic. It’s just a series with a clever young prince and his clever aide doing battle (at least in this novel) with an equally clever princess from the strife-torn Empire, still dealing with the death of its Emperor that we heard about in the last book. It feels a little bit like an episode of Blackadder if everyone were as clever as he was. There’s even a minimum of light novel cliches – the readers get a scene of the main female cast in a hot springs, but Wein is absent doing paperwork – no accidental peeping here. These are adults.

As noted, the main thrust of this volume is that Wein’s kingdom is visited by the 2nd Princess of the Empire, Lowellmina, who rumor has it is looking for a political marriage. As it turns out, she’s someone both Wein and Ninym have met before, though they were unaware that she was a princess. Wein correctly guesses she has another plan behind the public one, but has trouble figuring out the REAL plan she has behind the second one. She, meanwhile, is also trying to see what he does and how he reacts, relying on his being exceptionally clever to keep the ball rolling along. In among this we have the usual political crises. The Empire is trying to figure out which of the three sons of the Emperor should be in charge. Two territories in Wein’s kingdom who have always been at each other’s throats are coming to a boiling point. And a lovestruck, foolish son of an aristocrat from a neighboring nation may cause everything to fall apart for both Wein AND Lowellmina.

I mentioned in my last review that the best part of the book was the relationship between Wein and Ninym, and that remains the case. At the moment, it’s impossible for anything to happen between them, mostly as Wein is a noble Prince and Ninym is a non-noble from a race that many countries are severely prejudiced against. I suspect that will change before the series ends, because let’s face it, Wein and Ninym have been “married” for years now, in terms of closeness and knowing each other’s hearts. Lowellmina is also a great character, not as overdramatic as Wein can be when things go wrong (there’s some amusing faces in the illustrations) but still cut from the same cloth. There’s also some fun scenes showing Wein and Ninym at the Empire’s military academy from two years prior (which is where they met the in-disguise princess), and I’d love to see more from that period as well.

Certainly I’d recommend this for fans of series like Realist Hero and other kingdom-building books, but also for those who enjoy a light novel series without having to make excuses for half of the events that take place in them. Glorious fun.

A Witch’s Printing Office, Vol. 1

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By Mochinchi and Yasuhiro Miyama. Released in Japan as “Mahoutsukai no Insatsujo” by Kadokawa Shoten, serialization ongoing in the magazine Dengeki G’s. Released in North America by Yen Press. Translated by Amber Tamosaitis.

It’s become something of a running gag that “isekai” is the way to sell your title to a publisher, no matter what the series is. “I’ve got this idea about two philosophy students meeting in a coffee shop to discuss Kokugaku and Rangaku.” “…why would that ever sell?” “You see, the coffee shop is… IN ANOTHER WORLD!” That said, sometimes the isekai prototype does help to make a series more interesting because it’s baked into the plot, especially when the series can avoid the usual pitfalls of having the same thing happen – no guilds, adventurers, etc. Without its isekai plotline, this would just be one of seventy different kinds of “we’re working in an office and also connected with Comiket” titles that come and go with no one remembering them. But, let’s face it: Recreating Comiket in a fantasy world, using magic tomes as the draw… that’s a very clever idea. And from this idea we get the story of Mika, whose desire to get back home led to all this.

The actual circumstances of Mika ending up in another world are mostly glossed over in this first volume – when we come across her, she’s been in this fantasy world for some time. She has one magical skill, Copy, which is what it sounds – she’s a human copier machine. Trying to find a spell that can transport her back home, she’s created her own printing office to help out people who desperately need things copied, such as the magic spell that can drive away monsters, which with Mika’s help can be given to every villager. That said, magic books and spells don’t just walk up to you, even if you are a printing company. And so Mika has decided to help organize Magiket, a massive convention where people buy and sell magical spells. Can she keep the convention from going off the rails? And can she find a spell that will get her back home?

I will admit, “magical Comiket” is just the sort of high-concept idea I like, so I was already on this manga’s side to begin with. Mika might remind many people of Yomiko from Read or Die, at least in appearance, but she’s also a very can do sort of woman who sometimes exhausts herself trying to achieve something and help others. There’s various subplots at the Magiket itself: some people aren’t selling well, at least not until a spell is urgently needed; some folks are trying to sell illegal or illicit spells; and of course there’s the usual problems with lines and keeping everyone moving. I’m not spoiling anything to say that by the end of this book Mika has not found a way to return home, but she has managed to carve out a niche for herself, starting a company with enthusiastic employees and organizing a massive publishing event. Honestly, she’s achieved more in one book than a lot of isekai slackers have in ten.

I don’t expect too many serious or ongoing plots in this series, which when you boil it down is another workplace slice-of-life. But adding the isekai made all the difference for once, and I look forward to seeing what the next Magiket brings us.

Manga the Week of 1/1/20

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SEAN: Happy New Year! And yes, I know most of the titles I’m mentioning here go with the OLD year, coming out on 12/31. What do we have?

J-Novel Club has a new debut, The Holy Knight’s Dark Road (Seinaru Kishi no Ankokudou). Our hero is a holy knight beloved by his people and his goddess… but he feels he’s starring in the wrong light novel archetype, and so goes to join a magical academy! Hijinks no doubt ensue.

J-Novel Club also has Full Metal Panic! 5 and Outbreak Academy 12.

In print, Kodansha gives us 10 Dance 5 and Waiting for Spring 12.

ASH: I’ve been enjoying 10 Dance a great deal. I’ve liked what I’ve read of Waiting for Spring, too, though I’ve fallen behind.

MICHELLE: I’m looking forward to both of these!

MJ: I’m incredibly behind on 10 Dance but I really need to catch up!

SEAN: Digitally, we get another debut with To Be Next To You (Tonari no Atashi), a Betsufure shoujo title about a girl in love with her neighbor who is horrified one day to find him kissing another woman! Maybe she should finally confess?

MICHELLE: There are a whole bunch of shoujo debuts happening digitally for Kodansha over the next couple of months. I approve.

MJ: Same.

ANNA: I also approve, although I have given up on keeping up on them.

SEAN: There is also GTO Paradise Lost 11, Hotaru’s Way 11, Kakafukaka 9, and Kounodori: Dr. Stork 12. (Lotta Vol. 12s this week.)

MICHELLE: One day I’ll read Hotaru’s Way.

SEAN: Seven Seas has but a single title with Machimaho: I Messed Up and Made the Wrong Person Into a Magical Girl! 4.

Tokyopop (at least according to Amazon – don’t be surprised if this is bumped) has a new BL title, Don’t Call Me Dirty (Dirty Darling), from Mag Garden’s UVU. A man trying to get over his crush (who turns out not to be gay) takes in a vagrant, and things go from there. This actually sounds kind of sweet. It’s complete in one volume.

MJ: That… title.

SEAN: Vertical has quite a bit. Owarimonogatari: End Tale is the latest (and last?) in the Monogatari Series, and is divided into three parts. This first book in the series delves into just WHY Araragi got to be the misanthrope we saw at the start of the series.

Seraph of the End: Guren Ichinose, Resurrection at Nineteen sure is the latest light novel spinoff series from Seraph of the End – in fact, it’s a sequel to the first light novel spinoff.

And Manga Bookshelf will be delighted to hear we get What Did You Eat Yesterday? 14, the first volume in almost a year and a half.

ASH: Excellent! I most certainly am delighted!

MICHELLE: Me, too!

MJ: I, too, am delighted! So exciting!

ANNA: Yay!

SEAN: And we end of Yen. On the Yen On side, no debuts, but we get The Alchemist Who Survived Now Dreams of a Quiet City Life 2, The Irregular at Magic High School 14, Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? 14 (yes, at last, after three long delays), Our Last Crusade or the Rise of a New World 2, and Spice & Wolf 21.

On the manga end, the debut is Magia Record: Puella Magi Madoka Magica Side Story, another in the endless series of Madoka Magica spinoffs. This one adapts a mobile game, and runs in Manga Time Kirara Forward.

There’s also Kakegurui -Compulsive Gambler- 11 and Sacrificial Princess and the King of Beasts 8.

And that’s it! What manga come to mind in these days of Auld Lang Syne?

Banner of the Stars: The Ties That Bind

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By Hiroyuki Morioka and Toshihiro Ono. Released in Japan by Hayakawa Bunko. Released in North America by J-Novel Club. Translated by Giuseppe di Martino.

These are novels rather than light novels, so you don’t get cute interstitial artwork. This may be why we get this cover, with Lafier trying to look cool and captainlike while a cat is climbing on top of her. The cat is Jint’s (it’s Jint now. Don’t ask. Or rather, ask Hayakawa Publishing.), and spends much of the book wandering around places where it shouldn’t be and basically being a cat. That said, after the massive firefight that dominates the second half of the book, it’s probably for the best that the cat ends up being given a permanent home on planet. The cat also provides a different source of humor from the usual in this book, which is banter. Everyone in Banter… erm, Banner of the Stars is in a two-person team of back and forth dialogue as if they’re Nick and Nora Charles – indeed, Jint and Lafier are not nearly as caustic about it as many of the others, perhaps showing the feelings they have for each other. It’s almost Moonlighting in space.

This book takes place three years after the events of Crest of the Stars, with Jint now reunited with Lafier as her Clerk and right-hand man on her brand new ship. She’s just one of many ships that are setting out to fight the enemy, though, and we get a large amount of time devoted to space combat, things blowing up, and last-minute escapes. We meet Lafier’s crew, with Number Two Sobash, stoic Ecryua (stoic may be the wrong term given her love on Jint’s cat) and lovable drunk Samson. There’s also her Assault Unit Commander, who happens to be the sister of the guy that Lafier killed in Crest of the Stars. Sporr is still hanging around and being fabulous. And we also see Neleth and Nefeh, two twin brothers (unusual among the Abh) with a propensity towards being exceptionally weird. Everyone talks back and forth at each other like it’s His Girl Friday. Oh yes, and there’s the planet they’re fighting to conquer, which irritatingly hasn’t surrendered yet.

As I said, Jint and Lafier are also part of this, and we do get some choice banter (the thing about Lafier thinking her mother was a cat is brought up by Jint multiple times, to her displeasure). At the same time, there is a certain fatalistic quality to Jint that the reader, and Lafier, may find disturbing. Atosryua invites Lafier and Jint to a dinner to commemorate the life of her brother… the one Lafier killed… but it’s all very polite and no hard feelings. Afterwards, Jint remarks how he doesn’t have anyone who would miss him after he died anyway, and the look that Lafier gives him burns through the page and onto your fingers. She makes it more explicit later that she would miss him, dammit, but it’s fairly clear that if there is any romance going on between the two, she will need to break through a bit of his self-debasement first.

The author notes that each book in this series will be self-contained, which is probably a good thing given the first came out in 1996 and the 6th in 2018. As with Crest of the Stars, it will bury you in vocabulary, and some of the eccentricities of the characters feel like the author is being cute rather than letting it develop naturally. Still, this is a good solid start to the “second season” of Jint and Lafier.

Konosuba: An Explosion on This Wonderful World!: Megumin’s Turn

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By Natsume Akatsuki and Kurone Mishima. Released in Japan as “Kono Subarashii Sekai ni Bakuen wo!” by Kadokawa Sneaker Bunko. Released in North America by Yen On. Translated by Kevin Steinbach.

If you were going to suggest an obvious choice for a side-story spinoff in the Konosuba universe, Megumin immediately comes to mind. She’s the most popular of the cast, and her backstory could use some fleshing out beyond what we got in the 5th novel. Indeed, in Japan, this volume came out before the 5th novel, and the first thing I wanted to do after it was released was to reread that book to see if more of it made sense. It also allows us to get a sense of Megumin’s headspace – through most of this, she’s the narrative voice, and we can see her eccentricities filtered through a coating of relatively sedate and logical thought. Well, logical for the Crimson Magic Clan, of course, whose one truly eccentric member is Yunyun, she who gets embarrassed by the whole thing. If you wanted a book filled with Megumin and Yunyun being funny, good news, this volume delivers, while also fleshing out the overall story.

The book takes place two years before the main series starts, and shows us Megumin and Yunyun in magic school, learning the finer points of saying cool lines and practicing your awesome poses. Both have almost earned enough points to learn Advanced Magic – indeed, Megumin secretly already has the points to do it, but is saving up even more to get enough to learn Explosion, the spell that she’s been obsessed with since she was a little girl. Everyday life for Megumin consists of conning Yunyun out of her lunch every day, looking after her younger sister Komekko, and generally getting into trouble, particularly after picking up an odd cat, nicknamed “Ink” by Yunyun, who Komekko wants to eat but most everyone else wants to snuggle. Unfortunately, more and more monsters are coming to their village, and seem to be after Komekko! Will Megumin be forced to abandon her dream of Explosion to save her sister?

The main reason to get this solid first volume is the relationship between Megumin and Yunyun. Megumin tends to worry about Yunyun as the sort who would get suckered by the first person who called her friend, and she’s not wrong, as we later see two other classmates seemingly conning Yunyun out of money so they can help a sick younger brother, something Megumin regards with more than a little scorn. Despite Megumin’s constant bullying, it’s clear that the two are close – indeed, at least one girl thinks they’re lovers, and when Yunyun is dragged off by her other friends, accuses Megumin of being cuckolded. Despite that, there’s no yuri subtext here, but it is heartwarming to see Megumin look after Yunyun even while she makes her life miserable. The weakest part of the book involved the irritating NEET Bukkororii and his stalker crush on the girl he likes. Megumin and Yunyun think he’s a massive creep, yes, but so does the reader.

Aside from humorous foreshadowing, the other main cast is absent from this book, which is fine. It’s Megumin’s Turn, as the subtitle suggests. The next volume is supposedly Yunyun’s Turn, but I’m not all that optimistic about her achieving much – she’s funnier when suffering. In the meantime, Konosuba fans will definitely enjoy this.

A Certain Magical Index, Vol. 21

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By Kazumi Kamachi and Kiyotaka Haimura. Released in Japan as “To Aru Majutsu no Index” by Dengeki Bunko. Released in North America by Yen On. Translated by Andrew Prowse.

As with the previous volume, and likely the next one, this is a giant action movie brought to the page. As such, there’s not quite as much development of Index’s main themes, though once again if you are religious you should drop this work like a hot potato if you haven’t already done so. That said, the ex-Pope showing up here and being the baddest ass who ever badassed just by kindly talking to everyone shows that it’s not just a binary “everyone with the Church is evil” thing. This also applies, oddly enough, to Accelerator, who seems to finally be getting over his “I am a horrible villain who must be punished” mentality now that he’s had his battle with Misaka Worst. In fact, he and Worst team up here, because a) he needs help in saving Last Order, and b) she finds the idea of his asking her for help hilarious. She too is an example of a bad guy who changes sides. And then there’s Touma, our theoretical hero, who just wants to punch Fiamma. A whole lot.

Kamachi said in the afterword that this was meant to be (along with 22) one book, which is likely why Mugino is menacing Hamazura on he cover despite the fact that she literally only shows up to be the cliffhanger. Also, given this is the second to last book in the first “series” of Index, there’s no major new character introduced here, though we do get a reappearance from a few older characters I wasn’t expecting – indeed, you could argue that without Kazakiri showing up, Accelerator and Touma would both be very dead right now. The plot is divided basically as follows: 1) Touma trying to catch up to Fiamma, starting with Lesser, then losing her but gaining Sasha, who fills a similar function; 2) Hamazura looking out for the forgotten and ignored, as always, while (finally) succeeding in helping Takitsubo; 3) Accelerator trying to help Last Order (this is less easy than helping Takitsubo); 4) Misaka arriving in Russia but mostly standing around, thus summing up her position in the novels since Book 3; and 5) Stiyl trying not to get killed by a still-possessed Index.

The action scenes are nice and solid here, and while I still find a lot of the magic discussion a bit boring, it at least doesn’t last as long this time. Everyone knows their function. Fiamma’s is to be smug, and he succeeds admirably, and you really do want Touma to punch him in the face, even though Touma does not achieve this (or really anything) in this book. Arguably that also applies to Accelerator, who is nudging closer to knowing how to save Last Order (magic) but can’t get to the next step. Again, only Hamazura succeeds while looking at the small picture… which also allows him to succeed when he ends up in the larger picture as well, pointing out to a dying Acqua of the Back that the REAL heroes are those who get up and return home to loved ones rather than those who accept death. It’s a really good scene, and you can easily see why he’s been added as a third protagonist, especially give that you get the sense Kamachi doesn’t know what to do with Touma at this point.

The next volume is important, as it will not only wrap up World War III, but may be the final volume of Index in North America. It’s unclear if New Testament is considered a new license or a continuing one, but in any case Yen On has not made it clear if they’re doing it. (That said, the back cover copy for 22 does not say ‘Final Volume’, so that’s a good sign.) Till then, enjoy an action-packed volume, and sorry, Mugino fans, I’m sure she’ll be in 22 more.

Pick of the Year: It Was a Very Good Year

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MICHELLE: When declaring a pick of the year, I feel some self-induced pressure to choose something highbrow, but the fact is that the the title that I loved the most, cared about the most, was from Shounen Jump. And that, of course, is My Hero Academia. It’s fun, it’s funny, it’s got a lovable cast. It’s also got trauma, kids struggling with feelings of inadequacy, a great and gradual redemption arc for the protagonist’s childhood bully, and scenes that make one cry. I love it to bits.

SEAN: There’s a lot of titles I really loved this year (including MHA), but the one that caught my eye the most, as I said last week for Pick of the Week, was Our Dreams at Dusk. One of the best LGBTQ titles to hit these shores, it scores in characterization, art, mood, just about everything. It was simply amazing.

ASH: Our Dreams at Dusk really is a phenomenal series, and one of my top picks of the year, too. The other debut that made a big impression on me this year was the beautiful hardcover release of Moto Hagio’s The Poe Clan. It’s a marvelously dark and dramatic shoujo classic; I can definitely understand why it became such an influential work.

KATE: My favorite manga of 2019 was Taiyo Matsumoto’s gorgeous, weird, and trippy Cats of the Louvre, which is both a meditation on purpose of art, and a meditation on what it means to close the door on your childhood and face the uncertainty of being an adult. I’m still thinking about it more two months after I read it—something I can’t say about most of the books I read this year.

ANNA: My pick of the year is Witch Hat Atelier. It combines stunningly detailed art with classic world building, creating a manga that reminds me of fantasy stories I read as a child.

The Devil Is a Part-Timer!, Vol. 15

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By Satoshi Wagahara and 029. Released in Japan by Dengeki Bunko. Released in North America by Yen Press. Translated by Kevin Gifford.

We’re back to the main storyline, but the devil is almost entirely absent from this book, not showing up till the end. Instead we get some of the other characters getting a section of plot, including Chiho (who is still dealing with “Maou hasn’t answered my confession and I know the moment Emilia realizes she loves him I lose”, while Emeralda is trying to drag out her time in Japan as long as possible, both because she likes it there more and also to make sure that Emilia is really doing OK. And, of course, there’s the choice that Emi and Maou have to make – help Laila and save Enta Isla, or stay in Japan and keep seeking their own future? Perhaps most importantly, it’s Christmastime, which ties in with Chiho’s woes – Maou’s working the entire holiday. All of these subplots end up coming together when we center on what to get Alas Ramus for a Christmas Present… a decision that ends up shaking up everyone and everything.

It’s fairly rare to have a Christmas-themed light novel come out in North America close to Christmas – owing to when a book is licensed here, we get far more “Christmas in July” series. It handles the Christmas plot well, and the concept of what Alas Ramus really wants for Christmas is a strong story beat. I also really like everyone thinking about their future going forward in Japan – Maou is absent from most of the book as he’s doing training to become a full-time McRonald’s employee (given the title of the series, I suspect this won’t go well), and both Emi and Chiho are studying to get into university. We see most of this from the POV of Emeralda, who is quite happy to see it as she’s been against Emilia sacrificing her life for some time now, and would be delighted if she actually did things for herself, be this a new career or romance.

That said, there are a few big flaws with this book. This series has never shied away from long expodumps, and I’ve criticized it before. Well, I’m going to do it again, as so much of this volume was characters sitting around listening to Angels and Demons explaining the backstory. I get the sense that the author wanted to put this into a side-story or a spinoff, but was told no, so instead we get to see it secondhand from other people. Sadly, that just makes things boring. The other issue I had was a “one fakeout too many” problem. The book begins with Chiho and Rika arriving at a deserted apartment complex, with Chiho telling Rika everyone connected to Enta Isla has now left. Then we get the book proper. When we return, we get the setup for what feels like another “sorry, humans, you have to stay behind” bit… only for Chiho to pitch an absolute fit, use a magical portal device, grab Rika, and leap into Enta Isla. I loved this. The problem I had was later, when Chiho’s rage, which I loved so much, was handwaved away as being Rika misreading the situation and Chiho being tired. I get they don’t want her to confront Maou yet, but I’d rather she’d have been angry.

Still, provided you don’t mind having the plot spoonfed to you, this is a reasonable solid volume of the series, and I liked one big revelation at the end, which made me think of the Doctor Who story State of Decay. Expect things to stay on the Enta Isla side for the next book.

Accel World: The Rivalry of White and Black

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By Reki Kawahara and Hima. Released in Japan by Dengeki Bunko. Released in North America by Yen On. Translated by Jocelyne Allen.

Last time I said that this volume would likely finally get to the fight with the White Legion, and that is technically true, but it takes almost 4/5 of the book for us to get to that point. If Sword Art Online’s biggest fault is that it doesn’t flesh out its world or characters enough, and that the pace is too breakneck, Accel World has the opposite problem: the worldbuilding is excellent, but at the expense of the pace, which leads to readers wanting to skin through things to finally get to the fights. There is a minor battle here between Silver Crow and a bottle of Isodine – sorry, Povidone-iodine, but even that feels rather shallow as Iodine Sterilizer feels like an expy of Ash Roller. It is, frankly, a relief that a big villain finally appears to take on our heroes towards the end – and indeed, he’s the biggest villain we’ve seen, towering over the landscape, and might be a little more terrifying if he wasn’t depicted in the illustrations as looking like a giant Snow Bunny.

(The fanservice covers we’ve seen lately are also starting to irritate me – the illustrator’s always had that issue, I know, but this one in particular promises an attention to little girls that the text thankfully does not have.)

The first chunk of the book deals with Nega Nebulus and Prominence uniting to form a single legion, as promised. There is a bit of grumbling on the red side, both from folks who are a bit annoyed given that Black Lotus is the one who killed their former leader and also by the aforementioned iodine bottle, who just really wants to fight Silver Crow. On the Nega Nebulus side we have Cyan Pile and Magenta Scissor, both of whom are feeling guilt over the part they’ve played in past events and are looking for a chance to repent. After this, we get a relatively fluffy chapter which has the twins we met a while back from the Blue legion discovering what they think is a spy… only for it to turn out to be Trilead Trioxide, who is meeting secretly with Crow and Lotus. Some good character work here, and also more “TRILEAD IS THE IMPERIAL PRINCE OF JAPAN!” without actually saying this out loud.

The best part of the book is the final section, which once again gives the chocolate trio some heavy lifting to do as they find themselves first on the scene of battle, and therefore being forced to face off against a foe much bigger than they can really handle – but they try their best. I also liked that by now everyone knows that Haruyuki’s big flaw is that he frets too much, and that he does so much better when he forgets how difficult this is supposed to be and just plunges right in. And I admit I laughed out loud at Magenta Scissor asking if Bel and Pile were going out, which is followed by Bell asking “huh, are we?”. What was one of the bigger plot points in early books has fallen so much by the wayside that half the main couple doesn’t even seem to care anymore, and it almost feels like Kawahara mocking himself (while, of course, keeping Chiyuri free to be part of the potential harem pile).

So things have inched forward to the point where we’re actually fighting, and there is yet another cliffhanger promising things will get worse for our heroes. Still, I admit that after reading most of Accel World 20 my overall feel was “GET ON WITH IT!”.

Bookshelf Briefs 12/21/19

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Daytime Shooting Star, Vol. 3 | By Mika Yamamori | Viz Media – There’s less humor and more romantic drama in this volume, but that’s OK as the romantic drama seems to be slightly better. It helps that the teacher rejects the student, though I’m sure that’s not the end of it, and that scene manages to be the best in the volume. That said, Suzume is not the only one Shishio’s having issues with, and a lot of this book amounts to “sometimes you really do break up for the right reasons even if it doesn’t feel like it.” Honestly, the best relationship in the series so far may be Suzume and Yuyuka, who aren’t a romantic pairing but have the potential to be great friends provided they get past the love quadrangle. This is shaping up to be decent shoujo. – Sean Gaffney

Jujutsu Kaisen, Vol. 1 | By Gege Akutami | VIZ Media – Yuji Itadori is a member of his school’s Occult Research Club and when he finds a cursed object (a mummified finger that he eventually eats – ew!) he gets involved with a group of jujutsu sorcerers aiming to collect all the fragments of a powerful demon before they fall into the wrong hands. Spurred on by his dying grandfather’s words that he should help people, and by the realization that he’s the only person who can nullify the demon fragments before they cause more harm, Yuji joins up with their cause. This first volume was intriguing, if a bit gross at times, but Yuji feels really flat as a protagonist so far. I’ll keep reading for a bit in hopes that it all becomes more compelling. – Michelle Smith

Missions of Love, Vol. 19 | By Ema Toyama | Kodansha Comics – This has always been a fairly saucy manga for Nakayoshi, and it feels appropriate that the final volume has Yukina and Shigure, now a couple (if you’re surprised perhaps you should look at the cover), snowed in and Yukina being far too forward… at least till she’s taught that sex really is a step too far for someone still brand new to her feelings of loving someone else. Elsewhere, the manga is somewhat satisfying—I just don’t like Hisame, and even though the triangle with him and Mami is left unresolved it feels like he’s going to win, which doesn’t make me happy. But Yukina is cute, and we even get a callback to the glasses/social awkwardness thing. This was VERY up and down, but worth the ride. – Sean Gaffney

Monster and the Beast, Vol. 2 | By Renji | Yen Press – I enjoyed and was greatly intrigued by the first volume of Monster and the Beast, a somewhat unusual BL manga, so I’ve been looking forward to reading the series’ second volume. As the plot continues to develop, it’s revealed that Liam’s natural charm isn’t entirely natural. He puts it to honorable use in this volume, but it seems it’s gotten him into trouble more than once in the past. While Liam and Cavo travel together, Liam softens and opens up a bit towards his companion, making it clear that he actually does care for him and isn’t just taking advantage of the demon (something Liam would be completely capable of). As for Cavo, he becomes a little more daring in expressing his feelings and desires, although he still gets delightfully flustered. Monster and the Beast has its cute moments as well as some deadly serious ones. – Ash Brown

Our Fake Marriage, Vol. 2 | By Kiwi Tokina | Kodansha Comics (digital only) – Yae Sendo is living with her chidhood friend Takumi Natsume, now a famous architect, and posing as his wife to act as a buffer for all the chicks who want to bone him. Of course, he immediately starts putting the moves on her. Where are Yae’s family and friends to question this arrangement? Nonexistent. This premise was not the best to start with, but things take a downhill turn in volume two when Takumi tells her, “Resist if you want to. But I got no intention of stopping tonight.” By this point, she’s into it, but still.. this man basically said “I am fine with raping you” and it sends up no red flags! I assume readers were supposed to find story this sexy and/or romantic, given the implication that Yae was Takumi’s first love, but I find it icky and problematic. I shan’t be reading any more. – Michelle Smith

PENGUINDRUM, Vol. 1 | By Isuzu Shibata and ikunichawder | Seven Seas – Once again, I have not seen the anime this is based on, and I get the sense that a lot of the imagery probably works better when watched rather than read. Two brothers are dealing with a sister who’s dying, only to find her corpse possessed by the spirit of… something. Now they have to find a Penguindrum… and are not told what that is. And, on top of everything else, they run into a girl who’s very, very obsessed with her teacher. There are tidbits of a very interesting story here, and the possessed Himari can be quite funny (SURVIVAL! TACTIC!), but as with a lot of Ikuhara series that aren’t named Utena, I find it very difficult to get emotionally involved with it. – Sean Gaffney

Takane & Hana, Vol. 12 | By Yuki Shiwasu | Viz Media – I asked for more of Takane and Hana smirking at each other, and instead I get to what amounts to Takane losing his mind. He finally admits his feelings to Hana, who’s a bit poleaxed, and then proceeds to be an absolute ass for almost the entire rest of the book. He still has no idea how to properly interact with a girl he likes, and I hate to break it to him, but the solution to a relationship between a rich heir and an underage schoolgirl is not “well, whatever.” Hana spends much of the book simply exhausted, and I felt like that as well. Hopefully the next volume will get back on a more even keel, as I just don’t like Takane when he’s like this, and I don’t think Hana does either. – Sean Gaffney

UQ Holder, Vol. 18 | By Ken Akamatsu | Kodansha Comics – MORE Negima flashbacks, as the author tries to sell me on a Negi/Eva romance I still really don’t want, and essentially finishes giving us the backstory related to how things got this way. Next it’s time for more romantic stuff, as Chamo wants Pactios. Kirie isn’t able to do it because of her power, but Kuromaru can… and finally works up the nerve to confess about their future gender choices. Tota, of course,l takes everything in stride, but still it feels as if, as with Negima, any romance in the series moves at the speed of a slug. We also add in Karin towards the end, who wants to pactio with Eva but is steered towards Tota, and confesses some of her past as Judas Iscariot to him. If you’ve read all of both series, this was OK. – Sean Gaffney

The Water Dragon’s Bride, Vol. 11 | By Rei Toma | VIZ Media – I never doubted for a minute that this series would have a happy ending, but man, Toma-sensei really nailed the Water Dragon’s God’s terror in the face of mortality as well as Asahi’s abject despair when she believes he has died. It’s heartbreaking (and relatable). I also loved that Subaru’s confession prompts Asahi to take the initiative and get her smooch on with the Water Dragon God, and that he cries from his happiness. I will try not to think about how they’re going to navigate their future together and just be happy that they’re together. Looking forward to more Toma-sensei in the future! – Michelle Smith

Witch Hat Atelier, Vol. 4 | By Kamome Shirahama | Kodansha Comics – Another of the quartet of young apprentices takes the spotlight: Richeh, who wants to make her own magic and hates compromising. Sadly, that makes it hard to take tests, and she’s doing the next one, along with Agott and a third apprentice, a young man who seems to be abused and belittled by his instructor, but has a wealth of knowledge once he gets over his self-hatred. As always half the reason to read this is the art, which gives us the snake-like path that the test-takers travel down. And of course there’s Coco, who may not be taking the test but still finds a way to get herself into trouble, though more accurately trouble comes to her. This is still gorgeous and compelling. – Sean Gaffney

Bloom Into You: Regarding Saeki Sayaka, Vol. 1

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By Hitomi Iruma and Nakatani Nio. Released in Japan as “Yagate Kimi ni Naru: Saeki Sayaka ni Tsuite” by Dengeki Bunko. Released in North America by Seven Seas. Translated by Jan Cash and Vincent Castaneda. Adapted by Jenny McKeon.

Bloom Into You is one of the bigger runaway yuri hits of the past few years, so the fact that it’s getting a series of light novel side-stories, particularly given it’s by the prolific Hitomi Iruma, author of Adachi and Shimamura (also coming soon from Seven Seas) should not really surprise me. But I admit I am surprised. Every time there’s a shift in the marketplace I always seem to be blown away. All the old chestnuts: “yuri won’t sell”, “light novels won’t sell”, “tie-in novels never get licensed” – all these are long since dead. Seriously, appreciate the market we live in now. You should especially appreciate it because it gives us this, the first in a projected three-volume series of novels about Sayaka, Touko’s best friend and winner of the “I absolutely want to read more about her” poll that I’m sure was taken internally at ASCII Mediaworks. This book serves as a prequel to the manga, showing us Sayaka’s early life – and, more importantly, her inner monologue.

The book is divided into two sections. The first introduces us to Sayaka at 11 years old, busily taking part in endless activities and trying to give off the impression of being a mature, serious person – even to herself. Her swimming lessons are part of this, but are broken up every time by an unnamed girl (I called her Uruka after a while, after the BokuBen girl with similar looks and personality) who wants to be Sayaka’s friend and find out more about her… and also about the heat that she feels within her body whenever she’s around Sayaka. This story was bittersweet and painful, ending with Sayaka literally fleeing the scene but also learning more about herself. The second, longer story takes place when Sayaka is 14 or so, and is about her relationship – touched in the manga – with her sempai (who does have a name, but Sayaka chooses to stick with sempai even when they are dating.) Sayaka does not initiate this affair, but certainly is the most deeply affected by it, something she slowly goes to realize as time passes.

The best reason to get this is Sayaka, who is captured perfectly here, showing off a serious, mature for her age girl who nevertheless still has a great deal of growing up and discovery to do about herself. We see this captured in the stories, as the reader is usually well ahead of her in terms of what’s actually happening in the other character’s heads – Sayaka has trouble figuring out what the other girl is thinking, but we do not. Frequently this an be, as I noted, very painful – seeing swimming girl’s nascent excitement and frustration around Sayaka is very identifiable, and I was upset as it became clear that, as this book is from Sayaka’s POV, we’d never find out what happened to her after the story. As for Yuzuki, Sayaka’s senpai, it’s clear to the reader almost immediate that she’s in love with the idea of a love affair more than anything about Sayaka herself. Still, she’s not a pure villain in this book, and her awkward “oh crap what have I done” moments are also squirm-inducing.

The book closes with Sayaka determined to move on and never fall in love again, a determination that doesn’t even last five minutes into high school as she meets Touko and is shot through the heart. The second book promises to show us Sayaka’s POV of events during the manga proper. Till then, this is essential for Bloom Into You fans, as well as anyone who likes well-told coming of age stories.