Manga Bookshelf

Discussion, Resources, Roundtables, & Reviews

Blog

Accel World: The Black Dual Swordsman

by

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

First of all, my apologies. I ended the last review by complaining that we had the buildup to “what will a Space Stage be like?” with no follow through. Of course, it’s in THIS book that we get the space stage, as before they can battle Oscillatory Universe they have to go through Great Wall, who took some of their territory back in the day and now need to test their resolve in the best shonen manner. This of course leads to Black Lotus battling Graphite Edge, which leads me to my first complaint: I’m not that fond of Graphite Edge. Usually I enjoy a character with his sort of personality, but I feel it meshes very badly into the Accel World Universe. There’s also the fact that he’s clearly meant to be a take on Kirito – just look at the subtitle for this volume. But he’s nothing like Kirito at all – if anything he’s more similar to Klein. That said, the cliffhanger shows we may get more interesting detail about him in the next book.

We also meet a few other people in the real world and see how they contrast with their burst linker selves./ Sometimes it’s not much of one – the twins from Leondis radiate “we are a cliched parody of twins” to their core, but feel much the same in the Accelerated World. And sometimes there’s a larger contrast, as we find that Chocolat Puppeter is a classic “why would anyone notice me as I’m so ordinary” heroine. This is in fact pointed out by her two companions, who note that she’s the sort that folks call cute, and they’re right. I was a bit put out that we got the buildup for them meeting Nega Nebulus in the real world but the meeting itself took place offscreen – if nothing else I always enjoy people who have fought Silver Crow suddenly realize that it’s Haruyuki. This is especially true for Chocolat Puppeter, who we recall he tried to eat in their last fight. For tactical reasons, of course.

The climax of the book (there’s also a short story epilogue giving backstory to Blood Leopard, which was OK but that’s about it) involves Haruyuki realizing that he may not be able to be with Kuroyukihime much longer – her parents are pressuring her to move to a high school away from Tokyo, or even in America. This would mean no more Accel World. As such, he wants to help her achieve her goals… sort of. He wants her to reach Level 10, but doesn’t want her to kill four Kings to do it. So he and Fuko (and Metatron, who I really hope meets Othinus some day in an Index crossover) go back to the Imperial Palace to talk once more to the young boy who is totally not the son of the Emperor or anything, Trilead Tetraoxide. Unfortunately, the book ends before we can see if they achieve what they went there for: to see if the Fluctuating Light holds the answer to Level 10.

This is, overall, a fairly typical Accel World, still sort of spinning its wheels waiting for the next big arc. That said, 18 volumes in you’ll still want to read it.

My Hero Academia, Vols. 1-19

by

By Kohei Horikoshi | Published by VIZ Media

Reviewing nineteen volumes of a manga at once is a pretty daunting task, but here goes!

In a world where 80% of the population possesses superpowers known as “Quirks,” some people turned to villainy while others, officially trained and licensed, embarked upon careers of heroism to thwart them. Izuku Midoriya grew up idolizing heroes, particularly All Might, the Symbol of Peace, who always saved people with a smile. Unfortunately for Izuku, he was one of those unfortunate few without a Quirk and was forced to watch as his classmates and friends manifested abilities while he did not.

When Izuku is fourteen, he meets and impresses All Might when, despite being powerless, he rushes in to help his childhood friend Katsuki Bakugo when he is attacked by a sludge villain. As it turns out, All Might, who possesses a Quirk called One for All that endows him with super strength, was grievously injured several years previously in a battle with his nemesis, All for One. One for All is unique in that it can be passed on to a successor, and All Might has decided that Izuku is worthy of inheriting his power. All along, it’s been Izuku’s dream to attend U.A. High School and, after ten months of intensive training (and after ingesting one of All Might’s hairs), he succeeds in passing the entrance exam for U.A.’s Hero Course, much to Bakugo’s annoyance. (Bakugo believes he has been deceived about Izuku having been Quirkless all this time.)

Like many other shounen manga, part of the plot of My Hero Academia involves Izuku and the other students gradually getting stronger. Izuku goes through various stages of control over his power and eventually injures himself seriously to the point where he must switch to fighting primarily with his legs because his arms are so damaged. By volume nineteen, he can sustain 20% power only briefly, and All Might (who now teaches at U.A.) is training him how to, for the first time, add long-range attacks to his arsenal.

Meanwhile, just as Izuku is the protégé of All Might, All for One had taken a boy under his wing, as well. Tomura Shigaraki is a nihilistic villain with a particular grudge against All Might. He forms the League of Villains and so far has attempted to assassinate All Might at the school, attacked a training camp and kidnapped Bakugo, and ambushed a police caravan in order to steal Quirk-erasing drugs that had been seized from a former ally. While All Might exhausted the remainder of his powers to vanquish All for One, Shigaraki remains an active threat. Because of the power vacuum left by All Might’s retirement, the U.A. first years are able to take their provisional license exams earlier than normal and also go out into the field in work-study capacity.

The TL;DR version is: the plot is very good. Horikoshi-sensei writes with exuberance and mastery. However, the plot is not the reason I love My Hero Academia. I love it for the characters. I was thinking… I have read almost 90 volumes of One Piece by this point. Clearly, I enjoy it a lot and particularly admire the worldbuilding and continuity. However, while I’m fond of a few of the Straw Hats, I wouldn’t say I love any of them. Whereas with My Hero Academia, I love, like, ten of them. Here are some standouts:

• Izuku Midoriya – One of the things I really like about Izuku is that he’s smart. As a Quirkless hero fanboy, he spent a lot of time analyzing how they handled situations, and he’s good at coming up with strategies. Plus, he possesses all the idealistic qualities that a good shounen hero should have. He’s always out to help people, even if they don’t ask for it.

• Katsuki Bakugo – Bakugo has an explosive temper, but gradually reveals he’s a lot more sensitive that he lets on. Because of his volatile performance at the Sports Festival, Shigaraki targeted him, hoping to recruit him for the League of Villains. This ultimately led to All Might’s final confrontation with All for One, and Bakugo feels responsible that the Symbol of Peace (whom he also deeply admires) has been depowered. He’s the only one who knows Izuku’s secret and, after the most moving brawl I’ve ever seen in which he’s able to process some of the feelings he couldn’t express, he’s finally able to talk to Izuku without hostility. The day he actually smiles at Izuku, I will bawl.

• Shoto Todoroki – He became Izuku’s friend after the Sports Festival, in which Izuku encouraged him to finally embrace the half of his powers that came from his odious dad, #2 hero Endeavor. He’s still got a complex about his dad, but he’s working through it. And, for his part, Endeavor is trying to become a better hero, too, though he’s got a long way to go.

• Ochaco Uraraka – She’s a spunky girl who admires Izuku and has other feelings for him that she’s pushing aside for the moment. When she begins the series, she wants to become a hero for financial reasons, hoping to support her parents who’ve worked so hard. After her work study experience requires her to convey a dying hero to the hospital, she realizes in volume eighteen how much she just wants to save people. The monetary side has become less important.

• Eijiro Kirishima – Kirishima is just a supporting character until around volume fifteen, when he suddenly gets more fleshing out than even Ochaco or Ida (another of Izuku’s close friends) has received. He’s got an inferiority complex because his Quirk is purely defensive and castigates himself that he couldn’t help when Bakugo was taken. He presents himself as someone more confident and has a lot of noble ideals about what a hero should be, but I love that underneath that persona he’s a lot more complicated.

• Yuga Aoyama – In most other series, the kid who starts off being puffed up with pride over his own abilities (a naval laser!) would remain comic relief forever. But Horikoshi gives Aoyama several important heroic moments and, recently, he and Izuku have bonded over the fact that both of their Quirks cause them bodily harm, which doesn’t seem to be a problem for the other students. I would really love to see Aoyama star in his own arc.

• Mirio Togata – I was not prepared for the dizzying speed at which I’d come to love Mirio. First introduced in volume fourteen, he’s the one the principal (and All Might’s former sidekick, Sir Nighteye) originally had in mind as the next recipient of One for All. He’s optimistic and works hard and I love that he bears no grudge against Eri, a six-year-old girl that he lost his Quirk protecting. His return to heroism has been foreseen, so that’s something I’m looking forward to. His best friend Tamaki Amajiki is highly lovable, too.

• All Might – He’s not the greatest teacher, but he’s really trying hard. He serves as a father figure to Izuku and says encouraging things to him that make me verklempt, like “You’ve already exceeded my expectations more times than I can count. In my heart of hearts, I believe there’s something special in you and you alone.” He absolutely does not hesitate to give everything he’s got in that final battle with All for One, and has no regrets about the outcome, save that he failed to notice how much pain Bakugo was in about it. “I’m sorry. You too… are only a boy.” Waah.

• Shota Aizawa – I saved the best for last. Aizawa is the homeroom teacher for class 1-A and I love him so, so much. He is a great teacher and puts a lot of thought into how best to encourage development in his students. One of my favorite Aizawa moments occurs at a press conference when he expresses absolute faith that Bakugo will not be tempted to join the League of Villains. “More than anyone, he pursues the title of top hero with all he has.” Later, during a home visit with Bakugo’s parents to discuss the new on-campus dormitories, Bakugo’s mom reveals how much she appreciated this proof that her son has been understood by his educators. “Most everything comes easy to him. His whole life, people’ve made a fuss about him… praising him for every little thing he does.” Aizawa sees Bakugo’s potential but also doesn’t let any of his shortcomings slide. I love, too, how he helps take care of Eri and buys her outfits with kitties on them.

Barring one, the other students in class 1-A are great, too, and I hope they get their own arcs as revelatory as Kirishima’s. And then there’s class 1-B, whom we’ve only glimpsed, as well as Hitoshi Shinso, a boy from the General Studies Course who may have the potential to transfer to the Hero Course.

Alas, there’s one thing and one particular character that I don’t love about My Hero Academia.

• Although the female characters are impressively varied in character design and personality and are always included in various heroic endeavors (and their abilities respected by the male characters), they just don’t get as much of the spotlight as the guys do. True, Ashida and Jiro are more to the fore during the School Festival arc, which is very welcome, but I want to see them out in the field kicking some serious ass.

• Minoru Mineta – Unlike the other students who’ve grown over the course of the series, Mineta starts off as a gross little pervert, remains a gross little pervert, and there’s zero indication that he’ll ever be anything other than a gross little pervert. He doesn’t see girls as people, but as objects, evaluated solely for their attractiveness. In fact, his first words to Eri in volume nineteen—who is, I reiterate, six years old—are, “Look me up in ten years.” I want Shigaraki to use his disintegration Quirk on him. Slowly. And then Shinso can have his spot.

Ultimately, I love this series unabashedly. I love it as much as I love Hikaru no Go, and that’s a lot. And as with Hikaru, I love the anime just as much as the manga and recommend both. It took until volume nineteen to make it to October of Izuku’s first year, so at that pace, we’re looking at around 38 volumes per school year times three years… Sounds good to me! I will plug my ears and go “la la la!” if anyone ever mentions a time jump. This is really too good to rush. Or miss.

My Hero Academia is ongoing in Japan, where volume 24 will be out in August. Volume 20 is due out in English in August. New chapters are also available in English on the Shonen Jump website and app.

Review copies for some volumes provided by the publisher.

Manga the Week of 7/3/19

by , , and Leave a Comment

SEAN: July begins with, as you may be used to by now, a pile of manga. Let’s take a look.

Cross Infinite World has another novel debut with Labyrinth Angel, a supernatural thriller with a psychic woman and her butler assassin.

ASH: I do have a soft spot for butler assassins…

SEAN: There’s no Seven Seas next week, oddly enough, but we have two Ghost Ship titles. To-Love-Ru Darkness 11 and Yuuna and the Haunted Hot Springs 6 are both out.

J-Novel Club debuts a one-shot yuri novel, Side-by-Side Dreamers. Like JK Haru, this is from Hayakawa, a publisher known more for their science fiction than their light novels. An insomniac and a girl who can influence dreams battle against outside forces trying to destroy everyone’s sleep.

ASH: That’s a great premise. I hope this one is eventually released in print!

SEAN: They’ve also got Cooking with Wild Game 3, Infinite Stratos 8, and Kokoro Connect 6.

Kodansha has only one print title out next week, the 7th Grand Blue Dreaming.

Digitally, they have My Sweet Girl 4, Our Precious Conversations 3, Perfect World 9, and The Tale of Genji: Dreams at Dawn 5.

MICHELLE: I keep meaning to check out Our Precious Conversations, as it’s by Robico, whose My Little Monster I enjoyed.

SEAN: Now we drop all the way from K to V, with Vertical’s 13th Mobile Suit Gundam Wing.

There’s plenty of Viz, though – in fact it’s the bulk of the list. Debuting is Daytime Shooting Star (Hirunaka no Ryuusei), a Margaret title! Yes, regular Margaret, not Betsuma – a rarity for Western licenses. Country girl moves to the city, and finds the hot guy who she met the other day is her homeroom teacher. Student/teacher romance is not normally my thing, but I’m still gonna check it out.

MICHELLE: I unfailingly love Margaret titles, so despite the student/teacher aspect, I will also be reading this one.

ANNA: Me too, psyched for anything Margaret.

ASH: Count me as curious.

SEAN: Other shoujo titles include Anonymous Noise 15, Kakuriyo: Bed & Breakfast for Spirits 4, Oresama Teacher 26 (the ending was just announced in Japan! Noooooo!), Snow White with the Red Hair 2, Vampire Knight: Memories 3, and The Water Dragon’s Bride 10.

MICHELLE: Lots of good stuff in this list! I especially vote for Snow White with the Red Hair, the first volume of which was a lot of fun and had seriously likeable leads.

ANNA: This is a good week for me. Also excited for Snow White with the Red Hair and Water Dragon’s Bride.

ASH: Yup! Hooray for shoujo fantasy!

SEAN: On the Jump end, there is Black Clover 16, Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba 7, Dr. STONE 6, Haikyu!! 33, Kaguya-sama: Love Is War 9, the 2nd My Hero Academia School Briefs light novel, as well as the 5th Vigilantes spinoff volume, and Platinum End 9.

ASH: Hooray for Haikyu!!, too!

SEAN: Lastly, a couple of Yen titles got pushed back a bit. Bungo Stray Dogs gets its first novel, a prequel taking place two years before the manga. And we also get the 11th and final Alice in Murderland, which means that we are once again in an odd, Kaori Yuki-less time period in our lives.

There’s plenty in this list to interest everyone. What about you?

Shortcake Cake, Vol 4

by

Shortcake Cake Volume 4 by suu Morishita

I’m growing more and more fond of this series. I enjoy the steady, slice of life way the plot unfolds, the great sense of place that is grounded in the boardinghouse setting, and most of all the silent moments between the characters that are filled with meaning. I swear, a 4 panel layout of characters from Shortcake Cake just glancing at each other would be a long drawn out speech about feelings in a less well-executed manga.

Switching back and forth one’s object of affections isn’t really anything new, but as Ten starts to reassess her feelings for Riku, Chiaki comes down with a severe case of second male lead in a Korean drama syndrome, where he basically speaks to Ten about his feelings for her in incredibly oblique riddles that she is totally unable to pick up on. Oh, the foolishness and frustration of teenage shoujo manga love! Chiaki and Ten’s fake relationship to fake out Rei gives her an excuse to dismiss his declarations of affection, which Chiaki conveniently times for when Rei is around. Ten realizes her emotions are shifting and thinks to herself that if she was reading a story where she was the protagonist, she wouldn’t like it, because the main character contradicts herself and is selfish. She thinks of her current life being “a bad book” but it seems to more like just what anyone would expect from a teenager not very practiced at friendship. Ten’s self awareness goes a long way in making her sympathetic as she attempts to figure out her suddenly very complicated romantic life.

Chiaki and Riku also attempt to negotiate the strange new undercurrents in their friendship. Ten starts a summer job and in a fraught decision, the trio decide to go to a beach together during their vacation. This volume very much felt like summer, and as Ten goes home she starts to get more clarity over her emotions. I enjoyed the way Ten is self-reflective throughout the book, she seems to be making a decision that will carry over to the next volume, but she’s put in a lot of emotional work behind the next step on her journey.

Is It Wrong To Try To Pick Up Girls In A Dungeon? On The Side: Sword Oratoria, Vol. 9

by

By Fujino Omori and Kiyotaka Haimura. Released in Japan as “Dungeon ni Deai o Motomeru no wa Machigatte Iru Darou ka? Gaiden – Sword Oratoria” by Softbank Creative. Released in North America by Yen On. Translated by Dale DeLucia.

I’ve talked before about how I regret that the publisher talked the author into using the title this series has, as opposed to the original title Familia Myth. Granted, I see the publisher’s point, Familia Myth is not the most eye-catching title in the world. But DanMachi’s title puts the emphasis on Bell and his harem, even in these side stories dedicated to Loki’s crew. Whereas Familia Myth emphasizes the family aspect of the series, and I honestly think that that’s handled better than the harem. This 9th volume of Sword Oratoria interlaces with the 8th volume of the main series, showing us some scenes we’d seen from Bell’s POV in a new light when we get Aiz’s inner monologue. Interspersed with this are flashbacks to the time when Aiz first joined Loki Familia, and… let’s just say that “she was a little terror” doesn’t even begin to describe little Aiz and her desire for strength above all else, including her own safety.

Given that the cover art heavily implied it, I was expecting this volume to be heavy on Aiz’s backstory and emotional journey, and I wasn’t wrong. We’re still not quite sure what happened to her parents or precisely who they were, but we definitely get her first year with Loki’s familia sketched in here. Aiz is driven by a desire to kill monsters and get stronger, and does not care about anything else. She’s a bratty kid, and a lot more emotional than you’d expect from the stoic Aiz we know and love. In fact, this also applies to the current Aiz, who is in the dragon-scale worshiping village that she, Bell and Hestia ended up in the 8th DanMachi. In my review of that book I said I wanted to find out someday why Aiz was so FURIOUS at this village worshiping the scale, and here we find out exactly why… and maybe also why she has such trouble with Bell’s “not all monsters are evil” fight, which I’m fairly certain will be the subject of the next Sword Oratoria book.

I was expecting Aiz to get development, but I was also delighted with what this book did for Riveria. The “team mom” of the Familia, she’s been that way for so long that it’s easy to forget she wasn’t always that way, and nothing brings out her more emotional and angry sides quite like a 7-year-old with a death wish who won’t listen to a word she says. Little Aiz does not understand what everyone else does, which is that the look in her eyes is not only worrying but terrifying, and Riveria does not want her to go into the dungeon and get massacred by a really strong monster (which almost happens right at the end). As we’ve cone to expect with DanMachi in general, the plot beats are very cliched – we literally get a “you’re not my mom!” scene here – but that doewsn’t make it less heartwarming.

Also this plus one or two hilarious scenes of “why we never give Aiz alcohol” make this one of the strongest books in the entire series. Highly recommended.

Bookshelf Briefs 6/25/19

by , and Leave a Comment

Again!!, Vol. 9 | By Mitsurou Kubo | Kodansha Comics – Victories are always hard-won in Again!!. Nothing is tidy. Nothing goes right the first time. In this volume, Imamura and the ouendan help the drama club for the school festival, since they essentially poached the new members the drama club would have gotten in this reality. They were originally going to put on a musical Imamura wrote called “I Want to Die,” despite the school’s attempts to shut that down. That is, until, their club advisor collapses and might actually die, at which point they feel compelled to perform the sanitized “I Want to Live” version instead. After initially feeling left out of this version, Imamura ends up being proud of it, and catches a glimpse of a place he might belong in this world. He’s fallen in love, too, and could be happy here. Now the question is… will he be allowed to stay? – Michelle Smith

Caterpillar Girl and Bad Texter Boy | By Sanzo | Yen Press – Sometimes there’s a manga with a premise so bizarre my curiosity can’t help but be piqued. Caterpillar Girl and Bad Texter Boy is one of those manga. It’s also a surprisingly good tale, the strangeness of which can be taken at face value as well as as an overt metaphor. Believing she’s too good for him, Akane rejects Suzume’s confession of love. Miserable, Suzume makes drastic wish from a local god which transforms her into a caterpillar-like creature. The main characters in Caterpillar Girl and Bad Texter Boy are all dealing with some major issues surrounding love, trust, and self-worth, and they definitely don’t always handle them in the best or healthiest ways. The result is a manga that can be incredibly dark and bittersweet. There are some inconsistencies in the story’s internal logic regarding which wishes can and cannot be fulfilled, but I still rather enjoyed this peculiar manga. – Ash Brown

DAYS, Vol. 14 | By Tsuyoshi Yasuda | Kodansha Comics (digital only) – It’s only volume fourteen and Seiseki has made it to nationals. By sports manga standards, that might seem very quick, but actually, one of the things I like best about DAYS is that the main character, Tsukamoto, never takes anything for granted and always pauses to appreciate things, like the random chance of meeting Kazama and ending up on a team with these guys, or the excitement of taking a long bus ride as a team, or the fun of getting to stay in a hotel with Western beds. In between, there’s soccer aplenty, as the third years play against the younger students in an attempt to imbue them with some passion, but the overall feeling is one of “be sure to enjoy this moment,” which I really like. We get a glimpse here, but the tournament will really get underway next time! – Michelle Smith

Food Wars!: Shokugeki no Soma, Vol. 30 | By Yuto Tsukuda and Shun Saeki | VIZ Media – I continue to be torn about Food Wars!. I really did like some aspects of this volume, like Soma recognizing Erina’s superior skill and having her taste every component of his dish in their team challenge while simultaneously spurring her on to greater creative heights. I was happy with the outcome, and am curious about what the power structure at Totsuki will be like going forward—will Soma and Erina really be on the Council of Ten? However, I just can’t overlook that a major plot point in this volume involves Azami’s “spiritual essence” pulsating outward every time he tastes something delicious, causing multiple students in the audience to disrobe. I get that there needed to be a gimmick so that Azami could not refute the deliciousness of Soma and Erina’s two-course meal, but I just wish it wasn’t this. Sigh. – Michelle Smith

Hakumei & Mikochi: Tiny Little Life in the Woods, Vol. 6 | By Takuto Kashiki | Yen Press – I really enjoy each volume of this series, but it can’t be denied that it’s hard to fill even a brief with enough words for a review. Hakumei gets a haircut, but it grows back to its normal scruff fairly soon after. The couple also build a new outdoor kitchen with a brick oven for Mikochi, who is always looking for more and better ways to cook. Probably my favorite chapter in here was the one where Sen goes to the bar and runs into Conju, who is very drunk and very talkative, and we get a nice contrast of extrovert and introvert. For the most part, the series delivers more of the same, a peaceful, easy fantasy that will make you smile. Which is what I ask it to do, so that’s good. – Sean Gaffney

Hatsu*Haru, Vol. 7 | By Shizuki Fujisawa | Yen Press – This has rapidly turned into one of my favorite shoujo manga, even as it comes up with relatively obvious plot beats and complications. It succeeds because of the strength of its cast. Kai wants things to progress now that he’s dating Riko, but a kiss may be a little too much to ask, even with the help of both Ayumi AND Einstein. Meanwhile, an accidental remark by Miki’s sister has Kiyo feeling very self-conscious of her height… and realizing that Riko is not opening up about her own issues puts a “you never talk to me about anything” rift in their friendship. Meanwhile, the one weak link in the series—Tarou and Kagura—had better get an arc dedicated to them soon or else they’re never going to grab the readers. Still great. – Sean Gaffney

The Ideal Sponger Life, Vol. 2 | By Tsunehiko Watanabe and Neko Hinotsuki | Seven Seas – After the first volume introduced the hero and heroine and had them working to achieve their objective (an heir) by having sex (which they do), this second volumes gives us what I think most readers will stick around for: oodles of political intrigue. Zenjiro is finally introduced to most of the major nobles of the area in a dinner party of the damned, and has to navigate being polite but also not overly subservient—and how to accept gifts by not accepting them. He does a very good job, as everyone admits. He may not be able to fend off the need for a concubine or two, though—monogamy is relatively unheard of in this world. Fortunately, he and Aura still really love each other, which counts for a lot. – Sean Gaffney

Satoko and Nada, Vol. 2 | By Yupechika | Seven Seas – There’s a lot more Nada than Satoko in this second volume, which should not be surprising—she’s the one who is “foreign” to Japanese eyes, whereas Satoko’s realization that you can’t get milk bread in America runs a distant second. This is not to say that this volume isn’t great fun, letting the reader learn about Saudi customs (there’s an arranged marriage coming up that it’s hinted will take up a lot of the third book) and also lets her try things that she could never get away with back home (like riding a bike). Satoko is also doing things, like getting a cafeteria job on campus, and her role in this second volume is to become more outgoing—it’s said that she’s gotten better at presentations since she was paired with the gregarious Nada. READ THIS. – Sean Gaffney

Takane & Hana, Vol. 9 | By Yuki Shiwasu | Viz Media – I loved the fact that this series did not decide to embrace all the usual “we’re living together” tropes—indeed, the best scene in the book has Takane running into Hana dressed only in a towel coming out of the shower, and her reaction (and subsequent teasing) had me cheering. Hana’s been informed by Takane’s grandfather that this is necessary for his growth, so they reluctantly decide to go through with it. But that doesn’t make it any easier given that he’s still a lot older than her and she’s still in school. It also gives Okamon the push to confess to Hana, though honestly I’m not expecting much there. This series continues to be very funny and makes me root for the couple despite its problematic age issues. – Sean Gaffney

Whenever Our Eyes Meet…: A Women’s Love Anthology | By Various Artists | Yen Press – The reason to get this anthology is that all of its content is dedicated to adult women out of school and at the workplace. This is so refreshing it almost drowns out the actual content. It helps that the initial story, featuring an artist accepting a commission from a singer who wears a horse’s head mask to hide her face, is a nice start. But the rest of the stories are also quite good, with some being fleeting encounters and some turning into lasting relationships. I also liked the story of the up-and-coming woman who’s doing a presentation and finds her old coworker is her cab driver. Sometimes this risks being just another anthology, but in the end I enjoyed it. – Sean Gaffney

Kaiju Girl Caramelise, Vol. 1

by

By Spica Aoki. Released in Japan as “Otome Kaiju Caramelise” by Media Factory, serialization ongoing in the magazine Comic Alive. Released in North America by Yen Press. Translated by Taylor Engel.

As a lot of people know, manga magazines/genres in Japan tend to be loosely divided into four categories: shonen (for boys), shoujo (for girls), seinen (for men), and josei (for women). There are more of these, of course, such as magazines for little kids, but for the most part those are the typical genres. I say “loosely” divided as over the years it’s becomes easier for readers and creators to cross over into titles they might not be expected in. More and more women are reading Jump, and not just for BL fantasies. Guys are enjoying Betsufure titles. This comes up because the creator of Kaiju Girl Caramelise had previously been serialized in shoujo magazines such as Princess. As she says in the afterword, when she got a title for Comic Alive, which is a media-oriented seinen magazine, she thought at first she’d need to make it more obviously for guys. Her editors explained that no, this story really works best as shoujo, do it that way even though we’re Comic Alive. And they were right.

Kuroe has suffered her entire life from some sort of illness that causes her to grow kaiju parts, particularly claws and tail, when she’s experiencing feelings of love or passion. Needless to say, this doesn’t win friends or influence people, and so in high school she’s a sullen loner who avoids everyone and is given the cruel nickname “Psycho-tan”. (Kudos to Yen for the footnote explaining the nickname in Japanese, btw.) Given that this IS a shoujo title, she quickly captures the attention of the hottest boy in class, and ends up “tricked” by him into going on a date with her to get expensive pancakes. Unfortunately, his being nice to her, listening to her advice, and holding her hand puts her repressed feelings into overdrive, and she quickly runs away before turning into a full-blown Godzilla-style Kaiju, rampaging through Tokyo and horrifying everyone. The metaphor is about as subtle as a truck.

Despite the unsubtlety, this first volume is a lot of fun. The artist had previously done Beasts of Abigaile, which I also enjoyed. Kuroe is intelligent and likeable, if also somewhat blunt and caustic. Arata is a nice guy (no, not like that) who so far has no idea that the girl he likes transforms into a 30-story-tall monster when she thinks about them dating. There’s a third girl introduced in the standard “oh, he has a girlfriend of course he does… wait, no” sort of way, and she’s amusing in a fangirl sort of way – let’s hope SHE never finds out the truth about Kuroe, as I don’t think this series needs to go down a yuri road. And as always in series with troubled teens, I am always appreciative of a concerned parent, as Kuroe’s mother knows the truth about her condition and wants Kuroe to be happy despite it.

This is, as you’d expect, a fairly lighthearted series, but it’s also sweet in its own way. It’s just started in Japan, so I wouldn’t expect new volumes every two months, but it’s worth checking out.

Pick of the Week: Welcome Returns

by , , , and Leave a Comment

SEAN: Something for everyone this week. I enjoyed Little Miss P, and have been waiting for more Satoko and Nada for some time. I have to go with one of my “comfort manga” titles, though, so this week I’m picking the 2nd Today’s Menu for the Emiya Family. So many mythical heroes not killing each other and eating yummy food!

MICHELLE: I hope VIZ does more in the digital-only vein, so I will support their inroads into that arena by picking The Right Way to Make Jump. Plus, Kohei Horikoshi is in it, apparently.

ANNA: I’m going to go with Satoko and Nada for my pick.

KATE: I’m torn between the second installment of Satoko and Nada and the first installment of At the Mountains of Madness. How’s that for tonal whiplash?

ASH: Likewise! The first volume of Satoko and Nada was terrific, but then so was Gou Tanabe’s previous Lovecraft adaptation. And so I’ll continue the tonal whiplash by picking something different still, The Monster and the Beast.

Re: ZERO ~Starting Life in Another World~, Vol. 10

by

By Tappei Nagatsuki and Shinichirou Otsuka. Released in Japan by Media Factory. Released in North America by Yen On. Translated by Jeremiah Borque.

As with my review of the 9th volume, I recommend that this review not be read by anyone who’s only seen the anime or manga versions of Re: Zero.

The first half of this book is merely good, as it has to set up the basics of what will be the next arc. Subaru and Emilia arrive back at the mansion only to find that the other half of the village – the one with Ram – is not there. Instead they’ve ended up at the Sanctuary, an area deep in the woods that is the home to demi-humans. Headed over there, Subaru quickly runs afoul of the Witch Echidna, who is able to wrap him around her little finger despite the obvious handicap of being dead. Her tomb is home to a trial that Emilia must take – and, it appears, Subaru is able to take it as well, as he quickly gets sucked into the first of the three tests it involves. Which is good for the reader, as it involves confronting and accepting his past… a past that we’ve been almost entirely ignorant of till now.

So yeah, as expected, Rem is still in a coma and no one remembers her, and it appears that this is going to be the case for the entire arc. I suspect that Rem fans are not going to be too happy with the bright side, which is that this will allow Emilia to get more character development that she didn’t get in the previous arc. Unfortunately, as with Subaru’s character development in the last few books, this is going to begin with a certain amount of frustration – while Subaru is pretty much able to pass the first test with flying colors, Emilia fails the “confront your past” part every single time. I expect a future book will tell us why, but till then, sobbing on the ground and calling out for Puck (who is also absent, for reasons we don’t yet know) is not a good look for her.

The main reason to read this book is the chapter where Subaru confronts his past, which means that we actually get to know his past. His parents are both fantastic in their own way, two people who you read about for ten seconds and immediately understand “yes, these are absolutely who his parents would be”. Subaru suffered as a kid from what a lot of us do, which is being above average in academics and athletics to a certain age, but then starting to fall behind others. Subaru, who was measuring himself by his “perfect” father and coming up short, overcompensated by being more boisterous and doing more crazy, dangerous things at school – something that eventually lost him his friends and made him decide to stop going to school altogether. The trial allows him to do something that he can’t do in real life – say goodbye to both his parents, and assure them that he’s stopped standing still and is moving forward. The entire sequence is terrific.

Unfortunately, Re: ZERO still has its main gimmick in play. And so at the end of the volume Subaru is brutally murdered, and we see a face that I’d honestly totally forgotten about doing the killing. I’m not sure how far back he’ll go, but I suspect we won’t be seeing the first stage of the trial all over again. Also, his idea to take the trial FOR Emilia as her knight is a bad one, and I hope it gets scrapped. In any case, this is a fantastic new volume of an excellent series. Man, remember when I hated Subaru? It seems so long ago now…

Silver Spoon, Vol. 9

by

By Hiromu Arakawa. Released in Japan as “Gin no Saji” by Shogakukan, serialization ongoing in the magazine Weekly Shonen Sunday. Released in North America by Yen Press. Translated by Amanda Haley.

What I said about farming last time goes double for this volume, as there’s a pile of new information here about pigs, horses and everything in between. The pigs are getting ready to be butchered, and this time the entire school pools its money together to buy three of them. Despite having raised them from little piglets, this time around Hachiken is going to see Bacon’s journey all the way through to… well, bacon. As such, we get a very detailed observation of a pig butchering, so a word of warning for those of you who are squeamish. It is quite interesting, though, and long exposure to the procedure shows all the kids bouncing ideas off each other at a very fast pace (for future selling, etc.) – something that the teachers credit Hachiken for, as his ignorance in farm matters but raging curiosity leads the other kids to think of things they may not have otherwise.

We’ve been watching Hachiken grow over the course of this series, and this volume is excellent at showing the reader how far he’s come and showing him how far he still needs to go. In order to help Mikage study, he breaks down and asks his brother for help, and finds out his study guide notes are his for the taking – provided he goes back home to get them, as he left them in his old room. (In the interim, Shingo has somehow gotten married to a Russian woman, on the spur of the moment, showing again how different he and Hachiken are.) Hachiken’s return at first impresses us – his old middle school classmates note his new abilities and relaxed countenance, even as they get fake angry when they hear there are girls he speaks to. Sadly, going home means another fight with his father, one where Hachiken for once does not back down and defends what he sees as his Dad berating his classmates. It’s a great scene, and leads to his mother journeying up to the school herself to see what Hachiken is doing there.

He’s also tutoring Mikage, and tutoring is all it is, much to the frustration of her friends and the joy of his. (The frustrating of teenage hormones is a constant refrain in this manga, usually used to make things more lighthearted.) Mikage is trying, but there’s no miracle cure – no matter how much Hachiken breaks it down into horse anecdotes, this is going to be hard for her. (I laughed when the group suggested he become a teacher, and Mikage correctly pointed out he would die trying to help each student at maximum power.) There’s no turning back now, though, especially since her parents are selling some of the horses to help pay for her to go to college. The need for money is a constant theme of this series, which is also why it’s so jarring when Hachiken asks his father about any debt they may have, and finds that he is far better off than everyone else – they’ve even saved for his college. His is not a farming family. (Hachiken is also savvy enough to realize that he needs a real accountant for their growing business translations, and turning to Tamako was very smart of him.)

Can Mikage get into college? Can she afford to? Can she and Hachiken admit their feelings to each other without their parents or male classmates killing him? Can Shingo survive telling his parents he has a new Russian bride? Can Valentine’s Day be the celebration that Christmas absolutely wasn’t? These questions and many others will be answered in the next volume of Silver Spoon.