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My Week in Manga: August 24-August 30, 2015

August 31, 2015 by Ash Brown

My News and Reviews

Last week was a bit slow at Experiments in Manga as I decided to take it a little easy on myself, but I did still post a couple of things in addition to the usual My Week in Manga feature. The most recent manga giveaway was posted, for one, and there’s still time to enter for a chance to win a complete set of Yumi Tamura’s shoujo action thriller Chicago. I also posted an in-depth review of Minae Mizumura’s award-winning A True Novel which I absolutely loved. In part it’s a reimagining of Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights set in postwar Japan, but it’s not at all necessary to have read Brontë’s novel to appreciate Mizumura’s work.

Elsewhere online, Mangabrog has posted a translation of an interview of Parasyate‘s Hitoshi Iwaaki from 2005. Justin interviewed Sekai Project for Manga Bookshelf about the company entering the manga market. In licensing news, Kodansha Comics has picked up some Fairy Tail and Noragami side stories and Vertical Comics confirmed its acquisition of Maybe’s The Abandoned Sacred Beasts. Also of note, Humanoids will be releasing an anthology in 2016 called The Tipping Point which will include contributions from mangaka Katsuya Terada, Naoki Urasawa, Taiyo Matsumoto, and Atsushi Kaneko in addition to other comics creators from Europe and the United States.

Quick Takes

Dorohedoro, Volumes 13-16 by Q Hayashida. Even though I love Dorohedoro, it’s been a while since I’ve read the series; I like to save up a few volumes to read all at once. The manga is now entering what I believe will be its final story arc. Granted, Dorohedoro tends to be all over the place with all sort of plot lines weaving in and out, so its difficult to identify distinct story arcs, but Hayashida is now bringing it all back together again. She’s even tying in what initially seemed to be extraneous side stories from earlier in the series more cohesively. Dorohedoro is such a bizarre manga, somehow managing to be sweet and charming at the same time it is disgusting and grotesque. Hayashida’s artwork is marvelous, creating horrific, nightmare-inducing images and an atmosphere that’s dank, dirty, and dingy. But the series is also fun and funny, with a quirky sense of humor and a peculiar fixation on food. At this point, though there is still comedy, Dorohedoro is actually getting pretty serious and dramatic. En’s dead and the rest of the family is currently homeless and on the run; the Cross-Eyes have taken over, but they seem to be losing control of the extremely deadly situation.

Evyione: Ocean Fantasy, Volume 1 by Young-Hee Kim. Back in the day, Udon Entertainment had a line of manwha which, sadly, didn’t end up going very far. Tragically, only the first volume of Kim’s twelve-volume series Evyione: Ocean Fantasy was translated and released. It’s admittedly disappointing that there isn’t more, but the first volume of Evyione serves as a sort of prologue and is well worth checking out even though the rest of the story will likely never be translated. The manhwa is in part inspired by Hans Christian Andersen’s The Little Mermaid except that in the case of Evyione, it’s the king of the sea who has fallen in love with a human princess. The artwork in the series is stunningly gorgeous. The ocean scenes and merfolk are beautiful, sensuous, and slightly disconcerting. There’s a touch of horror to the king’s transformation into a human, keeping with the darker aspects of the original story. On land, Kim pays particular attention to the characters’ clothing and attire, the dresses especially are intricately detailed. Although Evyione is obviously based on The Little Mermaid, it’s not a simple retelling and incorporates political and court intrigue as well as additional plot elements.

Say I Love You, Volume 8 by Kanae Hazuki. I continue to really enjoy Say I Love You. Hazuki’s forthright portrayal of teenage sexuality in particular tends to be handled quite well. After focusing on some of the series’ supporting characters, the eighth volume of Say I Love You largely turns its attention back to Mei. Most of the volume is dealing with a popularity contest being held as part of the school festival that thrusts Mei into the spotlight when she becomes a finalist—some students voting for her because they like her, and some students voting for her in hopes that she will utterly embarrass herself. Yamato is a participant in the contest as well and out of all of the boys he’s expected to win, meaning he’ll be going on an arranged date with whichever girl receives the most votes. All together, this is a very challenging situation for Mei. She doesn’t really want all of the attention and yet she feels compelled to try to win. Hazuki avoids the pitfall of a makeover suddenly changing a person into someone completely unrecognizable. It’s not so much that Mei’s outward appearance is drastically altered, it’s that she’s starting to overcome some of her insecurities and reclaim her femininity for herself.

Vertical Confirms New 2016 License

August 31, 2015 by Katherine Dacey

Good news for folks who like fantasy: Vertical Comics just confirmed that it will be publishing MAYBE’s The Abandoned Sacred Beasts, which is currently running in Bessatsu Shonen Magazine. Look for volume one in May 2016.

The latest volumes of Tokyo Ghoul, Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon?, and Monster Musume top this week’s NY Times Manga Best Seller list.

On September 4th, the NHK will begin airing the four-part series Urasawa Naoki no Manben. Each episode will focus on a different manga-ka, offering the viewer an in-depth look at the process of creating a series. Among the featured artists are Akiko Higushimura, Inio Asano, and Takao Saito.

Naruto creator Masashi Kishimoto has begun dropping hints about his next manga project, fueling speculation that he will formally announce the title at New York Comic Con.

Justin Stroman interviews Sekai Project publishing director Evan Mapoy about the company’s plans to license manga for the American market.

With 10 days to go, Last Gasp has raised $18,430 in its efforts to publish and distribute 4,000 copies of Keiji Nakazawa’s Barefoot Gen to schools and libraries around the country.

How should translators handle the catch-phrases that give JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure its unique flavor? Deb Aoki posed the question to Twitter, sparking a lively debate about the challenges of localizing manga for American audiences.

Headed to London this fall? The British Museum is sponsoring an exhibit called Manga Now: Three Generations, which will feature three commissioned works by Chiba Tetsuya, Hoshino Yukinobu and Nakamura Hikaru. The exhibit runs from September through mid-November.

Anime News Network is looking for a freelance reporter to cover movie screenings and events in Tokyo. More details here.

What’s arriving in bookstores next week? The Manga Bookshelf gang investigates.

It’s the end of the month, which means that Ash Brown is once again giving away manga. This month’s prize is Chicago, a two-volume series by Basara creator Yumi Tamura. The deadline to enter is September 2nd, so hop to it!

News from Japan: Yuu Watase has put Arata: The Legend on hiatus again, while Akiko Higashimura has just announced that she will debut a new series in Cocohana magazine this November: Bishoku Tantei, which translates to Gourmet Detective. (The tagline writes itself, doesn’t it?) Topping this week’s Japanese manga bestseller list are the latest volumes of Detective Conan, Terra Formars, and–what else?–Attack on Titan.

You know you want to read it: Hiro Mashima just published a Fairy Tail/Parasyte crossover story in the October issue of Afternoon.

The latest chapters of Yuichi Okano’s autobiographical manga Pecoross no Haha no Tamatebako (The Treasure Chest of Pecoross’ Mother) explore the impact of the 1945 Nagasaki bombing on its youngest survivors.

Reviews: Ian Wolf posts an early review of Inuyashiki, Claire Napier shares her thoughts on Space Brothers, and Austin Lanari tackles the latest issue of Weekly Shonen Jump. Over at the Smithsonian’s awesome BookDragon blog, Terry Hong looks at the latest volumes of Wandering Son and What Did You Eat Yesterday?, while Japan Times contributor Kanta Ishida writes about Hiromu Arakawa’s agro-centric manga Gin no Saji (Silver Spoon).

Michael Burns on vol. 6 of Barakamon (Ani-TAY)
Henry Ma on chapter 639 of Bleach (Ka Leo)
Gabriella Ekens on vols. 1-4 of Blood Blockade Battlefront (Anime News Network)
Rebecca Silverman on vol. 1 of Core Scramble (Anime News Network)
Anna N. on Cosplay Basics (The Manga Report)
Sheena McNeil on vol. 1 of The Demon Prince of Momochi House (Sequential Tart)
Matthew Warner on Dream Fossil: The Complete Short Stories of Satoshi Kon (The Fandom Post)
ebooksgirl on vol. 1 of The Devil Is a Part-Timer! (Geek Lit Etc.)
Kory Cerjak on vol. 46 of Fairy Tail (The Fandom Post)
Dae Lee on Fragments of Horror (Otaku Review)
Erica Friedman on vol. 1 of Iono The Fanatics: Special Edition (Okazu)
Rebecca Silverman on vol. 23 of Kaze Hikaru (Anime News Network)
Bruce P. on Kinoko Ningen no Kekkon (Okazu)
Helen on Lucky Star (Organization Anti-Social Geniuses)
Kimber on Manga Classics: Emma (The Book Ramble)
Lisa Rabey on Manga Classics: Emma (No Flying No Tights)
Adam Capps on vol. 1 of My Hero Academia (Bento Byte)
Justin Stroman on vol. 1 of My Hero Academia (Organization Anti-Social Geniuses)
Matthew Warner on vol. 2 of My Neighbor Seki (The Fandom Post)
Sheena McNeil on vol. 10 of Nisekoi: False Love (Sequential Tart)
Jessikah Chaustin on vol. 1 of Puella Magi Tart Magica: The Legend of Jeanne d’Arc (No Flying, No Tights)
Jocelyn Allen on Rafnas (Brain vs. Book)
Ken H. on vols. 5-6 of Say I Love You (Sequential Ink)
Ken H. on vols. 7-8 of Say I Love You (Sequential Ink)
Nick Creamer on vol. 1 of A Silent Voice (Anime News Network)
Michael Burns on vol. 2 of A Silent Voice (Ani-TAY)
Rebecca Silverman on vol. 5 of Spell of Desire (Anime News Network)
Ash Brown on vol. 5 of The Summit of the Gods (Experiments in Manga)
Rebecca Silverman on vol. 7 of Terra Formars (Anime News Network)
Leroy Douresseaux on vol. 7 of Tiger & Bunny (Comic Book Bin)
Matthew Warner on vol. 2 of Ubel Blatt (The Fandom Post)
Isaac Akers on vol.1 of Tokyo Ghoul (Otaku Review)
Chris Sims on vol. 1 of Ultraman (Comics Alliance)
Kelly Harrass on vol. 1 of Ultraman (Panels on Pages)
Kristin on vol. 1 of Ultraman (Comic Attack)
Sakura Eries on vol. 12 of Voice Over! Seiyu Academy (The Fandom Post)
Johanna Draper Carlson on vol. 9 of What Did You Eat Yesterday? (Comics Worth Reading)
Adam Capps on vol. 5 of Witchcraft Works (Bento Byte)
Leroy Douresseaux on vol. 6 of World Trigger (Comic Book Bin)
Matthew Alexander on vol. 3 of xxxHolic Rei (The Fandom Post)

A True Novel

August 28, 2015 by Ash Brown

Author: Minae Mizumura
Photographer: Toyota Horiguchi
Translator: Juliet Winters Carpenter
U.S. publisher: Other Press
ISBN: 9781590512036
Released: November 2013
Original release: 2001
Awards: Yomiuri Prize for Literature

So far, only two works by Minae Mizumura have been translated into English. The first was the Yomiuri Prize-winning A True Novel. Originally published in Japan in 2002, A True Novel was selected for translation as part of the Japanese Literature Publishing Project. The novel was ultimately released by Other Press in 2013 with an English translation by Juliet Winters Carpenter. Other Press’ edition of A True Novel is a lovely two-volume box set retaining the black-and-white images taken by Kyoto-based photographer Toyota Horiguchi scattered throughout the pages. Mizumura’s second work to be translated, her treatise The Fall of Language in the Age of English, was published in early 2015. It was the release of The Fall of Language in the Age of English that reminded me that A True Novel had been sitting on my shelf waiting to be read for quite some time. My excuse was that I wanted to make sure that I had the time to devote to the novel that it deserved—A True Novel is a massive work well over eight hundred pages in length.

Taro Azuma immigrated to New York from Japan in the 1960s, finding a position as a personal chauffeur. Not much was known about the enigmatic young man and he was reluctant to talk about his past, but he did very well for himself in America, eventually becoming an extremely successful, wealthy, and respected businessman. It’s only after he made a name and a fortune for himself that he began to return to Japan on occasion. Growing up Taro was an orphan raised in a poor and abusive household. His fate was changed when he was taken in as a helper by the well-off Utagawa family, becoming remarkably close with their youngest daughter Yoko. But as time passed, the differences between Taro and Yoko’s social classes became more pronounced and more problematic for the Saegusas—Yoko’s high-society relatives—especially after a series of “indiscretions.” This was what prompted Taro to initially leave the country, but his destiny had already become intrinsically connected to those of Yoko and her family.

In part, A True Novel is a retelling of Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights, Mizumura moving the setting of the story from nineteenth-century England to postwar Japan. While someone who has read Wuthering Heights will be able to appreciate the parallels between the two narratives, A True Novel stands completely on its own as a separate work. It’s been a long while since I’ve read Wuthering Heights, but I must say I think I actually prefer A True Novel. The structure of the novel has several layers that build upon one another. The story opens with an autobiographically-influenced prologue long enough to be its own novel which outlines Mizumura’s life growing up in America and her impression of Taro when she meets him there. A True Novel continues with a young editor named Yuske Kato relating to Mizumura his later encounter with Taro in Japan and the story told to him by Fumiko Tsuchiya who at one point in her life was a maid to the Utagawas. It is these two stories that Mizumura weaves together to form the main narrative of A True Novel.

Each of the three nested stories—Mizumura’s, Yusuke’s, and Fumiko’s—draws the reader closer and closer to the heart of A True Novel. The work is tragically romantic, Yoko and Taro born into circumstances where their love for each other is all but impossible to realize, their hopes for happiness dashed by the expectations of society and matters of privilege and class. The characters and their relationships in A True Novel are marvelously complex with love and hate, redemption and revenge all playing a role. At times they can actually be infuriating, but that’s part of the reason A True Novel is so compelling and engaging—the characters are believably flawed individuals navigating (not always successfully) a world that is inherently unfair. A True Novel is a tremendous work, the story tracing decades of family history and drama and the dynamics of complicated and shifting relationships. The novel may be lengthy, but it never felt overly long. If anything, while I was immensely satisfied I was still sad to see it end. A True Novel may very well be one of the best works of literature that I’ve read.

Summer Manga Review Index

August 28, 2015 by Katherine Dacey

In a sure sign that the dog days of August are upon us, Manga Bookshelf’s most productive reviewer announced that he is taking a few days off for a well-earned vacation. We’re also in favor of poolside margaritas, so we decided to follow Sean’s lead this week. Never fear: we’ll be back in the saddle next Friday with reviews of Inuyashiki, The Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service and Tokyo Ghoul.

Still looking for something to read? We’ve got you covered with a handy index to all the books we’ve reviewed this summer:

Total Number of Manga Reviewed: 19
Total Number of Books Reviewed: 1
Most Viewed: Alice in Murderland and Demon From Afar
Most Tweeted: Haven’t You Heard? I’m Sakamoto, My Hero Academia, and My Neighbor Seki
Favorite Manga of the Summer: One-Punch Man
Least Favorite Manga of the Summer: Twin Star Exorcists

Alice in Murderland, Vol. 1 (Yen Press)
The Ancient Magus’ Bride, Vol. 1 (Seven Seas)
A Brief History of Manga (Ilex Publishing)
Demon From Afar, Vol. 1 (Yen Press)
The Demon Prince of Momochi House, Vol. 1 (VIZ)
Dream Fossil: The Complete Stories of Satoshi Kon (Vertical Comics)
Evergreen, Vol. 1 (Seven Seas)
Fragments of Horror (VIZ)
Haven’t You Heard? I’m Sakamoto, Vol. 1 (Seven Seas)
Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure Part One: Phantom Blood, Vol. 1 (VIZ)
Love at Fourteen, Vol. 1 (Yen Press)
My Hero Academia, Vol. 1 (VIZ)
My Neighbor Seki, Vols. 1-3 (Vertical Comics)
One-Punch Man, Vols. 1-2 (VIZ)
Prison School, Vol. 1 (Yen Press)
Seraphim 266613336 Wings (Dark Horse)
A Silent Voice, Vol. 1 (Kodansha Comics)
Twin Star Exorcists, Vol. 1 (VIZ)
Ultraman, Vol. 1 (VIZ)
Your Lie in April, Vol. 1 (Kodansha Comics)

We’d also like to hear from you: Are there great reviewers or websites that we’ve overlooked in our weekly round-ups? Is there a series that you’d like to see featured in the Manga Revue? Have we neglected a genre or artist that you feel deserves a bigger audience? Tell us about it in the comments–and be sure to include links!

Manga the Week of 9/2

August 26, 2015 by Sean Gaffney, Ash Brown, Anna N, MJ and Michelle Smith Leave a Comment

SEAN: School’s back in session. Do you have all your manga supplies? The old favorites? The new series? The zipatone? Let’s see what you might want to pick up.

Dark Horse still knows we like our samurai manga with the 6th New Lone Wolf & Cub.

ASH: I’m still catching up with the old school Lone Wolf & Cub, but I’m picking up this series, too.

SEAN: Kodansha debuts a new series called Ninja Slayer Kills, based off of a concept by two Americans who I suspect are imaginary. It also has a novel series later this year from Vertical, and seems to be very much in the ‘flashy action sequences’ genre.

ASH: Actually, I think Vertical has one of the other manga adaptations. But, yes, lots of action.

SEAN: Kodansha also has the fourth volume of Yamada-kun and the Seven Witches. We’re still running a few witches short.

ASH: This series has been a lot of fun so far.

SEAN: Slightly creepy power imbalance aside, I really enjoyed the first volume of The Ancient Magus’ Bride from Seven Seas, so the 2nd volume coming out pleases me greatly.

ANNA: I enjoyed the first one too. I like these low-key fantasy series, they remind me of the type of thing CMX used to put out (RIP).

ASH: The first volume was one of my favorite debuts this year, so I’m definitely looking forward to the second!

MJ: I will have to catch up with this one for sure!

SEAN: And a 6th omnibus of Dance in the Vampire Bund, which combines lolis and vampires to devastating effect, or so I hear.

Now it’s time for our slate of Viz. There’s new 3-in-1s of Dragon Ball (the 10th), Naruto (the 12th, and One Piece (the 13th). Good buys if you want to save shelf space.

Kimi ni Todoke has a 22nd volume, and I really hope that a plot point suggested by the cliffhanger happens, for the sake of my own sanity.

MICHELLE: Volume 21 was great, if painful, so I am very much looking forward to another installment.

ANNA: I have around 3 volumes now I need to read to catch up. I think I was staying away from the emotional trauma. I do love this series.

MJ: I live for this kind of pain.

SEAN: Kiss of the Rose Princess 6… I admit I’ve lost track of this series. Anna?

ANNA: What’s going to happen with the Junk Rose Princess and her Four Fake Rose Knights? Now that some of Anise’s Rose Knights are powered up even more, will this throw off the dynamics in this fun and frothy reverse harem manga? Is Anise’s father really as evil as he seems? How does one engineer Rose people? How many cards can Anise collect? I don’t know but I want to find out!!!!!

SEAN: Komomo Confiserie is the new series from Maki Minami, author of Special A and Voice Over. Given that title, I’d expect food to be involved. Always love stuff from this author.

MICHELLE: I loved Voice Over! way more an I expected to, and am looking forward to Komomo Confiserie quite a lot!

ANNA: I liked Voice Over, but not enough to complete the series. On the other hand I love food manga so I will be checking this out.

ASH: Food! Pastries! Cakes!

SEAN: Nisekoi barrels along with an 11th volume, being the rare Jump romantic comedy that doesn’t die in North America (see Strawberry 100% for the fate of prior comedies of that sort).

After getting a few volumes out digital-only, print readers are now able to experience the gloriousness that is One-Punch Man, with its first two volumes coming out together.

ANNA: One-Punch Man is the best. It totally deserves the print edition and I hope more readers discover it because it is hilarious.

ASH: I’ve been holding out for the print edition; can’t wait to finally read it!

MJ: Same here!

SEAN: Seraph of the End gets a 6th volume. Vampires? Still? Dunno.

ANNA: Not surprisingly, I enjoy this a bunch. It has more world building than most vampire manga. Looking forward to this volume.

SEAN: Skip Beat! has a 35th volume, edging closer to the longest shoujo series in North America (Boys Over Flowers still tops it right now, I think).

MICHELLE: You are right; if you include Jewelry Box, Boys Over Flowers has 37 volumes. Also, yay Skip Beat!.

ANNA: Skip Beat! is so great. May it go on for 35 volumes more!

MICHELLE: Hear, hear!

SEAN: There’s also an 18th volume of Tegami Bachi.

Lastly, you thought there would be no Yu-Gi-Oh? Foolish mortal! Here’s Vol. 7 of Zexal.

What manga makes you want to learn logarithm tables? (None of them, I imagine, unless you have the old Math Girls manga volume.)

ASH: I in fact DO have the old Math Girls volume!

MJ: Same! :D

Manga Giveaway: Yumi Tamura Giveaway

August 26, 2015 by Ash Brown

It’s almost the end of the month which means it’s yet again time for another giveaway at Experiments in Manga. This month I’m offering up an entire series: Yumi Tamura’s two-volume shoujo action thriller Chicago! The series was released in English by Viz Media a decade or so ago, but is now out of print. This month’s giveaway will give you a chance to snag a complete set of the manga. And, as always, the giveaway is open worldwide!

Chicago probably wouldn’t have come across my radar if it wasn’t for the fact that it was created by Yumi Tamura. Tamura is also the mangaka of Basara, a series that I absolutely love. Back when I was trying to track down some of the harder-to-find print volumes of Basara (the print edition is going out of print, but a digital version is now available), I discovered that Tamura’s Chicago and Wild Com. had also been translated. And so, simply because I enjoyed Tamura’s work so much on Basara, I picked them up. There are other mangaka whose work I will read no matter what it is, too, including but certainly not limited to Moyoco Anno, Usamaru Furuya, Fumi Yoshinaga, and Takeshi Obata. It can be interesting to see both the similarities and differences among the manga created by the same person; some mangaka have an incredible range.

So, you may be wondering, how can you win Yumi Tamura’s Chicago?

1) Are there any mangaka whose work you enjoy so much that you make a point to read anything they create? If so, tell me a little about them and what you like about their manga in the comments below. (If not, you can simply mention that.)
2) If you’re on Twitter, you can earn a bonus entry by tweeting, or retweeting, about the contest. Make sure to include a link to this post and @PhoenixTerran (that’s me).

There you go! It’s as easy as that. You all have one week to submit comments and each person can earn up to two entries for this giveaway. If you have trouble with the comment form, or if you would prefer, entries can also be sent directly to me at phoenixterran(at)gmail(dot)com. I will then post the comments here in your name. The giveaway winner will be randomly selected and announced on September 2, 2015. Good luck to you all!

VERY IMPORTANT: Include some way that I can contact you. This can be an e-mail address in the comment form, a link to your website, Twitter username, or whatever. If I can’t figure out how to get a hold of you and you win, I’ll just draw another name.

Contest winner announced–Manga Giveaway: Yumi Tamura Giveaway Winner

Is It Wrong To Try To Pick Up Girls In A Dungeon?, Vol. 3

August 26, 2015 by Sean Gaffney

By Fujino Omori and Suzuhito Yasuda. Released in Japan as “Dungeon ni Deai o Motomeru no wa Machigatte Iru Darou ka?” by Softbank Creative. Released in North America by Yen On.

The thing that struck me most about the third volume of this light novel series was how tightly paced the whole thing is. The second book followed directly from the first, and this one follows on right from the second, with Bell and Lily discussing the fallout of her leaving the Soma family, and introducing her to Hestia. The narrow focus allows us to really get a handle on Bell, his desire to be the best, and his frustration at being unable to progress as fast as he’d like – this despite the fact that he is making the fastest progress in the history of this world. Many overpowered light novel protagonists try to balance their perfect heroes with a massively low self-image, and Bell is no exception. He’s getting there, though – his goal isn’t to get a harem anymore, it’s to be a hero.

Of course he’s getting the harem anyway, though he’s totally unaware of this. Hestia and Lily jealously jockeying for position is highly amusing, though once again Hestia is very much a minor character in the book. This is surprising given how much her popularity has exploded in Japan – you’d think she were the only character. Instead, this time around we get a closer look at the mind of Aiz Wallenstein. While she’s not exactly knocked off the pedestal that Bell has put her on yet, he is at least starting to realize that Aiz is quite eccentric in her emotionally stunted way. Another comedy highlight is seeing Aiz beat the tar out of Bell over and over, and his waking up with his head in her lap then freaking out. It’s also a good plot moment, as Aiz really wants to find out how Bell is getting so good so fast – he learns from her teachings (which are mostly “I beat you up a lot”) astonishingly well.

Then there’s the minotaur. The series began with Bell about to die from having a run-in with one of these, and Freya’s underling Ottar is convinced that it’s his fear of that incident that is stopping him from progressing even faster. So, the decision is simple. Have him face off against another one. If he dies, oh well, he wasn’t worthy of Freya. Of course bell does not die. The sequence is utterly badass, even more so that it happens in front of the high-level adventurers of Loki’s family, who offer a running commentary. I will admit that the book pretty much stops right after the fight, as if the author is working to a set page count. But it’s a great fight to go out on. Oh, and I have a suspicion about Bell’s grandfather. Let’s just say I think I know his name, and I bet he’s gotten a harem by appearing as a bull or swan.

Again, I remain very surprised at how good this series has gotten, particularly with that cliched light novel title. Which was apparently by editorial fiat, I’ve found out. If you love fantasy series, absolutely give this a try.

Why Sekai Project Is Entering The Manga Industry

August 25, 2015 by Justin Stroman Leave a Comment

A lot of announcements happened at Anime Expo, San Diego Comic Con, and Otakon. Arguably the biggest announcement (not to actually shortchange what WAS announced) was the revelation of a new player in the manga industry. If you’ve heard of Sekai Project, you may be a bit more familiar with them bringing over visual novels, but at Otakon, they announced they will be dipping their toes into the market by licensing GATE, which just so happens to be streaming on Crunchyroll.

So…why is Sekai Project entering the manga industry? What is GATE all about? And when’s it going to come out? Well, I got in touch through email with publishing director Evan Mapoy, and the former Digital Manga marketing manager answers these questions and a few more.

…

Pick of the Week: Mostly Kodansha

August 24, 2015 by Sean Gaffney, Michelle Smith, Ash Brown and Anna N Leave a Comment

SEAN: There’s a surprising amount of stuff out this week for manga fans, including a new Alice that looks more plot-oriented than most, a new Attack on Titan as well as two spinoffs of same, and a new series from the creator of Gantz. I’ll give my pick to the manga tie-in of the Bodacious Space Pirates movie, Abyss of Hyperspace. It’s not very friendly to casual readers who don’t know the franchise, but for those who do, it’s pirate-riffic.

MICHELLE: I pretty much always pick this series when given the chance, but I am definitely going to be picking up the ninth volume of Say I Love You., which always thwarts traditional shoujo expectations in interesting ways.

ASH: Lots of good stuff coming out this week, and I’ll be picking up quite a few of them, but the manga I’m most curious about is the debut of Inuyashiki.

ANNA: Say I Love You is my pick as well, but I can’t believe we’re up to volume 9 already! More to get caught up on!

SEAN: I just want to add that the Say “I Love You” heroine continues to be so unhappy on these covers. She really does not want to be posing for this shot.

My Week in Manga: August 17-August 23, 2015

August 24, 2015 by Ash Brown

My News and Reviews

Last week Experiments in Manga reached its fifth anniversary, so I wrote a somewhat lengthy post about what I’ve been up to online and offline over the last year. Thank you again to everyone who has shown support and encouragement for Experiments in Manga over the years. Apparently, people actually want to see another five years, so I guess I better get to work on that. With that in mind, have two more in-depth reviews! Last week I took a look at Rikao Yanagita’s surprisingly entertaining The Science of Attack on Titan, one of the two non-manga books that Kodansha Comics has released so far. (The other one was related to Attack on Titan, as well.) I also reviewed Baku Yumemakura and Jiro Taniguchi’s The Summit of the Gods, Volume 5, which is the final volume in one of my favorite series. The writing and artwork in The Summit of the Gods is superb; I’m so glad that the entire manga is now available in English.

A few other things caught my eye online last week. Mangabrog has translated an article from 2013 that provides a tour through Inio Asano’s workspace. More information has been revealed about Kodansha’s digital efforts and the publisher is aiming high: digital editions of two thousand volumes translated into English by the end of 2017. Occasionally manga makes its way to NPR (which I believe is how I actually first learned about and became interested in Death Note). Most recently, one of NPR’s contributors featured a few great romantic manga: Kaoru Mori’s Emma, Ichigo Takano’s Orange, and Ai Yazawa’s Nana. I haven’t had a chance to read Orange yet, but considering the quality of Emma and Nana, I’m now looking forward to Seven Sea’s upcoming print release of the series even more. The game of manga tag continues to make it rounds, this time Narrative Investigations’ Helen tackles the questions.

Quick Takes

Castle Mango, Volume 2 written by Narise Konohara and illustrated by Muku Ogura. While I liked the first volume of Castle Mango, I really enjoyed the second and final volume of the series. Castle Mango is an unusual boys’ love manga; most of it doesn’t have anything to do with romance. The close relationship between Yorozu and Togame begins with a terribly manipulative lie, but it eventually develops into something real for both of them. In the first volume, the two men frequently seemed to have an almost father-son sort of vibe, but by the end of the series I was slightly more convinced by their intimacy as boyfriends. It does take a little while to get there though; they spend a large portion of the second volume apart. Togame is trying to give Yorozu space, feeling that it’s in the younger man’s best interest, but he doesn’t really go about it in the best way. Unfortunately, this is happening at the same time that Yorozu is struggling to take care of his little brother and his family’s business (a love hotel) when his mother is hospitalized. Yorozu is in the process of shedding the last of his immaturity and makes some terrible decisions in the process. In many ways, Castle Mango is more about Yorozu’s growth as a person than anything else.

Give to the Heart, Volumes 1-4 by Wann. After a long period of silence, about a year ago Netcomics quietly began publishing books in print again. Give to the Heart was the first manhwa to be released after the publisher’s hiatus. I was interested in reading the series because I wanted to support Netcomics, but also because it was created by Wann. (I had previously read and thoroughly enjoyed Wann’s collection of short manhwa 9 Faces of Love.) At first Give to the Heart seemed like it was going to largely be fantasy fiction, but as the series progresses, more and more science fictional elements are introduced. The ongoing story is about Sooyi, a young woman who became the wife of Ganok, the demon king who controls all water, but who is now attempting to escape him. Not only that, she is trying to find a way to kill him as well, or at least cause him as much pain as possible even if that means sacrificing her own life in the process. Though it is implied that Sooyi and Ganok were at one point content and happy as a pair, their current relationship obviously has its problems. Actually, considering the extreme imbalance of power between them—Ganok being a cruel god and Sooyi being a human with a strong will—that’s been true from the very beginning.

My Little Monster, Volume 9 by Robico. So, Haru and Shizuku are now officially a couple, although not much has actually changed in their relationship. But now that that has been settled, the other romantically interested parties are more or less able to move on with their lives. As a result, the plot of My Little Monster is now able to move along as well. This particular volume includes summer vacations and festivals, which is fairly standard for a high school romance, but Haru’s family drama is starting to come to the forefront of the story again. Underneath the humor of My Little Monster there seems to have been something ominous lurking waiting to be revealed. Haru’s brother Yuzan isn’t as terrifying as he once was, but there is definitely something going on between him and Haru and with Haru’s reluctance to interact with the rest of his family. Haru is trying to keep Shizuku from finding out the details, though eventually he’s really going to need to come clean with her and explain his situation. But, while Shizuku is still in the dark, at least readers get to learn a bit more. I continue to enjoy My Little Monster, especially the series’ quirky characters, and I’m happy to see the manga continue to gain some forward momentum.