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Weekly Shonen Jump Recap: April 7, 2014

April 21, 2014 by Derek Bown 3 Comments

If you like western themed fantasy then you really need to pick up The Seven Deadly Sins. The storytelling is very much in the style of other manga, but the aesthetic of the design is one hundred percent medieval european. Even the swords are styled properly, which for a manga artist must take an insane amount of self control not to insert any curved or katana styled swords in there.

That’s about it for my reading this week, I haven’t had much free time to read during so I haven’t had a chance to read anything new. Besides the latest chapters that is.

Naruto Ch. 671
I warned you Kishimoto. I warned you what would happen if you went the clichéd and tired route. That’s it. I’m done. Call me when the manga ends so I can see how much that is screwed up too.

Okay so not really, I’d really like to use this as an excuse to stop reading this manga forever, but the truth is that this is hardly the worst thing Naruto has ever done. Oh it’s terribly written, and a complete bore to boot. The truth is that Naruto long ago lost any chance it ever had for me to be invested. So to see a plot development like the one in this chapter doesn’t really make me angry as much as it just makes me shake my head and move on.

Basically my review comes down to this: Copy and paste my opinion from last week only this time double it.

Stealth Symphony Ch. 007
Again, I feel like I’m supposed to care about what’s happening, but the fact that I haven’t had any time to develop a connection to any of these characters before we start moving into a fight is pushing Stealth Symphony onto my naughty list. the few chapters that were meant to serve as our introduction to the characters just didn’t hack it because the characterization does not ever extend beyond basic tropes that manga authors keep repeating. So to see the manga try and focus on battles and spectacle gives me a bad vibe, suggesting that this manga will not last much longer.

One Piece Ch. 743
I imagine there are two things people are growing tired of in my writing, how often I dump on Naruto and how often I do the exact opposite for One Piece. The difference is that one tries to pass something the author thought of last week as an overarching thread, while One Piece manages to not only make a great spectacle, but also drop subtle hints suggesting how the story will progress. I dare not spoil anything, but in regards to the climax of this chapter, let us remember that not all is necessarily as it seems. This arc isn’t over yet.

World Trigger Ch. 055
I’d normally hate a series that has to stop and explain what is going on, rather than focusing on the action. But with World Trigger those short breaks in the action really help me appreciate the action a lot more. Would I appreciate what I’m seeing if I didn’t know that Tamakoma use a special kind of trigger? Probably not. And the flow of who has the advantage over whom really is handled quite expertly. While Border does seem to be at a disadvantage, there is still enough room to let the flow of battle ebb towards the side of our protagonists.

Bleach Ch. 575
Kenpachi is badass, do I really need to say anything else about this chapter? There really isn’t a plot worth speaking of, so I’ll just let the chapter speak for itself.

One-Punch Man Ch. 034.3
While I do have my reservations with One-Punch Man being a straight up action series, I do have to say that Saitama does make a good serious action lead. In that he’s completely not serious even when the battle seems to be going against him. There’s just a certain refreshing nonchalance to him that makes me wish more time was focused on him rather than the ancillary characters.

Nisekoi Ch. 117
Besides making me incredibly nervous about my recent stomach aches, this week’s Nisekoi is a perfectly told joke. One does not normally think of manga being structured in terms of a joke, but from the setup to the punchline this chapter just might have been perfect. Add in Marika being the best character ever and you have my favorite Nisekoi chapter since the short Ruri story we had a couple weeks ago.

All You Need Is Kill Ch. 011
Oh yeah, Keiji, he’s the main character isn’t he? I wouldn’t have thought we’d get any kind of emotional resonance with this series, but this chapter’s end was pretty well done, and worked well because the setup had been done properly through the last several chapters. I do ask myself how Rita can be uncertain of Keiji being trapped in a timeloop, but I suppose it makes sense if she herself is not caught in the same timeloop. She may have realized it during the battle, but in the morning she would have forgotten, which is why Keiji answering the question she was going to ask tomorrow is relevant.

Toriko Ch. 272
It was a nice little break to see all the characters from the manga’s past before we set off on the long arc that the gourmet world will be. I hope it won’t be too long before we see some of these characters again, because I would be really disappointed if we do not.

I also still stand by my opinion that Rin is being written as a beard for Toriko by Shimabukuro. “Please don’t mind that I’m leaving behind a hot woman who wants to marry me to go on a trip with four other guys.” Still, it’s refreshing that a shonen manga artist besides Toriyama actually has his main character discussing marriage, it seems so oddly absent from almost every other series I read, so this is a nice breath of fresh air and the source of many jokes for me.

Blue Exorcist Ch. 056
Dr Gedoin is an odd character, on the one hand he is too disgusting to keep around, but on the other hand he was moderately amusing this chapter, mostly because he is so clearly oblivious to how things will turn out that it’s almost endearing. Ignoring of course the lolicon vibes the guy gives off. And the fact that he’s clearly a misogynist. Can we please move away from him? But at least we get weird Frankensteinian zombies, which despite the fact that they are different from the ghouls we saw at the beginning of the series clearly resemble the ghouls at the beginning of the series. Hopefully the characters will realize next month that the doors in their cells have clearly been left open.

Special Bonus Story – Dragon Ball
When it comes to sharing my opinion about manga I normally do so without fear. After all, it doesn’t matter what I say, I’ll step on someone’s toes. But it’s not often that I find myself on the precipice of writing something that I know will piss off pretty much every manga fan online. But I am committed, so here I go.

I didn’t think this bonus story was very good.

Besides the fact that Toriyama’s art looks strange coming back to Dragon Ball after such a long time, all the characters look oddly proportioned, too skinny I might say. It was really neat to find out what Planet Vegeta looked like before it blew up (though it reminds me a lot of Namek, and earth for that matter with how Toriyama draws them). I think everyone can agree that Goku’s mom looks like nothing we imagined, and in general this was a fun little experience.

The problem is that it’s impossible not to draw comparisons between this little chapter and a very famous story relating to a comics icon. Almost beat for beat this is the origin story for Superman. Planet about to be destroyed, father called it, sends son away. I’d always imagined Goku was legitimately on a mission to destroy earth, not sent away to save his life, and that would have been a perfectly fine story. This version works in that it lines up with everything Toriyama wrote in the past about it. But at the same time the similarities are so close that I can’t help but wonder why no effort was made to avoid the comparisons?

It’s a fun little chapter, but anyone with a passing knowledge of western comics will more more than a little distracted while reading it.

If you want to hear more, check out the Manga^3 Podcast Archives.

Pick of the Week: Endings & Beginnings

April 21, 2014 by Sean Gaffney, Ash Brown, Michelle Smith and MJ 1 Comment

SEAN: Given I have the least surprising pick of the week, I guess I will go first. This is probably the last chance for me to urge you all to give Higurashi: When They Cry a try. Umineko has more depth, but also is a lot more depressing and filled with broken suffering people. Higurashi also has those people, but the entire story is about the power of friendship and learning to trust each other and managing to work past your issues and deal with your past without letting it rule you… or, in the case of Miyo Takano, letting it rule you after all. It’s been quite a ride. Let’s see how it ends.

ASH: I’m not sure if my pick will be surprising or not, but I’m going to go with the final volume of Bunny Drop. I loved the early series, and there are some great things about the later part, too, but it’s been a long time since a manga has been able to make me so incredibly angry. It wasn’t so much the direction that the story turned that upset me as it was how Unita handled it. I felt cheated. And yet I’m intensely curious about this volume of short stories.

MICHELLE: I have mixed feelings about how Bunny Drop turned out, certainly, but volume ten is still the only thing coming out this week that appeals to me, so I guess it’s my pick by default.

MJ: My pick may indeed be surprising, but I’m leaning overwhelmingly toward the first volume of the light novel series Sword Art Online. I do not watch much anime, but my husband introduced me to the anime adaptation of this series (available on Crunchyroll, for those who might be interested), and I absolutely loved it—particularly the first arc, “Aincrad,” which is the subject of this novel. Though the series’ second arc features more “damsel in distress” than I would like, I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to re-experience my favorite storyline in its original format. I’m so glad to see this being published in English!

What looks good to you this week?

Bookshelf Briefs 4/21/14

April 21, 2014 by MJ, Sean Gaffney and Michelle Smith 1 Comment

This week, MJ, Sean, and Michelle look at recent releases from Yen Press, Seven Seas, Viz Media, and Vertical, Inc.

Bunny Drop, Vol. 10 | By Yumi Unita | Yen Press – For many fans, Bunny Drop was a tricky series (for reasons documented by nearly everyone), and though I found the final volumes more palatable than I expected, I was never able to buy the supposed attraction between Rin and her much older guardian, Daikichi. For me, like most fans, I suspect, volume ten provides a single-volume capsule of exactly what I loved most and least about Bunny Drop. On one hand, this collection of side stories offers a welcome return to the series’ early charm. Most of the volume is devoted to tales from Rin’s childhood (along with a Masako side story that is surprisingly delightful). Unfortunately, its final chapter, depicting Rin and Daikichi’s married life, further illustrates the complete lack of romantic chemistry between them. Still, as a huge fan of the early series, I consider this volume a win. Thanks, Yen Press! – MJ

Dictatorial Grimoire: Red Riding Hood | By Ayumi Kanou | Seven Seas – The dramatic arc behind this final volume is not really Red Riding Hood – who’s also the wolf, in an excellent plot twist – but rather the relationship between Otogi and Cinderella, who turns out to be not quite what he seemed. But then given that this is based around Grimm’s Fairy Tales, it makes sense that things would get darker towards the end. Luckily, Otogi is better than his father and uncle, and is able to save the day and come to terms with Cinderella’s past. I wish that the volume had more of Hatsushiba kicking ass (she literally gets locked in a birdcage towards the end), but won’t carp too much. This has been a fun little series, with lots of amusing characters. – Sean Gaffney

Happy Marriage?!, Vol. 5 | By Maki Enjoji | Viz Media – Anytime we see Chiwa interacting with Hokuto’s family I get fascinated, which is a good thing, as Chiwa and Hokuto’s struggles to communicate with each other are really starting to frustrate me otherwise. It’s a decent example of people who fall in love but barely know how the other person works, but man, is it teeth-grinding to read. Much better are the machinations behind the scenes of Hokuto’s family, and Chiwa trying to be supportive and yet learn more at the same time. (There is also a gag showing how ignorant Hokuto is about things like foreplay that made me laugh out loud.) It’s not a happy marriage yet, but we’re only halfway through the series, and it’s been worse. But please, take the time to speak with each other! – Sean Gaffney

Knights of Sidonia, Vol. 8 | By Tsutomu Nihei | Vertical, Inc. – This volume focuses primarily on the relationship between Tanikaze, Izana, and Tsumugi, and their bonding into a family unit – they even find an apartment off in the far reaches of the ship and move in together. This is awkward not just because Tsumugi is a gauna hybrid who looks like a snake-worm thing (if I’m being charitable… please don’t sneak into Tanikaze’s bed looking like that, Tsumugi, it leads to filthy thoughts), but also because Izana’s love for Tanikaze is starting to reach a breaking point, especially as he still seems oblivious to Izana. Is it just because Izana is a hermaphrodite? Is it because Tanikaze still can’t get over the death of Hoshijiro? And does it even matter given that Izana may not live to see the next volume? Dang, this manga is addicting. – Sean Gaffney

Sweet Rein, Vol. 2 | By Sakura Tsukuba | Viz Media – I’m hard-pressed to think of how this manga could possibly be more frothy and insubstantial. Kurumi (a Santa Claus) and Kaito (her reindeer) spend their second Christmas together bringing joy to a bunch of orphans, then it’s summer and their bond is tested by a “Dark Santa,” and then it’s Christmas again, but they’re still 17. Meanwhile, Kaito’s brother finds his Santa and they somehow get into an argument with another beach hut noodle vendor (yeah, it’s summer again) that can only be settled by… a beach volleyball tournament. Ye gods. And yet, despite it giving me multiple things to roll my eyes over, I don’t dislike Sweet Rein. It probably helps that the way Tsukuba draws reindeer is so darn cute. It also doesn’t hurt that it’s only three volumes long; I’ll probably be completing the series as a result. – Michelle Smith

What Did You Eat Yesterday?, Vol. 1 | By Fumi Yoshinaga | Vertical, Inc. – I was campaigning for this series to be licensed when there was only one volume of it out in Japan, so it’s a relief to find that something I lobbied for sight unseen has turned out to be so good. (I mean, it’s by Fumi Yoshinaga, so the odds really were in its favor.) Shiro Kakei (lawyer) and his boyfriend Kenji Yabuki (salon stylist) have been together for a few years. Budget-conscious Shiro shops the sales and every evening prepares a multi-dish meal for them to share. The food segments are fun, no doubt, but what’s even better is when the food serves as a springboard for gay life topics, like their conflicting opinions regarding how open to be about their relationship or Shiro’s profound relief that he never got married to make others happy. It’s great stuff, and I’m so grateful that it’s here at last! – Michelle Smith

Sakuracon License Roundup

April 20, 2014 by Sean Gaffney

Well, we’ve had another con, and this time three big publishers were there to say things about manga: Viz, Yen, and Dark Horse. What did they say?

Not much from Viz, which usually saves its big announcements for the summer. They did indicate that one of their recent Weekly Jump digital series, World Trigger, would be getting a physical release this fall. With a plot that features high school students with superpowers taking on invaders from another dimension, it’s hard for me to think of it as anything but ‘Precure for guys’, but I will be interested to see what it’s like – Jump’s really been hitting its stride lately.

The big announcements were from Yen Press, and not just in the manga department. Let’s start with manga, though, as I have a feeling that most of the fandom will be focusing on one particular license, so I’ll save that for the end. King of Eden is by the author best known for collaborating with Naoki Urasawa on Billy Bat and others Takashi Nagasaki (aka Richard Woo). Well, Billy Bat is still unlicensed, but we do have King of Eden, a new horror series with art by SangCheol Lee, who I am totally unfamiliar with. This one looks to be worldwide digital, so my guess is it’s starting in Japan at the same time it does here.

Pandora Hearts is getting an artbook, Odds and Ends, which will be hardcover and have a slipcase, like many Japanese artbooks these days. Everything’s going upscale.

Gou-dere Sora Nagihara is the ecchi title of the con. It’s by Suu Minazuki, creator of Sora no Otoshimono. Our hero is an otaku in love with a fictional character. One day she comes to life before him, but her personality is not quite what he was expecting. She apparently decides to get her new master a harem, or at least help him get some action. This is from Hakusensha’s Young Animal Arashi, as if the description didn’t already tell you that (it was either that or Champion Red). We shall see.

Also from Hakusensha, from their sort of unclassifiable magazine Rakuen Le Paradis (think of it along the lines of Manga Erotics F), we get 14-sai no Koi, which I have been reliably informed is ‘excruciatingly adorable’. It features two 14-year-olds who are very wise and mature for their years… but they’re still 14, and falling in love with each other is going to bring all the awkward that this entails. The author, Fuka Mizutani, is best known here for several yuri stories in various anthologies. This isn’t yuri, but I feel her fans will want to seek it out anyway. It certainly sounds great to me.

Lastly on the manga front, we have a new title by Aki, whose Olympos Yen had previously brought over here, and perhaps best known for Utahime. Elhanburg no Tenshi ran in Shodensha’s Haruca, one of their more obscure josei magazines. Two childhood friends take over a castle supposedly haunted by an angel, but things quickly turn south when a woman becomes involved. Given my experience with Olympos, my hope is to have a better handle on what’s going on with this plot.

And then there’s light novels. Yen has had more success with this genre than any other publisher, something that they did not hesitate to bring up at the con. They’re putting out an omnibus hardcover of the Another novel, which had been released digitally a year or so ago, and whose manga they also released. However, they’re also creating a new imprint just for light noels, Yen On! What will debut from it this fall?

It wouldn’t be a light novel imprint without an awkward, long title that ends in a question mark, so let’s introduce ourselves to Dungeon ni Deai o Motomeru no wa Machigatte Iru Darou ka?, aka DanMachi, which Yen is releasing over here as ‘Is It Wrong To Try To Pick Up Girls In A Dungeon?’. This seems to be another fantasy series along the lines of Zero’s Familiar, with a boy who wants to be an adventurer meeting a goddess who has trouble getting worshippers. I’ll bet you two to one it’s zany.

However, this was all a prelude to the big announcement.

Yes, you’re not seeing things. To Aru Majutsu no Index, aka A Certain Magical Index. I’m not sure if Yen has licensed all 32+ novels right at the moment… my guess is about 6 with an option for more. But it’s certainly been one of the most requested titles of the last several years, and its spinoff series, A Certain Scientific Railgun, is selling quite well for Seven Seas. (As for the Index manga… trust me, read the books, it’s better.) I’m very interested to see how this sells. The lead male, Touma, is a divisive figure who acquires a harem yet makes no moves on any of them, and also has a story-breaker power he uses at least once per book. The heroine, Index… well, even that’s arguable, as Index may not actually be the series heroine so much as the series mascot. She also has a personality that Western fans have not exactly taken to their bosoms. That said, I really hope that everyone who demanded this series be licensed actually goes out and buys it, because this is a big investment, and kudos to Yen for going for it. Also, it has lots of cool things happening.

Lastly, we have Dark Horse, who added quite a bit of manga, to my surprise. Their continued re-release of CLAMP continues with the Legal Drug series coming out as an omnibus this fall. They’ve also licensed the sequel, Drug & Drop. Both series are published whenever CLAMP feels like it, so it should be easy to catch up with Japan. They’re also starting to digitize the bigger CLAMP titles, such as Card Captor Sakura and Chobits, later this spring.

There’s also the OreImo spinoff Ore no Kouhai ga Konna ni Kawaii Wake ga Nai (My Kouhai Can’t Be This Cute), which Dark Horse is sensibly retitling OreImo: Kuroneko. This ASCII Mediaworks series runs in Dengeki G’s, and is, as you might guess, focused on Kuroneko’s storyline in this series. Given the way the light novel series recently ended, I will be interested to see if its fandom is still around to get this, but hey, it’s cute and moe as heck.

And we have not one, but TWO titles from Satoshi Kon, whose Tropic of the Sea was released by Vertical recently. Opus came out in the mid-90s right before the author directed Perfect Blue, and was never finished in Tankobon form, though Tokuma Shoten published the ending in in the volume collection, which we’ll be seeing here. There is also Seraphim: 266613336 Wings, which was written by Mamoru Oshii, a creator that I have a lot of issues with. It’s also a mid-90s manga, from Animage magazine, and may I just note that that is an awful lot of wings in the title. If I were an angel, I’d want to cut back to maybe 4, or even less.

So that’a a lot of new stuff. What appeals to you the most?

Yen Press announces new licenses

April 19, 2014 by Brigid Alverson

Yen Press charged into con season today with a slew of new announcements at their SakuraCon panel. First up is a new light novel imprint, Yen On. Yen already publishes quite a few light novels, including Spice & Wolf and the previously announced Sword Art Online (also a manga) and Accel World. They announced three new titles for the imprint: Another, which they previously published digitally, and which is also a manga; A Certain Magical Index; and Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon?

They followed that up with some new manga announcements. I’m just gonna pull these from the press release.

KING OF EDEN by Takashi Nagasaki, art by SangCheol Lee – Maybe you’re not familiar with the name Takashi Nagasaki, but you sure should be! Nagasaki, the critically acclaimed co-author of Monster, 20th Century Boys, Master Keaton, Billy Bat, and Pluto, pens a grotesque thriller that will leave you begging for more! Starting May 1, chapters will be simultaneously published worldwide!
PandoraHearts ~odds and ends~ by Jun Mochizuki – If you love the cracking mind-warp that is PandoraHearts, you won’t want to miss this art book! Lavishly presented in hardback with a slipcase, Mochizuki’s darkly whimsical world comes to vivid life in this collection of over 120 color and black-and-white illustrations from PandoraHearts, Crimson-Shell, and more! Look for it in November 2014!
GOU-DERE SORA NAGIHARA by Suu Minazuki – No Yen list would be complete without a little raunch, am I right? In this hilarious fantasy romp out in November 2014, Shouta Yamakawa, a boy in love with his favorite demure manga heroine, Sora Nagihara, casually wishes she could be real…only to find himself staring into her eyes?! But Shouta soon realizes he got more than he bargained for ’cos this Sora turns out to be one bold, brazen babe!
LOVE AT FOURTEEN by Fuka Mizutani – Serialized in Hakusensha’s wonderful Rakuen Le Paradis anthology, LOVE AT FOURTEEN is a charming, bittersweet slice-of-life story about two very mature students in junior high falling in love like the teenagers they are. If you have a soft spot for subtle (not to mention adorable) romance, you’re going to have to read this in November 2014!
THE ANGEL OF ELHAMBURG by Aki – In this beautiful standalone volume, a close friendship between a king blessed by a strange angel and his knight begins to crumble under the weight of jealousy and contempt when a woman, and soon her child, comes between them. We love Aki with a burning passion here at Yen, so we’re beyond excited to be adding the gorgeousness of THE ANGEL OF ELHAMBURG to our Spring 2015 list!

A couple of other things…

Tokyopop, RightStuf, and Gentosha have announced that vol. 6 of Hetalia: Axis Powers will be released on May 31. Also, I don’t have a link for this but their latest newsletter announces that a motion comic of Sokora Refugees will launch on Saturday—but if you’re the impatient type, check out this Hulu link, as it seems it has been out since 2010.

Jason Thompson takes a look at The Legend of Koizumi in his latest House of 1000 Manga column for ANN.

Manga Publishers on Fan Interest in Manga Online

April 18, 2014 by Justin Stroman 5 Comments

Welp, thanks Google! Credit to AnimeKon for that.

Um, I guess this is the best image I could find? Credit to AnimeKon.

It started this week, when Ash had posted a link to Kodansha’s Tumblr that weighed in on piracy. Interested in reading what they said, I checked it out, and after sitting on this idea for a day, I decided to get in contact with all the manga publishers in the US and basically asked them for a response to that query. So a shout-out to he or she who decided to ask the question, and to Ash for linking to it.

I should already preface this by saying that, after reading the responses by the publishers, feel free to discuss your overall position on the situation, because discussion is good, and especially for those who live on the side where you do read manga that has no chance of being published in English for a multitude of reasons, it may be something you want to know. Or maybe not know about!

Note: as a heads up, this post may be updated with publisher thoughts as the day goes on. It’s their choice whether to respond or not.

Anyways, here they are (let’s start with the one who started this chain off):

Kodansha’s Editor Ben Applegate:

Today, here’s how our process works. We read series as they begin serialization in Kodansha’s magazines, and we keep an eye on the promising ones. If it’s by an author or from a franchise we’ve had success with, that’s a major bonus. Kodansha Japan will come to us to with the series they want to push in the future. We also consider which series may get an anime presence. All of these factors are more important than fan requests online. Though there was a time when most publishers referred to scanlations during licensing, and maybe some still do, we don’t. The other manga publishers I’m familiar with don’t either.

This is not because we don’t pay attention to our fans. It’s because we’ve learned from experience that highly-requested series usually produce sales that come in under expectations. The biggest reason is that, unfortunately, heavy social media users are just not representative of a majority of English-language manga fans. But it can’t help that most of the target audience has already read the series online, and thus isn’t very motivated to buy.

When series, usually seinen series, that are frequently requested on social media as a result of scans do get licensed, sales might be okay for Vol. 1 and sometimes 2, but they drop far below expectations on Vol. 3+. My personal hypothesis here is that people who’ve read the scanlations maybe remember to buy Vol. 1 or 2 because they want to support the artist, but by Vol. 3 and later they either forget or feel they’ve done their part. But the publisher is still on the hook for five, ten, fifteen more potentially money-losing volumes.

So, given the choice (and we usually aren’t), I would rather start from zero with a series I strongly believed in and try to build an audience for the legal release than be forced to compete with illegal scanlations that people have already been reading for months or years.

It doesn’t mean we’ve given up on “fan favorite” series. Vinland Saga was highly-requested and highly-scanlated for years. We took lots of extraordinary measures to try to break the “seinen curse,” producing premium hardcover editions with a bonus story, exclusive author Q&A, and other extra content. We also made them 2-in-1 editions to reduce the number of volumes we’d have to release. Whether that has worked or not is still an open question. Though Vol. 1 is doing well, it is discouraging to see basically no change in the popularity of the scanlations since we licensed the series.

Finally, consider: We’ve received some asks about whether having a manga available in English on a legal manga site makes a print version less likely because people have already read it. Well, illegal scanlations have an impact that’s many times bigger than any legal manga site. Something to think about.

So, what can you do? Well, you can stop reading scanlations, and encourage friends to do the same. I have never read more than a single chapter of a series in scanlation, and I have read a lot of manga (not all of it in Japanese). There is enough excellent manga out legally in English to fill all of your leisure time. ALL of it. And it’s increasingly available digitally at an affordable price.

If you still need a little piracy in your life, the least you can do is stop reading series that have been licensed. If you want to see what happens next, wait for the official release to catch up. You’ll survive the wait, I promise. And please spread the word about licensed releases! It can be hard for publishers to get scan readers informed about the legal version.

Viz’s Vice President of Publishing, Leyla Acker:

— On whether it’s a bad thing to read manga that won’t be published in English online when they’ve been fan translated?

I don’t think it’s a “bad thing,” mainly because I don’t think that value judgments like “good” and “bad” are useful to the conversation. The assumption implicit in this question is that the legitimacy of scanlations should be measured primarily by their potential impact on sales. While that’s no small issue, it’s not the main one, which is this: with a few notable exceptions, every mangaka and doujinshika I have ever spoken to about their work being scanlated hates it. From the creator’s perspective, the point is not whether the work is officially released in English or any other language, but that their work has been appropriated by people they don’t know and then used in ways they never consented to, even if it’s being done with good intentions.

— If fan interest online ever compelled them to go back and take a second look at a title?

You can basically copy and paste Kodansha’s Tumblr post on scanlations here. In other words, no. As fans ourselves, we’re definitely aware of what people are talking about online, but in our market there’s not necessarily a direct correlation between what’s popular online and what people actually buy. In fact, sometimes there’s an inverse correlation, not only with seinen and josei, as the Kodansha post indicated, but also markedly with shoujo. Also, if a midlist or potentially more modest-selling title has been heavily scanlated that can act as a disincentive for us to publish it since we know we’ll be faced with diminished sales out the gate.

Digital Manga Publishing’s Sales Manager Yoko Tanigaki:

— On whether it’s a bad thing to read manga that won’t be published in English online when they’ve been fan translated?

When was it ever a good thing? This is not a good or bad thing. This is an issue of right or wrong. It is wrong to take un-consented or unlicensed materials, scan them, translate them and distribute them. This is stealing- YES, stealing. This is never OK. This is WRONG. Knowing this and you still want a “scanlation-like” action in your life? Come work for me at Digital Manga Guild, and we’ll pay you a portion of the sale. I could always use more translators and letterers.

— On whether it’s a bad thing to read manga that won’t be published in English online when they’ve been fan translated?

Not really. There is no magical publishing formula that says “this book will sell well because it has a huge fan interest on line.”

Justin is the Editor-in-Chief of Organization Anti-Social Geniuses, an anime and manga blog. Currently is on an anime backlog adventure. You can follow him on Twitter @Kami_nomi.

The Black Lizard and Beast in the Shadows

April 18, 2014 by Ash Brown

Author: Edogawa Rampo
Illustrator: Kawajiri Hiroaki
Translator: Ian Hughes
U.S. publisher: Kurodahan Press
ISBN: 9784902075212
Released: January 2006
Original release: 1934 and 1928

After being introduced to the works of Edogawa Rampo through Strange Tale of Panorama Island and Japanese Tales of Mystery and Imagination, I have slowly been making my way through the rest of his work available in English. Compared to his total output in Japan where he was and continues to be an extremely influential author, relatively little has actually been translated. Happily, in recent years Kurodahan Press has been releasing more and more of Rampo’s stories and essays. The Black Lizard and Beast in the Shadows became the first volume of Rampo’s work to be published by Kurodahan Press in English in 2006. Translated by Ian Hughes and with an introduction by Mark Schreiber and illustrations by Kawajiri Hiroaki, the book collects two of Rampo’s short novels. The Black Lizard, originally published in Japan in 1934, features Rampo’s famous detective Akechi Kogorō. The second, shorter story, Beast in the Shadows, was first released in 1928 was one of Rampo’s earlier major works.

In the Japanese underworld the Black Lizard reigns supreme. A woman of exceptional beauty and intelligence, she has become one of Japan’s greatest criminals with an entourage of underlings ready and willing to carry out her schemes and to do her bidding. Most recently the Black Lizard has had her eye on the “Star of Egypt,” the most precious diamond in Japan. Her intent isn’t to steal it. Instead, she has put into motion an audacious plan to kidnap the owner’s daughter Sanae and demand the diamond as ransom. The brilliant private detective Akechi Kogorō is called in to prevent the kidnapping, but he may have met his match with the Black Lizard. The battle of wits between these two opponents in The Black Lizard is marvelous. Both are masters of disguise and both are extremely clever. A large portion of the novel consists of their daring and unexpected tactics as they try to out-think and stay several step ahead of each other. The plot of The Black Lizard take the readers through numerous twists and turns, some of which are difficult to believe but all of which are exciting.

Beast in the Shadows is told from the perspective of a detective novelist who accidentally becomes involved in a case surrounding his fellow mystery author Ōe Shundei. The novelist has fallen in love with Oyamada Shizuko, the wife of a wealthy entrepreneur, and it is for her sake that he begins investigating Shundei. Shundei is a misanthrope and stays out of the public eye so not much is known about the author. However, Shizuko has come to the determination that Ōe Shundei is the pen name of Hirata Ichirō, an ex-lover who has been harassing her and threatening her through letters. Hirata seems to have been spying on Shizuko and her husband and knows things about their private, intimate lives that no one else should. Instead of going to the police, Shizuko turns to the novels as her confidant in order to keep the matter discreet. Though shorter than The Black Lizard, Beast in the Shadows incorporates just as many surprising plot developments if not more, include a fantastic twist ending.

When I first started reading The Black Lizard and Beast in the Shadows I wondered why those two particular novels, other than being some of Rampo’s better known works of suspense, had been collected into a single volume. But by the end it became clear that there is one particular similarity between the two stories that tie them together thematically. I’m afraid that revealing it would spoil the mystery, though. However, I will say that the Black Lizard isn’t the only incredibly cunning character in the book. Another important element in both The Black Lizard and Beast in the Shadows is the role that fiction plays in the stories and specifically how crime inspires and influences fantasy and vice versa. This is particularly prominent in Beast in the Shadows where two primary characters are novelists, giving them a unique perspective on the investigation. But fiction is influential to The Black Lizard as well, Rampo’s very own short story “The Human Chair” being a pivotal reference. I already knew that I enjoy Rampo’s work, but I found The Black Lizard and Beast in the Shadows particularly fascinating because of the power granted to stories in the volume.

Attack on Titan, Vol. 12

April 18, 2014 by Sean Gaffney

By Hajime Isayama. Released in Japan by Kodansha, serialization ongoing in the magazine Bessatsu Shonen Magazine. Released in North America by Kodansha Comics.

We’ve had a lot of revelations in the last few volumes of Attack on Titan, revelations that the group really haven’t had time to take in what with the kidnappings, fleeing and screaming at each other. And we get one more big one at the end of this volume, as we discover the reason why Eren is so important to the Titan cause (and no, it’s not his temper). Mostly what this volume does, though, is strengthen and reinforce the themes of the series in a ‘battle to the death’ context: friendship vs. duty, love vs. safety, and what it means to be a human.

Let’s start with Ymir, who gets the largest picture on the cover, even if it’s in her titan form. Ymir’s devotion to Historia has been apparent almost from her first appearance, and this volume pretty much spells out how much Historia means to her – she’s willing to side with the rest of the Survey Corps unless Reiner and Bertolt can meet her demands. (This does lead to two of the only pieces of humor in the entire volume – first, when Historia delightedly spots Ymir’s titan only to go ‘eh?’ as she’s promptly swallowed in her mouth; and 2nd, Ymir’s defense of titans, where ‘eating people’ gets a Some Like It Hot response – nobody’s perfect!) Once Ymir and Historia are reunited, they spend no time in trying to out self-sacrifice one another, and Historia shows that the obsession is not merely a we-way street. (I’ll be using Historia, by the way, in the future, as this is the name she now wants to use for herself – Krista is a pseudonym.) In the end, though, they simply CAN’T be together, not right now.

As for Reiner and Bertolt, they’re still guilt ridden over what they had to do, and Bertolt screams out how they don’t enjoy killing anyone and that no one would choose to do this. This doesn’t stop them from needing to take Eren and Historia to the Titans. Armin, who is getting craftier (and more morally grey) with each volume, starts needling them about their comrade Annie, who Armin says is currently being tortured by the scientists back home. I’m not entirely sure this is true – in fact, I highly suspect it is false – but that doesn’t matter. Armin can see how torn the two of them are by what they’re doing, and uses it to his best advantage. God help us all if that boy turns evil.

Mikasa mostly spends this volume screaming and beating the crap out of people, but her most telling moment comes when she’s too injured to protect Eren anymore, and a Titan is upon them… the same Titan that ate Eren’s mother so many years ago. Mikasa tends to show her softer side only to Eren, and even then only when she senses one of them is near death. Here she wants to show Eren the depths of the familial love (I refuse to ship them, shut up) that she has for him. Speaking of familial love, they are both promptly rescued by the sacrifice of Hannes, who was important at the very beginning of this manga but has since fallen out of focus. It makes thematic sense that, after losing Eren’s mother, we would now see a father figure fall to the same titan. This does not make it any less depressing, though.

And so the long battle is over, and arguably our heroes won. Eren and Historia are back with the Survey Corps. Erwin lost an arm, but is alive. Reiner, Bertolt and Ymir got away to an uncertain future (it’s hinted Ymir may be walking to her death, something that she’s surprisingly OK with – Historia’s ‘goddess’ habit is rubbing off). Where do we go from here? I’m not sure, but this volume certainly will give readers more of what they like to see in this series. Still recommended. (Needs more Sasha, dammit. Where is she, anyway?)

Manga the Week of 4/23

April 17, 2014 by Sean Gaffney, MJ, Anna N, Ash Brown and Michelle Smith 2 Comments

SEAN: The 4th week of April brings us a variety of stuff, even if the majority comes from Yen Press, who always enjoy getting a week mostly to themselves (Viz usually owns Week 1 for this purpose).

There’s not nearly as much Korean manwha coming out these days, so I can actually highlight it when it does appear. This week sees the 15th volume of Bride of the Water God, which I believe the Manga Bookshelf team has greatly enjoyed in the past.

MJ: I am so happy that this series continues to be published! It’s beautiful.

ANNA: I’m fairly indifferent to this series. I thought the first two volumes were lovely, but the plot was so thin that the book didn’t maintain my interest at all. But good on Bride of the Water God for being one of the few surviving translated manwha series!

SEAN: There’s also the 31st volume of Gantz, which I believe the Manga Bookshelf team has not particularly enjoyed in the past, but whose collected costumes in all 31 volumes could power the rubber and lycra industries for the next twenty years.

ASH: I enjoyed the first five volumes or so, but never quite got around to reading more of the series. The length makes the prospect a little daunting at this point…

SEAN: Kodansha gives us the 9th volume of Animal Land, which, like Zatch Bell (by the same creator) I keep hearing good things about but can never quite get into.

ASH: It took me a few volumes to really get into Animal Land, but I’m looking forward to seeing where it goes.

SEAN: Vertical has the 9th volume of Flowers of Evil, which is ending next month in Japan, I believe, so we should be getting near a climax.

MJ: All right!

ASH: I’ve been waiting for this entire arc to be released before reading it. And now the wait is over!

SEAN: One of the most contested manga of the last few years comes to an end with Vol. 10 of Bunny Drop. I understand this volume mostly features chapters devoted to Rin as a child, but will also have a flashforward past the end of the series, so be warned in advance. I look forward to an post-series interview from Yen Press regarding this title!

MICHELLE: I’ll be reading it, for the sake of completeness if nothing else.

MJ: I’m rather looking forward to it.

ANNA: I dropped it after the third volume because I just found the plot squicky.

ASH: I’m interested in reading this volume. Some of Bunny Drop was incredibly well done. Other parts of it…not so much.

SEAN: Unless Yen decides to surprise me at Sakuracon by announcing the Dice-Killing optional epilogue, this is likely the final volume of Higurashi: When They Cry, containing the final two volumes from the Festival Accompanying Arc. This is, at last, the good end. Not a series I ever thought I’d read, I have since become totally obsessed with it, and thank Yen for exposing me to its charms. Nipaa~!

I’ve also been pleasantly surprised by Inu x Boku SS, which manages to be less moe than I feared and with dark undertones that are handled rather subtly. I am eagerly awaiting this new volume.

As for the 3rd volume of WataMote… all right, fine, No Matter How You Look At It, It’s You Guys’ Fault I’m Not Popular!, the key is to try to balance the excellent art, humor and characterization with the fact that reading about the lead too much makes you lose faith in humanity and possibly the will to live.

MICHELLE: Ugh, no thanks. Life’s too short.

MJ: Heh.

SEAN: Spice & Wolf’s novels have reached double digits, something which is entirely down to the economics examined through the series, and not at all for the moe and occasionally naked wolf-eared girls who also occupy the series. The novels recently ended with Vol. 17, so we’re over the halfway point.

ASH: I finally gave up on the novels a few volume back, but I’m glad that devoted fans are getting more of the series.

SEAN: I appear to be one of the few people out there who loved the first Sword Art Online manga omnibus, as those who had seen the anime and read the novels said it was very rushed. Luckily, here is the first novel so that I can compare them. I look forward to enjoying them even more. Wish Yen had the digital rights, though.

MJ: This is probably my most-anticipated release this week. I loved the anime adaptation of these novels, and I’m very excited to have the chance to read the source material!

SEAN: Lastly, we have the 2nd and final omnibus of the 3rd Umineko arc, Banquet of the Golden Witch. This should be the last of the truly doorstopping omnibuses – the series went from 5 volumes per arc to 6 after this, so further omnibuses will be 2-2-2 rather than 2.5/2.5. As for the content, after this ends you should have a lot more clues as to Beatrice’s true nature.

MICHELLE: Is that one kid still going “Uuu! Uuuuuu!!” all the time?

SEAN: She’s dead at this point in the arc (Umineko and Higurashi are the only two series where I can say that and have it not be a spoiler). The 4th arc will explore her life in depth, and explain the background of the “uu-uuu’ thing. It’s far more tragic and depressing than just an annoying tic. (Though admittedly, we aren’t there yet, and I admit it is a very annoying tic.)

What’s on your pull list from this group?

Eisner nominations and new Manga Competition!

April 17, 2014 by Brigid Alverson

The Mysterious Underground Men

The big news this week is the Eisner nominations. Here’s the list in the manga category (officially known as Best U.S. Edition of International Material—Asia):

The Heart of Thomas, by Moto Hagio (Fantagraphics)
The Mysterious Underground Men, by Osamu Tezuka (PictureBox)
Showa: A History of Japan, 1926–1939, by Shigeru Mizuki (Drawn & Quarterly)
Summit of the Gods, vol. 4, by Yemmakura Baku and Jiro Taniguchi (Fanfare/Ponent Mon)
Utsubora: The Story of a Novelist, by Asumiko Nakamura (Vertical)

If the choices seem pretty far from the mainstream, keep in mind that the Eisner judges have a difficult task (I was a judge in 2012 so I know this): You have to read a LOT of comics, and reading a series is a big investment of time; you’re looking for excellence, which implies literary quality; and you have to judge based on what came out in the nomination year, so even if you read a lot of series, you can’t consider the series as a whole, just a one-year slice. This biases the selection process heavily in favor of one-shots. All that said, I’d love to hear from you what you think the judges missed. I have my own opinions, which I’ll post eventually…

Attention creators! Entries are now being accepted for the Eighth International Manga Award.

Reviews

Leroy Douresseaux on vol. 60 of Bleach (The Comic Book Bin)
Mark Thomas on vol. 5 of Demon Love Spell (The Fandom Post)
Johanna Draper Carlson on vol. 5 of Happy Marriage?! (Comics Worth Reading)
Leroy Douresseaux on vol. 5 of Happy Marriage?! (I Reads You)
Johanna Draper Carlson on Insufficient Direction (Comics Worth Reading)
Kimi on vol. 6 of Itazura na Kiss (The Kimi-Chan Experience)
Leroy Douresseaux on vol. 11 of Library Wars (The Comic Book Bin)
Mark Thomas on vol. 2 of No Matter How You Look at It, It’s You Guys’ Fault I’m Not Popular (The Fandom Post)
Leroy Douresseaux on vol. 20 of Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan (The Comic Book Bin)
Jocelyne Allen on Sakuran (Brain Vs. Book)
Kristin on vol. 1 of What Did You Eat Yesterday? (Comic Attack)
Matthew Alexander on vol. 3 of Wolfsmund (The Fandom Post)