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By Satoko Kiyuduki. Released in Japan by Houbunsha, serialization ongoing in the magazine Manga Time Kirara Carat. Released in North America by Yen Press.

It may seem like forever, but in reality we’re getting two new volumes by Kiyuduki-san this fall, with this and the 3rd Shoulder-A-Coffin Kuro. This series ended up being far more popular in Japan (much to the consternation of Western fans, who I think prefer the darker Kuro), probably due to its dynamic – let’s face it, if every series you do with cute high school girls living their ordinary lives sells well, you’re going to want more of that. The artist does use this fourth volume to provide a bit more depth and characterization than we’d seen previously, though.

This series has always been compared with Sunshine Sketch (and not just over here – Japanese fanartists cross the two series over a lot), but GA is far more serious about its art. Previous volumes have dealt with color choice, textures, and lettering. This one has the color pages dealing with fashion from early to modern, and the chapters cover topics like the best way to convey water, how to get your model to not pose stiffly, and (in the best sequence) Kisaragi losing her glasses and seeing the rest of the cast as indistinct, vegetable-like shapes. For a 4-koma cutie series, the artist is not afraid to experiment within its boundaries.

Speaking of which, one series starring Noda, the flakey and eccentric girl, shatters the fourth wall in what turns out to be a long dreams sequence (which surprised me, as usually it’s Kisaragi who gets those sorts of stories). Noda, by the way, enjoys teasing Namiko, the straight woman of the group, about her weight and her larger chest. It was entertaining seeing that Namiko is starting to fight back in a deadpan way, and seeing Noda getting all upset is quite amusing, given she’s normally so hyperactive and cheery. Speaking of Namiko, she may be the perfect oneesama character to keep everyone else in check, but apparently her home ec skills show she’s not ready to be a perfect Japanese housewife just yet.

As for the third-year group that’s our secondary cast of GA characters, they get some nice spotlight time as well. Awara ends up wandering into said home ec class, and gets corralled into helping Kisaragi and Namiko make pasta. We also learn her eyesight is exceptional, almost preternaturally so. This is a contrast to the bespectacled Uozumi, who not only needs glasses but turns out to be color-blind (which, this being GA, leads to a discussion of how color-blind people see art and what Van Gogh painted). And in the final chapter of the volume, we see the sickly Tomokane brother, having passes out in the sun (his being sickly has been a plot point throughout) musing on the relationship between him and his sister (also Tomokane – the artist has deliberately avoided giving them first names) and how they contrast perfectly with each other. Not to mention how his sister apparently has psychic powers to know when he needs her help…

As I noted above, there are a ton of cute girl 4-koma series out there, even in North America. Most need something beyond the initial gimmick to keep you reading. And besides the bond between the cast members, humor, and occasional bits of character development, this series simply makes you more interested in art, and how artists see things. It’s great fun, and I’m pleased that we finally have the 4th volume. It’s coming out very slowly in Japan, though, so it may be a while before we see it again.

By Toru Fujisawa. Released in Japan as “Shonan Jun’ai Gumi” by Kodansha, serialized in the magazine Weekly Shonen Magazine. Released in North America by Vertical.

One of the things I’ve always liked about the GTO franchise, be it Shonan Jun’ai Gumi or GTO or Shonan 14 Days, is its insistence on taking responsibility for your own actions while at the same time not letting that destroy your dreams. Onizuka choosing to become a teacher may have had a lecherous motivation at the start, but it’s been proven time and time again that his ability to motivate jaded young minds and make them see there are other ways is second to none. And it’s also seen here in the earlier title, as we meet Nao Kadena, a former young punk who drove around in fast cars and on fast bikes (because there was nothing else to do, of course) who is now returning as a teacher in order to motivate these kids to get better grades… by any means necessary.

Onizuka here is fairly admirable throughout. Even if he’s attracted to Nao and thinking with his genitals as usual, he still notes that there’s something off about her, and resolves to dig a bit deeper and find out (and if he happens to see her naked, well, bonus). It’s this desire to understand and help others that makes him such an attractive shonen hero, and helps us to understand why girls actually do fall for him.

Then we have the second half of the book, which opens with a scene which reminds you why, even if he has a lot of girls falling for him, he’s still a virgin. After being mocked by Ryuuji, who is off for a secret date with Nagisa (still locked up by her parents, I believe), Onizuka decides to lose his virginity once and for all. So he climbs 12 stories up to Shinomi’s apartment, breaks into her bedroom, removes her panties and prepares to rape her in her sleep. Now, I know this was meant to be played for comedy. I also get that Shinomi woke up, beat the shit out of him, and that everyone regards him as a complete idiot for these actions. But holy crap, Shonen Magazine! What kind of heroes are you rolling out here?

Of course, we can also guess he probably wouldn’t have been able to go through with it. When he meets up with a genuinely cute girl later at a karaoke bar, who seems to be almost too good to be true. Taking her to a love hotel, he confesses his desire, and she’s willing to sleep with him… but is clearly doing it because he wants to, not due to any feeling on her part. This stops Onizuka cold, and he walks out, noting that he wants his first time to have some sort of love behind it. (That sound you heard was my neck breaking from the whiplash from three chapters ago to this point.) This touches her, and so over the course of the next few days the two begin a genuine romance – much to Shinomi’s annoyance (yes, she still has a crush on him despite everything).

Of course, the final pages seem to indicate that this romance won’t last. I’m not actually sure if this will end in a comedic way or will be another ‘Onizuka saves a lost soul and teaches them to dream again’ sort of climax. We will see in Vol. 15, the final volume in the series. Till then, enjoy Onizuka, seen here at his best and worst.

By Kenjiro Hata. Released in Japan as “Hayate no Gotoku!” by Shogakukan, serialization ongoing in the magazine Shonen Sunday. Released in North America by Viz.

In general, you find two types of Hayate fans when you look at your average message board discussing the series. Those who appreciate that this is, at heart, a comedic gag manga, and those who do not. To be fair, Hata does not make this easy for us. Indeed, Volumes 23-24 will be almost entirely gagless, as was Vol. 18. Hata brought this on himself by creating, as part of his comedy manga, a classic harem manga where you genuinely *don’t* have a clue which way it will eventually resolve. And the interaction of the girls with Hayate can be adorable, heartwarming, and fluffy. Thus, when Hata decides after a particularly shippy chapter to suddenly do something incredibly silly with Fumi, or a fanservicey plot that goes nowhere with Izumi and company, fans who want harem resolution (i.e., more Hinagiku and Maria) tend to get irritated.

Fortunately for the romance fans, Volume 20 should keep them very happy indeed. There are no real pointless gag chapters (though there is much humor), and lots of character development – well, the closest one gets in a title where nothing can be resolved. We open with the resolution of the Las Vegas story, as Wataru and Saki manage to finally get one over on his mother and escape. Wataru’s ambivalent feelings towards her are nicely portrayed – he acknowledges that she’s a horrible, immature person who is not ready to raise her son even though he’s a teenager – but she is still his mother, and should she show up at his door one day, he’d likely take her in.

Parents in Hayate tend to get a raw deal – there are no less than three different characters whose parents have saddled them with a huge amount of debt and run off, Nagi’s grandfather seems to be the main villain of the series, and Mikoto is happy to use and abuse even her own son. Interestingly, we also see far more of Nagi’s late mother (in flashbacks) in this volume than in any of the previous ones. She is the one exception – she’s allowed to be, as she is dead – and seems to be a kind and loving, if flakey, mother. I sometimes wonder if all the parents of our current gang knew each other growing up (it’s clear some of them did), and are taking it out on the next generation. Luckily, Hayate and company seem to be a bit more with it.

On the love front, Ayumu has drawn Hina out to where she can admit her love for Hayate openly as long as there’s no one else around. Progress! Of course, actual conversation with Hayate is still awkward – they both tend to put their foot in their mouth a lot – and she’s annoyed when she realizes that, because she’s strong and Hayate trusts her to take care of herself, he may not see her as feminine. As for Ayumu, she’s still the most mature of the cast, and gets to think what most North American harem fans don’t want to hear – that Nagi is the most important person in his life right now. (If Hayate resolves with a Nagi ending, by the way, watch this fandom crash and burn even faster than School Rumble and Negima did. This is why so many harems are unresolved…)

So now everyone’s in Greece, having fun and accidentally ending up in underground tunnels. You know, the usual vacation antics. If I recall correctly, we still have a ways to go before we get back to the serious Athena scenes (and yes, there are also folks who primarily read Hayate, a gag manga, for the serious parts), so when Vol. 21 comes out the usual six months from now, expect hijinks! Meanwhile, this is a great volume for fans of the series – though obviously a bad place for newcomers to jump in.