Features

SEAN: Is it Halloween yet? No.

ASH: Just treats until then, right?

Airship has a print debut of one of my favorite 2022 light novels, Though I Am an Inept Villainess: Tale of the Butterfly-Rat Body Swap in the Maiden Court (Futsutsuka na Akujo de wa Gozaimasu ga – Sūgū Chōso Torikae Den). You may think “but I already read The Apothecary Diaries *and* Culinary Chronicles of the Court Flower, do I really need another of these?”. Yes. Yes, you do.

ASH: If those are comparable series, then that’s a solid recommendation.

SEAN: Digitally we see the early debut of Free Life Fantasy Online: Immortal Princess, whose manga Seven Seas has also released, so let me copy paste: A newbie gamer gets a new VR game from her younger sister… but her character build is horrible! Now she’s a zombie.

We also get the 2nd volume of Vivy Prototype.

Ghost Ship gives us a 4th volume of JK Haru is a Sex Worker in Another World.

J-Novel Club debuts Backstabbed in a Backwater Dungeon: My Trusted Companions Tried to Kill Me, But Thanks to the Gift of an Unlimited Gacha I Got LVL 9999 Friends and Am Out For Revenge on My Former Party Members and the World (Shinjiteita Nakama-tachi ni Dungeon Okuchi de Korosarekaketa ga Gift “Mugen Gacha” de Level 9999 no Nakama-tachi wo Te ni Irete Moto Party Member to Sekai ni Fukushuu & “Zamaa!” Shimasu!). I wish I was lying about that title. You’d think with a title like that it’s a parody, but I’m told it isn’t.

ASH: With a title that long, I’m not sure the novel would actually provide many more details.

SEAN: We also see Black Summoner’s 8th manga volume, Chillin’ in Another World with Level 2 Super Cheat Powers 8, D-Genesis: Three Years after the Dungeons Appeared 2, Housekeeping Mage from Another World: Making Your Adventures Feel Like Home! 3, John Sinclair: Demon Hunter 8, The Magic in this Other World is Too Far Behind!’s 9th manga, Sorcerous Stabber Orphen: The Wayward Journey 19, To Another World… with Land Mines! 4, and VTuber Legend: How I Went Viral after Forgetting to Turn Off My Stream 2.

Kodansha Manga has, in print, EDENS ZERO 19, Fire Force 29, and That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime: Trinity in Tempest 6.

Digitally there is more. We see And Yet, You Are So Sweet 6, Are You Lost? 10 (the final volume), Cardcaptor Sakura: Clear Card 12, Cells at Work! White Brigade 3, Doing His Best to Confess 3, Elegant Yokai Apartment Life 24, Gamaran 2, Golden Gold 5, I Guess I Became the Mother of the Great Demon King’s 10 Children in Another World 6, Medalist 5, A Serenade for Pretend Lovers 5, and She, Her Camera, and Her Seasons 3. Medalist is, as always, something everyone needs to read.

MICHELLE: I am going to start Medalist this week!

ANNA: I need to start it too!

SEAN: One Peace has a 5th manga volume of Higehiro: After Being Rejected, I Shaved and Took in a High School Runaway.

More piles of debut volumes for Seven Seas. CANDY AND CIGARETTES runs in Young Magazine the 3rd, and features a retired cop who needs a job to pay for his grandson’s medical treatment, so partners with… an 11-year-old killer?

ASH: Not a combo I would have expected.

SEAN: The Evil Secret Society of Cats (Aku no Himitsu Soushiki Neko) is from the publisher Eastpress, and their magazine Matogrosso. A group of cats try to show humanity they are to be feared… but shucks, they’re just so adorable! This is in full color.

ASH: Always ready to give cat manga a try.

ANNA: It sounds cute.

SEAN: I Got Fired as a Court Wizard so Now I’m Moving to the Country to Become a Magic Teacher (Kyuutei Mahou-shi Kubi ni Nattande, Inaka ni Kaette Mahou-ka no Sensei ni Narimasu) runs in Takeshobo’s Web Comic Gamma Plus. The plot is the title.

ASH: The premise could have potential.

SEAN: The Saint’s Magic Power is Omnipotent: The Other Saint (Seijo no Maryoku wa Bannou desu: Mou Hitori no Seijo) is a spinoff of the main light novel series, telling the story from the perspective of Airi. It runs in Kadokawa’s Flos Comic.

Also from Seven Seas: The Ancient Magus’ Bride: Wizard’s Blue 5, How Heavy Are the Dumbbells You Lift? 9, The Idaten Deities Know Only Peace 3, and The Tunnel to Summer, the Exit of Goodbyes: Ultramarine 2.

Square Enix Manga has Soul Eater: The Perfect Edition 8.

Tokyopop has a 2nd volume of Yuri Espoir.

Viz Media has a one-shot, Drip Drip (Bota Bota), with a …striking cover. A young woman can’t see anything she thinks is dirty without getting a massive nosebleed. Can she find love? This is from the creator of BEASTARS, which is likely the only reason we’re seeing it, and it ran in Manga Goraku.

ASH: That is quite the cover.

ANNA: I feel safe skipping this.

SEAN: We get the print debut of Mission: Yozakura Family (Yozakura-san Chi no Daisakusen), which is up to 14 volumes in Japan so it was hard to ignore any longer. It’s a Jump title, about a boy who ends up involved with a family of spies.

Speaking of Jump, The Shonen Jump Guide to Making Manga is what it sounds like, and features commentary from your favorite Jump artists.

Viz also has Children of the Whales 20, Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End 6, Mobile Suit Gundam Thunderbolt 18, My Hero Academia Box Set 1 (the first 20 volumes, with an exclusive booklet), Persona 5 9, Record of Ragnarok 4, Twin Star Exorcists 26, and Undead Unluck 9.

ANNA: I need to get caught up on Frieren.

SEAN: Yen On has a lot of ongoing favorites. Bofuri: I Don’t Want to Get Hurt, so I’ll Max Out My Defense 7, Date a Live 7, Dragon and Ceremony 3, The Girl I Saved on the Train Turned Out to Be My Childhood Friend 3, The Irregular at Magic High School 20, Magical Explorer: Reborn as a Side Character in a Fantasy Dating Sim 3, Magical Girl Raising Project 14, My Youth Romantic Comedy Is Wrong, As I Expected 14.5 (the final volume), Spy Classroom 4, Unnamed Memory 6 (the final volume), and Your Forma 2.

Yen Press has several debuts. The Executioner and Her Way of Life (Shokei Shoujo no Ikirumichi) is an adaptation of the popular light novel, running in Young Gangan.

I Kept Pressing the 100-Million-Year Button and Came Out on Top (Ichioku-nen Button wo Renda shita Ore wa, Kizuitara Saikyou ni Natteita: Rakudai Kenshi no Gakuin Musou) is an adaptation of the popular light novel, running in Young Ace Up.

Sasaki and Peeps: That Time I Got Dragged into a Psychic Battle in Modern Times While Trying to Enjoy a Relaxing Life in Another World ~Looks Like Magical Girls Are On Deck~ (Sasaki to Pi-chan: Isekai de Slow Life o Tanoshi Mou Toshitara, Gendai de Inou Battle ni Makikomareta Ken – Mahou Shoujo Up o Hajimeta You Desu) is an adaptation of the popular light novel, running in Shonen Ace Plus.

ASH: These titles…

SEAN: She Loves to Cook, and She Loves to Eat (Tsukuritai Onna to Tabetai Onna) has a woman make far too much food due to stress from work. Fortunately, her next-door neighbor loves food! This is apparently a yuri series, though slow burn. It runs in ASCII Mediaworks’ Comic It, and is not an adaptation of a popular light novel.

ASH: Slow burn yuri food manga, you say? I’m in!

We also get The Abandoned Empress 3, Banished from the Hero’s Party, I Decided to Live a Quiet Life in the Countryside 3, Chitose Is in the Ramune Bottle 2, Combatants Will Be Dispatched! 7, Daughter of the Emperor 2, The Geek Ex-Hitman 2, In the Land of Leadale 2, Kakegurui – Compulsive Gambler – 15, Kakegurui Twin 11, MonsTABOO 2, Nights with a Cat 2, and No Matter How I Look at It, It’s You Guys’ Fault I’m Not Popular! 20.

What manga are you reading? Is it based on the popular light novel?

SEAN: Manga the Week of is brought to you this week by Weetabix.

MICHELLE: I will never not associate Weetabix with Spike and Giles.

ASH: Now that you mention it!

SEAN: We start with Yen On, which gives us In the Land of Leadale 6, Magistellus Bad Trip 2, and Sasaki and Peeps 2.

While Yen Press has The Hero Laughs While Walking the Path of Vengeance a Second Time 2 and Kaiju Girl Caramelise 6.

ASH: Oh, I somehow didn’t realize that Kaiju Girl Caramelise was an ongoing series.

SEAN: Viz Media debuts Dandadan, a Shonen Jump + title. A boy believes in aliens, but thinks ghosts are the bunk. A girl in his school believes the exact opposite. Together they will discover… that aliens and ghosts are too spicy for Shonen Jump’s app, I can tell you that.

ASH: Ha!

Also from Viz: Case Closed 84, Kaiju No. 8 4, Komi Can’t Communicate 21, Sakamoto Days 4, and Splatoon 15.

Tokyopop has a shoujo debut, Formerly, the Fallen Daughter of the Duke (Moto, Ochikobore Koushaku Reijou desu). J-Novel Club releases the light novel of this. The manga runs in MAGCOMI. It’s essentially a Villainess story, even if the lead isn’t evil in the original.

They also have a new one-shot, Hyperventilation. This BL manwha features two guys who meet again at a high school reunion and rekindle things.

Titan Books debut Atom – The Beginning, which runs in Shogakukan’s Heros magazine. It is, as you may have guessed, a prequel to Tezuka’s Astro Boy.

ASH: I am intrigued.

SEAN: SuBLime has Black or White 5 and Moon & Sun 2 (the final volume).

ASH: Which reminds me that I’ve been meaning to read the first volume.

SEAN: Square Enix Manga gives us Beauty and the Feast 4, Hi Score Girl 9, and My Isekai Life 3.

Seven Seas once again has a number of debuts. Black and White: Tough Love at the Office (Shiro to Kuro) probably has that subtitle to set it apart from other manga with similar titles. Two women at the same office who can’t seem to stop a) beating the shit out of each other or b) having sex with each other have to team up to solve a mystery. It runs in Comic Ruelle.

ASH: Not the type of yuri series we often see.

SEAN: Hunting in Another World With My Elf Wife (Hokkaidou no Geneki Hunter ga Isekai ni Hourikoma Rete Mita – Elf Yome to Meguru Isekai Shuryou Life) is a MAGCOMI title. A hunter gets killed by a bear and ends up in a fantasy world… but he still has his shotgun!

SHWD is also from Comic Ruelle. It stands for Special Hazardous Waste Disposal, and has been described as “yuri buddy cop story meets horror”.

ASH: Another atypical combination!

SEAN: Seven Seas also has Cat Massage Therapy 3, Creepy Cat 4 (the final volume), The Duke of Death and His Maid 3, The Girl From the Other Side: Siúil, a Rún Deluxe Edition II, Kemono Jihen 2, Magic Artisan Dahlia Wilts No More 3, The Saint’s Magic Power is Omnipotent 6, and This Is Screwed Up, but I Was Reincarnated as a GIRL in Another World! 3.

MICHELLE: I enjoyed the first volume of Kemono Jihen so look forward to the second.

ASH: I’m buying The Girl From the Other Side again; the deluxe edition is lovely.

SEAN: One Peace Books debuts Usotoki Rhetoric, a Bessatsu Hana to Yume title (!) about a girl who can hear lies teaming up with a detective in the mid-1920s.

MICHELLE: Ooooh. This sounds potentially fun!

ASH: It does!

SEAN: They’ve also got I Belong to the Baddest Girl at School 5.

Kodansha debuts Last Gender (Last Gender: Nanimono demo nai Watashitachi), an LGBT title about a hidden bar where people can explore different sides of themselves. It ran in Evening Magazine.

ASH: My curiosity is piqued.

SEAN: And they also have Shonen Note: Boy Soprano, a Morning Two title from the creator of Shimanami Tasogare. A middle school student with a wonderful soprano voice runs into issues growing up. This has been nominated for awards.

MICHELLE: I’ll definitely be checking this out.

ASH: I’ve really been looking forward to this one, too.

SEAN: And they have this weird poster book/artbook/massive thing, AKIRA: Art of Wall.

Also in print: The Ghost in the Shell: The Human Algorithm 3, Island in a Puddle 4, Lovesick Ellie 6, The Seven Deadly Sins: Four Knights of the Apocalypse 5, and Something’s Wrong With Us 11.

Digitally, we see The Fable 7, Giant Killing 33, Girlfriend, Girlfriend 10, Medaka Kuroiwa is Impervious to My Charms 4, My Maid, Miss Kishi 4, Police in a Pod 17, Quality Assurance in Another World 6, The Shadows of Who We Once Were 5, Tokyo Revengers 27, and Vampire Dormitory 7.

MICHELLE: One day I really will succeed in getting caught up on Giant Killing.

SEAN: J-Novel Club has a light novel debut. Yuri Tama: From Third Wheel to Trifecta (Yuri no Ma ni Hasamareta Watashi ga, Ikioi de Futamata Shite Shimatta) features a girl who is best friends with her school’s yuri power couple. Sadly, that means everyone else hates her. She doesn’t like herself much either. Then… both of her friends, separately, ask her out. And she says yes. To both of them.

ASH: Oh, my!

SEAN: Also digital: The Apothecary Diaries 6, the 8th manga volume of An Archdemon’s Dilemma: How to Love Your Elf Bride, Full Metal Panic! Short Stories 2, In Another World With My Smartphone 26, My Quiet Blacksmith Life in Another World 4, and The Reincarnated Princess Spends Another Day Skipping Story Routes 5.

Drawn and Quarterly are reissuing all four volumes of Shigeru Mizuki’s Showa: A History of Japan, with new cover art, as well as single volume Onward Towards Our Noble Deaths.

ASH: Very glad to see Mizuki’s work staying in print.

SEAN: And now we jump to Airship, which has some print light novels. We see the print debut of The Case Files of Jeweler Richard. There’s also Berserk of Gluttony 7, Failure Frame: I Became the Strongest and Annihilated Everything With Low-Level Spells 5, and I’m in Love with the Villainess 5 (the final volume).

ASH: I’ve been waiting for The Case Files of Jeweler Richard.

SEAN: And in early digital we see I Swear I Won’t Bother You Again! 2, I’m the Evil Lord of an Intergalactic Empire! 3, and Kuma Kuma Kuma Bear 12.

Please enjoy this delicious manga made from whole grains. What are you eating next week?

SEAN: It’s October, so all your manga tastes like pumpkin spice. Go one, try a page.

MICHELLE: Why, it’s positively delightful!

SEAN: Airship first. After a long wait, mostly as the series switched publishers in Japan and new contracts needed to be written, we have the 14th volume of Didn’t I Say to Make My Abilities Average in the Next Life?!. This is print AND digital, so no early stuff here.

There is an early digital debut, though, with The Weakest Tamer Began a Journey to Pick Up Trash (Saijaku Tamer wa Gomihiroi no Tabi wo Hajimemashita). The premise sounds very similar to A Late Start Tamer’s Laid-Back Life, but we’ll see how this “my seemingly weak class and skills get me abused but they’re actually REALLY STRONG” series goes.

And we also have an early version of Survival in Another World with My Mistress! 3.

Cross Infinite World has a 2nd volume of I’d Rather Have a Cat than a Harem! Reincarnated into the World of an Otome Game as a Cat-loving Villainess.

Dark Horse Comics gives us Blade of the Immortal Deluxe Edition 7.

ASH: Like Dark Horse’s other deluxe editions, these are hefty but beautiful volumes. I’m happily upgrading my collection.

Ghost Ship has a 5th volume of Sundome!! Milky Way.

A bunch of print for J-Novel Club. We see Ascendance of a Bookworm’s 11th manga volume, By the Grace of the Gods 10, The Faraway Paladin’s 4th manga omnibus, In Another World With My Smartphone 24, Seirei Gensouki: Spirit Chronicles Omnibus 7, The Unwanted Undead Adventurer 8, and The White Cat’s Revenge as Plotted from the Dragon King’s Lap 5.

The debut from J-Novel Club is Seventh. It’s the story of a noble who ends up cast from their family after being publicly disgraced, forced to try to find a way to survive. The catch is that this isn’t a villainess series, the lead character is a Duke. And not a villain. Then again, that younger sister of his looks suspiciously like an otome game heroine…

ASH: Hmmm…

SEAN: Also digital: Ascendance of a Bookworm 21, Holmes of Kyoto 11, A Late-Start Tamer’s Laid-Back Life 4, My Friend’s Little Sister Has It In for Me! 8, My Stepmom’s Daughter Is My Ex 4, Sweet Reincarnation 7, Tearmoon Empire’s 2nd manga volume, and When Supernatural Battles Became Commonplace 4.

Kodansha’s print debut is Be Very Afraid of Kanako Inuki! (Inuki Kanako no Daikyoufu!), a horror one-shot from the “queen of horror manga”. This has several of her most famous short stories, designed to terrify young girls. They ran in various magazines.

ANNA: OK, stories designed to terrify young girls sound interesting.

ASH: I’m looking forward to giving this one a try. Always game for new horror manga.

SEAN: I forgot to mention, the author of these stories also did School Zone, a horror manga Dark Horse put out long, long ago which was reviewed by our own Kate Dacey. http://mangacritic.mangabookshelf.com/2010/10/24/my-10-favorite-spooky-manga/

ASH: Oh, that’s a manga in good company!

SEAN: Also in print: Grand Blue Dreaming 17, Orient 10, Peach Boy Riverside 8, Rent-a-Girlfriend 14, Sailor Moon Naoko Takeuchi Collection 4, That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime 20, and Wandance 2.

MICHELLE: The first volume of Wandance was a lot of fun.

SEAN: As for digital… keeping in mind I am working from secondary sources… the debut is Raised by the Demon Kings! (Sodatechi Maou!). If you can imagine Three Men and a Baby but with rival demon kings, you’ve got this one. It ran in Magazine Special.

Also digital: The Abandoned Reincarnation Sage 6, Changes of Heart 6, Chihayafuru 34, Desert Eagle 4, A Galaxy Next Door 3, The God-Tier Guardian and the Love of Six Princesses 2, I’ll Never Send a Selfie Again! 5, Kounodori: Dr. Stork 28, My Boyfriend in Orange 12, and Our Love Doesn’t Need a Happy Ending 3 (the final volume)

Some more debuts from Seven Seas. Free Life Fantasy Online: Immortal Princess (Jingai Hime-sama, Hajimemashita – Free Life Fantasy Online) is the manga version of a series that just had its light novel also licensed by Seven Seas. A newbie gamer gets a new VR game from her younger sister… but her character build is horrible! Now she’s a zombie.

Imaginary is a josei title from Rakuen Le Paradis. A young man reconnects with a childhood friend he never confessed to. Can he manage to bond with her anew?

MICHELLE: This looks potentially interesting!

ANNA: Yay for josei!

ASH: Yes, indeed!

SEAN: Night of the Living Cat runs in Comic Garden, and the premise is horrifyingly adorable. Instead of zombies, humans who pet cats become cats themselves!

ASH: Goodness!

SEAN: The Summer You Were There (Kimi to Tsuzuru Utakata) is a Comic Yuri Hine series from the creator of The Girl I Want is So Handsome!. A shy girl is a romance writer, but when her classmate gets her hands on a manuscript, she suggests more writing experience… by the two of them dating!

Tentai Books theoretically has print releases for some of their recent digital-only light novels. We see From Toxic Classmate to Girlfriend Goals 1, I Kissed my Girlfriend’s Little Sister?! 1, There’s No Way a Side Character Like Me Could Be Popular Right? 3, and You Like Me, Don’t You? So, Wanna Go Out With Me? 1.

Tokyopop has the 11th volume of Konohana Kitan.

Viz debuts Romantic Killer, a Shojo Beat romance series from Shonen Jump +. (There was a HUGE fight about this online, but look, it’s shoujo, get over where it ran. I can’t believe I’M the one saying that, but…) A girl who’s not all that interested in guys is moved to a virtual reality where there’s nothing BUT hot guys. I’ve heard this is quite fun.

ANNA: Wow, it must be difficult for her to be surrounded by so many hot guys.

SEAN: Also out next week: Boruto: Naruto Next Generations 15, Dr. STONE 23, Moriarty the Patriot 9, My Hero Academia 32, My Love Mix-Up! 5, Snow White with the Red Hair 21, and Yona of the Dawn 37.

MICHELLE: Gotta get caught up on the Shojo Beat titles!

ANNA: Me too! Always glad to see a new volume of Yona.

ASH: Same!

SEAN: Yen On debuts Sugar Apple Fairy Tale, a fantasy romance novel series from the creator of Culinary Chronicles of the Court Flower. The story of a candy crafter trying to become a Silver Sugar Master seems sweet as pie, but the “I’m purchasing a fairy, as they are treated like property in this world” will be a bar it’s going to have to clear.

ASH: The candy crafting side of things has potential, but… yeah.

SEAN: We also get Bottom-Tier Character Tomozaki 8.5, The Detective Is Already Dead 4, A Sister’s All You Need 13, Suppose a Kid from the Last Dungeon Boonies Moved to a Starter Town 10, and Wandering Witch: The Journey of Elaina 9.

Three debuts for Yen Press. Gahi-chan! runs in Comic Dengeki Daioh “g”, and has its sights firmly aimed at 14-year-old boys who love unrealistic body types. A manga artist finds his heroine has shown up on his door! She’s actually a yokai… who can eat his art and transform it into a suit of skin, which she then wears. Despite sounding like a horror premise, it’s an ecchi comedy.

ASH: The yokai part of that description caught my attention, but I’m not sure about the rest of it.

SEAN: Tsubaki-chou Lonely Planet is a shoujo title from Margaret, from the creator of Daytime Shooting Star. A girl whose father has put their family in debt finds a job as a housekeeper to a surly novelist. What’s worse, she has to live there.

MICHELLE: Interesting that Yen is picking up these Margaret titles. This is the second one, after No Longer Heroine.

ANNA: Cool, I’m curious about this.

SEAN: And Unnamed Memory is the manga adaptation of the wonderful light novel series. It runs in Comic Dengeki Daioh.

Also from Yen: Angels of Death Episode.0 4, Bungo Stray Dogs: Wan! 3, Chained Soldier 2, 86–EIGHTY-SIX 3, The Eminence in Shadow 5, The Fiancee Chosen by the Ring 2, Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? On the Side: Sword Oratoria 18, So I’m a Spider, So What? The Daily Lives of the Kumoko Sisters 4, Toilet-bound Hanako-kun 16, and Yowamushi Pedal 21.

ASH: I’m finally close to being caught up with Yowamushi Pedal and have been enjoying the ride.

SEAN: I guess EVERYONE finally got their manga back from the printers. What are you getting?

SEAN: Oh no, I’m awake, September must be ending!

Yen On is taking the week off, but we have some Yen Press manga. Dead Mount Death Play 8, Laid-Back Camp 12, Play It Cool, Guys 4, and Re:ZERO -Starting Life in Another World-, The Frozen Bond 2.

From Viz Media we debut a JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure spinoff, Thus Spoke Rohan Kishibe (Kishibe Rohan wa Ugokanai). This features a series of short stories starring the eccentric guy from Diamond Is Unbreakable, and is coming out in deluxe hardcover, same as the JJBA volumes.

ASH: I’m looking forward to this one; Rohan is an interesting and popular character. (And he was also my introduction to JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure as a whole.)

ANNA: Yep!

SEAN: We also see Fist of the North Star 6 and Fullmetal Alchemist: The Ties That Bind (another reissue of an FMA light novel).

ASH: Still very happy to see Fist of the North Star coming out!

SEAN: Tokyopop debuts On or Off, a BL manwha webtoon about the dangers of falling for your boss.

They also have the 2nd volume of supernatural BL series Fangs.

After a number of minimal weeks from Seven Seas, they got everything back from the printers this time around. We start with 7th Time Loop: The Villainess Enjoys a Carefree Life Married to Her Worst Enemy! (Loop 7-kaime no Akuyaku Reijou wa, Moto Tekikoku de Juukimama na Hanayome Seikatsu o Mankitsu Suru), a manga adaptation of the light novel series Seven Seas also released. It comes from Comic Gardo.

Cats and Sugar Bowls (Neko to Sugar Pot) is a collection of yuri-themed short stories by the same author, and is a single volume.

ASH: That sounds like it could be promising.

SEAN: A Chinese Fantasy: The Dragon King’s Daughter (Chuugoku Gensousen) runs in Futabasha’s Web Action, and is a series of classic Chinese folktales adopted into manga form.

ASH: Count me curious, for sure!

SEAN: Crossplay Love: Otaku x Punk (Josou Shite Mendokusai Koto ni Natteru Nekura to Yankee no Ryou Kataomoi), an LGBT comedy about two guys who want to visit a maid cafe, but only feel comfortable doing so dressed as girls. It’s from Mag Garden’s MAGXIV.

ASH: I am intrigued.

SEAN: Dinosaur Sanctuary (Dinosan) is from Shinchosha’s Comic Bunch, and asks what happens, after the events of “A Certain Movie”, to the other Dinosaur-themed zoos around the world?

ASH: That’s a fun premise.

SEAN: Lazy Dungeon Master (Zettai ni Hatarakitakunai Dungeon Master ga Damin wo Musaboru made) has had the novel coming out from J-Novel Club for a while now. Here’s the manga version, which runs in Comic Gardo.

Love is an Illusion! is a manwha webtoon that delves into the story of a guy who spends his whole life thinking he’s an alpha… till he runs into a real alpha who sees he’s just an omega deep down. BL, as you likely guessed.

Seven Seas also has The Case Files of Jeweler Richard 3, GIGANT 9, Hitomi-chan is Shy With Strangers 5, I’m in Love with the Villainess 3, Kiruru Kill Me 3, The Legend of Dororo and Hyakkimaru 5, Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation 15, No Matter What You Say, Furi-san is Scary! 4, and Skeleton Knight in Another World 9.

One Peace Books debuts The Death Mage (Yondome wa Iyana Shi Zokusei Majutsushi), a light novel about a young man who is tired of getting reincarnated and then dying all over again, and resolves to use his powers from previous lives to put a stop to that.

ASH: I can understand that feeling.

SEAN: From Kodansha Manga we get the debut of Miss Miyazen Would Love to Get Closer to You (Ochikadzuki ni Naritai Miyazen-san). This Gangan Joker series has a girl trying to get to know the school’s delinquent, despite him being terrible at, well, communication. We know this genre by now.

ANNA: OK, I know the genre but I also enjoy people falling in love with delinquents.

SEAN: Also in print: EDENS ZERO 18.

Digitally we see Altair: A Record of Battles 25, Burn the House Down 4, A Couple of Cuckoos 9, DAYS 31, My Tentative Name 3, My Wonderful World 3, Oh, Those Hanazono Twins 5, The Prince’s Romance Gambit 11, SHAMAN KING & a garden 3, Tesla Note 6, and That’s My Atypical Girl 6, which definitely won’t be getting the Feature Image this week.

MICHELLE: Okay, finally some stuff for me. I am really curious about Burn the House Down and desperately need to get caught up on DAYS.

SEAN: Two debuts from J-Novel Club. Re:RE — Reincarnator Executioner (Re:RE -Ri: Āruī- Tenseisha o Korosu Mono) is a dark fantasy about a father trying to get back his daughter, whose body has been possessed by the evil Reincarnators.

Our other debut is a one-shot from the author of How a Realist Hero Rebuilt the Kingdom. Yashiro-kun’s Guide to Going Solo (Yashiro-kun no Ohitorisama Kōza) is a reversal of books like Bottom-Tier Character Tomozaki – a trendy girl is asking the lone wolf how she can be more like him!

J-Novel Club also has Did I Seriously Just Get Reincarnated as My Gag Character?!’s 2nd manga volume, The Ideal Sponger Life 8, Record of Wortenia War’s 8th manga volume, and Welcome to Japan, Ms. Elf!’s 6th manga volume.

Ghost Ship gives us Booty Royale: Never Go Down Without a Fight! 7-8 and Desire Pandora 3.

Dark Horse Comics has the 10th omnibus of GANTZ.

ASH: That’s a series I’ve not thought about in a long while.

SEAN: Cross Infinite World has Surviving in Another World as a Villainess Fox Girl! (Scenario Nante Iranai! Rival Chara no Kitsunekko). This book has not one but TWO “reincarnated into an otome game” characters, each with different motivations to save their favorite character. Unfortunately, their plans don’t match up.

Airship debuts a new “beautifully depressing” novel from the creator of I Want to Eat Your Pancreas. I Will Forget This Feeling Someday (Kono Kimochi mo Itsuka Wasureru) is about a couple trying their hardest to BE a couple despite being from different dimensions.

ASH: I often enjoy novels of that type, though I’m not sure I’m feeling up to it at the moment.

SEAN: We also get early digital volumes of Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation 19 and Though I Am an Inept Villainess: Tale of the Butterfly-Rat Body Swap in the Maiden Court 2.

There’s a ton of stuff here, after the September of Barely Any Manga. What are you getting?

SEAN: OK, now it’s the first week of Autumn, and there’s even rain! A good week to read some manga!

ASH: Truly!

SEAN: Airship starts us off with print titles. The 2nd volume of Classroom of the Elite: Year 2, Monster Girl Doctor 9, and The Strange Adventure of a Broke Mercenary 5.

And their early digital titles are Reborn as a Space Mercenary: I Woke Up Piloting the Strongest Starship! 5 and The Strange Adventure of a Broke Mercenary 6.

ASH: A mercenary sort of week, it seems.

SEAN: After a 3-year wait, Fantagraphics finally gives us the 2nd and final omnibus of The Poe Clan.

MICHELLE: Just in time for spooky season.

ANNA: I still need to read the first volume of The Poe Clan, but I own it. Maybe I’ll do a Poe Clan binge for spooky season.

ASH: So glad to see this coming out!

MJ: Yes!

SEAN: Ghost Ship gives us DARLING in the FRANXX 5-6.

There’s two new J-Novel Club light novel series. The Conqueror from a Dying Kingdom (Horobi no Kuni no Seifukusha – Maou wa Sekai wo Seifuku suru you desu). A man dies and is reincarnated in another world. He has a loving family, a promising future, etc. But… he knows that eventually bad things are going to happen. Now he has to figure out how to fix it.

DUNGEON DIVE: Aim for the Deepest Level (Isekai Meikyuu no Saishinbu o Mezasou) is our other debut. For once our kid who wakes up in a fantasy dungeon is desperate to get back home… because he has an ailing sister in Japan to care for. His only chance is to reach the very bottom, where the rumor is any wish can be granted.

ASH: Both of those may have potentially interesting twists on the genre.

SEAN: Also coming out: Black Summoner 10, The Master of Ragnarok & Blesser of Einherjar 21, The Misfit of Demon King Academy 2, Record of Wortenia War 16, and Reincarnated as the Piggy Duke: This Time I’m Gonna Tell Her How I Feel! 7.

Kodansha Comics has precisely one print volume, and it is Blue Period 9.

The digital debut is Gamaran, a Weekly Shonen Magazine title from about 12 years ago that ran for 22 volumes, followed by an ongoing sequel. It’s a martial arts series, so any plot description will be secondary to TOURNAMENT ARCS!.

MICHELLE: Man, I am weak against tournament arcs!

MJ: Honestly, so am I…

SEAN: Also out next week: The Abandoned Reincarnation Sage 5, Anyway, I’m Falling in Love With You 4, Blue Lock 15, Chihiro-kun Only Has Eyes for Me 7, The Dawn of the Witch 5, Golden Gold 4, Hella Chill Monsters 3 (the final volume), Hozuki’s Coolheadedness 10, Mr. Bride 6, A Serenade for Pretend Lovers 4, Shaman King Marcos 4, She, Her Camera, and Her Seasons 2, The Untouchable Midori-kun 2, and We’re New at This 11.

MICHELLE: I am a recent and enthusiastic convert to Blue Lock, so I’m happy I now have thirteen volumes to marathon digitally.

ANNA: Woo!

SEAN: Seven Seas debuts Anti-Romance, a BL title from Gentosha’s Rutile about two young men who’ve lived together for six years but are not quite more than friends. This is from the creator of Blue Morning. Seven Seas’s edition has extra material.

MICHELLE: Blue Morning was great, so I’m looking forward to this.

ASH: Same! I’ve enjoyed every Shoko Hidaka manga that I’ve read so far.

MJ: So here for this.

SEAN: His Majesty the Demon King’s Housekeeper (Maou Heika no Osoji Gakari) is from Akita Shoten’s Princess, a magazine I am very happy to see licenses from again. A girl with cleaning magic is transported to another world under an anti-cleaning curse! This sure sounds like shoujo, all right. Hopefully we’ll see more than just housekeeping.

ANNA: I enjoy shoujo and demons!

ASH: It’s frequently a good combination.

SEAN: And then there’s more BL, as we also get Monotone Blue, a one-shot from Be x Boy GOLD. This is from the creator of The Girl from the Other Side, and is a high school romance between a cat and a lizard. Well, OK, a catboy and a lizardboy.

MICHELLE: Huh.

ANNA: OK, tentatively here for this.

ASH: I do tend to like Nagabe’s manga, so I plan on picking it up.

MJ: Um. Yes.

SEAN: In continuing volumes, we get She Professed Herself Pupil of the Wise Man 6.

Tokyopop finally updated its website, so I can tell you that we see the third volume of Mame Coordinate.

Viz debuts the print edition of Look Back, from the creator of Chainsaw Man. When this came out digitally, everyone I know read it and loved it. It’s about drawing manga, but be warned: the word “poignant” applies here.

ANNA: Poignant and from the creator of Chainsaw Man sounds like quite the combination.

SEAN: Also from Viz: Alice in Borderland 3, BEASTARS 20, Crazy Food Truck 2, Golden Kamuy 27, Hayate the Combat Butler 40, Maison Ikkoku: Collector’s Edition 9, Seraph of the End 25, and Spy x Family 8.

MICHELLE: Gotta get caught up with Spy x Family.

ANNA: Me too. My household loves the anime.

ASH: So far, I’ve really been enjoying that series.

MJ: Same here!

SEAN: Three titles from Yen On: Hazure Skill: The Guild Member with a Worthless Skill Is Actually a Legendary Assassin 4, The Vexations of a Shut-In Vampire Princess 2, and Sword Art Online 25.

Lastly, there’s Yen Press. The debut is Josee, the Tiger and the Fish, the manga adaptation of the novel (and movie). This is complete in one omnibus.

Also coming out: the 11th and final volume of Shibuya Goldfish, Solo Leveling 5, Tales of Wedding Rings 11, and The Wolf Never Sleeps 2.

This seems more like a normal week of manga. What are you getting?

SEAN: Has fall arrived yet? Certainly not QUITE here as of yet.

ASH: So close! I can’t wait.

SEAN: Yen Press is taking the week off, for the most part. No light novels, and only two manga. One of those is a debut, however. No Longer Heroine (Heroine Shikkaku) is a shoujo series from Betsuma. It’s also 12 years old, showing that yes, older titles can still be picked up. Our heroine is a childhood friend! She’s going to get married to her guy! Because childhood friends always win in Japanese series… right? Right? (cricket noises)

ANNA: OK, I have to admit my curiosity about slightly vintage shoujo.

MICHELLE: I typically like series from Margaret and its offshoots, so I’m cautiously optimistic about this one!

ASH: Count me interested, too!

SEAN: And we also get the 23rd volume of Triage X.

No debuts for Viz, but we get new volumes of Animal Crossing: New Horizons 3, Call of the Night 9, Dragon Quest: The Adventure of Dai 4, Fly Me to the Moon 13, Mao 7, Mashle: Magic and Muscles 8, Pokémon Adventures: X•Y 3, Rosen Blood 4, and Yakuza Lover 6.

ANNA: Some things here I need to get caught up on!

SEAN: SuBLime debuts Love Nest, a Dear+ series that’s actually another spinoff from Sayonara Game.

ASH: I still need to read that one.

SEAN: And they’ve also got the 5th and final volume of Jealousy.

There’s a new Steamship debut, Ladies on Top (Onnanoko ga Daicha Dame desu ka?). This Ura Sunday Jyoshibu series is about a 24-year-old OL who’s had a series of bad relationships because the guys take the lead. Then she starts dating a 28-year-old co-worker who likes aggressive women and awakens her hidden dom…

ASH: I haven’t read a Steamship title yet, but this one caught my attention, so it may be the first.

SEAN: Square Enix debuts the manga version of My Happy Marriage (Watashi no Shiawase na Kekkon), whose light novel Yen is putting out. It runs in Gangan Online. The light novel is excellent… but expect the title to be ironic, at least for the start.

ASH: It’s interesting to me how these cross-publisher titles seem to be happening more frequently these days.

SEAN: They’ve also got the 6th manga volume for The Apothecary Diaries.

ASH: Yay!

SEAN: Seven Seas has Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid in COLOR! – Chromatic Edition. This one-shot collects the best/funniest/most heartwarming scenes in the manga and does them in full color.

One Peace Books has the 19th volume of The Rising of the Shield Hero’s manga.

In print, Kodansha Manga has the debut of a series already out digitally, I Was Reincarnated as the 7th Prince so I Can Take My Time Perfecting My Magical Ability (Tensei Shitara dai Nana Ouji dattanode, Kimamani Majutsu o Kiwamemasu). It is what it sounds like.

There’s also the 2nd and final volume of A Silent Voice Complete Collector’s Edition.

ASH: I’m double-dipping for the additional content.

SEAN: Digitally, we see new volumes of Ace of the Diamond 39, The Fable 6, Falling Drowning 3 (the final volume), A Kiss with a Cat 4, My Maid, Miss Kishi 3, Police in a Pod 16, The Shadows of Who We Once Were 4, Shangri-La Frontier 7, and WIND BREAKER 6.

MICHELLE: I thought Falling Drowning was pretty interesting and look forward to completing it. And, of course, here’s my obligatory pledge to catch up on Ace of the Diamond.

SEAN: Kaiten Books has a digital release for the 7th manga volume of Loner Life in Another World.

Two light novel debuts for J-Novel Club. Death’s Daughter and the Ebony Blade (Shinigami ni Sodaterareta Shoujo wa Shikkoku no Tsurugi wo Mune ni Idaku) has a baby discovered by a mysterious person in the middle of nowhere. She is taught combat and magic… then her mystery benefactor disappears! Now she has to leave the middle of nowhere to find them. (The title perhaps gives away who the mystery person is.)

ASH: Spoilers!

SEAN: There’s also Formerly, the Fallen Daughter of the Duke (Moto, Ochikobore Koushaku Reijou desu). Our heroine is raised to be a mage and the fiancee to a prince… then all the magic talent goes to her sister, so she’s tossed aside. Now she tries to make her way as an adventurer… but wait. Why is she suddenly finding herself in modern-day Japan? Her life is a game? And she’s a side character? Like heck. She’s going to catch her own good end.

We also get a manga debut, Isekai Tensei: Recruited to Another World. This is the manga version of the light novel we’ve already talked about. It runs in MAGICOMI.

J-Novel Club also has Demon Lord, Retry! 8, Grimgar of Fantasy and Ash 18, Perry Rhodan NEO 9, Reborn to Master the Blade: From Hero-King to Extraordinary Squire ♀ 6, and the 2nd The Saga of Lioncourt manga.

Ghost Ship has a 4th volume for Into the Deepest, Most Unknowable Dungeon.

Cross Infinite World has a new title, The Saint’s Belated Happiness: Newly Single, Now Living with the Demon Prince (Iki Okure Seijo no Shiawase – Konyaku Hakisareta to Omottara Mazoku no Ouji-sama ni Dekiaisaretemasu!). The saint has spent years saving the world… so many years that she’s now 27, so her fiance the prince dumps her for being too old. Going home, she finds a young boy… with horns. Who rapidly grows up to be The Demon Prince. He probably cares less that she’s a Christmas Cake.

Airship, in print, has Accomplishments of the Duke’s Daughter 6.

Digitally, the early debut is The World’s Fastest Level Up (Sekai Saisoku no Level Up!). You’ll never believe this. This boy has a skill. But everyone thinks it’s useless and hates him. Then, he finds out it’s the most powerful skill ever! Now he’ll be the strongest with the help of hot pink-haired heroine and hot blue-haired heroine! … sigh.

There’s also the 3rd volume of Loner Life in Another World, which at least I know is not taking itself seriously. Mostly.

Is it me, or is print manga just in a massive lull? What are you getting next week?

SEAN: It’s September, and Manga Bookshelf doesn’t even have an AOL account. What are we going to do?

ASH: LOL

SEAN: Airship has early digital releases for the third volume of Classroom of the Elite: Year 2 and The Most Notorious “Talker” Runs the World’s Greatest Clan 3.

From J-Novel Club we get some print titles. Ascendance of a Bookworm 14, Marginal Operation 11, My Next Life As a Villainess 11, and The Unwanted Undead Adventurer 7 (manga version).

ASH: Obligatory, “Yay, Bookworm!”

SEAN: Digitally there’s Cooking with Wild Game 18, Culinary Chronicles of the Court Flower 7, a third volume of Demon Lord, Retry! R, and Seirei Gensouki: Spirit Chronicles 20.

Kodansha Manga has new titles. In print, there’s a debut of Shangri-La Frontier, which we saw the e-book of already. VR game stuff.

We also see The Hero Life of a (Self-Proclaimed) “Mediocre” Demon! 6, The Heroic Legend of Arslan 16, When Will Ayumu Make His Move? 7, and The Witch and the Beast 9.

Kodansha’s new digital title is The God-Tier Guardian and the Love of Six Princesses (Rokuhime wa Kami Goei ni Koi wo Suru), a shonen title from Suiyōbi no Sirius. A knight reincarnated to support his liege in her future life. Sadly… her soul is in six different people!

There’s also Abe-kun’s Got Me Now! 9, Changes of Heart 5, Desert Eagle 3, Drifting Dragons 12, Kounodori: Dr. Stork 27, My Idol Sits the Next Desk Over! 5, Our Love Doesn’t Need a Happy Ending 2, and Vampire Dormitory 9.

KUMA has The Song of Yoru & Asa Encore, a sequel to, well, The Song of Yoru & Asa. It’s complete in one volume, and ran in Takeshobo’s Qpa.

ASH: I still need to read the original volume, but I plan on picking this one up.

SEAN: Seven Seas had some date reshuffles recently, so we get one book. But it’s a debut! Correspondence from the End of the Universe (Hate no Shoutsuushin) is about a young Russian man who’s abducted from his life and his fiancee by aliens, who give him a 10-year mission! Nothing he can do but get down to it. This josei title ran in Comic PASH!.

MICHELLE: Huh. Well, it’s certainly a unique concept.

ASH: That, and josei!

ANNA: Sounds a little wacky, that might be a good thing.

SEAN: Square Enix manga has the 5th volume of By the Grace of the Gods.

Viz has several new volumes. We see Black Clover 30, The Elusive Samurai 2, Ghost Reaper Girl 2, Ima Koi: Now I’m in Love 3, Kubo Won’t Let Me Be Invisible 3, My Hero Academia: Vigilantes 13, Prince Freya 7, and Queen’s Quality 15.

MICHELLE: Several shoujo series here I still need to check out.

ASH: I’m a bit behind, but I’ve been enjoying Queen’s Quality.

ANNA: Me too, I need to get caught up.

SEAN: And we end with Yen. Yen On has Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? 17, Ishura 2, and Reign of the Seven Spellblades 6.

And Yen Press gives the people what they want: another PMMM spinoff. Magia Record: Puella Magi Madoka Magica Another Story focuses on Mami Tomoe and gives her stuff to do which the main series could not do because she became a meme instead. This runs in Comic Fuz.

There’s also The Magical Revolution of the Reincarnated Princess and the Genius Young Lady 2, Overlord 15, and Sword Art Online: Girls’ Ops 8 (the final volume).

Huh. That’s almost as tiny a week as this week. Did everyone spend money on textbooks rather than manga?

ASH: Could be!

SEAN: It’s a rare 5th week of the month! Like most 5th weeks, it’s light.

ASH: Even light weeks have plenty being released these days!

SEAN: Yen On has a bizarre release. We’re getting both the 2nd AND the 3rd volumes of The Hero Laughs While Walking the Path of Vengeance a Second Time.

ASH: Huh. Release schedule are still all over the place, aren’t they?

SEAN: And Yen Press gives us Lost Lad London 2, Love of Kill 9, The Other World’s Books Depend on the Bean Counter 2, Reign of the Seven Spellblades 4, That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime: The Ways of the Monster Nation 8 and Trinity Seven 26.

MICHELLE: I really, really liked the first volume of Lost Lad London and am excited for the arrival of the second! And wow, already up to volume two on the Bean Counter, huh?

ASH: It does seem like the first volume just came out.

SEAN: Seven Seas debuts SPRIGGAN: Deluxe Edition. Viz put out 3 volumes of this in the 1990s then cancelled it, now Seven Seas is trying again with 650-age omnibuses. The writer gave us Until Death Do Us Part, the artist Project Arms. It’s from Weekly Shonen Sunday, and is loaded with ancient artifacts and secret agents.

ANNA: I do find it interesting when we get license rescues like this, even though I’m sure the series I’m most interested in will never be printed again.

ASH: Same.

SEAN: Also from Seven Seas is PULSE, a yuri manwha webtoon that’s getting a print release here. A doctor who keeps her sexual relationships strictly for pleasure tuns into trouble when she meets a transplant patient who refuses to get the operation.

ASH: I’m not sure I’ve actually read a yuri manwha before! It’s exciting to have the opportunity.

SEAN: Also coming out: Chillin’ in Another World with Level 2 Super Cheat Powers 4, D-Frag! 16, The Girl in the Arcade 2, Necromance 4, Seaside Stranger 4, and Tokyo Revengers Omnibus 2.

Kodansha, in print, gives us Blackguard 4, Blue Lock 2, Cells at Work! CODE BLACK 8, Lovesick Ellie 5, and Something’s Wrong With Us 10.

MICHELLE: In addition to obligatory praise for Lovesick Ellie, I’m also hyped for more of Blue Lock, which turned out to be not at all what I had expected.

ASH: Guess I’ll need to check out both of those series!

SEAN: Digitally, we have Even Given the Worthless “Appraiser” Class, I’m Actually the Strongest 5, Guilty 10, Having an Idol-Loving Boyfriend is the Best! 2, I Was Reincarnated with OP Invincibility, so I’ll Beat ’em Up My Way as an Action-Adventurer 3 (the final volume), My Roomie Is a Dino 7 (also a final volume), My Tentative Name 2, My Unique Skill Makes Me OP even at Level 1 8, Oh, Those Hanazono Twins 4, and Peach Boy Riverside 11.

J-Novel Club debuts a digital light novel whose manga came out a couple of weeks ago: Oversummoned, Overpowered, and Over It! (Meccha Shoukan Sareta Ken), about a hero who can’t seem to stop getting summoned to save the day.

There’s also Black Summoner’s 7th manga volume, Infinite Dendrogram 18, Magic Knight of the Old Ways 3, Marginal Operation 14 (digital version), Sometimes Even Reality Is a Lie! 2, and the 5th and final manga volume of Villainess: Reloaded! Blowing Away Bad Ends with Modern Weapons.

Cross Infinite World has a 2nd volume of Even Dogs Go to Other Worlds: Life in Another World with My Beloved Hound.

Lastly, Airship has early digital releases for Irina: The Vampire Cosmonaut 2 and Modern Villainess: It’s Not Easy Building a Corporate Empire Before the Crash 2.

That’s it. Man, this feels more like a list from 2013 or something. Are you buying anything?

ANNA: Maybe not!