manga the week of

SEAN: The end of September brings some nice books, but also a long-awaited new volume of a beloved series, so let’s start with that.

Yen Press has Yotsuba&! 15! Do you know when the last Yotsuba&! came out? 2018, that’s when. Rejoice!

ASH: Ah! A great series to start us off with!

ANNA: Wow!

MICHELLE: When last we left off, Yotsuba and her dad were acquiring a car, so I look forward to some fresh new adventures.

MJ: Oh!!

SEAN: Yen Press also has A Certain Magical Index 24, Combatants Will Be Dispatched! 5, In Another World with My Smartphone 3, Love and Heart 3, Magia Record: Puella Magi Madoka Magica Side Story 3, and Star Wars: Rebels 2.

Apologies to Udon, who I forgot about last week. They have already out Steins;Gate 0 Volume 1, an alternate universe manga set after a Bad End from the original game. This is an omnibus of the first two volumes.

Square Enix has By the Grace of the Gods 3.

Seven Seas has been awfully quiet all month… TILL NOW. Get ready to be buried.

ASH: I am prepared.

SEAN: We start with the Bloom Into You Anthology, a collection of manga by various artists revolving around the cast of this yuri manga.

ASH: I like seeing these anthology volumes released. Once upon a time, seeing them licensed was somewhat rare.

SEAN: Hello World, the manga, is a complete in one omnibus retelling of the light novel. It ran in Ultra Jump.

Karate Survivor in Another World (Yajin Tensei) is a Dengeki Daioh title for those who wish that more isekai titles were like old-school Shonen Champion “teens fight” manga.

ASH: I am interested in portrayals of karate in manga, but am significantly less interested in isekai these days.

SEAN: The Masterful Cat Is Depressed Again Today (Dekiru Neko wa Kyou mo Yuuutsu) is from Kodansha’s Suiyoubi no Sirius, and is about a young woman who takes in a giant cat… who’s really good at nearly everything. Better than her, at any rate. Cats and comedy, love it.

ASH: Indeed! Love a good cat manga.

ANNA: Sounds promising.

MICHELLE: Ooh.

MJ: This sounds fantastic!

SEAN: The NPCs in this Village Sim Game Must Be Real! (Murazukuri Game no NPC ga Namami no Ningen to Shika Omoenai) runs in Young Ace Up, and is based on the novel. I enjoyed the novel much more than expected, so the manga should also be fun.

Reincarnated as a Dragon Hatchling (Tensei Shitara Dragon no Tamago Datta – Saikyou Igai Mezasa Nee) runs in Comic Earth Star, and is ALSO based on the novel. I didn’t read that one, but I assume it is cute and has dragons.

That is SIX debuts. Wow. We also get BL Metamorphosis 5 (the final volume), How to Build a Dungeon: Book of the Demon King 7, Mushoku Tensei: Roxy Gets Serious 6, Pandora in the Crimson Shell: Ghost Urn 14, She Professed Herself Pupil of the Wise Man 2, and We Swore to Meet in the Next Life and That’s When Things Got Weird! 3 (the final volume).

ASH: BL Metamorphosis is wonderful; I’m so glad that it was translated.

MJ: I never managed to start it, but now is the time!

SEAN: One Peace has the 16th manga volume for The Rising of the Shield Hero.

Kodansha gives us the first volume of the updated Eternal Edition re-release of Codename: Sailor V.

Also in print: Eden’s Zero 12, Fairy Tail: 100 Years Quest 8, Fire Force 24, Shikimori’s Not Just a Cutie 6, To Your Eternity 15, UQ Holder 23, and Witch Hat Atelier 8, the most important of those titles. (Please buy Witch Hat Atelier.)

ASH: Yes, please do! I’m a little behind in my reading, but To Your Eternity is a favorite of mine, too.

ANNA: Witch Hat Atelier is one of the few series I’m not behind on!

MICHELLE: I totally am!

MJ: I’m… I can’t even bear to speak of it.

SEAN: Digitally, our debut is The Girl, the Shovel, and the Evil Eye (Youjo to Scoop to Magan Ou), a Shonen Sirius title whose content is not as cute as it sounds. A man dies and is reincarnated as a worker in a mining camp, without any powers, even! But when he tries to help a bullied girl, will he have powers after all?

Also out digitally: Am I Actually the Strongest? 5, Back When You Called Us Devils 5, Chihiro-kun Only Has Eyes for Me 2, Fate/Grand Order -Epic of Remnant- Pseudo-Singularity III: The Stage of Carnage, Shimousa – Seven Duels of Swordmasters 3, The Great Cleric 7, Harem Marriage 9, Mr. Bride 2, Saint Cecilia and Pastor Lawrence 4, That’s My Atypical Girl 2, and What I Love About You 7. Half that list is just the title of the Fate book.

J-Novel Club has 4 debuts, three light novels and one manga. Dahlia in Bloom: Crafting a Fresh Start with Magical Tools (Madougushi Dahliya wa Utsumukanai) is a J-Novel Heart series about a woman who was isekai’d after overworking herself to death. She’s not a villainess… but she’s still dumped by her fiancee. She’s been trying to be quiet and get on with life… well, screw that. Now she resolves to make a career for herself.

Min-Maxing My TRPG Build in Another World (TRPG Player ga Isekai de Saikyou Build wo Mezasu) is a series that features, well, an isekai’d guy using game mechanics in another world, but apparently the audience for this is more 45-year-old D&D players than teen MMO gamers.

The Reincarnated Princess Spends Another Day Skipping Story Routes (Tensei Oujo wa Kyou mo Hata o Tatakioru) is a villainess otome game series from J-Novel Heart. In this game, most fans agreed that the support guys were better than the love interest. Our villainess is going after one… but the heroine is determined to stop her. We shall see.

Also out as a light novel: Campfire Cooking in Another World with My Absurd Skill 10.

On the manga front, we get the debut of My Instant Death Ability Is So Overpowered, No One in This Other World Stands a Chance Against Me! —AΩ—. Based on the light novel, it runs in Comic Earth Star.

We also get the 4th Record of Wortenia War.

Ghost Ship debuts Manga Diary of a Male Porn Star (AV Dan’yuu Hajimemashita), a Shinchosha title from Kurage Bunch about a young man who moves to Tokyo to enter the world of Adult Videos. It’s… harder than it looks. No pun intended.

ASH: I’ll admit to being curious.

MJ: Same.

SEAN: Cross Infinite World gives us Return from Death: I Kicked the Bucket and Now I’m Back at Square One With a Boyfriend Who Doesn’t Remember Me. As you might guess, it’s a Peggy-Sue story a la Tearmoon Empire, and the title is also the plot.

Lastly, we have Airship. In print, they debut She Professed Herself Pupil of the Wise Man, and we also get Classroom of the Elite 9 and The Hidden Dungeon Only I Can Enter 5.

And we get an early digital release of Berserk of Gluttony 4.

Ooof. The Suez is unstuck, folks, and the September of Quiet is over. What are you getting?

SEAN: Even the Delta variant cannot stop the flow of manga coming through.

ASH: Which is impressive, really.

SEAN: Airship, in print, gives us the third volume of Trapped in a Dating Sim: The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs.

For early digital titles, we get Mushoku Tensei 13 and Reincarnated As a Sword 9.

Ghost Ship gives us Parallel Paradise 6.

J-Novel Club has some new print titles, the biggest one of interest being the print debut of Tearmoon Empire. The story of a spoiled princess who, after being executed, finds herself in her 12-year-old self, I highly recommend it to all light novel readers.

ASH: I’ve been looking forward to giving this one a try now that it’ll be available in print!

SEAN: Also debuting is the manga version of The Unwanted Undead Adventurer.

They’ve also got Ascendance of a Bookworm’s 7th manga, Infinite Dendrogram Omnibus 3, and Marginal Operation 7.

In digital, we get the manga debut of The Emperor’s Lady-in-Waiting Is Wanted as a Bride. Also out in manga form: Black Summoner 4, Cooking with Wild Game 5, and The Master of Ragnarok & Blesser of Einherjar 6.

Light novels out next week include The Master of Ragnarok & Blesser of Einherjar 17, Seirei Gensouki 16, and Slayers 10.

Kodansha’s print debut is When Will Ayumu Make His Move? (Soredemo Ayumu wa Yosetekuru), from the author of Teasing Master Takagi-san. This is a Weekly Shonen Magazine title about a girl who is trying to get a guy to confess to her, and a guy who only wants to confess after he’s beaten her in shogi. As you guessed, he’s terrible at shogi. This seems fun.

ASH: That does sound like it could be fun.

MJ: Sounds fun indeed!

SEAN: In print, Kodansha has Bakemonogatari 10, The Daily Lives of High School Boys 7, Don’t Toy with Me, Miss Nagatoro 8, Drifting Dragons 9, Heaven’s Design Team 6, Living-Room Matsunaga-san 7, Peach Boy Riverside 2, Rent-a-Girlfriend 8, Sachi’s Monstrous Appetite 4, Star⇄Crossed!! 3, Sweat and Soap 9, and Those Not-So-Sweet Boys 4. Printer finally delivered the books, huh?

MICHELLE: Definitely looking to the shoujo offerings in that lot.

ASH: Ditto! I’m glad to see more Drifting Dragons in there, too.

SEAN: Digitally our debut is You’re My Cutie (Kawaii Nante Kiitenai!!), a new Betsufure series about a girl who loves manga about cute kohais falling for cool sempais. Then she meets her own kohai… and reality is not like the manga.

MICHELLE: Hm. Maybe.

MJ: What Michelle said.

SEAN: Also: Blue Lock 7, The Decagon House Murders 2, Dr. Ramune -Mysterious Disease Specialist- 5, In the Clear Moonlit Dusk 2, Living-Room Matsunaga-san 10, My Darling Next Door 3, Our Fake Marriage 7, Ran the Peerless Beauty 10 (the final volume), Will It Be the World or Her? 9 (also a final volume), and You Got Me, Sempai! 10 (also also a final volume).

MICHELLE: Must finish Ran the Peerless Beauty!

SEAN: Seven Seas debuts My Wife Has No Emotion (Boku no Tsuma wa Kanjou ga nai), a Comic Flapper title about a salaryman and his robot, and their growing closeness. Um…? Robot?

ASH: I will admit to being intrigued.

SEAN: Seven Seas also has The Dangers in My Heart 2.

Square Enix has The Apothecary Diaries 3 and The Strongest Sage with the Weakest Crest 5.

Tokyopop has Would You Like to be a Family? (Kazoku ni Nattemimasen ka?), a BL title from Gush about a soft-spoken man drawn into his loud co-worker’s life… complete with loud co-worker’s child. This looks sweet.

MICHELLE: Ooh.

SEAN: Viz gives us BEASTARS 14, Dead Dead Demon’s Dededede Destruction 10, Fist of the North Star 2, Hell’s Paradise: Jigokuraku 10, Maison Ikkoku Collector’s Edition 5, and The Way of the Househusband 6.

ANNA: Always glad for more Househusband.

ASH: Same! And I’m still super excited we’re getting Fist of the North Star, too.

SEAN: Actually, come to think of it, this IS less than usual. Manga, are you OK?

ANNA: I am concerned!

ASH: Supply chain disruptions are real!

SEAN: Gonna start reversing the list more often as, no offense to Seven Seas, I am tired of Airship getting the first image every week.

So we start with Yen On, who have a plethora of “delayed from August… and July” debuts for us! Four of them, in fact.

Bond and Book (Musubu to Hon) is a new series from the author of the Book Girl light novels, which I greatly enjoyed when they came out ages ago. Sadly, they came out before the LN boom, so sold poorly – I hope this does better. It seems to be a linked story series, as the books overall involve a young man who can “hear the voices of books”, and each book has him dealing with a specific problem. The first is called The Devotion of “The Surgery Room” (a short story by Japanese author Kyōka Izumi).

ASH: This sounds right up my alley. I, too, enjoyed what I read of Book Girl and I like book-ish type stories.

SEAN: Second we have If the RPG World Had Social Media… (Moshi Role Playing Game no Sekai ni SNS ga Attara), a series which I’m going to take a wild guess is a comedy. Would you challenge the demon lord via text?

Third we have Magistellus Bad Trip. A Certain Magical Index may be dead in North America, but that doesn’t mean we can’t have a new series by the same author. A VR city with gambling and high stakes is about to be taken by a young man and his succubus partner.

Lastly, we get a spinoff from The Irregular at Magic High School, the appropriately named The The Irregular at Magic High School. Seems to be more of a continuation than a legit spinoff – they’re even keeping the numbering, as this is Vol. 17. But it has to be a new series, I’m sure.

ASH: Huh! That’s an interesting way of doing it.

SEAN: Viz Media debuts Mao, the new Rumiko Takahashi series. This runs in Weekly Shonen Sunday, and is definitely a step back towards serious supernatural/horror themed stories.

MICHELLE: Kinda curious about this one.

ASH: Same!

MJ: And me!

SEAN: Also from Viz: a double shot of Kenjiro Hata, as we get Fly Me to the Moon 7 and Hayate the Combat Butler 38. Other than that, it’s tie-ins galore, as we see Kirby Manga Mania 2, Pokemon: Sun & Moon 11, Splatoon 13, The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess 9, and YO-KAI WATCH 18.

Tokyopop has A Gentle Noble’s Vacation Recommendation 4.

SuBLime debuts Black or White (Kuro ka Shiro ka), which runs in Kadokawa’s Emerald. Two actors who are typecast in roles they’d rather not be doing are secretly lovers.

ASH: I’m looking forward to giving this one a try.

MJ: That does sound interesting, actually.

SEAN: Also from SuBLime, we have Jealousy 4 and Given 6.

MICHELLE: I am so behind on Given already.

ASH: I’m a bit behind, too, despite enjoying the series!

SEAN: Square Enix has the 4th volume of A Man and His Cat.

MICHELLE: Yay!

MJ: Another yay!

SEAN: Another small week from Seven Seas. They have The Ideal Sponger Life 9, Plus-Sized Elf 7, and Reincarnated As a Sword 7.

One Peace debuts Multi-Mind Mayhem (Isekai Tensei Soudouki), based on the as yet unlicensed light novel. This story of a man with three different souls in his body – his own, a Japanese samurai, and a Japanese otaku – comes from Alpha Polis.

ASH: I am possibly intrigued.

SEAN: Kodansha, in print, has Orient 4 and A School Frozen in Time 3.

MICHELLE: I enjoyed the first volume of A School Frozen in Time.

ASH: I still need to read it, but I do have a copy!

SEAN: Digitally, as always, much more. Two debuts. Turns Out My Online Friend is My Real-Life Boss! (Online Game Nakama to Sashi Off shitara Shokuba no Onijoushi ga Kita) is a BL title from Ichijinsha’s Gateau, about a guy who tries to destress after days dealing with his evil boss by talking with a gaming friend online. then they meet up in real life and… yeah, you guessed it.

The other debuts is also BL and also from Ichijinsha’s Gateau. We’re On Our Own From Here (Konosaki wa Futarikiride) is a high school romance between two boys, spurred on by a girl seemingly confessing to one.

MICHELLE: This looks really cute!

MJ: I’m a sucker for this type of story.

SEAN: There’s also Abe-kun’s Got Me Now! 7, Ace of the Diamond 34, Giant Killing 26, Police in a Pod 4, The Springtime of My Life Began with You 4, Tokyo Revengers 22, We Must Never Fall in Love 8, and Yamaguchi-kun Isn’t So Bad 2.

MICHELLE: Lots of stuff here that I’m interested in! Mostly the sports, not gonna lie.

ASH: I’ll admit to being fond of sports manga, too.

SEAN: J-Novel Club debuts Dragon Daddy Diaries: A Girl Grows to Greatness (Totsuzen Papa ni Natta Saikyou Dragon no Kosodate Nikki: Kawaii Musume, Honobono to Ningenkai Saikyou ni Sodatsu), a title from the author of Sexiled and A Lily Blooms in Another World, so again, I would not worry about daddy-daughter issues here. This looks super cute, and is about what you’d expect: a dragon adopting and raising a human child.

ASH: Another book to add to the list to check out!

Also on the light novel tip from J-Novel Club: The Apothecary Diaries 3, Culinary Chronicles of the Court Flower 3, Perry Rhodan NEO 3, The Sidekick Never Gets the Girl, Let Alone the Protag’s Sister! 2, and A Wild Last Boss Appeared! 6.

Lastly we have Airship. In print, they’ve got How a Realist Hero Rebuilt the Kingdom 12 and Muscles Are Better Than Magic! 3.

Two early digital debuts. The Most Notorious “Talker” Runs the World’s Greatest Clan (Saikyou no Shien-shoku “Wajutsushi” Dearu ore wa Sekai Saikyou Kuran o Shitagaeru). Sigh. Weak. But really strong. Betrayed. Evil? Probably, but he’s our hero. Moving on.

Planet of the Orcs is from Kodansha’s Legend Novels line, and therefore I expect it to be pretentious as hell, even though when I look at the premise all I can do is sing “ORCS WITH GUNS!” to the tune of Duran Duran’s Girls on Film.

That’s a big chunk of stuff… but is it for you?

SEAN: It’s ALWAYS September, somewhere in manga land.

Airship has two digital first debuts. I’m the Evil Lord of an Intergalactic Empire! (Ore wa Seikan Kokka no Akutoku Ryōshu!) is from the author of The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs, and is about a guy who lost everything in his previous life resolving to be evil this time. In space.

ASH: I’m beginning to see another trend emerging.

ANNA: I wonder if there are skeleton lords of space.

SEAN: The other debut is A Tale of the Secret Saint (Tensei Shita Daiseijo wa, Seijo dearu Koto wo Hitakakusu). A knight on the verge of death recalls her past life… no, not from Japan. She was a powerful Saint, a profession that’s almost extinct. A very dangerous profession. Now she has to hide her reawakened skills… but they’re simply too useful! This looks good.

ANNA: This does sound interesting!

SEAN: In print, Airship debuts My Status as an Assassin Obviously Exceeds the Hero’s, which we discussed before.

They also have Accomplishments of the Duke’s Daughter 2.

Cross Infinite World gives us The Werewolf Count and the Trickster Tailor 2. (It got bumped.)

Ghost Ship has Yuuna and the Haunted Hot Springs 15.

Two new novel series from J-Novel Club. The first is Chillin’ in Another World with Level 2 Super Cheat Powers (Lv2 kara Cheat datta Moto Yuusha Kouho no Mattari Isekai Life), which makes me ill just typing it out. Guy has weak powers. Everyone hates him. Then he hits level 2. Suddenly he’s really strong. Men respect him. Women love him. Repeat as needed.

J-Novel Club’s second light novel debut is My Daughter Left the Nest and Returned an S-Rank Adventurer (Boukensha ni Naritai to Miyako ni Deteitta Musume ga S Rank ni Natteta), the story of a dad who watches as his adopted daughter grows up to be really, really strong. For those who see “daddy” and “adopted daughter” and run away screaming, we have been assured this title is free of *that* sort of thing, and it’s complete in Japan, so they were able to double check this time.

ASH: It does seem like it could be promising, then.

SEAN: Other light novels (Japanese or German) out next week: Der Werwolf: The Annals of Veight 12, Invaders of the Rokujouma!? 37, Jessica Bannister 2, Record of Wortenia War 12, Villainess: Reloaded! Blowing Away Bad Ends with Modern Weapons 2, and The World’s Least Interesting Master Swordsman 7.

The one digital manga title is Sweet Reincarnation 5.

Kodansha, in print, has Battle Angel Alita 2 (this is the reprint omnibus of the original series), and… that’s it.

Digitally, of course, there is much more. The debut is Sweet Sweet Revenge, and that’s its Japanese title as well. It runs in Kodansha’s Aria, and is by the author of Stupid Love Comedy, though I will try not to hold that against it. A girl has come to school to get revenge against 5 popular, handsome guys who did her wrong. Can she do it? This only ran two volumes, so signs pointing to no.

MICHELLE: Snerk.

ASH: Maybe she’s just very efficient.

ANNA: I could be inefficient and just read Boys over Flowers again.

SEAN: We also get A Condition Called Love 8, Girlfriend Girlfriend 5, I Was Reincarnated as the 7th Prince so I Can Take My Time Perfecting My Magical Ability 2, My Dearest Self with Malice Aforethought 8, Otherworldly Munchkin: Let’s Speedrun the Dungeon with Only 1 HP! 4, Smile Down the Runway 20, Watari-kun’s ****** Is about to Collapse 10, With the Sheikh in His Harem 5, and Ya Boy Kongming! 4.

MICHELLE: I should get caught up on A Condition Called Love. I enjoyed what I read of it.

SEAN: Seven Seas has only one title: the 14th volume of Saint Seiya: Saintia Shō.

Tokyopop debuts Springtime by the Window (Madogiwa no Aoiharu),a rare non-BL title from them these days. It’s shoujo from Shufu to Seikatsusha’s Comic PASH!, so add them to the list of publishers still speaking to Tokyopop. It’s a high school romance with multiple couples.

MICHELLE: Hm. Also two volumes, so presumably TOKYOPOP will manage to release the whole thing.

ANNA: *Pours one out for unfinished TOKYOPOP series, again.*

SEAN: Lastly we have Viz, whose debut is Star Wars: The High Republic: Edge of Balance. This is a manga-ish title that’s more of a tie-in, but I’ll count it because the artist also did Tiger & Bunny.

Also out from Viz: Boruto: Naruto Next Generations 12, Dr. STONE 18, Dragon Ball Super 14, Love Me Love Me Not 10, Mashle: Magic & Muscles 2, My Hero Academia 29, Prince Freya 5, Snow White with the Red Hair 15, Twin Star Exorcists 23, Undead Unluck 3, and Yakuza Lover 2.

ASH: I need to get a move on some of my reading before I fall even further behind!

ANNA: Me too, I’m excited for more shoujo and the insanity that is Yakuza Lover.

SEAN: What manga makes you yearn for the days of AOL?

SEAN: Wake me when August ends or September begins, because this is technically manga from the last week of August. The theme for this week is “it got bumped”.

ASH: That seems to be a fairly common theme these days.

SEAN: Airship has a digital-first debut. Disciple of the Lich: Or How I Was Cursed by the Gods and Dropped Into the Abyss! (Fushisha no Deshi ~Jashin no Fukyou wo Katte Naraku ni Otosareta Ore no Eiyuutan~) has our hero summoned to another world… and dropped at the bottommost dungeon with no powers. Fortunately he meets a girl who’ll protect him. Unfortunately, she’s undead. (It got bumped. Shut up. I am but one man. I can’t hold all these last-minute release date changes.)

ASH: I’m not sure anyone can, to be honest.

SEAN: Also out digital-first, The Strange Adventure of a Broke Mercenary 2.

In print, Airship has Kuma Kuma Kuma Bear 7.

Cross Infinite World has Vol. 2 of The Werewolf Count and the Trickster Tailor… no it doesn’t, it got bumped. ARGH. Moving on.

Denpa gives us Gambling Apocalypse: KAIJI 3. (It got bumped.)

ASH: Still happy to see it finally coming out!

SEAN: Ghost Ship debuts Desire Pandora (Yokubou Pandora), from GOT Corporation’s Comic ExE. This is a borderline hentai manga that has two fetishes: demons and armpits. I’m not sure it has much else.

MICHELLE: …

SEAN: J-Novel Club brings us, on the light novel end, Ascendance of a Bookworm 14, Altina the Sword Princess 10, Girls Kingdom 4, The Great Cleric 4, and The Holy Crown of Marielle Clarac (7th in that series).

J-Novel Club also has some digital manga. We get Ascendance of a Bookworm 9, An Archdemon’s Dilemma 6, The Faraway Paladin 6, I Love Yuri and Got Bodyswapped with a Fujoshi 4, and Seirei Gensouki 6.

In print, Kodansha Manga has Cells at Work! 6 (the final volume), Chasing After Aoi Koshiba 2, Land of the Lustrous 11, Perfect World 7, Shaman King Omnibus 4, Sweat and Soap 8, and What Did You Eat Yesterday? 16.

MICHELLE: Hooray for more Yoshinaga! I’m glad the wait between volumes has decreased a bit.

ASH: Hooray, indeed!

SEAN: Digitally, the debut is Mr. Bride (Watashi no Oyome-kun), a josei manga from Kiss. A woman who’s together at work but a complete slob at home is discovered by her co-worker, who refuses to let her messy house slide. Soon he’s … moving in with her? This looks cute.

MICHELLE: I’ll probably check this out at some point.

ANNA: I’m curious about this, for sure.

ASH: Ohhh, I am likewise intrigued!

SEAN: Also debuting is ONIMAI: I’m Now Your Sister!. Please see Manga the Week of 7/28/21 for details – it got bumped.

Also out digitally: Fate/Grand Order -Epic of Remnant- Pseudo-Singularity III: The Stage of Carnage, Shimousa – Seven Duels of Swordmasters 2, Magical Sempai 8 (the final volume), The Prince’s Romance Gambit 9, Saint Cecilia and Pastor Lawrence 3, A Sign of Affection 4, and Stellar Witch LIP☆S 3.

Seven Seas has Call to Adventure! Defeating Dungeons with a Skill Board (Bouken-ka ni Narou!: Skill Board de Dungeon Kouryaku), a Futabasha manga from their online site based on a webnovel about a guy … you know, just look at the title.

Also from Seven Seas: Failed Princesses 4 and The King of Fighters: A New Beginning 6 (the final volume).

Square Enix Manga debuts Otherside Picnic’s manga, based on the light novels being put out here by J-Novel Club. I love this series and can’t wait to read the manga.

ASH: I really need to give Otherwise Picnic a try.

SEAN: Yen On debuts Meikyuu: Labyrinth Kingdom, a Tactical Fantasy World Survival Guide (Meikyuu Kingdom: Damu Tokushu Butai SAS no Ossan no Isekai Dungeon Survival Manual!), which is a dungeon crawl isekai, but this time starring an experienced soldier.

Also from Yen On: The Devil Is a Part-Timer! 20, Do You Love Your Mom and Her Two-Hit Multi-Target Attacks? 10, The Genius Prince’s Guide to Raising a Nation Out of Debt (Hey, How About Treason?) 7, and You Call That Service? 4.

Lastly, Yen Press has new volumes. Black Butler 30, Dead Mount Death Play 6, If Witch, Then Which? 3 (the final volume), Kiniro Mosaic 11 (the final volume), Laid-Back Camp 10, and Little Miss P 3.

MICHELLE: I kind of forgot Black Butler even existed.

ASH: It has been more than a year since the last volume was released.

SEAN: What manga are you picking up, bumped or otherwise?

SEAN: It’s time to do the list backwards again! Which I do because I enjoy changing things up once in a while, and absolutely not just because I feel guilty that Yen Press never gets a cover art picture…

So let’s start with Yen Press, who debut Bungo Stray Dogs: Beast, a spinoff of the main series that runs in Shonen Ace. It focuses on Ryuunosuke Akutagawa.

ASH: Oh, interesting! I’ve fallen behind with Bungo Stray Dogs, but still greatly enjoy its premise and all the literary references.

Yen also has the 10th Goblin Slayer manga.

Yen On debuts Spy Classroom, which has gotten a lot of good buzz. A spy is tasked to train a crack squad into a top spy team… sadly, the words “crack squad” are used in the same way you might say “crack pairing”. They’re all useless! This should be fun.

Also from Yen On, we see the 8th volume of 86, The Angel Next Door Spoils Me Rotten 2, Durarara!! SH 2, I’ve Been Killing Slimes for 300 Years and Maxed Out My Level 10, and Konosuba: An Explosion on This Wonderful World! Bonus Story 2 (the final volume of this side story).

Viz Media has One Piece 97. Why it’s coming out this week, I’ve no idea. Get back to first week of the month where you belong!

MICHELLE: I’ve fallen a fair bit behind on One Piece, sadly.

ANNA: I’ve never even attempted it, but my kids have read through it twice courtesy of the Shonen Jump app.

SEAN: Square Enix Manga has Ragna Crimson 3.

Seven Seas’ first debut is Chillin’ in Another World with Level 2 Super Cheat Powers (Lv2 kara Cheat datta Moto Yuusha Kouho no Mattari Isekai Life), whose light novel J-Novel Club will be putting out. It runs in Comic Gardo. The plot makes me despair to type up. This guy is a summoned hero, but he’s really weak, so everyone hates and bullies him. Then he hits level 2, and all his cheat powers show up! I don’t think this quite goes “Now I’ll show them! I’ll show them ALL!”, but hey.

The other debut is Reborn as a Space Mercenary: I Woke Up Piloting the Strongest Starship! (Mezametara Saikyou Soubi to Uchuusen Mochi Datta node, Ikkodate Mezashite Youhei to Shite Jiyuu ni Ikitai). Airship already had the light novel version of this. If you enjoy “seems weak but actually strong” books but want them set in space, this might appeal. It runs on the Comic Walker website.

ASH: I think space could be a nice change of pace.

Seven Seas also has the 4th and final volume of A Certain Scientific Railgun: Astral Buddy, The Kingdoms of Ruin 3, Kuma Kuma Kuma Bear’s 5th manga volume, Love Me for Who I Am 4, Skeleton Knight in Another World’s 7th manga volume, and The Tale of the Outcasts 2.

MICHELLE: Oh, is Skeleton Knight another skeleton isekai?

ANNA: How many are there????

SEAN: (Yes, it is another example of skeleton isekai, though the most famous one is Overlord.)

ASH: Once you notice the skeletons, they’re everywhere! (I’m particularly fond of Skull-face Bookseller Honda-san, myself.)

SEAN: The only print release for Kodansha is the 6th omnibus of Saint Young Men.

ASH: Oh, that one’s for me!

MJ: Yes!

SEAN: Digitally, they debut Chihiro-kun Only Has Eyes for Me (Chihiro-kun wa, Atashi Holic), a Nakayoshi series about a girl who catches the eye of a fellow student and fashion designer. He wants her to model. He wants her to pose. He wants her to strip. He may be a little obsessed…

MICHELLE: Curious, I looked this up on Kodansha’s website. The first line in the blurb for volume two is “You have no right to refuse me doing this.” So, a big NO THANKS from me.

ANNA: Yeargh no thank you.

SEAN: Also out: Back When You Called Us Devils 4, DAYS 25, Harem Marriage 8, My Darling Next Door 2, and Quality Assurance in Another World 3.

MICHELLE: Gotta get caught up on DAYS!

SEAN: J-Novel Club gives us By the Grace of the Gods 8, The Emperor’s Lady-in-Waiting Is Wanted as a Bride 2, Guide to the Perfect Otaku Girlfriend: Roomies and Romance 3, The Ideal Sponger Life 4, and The Great Cleric 4.

Ghost Ship debuts Does a Hot Elf Live Next Door to You? (Otaku no Tonari wa Elf Desuka?), which runs in Kodansha’s Young Magazine. Japan is now having isekai elves and other types moving there to see what life is like. Our hero just wants to be a manga artist, but how can he when all these hot girls keep showing up and trying to seduce him? That’s rough, buddy…

MICHELLE: *snerk*

SEAN: Ghost Ship also has Call Girl in Another World 2.

Dark Horse has the 8th deluxe Berserk hardcover.

ASH: The Berserk are taking up a fair amount of my available shelf space, but they’re looking good doing it!

SEAN: Airship has a digital-first debut. Disciple of the Lich: Or How I Was Cursed by the Gods and Dropped Into the Abyss! (Fushisha no Deshi ~Jashin no Fukyou wo Katte Naraku ni Otosareta Ore no Eiyuutan~) has our hero summoned to another world… and dropped at the bottommost dungeon with no powers. Fortunately he meets a girl who’ll protect him. Unfortunately, she’s undead.

Also out early digital is Classroom of the Elite 9 and Monster Musume The Novel – Monster Girls on the Job! (yes, yes, it got bumped).

Did anything catch your eye here? Also, does anyone even notice that I go in alphabetical order by publisher anyway?

ASH: It may be the librarian in me, but I do!

SEAN: Mid-August, and I cannot confirm this, but I imagine it’s hot. At least here in North America. Australia might be saying something different.

Airship, in print, gives us Adachi and Shimamura 6 and Mushoku Tensei 12.

Digitally, the early debut is The Haunted Bookstore – Gateway to a Parallel Universe (Wagaya wa Kakuriyo no Kashi Honya-san), a fantasy about a girl who lives in a bookstore that caters to spirit people. Then one day she rescues a boy from an exorcist family! Can she convince him all spirits aren’t evil?

ASH: This appeals to me on multiple levels.

MJ: Okay, same.

SEAN: There’s also The Hidden Dungeon Only I Can Enter 5.

Cross Infinite World has a 2nd volume of the enjoyable but exhausting to say title Since I Was Abandoned After Reincarnating, I Will Cook With My Fluffy Friends: The Figurehead Queen Is Strongest At Her Own Pace.

Dark Horse has the 2nd and final What’s Michael: Fatcat Collection, rounding up the rest of what Dark Horse published from this classic 80s manga.

MICHELLE: Oh, hey! I was wondering what had happened with this.

ASH: Glad to see it finally coming out! I love the series and am happy to see it back in print.

MJ: Oh!!

SEAN: Ghost Ship debuts Shiori’s Diary (Shiori no Nikki), from Nihon Bungeisha’s Manga Goraku Special. A wife finds a diary showing evidence of her husband’s many affairs, so decides to start a diary of her own… and start having sex with others as well. From what I hear, this is more ‘high tone’ than Ghost Ship’s usual fare.

ASH: Huh!

SEAN: They’ve also got Destiny Lovers 7 and the final volume of Yokai Girls.

J-Novel Club has some nice print stuff for us this week. We get the debut in print of The Unwanted Undead Adventurer, which is a skeleton isekai, but this one is a kinder, gentler skeleton.

MICHELLE: I was not prepared for the existence of the skeleton isekai genre.

ANNA: Nor was I.

MJ: Well, huh.

SEAN: Also debuting in print is the manga omnibus of The Faraway Paladin (which is also getting an anime soon). If you ever wondered what Superman would be like in a high fantasy world, this is not far off. This has Vol. 1-2.

ASH: I’m still waiting for the original novels to be released in print (supposedly coming next year!), but I’ll take the manga in the meantime.

Also out in print: Ascendance of a Bookworm 9 (aka Part 3, Vol. 2); By the Grace of the Gods 5; In Another World with My Smartphone 17; and Otherside Picnic Omnibus 2, with Vol. 3-4.

Digitally, J-Novel Club has Can Someone Please Explain What’s Going On?! 6, Mapping: The Trash-Tier Skill That Got Me Into a Top-Tier Party 6, Otherside Picnic 5, Reincarnated as the Piggy Duke: This Time I’m Gonna Tell Her How I Feel! 2, and Sorcerous Stabber Orphen: The Wayward Journey 13.

In print, Kodansha brings us the latest Kaoru Yuki title, Beauty and the Beast of Paradise Lost (Rakuen no Bijo to Yajuu). This runs in Kodansha’s Palcy, and is probably in the artist’s usual genre of “is this romance, horror, or both?”.

MICHELLE: That cover is great.

ANNA: Good to see more Kaoru Yuki coming out.

ASH: Ooooh! Kaoru Yuki!

MJ: Oh, I’m so excited!

SEAN: They’ve also got That Wolf-Boy Is Mine! Omnibus 1, containing the first two volumes.

Also in print: Blue Period 4, the 16th and final volume of Boarding School Juliet, and Go with the Clouds, North-by-Northwest 5.

The digital debut may be more familiar to mystery fans: The Decagon House Murders (Jukkakukan no Satsujin), a manga based on the classic mystery novel. A mystery club travels to a remote island to solve an unsolved murder… but is this really all it seems? Umineko fans will find a lot of this rings a bell.

MICHELLE: I’m looking forward to this one!

ASH: Oh, nice! I enjoyed the novel, so will want to check the adaptation out, too.

SEAN: Also out: Cells NOT at Work 4, Nina the Starry Bride 4, Undead Girl Murder Farce 3, and Will It Be the World or Her? 8.

One Peace debuts a new title: I Belong to the Baddest Girl at School (Pashiri na Boku to Koi suru Banchou-san), a Kadokawa series from Young Ace Up. A boy is being used as an errand boy and bully victim by the girl gang leader of the school… or so he thinks. She’s actually trying (badly) to confess. I am always down for banchou girls.

ASH: Same!

SEAN: Also from One Peace, the 5th manga volume of The Reprise of the Spear Hero.

Seven Seas debuts Level 1 Demon Lord and One Room Hero (Lv1 Maou to One Room Yuusha), a title from Houbunsha’s Comic Fuz that seems to be part of the popular ‘demon lord in modern Japan’ genre.

They also have Slow Life In Another World (I Wish!) (Isekai de Slow Life o (Ganbou)), an Overlap series from Comic Gardo. A reincarnated guy does his best to avoid conflict in his new world… but he’s getting attacked, he’s getting slaves, and he’s getting more problems.

There’s also Akashic Records of Bastard Magic Instructor 12, The Ancient Magus’ Bride: Wizard’s Blue 3, Arifureta: from Commonplace to World’s Strongest 7th manga volume, Magical Angel Creamy Mami and the Spoiled Princess 2, School Zone Girls 2, Superwomen in Love! Honey Trap and Rapid Rabbit 2, and Thigh High: Reiwa Hanamaru Academy 2.

ASH: I’ll have to admit, despite greatly enjoying the original series, I have yet to actually try any of the spinoffs of The Ancient Magus’ Bride.

Viz has a new Junji Ito manga, Sensor. Is anyone else reminded of the days when an Arina Tanemura manga would come out from Viz every month? It seems like we’re at that point with Ito.

ANNA: I would like to read more Arina Tanemura manga!

ASH: As would I! And more Junji Ito for that matter.

SEAN: Also from Viz: Asadora! 3, Assassin’s Creed: Blade of Shao Jun 2, Golden Kamuy 23, Mobile Suit Gundam Thunderbolt 16, Urusei Yatsura Omnibus 11, and Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead 3.

Yen On debuts the print version of Megumi Hayashibara’s The Characters Taught Me Everything: Living Life One Episode at a Time, which had a digital version out a while back. This memoir is part talking about roles she’s had over the years and part self-help book.

ASH: I’m looking forward to this one.

SEAN: Yen On also has Baccano! 17, which wraps up the 1700s arc (and might seem familiar to anime fans), and Bottom-Tier Character Tomozaki 6.5, which, as you may have guessed from the number, is a short story volume.

What manga will you read no matter which continent you’re on?

SEAN: August continues. It’s still 2021, you know. Not 2022 yet, I promise.

ASH: I do sometimes wonder at what year it is, so I appreciate the clarification.

SEAN: Two print novels from Airship: Drugstore in Another World: The Slow Life of a Cheat Pharmacist 2 and Skeleton Knight in Another World 9.

In early digital news, we get two debuts. Monster Musume The Novel – Monster Girls on the Job! is pretty much exactly what it says.

ASH: Huh, I had missed that there was a novel, too.

SEAN: She Professed Herself Pupil of the Wise Man (Kenja no Deshi wo Nanoru Kenja) is about a gamer whose OP character is an old man. Then one day he falls asleep and wakes up in the world of the game… but he’s a young girl! What else can he do but pretend that she’s his disciple?

Denpa Books gives us Gambling Apocalypse: KAIJI 3.

ASH: Glad to see this coming out!

SEAN: Ghost Ship debuts Sundome!! Milky Way, a Shueisha series from Grand Jump about a salaryman who runs into an alien girl who wants to have his baby. The trouble is, when she gets embarrassed she reverts to her alien form. This is from the creator of Yokai Girls.

ASH: Not to be confused with the now out-of-print (though still available electronically) Sundome by Kazuto Okada.

SEAN: J-Novel Club has, in novels, Are You Okay With a Slightly Older Girlfriend? 4 and The Greatest Magicmaster’s Retirement Plan 10.

On the manga side, they debut Villainess: Reloaded! Blowing Away Bad Ends with Modern Weapons (Doushitemo Hametsushitakunai Akuyaku Reijou ga Gendai Heiki wo Te ni Shita Kekka ga Kore desu), whose light novel we’ve already seen. The manga runs in Suiyoubi no Sirius.

And we also get Record of Wortenia War’s 3rd manga.

In print, Kodansha has the 3rd volume of the delightful A Sign of Affection.

MICHELLE: I really will read this at some point.

ANNA: I love this series. It is one of the few series that I decided to get digitally because I didn’t want to wait for print.

ASH: I just recently picked up the first volume! I’m looking forward to giving the series a try.

SEAN: The digital debut is Yamaguchi-kun Isn’t So Bad (Yamaguchi-kun wa Warukunai), the story of a girl who finds the scary-looking classmate of hers is actually quite a kind person. It runs in Betsufure.

MICHELLE: I know this is a well-trodden shoujo genre, but dangit, I usually like these.

ANNA: Unsurprisingly, me too!

ASH: Saaaaaaame.

SEAN: They also have Are You Lost? 7, Cells at Work and Friends 5, A Couple of Cuckoos 5, Defying Kurosaki-kun 16, Giant Killing 25, and Police in a Pod 3.

MICHELLE: Insert perennial Giant Killing squee here.

ASH: I really enjoyed the anime; I still need to read the manga!

SEAN: A lot of debuts for Seven Seas. Chronicles of an Aristocrat Reborn in Another World (Tensei Kizoku no Isekai Boukenroku – Jichou o Shiranai Kamigami no Shito) is another “the title is the plot” isekai, and it runs in Mag Garden’s Beat’s.

I Got Caught Up In a Hero Summons, but the Other World was at Peace! (Yuusha Shoukan ni Makikomareta kedo, Isekai wa Heiwa deshita) is a Kadokawa series from Comp Ace. Our protagonist is accidentally transported due to a hero summons… but there’s no war? Demons are our friends? No adventuring either? Good thing there’s piles of girls to glom onto our potato of a lead guy!

Skip and Loafer is a series from Kodansha’s Afternoon about a country girl who thinks she is completely prepared for life in the big city!… She isn’t. This is award-nominated.

MICHELLE: This sounds fun! The cover is cute, too. Kind of has a Silver Spoon vibe.

ANNA: This does sound cute.

ASH: I am intrigued!

SEAN: Also from Seven Seas: Doughnuts Under a Crescent Moon 2, Failure Frame: I Became the Strongest and Annihilated Everything With Low-Level Spells 2, Harukana Receive 8, How Heavy Are the Dumbbells You Lift? 7, and Tamamo-chan’s a Fox! 3.

Square Enix has a 7th volume of Hi Score Girl.

SuBLime has a 2nd volume of horror BL series MADK.

ASH: I’m so far behind on so many series, but this one is higher up on the ever-growing pile of manga to be read.

Tokyopop gives us Glass Syndrome (Glasstaion Shoukougun), a one-shot BL manga about two teens who both have tons of issues and how they get together. It ran in Kaiousha’s Gush.

MICHELLE: Another nice cover.

ANNA: Tokyopop, you still can’t trick me.

SEAN: Viz has Call of the Night 3, Fullmetal Alchemist: Fullmetal Edition 14, Komi Can’t Communicate 14, the 7th volume of Persona 5, Radiant 14, and Sleepy Princess in the Demon Castle 15.

ASH: Some good selections in that list.

SEAN: Lastly, Yen Press has The Dark History of the Reincarnated Villainess 3, ID:Invaded #Brake-Broken 2, Love of Kill 3, Mint Chocolate 3, and Sasaki and Miyano 3.

What manga are you reading if you get transported to another world?

SEAN: August! Is there any dog manga?

MICHELLE: Guru Guru Pon-chan?

SEAN: Airship has two print debuts of light novels we’ve talked about before when the early digital came out: The Strange Adventure of a Broke Mercenary 1 and Loner Life in Another World 1.

Airship also has, in print, Didn’t I Say to Make My Abilities Average in the Next Life?! 13, Neon Genesis Evangelion ANIMA 5 (the final volume), and ROLL OVER AND DIE: I Will Fight for an Ordinary Life with My Love and Cursed Sword! 4.

Digital-first, the debut is The NPCs in this Village Sim Game Must Be Real! (Murazukuri Game no NPC ga Namami no Ningen to Shika Omoenai), a light novel about a NEET shut-in who gets a game in the mail featuring NPCs he can control and guide as their “god”. Trouble is, these NPCs feel very, very real. This is from the creator of Reborn as a Vending Machine, I Now Wander the Dungeon, so I’m more intrigued than I normally would be.

Also we have Muscles Are Better Than Magic! 3.

Dark Horse has a 3rd deluxe hardcover version of Blade of the Immortal.

Denpa Books has the 4th Pleasure & Corruption.

Ghost Ship debuts JK Haru Is a Sex Worker in Another World (JK Haru wa Isekai de Shoufu ni natta), the manga adaptation of the light novel that J-Novel Club released several years ago. A high schoolgirl and her creepy classmate are killed and reincarnated in another world. He’s an adventurer. She’s… not. Despite the description, if this is as good as the light novel, it should be well worth a read. It runs in Shinchosha’s Ufufu, which is quite a magazine title in itself.

J-Novel Club, for light novels, gives us I Shall Survive Using Potions! 7, My Instant Death Ability Is So Overpowered, No One in This Other World Stands a Chance Against Me! 9, and Slayers 9 – the first previously untranslated volume in the series.

On the manga end, we see Black Summoner 3, I Shall Survive Using Potions! 6, The Magic in This Other World Is Too Far Behind! 7, and Marginal Operation 8.

Kaiten Books has, digitally, a 2nd volume of Gacha Girls Corps.

Kodansha has a print debut that may seem a bit familiar: Battle Angel Alita is coming out with a new translation in paperback. This is the original version from 1990. It also sounds very familiar because I wrote this two weeks ago – it got bumped.

Also in print is Sachi’s Monstrous Appetite 3.

Kodansha’s digital debut is 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), a Magazine Pocket about a magic nerd reincarnated as the 7th prince… meaning he has tons of time to do nothing but research magic.

Also digitally, we see Chihayafuru 27, Drifting Dragons 10, My Dearest Self with Malice Aforethought 7, Shangri-La Frontier 3, With the Sheikh in His Harem 4, and Ya Boy Kongming! 3.

MICHELLE: Yay Chihayafuru!

ANNA: I’m so far behind!!!

SEAN: Seven Seas has three debuts. Happy Kanako’s Killer Life (Shiawase Kanako no Koroshiya Seikatsu) is a long-anticipated title from pixiv about an OL who accidentally finds she’s become a crack assassin… but what are morals when the pay and alcohol are good? I’ve seen some of this, and it’s hysterically funny.

MJ: Interesting???

SEAN: Pompo: The Cinéphile (Eiga Daisuki Pompo-san) runs in Media Factory’s Gene Pixiv, and stars a fantastic movie producer… who happens to look like a little girl.

Lastly, Trapped in a Dating Sim: The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs is a manga adaptation of the light novel (which we’ve already seen) which runs in Fujimi Shobo’s Dra-Dra-Sharp#.

Seven Seas also has Bite Maker: The King’s Omega 2, Days of Love at Seagull Villa 3 (a final volume), I Swear I Won’t Bother You Again! 2, Rozi in the Labyrinth 2, and Servamp 15.

Tokyopop has the 3rd volume of Laughing under the Clouds.

Viz debuts the start of the 5th arc of JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Golden Wind!

That said, the big story is what’s ending this week. We get Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba 23, Haikyu!! 45, and The Promised Neverland 20, all of which are the final volume. That said, Haikyu!! already has an After Story in Japan, and Demon Slayer became such a monstrous hit you know we haven’t seen the last of it. As for The Promised Neverland, I think it stands as a good example of why popular titles can sometimes fail if they run too long.

MICHELLE: I’ll finish The Promised Neverland, but of course my heart here belongs to Haikyu!!.

ANNA: There are many Haikyu!! fans in my household.

SEAN: Also from Viz: Black Clover 26, Chainsaw Man 6, Jujutsu Kaisen 11, Kaguya-sama: Love Is War 20, Kaze Hikaru 29 (!!), The King’s Beast 3, Snow White with the Red Hair 14, We Never Learn 17, and Yona of the Dawn 31.

MICHELLE: Oh, it’s Kaze Hikaru time again!

ANNA: Kaze Hikaru time is the best time of the year! I’m also excited for <Snow White with the Red Hair and of course Yona of the Dawn.

SEAN: Lastly, Yen Press has the 2nd Uncle from Another World.

Oof. Any highlights?

SEAN: The end of July should be quiet, right? Everyone’s on vacation, right? Right?

ASH: I actually will be on (a very much needed) vacation!

ANNA: Me too!

SEAN: Airship has the print edition of Reincarnated as a Dragon Hatchling 1, and an early digital for Accomplishments of the Duke’s Daughter 2.

Cross Infinite World has the 2nd volume of Mia and the Forbidden Medicine Report.

Denpa Books has a 2nd volume of Heavenly Delusion.

ASH: Nice to see this one finally coming out; it encountered some delays.

SEAN: Ghost Ship debuts Booty Royale: Never Go Down Without a Fight! (Hagure Idol Jigokuhen), which is coming out in 2-volume omnibuses and runs in Nihon Bungeisha’s Bessatsu Manga Goraku. A wannabe idol and karate expert is tricked into the adult entertainment industry, and forced to fight the sex equivalent of a death match game.

MICHELLE: …

ASH: Huh.

ANNA: Erm.

SEAN: J-Novel Club gives us The Faraway Paladin’s 5th manga volume, John Sinclair: Demon Hunter 3, Monster Tamer 5, Perry Rhodan NEO 2, and the 4th Sweet Reincarnation manga.

Kodansha’s print titles include the debut of Pretty Boy Detective Club (Bishounen Tanteidan). They’ve released the first three novels for this already, now we’re getting the manga, which has run in Aria, Palcy, AND Shonen Magazine Edge, so is sui generis. It’s about a middle schooler who gets caught up in a very strange club.

MICHELLE: The first novel didn’t thrill me, but that was largely because of the narrative style. Could be that I would enjoy it more as manga.

ASH: I’ve found that to be true of some of NISIOISIN’s other work as well; at times the stories seem better suited for manga (or anime) rather than prose.

SEAN: Also in print: Boys Run the Riot 2, CITY 12, I’m Standing on a Million Lives 10, Sweat and Soap 7, and Yuzu the Pet Vet 6.

ASH: Boys Run the Riot is high on my list. And this is a good reminder for me to give Sweat and Soap a try.

SEAN: Digitally we see two debuts. My Darling Next Door (Tonari no Otona-kun) is a Betsufure series about a high school girl who falls for an older salaryman who’s just moved next door. Hrm…

ONIMAI: I’m Now Your Sister! (Onii-chan wa Oshimai) runs in Ichijinsha’s Comic Rex, and is about a young man who is turned into a woman due to his mad scientist Little Sister. No comment.

We also see And Yet, You Are So Sweet 4, Back When You Called Us Devils 3, Harem Marriage 7, I’m Standing on a Million Lives 11 (print has nearly caught up), Quality Assurance in Another World 2, Saint Cecelia and Pastor Lawrence 2, Saint Young Men 12, She’s My Knight 2, The Slime Diaries: That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime 5, and the 10th volume of When We’re in Love, which is not a final volume but the series has gone on hiatus after this.

MICHELLE: Cue lamentations about being so far behind on everything.

SEAN: Seven Seas has a few debuts. I’m in Love with the Villainess is based on the light novel, and the digital version has been out for some time, but the print edition of the manga is now released.

ASH: Excellent.

SEAN: Seaside Stranger (Umibe no Étranger) is a BL story from Shodensha’s On Blue, about two men who bond with each other at a seaside town… only one of them isn’t staying long. Can they reconnect?

MICHELLE: I’m definitely looking forward to this one!

ASH: Same! I’ve heard good things.

ANNA: Sounds good.

SEAN: The Strange Adventure of a Broke Mercenary (Kuitsume Youhei no Gensou Kitan) runs in Hobby Japan’s Comic Fire, and is based on the light novel that Airship is releasing. A cynical merc finds it hard to change careers and become an adventurer.

Also from Seven Seas, Berserk of Gluttony 3, Blue Giant 5-6, My Senpai Is Annoying 5, the 5th and final volume of the PENGUINDRUM manga, and The Demon Girl Next Door 3.

ASH: For the most part, I’ve been enjoying what I’ve read of Blue Giant.

ANNA: I have yet to read the first volume, but I have it!

SEAN: Square Enix debuts The Great Jahy Will Not Be Defeated! (Jahy-sama wa Kujikenai!), the story of a demon lord whose mana crystal is shattered and who ends up powerless in the human world. Can she regain her power despite being small, weak and somewhat pathetic? This has an anime coming out this summer, and is, sigh, from the same writer as Breasts Are My Favorite Things in the World! and The Maid I Hired Recently Is Mysterious.

They’ve also got The Strongest Sage with the Weakest Crest 4.

Tentai Books gives us How to Melt the Ice Queen’s Heart (Koori no Reijou no Tokashi Kata), a light novel which seems to be a sweet high-school romance series.

Tokyopop has a 4th volume of Ossan Idol!.

Viz has a formerly print-only release now released to digital – all 19 omnibuses of it! If you haven’t heard of Ranma 1/2, I’m sorry, I don’t know what to tell you.

ASH: Ha!

ANNA: What an obscure title!

SEAN: They’ve also got a digital release of Jump title Ayakashi Triangle, a series so ecchi it can’t appear on the normal Jump app. It’s from the To-Love-Ru creator, natch.

Yen On gives us Combatants Will Be Dispatched! 6, The Executioner and Her Way of Life 2, Goblin Slayer 12, In the Land of Leadale 3, Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? 16, Rascal Does Not Dream of a Sister Home Alone (the 5th in the series), and Reign of the Seven Spellblades 3.

Yen Press debut? We’ve got it. Captivated, by You (Muchuu sa, Kimi ni) is a one-shot short story collection from Enterbrain’s Comic Beam about strange high school kids, and has won some awards. It’s also a hardcover release. Anyone seeing the words “Comic Beam” should have already added this to their buy list.

ASH: Ooooh, this does look good.

ANNA: Sign me up!

SEAN: Yen also has Cirque Du Freak: The Manga’s 3rd Omnibus re-release, Cocoon Entwined 3 (hair), IM: Great Priest Imhotep 10, Karneval 12, and RaW Hero 5.

Hey, that’s not quiet at all! What suits your tastes?

SEAN: July continues to exist, despite the best efforts of calendar cancellers. What manga do we have?

ASH: A fair bit, it would seem!

SEAN: Airship has digital-first releases for Adachi and Shimamura 6 and Kuma Kuma Kuma Bear 7. In print, they debut Reborn as a Space Mercenary: I Woke Up Piloting the Strongest Starship!, and we also get the 4th volume of The Invincible Shovel.

Ghost Ship debuts Call Girl in Another World (Isekai demo Fuuzokujou Yatte Mita). A sex worker who works at a soapland suddenly finds herself in another world! In order to return, well, if you guessed “she has to be a sex worker in this fantasy world”, you’re on the nose. This is NOT the same as JK Haru Is a Sex Worker in Another World, FYI, and I suspect is far more interested in the sex. It runs in Houbunsha’s Comic Trail.

J-Novel Club, first of all, has all the print books I mentioned two weeks ago – they were delayed due to ongoing shipping issues from the Suez Canal blockage earlier in the year.

ASH: It’s been a rather chaotic time for the shipping industry. (And just about every other industry, for that matter.)

SEAN: Digitally, we see Cooking with Wild Game 13, The Master of Ragnarok and Blesser of Einherjar 16, Tearmoon Empire 5, and the 5th volume of The White Cat’s Revenge as Plotted from the Dragon King’s Lap, which I thought was a final volume but there is apparently more coming from Japan. Tearmoon Empire is essential reading for shoujo light novel fans.

Kaiten Books has a lot of new print volumes for series that were previously digital. We get debuts for Gacha Girls Corps, UzaMaid: Our Maid Is Way Too Annoying!, and The Yakuza’s Guide to Babysitting.

They’ve also got the 2nd volume of The Yakuza’s Guide to Babysitting digitally.

Kodansha has a print debut that may seem a bit familiar: Battle Angel Alita is coming out with a new translation in paperback. This is the original version from 1990.

ASH: Interesting. I’d missed that this was going to be a new translation.

MJ: I guess I’m kind of interested.

SEAN: There’s also more Battle Angel Alita with the 7th volume of Mars Chronicle. And we get L*DK 16, the 14th and final volume of The Quintessential Quintuplets, Rent-a-Girlfriend 7, Sue and Tai-chan 3, To Your Eternity 14, and The Witch and the Beast 6.

ASH: To Your Eternity has my attention. (And probably the attention of even more people now that there’s an anime adaptation.)

MJ: Oh, hm. I may have to check it out.

SEAN: Digitally we get Saving Sweets for After-Hours (Sweets wa Teiji no Ato de). It’s from Kodansha’s Palcy, and stars a tall beauty who nevertheless has no romance in her life as men seem to want her to dominate them. Her fortunes change, however, when she meets a co-worker with a secret. This may appeal to Sweat and Soap fans.

Other E-Books: Blue Lock 5, Boss Wife 2, Cells at Work: Platelets! 3, the 4th and final volume of The Honey-blood Beauty & Her Vampire, I Guess I Became the Mother of the Great Demon King’s 10 Children in Another World 4, Kakafukaka 12 (also a final volume), Ran the Peerless Beauty 9, Undead Girl Murder Farce 2, We’re New at This 8, and Will It Be the World or Her? 7.

MICHELLE: I still need to get going on Blue Lock, but huzzah for more Ran the Peerless Beauty!

SEAN: One Peace has The New Gate 6.

Seven Seas has two debuts. The Dangers in My Heart (Boku no Kokoro no Yabai Yatsu) is an award-winning manga from Akita Shoten’s Manga Cross about the romance between a boy who pretends to be an edgy sociopath and the school beauty, who he longs for and who turns out to be a bit strange herself.

ASH: I am intrigued.

ANNA: Sounds like it might have potential.

MJ: Hm.

SEAN: The other debut is She Professed Herself Pupil of the Wise Man (Kenja no Deshi wo Nanoru Kenja), based on the light novel which Seven Seas has coming out in a month or so. A gamer is transported to the game world he loves… but not as the old, powerful wizard he played! He’s a cute girl instead. Can he get by pretending to be his own student?

We also get The Ancient Magus’ Bride: Jack Flash and the Faerie Case Files 3, Cutie and the Beast 3, and Otaku Elf 2.

Sol Press has Redefining the META at VRMMO Academy 4.

Tokyopop has a new BL one-shot, Chéri, My Destiny! (Cheri, Unmei no Hito!). This is from Kaiousha’s Gush, and is about a candy war that turns into passion.

Viz has two debuts. The first is a Jump series, so it’s odd to see it this late in the month. MASHLE: Magic & Muscles is about a world where everyone can use magic… except our hero. So he decides to bulk up instead. This has gotten pretty popular.

The other debut is long-awaited. No. 5, a Taiyo Matsumoto title from 2001 that ran in Shogakukan’s Ikki. Viz was putting it out at the time on their Ikki website, but when the various Ikki series didn’t sell great the site kinda floundered, and this was dropped. It’s back now, in Viz Signature edition. As for the plot, well, it’s Matsumoto doing After The Apocalypse.

ASH: I am so excited to see this being released! I’ve held onto my copies of the two volumes that previously made it into print but won’t hesitate to double-dip.

ANNA: Nice.

MJ: Oh!

SEAN: We also get BEASTARS 13, Children of the Whales 17, Hell’s Paradise: Jigokuraku 9, and RWBY: Official Manga Anthology 5.

Yen On has High School DxD 4, the 5th and final volume of Last Round Arthurs, So I’m a Spider, So What? 12, and Unnamed Memory 3.

Yen Press’ debut is The Whole of Humanity Has Gone Yuri Except for Me (Watashi Igai Jinrui Zenin Yuri), a Kadokawa title from Shonen Ace about a “normal” girl who suddenly finds herself in a world where there are only women. Can she find her way back to her own world? And what is “normal” anyway? This is complete in one omnibus.

Yen Press also has Solo Leveling 2.

ASH: I’ve heard good things about Solo Leveling, I should maybe check it out before I get too far behind.

SEAN: Chunky week. Anything appealing?

MICHELLE: I’m too inundated with everything I’m far behind on to find anything that appealing, to be honest!

ANNA: Me too!!

SEAN: Now that July 4th has come and gone and terrified all our dogs, what manga do we have to soothe us?

MICHELLE: My big tabby is also not a fan.

MJ: My cats are fine, but I’m traumatized.

SEAN: Airship, in print, has Hello World, a sci-fi one shot with a “fix your past to stop a tragic death” plot. Given Seven Seas also published orange, there’s a lot of this going around.

ASH: I did like orange, so I’m far from opposed to this particular premise.

ANNA: Somewhere I have the first volume of orange, unread.

SEAN: Also in print, Airship has Berserk of Gluttony 3.

Digitally, we get the 12th volume of Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation.

Denpa lists a debut on its website for next week: Lil’ Leo (Reo-kun). This one-shot cat manga is by Moto Hagio, famous for They Were Eleven, The Poe Clan, Otherworld Barbara, etc. This is about a cat who decides to go to school one day like the neighbor kid, then subsequently finds there’s nothing he can’t do. It ran in Flowers.

MICHELLE: Oooh.

ASH: I’m really looking forward to this one.

ANNA: Cool.

MJ: Moto Hagio and cats. What’s not to love?

SEAN: It’s a quiet week for J-Novel Club, as we have only Black Summoner 5 and Seirei Gensouki: Spirit Chronicles 15.

In print, Kodansha has Cardcaptor Sakura: Clear Card 9, Heaven’s Design Team 5, Toppu GP 5, and Yuri Is My Job! 7.

The digital debut is In the Clear Moonlit Dusk (Uruwashi no Yoi no Tsuki), a Dessert series from the creator of Daytime Shooting Star. The cover reminds me a bit of I Hate You More than Anyone!, and is about a “school prince” – female – meeting the other “school prince” – male.

MICHELLE: Looks fun!

ASH: It really could be!

ANNA: I really liked Daytime Shooting Star. so I’m curious about this.

MJ: Interested…

SEAN: We also get Ace of the Diamond 33, ASHIDAKA – The Iron Hero 3, Cells at Work: Baby! 3, The Dawn of the Witch 3, Giant Killing 24, Police in a Pod 2, Shaman King: Marcos 2, The Springtime of My Life Began with You 3, Tokyo Revengers 21, and the 6th and final volume of Vampire Dormitory.

MICHELLE: I really have to get caught up on Ace of the Diamond and Giant Killing. I like both a lot.

SEAN: Two debuts for Seven Seas. The Invincible Shovel (Scoop Musou: “Scoop Hadouhou!” (｀・ω・´)♂〓〓〓〓★(゜Д゜ ;;) .:∴DOGOoo) is the manga adaptation of the comedy light novel, and features shovels. So many shovels.

ASH: That title is kind of amazing.

ANNA: I don’t know what to think about anything anymore.

SEAN: The other is Mars Red, a manga from Comic Garden that had an anime recently, about a young reporter who meets a friend of hers who a) died years ago, and b) is now part of a vampire A-Team.

Also from Seven Seas: Gal Gohan 8 and The Hidden Dungeon Only I Can Enter 3.

Square Enix has a 4th volume of Soul Eater: The Perfect Edition.

SuBLime has a debut. Bad Boys, Happy Home (Dousei Yankee Akamatsu Seven) ran in Akita Shoten’s Kachi Comi, and features a high school punk who regularly picks fights with a homeless man… then, when the homeless man is kicked from where he normally sleeps, the punk offers up his own home!

ASH: I’ll admit, I’m curious.

SEAN: Viz Media gives us, at long last, the final 40th volume of RIN-NE. I admit I long since stopped reading this, but I hope everything works out for the dumb guy and the somewhat stoic girl who (presumably) loves him.

MICHELLE: I didn’t hate RIN-NE, but it’s true that nothing of consequence ever seems to happen.

SEAN: Viz also has Case Closed 79, Fly Me to the Moon 6, and Splatoon: Squid Kids Comedy Show 4.

Yen On has Goblin Slayer Side Story II: Dai Katana 2. They’ve also got a paperback reissue of The Miracles of the Namiya General Store.

ASH: I’m still happy that The Miracles of the Namiya General Store was translated.

SEAN: Yen Press debuts The Maid I Hired Recently Is Mysterious (Saikin Yatotta Maid ga Ayashii), a Gangan Joker title about a maid that teases the young boy who is her charge. Gonna be honest, this is by the author of Breasts Are My Favorite Things in the World!, and I hated that, so…

MJ: Yen Press staying on brand, I see.

SEAN: Also from Yen Press next week: Bungo Stray Dogs 19, Days on Fes 2, The Hero Is Overpowered But Overly Cautious 3, Horimiya 15, In Another World with My Smartphone 2, Interspecies Reviewers 5, Love and Heart 2, No Matter How I Look at It, It’s You Guys’ Fault I’m Not Popular! 18, Slasher Maidens 3, A Terrified Teacher at Ghoul School 10, To Save the World, Can You Wake Up the Morning After with a Demi-Human? 3, and The Vampire and His Pleasant Companions 3.

What manga makes you calm and tranquil?

SEAN: July! Manga! Too hot to be glib!

ASH: So, so hot in so, so many places.

SEAN: Airship, in print, has the debut of Accomplishments of the Duke’s Daughter. There’s also the 3rd volume of I’m in Love with the Villainess.

MICHELLE: I managed to read the first volume of I’m in Love with the Villainess recently! Definitely the best light novel I’ve tried so far.

ASH: I really need to get around to finally reading it myself; I’ve heard nothing but good things.

SEAN: Airship also has an early digital debut of a title we’ve seen the manga for already: My Status as an Assassin Obviously Exceeds the Hero’s. Take a wild guess at the premise. They’ve also got Trapped in a Dating Sim: The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs in early digital.

Ghost Ship debuts Devilish Darlings Portal Fantasy (Isekai Seikatsu no Susume), which ran in Takeshobo’s Kissca and is a one-shot. It’s basically an isekai with more nudity, though I hear it’s cuter than it sounds.

In print, J-Novel Club gives us Slayers, Vol. 1-3, a nice hardcover omnibus of the first three volumes of the classic series.

ASH: I know quite a few people who are looking forward to this release.

MJ: I didn’t know this was coming, but now I’m excited!

SEAN: They’ve also got Ascendance of a Bookworm’s 6th manga volume, How NOT to Summon a Demon Lord 13, I Shall Survive Using Potions!‘s 4th manga volume, Infinite Dendrogram 13, My Next Life As a Villainess 8, and a 2nd omnibus of Seirei Gensouki: Spirit Chronicles.

Digitally, we get not only Ascendance of a Bookworm’s 8th manga, but also the first volume of the Ascendance of a Bookworm fanbook. See illustrations, Q&A from the author, and a new short story! We also see Altina the Sword Princess 9, Culinary Chronicles of the Court Flower 2, Grimgar of Fantasy and Ash 17, My Friend’s Little Sister Has It In for Me! 3, and Record of Wortenia War 11.

ASH: It makes me happy that Ascendance of a Bookworm is doing well enough that we’re getting material beyond the main series.

SEAN: Kodansha, for print releases, has the 7th APOSIMZ, Fire Force 23, Orient 3, and Shaman King’s 3rd omnibus.

Digitally we get 2 debuts. Fate/Grand Order -Epic of Remnant- Pseudo-Singularity III: The Stage of Carnage, Shimousa – Seven Duels of Swordmasters exhausts me just to type out. It runs in Kodansha’s Magazine Pocket. The plot… is FGO.

ASH: That is quite the title.

SEAN: That’s My Atypical Girl (Asper Kanojo) is a seinen manga from Comic Days, and thanks for avoiding that Japanese title, I approve. A manga artist gets a visit from a fan who’s just a bit different.

Also out digitally: The final 7th volume of 1122: For a Happy Marriage, Bakemonogatari 9 (the print came out two weeks ago), Girlfriend, Girlfriend 4, Guilty 8, Living-Room Matsunaga-san 9, My Dearest Self with Malice Aforethought 6, Shaman King: The Super Star 5, Shikimori’s Not Just a Cutie 5, Smile Down the Runway 19, Those Snow-White Notes 8, With the Sheikh in His Harem 3, and Ya Boy Kongming! 2.

MICHELLE: I’ll be reading several of these digital releases.

SEAN: Seven Seas has two debuts. Great Pretender is a manga based on the Netflix anime, and runs in MAGCOMI. It’s not quite Leverage: The Manga but close.

The other debut we’ve technically seen before. Kageki Shoujo! ran for two years with Shueisha, and we saw that omnibus come out last year. Then it jumped ship to Hakusensha, where it runs in their josei magazine Melody. And this is the start of that run! Takarazuka fans will love this.

MICHELLE: Oh! I didn’t realize there was more coming. Nice.

ASH: Looking forward to reading more of this series!

MJ: Oh, hello!

ANNA: I need to read it!

SEAN: Also from Seven Seas: Dai Dark 2, Muscles Are Better Than Magic 2, Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation 13, The Saint’s Magic Power Is Omnipotent 3, and SUPER HxEROS 3.

ASH: I somehow actually haven’t managed to read the first volume yet, but hooray for more Dai Dark!

SEAN: Tokyopop has three titles: Her Royal Highness Seems to be Angry (Oujo Denka wa Oikari no You Desu) is the debut. The digital version came out a while back, and it runs in Overlap’s Comic Gardo. It’s sort of a reincarnation story AND a villainess story.

We also get Laughing Under the Clouds 2 and Futaribeya: A Room for Two 8.

No debuts for Viz, but we do get the final volume of Oresama Teacher. I know Nozaki-kun gets all the love, and rightly so, but this is also awesome, and I will miss it, even if it does end up going the teacher/childhood friend/sadist route.

MICHELLE: I admit I prefer Nozaki-kun, but I do intend to finish Oresama Teacher, too.

ASH: I need to catch up on Oresama Teacher, but I’ve greatly enjoyed what I’ve read so far.

ANNA: I also need to get caught up, but I have many stockpiled volumes.

SEAN: Also from Viz: D.Gray-Man 27, Dr. STONE 17, Idol Dreams 7, Love Me, Love Me Not 9, Moriarty the Patriot 4, My Hero Academia Vigilantes 10, Platinum End 13, Queen’s Quality 12, and Undead Unluck 2.

ASH: I’m behind but I’ve got my eyes on a few of these, too!

ANNA: I’m stoked for my very occasional volume of Idol Dreams especially!

SEAN: That’s it! Seems like less than usual? Have I gotten used to it?

SEAN: The end of the fiscal year! What books are just barely part of their publisher’s 20-21 financials?

Airship has an early digital title: Loner Life in Another World (Hitoribocchi no Isekai Kouryaku ~ Cheat Skill wa Urikiredatta ~), a title that may sound familiar as Kaiten Books has been putting out the manga. The premise is exactly what you’d expect, but I am actually giving this one a try, as I’ve heard the original Japanese is so impenetrable that even hardcore readers have trouble figuring it out. I want to see how the translators do.

ASH: It does sound as though they may be doing some heavy lifting!

SEAN: Airship also has Drugstore in Another World 2 (early digital) and Grimgar of Fantasy and Ash 15 (print).

Cross Infinite World has Apocalypse Bringer Mynoghra: World Conquest Starts with the Civilization of Ruin (Isekai Mokushiroku Mynoghra: Hametsu no Bunmei de Hajimeru Sekai Seifuku), a title that… does not sound like their usual sort of book. Our hero is an ill young man who ends up reincarnated… as an evil God. Overlord fans might enjoy this.

Two digital debuts for J-Novel Club. Reborn to Master the Blade: From Hero-King to Extraordinary Squire ♀ (Eiyu-oh, Bu wo Kiwameru tame Tensei su. Soshite, Sekai Saikyou no Minarai Kisi ♀) is the story of a hero-king who wants to live his next life as a warrior. He’s reincarnated… but as a noble daughter who’s ineligible to be a knight. What now?

ASH: Hmmm, that might have some potential?

MJ: This might be interesting.

SEAN: The other title is The Sidekick Never Gets the Girl, Let Alone the Protag’s Sister! (Shinyuu Mob no Ore ni Shujinkou no Imouto ga Horeru Wake ga Nai), the story of a former hero in a fantasy world reincarnated as a normal Japanese high school kid. He wants to be dull and normal, and let his handsome popular friend be the protagonist… then he meets said friend’s little sister.

Also out next week: Ascendance of a Bookworm 13, The Great Cleric 3, My Next Life As a Villainess 9, and A Wild Last Boss Appeared! 5.

ASH: Hooray, Bookworm!

A print debut for Kodansha with Peach Boy Riverside, which we’ve seen in digital-only format. A retelling of the Momotaro legend in fantasy world format.

ASH: A reimagining of Momotaro, you say? That completely slipped by me when it was released digitally.

SEAN: Also out in print: That Time I Got Reincarnated As a Slime 16 and UQ Holder 22.

Debuting digitally is Quality Assurance in Another World (Kono Sekai wa Fukanzen Sugiru), a Comic Days title about a young girl who meets a “Seeker”, someone who tries to fix problems in their world. But… just what *is* their world, anyway?

Also out is the 6th and final volume of Atsumori-kun’s Bride to Be, A Couple of Cuckoos 4, Heaven’s Design Team 6, I Fell in Love After School 8 (also a final volume), Seven Shakespeares 16, and Shojo FIGHT! 17.

MICHELLE: I have really enjoyed Atsumori-kun’s Bride to Be, and look forward to completing it. I liked I Fell in Love After School too, but haven’t read as much of that one.

SEAN: Seven Seas has If It’s for My Daughter, I’d Even Defeat a Demon Lord 6 (this is the manga), Magical Girl Site 15 and the 8th and final volume of Merman in My Tub.

ASH: Wow, it’s been a long time (a few years) since we last saw a new volume Merman in My Tub!

SEAN: Sol Press has the 4th and final volume of Why Shouldn’t a Detestable Demon Lord Fall in Love?!.

Yen On debuts The Detective Is Already Dead (Tantei wa Mou, Shinde Iru), the story of the sidekick to a famous detective. After said detective died, he theoretically returns to normal life… but then a girl shows up who looks an awful lot like the dead detective. This is supposedly excellent.

MICHELLE: Hm. I’m intrigued.

ANNA: I am as well!

ASH: Same!

MJ: And I!

SEAN: There’s also Bofuri: I Don’t Want to Get Hurt So I’ll Max Out My Defense 2, A Sister’s All You Need 10, and Suppose a Kid from the Last Dungeon Boonies Moved to a Starter Town 6.

The debut for Yen Press is Farewell to My Alter: Nio Nakatani Short Story Collection, which is what it says. By the creator of Bloom Into You.

Yen also gives us After School Bitchcraft 2, A Certain Magical Index 23, the 2nd and final Dear NOMAN, Heterogenia Linguistico 3, High School Prodigies Have It Easy Even in Another World! 10, the 11th and final The Honor Student at Magic High School, I Cannot Reach You 2, Kakegurui Twin 10, Love at Fourteen 10, Mieruko-chan 3, My Youth Romantic Comedy Is Wrong As I Expected 15, Play It Cool, Guys 2, Sacrificial Princess and the King of Beasts 13, the 3rd and final Strawberry Fields Once Again, Sword Art Online: Project Alicization 3, and Trinity Seven 23.

ASH: That’s quite the list!

SEAN: To balance your books, you need to buy more manga! What are you getting?

SEAN: June staggers on, despite all efforts to stop it.

ASH: That it does.

SEAN: Airship has print releases of Kuma Kuma Kuma Bear 6 and Classroom of the Elite 8. They’ve also got early digital releases for Neon Genesis Evangelion: ANIMA 5 (the final volume) and ROLL OVER AND DIE: I Will Fight for an Ordinary Life with My Love and Cursed Sword! 4.

J-Novel Club has some manga volumes out digitally, including the debut of Der Werwolf (Jinrou e no Tensei, Maou no Fukkan: Hajimari no Shou), based on the light novel. It runs in Comic Earth Star.

Also debuting in manga form is Welcome to Japan, Ms. Elf! (Nihon e Youkoso Elf-san), again based on the light novel. It runs in Comic Fire.

The light novel debut next week is Villainess: Reloaded! Blowing Away Bad Ends with Modern Weapons (Doushitemo Hametsu Shitakunai Akuyaku Reijou ga Gendai Heiki wo Tenishita Kekka ga Kore desu). Yes, a girl is reincarnated into the world of an otome game where she’s the villainess. Except… she was a huge military nut in her past life. Therefore, screw becoming a better person, she just needs MORE DAKKA. This is from the author of Her Majesty’s Swarm, and hopefully will interest me more than that one did.

ASH: It’s fascinating to see how these sub-sub-subgenres evolve.

SEAN: And there’s a J-Novel Pulp series debuting as well: Jessica Bannister and the Midnight Séance. Supernatural reporter!

Also out next week: the 12th and final volume of Full Metal Panic! and The Unwanted Undead Adventurer 8.

Kodansha has some print. There’s Bakemonogatari’s 9th manga volume, Blood on the Tracks 6 (yes, I know), Boarding School Juliet 15, Cardcaptor Sakura Collector’s Edition 8, Cells at Work: Baby! 2, The Daily Lives of High School Boys 6, Gleipnir 9, Grand Blue Dreaming 13, Love and Lies 10, Whisper Me a Love Song 3, and The Witch and the Beast 5. That’s a LOT, so don’t be surprised if you see some of these on the list for manga the week of July 7 with me saying “yes, I know” next to them.

ASH: That is a larger batch of print! (I’m not going to complain much about that, certainly.)

SEAN: Debuting digitally is Saint Cecilia and Pastor Lawrence (Shiro Seijo to Kuro Bokushi), a 4-koma series about a somewhat useless Saint and the Pastor who has to take care of her. It runs in Shonen Magazine R.

Also, we see Abe-kun’s Got Me Now! 6, And Yet, You Are So Sweet 3, Back When You Called Us Devils 2, DAYS 24, Harem Marriage 6, Those Snow White Notes 7, and When We’re in Love 9.

MICHELLE: I’ll be checking out a couple of these, at least.

SEAN: Debuting for Seven Seas is Sadako-san and Sadako-chan, a one-shot about the girl from the Ring getting introduced to the modern world – can you crawl out of a Youtube video? This ran in Comic Walker.

ASH: I’m curious about this one.

SEAN: Also out from Seven Seas: D-Frag! 15, Drugstore in Another World: The Slow Life of a Cheat Pharmacist 2, Magical Girl Spec-Ops Asuka 11, and Sorry for My Familiar 8.

Square Enix gives us a 4th volume of Suppose a Kid from the Last Dungeon Boonies Moved to a Starter Town.

The debut for Yen On got bumped, but there’s still some new light novels out next week from them. We get Death March to the Parallel World Rhapsody 14, The Greatest Demon Lord Is Reborn as a Typical Nobody 6, Haruhi Suzumiya 11 in print, Konosuba: God’s Blessing on This Wonderful World! 14, Re:ZERO -Starting Life in Another World- 16, Solo Leveling 2, Sword Art Online 22, Sword Art Online Alternative Gun Gale Online 9, and That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime 11.

Yen Press has two debuts. The first is the manga version of a light novel we’re getting in July. If the RPG World Had Social Media… (Moshi Role Playing Game no Sekai ni SNS ga Attara) runs in Dengeki Daioh “g”, and the premise is the title, as has been the norm lately.

The other is your name. The Official Visual Guide, which contains art, storyboards, character designs and interviews.

ASH: That should be a visual treat, if nothing else!

SEAN: Lastly, Yen also gives us I’ve Been Killing Slimes for 300 Years and Maxed Out My Level 6, The Royal Tutor 15, and Toilet-bound Hanako-kun 9.

ASH: I need to catch up with Toilet-bound Hanako-kun; I’ve really enjoyed what I’ve read of it so far.

SEAN: What manga is steamrolling over you without stopping?