manga the week of

SEAN: Hope you like Viz, that’s all I can say. They have this week all to themselves.

Now that Bakuman is all over, there’s a giant Bakuman box set for those who missed it. Discover the secrets to Jump manga, and look askance at that line about a man’s dreams all over again!

MJ: Perhaps in the new set, that line will have been magically rewritten. :D

ASH: I actually haven’t read any of Bakuman, yet. Sounds like this would be a good time to get around to doing that.

SEAN: It’s been a while since we’ve seen Black Bird, and it’s ending soon, so I’ll be nice. It’s a powerful manga with the ability to win the hearts of many readers. Excellent pickup for Viz.

ANNA: I’m glad this is so popular for Viz, and also glad I stopped reading it because I didn’t care for it. There’s other, better supernatural manga out there, most of it also published by Viz.

MICHELLE: Oh, is it really ending soon? I had no idea. I really used to keep better track of these things!

MJ: I want to say “good riddance,” but… what will I have left to hate now? I feel bereft.

SEAN: (Dr. Forrester voice) Who… Who Will I Kill?

Bleach is up to Vol. 58. Expect the usual Bleach shenanigans, but I will note this volume had one of the best reveals in the entire series about a character’s past.

MICHELLE: I periodically get caught up with Bleach, but I probably wouldn’t if my local library didn’t carry it.

MJ: Well, now I wanna read it. Hm.

SEAN: Claymore has hit Vol. 23, which means everyone has to buy it, or Robert Anton Wilson will be sad.

MJ: Heh. (Also, I will be sad, but not because of 23.)

SEAN: I lost track of Dawn of the Arcana, apparently right about when it got really good. But I’m sure the others will tell me what I’ve been missing.

ANNA: It is good! It has an interesting low key vibe for a fantasy series. It reminds me of some of the stuff CMX used to put out, in a very good way.

MICHELLE: I can see that comparison!

ASH: I’ve been meaning to give Dawn of the Arcana a try. Comparing it to CMX’s series just moved it up on my list.

SEAN: The 6th Hana-Kimi omnibus has Vols. 16-18, so we’re about 3/4 of the way there. Had enough reverse harem shenanigans yet?

ANNA: There can NEVER be enough reverse-harem shenanigans!!!!!

SEAN: I was pleasantly surprised at Vol. 1 of Happy Marriage?!, whose lead male was not as jerk-like as I expected, so am looking forward to seeing if Vol. 2 can develop the heroine some more as well.

ANNA: This was like volume 1 except with additional super handsome men. No real reverse-harem shenanigans though.

MICHELLE: I liked it more than expected, and it’s quite manhwa-like!

MJ: I’m looking forward to this as well, to my own surprise.

SEAN: My Neighbor Totoro is one of the best and most beloved children’s movies of all time. What better present for your young child than a translation of the Totoro novel, with original illustrations by Miyazaki?

ANNA: This sounds nice!

MJ: Agreed!

ASH: Oh! I had completely forgotten this was coming out.

SEAN: Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan is in the middle of a smaller, quieter arc after the long, long, LONG Kyoto arc, so I’m expecting a calmer, gentler yokai with Vol. 17. I firmly believe my expectations will be ruthlessly shattered.

One Piece Omnibus 7 has some of the best volumes of the Alabasta arc, which is one of the best arcs, so you know that you have to get it if you haven’t already.

Rosario + Vampire II 12 is another of those very popular shonen series that I never really got past the first volume of so have nothing to say about.

And Sakura Hime 11 is the exact same thing, only on the shoujo side.

Slam Dunk 30, everyone! The penultimate volume! I’m going to guess there will be a basketball game of some sort.

ANNA: The most awesome basketball game ever! Seriously I love Slam Dunk.

MICHELLE: Me, too. I have been hoarding the recent volumes even though I’ve been so tempted by them. Is there any other sports manga now running? I can’t think of one…

ASH: I am so far behind with Slam Dunk, but it really is great. The only other sports manga I can think of that’s currently being published is Real, also about basketball and also by Takehiko Inoue (and one of my favorite series!)

MICHELLE: Oh, I had forgotten about Real! Possibly because it’s seinen, it doesn’t feel like traditional sports manga to me. I’d dearly love more Mitsuru Adachi, and I’d even buy the Prince of Tennis sequel, no matter how stupid it is.

SEAN: I’m not sure Adachi’s done basketball… he tends to stick with his one sport, although my own license dream, Rough, is a swimming manga.

MICHELLE: Oh, I definitely wasn’t thinking only basketball. Rough is the one I most want, too! :)

SEAN: Toriko 18 will no doubt make me hungry, have plausibly deniable homoerotic content, and feature some truly ridiculous animals.

ASH: I’m behind with Toriko, too, but I do get a kick out of the series.

SEAN: Lastly, and to the frustration of my trying to get the side images to look cool and not dangle off the edge of the article. we have the debut of the new series from Special A’s Maki Minami! Voice Over: Seiyuu Academy, is from Hana to Yume, so it already has a head start with me. Can’t wait.

ANNA: I liked this more than I thought I would, considering I did not care much for Special A.

MICHELLE: I enjoyed it, too. It’s pretty generic, but there was still something about it that compelled me to want to read volume two.

MJ: I’m with Michelle and Anna here, too.

SEAN: Is your favorite manga a voice actress?

SEAN: A surprisingly huge last week of the month. Shall we get right down to it?

Archaia has their new modern adaptation of Cyborg 009 debuting this week. I recall the old 60s series when Tokyopop took a flyer on it, and it was fun if very ‘a product of its time’. It’s a series that a modern retelling, getting rid of some of the racism and sexism, could really work wonders. Intriguing.

ASH: I’ve already got my copy of this one. I haven’t read it yet, but I can say this–Archaia’s Cyborg 009 has one of the coolest book designs that I’ve seen in quite a while.

SEAN: Kodansha continues the speedup of Attack on Titan with Vol. 7, which reminds you that the series can still be really, really brutal.

ASH: Yes it can! If Attack on Titan has one thing going for it, it’s the series’ intensity. And tragic deaths.

MICHELLE: I feel very wrong that “tragic deaths” has seriously made me consider Attack on Titan.

ANNA: I feel the same way. What is the ratio of tragic deaths to non-tragic deaths per volume?

MJ: I also would like to see some statistics on this. Yes.

SEAN: Also, lest you think there’s only omnibuses, there’s the 18th volume of Battle Angel Alita: Last Order.

And speaking of speedups, here’s Fairy Tail 30, which wraps up its very long S-class arc, and has a major plot shift that affects… well, not quite everything.

I admit I sometimes miss things coming out via Picturebox and their cadre of indie manga releases. Here’s a new one called World Map Room, which I know nothing about.

ASH: Picturebox is a publisher that has really caught my eye this year. I don’t always enjoy Yuichi Yokoyama’s manga, but I can certainly appreciate his draftsmanship and experimental work.

MJ: Agreed. I’m very interested in what they’re doing.

SEAN: I had assumed that Dictatorial Grimoire: Cinderella was another series from Quin Rose in the Alice in the Etc Etc. vein, but apparently not. This is from Media Factory’s oddball shoujo-ish Comic Gene, and is a Grimm’s Fairy Tales rewrite, in a way.

MICHELLE: Huh. I’m feeling a little oversaturated with fairy tail adaptations, though.

ANNA: I love fairy tale adaptations! Not sure if I will check it out although content from oddball shoujo-ish magazines sounds promising.

MJ: Well, huh. This does sound like my kind of thing!

SEAN: Alice in the Country of Clover: Cheshire Cat Waltz is almost finished, I believe, but not quite, so here’s more Boris and Vol. 6.

Mobile Suit Gundam: The Origin has been one of my most awaited titles of 2013, with every volume desperately needing to get into my hands as quickly as possible. Vol. 3 is called Ramba Ral!

ASH: I’ve been very impressed by Vertical’s edition of The Origin. It’s a great manga and a gorgeous release. Plus, I’m a fan of Yoshikazu Yasuhiko’s manga.

MICHELLE: I’m enjoying it, too!

ANNA: I am so happy that Vertical is putting out this series.

SEAN: If you’d told me a few years ago Vertical would be licensing a Young Animal title, I’d have laughed. But here we are. Sickness Unto Death is along the lines of Flowers of Evil, but only 2 short volumes. The first ships this week.

ASH: I’m very curious about this one.

MICHELLE: I don’t know what to think about it.

MJ: I’m always interested in what Vertical has to offer, so count me in!

SEAN: Are You Alice? has a 2nd volume that may potentially have something comprehensible happen, which Vol. 1 lacked, in my opinion.

And The Betrayal Knows My Name, a series that feels like it should be Wings but is instead in Asuka (which is becoming the new Wings), hits Vol. 6, and has lots of reincarnation romance.

MJ: I have been shamelessly addicted to this series ever since my holiday marathon read last year. More, more!

SEAN: A Bride’s Story really picked up for me with the introduction of the twins in Vol. 4, so seeing their wedding in this new volume is definitely high on my list of things to do.

ASH: I’m always happy to see a new volume of Kaoru Mori’s A Bride’s Story! (Now, if we could only get Emma back into print, too…)

MICHELLE: Someday I will have time to read this.

ANNA: Me too. I need to catch up. The first two volumes were lovely.

MJ: I adore this series, and I’m very excited about the wedding! Hurray!

SEAN: Kieli hits Vol. 9… of the novels, that is. Don’t get your novels and manga mixed up, especially from Yen, which tends to license both more than most companies.

The regular old manga may be ending in Japan, but its gag spinoff continues, as we see the 7th volume of The Melancholy of Haruhi-chan Suzumiya.

Lastly, Soul Eater hits sweet 16, and will likely start spinning out new plot threads here to see what sticks. Always fun.

What’s whetting your appetite?

MICHELLE: Isn’t Goong 13 coming out too this week, now that I think about it? At least, Amazon has it with the same date as the other Yen, and I just got it in a box of review copies (yay!).

ANNA: eeeeeeeee!

MJ: YAY GOONG YAY!

SEAN: It’s still hard for me to remember Korean books…

SEAN: Three weeks this September have a huge pile of manga, one is merely a small pile. This is that week. (Though some may get Yen titles one week early via Diamond.)

Genshiken has continued to prove that if you have a good enough ensemble cast, it doesn’t matter who the ‘lead character’ or stars are. It rotates students in, it rotates students out. Well, OK, Madarame and his not-quite-harem continue to be the focus of the 2nd Season. Vol. 3 is out this week.

MICHELLE: I must admit that I have never read any Genshiken.

ASH: I haven’t read any of the second season yet, but I did rather enjoy the Genshiken omnibuses. Guess I’ll need to catch up!

MJ: I’ve always been interested in this title, but missed picking up the first season, so I’ve never managed to get into it. I would like to rectify that at some point!

SEAN: The other Kodansha title, Sherlock Bones, you may at first glance think is meant for younger readers, especially once you see the premise “Sherlock Holmes reincarnated as a dog”. That said, I think there may be something I can do to tempt old-school mystery and manga fans to get this volume: “From the creator of Kindaichi Case Files.”

MICHELLE: … and also !!! That certainly tempts me!

MJ: What she said!

SEAN: Everyone knows that old-school manga titles are not really looked at by companies anymore. UNLESS… they’re by the late director Satoshi Kon, aka Perfect Blue, Tokyo Godfathers, etc. Tropic of the Sea was a single-volume manga he did for Kodansha’s Young Magazine in 1990, and it’s at the start of his career, before he became famous for other things. It promises to be riveting, from what I hear.

ASH: I’m really looking forward to Tropic of the Sea. That cover is simply gorgeous and the interior art I’ve seen is also striking.

MJ: I’m very interested in this as well.

SEAN: Bokurano: Ours must still have cast members to kill off in a tragic yet heartwarming and life-affirming way, as the series is still going. Here’s Vol. 9 from Viz, whose continued support of the SigIKKI line I will always appreciate.

MICHELLE: I’ve fallen somewhat behind on Bokurano: Ours, but I do like it.

SEAN: Lastly, Ooku: The Inner Chambers has a new volume. We’re caught up with Japan, and the series doesn’t come out all that rapidly anymore. But this just makes this alternate world tale of court intrigue a rare treat.

MICHELLE: Yay, more Ooku!

ASH: Indeed! Hooray for more Ooku!

MJ: Insert additional cheers here!

SEAN: What manga dost thou wish to acquire on the morrow?

SEAN: Manga is here, let’s to’t.

Dark Horse has the 27th volume of Blade of the Immortal, one of Dark Horse’s long-running prestige manga titles. It’s still badass.

ASH: That it is! Blade of the Immortal was one of the first manga series that I started reading and I’m still hooked on it.

MICHELLE: I read the first volume and was really impressed by the art, and I own a bunch more of it, but I’ve still never continued. The same thing happened with Vagabond too, actually.

ANNA: I read the first three volumes or so and really liked it. If I ever stumble across a library with a good chunk of this series, I would check it out again. Vagabond as always has my eternal devotion, I think I might be behind with one or two of the VizBig editions.

MJ: I wish I’d gotten hooked early on. At this point the length feels so daunting! Yet I feel I’d probably love it.

SEAN: They also have the 4th volume of OreImo. No spoilers in the comments, bitter fans of the anime. (I wonder if OreImo will pull a School Rumble in terms of sales now that the ending is out in Japan?)

DMP have a BL title coming out called Priceless Honey. Seems to be a short story collection from the author of Punch Up!.

MJ: I’m not big on BL anthologies, but I did like Punch Up!…

SEAN: Kodansha have the 2nd to last Arisa, which I got very, very behind on. Luckily, it’s out digitally now, so I can try to catch up!

ASH: I’m a bit behind on Arisa as well, but it had a great start and I’ve been meaning to read more of it.

MICHELLE: I’ve read through volume ten. It’s become rather snickerworthy, as I noted in brief back in June, but I’m still planning to see it through to the end.

ANNA: I haven’t read this, for some reason Kodansha’s current shoujo releases don’t appeal to me very much, but I’m looking forward to some of the new series they’ve recently announced!

Not out digitally (here or in Japan) but certainly out in print is the first collection of Sailor Moon Short Stories. These ran in Nakayoshi’s sister magazines throughout the run of the manga, and originally were interspersed through the original volumes. The re-release collected them all at the end. This first of two volumes collects the Chibi-Usa side stories, and the Exam Battles starring the other Inners. It also has my 2nd favorite Sailor Moon manga moment.

MICHELLE: I’m not sure how wise it was to put the short stories in their own collection. True, this way they don’t interrupt the main flow of the narrative, but when I read the Japanese edition this way I was sort of… underwhelmed. Maybe they’ll fare better in English.

ANNA: One of these days I will marathon Sailor Moon, I feel like I should block out a day and stock up on Sailor Moon reading supplies. I’m envisioning a lot of sweet milky tea and many star-shaped cookies.

SEAN: I’ve come to love His Favorite without ever reading it, just for the look of disgust on the face of the uke on every single cover. It’s an absolute delight, and I hope he’s just as grouchy in the manga itself. Vol. 5 is out this week.

MJ: I’m a volume behind on this now, but the manga really is as delightful as its covers, in my experience. And that character is pretty grouchy. It could sort of read as an AU xxxHolic fanfic, if that gives you some sense of what you’re in for.

SEAN: Also out from SubLime is The Man of Tango, which sounds like it should star Robert Vaughn and David McCallum. The cover art for this is easily the best design SubLime’s ever done (their cover design has been a very weak point to date), and really looks smokingly passionate. This apparently has previously unpublished content as well.

ASH: I’m very excited about the release of The Man of Tango! Originally licensed by Aurora but never released, I was thrilled to see SuBLime pick it up.

ANNA: I don’t read a ton of yaoi, but this was one manga that I actually pre-ordered when Aurora was supposed to release it. Glad this is coming out finally, I found the title and cover of this manga very intriguing.

MJ: I’m looking forward to this as well!

SEAN: Udon still puts out manga, and not just artbooks. Today, it’s Disgaea 3: School of Devils 2. Next week, Arsenal 4, Tottenham nil.

And a trio from Viz. 07-GHOST just ended in Japan last month, but fear not, there’s still a lot to go before we catch up. Here’s Vol. 6.

MICHELLE: It seems like volumes of this series are appearing like bunnies! Soon we’ll be caught up with Go!Comi, if we’re not already!

ANNA: ACK, I’m three volumes behind now! I do like this series, though.

MJ: I am too, yikes!

SEAN: Arata: The Legend is about a year and a half behind Japan, which is not uncommon for a Shonen Sunday mid-list title, even if it is by Yuu Watase. Here’s Vol. 15.

MICHELLE: I do enjoy Arata, even if I can’t get as squeeful about it as, say, Genbu Kaiden.

ANNA: Genbu Kaiden deserves all the squees!

MJ: Agreed, re: Genbu Kaiden. I’m iffy on Arata.

SEAN: And Vol. 22 of Hayate the Combat Butler, which is 3 1/2 years behind Japan and growing farther away every biannual release, but sadly, sales. The manga is still in Greece, and this volume has what may be one of the best romantic heartbreakers of the entire series to date.

Anything strike your fancy?

SEAN: As I’ve noted before, Diamond Comics and Amazon’s street dates are looking farther apart than ever before. As a result, this list is a fusion of Amazon (the major, book-company publishers) and Midtown Comics (the comics-first publishers).

Dark Horse brings us the 4th volume of Blood Blockade Battlefront, the alliterative series from the Trigun creator.

There’s also a new Evangelion spinoff coming out as well, with the first volume of Shinji Ikari Detective Diary. From the description, it sounds like this is aimed squarely at the BL Evangelion shippers, in much the same way that the Raising Project manga is aimed at harem fans.

Fanfare/Ponent Mon has the 4th volume of mountain climbing manga Summit of the Gods, one of those “blogger popular” titles I keep meaning to catch up on but have never quite done so. It is supposed to be excellent, though.

MICHELLE: Oh, nice! I really like Jiro Taniguchi, but have been waiting for this series to come out in full before reading it. I think there’s one more volume still.

ASH: Oh! I’m one of the reasons this is a “blogger popular” title. Summit of the Gods is easily my favorite Jiro Taniguchi collaboration; I’m very happy to see that Fanfare/Ponent Mon is continuing to release the series. Only one more volume to go after this!

MJ: Count me in for this one as well!

SEAN: Amazon has Wandering Son 5 listed for November 2nd. If Kodansha is the publisher that is consistently always arriving at bookstores first and comic shops later, Fantagraphics is the classic example of the opposite. Here’s Wandering Son 5, hitting comic shops. In this volume, I believe we get to high school and introduce some new supporting players.

MICHELLE: I am lamentably several volumes behind with Wandering Son, but it’s still nice to see new volumes make their appearance!

ASH: We actually have a few years of junior high to get through before reaching high school, but you’re right about the new supporting characters.

ANNA: I really need to catch up on this series!

MJ: I adore this series, and I can’t wait to read volume five, whenever it appears!

SEAN: Seven Seas has the final volume of one of my favorite series from them, Young Miss Holmes by Kaoru Shintani (of Area 88 fame). This omnibus, containing Books 5-7, is even larger than the previous two, and is filled with mysteries, mayhem, and killer maids. There’s a sequel in Japan, featuring 17-year-old Christie continuing to solve crimes. Seven Seas has noted its possible license (Slightly Older Miss Holmes?) depends on sales of the first, so go get it! Also, there’s only one Conan Doyle story in here (the rest are originals based on ‘unseen cases’, so less danger of offending Holmes purists.

ANNA: I somehow missed that this was by the mangaka of Area 88! I still have all my ancient Eclipse Comics/Viz editions of Area 88 stashed in a box somewhere. Now, I might finally pick up Young Miss Holmes. I hope there are scenes of people in flight suits with floppy hair looking incredibly emo in Young Miss Holmes, because Area 88 was awesome at that.

SEAN: There’s also a 2nd omnibus from Seven Seas, with Vols. 3-4 of Zero’s Familiar. I was surprised that the dark shroud of fan opinion surrounding the tsundere heroine turned out to be more of a off-white silk scarf more than anything, and wonder if my opinion will stay the same as we go further into this fantasy harem series.

I presume that those who read Bleach either have done so for years, or are likely never to do so. But if you’ve been catching up via the omnibus, the 3 volumes collected in the 6th one are some of the very best, and remind me of those olden days when Kubo could pace properly.

MJ: Agreed. I have much nostalgia for those early volumes, and this is a particularly strong little set.

SEAN: Demon Love Spell has been one of Shinjo’s best titles at walking that fine line between ‘sexy, forceful guy’ and ‘complete ass’, and I’m hoping that Vol. 4 continues that balance.

ANNA: I have just read this and it was hilarious. This is rapidly becoming my favorite Shinjo series, despite my long-standing fondness for Sensual Phrase.

MJ: I’m absolutely addicted to this series.

SEAN: Dragon Ball has an omnibus as well, and it’s hit Vol. 2. New Dragon Ball readers are born every day! This omnibus is probably for them more than those of us who bought the VIZBig, or the original volumes. Or the digital volumes. And stay tuned for Dragon Ball cranial ports, coming in 2015.

Midnight Secretary has a lot of good buzz. So much good buzz, in fact, that Viz has already licensed another title by the same author before this one has even come out. You know they trust it will do well. And why will it do well, you ask? One word: vampires. That said, the heroine is also apparently an excellent draw, and is not your usual Petit Comic office lady. I’m very intrigued about this one. Can’t wait.

ANNA: I think this will be a must get for paranormal romance manga fans. I am also looking forward to this. I mean, the title alone is fantastic.

MJ: Agreed on all counts!

SEAN: The 6th Naruto omnibus is out. I still need to catch up on this title. So… ninjas?

ASH: Yes. Ninja. Lots and lots of ninja.

SEAN: One Piece has reached Vol. 68. There is an awful lot of fighting happening here, and several of our heroes continue to be in the wrong bodies, leading to humorous situations. Recommended as top-drawer entertainment.

MICHELLE: I continue to love One Piece.

SEAN: Last time, Psyren turned its attention to our villains, and did a damn good job of fleshing them out. I expect it will go back to the heroes this time, as we’re getting near a climax (I think we’ve only 5 volumes to go).

MICHELLE: I need to catch up on Psyren. So many books (and responsibilities), so little time.

SEAN: And Strobe Edge hits its second half with Vol. 6. We may have resolved one of the obstacles standing between our two lovebirds last time, but the course of true love definitely doesn’t run smooth in this title. Something bad’s going to happen, I can feel it. Be there to read it when it does.

MICHELLE: I really love Strobe Edge, and I admit I kinda wouldn’t mind seeing something bad happen.

ANNA: This is one of those shoujo series that just seems to get better as it goes along.

MJ: This is a strong week for addictive shoujo, I see. Lovely, lovely.

SEAN: Any manga jump out at you this week?

SEAN: As the month of August draws to a close, it’s a quiet week for manga. Peaceful. Let us see what mild, calming titles we have out. But soft, lest we disturb the young ‘uns!

We have a trio of titles from Kodansha. First is Attack on Titan 6, beginning its speedup! Oh dear, this doesn’t seem quiet and peaceful at all. In fact, it may involve people getting killed messily. Despite that, it really is a fantastic title that deserves your attention. Perhaps if you whispered the dialogue as you read.

MICHELLE: I still haven’t read any of this one, and now six volumes is seeming like quite an investment. I dunno…

MJ: I’m thinking that when I finally get around to restarting this series, I’ll definitely whisper the dialogue in my head.

SEAN: Fairy Tail has proven to be loud and boisterous in the past, and I suspect that Volume 29 will be no different, meaning it’s really not adding to the appeal of this quiet, peaceful week of manga. Still, it has a good heart, and is a great title for those who love a strong sense of loyalty and justice, the bonds of family and friendship, and punching things.

MICHELLE: Hee.

MJ: I *heart* punching things. You know. Quietly.

SEAN: The second volume of Sankarea is also shipping. I’m afraid that zombies are really never mellow and friendly. I blame their upbringing. That said, the first volume was funnier and more heartwarming than I expected, and has a father character who looks to explore a dark side to overprotective anime dads. A very dark side.

MICHELLE: That upbringing line is priceless.

MJ: What can I say? You’re weirdly making me feel like reading this.

SEAN: Seven Seas has the second volume of Crimson Empire. I suspect the main reason this series was licensed is so that the company could release more volumes of the far more popular Alice in the Country of Hearts, whose one-shots tend to have Crimson Empire short stories in the back. Nevertheless, it’s filled with swordplay and battles, so absolutely does not meet our criteria at all.

MICHELLE: Zzzz.

MJ: What she said.

ANNA: I enjoyed the first volume, but I have a high tolerance for reverse harem titles.

SEAN: Lastly, there’s Chi! Yes, perfect! Chi’s Sweet Home 10 from Vertical gives us an adorable cat and her adventures with her family! It’s like floating downstream on a quiet river. Everyone loves Chi.

MICHELLE: I certainly love Chi!

MJ: A lovely addition to the week! Every week could use a little Chi.

SEAN: A perfect way to end this quiet, peaceful week of manga. Well, except for those other four titles. What looks good to you?

SEAN: Third week of the month, which is traditionally Yen Press time, and that’s true this month as well. But before we get to Yen, we have a few choice tidbits.

Kodansha has the 11th volume of Cage of Eden. Now that it’s getting serious enough to kill off some of its main cast, will things continue to take a turn for the deadly? And what will this mean for the female cast’s ability to strip naked and bathe in rivers? (Likely not much.)

Vertical continues to dip its toes into the josei market, this time with Kyoko Okazaki’s Helter Skelter: Fashion Unfriendly, a done-in-one manga volume from the pages of Shodensha’s Feel Young. The premise reminds me of the movie Death Becomes Her, though I suspect this won’t be as funny as that was. It’s still a highly awaited release.

MJ: I’m absolutely looking forward to this, and have been since the announcement last year at NYCC. I’ll be picking it up for sure.

MICHELLE: Me, too!

ANNA: I am looking forward to this as well! I think Vertical putting out more josei is a great thing, and I’ll absolutely be picking this up.

SEAN: Viz has its annual release of Ikigami: The Ultimate Limit, but it’s almost over, as I think the series ends with 10. I’m not sure if it’s still doing the ‘let’s see how people deal with impending death’ thing or if it’s moving into a big climax. Honestly, it was a bit too depressing for me.

MJ: I haven’t read this in a long time, and had actually thought it was already over. Oops?

MICHELLE: I have a bunch of volume of this but I haven’t read beyond volume two ‘cos it was too depressing for me, too.

SEAN: And now about that Yen. There’s Vol. 3 of BTOOOM!. Indeed. There is that.

MJ: Um. No.

MICHELLE: Big fat no.

SEAN: We have reached Vol. 9 of Bunny Drop, which ends the main storyline, though there is one more volume of side-stories coming out next year. This is the biggie, and now at last everyone can discuss THAT spoiler. Though not till next week, please. (It’s also still quite well-written, but I fear any discussion of it tends to be dwarfed by THAT.)

MJ: I’m diving in… with a little fear, I’ll admit, but I wouldn’t miss this for the world.

MICHELLE: I definitely feel that I have to read it for myself before formulating an opinion, but there is definitely some trepidation.

ANNA: I honestly stopped reading this because of THAT spoiler, I think I stopped at volume 3 or so.

SEAN: For those who liked the Doubt omnibus, we have Vol. 1 of Judge. I didn’t, so will be passing. But hey, more students trapped in a survival game who die one by one. We can never get enough of that. Apparently.

MJ: Heh.

SEAN: Pandora Hearts 17 will no doubt excite MJas much as 15 and 16 did. Or perhaps even more. One day I’ll read it. (Likely whenever Squeenix titles are available digitally again.)

MJ: Definitely more! After volume 16, I’m pretty much dying for what comes next. DYING, I say.

MICHELLE: Big fat yes!

ANNA: Everyone is such a fan of this, one of these days I’m going to have to check this series out.

SEAN: Puella Magi Kazumi Magica is apparently the fluffier of the two spinoffs, but that’s really not saying much. Any series with Kyubey in it is guaranteed to get very dark, very fast. Vol. 2 is here.

Spice and Wolf’s 9th novel drops. Wolves. Economics. Econowolves.

Lastly, Umineko: When They Cry wraps up its 2nd Arc, Turn of the Golden Witch. In case you needed reminding, this manga contains some scary scenes that may not be suitable for children. PARTICULARLY the tea party. (shudder)

MICHELLE: I gave up on this a while ago. Has that kid stopped going “Uuuuu! Uuuuu!!” yet?

SEAN: Pretty much no, though we do eventually find out why she does that.

What manga are you reading with your tea and cake?

SEAN: First of all, I’m giving up on moving Yen to when I get it. Diamond is shipping it next week to me, but that would mean 25 books this week, and only 3 to discuss next week. That’s just imbalanced. I’ll go back to using Amazon’s street date, and just revel in things on my own earlier.

We start off with another Tezuka manga, as Vol. 1 of Triton of the Sea hits stores via Digital Manga Publishing. Another late 60s/early 70s Tezuka title, this was serialized one page at a time in Kodansha’s daily newspaper Sankei Shimbun. The story involves humans and mermaids, and is not as peppy and cheerful as Unico and Atomcat were.

ANNA: This looks interesting!

SEAN: DMP are slowly returning to print, which means more BL titles as well. The Tyrant Falls in Love has hit 8 volumes, and judging by the description it’s done that by basically being a giant soap opera. Expect emotions.

MICHELLE: I’ve never read any of this series, but I’m very happy to see DMP returning to print editions.

ANNA: I’m also glad to see that DMP is returning to print.

MJ: I hated the first volume of this series and then loved the second. I’ve been warned off later volumes of the series by fans who know my tastes, but I’m still glad to see it returning to print.

SEAN: Meanwhile, Wild Honey is a one-and-done volume that involves… sigh… werewolves. Really hot werewolves, no doubt.

Kodansha has the 2nd Battle Angel Alita: Last Order omnibus. I think this volume will feature the title’s descent into the Tournament Arc from Hell, which it takes several years to emerge from. That said, the fights are quite well drawn.

And the second volume of No. 6 drops, where no doubt our hero continues to find out how this world really operates and has more not-quite-ship tease with his newfound companion.

MICHELLE: I’m going to give this series one more volume at least, but I’m feeling a little meh so far.

SEAN: SubLime has the 2nd volume of Blue Morning, for those who want butlers and masters and really well-done cover art.

MICHELLE: Yay!

MJ: I kinda can’t wait for this.

SEAN: For those who don’t want well-done cover art, there’s Embracing Love, debuting here in a 2-in-1 omnibus. See how the leads stare at you. They are serious about being gay. VERY serious.

MICHELLE: *snerk* I believe this is considered a BL classic, so I’m interested to read it.

MJ: Agreed.

SEAN: Viz has some amazing titles coming out this week, making my Pick of the Week either a chore or something I will have to cheat on. Dorohedoro hits double digits, which I am honestly delighted by. Still my favorite SigIkki title, and it looks like it may be hitting a point of no return soon in regards to Caiman.

EXCEL SAGA 26! The second to last volume! Do you realize that we are almost at a point where you will not be buying new volumes of Excel Saga? This makes me so sad! And yet, new volume! Everyone must buy it! It has Homestuck, Warehouse 13, and Welcome to Night Vale cameos in it! Really! Trust me! Would I lie to you?

MJ: Someday, Sean, I’m going to try to read this series, and it will be entirely because of your undying enthusiasm.

SEAN: InuYasha’s VIZBIG edition hits Vol. 16, containing… (calculates) 3 more volumes! Honestly, I can’t remember. I think it’s somewhere in the 40s. Takahashi fantasy at its most popular. I really must catch up one day.

MICHELLE: I still haven’t finished InuYasha. I think I have the last ten volumes hanging around here unread.

ANNA: I am frightened by the length of this series, but it is totally something I would check out of the library one day.

SEAN: Itsuwaribito 9 brings us to a village ruled by women who have no use for men. Oh dear. In a shonen manga? Please don’t have the village learn a valuable lesson about how awesome the male lead is…

I’ve been waiting for this debut for a while now. Magi is one of Shonen Sunday’s more successful current titles, and I hope the title breaks out here in North America in a big way. Retelling the Arabian Nights the shonen fantasy way, with verve and sass. And yes, starts slow. All Sunday titles start slow.

MICHELLE: I was pleasantly surprised by volume one, so if it gets even better from here, that’s definitely promising.

ANNA: Hmm, this sounds like a good shonen series for me to try out.

MJ: I’ve definitely got this in my queue!

SEAN: Neon Genesis Evangelion 3-in-1 gives us Vol. 4, containing Vols. 10-12 of the original title, and everything begins to go completely to hell here. Not that it had all that far to wander, honestly.

If you can’t get enough of the main Tiger & Bunny series, how about a doujinshi anthology? No, not like that, you pervs. This is 100% clean, though no doubt FILLED with ship tease. Vol. 1 of the anthology debuts from Viz.

MJ: I gotta say… meh. Unfortunately.

SEAN: Lastly, the X 3-in-1 hits Vol. 6. If I’m not mistaken, this is where the volumes will have to end, at least until CLAMP returns to the title to wrap it up. Which ain’t happening anytime soon. In the meantime, enjoy where it leaves off.

MICHELLE: I have no idea if it’s still available, but the anime did offer an ending of sorts. Or at least a reasonably satisfying stopping point.

ANNA: This is really one of my favorite CLAMP series despite the lack of ending.

MJ: I’m actually really looking forward to this, even though I’ve already read the not!ending. These lovely editions really have given me a new appreciation for the series.

SEAN: Besides EXCEL SAGA!, what else interests you here?

SEAN: Can’t talk, too much manga.

Dark Horse has the 2nd Lone Wolf and Cub omnibus. I enjoyed the first one more than I thought, and will hope that the 2nd gives us just as much assassination intrigue and adorable toddlers with killer eyes.

MICHELLE: I also liked it more than I expected.

ANNA: I read the first five or so volumes of this back in the day, and am glad it is getting reissued.

MJ: I’m surprised to find myself really looking forward to this second omnibus!

SEAN: Drawn and Quarterly finally, after a long gestation period, has the first in what I hope becomes a series of books based on Shigeru Mizuki’s 60s yokai classic, Gegege no Kitaro. Retitled Kitaro for North America (Gegege is sort of an untranslatable sound of fear), it’s over 400 pages of 60s shonen goodness. For those who love all the yokai manga coming out these days, here’s the King.

ANNA: I am intrigued by this!

MJ: Same here!

SEAN: I know only I care, but I still do care: Kodansha Comics has Vol. 31 of The Wallflower. 31 volumes! That’s more than Kenshin! Lots more than Fruits Basket! It’s 30 volumes more than Gaba Kawa! It’s a long series that rewards me with comedy, not romance.

MICHELLE: Back in the day, I bought the first six or seven volumes of this. But then I learned about its length and its episodic nature and I just went “Ugh.”

ANNA: I had a very similar reaction to Michelle’s. I found the first few volumes amusing but wasn’t willing to sign up for a neverending series.

SEAN: Seven Seas has a significant presence this week. There’s another Alice spinoff, The Clockmaker’s Story. The spinoffs are starting to glut the market, but I really enjoy Julius and his grumpypantsness. He reminds me of Austria from Hetalia. So I have hopes for this.

MICHELLE: I kinda like Julius, too, but I have really lost count of these spinoffs.

ANNA: I am pro-Julius!

SEAN: Hooray, a new volume of A Certain Scientific Railgun, the manga that reminds you once again that spinoffs can not only do better than the original, but inspire flamewars about the original! The athletics festival continues here, and we find out what Misaka does when her support team of good friends is taken from her.

Dance in the Vampire Bund continues to omnibus itself with Vols. 7-9. I understand it has vampires.

Kanokon also gives us an omnibus, featuring Vols. 3 and 4. I think I’ve already said what I need to about this series.

MICHELLE: I don’t even know what Kanokon is. Should I be glad?

SEAN: The Sacred Blacksmith has a second volume, for fantasy swordplay fans. I seem to recall I liked this slightly better.

And World War Blue, Seven Seas’ attempt to license a Fairy Tail that’s all their own, has its own Volume 2, just a month after Vol. 1.

It’s rare I discuss artbooks, but I’m also a giant Haruhi Suzumiya fanboy, so this dovetails nicely. Udon is putting out the first of a series of Haruhi artbooks, this called Haruhi-Ism: Noizi Ito Artworks. I suspect, as opposed to Udon’s amazing Read or Die artbook, we’ll see more art and less infotext here. But hey, getting it anyway.

MJ: I’m actually kind of interested in this, too.

SEAN: Vertical gives us the 4th volume of Knights of Sidonia. What’s the chance they go back to the wacky harem comedy this time around? I’m guessing it’s more likely there will be body horror and space battles instead. But it’s good. I’m just being churlish.

MICHELLE: But it’s creepy body horror of the best kind! I love Sidonia a lot.

ANNA: I guess I am now two volumes behind on this series, but I look forward to getting caught up. I’m happy that Vertical is bringing over mecha manga like this and Gundam: The Origin.

MJ: I *heart* Knights of Sidonia very much.

SEAN: And Viz. Bakuman comes to an end with its 20th volume, and has proven to at least be a slightly happier ride than Death Note. Certainly more people know about the workings of Jump now…

MICHELLE: Stay tuned for a special Off the Shelf devoted to Bakuman., coming next month!

MJ: I’m really looking forward to the discussion with Michelle. This series surprised me at intervals, throughout, and I was especially surprised to find myself actually caring about the romance during the last volume. Can’t wait to see how it plays out!

SEAN: A Devil And Her Love Song hits double digits with Vol. 10. Given where last volume left off, it’s expecting this one will be a big ol’ angstfest, but you never know.

MICHELLE: I think angstfest is a good bet.

ANNA: I have read this and haven’t been able to write my review yet, but I would say that it goes beyond angsfest and heads strongly into severe emotional traumaland.

MJ: Oh, my.

SEAN: Happy Marriage?! is the new josei title from Shojo Beat, being another foray into the magazine that gave us Butterflies, Flowers. I must admit, I’m a bit wary – Butterflies, Flowers succeeded for me because of its ridiculousness – this may not have as much of that. But hey, any Petit Comic over here is good.

MICHELLE: I’m wary, too, but I’ll give it a shot.

ANNA: I liked it just fine! It is a lightweight, fun to read josei title. Not as goofy as Butterflies, Flowers, but still enjoyable.

MJ: I’m interested, for sure. Wary, but interested.

SEAN: Kamisama Kiss has caught up with Japan, at least as much as Viz allows itself to do, so it’s been a while since we’ve seen it. Lucky Number 13 should give us yokai manga of the week #2.

MICHELLE: I’m going to try to get caught up on this soon.

SEAN: Kaze Hikaru 21! Squee! OK, I admit, I’m still 20 volumes behind on this series. But hey, any series that comes out yearly is always in my wheelhouse, given Excel Saga was there for a while as well. Highly underrated shoujo, from what my friends tell me.

MICHELLE: I love Kaze Hikaru very much. Everyone should read it! But especially MJ.

ANNA: I adore this series and I always feel a bit giddy when a new volume comes out.

MJ: *hangs head in shame*

SEAN: Kimi ni Todoke 17. I have little to say about this series, even though I love it to bits. Just expect everyone to be even more sweet and adorable, OK?

MICHELLE: Works for me!

ANNA: Works for me too!

MJ: Count me in!

SEAN: Another series hits double digits as Library Wars: Love & War gets to Vol. 10. I think this got delayed a month or so, so I hope it’s worth the wait.

MICHELLE: I’m kind of surprised how much I’ve been enjoying Library Wars lately.

ANNA: I was always going to be a fan because it is not that often that my profession gets featured in a manga, but I think that this series has gotten more enjoyable several volumes in.

SEAN: Naruto 62. That’s a whole lotta ninja.

Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan wraps up Kyoto here at last, and moves on to a few side stories before the next big arc. It’s also yokai manga #3.

There’s always one Viz manga Diamond ships to my store late, and this month it’s Otomen 16. But the rest of you will get it. As always, I’m there for the Ryo.

Slam Dunk is in its closing volumes, but still not quite there yet. Here’s Vol. 29.

MICHELLE: It is taking a lot of willpower not to read the three unread volumes I have now collected, but this series is so good when read in chunks, so I’m tying to hold out ’til volume 31 gets here.

ANNA: I have less self control and generally read Slam Dunk as soon as it arrives because I can’t ration out my reading of this sports manga masterwork.

SEAN: Tegami Bachi is bachi-ing its tegami with Vol. 14. (Sorry, this has been a long post, I’m tired, and I don’t read the series.)

Lastly, Toriko 17 wraps everything up with some more tasty food fighting.

Assuming you didn’t move on halfway through this endless list, what are you getting this week?

SEAN: It’s the dreaded 5th week of the month, but there’s more to find here than usual, with a couple of really tasty manga treats, particularly if you like old-school manga.

Dark Horse has the 28th volume of Gantz. I’m not certain if they’re still all wearing shiny leather catsuits. I have to assume they are. Sadly, this series is still not Hen or HEN, two series (yes, they are separate, though connected) by the same author that I would rather see licensed over here.

MICHELLE: Do they involve chickens? (Please say yes.)

SEAN: Nope. Hen involves a straight high school boy falling in love with another boy, and trying to convince himself that his love is a girl who’s just trapped in a boy’s body. HEN is essentially the same, only the lead is a girl falling for another girl (this version got an anime). They’re both more interesting than they sound. (Hen means ‘strange’ in Japanese.)

MJ: Is it awful that I’m more excited about this Hen/HEN discussion than I am about the actual items on this week’s list?

MICHELLE: So am I. Gender-complicated romance trumps shounen fighting sagas.

MJ: Amen.

MICHELLE: Even if there are no chickens.

MJ: Even then.

SEAN: I also note that both Hen and HEN ran in Young Jump (which explains much of the fanservice scattered throughout both titles). So they’re not just seinen gay manga, but MANLY seinen gay manga. :) (They also take place in the same ‘universe’, and intertwine slightly.)

I found out about HEN from Erica, who has the series in Japanese.

MJ: I feel somehow that this week’s featured image should be Hen. Or HEN. One of the two. :D No?

SEAN: Sadly, it would require Viz to license the series (or sublicense it to Dark Horse, but honestly Gantz is more their style), which I doubt will happen unless the market changes a lot more than it has to date. This is late 80s-mid 90s stuff, let’s remember. :)

MJ: Oh, well. *sniff*

SEAN: Kodansha Comics has a new Fairy Tail, also a Vol. 28. Still speeding up, though if you have a digital option, you can get up to Vol. 33 now, I believe. I believe that fights are still happening.

MICHELLE: That is a good bet.

SEAN: Picturebox debut their new line of ’10-cent manga’, which seems to pick up various influential old-school titles, Yes, Tezuka is coming in the fall, but first we have Shigeru Sugiura, who was almost as influential but is criminally underrepresented outside Japan. His Last of the Mohicans came out in 1953, though I believe this hardcover release is from his 1970s redraw/touch-up of that. This is not a straight-up adaptation, though. Surreal is the word of the day. Highly anticipated.

MICHELLE: Huh. Interesting.

MJ: I’m definitely interested in this, though with the slightest concern over my ability to fully appreciate it. But I have high hopes!

ANNA: This sounds off the beaten path and very interesting. I’m always glad when something unconventional gets released, and old-school manga is something that we’ve not seen as much of over here as I would like.

SEAN: And in case you really wanted Tezuka, Vertical has the sequel to Princess Knight, Twin Knights. This came out in 1958, 5 years before the Princess Knight we saw over here, which was a redone version of the original Princess Knight from 1954, of which this is a direct sequel. If that made sense to you, congratulations, you are a Tezuka fanboy. This should be light, frothy adventure fun.

MICHELLE: Maybe it will be missing the elements of Princess Knight that kinda made me mad.

MJ: I’m hoping so. A lot.

ANNA: Looking forward to this!

SEAN: Lastly, Yen releases another in their series of Kingdom Hearts releases, this one an omnibus repackaging of Kingdom Hearts II. This is a full-on shonen adventure, which ran in Square Enix’s main magazine, Gangan. The only odd thing about it is Donald Duck and Goofy’s presence, really. Otherwise this could be Fairy Tail or Soul Eater.

MICHELLE: I regret to say that I could not possibly care less about Kingdom Hearts.

MJ: I probably could, but not a lot less.

SEAN: Are these titles too old-school for you? Or not old enough? Or do you want HEN as well? (No, it’s still not licensed – that image above is from the French release.)

SEAN: As you’d expect when I get Yen a week early, that makes this week look pretty damn tiny. What’s coming in? All final volumes this week!

Kodansha has the 11th and final volume of Bloody Monday. There are two sequels out in Japan, but I have a sneaking suspicion this may be it for the title on these shores. Let’s hope it ends better than your average season of 24!

MJ: I abandoned this series early on, though the fact that it wraps up in 11 volumes might be enough to draw me back to it eventually. I guess time will tell.

MICHELLE: I only ever bought the first two volumes of this one. I wonder if it’ll be the first series by this pseudonym-happy creator to actually finish in America, even if we don’t get the sequels. GetBackers, Drops of God, Kindaichi Case Files… all stopped short of the end. Oh, wait, there was Psycho Busters. Exactly my last choice of that group.

SEAN: Vertical has the 5th and I believe final volume of Heroman. Everyone on the cover looks happy, particularly the giant robot.

Lastly, Vertical also has the 6th and final volume of Limit, which has spend 5/6 of its time torturing its cast. Will it kill everyone off, or do we get to survive to see a sequel where they crash on a desert island or something?

MJ: This is definitely the most compelling item on the list for me this week. It has consistently kept me on the edge of my seat, so I’ll be anxious to find out what happens!

MICHELLE: I must confess that I haven’t read beyond volume one of Limit. One day I will!

ANNA: I need to catch up on this too! I enjoyed the first two volumes very much.

SEAN: Which series are you wrapping up?

SEAN: Standard ‘Diamond is sending me Yen Press a week early’ warning. I’m not quite sure why they do this, it seems to only be the the Northeast Corridor. Ironically, years ago, I used to get my manga a week later than others, again just the Northeast Corridor was affected. In any case, my list is hefty this week.

Dark Horse has the 4th volume of Gate 7, a title that has completely failed to keep me interested in any way. But there are some fans of it, particularly those of a historical bent.

MICHELLE: I feel bad that this one didn’t particularly grab me, but… it didn’t.

MJ: Gate 7 *did* grab me right away, but then the heavy concentration of unfamiliar historical references kinda bogged me down. Fortunately, I found a helpful guide to carry me through! So I’m looking forward to this new volume with only the slightest sense of bog.

SEAN: Kodansha has the 4th volume of Missions of Love. You know, when I was first promoting this title as an interesting little shoujo love triangle, I wasn’t aware that it was going to turn into the Gakuen Prince of 2013. Let’s see how saucy it will get this time.

MICHELLE: I read a couple of volumes of this, but I think I didn’t like any of the characters enough to continue.

ANNA: Knowing now that it turns into the Gakuen Prince of 2013, I’m glad I didn’t start reading this.

SEAN: Many are calling the 12th Sailor Moon volume the final one, and it’s true that the main story wraps up here. However, this re-release stripped out all the short stories that had originally been interspersed in the volumes, and has given them two separate books of their own. So fear not! Soon you will be able to learn if Rei farts.

MICHELLE: Yay?

SEAN: Viz has the 5th volume of 07-Ghost, a series I’ve fallen behind on. Anyone else?

MICHELLE: I’m behind, too. I’ll catch up one day.

MJ: Same here, and that’s really a shame.

ANNA: I’ve read through volume four, and I like this series! But I’m predisposed to enjoy any manga that involves fighting priests.

SEAN: They also have the 5th and final volume of I’ll Give It My All… Tomorrow, a SigIkki series. I found the protagonist too annoying to continue the series, but then, that was sort of the point, and I know a lot of people identified with his situations.

MJ: I can’t say that I identify with him, but I do feel like I know him, and that is enough to keep me interested in his plight.

SEAN: The rest is all Yen. We have the 14th volume of Black Butler, which I’m sure is sexy as hell, at least according to the Tumblrs I see. Or perhaps smexy.

MICHELLE: I am old, because I just had to look up what “smexy” means.

MJ: Smexy or not, I just… can’t get into it.

ANNA: I read the first volume, and that was enough for me.

SEAN: This isn’t a manga, but I don’t care. The Book Girl light novel series has hit its endgame, and Book Girl and the Scribe Who Faced God is a 2-parter it’s so big. Part 1 drops this week, and we will finally get to focus on Tohko.

The 2nd and final Doubt omnibus is out, which will no doubt kill off most of the rest of the cast. If you’re a fan, good news: its spiritual sequel Judge is coming soon.

Is This A Zombie? 5 proves that it’s not just Seven Seas’ moe titles that make me sigh and rub my forehead. Congrats to Yen, I guess?

MJ: Heh.

SEAN: K-On! had a sweet, definitive ending, but it was also wildly popular, and you know what companies think about wildly popular finished titles. So K-On! College is the first of two sequels that continue the story, this one following Yui, Mio, Ritsu and Mugi in higher education.

Nabari no Ou is the last title we have this week that is ending, showing us that you can succeed as a ninja manga and not be Naruto. Though I’m sure it would have appreciated Naruto’s sales…

MICHELLE: This title isn’t one of my favorites, but it’s been interesting enough to keep me reading, so I’m looking forward to reaching the conclusion.

MJ: This title is one of my favorites, so I’m looking forward to it!

SEAN: Madoka Magica prints money, let’s have more of it! Puella Magi Oriko Magica is another spinoff series, and I believe it’s the darker of the two that Yen is putting out.

Soul Eater 15 shows us barreling to a climax, though things have started to go badly for some of our heroes. Poor Kid!

Lastly, we have a 4th omnibus of Until Death Do Us Part, which doesn’t remind me of the way Glenn Miller played at all. (Seven Degrees of Pun Bacon there.)

MICHELLE: I would feel so proud of myself if I could get the reference.

MJ: That’s what Google is for, Michelle!

SEAN: Even Google might not help. Till Death Do Us Part -> Till Death Us Do Part -> All In The Family -> “Those Were The Days” -> “Boy, the way Glenn Miller played…” Welcome to Sean’s mind. Don’t stay long.

MJ: I guess we’ll have to wait until someone develops a search engine for Sean’s brain. It’s sure to happen. Someday.

SEAN: What manga are you beating the heat with?

SEAN: Not as big as week 1 of July, but there’s plenty of tasty treats to check out as the summer continues to be hot.

Dark Horse has the 2nd and final omnibus of Tokyo Babylon. I didn’t buy this one, so will forever imagine it ends with a big picnic, and possibly puppies and unicorns. :)

MICHELLE: I will allow you to have your dreams.

MJ: I’m sure everyone can guess how eagerly I’ve been anticipating this release. I was over the moon for Dark Horse’s first omnibus, and since I actually like to be beaten into a sobbing pulp by my fiction, I’m willing to move forward without those puppies and unicorns. Note: This volume will also contain Hokuto’s side story of epic awesomeness, so there’s that.

SEAN: Digital Manga Publishing is finally returning to print manga, and what better title to see returning to our shelves than the 7th volume of Vampire Hunter D?

MICHELLE: While this personally doesn’t excite me much, I was very pleased to see that the tenth volume of Itazura Na Kiss is now available for pre-order. Hurray for print manga!

SEAN: SubLime has two new debuts. False Memories has a cute cover, so I have less to say about it. It’s by the author of Devil’s Honey and Dash!

MICHELLE: The cover is very cute indeed. I confess that was all it took to convince me to read it, and I didn’t connect the author with Devil’s Honey. The latter was pretty good, though, so I’m definitely intrigued.

MJ: Agreed!

SEAN: Oh Dear Lord. Look at the cover for Hide & Seek. Have you seen two people you want to punch in the face more than these two? :) This is by the author of Bond of Dreams, Bond of Love, which if I recall also had ridiculous covers. Recommended for those who enjoy large yaoi hands.

MICHELLE: *snerk* While I liked Yaya Sakuragi’s Stay Close to Me, Bond of Dreams, Bond of Love was so generic and the characters so unappealing that I now view anything else by the author with trepidation.

MJ: Heh. I deeply disliked Bond of Dreams, Bond of Love, but on the upside, at least these two characters both look like adults, so I’ll give it a try.

SEAN: Vertical has the 6th volume of Flowers of Evil, whose sales will hopefully be bumped by the recent conclusion to the anime version.

MJ: I hope so, too! I’m looking forward to this volume in any case.

SEAN: Viz has Case Closed Vol. 47. In Japan, Vol. 79 came out this April. Sadly, I suspect we will not be seeing the great Case Closed speedup anytime soon.

MICHELLE: I find this series to be fun occasionally, but it’s one of those cases where I’m very grateful my local library purchases it so I don’t have to. I can’t imagine housing dozens of volumes of goofy, episodic mysteries.

SEAN: The 5th Fullmetal Alchemist omnibus contains Vols. 13-15 of this shonen series that everyone should own. And I hope Viz can negotiate digital rights back now that Square Enix shuttered their digital site.

MICHELLE: It’s a classic.

MJ: Fullmetal Alchemist is absolutely a must-own, and I’m glad it’s being given a second run like this.

SEAN: The 4th Loveless omnibus, with Vol. 7 & 8, I think catches us up with Viz’s newer releases, right?

MICHELLE: It does, as volume 11 came out in June. It also catches us up with Japan.

MJ: I honestly can’t wait. The new volumes have been mocking me from the shelf for so long.

SEAN: Rin-Ne has hit a dozen volumes, and is doing well enough that it doesn’t have to worry about getting as behind as Case Closed is. Not that this means any legitimate plot is happening, mind you…

MICHELLE: I’m happy that RIN-NE exists for whenever I want a dose of Takahashi, but it’s true there’s not really anything to get excited about.

SEAN: Finally, we see the second volume of superhero manga Tiger & Bunny. He’s a superhero. He’s also a superhero. THEY FIGHT CRIME!

Anything here catch your fancy?

SEAN: I’m pretty sure there’s something for absolutely everyone in this week’s list. Let’s break it down.

Starting off with a publisher we don’t often talk about. But Last Gasp has not one, but two manga releases out this week. First off is The Strange Case of Panorama Island, which is an adaptation of a famous Edogawa Rampo novel by underground manga artist Suehiro Maruo. Now admittedly, most of the indie manga fans grabbed this at TCAF already. Let’s get it more widely read.

MJ: I’m definitely interested, and I wasn’t at TCAF, so count me in!

MICHELLE: Ooh, finally! This one has been on my Amazon wishlist for ages!

ANNA: How many years ago was this announced? I’m glad that Strange Case of Panorama Island is coming out finally, I am very curious about it.

SEAN: And there’s also the 2nd volume of the cute yet disturbing Little Fluffy Gigolo Pelu, the first volume of which came out back in 2009. It’s a Junko Mizuno title, so be prepared for strangeness.

MJ: At long last! I still have the first volume that I borrowed from Michelle ages ago, so I guess I’d best reread and send back to her so that she can do the same!

MICHELLE: !!!!! I genuinely had no idea the second volume of this was on the horizon! It might be time to bust out my seldom-seen happy dance!

ANNA: I had no idea either! This is exciting.

SEAN: Seven Seas has a quintet of releases. Alice in the Country of Clover: Cheshire Cat Waltz hits its fifth volume, and continues to feature Alice’s love relationship with Boris.

MICHELLE: I have a tendency to start each new “Alice in the Country of” series, but then never go back to them. That’s the case with this one, too.

SEAN: Gunslinger Girl finally comes to an end with this volume, and if I’ve guessed correctly it will probably not involve everyone living happily ever after and there being punch and pie. Still, it’s a beloved series, and will no doubt be heartwarmingly bleak and tragic.

There’s also the 3rd omnibus of I Don’t Like You At All, Big Brother!!. I think this actually catches us up with Japan, given it’s an omnibus. As such, it may be a while before I have to talk about it again.

The same cannot be said for Mayo Chiki, which resists all my voodoo doll poking at it. Vol. 3 is out next week.

MJ: I can’t tell you how little interest I have in these things.

MICHELLE: *snerk*

SEAN: Lastly, and if I’m honest most interesting, is the debut of a new series, World War Blue. It’s basically the Nintendo/Sega console wars, only with human personifications. I find the premise intriguing, and it does not seem, on first glance, to be filled with moe incest, so it’s my Seven Seas pick this week.

MJ: I agree, that does sound interesting. May be a rare Seven Seas winner for me.

MICHELLE: Huh.

SEAN: Vertical has a debut this week as well, though it’s a much darker series. Wolfsmund comes from the folks at Enterbrain, home to A Bride’s Story, and is a brutal examination of the Middle Ages. It’s supposed to be really excellent, but honestly may be too dark for me.

MJ: “Dark” has never scared me away, so bring it on!

ANNA: This sounds a bit odd and potentially interesting.

SEAN: And what would a first week of the month be without Viz? Bleach 57 gives you 57 varieties of plot, 3 speeds (slow, very slow, and stop), and 3,249 characters.

MICHELLE: And again I snerk.

SEAN: Blue Exorcist hits double digits, and I believe finally heads back to Academy life, though who knows how long that will last.

MICHELLE: I need to catch up on this one.

ANNA: Me too.

SEAN: A new 3-in-1 omnibus, for those who missed it the first time. Like me. D.Gray-Man 1-3 gives us an introduction to this series that started off in Jump before moving to Square (for the artist’s health reasons, I believe). It’s the series about exorcists that didn’t become a monstrous hit (see above for the other one).

Jiu Jiu finishes with its 5th volume, and I’m so relieved that I believe I will actually read it.

MJ: Heh.

MICHELLE: Jiu Jiu is over now? Hallelujah! I expected it to keep limping on indefinitely.

ANNA: I’m probably not going to read this, but I’m relieved that the series is wrapping up. Viz is also going to be releasing infinitely more interesting shoujo/josei very soon.

SEAN: Natsume’s Book of Friends is always welcome in my house, even if it likely won’t feature my OT3 again. But Vol. 14 will be filled with melancholy, gentle humor, and piles and piles of yokai.

MJ: I haven’t checked in with this series in a while, but it was always a favorite, so perhaps now’s the time to catch up!

MICHELLE: I heart it!

ANNA: I have a stash of volumes somewhere I need to catch up on!

SEAN: Oresama Teacher is one of my top 5 comedy mangas right now, and Vol. 14 will be read as soon as it is in my hot little hands. I love it to bits. (Yes, yes, but I loved The Magic Touch, I’ve heard that before…)

MICHELLE: Usually episodic comedies don’t do much for me, but I frequently enjoy Oresama Teacher.

ANNA: I like this series a bunch. It might not always make sense, but the ridiculous situations are part of its charm.

SEAN: Psyren 11 will, I hope, go deeper into the question of Sakurako’s personality disorder, or at least not feature 200 pages of nothing but psychic battles again.

MICHELLE: I need to catch up on this one, too.

SEAN: Skip Beat! gets its 5th 3-in-one, and I seem to recall this would put it right in the middle of the Dark Moon arc. If you haven’t read it yet, why are you reading this? Read Skip Beat!

MICHELLE: Do!

ANNA: Skip Beat! is so good, and unlike most other long-running series it doesn’t seem to slow down or have less interesting storylines.

SEAN: And lastly, in Strobe Edge 5, everyone will be sad. This is not so much a prediction as a premonition.

MJ: I’m totally on board with this kind of sadness.

ANNA: So am I. This series has really gotten better as it develops.

MICHELLE: Me, too. I like Strobe Edge very much.

SEAN: So what appeals to you on this 4th of July week? (Or, if you aren’t American, this generic week?)

SEAN: Given that I got in Yen books this week but the rest of you get it next week, my own Next Week list is somewhat short. But not without interest.

First, I forgot this last week, but the 9th light novel of the Haruhi Suzumiya series, The Dissociation of Haruhi Suzumiya, is out this week. This one is part of a 3-book set (Books 10-11 are coming out here as one big book around Thanksgiving) that revitalized the franchise, giving the series a shot in the arm, as well as a new rival for Kyon’s affections… or is she? Good stuff.

MICHELLE: I think I read the first one of these a long time ago, but never managed to continue.

MJ: I’d like to read these light novels, because the manga adaptation has mostly not done a lot for me. Maybe I’ll like it better in its original form.

SEAN: Now on to 6/26 proper. Dark Horse has the third volume of OreImo. With Haganai, coming out via Seven Seas, it managed to be just interesting enough that I continued it despite its skeeziness. This title is just skeezy enough that I dropped it despite its interestingness.

MICHELLE: Ugh.

MJ: So much skeeze these days, it seems. What’s up with that?

SEAN: Kodansha is still speeding up Fairy Tail. Vol. 26 ended with out heroes in a bad spot. Will they continue to get the crap kicked out of them here as well? Oh, probably, this arc is 7 books long and this is only Book 4 of that.

MJ: This is one of those long series I keep thinking I’d like to try (Hiro Mashima is such a charming guy!) but I’m perpetually intimidated by its length. Should I start it anyway?

SEAN: There’s also a new Negima omnibus for those who missed it, this one taking us into the Magic World arc that proved to be much better than anyone was really expecting.

MICHELLE: An omnibus cannot tempt me to read Negima.

MJ: What she said.

SEAN: Lastly, and most important, we have the 2nd volume of Gundam the Origin. Vol. 1 blew me away with how cinematic it looked, how easy it was for a Gundam newbie to get into the story, and how much care went into its design – this is a gorgeous book intended to stay on shelves for long periods. Get it now, it’s also a limited item.

MICHELLE: Finally, something to look forward to, and I agree with you completely, Sean. My only complaint is the focus on plot over characters, but that’s not enough to dissuade me from picking up volume two.

MJ: Same here. I thought the artwork in the first volume was absolutely stunning. I’m looking forward to more!

ANNA: I agree, Gundam the Origin is the only thing I’m excited about this week. Given the limited print run for this special edition, I’d advise fans to pick up their copy sooner rather than later.

SEAN: What manga makes you go three times faster just to get it?