Features & Reviews

Bookshelf Briefs 6/13/16

June 13, 2016 by Sean Gaffney and Michelle Smith Leave a Comment

It’s a Vizstravaganza!

Assassination Classroom, Vol. 10 | By Yusei Matsui | Viz Media – First of all, yay, Kayano got to do something! The giant pudding detail was very well done, and there was a minimum of the usual tiny chest jokes that normally surround her. The other important detail to note in this volume is how much other forces from outside the classroom are also trying to kill Koro-sensei, and how their methods are very much “by any means necessary.” Indeed, Shiro may end up being this manga’s Big Bad. What he does to Itona is appalling, and I was pleased that, after suitable recovery and the appropriate tragic backstory, he was able to join the class. This continues to be a top-drawer Jump series, and is now so popular that the author will be at NYCC this fall. – Sean Gaffney

Food Wars!: Shokugeki no Soma, Vol. 12 | By Yuto Tsukuda and Shun Saeki | VIZ Media – I always enjoy Food Wars!, but this was an especially good volume. The three-way battle in the final round of the Fall Classic gets underway, but Soma is at a disadvantage when it comes to selecting the best pike (the theme ingredient) for his dish. Of course, he comes through with an innovative workaround after having been dismissed as a threat by his two competitors, though we’ll have to wait until the next volume to see how the judges react to his final flourish. I especially liked that the art has evolved some, and Soma appears to have aged a bit since the start of the series, and that the over-the-top reaction shots leaned more towards musclebound dudes than scantily clad ladies this time around. Eagerly looking forward to volume thirteen! – Michelle Smith

Kamisama Kiss, Vol. 21 | By Julietta Suzuki | Viz Media – I was rather surprised to see that Tomoe’s plight is not so easily resolved, and indeed not resolved at all this volume. But that allows us to focus more on Nanami, who is struggling hard to get her happy human-sized lifetime with her love, but the question remains how long her life is going to be, especially with Yatori, who’s always been sort of creepy and villainous but ups his game a great deal here. Things are so bad that Nanami is even offered an out, when she arrives at Mount Kurama and reunites with her (slightly older) friends, who tell her she can stay there for the rest of her life, and see Tomoe on occasion. But that’s not good enough: Nanami loves Tomoe, and has to fix this. Still recommended. – Sean Gaffney

Paradise Residence, Vol. 2 | By Kosuke Fujishima | Kodansha Comics – This is just the one volume, and because Fujishima’s volumes are slim, it looks like a lot less compared to its predecessor. I’d say that the content also felt a bit light compared to its predecessor, but that implies that the previous volume had a heavy amount of content, which it doesn’t. This series is fluffy even for Fujishima, who takes the time when he’s relaxing from wrapping up Oh My Goddess (most of this ran concurrently with it) to give us amusing school situations, amusing beach situations, a lot of pretty girls, and of course a brief race with a souped-up car, because we know what the author REALLY cares about. If you love Fujishima, this is definitely worth a read. If not, totally skippable. – Sean Gaffney

QQ Sweeper, Vol. 3 | By Kyousuke Motomi | Viz Media – I wasn’t aware that this was the final volume of QQ Sweeper until right before I read it, and it came as a surprise. That said, what it’s actually doing is changing its title and rebooting itself, something that usually happens when a title changes publishers, but no, it’s still going to be in Betsucomi. This is probably why very little is actually wrapped up here, though at least we now have confirmation that Fumi is indeed a very special girl, and she and Kyutaro become closer. This is just as dramatic as the previous volume, with some bullying at the start and major suicidal focus in the second half, so it may not be for everyone. For me though, it was fantastic, and I really hope Viz licenses Queen’s Quality soon. – Sean Gaffney

QQ Sweeper, Vol. 3 | By Kyousuke Motomi | VIZ Media – This is the final volume of QQ Sweeper under this name, but the story doesn’t actually end here. Rather, it just sort of pauses, continuing in Queen’s Quality, which I am hopeful VIZ will license soon. Because, in the end, I really came to like Fumi a great deal. When a manipulative bug-handler coopts a karaoke outing to create hysteria over Fumi’s supposed curse, which in turn leads to bullying followed by insincere friendliness, she comports herself throughout with dignity yet doesn’t shy away from expressing her anger. Furthermore, she’s able to graciously accept Kyutaro’s help when one of the mean girls is further compelled to attempt suicide. It’s nice to have a lead who isn’t spazzy! In fact, I’ve grown to care about both lead characters very much and hope we see more of them soon! – Michelle Smith

School Judgment: Gakkyu Hotei, Vol. 3 | By Nobuaki Enoki and Takeshi Obata | Viz Media – Sometimes you read a series and you know the only reason it was licensed at all is the name recognition, and that’s certainly the case with School Judgment, which would never have even sniffed these shores were it not drawn by Takeshi Obata. We meet our third colleague of Abaku, and if you enjoyed Franziska Von Karma but wished she wore a leather bustier and was twelve years old, you’re in luck! For the rest of us, the fanservice falls flat, and the volume reads like a classic ‘cancelled’ Jump series, i.e. the ending is quite rushed and unsatisfying. If you absolutely must have anything Obata writes, you can get this, but otherwise Ace Attorney is still miles better (and indeed Miles better). – Sean Gaffney

School Judgment: Gakkyu Hotei, Vol. 3 | By Nobuaki Enoki and Takeshi Obata | VIZ Media – In this volume, one last classroom session for class 6-3 leads to the discovery of the identity of the fourth student to survive the massacre five years before. I’ve always felt rather “meh” about School Judgment, but with the introduction of Yui Kijima (the third survivor), my feelings shifted to outright dislike. Not only does she have a sadistic personality, the hyper-sexualized depiction of her as a leather-clad, twelve-year-old dominatrix is really gross. Still, the promise of resolution to the aforementioned massacre kept me reading. Too bad that turned out to be pretty lame, as well. Enoki’s original one-shot, with its craptastic art, rounds out the volume. I’m left with profound gratitude that this series is over. – Michelle Smith

Toriko, Vol. 34 | By Mitsutoshi Shimabukuro | Viz Media – I will hand it to Viz, there was absolutely no way they could censor out the fact that Toriko and company have to get the testicles of the Monkey King to save Komatsu, or all the many, many ball-jokes that follow, and they don’t even try. For the most part, though, this is setup to a big upcoming battle, complete with ignominious defeat to begin with (complete with fake horrific death scenes), and difficult but amusing training sequences. As for the Monkey King himself, he honestly seems like a lot of fun, and I’m hoping that things might be able to be resolved without his death. Until then, though, it’s a giant tag-team wrestling match with our heroes. Toriko is still not about food, but as a Jump title, it’s good. – Sean Gaffney

My Week in Manga: June 6-June 12, 2016

June 13, 2016 by Ash Brown

My News and Reviews

Last week at Experiments in Manga I posted May’s Bookshelf Overload. Largely in part due to my trip to TCAF and the generosity of Kodansha Comics, I ended up with a lot of comics and manga to add to my shelves in May. I was actually out of the state traveling for work for most of the week, but while I was gone I did manage to post an in-depth review of Yui Sakuma’s Complex Age, Volume 1 which is scheduled to be released later this month. I was completely taken by surprise by how strongly the manga resonated with me.

As for some of the interesting reading that I came across online last week: Kodansha Comics’ most recent creator spotlight, which includes links to interviews, videos, and more, focuses on Yoshitoki Oima. ICv2 interviewed Stu Levy about Tokyopop’s return to print publishing. At The OASG, Jenny McKeon shared part of her story about becoming a manga translator in comic form. Also, the most recent installment of The Sparkling World of 1970s Shojo Manga highlights Keiko Takemiya and her work.

Quick Takes

Kiss Him, Not Me!, Volumes 3-4 by Junko. I can’t help it. I do have some reservations about the occasional emphasis placed on Serinuma’s weight (although it does reflect more poorly on the other characters than it does on Serinuma herself), but Kiss Him, Not Me! honestly makes me grin. The story is ridiculous and over-the-top, as are Junko’s illustrations. The characters’ facial expressions and extreme reactions can be pretty spectacular. But there’s also some legitimate character development in the series to go along with the comedy. At times it can even be quite touching. One of the things that makes Kiss Him, Not Me! particularly refreshing is that although Serinuma is basically dealing with a reverse-harem situation, she doesn’t really have any sort of romantic interest in any of the other characters. Like the title suggests, she’d much rather her fujoshi fantasies be indulged. But at this point she does care a great deal about them all as friends, and she makes a great friend even if her suitors would like something more. The four boys and now also the one girl (who is a fantastic addition to the series) are slowly changing for the better and are becoming better people simply by knowing her.

Orange, Omnibus 2 by Ichigo Takano. The first manga to really floor me this year was the debut of Orange. I was a little worried how the second half of the series would turn out, but Takano handles the story very well, finding a good balance between hopefulness and bittersweetness. Orange is a series that deals very frankly, realistically, and powerfully with heavy subject matter like depression and suicide. Takano captures extraordinarily well what it can be like to have depression and how extremely difficult it can be not only for that person but for their loved ones as well. Orange recognizes that issues surrounding mental health are complicated and simple fixes don’t really exist. The manga is not always an easy read—honestly, it can be devastating and I’ll admit to reading through tears on multiple occasions—but it most definitely is a worthwhile series. The second omnibus is filled out by one of Takano’s earlier manga Haruiro Astronaut, a romantic comedy which plays around with shoujo tropes. After the hard-hitting emotional drama of Orange, Haruiro Astronaut comes across as a little frivolous, but it’s enjoyable and in the end I rather liked it’s goofiness.

Paradise Residence, Volume 2 by Kosuke Fujishima. I’m a little surprised by how much I’m enjoying Paradise Residence. Perhaps it’s because the series reminds me of some of the better parts of living in a dormitory and leaves me feeling a bit nostalgic for my college days. (Paradise Residence is about an all-girls high school, though, so the experience isn’t quite the same.) I was particularly fond of the chapter in the second volume in which everyone shows off their culinary skills and creations using low-budget ingredients and super-simple cooking techniques. (Actual recipes are included in the volume as well, which is a nice touch.) Paradise Residence is a fairly low-key comedy that relies more on the charming nature of its cast rather than on over-the-top humor, although sometimes the manga can be pretty ridiculous. The characters are generally likeable and their interactions are entertaining, providing much of the series’ appeal. However, their characterization does come across as somewhat shallow; some of the girls seem to be little more than a “type” or are stuck with a single gag instead being allowed to be fully-realized characters.

Anne Happy, Vol. 1

June 12, 2016 by Sean Gaffney

By Cotoji. Released in Japan by Houbunsha, serialization ongoing in the magazine Manga Time Kirara Forward. Released in North America by Yen Press.

There is a sort of subgenre of school life manga that flits across all genres, be it shonen, seinen or shoujo. This is the ‘separate class filled with special students’ genre. They can be special in the bad way, as with Assassination Classroom’s 3-E class of low-graders, special in a superpowered way, with both Medaka Box’s Class 13 and Class -13, or special in the doomed way, as with many a survival game manga where the class finds itself in a situation where they all die one by one (Battle Royale, Dangan Ronpa, etc.). And now we have Anne Happy, a mostly lighthearted comedy about a group of girls who are all ‘unlucky’ in some way, be it poor health, misdirection, or what have you. The title character (though not, oddly, the protagonist so far) is Anne, a girl whose bad luck is SO bad that it almost comes out the other side.

Our heroine is Ruri, who at first seems out of place in this class, till we realize that she has a fetish for the construction sign of a cartoon worker who directs you to move out of the area. I hesitated to reveal this, as honestly it’s the best joke of the volume, and it’s really the only thing keeping her in the class at all, as otherwise she’s a fairly normal, if dour, young girl. Anne is just like you’d expect from a series like this: overly upbeat and peppy to an unreasonable degree, whether she’s being picked as 49th most lucky in a class with only 40 people in it or accidentally falling into a river and almost getting mauled by a bear. There’s also Botan, who is the ‘calm airhead’ sort (apologies if I call her Mugi by accident) whose body is so fragile that a mild handshake can break all her fingers.

Everyone in this class has been put there supposedly to change their bad luck and find happiness, which mostly seems to involve a series of endurance tests given by their semi-sadistic teacher (who seems to have a split personality). There’s a sense that Anne is worse than the others – she is the title character, after all – and at one point she loses her hair clip and her luck turns to negative fifty zillion. Honestly, though, the plot is mostly an excuse for a series of school gags based around goofy, unlucky girls. We also meet Hibiki, a tsundere sort who seems to be in love with her Takarazuka-esque classmate Ren. I assume that everyone will get to know each other better in the 2nd volume.

This isn’t really a must-read, even for fans of comedies like this one. But it’s pleasant enough, and there weren’t many points where I was irritated or wanted to stop reading. And, aside from a few jokes about Botan’s chest, there’s less fanservice than you’d normally expect in a title like this, possible as Kirara Forward lacks that sort of thing in general. Anne Happy falls into the category of ‘Not bad, will try another volume’ for now.

Complex Age, Vol. 1

June 10, 2016 by Ash Brown

Creator: Yui Sakuma
U.S. publisher: Kodansha Comics
ISBN: 9781632362483
Released: June 2016
Original release: 2014
Awards: Tetsuya Chiba Award

I almost passed over the English-language debut of Yui Sakuma’s Complex Age, but I’m very glad that I took the opportunity I had to read it. Complex Age, Volume 1 was first released in Japan in 2014 while the English-language edition of the volume was released in 2016 by Kodansha Comics. I believe that Complex Age is currently the first and only professional work by Sakuma to have been released. The manga began in 2013 as a one-shot which won the Tetsuya Chiba Award. (That one-shot is also included in the first volume of Complex Age.) Then, in 2014, Complex Age was relaunched as a series. While the original one-shot and the longer series don’t appear to be directly related when it comes to characters and plot, they do share a similar basic premise—an adult woman who is growing older and coming to terms with what that means for her hobbies and interests. I actually didn’t know that was what Complex Age was really about before reading the first volume. I thought it was simply about cosplay and since cosplay—the passion of the series’ main character—isn’t a particular interest of mine, I wasn’t anticipating that the manga would be story that I would end up so closely identifying with.

Nagisa Kataura is twenty-six years old, lives with her parents, and works as a temp worker for a tutoring agency, but in her spare time she is an accomplished and admired cosplayer. Her favorite character to cosplay is Ururu from the anime Magical Riding Hood Ururu who represents everything she wants to be as a person. Nagisa pours herself into her creations and is known for her attention to detail and high-quality work. She does all that she can to achieve perfection and to completely embody a character. However, despite cosplay being such a huge part of her life, she keeps her hobby a secret from her family and coworkers. Now that she’s an adult it’s become even more difficult for Nagisa to share her passion with people who aren’t already accepting of cosplay; it’s considered by many to be a frivolous hobby more suited for much younger fans. As she ages, Nagisa becomes more and more self-conscious about her cosplaying and the criticism that she receives becomes harder and harder for her to take. And yet Nagisa still loves what she does and cosplay is a very important part of who she is.

At first, I wasn’t sure that I really liked Nagisa. The opening chapter begins with her preparing for an event at which she will be cosplaying Ururu, putting an incredible amount of effort into making sure that everything is just right. But while she is at the event she is exceptionally rude and judgemental of the other people there, her behavior culminating in an outburst in which she harshly and publicly criticizes another cosplayer for not respecting the hobby and for not taking it seriously enough. However, as Complex Age progresses, Nagisa becomes a much more sympathetic, or at least understandable, character. The reason she is so sensitive is that her confidence, self-worth, and personal identity are almost irrevocably intertwined with her cosplaying. And so what Nagisa perceives as an insult to the hobby becomes an insult to her personally; when someone else is more talented or more physically suited to portray her favorite characters, she can only see her own faults and limitations being emphasized in comparison. She’s genuinely afraid that she is getting too old for cosplay and that voluntarily giving it up or being rejected by others because of her looks or age would result in her losing a large part of herself.

Before reading Complex Age I didn’t know much at all about the behind-the-scenes work that goes into cosplay, but the manga generally incorporates those sorts of interesting details quite nicely into the story. I’m still not particularly interested in or personally invested in cosplay myself, but Complex Age still resonated with me a great deal. Like Nagisa, I’m an adult interested in media and hobbies that many people look down upon or generally associate with a younger age group (in my case, manga and comics among other things). I also know quite well and understand the dangers of allowing a passion to define one’s self or to impact one’s self-esteem. I have dealt with and, if I’m completely honest, continue to deal with many of the same uncertainties, insecurities, and struggles that Nagisa faces in Complex Age. While so far I do like the series, I think that the Complex Age one-shot about Sawako, a thirty-four-year-old woman letting go of her passion for dressing in Gothic Lolita fashion, made an even greater impression on me. (Also, Sawako’s husband is pretty great.) I’m very curious to see if Sakuma will take Nagisa’s story in a similar direction or if ultimately the Complex Age series will be a little less bittersweet than its predecessor.

Thank you to Kodansha Comics for providing a copy of Complex Age, Volume 1 for review.

Manga the Week of 6/15

June 9, 2016 by Sean Gaffney, Michelle Smith, Ash Brown, MJ and Anna N Leave a Comment

SEAN: Ah, the 2nd week of the month, the most common week for the Manga Bookshelf team to look over the releases and think “Wow, am I picking Magi as Pick of the Week again?”

MICHELLE: Heh.

SEAN: Dark Horse has a 2nd volume of Fate/Zero, sure to give us many more heartwarming moments so that it can crush them to bits in later volumes.

Kodansha Comics is likely counting down the days till Air Gear finishes, and they’re close with Vol. 35, but not yet.

And there’s a 5th volume of L♥DK, and I’m sure all is sweetness and light.

ASH: I know people who like the series, but personally I find it infuriating.

MICHELLE: I never went back after volume one.

SEAN: Paradise Residence has a 2nd volume, which is NOT an omnibus, so don’t be surprised at its slim size. There’s also a souped-up car, because Fujishima.

ASH: I’m enjoying Paradise Residence much more than I thought I would!

SEAN: And Kodansha also has a 2nd volume of their Persona Q spinoff, this one on the P4 side.

Seven Seas has a new debut, which seems to be a romantic comedy of sorts? Masamune-kun’s Revenge runs in Comic Ryu, and the premise sounds like it could be a disaster (guy becomes handsome to get revenge on ice queen who rejected him). I guess we will see how much it subverts its premise.

ASH: Hmmm.

SEAN: There’s also a 6th volume of Servamp, which has vamp… yeah, OK, the running gag is old. I will stop.

SubLime gives us a 2nd 2-in-1 omnibus of Don’t Be Cruel. But are their hearts true?

ASH: I haven’t heard much about Don’t Be Cruel, but enough to be curious about the manga.

MJ: I’m a bit curious as well.

MICHELLE: The blackmail plot doesn’t thrill me, but I can’t help but be amused by the fact that the volume numbers appear on tighty whities.

SEAN: And His Favorite has reached Volume 9, and the cover art is still amazing.

ASH: Uh oh! I’m apparently a couple volumes behind.

SEAN: Vertical gives us a 5th omnibus of Tokyo ESP.

MICHELLE: Yay! I believe this is launching a new arc.

SEAN: And yay, it’s a new volume of Magi! 18 volumes from Viz, and we’re still not tired of it.

MICHELLE: Nope!

ANNA: YAY MORE MAGI!!!!!!

SEAN: Viz also has a 2nd volume of Monster Hunter: Flash Hunter. Would a Flash hunter be against every one of us? (Wow, that was obscure.)

MICHELLE: I admit I didn’t get it, but my brain did think the sequel could perhaps be ‘QuickTime Hunter.’

SEAN: Lastly, the re-release of the Evangelion manga comes to an end with the 5th omnibus, containing the last two volumes. I actually quite liked this ending. It’s worth picking up.

Does something this week cry out to you?

orange: The Complete Collection, Vol. 2

June 9, 2016 by Sean Gaffney

By Ichigo Takano. Released in Japan by Shueisha and then Futabasha, serialized in the magazines Bessatsu Margaret and Manga Action. Released in North America by Seven Seas.

I’d mentioned while reviewing the first omnibus of orange that it wasn’t a slam dunk that Kakeru was going to be saved. Fortunately, the author agreed with me, and most of this 2nd omnibus shows us that trying to change the future is hard, especially when you’re dealing with someone who killed themselves – it’s not always something you can fix just by being really nice. Naho and the others don’t really screw much up here, and they try their hardest, but there’s a lot going on in Kakeru’s head, and even Future Vision can’t solve his own inner demons. This leads to a devastating chapter that is easily the best of the book, as we see from Kakeru’s POV the thoughts and actions that led to his suicide in the original world.

And there is, of course, the romance between Naho and Kakeru as well. I’m pleased that the future flashforwards we see here show that Naho and Suwa’s marriage isn’t an unhappy one – they’re two people who’ve led a good life, and even have a kid, but they’re both still devastated by the boy they couldn’t save. Perhaps this is why, despite all the suggestions and hints, the romance is mostly left on the back burner, and we don’t get a definitive “and they married and lived happily ever after” here. Much like A Silent Voice, this is a series that’s trying to be about friendship and overcoming difficulties. Because in the end, after everything they changed, and every way they tried to make Kakeru feel loved and welcome, he *still* tries to kill himself.

But they did make a difference – he pulls back at the last minute, realizing he doesn’t want to die. (Admittedly, Hagita breaking his bike helped – Hagita is mostly used as comic relief throughout, being the “friend nobody likes” sort, but he’s also quite clever and absolutely one of the gang here.) I was rather surprised that, in their tearful talk after his attempt, they all confess they got letters from the future, and show them to him. The science of how this happened is very vague, and I don’t think we’re meant to dwell too hard on it. In the end, appropriately, the six friends bury the time capsule we’ve seen before, only now dedicated to a new future.

There wasn’t quite enough orange to fill a 2nd omnibus, so we get a short multi-part romance from the same author, Haruiro Astronaut. It’s not as good as the main story, but isn’t too bad, and has some good twists – the romantic setup is theoretically between the cool guy and the sweet guy, but ends up taking a third option, and there’s some talk about actually trying to care about what girls think rather than just trampling all over them. It’s good, but the main draw of this collection is orange itself. It’s excellent, and both omnibuses are absolutely worth your money.

Everyone’s Getting Married, Vol. 1

June 8, 2016 by Anna N

Everyone’s Getting Married Volume 1 by Izumi Miyazono

As far as I’m concerned, Shojo Beat’s recent practice of releasing the occasional josei title is one of the best things ever. Manga featuring non-highschoolers is still not so easy to find, so I was looking forward to Everyone’s Getting Married. At the same time, just based on the title I was a bit concerned that this would be a josei version of The Rules or something that would involve trapping a man into marriage. I was really happy to discover that I enjoyed the personalities and relationship dynamic between the main couple in this manga.

Asuka Takahashi is a successful real estate agent, but her main ambition in life is to get married and become a homemaker. Asuka takes the idea of being a housewife very seriously, mainly due to the fact that she has strong childhood memories of the type of home her mother provided for her as a child. She’s thwarted in her goal in the first chapter when her long term boyfriend breaks up with her. Asuka has a brief encounter with Ryu Nanami when she’s attending a wedding. He’s a newscaster who is determined to never settle down. Asuka and Ryu have an unusually frank exchange about their incompatible goals in life and then part, fully expecting to never see each other again. He tells her “You seem like a great woman, but it would never work out between us,” and she thinks “This man…is not at all what I am looking for.”

Of course, they get thrown together over and over again, because Ryu is the roommate of Asuka’s co-worker Ono. Ryu and Asuka start getting to know each other better, unconstrained by the possibility of a romantic relationship since they’ve mutually ruled each other out. Asuka sees that Ryu is much more of an ordinary person than he appears to be based on his TV persona. He sees that she’s genuinely kind, and he respects the work that goes into keeping a household running even though he has no desire for a wife. They both begin to fall a little in love with each other, but their goals in life for a family and future remain absolutely different. Miyazono’s art is pretty to look at and easy to follow, even though her style isn’t particularly unique.

Asuka and Ryu end up both being sympathetic and quirky enough to make me wonder which way this story is going to go, even though I’m totally expecting a happy ending. They’re also balanced out a bit by secondary couple Ono and Rio, who have the opposite relationship dynamic where Ono wants to settle down and Rio is determined to keep dating. Overall, this first volume seems like a great addition to the under the radar josei titles coming out under the Shojo Beat line.

Bookshelf Briefs 6/7/16

June 7, 2016 by Sean Gaffney and Michelle Smith Leave a Comment

Inu x Boku SS, Vol. 11 | By Cocoa Fujiwara | Yen Press – The finale of this series gets a few more extra pages to be able to show the final battle and all of the villainous tragic backstory that precipitates it. It ends up tying in with the time-traveling tree we’ve seen in prior volumes, but honestly, I wasn’t as interested in the villains as I was in seeing our heroes be cool. All the appropriate couples end up together (though surprise, the supposed lesbian isn’t so much in the end), and we even get some closure from the future-that-wasn’t cast as well. I enjoyed this series a great deal, with several of the plot twists taking me totally by surprise (though sometimes, as with the fate of Kagerou, there is utter non-surprise). I’ll miss it. – Sean Gaffney

Kamisama Kiss, Vol. 21 | By Julietta Suzuki | VIZ Media – I have consistently enjoyed Kamisama Kiss, but now that we’re moving into the endgame, it’s gotten even better. Tomoe has decided to become human, but his first attempt has left him in fox form instead. Nanami is supposed to stay behind while Mikage seeks treatment, but of course she doesn’t, and her shortcut leads to a run-in with one of Kirihito’s minions who reveals that her life force has been so diminished by what happened between her and his master in Okinawa that she’s got at most six months to live. I am absolutely sure a shoujo manga won’t allow its heroin to die—though I can think of one notable exception—so the parts that I actually found most interesting involved Kirihito’s schemes coming nearer to fruition along with inter-minion power plays. I love the darker atmosphere Suzuki evokes in their scenes; I hope there are many more of them to come! – Michelle Smith

Non Non Biyori, Vol. 4 | By Atto | Seven Seas – I was a bit irritated with the last volume of this slice-of-country-life series, but luckily things are a bit better this time around. Natsumi’s irritating qualities are kept to a minimum, and we get more of Renge, possibly due to reader demand as she is the young, cute (and very strange) one. Of course, you could argue the entire cast is strange in its own way, and the series is at its best when it’s at its silliest, such as the Koshigaya Sisters playing around with persimmons, or a flashback to the day baby Renge was brought to school and caused total havoc. There are some sweet moments as well, of course, such as the trek to see the New Year’s sunrise, but for the most part you read this for good, if mild, laughter. – Sean Gaffney

orange: The Complete Collection, Vol. 2 | By Ichigo Takano | Seven Seas – Given how deeply I loved the first volume of orange, it would’ve been hard for the second to surpass it, so the fact that I liked it a little less shouldn’t be construed as disappointment. I merely thought the ending was a bit rushed, with Suwa giving up on his feelings for Naho seemingly without much angst and an argument between Naho and Kakeru that felt somewhat forced. (Surely Naho is intelligent enough to see where her future self went wrong before essentially repeating the mistake!) There are many intensely lovely scenes between the group of friends, however, including a memorable sports festival, and I’m very fond of all the characters. To top it all off, I actually really liked the bonus story, too. This is a manga I will be rereading and foisting on friends for sure. – Michelle Smith

A Silent Voice, Vol. 7 | By Yoshitoki Oima | Kodansha Comics – Those who were wondering if the two tormented leads would ever get together at the end of this may be a bit disappointed by the ending to A Silent Voice, where the closest we get to romantic resolution is Naoka showing off a ring a tall, hot model gave her—which turns out to be from Miyoko. (OK, that’s not romantic resolution, it’s yuri tease.) What is resolved is the film everyone was making, which doesn’t get any awards but ends up being personally satisfying, and Shoko and Shoya, who are both able to come to terms with their past and move on. After a series that dealt repeatedly with abuse and suicidal thoughts, this comes as something of a relief, and I am delighted with the finish. – Sean Gaffney

Yamada-kun and the Seven Witches, Vol. 8 | By Miki Yoshikawa | Kodansha Comics – The first half of this is pure setup, as they learn what the power of the seventh witch is (the cliffhanger from last volume being totally wrong), realize what will happen if they figure out who said witch is, and have contingency plans to deal with said fallout. And then, naturally, everything goes horribly wrong. The second half of this volume can be very painful to read, especially for anyone who’s always secretly wondered if maybe their friends all have more fun whenever they aren’t there. Yamada-kun puts a brave face on things, which leads to hilarious scenes of him trying to clean his way to happiness, but an emotional breakdown isn’t far off, and I suspect things will get worse in the next volume. – Sean Gaffney

Yotsuba&!, Vol. 13 | By Kiyohiko Azuma | Yen Press – It’s been a long time since the last volume of Yotsuba&! came out, but after reading a few pages it feels like we’ve never really been away. We get Asagi being bemused at Yotsuba’s childlike logic, Fuuka suffering from the same, and Yanda getting just plain abuse. But the majority of this book is about Yotsuba’s grandmother, who comes to stay with her son for a few days. She’s new to the reader but not to Yotsuba or Koiwai, which leads to many familiar yet unfamiliar situations. She’s also naturally got a dour face, even if her mood is not matching, so we get amusing contrasts between dialogue and expression. But, most importantly, we discuss Yotsuba sleeping on her own for the first time! Will time actually move forward? – Sean Gaffney

Franken Fran, Vols. 3-4

June 7, 2016 by Sean Gaffney

By Katsuhisa Kigitsu. Released in Japan by Akita Shoten, serialized in the magazine Champion Red. Released in North America by Seven Seas.

Franken Fran has many grotesque, nasty images throughout. There’s blood, gore, other bodily fluids, and truly disgusting things being done to the human body. And yet the most terrifying thing in the entire series is easily Fran herself, who is quite simply impossible to understand or empathize with, and whose concept of what life is does not remotely cross over with the majority of humanity. Fran is simply a force of nature, and this omnibus shows us several times when your jaw drops at what she carries out. Oddly enough, it’s Veronica, her sister the assassin who was introduced at the end of the last book, who ends up being the voice of sanity in the series (as well as the straight man).

This is not to say that Veronica is a good guy, of course. In one of the more touching chapters in this book, Veronica and walking organ bank Adorea go to a high school undercover to, theoretically, give Veronica “social skills”. (The fact that Fran is the one who says she doesn’t have these is one of the best jokes in the book.) Of course, veronica is a small, sullen, scarred girl, so naturally she proceeds to get bullies to hell and back, with only one other girl nice enough to be friends with her. And then, of course, everything goes even MORE horribly wrong, as we discover a slavery ring and Veronica has to clean house and chop up a few bad guys. If this were a normal, non-funny thriller series, Veronica might be the anti-hero.

And of course there are the plots of the chapters themselves. Franken Fran is to a large degree an anthology horror series, with Fran and her occasional cast dealing with tragic young love, evil matriarchs seeking immortality, and of course at least two chapters dealing with bugs, which are absolutely not for the squeamish. There’s even a cameo by a certain cult religious deity. The two best chapters in the book are two of the most touching (note that I’m defining touching in the venue of Franken Fran, not beyond it) – in one, a suicidal young man who changes his mind is given new life as a children’s mascot, and crosses paths with a young girl who’s being abused by her father. In the other, a young girl’s dog is killed by a truck, and it’s Fran to the rescue, though her new dog is, shall we say, not what you’d expect. The series even mocks itself by having a Hollywood movie made out of the latter chapter, with dire consequences. (“The bestiality was a nice touch.”)

In the end, Franken Fran is about the stories. They won’t make you feel good, they may gross you out, and one or two of them may give you nightmares. But they’re all stories that stay in your head. And Fran, being a protagonist (I refuse to call her a heroine) who is our guide through this twisted world, is just as memorable.

My Week in Manga: May 30-June 3, 2016

June 6, 2016 by Ash Brown

My News and Reviews

Since it was the end of one month and the beginning of another, there were a couple of different things posted at Experiments in Manga in addition to the usual My Week in Manga feature. First of all, the Paradise Residence Giveaway Winner was announced along with a list of some manga licensed in English that feature boarding schools, dormitories, or other communal living arrangements. As for the first in-depth manga review of the month, I was absolutely thrilled to write about Shigeru Mizuki’s The Birth of Kitaro, the first volume of Drawn & Quarterly’s new Kitaro series designed to appeal to readers of all ages. I am so incredibly happy that more Kitaro manga is being released in English. I loved Drawn & Quarterly’s original Kitaro collection from back in 2013 (it was one of my most notable releases of the year), but if The Birth of Kitaro is any indication, I’m going to love this series even more.

I’m still keeping plenty busy at home and at work, but there were I couple things in particular that caught my eye online last week. For one, the fourth part of “The Sparkling World of 1970s Shojo Manga,” focusing on Moto Hagio, was posted at The Lobster Dance. Also, Seven Seas made a slew of new licensing announcements over the course of the week. The one that I’m most excited for is The Girl From the Other Side: Siúil, a Rún by Nagabe (coincidentally, Jocelyne Allen recently reviewed the first volume at Brain vs Book and it sounds fantastic), but Seven Seas has also picked up four more yuri manga—Milk Morinaga’s Secret of the Princess and Hana & Hina After School, Hiromi Takashima’s Kase-san and…, and Hachi Ito’s Kindred Spirits on the Roof—as well as Seiju Natsumegu’s Ghost Diary, Tsukasa Saimura’s Tokyo Undead, Kawakami Masaki and Hato’s There’s A Demon Lord on the Floor, and a collaboration with Mamenosuke Fujimaru to create an English-first manga, Captive Hearts of Oz.

Quick Takes

Attack on Titan, Volumes 16-18 by Hajime Isayama. It’s been a little while since I’ve read Attack on Titan proper as opposed to one of the spinoff manga or novels. Granted, part of that is because the North American release of the manga has more or less caught up with the Japanese release; with number twists and turns in the series’ plot, I find that Attack on Titan generally works better for me if I can read several volumes at once. These three volumes delve into the backstories of several of the characters including Levi and, probably more importantly, Historia. There are also several important reveals regarding the nature of the world and of the Titans. Overall, an exciting few volumes with some legitimately interesting developments. Although the series is still ongoing, it feels as though Isayama is beginning to set up the series’ finale. I’m hoping for a satisfying conclusion, and I’m starting to believe that Isayama might actually be able to pull one off. With the sixteenth volume, Kodansha Comics has also started releasing special editions which are packaged with other merchandise. Some of the extras, like playing cards, I’m not personally interested in but others, like the No Regrets anime, I’m definitely glad to have.

Fairy Tail: Blue Mistral, Volume 2 by Rui Watanabe. Recently, I’ve been sampling quite a few of Fairy Tail‘s spinoff manga being released in English. Some I’ve actually liked while others I’ve merely tolerated, so it was anyone’s guess as to whether or not I’d appreciate the franchise’s shoujo offering, Blue Mistral. I’m happy to say that, for the most part, it’s not a bad series at all. The plot of Blue Mistral, Volume 2 may seem to oversimplify what is really a rather complicated situation and some of story’s resolutions feel like they come a little too easily, but considering that the series original intended audience was preteens and early teens I don’t necessarily consider that to be a true fault. Actually, it’s kind of refreshing to read such a sweet, cheery, and bright version of the world and characters of Fairy Tail. Blue Mistral follows the adventures of Wendy Marvell, an impressively skilled twelve-year-old sky-dragon slayer magic user. She’s a likeable and earnest protagonist who believes in friendship and in helping others whenever she is able. Perhaps unsurprisingly, Blue Mistral‘s shoujo version of Wendy may be even more adorable than Fairy Tail‘s shounen version, in part because Watanabe’s artwork tends to be fairly cute.

Wild Butterfly by Hiroki Kusumoto. It wasn’t until I was about halfway through reading Wild Butterfly that I realized that I had previously read another of Kusumoto’s manga, the first volume of Vampire’s Portrait. I didn’t especially like Vampire’s Portrait (I never got around to reading the second and final volume), but it did have one thing in common with Wild Butterfly—when called upon, Kusumoto can draw some fantastically frightening scenes with shocking reveals. Wild Butterfly is a collection of five unrelated short manga. Despite the fact that, because the volume was released under Digital Manga’s June imprint, “yaoi manga” is emblazoned on the front cover, only one of the five stories could even arguably be considered boys’ love. Most of the stories have a bit of horror or some supernatural elements, although the titular “Wild Butterfly” is more of a period piece about the tragedy of war. There aren’t really any overarching themes in Wild Butterfly, but the stories do tend to be fairly melancholic and somber. The collection isn’t outstanding or particularly refined, but there are some interesting aspects to the stories. I did at least enjoy Wild Butterfly much more than I did the beginning of Vampire’s Portrait.

Umineko: When They Cry, Vol. 13

June 5, 2016 by Sean Gaffney

Story by Ryukishi07; Art by Hinase Momoyama. Released in Japan in two separate volumes as “Umineko no Naku Koro ni: Dawn of the Golden Witch” by Square Enix, serialized in the magazine GFantasy. Released in North America by Yen Press.

“Beatrice was dead: to begin with. There is no doubt whatever about that. The register of her burial was signed by the clergyman, the clerk, the undertaker, and the chief mourner. Lambdadelta signed it. And Lambdadelta’s name was good upon ‘Change, for anything she chose to put her hand to. Old Beatrice was as dead as a door-nail.”

OK, sorry, that just had to be done. Welcome to the new arc of Umineko, folks, and here’s 500 more pages of Rokkenjima antics. And yes indeed, Old Beatrice is dead, and won’t be returning. Luckily for us, Battler is a bit upset about that, and so we have new, Fledgling Beatrice. Sadly, new Beatrice acts meek and mild, and seems to regard Battler as more of a father than anything else. Yes, sorry to say, if you thought creepy incest themes were only in the third arc, guess again.

Battler understands how magic really works now, so recreating *a* Beatrice isn’t that hard. But this isn’t his Beatrice, as she has not experienced the thousand years of endless torture that turned her into the Endless Witch. As a result, Battler is a bit upset at her very presence, which is a shame as she really, really wants to be nice to him. Fledgling Beato (the translation does not use the term “Chick Beato” as the games did – I thank them for that) is, personality-wise, much the same as the Beatrice that Rosa found in the secret mansion back in 1967 or so. And Battler is, of course, very reminiscent of Kinzo lately. I don’t like where this is going.

Luckily there are many other aspects to this series, as always. Erika is back as well, and she’s naturally at her best when at her worst, destroying Maria’s concept of magic to such a degree that even Gertrude and Cornelia are calling it completely pointless. Erika is a villain you love to hate, and even though she is also part of the endless cycle of ‘bullied becomes the bully’ thanks to suffering at Bern’s hands, her total contempt for anything other than truth leads her to arrogance and scorn. Also returning, after an Arc’s absence, is Ange, somewhat surprised to not be dead. She’s here to investigate the supposed author of the 3rd-5th arcs, Tohya Hachijo – or rather to her true self, Featherine Augustus Aurora, who seems to be a Witch along the lines of Lambda or Bern, only infinitely more arrogant. (The connection to Higurashi’s Hanyuu, subtle in the VN, is made far more explicit here.)

And then there’s our romantic couples. It is rather sweet seeing Kanon finally work up the courage to confess to Jessica, and she does more happy blushing here than she has in the last five arcs combined. It is also somewhat interesting to see George confess to his past mindset and pettiness – honestly, the entire section makes teenage George sound a bit like an MRA, and I’m glad to see he has matured to a degree where he can confess to how stupid it is. The more interesting question here, though, is the need for magic in order to make them happy. Yes, the whole master/servant relatioship is a worry, but not a big enough worry to require a literal miracle. Why do Shannon and Kanon need magic for their love to be fulfilled? Why is Beatrice so determined to be with Battler even though she keeps calling him father? Why does Ryukishi07 feel the need to introduce a second Greek Chorus to expound just about love? And why does the manga always make Ange a giant brocon, something that isn’t in the VNs? Is it just for the lulz?

The art, by the way, is from the artist who did the Higurashi Massacre volumes, and it’s pretty good. Like several of the other artists, she knows when to emphasize the sauciness in ways readers will like – hence Fledgling Beato and Elder Beato crushing their chests together – but also to make fun of it in the 4komas later. If you enjoy Umineko, there’s nothing to worry about here, except more attention to incestual romances than I’d perhaps like.

The Manga Revue: I Am a Hero

June 4, 2016 by Katherine Dacey

Can the market support another zombie comic? That’s the question at the heart of this week’s column, as I examine Kengo Hanazawa’s I Am a Hero, a manga about a geeky artist living through a zombie apocalypse. Bone appetit!

I Am a Hero, Vol. 1
By Kengo Hanazawa
Rated Older Teen, for ages 16+
Dark Horse, $19.99

At first glance, I Am a Hero looks like a Walking Dead clone, complete with gun-toting vigilantes and hungry zombie hordes. Peel back its gory surface, however, and it becomes clear that I Am a Hero is really a meditation on being trapped: by a dead-end job, by thwarted expectations, and by fears, real and imagined.

The “hero” of Kengo Hanazawa’s series is thirty-five-year old Hideo Suzuki. Though Hideo tasted success with the publication of his own manga, his triumph was short-lived: Uncut Penis was cancelled just two volumes into its run. He now toils as a mangaka’s assistant, working alongside other middle-aged artists whose professional disappointment has curdled into misogyny and grandiosity.

Compounding Hideo’s problems is his fragile mental state. He hallucinates, talks to himself, and barricades the door to his apartment against an unspecified threat, in thrall to the voices in his head. Despite his tenuous grasp on reality, Hideo is the only one of his co-workers who notices the small but telling signs that something is deeply amiss in Tokyo. Hideo soon realizes that his long-standing fears might actually be justified, and must decide whether to hunker down or flee the city.

Getting to Hideo’s do-or-die moment, however, may be a challenge for some readers. The first act of I Am a Hero is a tough slog: not only does it focus on a cluster of strenuously unpleasant characters, it documents their daily routines in painstaking detail. The tedium of these early chapters is occasionally punctuated by vivid, unexplained imagery that calls into question whether the zombies exist or are a figment of Hideo’s imagination. What the reader gradually realizes is that Hideo’s paranoia makes him alive to the possibility of catastrophe in a way that his bored, self-involved co-workers are not; they’re too mired in everyday concerns to notice the growing body count, a point underscored by the banality of their workplace conversations, and their shared belief that women are the real enemy.

When the zombie apocalypse is in full swing, Hanazawa delivers the gory goods: his zombies are suitably grotesque, retaining just enough of their original human form to make their condition both pitiable and disturbing. Hanazawa stages most of the action in tight spaces–an artist’s studio, a pedestrian footbridge, a hallway–giving the hand-to-hand combat the stomach-churning immediacy of a first-person shooter game. Only when Hanazawa cuts away to reveal a fire-ravaged, chaotic landscape do we fully appreciate the extent to which Tokyo has succumbed to the zombie plague.

It’s in these final moments of the book that Hideo glimpses an alternative to his miserable existence–the loneliness, anonymity, and failure that, in his words, have prevented him “from being the hero of my own life.” How he escapes these emotional traps–and those pesky zombies–remains to be seen, but it seems like a journey worth taking. Count me in for volume two.

A word to parents: I Am a Hero is less gory than either The Walking Dead or Fear the Walking Dead, but contains scenes of disturbing violence and frank sexual content. Dark Horse’s suggested age rating seems appropriate for this particular title.

Reviews: At Brain vs. Book, Jocelyn Allen looks at two untranslated series: Akina Kondoh’s A-ko-san no Koibito, a josei manga about a woman juggling two love interests, and Machiko Kyo’s Nekojou Mu-Mu, a comic about an outrageously cute cat. Matt Brady, host of Warren Peace Sings the Blues, weighs in on the third installment of JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Phantom Blood. And at Three if By Space, Robert Prentice explains why My Hero Academia is truly a comic for all ages.

Manjiorin on The Birth of Kitaro (The OASG)
Demelza on Blood C: Demonic Moonlight (Anime UK News)
Adrienne on Cute Life of Mary and Lola (Heart of Manga)
Che Gilson on vol. 1 of Fairy Girls (Otaku USA)
Tony Yao on Food Wars: Shokugeki no Soma (Manga Therapy)
Marissa Lieberman on vol. 1 of Gakkyu Hotel: School Judgment (No Flying No Tights)
A Library Girl on vol. 7 of His Favorite (A Library Girl’s Familiar Diversions)
Michael Burns on vol. 2 of How to Raise a Boring Girlfriend (AniTAY)
Steve Foxe on vol. 1 of I Am a Hero (Paste Magazine)
Svetlana Fedotov on vol. 1 of I Am a Hero (Fangoria)
Helen on Itihasa (The OASG)
Anna N. on vol. 20 of Kamisama Kiss (Manga Report)
Khursten Santos on Minori no Te (Otaku Champloo)
Saeyong Kim on vol. 1 of Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-Kun (No Flying No Tights)
Sean Gaffney on vol. 3 of Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-Kun (A Case Suitable for Treatment)
Gabe Peralta on vol. 3 of Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-Kun (The Fandom Post)
Gabe Peralta on vol. 1 of My Youth Romantic Comedy Is Wrong as I Expected (The Fandom Post)
Ken H. on vol. 1 of Mysterious Girlfriend X (Sequential Ink)
Kory Cerjak on vol. 1 of Mysterious Girlfriend X (The Fandom Post)
Matthew Alexander on vol. 11 of Path of the Assassin (The Fandom Post)
Matthew Alexander on vol. 12 of Path of the Assassin (The Fandom Post)
Jason Thompson on vol. 1 of Princess Jellyfish (Otaku USA)
Nic Willcox on vol. 1 of Puella Magica Homura Tamura (No Flying No Tights)
David Brooke on vol. 2 of Real Account (AiPT!)
Rebecca Silverman on vol. 4 of Requiem of the Rose King (Anime News Network)
Lori Henderson on The Secret Sakura Shares (Manga Xanadu)
Sarah on vol. 5 of Servamp (Anime UK News)
Matt on vol. 7 of A Silent Voice (AniTAY)
Jason Thompson on Sweetness & Lightning (Otaku USA)
Nic Willcox on vol. 1 of Sword Art Online: Girls’ Ops (No Flying No Tights)
Demelza on vol. 1 of To the Abandoned Sacred Beasts (Anime UK News)
Daniel Boyd on vol. 3 of Ultraman (No Flying No Tights)
Sarah on vol. 10 of What Did You Eat Yesterday? (Anime UK News)
Sophie Knight on What Is Obscenity? The Story of a Good-for-Nothing Artist and Her Pussy (The Japan Times)
Michelle Martinez on What Is Obscenity? The Story of a Good-for-Nothing Artist and Her Pussy (New York Journal of Books)
ebooksgirl on vol. 12 of Yotsuba&! (Geek Lit Etc.)
Marissa Lieberman on vol. 1 of Yowamushi Pedal (No Flying No Tights)

Kitaro, Vol. 1: The Birth of Kitaro

June 3, 2016 by Ash Brown

Creator: Shigeru Mizuki
U.S. publisher: Drawn & Quarterly
ISBN: 9781770462281
Released: May 2016
Original release: 1966-1968

In 2013, comics publisher Drawn & Quarterly released Kitaro a volume collecting stories from Shigeru Mizuki’s most well-known and beloved manga series GeGeGe no Kitaro. I absolutely loved the collection and so I was thrilled when Drawn & Quarterly announced that it would be publishing more of Mizuki’s GeGeGe no Kitaro in English as part of its Enfant line of kids comics. The Birth of Kitaro, released in 2016, is the first of seven planned Kitaro volumes with stories selected, with input from Mizuki, by the manga’s translator and yokai scholar Zack Davisson. The Birth of Kitaro collects seven stories originally published in Japan between 1966 and 1968, an essay about the history of Kitaro as well as an additional guide to yokai written by Davisson, and an utterly delightful section devoted to yokai-themed activities such as a word search, a maze, and several matching games among other fun challenges.

The tales in The Birth of Kitaro begin with the origin story of Kitaro, a powerful and mostly benevolent yokai boy. (“The Birth of Kitaro” also explains why his father, Medama Oyaji, is a disembodied/embodied eyeball.) The chapter was first published in the influential alternative manga magazine Garo. The other six stories chosen for the collection were created with a slightly younger audience in mind and were serialized in Shonen Weekly and as well as the magazine’s special edition. The second chapter, “Nezumi Otoko versus Neko Musume,” introduces one of the series’ primary recurring characters. Nezumi Otoko, one of Kitaro’s yokai friends even though he is a bit of jerk, tends to either cause trouble or get himself into trouble, needing to be chastised or rescued by Kitaro depending on the circumstances. The other stories included in The Birth of Kitaro are “Nopperabo,” “Gyuki,” “Yokai of the Mountain Pass,” “Makura Gaeshi,” and “Hideri Gami.”

As much as I loved Drawn & Quarterly’s original Kitaro collection, I think that I may love The Birth of Kitaro even more. All of the stories selected for the volume are a little bit creepy, a little bit scary, and a little bit gross, but they are also a great deal of fun and can be rather funny, too. I had actually forgotten just how amusing Mizuki’s Kitaro manga could be; the mix of scariness and silliness in the series is marvelous. Mizuki has a terrific sense of humor and comedic timing, perfectly balancing the chuckles with the chills and thrills in the manga collected in The Birth of Kitaro. The horror and the humor work together to create an incredibly enjoyable read. It also doesn’t hurt that Kitaro is a likeable lead to begin with, and that the supporting characters like Nezumi Otoko and Medama Oyaji, with their distinctive personalities and entertaining interactions, add a tremendous amount to enjoy in the series as well.

Mizuki’s Kitaro manga is steeped in yokai lore which I love. Other readers picking up The Birth of Kitaro may not be as familiar with Japan’s mysterious monsters and phenomena, but the volume is still very approachable and accessible. The stories themselves provide an entertaining introduction to yokai (from time to time even Kitaro must do a bit of research in order to effectively confront and deal with troublesome spirits) and for readers who are curious to learn more, Davisson’s “Yokai Files” are an informative addition to the volume. The Birth of Kitaro is an excellent all-ages manga, suitable for younger readers who enjoy a bit of a scare and supernatural excitement while still being entertaining and appealing for adults. It’s also a wonderful overall package, with fun and games, the manga itself, and background information all together in one place. The new Kitaro series in English is off to a fantastic start with The Birth of Kitaro; I can’t wait for the next volume to be released.

Thank you to Drawn & Quarterly for providing a copy of The Birth of Kitaro for review.

Manga the Week of 6/8

June 2, 2016 by Sean Gaffney, Ash Brown, Michelle Smith, Anna N and MJ 1 Comment

SEAN: June is busting out all over, especially in terms of sheer manga volume – this month will be punishing, starting with 25 books out next week.

Dark Horse gives us the 4th – and presumably last for now – omnibus of The Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service. Go get it if you haven’t already.

ASH: I’m really glad this series is getting a second chance. Apparently the omnibuses are doing better than the single volumes did.

SEAN: And the Evangelion spinoff Shinji Ikari Raising Project may be over in Japan, but we still have a couple volumes to go. Here’s Vol. 16.

And a 9th New Lone Wolf and Cub.

This isn’t on Amazon yet, but Diamond has a couple of DMP books out, so let’s list them as well. (Yes, DMP still does print books. On occasion.) Does the Flower Blossom? gets a 2nd volume.

MICHELLE: I’m still holding out hope for volume eleven of Itazura na Kiss!

SEAN: And we also get the 9th volume of The Tyrant Falls in Love.

ASH: The eighth volume made for a pretty solid conclusion to the series, so I’m curious to see where this one goes.

SEAN: Kodansha has a 5th volume of shoujo reverse harem series Kiss Him, Not Me!.

ASH: I find that I am rather enjoying this series.

SEAN: And Say “I Love You” has gotten to Volume 14, and I still insist on using those quotes, because I’m stubborn like that.

MICHELLE: Yay!

ANNA: So far behind on this series, maybe I can do a reading binge over the summer.

SEAN: Seven Seas has the third Mayo Chiki omnibus. Does this finish that up? (Or off?)

And Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation’s third volume continues to prove that sometimes to get sales you have to license the title people already call it.

Seven Seas’ debut is The Other Side of Secret, which is from Media Factory’s Comic Alive, and I suspect will involve harem romance and possibly large breasts.

And now we have Viz, starting with Assassination Classroom getting to double digits.

Viz debuts a new Jump series, Black Clover. The premise looks to me like One Piece only with magic instead of pirates, but we’ll see how fun it is.

And there’s a 3rd Bloody Mary volume. Vampires!

ANNA: Yay! This series is goofy, but I enjoy all the angst.

SEAN: Dragon Ball’s 3-in-1 has hit lucky Vol. 13.

Yay, another Josei Beat series debuts! Everyone’s Getting Married comes from the pages of Petit Comic, and I’ve generally been very fond of these types of series. Romance between non-high schoolers!

MICHELLE: I am looking forward to this debut!

ASH: As am I!

ANNA: I’m EXTRA looking forward to it!

MJ: I’m… skeptical, but hopeful? Viz’s josei series tend to be full of landmines for me.

SEAN: Food Wars! has a dozen volumes now, and it still makes me hungry.

Kamisama Kiss is up to Vol. 21, and the romance seems to finally be heating up, maybe? As much as Hana to Yume romance ever does?

Komomo Confiserie’s 4th volume continues to try to charm me despite its lack of loud, dense heroines.

MICHELLE: I continue to follow all of these.

ANNA: They are all good series, but Kamisama Kiss is a standout.

SEAN: One Piece has its 16th 3-in-1, which I think begins Thriller Bark?

QQ Sweeper doesn’t come out often enough for my tastes, but I am very happy Volume 3 is here.

MICHELLE: Me, too, though this is the end. Unless VIZ has also licensed the sequel!

ANNA: Aieee, I didn’t realize it was so short. I will cherish the three volumes even more.

MJ: This, this, this!! But is it really the end? Nooooo.

SEAN: And School Judgment ends with its third volume.

MJ: I with I’d liked this more.

MICHELLE: Me, too.

SEAN: Seraph of the End reaches Volume 9. Vampires!

So Cute It Hurts!! has Volume 7, and I will assume has kept its cuteness promises to the reader.

MICHELLE: I have never found it cute, to be honest.

ANNA: I have found it somewhat cute, but I enjoy eye patches and cross dressing in manga.

SEAN: It’s been nine months since a Tegami Bachi volume, so Vol. 19 is heavily anticipated by the fandom.

Lastly, we have a 34th volume of Toriko, which doesn’t make me as hungry as Food Wars!, but has more punching.

ASH: True!

SEAN: Are you picking up any of this deluge?

Strike the Blood, Vol. 3

June 2, 2016 by Sean Gaffney

By Gakuto Mikumo and Manyako. Released in Japan by ASCII Mediaworks. Released in North America by Yen Press.

You’ll pardon me if I find myself saying the same things I said in the first two reviews of this series. I have gotten to the point where I almost wish Strike the Blood was worse than it actually was, as that might actually make it slightly more surprising, even in a horrible way. But no, this is very much a series that fulfills its function. It has a lot of cool, well-written action scenes, the plot advances incrementally, the hero gets a couple of new girls who like him, and the heroine sees this and is cool and frosty to him for reasons he can’t quite figure out. It’s very well colored, but never goes outside the lines. Not once.

Oddly, you would expect a series like this to have varied covers, usually with the hero and a different girl on each of them. that is one thing Strike the Blood does do differently – each cover is Yukina posing for the reader, reminding readers that she is the main heroine whether they like it or not. And as a main heroine, she’s pretty good. The main reason I’m interested in her is that she seems to get frosty when the hero does something that implies he’s not attracted to her, rather than the usual punchy. Her overly earnest personality balances nicely against the more normal childhood hacker friend, the classic tsundere not-lesbian, and (introduced here) the shy princess and her sister, the teasing princess. Of course, the fact that all those are classic harem series archetypes also says something about what we’re reading here.

As for non-harem plot antics, well, trying to turn your adopted daughter into an Angel in order to make her happy is certainly not something you’ll see every day. I did appreciate that Kensei’s motives were given a bit of depth, showing off the somewhat misplaced love he has for her, even if his solution is appalling. It made a nice contrast with Beatrice, who comes to us right out of sneering female villains 101, and is such a cliche that it begins to verge on parody. Same with the elder princess, La Folia, who is noble and very royal, but also introduced to the reader by being found bathing in a stream, and also becomes the latest girl Kojou has to bite in order to release a beast monster to save the day.

I would ideally like something in this series to horribly offend or appall me, so that I could simply drop it and that would be the end of it. But no, Strike the Blood continues to be quietly competent and eminently enjoyable, provided you hate surprises. The hero is a nice guy, but if it weren’t for the illustrations provided throughout, I’d likely imagine him as looking exactly the same as Touma from A Certain Magical Index, a series which this has some similarities with. Index’s prose can be a bear to read, though, and it does throw the occasional curveball. Strike the Blood is batting practice. Straight down the middle, book after book.