Features & Reviews

Blood Lad, Vol. 1

December 26, 2012 by Sean Gaffney

By Yuuki Kodama. Released in Japan by Kadokawa Shoten, serialization ongoing in the magazine Young Ace. Released in North America by Yen Press.

I wasn’t quite sure what to expect with this series aside from ‘vampires’. And that ends up being pretty fitting, as I think the series itself is not quite sure where it’s going to go until we get about halfway through this omnibus, at which point it finds its feet surprisingly quickly. There’s some interesting characters, attempts at world building, and some surprisingly vicious backstory, along with a healthy dollop of humor and fanservice. Honestly, I’m not really sure why this is in the seinen magazine Young Ace rather than its Shonen equivalent, unless it gets far more violent later on. It could simply be Young Ace had the free slot for a new series.

Admittedly, after the first few pages I was expecting something far worse than what this turned out to be. The idea of a slacker vampire who’s a secret otaku made me groan, and thankfully this aspect of Staz’s personality is given shot shrift as the series goes on. More to the point, we see that Staz’s seeming apathy towards life stems from his own family relationships, and that he’s surprisingly tough and powerful – and even clever, when he bothers to be. I was amused at one or two points in the volume where he analyzed the situation and immediately gave up fighting, knowing that he would lose and it’s best to conserve his powers. I was also pleased to see that his obsession with Fuyumi lasted only till she died – after which, he really wants to resurrect her but is clearly not enamored of her. Blood Lad is driven by its action and fantasy, not its harem aspects (though those do linger, mainly via Bell).

As for Fuyumi, she’s probably the aspect of this story I enjoyed the least. She should be there to be the audience identification figure, the lone normal Japanese girl among a town full of freaks. Unfortunately, you don’t get very far in to this volume before you see her role is to have large breasts and get captured a lot. There is a bit of existential angst when she and Staz return to Japan, and he uses mind control to make everyone think she’s still there – this horrifies her till he points out the alternative. Mostly, though, Fuyumi seems to be there to draw in readers who want a passive female in their action fantasy manga.

As I noted earlier, Staz does not have a very nice backstory, and no doubt we will meet his brother in the second volume. The idea of how Staz’s magic is suppressed is quite scary, and certainly explains why he’s so reluctant to take any actions. We also meet his sister Liz, who quickly proceeds to torture him, though I have a nagging suspicion that there may be a bit of a brother complex behind all this – possibly as I’ve read too many moe manga in a row recently.

Blood Lad isn’t terrific – Soul Eater handles almost everything this manga tries to do better – but it’s a solid title, and better than I’d expected. If it can do something with Fuyumi next time, that’s be appreciated. But either way, I look forward to seeing Staz break out and kick some more asses in Volume 2.

It Came from the Sinosphere: Angel Hair

December 25, 2012 by Sara K. Leave a Comment

So it me a while to figure out which Lai An (aka Ryan) manhua I wanted to talk about this week, but as soon as I re-read Angel Hair, I realized that this was the one.

The Story

A couple of travellers visit the grave of an angel somewhere in Italy. The travellers exchange the stories they have heard about the angel’s death. Then a stranger comes and tells them his version of the story.

The travellers find the tomb.

This manhua is mainly a collection of three stories about an angel called Nathaniel and how he died. The three stories all feature characters with the same names, and has some common element (for example, each story features hair turning from black to blond or from blond to black, and all three stories are set during the Italian Renaissance), and of course, each story ends with the death of the angel Nathaniel, but otherwise they are different stories.

Background

Sometimes her name is written in English as ‘Lai An’ and sometimes as ‘Ryan’.

Though there are other magazines which have published Taiwanese manhua aimed at a female audience, Star Girls is, as far as I know, the only magazine to have ever focused on Taiwanese manhua aimed at a female audience. When Star Girls debuted in the 1990s, when Taiwan was transitioning to democracy and aspiring manhua artists suddenly had a lot more freedom (technically, the Taiwanese manhua revival started in the late 1980s, but whatever) this magazine served as a venue for many brand new artists inspired by Japanese shojo manga. Based of what I’ve seen of the 90s material, much of it was dreck. However, it was in the 1990s that Yi Huan (who I’ve discussed before), Nicky Lee (who I’ve also discussed before), and Lai An got their start in Star Girls, and became Star Girls’ three most popular artists. All three of them are still producing shojo-inspired manhua.

Now, Star Girls has a much smaller group of artists than the 1990s, and it’s much harder for new talent to break in since the magazine editors apparently favor talent which has already proven successful. However, my impression (granted, this might be skewed by the samples I’ve encountered) is that the overall quality of the magazine is higher now than in the 1990s.

Anyway, as far as I know, Yi Huan, Nicky Lee, and Lai An are the only Star Girls’ artists who have ever published their own artbooks (please correct me if this information is wrong).

This manhua is a collection of three stories published in Star Girls magazine in the late 90s.

About Lai An’s Art

Since Star Girls is modelled after Japanese shojo magazines, all of its manhua are heavily influenced by Japanese shojo manga … but some are only heavily influenced, for example the work of Yi Huan, and some are so heavily influenced that I can’t stop myself from comparing it to extremely similar Japanese material, for example the work of Nicky Lee. Lai An also falls into the latter category. Her art style in the 1990s is basically just like the dominant shojo art styles of the 90s, and her current art is much like current shojo art.

The thing is, I love 90s shojo art. I dislike current shojo art, which is one reason I don’t read much current shojo (and what I do read of the current stuff, such as 7Seeds, tends to have a retro art style).

As it so happens, I love Lai An’s early art, but I don’t love her current art. I think it is partially because she is following contemporary Japanese styles. Yet I don’t think that completely explains it.

Here are some pages from an early Lai An manhua, The Royal:

First of all, I love the 90s style, in fact, it even seems to hark back to glorious 70s shojo (I can tell that many Star Girls artists love 70s shojo). There is an abundance of wavy lines, a jewel-like beauty, as well as the daring emotionally charged panel compositions which I love to see in shojo manga.

These are some pages from Lai An’s currently running manhua, Close to You:

Okay, the art’s not bad. Actually, it’s good. It’s even more anatomically accurate. It looks the work of a more mature artist. But, to me, it lacks the creative energy of her early artwork. It doesn’t make me pause so I can let the art penetrate my eyes. And I don’t think this can simply be attributed to a change in vogue.

Anyway, maybe I should start talking about…

The Art in Angel Hair

Flowers! Feathers! Swirly lines! Expressive use of panels! Super-long legs! Wheee!!!

About the only thing it would need to become even more like 70s shojo manga art is the sparkles, but that’s okay, I think the flowers and the expressive use of panels are better than sparkles.

And of course, girly art which does not constantly burst into flowers can also be wonderful too, but hey, I heartily approve of girly comic books which burst out into flowers.

It should be apparent by now that Angel Hair is a work from Lai An’s early period, in other words, from when her art was actually beautiful instead of merely being good.

However, it’s not just the 70s-shojo-esque (and authentically 90s) Asian-style girly comic book art.

In order for complex panel compositions to work, there need to be simple compositions to balance them out, and in fact, these simpler compositions will often have the greatest impact because they can be understood the most immediately. Lai An includes a sufficient number of single-panel or otherwise simple pages as well. Of course, when the panel composition is simple, there needs to be a compelling subject. Lai An takes care of this too.

And of course, her characters can be very expressive, and not just in a melodramatic way.

However, I think my favorite thing about the artwork is the use of contrast. Most of this manhua is very light, colorwise – lots of white space between the lines, not too much screentone, etc.

That means when black space is used, it really stands out. These are some of my favorite images, but partially because they contrast with the overall light-levels of the manhua as a whole – in isolation, they would not be so striking.

And it supports the stories. All of the stories include as a plot element blond hair vs. black hair. In all of the stories, blond hair represents goodness, purity, and beauty … as well hypocrisy and deceit, whereas black hair represents evil, pollution, and ugliness … as well as truth and integrity. By keeping most of the art looking light, the dark parts truly feel heavy, serious, and like a stain on the appearance.

This is an opportunity to talk about…

The Stories, Again

All three stories are fairy-tale like, of course. And we all know what a fairy-tale should feel like. And that’s why the first two stories feel wrong.

In the first story, for example, (spoiler warning) the princess kills the angel to get his hair so her hair would be blond forever and she could win the love of the prince. The innocent angel dies and the princess marries the prince and lives happily ever after.

Lai An said she got a lot of complaints about this story when it first ran in Star Girls magazine. It flies in the face of the ‘just world hypothesis’ (which, strangely, I have discussed before) and fairy tales just don’t work like that.

The second story also feels unsatisfying, though I don’t want to spoil that one.

However, the point is that these first two stories are supposed to feel false. Lai An says that she didn’t know whether to be pleased or disappointed by the magazine readers’ reactions. That is so that, when the third story is told, the reader will feel that the third story is the true story of how the angel died (and I am definitely don’t want to spoil that one).

The mere fact that the first two stories are, essentially, false, demonstrates that one shouldn’t trust everything one hears.

I think I hinted at the moral of the three stories while I was talking about the art. Basically, the message is “don’t judge people based on their appearances.” Or perhaps more broadly, “do what you feel is just, not what other people say you should do.”

All in all, I think the stories, collectively, work quite well.

Availability in English

There is no legal way to read this manhua in English. That’s too bad. It’s only one volume long, so I can’t imagine that it would be too much of a financial risk to license and publish this (digitally, or even on paper) in English.

Conclusion

To be honest, I am not a Lai An fan. But this specific manhua is an exception. It was among the first manhua I ever read, and it left an impression on me. It uses the story structure expertly to make its point. And I am most definitely a sucker for the artwork.

Next Time: Full Count (idol drama)

Last week, Sara K. attended the “Global Sinophonia” conference at Academia Sinica. Though she was just an observer, she had never been to an academic conference before, and in some ways she thought getting a peek at that world was more interesting than the presentations themselves. Of course, some of the presentations were very interesting, and will no doubt have their influence on this column. It was also the first time she ever identified herself as a blogger in the offline world (hey, what was she supposed to say when people asked her “what university are you affiliated with” or “what do you research”?) Sara K. is very grateful to Yen Yen Woo and Colin Goh of Dim Sum Warriors for inviting her. Speaking of that, you can now admire the technological marvel of a 3-year old reading a bilingual comic on an iPad.

Kaoru Mori: Anything and Something

December 24, 2012 by Sean Gaffney

By Kaoru Mori. Released in Japan by Enterbrain, serialized in various magazines. Released in North America by Yen Press.

Well this is a bit of an odd duck, isn’t it? Half story collection, half sketchbook, it’s no surprise that this is being released in more expensive hardcover, as I doubt it would recoup any costs whatsoever otherwise. But then that’s also true of A Bride’s Story as well (and note Emma and Shirley were “blogger favorites” with crappy sales). Kaoru Mori is not the author of a Bleach or Naruto, and has a very enthusiastic but minimal audience. As such, this may almost be review proof – anyone buying this is getting it because it’s something new by the author, and the content is mostly irrelevant. That said, there is a lot to like here, even as there’s also a lot that left me scratching my head or feeling vaguely unsatisfied. Which is about what you’d expect from a collection like this.

One thing that pleased me greatly was the sense of humor of many of these stories. Indeed, they’re not simply funny but eccentric – always one of my favorites. The first story in the collection shows a butler and maid desperate for a master so that they can continue to live as they are accustomed – and it’s clear who’s going to be in charge. Then there’s the very early story involving a perverted loon of an inventor and his implacable battle maid. It was impossible for me not to think of the inventor as being played by Michael Bentine (google it). And the cute yet slight story of a girl who takes forever to grow into her school uniform just brings a smile to the face. Some girls are born to attract attention no matter how they look.

There’s also quite a bit of cheesecake here, as if the cover art didn’t clue you in. A Bride’s Story and Emma don’t exactly give a lot of opportunities to draw the female form (except covered in gorgeous clothing). Also, Mori writes mainly for Fellows!, an Enterbrain seinen magazine whose content is geared towards older men who like to see something sexy. This explains the almost static chapters with the Host Club bunny and the wife trying on her swimsuit, which are almost there for art alone. Indeed, one very short story about a girl who is bird-watching essentially stars her posterior.

There were one or two stories that reminded me of my frustration with Mori’s implacable females, particularly one involving a young master wanting to no longer be treated like a child and his maid who smiles politely no matter what. I admit it’s what she does best, but I was hoping for a bit more wackiness. Ironically, the longest story of the collection (and one of my favorites) wasn’t written by Mori, but by fellow Fellows! writer Satoshi Fukushima (who writes Kidou Ryodan Hachifukujin, which would be an awesome if unsellable license). This also features a seemingly implacable girl, but mostly focuses on the ‘normal’ girl who becomes her friend. There were a lot of subtleties here regarding art and life, and I worried that the story was going to end far more tragically, so was pleased at its more ambiguous climax.

After that, there’s the 2nd half of the book. I have far less to say about it – it’s a sketchbook, basically – and if you like Emma or A Bride’s Story, or simply reading about things like fireplaces, then you should find it satisfying. I do wish it had been interspersed with the short stories – having it all come in the 2nd half ends up making the whole book feel like a bit of a curate’s egg (google that too). There’s some good stuff here, but as a collection it’s more ‘odd’ than ‘satisfying’. Which is appropriate, as that’s how I’ve come to view Mori’s work as a whole.

Bookshelf Briefs 12/24/12

December 24, 2012 by Sean Gaffney, MJ and Michelle Smith 1 Comment

This week, Sean, MJ, and Michelle look at recent releases from Kodansha Comics, Seven Seas, VIZ Media, and JManga.

Attack on Titan, Vol. 3 | By Hajime Isayama | Kodansha Comics – There are many depressing series that never quite let you forget that hope for the best is behind it all. Attack on Titan, on the other hand, never lets you forget how fast hope can be lost and turn into total despair. Despite the arrival of a timely (and high-ranked) ally, most of this volume has our three leads existing at a knife-edge away from being killed. For once, the fact that I can barely tell anyone apart except for our heroes works quite well – the mob mentality and need to get rid of anything terrifying is at work here, and that tends to trump things like strategy and common sense. That said, there’s not a lot of common sense in what Eren can now do, and the ‘hey, now we have a titan on our side’ plan doesn’t go nearly as well as they thought. Luckily, there’s a cooking battle arc next time (OK, not really.) -Sean Gaffney

A Certain Scientific Railgun, Vol. 6 | By Kazuma Kamachi and Motoi Fuyukawa | Seven Seas – This is adapting the third ‘Magical Index’ main novel, in case readers were wondering why the big battle with Accelerator consists of Misaka standing around watching things. Still, given that you can’t exactly write Touma out, the Railgun adaptation handles things quite well, putting the focus squarely on Misaka and her own suffering. And it is indeed suffering – Misaka cannot stop blaming her own past actions as a child for the mass slaughter of innocents, to the point where the reaches a horrible decision (that, luckily, Touma is there to talk her out of, or at least calm her down a bit). I will admit that Uiharu and Saten, briefly glimpsed at the start, are missed, but this is a big character-building exercise for Misaka, so it’s OK for once to let the spotlight drift elsewhere. -Sean Gaffney

The Earl and the Fairy, Vol. 4 | By Mizue Tani and Ayuko | VIZ Media – The ending to this final volume of Earl & Fairy is strangely open – or not so strangely, as the light novel series extends many, many volumes beyond this point. It’s not a bad ending to the manga, but I get a feeling that it’s simply reinforcing the lessons that Lydia learned at the end of Volume 2, simply filtered through a different scenario. Everyone gets to show off what they do best – Lydia is compassionate yet foolhardy, Edgar is intelligent yet nihilistic, and Raven gets to beat people up and be deadpan. I did like the repair of Rosalie and Doris’ relationship, mostly as Rosalie did not magically turn nice – she’s still as annoying as she was since we met her. This was a decent fantasy series, but I fear that it doesn’t really linger in the memories that long – which may be why the manga ended with this volume. -Sean Gaffney

My Darling Kitten Hair, Vol. 2 | By Haruko Kumota | JManga/Libre Publishing – As is usually the case, MJwas absolutely right about My Darling Kitten Hair—it’s thoroughly charming. The time for confessions of love has long past, and now “Kei-chan” and “Mii-kun” are getting used to actually being together as a couple after six years in a long-distance relationship. The characterization in this series is so strong that the reader is actually truly happy for them when they achieve a breakthrough, and crushed when things don’t go quite right. I especially love that Mii-kun, the languid slacker type (as opposed to Kei’s tidy salaryman), is actually the more vulnerable one in a lot of ways. But on the whole, I love both guys so much that I really can’t wait for the next volume. Plus? Cute cats! I don’t know how I could possibly recommend this more highly.– Michelle Smith

Natsume’s Book of Friends, Vol. 13 | By Yuki Midorikawa | VIZ Media – For me the best part of this volume was seeing attention paid to ‘Those Two Guys’, i.e. Natsume’s school classmates who aren’t Tanuma and Taki. It’s rare you see such characters get development beyond being a line or two within the hero’s larger story, so giving Nishimura and Kitamoto backstories and reasons for enjoying Natsume’s company (without making them connected to the supernatural the way Tanuma and Taki are) is heartwarming to see. Once again, the emphasis is on expanding Natsume’s world. The earlier chapters, a more action-oriented story featuring Natsume infiltrating a meeting of exorcists, didn’t do as much for me, but then I’ve always enjoyed the smaller, quieter chapters of this series over the main plot-based ones. Still a must read. -Sean Gaffney

Pride, Vols. 3-4 | By Yukari Ichijo | JManga/SHUEISHA Inc. – I’d nearly forgotten just how much I loved this series until I delved back into it this week, and wow do I love this series. Tension ramps up dramatically in these two volumes, as Shio, Moe, and Ranmaru form an unexpected musical trio that ultimately lives or dies on each of their personal career choices—all the while Shio struggles to keep secret her business-only engagement to record executive Jinno (who becomes both more sympathetic and more suspect over the course of these volumes). As melodramatic as the story’s plotting may seem, it’s rooted in exactly enough emotional truth to satisfy a cranky old lady like me. It’s an exciting, exquisitely-crafted, gorgeously dramatic ride that has left me absolutely pining for more. Highly recommended.

Manga Bestsellers: 2012, Week Ending 23 December

December 24, 2012 by Matt Blind Leave a Comment

Comparative Rankings Based on Consolidated Online Sales

last week’s charts
about the charts

Manga Bestsellers

1. ↔0 (1) : Sailor Moon 8 – Kodansha Comics, Nov 2012 [408.3] ::
2. ↑2 (4) : Maximum Ride 6 – Yen Press, Sep 2012 [390.8] ::
3. ↑3 (6) : Sailor Moon vols 1-6 box set – Kodansha Comics, Nov 2012 [388.5] ::
4. ↓-2 (2) : Death Note vols 1-13 box set – Viz Shonen Jump Advanced, Oct 2008 [375.3] ::
5. ↓-2 (3) : Naruto 59 – Viz Shonen Jump, Nov 2012 [368.8] ::
6. ↓-1 (5) : Vampire Knight 15 – Viz Shojo Beat, Nov 2012 [342.6] ::
7. ↔0 (7) : Sailor Moon 1 – Kodansha Comics, Sep 2011 [313.9] ::
8. ↑5 (13) : Maximum Ride 1 – Yen Press, Jan 2009 [301.2] ::
9. ↑3 (12) : Black Butler 1 – Yen Press, Jan 2010 [286.7] ::
10. ↔0 (10) : Sailor Moon 3 – Kodansha Comics, Jan 2012 [281.6] ::

[more]

Top Imprints
Number of volumes ranking in the Top 500:

Yen Press 99
Viz Shonen Jump 95
Kodansha Comics 52
Viz Shojo Beat 51
Viz Shonen Jump Advanced 35
Seven Seas 22
Dark Horse 21
Viz 20
Viz Signature 13
Del Rey 10

[more]

Series/Property

1. ↔0 (1) : Sailor Moon – Kodansha Comics [1,052.3] ::
2. ↔0 (2) : Naruto – Viz Shonen Jump [775.8] ::
3. ↔0 (3) : Maximum Ride – Yen Press [766.9] ::
4. ↔0 (4) : Black Butler – Yen Press [679.2] ::
5. ↔0 (5) : Vampire Knight – Viz Shojo Beat [571.8] ::
6. ↔0 (6) : Bleach – Viz Shonen Jump [533.0] ::
7. ↑1 (8) : Death Note – Viz Shonen Jump Advanced [512.4] ::
8. ↑1 (9) : Soul Eater – Yen Press [492.4] ::
9. ↑1 (10) : Alice in the Country of Clover – Seven Seas [394.0] ::
10. ↓-3 (7) : Fairy Tail – Del Rey/Kodansha Comics [393.2] ::

[more]

New Releases
(Titles releasing/released This Month & Last)

1. ↔0 (1) : Sailor Moon 8 – Kodansha Comics, Nov 2012 [408.3] ::
3. ↑3 (6) : Sailor Moon vols 1-6 box set – Kodansha Comics, Nov 2012 [388.5] ::
5. ↓-2 (3) : Naruto 59 – Viz Shonen Jump, Nov 2012 [368.8] ::
6. ↓-1 (5) : Vampire Knight 15 – Viz Shojo Beat, Nov 2012 [342.6] ::
12. ↓-4 (8) : Black Bird 15 – Viz Shojo Beat, Dec 2012 [263.8] ::
16. ↑19 (35) : Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind 2 vol hardcover box set [complete] – Viz Ghibli Library, Nov 2012 [241.9] ::
17. ↓-1 (16) : Yu-Gi-Oh! Zexal 2 – Viz Shonen Jump, Dec 2012 [240.1] ::
23. ↑7 (30) : D. Gray-Man 23 – Viz Shonen Jump Advanced, Dec 2012 [227.5] ::
27. ↓-8 (19) : Bleach 52 – Viz Shonen Jump, Dec 2012 [213.1] ::
28. ↓-11 (17) : Alice in the Country of Clover Cheshire Cat Waltz 3 – Seven Seas, Nov 2012 [208.8] ::

[more]

Preorders

20. ↔0 (20) : Sailor Moon 9 – Kodansha Comics, Jan 2013 [230.8] ::
44. ↓-2 (42) : Sailor Moon 10 – Kodansha Comics, Mar 2013 [169.7] ::
92. ↓-2 (90) : Negima! 37 – Kodansha Comics, Jan 2013 [112.2] ::
98. ↔0 (98) : Alice in the Country of Joker Circus & Liar’s Game 1 – Seven Seas, Feb 2013 [102.7] ::
103. ↓-2 (101) : Battle Angel Alita Last Order 17 – Kodansha Comics, Feb 2013 [96.0] ::
104. ↑5 (109) : Alice in the Country of Joker Circus & Liar’s Game 2 – Seven Seas, May 2013 [96.0] ::
109. ↑4 (113) : Negima! 38 – Kodansha Comics, Apr 2013 [91.4] ::
111. ↑6 (117) : Wallflower 30 – Kodansha Comics, Feb 2013 [91.2] ::
113. ↓-37 (76) : Sailor Moon 11 – Kodansha Comics, May 2013 [90.6] ::
118. ↓-32 (86) : Sailor Moon 12 – Kodansha Comics, Jul 2013 [88.4] ::

[more]

Manhwa

341. ↑ (last ranked 11 Nov 12) : Legend 3 – Yen Press, Aug 2008 [30.8] ::
388. ↑ (last ranked 5 Feb 12) : Legend 6 – Yen Press, Oct 2009 [24.8] ::
458. ↓-67 (391) : March Story 4 – Viz Signature, Oct 2012 [19.9] ::
488. ↑ (last ranked 18 Nov 12) : Legend 1 – Yen Press, Nov 2006 [18.3] ::
501. ↑ (last ranked 2 Dec 12) : Legend 2 – Yen Press, May 2008 [17.4] ::
511. ↑239 (750) : Chocolat 8 – Yen Press, Dec 2012 [17.1] ::
526. ↓-115 (411) : Bride of the Water God 12 – Dark Horse, Nov 2012 [16.3] ::
583. ↑ (last ranked 9 Dec 12) : Legend 4 – Yen Press, Dec 2008 [13.7] ::
638. (new) : Raiders 9 – Yen Press, Dec 2012 [11.4] ::
687. ↑755 (1442) : Kill Me Kiss Me 3 – Tokyopop, Aug 2004 [10.1] ::

[more]

BL/Yaoi

125. ↑1 (126) : Alice the 101st 3 – DMP DokiDoki, Jan 2013 [85.1] ::
137. ↑2 (139) : A Century of Temptation – DMP Juné, Apr 2013 [79.1] ::
162. ↓-5 (157) : Ze 7 – 801 Media, Jan 2013 [68.7] ::
167. ↑112 (279) : Loveless 9 – Viz, Sep 2012 [64.8] ::
185. ↓-25 (160) : Finder Series 6 Passion within the View Finder – DMP Juné, Jul 2012 [60.3] ::
186. ↑5 (191) : Otodama: Voice from the Dead 2 – DMP DokiDoki, Oct 2013 [60.3] ::
231. ↑35 (266) : Honey*Smile – DMP Juné, Oct 2012 [49.0] ::
363. ↑108 (471) : Awkward Silence 1 – SuBLime, Jul 2012 [26.4] ::
379. ↓-80 (299) : Awkward Silence 2 – SuBLime, Oct 2012 [25.3] ::
460. ↑305 (765) : Mr. Tiger & Mr. Wolf 1 – DMP Juné, Sep 2011 [19.9] ::

[more]

Ebooks

8. ↑5 (13) : Maximum Ride 1 – Yen Press, Jan 2009 [301.2] ::
29. ↑3 (32) : Maximum Ride 5 – Yen Press, Dec 2011 [208.1] ::
30. ↑22 (52) : Maximum Ride 2 – Yen Press, Oct 2009 [202.6] ::
37. ↑11 (48) : Maximum Ride 3 – Yen Press, Aug 2010 [182.5] ::
53. ↓-2 (51) : Naruto 57 – Viz Shonen Jump, Jul 2012 [159.7] ::
58. ↑12 (70) : Maximum Ride 4 – Yen Press, Apr 2011 [156.7] ::
86. ↓-1 (85) : Naruto 56 – Viz Shonen Jump, May 2012 [117.9] ::
88. ↑11 (99) : Naruto 1 – Viz Shonen Jump, Jul 2003 [114.8] ::
106. ↓-3 (103) : Blue Exorcist 1 – Viz Shonen Jump Advanced, Apr 2011 [94.8] ::
133. ↑10 (143) : Blue Exorcist 2 – Viz Shonen Jump Advanced, Jun 2011 [81.3] ::

[more]

Off the Shelf: Shorts Weather

December 22, 2012 by MJ and Michelle Smith Leave a Comment

MICHELLE: So, I have these two boy kitties who have had a personality/territory conflict for going on two years now. And now, suddenly, they are sleeping peacefully next to each other on an ottoman. I can only conclude that this is a Christmas miracle.

MJ: Hallelujah!

MICHELLE: Maybe it’s a body-heat issue, but I would be so happy if they actually became friends.

Anyway, what better way to celebrate surviving the longest night of the year (not to mention the Mayan apocalypse) than devoting our final column of the year to two recently released short-story collections? I’m speaking of The Devil Is So Cute by Takako Shimura (JManga) and Kaoru Mori: Anything and Something (Yen Press). It just seemed natural to me to pair these together, since Shimura and Mori are women artists writing primarily for the seinen demographic.

MJ: What better way indeed? Now, I’ll admit that the collection of short manga tends to be one of my least favorite formats (it beats out 4-koma, but only by a hair), so I went into this with a sort of grudging sense of duty, but both collections offered up some interesting insight into their creators, so it was definitely worthwhile.

MICHELLE: Yeah, I don’t have a lot of enthusiasm for the medium itself, but it was at least neat to see how these different artists approached short stories. (With varying results, I suspect, due to the nature of the magazines in which the stories ran.)

Would you care to introduce one of the collections?

MJ: Sure! I’ll start with Shimura’s, which, of the two, is the most typical of the format. Pulling from one-shots originally published in magazines like Comic High! and Jump SQ between 2004 and 2009 (along with one extra chapter added specifically for the collection), The Devil Is So Cute covers a range of subjects from the existence of witches to childhood crushes, though when you get right down to it, they’re really all about relationships—particularly those between family members and close friends.

The book’s title story, for instance, about a young boy, Megumu, who meets a woman claiming to be a witch, is really telling the story of the boy’s strained relationship with his very strict father. The witch, Nozomi, who has the ability to be accepted as anyone she wants, in any role she wants—she appears as Megumu’s sister, teacher, pediatrician, you name it—is there to bring them closer together, but she could easily be read as a figment of Megumu’s imagination, as it’s Megumu and his father, ultimately who do all the work. It’s a whimsical story with a serious purpose, which makes it a pretty terrific read.

One theme that comes up more than once in the collection is that of first love—not the sweet, mushy, teen romance kind that tends to be the stuff of shoujo manga, but the unrequited childhood crushes that I think are pretty relatable for most of us—viewed both during and after the fact. “My Summer Vacation,” for instance, tells the story of a young girl whose crush on the man who works at her local public bath leads her to pretend she’s doing a research report on bathing so that she can justify talking to him, over and over. It’s a pretty adorable, light-hearted story, unlike the somewhat darker “Unworthy Son,” which chronicles one young man’s horror as his father remarries to a teacher whom he had crushed on so heavily as a student that she’d inspired him to draw a manga about her.

Some of the stories are more whimsical than others, and some are definitely stronger than others, but there’s a lot of range in this collection, which helps to keep it interesting.

MICHELLE: Y’know, it hadn’t actually occurred to me that Nozomi might be imaginary! That’s an interesting spin on things. But yes, I really appreciated that the story is actually about the father-son relationship—with their inability to communicate depicted with distressing accuracy—instead of witches and magic.

Another theme of the collection, sometimes operating hand-in-hand with “first love,” is that of the struggling manga artist so busy working as an assistant for others that he/she has no time to devote to their own work. But is that truly the case, or are they just using that as an excuse for not pursuing their own dreams? In “One Day,” a would-be mangaka runs into her former crush when she goes out drinking after meeting a deadline. In the past, she had declared her intentions to create manga on a whim, but has failed to find the dedication necessary to make that happen. Similarly on a whim, she confesses her feelings to him in the present and now suddenly wants to resume drawing. In “Unworthy Son,” the protagonist is in a similar situation, never having success with any of the portfolios he submits. He’s on the verge of calling it quits when he too is compelled to carry on by the weight of others’ expectations.

This ties in with yet another theme, which is jealousy of a friend’s talent. This idea is present in “Unworthy Son” but also in “Transformation,” in which a woman dreams that her successful novelist friend has died in an accident and comes out of the experience not exactly transformed, but at least a little more willing to be honest about her feelings, if not completely at peace with them.

MJ: Yes, I thought all the stories about mangaka—and particularly about mangaka who weren’t making a living drawing their own stories—were really interesting and insightful. And while I don’t want to presume that Shimura is writing from her own experience (certainly she is a successful mangaka), I think it would be fair to say that she’s writing something she knows, either from observing others, or from her own, hidden insecurities which of course we all have. In any case, it reads as thoughtful and authentic. It’s one of the strengths of the collection.

So, on to Kaoru Mori, then? Would you care to do the introductory honors?

MICHELLE: Sure!

So, as opposed to Shimura, who is writing about things she knows, Kaoru Mori seems to be writing about things she likes (or that her audience likes). And since she is known for liking maids a lot, it’s no surprise that there are a few of them here, though there are also some teens and some alluring older ladies as well.

So, you’ve got your kooky maids/servants—the staff in “Welcome to the Mansion, Master!” wants a new master so they can continue to enjoy the creature comforts of their swanky surroundings while the titular maid in “Miss Claire’s Ordinary Daily Life” is the only one to stand by her witless master, going so far as to beat up a robber whilst clad in her nightgown—as well as your fussily affectionate ones (“Maudlin Baker”). The alluring older ladies are found in a pair of stories—”The Swimsuit Bought Long Ago” and “Burrow Gentlemen’s Club”—that share the same storytelling trick, where the main character replies (in square boxes instead of dialogue bubbles) to a man speaking off-panel. I actually thought “Burrow” was the most intriguing story of the whole collection, but because it’s so short, it’s more of a tease than an actual mystery.

Speaking of teases and alluring ladies, it must be said that while there are maids, ladies in swimsuits, and ladies in Playboy-esque bunny attire in this volume, somehow it doesn’t feel super fanservicey to me. I think it’s because Mori keeps the proportions of these characters (even “Cover Story,” which is essentially the four-page sequence of a girl with a bedonkadonk straddling a tree branch to look at a bird) realistic, so it’s more like a celebration of their overall sexiness than an exaggeration of certain anatomical attributes.

MJ: I agree completely! Obviously many of these were drawn as alluring shorts and single-page illustrations for men to enjoy, but her style when she’s drawing women in bunny outfits or swimsuits reminds me of nothing more than old-fashioned bathing beauties from the first half of the 20th century, back when realistic bodies were still considered beautiful. While it’s possible I’d find them scandalous if I lived back in that time, as a woman in 2012, I actually just find it… refreshing.

Anything and Something strikes me as much less a standard collection of shorts than is The Devil Is So Cute, though this isn’t necessarily a good or bad thing. On one hand, it’s a much less polished collection. Not all of the shorts are completed stories—and even a few of those that are feel a little half-baked. “Sumire’s Flowers,” for instance (for which Mori only provided the illustrations), begins as an intriguing look at rival student artists, but then devolves into a weird morality tale about adultery. On the other hand, many of Mori’s little scraps of ideas are more inspired than entire volumes of some long-running manga. “Burrow Gentleman’s Club” is a great example of that. I’d love to read a more complete version of that story, but even the snippet we’re given here is well worth the page space! The book’s overall tone is casual enough to encompass a lot of tiny experiments and bursts of whimsy without the slightest strain, so these bits and pieces fit together nicely.

Is it wrong that my favorite bits in this book are Mori’s little autobiographical strips, afterwards, and thank-yous, tacked on between chapters? Honestly, I’d have picked up the book for those alone.

MICHELLE: Those are lots of fun, and the extensive illustration gallery (with notes) in the back is simply gorgeous. So yes, even if this is less polished (I was baffled by bits of “Sumire’s Flowers,” too) or complete (I want more “Burrow”!) than Shimura’s collection, it’s still definitely worth checking out!

License This! Kinou Nani Tabeta? by Yoshinaga Fumi

December 22, 2012 by Travis Anderson 16 Comments

Hello again and welcome to another installment of This Is Why I Can’t Be Trusted To Write a Weekly Column…I mean License This! Because, yeah, wow, a month passed! That snuck up on me quickly.

So although I really want to be writing about some older series (and will eventually, I promise!), this time I will once again go with something current that doesn’t require me to do a lot of rereading to remember why I liked it so much. ^_^;;

Kinou Nani Tabeta? (What Did You Eat Yesterday?) by Yoshinaga Fumi is the story of Kakei Shiro, a forty-something gay lawyer who loves to cook, especially for Kenji, his live-in boyfriend. It’s a slice-of-life manga, with about half of each chapter given to preparing and eating a meal. And as you might expect from a known foodie like Yoshinaga, the cooking segments are really detailed. I mean really, really detailed. She is essentially writing a recipe book here in manga form, as Kakei thinks about each step of the meal during preparation (and actual recipes are generally included at the end of each chapter as well). But it’s not just about cooking. The meals are always well-integrated into the story, and with each chapter we learn more about Shiro and Kenji, as well as their friends, relatives, neighbors, and co-workers.

This is one I’m actually surprised is not licensed yet. Not only is Yoshinaga very popular with English-speaking audiences, but even her random book about eating food in Tokyo was published in English, so publishers are clearly willing to publish anything she writes. And yet this series is already at seven volumes in Japan (at a rate of about one per year, like most seinen manga) and no one’s picked it up? That kind of makes it seem hopeless, and yet I do hope that eventually it will be picked up, because it’s awesome.

With such a long gap between volumes, I often forget just how much I like it, but then a new one comes out and I’m utterly charmed once again. Maybe it’s the lack of clear genres that is stopping this from getting published. It’s a foodie manga (complete with the above-mentioned lovingly-rendered step-by-step instructions for everything Shiro cooks), but the protagonist is a gay man living with his boyfriend. And it runs in a seinen magazine, so while the protagonist and many supporting characters are gay, it’s not a romance and doesn’t feature the sort of BL tropes that so many love.

That’s a feature for me, though, not a bug! When I was younger and desperate for any stories about queer people, I read a whole lot of BL. Much of it I even enjoyed, simply because there was nothing else out there. But those tropes do bother me, and I am always thrilled to find manga with queer characters that isn’t BL (or the rare BL story that isn’t quite so tropey). And omg this really delivers. I enjoyed Antique Bakery quite a lot for similar reasons, but this is far and away the better manga, IMO, at least in that regard.

One of my favorite plotlines so far, which I think is a good example of just how dedicated Yoshinaga is to giving us a realistic view of what it’s like to be gay in Japan, is when a gay couple who are friends with Shiro and Kenji come to Shiro for legal advice.

I’ve taken the liberty of translating the page where Tetsu brings up why they’ve come to dinner:

Not only do I love the way Yoshinaga tackles the topic (something I doubt would ever come up in a typical BL manga), but I love the expression on the guy’s face in the second-to-last panel. He doesn’t say why he wouldn’t want any money going to his parents, but he doesn’t have to. It’s clear to everyone present (as well as the readers) that they must have rejected him.

There’s just so much stuff like that. It’s not heavy-handed and it’s not like all the plots are About Being Gay. It’s just that these things are part of their lives and are incorporated as such. And I love it so much, but at the same time it makes me sad and angry that one reason I love it so much is because there is literally nothing else like it, and that sucks. I really hope that some publisher gives it a chance in English.

Adventures in the Key of Shoujo: A Kiss on Tearful Cheeks, Vol.1

December 22, 2012 by Phillip Anthony 3 Comments

A Kiss on Tearful Cheeks | By Tsumugi (Story), Yukie Sasaki (Art) | Published by JManga.com | Rated: Teen Plus

Don’t Let The Sun Catch You Crying might be the perfect anthem for the heroine of A Kiss on Tearful Cheeks, Iori Narazaki. She is constantly upset by the little things, not the big things. She’s never been in love because her feelings never lasted. Mam and Dad are abroad so big sister Shiori takes care of her. Shiori works in a publishing company and Iori, 17, goes to school. One day she is crying after being dropped off at school when a young man named Yusuke Izumi asks her if she’s alright. After revealing that he works in the same company as Shiori, and also knows her, Yusuke gives her his card and says if she’s ever crying again to call him. Iori toys with the idea of contacting him but doesn’t, and after being set up on a date by her best friend, Megu, seems to like the guy Megu set her up with. Unfortunately, the date turns out to be a lesser example of the male sex and when things look bad for Iori, Yusuke suddenly turns up and rescues her. So, Iori begins to think that this feeling she has when she thinks of Yusuke might not be so bad.

The best thing about this title for me upon starting it is that it is a million miles away from my usual fare for the column. It’s entirely contemporary and set in the here and now. Iori is a bit of a crybaby but she isn’t helpless. She has a bad case of poor self-esteem, that’s all. She really wishes that people wouldn’t have to worry about her. She always wonders why she isn’t like her sister, for example. But when Yusuke comes into her life, it really does transform things around her. He wants her only because of her not because he grew up with her, or is best friends with her or is related to her. And Yusuke, aside from one or two odd bits of behaviour, doesn’t want to pressure her into doing something she doesn’t want to. Simply put, he is enchanted with her and she’s smitten with him.

Now, as I said, there are one or two quirks of behaviour on Yusuke’s part that I don’t get as they seem slightly at odds with the rest of his makeup. One, he gets intensely jealous whenever other boys Iori knows pay attention to her. He’s only known the girl a wet week and already he’s jealous? Second, after he and Iori decide to get together, he keeps leaving love bites on her body. And refers to them as his mark. Hmm, I don’t understand that. Now, if he didn’t have positive attributes like not wanting to push her into having sex with him (every bloke worth his salt should come with this way of thinking as a standard part) or explaining himself when he does get jealous, this would be a different kind of story. One thing about the way Iori is written that doesn’t sit very well with me is she, twice in a row, gets into a situation where really creepy lads try to maul her (thats’s the best way I can put it) and twice Yusuke rescues her. Does she really need him to rescue her? So little of her psychological makeup is described in this first volume, I worry that it will become an “Oh, no! I’m being attacked! Save me, Yusuke!” trope of the story. The authors are not helping matters by using Iori in this way, because they have a person she barely knows attack her and then has a person she has known all her life attack her. What does that say about girls in Japan? No matter what they say, you can have your way with them? I really worry about that kind of message.

Maybe I’m projecting too many of my own insecurities about messages like that in this review. If I am, consciously or unconsciously, I apologise as the series has a lot of potential. The best bits in this are the moments when Iori and Yusuke are with each other and we hear Iori’s innermost thoughts. These are the thoughts of a person who doesn’t know where she and he are going but after living a life of uncast doubts, she wants this feeling she gets around Yusuke. Wants it more than anything. Come hell or high water. Come laughter, scares and yes, even the tears. I think some of us can relate to this feeling. Hell, I know I’ve been in throes of such a feeling and having and wanting no way out. It could all turn to cat poop in five minutes. Iori doesn’t seem to care. Much like the lyrics of the above mentioned song, Iori doesn’t mind crying now because now she’s not crying about nothing, she’s crying about a feeling she’s got and that’s not a bad thing.

Yukie Sasaki’s art is somewhat refined but the joy here is the long delicate features of her characters, their huge expressive eyes, and the unfinished look to things. It makes for a uneven mess, but it’s a lovely mess for my money. Tsumugi, the author, really needs to decide where her main characters mental tics should settle. Plus the mixed messages thing about Iori being a target for every guy that’s not Yusuke needs to end, full stop. Other than that, I’m happy to keep going.

This is my first review for Manga BookShelf using the JManga platform, though I would humbly ask that you check out the rest of the writers on Manga Bookshelf for a better view of the service as a whole. I like JManga, not enough to say it’s a perfect system because it’s not. There are parts of it I would change. They are starting to address the pricing problems of the original setup of the website. And yes, universal access to all titles, regardless of geography, is an absolute must. But for titles like A Kiss… there is simply no way it would ever be released by a print publisher. Sadly, the market just won’t support it. So, I am looking forward to buying more of A Kiss… but I would ask the people at JManga to bring over the rest of the series as there are only three volumes of nine available. Incomplete series make no money no matter how loyal their readers are.

Question time: Given how much fun I had with JManga, would you like me to take a break from Sailor Moon more often and do stuff like A Kiss…? I know that a few of you had said initially that doing Sailor Moon alone was not the end all and be all of shoujo and I do see that. Seeing as I can’t spend all that much on manga these days (Google: Irish economic problems. Not being sarcastic here.), what would you like more of? Stuff like A Kiss… and Skip Beat or more fantasy stuff like Sakura Hime or Sailor Moon? With it ending in 7 or so more volumes and I’m having so much fun on the column that I don’t want to dry up when I finish on SM. Comments and emails are welcome in this endeavour.

Pride Vol. 3 and 4

December 21, 2012 by Anna N

Pride Volume 3 by Yukari Ichijo
Available on Jmanga.com

Pride is rapidly becoming one of my favorite series on Jmanga. This story of two rival opera singers always manages to put an interesting twist on showbiz manga with some unexpected plot twists. The rivalry between classy yet suddenly broke Shio and crawling up from the gutter Moe was firmly established in the first two volumes, and they are thrown together when they both get work at the same nightclub. Something unexpected occurs when they sing together though, their different voices end up blending in a delightful way. Ran thinks that the two women combined are his perfect diva and he is inspired to write even more of his own music for them. They join together in an unlikely trio called SRM, with both singers challenging each other to grow while Ran feels free to explore his avant-garde impulses. After seeing the antagonistic relationship between Shio and Moe, it was interesting to see how their commitment to music made them want to work together.

One of the things that I enjoy about this series is the way that Shio and Moe are so forthright with each other about their mutual dislike. Moe basically states that she hates Shio, and Shio points out that Moe’s low character is also something that she despises. Moe announces that when they sing together she intends to use Shio as her foil to showcase her own voice, and Shio points out that if she intends to do that, Moe has to drastically elevate her technique. The fledgling trio actually starts to achieve a small amount of success when they get a chance to go on a variety show that has a singing and songwriting competition, but their chances of winning are derailed when a musical prodigy named Eiko also appears on the program as a surprise guest.

Pride Volume 4 by Yukari Ichijo
Available on Jmanga.com

It turns out the Eiko is the illegitimate half-sister of Shio’s wealthy fiance Mr. Jinno. Shio gets a glimpse of Jinno’s family life when she’s introduced to his parents, and she sees that Eiko has to sneak around in order to see her father. Jinno’s character begins to be revealed a bit more, and he is slightly more sympathetic, but still with the potential to do something scary if Shio crosses him. Just as Shio’s future life as a music company begins to take shape, Ran suddenly seems to be looking at her in a new way. Shio’s been able to take care of herself on her own for a bit, and the new levels of maturity and self-assurance begin to attract Ran. Shio keeps her engagement a secret because she doesn’t want to distract from SRM’s potential.

As a character, Shio is still interesting after 4 volumes, because she just seems to sail through some difficult situations due to her strong sense of self. This is contradicted by her cold decision to become engaged to Jinno, but she’s also very pragmatic. When Shio sees the truth about Moe’s mother, she handles the situation with aplomb, and doesn’t use it as an excuse to strike back at her rival. Moe begins to recognize that her singing has been improved by being exposed to Ran’s music and Shio’s technique, but she still goes through life with raw emotional reactions. The contrast between the personalities and life situations of two protagonists in Pride really drives the series forward in a compelling way. The fourth volume ends in a bit of a cliffhanger, and I can’t wait for volume five.

Electronic access provided by the publisher

JManga the Week of 12/27

December 21, 2012 by Sean Gaffney, MJ and Michelle Smith 1 Comment

SEAN: The final week of 2012 gives us some interesting stuff from JManga: 2 recurring volumes, and three new ones I know almost nothing about!

tactics Vol. 11 was postponed from a few weeks back, and is filled with supernatural shenanigans. Nice to see JManga rescue this from Tokyopop.

MJ: I’m definitely thinking about giving this series another chance. I read its early volumes so long ago, I can’t even remember what I didn’t like about them anymore. Time to check in on it again!

SEAN: Morita-san Wa Mukuchi is one of those underrated titles that I always forget to read but when I do, never fails to bring a smile to my face. Even if I’m the polar opposite of its quiet heroine.

Drops is the first new manga here, and appears to be done in one volume. It’s an Ohta Shuppan Manga Erotics F title, always a good sign. The author, Yuiji Aniya, seems to mostly be known for her BL – DMP licensed her Men of Tattoos manga, and Digital Manga Guild picked up Mister Convenience. I don’t think this is BL, but I have no other info.

MICHELLE: I really, really loved Men of Tattoos. In fact, I named it one of my favorite BL reads of 2012! The cover of Drops suggests something more comedic, but I’m still quite excited about it!

MJ: It’s definitely Michelle’s enthusiasm about Men of Tattoos that has me anticipating something good here. I look forward to finding out!

SEAN: Don’t Disturb Me and Him, Please will either be fantastic or horrible, and I’m not sure which. The artist is well known here, having done Blood+ (Dark Horse)and Le Portrait de Petit Cossette (Tokyopop), and this is also Manga Erotics F (and also complete in one volume). The premise, though, is described as being about a girl who is horribly attracted to horrible perverts, and ends up caring for a lolicon. It’s described as comedic. Well, I certainly *hope* so. I’m hoping it’s wildly over the top – the cover seems to indicate it will be.

MICHELLE: Hm. I’ll wait and see on this one.

MJ: Er. Um. Hm. I’m not a big fan of Blood+, but I guess we’ll see? It definitely sounds interesting…

SEAN: Lastly, Rensuke Oshikiri gives us Pico Pico Boy, which seems to be slice-of-life seinen. It’s also Ohta Shuppan, but ran in a couple of their far tinier magazines, so I have even less info! The artist specializes in horror, but this… isn’t that, as far as I can tell.

MICHELLE: Yeah, we haven’t much to go on with this one. But it’s definitely part of JManga’s charm that they bring out these unknown titles. I mean, at least some of them have to be hidden gems, right?!

MJ: Right!

SEAN: Indeed. Lots of surprises coming up next week.

My Week in Manga, Episode 3

December 21, 2012 by MJ 7 Comments

Welcome back to our new video feature, My Week in Manga! In this week’s episode, I talk about what I’ve read this week and what I’ll be reading before the week is out, including a short review of Ryo Hanada’s Good-Bye Geist, from GEN Manga.

Click here for information on the upcoming holiday book club!

Come join me!

Manga this week:
Kaoru Mori: Anything and Something (Yen Press)
Good-Bye Geist (GEN Manga)
Pride, Vols. 3-4 (JManga)
The Devil Is So Cute (JManga)
The Betrayal Knows My Name (Yen Press)

Edited by MJ
Music (“20/20,” “Stars Collide,” & “Swansong”) by Josh Woodward

Mayo Chiki!, Vol. 1

December 21, 2012 by Sean Gaffney

By Hajime Asano and NEET. Released in Japan as “Mayoeru Shitsuji to Chikin na Ore to!” by Media Factory, serialization ongoing in the magazine Comic Alive. Released in North America by Seven Seas.

Possibly the most frustrating thing about Mayo Chiki! is that there is a manga with some interest in it struggling to get out here. The story is not remotely going to be original, but it could at least be interesting, with some likeable characters and a healthy dose of humor. The humor, at least, is present, and one of the manga’s saving graces. But none of that really seems to matter, as the manga’s art and general mood seems to revolve around presenting young girls (in the classic moe ‘they’re 17 but look about 9’ style) looking humiliated in half-naked (and sometimes 3/4 naked) poses. And it kills any chance the story may have had of doing something with its cliches.

The basic premise of Mayo Chiki! reads like any number of the moe light novels that have come out in Japan recently, and been made into anime/manga/games/etc. Indeed, some of you may have read my reviews of I Don’t Like You At All, Big Brother!! and Haganai, both of which run in the same magazine and are cut from the same cloth. The premise is that Jiro, who is terrified of women (but extremely tough) due to his mother (a wrestler) and sister (just a sadist) beating the shit out of him every day, such that he gets a nosebleed whenever he sees a woman as a defense mechanism (his family stopped when they saw blood). School is his only refuge, but one day, in the bathroom, he accidentally walks in on the handsome yet cold Subaru, and notes he is wearing panties. In fact, it’s worse than that – Subaru is a girl. And no one is supposed to find this out on pain of death. Luckily, Subaru is more than just a handsome bishie trap – she’s also butler for the school’s rich princess, who turns out to be sympathetic – and sadistic. She blackmails Jiro into keeping their secret, and gradually Jiro and Subaru grow closer, despite everyone else now thinking the two of them are gay.

Yes, there was no way this would be fantastic or original given that premise. But it didn’t have to be all that bad. And as I said, the manga has some very funny moments in it, my favorite being the ‘secret memory manipulation technique’ which consists of hitting someone till they lose their memory. And there are some possible plot points of interest, especially given the hero and heroine have both lost a parent. But then you get the little sister turning out to have incestual feelings for her brother, I think simply because you can’t write a moe light novel without incest subtext anymore. And Subaru being tied up in bed with a ball gag in her mouth, supposedly to stop her from killing Jiro but more accurately to show the reader she is tied up and with a ball gag in her mouth. And the extras, which have a ‘I am holding a microphone with my mouth open’ shot, a ‘I am licking ice cream’ shot, and a 2-page spread of the cover, only with Subaru wearing only an unbuttoned men’s shirt.

I like some moe stuff – Haruhi Suzumiya, K-On!, Toradora. But I think my general feeling about moe manga with so many suggestive poses like Mayo Chiki! is that it makes me feel like a criminal when I read it. Certainly I don’t recommend taking this book anywhere near Canadian Customs. That said, I am me, and I’m sure that if readers can get past the art style and sleazy sexual poses, there’s a more interesting story in here crying to get out. And of course there’s the anime adaptation, which Sentai has released, so it has a built-in fanbase. I think I’m just tired of anything from Comic Alive, maybe.

Manga the Week of 12/26

December 20, 2012 by Sean Gaffney, Michelle Smith and MJ 3 Comments

SEAN: Things are pretty quiet the day after Christmas. Even Diamond Comics is taking the week off, with the exception of a few books from its elite, non-manga publishers. That said, Midtown Comics has a few things that Diamond already sent out that are coming in from their other suppliers, so let’s catch up.

Cage of Eden 8 continues to be action-packed, thrilling, revelatory, and absolutely drenched in fanservice. It’s a title I enjoy reading but can’t recommend to anyone unless they’re used to large breasts everywhere. That said, it is refreshing seeing a shonen title doing well over here that really is for 10-12 year old boys, as opposed to Jump’s more balanced gender readership.

MICHELLE: I have some small interest in this title because of its plot but, yeah, boobs deter me.

MJ: I suppose that, being a manga fan, I’m *used* to large breasts everywhere, but I admit it gets wearying after a while. I wouldn’t say they deter me, exactly, but they do tend to push me into “critical” mode right out of the gate.

SEAN: Viz has a new volume of Dogs: Bullets and Carnage, the first in a year. (Either it’s caught up to Japan or sales are meh. I suspect the former.) This is also filled with action, thrills, and revelations, and is absolutely drenched in fanservice… for female readers. I don’t think I’ve read a single non-BL Dogs fanfic on the internet. (Note: Dogs has no actual BL.) I need to catch up with this, but it’s recommended in a dystopian sort of way.

MICHELLE: I have just started reading Dogs with an eye to featuring this latest volume in an upcoming Off the Shelf. “Dystopian” really is an apt way to describe it, and since I usually like those sorts of stories, I am kind of liking this one too, even if violence is trumping characterization at the moment. I’m just in volume one, though, so this could obviously change.

MJ: Is it wrong that I find myself more interested in looking up the fanfic than I am in the series itself? I’ve always been kinda so-so on this series, and I suspect some BL might help.

SEAN: And Neon Genesis Evangelion 13 may have come out last month everywhere else, but this means little to Midtown, who are seeing it arrive a bit late. It’s worth the wait, as I noted in my review. And may finally end with Vol. 14, sometime before we all die. Or the artist does.

MICHELLE: Y’know, I have never actually seen Evangelion (aside from the first couple of episodes), nor have I read any of the manga. Possibly this is a serious oversight in need of correction.

MJ: I’m a fan of the anime, but I never got very far with the manga adaptation. Sean’s review has me feeling rather curious, however.

SEAN: What are you spicing up your Boxing Day with?

Neon Genesis Evangelion Omnibus, Vol. 1-3

December 19, 2012 by Sean Gaffney

By Yoshiyuki Sadamoto and GAINAX. Released in Japan by Kadokawa Shoten, serialized in the magazine Shonen Ace. Released in North America by Viz Media.

In a not-entirely-coincidental move, Viz has released the first of their omnibus releases for Evangelion at the same time as Vol. 13, giving the reader a chance to catch up and remind themselves of what they may have forgotten. And it’s definitely possible that they forgot, as the manga began in 1995, and Viz started releasing it in 1998 or so, in 32-page comic book format (remember when they did that?) and flipped (remember when they did that?). But now it’s decades later, and it’s time to get the band back together again with this new oversize omnibus with color pages and snazzy packaging. (Which is well worth it, by the way, it looks great.) But what about the content?

Given I only reviewed Vol. 13 of Evangelion last week, there may be some repetition involved. But the main reason I tend to prefer the manga adaptation of Evangelion to the anime is that it takes the basic plot and makes everything just slightly more tolerable. And indeed, in these early volumes, it is pretty slight – there are no major changes from what we watched in the first 6 episodes or so of the anime. For those living in a cave, Evangelion starts off as a post-apocalyptic giant robot sort of story where a young teenager estranged from his father is called to a super secret base to find out that he’s one of the few people who can pilot said giant robot and defeat the enemy creatures that keep attacking the Earth. Only the creatures are Angels, and that’s not merely Japan’s love for using religion where it’s not appropriate – Evangelion is drenched in religion, with each enemy angel having an appropriate name – Sachiel, Shamshel, Ramiel, etc.

Shinji in particular benefits from the adaptation to manga. He still complains quite a bit, and still runs off halfway through the volume, but his general demeanor is more argumentative and sullen rather than weak and whiny, and it simply makes the reader identify with him better. Indeed, his reasoning for running off is given better depth in the manga – he’s desperately searching for a family/parental figure, and finding that the closest one he now has, Misato, has been writing a journal for NERV analyzing him is a crushing blow. His response to Touji is also excellent – some may object that it shows Shinji being too ‘cool’, but I like to think that it shows Shinji as being slightly less broken.

There’s also Shinji’s relationship with Gendo, and his observation of Rei’s relationship with Gendo. I’ll admit I’m not all that fond of Gendo, and the manga doesn’t help – he’s the one character who’s actually less appealing than in the anime. But seeing his interactions with Rei must deal Shinji’s fragile psyche a crushing blow, wondering what in God’s name is wrong with him if he can’t get any sort of affection from his father but she can. Of course, this isn’t Rei’s fault, and it’s to his credit that he’s able to bond with her as well. The three volumes are roughly divided into Shinji’s relationship with another person – Gendo in Vol. 1, Misato in 2, and Rei in 3. The climax to 3, where Shinji manages to coax a genuine smile out of Rei,l is wonderfully heartwarming, and a great place to end this omnibus.

If you haven’t read the manga yet, this is absolutely a worthy release to get, showing why it’s become one of the most important stories from the last thirty years.

Also, Page 234 has to be read to be disbelieved. Sometimes an Angel is not just a cigar, I guess. And Misato’s dialogue is just icing on the cake.

It Came from the Sinosphere: The Flying Guillotine

December 18, 2012 by Sara K. Leave a Comment

There is a new movie, which I have yet to see, called The Guillotines. It’s directed by Andy Lau (who, among many other accomplishments, starred in one of the most popular versions of Return of the Condor Heroes and directed the Hong Kong version of ‘Initial D’), and one of the actors is Ethan Ruan, who starred in both My Queen and Fated to Love You. This gives me an excellent excuse to talk about the original Chinese-language guillotine movie, The Flying Guillotine.

The Story

The emperor gets a frightening new weapon, called the “flying guillotine” for his team of guards. Eventually, the paranoid emperor orders the assassination of the weapon’s inventor. This disillusions Ma Teng, one of the guards. However, when your emperor is paranoid, questioning him is super-dangerous, so Ma Teng has to flee and live the life of a fugitive, constantly terrified that the flying guillotine will soar back into his life … and cut off his head.

About the “Flying Guillotine”

Supposedly, this weapon really was used during the Qing dynasty, however there are no good historical descriptions of it, which allows creative people to fill in the details with their imaginations.

This movie is not the first time this weapon has appeared in fiction – I recall a 1960s wuxia novel making reference to the weapon – but it’s the first work famous for featuring this weapon, and without this movie we probably would not have seen any other ‘guillotine’ movies.

There are right ways and wrong ways to use flying guillotines in movies. Let me start with a wrong way.

The Wrong Way to Do It

In Tsui Hark’s Seven Swords, we see the flying guillotine being used to kill people within the first few minutes of the movie.

The flying guillotine at the beginning of Seven Swords

Unless the victim is a child, puppy, or otherwise obviously innocent and cute, or we can immediately understand the how the death devastates other people, or you’re a film genius, you cannot get the audience to feel a powerful emotional hit when somebody dies in the first few minutes of a movie. Note that the saddest movie in the world has a cute kid and a situation that is really easy to understand.

Flying guillotines are not easy to understand.

Unless you assume that the audience is already familiar with flying guillotines, it just looks like a fancy weapon – and heck, I was familiar with the flying guillotine, and even I felt a distinct lack of resonance.

The Right Way to Do It

The inventor develops the concept of the flying guillotine.

The Flying Guillotine spends a lot of time explaining what the flying guillotine is. It shows how the inventor got the inspiration; it shows the weapon being demonstrated on a dog before the emperor; it shows the guards training for months on wooden dummies. This is to ensure that the audience has a very clear understanding of how the weapon works. It’s almost a half-hour into the movie before the weapon is used on a human being, and by then, we know exactly why we should be freaked out.

The guards are practising using the flying guillotine

How does it work?

1. The attacker, hidden, throws the flying guillotine out, while holding onto the chain.
2. The flying guillotine lands on the victim’s head, like a hat.

Oh No! There’s a flying guillotine on his head! We know what happens next…

3. The attacker yanks the chain, which causes the blades inside the hat to slice the victim’s neck.
4. The attacker, via chain, pulls the guillotine back, which comes with the head.
5. The victim is left standing there, only without a head.

This is a scary weapon because:

1) It seems to come out of nowhere – so the characters always have to be careful, lest a flying guillotine comes in the window, into the courtyard, out from the woods, etc – YOU ARE NEVER SAFE!!!!
2) We get to see the flying guillotine land on the victims head before the head gets cut. This gives the audience a moment to feel horror as they anticipate the next step.
3) The head seems to simply … disappear. Bystanders are left clutching the now-headless victim, not understanding where the head went (the audience, of course, understands too well). The movie repeatedly shows the moving bodies of headless people … and it’s always creepy.

All of the above relies on the audience understanding what is going on. If the audience doesn’t know about the danger of flying guillotines coming from hidden locations, the audience won’t constantly be afraid that the protagonists’ heads will get cut off with little advance warning. If the audience doesn’t know how the flying guillotine works, then the audience won’t feel quite as terrified when one lands on a character’s head. If the audience doesn’t understand how it works, then the audience will be confused instead of creeped out by the headless people.

The Emotional Resonance

What seals the deal, of course, is the emotional resonance.

First of all, there are lots of reaction shots. They are just right. They are usually pretty quick, so they don’t drag on and overstay their welcome. However, they effectively communicate the characters’ terror. The dread is contagious.

A reaction shot

And the movie is very good at stepping up the tension right up to the climax. First, even when the guards are just training, it feels as tense as a sword hanging by a thread – we know that it’s only a matter of time before heads roll, or more accurately, get snatched away. Then heads do get snatched way. Then Ma Teng gets married, so his wife is also in danger. Then Ma Teng has a child, so there is also now a cute kid in danger.

The villain has kidnapped the cute kid!!!!!!

Another way the film ups the emotional resonance is splitting fight scenes with a scene that gives the fight meaning.

Split Scenes

It’s time for a song

The first split scenes is a fight that happens against a … Huangmei opera number. Shaw Brothers happen to be the biggest producer of both Huangmei and kung-fu movies, so it’s not surprising that they would mix the two. As Ma Teng fights for his life, this woman sings and dances. Aside from providing a beat for the fight, it’s a stark contrast to have such an upbeat song for a life-and-death battle. But I think that’s the point. It’s supposed to jolt the audience … and also give the audience a sense of why Ma Teng wants to stay alive.

Let us dance – by which I mean fight to the death – to the upbeat music!

The song featured in the movie was also covered by Teresa Teng (Deng Lijun), Taiwan’s greatest cultural export and the most popular singer in the entire history of East Asia.

The other split scene is when Ma Teng’s wife gives birth inside, while Ma Teng fights the two assassins outside. Aside from contrasting birth and death, splicing the childbirth scene and the fight really heightens what’s at stake.

The Sounds

There is a set of distinctive sounds used with the flying guillotines. First, there is the whirring sound of the guillotines themselves, and then there is the signature music which always plays after the guillotine has completed the decapitation. This trains the audience to always associate this pattern of sounds with the guillotines … so that as soon as the sounds play the audience can anticipate the terror. For example, when Ma Teng has nightmares, the sounds play, and the audience at first thinks that a guillotine is really coming before it’s apparent that it’s just Ma Teng’s imagination. It gives the audience a sense of what it’s like to be Ma Teng.

There is also the distinctive bell that rings when the guards are ordered to carry out another assassination.

I’m the kind of person who is much more easily spooked by sound than by sight.

Autobiography?

I pointed out that Ni Kuang wrote the script for The 36th Chamber of Shaolin. He also wrote the screenplay for this film … and I strongly suspect it’s autobiographical.

Am I suggesting that Ni Kuang is some time traveller who used to be one of Emperor Yongzheng’s guards? No.

He was, however, a public security official for the People’s Republic of China in the 1950s. Part of his job was writing death sentences. He became suspicious about some of the cases brought before him, and asked a local party chief about it. The chief replied that if he kept asking such questions, Ni Kuang himself would be sentenced to death. Out of fear for his life, Ni Kuang eventually fled the People’s Republic of China and settled in Hong Kong, where he became one of the most popular Chinese-language writers of the 20th century.

I don’t think it is can be a coincidence that Ma Teng and Ni Kuang’s lives have such parallels.

Availability in English

It is easy to get this movie with English subtitles.

Conclusion

This is one of my favorite Chinese-language movies. Is it the kind of movie which you can use to demonstrate your high-culture credentials? No. But I have seen my share of art house films, and at least to me, most do not have as much feeling as this kung-fu flick.

Recommended.

Next time: TBD (though there is a high probability that it will be a manhua by Lai An aka Ryan)

The more Sara K. learns about Chinese-language media, the more she realizes how much she doesn’t know. Sometimes she feels like her knowledge is inadequate for writing this column. However, she makes no pretence about academic qualifications (or other kinds of qualifications), and perhaps her novice status makes her posts more accessible to people new to Chinese-language media.