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Fumi Yoshinaga Week Wrap-up

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It’s been a wonderful week here at Manga Bookshelf. As we wrap up our week-long look at Fumi Yoshinaga, I’d like to extend another round of thanks to Michelle Smith, Danielle Leigh, Eva Volin, Robin Brenner, and David Welsh for joining me in celebrating one of our favorite mangaka.

After kicking things off with my favorite of her series, Flower of Life, I though it appropriate to end things yesterday on a similarly beloved note with Antique Bakery. There are few short series I have loved as much as either of these, and it’s a great pleasure to talk about them here, in the company of both long-time Yoshinaga fans and potential new ones.

A full archive of the week can be found by searching the tag, “fumi yoshinaga.”

Alternatively, here’s a full list of the week’s festivities: …

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Fumi Yoshinaga Week Begins!

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Today marks the first in a week-long celebration of mangaka Fumi Yoshinaga here at Manga Bookshelf! Each day will feature a new bit of celebration in the form of reviews, essays, roundtables, and whatever else may happen to occur.

Several other bloggers will be making special appearances here throughout the week, and yet others have expressed a desire to spread the Yoshinaga joy in their own blogs, so I’ll be linking to those as well. If you’re a blogger with something you’d like me to link to this week, please drop me a line!

For my first contribution to the week’s festivities, I’ve written a short essay about Yoshinaga’s series Flower of Life entitled Flower of Life: A Love Story. Be sure to check out the link to find out what that means!

Some of the manga you can expect to hear about this week …

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NANA Project # 6, Vols. 11 & 12!

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Here’s a quick evening link to the newest installment of The NANA Project, a bi-monthly roundtable on the series with Danielle Leigh, Michelle Smith, and me. This month, we discuss volumes 11 and 12, particularly focusing on the ways Nana and Hachi’s roles in the story have changed.

Here’s a quote from me early on: “… I feel like we’re being taught a lesson about the nature of love, though I’m not entirely sure I like it. Hachi’s relationship is really a sham on so many levels, yet it offers her a kind of security she’s never quite had (even at home with her parents) … Meanwhile, Nana’s urgent love for/with Ren should make them both feel more secure (certainly that’s what everyone’s banking on), but instead it just feels dangerous, suffocating, and a little bit unreal.”

It was a great conversation and I hope you’ll join in! Read this month’s installment here or catch up on past Projects. …

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SDCC, Otaku tour & more!

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The stream of San Diego Comic-Con press releases has begun (with more to come over the next week). So far, my inbox has mainly had word from Viz Media, who are mostly touting anime and game-related items, with just a couple bits of manga news in the mix.

First of all, they’ve got Stan Lee lined up to sign copies of volume two of Ultimo, his co-creation with Hiroyuki Takai, on Saturday the 24th, 2pm at the Viz booth. I had difficulty getting into the series’ first volume, but I’ve got the second in line for a look soon. Mr. Lee will also appear on Viz’s Shonen Jump panel earlier that day.

Secondly, there’s quite a bit of fuss being made around the Vampire Knight anime series, which is not something I’d normally mention here, except that Nancy Thistlethwaite, editor of the manga translation, will be appearing alongside the Vampire Knight voice actors on a panel …

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Interview at Osmosis Online

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Recently, I was asked by Jeremy Nisen at Osmosis Online if I’d be willing to be interviewed about my life as a manga blogger. I said, “sure!” so he sent me a few questions to answer, which have been posted to the site today!

Jeremy asked lots of interesting questions, beginning with a request for recommendations for non-comics-readers (and non-manga-fans), and moving on things like how I got into manga, how I became a critic, and the unavoidable topic of scanlations. My responses aren’t what you’d call brief, but hopefully it’s all readable and maybe even fun!

If nothing else, it provided an opportunity for me to give a shout out to some of my favorite manga, and to encourage newcomers to pick up Chi’s Sweet Home, my source of sunshine and happiness for the week.

Many thanks to Jeremy for inviting me to chat with him. …

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MMF, Shipping News, & More!

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Now that June’s Manga/Manhwa Moveable Feast has ended, it’s time to look forward. And I’ll admit that I could barely contain my squee while announcing the choice for next month’s Feast, Ai Yazawa’s Paradise Kiss.

I’ve already reviewed the series in its entirety, but I look forward to having an excuse to give it another read. What I think is especially compelling about this series is that though it offers a nice helping of genuinely steamy romance (and I’m not talking sex scenes, I’m talking hot, pulse-racing, emotionally raw romance), what the story’s really about is its heroine becoming part of the adult world in a much larger sense–making real choices about her education, her career, her family, who she is as a person and who she wants to be.

The romance is a catalyst, but it’s not the point, and that’s what makes this series such a damn good read. …

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Scanlations & Shipping News

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Happy Humpday everyone! To start the day off, here’s a quick round-up of what’s been going on over the past few days at Examiner.com.

First, a link to my weekly report on what’s shipping to the Boston area this week: What’s new at Comicopia, June 9, 2010. The list includes a number of my favorites, for instance, Very! Very! Sweet, an adorable girls’ manhwa title from Yen Press featuring a teen who’s willing to pose as another teen’s girlfriend (typical romance plot) in exchange for a really nice cat tower (not so typical). Yes, I am that easily pleased. But c’mon. A cat tower. So adorable.

On the more serious side, this week’s haul includes the latest volume of Viz’s Children of the Sea, one of my favorite titles of 2009. To quote from my review:

“Igarashi’s art is absolutely stunning. With an ethereal, …

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Introducing Shonen Sundays

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Yesterday saw the first posts in a new month-long series, Shonen Sundays, a joint project with Michelle Smith of Soliloquy in Blue. To quote her introductory post:

“MJ (of Manga Bookshelf) and I have often talked about our ardent love for shounen manga … Unfortunately, our conversations have been somewhat limited because neither of us has read the other’s favorite series. With that in mind, the idea for Shounen Sundays was born.

Here’s how it works: each Sunday in June, MJand I will post a review of a shounen manga that is new to us, two that are among the other’s favorites and two of our own choosing.”

Check out Michelle’s post for more.

This past weekend, I reviewed the first two volumes of Arata: The Legend …

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Why Hope Larson is Cooler Than You

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Yes, I’m talking to you, paranoid fanboy. You, who are so terrified of having to share shelf space with girls that you’ll call them names just to keep them at bay.

For a little context, Kelly Thompson at CBR’s Comics Should Be Good posted a great interview yesterday with comics creator Hope Larson. The interview was inspired by Hope’s recent survey of female comics fans, in which the two discuss topics such as how to create more female-friendly comics and how to introduce girls to comics, especially in their heavy-reading YA years. The interview is a great read, filled with plenty of timely insight for any western comics publishers looking to sell books to the half of the population they’re currently ignoring.

Unfortunately, things move swiftly downhill in comments to the post, with smug, condescending fanboys calling female readers “cute,” …

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Manga: who’s buying?

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That’s the question I ask today at Examiner.com. In the midst of the manga blogosphere’s recent (understandable) doom and gloom, it seems like everyone’s talking about who’s not buying manga, but few are talking about who is.

Watch as I muse on current events, treat anecdotal evidence as scientific theory, and misspell the name of Boston’s only serious manga seller! Whee?

In all seriousness, though, I do think there’s some truth in my (tentative) assertion that adults are buying manga. From Viz’s new commitment to its SigIKKI line to Vertical’s wealth of new licenses, what’s clear to me is that though publishers are staying cautious, they’re not backing off. My “to be reviewed” stack has more seinen (and even josei) in it than I would have imagined just a year ago. So what does this mean? Check out my post and let me know what you think!

New at Examiner.com

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Here’s a quick post to let you know what’s new so far this week from your Boston Manga Examiner.

On Monday, I posted my (now) weekly rundown on weekend manga talk from local bloggers, Latest links from local manga critics, featuring items such as Kate Dacey’s intro to To Terra for this month’s Manga Moveable Feast, the Good Comics for Kids smackdown of DC Comics, and Katherine Hanson’s new review of unlicensed yuri series, Otsu Hiyori’s Mizu-iro Cinema.

Look for my contribution to the To Terra celebration here at Manga Bookshelf sometime over the next couple of days.

Next, a short commentary on the current state of classic shojo from North American publishers, The plight of classic shojo, inspired both by disappointing losses via the shutdown of CMX and exciting recent licenses from DMP and Fantagraphics. …

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This week at Examiner.com

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Though we’ve barely cleared hump day, it’s been an eventful week already for my new gig at Examiner.com.

Monday began with a round-up of weekend posts from Boston-area critics. I’m thinking of continuing this each week as sort of a bleary-eyed, Monday-morning treat. I’m still not sure exactly who my audience is at Examiner.com, but for the moment I’m operating on the assumption that it may not be the usual manga crowd who could just get all those links at MangaBlog. The fact that my posts stand alongside everything in the Arts & Entertainment section, from concert reviews to celebrity gossip, suggests the possibility of a very different readership.

On Tuesday, I posted a bite-sized version of my review of Twin Spica, Vol. 1, in my continued effort to make sure recent titles are covered on the site. All happy manga thoughts were crushed later that night, however, by news of the CMX shutdown. …

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New at Examiner.com

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It’s been a busy week so far for my new gig at Examiner.com!

On Monday, I rounded up recent links from local manga critics, including Kate Dacey’s fabulous article, On Criticism: The Seven Deadly Sins of Reviewing (all seven of which I believe I’ve committed just this week). This is a must-read for all manga reviewers.

Tuesday brought news of trouble at Go!Comi and and later on at Viz.

Wednesday I continued my weekly look at what’s new at Comicopia–a localized take on new releases to let Boston-area fans know what’s actually shipped to their local comic shop each week. Local fans would do well to keep tabs on owner Matt Lehman’s Twitter account as well, @comicopia….

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Is Go!Comi gone?

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Like most of the manga blogosphere, I’m mourning the likely demise of Go!Comi, as reported by Kate O’Neil, Gia Manry, and many others. Today’s Examiner.com contribution is a short summary of the reports from around cyberspace, with a focus on reactions from Boston-area bloggers.

I also included a few links to reviews of Go!Comi manga, which mainly reminded me just how important it is that I get my own copies of my favorite series of theirs, After School Nightmare.

Many have written much more eloquently on the topic than I. Be sure to check out Brigid Alverson’s write-up in particular, which I’ve linked to from my post. Also of note is Johanna Draper Carlson’s detailed post over at Comics Worth Reading.

That’s the news for today! As my new apartment slowly comes together …

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Linkblogging local critics

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In today’s update at Examiner.com, I take a look at what area manga critics have been posting over the past few days. Critics whose posts I’m stalking today include Kate Dacey, Brigid Alverson, Kate O’Neil, and Robin Brenner.

I must admit it’s a challenge keeping things “local” in cyberspace, where a sense of place is largely irrelevant. Is localized coverage of a topic like manga even useful? I do wonder. I’d be interested in feedback on this issue so far should anyone have some to give.

In the meantime, here’s the usual spiel: Check out my post and my page! Subscribe to e-mail updates or my RSS feed by clicking the appropriate buttons! Comment! Share! Generally spread this Boston-centric manga news around! And Bostonians: if you’ve got news you’d like me to report on, please let me know. ‘Til tomorrow!