Unshelved

I think this is the first title I’ve tried from Seven Seas. Toradora is a cute but not very original shonen romantic comedy manga adapted from a light novel series. Ryuuji is a marshmallow on the inside, but he constantly seems to be glaring as his natural expression. As a result, his classmates all fear him as a fearsome juvenile delinquent. Ryuuji starts school making a horrible impression on his classmates yet again, although he has one male friend named Kitimura. Ryuuji also has a hopeless crush on one of the girls at school, a cute and outgoing girl named Minori. As with most protagonists who want a “normal high school life” Ryuuji’s dreams are shattered when he meets the “Palmtop Tiger,” a tiny, insane, ill-tempered girl named Taiga.
While the students quail in fear about the prospect of being glared at by Ryuuji, they dive out of the way to avoid encountering Taiga. An accidental encounter turns into a confrontation when Ryuuji discovers that Taiga accidentally let a love letter for Kitimura in his backpack. Taiga’s response to this accident is to break into Ryuuji’s apartment in the middle of the night and attack him with a wooden sword.

The unlikely duo agree to team up to help each other target their objects of affection. But Ryuuji’s plans to bring him closer to Minori and Taiga closer to Kitimura always seem to end in disaster. There’s plenty of slapstick action and exaggerated emotions in this manga. While the situation and plot in the manga is fairly typical, Ryuuji’s interior live and motivations are well-portrayed, probably because this was adapted from a novel. The art is well done, but not distinctive. It was a little odd but not unexpected in a shonen comedy that Ryuuji’s mother (who works as a bar hostess) seems to spend most of her time lounging around her house in lingerie. Overall, Toradora is a solid entry in the shonen comedy genre. Toradora is the type of manga I’d be happy to check out of the library, but it isn’t likely to make it into my regular reading rotation, especially when there’s genuinely absurd shoujo comedy like Oresama Teacher currently being published.

I will concede that there are many shoujo series out there that are better executed than Library Wars, but I will always love this manga because I am a librarian and this manga is about paramilitary librarians falling in love. While some of the plot contrivances in Library Wars are a bit on the thin side, it still functions wonderfully for me as a cute fluffy read. The main story in this volume centers around the enigmatic Komaki and a young deaf girl who he picks out library books for. Komaki might be deluding himself that he’s only performing reader’s advisory services for an old family friend, but as Marie grows up she falls in love with him. Their relationship is totally innocent, but this doesn’t stop the Media Betterment Committee from making false accusations, kidnapping Komaki, and tying him up and torturing him. Because that’s what happens if you are accused of making insensitive book recommendations. With the eyes of a young girl in love herself, Iku clearly sees that Marie cares for Komaki and takes her along on a rescue mission, even though Dojo objects.

I do wish that Dojo would stop slapping Iku whenever she’s trying to strike out on her own to do her job. He usually does this just before she’s supposed to rush into danger, but it suggests an unhealthy relationship dynamic, which I don’t think the author is going for. Aside from foiling the Media Betterment Committee and dodging her parents, Iku does have a great moment where she gets a surprise makeover as part of her guard duty at a literary event and Dojo spends most of his time fending off other men. So nothing earth shattering in volume 5, this installment is pretty much exactly what the previous volumes delivered but it is good enough for me. I was amused that when Dojo was chiding Iku about her reference duties, he called it “referencing,” which I thought was a bizarre but charming way of referring to the classic reference interview.

I love the cover for this volume! Most of the previous volumes had daytime scenes, so it seemed like a nice change to feature the characters against a night time backdrop. I’m a little concerned about Kaze Hikaru. I’d been behind on this manga but then decided to read a good chunk of the most recent volumes. I hadn’t realized that there was a year between volumes 18 and 19. Now there are 28 or so volumes out in Japan and the series is still ongoing, and I’m wondering if we really will get the complete series out here. Kaze Hikaru isn’t a manga that clobbers the reader over the head with tortured vampire bishonen but it is exceedingly well-crafted, with plenty of historic charm and angsty cross-dressing.

As always, Kaze Hikaru blends historic details with the drama provided by the slowly developing relationship between Sei, disguised as a boy to enter the Shinsengumi and her mentor Okita who knows her true identity. This volume was a little more heavy on the historic politics front, as it detailed some of the maneuvering from the arrival of foreign ships outside Japan. Sei is on a mission to locate a mysterious geisha Captain Kondo fell for, as he is overcome with illness. Sei’s girlish good looks become a problem for her mission, as she heads into a confrontation with a man named Ukinosuke who appears to be a dissolute drunkard. Okita arrives just in time to help out, and Kondo is able to finally meet the woman he fell in love with. Ukinosuke is revealed to be an alias for a very important man, and Kondo’s devotion to his duty ends up influencing a critical decision from the shogun. Sei ends up comforting and supporting Okita for a change, when he thinks he’s been put aside by the captain. The volume concludes with a delightful stand-alone story where Sei and Okita confront the bad reputation of the Shinsengumi and meet a pioneer of photography in Japan.

I’m always amazed at how much story Watanabe is able to pack into one volume and the fact that even though the relationship between Sei and Okita is progressing at such a slow pace, I don’t feel impatient about the idea of the story of Kaze Hikaru needing to resolve anytime soon. I think I’ll start to get impatient if I have to wait a year for volume 20 though!

Review copy of Kaze Hikaru provided by the publisher.

Hi, everyone! My name’s Sean Gaffney, and since the very end of 2009 I’ve been writing a blog called A Case Suitable for Treatment (called that because I can’t remember movie titles very well, but I do like David Warner).

Mostly what you’ll be seeing from me here is what I’ve been doing on my old blog: lots of manga reviews, with the occasional post discussing cartoons, or Shakespeare, or Frank Zappa, all obsessions of mine. You will find my style of writing to be fairly stream-of-consciousness (crueler people might say ‘rambling’), but I hope you will enjoy my reviews as much as I enjoy writing them.

For those worried about the content of my old blog, fear not, it’s all here already, and available via the handy category dropdown to my right. Thus you will not be losing any of my posts begging you all to buy Excel Saga, Gatcha Gacha, or I Hate You More Than Anyone!.

A word of warning: I write a lot of positive reviews. I am pretty easy to please, and even with things that I know are aggressively mediocre I can usually find enough about them to praise. When I do feel that something is unworthy of your time, however, I will certainly let you know it.

I am extra thankful to MJ, Katherine Dacey, David Welsh, and Michelle Smith for inviting me to join their collective group, and I hope to be able to train harder to get to their level, in the best shonen traditions of friendship, perseverance and victory.

Welcome!

Arata Volume 5 I think I’m really hampered from fully enjoying this series due to my familiarity with Watase’s other works. Modern Japanese Arata still is putting together the pieces of his quest in a fantasy world with an imperiled princess, while the Arata he switched places with is back in Japan navigating the difficulties of modern school life. Watase does do quest storylines very well, but there’s not much new here to someone that’s already read the piece/people collecting narratives of Fushigi Yugi and Fushigi Yugi: Genbu Kaiden. I continue to me more interested in the other Arata’s adventures in Japan, and in this volume he gets an unexpected ally when a classmate sees through his disguise. What disappointed me was the plot twist at the end, which seemed so reminiscent of the whole Miaka/Yui dynamic in Fushigi Yugi that it didn’t carry much suspense or dramatic tension for me.

Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan Volume 3

Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan continues with its well-executed story of a boy who happens to be the heir to a clan of demons. Nura confronts the rebellious Guyki, and comes up with some clever maneuvering with clan politics when his grandfather announces his intention to make Nura his formal heir. Nura’s classmate Kana is menaced by yokai, and when Nura’s older and stronger form comes to her rescue a little bit of a Lois Lane/Clark Kent dynamic develops when Kana suspects that her classmate and the powerful yokai boss might be connected. The volume wrapped up with a story where Nura’s grandfather meets the powerful exorcist Yura, who attempts to defend the old man she assumes is human from a yokai assassination attempt. There’s plenty of action in this manga, which is enlivened by all the off-kilter character designs used for the yokai. I think this is one of the more solid recent shonen manga series from Viz.

Saint Seiya: Knights of the Zodiac #27

My favorite of this recent batch of shonen manga was by far Knights of the Zodiac. I don’t collect every volume, but I’m always happy to read it when I come across one. The over the top manly shouting and endless battles between gods ensures that it isn’t too hard to just pick up a ransom volume and enjoy it, without worry too much about the ongoing storylines. Basically I read Knights of the Zodiac for two things: crazy battle shouts and ridiculous moments of insanity. The Bronze Knights are about to battle the henchmen of Hades, but there are horrible complications that might prevent them from being effective in battle. Awesome battle cries were in evidence from the first few pages as Dragon fights a trio with their “Grand Axe Crusher!, Blood Flower Scissors!, and Annihilation Flap!” No! Not the Flap! The craziest image in this manga occurred when Thantos was describing to Seiya how he trapped Athena in a vampiric urn, which slowly turns red as it absorbs all of her blood, thus killing her. Athena is shown sleeping with her head sticking out of an urn, tendrils of hair spread out everywhere. Phoenix shows up, as does Seiya’s long-lost sister. Everybody is gearing up for the final battle in the next volume, which I am going to have to get. I certainly hope Athena manages to escape from her vampiric pottery prison.

Review copies of Arata and Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan provided by the publisher.

The manga moveable feast for this month is Wild Adapter. I’m not able to participate fully, because I only read the first two volumes of that series a long time ago. I didn’t follow through with collecting Wild Adapter because I was much more taken by Minekura’s other series, Saiyuki. I’ve read most of the first series and have collected a decent chunk of Saiyuki: Reload, but I haven’t read Reload yet. This Manga Moveable Feast is a good excuse to go back and remind myself why I liked Saiyuki so much in the first place. Hopefully I’ll be able to make a second pass through this series over the summer and finally read most of Reload.

Minekura’s Saiyuki is very loosely based on the classic Chinese tale Journey to the West. Saiyuki’s quartet of womanizing and drinking heroes set off on a journey to prevent the escape of a great and destructive Yokai who was sealed away centuries ago. The land they journey through is Shangri-La, an uneasy mixture of Heaven and Earth, populated by both humans and yokai. Many of the yokai have started to turn on humans and the great priest Genjo Sanzo is charged with preserving Shangri-La. With him are yokai companions, the powerful and irrepressible Monkey Kin Son Goku, the womanizing half-breed Sha Gojyo, and the enigmatic Cho Hakkai. The bickering relationship between the characters makes their quest sometimes seem like a very strange episode from one of the National Lampoon Vacation movies, if it was cast with a boy band who makes frequent stops to murder insane demons.

When rereading the first few volumes of this series I was struck by how well Minekura paces her story. It starts out quickly with the quartet heading out on their quest and quickly getting into trouble. In between the fights are stories that showcase the individual characters and giving the reader insights as to why their combative friendship works. They see how distrusting humans are of yokai. Sha Gojyo shows an uncommon degree of gentleness to a woman who is pining for her lost yokai lover. Son Goku seems to spend most of his time getting into trouble and obsessing over food, but he’s devoted to Sanzo and is likely to be the most powerful of the group if he was ever unleashed. Cho Hakkai’s smiling and calm exterior hides a tragic past. Sanzo resolutely maintains his cynical exterior.

As the character’s personalities become more defined, it is also fun to see the world they navigate through on their quest. Minekura blends fantasy elements with modern anachronisms. Cho Hakkai’s dragon transforms into a Jeep that the characters drive through the landscape of Shangri-La. The heroes are chain-smoking beer drinkers who love gambling. When other monks encounter Sanzo they are horrified by his dissolute habits, but he’s able to put down rogue yokai with his awesome sutra chanting or his gun. With a cast of bickering cuties with tortured casts and Minekura’s growing habit of drawing her men in random pin-up poses, it is easy to see why Saiyuki developed a huge female following. I’m not even sure if this manga ever actually ended, because it seems to spawn any number of sequel and prequel series. But the point of Saiyuki is the journey, not the destination. I think I liked it just as much when rereading these volumes that I last read several years ago.