Manga Bookshelf's Weekly Features

KATE: This is one of those weeks when I’m having difficulty mustering enthusiasm for anything on the list; the thought of all those sequels, prequels, and new arcs is exhausting! If I had to pick a title, though, my vote goes to the second volume of The Credits Roll Into the Sea, which chronicles a middle-aged mom’s efforts to become a film maker.

MICHELLE: I am in a similar boat. However, I am genuinely interested in Byakko Senkei, however much I have failed to read any of it so far, so I will go with that, this week.

ANNA: I’m a volume or two behind with Byakko Senkei, but for sure that’s a highlight for me this week.

SEAN: The new anime season of The Apothecary Diaries has made me want even more, so this week I’m going to go with the spinoff manga The Apothecary Diaries: Xiaolan’s Story, which will hopefully be fluffy and adorable like its title character.

ASH: My brain is too full of words these days, but still seems happy to look at pretty things, so my pick this week goes to Visions 2024__Illustrators Book (even if it’s a little like living in the past).

SEAN: The me from 1996 that was buying Ranma 1/2 in 32-page comic form has to give the nod to Vegetable Sandwich, which hits my nostalgia so hard it sees stars.

MICHELLE: Yeah, it looks doofy and charming and maybe a bit of brain balm? I’m in.

ANNA: Vegetable Sandwich does look fun, but I have to say I’m probably most intrigued by Happiness Theories, so that’s going to be my pick.

ASH: Likewise! Somehow, I hadn’t previously heard anything about Happiness Theories, but was thrilled to discover that Mari Yamazaki was being translated by Frederik L. Schodt; I immediately added the book to my must-read list.

MICHELLE: I am a sucker for mall stories, for some reason, so the prospect of people hiding in one during a zombie crisis compels me to go with What Six Survivors Told… this week.

KATE: I’m with Michelle: zombies + mall is a winning formula, so I’ll be checking out What Six Survivors Told…. I’m also curious about Let’s Go Nirvana!, which sounds a little Sister Act with more tattoos.

SEAN: Not a big zombie fan, so I’ll pick Let’s Go Nirvana! this week.

ANNA: I’m in the mood for some distraction, and Let’s Go Nirvana! sounds like the most amusing option out of the new releases, so that’s my pick as well!

ASH: I am exceedingly curious about Let’s Go Nirvana! and I adore the cover of the first volume. I hope the rest of the manga can live up to it!

SEAN: Tempting as it is to pick the prodigal LGBTQ manga or the old-school Miyazaki, I picked a retro release last week. So this week I’ll go for… something even older, technically, the manga adaptation of And Then There Were None. As always, I will wonder if it skews to the original novel, or to most of the other adaptations that have been done, in terms of the plot and the survival of those therein.

KATE: I’m with Sean: Agatha Christie FTW!

ANNA: Agatha Christie does sound delightful, but I also feel compelled to shout out the rerelease of Wandering Son!

ASH: Wandering Son was (is?) such an important series to me personally. Even if we don’t see the rest of it translated, I am so glad to see the manga available in print again. It’s definitely my pick this week.

MICHELLE: I have never read Appleseed, so the prospect of getting the whole thing in one gorgeous hardcover edition was too good to pass up. I am excited to finally check it out!

ANNA: I’m feeling very nostalgic about Appleseed, and am excited to check out the new edition!

SEAN: Same. The new hardcover of Appleseed has all my attention this week.

KATE: I’m going to break ranks and make Say Hello to Mister Wallaby my PotW. I need a light-hearted marsupial comedy right now.

ASH: Say Hello to Mister Wallaby looks like it should be cute, but Appleseed is what has my attention this week. I’ve actually never read the original series before, only Iou Kuroda’s Appleseed Alpha, so a giant omnibus seems a good way to correct that oversight.

SEAN: Sometimes a manga sneaks up on you. I hadn’t even realized that On Their Frontlines: The Lives of Japanese War Brides was coming out at all. Looking at it, though, it appears to continue the trend of Fantagraphics licensing really good stuff. It’s my pick this week.

MICHELLE: I am certainly intrigued by On Their Frontlines, but I do really love the works of Kazune Kawahara and it’s about time I read some of A Star Brighter Than the Sun, so I will go with that, this time.

ASH: Kazune Kawahara manga are always a great pick! But I’ll be joining Sean in choosing On Their Frontlines this week; I’ve heard incredibly good things about the series.

ANNA: Both of these sound like great options, but I’m also going to go with On Their Frontlines.

KATE: Billy Bat is great fun: it’s a valentine to the pulpy American comics of the 1930s and 1940s, but it’s also a swell mystery and a thoughtful meditation on creativity. It’s definitely worth adding to the pile! I also wanted to make a plug for Akino Kondoh’s Box Garden Beetle. If her name sounds familiar, that’s because she was featured in <a href="https://mangacritic.mangabookshelf.com/2010/05/21/ax-vol-1-a-collection-of-alternative-manga/"AX: Alternative Manga. Her work is weird, playful, and sometimes a little unsettling, but always worth a look.

ASH: With all of the fantastic licenses recently announced at Anime NYC, it may be easy to overlook the excellent titles being released this week, but there are more than a few! It probably isn’t a surprise that I’m interested in Hirohiko Araki’s Manga Theory and Practice: How to Create Villains. However, the manga debut I’m most looking forward to this week is Deep-Sea Aquarium Magmell. Creatures from the oceanic depths are absolutely fascinating.

MICHELLE: Maybe this title won’t be any good, but I’m still intrigued by Then Shall I Kill in Your Stead?, so I will go with that, this week.

SEAN: I have heard good things about What Does the Fox Say?, so I’m going to make that my pick.

ANNA: There’s not a ton coming out that I’m really enthusiastic about this week, but I’m most intrigued by Hand in Hand with Mu-chan.

MICHELLE: Well, Sean called it. Half Is More definitely looks like the most significant release, this week.

SEAN: Yeah, at Anime NYC last year they talked about this title, and I’m delighted to see it licensed. Half Is More definitely my pick.

KATE: And more than half of us have made it our Pick of the Week! (See what I did there?)

ANNA: Maybe more than more than half of us are making it our pick!

ASH: In fact, both halves are! Half Is More has been wholly selected as this week’s pick.

SEAN: I have often found that when the first volume of a manga has the two main characters just standing straight and staring at the reader with a blank face, it’s inevitably really good. Hence, my pick this week is for Chiisakobee, which has exactly that.

KATE: Make mine Chiisakobee, too. Something about that cover really speaks to me!

ASH: That cover really is great. So count me in for Chiisakobee, too! (Although I’ll also probably be taking a closer look at Ask Iwata when I have a chance.)

MICHELLE: Sure. I don’t have any better ideas, really.

ANNA: I guess I’m gonna go with the consensus this week!!

KATE: As a musicologist who happens to like manga, I whole-heartedly endorse Crescent Moon Marching and Girl Meets Rock—the former because I played tenor drum in my high school marching band, and the latter because I teach Rock History. As I’ve learned from both gigs, playing in a band of any kind means drama. I’m here for all of it: tears, rivalries, romances, and rehearsals.

MICHELLE: I am absolutely interested in Crescent Moon Marching, but for this one week of each year, it’s just gotta be Kaze Hikaru, for me.

ANNA: I will not pass up the chance to celebrate a new volume of Kaze Hikaru!

ASH: Marching band manga??? Marching band manga?!! As soon as I learned about it, I wanted to read Crescent Moon Marching; I’m very excited that its time has come. I loved being in marching band in high school and college (usually playing mellophone) and I still enjoy watching performances immensely, so I suspect I’ll appreciate this series, too.

SEAN: I mean, yes, it’s Kaze Hikaru, the Excel Saga of the 2020s, but if I make my pick what I’m most interested in, it’s definitely Girl Meets Rock!.

SEAN: I mean, FISHGOD. Because my god, look at that summary.

MICHELLE: Hm. It really is hard to beat that summary. If I’m honest, I’m most excited by a new volume of The Ancient Magus’ Bride, though, as it presents a good opportunity to get caught up again.

ASH: Manga Mavericks has been licensing some really interesting things; I’ve really enjoyed everything I’ve read so far. While FISHGOD definitely has me curious, it’s Horon of the Closed Country that I’ll be reading first.

ANNA: FISHGOD does sound amazing, but I’m going to select Liste Rouge because I’m always curious about shoujo fantasy.

ASH: There are a few ongoing series being released this week that I’ll be making a point to read, but as far as debuts go, Smells Like Green Spirit is what has my attention. Growing up in a rural area myself, I suspect this manga will resonate. (And I appreciate that it’ll be available in a single volume!)

SEAN: I was pretty charmed by the simple plot of The Mortifying Ordeal of Being Seen, so the second volume is my pick this week.

KATE: I freely admit that this week’s new arrivals didn’t set my heart (or wallet) aflame, so I’m going off list to recommend Akari, which was nominated in the Best One-Short category for this year’s American Manga Awards. It’s beautifully illustrated and genuinely moving—keep a box of Kleenex handy! You can order copies directly from Glacier Bay Books.

MICHELLE: I’m also down for Smells Like Green Spirit this week.

ANNA: There’s honestly not a lot that appeals to me this week, so I’m just going to highlight the Red River rerelease as my pick. It is such a treat when series that came out some time ago get new editions!

SEAN: Inklore has some yuri, and I like yuri (is it yuri if it’s Korean?), so I will make Sora & Haena! my pick this week.

MICHELLE: I’m intrigued by Strange Pictures, but potentially more inclined to read the original novel, instead. (A subsequent novel, Strange Houses, is very much up my street, pun intended.) So, instead I’ll go with the BL angst of Forest of the Rabbits.

KATE: I share Michelle’s interest in <i<Strange Pictures, but am also eyeing Drops of God: New World for some over-the-top representations of wine growing (and wine tasting).

ANNA: Out of everything coming out this week, I think I’m most intrigued by Renjoh Desperado, so that’s my pick!

ASH: I’ve been meaning to read the Strange Pictures novel for what seems like ages now, along with Strange Houses and, more recently, Strange Buildings. So I’ll make the manga adaptation my pick this week, hoping to jumpstart some of the related reading. Though I will admit to being curious about Renjoh Desperado, too!

KATE: As an official member of Gen X, I feel morally obligated to choose The Credits Roll Into the Sea. Any story about a middle-aged person bravely deciding to buck convention has my full support!

MICHELLE: BL baseball manga is thoroughly my thing, so it’s Blue Summer Haze for me.

ASH: I’m certainly not going to say no to Blue Summer Haze, but this week I’m all for The Credits Roll into the Sea. I’ve been looking forward to this release ever since it was first announced!

ANNA: I’m won over by the enthusiasm for The Credits Roll into the Sea too!

SEAN: Ditto – The Credits Roll Into the Sea looks fantastic, has great buzz, and is apparently getting a movie. I can’t wait.

SEAN: Kind of a sparse week. I’ll make my pick Geniearth, which might be a bit too gritty shonen for my tastes, but it’s got a very compelling cover.

MICHELLE: I’m in a similar boat. I’ll go with What If I Said, “I Love You?”, I suppose.

ASH: I was likewise not especially excited by this week’s offerings, although What If I Said, “I Love You?” and Geniearth are the two debuts I’m most likely to read. But then I learned that Bubbles Zine just released Lunatic Lover’s by Maruo Suehiro. Definitely not a manga I would recommend for everyone, but I’m excited about it.