Manga Bookshelf's Weekly Features

SEAN: Not a lot of must-buy titles for me this week, but I will say that if you never got the original manga, the box set of Wotakoi: Love Is Hard for Otaku looks like a great buy, and has a sticky notepad as a bonus.

MICHELLE: I’ll be checking out Show-ha Shoten!. It’s less that I’m into comedy duos and more that I’m into Takeshi Obata’s artwork, though.

KATE: I second Michelle’s recommendation: comedy tonight!

ASH: Likewise! As much as I enjoy Wotakoi, my pick this week goes to the debut of Show-ha Shoten! Though I’m unfamiliar with the author, I do find myself intrigued by the series’ premise and I’m definitely looking forward to Obata’s illustrations.

ANNA: Put me down for Show-ha Shoten! as well!

MJ: As a certified Takeshi Obata superfan, there is no other choice for me this week but Show-ha Shoten! I have been a diehard fan since Hikaru no Go, and I’m admittedly happy to see him working with a new writer, so count me IN for his beautiful work.

KATE: Though this is a lighter week than usual, I found two titles on the list that piqued my interest. The first is Maiden’s Bookshelf: The Moon Over the Mountain, which has a swoon-worthy cover, and draws from the same well of inspiration as Hell in a Bottle. I’m also interested in reading the new edition of Keiji Nakazawa’s I Saw It: A Survivor’s True Story of the Atomic Bombing of Hiroshima, which Last Gasp is releasing this week. It’s not clear from the packaging if this version is a reprint of the old Educomics edition, or is a fresh translation; nonetheless, it’s good to see this title available again, as it’s a simple but powerful way to help young readers appreciate the horrors of nuclear warfare.

SEAN: I’m picking the final volume of Mixed Bathing in Another Dimension. Its last volume came out in late 2019. I have forgotten everything about what happened in it. But I know I will miss this harem guy, his passel of bathing girls, and the importance of consent before he washes them.

ANNA: I’m going to join Kate in picking I Saw It: A Survivor’s True Story of the Atomic Bombing of Hiroshima, it is good that important stories like this are kept in print and accessible to readers.

MICHELLE: I agree that it’s good for I Saw It to remain in print, but personally I just can’t take something so devastating this week. Instead, I’ll pick volume six of Cherry Magic!, a cute series that I look forward to catching up on.

ASH: I’m not sure how I overlooked that it was being released this week (maybe because I’ve had it preordered for what seems like ages…), so I’m glad that Kate made mention of The Moon Over the Mountain. I’m a big fan of Atsushi Nakajima’s work and the first volume of Maiden’s Bookshelf was beautifully done, so I’m particularly looking forward to this next installment.

SEAN: There’s no new manga titles that really call out to me, and while I am interested in These Legs Don’t Lie!, that borderline H cover makes me wary. So I’m going to pick Ascendance of a Bookworm, because it’s always fantastic.

KATE: I’m in the same boat as Sean; this week’s list is long but not very enticing. If I had to choose a title, though, I’d pick the new edition of Polar Bear Cafe, if only because the premise sounds like a nice bit of escapism. (The artwork looks pretty darn cute, too.)

MICHELLE: The blurb for Happy of the End includes the line ” Chihiro may not have a place to call home currently and Keito may not be a good person by any means, but maybe the two of them could be happy together.” Depending on how bad Keito actually turns out to be, this could be dreadful or right up my street. Either way, I’ll take a chance and pick this one this week!

ASH: While there are a few debuts that vaguely interest me this week, I think I should probably make up for being delinquent in my reading of Wave, Listen to Me! and take some time to get caught up with that series, so that’ll be my pick.

ANNA: I’m also not seeing a ton out there that is a must buy for me, but I am curious about A Condition Called Love.

MICHELLE: I’m intrigued by [Oshi no Ko] and Honey Lemon Soda, but how could I not pick the finale of Lost Lad London, which I have enjoyed exceedingly thus far? I hope we see more mysteries in manga form in future!

SEAN: I’m a big fan of Kaguya-sama: Love Is War, and I enjoyed Scum’s Wish as much as anyone can enjoy a series like Scum’s Wish. The idea of a collaboration intrigues me, so I’ll go with [Oshi no Ko].

KATE: One of my favorite horror series of the last five years was PTSD Radio, a collection of interconnected vignettes that are every bit as spooky and weird as Junji Ito in top form. If you missed out on this series when it was digital-only, now’s your chance to pick up the first two omnibus volumes; the final omnibus will be available in May, so you won’t have to wait long to read the conclusion.

ANNA: I’m very curious about Honey Lemon Soda, looking forward to checking it out!

ASH: As a fan of horror manga, I appreciate Kate’s reminder about PTSD Radio, which I somehow haven’t actually read yet. My pick this week goes to the debut of BARBARITIES, however; I’ve been looking forward to giving another manga by Tsuta Suzuki a try.

SEAN: No question, my pick this week is I’m in Love with the Villainess: She’s so Cheeky for a Commoner. We’ve seen “the same events from another perspective” in other light novels, but usually as briefly changing narrators, not an entire new series. Plus… More Claire! More Rae!

MICHELLE: Given is no doubt a nicer series than The Shadows of Who We Once Were, but since I haven’t read it in ages, I don’t feel as though I can really pick it these week. Whereas I’ve been binging Shadows and, though I am still not entirely sure how I feel about it, the end being in sight definitely inclines me in its favor. So… half-hearted endorsement, I guess?

ASH: Debut-wise, I think the series that I’m the most curious about this week is The Knight Blooms Behind Castle Walls, but if I look towards currently ongoing series (and favorites) Vinland Saga is always a top choice for me.

ANNA: I may be far behind, but I won’t pass up a chance to hype Vinland Saga either.

KATE: All the enthusiastic praise for Vinland Saga makes me think I should give it a second try, so I’m joining Anna and Ash and making it my pick of the week.

MICHELLE: I was originally going to pick I’m Kinda Chubby and I’m Your Hero, but a commenter on the Manga the Week of post described the Raven of the Inner Palace anime as “sad and lovely,” so now I am super curious about that. Thus, I’m actually picking a light novel this time!

SEAN: Raven of the Inner Palace is definitely on my list, because I am happy to add another “behind the scenes of the emperor’s harem” title. That said, the one that is most intriguing to me this week is No Longer Allowed In Another World, which has the potential to be amazingly funny or a giant trainwreck, and I want to see which.

ASH: I’ll throw another title out there for consideration since I’ve been waiting for it for so long—Rakuda Laughs—but honestly I’m interested in everything that’s been mentioned so far and will join Sean in picking No Longer Allowed In Another World for the reasons already outlined.

KATE: I’ve heard a lot of good things about Romantic Killer–especially its blunt, no-nonsense heroine–so that’s my pick of the week.

ANNA: Put me down for Romantic Killer too, I’m intrigued.

SEAN: It’s the end of the year, and as always I’ve forgotten 90% of what I read back in March and April. I will thus make my pick a collective pick, as this year had so many new Villainess Novels. Be it reincarnated in an otome game, a duke’s daughter who is publicly shamed, or just a depressed young woman who’s trying to quietly live through her teenage years so she can enter a convent, the Villainess genre has proven surprisingly wide, and I’ll be delighted to read even more of it in 2023.

MICHELLE: I didn’t read as much as I wanted to this year—blast that infernal “life crap” that always seems to intrude—but of what I did read, my favorite was Lost Lad London. Getting a real mystery in manga form is rare enough, and one that acknowledges racism and sexism is unheard-of. I am both looking forward to and lamenting the third and final volume, due out in a few weeks.

ASH: I likewise haven’t had as much time to devote to manga this past year as I would have liked. However, despite some sub-genres seeming to have flooded the market, I’ve been impressed (and pleased!) to see the wide variety manga being released these days. In particular, or in general, I’d like to make small, niche, manga publishers my pick of the year. Specifically, Glacier Bay Books continues to produce highly engaging releases and Star Fruit Books has brought Hideshi Hino back in English as part of a steadily developing catalogue of interesting print manga.

KATE: I want to echo what Ash is saying about small presses such as Glacier Bay Books and Star Fruit: they’re bringing all kind of cool, off-beat titles to the American market that otherwise wouldn’t be translated. In a market that’s so thoroughly saturated in isekai titles and formulaic high school romances, it’s great to have some meaningful alternatives, so I’m making these two presses my “manga of the year.”

SEAN: There are two wolves fighting inside me. One wants to appreciate tougher, more realistic manga and is interested in the debut of Run Away with Me, Girl, which has been politely described as “heavy”. The other wolf is going “the first new Railgun manga in 18 months? Score!”.

KATE: I’ve recently been re-watching Seinfeld, and saw the episode where George can’t stop singing “Master of the house, doling out the charm/Ready with a handshake and an open palm.” Therefore, my pick of the week *has* to be Les Misérables. Sorry, I don’t make the rules…

MICHELLE: Heavy or not, Run Away with Me, Girl really does have the majority of my attention this week, so I’ll go with that this time.

ASH: I’ll admit, Run Away with Me, Girl is definitely the debut that has caught my eye this week, too. But, I also want to give Sweat and Soap a shout out—I was late to reading the series myself, but it really is a great one.

ASH: There certainly are a fair number of releases this week! Debut-wise, I find that overall the novels have caught my attention the most, with Sword of the Demon Hunter being of particular interest. That being said, I’m likely to actually have time to read some of the new manga, first…

SEAN: I’m actually going to pick Konosuba: God’s Blessing on This Wonderful World! Memorial Fan Book. We get so few of these guidebooks translated over here, so I want to support it.

MICHELLE: I can’t possibly resist BL described as ” Two men struggling with life find each other.” Midnight Rain for me this week!

KATE: I can’t say enough good things about Kowloon Generic Romance: the Mangasplainers compared it with Wong Kar-Wai’s films, and I think that’s an apt comparison. If I’m making it sound like a Very Serious Manga™, though, rest assured it isn’t; Kowloon Generic Romance is moody and romantic, but it’s also raunchy, funny, and frank with a boisterous cast of characters. This is hands down one of my favorite books of the year!

MJ: Okay, at first I was sure I was going to side with Michelle, but then Kate’s description of Kowloon Generic Romance hooked me completely. I think that’s going to have to be my pick this week, no matter what else is on the table!

MICHELLE: Okay, I have just realized this takes place within Kowloon Walled City so I am definitely going to read this, previous pick notwithstanding!

MICHELLE: I usually like manga from Margaret and its spinoffs, so I’ll go with Rainbow Days this week despite knowing absolutely nothing about it.

KATE: I second Michelle’s recommendation, and raise it one artbook: I’ll be adding Studio Ghibli: The Complete Works to my cart this week as well. I’m still under the spell of Shuna’s Journey…

SEAN: This is the final volume of Hello Melancholic, so I’ll make that my pick. Best to read it while listening to J. J. Johnson.

ASH: Sean’s called it with Boat Life—as a fan of alternative manga and manga history, it’s easily my pick this week. In addition to the manga itself, I’m also really looking forward to reading Ryan Holmberg’s accompanying essay.

SEAN: My pick this week is The Food Diary of Miss Maid, because I have the first of many office Christmas parties this week and I will probably be overeating.

MICHELLE: This week is full of new volumes of series that I really should be reading. Witch Hat Atelier and Skip & Loafer are high on the list, but I think I’ll make Classmates my official pick, as I’ve been hearing good things about that series for years.

ASH: Most of what I’m planning on reading this week are new volumes of continuing series, but at least one print debut has caught my interest, too—my pick goes to In the Clear Moonlit Dusk!

MJ: I will admit to being kind of interested in Reincarnated as an Apple: This Forbidden Fruit Is Forever Unblemished!, because… I mean. Apple. But my pick is almost certainly In the Clear Moonlit Dusk, so I guess I’m going along with Ash this week.

KATE: It’s always a good day when there’s a new volume of Skip & Loafer!

MICHELLE: There are a lot of appealing BL or BL-adjacent works out this week. I need to get caught up on I Think Our Son Is Gay and Sasaki and Miyano (so that I can read the spinoff), and The (Pet) Detective Agency looks pretty cute too, but quirky and retro-looking BL will always win out with me in the end, and thus my pick this week is The Gay Who Turned Kaiju.

ASH: The Gay Who Turned Kaiju is certainly one of the highlights for me this week, and I will happily be reading the others Michelle mentioned, too. That being said, I really enjoy Tomihiko Morimi’s work and have been reading a fair number of short stories these days, so I’m actually going to make Fox Tales my official pick.

SEAN: My pick this week is the yuri-ish Touring After the Apocalypse, which really, really REALLY sounds like Girls’ Last Tour.

KATE: Touring After the Apocalypse. I don’t know that I have a particularly thoughtful or well-informed reason for choosing it, but I like the cover’s juxtaposition of two totally normal, cheerful people going about their business in a hellscape. That feels like a pretty accurate reflection of what 2022 has been like for most of us!

MJ: I suppose I am also choosing Touring After the Apocalypse as my pick this week. Even with so many titles coming out, my feelings echo Kate’s this this week!

MICHELLE: This may well be too far out of my comfort zone, but I’m still too happy that we’re getting danmei here to refrain from picking The Husky and His White Cat Shizun!

SEAN: I’ll go with the first volume of <i.Futari Escape, which seems to be a fun read for a quiet week.

KATE: I’ve been enjoying Naoki Urasawa’s Asadora!: it’s a period piece featuring a plucky heroine and crusty old pilot who will stop at nothing to save Japan from a Godzilla-like threat. The characters are all drawn in broad strokes, but the artwork is terrific and the story unfurls at such a brisk pace that it’s easy to forgive Urasawa a few narrative missteps. The last volume came out in… (checks notes)… April, so I’m primed and ready for volume six.

MICHELLE: I’ve been meaning to check out Asadora!.

ASH: I was really excited to learn that a rendition of Atsushi Nakajima’s The Moon Over the Mountain was scheduled to be released later this year, not realizing that it was part of a series. Now that I know that it is, I’m really looking forward to reading the series’ debut volume, Hell In a Bottle.

ANNA: Even though I am so far behind, I’m going to pick Requiem for the Rose King.

MJ: There are a number of interesting-sounding options this week, but I’m going with Requiem for the Rose King, too! I can’t resist!

SEAN: My pick this week is the final volume of light novel series Torture Princess: Fremd Torturchen. There really is an AWFUL lot of torture and gore in it, so it’s all the more impressive that the writer managed to get me addicted to it anyway. Though I admit that I’m expecting it will end with the death of everyone in the world. But gorgeously written.

MICHELLE: There wasn’t a whole lot that appealed to me this week, but Matcha Made in Heaven looks cute enough that I’ll go out on a limb and pick that!

ASH: I’ll admit, Matcha Made in Heaven is the debut that caught my attention this week, too! Which is entirely on the other end of the spectrum from my other top pick, Berserk…

ANNA: Matcha Made in Heaven does sound cute, that’s my pick too.

MICHELLE: Oh, man. I’m forced to choose between perennial fave Skip Beat! and a promising new sports manga. I reckon I’ve gone on record enough about the former at this point, so I’ll pick Blue Box this week.

SEAN: What Michelle said. Blue Box is my pick.

ASH: I’m definitely interested in Blue Box and am glad to see more than one series being brought back into print this week, but my official pick goes to Berserk. It may not technically be the end of the series, but it’s certainly an end of an era.

ANNA: I’m sorry I’m not going to deny my pick for Skip Beat! even with the temptation of a promising sports manga!

KATE: Blue Box for me as well–it looks like fun, and I can’t resist a good basketball manga.