Manga Bookshelf's Weekly Features

MICHELLE: There is a lot of terrific stuff coming out this week. Shortcake Cake, Snow White with the Red Hair, and Haikyu!! continue to be among my favorite series. But this week I’ll award my pick to the debut of Not Your Idol, as the prospect of some psychological drama appeals to me.

SEAN: I admit Not Your Idol looks great, but it also seems a bit too dark for my taste. Therefore I will go to the opposite pole and make my pick Kuma Kuma Kuma Bear. Because frankly, it looks fun and also ridiculous.

ANNA: I agree that Not Your Idol looks great, but I’m also just not in the mood for anything too dark and twisty. So right now I’m much more in the mood for some Shortcake Cake but it is always hard for me to pick when there are a bunch of Shojo Beat titles coming out.

ASH: Debut-wise, Not Your Idol is where it’s at for me. But I’d also like to take this opportunity to give Skull-Faced Bookseller Honda-san one last shout-out, too!

MJ: I’m going to go with Not Your Idol. I’m increasingly shifty about cross-dressing as a plot device, but I like the cover, and apparently that’s enough for me in these strange times.

SEAN: Another week, another pick that’s blindingly obvious. I admit I am interested in Yen On’s new title, but clearly the choice is BL Metamorphosis, which seems to have both a great premise and wonderfully soft and nostalgic art.

KATE: What Sean said: BL Metamorphosis is my pick of the week, too!

ANNA: BL Metamorphosis sounds amazing. Looking forward to reading it.

MICHELLE: BL Metamorphosis all the way!

ASH: It really can be nothing else – I’ve been wanting to read BL Metamorphosis even before it was licensed; I’m so glad the series is being translated.

MJ: Normally, I’d never pass up a chance to hype Silver Spoon, but the temptation to make this a unanimous pick is just too strong. BL Metamorphosis it is!

KATE: While I can’t speak for everyone, I think it’s a safe bet that every member of the MB Battle Robot will be buying the first volume of Blue Flag, as it’s the kind of manga all of us like: a juicy, character-driven drama with crisp artwork. So my pick is Blue Flag. I dare the rest of the crew to prove me wrong!

MICHELLE: I’ve tried not to learn too much about Blue Flag to avoid spoilers but everything I have heard sounds fantastic, so I am enthusiastically waving its banner this week.

SEAN: Blue Flag, smilin’ at me, nothing but Blue Flag do I see…

ANNA: What is this I hear about Blue Flag???

ASH: I think a few of us (myself included) are excited for its release! Blue Flag is my pick, most certainly!

MJ: There’s a title coming to me… what is it? Something like Blue Flag, whatever that means. Yes, Blue Flag.

SEAN: It’s rare that I choose a pick based on a cover, but the cover art for My Dress-Up Darling just looks so confident and strong that I can’t help but be drawn to it. So I’ll make it my pick, with an honorable mention to the next Ran the Peerless Beauty.

MICHELLE: I will take up the banner for Ran the Peerless Beauty! It’s extremely charming, with expressive art and very likable leads. It’s got a little in common with Kimi ni Todoke, particularly the overall feel of it, so if you need something to fill the hole that series left behind when it ended, may I suggest Ran the Peerless Beauty?

ASH: The manga I’m most curious about this week is My Dress-Up Darling – it’s premise is intriguing, but I could also see it going in directions that I’m not particularly interested in. So, in case it turns out not to be my type of series, my backup pick is the most recent volume of Sleepy Princess in the Demon Castle.

MJ: Despite reports of abundant fanservice, I’m also cautiously drawn to My Dress-Up Darling, and hey, if you can’t take chances during quarantine, when can you? I’ll join Sean in making that my pick for the week!

KATE: I’m still hoping to get a good night sleep one of these days, so my vote goes to the latest installment of Sleepy Princess in the Demon Castle. Syalis can catch 40 winks ANYWHERE… now that’s a superpower! (Also: how you can you resist a manga with cute teddy demons, quite possibly the most harmless monsters anyone has committed to the page?)

ANNA: I agree with Kate, a funny manga all about a good night’s sleep sounds like a great distraction right now, so Sleepy Princess in the Demon Castle is also my pick.

MICHELLE: I don’t know what to expect from Prince Freya, as I haven’t read either of the creator’s series that have been published in English so far. The “impersonate the prince” plot could go wrong, but similar plots have occasionally gone very right for me (Hello, Basara!). Mostly, then, I am picking it on the strength of its cover, which is frickin’ gorgeous.

SEAN: If Prince Freya is like Basara that would be fantastic, though I suspect it may be more along the lines of the author’s other series. I’m definitely looking forward to it. That said, I’m picking The Engagement of Marielle Clarac from J-Novel Club. Tagged as ‘josei’ on their site, the tale of a woman who is too busy seeing her fiance in terms of a fandom ‘type’ sounds right up my alley.

ASH: I’m totally with Michelle this week. I’m fairly certain I haven’t read any of the creator’s other titles, so am not entirely sure what to expect, but Prince Freya is definitely the debut that has piqued my curiosity the most.

ANNA: I’m most intrigued by Prince Freya as well, count me in!

MJ: I will admit that the kind of crossdressing story I expect from Prince Freya, which always seems to end up with cishet romance in the end, has become much less of a draw for me over the years. I generally think, “Well, I’d rather just re-read Basara.” But in difficult times I’m willing to give it a shot. Sign me up for Prince Freya!

SEAN: The last pick before I have to stop getting my manga from my local comic shop for the time being, I am feeling a tad melancholy. I expect I’ll be doing a lot more digital reading. As such, it’s the digital-only release of A Sign of Affection that holds my attention this week, even if it does have the standard “guy grabbing the girl from behind with his huge hand” cover.

MICHELLE: I did not notice that monstrous hand until you pointed it out. Holy crap. But yes, indeed, A Sign of Affection is also my pick this week. There have been so many new digital-only shoujo series from Kodansha of late that I’m already behind, but I continue to be happy about them nonetheless.

KATE: At the risk of being the most predictable member of MB Battle Robot, my vote goes to Blank Canvas, a manga that manages to be funny, wise, and cringe-inducing in equal measure. I love it.

ASH: As curious as I am about Fire in His Fingertips, I’m unquestionably with Kate this week for my pick. Higashimura certainly doesn’t pull her punches, but Blank Canvas is just so darn good.

MJ: Giant hand notwithstanding, I’m with Sean and Michelle this week. A Sign of Affection is my pick!

MICHELLE: I am a little wary of Star⇄Crossed!!, since the creator’s other series to be licensed here was not my thing, but its wacky premise has undeniable appeal in these dark days. I hope I love it.

SEAN: I’ve been enjoying J-Novel Club’s line of shoujo light novels even more than I expected to. As a result, the series I’m most looking forward to this week is the debut of The White Cat’s Revenge as Plotted from the Dragon King’s Lap, which if nothing else has KITTIES!

KATE: Any manga that has Erica Friedman’s endorsement is automatically on my must-read list, so my vote is for The Conditions of Paradise.

ASH: I’m certainly interested in everything that’s been mentioned so far, but my pick this week goes to the second volume of Toilet-Bound Hanako-kun with it’s quirky characters and interesting takes on yokai.

ANNA: I’m throwing in with Michelle and picking Star⇄Crossed!! too!

MJ: While I’m very much interested in The White Cat’s Revenge as Plotted from the Dragon King’s Lap, I’m going to have to go along with Anna and Michelle this week. Star⇄Crossed!! looks like everything I need to battle the social-distancing blues!

SEAN: There are some high-profile debuts this week: Something’s Wrong with Us from Natsumi Ando, and Hell’s Paradise: Jigokuraku from the assistant to Fire Punch’s creator (but I won’t hold that against him.) But I have to give the nod to my old friend Kumeta Koji (or Kouji… curse these romanji changes) with Kakushigoto: My Dad’s Secret Ambition, simply as I am so happy to see his stuff over here once more.

MICHELLE: I’ll definitely be checking out Hell’s Paradise: Jigokuraku and Kakushigoto: My Dad’s Secret Ambition, but I have just got to see what Natsumi Ando doing josei looks like, and thus my pick is Something’s Wrong With Us.

KATE: I’m exercising my right to nominate two titles for this week’s column: the gorgeously illustrated Witch Hat Atelier, whose plucky heroine just begs for her own Studio Ghibli film, and The Girl from the Other Side, whose plucky heroine may not survive to the end of volume eight. I have my supply of Kleenex and whiskey on hand in case things get any more emotional.

ASH: While there are some very interesting debuts this week, I find myself echoing Kate’s picks – Witch Hat Atelier and The Girl from the Other Side are consistently some of the best series being released right now.

ANNA: I agree, Witch Hat Atelier and The Girl from the Other Side as such special series it is an extra treat that they are both coming out the same week!

MJ: I’m with Michelle this week! Something’s Wrong with Us is too intriguing to pass up. I’m not always a fan of the josei manga that gets localized in North America, but this sounds just about weird enough for me.

MICHELLE: In a week with the debut of a josei series about a nerdy figure skater, there is really no contest. It’s gotta be Knight of the Ice.

SEAN: I didn’t use it for the Manga the Week of Feature Image because I knew it would be here. Obviously, it’s Knight of the Ice.

ASH: It really is an obvious choice! Knight of the Ice is unquestionably my pick – I’m very excited that more of Yayoi Ogawa’s work is being translated – but I’d also like to take the opportunity to encourage everyone to pick up the most recent volume of Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-kun!

ANNA: No surprise, I’m picking Knight of the Ice too!

KATE: The Massachusetts judge awards Knight of the Ice a perfect 10!

MJ: Well, I’m not going to be the one to break the streak. Knight of the Ice it is!

SEAN: A new Shojo Beat series is always welcome, especially when it’s by a proven talent. As such, my pick this week has to be Love Me, Love Me Not, especially as it has two girls on the cover rather than the standard “hero with arms around heroine” shot.

ANNA: I always want to celebrate new Shojo Beat series, so Love Me, Love Me Not is my pick as well.

MICHELLE: Yep, I’m on the Sakisaka bandwagon, too!

MJ: Count me in for Love Me, Love Me Not as well!

ASH: Likewise! As far as debuts go, Love Me, Love Me Not is my pick this week without question.

KATE: I think the best way to describe this week’s new arrivals is A Whole Lot of Stuff I’m Unlikely to Read. I will cop to being interested in Shuzo Oshimi’s Blood on the Tracks, though the part of me that read Flowers of Evil, Drifting Net Cafe, and Happiness wonders how many volumes I’ll read before it just gets too squicky for me.

ANNA: There’s a bunch of stuff coming out this week but I have to say what most interests me is the reissue of Saiyuki. You’ve got Jeeps! Monkey gods! Cigarettes! Guns! Pointy ears! Cranky Priests! Yokai! Is there a more 90s series than this? I don’t know, but I’m glad it is being released again.

SEAN: It’s definitely a Kodansha week for me – leaving aside Saiyuki, there’s also the debut of Sweat and Soap, and new volumes of In/Spectre and Magus of the Library. Kodansha is my pick!

MICHELLE: I’m intrigued by Blood on the Tracks, though I could not make it through Flowers of Evil, so perhaps that will happen again. And I’ll definitely be checking out Saiyuki and Kodansha’s latest digital shoujo debut, I Fell in Love After School. But what I am most excited about is a new volume of The Ancient Magus’ Bride. I love that series very, very much.

ASH: I love The Ancient Magus’ Bride, too! But this week my pick goes Magus of the Library – I’m really enjoying Mitsu Izumi’s fantasy take on librarianship and how surprisingly accurate it can be at times.

MJ: Even though I’ve still got my old copies of Saiyuki, I doubt I can turn down a chance to buy them again, especially in shiny, new hardcover editions. Though nothing will quell my longing for more of Minekura’s Wild Adapter, I’ll take what I can get. Bring me Saiyuki!

SEAN: A lot of diverse choices this week. The “prestige” title is clearly Downfall, but let’s face it it’s far too bleak for me. Instead, to no one’s surprise, I’ll go with Silver Spoon again. Because it is Silver Spoon, and because it is my heart.

MICHELLE: I am ashamed to admit I still haven’t read any Silver Spoon. I, too, am turning away from bleakness and toward my favorite genre, which means I am picking Shojo FIGHT! this week.

MJ: Silver Spoon. It is always Silver Spoon.

KATE: This week’s list is chock-full of great manga, from MB fave Silver Spoon to Drifting Dragons, one of the best-looking fantasy titles being published in English right now. (I reviewed the first two volumes back in 2018, if you’re curious.) My pick goes to another under-appreciated gem, however: O Maidens in Your Savage Season. If you were a nerdy teen girl—and I certainly was—Maidens should be on your list, as writer Mari Okada clearly remembers how hard it was to be horny, awkward, and VERY SERIOUS at fifteen. You’ll laugh and cry and cringe in equal measure.

ASH: So many great titles are being released this week, it’s hard to choose just one! I gladly join the chorus for Silver Spoon and all the other manga already mentioned, but the first volume of Nicola Traveling Around the Demons’ World was such a treat that the second gets my official pick.

MICHELLE: There is so much good stuff coming out this week! My Androgynous Boyfriend and The Carp on the Chopping Block Jumps Twice are exciting enough, and then there was the surprise (to me) of a What’s Michael? reissue. What I’ve been looking forward to the most, though, is A Man and His Cat. In these trying times, the heartwarming tale of a kitty and an old dude who find each other sounds like balm for the soul.

SEAN: I am down for A Man and His Cat to be sure, as well as My Androgynous Boyfriend, plus my usual faves like Kase-san and Hayate. But I’m going to go with the What’s Michael? reissue here, because the original is one of the most iconic cat manga out there, because Makoto Kobayashi’s art is so unique, because it’s just so dang WEIRD, and because if it does well maybe we’ll get Club 9.

KATE: I was going to suggest we title this week’s column “Cat Scratch Fever,” but I thought better of it… Emoji I will say, however, that I’m 100% on board with the MB gang’s feline-friendly picks. I’m stoked for both What’s Michael? and A Man and His Cat.

MICHELLE: The Week of the Cat?

ANNA: I’m all in favor of cat manga, but my pick this week goes to the SubLime debut Given, which features music, cute boys, and plenty of angsty emotions. What else could one want?

ASH: I am thrilled that What’s Michael? is back in print (and I’ll likely be double-dipping, despite somehow managing to pull together a complete collection of the original trade release), and I’m very excited about the debut of a new publisher and A Man and His Cat, but I’m with Anna this week in making Given my official pick. (With My Androgynous Boyfriend coming in as a close second!)

MJ: I’m also very interested in Given, which I’m really hoping to love, but for my official pick I gotta go cat. I missed What’s Michael? the first time around, so I’m excited about that, too, but I think my top choice has to be A Man and His Cat.

SEAN: It’s Jump/Beat week, folks, and once again my pick is Yona of the Dawn, because it remains one of the best manga Shojo Beat is putting out.

MICHELLE: It is super hard to choose between all the Jump/Beat offerings! Since Sean’s got Yona covered, I’ll pick My Hero Academia. I really like this arc, pitting class 1A and 1B against each other, and even though I know how it ends (courtesy of my Shonen Vault subscription) I’m still eager to revisit it.

ANNA: It is a tough week for me, because needing to pick between Yona of the Dawn and other Shojo Beat offerings is very difficult. But I’m going to go with Shortcake Cake because in it, a romance moves forward after some incredibly cinematic love confessions. This volume is shoujo turned up to 11!

ASH: Like seemingly everyone else this week, Yona of the Dawn is one of my top picks, but I’m also really looking forward to the latest volume of JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure.

MJ: I’m not feeling as excited about the ongoing Jump/Beat series this week, so I’m going to stray into digital and take a look at Kodansha’s debut, Let’s Kiss in Secret Tomorrow. I’m not sure what to expect, but I’m always a fan of childhood friends-to-lovers, so I’ll give it my pick for the week!

ASH: Back in 1983, Frederik L. Schodt introduced Riyoko Ikeda’s highly-influential manga The Rose of Versailles to English-reading audiences when he provided and except of it in his work Manga! Manga!: The World of Japanese Comics. Since then the license was a seemingly unobtainable prize. Even after Udon Entertainment announced the rights to release a English translation of The Rose of Versailles, the series languished for years. I wasn’t going to believe it until I saw it, but my faith has been restored – in 2020, I am finally holding the first glorious hardcover volume in my hands. Everyone else should be, too.

ANNA: I am so excited for The Rose of Versailles. I’m waiting for my copy, but will have a mini-celebration when I have it in my hands. There could be no other pick of the week!

SEAN: It feels like the last thirty-odd years of mainstream manga in North American has led up to this moment. The Rose of Versailles is not only long-awaited, but its presentation shows it was worth the wait. It’s magical.

MICHELLE: I find I still can’t believe it, despite credible reports of its existence. When my copy comes, I just might cry.

KATE: My copy of Rose of Versailles just arrived, and it’s gorgeous! So many epaulets! So many galaxy eyes! So many tears! I’m already swooning and I haven’t finished chapter one. (I guess it’s my pick of the week, too.)

MJ: It’s hard to believe this time has finally come! I don’t have my copy of The Rose of Versailles yet, but when it arrives, like Michelle, I think there’s a good chance I’ll cry!