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Pick of the Week: Blue Morning, Evangelion, 07-Ghost

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potw5-13-13MJ: The shipping list is light this week, and though I do have some interest in the latest volume of 07-Ghost, I’m going to surprise myself (and probably others) this week by choosing a SuBLime debut, Blue Morning, as my pick. I read an early copy yesterday, and though it’s provided more questions than answers in this angsty, intense first volume, I have to admit it got under my skin. Fortunately, it’s actually nothing at all like Black Butler. I’m officially intrigued.

SEAN: Given I’m only getting one thing this week, I suppose that is the pick. The re-release of Neon Genesis Evangelion as a deluxe omnibus has reminded me why I’m still fascinated by the series, and why I still prefer the manga to the anime. This third volume should introduce Kaworu, and things will go even further to hell. Good times!

MICHELLE: Blue Morning looks intriguing, and the fact that MJlikes it goes a long way. But I’m still gonna have to go with 07-Ghost. I can’t believe it’s up to four volumes already, and I can’t believe I’m already behind! Must remedy at the next opportunity!

ANNA: There aren’t a whole lot of options, so I’m going to have to agree with Michelle and cast my vote for 07-Ghost. The storylines might not always be coherent, but there’s plenty of stylish angst to distract the reader. I also find the world building aspects of the series interesting. The reincarnation elements, action scenes, fighting priests, and warring states combined with the mystery surrounding the protagonist make me still want to read the next volume.

What looks good to you this week?

Pick of the Week: Dancing to the Shojo Beat

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potw5-6-13MJ: This week’s pick is an extremely tough one for me, particularly when faced with choosing between beloved series like Wandering Son, Strobe Edge, and even Bakuman,which is heading into its last couple of volumes. But in the end, I’m going to go with an end—that of Yuuki Obata’s melancholy romance, We Were There, which has charmed me all the way from its very first volume, through its soul-crushing volume four, and so on and so forth, to the last, sweet moments here in its final volume. This series has been an especially emotional ride for me—I’d recommend it to anyone—and its ending is extremely well-earned. It’s an obvious pick for me, I suppose, but for very good reasons.

MICHELLE: And it’s my pick, as well. “Well-earned” is right, and I could go into detail about why it’s more satisfying than your average shoujo conclusion, but that would probably be rather spoilery. Instead, you should see for yourself!

SEAN: I’ll go with the new volume of Dengeki Daisy, a shoujo manga with the plot of an action movie. It’s rather impressive how even the people normally creeped out by older guy/high school girl romance don’t seem to mind it in Dengeki Daisy – both in the story itself and in the readers. Perhaps because of the comedy that comes with it, or the way that Teru isn’t being tricked, seduced, or blackmailed into it. But probably mostly due to the writing – a lot can be forgiven in a romance if both leads are simply great people you want to see get together. Well, right after they solve this kidnapping. Yes, another one.

ANNA: Since other people have picked We Were There and Dengeki Daisy, I’ll go with Strobe Edge. The fourth volume has come a long way in terms of plot development and art. Even though some of the plot elements are a bit stereotypical, there’s plenty of emotional resonance in the developing love triangle.

Readers, what looks good to you this week?

Weekly Shonen Jump Recap: April 29, 2013

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April 29 CoverThis was an amazingly strong week for Weekly Shonen Jump. The majority of the chapters were all excellent, with two exceptions, and once again One Piece has somehow managed not to be the top chapter this week. In fact, in my personal rankings, it’s actually just number three. How did this happen? Keep reading and find out. And as always, let me know in the comments how wrong I am.

One Piece Ch. 707
One Piece was excellent this week. Don’t think that it was any weakness of Oda’s that made this week’s chapter fall in my own personal rankings. We actually get a really good look at the fights and all the different characters. I’ve been loving the design for the Fighting King Elizabello II. There’s just something about that goofy boxing pose of his that is charming. Though, the idea that his punch can take down a wall would be more impressive if it didn’t take him an hour to charge it up and there weren’t characters who could do the same without charging their punches.

I love how Oda manages to include new plot lines in an almost flippant kind of way. Former Gladiator Ricky clearly has an important story, but not more than a couple of pages is spent on him. My best guess would be that it’s somehow connected to Rebecca’s developing plot. Oda also uses this chapter to make Bellamy appear much more formidable than he was. Even his at first goofy power is actually kind of badass. His punch is like one of Luffy’s punches, only he doesn’t have to stretch his arm back first.

One Piece

Naruto Ch. 628
I could go on a long rant about this chapter. Not even because the chapter itself is bad, but because the last chapter was the final blow for me. This series has constantly moved from being good to bad to good to bad to decent to bad to boring to bad to screw-this-I’m-out. The bad moments on their own aren’t that terrible, but they keep getting worse, and after years of putting up with this pattern, the latest batch of stupidity was the last straw. I was almost ready to give this series up after the Kage summit. After the last chapter, and then realizing how much I don’t care about this series anymore, I would give it up. Except that I write a review for it every week, and I cover it on a podcast.

If you want to know the biggest problem I have with the series now, it’s that every time I see any of the characters I remember all the stupid, terrible writing decisions Kishimoto has made in the past. The worst part of it all is that from what I’ve seen of interviews of him, Kishimoto seems like a pretty humble kind of guy. So I feel bad ragging on his series so much. But the fact remains that Naruto should have ended years ago. And a good chunk of the cast should have been excised from the series well before then.

Like I said, I could go on a long rant. Instead I’ll keep it to a medium rant.

Mario One-Shot Prelude
After the intense bad feelings Naruto left with me this week, I actually found myself enjoying the few pages of this prelude we got. I really think Kishimoto would do quite well if he just started a new series. Drop all the baggage Naruto has accumulated and just try again. It’s outlived its welcome and I wouldn’t mind seeing a completely new series.

World Trigger Ch. 012
The best I can say about this series is that it’s boring. It doesn’t have any pizzaz and the characters aren’t exactly memorable. It didn’t bother me before, but Yuma’s default face is really getting on my nerves. Sadly I can’t even build up any kind of vitriol to make my commentary about this series entertaining. It’s just boring.

Bleach Ch. 535
Bleach manages to remain adequate once again. I do find it a bit annoying that there needed to be some kind of convoluted reason for Isshin to stay with Masaki. Is it too difficult to just have him fall in love with her and leave Soul Society for her? That would certainly be a better love story and is pretty much the story readers have been telling themselves for years. Is it really necessary to complicate that? It does provide a good explanation for where Ichigo’s hollow powers come from though. And I do appreciate that Isshin’s “Well duh” answer fits the overall attitude readers have had. Of course he’s going to stay, after all how else would he have three kids with her. But overall the story has been interesting enough that I don’t mind already knowing the ending.

Bleach

Nisekoi Ch. 072
You wanted to know what my number two was for this week? Nisekoi continues its strong streak with another comedy-heavy chapter. It dips in quality when things get too serious, something One Piece does not suffer from. But at its strongest Nisekoi can trump even One Piece, at least where I am concerned. And this is no mean feat. Nisekoi was just beyond funny this week, and the comedy stretches on to the next chapter. What more could I, as a comedy fan, possibly ask for?

Nisekoi

One-Punch Man Ch. 015
One-Punch Man is back in form after a few lackluster chapters. They were entertaining at the time, but it isn’t until now that I see how they were relatively duller than what this series can be at its strongest. And they did it with a punch to the balls joke. How does that happen?

Dragon Ball Z Ch. 013
I’m sorry, but I can’t think about this series without thinking of the corresponding episodes of Dragon Ball Z Abridged. This was definitely a step upwards from the first few chapters. Seeing the focus on the wilderness of Dragon Ball does make me regret that later on in the series it will become a lot more urbanized, which is a real shame since Toriyama is great at designing and drawing monsters. Fewer cities, more dinosaurs please.

Toriko Ch. 231
This. Chapter. Was. Amazing! And yet it was only my number four this week. In any other manga I’d call OP shenanigans on Zebra. But his presence and balls-out badness transcends literary criticism and touches the depths of my primal macho drive, bypassing any argument that isn’t expressed as a gutural roar of badassitude. I don’t need any kind of balance or logical progression of strength, I just need Zebra messing even the biggest baddie up.

And yet, Setsuno is even more awesome than that hulking pile of muscles. Toriko is a very unusual series.

Cross Manage Ch. 031
I’ll probably get calls of “Traitor!” from the One Piece fandom for this one. But Cross Manage was the best chapter this week. We actually get to see a proper lacrosse game for what feels like the first time since the series started. And the game isn’t finished in a single chapter—that’s completely unheard of in this series. And boy does it pay off. After not seeing any games in so long, spending all the time on character development, we finally get to see how good Kato actually is at drawing a suspenseful game. Sure the final twist was easily called, but it was so well portrayed that I didn’t mind. Having gotten to know all these characters really helps this first actual game stand out. I would have liked to see more of the other characters—that would have helped certain moments—but I think this was a strong enough showing that Cross Manage should survive the next wave of cancellations and allow us to spend even more time getting to know the underdeveloped characters. This series has been underperforming at first, but slowly it has risen in my estimation and if it gets canned I will be calling bloody murder.

Cross Manage

Did I explain my choices for this week’s rankings well enough? Or are you even more convinced that I’ve lost my mind? Let me know in the comments, I’d love to argue with you about it.

If you want to hear more, check out the Manga^3 Podcast Archives. Or go directly to last week’s episode, Episode 045 – April 22, 2013 – The Naruto Conundrum: Why Do People Like Side Characters More? | Cooking Papa

Pick of the Week: Twin Spica goes digital!

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twinspica1SEAN: I feel bad not picking the elite, first of its kind groundbreaking gay manga, but I’m not going to be reading it, as I’m not an audience for explicit gay bondage no matter how well put together it is. So my pick of the week is the digital release of Twin Spica, which I discussed in “Manga the Week of” earlier. A sublime, subtle story about growing up, overcoming hardships and tragedies, and the allure of space. Will love to read it all over again.

MICHELLE: I’m going to have to agree with Sean on every point, this week.

ANNA: I also hope that Twin Spica gets some extra love, now that it is being released in digital format. This reminds me that I need to go back and read the print volumes I’ve been stockpiling.

MJ: Well, I guess I’ll make it unanimous. While I’m definitely planning to check out The Passion of Gengoroh Tagame, I’m unreservedly enthusiastic about Twin Spica‘s move to digital. This is a series I named as a Best of the Year upon its debut, and then again as it concluded, and I’ve been very sad that low sales have forced it out of print. I hope very much that its digital venue can give it much-deserved new life!

Readers, what looks good to you this week?

Weekly Shonen Jump Recap: April 22, 2013

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April 22 Cover PageBit of a short issue this week, or at least it feels like that for me since I stopped trying to decipher Yugioh! Zexal. It may be lax of me as a reviewer to ignore that series, but the only way for me to give it a fair shake in any kind of review would be to actually do my research and read the series. But, let’s face it, I could already tell you from chapter one it wouldn’t be interesting—and I haven’t seen anything since then to change my mind.

Dragon Ball Z Ch. 012
Dragon Ball Z (I refuse to call it Dragon Ball since saying “Dragon Ball Ch. 012″ would be inaccurate) really is at its best during chapters that would be nothing but talking heads, were Toriyama not so good at utilizing panel layout and camera angles to make even the talkiest of scenes dynamic. Again, it’s impossible to comment on these chapters without letting my prior knowledge of the series color my perspective, so I’ll limit it to saying that I’m amused by how Gohan actually goes through with his plans to become a scholar, despite everyone saying it’s such a waste. Follow your own dreams, not those others inflict on you. Even if you’re talented at something, it doesn’t mean you are required to pursue it. Sure people that want to do what you’re good at will think it a waste of talent, but that’s not what matters. It’s really a good lesson for all of us.

One Piece Ch. 706
There aren’t many creators who could take a character who was beaten down like a putz and have him come back as a legitimate threat. Not only did Bellamy come across as a threat, but he actually is one of the two characters I predict to win Block B. Oda set up the fights to take advantage of the fact that we all expect Luffy to win, and managed to introduce doubt in the other two blocks by focusing on four characters in the two blocks, either of which could win their respective blocks. So it’s certainly suspenseful when normally it would not be.

Also, Nami is going to be furious if she finds out Bellamy stole the golden pillar that was supposed to be theirs.

One Piece

One-Punch Man Ch. 014
Oh Hammerhead, I’m so glad you didn’t die. He makes a great final punch line because he is the opposite of the usual. Instead of someone dying, it’s someone living when they shouldn’t. Sonic’s expression is also the scariest thing I’ve seen all week. That is all.

One-Punch Man

Bleach Ch. 534
While this chapter was not as engaging as the past few chapters have been, I quite liked it compared to the chapters before this flashback. I think it’s because this is a story I’ve been waiting for a long time, but also because it eschews the baggage Bleach has accumulated in the past years. I think Kubo is capable of telling good stories, but he’s overburdened himself with years of continuity. Sometimes you just need a fresh start, and this story is as close to a fresh start as we’re going to be getting for a while.

Nisekoi Ch. 071
When I found myself rating One Piece as the best chapter this week, I realized that I was doing what I had sworn I would not. I was ranking it number one because I always rank it number one. But this week that honor goes to Nisekoi. The setups for the final punchline were all wonderful, and the punchline itself was just hilarious. Every chapter I think I have a new favorite character, and every time I find myself proven wrong yet again. That’s it—just give this series a harem ending, I won’t mind. I can’t pick which girl to root for anymore.

Nisekoi

Toriko Ch. 230
This chapter of Toriko was the embodiment of “But wait, there’s more!” in manga. There are so many unexpected reveals and awesome cliffhangers that I can’t focus on one. Nor do I want to give anything away. Let’s just say that an unimportant character from early on in the manga comes back in a big way, and another fairly important character who only showed up once changes sides. And then Zebra. Just Zebra. You think he’s peaked in awesomeness, but then you find out you are once again wrong.

Toriko

World Trigger Ch. 011
What could have been a pretty major threat, and has been the main threat for the series’ run, turns out to handled in a montage. Now, I wouldn’t be surprised if it turns out there are more gates opening in strange places, because nobody functioning as a writer in any kind of professional capacity could ever possibly make such a basic writing blunder in such a high stakes game. Could they?

We’ll have to wait to see what happens. But hopes are not high. A shame, truly, considering how much I enjoyed the first chapter.

Cross Manage Ch. 030
How does this series keep getting better!? Last week I thought it would be disastrous if Kaito skipped the match. And either he has the most common sense of any writer, or he’s reading my mind. If the latter, please pay attention, Kaito-sensei, I have a few ideas for some omake material. This chapter really showed how good Cross Manage could be as a straight up sports manga. Which just doubles my enjoyment because I already was enjoying it as a character piece. Considering possible upcoming cancellations and series ending their runs I wouldn’t be surprised if Cross Manage lives to fight another day. It better, it’s survived this long and gotten this good that canceling it now would be an abject shame.

Cross Manage

Despite being a short issue, this week’s Weekly Shonen Jump was very strong. Perhaps the lack of Naruto skewed the overall quality. One more week, and then we’re off for Golden Week. I’ll be craving new manga chapters all week, but at least I get to take a break just like the manga authors do that week.

If you want to hear more, check out the Manga^3 Podcast Archives. Or go directly to last week’s episode, Episode 044 – April 15, 2013 – The Naruto Conundrum: Why Do We Hate Sasuke? | Mutant Turtles Gaiden and Super Turtles.

Pick of the Week: Pandora Hearts, Doubt, Negima!

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potw-4-21MJ: The shipping list this week is formidable, and while I expect Tezuka’s Unico will get a lot of the manga blogosphere’s attention, there are also new volumes forthcoming of favorites like Bunny Drop and even an intriguing debut series, Doubt. But given my personal excitement over the latest volume of Jun Mochizuki’s epic fantasy series, Pandora Hearts, I’ve got to do the predictable thing and give that series another boost. I got a chance to read volume fifteen this weekend, and I have to say that it’s even more dramatic than I expected; Even as a consistent fan of the series, I’ll admit I’m blown away but several of the volume’s major revelations, and… yeah, wow. That’s all I can really say. Despite the fact that most of my favorite characters barely register in this volume, it’s got me firmly in its thrall. And I may have new favorite characters. This remains to be seen. Oh, Pandora Hearts, you intrigue me so!

MICHELLE: Gah, I don’t even know what my pick is this week. I’m a few volumes behind on Pandora Hearts and I’m feeling a little trepidatious about Bunny Drop these days. So I guess I’m going with Doubt, a series that I know virtually nothing about except that it involves a deadly survival game of some sort.

SEAN: Despite my many issues with its abrupt, inconclusive ending, my pick of the week is going to be the 38th and final volume of Negima!, mostly as I enjoyed the series for so long and it produced so many awesome characters to root for. A series that started as merely “Harem Potter” turned into a very emotional, action-oriented battle manga, even if it never quite abandoned what Kodansha wanted Akamatsu to write: more nude girls. I hope that someday he revisits it to answer a few of the questions the audience still has after this volume.

Readers, what looks good to you this week?

Pick of the Week: Pepita, Dorohedoro, Sidonia

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potw2MICHELLE: I’ll definitely be picking up a few things on this list, and am particularly eager for the second volume of Knights of Sidonia. However, it’s not often that two of my interests—architecture and Inoue Takehiko—come together, so I am going to have to vote for Pepita: Takehiko Inoue Meets Gaudi. Honestly, I have no idea what to expect from this book but I have no doubt that it’ll be gorgeous.

MJ: I’m with Michelle all the way, this week. I, too, am looking forward to volume two of Knights of Sidonia (and the latest volume of Flowers of Evil as well) but my most-anticipated release is Pepita: Takehiko Meets Gaudi. It promises to be beautiful and fascinating.

SEAN: I’m not as hyped up about it as Excel Saga, but that’s because I’m not as hyped up about anythng as I am about Excel Saga. But those who follow my reviews have likely guessed my pick this week is Vol. 9 of Dorohedoro. The plot really picked up last time, which can be a problem with a series as dense as this one is—it’s another title that rewards multiple re-readings. Will Caiman finally discover his past? And does he really want to?

ANNA: I also agree with Michelle and MJ. I’m interested in both Pepita and Knights of Sidonia, but I’ll probably wait a little bit to pick up Pepita. I’m going to be reading Knights of Sidonia much sooner, so that gets my pick.

Readers, what looks good to you this week?

Pick of the Week: Excel Saga & some other stuff

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potw-4-8-13SEAN: (flat stare)

MJ: There’s quite a bit on the menu for this week, but honestly not too much for me, which makes it incredibly easy to go for an older series that’s one of my new favorites. That, of course, would be Yun Kouga’s cat-ear-sporting, battle-filled, BL-tinged fantasy Loveless, currently running in Ichijinsha’s Comic Zero Sum and recently licensed-rescued by Viz. I’m a Kouga junkie of a sort, and Loveless delivers on everything I crave most from her series—idiosyncratic characters, complicated morality, and messy, messy relationships. My reaction to the release of a new omnibus volume is pretty much, “Gimme.”

MICHELLE: Yeah, not much for me on this list, either. Still, Punch Up! really has grown on me of late, so there’s no way I’d miss its fourth and final volume!

ANNA: Not a lot for me on this list. I’m going to go with Crimson Empire 1: Circumstances to Serve a Noble though, just because I decided not to resist the siren song of yet another Quinrose manga and I ordered it! We’ll see if I regret this pick once I actually read it.

Readers, what looks good to you this week?

Pick of the Week: Saiunkoku conclusion & more

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potw-4-1SEAN: It’s rare that I go off of my own reservation, especially in a week with so much stuff piling in. But my pick of the week just arrived in the mailbox, and will be hitting stores soon: Unico, the new release of Osamu Tezuka’s put out by DMP’s Kickstarter label. Unico is a children’s title (in full color) about a unicorn who can bring others happiness; that said, it’s not as happy and fluffy as you’d expect, and can be quite tearjerking. It’s great to see, and I can’t wait to dig into it.

MICHELLE: Despite the presence of favorites like Sailor Moon, Dawn of the Arcana, Kimi ni Todoke, and Slam Dunk on Sean’s list, I am going to have to give my pick to a beloved series that’s ending this week: The Story of Saiunkoku. I’m very glad we got the chance to read this, but I’m so sad the manga has ended already, when there’s so much story in the light novels that we will never see! Still, that’s no reason not to read the part of the story that we did get, because it’s utterly charming.

ANNA: Since I can’t pick Mobile Suit Gundam: The Origin two weeks in a row, I will highlight Library Wars Vol. 9, which is reaching increasing heights of romantic adorableness as Dojo and Kasahara seem to spend most of the volume blushing, lost in thoughts about their feelings for each other, and occasionally fighting the evil forces of library censorship. This shoujo manga isn’t very deep, but it is consistently enjoyable and always makes me smile.

MJ: There are a lot of strong titles on this week’s list, including all those mentioned above, but given that it’s reached its eighth and penultimate volume, I feel I must continue to root for Toru Fujisawa’s GTO: 14 Days in Shonan. When I placed this at the head of my Top Five New Print Manga of 2012, I talked a lot about Onizuka’s status as a genuine badass, and after volume seven’s terrifying blow against the kids he’s worked so hard to protect, I’m counting on his stubborn, badass nature to see us through. This is a series I’ll savor to the end.

Readers, what looks good to you this week?

Pick of the Week: Blood & Mecha

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potw3-25-13MJ: We’ve got some interesting titles to choose from this week—not a lot in the way of long-standing favorites, but quite a bit of variety. Given my initial reaction to this series’ cover images, I’m surprised to hear myself saying this, but I’m giving my vote this week to volume two of Yuuki Kodama’s Blood Lad. I enjoyed volume one quite a bit—more than my colleagues, I believe—so I’ll be delving into the second volume with a great deal of optimism. Apparently, otaku vampires are my thing after all! This title was a surprise hit for me, and I’m really looking forward to continuing with it.

SEAN: We’ve finally hit the last bad end of Higurashi: When They Cry, and it’s a really bad end, as you’d expect with the title Massacre Arc. The arc after this is a bit contested among fandom, but everyone seems to love this one, which may end in tragedy but is the emotional catharsis of every other arc that came before it. It may not run in Jump, but the precepts of Friendship and Training (well, living through the arcs could be considered training in a way) are here in spades, and will help to achieve Victory in the Festival Accompanying Arc. No victory here, though. But oh so close.

MICHELLE: I think I’m gonna go with Durarara!! Saika Arc this week. As I wrote in a recent Off the Shelf, so far “this is shaping up to be a lot more linear than the original, and I’d say a definite improvement.” The story’s self-contained, so one could start here, but be prepared for a disorienting glut of characters at first. Since you’d encounter the same even if you started at the actual beginning, though, there’s really no difference.

ANNA: I think Mobile Suit Gundam: The Origin comes out this Tuesday, and I am genuinely excited for that. Based on the Japanese Aizoban editions and produced by Vertical, this is a manga that should be a treat to own.

Readers, what looks good to you this week?

Pick of the Week: JManga Scramble

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With a distinct lack of new print manga available in stores this week, we thought we’d take the opportunity to recommend a few last-ditch titles from soon-to-expire digital publisher JManga. If you’ve got extra points to spend and are looking for a great, last-minute read, here are a few titles to consider!

ANNA: I’m always on the lookout for more josei manga, and while I was disappointed in the variety of genres Jmanga offered at its initial launch, I was pleasantly surprised when I saw more Harlequin romance, Ohzora, and josei titles popping up in the months to follow. The title I was most excited to see was the fourth volume of Walkin Butterfly 4. I collected the earlier print volumes and was so happy to be able to read the end of the series on Jmanga. While there are series left unfinished with Jmanga’s closure, I feel it is good to celebrate some of the series that Jmanga finished! Walkin’ Butterfly is the story of a tall misfit tomboy named Michiko who begins to find herself when she accidentally becomes part of the fashion world. Her relationship with the temperamental up and coming designer Mihara changes them both, and the series shows how she transforms herself in an atypical way for an ugly duckling becoming a swan type story. Tamaki’s illustrations convey the world of modeling and fashion in an edgy way – while there are occasional flashes of elegance, this is much grittier than the stylized fashion portrayed in a title like Paradise Kiss. walkinb
SEAN: I think I’ve banged the gong for Wonder! and High School Girls enough, so I’ll note that my favorite aspect of JManga was that they could pick up some of the weirdest titles. Not just normal seinen weird like Ninja Papa or Anesthesiologist Hana, but stuff that no one else would license in a million years. Things like Young-kun, a stick-figure 4-koma that I still don’t think I ever understood, or Edo Nekoe Jubei Otogizoshi, a mystery-solving cat manga from Shonen Gahosha’s magazine of cat manga. And of course there was a pile of yuri titles that fans have been wanting for years, from Love My Life to Poor Poor Lips to YuruYuri. The saddest thing is that there was simply too much content I wanted to read, and I may never get the time to now. But man, it was great content. edo
MICHELLE: If there was just one title that I’d recommend people read while they have the chance, it would be est em’s Working Kentauros. Here’s what I said about it in a Going Digital column from last year: “Like the best speculative fiction, est em uses her offbeat “centaurs in the workplace” concept to communicate universal truths. Everyone wants to be free to be themselves, and no one wants to watch someone they love get sick and pass away. Even if they happen to be a centaur. Highly, highly recommended.” kent
MJ: Many of my favorite series at JManga are hard to recommend at this juncture, simply because they’re unfinished. As much as I adore titles like Sweet Blue Flowers, Dousei Ai, or Pride, I can’t wholeheartedly recommend that anyone sign themselves up for that kind of heartbreak. One of my long-touted BL favorites, however, is Haruko Kumota My Darling Kitten Hair, which, though unfinished, is so committed to its low-key, slice-of-life format that it’s guaranteed to offer no lingering angst or nail-biting cliffhangers. From my review of the second volume: “It’s so rare to read a BL series (or any relationship-driven story) that is about staying in love rather than falling in love, and there’s a reason for that. It’s hard! As difficult as it can be to write authentic, well-developed romance, much like actual romance, it’s even harder to keep that fire burning after the initial rush of first love. Thankfully, My Darling Kitten Hair stands as a lovely example of how to do exactly that. And it’s a real pleasure to read.” Two volumes are available. kittenhair

Readers, any last-ditch JManga titles you’d recommend?

Pick of the Week: Tokyo Babylon

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tokyobabylon1SEAN: Far be it from me to break with what I suspect is going to be unanimous. The clear pick this week is the first omnibus re-release of CLAMP’s Tokyo Babylon. I joked about it being the story of Hokuto and those two other guys, but it is certainly true that Hokuto is my favorite thing about it, and I’ll likely be digging into this volume especially for her. That said, the tragic story of Subaru and Seishirou is no slouch, and if I want to pretend things end happily I can just stop with this first volume anyway. This is one of the books that made CLAMP famous, and justifiably so.

MJ: I’m sure that by now it’s obvious I concur. Though there are at least two series I love just as much on this week’s list (Fullmetal Alchemist and Paradise Kiss) Dark Horse’s re-release of Tokyo Babylon is one of my most euphorically anticipated of the year, and there’s no way I can turn down the opportunity to try to bring more readers into the fold. I love everything about this series—its overblown comedy, its sometimes-clunky drama, and its eighties fashion sense—but mostly I love it for its slow-developing characterization and, well, its cruelty. CLAMP goes at this story with full force, and isn’t satisfied until they’ve beaten you into an hysterical, bloody heap. If you think I’m exaggerating, you haven’t read Tokyo Babylon. So go to it!

MICHELLE: I’m not gonna be the one to buck the trend! The best thing about the series being in print again is that readers who missed out the first time will be able to discover it. I hope we see some reviews from first-time readers in the near future!

ANNA: I think all of this peer pressure means I have to give this series a second chance.

Readers, what looks good to you this week?

Pick of the Week: VIZ all around

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potw-3-4MJ: There’s a lot to choose from this week, including a number of my traditional favorites (Bakuman, Fushigi Yûgi: Genbu Kaiden), but I’m going to betray everything I thought I knew about myself and pick something from the pen of Mayu Shinjo. That’s right—I’m getting behind Demon Love Spell, the latest volume of which is due out this week. I read volume two for this weekend’s Off the Shelf, and I’ll be damned if it didn’t just charm the heck out of me. Mayu Shinjo, I judged you too soon.

MICHELLE: Given that I have only one more chance to say it after this time… my vote goes to Fushigi Yûgi: Genbu Kaiden. Events are moving very briskly towards the end!

SEAN: It feels like forever since I’ve PotW’d One Piece, which almost gets taken for granted these days as simply being omnipresent. But there’s a reason why it is so popular (in Japan, at least): it’s amazing fun, week after week, balancing comedy, drama, action, and more comedy. At this point, I wouldn’t be surprised if it does make it to 100 volumes, even if that might make Viz cry a bit.

ANNA: I would normally go for Genbu Kaiden, which I adore, or Demon Love Spell which I expect to adore when I pick it up. But since those are taken I will go for Oresama Teacher. Bancho forever!!!!!!

Readers, what looks good to you this week?

Pick of the Week: Noncommittal

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To keep things consistent, we’re officially transitioning to Sean’s Manga the Week of lists as our source for Pick of the Week, in place of the Midtown Comics list we’ve traditionally used. That said… maybe we picked the wrong week?
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SEAN: Um… Cage of Eden? I guess? Whatever… you all can choose among the Yen stuff if you like, given what else there is… Zzzzzzzzzzzzz…

MICHELLE: I suppose I’ll throw in for Kitchen Princess. I’ve never read it, but I know David liked it, and that’s good enough for me!

MJ: Well, given the choices, I guess I’ll take advantage of the description of this as a “transition” and go for one of the Yen titles that’s turning up at Midtown this week (but appeared on Sean’s list last week). And that title would be BTOOOM!, a sort of adventure/survivalist story by Junya Inoue. I read it for Off the Shelf a couple of weeks ago, and found it to be great (if unoriginal) fun.

Readers, what looks good to you this week?

Pick of the Week: Misanthropy & Other Stories

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ayako-paperbackMICHELLE: Wow, pickings sure are slim at Midtown this week. If you’re not interested in the latest Evangelion tie-in, volume 30 of Wallflower, or the paperback reprint of Ayako, you are out of luck. Of these, Ayako would be the one I’d choose (if I didn’t already own it in hardcover)—it may be misanthropic, but it’s definitely worth reading.

saga10ANNA This is somewhat sad. So sad in fact that I’m going to pick something that isn’t even manga at all! It looks like the 10th issue of Brian K. Vaughn and Fiona Staples’ Saga is coming out this week. I enjoyed the first trade paperback of this series very much, and it is nice to see more nifty titles coming out from Image Comics. I’m looking forward to the second volume of this adult space opera.

umineko2SEAN: Sheesh, I do all I can to expand Manga The Week Of, and everyone then proceeds to stick with Midtown’s paltry offerings. My pick this week is therefore the second Umineko omnibus, which wraps up the first arc. Less heartwarming than Higurashi so far, its grand guignol over-the-top style appealed to me, and you gotta love those screaming faces (from those still alive, that is).

nabari13MJ: I’ll admit that I feel hesitant about choosing from Sean’s lovely selection of Yen titles, as even online retailers list their release dates as yet a full week away, but I guess I’ll take this opportunity to highlight a series that rarely makes it into our Picks. That series would be Nabari no Ou—you know, the other ninja manga. I’ve been a fan of this series from the start and though I’ve fallen behind, now that its penultimate volume has arrived, I feel the time for a marathon is now. I’ll be setting up a “book club” marathon in the forums later today. Come join me?

Readers, what looks good to you this week?