Pick of the Week

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!

MELINDA: 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!

MELINDA: 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!

MELINDA: 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!

MELINDA: 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.

MELINDA: 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.

MELINDA: 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!)

MELINDA: 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.

MELINDA: 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.)

MELINDA: 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!

SEAN: This week I’m torn between small children and yakuza husbands, so my pick is split between the 5th Ascendance of a Bookworm light novel and the second volume of The Way of the Househusband.

MICHELLE: I’m all in for The Way of the Househusband, personally, though I’m also intrigued by MabuSasa, the latest digital shoujo from Kodansha.

KATE: My pick is also The Way of the Househusband, a classic fish-out-of-water comedy that finds fresh ways to mine the gangster-goes-straight concept for laughs. Read it… or else!

ANNA: Way of the Househusband for me as well. The first volume was hilarious, looking forward to more of the same.

ASH: Who am I to argue with everyone else? The Way of the Househusband is unquestionably my pick this week, too.

MELINDA: Well, I’m certainly not going to be the one to destroy the consensus this week. The Way of the Househusband it is!

MICHELLE: There are several volumes of sports manga coming out this week, which delights me to no end. I will happily read all of them, but my pick goes to the one with a premise slightly different from the rest. Giant Killing, that means you. In this seinen title, we’re dealing with a pro soccer club, not a high school team, and I’m loving it.

SEAN: Speaking of sports manga, will the race that can never end finally end in this Yowamushi Pedal? It’s my pick for this week.

KATE: We’re still six or so weeks out from Lent, so my pick is Liquor and Cigarettes.

ASH: As it appears Yowamushi Pedal is covered, I’ll make Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess my pick this week. This adaptation has been a bit more involved than Himekawa’s other Zelda manga; I’ve been enjoying seeing the team’s skills applied to a longer series.

ANNA: There’s not a ton that appeals to me this week so I’m going to trust Kate’s manga instincts and pick Liquor and Cigarettes as well.

MELINDA: I’m pretty much exactly where Anna is this week, so I’ll also go along with Kate! Liquor and Cigarettes it is!

SEAN: It’s Jump/Beat week, so we have an embarrassment of titles. I’ll pick the final Anonymous Noise, which is not quite as gripping now that it’s not showing its heroine screaming her song at the reader, but still a very good read.

MICHELLE: I’m definitely going to read the finale of Anonymous Noise, which won me over after the first few volumes but never quite captured my heart, but what I’m really jonesing for is a hit of some volleyball action in Haikyu!!.

KATE: Lest anyone accuse me of being predictable, I’m going to pick… actually, I’m going to stay on brand and choose volume 13 of The Promised Neverland. Why break my streak?!

ANNA: I’m never going to pass up a chance to highlight some josei, so my pick is An Incurable Case of Love Volume 2. The first volume featured a few twists on the workplace romance genre, so I’m curious to see what happens next.

ASH: This really is a good week for Viz releases! But to be contrary, and because I just finished reading and liked the first volume, I’m going to pick Animeta!.

MELINDA: It doesn’t seem like this should be a difficult week to come up with something, but I admit it’s been a struggle! But I have finally started getting into Snow White with the Red Hair, so I think I’ll toss my vote in for that. I need to read more manga in 2020!

ASH: Although there are a few manga being released this week that I’m interested in, without a doubt my pick goes to the latest installment of What Did You Eat Yesterday? in English. The series is such a delight and it’s been more than a year since the last volume was published, so I’m really looking forward to reading more.

SEAN: What Did You Eat Yesterday? never gelled for me, so I’ll go with the latest Monogatari as my pick. Owarimonogatari: End Tale is one of many times that Nisioisin has said that he’s ending the series, and it does actually wrap up the main plotlines, to be fair, if not the books themselves. This is the first of three volumes, dealing with Araragi’s first year in high school and the mysterious Ogi Oshino.

MICHELLE: I’m very much looking forward to more 10 Dance and Waiting for Spring, but given that my spirits had a noticeable uptick when I noticed this volume on the calendar, it’s gotta be What Did You Eat Yesterday? for me!

MELINDA: I’m interested in a few titles in the upcoming New Year’s batch, but I’m going to have to go with Ash and Michelle. Fumi Yoshinaga always wins with me, and I’m thrilled that we’re finally seeing more of What Did You Eat Yesterday? this week!

MICHELLE: When declaring a pick of the year, I feel some self-induced pressure to choose something highbrow, but the fact is that the the title that I loved the most, cared about the most, was from Shounen Jump. And that, of course, is My Hero Academia. It’s fun, it’s funny, it’s got a lovable cast. It’s also got trauma, kids struggling with feelings of inadequacy, a great and gradual redemption arc for the protagonist’s childhood bully, and scenes that make one cry. I love it to bits.

SEAN: There’s a lot of titles I really loved this year (including MHA), but the one that caught my eye the most, as I said last week for Pick of the Week, was Our Dreams at Dusk. One of the best LGBTQ titles to hit these shores, it scores in characterization, art, mood, just about everything. It was simply amazing.

ASH: Our Dreams at Dusk really is a phenomenal series, and one of my top picks of the year, too. The other debut that made a big impression on me this year was the beautiful hardcover release of Moto Hagio’s The Poe Clan. It’s a marvelously dark and dramatic shoujo classic; I can definitely understand why it became such an influential work.

KATE: My favorite manga of 2019 was Taiyo Matsumoto’s gorgeous, weird, and trippy Cats of the Louvre, which is both a meditation on purpose of art, and a meditation on what it means to close the door on your childhood and face the uncertainty of being an adult. I’m still thinking about it more two months after I read it—something I can’t say about most of the books I read this year.

ANNA: My pick of the year is Witch Hat Atelier. It combines stunningly detailed art with classic world building, creating a manga that reminds me of fantasy stories I read as a child.

SEAN: An embarrassment of amazing stuff this week. I could choose any one of half a dozen books. But I’ll go with the 4th and final Our Dreams at Dusk, which has been such an amazing series. Recommended for everyone.

MICHELLE: I definitely look forward to reading Our Dreams at Dusk, but this week I’ll award my pick to Our Dining Table, which looks absolutely adorable. Seven Seas really is putting out some stellar titles these days!

KATE: I whole-heartedly agree with Sean: Our Dreams at Dusk is a genuinely moving story, told with nuance and grace. If the Manga Bookshelf team’s ringing endorsement isn’t enough to persuade you to read this series, check out Sean’s thoughtful reviews of volumes 1-3 at A Case Suitable for Treatment.

ASH: Wow! This week really is full of amazing releases, which makes it incredibly hard to choose just one as my pick. Our Dreams at Dusk is an incredible series, as is Vinland Saga and To Your Eternity. I’m also really looking forward to Our Dining Table and the debut of the previously unlicensable Saint Young Men. But the first thing that I’ll be reading – and therefore my pick this week – is Junji Ito’s manga adaptation of No Longer Human.

ANNA: I totally plan on reading Our Dreams at Dusk one day, and I’m excited for more Vinland Saga. The manga I’m most excited about reading this week though is Saint Young Men, I’ve been holding out for the print edition for a long time.

MELINDA: I’ve absolutely got Our Dreams at Dusk on my to-buy list, and I’m also pretty excited about Junji Ito’s No Longer Human, but like Anna, I’ve waited so long for a US print release of Saint Young Men, that just has to be my pick for the week.