Pick of the Week

SEAN: My Pick of the Week is obvious to anyone who reads this site at all. It is Excel Saga. The final Excel Saga. You should all BASK IN ITS GLORY! BOW, FOOLISH MORTALS! BOW TO THE FINAL VOLUME OF EXCEL SAGA!

MICHELLE: Huh. I somehow feel this strange compulsion to choose Excel Saga. Weird. Anyway, my pick of the week is Excel Saga. No, wait, I meant to say NightS. Quite frankly, I don’t really know what it’s about, but I liked Kou Yoneda’s No Touching At All so much that I’m willing to bet it’ll be good.

ANNA: Actually there isn’t much that really excites me this week, but I recently went to my public library and picked up a ton of manga! So my pick of the week is the manga selection at your local public library!

ASH: Public library manga are always a great choice! But I think I’m with Michelle this week. The manga I’m most looking forward to is NightS. I really enjoy Kou Yoneda’s work, so I’m happy to see more of it being released in English. Though, I guess there’s some manga called Excel Saga being released this week, too?

MJ: In reality, I’m most likely with Michelle and Ash. I’ll be picking up NightS for sure. But in the interest of extending Sean’s giddy mood for at least another day, I’ll say only this: Save a manga critic. Buy Excel Saga.

What looks good to you this week?

ASH: Well, as Sean put it, I hope you like manga! Seems like there is a ton of guilty pleasures and other great manga being released this week. But even though there are plenty of titles that I’m interested in reading, my heart belongs to the most recent volume of Takako Shimura’s Wandering Son. It’s such a beautifully written and drawn series and I love the deluxe treatment that Fantagraphics has given it. Wandering Son is an incredibly important series to me personally; I’m still thrilled that it’s being released in English at all.

MICHELLE: I’m so behind on Wandering Son that I feel like a hypocrite picking it, so instead I’m going to pick a shoujo favorite: Natsume’s Book of Friends, now in its 15th volume. This series doesn’t come out too frequently, as we’re almost caught up to Japan, so each new installment is like a treasured gift. The series is warm and lovely, but not without its dramatic moments. I recommend it most highly!

SEAN: And I too will go with a shoujo favorite, as I pick the 18th volume of Kimi ni Todoke. Seeing the character development of the five other main leads (yes, yes, even Kento, though I admit it grudgingly) has been excellent, but seeing Sawako’s growth has been positively sublime. Every new volume of this series always gets devoured the day I get it, and this one will be no exception.

ANNA: I’m going to have to go with DMP’s Takasugi-san’s Obento. Food manga is one of those underrepresented genres for translation, so I always feel compelled to highlight it. This slice of life story centered around bento is sure to entertain anyone who enjoys the demonstration of care that goes into a well-designed lunch.

MJ: To bring this column full-circle, I’m going to go back to Ash’s pick, because it’s mine too. Though I’m thoroughly enjoying a number of the series whose latest volumes are being released this week, including Strobe Edge, Midnight Secretary, and the shoujo favorites mentioned by my colleagues, nothing comes close to my feelings for Shimura’s Wandering Son. Not only is it lovingly translated and produced, but I find it very personally gratifying—perhaps differently than Ash does, but with similar strength. This series made my list of best continuing series in 2012, and you can count on it appearing in 2013’s list as well.

What looks good to you this week?

In case you missed it, check out our Pick of the Year – 2013!

SEAN: ‘Tis Christmas, and a young child is looking under the tree for a manga that’s bigger than the average tome, one that has a gorgeous design and feel, and one that can amuse, delight, and possibly scare the pants off of them. Yes, that child is looking for Kitaro from Drawn and Quarterly, which is my pick for Christmas gift this holiday season. It’s a true classic whose influence is massive, it has Nezumi Otoko, one of manga’s truly great Dirty Cowards, and it’s just a giant pile of fun. Give your kid the gift of vintage manga! (And also a PS4, so they don’t whine.)

MICHELLE: At first I thought it would be very difficult to come up with the one gift I’d give a manga fan this Christmas, but then I remembered the one manga I simultaneously adored and was mightily impressed by—Taiyo Matsumoto’s Sunny! Sad, charming, uplifting, introspective, a page-turner… all of these adjectives apply. And if you were feeling really generous, you could pick up volume two as well!

ASH: For manga fans, or even general comics fans, a gift that I think will have broad appeal is Makoto Yukimura’s Vinland Saga. Kodansha’s first deluxe hardcover release looks great on the shelf, too. The series has badass Vikings, exciting battles, great art, and fantastic characters. And lots of snow; that’s seasonal, right? Also, if you get them hooked, the second omnibus will be on its way soon!

ANNA: If you are all nestled snug in your bed with visions of giant robots dancing in your head, there is no other book I would recommend than Gundam: The Origin. Any volume in this series comes with Vertical’s always excellent production values, the hardcover design makes it extra special, and the revisited first story of the Gundam saga is both epic and human in scale, as the great action in the space battles is balanced by the human trials and tribulations the human pilots go through.

MJ: I personally love Christmas for the sake of two of its particular attributes: beauty and nostalgia. And what manga embodies these glorious concepts more completely than the works of Moto Hagio? My gift pick this year goes all the way back to January’s highly-anticipated release of Hagio’s The Heart of Thomas. Lovingly translated by Hagio aficionado Matt Thorn, and gorgeously produced by the folks at Fantagraphics, this luxurious hardcover edition is undoubtedly the loveliest jewel in my personal collection—and for a fan of classic shoujo, that’s saying quite a bit. It’s the kind of manga that’s so pretty, I’d content myself with simply gazing at its artwork, were that all it had to offer. Fortunately, there’s a lot to love all around. A year later, it’s still my favorite new release of 2013.

What are your manga gift picks for this holiday season?

MJ: I know there’s a lot of manga on tap this week, but I can’t help it… my heart belongs to Pandora Hearts, and I fear it always will. Volume 18 hurt me as cruelly as it could, and as it turns out, that’s just the way I like it. More, more, more, please. I gotta have my fix.

MICHELLE: Ooh, how do you like your love? o/~ (I hope I’m not the only one who instantly got that song in my head!) Anyway, I’m definitely with MJ on this. The cliffhanger ending of volume 18 was too cruel to pass up on the 19th, though, now that I think about it, it’s all too likely that only more sorrow awaits.

SEAN: My pick this week is the 2nd and final volume of Summer Wars, which was a big surprise hit for me this fall. Combining rural love comedy with technopocalypse is not something you see every day, and it has some likeable, fallible lead characters. It’s also not afraid to go into dark places when it has to. If Vol. 2 is as good as Vol. 1, we’re in for a real treat.

ANNA: I’m going to have to go with Gundam: The Origin Vol. 4. I love this series, and I love Vertical for bringing it out in a deluxe hardcover edition.

ASH: Gundam: The Origin has consistently been one of my favorite releases this year, but my pick of the week goes to the eleventh volume Q Hayashida’s delightfully weird and strange manga series Dorohedoro. With its dark humor and quirky characters, Dorohedoro somehow manages to be incredibly violent and incredibly charming all at the same time.

What looks good to you this week?

ASH: It’s a somewhat quieter week for manga releases, but there’s still some good stuff coming out. I’m tempted to select the most recent volume of Tsutomu Nihei’s Knight’s of Sidonia as my pick of the week; the series has turned out to be great mix of sci-fi, horror, and romance. But I’ll have to admit, the manga that I’m probably most excited about this week is SuBLime’s rerelease of Ayano Yamane’s Crimson Spell. Occasionally I just really want to read some nicely drawn, smutty fantasy goodness.

ANNA: I’ll have to go with Knights of Sidionia, as I feel obligated to support awesome manga about mecha fighting aliens in space.

SEAN: I’ll go with Magi, the latest Shonen Sunday hit from Viz. It’s looking good so far, with this Arabian Nights adventure being exciting, heartwarming and funny.

MICHELLE: Since Knights of Sidonia has been safely covered, I’m also going to pick Magi. I enjoyed it from the beginning, but the interesting developments at the end of volume two sealed the deal. This could turn out to be a real favorite.

MJ: And I’ll circle partway back, at least. Though I’m interested in both Magi and Crimson Spell, I’m joining Anna this week in her support for volume six of Knights of Sidonia. I’ve never been a major fan of mecha, but this series has blown me away with its intense poignance and gorgeous artwork. I’m more than hooked.

What looks good to you this week?

SEAN: There are a large number of things to pick from (even larger if you realize I forgot to add Fairy Tail 33 to that list – whoops) – and I think I will make my choice Volume 32 of Skip Beat!. It’s quite impressive how invested the author has kept her readers in Kyoko’s success, given that this is well over the average length of a shoujo series, and we’re still only slowly edging towards romance. And yet it’s addicting. Once you start reading, it’s very hard to stop. So I’ll keep reading.

MICHELLE: My passionate love for Skip Beat! is thoroughly well documented by now, so instead of seconding Sean this time I will take my final chance to recommend Slam Dunk, whose 31st and final volume comes out on Tuesday. This is the quintessential sports manga, with an uncouth hero who finds the place he belongs, a place to be needed, and eventually becomes a real asset to his teammates. I’m going to be sad when this one is over.

ANNA: I love Skip Beat! too, but I’m going to have to join Michelle with picking the final volume of Slam Dunk. This is a special series, and I’m grateful I got to read it in English despite the fact that sports manga generally don’t sell all that well.

ASH: Skip Beat! and Slam Dunk are both fantastic choices that I could easily get behind, but I’ll think I’ll mix it up a bit by picking Dengeki Daisy this week. The series is a peculiar amalgam of romance, comedy, and cyber espionage, but I’ve become rather fond of it and look forward to the release of each new volume.

MJ: I’m going to add to the Vizfest we have here this week, with a rather surprising pick. I thought initially I’d be putting my hat in for Mayu Shinjo’s delightful Demon Love Spell, which has been a favorite for me since its launch. Instead, I find myself gravitating towards an unlikely choice—volume two of Maki Minami’s Voice Over! Seiyu Academy. After having registered my dread of its second volume just last week, I picked up my early copy and read it. As it turns out, the end of volume two features a shift in premise that suddenly commands my interest. It’s nothing new—just another well-worn shoujo trope—but one that is executed with the style and panache of, say, an addictive K-drama. Count me in!

What looks good to you this week?

ASH: There are a few interesting things being released this week, but there is one volume that especially stands out for me: Kyoko Okazaki’s Pink. Originally published in 1989, the manga is of the earliest successes from one of the most influential mangaka in josei. I was greatly impressed by Okazaki’s Helter Skelter, also released by Vertical this year, so I’m particularly looking forward to reading Pink.

MICHELLE: Pink is definitely the one I’m looking forward to the most. I am also amused by how innocuous its cover looks, given the plot synopsis!

SEAN: I am looking forward to Pink, which sounds great. My Pick, though, is for the 9th volume of Attack on Titan. It really is quite a pivotal volume, with all the various plot bits that have been dropped over the last several books coming together and making sense. Plus we get a great cliffhanger into what looks like an even more pivotal Volume 10. This is not the runaway breakout hit of 2013 for nothing.

ANNA: I am also very much looking forward to Pink. I’m so glad Vertical has decided to bring out some quality josei titles!

MJ: Well, I pretty much already declared Pink as my pick of the week, and I have no good reason to contradict myself, so my choice this week is clear. I really enjoyed Helter Skelter, and I’m thrilled that we’re seeing more Okazaki this quickly. Thanks, Vertical!

What looks good to you this week?

MJ: Once again, there’s quite a bit on this week’s shipping list, including a new volume of the much beloved Yotsuba&!, but one title stands out clearly from the crowd for me. That would be volume two of Taiyo Matsumoto’s Sunny, due out this week from Viz. From my review of the first volume: “The book’s structure and pacing seem so in tune with a child’s sense of time—that feeling of impatience on top of the endless landscape of imagination. These kids have more reasons than most to escape into their fantasy worlds, but they spend just as much time being shuffled along the familiar routines of childhood. Meals, school, sleep, play—their daily lives are similar to most young kids, but with an edge of anxiety most of us were privileged to do without. And it’s these points of anxiety that make Sunnyfeel moving and real, and not a nostalgia piece in the slightest.” Yes, I will be buying this. I really can’t wait.

MICHELLE: I’m with MJ on this. I reviewed volume two for this week’s Bookshelf Briefs and it was every bit as masterful and moving as volume one. Perhaps more so. Really, I find words inadequate to describe its greatness, so just go read it already.

ANNA: I’ll have to join in on the love for Sunny, this is clearly the standout title for the week.

ASH: It’s Matsumoto’s Sunny for me this week, too. I had the pleasure of being at TCAF for the series’ English debut, and I’ve been looking forward to the second volume’s release ever since.

SEAN: I’m picking Yotsuba&!, because I dislike unanimity, and also it’s hella fun.

What looks good to you this week?

ASH: Though there aren’t quite as many titles coming out this week as there were in the past couple of weeks, there are still plenty of manga to choose from. Personally, I’m torn between two releases: the first omnibus in Shigeru Mizuki’s Showa: A History of Japan from Drawn & Quarterly and the first volume in PictureBox’s new series Masters of Alternative Manga, Gold Pollen and Other Stories by Seiichi Hayashi. In the end, I think I’m leaning slightly more towards the beautiful hardcover edition of Gold Pollen. Alternative and underground manga aren’t often released in English; I’m happy to show PictureBox my support because I’d love to see more of it.

SEAN: I was going to pick Showa anyway, so no worries about it not appearing here. I’ve loved the Mizuki manga we’ve gotten so far from D&Q, and seeing a history of one of the most volatile periods of modern Japan, interspersed with more awesome yokai folklore, is simply too good to pass up. A must buy.

MICHELLE: I’m awfully glad we’ve got things like Gold Pollen and Showa coming out, but I can’t lie—my heart belongs to Blue Morning, volume three. Definitely my pick for best BL of the year.

ANNA: I’m glad we have those things coming out too, but to be honest, I’m probably going to read the latest volume of 07-Ghost before I read other things that are being released this week. So that is my pick!

MJ: It’s so tempting to fall back on an enduring standby this week, with the sixth 3-in-1 edition of Fullmetal Alchemist making its way to the shelves. There are few shounen manga that have occupied such a prominent place in my heart, and my admiration for its brilliant creator, Hiromu Arakawa, is steadfast and true. But comfort of old favorites is, this week, overshadowed by my excitement over PictureBox’s new collection of Seiichi Hayashi manga, Gold Pollen and Other Stories, so I must echo Ash’s pick. Not only does this release offer me a prolonged glimpse at an era of manga from which I’ve read very little, but it’s also a gorgeous, high-end release—large trim, hardcover, full-color. I can’t wait to take a close look at it. I’m thrilled, too, that this is just the first in PictureBox’s alternative manga series.

What looks good to you this week?

MICHELLE: I’m caught between two equally compelling options. On the one hand, there’s Skip Beat!‘s sixth 3-in-1 omnibus, but I’ve literally been telling people to read this for years, so even though it’s terrific, perhaps I should instead go for option number two, Strobe Edge. It’s more of an unknown quantity for me, but I’ve personally been enjoying it a lot. So… my official pick is… Strobe Edge (but also Skip Beat!).

MJ: As I’m having trouble choosing something this week, I’ll also go with Strobe Edge! I was unimpressed by this series at first, but it had me hooked by the end of the first volume, and that has only intensified over time. It’s become a book I gobble up immediately upon the arrival of each new volume. Nothing quite beats addictive shoujo.

ANNA: I also adore both Strobe Edge and Skip Beat, but I’ll go ahead and make Skip Beat my pick, simply because I’m a big fan of omnibus editions for these long-running series. Skip Beat is the rare long series that manages to keep everything compelling and fresh.

ASH: I haven’t read any of Strobe Edge yet, but I have read and adored Skip Beat!. Great comedy, great characters, and a the omnibuses are a great way of getting into the series. So, despite some of the other intriguing titles being released this week, my vote goes to Skip Beat!, too.

SEAN: And instead of breaking the tie I will choose Oresama Teacher, which not only is that rare series about teenage delinquents that’s licensed in North America, and not only has an entire *cast* that can rival Special A for being dense and not understanding any nuance, and not only manages to have a reverse harem love quadrangle without making me actually take any sides about who will win, but is simply funny as hell. Will always love this.

What looks good to you this week?

SEAN: There’s far too much stuff coming out this week, so something is bound to get lost in the shuffle. With that in mind, I will once again bang the gong for one of my addictive series. Higurashi: When They Cry continues to answer things, as we see the aftermath of Satoko and her parents, see how Rika lost her parents, and watch Miyo almost lose everything. The parallels between Miyo and Rika are emphasized even more. Definitely will be devouring this.

MICHELLE: And I’ll bang the gong for one of mine, Pandora Hearts. I’m not sure how much answering it’s going to do, but I’m sure it’ll be as riveting as it is occasionally baffling.

ANNA: I’m going to venture off-list and pick Vinland Saga again. Because today I’m finally going to head out to a physical bookstore to buy it as it seems to still be unorderable on Amazon.

ASH: Wow, there really is a lot of manga coming out this week! I’m particularly looking forward to the second volume of Mitsuhisa Kuji’s Wolfsmund which I would recommend for fans of dark and intriguing historically-inspired manga.

MJ: It’s an abundant shipping week, for sure, though for such a full week, there’s surprisingly little in it that appeals particularly to me. I’m planning to take a look at new Yen titles Another and No Matter How I Look At It, It’s You Guys’ Fault I’m Not Popular!, and I’m always happy to see a new volume of the visually stunning Bride of the Water God. But there’s only one book in this week’s batch that I absolutely can’t wait to read, and that’s volume 18 of Pandora Hearts. I’m a long-time fan of the series, as you know, and at NYCC I was reminded again of just how few of us there are in critical circles when a fellow journalist at the con asked me, “Who writes about Pandora Hearts?” I could think of very few. So, with that in mind, I’m happy to join Michelle this week in making it my pick!

What looks good to you this week?

MICHELLE: There’s not a lot to choose from this week, but I think I’m going to go with Juicy Cider. Yes, the plot sounds generic, but I have enjoyed other BL works by Rize Shinba (most notably Intriguing Secrets), so I suspect it will be better than it seems.

ASH: I think I’m going to have to go with No. 6 this week. I would describe the manga as a “traditional” dystopia and there doesn’t seem to be very many examples of these in English. Plus, I’m really enjoying watching the relationship between Rat and Shion develop.

SEAN: Summer Wars for me. The characters look cute, the premise is intriguing, and I haven’t seen the movie it’s based on, so am relatively unspoiled. For once.

MJ: I’m rather torn this week, though not from an abundance of choices, but rather from a lack of them. Still, I feel pretty confident going with Summer Wars. I greatly enjoyed the filmmakers’ earlier work, The Girl Who Leapt Through Time, as well as Vertical’s demonstrated taste in manga adaptations, namely 5 Centimeters Per Second, so I’m optimistic, for sure. This book is definitely on my list.

What looks good to you this week?

MICHELLE: Confident that someone else will pick the Nordic (is it Nordic?) elephant in the room, I’m going to kick things off by picking the second volume of Magi: Labyrinth of Magic. I liked the first volume, but the second is even better. It’s sort of a textbook example of balancing interesting and likeable characters with an intriguing setting with bits of humor and adventure and yet making it not feel like a balancing act or textbook in any way. In fact, it feels pretty refreshing and unique. I may have a new shounen favorite!

SEAN: My pick of the week is Vinland Saga. As for why, see here: Vinland Saga, Vol. 1

ASH: I’m finding it very difficult to limit myself to only one manga this week (I’m very excited to see more of est em’s work being released in print), but ultimately I think I will also have to choose the first omnibus of Makoto Yukimura’s Vinland Saga. I have literally been wanting this series to be licensed in English for years and it is finally here!

ANNA: I’m going to have to go with Vinland Saga as well. I’m very excited to read this.

MJ: Since Vinland Saga already has a strong showing, I’ll pay a bit of attention to SuBLime Manga and the second (and final) volume of Kano Miyamoto’s Sleeping Moon. This series’ first volume put me in mind of a favorite novel from my teens, Mary Stewart’s Touch Not the Cat, with its mix of supernatural mystery and cousinly romance, and that’s always a plus for me. Though I wish this story had more time to play out, it’s enjoyable to the end.

What looks good to you this week?