May 20, 2009
by Joy
Comments Off on Chmakova, Svetlana: Nightschool: The Weirn Books, vol. 1
Sarah Treveney has a new job as part of the staff at a high school for vampires, werewolves, and witches. For reasons not yet explained, her younger sister Alex, a talented weirn (a type of witch in the series), is … Continue reading
April 28, 2009
by Joy
Comments Off on Kiyuduki, Satoko: GA, vol. 1
GA: Geijutsuka Art Design Class is a yonkoma (4 panel) manga that follows five friends–Kisaragi, Miki, Namiko, Tomokane, and Miyabi–during their days in a high school art department. Each strip collected in this volume captures a different moment in the … Continue reading
April 22, 2009
by Joy
Comments Off on Ishida, Akira: Oninagi, vol. 1
Fifteen-year-old Nanami is looking forward to starting high school, since it will give her an opportunity to be closer to her long-time crush Kazuto Sanjouin. But her hopes for a normal springtime of youth are promptly derailed by the arrival … Continue reading
April 14, 2009
by Joy
Comments Off on Huh and Kim: Pig Bride, vol. 1
When eight-year-old Si-Joon, the spoiled son of a senator, is lost in the mountains during summer camp, he meets a strange woman who tells him that he must marry her (literally) pig-faced daughter to atone for the sins of his … Continue reading
April 7, 2009
by Joy
Comments Off on Yu, Yanshu: Step, vol. 1
Step is the story of Mr. Han, a professional monster hunter, and Dynasty Tang, the orphaned vampire girl that he has taken in. When Mr. Han is not busy fending off vampires and three-headed dogs, he focuses on lighter pursuits, … Continue reading
March 20, 2009
by Joy
Comments Off on Urasawa, Naoki: 20th Century Boys, vol. 1
Even in the US, where most of his work is still not yet available, Naoki Urasawa is something of a manga superstar. When his work Monster, a suspenseful thriller about a doctor on the trail of a serial killer, first … Continue reading
February 10, 2009
by Joy
Comments Off on Mizushiro, Setona: After School Nightmare, vol. 10
The tenth volume of After School Nightmare marks the end of the series and finally offers some answers regarding Ichijo’s mysterious experiences in the dream class. Readers who’ve stuck with this fascinating series through all its earlier twists and turns … Continue reading
January 16, 2009
by Joy
1 Comment
In Silver Diamond, Rakan, an orphaned teen with an affinity for plants, has his life turned upside down when a series of unexpected guests from another world turn up in his garden. Chigusa arrives first; he initially mistakes Rakan for … Continue reading
November 18, 2008
by Joy
Comments Off on Usui, Yoshito: Crayon Shinchan, vol. 6
Crayon Shinchan is a gag manga about a cheeky five-year-old boy whose obsession with bodily functions, pretty girls, and his mother’s clothing tends to make life very interesting for his family, friends, and classmates. Though I haven’t read the earlier … Continue reading
October 30, 2008
by Joy
Comments Off on Nakaji, Yuki: Venus in Love, vol. 5
In volume 5 of Venus in Love, romance is finally blossoming between Suzuna and Eichi, and their relationship grows stronger as various holidays provide opportunities for each to demonstrate their affection to the other. But complications loom on the horizon … Continue reading
October 21, 2008
by Joy
Comments Off on Kusakawa, Nari: Two Flowers for the Dragon, vol. 3
In Two Flowers for the Dragon, Shakuya, the teenage princess of the Dragon Clan, finds herself in the uncomfortable situation of having not one but two fiancés. The cause of her predicament? The unexpected return of Lucien, her first fiancé, … Continue reading
October 15, 2008
by Joy
Comments Off on CLAMP: Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle, vol. 16-18
CLAMP kicks the plot of Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle into high gear in volumes 16-18 of this ongoing series. Readers of the first fifteen volumes would have been somewhat justified in wondering if the story’s determined group of travelers–Sakura, Syaoran, Kurogane, … Continue reading
August 27, 2008
by Joy
Comments Off on Urushibara, Yuki: Mushishi, vol. 4
Ginko is a mushishi, an expert in the primordial life forms known as mushi. He does not have any unusual powers of his own, aside from a tendency to attract mushi and to see them while some others cannot. As … Continue reading
August 13, 2008
by Joy
Comments Off on CLAMP: xxxHOLiC, vol. 11-12
Volumes 11 and 12 of xxxHOLiC continue the story of Kimihiro Watanuki, a high school student whose inconvenient tendency to attract spirits led him to make a rash bargain with Yûko, the space-time witch, back in volume 1. Now fully … Continue reading
August 7, 2008
by Joy
1 Comment
Wild Adapter, vol. 1-2 By Kazuya Minekura Translation: Alexis Kirsch English Adaptation: Christine Boylan Tokyopop ISBN-10: 1598169785 (v1) $9.99 ISBN-10: 1598169793 (v2) $9.99 In Wild Adapter, Kazuya Minekura takes readers into Japan’s underworld, where yakuza power struggles, interpersonal rivalries, and … Continue reading
July 16, 2008
by Joy
Comments Off on Hatori, Bisco: Ouran High School Host Club, vol. 9-10
Ouran High School Host Club is a shojo manga series that both embraces and pokes fun at the storytelling conventions that diehard manga readers have come to know, love, and occasionally mock. The protagonist, Haruhi Fujioka, is a poor but … Continue reading
July 10, 2008
by Joy
1 Comment
Mushishi, Vols. 1-3 Story and Art by Yuki Urushibara Translated and Adapted by William Flanagan Del Rey, 2007-2008 (First published 2000-2002 in Japan) ISBN-13: 9780345496218 (vol. 1) ISBN-13: 9780345496447 (vol. 2) ISBN-13: 9780345496454 (vol. 3) Review Ginko is a mysterious … Continue reading
June 16, 2008
by Joy
Comments Off on The Place Promised in Our Early Days (2004)
I first heard of director Shinkai Makoto through a brief mention of his work in Asia Pacific Arts’ Best of 2007: Asian Film roundup. I do not usually find anime recommendations over at APA, which made this mention worth investigating, … Continue reading
June 4, 2008
by Joy
Comments Off on Arakawa, Hiromu: Fullmetal Alchemist, vol. 16
My review of vol. 16 of Fullmetal Alchemist is now up at Manga Life. An excerpt: In Volume 16 of Fullmetal Alchemist, the story returns to the present after the long flashback to the Ishbal campaign in Volume 15. As … Continue reading
April 30, 2008
by Joy
1 Comment
My review of Bus Gamer is up at Manga Life. An excerpt: For fans of Minekura’s other series, Saiyuki and Wild Adapter, Bus Gamer offers familiar pleasures. Although the art is not quite as polished as that seen in Wild … Continue reading