Review: THE ANCIENT MAGUS' BRIDE: JACK FLASH AND THE FAERIE CASE FILES

Both the summer movie season and the summer anime season is loaded with sequels, so it's as good as a time as any for us to cover some more manga sequels, prequels, and spinoffs, starting with a spinoff from one of my favorite manga. 

THE ANCIENT MAGUS' BRIDE: JACK FLASH AND THE FAERIE CASE FILES (Maho Tsukai no Yome Shihen.75: Inazuma Jack to Yosei Jiken), written by Yu Godai with art by Mako Oikawa and script supervision by Kore Yamazaki.  First published in 2019 and first published in North America in 2020.

PLOT:

Just beyond the busy everyday surface of New York City is a world of alchemists, fae, and other magical beings living amongst them.  When the thin boundary between the two is broken, it is up to investigators like Jacqueline "Jack" Flash and her werewolf assistant Larry to make things right.  Their status as changelings allows them to easily traverse both worlds, which they'll need to do to solve cursed cameras, a ring of thieving spectral hounds, and stolen dragon eggs.

Review: HAPPY CRAPPY LIFE

It takes a lot of talent to write a BL comedy about two messy dudes trying to fix their respective lives and make it work, and this manga is the proof of just such a talent.

HAPPY CRAPPY LIFE (Happi Kuso Raifu), by Harada.  First published in 2018 and first published in North America in 2023.

PLOT:

Kasuya had it all: a powerful, high-paying job, an engagement to his boss's daughter, and all the benefits of big-city nightlife.  Thanks to a sex scandal, he was shipped out alone to the countryside, left to stagnate in a small town full of gossipy old men and Kuzuya, a jobless, horny mess of a man.  

When a visit to the local bar leads to Kasuya's big secret going public, Kasuya realizes he can't go back to his old life.  Furthermore, Kuzuya is more than happy to indulge Kasuya's love of butt stuff since he can't get laid either.  That one terrible, drunken night might be the beginning of something beautiful for them both...if they can just figure out how to tolerate one another first.

Review: PLANETES

 This month we're reviewing science-fiction manga, and you'd be hard-pressed to find one that's more "hard" sci-fi than this one.

PLANETES (Puranetesu), by Makoto Yurikuma.  First published in 1999 and first published in North America in 2003.

PLOT:

In 2074, humanity has finally ventured beyond Earth, thanks in no small part to the discovery of practical nuclear fusion and the beds of helium-3 needed to fuel it.  One of the side effects of all the increased space travel is an increase in space junk orbiting around Earth itself, where every piece is a potential threat to every ship and satellite that passes by.  It's up to lowly junk collectors like Hachi, Fee, and Yuki to collect this low-orbit garbage while dealing with the highs and lows of their everyday lives.

Holiday Review #25: STOP!! HIBARI-KUN

 With so many long-shot older manga releases coming out this year from so many different publishers, it was legitimately hard to pick one to close out this year's Holiday Reviews.  This one was special though, not just because of its place in the history of Weekly Shonen Jump but its place in the history of queer representation in manga, and that's absolutely something worth celebrating this Christmas.

STOP!! HIBARI-KUN (Sutoppu!! Hibari-Kun), by Hisashi Eguichi.  First published in 1981 and first published in North America in 2025.

PLOT:

After Kohsaku's mother dies, he's taken in by Ibari Ozora, a Tokyo-area Yakuza boss.  It's not long after he steps into their home that he meets the beautiful, charming Hibari.  Hibari is trans, much to the despair of her father, her elder sisters, and Kohsaku.  Hibari's not bothered, though, as she's both strong and clever enough to evade her father's attempts to make her more manly, the attempts of the local mean girls to take her down a peg, and keeping Kohsaku from chasing the cute girl managing the school boxing club.

Holiday Review #19: NEIGHBORHOOD CRAFTSMEN - STORIES FROM KANDA'S GOKURA-CHOU

 Now this is more of what I was looking for!  This is the sort of hyper-focused historical story that you could only ever get from manga (even if it's almost certain to never top the sales charts).

NEIGHBORHOOD CRAFTSMEN: STORIES FROM KANDA'S GOKURA-CHOU (Kanda Gokura-cho Shokunin-Banashi), by Akihito Sakaue.  First published in 2020 and first published in North America in 2025.

PLOT:

Centuries ago, back when Tokyo was still Edo, everyday craftspeople worked diligently on their wares.  It didn't matter if it was something as humble as a wooden tub or a plaster wall or as prestigious as a samurai's sword - they all understood the properties of the materials they worked with and the value of their skills, and their role in the everyday functions of the city.

Holiday Review #16: LOVE BULLET

It's seasonally fitting that after we got a Green Yuri last year, we get a Red Yuri this year to match it.

LOVE BULLET (Rabu Baretto), by inee.  First published in 2023 and first published in North America in 2025.

PLOT:

Any young person who dies young without knowing love will be given a second chance by the goddess of love.  They become cupids, with white hair and red eyes, invisible to the human world.  Their task is to pair up the lonely hearts of the world to earn enough karma to gain a second life, although now they use modern munitions instead of the traditional bow and arrow and things can get a bit competitive when multiple cupids are involved.

Kohaku is one of the latest additions, a teen girl who died in a freak accident just as her best friend Aki was confessing her feelings.  Even in life, Kohaku had a knack for picking couples among her classmates, but those skills will be put to the test on her first assignment: find the perfect match for (the now college-aged) Aki.

Holiday Review #15: BLACK BLOOD

Only one book this year dared to ask the question "can you make a BL manga about a man and a cyborg, much less make it good?"

BLACK BLOOD, by Hayate Kuku.  First published in 2021 and first published in North America in 2025.

PLOT:

In the far-off future, a cyborg named Ethan is sent to the planet of Peridot to work as a security guard on a human terraforming project.  It's there that he meets Mihail, a botanist trying to study the native plantlife of this strange planet.  Ethan gets assigned to be Mihail's security on his missions, and the two soon find themselves drawn to one another.  Is it love? And how does love work for a man who is no longer human, a man made more for the battlefield than romance?

Holiday Review #14: HABERDASHERY GINMOKUSEI

 But that's enough straight romance!  There was plenty of fine BL released this year and this series in particular was one of the most handsome examples to hit the shelves.

HABERDASHERY GINMOKUSEI (Ginmokusei no Shitateya), by Mamita.  First published in 2020 and first published in North America in 2025.

PLOT:

Ubuki chose to leave his job and take over his grandfather's tailor shop because he wanted to honor him, but he barely had a chance to learn the ropes before his grandfather died and now the shop is on the verge of failure.  That's when a statuesque blond named Theo walks through the door, insisting that only he can save the shop.  Ubuki soon realizes the two of them met before during a drunken hook-up, but he's in no place to refuse help.  As the shop transforms under Theo's guidance, Ubuki finds himself questioning just what Theo's true intentions might be.

Holiday Review #5: TAMAKI & AMANE

 This was a good year for josei, even if most people didn't realize it because nobody was marketing their josei releases as part of that demographic (which is a rant for another day).

If nothing else, it was a year that brought us a new Fumi Yoshinaga book and there was no way I was NOT going to talk about it.

TAMAKI & AMANE (Tamaki to Amane), by Fumi Yoshinaga.  First published in 2022 and first published in North America in 2025.

PLOT:

Throughout the ages, there has always been a Tamaki and an Amane.  Sometimes they are a tragic couple in the Edo era, torn apart by pride and death.  Sometimes they are a pair of Taisho-era school-girls supporting each other through the trials of marriage and motherhood.  Sometimes they are two former squadmates who bond while running a black market cafe during the Occupation.  Sometimes they are a terminally-ill nurse and a lonely little boy in desperate need of comfort and attention.

Despite the circumstances, a Tamaki and Amane will meet and their lives will always be changed by that meeting.

Holiday Review #4: DOGSRED

There was one more notable shonen sports story from a familiar creator this year, albeit one of more recent fame and a far cooler sport.

DOGSRED (Doggusureddu), by Satoru Noda.  First published in 2023 and first published in North America in 2025.

PLOT:

Rou was on the verge of greatness.  Despite losing his mother in a car accident, Rou Shirakawa managed to win the national figure skating championship...until he immediately lashed out in an angry tirade afterwards.  With no parents or career prospects, there's nothing for him or his twin sister Haruna to do but live with their grandfather in a small town in Hokkaido.  A chance encounter with a local bully leads to Rou accidentally sinking the local kids' hockey net, and the only way to get a replacement is for Rou to join the local middle school's hockey team for a single match before they (and the school) are shut down for good.  Now Rou has to figure out how to adapt his figure skating skills to a sport he barely understands how to play.

Holiday Review #2: BAKI THE GRAPPLER

Now I can switch from talking about Paru Itagaki to her far more infamous father.  It's not the first time his best-known manga been released in English, but this year marks the first time it has been collected into proper volumes.

BAKI THE GRAPPLER (Gurappura Baki), by Keisuke Itagaki.  First published in 1991 and first published in North America in 2025.

PLOT:

Baki Hanma is just seventeen years old, but he has the body of a champion.  When he's not training, he's competing in martial arts competitions or squaring off against the karate champion at his high school.  Baki's not concerned, though.  He's always up for a fight, as each new battle is one more step towards proving himself as the strongest man in the world.

Holiday Review #1: SANDA

Well obviously I have to start this year's holiday reviews with the manga about Santa Claus!

SANDA, by Paru Itagaki.  First published in 2021 and first published in North America in 2025.

PLOT:

In the not-too-distant future, the Japanese government has taken drastic measures to combat its declining birthrates.  Children are shielded from the world and their own bodies well into adolescence.  Anything that might serve as a marker of adulthood is suppressed, including the notion of Santa Claus and Christmas.

Shiori Fuyumura believes in Santa Claus.  More specifically, she believes that her middle-school classmate Kazushige Sanda is Santa Claus, and that his powers can help her uncover the truth behind the disappearance of her best friend, all while evading the machinations of their fellow classmates and their ghoulish principal.

Review: MONSTER

Of course, perhaps the most unnerving sort of manga are those about people whose minds and hearts become twisted enough to kill their fellow men, the sort of person worth of the moniker "monster."

MONSTER, by Naoki Urasawa.  First published in 1994 and first published in North America in 2006.

    

PLOT:

Dr. Tenma was a skilled neurosurgeon with a promising career.  He was working with some of the best surgeons in Germany, as well as a promising engagement to the daughter of the director.  Everything was looking up for him...until Tenma defies his superior’s orders and operates on a gravely injured young boy instead of the mayor of the town.  

This single decision costs him his cushy position and his fiancée, and the former is only saved because his superiors die from poisoning.  Years later, Dr. Tenma is the head surgeon, but he suspects that the recent chain of murdered childless couples may be tied to the young boy he saved so long ago.

Review: WELCOME TO DEMON SCHOOL! IRUMA-KUN

Thankfully, there's a much more recent shonen manga with a spooky theme that is a lot more confident in itself and its purpose, even if the title character isn't so much.

WELCOME TO DEMON SCHOOL! IRUMA-KUN (Mairimashita! Iruma-kun), by Osamu Nishi.  First published in 2017 and first published in North America in 2023.

PLOT:

Iruma is a nice boy, the sort of kid who can't say 'no' to anything...including being sold by his own parents to a demon for incredible wealth.  It's not all bad, though.  Turns out the demon in question is a lonely old man who is happy to treat Iruma like the grandchild he never had.  He's even willing to send Iruma to the school he runs...a school for demons who will eat Iruma if they discover he's human.  It's going to take a lot of luck and all of the skills learned at all the jobs his money-hungry parents forced him to do if he's going to survive!

Review: GON

 This series might be one of the most challenging old-school manga to review, but who am I to back down from a challenge?

GON, by Masashi Tanaka.  First published in 1991 and first published in North America in 2007.

             

PLOT:

Gon is a tiny little tyrannosaur with a big attitude.  He has somehow survived the Mesozoic, and now finds himself facing off against some of the biggest, toughest predators in the modern animal world.

Review: KAMIKAZE GIRLS

Let's talk about an old but beloved little one-volume wonder from the glory days of Shojo Beat.

KAMIKAZE GIRLS (Shimotsuma Monogatari), based on the light novel by Novala Takemoto with art by Yukio Kanesada.  First published in 2004 and first published in North America in 2006.

PLOT:

Momoko loves lolita fashion, but it's hard for her to cultivate her wardrobe and the aloof, elegant air she desires when she's been dragged from Osaka to the middle of nowhere by her deadbeat dad.  That's where she meets the biker girl Ichigo, who desperately wants to get her biker coat embroidered to honor her mentor but needs someone who knows their way around Tokyo.  This simple exchange blossoms into an unlikely friendship between two lonely girls from two radically different subcultures.

Review: AIR GEAR

This month we're looking at nothing but shonen manga.  The focus has been on Viz's offerings for the better part of two decades, but I'm going to start with a somewhat forgotten title from Kodansha.

AIR GEAR (Ea Gia), by Oh! Great.  First published in 2002 and first published in North America in 2006.

PLOT:

Itsuki Minami is the talk of his junior high class.  He's the leader of the Eastside gang, has incredible strength, and lives with the tough but beautiful Noyamano sisters.  One day, the violent and vindictive Skullsaiders gang take their violent revenge upon Itsuki's gang, which plunges him into despair.  That's when the sisters reveal that they are members of a secret gang of their own.  They bring Itsuki into their fold, gifting him a pair of special motorized in-line skates called Air Treks.  These combined with his natural strength and agility give Itsuki the ability to do all sorts of fantastic feats.  Now Itsuki has the tools he needs to rebuild his gang, take back his turf, and spread his wings.

Review: YAKUZA FIANCE

 Perhaps the hardest thing about this month is finding romance manga that are messed-up enough to fit the theme but aren't awful.  

This year, I managed to find one.

YAKUZA FIANCE (Raise wa tanin ga Ii), by Asuka Konishi.  First published in 2017 and first published in North America in 2022.

PLOT:

Yoshino is the granddaughter of an Osaka-area yakuza clan, but all she wants is a normal life.  That's why she's so frustrated when she learns from the local tabloids that she's being engaged against her will to Kirishima, the grandson of a Tokyo clan.  

At first, Kirishima seems too good to be true: handsome, polite, and attentive.  Then the mask slips and the real Kirishima is revealed, a cold, cruel, sadomasochistic enforcer.  At first Yoshino is frightened, but then resolves to scare him off with a stunt of her own.  Who could have guessed that it would backfire and that Kirishima would end up genuinely smitten with her as a result?

Review: MY HAPPY MARRIAGE

It's January again, which means once more it's Dealer's Choice Month.  That means there's no theme tying together this month's review beyond the fact that I want to talk about them...or in this case, that the second season of the anime adaptation of this work is currently airing. 

MY HAPPY MARRIAGE (Watashi no Shiawase na Kekkon), based on the light novels by Akumi Agitogi and illustrations by Tsukiho Tsukioka, with art by Rito Kohsaka.  First published in 2018 and first published in North America in 2022.

PLOT:

For almost as long as Miyo Saimori can remember, her life has been nothing but misery.  She was the product of a loveless arranged marriage, lacking in the hereditary magical powers that noble families like hers are supposed to possess.  When her mother died and her father remarried, her life became nothing but an endless wave of drudgery, abuse, neglect, and depression.  Miyo has no reason to believe her life could be anything different, even when her father sends her off to be married to the notoriously icy Lord Kiyoka Kudo.

With the help of Kiyoka's kindly housekeeper Yumie, Miyo slowly begins to open up to others and piece together her sense of self-worth.  In turn, Kiyoka finds himself drawn to this strange, sad, lonely young woman, even as outside forces conspire to sabotage their romance before it can properly begin.

Holiday Review #25: LAST QUARTER

This marks the second year in a row that I've ended our holiday reviews with a Ai Yazawa manga.  It's almost like it took Viz way too long to figure out that there was a majorly pent-up desire for more works of hers beyond Nana!

Regardless, I'm always ready to celebrate when we get more older shojo titles on the shelves and what is Christmas if not a celebration?

LAST QUARTER (Kagen no Tsuki), by Ai Yazawa.  First published in 1998 and first published in North America in 2024.

PLOT:

Mizuki was frustrated with everything: her dead mom, her dad's infidelity and remarriage, her new step-sister, her cheating boyfriend.  She's willing to throw everything away to be with the handsome, troubled musician Adam...until it ends up costing her life.

Young Hotaru had an encounter with Mizuki while she was in a coma.  Now she finds herself drawn to the house where Mizuki and Adam once lived, where Mizuki's spirt now dwells, unable to remember who she was and why she is there.  Thus it's up to Hotaru and her classmates to solve the mystery of the ghost they dub "Eve."