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."

Holiday Review #21: TRILLION GAME

What happens when you combine the writer of Dr. Stone and the artist of Crying Freeman?  You get this, although I'd have to ask why anyone wanted this in the first place.

TRILLION GAME (Toririon Gemu), written by Riichiro Inagaki with art by Ryoichi Ikegami.  First published in 2020 and first published in North America in 2024.

PLOT:

Haru is a fast talker with charisma to spare and a big dream: making a trillion dollars.  Gaku is talented with computers, but can't seem to catch a break otherwise.  Haru convinces Gaku to join him and make all their dreams come true, even if that means bullshitting their way into a start-up loan from a banking executive's daughter and competing in an international hacking contest.

Holiday Review #20: COLETTE DECIDES TO DIE

Ok, let's cover a shojo manga that's a little lighter in tone and content.

Yes I know what that title says, let me explain.

COLETTE DECIDES TO DIE (Koretto wa Shinu Koto ni Shita), by Alto Yukimura.  First published in 2013 and first published in North America in 2024.

PLOT:

Colette is an overworked apothecary who is at her physical and mental limit.  She leaps into a well hoping for some relief in the land of Hades, but instead finds that Hades himself is in need of her skills!  She's able to cure him, but now she finds herself at his beck and call to help him and other in need of some tough love and good medicine, be they demi-gods or the shades of former loved ones.

Holiday Review #12: IN THE NAME OF THE MERMAID PRINCESS

 Ok, after all that we need something cute, frothy, and feminine.  Surely a cute shojo manga from Shojo Beat can deliver that!

...right?

IN THE NAME OF THE MERMAID PRINCESS (Mio no Na no Moto ni), written by Yoshino Fumikawa with art by Miya Tashiro.  First published in 2020 and first published in North America in 2024.

PLOT:

Princess Mio was born a mermaid, but her kingdom of Blognig severely persecutes demi-humans like her.  As such, she is hidden from the world, forced to take magical medicines to hide her true form.  Only her father and a select few servants know the truth, and all of them go out of their way to avoid touching her.

As her sixteenth birthday approaches, she is assigned a tutor to teach her the ways of her fiance's kingdom.  This tutor, Yuri, refuses to humor her kingdom's prejudices and encourages her to embrace her true form and abilities, putting the both of them in peril.  It's up to Mio to use her abilities to save Yuri and escape to a world where they both can safely exist.

Holiday Review #5: GOKURAKUGAI

Even shonen manga is not immune to the horror vibes, even if it mostly takes the form of demon fighters like this one.

GOKURAKUGAI, by Yuto Sano.  First published in 2022 and first published in North America in 2024.

PLOT:

In the neighborhood of Gokurakugai, there are two troubleshooters named Alma and Ms. Tao.  They are guns for hire, committed to hunting down demonic creatures known as magas in the Chinatown in which they live.  That means doing everything from solving missing persons cases, comforting victims of familial abuse, or hunting down a serial killer.

STORY:

So even if you aren't the sort of person who keeps up with all the latest chapters in the Shonen Jump app, odds are good you've heard of this series because for a while it was a meme.  The joke was that despite having only a handful of chapters to its name and rather middling rankings, Gokurakugai was the most impossibly popular, acclaimed manga to ever run in Weekly Shonen Jump.  

I can see how these jokes would arise because Gokurakugai is aggressively mid.  The premise is flexible, but there are countless other action exorcist/spirit detective styles stories like this one, even if you only limit yourself to Weekly Shonen Jump.  Alma is pretty much every Shonen Action Boy you've ever seen: dumb, happy, gluttonous, eager to help, with hints of a dark past and the flashy ability to pull a giant knife made of blood from his chest.  Tao is just an enigma, carried more by the coolness of her design than anything else.  The rest of the cast is full of familiar shonen character types, ranging from the Token Cute Girl to the Token Sleezy Guy (who is both a money-grubber and mildly pervy).  

The stories we see in this volume also have the same problem.  They are perfectly fine, largely self-contained stories that follow a fairly firm formula.  Someone brings a case to Alma and Tao, they go to the site, they have a big flashy action sequence, and all the loose ends are wrapped up tidily (save for the final story in this volume, which leaves off on a cliffhanger).  Curiously, these fights are also often use for exposition dumps about Alma's supernatural origins or the demons they fight.  I'd be lying if I wasn't amused at the fact that they are called "maga," and that Alma himself declares him and Tao to be "maga hunters."  That term is a lot more loaded for Americans than it is for the Japanese, but there's no doubt that quite a few people would find the prospect a little more appealing after this year's election.  It's just hard to understand how this otherwise unremarkable series survived when so many others like with much more memorable premises and characters did not.

ART:

This is apparently Sano's first serialized series, but you'd never guess it from looking at this book.  Everything from the designs to the backgrounds are polished and technically competent.  It's just a shame that despite all that effort, Gokurakugai still feels generic.  Maybe they are a touch more realistic than you typically see in Shonen Jump, but you could probably swap them with similar characters from half a dozen other titles running in the magazine right now and not notice much of a difference.  The only design that feels mildly inspired is Tao's, with her long braid of grey hair, cool shades, skintight bodysuit, and ever-present cigarette.  Even then, she feels more like a thirst trap than a character in her own right.  The most distinct thing this series has going for it visually is its Chinatown setting, and even then it feels very shallow, as if everyone is cosplaying in a theme park.

RATING:

I'm sure that the usual crowd will declare Gokurakugai to be DA BEST MANGA EVAR in an unironic fashion when it inevitably makes the leap to anime, but as it stands right now it's the manga equivalent of Panda Express: offering up a familiar if unchallenging recipe with a vaguely Chinese flair that is forgotten almost as soon as it is consumed.  Even then, I will likely find myself sooner craving some of their orange chicken than I will crave to read the second volume of this.

This manga is published by Viz.  This series is ongoing in Japan with 4 volumes available.  3 volumes have been published and are currently in print.  This series is also serialized weekly via the Shonen Jump app.

Our Holiday Review Giveaway is underway! To find out more and potentially win a $25 Bookshop.org gift certificate, click the link above.

Review: BOKURANO:OURS

We got a lot of original mecha stories around the turn of the millennium, most of which were anime originals.  This is one of the rare exceptions (even if it got an anime adaptation later down the line). 

BOKURANO OURS (Bokurano), by Mohiro Kitoh.  First published in 2003 and first published in North America in 2010.

PLOT:

It's an ordinary summer in an otherwise unremarkable seaside town.  A group of kids are wandering around the beach when they discover a cave in the cliffside.  Inside that cave they find a strange man in a makeshift room loaded with machinery.  The man asks the kids if they want to play a game, but asks them to pledge to keep it secret.  The kids don't take the situation seriously at the time, but everything changes when they are whisked away from their classrooms and into a sparse, white room inside a giant insectoid robot.  It's only then that the man explains the rules of the game: each child will be given a chance to pilot the robot to fight other alien robots, with the fate of the world on the line.  The kids win their first battle, but in doing so expose some of the emotional fault lines within their friend group with deadly results.

Review: TUXEDO GIN

One of the nice things about Old School Manga Month is that it's a good opportunity to bring forgotten favorites and hidden gems back to light.  Today's review is a prime example of both, a series I remember reading and liking even before I began this blog but was seldom mentioned by anyone then and all but forgotten now.

TUXEDO GIN (Takishido Gin), by Tokihiko Matsuura.  First published in 1997 and first published in North America in 2003.

PLOT:

When Ginji Kusanagi saw Minako Sasebo, it was love at first sight.  He certainly didn't expect a girl like her to accept a date from a rough-looking kid on the verge of his pro boxing debut like him, but a motorcycle accident kills Ginji the day before that date can take place.  An angel gives him a second chance, but in order to get his body and his life back Ginji must live out a second life as a penguin.

Things don't get easier for the newly dubbed "Gin" as a penguin.  No sooner does he manage to escape his aquarium home than he has to deal with the goons who caused his killer accident, Minako getting kidnapped, and a rich rival who's determined to make Minako his.

Review: MISTER MISTRESS

 I can't not close out this month by shooting the metaphorical fish in the barrel - i.e., reaching deep into my boxes of BL manga and finding some silly-looking stinker to review.

MISTER MISTRESS (Aijin Incubus), by Rize Shinba.  First published in 2005 and first published in North America in 2008.

PLOT:

Fujimaru is your standard horny hetero teen boy, and it turns out that his teenage libido is the key to unlocking the secret of his late grandfather's house: an incubus named Rei.  Rei craves Fujimaru's body and the raging hormones within it, but Fujimaru isn't very keen on the idea.  The more he tries to resist, the harder Rei tries to trick him into sex.  How long can Fujimari hold out against such temptation?

Merry Month of Manga: SHORT-TEMPERED MELANCHOLIC AND OTHER STORIES

 As this blog enters its 13th year, I'm celebrating it in the usual fashion: a month's worth of reviews.  This time around, it's all One-Volume Wonders, starting with this collection from notable shojo mangaka Arina Tanemura.

SHORT-TEMPERED MELACHOLIC AND OTHER STORIES (Kanshakudama no Yuutsu), by Arina Tanemura.  First published in 1998 and first published in North America in 2008.

PLOT:

Kajika is the heir to an old ninja family and is proud to show off the skills her grandfather taught her...at least, until her crush Fujisaki tells her to be more ladylike.  Her attempts fail, but after her childhood best friend gets into a fight with Fujisaki for her honor she learns that it's better to be true to herself than to meet some boy's unrealistic expectations.  This is followed by other simple tales of teenaged love, including a girl who uses her ditzy best friend as a stand-in during a date with a pen-pal, a girl trying to convince a stubborn boy to not give up on love, and a girl who gets over her crush on her best friend's boyfriend thanks to a particularly persistent admirer.

Review: ARATA THE LEGEND

 A new year means it's time for another round of Dealer's Choice, where the only theme unifying the reviews is their refusal to fit into most of my usual themes and my desire to talk about them anyway.  We're starting off with yet another Yuu Watase title, but this one is a little different from the rest.

ARATA THE LEGEND (Arata Kanagatari), by Yuu Watase.  First published in 2008 and first published in North America in 2010.

PLOT:

Arata Hinohara is a miserable teen who is bullied and shunned by his classmates.  Arata Hime is a restless young man forced to conceal his true gender in order to take over his family's traditional role as a magical protector of the land.  Things go badly for this Arata right away, as the princess he's tasked with protecting is brutally murdered by one of her twelve generals.  Arata is framed for the crime and tries to flee, only to stumble through a tear in time and space so he can switch places with Hinohara.  While Arata Hime adjusts to modern Japan, Hinohara is stuck in a strange world as a fugitive for a crime he did not commit with only a serving girl to guide him and a mystical weapon said to possess the power of a god.  It seems that the only way Hinohara can get home is to survive long enough to clear his counterpart's name and save the kingdom.

Holiday Review #25: NEIGHBORHOOD STORY

 We started this year's reviews with a long-awaited license, so it's only fitting to end it with one as well.  As much as I might complain about how much Viz neglects their non-WSJ titles or the titles they pick up for the Shojo Beat imprint, they did release this classic from Nana and Paradise Kiss creator Ai Yazawa just in time for the holidays.

NEIGHBORHOOD STORY (Gokinjo Monogatari), by Ai Yazawa.  First published in 1995 and first published in North America in 2023.

PLOT:

Mikako and Tsutomu have known each other forever.  They grew up together, go to the same art college, and even walk to class together.  Tsutomu's resemblance to a popular singer has rendered him unexpectedly popular with the ladies, much to Mikako's annoyance and Tsutomu's bafflement.  Neither of them are quite ready to admit they might have feelings for one another, but their friends will certainly try their best to bring them together.  Mikako's going to need all the help she can get to complete with her glamorous classmate Mariko.

Holiday Review #15: WOLF GIRL AND BLACK PRINCE

 I cannot believe that Viz, with all that WSJ money at their disposal and so many shojo titles under their umbrella to choose from, decided to spend their resources on digging up this twelve-year-old turd of a title.

WOLF GIRL AND BLACK PRINCE (Okami Shojo to Kuro Ojo), by Ayuko Hatta.  First published in 2011 and first published in North America in 2023.

PLOT:

Erika wanted to be cool and make lots of friends in high school.  Instead of seeking out like-minded people and being herself, though, she chose to hang out with trendy girls and lie about having a boyfriend so she had something to talk about with them.  She ends up taking a picture of a random handsome boy on the street as part of her charade.  This boy turns out to be Kyoya Sata, who is idolized by the other girls in her grade.  He's willing to help Erika keep up her pretense...at a cost.  He'll play the role of her boyfriend, but in return she must serve as his dog, always at his beck and call.

Holiday Review #2: AKANE-BANASHI

 Of course, Viz's domination of the shonen manga scene via Weekly Shonen Jump continued as always.  There's been a handful of promising new series to emerge this year, but this one was by far one of the most intriguing.

AKANE-BANASHI, written by Yuki Suenaga with art by Takamasu Moue.  First published in 2022 and first published in North America in 2023.

PLOT:

Akane Osaki loves her dad.  He's an up-and-coming rakugoka, well on his way to becoming a headliner.  Alas, his career in rakugo comes to an end when the resident master expels all the applicants without warning or explanation.  Young Akane is absolutely furious at this injustice, and is determined to prove to the old man that her father's form of rakugo is more than worthy.  She already spent her childhood watching and imitating her father, and now she's spent years taking secret lessons from his old teacher.  Will it be enough when it's her turn to take to the stage for the first time?

Review: SILENT MOBIUS

 Well, considering that Kia Asamiya was a guest at this year's Otakon, maybe it's time for me to cover his most famous manga work.

SILENT MOBIUS (Sairento Mebiusu), by Kia Asamiya.  First published in 1989 and first published in North America in 1999.

PLOT:

In the year of 2026, Tokyo is a pollution-soaked metroplis plagued by bizarre interdimensional creatures known as Lucifer Hawks.  The city's only defense is AMP: the Attacked Mystification Police.  They are an all-female squad of officers who use a combination of magic and tech to destroy the Lucifer Hawks.  They not only have to deal with the resentment of their more ordinary male colleagues but also their own personal struggles and dramas.

Review: DRAGON BALL

 Once again, it's time for another Old School Month, where I review some of the greatest 20th century classics and forgotten curiosities.  Today's review is a bit of both: the foundation for a massive anime and manga franchise, but one that's been overshadowed by its far more successful continuation.

DRAGON BALL (Doragon Boru), by Akira Toriyama.  First published in 1984 and first published in North America in 1998. 

 

PLOT:

Goku is a naive little monkey-tailed boy living by himself deep in the wilderness.  One day he is nearly run over by a teen girl named Bulma.  She is travelling the world searching for the Dragon Balls, seven mystical orbs that when gathered together will grant one person a wish.  Bulma soon discovers that the 'grandpa' that Goku keeps referring to is in fact a Dragon Ball, so she manipulates Goku into joining her quest.  Along the way they encounter a motley crew of characters: the pervy turtle-shelled hermit Kame Sen'nin, Oolong the magical shapeshifting pig, and the hapless bandit Yamcha and his companion kitty Puar.

Review: FUSHIGI YUGI - BYAKKO SENKI

I wasn't very keen on the original Fushigi Yugi but found its later prequel to be much better.  How will their latest installment of the story compare to the others?

FUSHIGI YUGI: BYAKKO SENKI by Yuu Watase.  First published in 2017 and first published in North America in 2020.

PLOT:

Young Suzuno is a sweet, sheltered young girl growing up in 1920s Tokyo.  Her father dotes upon her, but he has one rule: do not touch the book called The Universe of the Four Gods.  He remembers all too well what happened to their family friend Takiko and he fears that the book is now seeking out Suzuno in turn.  When her home and family are destroyed in the Great Kanto Earthquake, the only way to save Suzuno is to let the book draw her into its world.  It is there that she meets a shapeshifting tiger-woman, a pair of desert-wandering orphans, and the first hints to Suzuno's true destiny as the Priestess of Byakko.

Review: BASTARD!!

 Let's escape the stress of the everyday world (if just for a bit) with some fantasy manga.  We could all probably use the break.  To begin, we'll look at some classic western-style fantasy, viewed through a heavy metal lens.

BASTARD!! (Basutado!! Ankoku no Hakaishin), by Kazushi Hagiwara.  First published in 1988 and first published in North America in 2002.

PLOT:

The fantastical kingdom of Metallicana has long been at war not just with other kingdoms but also with powerful wizards set on conquest.  It's here where young Yoko lives with her high priest father and her darling, innocent adopted brother Lucien.  When their kingdom is threatened, she and her father must perform a dark ritual upon Lucien, transforming him into the reincarnation of the tall, strapping, foul-mouthed sorcerer Dark Schneider.  Dark Schneider has no interest in saving anyone but himself, but his love of the ladies and his connection to Lucien allows Yoko to hold some control over him.  Their kingdom is saved, but Dark Schneider's resurrection draws forth opponents from his past seeking revenge (and who are unafraid to use those around him as bait).

Merry Month of Shojo Review #20: SHIRAHIME-SYO

 Let's wrap things up with a beautiful little oddity from CLAMP's library of works.

SHIRAHIME-SYO, by CLAMP.  First published in 1992 and first published in North America in 2004.

PLOT:

This short story collection tells the tale of four lost souls, seeking everything from revenge to reunions with lost loves.  All of them find themselves lost in the wildness of a snowy mountain, where they encounter strange animals and mystical forces they can only ascribe to the godly Snow Princess.

Merry Month of Shojo Review #19: PRINCE FREYA

Do you like shojo adventure stories?  Are you up to date on Yona of the Dawn and seeking something else in a similar vein?  This series is easily your best bet.

PRINCE FREYA (Itsuwari no Fureiya), by Keiko Ishihara.  First published in 2017 and first published in North America in 2020.

PLOT:

Ever since her mother fell ill, Freya has depended upon the kindness of the village for their survival.  They do this not only out of the kindness of their hearts, but also because Freya's eldest adoptive brother Aaron is a personal knight to Prince Edvard, and as such one of the few people keeping the invading forces of the kingdom of Sigurd at bay.

Then everything goes drastically wrong.  Freya learns that the prince is dying of poison, and with his dying words he tasks her with taking his place.  She manages to save Aaron from enemy forces, only to lose him shortly thereafter.  Now she and her other adoptive brother, Alek, must grapple with their grief and guilt all while Freya learns how to act like a prince.

Merry Month of Shojo Review #13: OTOMEN

Shojo manga's relationship to gender performance can sometimes be kind of fraught, but this series strives to be a little more understanding.  Does it work out?

OTOMEN, by Aya Kanno.  First published in 2006 and first published in North America in 2009.

PLOT:

Asuka Matsumune is a high school boy with a lot of traditionally feminine interests.  He's good at sewing and knitting, he's a great baker, and he loves shojo manga.  Alas, to appease his paranoid mother he has to play the part of a cool, manly, kendo-playing boy.  He ends up catching the eye of Ryo Miyakozuka, the daughter of a kendo master who fails at every attempt she makes at being traditionally feminine and declares that she could only love a truly masculine man.  Asuka adores her, but can he ever reveal his true self to her?