Review: GRAVITATION EX

It's time to return to one of the landmarks in millennial BL and see how its sequel fares.

GRAVITATION EX, by Maki Murakami.  First published in 2004 and first published in North America in 2007.

PLOT:

Shuichi and Eiri have finally settled into a relationship, and now they are travelling to NYC so Yuki can give his final respects to his former teacher Yuki.  No sooner do they get there than they get saddled with Riku, Yuki's orphaned son.  The two now have to juggle caring for a child alongside managing their stormy relationship, the demands of Shuichi's rising music career, and all sorts of nonsense along the way.

Review: YUBISAKI MILK TEA

Puberty is a time when a lot of people (be they real or fictional) explore their gender presentation.  This particular manga is not the best representation of it, though.

YUBISAKI MILK TEA (Yubisaki Miruku Ti), by Tomochaka Miyano.  First published in 2002 and first published in North America in 2006.

PLOT:

Yoshinori isn't entirely sure what to do.  First, his childhood friend Hikari starting acting weirdly around him.  Then he finds himself drawn to his brainy classmate Kurokawa.  When Kurokawa starts tutoring him, jealousies flare and Yoshinari has to come to terms with himself, his friends, and his fondness for cross-dressing even as growing up makes all of these things more complicated.

Review: GATE KEEPERS

Of course, for every successful sci-fi manga there are far more that fail to find an audience outside of Japan and this is just one of them.

GATE KEEPERS (Geto Kipazu), based on an original story by Hiroshi Yamaguchi with art by Keiji Goto.  First published in 1999 and first published in North America in 2003.

PLOT:

It is 1969, and Shun Ukiya is hoping just to make a good impression on his first day of high school.  On his way there he is waylaid by a strange man with a suitcase machine gun.  Shun escapes with the help of a girl in a mask named Ruriko and by producing an equally strange power from his own hands.  No sooner is Shun saved than he is swept up by AEGIS, a secret organization using his school as a front while protecting the world from alien invaders.  He is immediately declared captain of the "Gate Keepers," which just so happens to be a team of cute and quirky high-school girls ready to fight back against alien invaders and the human traitor worki
ng with them.

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.

Review: BRAIN POWERED

I guess it's finally time for me to look at this manga adaptation of one of the worst mecha shows in history, albeit from a surprising source.

BRAIN POWERED (Buren Pawado), based on the story by Yoshiyuki Tomino with art by Yukiru Sugisaki.  First published in 1998 and first published in North America in 2003.

PLOT:

The earth is under attack as massive, strange discs rise from the bottom of the ocean, bringing destruction in their wake along with the strange organic robots inside them.  A mysterious group known as Orphan is gathering as many of these plates and robots as possible, to study them for reasons known only to their leaders.  Yu Isami doesn't care about any of that, though.  His parents may run Orphan, but he just tries his best to keep his head low and do what he's told.

When his beliefs are confronted by a mysterious pilot named Hime Utsumiya, he choses to defect and joins her on the giant floating fortress called Novis Noah.  There they nurture the robots (known as "Powereds") like children, working in partnership with them like parent and child to oppose Orphan.  

Review: LUPIN III

 It's time once more for Old-School Month here on the Manga Test Drive (even if it's a little later than usual), and we're starting with one of the most iconic manga to come out of the 1960s.

LUPIN III (Rupan Sansei), by Monkey Punch.  First published in 1967 and first published in North America in 2003.

PLOT:

Lupin the Third is a legendary thief, always able to sneak his way into the most secure locations.  With his right-hand man Jigen at his side, Lupin travels the world while stealing treasure and the hearts of beautiful women, all the while evading the ever-vigilant Inspector Zenigata.

Review: RAVE MASTER

During Tokyopop's prime, they struggled to get their hands on big-name shonen manga titles.  They really only managed to do so twice.  One of those was Love Hina.  The other was this.

RAVE MASTER (Rave: The Groove Adventure), by Hiro Mashima.  First published in 1999 and first published in North America in 2003.

PLOT:

Haru Glory has spent sixteen idyllic years on Garage Island alongside his sister.  Then he fishes a strange, snowman-like creature out of a pond, inadvertantly setting into motion the renewal of a battle between the forces of darkness and light, of Dark and Rave.  An ancient warrior stumbles into their village proclaiming that only Haru can wield the powers of the Rave, so now Haru must master his new weapon against the the forces of Demon Card while searching for the four remaining Rave Stones that can bring this battle to an end.

Review: RIZELMINE

Don't think we're ignoring shonen romance, as here's a wretched little one-shot example from the creator of D.N. Angel.

RIZELMINE (Rizerumain), by Yukiru Sugisaki.  First published in 2001 and first published in North America in 2005.

PLOT:

Tomonori Iwaki is having a very bad day.  It began when he learned that the teacher he's been crushing on is getting married.  It only got worse when he came home, only to find a tiny, obnoxious little girl named Rizel claiming to be his wife.  Rizel is a secret government experiment, a being who needs to learn about love to further her development, and her "dads" (who are totally not government spooks) easily bribe convince his parents to go along with it.  Rizel loves her new husband, but Tomonori wants nothing to do with her and his rejections come with explosive results.  Things only get more chaotic from there, as some of Tomonori's classmates, an American-made knockoff of Rizel, and a coma threaten to part the unwitting couple.

Review: MOBILE SUIT GUNDAM: BLUE DESTINY

It's Mecha Month once more at the Manga Test Drive, and naturally I have to start with the franchise I know and like the best...even if this is not one of its best outings. 

MOBILE SUIT GUNDAM: BLUE DESTINY (Kidou Senshi Gundam Gaiden: THE BLUE DESTINY), based on the franchise created by Yoshiyuki Tomino and Hajime Yadate, written and illustrated by MIzuho Takayama.  First published in 1996 and first published in North America in 1999.

PLOT:

Yu Kajima is just one of the many Federation GM pilots fighting to repel the last remaining Zeon pilots in the closing weeks of the One Year War. His skills have brought him to the attention of Captain Alf Chamra, who believes that Yu is the perfect test pilot for his latest project: an experimental suit called The Blue Destiny, controlled by the equally experimental EXAM system.  Now Yu is being pursued by notorious Zeon ace pilot Nimbus Schatzen, all while experiencing strange visions of a mysterious young woman and piloting a mobile suit that struggles to distingush friend from foe in the heat of battle.

Review: THE GOOD WITCH OF THE WEST

 This year things will be especially witchy at The Manga Test Drive.  Witches can take all sorts of shapes in the world of manga, including as innocent shojo heroines.

THE GOOD WITCH OF THE WEST (Nishi no Yoki Majo), based on the novels by Noriko Ogiwara with art by Haruhiko Momokawa.  First published in 2004 and first published in North America in 2006.

PLOT:

Firiel Dee is a gentle girl growing up in the countryside alongside her loving foster parents, her reclusive biological father, and his brilliant but terse apprentice Rune.  On her fifteenth birthday, Firiel is given a beautiful necklace with a blue stone, an heirloom from her late mother.  In truth, Firiel's late mother was a runaway princess and this jewel marks Firiel as a potential candidate to become the next queen.  No sooner does Firiel learn about this than her life is thrown into chaos.  Her foster family is murdered, her bio father has fled, Rune has been captured by a cult, and the only way for Firiel to make it right is to embrace her royal heritage.

Review: GAKUEN HEAVEN

 It's back-to-school time here at the Manga Test Drive, which in the manga world means attending anything but your ordinary Japanese high school.  That's certainly the case with our first review, a visual novel adaptation about a very special (and very gay) school.

GAKUEN HEAVEN, based on the visual novel by SPRAY with art by You Higuri.  First published in 2004 and first published in North America in 2006.

PLOT:

Keita Itou is a lucky boy.  While he seemingly has no outstanding qualities, he has been accepted to the prestigious boys' school Bell Liberty Academy where every boy has a special talent or quality.  Once he gets there, he is welcomed by the very tall, handsome student body (and in particular by the student council president Niwa).  Soon enough Keita is swept up in a school scavenger hunt where the winner is granted whatever they want.  The competition is fierce, especially once a group of boys use this opportunity to get to Niwa by attacking Keita.

Merry Month of Manga: SMUGGLER

 And now we switch gears hard, going from a sensitive and accomplished coming-of-age drama to a messy seinen crime story.

SMUGGLER, by Shohei Manabe.  First published in 2000 and first published in North America in 2006.

                                               

PLOT:

Kinuta didn't meant to end up in the Yakuza.  He wanted to be an actor.  Then he got into some financial trouble, which led to him meeting the worst sorts of people and getting himself deeper in trouble.  Now he's stuck dumping bodies, bereft of any purpose in his life.  Things only get worse when a couple of Chinese assassins take out his boss.  His gang manage to capture one of the assassins, but Kinuta accidentally lets him escape.  Kinuta must take the assassin's place to hide his failure, but the longer the deception goes on the more he loses himself in the role.

Review: PRINCESS AI

 I know some might fuss over including this title here, considering its reputation and the fact that it was so closely tied to Tokyopop's controversial OEL initiative.  This one did run in a shojo magazine (even if its sequel and spinoffs are pure OEL), so it count for my purposes.  Plus, this year marks its 20th anniversary so now's as good a time to look back on it as any.

PRINCESS AI (Purinsesu Ai Monogatari), written by DJ Milky and Courtney Love, with character designs by Ai Yazawa and art by Misaho Kujiradou.  First published in 2004 and first published in North America in 2004.

PLOT:

A beautiful young woman from another world wakes up confused and alone in a Tokyo alleyway.  She can't remember anything clearly save for her name: Ai.  Fortunately for her, Ai meets up with Kent, a sensitive college student who takes her in.  She's also fortunate enough to possess the singing voice of an angel, and she soon becomes a sensation at the strip club where she works.  Alas, there are dark forces coming for Ai, be they greedy record executives or demons from Ai's original world who want her dead.

Review: GORGEOUS CARAT

 It's time to dig once more into my collection of BL manga and find a series that looked spectacular at first glance but lost some of its sheen as I read it.

GORGEOUS CARAT (Gojasu Karatto), by You Higuri.  First published in 1999 and first published in North America in 2006.

PLOT:

In belle époque Paris, the rumor mill is abuzz about the sad fate of the Rocheforts.  Once they were a wealthy aristocratic family, but now they have been reduced to selling off their family treasures one by one to survive.  The Rocheforts' heir Florian wants to sell the family's most precious jewel, a giant diamond known as the Flame of Mughal, but his mother refuses out of sheer pride.  Fate soon forces their hand by way a distant relative named Ray Balzac Courland, who is better known as the mysterious jewel thief Noir.

Ray offers the Rocheforts a choice: sell him the Flame of Mughal or sell him Florian to do with as he pleases.  Florian agrees to the latter, and soon finds himself swept up in Ray's many schemes.  He and Ray may have started as captive and captor, but more and more the two must work together to solve other crimes around them and live for another day.

Review: SHAOLIN SISTERS

 Our final review for the month is not just a celebration of sisterhood but also a return to a series I reviewed six years ago.

SHAOLIN SISTERS ( Fuun San Shimai Lin³ ), by Narumi Kakinouchi.  First published in 2000 and first published in North America in 2003.

PLOT:

Julin's 15th birthday should have been a joyous day, but the White Lotus clan turned it into a tragedy.  Her master was killed by their garrote-wire wielding leader Bai Weng, while her friend Kio was lost in the wilderness.  The only way she can stop them and avenge her fallen friends is to seek out her father's other daughters, each of wielding powerful martial arts of their own along with mystical bells that match the one Julin was given.  All the while, they have to prevent the very secrets of Shaolin from falling into Bai Weng's clutches.

Review: ME & MY BROTHERS

There aren't as many manga out there about brothers as there are about sisters, but a series like this doesn't make the best case for why there shouldn't be more.

ME & MY BROTHERS (Onii-chan to Issho), by Hana Tokeino.  First published in 2004 and first published in North America in 2007.

PLOT:

Sakura had been orphaned at an early age, and age 14 she was orphaned again when her beloved grandmother passed away. Shortly thereafter, her quiet home is invaded by four strange young men who immediately declare themselves to be her brothers.  They are in truth her former step-brothers, who were separated from her upon the death of her parents when Sakura was an infant.  Now they want to make up for lost time, but can Sakura deal with the challenges that come with having four very overprotective guardians?

Review: PSYCHIC ACADEMY

 I thought I was just getting another magic school variant with title.  Instead I ended up with one of the ripest, most ridiculous pieces of garbage I've reviewed on this site in a good long while.

PSYCHIC ACADEMY (Saikikku Akademi Ora Bansho), by Katsu Aki.  First published in 1999 and first published in North America in 2004.

PLOT:

Years ago, Ai Shiomi's older brother Aura saved the world with his incredible aura elemental powers.  In the years since, the Psychic Academy was formed to train other children with aura powers.  Ai is getting transferred there, although he maintains that he couldn't possibly be worthy of such a place.  The only bright spot is a chance for him to see his childhood friend Orina once again.

It turns out that Ai is more powerful than he thought.  This gains him an ally in the form of the gruff bunny-like creature Buu, but also serves to antagonize the fire-wielding top student/resident tsundere Mew.  He's going to need that power when his protective older brother/former Savior of the World becomes his homeroom teacher and a rivalry begins between Orina and Mew.

Review: CORRECTOR YUI

 Remember when the internet was still so much of a novelty that you could create an entire series about a magical girl fighting evil on the internet?

CORRECTOR YUI (Korekuta Yui), based on a character created by Kia Asamiya with story and art by Keiko Okamoto.  First published in 1999 and first published in North America in 2002.

PLOT:

In the far-away year of 2020, the world is more connected than ever through computers.  One of the few people who isn't is Yui Kasuga, a schoolgirl and wanna-be mangaka who cannot seem to comprehend the first thing about computers.  Yet it is she who is chosen by Ir, one of eight sentient guardian programs to be their champion.  They were sent out by their creator to stop Grosser, a supercomputer who has gone rogue and seeks to take over the world.  It's up to Yui to become a digital magical girl to stop Grosser's minions, find the other guardian programs, and save both the real and virtual world!

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 #18: CHERRY JUICE

It's weird to come across a shojo manga that feels so much like a shonen ecchi manga without actually being an shonen ecchi manga.

CHERRY JUICE (Cheri Jusu), by Haruka Fukushima.  First published in 2004 and first published in North America in 2007.

PLOT:

Minami and Otome are seemingly as normal as step-siblings can be, even if Otome's best friends all envy her for having such a hot, popular step-brother.  Then Minami's best friend, Amane, confesses to Otome and kisses her.  Now he's not sure just what the nature of his feelings towards his step-sister are, and Otome is starting to feel equally confused.