tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-45281101211428050562024-03-17T21:04:10.356-04:00Mangabot Blog 3000Like manga? Like manga so much you read blogs about manga? Then read this blog, because you know...cheese!Brandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13021190244110458504noreply@blogger.comBlogger50125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4528110121142805056.post-44643361272985624982020-10-19T22:28:00.001-04:002020-10-19T23:29:10.549-04:00So Bad it's Good: Para ParaSo, a couple of weeks back I was visiting a friend out on the West Coast. This meant I had access not to just one Book Off but three. Needless to say, I bought so much manga I had it mailed back to my house because it wouldn't come close to fitting in my luggage.<br />
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There were quite a number of books they had for a dollar at Book Off so I bought a bunch of them. Because hey why not? I'll take a stab at anything. Oh, boy did I come with a treasure. Para Para was released in 2001 by the now-defunct publisher ComicsOne. They release some interesting stuff during their time including my beloved Bride of Deimos.<br />
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Para Para is a manhua (which are Chinese comics) this one is specifically Hong Kong which has its own comic scene which seems to be an interesting mix of east meets west. They seem to be always in color with art that would be on the realistic end of manga styles. The author/artist Andy Seto seems to be a very popular creator on the scene having done Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, and King of Fighters comics. I'm guessing Para Para isn't one of his better works.<br />
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So what makes this one so bad it's good?<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhr-U94i1tMXlQtc_IG6o4YLQvuDC0x6DTElobROZNmGAl2VW2RThyphenhyphenCtYdvosu7lYpnAcc504GCdK0nTkZPUrfxnzPGrU8mxIfx_6vIX-ShVSdmKfbSYKXORK1htm6ZKTpNghmINnp9ckk/s1600/para-para_01jpg.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="796" data-original-width="912" height="174" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhr-U94i1tMXlQtc_IG6o4YLQvuDC0x6DTElobROZNmGAl2VW2RThyphenhyphenCtYdvosu7lYpnAcc504GCdK0nTkZPUrfxnzPGrU8mxIfx_6vIX-ShVSdmKfbSYKXORK1htm6ZKTpNghmINnp9ckk/s200/para-para_01jpg.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Next on the Escher Girls Tumblr</td></tr>
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<ul>
<li>Way, way over dramatic about stupid crap and totally serious about it.</li>
<li>Art that is half decent but weirdly stiff and faces that just look a little off.</li>
<li>Lines like <span class="text_exposed_show">"You hit me!! You've never hit me before!! I hate you!!"</span></li>
</ul>
<span class="text_exposed_show">The story starts off with our heroine Yuki swimming in the school pool only to be yelled at she should be in class. She gets nasty with the guy and it turns out she is the school dean's daughter (I'm already feeling the cliche). And she is totally good with using the position to get what she wants. What a nice main character!</span><br />
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<span class="text_exposed_show"> </span> <br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYJhyXf9jAgfOPeSRZ8Cm60-m7aU7yhzgocaK3-cVNJ8o7XSFsrcNfRLTWM4MedQwQ3T3Z-k04tUSAm0kKcxgoyXKR1KDLBelVx8q-hzwJRCgLzdLOxZXGLyiOXJ7JZbfWg7v7CX9Ge3o/s1600/para-para_02.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="322" data-original-width="562" height="114" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYJhyXf9jAgfOPeSRZ8Cm60-m7aU7yhzgocaK3-cVNJ8o7XSFsrcNfRLTWM4MedQwQ3T3Z-k04tUSAm0kKcxgoyXKR1KDLBelVx8q-hzwJRCgLzdLOxZXGLyiOXJ7JZbfWg7v7CX9Ge3o/s200/para-para_02.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fuck you rain</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Next, we meet our hero Dennis. Dennis hates the rain.<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdCUAnBkTJJxAG-OBQYq-OJmHmTmEdcEkzG58qSlbMNa6YD2GKiv4cEZTYDL6Tf88iwVtmklrjApn8j29PAMLjW5uYiFJiynWiiEDTZpu8CxbNVfqlyEHVikeLUPdXt9BogHKVa2Vdfwg/s1600/para-para_03.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="418" data-original-width="578" height="144" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdCUAnBkTJJxAG-OBQYq-OJmHmTmEdcEkzG58qSlbMNa6YD2GKiv4cEZTYDL6Tf88iwVtmklrjApn8j29PAMLjW5uYiFJiynWiiEDTZpu8CxbNVfqlyEHVikeLUPdXt9BogHKVa2Vdfwg/s200/para-para_03.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I do what I want!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Yuki has a meeting with her Father who proves to also be an asshole. Guess it runs in the family. Turns out Yuki is really good at one thing, athletics (all of them apparently), but bad at book learning. Her Father hates that more than anything of course and compares her to her dead sister and then slaps her. Where we get some of the best dialogue ever.<br />
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Of course Yuki storms off. Admittedly if my Father was that much of an asshole I would too. She then has a chance meeting (in the rain) with Dennis. Where he thinks she is someone called Mary. Also, I am not sure if he gets hit by a trolley car and stops it with his hand or not. The art in this book...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMnOosZL_bCtSDo1BU-XD0fHSLCJ-isIc7kVBwfyATVnIlhX-JiYIAJmmOcRAEx6SfpGoqtHeafm-tlAS6EN33jxcla5jB-4PqLuynMoh7sP223BZrHqobNbB0K_RjSL-8VGhYklardCA/s1600/para-para_04.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="344" data-original-width="216" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMnOosZL_bCtSDo1BU-XD0fHSLCJ-isIc7kVBwfyATVnIlhX-JiYIAJmmOcRAEx6SfpGoqtHeafm-tlAS6EN33jxcla5jB-4PqLuynMoh7sP223BZrHqobNbB0K_RjSL-8VGhYklardCA/s200/para-para_04.jpg" width="125" /></a>Mary then meets up with her "friend" Ban. Ban is trying hard to get into her pants even though it is obvious she isn't interested and just using him because she must not have any acutal friends. At this is when she is introduced to the amazing world of Para Para. Which is a style of dance from Japan which during this early aughts was very popular with arcade machines. This will be important.<br />
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At this club Yuki has a run in with a girl called Vodka (yes, really). Vodka takes her Para Para really seriously and after hearing Yuki trash talk it challenges Yuki to a dance off (yes, really).<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkCPiLPu6Nkm0BRKbxJ5HxpvRSg7AdOpj6DRB7-dAHseS25XmUrpZOk7_tehyphenhyphenRsRvN4hzRkFdudCzAHJCBVKd8hE6b7pqhlL8hlSlNrEovqch9ILe1Ztpw8eWAxdiIL5jrpdbKNqMm1DU/s1600/para-para_05.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="378" data-original-width="204" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkCPiLPu6Nkm0BRKbxJ5HxpvRSg7AdOpj6DRB7-dAHseS25XmUrpZOk7_tehyphenhyphenRsRvN4hzRkFdudCzAHJCBVKd8hE6b7pqhlL8hlSlNrEovqch9ILe1Ztpw8eWAxdiIL5jrpdbKNqMm1DU/s200/para-para_05.jpg" width="107" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yuki takes this very seriously</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Of course it turns out Yuki is a natural at Para Para so Vodka has to keep upping the difficulty to the point where the arrows on the arcade machine disappear. (How did you think they were having a dance off?). In the end Yuki can't beat Vodka. Which leads to a creepy scene where Ban's friend Fatty (yes, this character is called that through the whole book) goes from chill dude to super creeper because he was offered a date with whoever the loser of said contest was. (Aren't these people just so nice?). Which again of course Dennis comes in last minute saves Yuki from Fatty and challenges Vodka to a single round dance off.<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_NimCmgLoE8OP_KO_OFrdeHEFku85xUqpvN8w6Lz9fM_4-8XcqlkdrUO9Fs-xggpAaFj8ZPWq6psuiKrb3mf2YJ16MRbrkD-hJNDYSqjb4KcHFWszR-vmAAj79R_V8IncLQQgP-WYyXE/s1600/para-para_06.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="282" data-original-width="428" height="131" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_NimCmgLoE8OP_KO_OFrdeHEFku85xUqpvN8w6Lz9fM_4-8XcqlkdrUO9Fs-xggpAaFj8ZPWq6psuiKrb3mf2YJ16MRbrkD-hJNDYSqjb4KcHFWszR-vmAAj79R_V8IncLQQgP-WYyXE/s200/para-para_06.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yes, this dumb rabbit is the super secret character</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Turns out Dennis is so awesome at Para Para he can unlock some super secret character that Vodka doesn't even know about.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNcuVsSk9GXw_x8_pDrZfttB7x8Yh-XaWbn-OHwst7vVo4DXuS1QJTXxjwnWp0NYnN_8PUSOH6r2nTOlmu8qQFu4nXtCcarzYJmymu8eLV2e7x17nzOtH8-LmezXyZXX3UoW0hhaoBrkg/s1600/para-para_07.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="194" data-original-width="165" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNcuVsSk9GXw_x8_pDrZfttB7x8Yh-XaWbn-OHwst7vVo4DXuS1QJTXxjwnWp0NYnN_8PUSOH6r2nTOlmu8qQFu4nXtCcarzYJmymu8eLV2e7x17nzOtH8-LmezXyZXX3UoW0hhaoBrkg/s200/para-para_07.jpg" width="170" /></a></div>
The dude is so good that he gets a crowd to follow him while he dances. Which is when we get the amazing line from Yuki, "He's become their spiritual leader! At this moment he's become A GOD!"<br />
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Of course Dennis beats Vodka. Rhen we get a confusing scene where Vodka tells him she only came here for him even though a few pages before she didn't know who he was. Dennis also tells her "You know nothing about the true meaning of 'dance'." (This dialogue is fucking gold, people, fucking gold).<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMxDJ9W5xivBGzDZ0TpFL76PoD4Q9FNX8EOuXC315lBvADUv6M4TiPTYVgKlqA61G1FCtLfrb8dggnSqj6vOz8DTfqcFxs1SZFAB4mKzDl9YfaZF3cap4Kvql-fnd1nKKiA7avrkyUQ7w/s1600/para-para_08.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="424" data-original-width="300" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMxDJ9W5xivBGzDZ0TpFL76PoD4Q9FNX8EOuXC315lBvADUv6M4TiPTYVgKlqA61G1FCtLfrb8dggnSqj6vOz8DTfqcFxs1SZFAB4mKzDl9YfaZF3cap4Kvql-fnd1nKKiA7avrkyUQ7w/s200/para-para_08.jpg" width="141" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nothing, like a cig after a dance off. <br /></td></tr>
</tbody></table><p>
Also, I can't help but find it amazing that the dance god Dennis lights up a cigarette after this workout.<br />
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Yuki to weak after this dance off (guess her "athletics" didn't include endurance training) is swept off her feet by Dennis and carried to her limo waiting outside. </p><p>At some point I might wright a part two on this one. <br /></p>Brandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13021190244110458504noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4528110121142805056.post-45767033129541930002015-07-22T15:07:00.002-04:002015-07-22T15:13:04.990-04:00Thoughts: MAL Manga Challenge <div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">MAL Manga Challenge Round One:</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">So, on the message boards of MyAnimeList is having a manga reading challenge. Here are all the titles I read and some quick thoughts on them. I enjoyed this so much I am doing a second round.</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Read a one-shot:</span><a href="http://myanimelist.net/manga/5581/Metropolis" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">Metropolis (KURODA Iou)</span></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">A re-imagining of Tezuka’s Metropolis. Honestly, I can’t remember this one well, so I’d say you can give it a pass.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Read a manga published before the 90s:</span><a href="http://myanimelist.net/manga/9210/Yume_no_Tsuzuki" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">Yume no Tsuzuki</span></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">A sci-fi story that is heavily dated by technology and fashion. It was alright. I can’t tell if the short length helps or hurts this one.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Read a manga published after the 90s</span><a href="http://myanimelist.net/manga.php?id=17465" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">Omoide Emanon</span></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">This one was really good. Nice art and interesting story. About a woman who has generational memory of the earth’s history.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Read an award-winning work:</span><a href="http://myanimelist.net/manga.php?id=8652" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">A Cruel God Reigns</span></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjklVfFLR41UX6sh-D7xzRR_Ffjy5Km2Pklwti7Ev69O-jwNPYN-CH70KjAexgxEipRZmu1wJT9tHBtHk4P7Yk5oygRKZ_g7dU-ndnh2UvC9EQ2JxCH6Yq1JI-CRpD6ZABt_sXZN37IS6g/s1600/A-Cruel-God-Reigns.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjklVfFLR41UX6sh-D7xzRR_Ffjy5Km2Pklwti7Ev69O-jwNPYN-CH70KjAexgxEipRZmu1wJT9tHBtHk4P7Yk5oygRKZ_g7dU-ndnh2UvC9EQ2JxCH6Yq1JI-CRpD6ZABt_sXZN37IS6g/s1600/A-Cruel-God-Reigns.jpg" /></a></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.656; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">A 17 volume series from Moto Hagio? Yes, please. But this one can be really emotionally draining so be prepared for that. Here is a write up I did for the Hidden Gems of Manga club:</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Ever wanted to read something emotionally challenging? Then Zankoku na Kami ga Shihai suru (A Cruel God Reigns) is most certainly it. A seventeen volume series from manga great Moto Hagio this is the story of two teens Jeremy and Ian deal with abuse and dark secrets.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">The story starts with Jeremey living with his single Mother in Boston. They happen to meet Greg Roland. A good looking, single, wealthy man from England. Jeremy’s Mother is smitten with him right away and Greg pushes for a fast marriage. But this is only the start of a chain of moves that Greg has to entrap Jeremey has he soon starts to sexually abuse him.<br /><br />Soon, they go to England and here Jeremey is trapped. It is apparent something is wrong with Jeremy but he won’t say anything because he wants his Mother to be happy. Things start to unravel when Jeremy tinkers with his Stepfather's car. His Step-Father and Mother died in a car accident soon after. But was it Jeremy’s tinkering or was the car defective from the start?<br /><br />After his Father’s death Jeremy’s new older step-brother Ian learns about all the abuse his Father has done. Ian can’t believe it, and it forces him to deal with thoughts and feelings he has to never had to deal with before.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Can Jeremy and Ian keep it together and move on? </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Read a manga by your favorite author/artist:</span><a href="http://myanimelist.net/manga.php?id=5748" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">Hohoemi No Nichijou</span></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Bohra Naono is my all time favorite BL/Yaoi creator. I love her art. Her stories are cute, feature older men, and the supernatural quite often. Really, right up my alley. This was a volume of cute one-shots.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Re-read a manga:</span><a href="http://myanimelist.net/manga.php?id=1230" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">Tokyo Akazukin</span></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">I was pretty obsessed with Benkyo Tamaoki art at one point and had read this years ago. I was wondering if it would still hold up. Not so much. I would say it is best explained as supernatural exploitation. I would say if you are not already super familiar with anime and manga this is just a huge no. Even, if you are familiar with anime and manga stay away unless you like guro and lolis (and not just lolis being cute but uhhh you know…).</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Read a manga by Osamu Tezuka: </span><a href="http://myanimelist.net/manga/22208/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">The Twin Knights</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><br class="kix-line-break" /></span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Well, this got me to finish up Princess Knight since this is the sequel to it. I liked this one a bit more than Princess Knight since it comes off way less sexist. Princess Knight had a whole thing with boy hearts and girl hearts. And without her boy heart Princess Knight would lose all her strength and such. None of that here, just girls getting to be badass.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Read a manga that is tagged with a genre you dislike:</span><a href="http://myanimelist.net/manga.php?id=65665" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">Pato-ko Ikkimasu!</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> (Car)</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><br class="kix-line-break" /></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">I was looking for anything short and fully translated about cars. This was pretty unremarkable </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Read a debut manga:</span><a href="http://myanimelist.net/manga/10742/Puzzle+" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">Puzzle+</span></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Supernatural mystery seems right up my alley but this title was a bit wonky. It wasn’t bad but I do feel the shortness of this one kind of kills it. Sometimes, it was hard to tell what was going on.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Read a manga that became a prototype for a longer running series:</span><a href="http://myanimelist.net/manga/465/NOiSE" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">NOiSE</span></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">I’ve tried to get into Tsutomu Nihei’s (Blame) works but I never seem to be able to. This wasn’t bad, in fact I think I liked it a lot more than his other works but the story is still kind of muddied in it.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Read a manga with a target demographic that does not apply to you:</span><a href="http://myanimelist.net/manga/16713/Burning_Hell" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">Burning Hell</span></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">A manga about terrible people being terrible. Another title that feels like an exploitation piece. Does have really nice art though.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Read a manga with a target demographic that can apply to you (i.e. josei if you're a female in her 20s, etc): </span><a href="http://myanimelist.net/manga/19393/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">Insufficient Direction</span></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9bHnWYUTUi3tWMuSs-KvtE7r2Bh8qeZt031MgZbi_U4PWCuAcAzT5AzsVwKskvWXOfeXMrosBa2BwR0eXz98mpL3IOGf9K_ocHMR5YJx6OeKPTv26EGOSyVlTo-wx99IE-2KZ4SlXWMM/s1600/Insufficient-Direction.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9bHnWYUTUi3tWMuSs-KvtE7r2Bh8qeZt031MgZbi_U4PWCuAcAzT5AzsVwKskvWXOfeXMrosBa2BwR0eXz98mpL3IOGf9K_ocHMR5YJx6OeKPTv26EGOSyVlTo-wx99IE-2KZ4SlXWMM/s1600/Insufficient-Direction.jpg" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Written by the manga creator who is married to famed anime director Hideaki Anno (Neon Genesis Evangelion). This is as slice-of-life as you can get. It is cute but doesn’t really add a whole lot of insight to Anno (other than he is a huge dork but I didn’t need to read this to know that).</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Read a manga that has a main character of gender opposite to the demographic (i.e. female lead in a male demographic):</span><a href="http://myanimelist.net/manga.php?id=35357" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">:REverSAL</span></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">This was a cool sci-fi manga about being trapped in a game (yeah I know too many). I enjoyed this but it suffers from being too short and doesn’t allow for tension to build up.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Read a manga with a score of or below 7 in MyAnimeList:</span><a href="http://myanimelist.net/manga.php?id=47230" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">Cyclic the Love</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><br class="kix-line-break" /></span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">This is a one-shot that I didn’t remember anything about until I looked it up again. So, I can say pass this one up.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Read a manga that starts with the same first letter as your username:</span><a href="http://myanimelist.net/manga/1479/Blue_Heaven" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">Blue Heaven</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><br class="kix-line-break" /></span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">This is good if you are looking for some fast paced action but the plot kind of gets muddled. Art was nice.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Read a manga that someone on your friends' list rated a 10:</span><a href="http://myanimelist.net/manga/10756/Lunar:_Vheen_Hikuusen_Monogatari" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">Lunar: Vheen Hikuusen Monogatari</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><br class="kix-line-break" /></span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Three short stories about the Lunar universe. Surprisingly good. The art is very, very nice. And the none of the characters seem to be characterized correctly.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Read a manga that has a main character that is a professional in his field (doctor, detective, embalmer, etc):</span><a href="http://myanimelist.net/manga/5106/Uchi_no_Tantei_Shirimasen_ka" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">Uchi no Tantei Shirimasen ka?</span></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">This was a cute yaoi title about two detectives. It isn’t going to set the world on fire but it was enjoyable. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Read a manga that has a one word title:</span><a href="http://myanimelist.net/manga/3326/Zansho" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">Zansho</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><br class="kix-line-break" /></span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">A volume of one-shots. Some were pretty good.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Read a manga with children in it:</span><a href="http://myanimelist.net/manga/5529/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">Hana Meguri Goyou!</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><br class="kix-line-break" /></span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">This manga is really a mess. The story is kind of all over the place. And while the art isn’t bad the paneling is just awful and is hard to tell what is going on a lot of the time.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgIAB-AJqkFVcW20xih3T6ctNVg-8DTDb4K31akvyb8o1dT4twgx1XMTnePd1B8SsNzHgyCn0Cud6hDP76y7_MUax9nw88O8zhJ2zbyaaU4leDsIO5SiRqY_URhrb_Pz34vJ7jz4LYZnw/s1600/Bambino.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgIAB-AJqkFVcW20xih3T6ctNVg-8DTDb4K31akvyb8o1dT4twgx1XMTnePd1B8SsNzHgyCn0Cud6hDP76y7_MUax9nw88O8zhJ2zbyaaU4leDsIO5SiRqY_URhrb_Pz34vJ7jz4LYZnw/s1600/Bambino.jpg" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Read a manga about food:</span><a href="http://myanimelist.net/manga/11977/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">Bambino!</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><br class="kix-line-break" /></span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">I think this is the real winner of all the titles I read. It was really enjoyable and I powered through 15 volumes in one night. Here is the write up I did for Hidden Gems of Manga:</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">This time we dive into the world of being a professional chef. Shogo Ban has never wanted to do anything else with this life this be a professional Italian chef. But he has only worked in small restaurant in a small town as help. Can he make it in on the most popular (and busy) places in Tokyo?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">He gets there and promptly nicknamed Bambino (baby) by the other chefs. Watch as he has to work 12 hour days; deal with abusive co-workers; give up on some relationships in his life; and travel to America. Learn a bunch of Italian phrases related to food!</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">If you like cook shows or contests like Chopped or Cutthroat Kitchen this is a must read.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Read a manga about war:</span><a href="http://myanimelist.net/manga/1214/Joan" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">Joan</span></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">This is a manga about a woman who is kind of obsessed with Joan of arc and wants to follow her path. It’s a weird manga. It isn’t bad but a manga about Joan of arc herself would have been more interesting. It’s by the guy who did the character designs for the original Gundam. So, it is pretty nice looking. It is also in full color which is pretty cool. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Read a manhua:</span><a href="http://myanimelist.net/manga/15415/Chicken_Cutlet_Princess" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">Chicken Cutlet Princess</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><br class="kix-line-break" /></span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Manhua is the Chinese counterpart to manga and comics. This was a cute and stilly romance story about a girl who really likes chicken cutlets and the boy who thinks she is a complete weirdo. Cute fun fluff.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Read a manhwa:</span><a href="http://myanimelist.net/manga/14934" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">I Will Grant You Three Wishes</span></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Manhwa are Korean comics. Another one-shot that left almost no impression. At least it wasn’t long?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Read a horror, sci-fi OR fantasy manga:</span><a href="http://myanimelist.net/manga/5759/Madness" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">Madness</span></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">This is a fantasy yaoi title (which I wish there was more of). It was pretty decent and had actual plot and even (gasp!) female characters. Story is a bit muddled but overall not bad for what it is.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Read a webmanga:</span><a href="http://myanimelist.net/manga/29983/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">Noblesse</span></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc8SzrtmQxQnJKoEgHcXYOdFEcnqKRAqbjvvfY9iF7vkGXNy42vLvlZcIwOzZeNc_ylcfrhaA07-seZ2NIueg8jbvppMSH6TnH8ExRTYHwxQwRBjNxe6pPvlgx7aW-LkyAYCZKH83xe_U/s1600/Noblesse.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc8SzrtmQxQnJKoEgHcXYOdFEcnqKRAqbjvvfY9iF7vkGXNy42vLvlZcIwOzZeNc_ylcfrhaA07-seZ2NIueg8jbvppMSH6TnH8ExRTYHwxQwRBjNxe6pPvlgx7aW-LkyAYCZKH83xe_U/s1600/Noblesse.jpg" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">So, I wanted to read one of those webtoons that everyone is talking about. A webtoon is pretty much the Korean equivalent of a webcomic. Noblesse is one of the big ones everyone talks about, and is about vampires, so that was the one I choose. It wasn’t bad and I enjoyed it a lot but it has some serious issues with power creep and a sort of rinse and repeat plot. But it does have a good sense of humor done right to break up the tension in the story, it never feels out of place (which I find pretty impressive). It also has a number of great character moments, which help elevate the series a lot. The art is also full color and very pretty to look at. </span></span></div>
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Brandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13021190244110458504noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4528110121142805056.post-18118599653313867642015-07-21T15:28:00.000-04:002015-07-22T14:54:46.929-04:00Thoughts - Sailor Moon Crystal<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhMOZYEZlV2n7-V9QOqaNlv-icK6mdl3LO_tCGOm9npYllON8fBIplzLV9q7GK5bf7VKmYxlC8BMbAqilafUKeLbHZaoL4id8tGynKfpbAE8uHBGswEpXYuh3fcrgtVtdL8Nw3PUBgVmA/s1600/sailor-moon-crystal.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhMOZYEZlV2n7-V9QOqaNlv-icK6mdl3LO_tCGOm9npYllON8fBIplzLV9q7GK5bf7VKmYxlC8BMbAqilafUKeLbHZaoL4id8tGynKfpbAE8uHBGswEpXYuh3fcrgtVtdL8Nw3PUBgVmA/s320/sailor-moon-crystal.jpg" width="205" /></a></div>
Okay, I am cheating a bit with anime, but I wrote down these thoughts and I thought I would share them. I finished Sailor Moon Crystal. And it was ehhhhhh. I didn't dislike it as much as others on the internet seem to. I think it does end up showing what were the strong points of the original series though.<br />
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The art/animation is seriously lacking. I do think I'm a bit more indifferent than most of the fandom was about this. But as I've been watching a ton of anime lately, I can say it doesn't stand up to today's standards. And I think as a big anniversary event, everyone thought they would try and make it look awesome and it looks kind of blah. The old show may not be up to today's standards either but you can see they put a lot of effort into it for its time and what it was.<br />
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Characters is where I think Crystal really shows what the strong point in the original series was. Because in Crystal no one but Sailor Moon, Chibi-Usa, and maybe Mamoru get any real character development. The other girls get personalities but almost no screen time to show those personalities off. The original might have a lot of filler but it was used well to expand the characters and make you care about them. (I feel like even the live action Sailor Moon did a much better job with the other characters).<br />
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Story is hard for me to judge. I did start re-watching the original a while back but didn't get that far. So, I can't tell if the case is I've gotten older so the story just doesn't hold up as well for me or if Crystal was just that lacking. I do think it is a show that if it had a stronger team working on it, there could have been a much stronger final product.<br />
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I will say the one big improvement with this show is Chibi-Usa is actually tolerable and actually pretty likeable by the end. They manage to really tell her story in a way that better explains her back story. Which explains a lot of her behavior. Also in this case, less episodes mean less screen time for her to be obnoxious.Brandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13021190244110458504noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4528110121142805056.post-49728827842288015292014-02-23T20:26:00.001-05:002014-02-23T20:26:50.101-05:00Scanlation Get: Devilman vs Getter Robo<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTIevXJ6vaA2f0DpkRXNay5qm_VoEdV1lN8dOVBQovDJ6L_iseD8q8gLrZsJos6EexiYnSZyLq3jtqnJ67LKtzxuLgwiIqgZ9Mu9Blp7lE-lNAYJXUwJaI2_FXK_nGtX7TfZ4IXGuUjrk/s1600/devilman-getterrobo-cover.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTIevXJ6vaA2f0DpkRXNay5qm_VoEdV1lN8dOVBQovDJ6L_iseD8q8gLrZsJos6EexiYnSZyLq3jtqnJ67LKtzxuLgwiIqgZ9Mu9Blp7lE-lNAYJXUwJaI2_FXK_nGtX7TfZ4IXGuUjrk/s1600/devilman-getterrobo-cover.png" /></a></div>
Devilman vs Getter Robo is mostly a generic team up title. This is a pretty recent title as it was done in 2010, but uses the classic Getter Robo backgroud story of an evil Dinosaur Empire as the villains. For reason never explained Akira and Miki from Devilman show up at the Getter Robo base for an overnight stay. Silene has her own planes, she joins up with the Dinosaur Empire to try and take out both Devilman and Getter Robo.<br />
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The most interesting part of this manga is the final battle which include Miki and Michiru getting their own Getter to pilot. Though in the end it doesn't do much, but at least the gave the ladies something to do, other than being damsels in distress. The best part is when the demons merge with the mechasaurus, which leads to some really cool looking designs.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuBvJLrn7vEp-xTW3GqDwlDVzUVH-Jh6MCWR3TLDHs-CFMu0MiLCcjgbIjgCp-lnE0LAyun8BrCOaJNTfdHzxcfO9giblvIlYrQudoBCHM6lKjbfRJuv0dt6uQoohBCMxNl7kP3ePJtlM/s1600/devilman-getterrobo-01.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuBvJLrn7vEp-xTW3GqDwlDVzUVH-Jh6MCWR3TLDHs-CFMu0MiLCcjgbIjgCp-lnE0LAyun8BrCOaJNTfdHzxcfO9giblvIlYrQudoBCHM6lKjbfRJuv0dt6uQoohBCMxNl7kP3ePJtlM/s1600/devilman-getterrobo-01.png" /></a></div>
Also, while in the information I could find for this lists Go Nagai as
the author and mentions Dynamic Pro (Nagai's studio) as the artist. I
find it odd that Ken Ishikawa isn't mentioned at all since Getter Robo
was really his baby. The art is Nagai style but looks to be that yes it
was probably done by someone other then him. The faces and a few other things are just kind of off. <br />
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I can't say to much about this title. It was short, only one volume. But it was a fun quick read, though pretty insubstantial. It pretty much is a by the books team up title, checking off all the tropes as it goes along.<br />
<br />Brandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13021190244110458504noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4528110121142805056.post-7944040326021704222012-09-01T12:44:00.001-04:002012-09-01T12:45:11.840-04:00Scanlation Get: Guerrilla High/Gakuen Taikutsu Otoko<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi75RtBHXX-2ScRUcy-3w7T7Ibm-iZX80QSIU-j90VrX8uslbkf3au64E-T0k6YG_p7ihcOVjKuVaoHDjDXm9E-KBhH27hE-HuldmQmJl0UQpwezIrK0M_KBakW3rDV_qSYr30Zr0JrBZs/s1600/gh-cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi75RtBHXX-2ScRUcy-3w7T7Ibm-iZX80QSIU-j90VrX8uslbkf3au64E-T0k6YG_p7ihcOVjKuVaoHDjDXm9E-KBhH27hE-HuldmQmJl0UQpwezIrK0M_KBakW3rDV_qSYr30Zr0JrBZs/s1600/gh-cover.jpg" /></a></div>
At one point in time there was basically almost no Go Nagai manga in English. Through the hard work of a lot of scanlators it seems like a mountain of his work is now available. Considering that the likelihood of his work actually getting published in U.S. is low, I really appreciate their efforts. At first it was jut the big stuff but now we are seeing more and more of his lesser known works like today's title Guerrilla High.<br />
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In the late 1960s there was a rise of violent student movements in Universities. This trickled down even to the lowest kindergarten class. To a point where no teacher was safe. It was then decided teachers could carry weapons and even have a license to kill. The students more oppressed then ever start guerrilla movements to bring down this tyranny. Only it seems the guerrilla's themselves are vicious maniacs.<br />
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Are heroes (anti-heroes?!) are Saotome Mondo and Midou Tatsuma. At first it seems they really want to help the students but in truth Mondo just wants to incite violence and murder. He ends up indirectly killing many of the students on his rampage through the school. Midou seems like the reasonable one but when it comes down to it Midou can go off the edge just as bad.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwiMC1VHHjpvS5ERVtvjBs6z5N-dIN8IxVaPi3obETltZXF9tFRqQxjPRZ619fuX0sf0_wYO_HJccsa9kHL7kB8XBz-FhvAOvU0AgvSepUwAZoh5NBhKjeE3wCQ4vE3T0PgaBRGKkxHuw/s1600/gh-01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwiMC1VHHjpvS5ERVtvjBs6z5N-dIN8IxVaPi3obETltZXF9tFRqQxjPRZ619fuX0sf0_wYO_HJccsa9kHL7kB8XBz-FhvAOvU0AgvSepUwAZoh5NBhKjeE3wCQ4vE3T0PgaBRGKkxHuw/s1600/gh-01.jpg" /></a></div>
The first volume ends with Midou just disappearing. The second volume introduces us to a new character Nishikiori Tsubasa. The leader of an all female guerrilla group that goes around in bikinis and go go boots. She is super strong and not afraid to fight sadly even though she seems like a pretty cool female character she ends up just being most a plot device (also she spends much of the second and third volumes with no pants or underwear on). As she gets kidnapped and captured by our new villain Midoro Toranosuke, bandaged man, and Principal of an elite school.<br />
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At this point I guess his evil plan is to have Mondo rescue her?! I'm not sure Mondo has no connection to her at this point and going goes to rescue her because she is hot and has nice boobs. Truly, we stand at the peak of truly great motivation in stories.<br />
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After this point I don't want to say to much about the plot. The second half is full of strange twists and I wouldn't want to ruin them. Though I will have to say this story just kind of ends on a "eh, what?" note. A bunch of stuff happen and then then go for what seems to be the final fight. Only it's "The End" and not an actual final fight.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5uhP2wdUV6UuF6nn5o6fRY8OCRlxGO-tHayLpYynJUUoPoebrKYkbtIkzJWoAPW1cnzc6FTswYZB0rGKYHaODrDg56AVMU3mXznT7KaBCNSeDVY-SSXmc0IsCBvsHzU3cpe_r9RxFFeQ/s1600/gh-02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5uhP2wdUV6UuF6nn5o6fRY8OCRlxGO-tHayLpYynJUUoPoebrKYkbtIkzJWoAPW1cnzc6FTswYZB0rGKYHaODrDg56AVMU3mXznT7KaBCNSeDVY-SSXmc0IsCBvsHzU3cpe_r9RxFFeQ/s1600/gh-02.jpg" /></a></div>
Other then the ending kind of leaving a bad taste in my mouth I enjoy this manga lot. It runs at breakneck speed. Something is always happening and there are tons of great fight scenes. This is one of Go Nagai's hyper violent titles. Whole mobs of people die in this. While Nishikiori runs around with out much on there isn't nearly as much on the sex side. It is certainly far more subdued then Cutey Honey in that aspect.<br />
<br />
I want to say the plot is a mess (which it kind of it) but to me the big problem was Saotome Mondo's character. Was he supposed to be a guerrilla for the people, a redemptionless murderer, someone who at least cares about his friends, or someone who cares about no one? The character was kind of all over the place. Though, even with those problems it was still a really fun read.<br />
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_YR-OA73BZrIHsQPdPmKy-wVA5HoQs0jBwi2qWA6iGuZ3lnrH9IcFOAk9gRKvvhCO3ta5eSwGlFGaPpERkrk5TMUETGT9n7Wfjeepd87t40srqUScZlK8x-oQ7FEycvPv0oioXt4GIpU/s1600/gh-03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_YR-OA73BZrIHsQPdPmKy-wVA5HoQs0jBwi2qWA6iGuZ3lnrH9IcFOAk9gRKvvhCO3ta5eSwGlFGaPpERkrk5TMUETGT9n7Wfjeepd87t40srqUScZlK8x-oQ7FEycvPv0oioXt4GIpU/s1600/gh-03.jpg" /></a></div>
The art in this is actually very nice. I mean if you already don't like Go Nagai art, this isn't going to change your mind. But this is some of the best I've seen from him. Nothing to wacky or wonky looking. Strong lines, some really great one page spreads, in that really scribblely style he does. Also of note, huge chunks of this manga are in color. Not just a page here or there but like 20 pages at a time or more. For a color comic from the 1970s it is really nice color. Much better then most American comics comparable in age. It really makes me wish the whole manga was in color.<br />
<br />
If you are looking for something over the top and don't want to think to hard, this is certainly a great red. Guerrilla High even though it has problems was still a very fun read worth checking out.Brandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13021190244110458504noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4528110121142805056.post-85259511470834471262012-08-08T11:33:00.002-04:002012-08-08T11:57:21.877-04:00Thoughts: Collecting Tips - Buying Used 2Okay we have covered how to get used manga in real life but what about online?<br />
<br />
<b>The Internets</b><br />
<br />
Don't want to be bothered going out to all these places? Then online
is the place to go. The two retailers I'd suggested are <a href="http://www.amazon.com/b/?_encoding=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&linkCode=ur2&node=3247953011&tag=kuzunoha-20" target="_blank">Amazon Marketplace</a> and <a href="http://half.com/">Half.com</a>.
Often titles will be very cheap on both sites, but key is to remember
shipping. On Amazon used books can start at a penny and on Half.com books
can start at seventy five cents. Amazon Marketplace is different then
normal Amazon and you will have to pay shipping, at least $3.99 per book.
Half.com's shipping starts at $3.49, the real difference comes in when you <i><b>buy
multiple books</b></i> from the <b><i>same seller</i></b>. Half.com will reduce the
shipping <b><i>in about half </i></b>for each subsequent book <b><i>from the
same seller</i></b>. Amazon Marketplace even if you order all your books
from the same seller, each will have the same cost of shipping as the first
book. If you are looking to order more then one book at a time I highly
recommend pricing it out on both sites. A lot of the time even if the
book costs more on Half.com the total cost will be lower due to shipping.
Also always try and get as many book as possible from the same seller for that
reduced shipping cost.<br />
<br />
Also, with these sites watch out for over inflated prices. Sometimes a
volume or a whole series is legitimately expensive because it went out of print
and had a low print run. Sometimes though sellers use <a href="http://io9.com/5795511/amazons-2369865593-book-about-flies" target="_blank">bot programs</a> to control the pricing, like being the
cheapest for sale but only by a penny. Sometimes books will become super
inflated, in the case the best solution is to wait for the seller to realize
what has happen and hope they lower the price.<br />
<br />
Another place to try is <a href="http://www.blogger.com/">eBay</a>. If you are just shopping around for some manga to buy eBay can be great. A lot of the time whole series show up in lots to buy. Just make sure you check around on other sites to see if you are getting a good deal. Now, if you are looking to fill out certain titles it can be a bit of mixed bag.<br />
<br />
What if you just want one volume of a series from the middle of it? Or the title you are looking for is a bit more unusual? Then you can try eBay's saved searched. You just put in a search you want and every time something new comes up under that search eBay sends you an email.<br />
<br />
Another online outlet for buying used manga is Live Journal selling communities like <a href="http://garagesalejapan.livejournal.com/" target="_blank">Garage Sale Japan</a>, <a href="http://anime4sale.livejournal.com/" target="_blank">Anime4Sale</a> and <a href="http://shopanime.livejournal.com/" target="_blank">Anime Shopping</a>. Again this is a shot in the dark but is great place to find whole series and random volumes for great prices. It's always a great way to unload your own stuff. All you need to do is sign up for a Live Journal account.<br />
<br />
Next time I'll talk about trading for want you want!Brandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13021190244110458504noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4528110121142805056.post-9488666487796072722012-08-08T11:14:00.002-04:002012-08-08T11:14:54.218-04:00Thoughts: Collecting Tips - Buying Used 1Okay we got buying new manga down but what if want to buy used, here are some tips for that. First why even buy used? If there is an old series that now seems interesting used maybe the only way to get it. Also used is a great way to pick up stuff for cheap.<br />
<br />
<b>Brick & Mortar</b><br />
<br />
One place to try is your local used book store. Much like going to conventions to buy this can be a huge crap shoot. Some used book stores have a great section of graphic novels with manga for good prices, others well not so much. The nice thing about the used book store is you can take books you have laying around in for credit to use on picking up stuff you want. Used books stores sometimes end up in weird places so it might be worth Googling it to see if any are in your area.<br />
<br />
Then we go back to the local comic book store. If you are familiar with your local shop then you will know if they carry used books or not. While back issues of single comics are common, used volumes of graphic novels and manga not so much. It can't hurt to ask though.<br />
<br />
Another shot in the dark is a <a href="http://www.booksalefinder.com/" target="_blank">book sale</a>. These are local events held by generally by libraries (but other places also) selling off a huge mass of used books for super cheap. I've found some very interesting books at sales like this but the manga kind be kind of iffy. A lot of the time the people running the book sale don't know where to put manga so you may have to look in children's and sci-fi sections.<br />
<br />
Another brick and mortar store I would highly recommend is <a href="http://www.bookoffusa.com/" target="_blank">Book Off</a>. Book Off is a Japanese chain of used book/video game/DVD etc. stores. Currently there is one store in New York City, five out in California, and two in Hawaii. They will often have a good selection of manga in English, anime DVDs, and art books. Most of the manga here runs about $5 dollars or less. When I was visiting friends out in LA I think we visited almost all of the stores in the area. I brought back more stuff from Book Off then I did from Anime Expo that year. I also make sure to stop in the New York store every time I'm in the city. Now, what if you don't live close to one? Well you get someone else to look for you, which I'll get to more in a another post.Brandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13021190244110458504noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4528110121142805056.post-57707860806786638942012-08-07T21:52:00.002-04:002012-08-08T09:57:54.408-04:00Thoughts: Collecting Tips - Buying NewSo you want to start collecting manga or you are collecting manga but looking for a bit more help? Here are my best tips when it comes to collecting. Some of these might seem like common sense but sometimes you might just not think of it.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjofTBjP5XtCMwoKWlLjg55NRl5yZMP1kf8OHUcHZqJB_ucvIJd9MhRPT532_sxTXoWIvjiEKDM9W42DyFWqvu8bg236TR1Wr2R2MlH3amyHNpZul8URrNS-0dumrfTekm2RamS_hmIBMc/s1600/collection_05_2010-002.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjofTBjP5XtCMwoKWlLjg55NRl5yZMP1kf8OHUcHZqJB_ucvIJd9MhRPT532_sxTXoWIvjiEKDM9W42DyFWqvu8bg236TR1Wr2R2MlH3amyHNpZul8URrNS-0dumrfTekm2RamS_hmIBMc/s1600/collection_05_2010-002.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">How did this all get here?!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
<b>Buying New </b><br />
<br />
So, if there is a series you really want and it is going to come out soon or is currently coming out, pick it up as soon as possible. Yes, a lot of series devalue over time but there are many cases of a great series going out of print (OOP) shortly after release and having super jacked up prices. So, often to avoid headaches I suggest getting titles as they come out. This might seem expensive but there are way to save money.<br />
<br />
One thing not to do is buy from a big box retailer. Not that I hate Barnes & Noble, but there other ways and places to acquire manga cheaper. One of those is to try your local comic book shop. Local shops often will give a deal if become a "subscriber." You order so many titles a month (with the plan to get future volumes) and the store gives a discount on all these titles. Generally in the range of 10% to 20%. Since manga isn't monthly for the most part, you will have to talk to the store owner about making arrangements. Most of the time store owners are more then willing to make a deal with you. Also even if you don't see your favorite manga at the local store there is a good chance they can order it in for you.<br />
<br />
Another great way to get new manga cheap is Amazon. It is almost always discounted to some degree. I just looked up <a href="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?lt1=_blank&bc1=000000&IS2=1&bg1=FFFFFF&fc1=000000&lc1=0000FF&t=kuzunoha-20&o=1&p=8&l=as4&m=amazon&f=ifr&ref=ss_til&asins=1935429744" target="_blank">Sailor Moon Volume 1</a> and it is 35% off. Now another great thing about Amazon is pretty much everything over $25 dollars will have free shipping. I just wait for about three titles I want to come out and order all three at once for the free shipping. If you have Amazon Prime then you don't even need to worry about that. If you are a student you can get a free six month trial of Amazon Prime no less.<br />
<br />
Another online retailer that is worth trying <a href="http://rightstuf.com/">rightstuf.com</a>. They often have sales from different publisher that give for around 33% off. They also have a <a href="http://www.rightstuf.com/1-800-338-6827/catalogmgr/xMN07NuCQWoUB7as9y/browse/item/28423/4/0/0" target="_blank">Got Anime? Purchasing Club Membership </a>which gives an additional 10% off. Though unless you are ordering over $49 dollars you will have to pay shipping costs.<br />
<br />
One last suggestion for buying new is buying new titles at cons. This can be a crapshoot though. Some publishers like <a href="http://www.vertical-inc.com/" target="_blank">Vertical</a> sell all their books at a great discount ($10 a piece for books that run $16.95 sometimes) but you have to hurry to the dealers room right away to get what you want. Other dealers may offer discounts on newer books also. There are also deep discount sellers with deals like 10 for $40, on new but slightly older titles. Where the more you buy the cheaper it is. If you are in the dealers room you can put your books together for an even better deal. If there is something you are really jiving for, it might be worth a look.<br />
<br />
Next time I'll talking about getting those series you might of missed out new in "Buying Used."Brandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13021190244110458504noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4528110121142805056.post-70999302870819337942012-07-31T00:16:00.001-04:002012-07-31T00:16:42.361-04:00Thoughts: Otakon 2012<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRsoHuTeW0007_Uo3uN5HDMYvrPyvSCESpSmS9co8Hu6W8Ul_mk0OqvNvq_abSFIfbM4jcOZsBEP5hz-BrIXnsRREcaAEEvaBIwltVaTaNbx8vel4H7ar1J7TJ21reISgigt-Q-kcRLxs/s1600/blogger.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRsoHuTeW0007_Uo3uN5HDMYvrPyvSCESpSmS9co8Hu6W8Ul_mk0OqvNvq_abSFIfbM4jcOZsBEP5hz-BrIXnsRREcaAEEvaBIwltVaTaNbx8vel4H7ar1J7TJ21reISgigt-Q-kcRLxs/s1600/blogger.jpg" /></a></div>
Another con, another haul. Otakon this year was interesting for me, it was the first year I did two costumes and the one that I went to least amount of panels. Also it was freaking hot.<br />
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibkIZCKBtFUDeWrpwK8qXfv0clFFxV_vRWQ_YmHbROubxsyhbmgVEK8sXmfpwZK6UK2eU-Qu7AMEQbeiVVctZ7mQRAGgDuei1kiFSgwmQTCEbEoINGPg9Vy_td3mQaJZm3geCbb9b7UiY/s1600/Franken_Fran_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibkIZCKBtFUDeWrpwK8qXfv0clFFxV_vRWQ_YmHbROubxsyhbmgVEK8sXmfpwZK6UK2eU-Qu7AMEQbeiVVctZ7mQRAGgDuei1kiFSgwmQTCEbEoINGPg9Vy_td3mQaJZm3geCbb9b7UiY/s1600/Franken_Fran_blog.jpg" /></a></div>
Friday I was dressed as the titular Franken Fran. Which was interesting to say the least. As a manga only character I didn't expect a ton of people to know me (though at least a few people did). What I didn't think of, was that most people would think I was dressed as female Stein from Soul Eater. (Which is kind of funny because after I made my head bolts I made the Stein screw for one of my friends.) The costume was much hotter then I expected. With the long wig and lab coat I had to stop shopping at one point in the dealers room. I'm not sure if it was just the heat or if I was having hot flashes (I have some hormonal problems). I still got a pretty good haul despite all this.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdo0Y1A5ikSsbYEQq1zS4a2EQSpxhtKOHRIvQM5Lo0eKZSNBMzpqTLf8ExvqZCAIU1521rVGyg-L6fJoiPbncFs2fNYAHvDGQbpq_YMWfeuspCtaO9Bx350o19jS88VYf4AgEyD3_muh0/s1600/Glados-Potato-blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdo0Y1A5ikSsbYEQq1zS4a2EQSpxhtKOHRIvQM5Lo0eKZSNBMzpqTLf8ExvqZCAIU1521rVGyg-L6fJoiPbncFs2fNYAHvDGQbpq_YMWfeuspCtaO9Bx350o19jS88VYf4AgEyD3_muh0/s1600/Glados-Potato-blog.jpg" /></a></div>
Saturday was interesting to say the least... I don't think I did much other then wear my costume and do a little shopping. My friends like to get pictures in the Otakon Photo Suite early in the morning but things got all screwed up. I got in my Glados Potato costume later then I had planned but I figured it would be fine because we would be starting late. Ugh, no so instead of 12 pm we did the shoot at around 5:30. I was in the costume in the early after noon but after a couple of hours of wearing it I just couldn't do it any more and deposited in a friend's room in the Hilton for a bit. I then did some more dealer's room and artist's alley shopping. Which when much better, I was less hot and I felt like people were being way less pushy then on Friday. I went and retrieved my costume but getting anywhere in it was a challenge. I had a porthole view but it was so low I could only really see the chest area on people. I tried going down and escalator and never before had I been so scared to try. Luckily, a guy talked me through it. Then I found out the Hilton skywalk bridge was closed (for what reason I guess I'll never know) so I had to go outside again. Once that costume gets hot, it stays hot. Even with a fan inside, it was like being in a mobile sweat lodge. I did finally get my photos taken but I had to get out of the costume a.s.a.p. after that. My legs are still sore from it.<br />
<br />
On one hand I never want to wear this freaking this costume again but on the other had I'd like to try again and do it better. It wasn't as last minute as the Fran costume but it was still done under a month. My friend did the wire frame, batting, stuffing, and fabric. I did the wires, clips, and face plate. I guess we will see, for a winter convention I don't think it would be so bad heat wise. Though we would have to figure out how to set the porthole so I can see faces instead of chests.<br />
<br />
Sunday was the only day I went to a panel that wasn't my own. I went to the Vertical panel, which I try to go to every year. They are publishing some interesting stuff this year, Wolfsmund looks pretty cool and some how they ended up with the job of printing Queen's Blade art books (even Ed didn't seem to enthused by this). Also Twin Spica is going out of print because of poor sales which is pretty sad, Ed quoted numbers and it was abysmal. Remember if you really want a title to come out here buy it!<br />
<br />
I ran two panels myself. Both of them were 18+ this time around. I did a Go Nagai panel, which was a rehash from last year but with more 18+ content. Last year I managed to be informative this year I managed to wave my hands around a lot and spout stuff. I tried, but it just wasn't with me this time. It didn't help we ran into technical difficulties. My netbook only has HDMI out so I told my co-panelist to bring his laptop (we used his last year). There is where we ran into a problem it was a different laptop but only had HDMI out also. Fuuuuuuuuuuuu... Luckily the con staffer and the audio guy called for a HDMI converter and I call my friend for her laptop. Of course pretty much everything comes at once. I tell my friend we don't need her laptop and she leaves. Only my co-panelist's computer won't duplicate the screen. Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuu.... I call my friend again and she runs down her laptop, again. Fortunately we got there early enough that we were only 5 minutes late to start. It went pretty well, we had some laughter and we didn't have any one really get up to leave (which is always a good thing).<br />
<br />
Saturday said laptop friend, another friend, and I ran a yaoi panel called Sugar & Old Spice. Two of us had previously done it at MangaNext. Only at MangaNext it was the same time as the rave and so only three people who <i>really loved</i> yaoi showed up. Otakon we packed a room (a small room but still a room). My friends were very prepared but I was not so much. I knew the stuff because it is stuff I am very familiar with but I should have had notes. Still we filled the time pretty well and had people asking us all kinds of questions. It was cool.<br />
<br />
<i><b>As for the actual haul it was:</b></i><br />
<br />
<b>Printed yaoi web comics</b> <br />
Star Fighter - 1 & 2 <br />
Teahouse - 1 to 3 <br />
<b><br /></b><br />
<b>Manga</b><br />
DMC - 5 & 6 <br />
He Is My Master - 5 & 6 <br />
Kashimashi ~Girl Meets Girl~ - Omnibus 1 & 2<br />
Lament of the Lamb - 5 <b><br /></b><br />
No Longer Human - 2 & 3 <br />
Ooku - 4<br />
Sakuran<br />
Sensual Phrase - 9 <br />
Three Wolves Mountain<br />
Velveteen & Mandala<br />
Venus Versus Virus - Omnibus (4 to 6), 7, 8 <br />
<br />
<b>Other</b><br />
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DI5_sQ8O-7Y" target="_blank">Mine Turtle</a> t-shirt<br />
<a href="http://www.atlus.com/p4arena/" target="_blank">Persona 4 Arena</a> t-shirt (My friend got it at E3 but she gave it to me at Otakon)<br />
<a href="http://www.tantocuore.com/" target="_blank">Tanto Cuore</a> playing mat<br />
<br />
Some of the manga came from a friend who got it at a local store to her for super cheap.<br />
<br />
Over all a weird but interesting year.Brandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13021190244110458504noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4528110121142805056.post-33415657238751471382012-07-03T16:07:00.001-04:002012-07-03T16:07:37.406-04:00Scanlation Get: Dororon Enma-kun<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3Kmm0h2Oon8xE7EXH2NHvggXUlAQq1s6sDhtr4NHZnNOxHoaeQxvW3H-1hn8kyXDUI2hQjvY67cd82sQms2cUW8KLrv6_jqnKkISrR1Xle_T6Dtaxp83-j3IfnTA2sanl6Q-4VTH7TdU/s1600/Dororon_Enma-kun_vol2_(1996).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3Kmm0h2Oon8xE7EXH2NHvggXUlAQq1s6sDhtr4NHZnNOxHoaeQxvW3H-1hn8kyXDUI2hQjvY67cd82sQms2cUW8KLrv6_jqnKkISrR1Xle_T6Dtaxp83-j3IfnTA2sanl6Q-4VTH7TdU/s1600/Dororon_Enma-kun_vol2_(1996).jpg" /></a></div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOYFosnMBS7hy4UqcQEG4IAWjGt2ihsGRXSOcpEl-_BDFmVKM8RiCwoaRkqOEl1eT2sLnPq2Lf1qjnPyQemXLNV41JIJ0TpMooPerMDwUDasVFV-bm-Ct7RGxz0TJ5GrUQFV9EJ5riJuA/s1600/enmakun-02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><span id="internal-source-marker_0.7923355435801278" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">This
one is a weird one to talk about and I may be skewed from watching
Dororon Enma-kun Meeramera before finishing the manga. I’d pretty much
sum up the manga as interesting ideas, lackluster execution.</span><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"></span><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Are
heroes are the titular Enma-kun (nephew of Hell’s Great King Enma),
Yukihime (an ice princess), Kapperu (a cute looking kappa), and
Chapeauji (literally a sentient old man hat). Enma-kun and friends are
sent to Earth to (ostensibly) capture demons that have escaped from
hell. Expect Enma-kun kills them pretty much every time.</span><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"></span><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">While
there are some longer story arcs most of the stories are short one
chapter affairs. I think that is part of the problem the manga seems to
be going somewhere at first and then just trails off into nowhere.
Part way through I was pretty sad because I came to the realization
that the ending was going to be lame and I was pretty right.</span><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"></span><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDZtmYat9jianbPhCI2o609r1mITrCZob1BH2uAMWbzBH4gu91YbuYGiiefj4vEfJi-3P6rS9T25M8KnimMpeDXUij9ARCobJTJ1ZuCxkyEAeJkAXEZ3p8A0hgGyrflnLnhG61qPZjZh8/s1600/enmakun-01.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDZtmYat9jianbPhCI2o609r1mITrCZob1BH2uAMWbzBH4gu91YbuYGiiefj4vEfJi-3P6rS9T25M8KnimMpeDXUij9ARCobJTJ1ZuCxkyEAeJkAXEZ3p8A0hgGyrflnLnhG61qPZjZh8/s1600/enmakun-01.jpg" /></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">It
is supposed to be a horror/comedy but comes out more like light
horror/juvenile sex comedy. Which is a little strange when all of the
characters look to be about eight. Also there are only so many jokes
about getting to seeing Yukihime’s vag I can take before it has worn out
its welcome. I also think a lot of the jokes almost work but don’t seem
to follow through and they just fall kind of flat.</span><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"></span><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">So
here comes a left turn, while I personally would tell most people to
skip this manga, I highly suggest checking out two anime based on it. </span><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"></span><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">One
is Kikoushi Enma (Demon Prince Enma) this came out a few years ago in
the US on DVD. While it is out of print and can be purchased used pretty
easily online. Kikoushi Enma re-imagines the characters as grownups
and goes for a dark and moody atmosphere. It reminded me a lot of Hell
Girl but a bit more mature. Also it was animated by Brains Base. So
the animation is pretty nice, some of it is a little dated by 3d effects
but it doesn’t hamper the anime any. </span><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"></span><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOYFosnMBS7hy4UqcQEG4IAWjGt2ihsGRXSOcpEl-_BDFmVKM8RiCwoaRkqOEl1eT2sLnPq2Lf1qjnPyQemXLNV41JIJ0TpMooPerMDwUDasVFV-bm-Ct7RGxz0TJ5GrUQFV9EJ5riJuA/s1600/enmakun-02.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOYFosnMBS7hy4UqcQEG4IAWjGt2ihsGRXSOcpEl-_BDFmVKM8RiCwoaRkqOEl1eT2sLnPq2Lf1qjnPyQemXLNV41JIJ0TpMooPerMDwUDasVFV-bm-Ct7RGxz0TJ5GrUQFV9EJ5riJuA/s1600/enmakun-02.jpg" /></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">The
other is the more recent Dororon Enma-kun Meeramera. This was also
animated by Brains Base. For a TV series this show looks freaking good.
Really clean, sharp animation with lots of detail, way more then I
would have expected for a show like this. Also it is what the manga
basically should have been. It still has some of strangeness of eight
year olds in a sex comedy but it goes way sillier than the manga and
cuts out some of the strangeness of the manga (Like why is Enma-kun
always in some underwear-diaper thing?). NIS recently announced it for a
U.S. release September 2012. I have to say it is really great it
manages to build off the content of the manga, it builds up to something,
and take what was a kind of out of context lame ending to manga and turn
it into something cool and funny.</span>Brandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13021190244110458504noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4528110121142805056.post-60433313663215731942012-01-23T15:49:00.000-05:002012-01-23T15:49:20.526-05:00DMP at it again<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3kfgf0f7r3yFgLS3UHMxqpqiYe4TsWCq21VwueYTufVkEHNvd10NxK4x2G-WHhgPvWTHsOWMs2-1RzXCU-LVvUHOjOUdLUyzrQ3iCT0D32TVB10_SMTfEnW7-mWeRW7ulfGsyfHodyJs/s1600/Barbara.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3kfgf0f7r3yFgLS3UHMxqpqiYe4TsWCq21VwueYTufVkEHNvd10NxK4x2G-WHhgPvWTHsOWMs2-1RzXCU-LVvUHOjOUdLUyzrQ3iCT0D32TVB10_SMTfEnW7-mWeRW7ulfGsyfHodyJs/s200/Barbara.jpg" width="140" /></a></div>
In exciting news you probably already know if you read a blog like mine is DMP is doing another Kickstarter to get <a href="http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/digitalmanga/publish-osamu-tezukas-barbara-in-english">Osamu Tezuka's Barbara published in English</a>. This is great, the whole reason they got this title was because of the previous Kickstarter working so well (Tezuka Pro came to them with it). This campaign is even doing better. It reached its goal in two days. Now, only ten days in it has made more then double its goal! I can't wait to get my copy! I'm also excited to see what else is next for them.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrDNjQ5bMtSDWa2VfrL1BGJ-iL8-4_u16qdzSLXWvWtZ-SUbk1b2jvZl6-H6-FyrqdlTexI5DLl9A9-L4GW1rqqaSjFfpwaEz8COLIGfOZEJLevO0PaCwCcxkc8zwEsiXJE1kxQsczWJ4/s1600/oots.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrDNjQ5bMtSDWa2VfrL1BGJ-iL8-4_u16qdzSLXWvWtZ-SUbk1b2jvZl6-H6-FyrqdlTexI5DLl9A9-L4GW1rqqaSjFfpwaEz8COLIGfOZEJLevO0PaCwCcxkc8zwEsiXJE1kxQsczWJ4/s200/oots.jpg" width="160" /></a></div>
For me the fallout of this is even exciting in non-manga related topics. <a href="http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0001.html">Order of the Stick</a>, which is probably my favorite web comic, is also doing a <a href="http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/599092525/the-order-of-the-stick-reprint-drive">Kickstarter republishing campaign</a>. Yes, I know I can read it all online but there is still something about owning a copy.<br />
<br />
I hope small publisher and indies keep up the good work!Brandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13021190244110458504noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4528110121142805056.post-23876688322228934962011-11-15T16:38:00.001-05:002011-11-15T16:43:12.944-05:00DMP Starts a Bring Back Osamu Tezuka's "Swallowing the Earth" Kickstarter<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgc4joQBqIllhsUeblrYkG_6hgpdl41AikLcQdvPqhvLJcnLxKUDNFr24bTBcsrxdvHmIkMIj1bzVJQyjgn-4Yo1EVAGEZRTTzhxF28ReeZRFy6t3V5s6En08KiOue-t8xK7xODOjDSrX8/s1600/4SKPY.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="243" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgc4joQBqIllhsUeblrYkG_6hgpdl41AikLcQdvPqhvLJcnLxKUDNFr24bTBcsrxdvHmIkMIj1bzVJQyjgn-4Yo1EVAGEZRTTzhxF28ReeZRFy6t3V5s6En08KiOue-t8xK7xODOjDSrX8/s400/4SKPY.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
According to their website, manga publisher <a href="http://www.dmpbooks.com/">DMP</a> has started a campaign via Kickstarter in order to be able to reprint <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osamu_Tezuka">Osamu Tezuka</a>'s "<a href="http://myanimelist.net/manga/13605/Swallowing_the_Earth">Swallowing the Earth</a>".<br />
<br />
Over two years ago, DMP sold "Swallowing the Earth" as a large omnibus. However, it had a small print run and has been in high demand by fans ever since. DMP wishes to print the book again but cannot afford a new print run. They have turned to the fundraising site Kickstarter to get the book back out to fans.<br />
<br />
With Kickstarter, users pledge money to the campaign over a 30 day period. If the goal is met by the end of the 30 days, then the project is funded. By pledging different amounts, users can gain different rewards. Awards include a copy of the book when it's printed or even a package that not only includes the book, but many other manga titles as well.<br />
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DMP stated that if the campaign is successful, they will be looking to reprint other titles, or even bring new titles this way in the future.<br />
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<a href="http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/digitalmanga/bring-back-osamu-tezukas-swallowing-the-earth">DMP's Kickstarter page</a> <br />
<br />
Source: <a href="http://www.dmpbooks.com/blog/1789/bring-back-osamu-tezukas-swallowing-the-earth-via-kickstarter">DMP</a><br />
<br />
*Note* This was my news story on <a href="http://myanimelist.net/forum/?topicid=365589">myanimelist.net </a><br />
<br />
<b>My thoughts?</b><br />
<br />
I actually own a copy of the book from the first time DMP printed it.
It's an interesting piece. It's certainly not Tezuka's best work, but
is a very interesting transitional piece. During the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gekiga">gekiga</a>
movement in the 1960's Tezuka wanted to start writing more mature
works. The thing is there a few transitional works where you can tell
he is trying to write a more mature story but still feel really
cartoony. Silly faces, over exaggerated gags, and such. But the story
tends to be dark and the characters often have poor morals. It can be
really odd. So, it's interesting to see Swallowing the Earth compared
to something a few years later like MW (which is one of his most serious
and dark titles).<br />
<br />
I also like the idea of a Kickstarter campaign to get titles reprinted.
I understand companies can't always take the risk of reprinting some
titles and this can take the risk out of it. I think this a great way
to see some of those now costly titles reprinted (like Flower of Life volume 4).<br />
<br />
DMP also even mentions that if this goes well they will look into
publishing niche titles this way. I could think of so many great titles
I could get this way. I hope it all works out.Brandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13021190244110458504noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4528110121142805056.post-85139177962642687972011-08-12T14:01:00.000-04:002011-08-12T14:01:57.452-04:00Scanlation Get: Mazinger Z<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3eNxni6wKCRt4boGeoTjnU09NZ0JxTlNbqdxpOHghKQKwPnBZIthetFuSWI4u61sXrV-EY7syLbhXsX0I_nOowVtfvj9HpIhmhir7LwOM4eX41ZJJZXgCbVGH_rwWkbktzuSVp1ZOQJY/s1600/mazigner-z-cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3eNxni6wKCRt4boGeoTjnU09NZ0JxTlNbqdxpOHghKQKwPnBZIthetFuSWI4u61sXrV-EY7syLbhXsX0I_nOowVtfvj9HpIhmhir7LwOM4eX41ZJJZXgCbVGH_rwWkbktzuSVp1ZOQJY/s1600/mazigner-z-cover.jpg" /></a></div>So, this year at Otakon I ran a panel on the man himself Go Nagai. In doing so, I wanted to catch up on some of his anime and manga works. I managed to watch a ton of (pretty terrible) anime adaptations of his work, but didn’t get around to much manga. I started and recently finished Mazinger Z though. This ending up being pretty interesting because while I had known of Mazinger Z the only related series I had seen was Mazinkaiser and Mazinkaiser SKL. So, I went into this title pretty fresh.<br />
<br />
Kouji Kabuto and his younger brother are living with their genius scientist Grandfather after their parents died in a lab accident. Over all they are still an upbeat family living a good simple life. One day Kouji on the way to school experiences a major earthquake. He hurries home to see if his elderly Grandfather is alright. What he finds is a giant hole in the garden which has opened up a path to his Grandfather’s secret lab. Here he finds is the giant robot Mazinger Z and his dying Grandfather after some rubble crushed him. Right before he dies Gramps lays some heavy shit on Kouji that Mazinger is his and can be use to “save the earth or destroy it” it’s up to Kouji to decide. <br />
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<div style="text-align: right;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJtsdz1O_n1Z9zXdb_EZt3Ackv8nsMbyGmXch1TpS-qm9kOvSBaEE1GzOBnv7A53geYODMjyEl0-b0Z0FXS1V-7q6UCLW4xF94iV5CL8gYqa-Y3EATsRTeTaBo3a6L8wqMflT0exn41P0/s1600/mazigner-z-01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJtsdz1O_n1Z9zXdb_EZt3Ackv8nsMbyGmXch1TpS-qm9kOvSBaEE1GzOBnv7A53geYODMjyEl0-b0Z0FXS1V-7q6UCLW4xF94iV5CL8gYqa-Y3EATsRTeTaBo3a6L8wqMflT0exn41P0/s1600/mazigner-z-01.jpg" /></a></div>Shortly there afterwards Kouji takes Mazinger Z out, only to find he can’t control it and it goes on a rampage. During this he has a run in with another piloted robot, Aphrodite A, created by Professor Yumi and piloted by his daughter Sayaka. After a short fight Kouji gets things under control and just in time when a third robot shows up and starts attacking the city. Kouji and Sayaka join forces to fight the evil Dr. Hell and his mechanical beasts.<br />
<br />
Mazinger Z moves at a breakneck speed. Events tend to just roll right into another. I really enjoyed that aspect even if it just seems that sometimes I just had to accept stuff. Boss has a robot now? Sure why not?<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEignIJYyFSBFDNT9BYWLX791DEljOHA2rslia_UGtAnnL_CX1hBPkeG4T28oZVrCDLGXa_RWwwvAlnplzwDz89zLQYxWTKJVGBjgxTrMT2l4lRPSOuFl6v0ISFibSrQMUbsAVD_7ukVFbk/s1600/mazigner-z-02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEignIJYyFSBFDNT9BYWLX791DEljOHA2rslia_UGtAnnL_CX1hBPkeG4T28oZVrCDLGXa_RWwwvAlnplzwDz89zLQYxWTKJVGBjgxTrMT2l4lRPSOuFl6v0ISFibSrQMUbsAVD_7ukVFbk/s1600/mazigner-z-02.jpg" /></a></div>The villains in this were a lot of fun too. Dr. Hell himself comes off kind of generic, but his henchmen are all kinds of crazy. Baron Ashura is (in the most literal sense) half man and half woman. There was back and forth panels as the female and male side exchanged dialogue. It’s a lot of fun, though I could have passed on the bizarro shower scene at one point. Was that supposed to be sexy or funny (either way let me stab myself in the eyes)? Count Brocken is also another winner. A headless man in Germen military gear who often carries around his head (but it can float too!) often flies in on some sort of hover pad and threatens Kouji. The levels of ridiculousness of this can be mind blowing, watch out!<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1NgDWmeZAR0_l4A6d2Gy45lCuNkey1RX2ZLx5Jw8ZMrPnu3a2OWq3I7e2tWm74CQPoIV4wUIVEexJvWw2TiqTzOcTYxvSIYU0ykoOI3HsSPvYKm2Bo7q7sdIRP8Com8hMSl4NVRj3H3s/s1600/mazigner-z-04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1NgDWmeZAR0_l4A6d2Gy45lCuNkey1RX2ZLx5Jw8ZMrPnu3a2OWq3I7e2tWm74CQPoIV4wUIVEexJvWw2TiqTzOcTYxvSIYU0ykoOI3HsSPvYKm2Bo7q7sdIRP8Com8hMSl4NVRj3H3s/s1600/mazigner-z-04.jpg" /></a></div>This title was just a lot of fun to read. It was said Go Nagai wrote this to blow off some steam after working on Devilman and you can tell he is writing to have a good time. I really liked that, I could just feel fun coming off of the pages. I also enjoyed a lot of small things like the fact Kouji and Sayaka just like each other and there isn’t any tsundere bull. I also like that Sayaka is a strong brave female character, it was a shame though that she ended up being mostly useless.<br />
<br />
My only complaint really is after what is the “ending” to the series there is a number of short one off stories. The ending has been a really intense point. I think leaving off with these short stories really hurt the impact of the ending.<br />
<br />
In terms of fan service and gore Mazinger Z comes out like a baby kitten compared to a lot of other Go Nagai works. There are bits where Kouji or Boss get a look at a naked woman but it never really goes past that to the whole other level some of his titles go (I’m looking at you Cutey Honey and that statue licking scene!). There is some violence but for the most part it’s pretty mild and doesn’t focus much on it.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_mXaRX3vrNTfgES-XKGYFJTAU8cij7hWlHFhxMbbsDrfgD0H6aDld_ud9TeTQl1IaojG7xZxHMKfYkzpf12mOvInpLF7IlZR_AMA3pEBsAlCGu80TqPSnWz4saXP0IccNRyxf6v0KsUM/s1600/mazigner-z-03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_mXaRX3vrNTfgES-XKGYFJTAU8cij7hWlHFhxMbbsDrfgD0H6aDld_ud9TeTQl1IaojG7xZxHMKfYkzpf12mOvInpLF7IlZR_AMA3pEBsAlCGu80TqPSnWz4saXP0IccNRyxf6v0KsUM/s1600/mazigner-z-03.jpg" /></a></div>As in my past reviews on Go Nagai the art is well very Go Nagai. I’m starting to not notice how awkward the art is any more. Though man, the pilot outfits sure are freaking goofy looking. Over all, I’d say the art was better than Cutey Honey’s but had less interesting panel layout then Devilman.<br />
<br />
This is a summer popcorn flick of manga, it’s a lot of fun and full of action but, nothing to deep going on. I do recommend it though if you like Go Nagai’s other works, or if you are just looking for something fun to read.Brandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13021190244110458504noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4528110121142805056.post-77069074703955137122011-03-04T15:11:00.003-05:002011-03-05T15:27:08.804-05:00Scanlation Get: Pansy<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdQfuAcS6W3QOyTsGV7IMq8zHFD2Z4Saxn4e8qBr7VDbU_XxyCh__29wGXSdJZWtiUh9EMrtha9PNDWewG2hdebWQ7wkcdA0T3b2Za06fqA5M7y_orfFaaT9BdbHGTYphK9Tkz1VZPsvs/s1600/pansy-01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5NNYqxDfRfqkR6rtsQlESMSwW_PIc7cbTB5IkLQuIdthisJxALrT0ksyvgUGVAhkv5VruTUmtodVuvqGJYicxbkwnEuKjrKIp0VTFkg9z6Vy5JdG1mAiHziBTgBoF-Fs4XS7zjC9HNV8/s1600/pansy-cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5NNYqxDfRfqkR6rtsQlESMSwW_PIc7cbTB5IkLQuIdthisJxALrT0ksyvgUGVAhkv5VruTUmtodVuvqGJYicxbkwnEuKjrKIp0VTFkg9z6Vy5JdG1mAiHziBTgBoF-Fs4XS7zjC9HNV8/s1600/pansy-cover.jpg" /></a></div>I know it’s been a while, I have been busy (mostly playing Fallout: New Vegas…) but I’m going to try and get back on the wagon again. This time I bring you a title I just finished recently called Pansy by Mariko Okumura. It’s a historical fiction (though starts to drift a little into light fantasy by the end) shoujo title from the late 80s. Pansy is a feral girl, recently found in Africa, living in the wild being raised by chimpanzees. Mark Animal the young man, who found her, takes her back to his European-esque home country of Roland to study her. Pansy meets a slightly older boy than herself named Edo (who in one of the more obvious turns in the story is the prince of the country) who loves her free spirit. Upon hearing the Traumerei played memories of her past start to awaken. Quickly though events start to roll changing Pansy’s life even further. The story of Pansy quickly turns into one of high adventure and political intrigue.<br />
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At first it’s just something small as Mark’s fiancé being jealous of Pansy and having a local reporter take photos of the girl acting like a monkey. Soon she is embroiled in the affairs of the royal family as the throne is being usurped by Edo’s jealous cousin Wirald. Something is always happening to Pansy and new people are always coming in and sometimes old characters come back for a surprise. It is what really made this manga really enjoyable though was I never really knew what was going to happen next. So much crazy crap happens, but because Pansy just rolls with it all it just seems to work. She gets lost, becomes a maid, and might be from a noble family. Then when everything looks like it might work out just fine, BAM! everything she has is destroyed. Pansy ends up doing a little bit of everything and ends up in trouble a whole lot but she remains a strong lead through it all.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdQfuAcS6W3QOyTsGV7IMq8zHFD2Z4Saxn4e8qBr7VDbU_XxyCh__29wGXSdJZWtiUh9EMrtha9PNDWewG2hdebWQ7wkcdA0T3b2Za06fqA5M7y_orfFaaT9BdbHGTYphK9Tkz1VZPsvs/s1600/pansy-01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdQfuAcS6W3QOyTsGV7IMq8zHFD2Z4Saxn4e8qBr7VDbU_XxyCh__29wGXSdJZWtiUh9EMrtha9PNDWewG2hdebWQ7wkcdA0T3b2Za06fqA5M7y_orfFaaT9BdbHGTYphK9Tkz1VZPsvs/s1600/pansy-01.jpg" /></a></div>The writing is kind of odd, while there are story arcs and they have a somewhat normal structure the overall story isn’t so structured and it kind of rambles on into the series next event. Also while most of the story would be considered historical fiction towards the end the story introduces a country where the nobles worship Satan (at this point I gave a hardy WTF?). This apparently grants them some magic powers like staying young and seeing through a crystal ball like a security camera. It’s kind of odd but at that point so many other barmy things had happened I just kind of rolled with it. I also have to note that the scanalations of this series are from different language from the original Japanese. So, it is a translation of a translation and early on it really shows. In the first few chapters the wrong forum of various pronouns are used. Thankfully over the course of the scans the translation gets better.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgvjJKGQkNmaqlepuRqgVkDkI-qMR9k5BhZSiD_T9gwKWSed4Dt99n0uiyLdU0sSDbL8ekmKCEnzDP6yCnZ7XQetrNoo4E4tTvOvZa2yld2ggjAN6qrasnb_OXR5d91yMdjYUUISRYMCs/s1600/pansy-02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgvjJKGQkNmaqlepuRqgVkDkI-qMR9k5BhZSiD_T9gwKWSed4Dt99n0uiyLdU0sSDbL8ekmKCEnzDP6yCnZ7XQetrNoo4E4tTvOvZa2yld2ggjAN6qrasnb_OXR5d91yMdjYUUISRYMCs/s1600/pansy-02.jpg" /></a></div>The art is well done but pretty typical of 80s shoujo so looks a bit dated today. Thankfully, it’s a period piece so it isn’t as dated as some other titles of the time. The art is well drawn and a lot of the formal clothes have very nice details to them. These are drawing you can see that some care went into creating them. I’d also say the screen tone used in this title is very well done, not too much and done with care. <br />
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I got to say I enjoyed this title way more than I thought I would. I finished off all eleven volumes in just a couple of days. It was almost like playing Civilization expect instead of one more turn it was one more page just to see what crazy thing would happen next.Brandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13021190244110458504noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4528110121142805056.post-33316107185086991282010-09-09T23:57:00.000-04:002010-09-09T23:57:13.510-04:00Thoughts: Rumikio Takahashi great mangaka or greatest mangaka?!<span id="internal-source-marker_0.1393460184901968" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Rumikio Takahashi great mangaka or greatest mangaka?! LOL, no... I really don’t get people who think she is the greatest female mangaka of all time. I don’t hate her works like I do CLAMP because I do think her work has merit. In fact a lot of important merit, just not greatest of all time merit. </span><br />
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">I can seriously argue she is not the greatest female mangaka of all time. I mean really?! Historically important?! Sure. Important to otaku culture? Hell yeah. But the best? Hell no. </span><br />
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Moto Hagio, Riyoko Ikeda, and many other members of the Year 24 Group? Yes, I feel that many of their works have a depth from other literary sources that more otaku influenced works do not have. Since their influences come from more outside sources where otaku works tend to come from inside the culture. </span><br />
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Not that these works are not interesting and can be intelligent in their own right but they start to really cause a catastrophic feeling. These otaku works are created by otaku for otaku and make otaku feel safe. This is their world and outsiders can't touch it. But much like with the gene pool you need outside influences or things start to get distorted. </span><br />
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">When I read works like Glass Mask and Rose of Versailles there is a feel that these works are written for everyone and they are influenced by many works not just other manga. Works by Takahashi just don’t give me that feeling, they give me the feeling they are for Otaku. For every enjoyable and decent title like Otaku no Musume-san there are a ton of other samey generic title filled with Otaku tropes, so Otaku can in some can indulge in a dream life without having to really work on making their own life better.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Okay, I’ve kind of gone off the subject...Rumikio Takahashi’s early work is important and did help create otaku culture as we know it but lacks a quality it make it stand on its own anymore outside the culture. </span>Brandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13021190244110458504noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4528110121142805056.post-581727246420172802010-08-19T20:17:00.000-04:002010-08-19T20:17:08.447-04:00Scanlation Get: Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguqU-NmjmgDGRQUgdoq5AnB23gkUPWULcAwCsYG6Tmf24BYsH0SgqYRDP2JJUQS3AyWVGYeJmRRjkEFckzTuMXrR1YHfPKRTNtXO5dduokDN4YT_K8Ah5l_WnPvxPgZWdOKABOEv7OjwM/s1600/yokohama-kaidashi-kikou-cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguqU-NmjmgDGRQUgdoq5AnB23gkUPWULcAwCsYG6Tmf24BYsH0SgqYRDP2JJUQS3AyWVGYeJmRRjkEFckzTuMXrR1YHfPKRTNtXO5dduokDN4YT_K8Ah5l_WnPvxPgZWdOKABOEv7OjwM/s320/yokohama-kaidashi-kikou-cover.jpg" /></a></div>Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou (YKK) by Hitoshi Ashinano is a title that embodies the line “It's the end of the world as we know it and I feel fine.” The story takes place after some great disaster, the seas and risen, and much of the world is in decline. People just going on living like always, living a rather laid back pace of life. The main character is a robot named Alpha and she runs her owner’s seaside café. Where her owner is, no one knows. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOLayTvsfiQcooW3dV-_dBwoxiPn_Q8rji2g65QFo6rIao6QC4CQNg1Xbf74kKWm2BUMzq2BP-groDVY8uRHWcYfQy5KYOtwzbfirguVnnc6iID1MqmetoMzxaNbsm40XNw8pNBKLQb6g/s1600/yokohama-kaidashi-kikou-01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOLayTvsfiQcooW3dV-_dBwoxiPn_Q8rji2g65QFo6rIao6QC4CQNg1Xbf74kKWm2BUMzq2BP-groDVY8uRHWcYfQy5KYOtwzbfirguVnnc6iID1MqmetoMzxaNbsm40XNw8pNBKLQb6g/s320/yokohama-kaidashi-kikou-01.jpg" /></a></div>The story mainly revolves around Alpha and her adventures but sometimes it drifts off into stories about the side characters. It is hard to describe the plot of Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou because it is one of those slice of life titles that have no real strong ongoing story. It’s just the life of Alpha taking care of the café, visiting friends, and the stories of the supporting cast. A nice laid back life that seems really pleasant. As I read YKK I kept imagining what it would be like to go to Alpha’s café and enjoy a cup of tea.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>If this sounds boring to you, then this title will be to you. Action is almost none existent, YKK makes Azumanga Daioh look like Crank: High Voltage. For me what really made this title overcome the slow pace is the really great atmosphere that drives it and the likable and nuanced characters. Every character was very distinct emotionally but outrageously or in your face.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMgRdHdM0CpeKPJZLK3fmg_fzinRekxh_UGF4RiZ6__eX9v1ZyRZqKJlJQlBenrXWpi3uKjVNH3Vt9M5PXBQY8zZYFNL8mWeoUfbgsQ6GJU9S3q4zse-x7jIPUtYlfmSedi6ifF_BTSEg/s1600/yokohama-kaidashi-kikou-02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMgRdHdM0CpeKPJZLK3fmg_fzinRekxh_UGF4RiZ6__eX9v1ZyRZqKJlJQlBenrXWpi3uKjVNH3Vt9M5PXBQY8zZYFNL8mWeoUfbgsQ6GJU9S3q4zse-x7jIPUtYlfmSedi6ifF_BTSEg/s320/yokohama-kaidashi-kikou-02.jpg" /></a></div>I enjoyed the art in the series it, but I wasn’t in loved with it. It has a really warm quality, the backgrounds are very well drawn, and it works well in context with the story. It is just that I wouldn’t run out and get an art book for it and I LOVE art books. I think the layouts are great, though. The panels are fairly simple but the contents inside each panel is composed incredible well. Many of the panels would make a nice framed piece of art on their own.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>I enjoyed this title a lot it has a very dreamy quality that is hard to quantify. If you enjoy then slice of life genre this is a must read. If you think slice of life is boring as fuck, run as far away and as fast as you can get from this.Brandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13021190244110458504noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4528110121142805056.post-61510459218059229042010-08-04T20:25:00.000-04:002010-08-04T20:25:06.536-04:00Thoughts: Otakon 2010<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx7WE_Q3f9dDH-tVVLcn8wRusrNuph9lpkq6GCXPic521uF3x4mJSYLZyfgVtNwIxHvgE82a39o9vzFyt-h-pekNB0VN49BMnJNYDbjGd-hfH5On9oq-h8IWCybkbPwX6aN62MOd7J-_I/s1600/otakon-2010-014.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx7WE_Q3f9dDH-tVVLcn8wRusrNuph9lpkq6GCXPic521uF3x4mJSYLZyfgVtNwIxHvgE82a39o9vzFyt-h-pekNB0VN49BMnJNYDbjGd-hfH5On9oq-h8IWCybkbPwX6aN62MOd7J-_I/s320/otakon-2010-014.jpg" /></a></div>Going to cons always messes up my schedule (and my eating habits) for sometime before and after the con. I'll get back to the real content soon, I kind of promise. So, I was at Otakon, this past weekend. I can't say it was too exciting, only once in the time I have been going (10+ years) that there has been a guest I wanted to see (Kouta Hirano), so I mainly go just to hang out. The problem being is most of my friends moved to the west coast this year so there was only 3 of us in our group. We had a really good time though. I got to hang out with some of my other “peeps” I know on-line which was awesome.<br />
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I love going to cons for the shopping. I think one can kind of take it for granted today just how easy it is to get anime/manga materials today. Not just in the arr I'm a pirate way either, but getting actual goods is so much easier today. It used to be if you wanted the really awesome stuff, you had to go to a con to get it. Now you can order so much stuff on-line the dealers room isn't as big of a deal. I have to say though there is nothing like instant gratification. I like going through stacks of art books finding one so awesome I didn't even know I had to have, but I have to now! Sadly, this year I was pretty cash strapped at the con, so I didn't get much, but I did get some good stuff.<br />
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Before the con I talked to on of my on-line friends who hit up a used book store in her area. She picked up these for me there (at three bucks a piece!):<br />
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Honey and Clover 4,5<br />
The Embalmer 2<br />
Lament of Lamb 3<br />
20th Century Boys 4<br />
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A little out of order but the deals were to good to pass up really and they are all in great shape. It was also awesome to meet one of my on-line friends. She bought 56 volumes of manga at the con! I dream I can do that some day! I think my best was in the 20-30 range.<br />
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At the con I picked up:<br />
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Twin Spica 1<br />
Black Jack 11, 12<br />
Age Called Blue<br />
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Though when I got home I realized I didn't have Black Jack 10. It is not a huge deal, as Black Jack has no real reading order. It's just the were on sale for ten bucks each! That is a six or seven dollar savings! Because I bought thirty bucks worth of stuff from Vertical, they give me a really pimp bag.<br />
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The only other think I got was the Higurashi visual novel from MangaGamer (and a free boob mouse pad lol).<br />
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Probably my smallest haul from a con ever but some good quality stuff.<br />
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I sat in on the Vertical panel. They have some more surprised Tezuka stuff coming and are looking to get more stuff from the '49s out there (which would be so awesome). <br />
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During Q&A someone asked about Go Nagai, in which Ed Chavez confirmed that they would like to release some of his titles but Dynamic Pro wants them to start with Maou Dante and they feel that is to much of a risk to sink capitol into, but maybe someday. I still need to review that one (but it means I have to read it again, lol) but I can understand where Ed is coming from on that one.<br />
I will work on a real post of next time!Brandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13021190244110458504noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4528110121142805056.post-1261148842436238682010-07-22T19:43:00.000-04:002010-07-22T19:43:16.118-04:00Thoughts: Quickie on Ikki 2<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggnUZr1C3n_TKm9nBMNMlcrWxc4M_ro2tgJQOFgIOz1KYH84MPg7WKvUisVCXroppeA68j1_PXDxjto0QDyEpX9qeiPotoZQl5Cwd74MF3jGzLERlA9aPB-uD3q6PDCqDlEpnTx0FIh9o/s1600/ill-give-it-my-all-tomorrow.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggnUZr1C3n_TKm9nBMNMlcrWxc4M_ro2tgJQOFgIOz1KYH84MPg7WKvUisVCXroppeA68j1_PXDxjto0QDyEpX9qeiPotoZQl5Cwd74MF3jGzLERlA9aPB-uD3q6PDCqDlEpnTx0FIh9o/s320/ill-give-it-my-all-tomorrow.jpg" /></a></div><b>I'll Give It My All... Tomorrow</b><br />
This is basically about a guy in his forties quiting his job to become a mangaka except instead of having drive and ambition he spends most of his days fucking around. His father berates him all the time and his teenage daughter is doing what she can to take care of herself. It doesn't sound like much and it is one of the slice of life titles were not much happen but there are these moments of incite about life that are really brilliant in this manga. The art is similar to Tokyo Zombies as it looks more like someone's notebook scribbles but I think it's charming.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl_C4kzq9DKlcnpV-u8V9vF_fAxHemzqu6k-wPIezYyUc8L97f2tbwH5oLgq9hMUqcvF3X7cSr1c1aBDugP22Ni58s-tFLj8Capia7DNZyU8RRn7eJBCn2f09LR-tTD5HDsS_Kkx3iYFQ/s1600/kingyo-used-books.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl_C4kzq9DKlcnpV-u8V9vF_fAxHemzqu6k-wPIezYyUc8L97f2tbwH5oLgq9hMUqcvF3X7cSr1c1aBDugP22Ni58s-tFLj8Capia7DNZyU8RRn7eJBCn2f09LR-tTD5HDsS_Kkx3iYFQ/s320/kingyo-used-books.jpg" /></a></div><b>Kingyo Used Books</b><br />
Is a manga, about selling manga, that highlights a different manga in each chapter. There are several characters but so far it's be mostly introductions and light back story on them. I can't say I feel really attached to any of them. What makes the title interesting is all the different manga it talks about. Each chapter features something different from the ultra rare to to greats and give a little incite about each of them. It's a cool title if you like to learn more about the history of manga (which I do) but if you don't I'd think it would be kind of a dud. The art is nice and well done but I fine it lacking a certain appeal to be (maybe it's not very stylish?).<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLN51qSUI2VnYRVccVKWT9uk9yWMfxp5udc_a6HI1EMdi7tBmc5FOQXTGrhO6CzffF4ltyi-vlzxpsFp931Hm50MiBwEJSbNElpfDZGwFDcy1OFCHpYjjQHS1-a5jSkkqhBMbhMR8P9SY/s1600/saturn-apartments.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLN51qSUI2VnYRVccVKWT9uk9yWMfxp5udc_a6HI1EMdi7tBmc5FOQXTGrhO6CzffF4ltyi-vlzxpsFp931Hm50MiBwEJSbNElpfDZGwFDcy1OFCHpYjjQHS1-a5jSkkqhBMbhMR8P9SY/s320/saturn-apartments.jpg" /></a></div><b>Saturn Apartments</b><br />
This one is slice of life...in space! This is another one of those titles with really languid pacing. The main character is a teenager who has lost his parents but the people around him have been good in taking care of him. Life on this space station though isn't all that it is cut out to be as there are lower and upper levels that divide jobs and class between the people. The main character Mitsu takes on the the difficult job of window cleaner not only does he have to learn his job but about the other people working around him, and general populous of the station. I really like the art in this one, it is very cute (every had big round head and is kind of stumpy) but had a lot of detail (there are some damn impressive backgrounds).<br />
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Hmm, this time around not the most exciting titles but they are all enjoyable if you like slice of life. If I had to pick a current favorite out of all the Ikki titles I have read it would have to be After School Charisma. Like I said it starts out awkward but really grows into an interesting and intriguing plot. The slice of life titles just don't provide that and the narrative in Dorohedo isn't as strong.Brandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13021190244110458504noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4528110121142805056.post-22608769720936741962010-07-14T22:05:00.000-04:002010-07-14T22:05:41.428-04:00Thoughts: Quickie on IkkiI’ve been feeling a little off, so though I would do something a bit different this week and give you my thoughts on some of the titles on the Ikki website. This is a website with 100% legit translated manga to read online from Ikki and Viz. Sadly they don’t leave all the chapters up, which I really wish they did. I’ve missed out on a few series because I wasn’t fast enough.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMeLHSf-vMmW1CglrUYmeIinYF8MQH-Jm6V8YK_jOG1m_sz9zgVo7D8xUUPkiY7n0YiS9zZwSjeibr7r1RCYX_F5GNB5JKc3vCvvNVnSMnaZnr0-0oWbcLT3p2bvqu0JZ-P3O1qMDlixY/s1600/after-school-charisma.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMeLHSf-vMmW1CglrUYmeIinYF8MQH-Jm6V8YK_jOG1m_sz9zgVo7D8xUUPkiY7n0YiS9zZwSjeibr7r1RCYX_F5GNB5JKc3vCvvNVnSMnaZnr0-0oWbcLT3p2bvqu0JZ-P3O1qMDlixY/s320/after-school-charisma.jpg" /></a></div><b>After School Charisma </b><br />
I really dig this title. It starts out pretty awkward, most of the characters are clones of famous people. In the first few chapters the author really makes sure you know that this bishonen is Sigmund Freud or this beautiful girl is Florence Nightingale and such by saying his/her full name repeatedly. The basic plot is about a high school rising clones of famous people with the idea of letting go back out in the work to "do good work" (it is still a little mysterious at this point). Problems arise when some of the clones don’t want to do what their originals did, and other die just like their originals. Like I said the start is really awkward but this title really comes into its own as an interesting mystery. The art in this is also top notch.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwYfN2cL6uWh-7yyPmKAlIiSkVcf_duHxpVPbWpGzSUzc54fi0qjsvuWaon8QmBsBLmUG5i8kH-Toa618fJ9fBZJOiXHOQcxomUOvXgrkKOOhR4JLF3Ad-9DfDNwON1h0qrcXL3fC6-gI/s1600/dorohedo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwYfN2cL6uWh-7yyPmKAlIiSkVcf_duHxpVPbWpGzSUzc54fi0qjsvuWaon8QmBsBLmUG5i8kH-Toa618fJ9fBZJOiXHOQcxomUOvXgrkKOOhR4JLF3Ad-9DfDNwON1h0qrcXL3fC6-gI/s320/dorohedo.jpg" /></a></div><b>Dorohedo</b><br />
This had been a title I wanted to read for a while. I had read Q. Hayashida’s adaptation of the Maken X video game and while maybe not the best adaptation the art and strangeness really had me intrigued. That is pretty much the case here with Dorohedo, I’m still not 100% what is going on. There are wizards who mutate people and a dude with a Lizard head who wats to find out who did that to him. But really to me the story in this case isn’t all that important. This is a title where it is to much more about the world and characters that live in it. It’s kind of steampunk if speampunk was actually dystopian like cyberpunk. The art is gritty and kind of chaotic but I really enjoy it for those reason but I know it turns some people off.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9mi751V3Ra1C0yscvh5Lz2Im8nOLCYnYC4rch8mVS1gzVGLtC2OmWst5rNeNdn78trEsrRRQAw7K1DV2gjbS2VhAZH_AIvsuS8r3CmzEk2i_siNIz3LzpGn-9CnKYfEcGVNgKyDVKX1k/s1600/house-of-five-leaves.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9mi751V3Ra1C0yscvh5Lz2Im8nOLCYnYC4rch8mVS1gzVGLtC2OmWst5rNeNdn78trEsrRRQAw7K1DV2gjbS2VhAZH_AIvsuS8r3CmzEk2i_siNIz3LzpGn-9CnKYfEcGVNgKyDVKX1k/s200/house-of-five-leaves.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><b>House of Five Leaves </b><br />
I had really loved the anime Ristorante Paradiso based on another work of Natsume Ono which came as a surprise to me. Right now I can’t say how much I like House of Five Leaves it has very slow pacing and I feel only now in the second volume am I getting a real feel for the characters. Still it’s been interesting and I like her really strange and somewhat awkward art. Somehow it is very anime/manga style but not like any other anime/manga. I have yet to check out the anime adaption of this but this might be one where I like the anime better as was the case with Ristorante Paradiso. <br />
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Next week I'll finish off the list but all of the titles I've listed are worth checking out.Brandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13021190244110458504noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4528110121142805056.post-26090140556494024862010-07-08T20:51:00.001-04:002010-07-22T19:32:56.625-04:00Scanlation Get: Crows<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOR4_AOHZx7x4VL5uR7jkh9Kn6m_Fv7eQNjO5MPnaGr431kpjEGta2KZSou5m-4_KDaZFppWGK0gLdKw3Wt9nddfo9pnN5h42GIRzMrMUnNPo-kYHpGdB8pWTSoUySGs6qBEwPMSdmtQ4/s1600/crows-cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOR4_AOHZx7x4VL5uR7jkh9Kn6m_Fv7eQNjO5MPnaGr431kpjEGta2KZSou5m-4_KDaZFppWGK0gLdKw3Wt9nddfo9pnN5h42GIRzMrMUnNPo-kYHpGdB8pWTSoUySGs6qBEwPMSdmtQ4/s320/crows-cover.jpg" /></a></div>I have to admit this week’s title is one of those golden little guilty pleasures for me. I’ve always loved stories about delinquents, the yakuza, and such. I also love stories where people beat the living shit out of each other. Crows by Takahashi Hiroshi is an almost perfect package of delinquents and shit beating.<br />
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Suzuran is an all-boys high school that in which the student population is total made up of trashy youth who feel society has no place for them (It might sound bad but it really reminds me a lot of clique of people I hung out with in high school). The main character is a transfer student known as Bouya Harumichi is a bit of an ass, who likes to spend his days looking at nudie magazines, and tends to wear a jacket with no shirt on (oh, so classy…). He is damn good at fighting though. Which is good since 90% of this manga is fighting. The other 10% is made up of posturing and hanging out with friends. Most of the plot involves some way to get in a fight, who is the strongest student, other school moving in on different territory, and etc. The plot never gets complicated but that doesn’t matter. This is title about friendship and beating the shit out of people. Crows does this well and manages to balance a lot of the violence with light humor (even if vast amount of it is about getting diarrhea from drinking milk).<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN4WDeJi4m92XirJXrb8hIBzxX1dxfXvh_5XH9jnHfhoUROpOUuBJCsR4e1445VXk0XHrMqAXABqf5LbUtk7jrw4E7OKm8cH80XsG9o-b5zZWQqF0wSQpLKq4H-OyXFiAhix_f4nLE3Dw/s1600/crows-01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN4WDeJi4m92XirJXrb8hIBzxX1dxfXvh_5XH9jnHfhoUROpOUuBJCsR4e1445VXk0XHrMqAXABqf5LbUtk7jrw4E7OKm8cH80XsG9o-b5zZWQqF0wSQpLKq4H-OyXFiAhix_f4nLE3Dw/s320/crows-01.jpg" /></a></div>The art is a little old fashioned as the series started in the 90s but once again this is a case where I find it very charming. It is also nice to see how much better it gets by the time the next series Worst starts. Half of the art is about the faces; from the goofy to the deadly serious they are all really well done here. The other half is all about fighting; sometimes it makes me cringe just thinking how some of the impacts in the story would hurt.<br />
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Currently Crows combined with its sequel series Worst are some of my favorite titles right now. I can’t say Crows will blow your mind but if you are someone who enjoys the something more visceral this title is a true winner. I also enjoyed the fact that while over the top it tends to say far more realistic in nature then a lot of its brethren delinquent manga. If you like manga with a lot (and I mean a lot) of fighting and story about high school delinquents this is a must read.Brandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13021190244110458504noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4528110121142805056.post-30114187405598216002010-06-29T21:10:00.000-04:002010-06-29T21:10:35.603-04:00Scanlation Get: Glass Mask<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAQttgvo7FNA5ibQLM94hv9_YHD607O8CFvxKRSnLIsSzZ5bZQ8-xJd3uydsWG2Hf0dqFm-jl9AxF8w2w8sfgcZREyimHqaV7z8rwgi9uCdBChLrErnto71aH-BuQZb6Ow578SDLIXmlQ/s1600/glass-mask-cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAQttgvo7FNA5ibQLM94hv9_YHD607O8CFvxKRSnLIsSzZ5bZQ8-xJd3uydsWG2Hf0dqFm-jl9AxF8w2w8sfgcZREyimHqaV7z8rwgi9uCdBChLrErnto71aH-BuQZb6Ow578SDLIXmlQ/s320/glass-mask-cover.jpg" /></a></div>Once again it is back to the 70's with my next pick Glass Mask by Suzue Miuchi. I kind of have a love hate relationship with shoujo. I want to love it, but I find much of the shoujo titles from today boring with flat uninteresting main characters. Honestly if the character's personality is picked from the stock of “I want a boyfriend” or “I want to be a bride” I don't want to read it. In fact it makes me want to punch it in the jeans. (Now, American romcoms I'd punch right in the kidneys.) I do love a lot of shoujo from the 70s or even the 80s, where female characters have big dreams and big goals. In Glass Mask our heroine Maya ends up with big dream of being the actress who plays the role of the goddess in the famous play the Crimson Goddess but before she can ever do so she must master thousands of roles.<br />
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I am recently re-reading this. I had read quite a few volumes but I can't remember where I left off. (I only stopped reading being the scanlator at the time got a C&D letter and took everything down. I was rather sad this was my first long term scanlation I had gotten into and I really loved it.) One of things I am enjoying is just how much I remember things. Like when Maya sat out in the rain purposely to get sick to play Beth better in Little Women. There have been titles I have read and really liked them at the time but when I go back to think about them I can't remember anything. Considering, I last read Glass Mask six years ago my memory for this is surprisingly good, which I think says something for the title. I am looking forward to rereading certain parts that I enjoyed the first time.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFhb5TMTvsyMw9coaVY40vMA10iKs_LcnnIoiz9XchrLSBUexi4a_nqXSr5-CWgiYLaZI8Ga-kwKnbViPntnEd5jhZLNVQy7_O9m9-vh3AXr1SElVccut0g-5QqMaXKvVqQ6OLKbjF8yE/s1600/glass-mask-01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFhb5TMTvsyMw9coaVY40vMA10iKs_LcnnIoiz9XchrLSBUexi4a_nqXSr5-CWgiYLaZI8Ga-kwKnbViPntnEd5jhZLNVQy7_O9m9-vh3AXr1SElVccut0g-5QqMaXKvVqQ6OLKbjF8yE/s320/glass-mask-01.jpg" /></a></div>The main character Maya is played off as average and kind of dumb. Even her mother tells her she is useless. All Maya wants to do is watch dramas and plays. She will even go to some extreme measures to get tickets to see a play. She jumps into the Yokohama bay early on for one. It takes former Crimson Goddess actress Chigusa Tsukikage to see that even Maya has talent and with training she could aspire to be the Crimson Goddess herself. Maya then goes for a ride of a life as she trains but many things go awry often no fault of her own. Her rival wants the role of Crimson Goddess herself; the rival acting school with stop at nothing to close Tsukikage's school; and the chairman at Daito Entertainment will do anything to the rights to the Crimson Goddess play.<br />
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There is romance involved in the story but there is a lot of development even before it is seen and Maya always takes acting before she does boys. She is determined to see her dream and won't stop until she gets there.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsyghlgHLPw3gXlwRgejwy4KaTDtOHBz7xp3a9o0IWrL74s6qGww_A2RoLpn_WMdUN_HQHHrvwh23b3TuvRoYneaDv2rk_Oc4j_iRwrGvcUumoLzKr3flqKcJ2o5ggpajcZfe12rEFeFY/s1600/glass-mask-02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsyghlgHLPw3gXlwRgejwy4KaTDtOHBz7xp3a9o0IWrL74s6qGww_A2RoLpn_WMdUN_HQHHrvwh23b3TuvRoYneaDv2rk_Oc4j_iRwrGvcUumoLzKr3flqKcJ2o5ggpajcZfe12rEFeFY/s320/glass-mask-02.jpg" /></a></div>The art is very 70s but well drawn. It relies more on strong line work then screen tone which is something I really like. (I feel to many shoujo titles insert random screen tone to fill up space.) The panel layouts are nothing amazing, but are clear and strong in conveying the story. Where it suffers the most is the clothes. They were fashionable for the time now they are really out dated. Apparently, as some point the mangaka went back and re-drew the older volumes but that seems like and exercise in futility to me. Clothes almost end up out dated (though I got to say Paradise Kiss holds up surprisingly well) unless they are the most generic clothes ever. I hate when manga and anime take the generic clothes route though, it has no personality. I'd rather watch or something out dated looking and feels like it has life rather then some lifeless and generic.<br />
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Rereading this title reminded me how much I love this title. If it ever came out in English I'd buy every volume. I like reading stories about girls and women who aspire to great heights and Glass Mask certainly fills that role.Brandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13021190244110458504noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4528110121142805056.post-10661794916585742572010-06-23T22:03:00.000-04:002010-06-23T22:03:27.582-04:00Thoughts: What is going on here?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJP-3I-Nkv7aKlEzpl4cbySQ0zM9uwO5jociWlWJUIqBCQbWuS7FdHlZ2cgV8Xgx-6voNOQ2zqkC9N3zpY0uz24HHkJGh2ucyO0Ux6sPRQId_vd0OdNL_yiJQklH7HafMnkguvbgfeM2o/s1600/Bastard-26.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJP-3I-Nkv7aKlEzpl4cbySQ0zM9uwO5jociWlWJUIqBCQbWuS7FdHlZ2cgV8Xgx-6voNOQ2zqkC9N3zpY0uz24HHkJGh2ucyO0Ux6sPRQId_vd0OdNL_yiJQklH7HafMnkguvbgfeM2o/s320/Bastard-26.jpg" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJP-3I-Nkv7aKlEzpl4cbySQ0zM9uwO5jociWlWJUIqBCQbWuS7FdHlZ2cgV8Xgx-6voNOQ2zqkC9N3zpY0uz24HHkJGh2ucyO0Ux6sPRQId_vd0OdNL_yiJQklH7HafMnkguvbgfeM2o/s1600/Bastard-26.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=kuzunoha-20&l=bil&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=1421521954" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important; padding: 0px !important;" width="1" /></div>Ugh, I am a bit annoyed. It seems Viz has listed <a href="http://www.viz.com/products/products.php?product_id=7547">volume 19</a> at the final volume of <a href="http://www.viz.com/products/products.php?series_id=22">Bastard!!</a>. Much like cake, this is a lie. Considering it is still publishing in Japan and is up to volume 26. This is a series have been collecting since 2003. (Holy, crap seven freaking years). My volumes are from so long ago that my first five volumes are in the large size Viz used to publish in (though it seems they have returned to this size for some of their signature line). It is even more annoying that recently Viz stated they <a href="http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2010-05-13/viz/no-product-or-business-line-cancellations-planned">would not be canceling any of their product lines</a>. Volume 19 doesn’t even come to any conclusion.<br />
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<iframe align="right" frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=kuzunoha-20&o=1&p=8&l=bpl&asins=1421521954&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="align: left; height: 245px; padding-right: 10px; padding-top: 5px; width: 131px;"></iframe>I hope Viz hasn’t really canceled Bastard!! Even a really long delay between volumes would be better. (Though they have been close to a year apart recently). I want to give people my money for this title in a format I can read. Really! <br />
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While I don’t know any numbers, Bastard!! always did well at the comic book store I worked at. It wasn't a Naruto or One Piece but I thought it sold pretty solidly. Though said store was in a very middle class white suburb that grew up on heavy metal. Maybe some marketing in some metal mags would work for it... I just don’t want to see it go.<br />
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It's seems that few other titles from Viz have gone on a long hiatus or have stopped completely, like Oishinbo. Hopefully some new will come out of Viz. I'd rather know for sure what is going on.Brandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13021190244110458504noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4528110121142805056.post-63518830007812424422010-06-16T18:41:00.000-04:002010-06-16T18:41:12.604-04:00Scanlation Get: My Girl<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuFhsaCT36mRPhyphenhyphen74vvyi706zMd5omX1qlWOPCwFLOUx9iLs8TFWNITbUtpK8PAyXJNW09Zw2O3Rb_6ZBdoNT51I7ZY2t7n68B9rFIAA-cHFRK_DU8JY2yn9fp1Wm0aY9Mhlk0vORrBeM/s1600/my-girl-cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuFhsaCT36mRPhyphenhyphen74vvyi706zMd5omX1qlWOPCwFLOUx9iLs8TFWNITbUtpK8PAyXJNW09Zw2O3Rb_6ZBdoNT51I7ZY2t7n68B9rFIAA-cHFRK_DU8JY2yn9fp1Wm0aY9Mhlk0vORrBeM/s320/my-girl-cover.jpg" /></a></div>Holy crap, I don’t think I can take much more of this. Don't get me wrong I really enjoy the slice of life titles and the surprise father trope, but after several weeks of it I need a serious change of pace. This week though won’t be that change in pace. In fact this week’s title My Girl by Sahara Mizu is pretty much the bible of “by the book” on this trope. Not to say it is bad, because it’s not, but it is the least original of the bunch I have read so far.<br />
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Kazama is recently out of college, working, and living a single life. When one day news comes that his girlfriend from high school has died. At the funeral he finds that she had a daughter, which is his. Apparently, the young girl’s Mother decide to study abroad and be a single parent as not to bother Kazuma with it, who was still in high school at the time. Kazuma takes in this young girl Koharu in and takes care of her.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVq3uc5kI1QxRAKs4mbY1BClt-Qzs1h-pYfN_xzKP_LEcq5kptm6jtfiiKuZVpCrNSkdKoxYwjpMn9xcxzyfyZmre0ZLlOTkCAD_fM_E9dF1E-MZ2nK-V-jNhaOYHAZAtdAPN1whzhrRc/s1600/my-girl-01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVq3uc5kI1QxRAKs4mbY1BClt-Qzs1h-pYfN_xzKP_LEcq5kptm6jtfiiKuZVpCrNSkdKoxYwjpMn9xcxzyfyZmre0ZLlOTkCAD_fM_E9dF1E-MZ2nK-V-jNhaOYHAZAtdAPN1whzhrRc/s320/my-girl-01.jpg" /></a></div>I can’t say much else without getting to far into minutiae. Kazuma is almost a blank slate; he is not that great at this job, he really loved Kazuma’s Mother, and he tries to take good care of this little girl. Kazuma is cute, a bit sad her Mother died, and is sweet and innocent. Personality isn't their strong suit. Events happen at a lackadaisical pace and the story has great atmosphere that draws you in when reading. The problem is afterward it didn’t leave me with really feeling anything.<br />
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Now the art is where I thought this title stands out a bit more. It really fits with the atmosphere of the story. The characters are lively and have a wispy quality to them. The panel layout are also nice. They are loose, but are laid out in an interesting manner, and have an energetic quality to them. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtNidNVR9h1UCHyvVbkCtbTLwQryXX4c7UrmGpEgqONzUxx8ognv70lYQEjvbZH6BqHoI47m0FNEfdjK1ldTemd-pDTKcOpMVYqfG66ZmU7RrVu0nxsLz5NsZSdjWKEypTVsPB7u2FSiw/s1600/my-girl-02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtNidNVR9h1UCHyvVbkCtbTLwQryXX4c7UrmGpEgqONzUxx8ognv70lYQEjvbZH6BqHoI47m0FNEfdjK1ldTemd-pDTKcOpMVYqfG66ZmU7RrVu0nxsLz5NsZSdjWKEypTVsPB7u2FSiw/s320/my-girl-02.jpg" /></a></div>Like I said, at this point I’m getting to my fill with these titles. Sadly, My Girl doesn’t tread any new ground and I think it suffers for it. So much so I can easily make comparisons to the previous titles I have covered. High school girlfriend leaves to be a single mother? Otaku no Musume-san. Young single man meets a girl he has to take care of at a funeral? Bunny Drop. I could go on. The problem being is that titles like these are going to have similarities. I just feel this one doesn't have enough personality to get beyond that fact. I still enjoyed it and thought it was good, but I was left with the feeling it was insubstantial overall.Brandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13021190244110458504noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4528110121142805056.post-9763991857760614152010-06-09T23:48:00.001-04:002010-06-10T11:44:57.292-04:00Review: Bunny Drop<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrgO6AgsqUuhnqfxRamMSxFS0zLwiGe5Dj_fQIXTTUuGfGFSmEhBpemVUcIYgYa3Is4A7nVRMK154LS5gEp1EfbEDdP7FP-Wy7beh00xA756pT-Wf_q9abicP0g0Cl1Nag7v169NFxcmM/s1600/bunny-drop-cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrgO6AgsqUuhnqfxRamMSxFS0zLwiGe5Dj_fQIXTTUuGfGFSmEhBpemVUcIYgYa3Is4A7nVRMK154LS5gEp1EfbEDdP7FP-Wy7beh00xA756pT-Wf_q9abicP0g0Cl1Nag7v169NFxcmM/s320/bunny-drop-cover.jpg" /></a></div>Bunny Drop by Yumi Unita is another title that uses the surprise father trope to tell an excellent story. Here we have the bachelor Daikichi whom upon going to his Grandfather's funeral he finds out he has an Aunt he never knew about. Also she is only six years old. Apparently, Grandpa had been taking care of this girl Rin but never let his family know. What is even more mysterious is that Rin's Mother never shows up to the funeral. It's up to the family to decide what to do with her, but no one wants to bother with her. In a fit of annoyance with his family Daikichi declares he will take care of her and takes Rin home.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBBPlFLY0cHMlv8dtgAPtsCEvcA4iBAXXAIdk6elrBSRH0EUG-qiDrPRrbtdmpEpoZCbvJYZm-0_fc7QI4GVdABw6XkQHxsw4XEgHJ3YVXnE9lyxfMD1Dzwu8e3ocpnN-1h0xQwnl88fY/s1600/bunny-drop-01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBBPlFLY0cHMlv8dtgAPtsCEvcA4iBAXXAIdk6elrBSRH0EUG-qiDrPRrbtdmpEpoZCbvJYZm-0_fc7QI4GVdABw6XkQHxsw4XEgHJ3YVXnE9lyxfMD1Dzwu8e3ocpnN-1h0xQwnl88fY/s320/bunny-drop-01.jpg" /></a></div>From here we get some of what is typical of these types of stories. Daikichi must learn to take on a whole new type of responsibilities and how to care for a child. Daikichi ends up being pretty selfless and Rin is over all a very good child. The interest comes in from a few things like Daikichi's family learning to accept Rin; Rin learning to come out of her shell; and the mystery of who is her Mother. The mystery aspect really sets this series bit more apart from the others. A lot of time is spent trying to figure out why the Mother isn't in the picture, who she is, and just where is she at and what is she doing. It helps to keep this title fresh.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiH8zySzC7te_FfrBC9gRWxuD9orqVOJR8Cmhcvu_WJPo4CsQevCdk444yLWGRzHQ3feZi6U0Q_H4KfQkJrMARYd1CRxztML8BJ9Ita3NVX41_gYuhDfezMVO4XDhqeB_JSCttdJXHLB4/s1600/bunny-drop-02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiH8zySzC7te_FfrBC9gRWxuD9orqVOJR8Cmhcvu_WJPo4CsQevCdk444yLWGRzHQ3feZi6U0Q_H4KfQkJrMARYd1CRxztML8BJ9Ita3NVX41_gYuhDfezMVO4XDhqeB_JSCttdJXHLB4/s320/bunny-drop-02.jpg" /></a></div>I would have to fault the art in this in many of the same way I did for Hotman, but for some reason it doesn't bother me as much here. The character designs I find appealing but the character are drawn fairly simplistically and some what stiffly. Some panels have some interesting background but there then there will be pages of panels with little or no backgrounds. The panel layouts are okay, they have fairly strong structure, but they feel unnoticeable. Which can be a good or a bad thing, in this case I think it works for the title. You just feel the story and are not taken in by the art.<br />
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<iframe align="right" frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=kuzunoha-20&o=1&p=8&l=bpl&asins=0759531226&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="height: 245px; padding-right: 10px; padding-top: 5px; width: 131px;"></iframe>I really liked this title a lot. While I didn't say much about it, I'd say out of the surprise father titles I have covered so far it's my favorite. It pulls you in emotionally with out doing cheap tricks to do so. Also being a fan of mystery I like the angle of the missing Mother it adds an interesting element to the story that also has emotional impact.<br />
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Final Verdict: Cherry is my favorite flavor.Brandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13021190244110458504noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4528110121142805056.post-51956238797546122702010-06-01T20:56:00.000-04:002010-06-01T20:56:46.883-04:00Scanlation Get: Hotman<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgBz_3EL7Ffx5GELsqd7SITEKhQN1pwGXXgzw9QGdjW19yqdeaDhCvNqf03ctwZU-YO6T3KHhpI-F8lkCfUHgDyBtdUmQIsX5eR_pVJaeIPNJDXrJahqZm7-kJ6PgRusTCXsMul0VwV2Q/s1600/hotman-cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgBz_3EL7Ffx5GELsqd7SITEKhQN1pwGXXgzw9QGdjW19yqdeaDhCvNqf03ctwZU-YO6T3KHhpI-F8lkCfUHgDyBtdUmQIsX5eR_pVJaeIPNJDXrJahqZm7-kJ6PgRusTCXsMul0VwV2Q/s320/hotman-cover.jpg" /></a></div>This week’s title isn't as much of the learning about little girls and how to be a good parent but more about what happens after you have managed to do those things. Hotman by Shou Kitagawa is more about taking on so much responsibility for others in your life that it leaves little time for one’s self and bringing those two aspects in balance.<br />
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Enzo is a reformed delinquent who is now working as an art teacher. Unlike other titles that feature reformed delinquents, like GTO, it would be hard to tell that Enzo had been anything but a normal guy. He takes the best of care of his young daughter Nanami and his 4 bothers, and sisters (who all have different Fathers from Enzo and each other). He works hard at school, and does whatever he can to help out everyone else but his self.<br />
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It wasn’t always like this though. Enzo who was already a big delinquent in the past, but after his mother died, he went even more wild. His mother’s home became a haven for other punks and delinquents like himself. Until one day when he finds a baby at his doorstep. His apparent partying left him with a lifelong gift, one that changes him forever.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5LsKP7cr4U4UpWTbo35j8yJWtFDi35FcLFYV0flq2uyypjTq0vBQ1TWQfgRvGes6XdX74br3tB4m2vqdAx9MzqRq9O8-9ftp9q8jy0CA44sFRnCNrV5wE1ADSBifhSVJ4Uhm4FKXtgKc/s1600/hotman-01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5LsKP7cr4U4UpWTbo35j8yJWtFDi35FcLFYV0flq2uyypjTq0vBQ1TWQfgRvGes6XdX74br3tB4m2vqdAx9MzqRq9O8-9ftp9q8jy0CA44sFRnCNrV5wE1ADSBifhSVJ4Uhm4FKXtgKc/s320/hotman-01.jpg" /></a></div>The only thing is this baby, Namami, has serious skin problems. A problem Enzo blames himself and his past life style on. He becomes a health nut because of this, trying to make her skin problems better. In the end he becomes such a selfless person to punish himself for his perceived past sins. He doesn’t allow time for himself, and while he is interested in the school nurse he can’t ask her out because he feels that she is too good for him.<br />
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Each volume features its own story arc that features a different member of Enzo’s family. Enzo’s story goes on though each but this way it highlights each member during important events that affect them. Hotman is pure slice of life, but it is nice to see a story about a family that might have a lot of dysfunction about them working hard and functioning together. This manga really carries a pretty healthy attitude about family and how they can work together for the better.<br />
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The art is pleasant and well drawn enough but it’s a pretty typical style that I kind of find boring but not off putting. The layouts are also average, and are oddly almost shoujo like in style. A lot of the pages feature much more open panel design then one would see in the average senien manga. I’d also have to fault a bit of over reliance on screen tone for this title. A lot of panels have no background or the nebulas “it’s a screen tone” background. Fortunately it is not distracting since it is a title more about the emotion on character faces, which is done really well here. Over all the art works here but isn’t anything overly interesting.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4C1imfAxlpONvvdc_VOK_MTr9SAw8zP9AXBWfLz3bG98FvwDan3T6TAWMbU9HWDi2YH7MAQwMu3OW2otTwacL6qW6yI0J_OkcLNkFnpqPhtydZwErIN-EdZWAiOf-cka0VA0jXFMLUS4/s1600/hotman-02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4C1imfAxlpONvvdc_VOK_MTr9SAw8zP9AXBWfLz3bG98FvwDan3T6TAWMbU9HWDi2YH7MAQwMu3OW2otTwacL6qW6yI0J_OkcLNkFnpqPhtydZwErIN-EdZWAiOf-cka0VA0jXFMLUS4/s320/hotman-02.jpg" /></a></div>I did have a couple of problems with some of the ways this title pulls on your emotional strings. Such as one of the side female characters being fairly motivated and punished for having an abortion in the past by not being able to have children now because of it. (How often does that really happen? After looking it up not often). I could go on a bit about this (and the treatment of women in media), but honestly I don’t want to think to hard about it. Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar and sometimes a plot device is just a plot device.<br />
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I got really sucked into this title. Enzo is a really fun and sympathetic character. I find truly caring fathers something lacking a lot of the time in pop culture entertainment where they are often played off as jerks. Over all I really liked this title and if you liked the other surprise father or slice of life titles this is totally worth checking out.Brandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13021190244110458504noreply@blogger.com0