Enjoy Everything, Yotsuba!

I've had a long, busy week so I'd like to treat y'all with a lighter subject for a blog post, one that's got some nice images in it and is about a manga I've never not laughed at or at least smiled at: Yotsuba&! by Kiyohiko Azuma, a slice-of-life series about a little girl named Yotsuba and her daily activities in her new town, learning how things work, making friends, and following around her single dad who is still navigating fatherhood.

If you haven't started reading Yotsuba&! yet, you are missing out on one of the most charming and aesthetically pleasing series currently being released in English. Yeah, it's that good.

You Need To Read Vinland Saga, Right Now

"From the distant north... beyond the frozen sea... they come, bringing with them the black clouds of war." - Chapter 1

Sometimes, the manga market favors the popular but untalented and ignores the talented but niche. Sometimes it skews towards quality titles in their favor. Unfortunately, due to the nature of manga in America, it often does not; titles with smaller demographics are often left by the wayside, destined for cancellation or to be published in total anonymity without any press coverage or fan love. 

Vinland Saga seems destined to join the ranks of outstanding manga who never found their audience and their sales margin, and if that comes true and Kodansha pulls the series from English publication, than we should all feel bad for not supporting this series. In 2014, Kodansha temporarily suspended the Vinland Saga's publication schedule and immediately fans worried for its future.

Later news from Kodansha confirmed that the future of Vinland Saga relies on sales; if volumes six and seven do well, volume eight and onward will be confirmed for release. If not, well... that's all, folks. Say goodbye to any more new Makoto Yukimura in English.

Manga Review: Ranma 1/2 2-in-1 Edition, GN 9

Ranma 1/2 (2-in-1 Edition) Volume 9
Author: Rumiko Takahashi
Viz Manga
360 pages

Meet Picolet Chardin II, master of the très terrifying La Belle France School of Martial Arts Dining. A style of martial arts based on eating doesn't seem like it would be hard to master…but if Ranma can't defeat Picolet in La Belle France, it'll be wedding bells! Then, the unfortunately named "Pantyhose Taro" makes trouble for Ranma and the others, but who's really the target—and cause—of all the vengeance? (Source: Viz.com)

The latest Ranma 1/2 omnibus collection contains volumes seventeen and eighteen from Rumiko Takahashi's infamous martial arts comedy series. It is a ridiculous, slapstick bundle of humorous hijinks and romance and at this point, if the idea of characters literally slamming into scenes at random while oddly placed bodies of water put other characters into gender-related peril don't tickle you pink, you will probably not care to pick up the newest installment in this modern classic. But Ranma 1/2 remains a classic for a reason, one of the biggest reasons being that Takahashi knows how to keep things interesting book after book, and arcs like Picolet and Pantyhose Taro show that when this series is at its best when it gets weird.

Manga Review: Soul Eater GN 25

Soul Eater volume 25
Author: Atsushi Ohkubo
Yen Press
248 pages

Kid’s sense of order stands in sharp contrast to the unpredictable madness of the Kishin. But order and madness are two sides of the same coin. When Asura challenges the “tyrannical” Shinigami and his laws that serve to control humans’ lives, Kid can feel the tendrils of madness within himself seeking purchase. The bonds of his friendships and his faith in order are tested to their limits as Asura makes his final stand against the forces of DWMA. When the moondust settles, who will emerge as lord of this world–Shinigami or Kishin? (Source: Yen Press)

Spoiler note: Post contains some spoilers for the Soul Eater final volume (although not explicitly).

I don't think that Atsushi Ohkubo knows how to end a series, and that is okay by me. I don't demand much of a series ending but I do ask that they resolve at least the biggest plot lines and create a satisfying end based on the story and the character development up to that point. It doesn't have to be happy go lucky, it doesn't have to be one I necessarily agree with (i.e. "ugh why didn't [x] happen!"). Ohkubo, in the Soul Eater manga finale, tries to wrap up the DWMA vs First Kishin battle royale but he has clearly written himself into a corner so ends things the best way he can.

Manga Review: Shigeru Mizuki's Kitaro

Kitaro
Author: Shigeru Mizuki
Drawn & Quarterly
432 pages

Meet Kitaro. He’s just like any other boy, except for a few small differences: he only has one eye, his hair is an antenna that senses paranormal activity, his geta sandals are jet-powered, and he can blend into his surroundings like a chameleon. Oh, and he’s a three-hundred-and-fifty-year-old yokai (spirit monster). With all the offbeat humor of an Addams Family story, Kitaro is a lighthearted romp in which the bad guys always get what’s coming to them. (Source: D&Q)

Reviewing a yokai book, especially a Shigeru Mizuki book, is a daunting task. Mizuki is considered Japan's resident expert on yokai tales in manga; according to the book's foreward, there's an entire segment of the Japanese population who owes their knowledge of the yokai world to GeGeGe no Kitaro. It makes sense: every chapter is a field study on a different variety of ayakashi as they wreck mischief on the human world.

And at the center of the story is the mysterious boy Kitaro, the human-looking yokai with one eye whose powers with the supernatural are a thing of legend. If something goes wrong, the world calls upon Kitaro for guidance, and he works his magic to the 'ge ge ge' chorus of the beasts all around him. He dutifully serves the realm of humans but his life is fully entrenched in the yokai world, and his ability to slide between these two spheres is a major reason why both sides look up to him. 

Dear Julietta, I Have Thoughts On Your Manga

Spoiler alert: post contains spoilers for the Kamisama Hajimemashita manga up to volume 18/chapter 107.

Kamisama Kiss volume 18
Nanami’s journey to the past was a success! She found a way to break the curse and save Tomoe, and he even admitted that he has feelings for her. Now they’re both ready to enjoy life as a happy couple. Tomoe is hoping to spend some special alone time with Nanami, but instead they go on a school trip to Okinawa with the entire grade—and things go from tropical paradise to yokai nightmare in no time!

Dear Julietta Suzuki:

Julietta - do you mind if I call you Julietta? - I've been told that you will be attending Anime Expo 2015 this year, to take place July 2-5. Awesome! The company that publishes your manga in English, Viz Media, has been asking fans of your series for questions to ask you during the convention. It is no secret to anyone who reads Nagareboshi Reviews that I am a big big fan of Kamisama Kiss, especially Nanami and her relationship with Tomoe, the human kami and her protector/servant.

I would love to ask you a hundred questions on your creative process, how you draft every chapter, where the inspiration for each story arc came from . . . but after reading the most recent English graphic novel release of Kamisama Kiss, I'll have to make my questions a little more plot focused.

Fall Back Into The Spring: Nostalgia, Ranma, and Rumiko

Pictured above: a ridiculously small percentage of the Ranma 1/2 cast,
fulfilling the rule that a Takahashi manga has to have more characters than Game of Thrones.

There are few series that invoke a deep sense of fan-based nostalgia as Ranma ½, which could have easily gone down in history as Rumiko Takahashi's most popular and beloved series until Inuyasha came along and knocked it off its throne. It also helps that while Ranma and Inuyasha are both wacky fantasy-based romantic hijink programs, Inuyasha benefited from being more accessible to U.S. fans, airing on American TV, and appealing to young female viewers with its telenovela romance of Inuyasha and Kagome.

Ranma, however, is special and always will be to me. When I think Ranma, I think about renting the first VHS of Ranma 1/2's anime from the local Blockbuster, then watching it in my mom's room on her tiny television set and watching the martial arts madness fly across the screen. I never actually finished the anime – a lot of episodes plus films and movies made it a hard project to complete when the Blockbusters doesn't keep new tapes in stock – but I still have a great fondness for the animation and the opening/ending themes, which have become iconic in their own right.

Manga Review: Attack on Titan GN 15

Attack On Titan volume 15
Author: Hajime Isayama
Kodansha Comics
192 pages

Hange’s interrogation of a Military Police squad has revealed that Krista (a.k.a. Historia Reiss) is the true heir to the throne. The Corps quickly moves to enthrone her as queen, but a homicidal MP leads a squad that abducts Eren and Krista and throws the Corps into disarray. With Erwin arrested and the Survey Corps on the edge of dissolution, are Levi and Hange finally out of options? (Source: Random House)

I remember not being very enamored of the previous volume of Attack On Titan/Shingeki no Kyojin but I couldn't remember why until I looked back over my review of it. It was a bit of a messy, clusterfuck bomb of a book that threw a ton of plot twists at the wall just to see what would stick, which is really no good way to construct a manga. By comparison, the fifteenth and latest volume of AoT is pretty great, even though in some ways they both share the same narrative issues. Yet, this book handles these issues so much better and puts an end to a subplot that had been threatening to drag the series into the muck for a while.

Eisner Noms for 2015 Yield Nods To Manga Field

The 2015 Eisner Awards Nominations have recently come out - and hey, it looks like manga is once again getting some recognition! A full list of the nominations can be found at the Comic Con website, but the most important category of nominations for manga fans can be found below:

Best U.S. Edition of International Material—Asia

All You Need Is Kill, by Hiroshi Sakurazaka, Ryosuke Takeuchi, Takeshi Obata & yoshitoshi ABe (VIZ)
In Clothes Called Fat, by Moyoco Anno (Vertical)
Master Keaton, vol 1, by Naoki Urasawa, Hokusei Katsushika, & Takashi Nagasaki (VIZ)
One-Punch Man, by One & Yusuke Murata (VIZ)
Showa 1939–1944 and Showa 1944–1953: A History of Japan, by Shigeru Mizuki (Drawn & Quarterly)
Wolf Children: Ame & Yuki, by Mamoru Hosada & Yu (Yen Press)

I'm torn between the Moyoco Anno and the Sakurazawa/Takeuchi/Obata/ABe titles, to be honest. And then there's Master Keaton! And a Shigeru Mizuki title, from a publisher not as well known for manga as the others, which is pretty awesome. I don't think there's a dull title in the bunch.

Looking at the other titles, briefly, I see that the new Ms Marvel (Kamala Khan) got some nods too. Awesome! I've only read the first trade paperback but I adore Kamala and her series. I'm kinda frumpy over MIND MGMT not getting any nominations, but I'm hoping it has gotten some recognition through the Eisners before? I don't see how it couldn't.

Some other favorites of mine getting noms through Eisner this year: Matt Fraction's Hawkeye, Lumberjanes by Stevenson et al, Seconds by O'Malley (YOU GOTTA READ SECONDS RIGHT NOW, SCOTT PILGRIM FANS), Noto's Black Widow (which will win best cover artist if there is any justice in the universe).

I don't read as many U.S. comics as I do manga so what titles in this list should I be looking at?

Manga Sprites: Video Games and Time Travel

In this edition of Manga Sprites, super short reviews of recently read books, I look at the first volume of No Game No Life and the latest volumes (or near-latest) of Kamisama Kiss, Library Wars and Blue Exorcist. Spoilers for the last three series!

No Game, No Life volume 1 by Yuu Kamiya, Mashiro Hiiragi: There was an urban legend that there was a legendary, undefeated gamer called [ ], but in reality he was just a NEET brother and sister called 空 (Sora) and 白 (Shiro). These hikikomori siblings who both refer to the real world as a worthless "Kuso Game" are one day summoned to a different world by a boy calling himself "God".

I tried to enjoy this manga, since it is a favorite of my best friend, but wow it is so terrible. I found the main characters grating, especially the brother's arrogant and lack of empathy towards other human beings. There is a lot of ridiculous fanservice and the amount of panty shots, breast shots, and sexy poses in unsexy scenes had me wondering if NGNL is a h-manga in disguise. There are so many other series about people being pulled into MMORPGs and series about NEETS/hikkikomori as main characters that I don't see how NGNL can be seen as original. I'll probably not be picking up the second volume unless it drops into my lap and I'm so bored I can't help but flip through it.

Maka Vs Chrona: Brief Thoughts On Soul Eater 24

DWMA braces for the final showdown as the Kishin awakens from his slumber at the heart of the moon. Unable to contain his rage, Noah is the first to attack, the Book of Eibon and "BREW" fueling his assault. Despite his formidable efforts, though, Noah is overcome not by the Kishin, but by the sudden appearance of Crona. With the world hanging in the balance, DWMA can only wonder who will prove to be the greater foe--the Kishin...or Crona...

This was just a really good volume of Soul Eater. Is it okay to leave it at that? I can't even explain why: it's literally an entire book of Chrona and Maka duking it out on the freaking moon. Actually, yeah, that says it all. It's a big ol' MOON FIGHT, with bonus full-blood-madness Chrona and Maka/Soul really hitting the soul resonance ability with their best efforts since they first partnered.

I am usually bored by so much fighting but this time, I was incredibly entertained. Maybe it was the striking visuals of Chrona's madness, partnered with their abilities in motion and the mirrored calmness of Maka and Soul's wavelength against the darkness. Perhaps it was the fact that one of the moon's teeth is knocked out from Chrona's powers; that scene was both horrifying and hilarious, and it's that combination that pretty much best defines Soul Eater at its best.

I was glad for so many things in this book: the team efforts from Maka and her back-up squad; the usage of Maka's dad as both a paternal figure as a weapon; the callback to Medusa and the horrible psychological damage she did to her own child; the fact that the Kishin is still among them and still a tangible threat. The art was on point, the pacing was fast but not ridiculous, and it ends on a surprisingly badass moment from Death the Kid which just has to be seen firsthand.

I haven't gotten my hands on the final volume of Soul Eater, which I know is already out yet via Yen Press - libraries, man, I don't think manga is high on their priority list! - but judging by this book and the preview for the finale, I already know it's gonna be a doozy. Hopefully, it'll make all of the waiting worth it.

It Took 10 Volumes For Me To Warm To The Magi Manga

This is a story about the flow of fate and the battle to keep the world on the right path. Aladdin is a boy who has set out to explore the world after being trapped in a room for most of his life. His best friend is a flute with a djinn in it named Ugo. Soon enough, Aladdin discovers he is a Magi, a magician who chooses kings, and he was born to choose kings who will follow the righteous path, battling against those who want to destroy fate. (Source: MU)

I'm kind of tired of people telling me that mediocre manga "gets better" the further you get into it. I don't have a lot of time to invest in lower quality storytelling and art when I already read a lot of good-and-above manga series. Magi, for the longest time it seems, was one of those titles. However, the person telling me this about Magi is one of my best friends, so for him, I persevered, as sempai often do for their kohai.

Well, kohai, I am here to report that ten volumes into Magi (I follow the Viz releases, so sue me) I have not fallen in love with the series but it is so much of a bearable story than it was at the beginning.

Five Things I'll Miss About Pandora Hearts

Spoiler alert: Discusses Mochizuki Jun's Pandora Hearts up to and including volume 22.

I've just finished the 22nd volume of Pandora Hearts - which, WOW - and for some reason, Yen Press has no information about the next, allegedly final volume. Not even a placeholder on the series page! Yen Press, y'all killing me over here.

There are not many series in which I feel physical and emotional consternation after finishing a book, but damn if MochiJun's Pandora Hearts isn't one of them. Over twenty volumes later and she still has the power to make me care about her expansive cast of characters while keeping the story fresh and interesting. Plus, she knows just when a series needs to end. And right now, the end of the story of the Abyss and Oz is coming sooner than later.

With the end of the epic fantasy manga series Pandora Hearts just on the horizon (probably, most likely), I'm looking back at some of the things I'm gonna miss when Oz and Alice and the rest of the team sign off for good.

(Well, until Yen Press releases the Caucus Race companion novels. Excited for those!)

Manga Review: Millennium Snow GN 4

Millennium Snow volume 4
Author: Bisco Hatori
Viz Manga/Shojo Beat
200 pages

Spoiler alert: Review contains major spoilers for the fourth and final volume of Millennium Snow, as well as events leading up to it.

Toya still hasn’t agreed to make Chiyuki his partner, but while his opinion hasn’t budged, time has. It’s now their last year in high school, and Toya is facing the prospect of supporting himself for the rest of his long life. But even with Chiyuki’s calming influence, is Toya capable of holding down a job? And if he’s not, how will a lone vampire survive in this cold world?

In 2001, manga-ka Bisco Hatori would begin work on her vampire shojo series Millennium Snow. A year later and another series would quickly eclipse the first's in popularity and steal away Hatori's attentions, leading to putting Millennium Snow on hiatus for years and years (that second series being, of course, the classic rom-com Ouran High School Host Club).

Over ten years later, Hatori has returned to her first series proper and given it a real ending. While it occasionally dips into the melodramatic and the rushed, it marks a significant uptick in Hatori's manga repertoire and gives the story of Chiyuki and Toya a much desired conclusion.

Confessions of a Soul Eater Fan, Tomar Uno

Not sure if Soul Eater tankobon cover
or album art for their new mixtape.

Spoiler alert: Post contains spoilers for Soul Eater volume 23 and Soul Eater Not! volume 4.

Reading the two different Soul Eater series via Yen Press' English releases so far - the parent series, Soul Eater, and its shoujo-esque sister series of a prequel, Soul Eater Not! - I keep finding that, comparing releases, I'm enjoying the NOT version more than the EAT version. And that is kind of weird! And possibly controversial, since Eat! is a spin-off with seemingly few fans.

The main sticking point for readers is the wide difference in tones between the two series: Soul Eater is a darkly Gothic/Tim Burton series with demented themes and artwork; Soul Eater Not! lives in the same Burtonesque series but earlier in the timeline, and is much more fluffier and brighter than its original form. The main drama in Soul Eater is the war against the First Kishin, the mad Chrona launching themselves onto the Moon, and the strained relationship between DWMA and the witches. The main drama in Soul Eater Not? Whether or not our heroine Tsugumi will find a meister partner for her weapon and whether it will be Anya or Meme.

And yet, I - who effin' loves how dark and dramatic Soul Eater has gotten, and how far it's gone from the original, boring story of mindless soul gathering by DWMA students - wish there was more Soul Eater Not! to read more than the original series. Unfortunately, both series are nearing the end of their run; Soul Eater ends at volume 25, its spin-off at volume 5.

Manga Review: Voice Over! GN 3

Voice Over! volume 3
Author: Maki Minami
Viz Manga/Shojo Beat
192 pages

Hime just got her first big break in voice acting, but it means she has to move out of her house and pretend to be a boy! Her new manager, Yamada, is willing to put in the extra time to train her personally, and Hime's hope of being a voice actor seems close to being fulfilled. But Yamada insists that he'll only use her for male characters. Will she have to give up on Lovely Blazer to see her dream come true?

After volume two of Maki Minami's latest shojo series, Voice Over/Seiyuu Ka, I was expecting volume three to focus more on Hime and her VA school group as they prepare for their next performance. Instead, what I got was a fun and slightly dangerous romp through the forest as Hime spends a weekend in a voice acting retreat with school duo fave Aqua.

As with any good forest retreat involving teenagers, a possible relationship forms and drama ensues. Plus, Hime gets flicked on the forehead a lot by Yamada, her manager who has no problem pushing Hime to her limits to hear her famous prince voice. Even though the scope has narrowed to focus on just Hime's goals as a VA, I enjoyed it as much as if the whole crew was present.

Manga Review: Naruto GN 68

Naruto volume 68
Author: Masashi Kishimoto
Viz Media/Shonen Jump
192 pages

Spoilers for the current arc of Naruto, up to chapter 657.

Path: Even as the Shinobi Alliance’s resolve begins to falter in the face of Obito’s overwhelming power, Naruto refuses to give in. But how can he turn the tables with the odds so stacked against him? Can Naruto and Sasuke work together long enough to lead the ninja world to victory?!

The first 90 percent of this volume of Naruto is pretty good. We have shinobi working across village and country lines against Obito, Naruto and Sasuke teaming up yet again in the name of saving the ninja world, and a good amount of action in every chapter. It's a shame the last ten percent had me wanting to throw the thing across the room. Basically, Kishimoto decided that one final boss wasn't enough. No, he added yet another one. And at that point, I nearly screamed.

In this book, all of the action quickly boils down to the fight between Team Naruto and Sasuke versus Team Obito. It's obvious that both Naruto and Sasuke's powers have blossomed in unfathomable ways since they last fought, and their abilities joined together is hard to beat.

Birth Rites and Testimonies: On Reading Children of the Sea

One summer vacation, Ruka meets two boys, "Umi" and "Sora," whose upbringing contains strange and wonderful secrets. Drawn to their beautiful swimming, almost more like flying, Ruka and the adults who know them are intertwined in a complex mesh... (Source: SigIkki)

This weekend I finished reading Daisuke Igarashi's Children of the Sea, a Viz Manga/SigIkki seinen release. It's taken me years to finish this manga. It's so beautifully drawn and intricate in plot and visual that I didn't want it to end, thus why I took forever to read the fifth and final volume. The wait was worth it.

This Igarashi manga is billed as a mystery and Wikipedia calls it an adventure, which are both accurate in their own way, but overall it's a fantasy of the world. Like the sea, the deeper you get into it, the more opaque it gets. For many, that can be a distraction from the story. People want answers, and for a mystery, this series isn't concerned with finding answers.

Yet when you break through the other side with Ruka at the end of her journey, being opaque makes sense. It fits with the series, with the characters and their narratives. This series encompasses death and rebirth and a sense of oneness that never feels forced. It's a beautiful thing to read.

Manga Review: Attack On Titan GN 14

Attack On Titan volume 14
Author: Hajime Isayama
Kodansha Comics
192 pages

Commander Erwin has finally come to a decision: Putting their own wealth and position ahead of the survival of humanity, the royal government is no longer fit to lead. To execute their leader’s most audacious plan yet, Eren and Krista will have to put themselves in peril yet again, and Armin, Mikasa, and the rest of the Survey Corps will have to turn from humanity’s guardians into traitors. If they fail this time, they’ll face not a Titan’s gaping mouth, but the gallows…

Maybe this is a sign I'm slowly starting to get burned out on the Attack On Titan manga, because this volume was good, but it was frustrating at times and ridiculous at others. For a series centered around colossal human-looking beasts that tower above everything and eat people like gummy bears, you expect a certain level of the absurd but volume 14 really takes the cake.

It's not even the fact that the series has shifted its focus from fighting titans to fighting government corruption, because in such a closely collected community of paranoia and desperation as those who live behind the walls, this kind of in-fighting is bound to happen. No, it's just that some of the plot twists that Isayama throws at us with the subtlety of a quick brick that has me groaning.

Manga Review: Kamisama Kiss GN 16

Kamisama Kiss volume 16
Author: Julietta Suzuki
Viz Manga/Shojo Beat
200 pages

Back in feudal Japan, Akura-oh is getting frustrated with his best friend and rampage companion Tomoe. He correctly guesses that Tomoe is lovesick, and decides the best way to deal with it is to kill the object of his affection--Yukiji! And to make matters worse, when Nanami wears historical clothes, she looks an awful lot like Yukiji! Can she manage to preserve the past, save Tomoe, protect Yukiji and keep from getting killed?!

I am really digging the current time travel arc in Kamisama Kiss. I'm a big fan of shows which incorporate time travel into their stories and have near-time paradox situations that actually work out (with a little in series explanation, of course) – LOST did this very well in seasons four and five – and Kamisama Kiss' own "rescue Tomoe with the past" arc is coming along well.

In this volume, Nanami works harder than ever to find a cure for Tomoe's curse, determined to find Kuromaro of Mount Ontake, wherever that may be. Her mission gets slightly sidetracked after escaping from Akura-oh's company and falling back in with Yukiji, but it looks like Nanami's more than passing resemblance to the other woman will become a useful tool to ward off a couple of mischievous, dangerous demons.