Former site writer Rob Vollmar has talked up the works of Osamu Tezuka, “God of Manga”, here before, but none of them clicked with me until now. (Big thanks to David Welsh, whose contest got these books to me for free.)

Black Jack Book 1
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Black Jack is a rogue surgeon, an unlicensed doctor who refuses to kowtow to the medical establishment. He requests immense fees to accomplish the impossible, such as treating sores that form faces and talk or transplanting a brain to a new body so an artist can finish his life’s masterpiece. (His treatment methods can also be extreme, as when he shoots a possessed patient to knock him out for an operation or treats uterine cancer with a sex change.)

Customers think he’s only in it for the money, but he’s more noble than that … although being rich also helps insulate him from those petty officials and selfish egomaniacs who want him stopped. There’s a kind of Randian individualism to Black Jack’s choices. He can do amazing things, and he has little patience for those who get in his way because of their own fears and insecurities. Hypocrites and the corrupt think of him as one of them, but he’s far from it.

Tezuka majored in medicine in college, which gives him enough background to give these crazy operations somewhat plausible grounding. The real point of the stories is a moral message. Black Jack uses his skills to play god sometimes, bringing a just end to those who deserve it when no one else can.

For example, in the first story, a rich man’s spoiled son has destroyed himself in a car crash. He’s so far gone that another body is needed for replacement parts. The tycoon has no problem framing a poor man for murder, then delivering him to be cut up, but instead of rebuilding the son, Black Jack uses plastic surgery to make the innocent man look like the now-dead son, thus neatly defeating the corrupt.

The characters are caricatures, showing their personalities through their features. The wealthy patriarch is hawk-nosed, with sharp edges and curling hair resembling a crown of feathers. The cowering hospital head is all big nose and balding head, a comedy figure. When we first see Black Jack, it’s a striking pose, cape-like coat blowing in the wind, scarred face and two-tone hair showing how distinctive he is compared to others. The pacing is perfectly suited for action and suspense.

The over-the-top premises of the stories are engrossing. It’s unbelievable that a woman can get visions from a cornea transplanted from a murdered donor, or a famous woman’s psychic “living tumor” could become a doll-like companion to Black Jack. (Katherine Dacey talks about the problems with Pinoko in her review.) Even the Christmas story involves amputation and a rare romance. (Love isn’t treated kindly in this series.) I can see this appealing to fans of shows like CSI or House.

The publisher’s website has previews available. Vertical plans to bring these books out every other month until the whole thing is collected, at least 17 books’ worth. They need your support to follow through on these plans, and the material is deserving of readership.

Chris Butcher’s review talks about how the stories have been rearranged and redrawn in some cases. Jog has also covered the book.

Let’s just get to the point. Genshiken Official Book is Del Rey’s attempt to get one more sale from Genshiken fans now that the series has ended. The book also claims to be an introduction and guide for those who haven’t read the series yet. However, there is isn’t much to recommend the book to either fan or newcomer.

Genshiken Official Book
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The first four chapters are meant to serve as a series introduction. The first chapter does a good job of summing up the philosophy, history, and most memorable events of the Genshiken club, but the second chapter is the worst chapter in the book. We’re introduced to each character through panels from the original manga featuring that particular character. Each panel has an accompanying caption. The problem is that the captions usually just restate, sometimes verbatim, what is said in the panel. For example, on page 38, in the Madarame section, there is a panel showing Madarame saying, “There’s no way that you could really have a little sister.” The caption under the panel says, “No way you could have a little sister: When Madarame learned that Sasahara had a younger sister, he insisted that it was impossible.” The repetition is maddening. I found myself ignoring the panels completely and just skimming the captions. Occasionally, there is a caption that actually conveys a needed explanation not available in the panel or has a joke about the personality of the featured character. If you’ve read the manga, it’s best to just skip this chapter all together.

The third chapter talks about a few of the relationships within the group. I found the explanations a little overdramatic and simplistic. Odder still is the lack of any mention of Sasahara’s romantic relationship in the last two volumes or so of the series. I got the impression that this official book originally was published in Japan before the series concluded, and so the author didn’t want to spoil the upcoming events.

The final introductory chapter is Madarame’s Ten Commandments for Otaku. The first couple are actually funny, but the rest are too specific to situations within the manga to be of any general use. This specificity caused the humor to fail for most of the chapter.

I’m going to skip ahead to the last chapter for a moment. Here, Shimoku explains all the references found in the character sheets spread throughout the original manga. Only the most diehard Genshiken fan will find this chapter interesting, or even readable. For everyone else, it’s too much minutia to wade through. It’s best to skip this chapter also.

Chapters five through eight are original material and the best part of the book. As fun as these chapters are, they don’t justify the need for an entire book. Instead, it would have been better to include this material as bonus content at the end of the manga volumes.

Chapter five is a brief introduction to the fictional anime Kujibiki Unbalance. The chapter contains a short description of the series’ main characters as well as a script for the first half of episode one. It’s nice to have this information organized and to get a better peek at the anime that all the Genshiken members love deeply. Shimoku is smart enough to keep this chapter just as vague as the original manga. This allows the reader to create their own version of what this anime must be like. Since most, if not all readers, will imagine a series that incorporates their own favorite anime elements, this allows them to feel like they have a common bond with the Genshiken members.

Chapter six is a reproduction of the first issue of the Genshiken club’s fanzine from 1987. The chapter also includes an interview with Ken Akamatsu (A.I. Love You, Love Hina, Negi!). The fanzine is a fun, nostalgic trip for those knowledgeable about 80s anime. The Akamatsu interview is the real highlight of the chapter. He talks about his own involvement in his college’s anime, manga, and movie clubs. This leads to a discussion of his participation in the biannual Comiket convention and his becoming a professional manga artist. The interview really focuses on the economics of selling books at Comiket and the kind of money a successful manga group can make. Akamatsu claims that it’s possible to sell 20,000 books in one day. If you do the math, a successful group can make a good living just from Comiket book sales. It was amazing to find out Akamatsu still participates in Comiket to this day. Currently, he just sells storyboards or character portfolios for about a dollar.

The seventh chapter contains two short stories, each by a different novelist, featuring members of the Genshiken shopping. The stories are quick, light reads.

The eighth chapter breaks down the basics of the otaku life. There are brief explanations of Akihabara, fanzines, fight games, porn games, anime, etc. The chapter ends with a story of Sasahara and Madarame buying porn games. The story, and accompanying footnotes, will tell you everything you ever wanted to know about the porn game industry in Japan. The chapter as a whole contains a lot of interesting information about otaku culture in Japan. The Akihabara section is especially useful to first-time visitors.

At its heart, Genshiken was a series about learning to accept yourself and a group of people who accept and support each other, even after knowing each other’s dark secrets. It’s not surprising that fans of the series would like one last chance to visit this lovable rogues’ gallery of otaku. Genshiken Official Book won’t scratch anybody’s itch. The book is focused on dispensing information, and you don’t get to spend any real time with the characters themselves. As I said earlier, I just don’t see the need for this book, and I certainly can’t justify paying almost $15 for it. Fans would best spend their money finding a new series to follow or buying a new volume of a series they’re currently reading.

(A complimentary copy was provided by the publisher for this review.)

Parasyte Book 1
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When alien worms come to possess humans, Shinichi is saved by his Walkman. He uses the cord as a makeshift tourniquet, preventing the invader from making a full transfer after it bores into his hand. Instead, it takes over only his right arm.

(When Tokyopop originally published this series from 1999-2002, they flipped the art so it read left-to-right, as was expected of translated manga series at the time. That meant that the parasite was called “Lefty” instead of “Migi”, as it is here, which means “right”.)

The art is clear and straightforward with a minimum of stylization and simple, rectangular panel layouts. It provides a grounded setting for the outrageous events shown; because the presentation is so normal, the air of menace is more disturbing.

Once possessed, people become shape-shifters, devouring others. (The parasites eat others of whatever species they possess.) Shinichi’s arm winds up taking on Plastic Man-like effects, stretching and warping. It grows its own eyes and mouth to communicate with its host. Migi is a failure at its mission, but it wants to learn, stumbling at English and reading while Shinichi sleeps. Unlike the other parasites, who completely take over their hosts by entering the brain, the two maintain separate personalities.

Parasyte Book 2
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That causes other parasites to see them as a threat, but it also leads to black humor. Migi wants to know more about reproduction, so when Shinichi is shyly talking to a female classmate, his hand forms into a giant penis. Shinichi contemplates cutting off his hand to be rid of Migi, but once it starts behaving, the two form an uneasy alliance. Shinichi doesn’t want to lose part of his body, and Migi needs him to learn and survive.

Shinichi doesn’t pay enough attention, I think, to something that Migi says early on: “I am not human, nor am I a pet.” Its sympathies and drives are not his. When various people wind up dead, chopped up and eaten, Shinichi knows it’s another parasite — but when he wants to tell someone, Migi threatens him in frightening ways.

The demented imagination on view here is impressively chilling. They encounter another “failed” parasyte, one that possessed a feral dog instead of a human. It wants to kill them, pursuing them by turning its head into giant bat-like wings, giving the image of a headless beast flapping after them. Other, more evolved parasites unwrap their human-looking heads in strange, unsettling ways, becoming ribbon-like blades or sharp tentacles.

From Migi’s perspective, its kind is only feeding on something, just like humans keep and kill others. It’s a question I first saw explored in The Vampire Tapestry — if a species existed that only ate humans, would it be wrong for it to kill us? It’s about exploring ethical predation. Humans can be very selfish; what would we do if something just as selfish but more powerful than us arrived on Earth?

Parasyte Book 3
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As book one continues, Migi and Shinichi meet other parasites, including one that has taken over its victim’s life as well as the body, successfully pretending to be a schoolteacher. Those close to Shinichi are noting how much he’s changing through all this. How could he not? He now has a dangerous secret and big decisions to make that he can’t share with anyone.

A key difference between Shinichi and Migi is emphasized in book two. For Migi, everything is analyzed in terms of survival. Whether or not to fight someone is solely a matter to be determined based on whether you can win. For Shinichi, sometimes you fight, knowing you’re going to lose, because it’s the right thing to do (because, for example, a gang of tough guys from a rival school is hassling a classmate). Migi doesn’t understand self-sacrifice, while Shinichi is driven to reassert his humanity in the face of fears that Migi’s presence is changing him more than he knows.

Then many of the decisions are taken out of Shinichi’s hands, as his family becomes deeply involved in a shocking, life-threatening turn of events. His parents have gone off on a vacation, leaving him alone to face an unexpected encounter. After he expresses everything he’s previously left unspoken, he winds up scarred in more than one way. He’s continuing to transform, becoming almost super-human in some ways, with enhanced senses. He meets other hosts, possessed to different degrees, as he (and we) find out more about how the parasites work and what kinds of lives are possible with them.

Parasyte Book 4
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Book three introduces another student with a parasite, only he’s fully transformed. He says he wants to learn from Shinichi how to co-exist peacefully, but his actions are suspect. Then again, so are Shinichi’s, as he’s becoming more like Migi in disturbing ways. He fights less now, as he’s more capable of winning. Others recognize his frightening calm and back off.

Shinichi is losing his weaknesses — his indecision, his caring for others, his physical uncertainty — but it’s still a question whether that makes him a better person. He was more human when he had more flaws. When confronted with a horrific massacre, though, he still reacts emotionally, with panic. That mass killing was the result of a smart art student finding out about the parasite student. Society is beginning to suspect their existence, and the result is fear, suspicion, and confusion.

By book four, Shinichi is torn between two girls: Satomi is a classmate, a normal girl who’s suspicious of the changes she sees happening in him, while Kana’s more of a gangster. She runs with tough guys and has the psychic ability to sense parasites. Her lack of fear attracts him, but he’s afraid it will also get her into trouble, a premonition that comes true and draws official attention to him. That leads to his biggest dilemma yet — how far will he go to protect his secret in the face of Migi’s insistence on survival.

In book five, Shinichi has one last chance to share with Satomi, but he can’t bring himself to tell her the truth. Instead, he makes plans to find out how much others know about him by turning the tables on those following him.

Parasyte Book 5
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The back cover mentions his “desperate struggle to save his own soul”, which sums it all up poetically but doesn’t apply to how the characters think about things. Migi doesn’t believe in souls, only Skinner-esque behaviorism and Darwinist survival of the fittest. Shinichi, on the other hand, feels like he’s losing himself, but he can’t get past his immediate circumstances to think in such high-toned terms.

Even though it’s full of terrifying scenes and ideas, I like this series because of the main character. Although there’s gore, there’s also humor and feelings I can relate to. Often, you’re supposed to become more emotionally stoic as you grow up. Although the cause of Shinichi’s shut down is different, his concerns are universal, wondering if what he’s feeling or not feeling is normal when there’s really no such thing.

The price of each volume is higher than the usual manga, but each book is thicker than normal, too, at over 280 pages. And the reading is dense, with plenty happening to keep the reader involved. (Complimentary copies for this review were provided by the publisher.)

Japan is under attack by aliens who want to steal their national landmarks. These wily aliens understand that you can’t beat the Japanese with advanced technology or superior numbers. The only way to insure victory is to attack the Japanese in their one true weakness, cuteness (kawaii in Japanese). So they’ve crafted the most charming monsters to come and pilfer the Japanese treasures. How can the Japanese government protect their cultural heritage when the public swiftly turns against anyone who dares to harm these adorable creatures?

Ah, but the Japan defense force is just a shrewd as the aliens and have fashioned the perfect counterattack force. The Special Defense Corps is made up of three super-cute elementary schoolgirls: Mao, Sylvia, and Misora. Only by being more kawaii then the enemy are these maidens able to fight off the aliens’ attempts at larceny.

Mao-Chan Book 1
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Mao-Chan is an adaptation of the Ken Akamatsu anime released back in 2003 and 2004. Del Rey has combined the first and second volumes of the Japanese edition into one book for US release. When referring to either volume one or two, I mean as published in the Japanese edition.

The series starts off as a funny and insightful satire of Japanese culture, especially Japan’s kawaii cult. (To understand how pervasive cute things are in Japanese culture, read the book Hello, Please! Very Helpful Super Kawaii Characters From Japan.) I love the fact that the aliens have analyzed Japanese culture and realize the Japanese will let cute creatures do anything they want. When the Japanese public sees a cute creature, they go into a kawaii coma and are helpless to act against the invader.

It’s amazing how quickly the military is able to form its own cute defense force. Kinda like the government was already aware of this weakness and had a contingency plan in place just in case someone else figured this out. One of the funniest elements in volume one is how the Special Defense Corp’s (SDC) budget is directly tied to public opinion. So it becomes a battle of the cute, as the aliens try to either develop a creature cuter than the girls of the SDC or counteract their cuteness. I’ve always liked Akamatsu, but I found new respect for him as a writer seeing how deftly he handled this lampoon.

I think the setup for the series is brilliant. Akamatsu has created a show that allows him to poke good-natured fun at an almost unlimited variety of targets. For example, each of the girls wears a clover pin that allows them to transform into their SDC uniform. Fans of Sailor Moon will see the reference and parody of the magical girl genre. Each of the girls has a fighting specialty, Mao’s is ground defense, Misora’s is air, and Sylvia’s is the sea. However, they are able to combine their abilities to form a superpower attack. Fans of Power Rangers, Thundercats, Voltron, etc. will see the parody of Japanese superhero team shows here.

Akamatsu is also poking fun at himself and how he has made a handsome living exploiting Japan’s kawaii culture in his own series Love Hina. Even doting grandfathers aren’t safe from lighthearted ridicule. The SDC is headed by the grandfathers of each girl. They spend as much time arguing over who is the cutest and most beloved as they do over military tactics. Mao-Chan reminds me of the first volumes of Ranma ½ where Takahashi used the series to satirize gender roles, romantic relationships, martial arts movies, and fighting manga.

There is a shift in emphasis once we get to the second volume. The satire aspects are downplayed, and the series begins to focus more on character development. I have to admit I was a little disappointed at first. However, the first volume is very gag-driven and there really is only so far you can go before the parody wears out. The character-driven stories help balance the series out. It’s still a comedy series, just the focus of the jokes have changed. Another advantage of the second volume is longer stories, which are a nice change of pace from the first volume where each chapter is its own story.

I have only one minor complaint with Mao-Chan: the stories have a sitcom nature. This only becomes evident because we have two volumes to read through. Certain jokes and themes get repeated through each of the stories. Mao is clumsy, the grandfathers always argue over who is the cutest and should get all the credit, the alien spies always underestimate the SDC, etc. You can overcome this problem if you don’t try reading through the book in one or two sittings like I did. It’s best to read a story arc, then set the book down until the next day and then read the next story. Toward the end of the second volume, you can see the series moving away from this formulaic story structure.

The artwork in this book is excellent. RAN copies Akamatsu’s style very well. In fact, a few of the characters could be the twin sisters of other Akamatsu characters: Kagome Mishima is Naru Narusegawa (Love Hina) with a more realistic bust line, Sylvia Maruyama is a more mature-looking Shinobu Maehara (Love Hina), and Yuriko Ozara looks like Asuna Kagurazaka (Negi!) minus the bell barrettes and shorter hair. This can be a little distracting at times, but I consider this a minor flaw.

Since this is an Akamatsu series, you have to expect some fan service. Remarkably, there is much less than in his other series. (I would say about only a tenth of what you normally get.) RAN does a great job with character designs and communicates emotions well. He is also adeptly handles the fight scenes. There’s a wonderful sense of energy and fun in all the artwork throughout the book.

The book includes translation notes, original character sketches, three four-panel comic strips, a one-shot story of Mao and the SDC ten years later, and a list of all the aliens fought in the book. It’s a thick book, but it has a very nice tight binding. There’s an English website for the anime.

I thoroughly enjoyed Mao-Chan and recommend it to anyone who enjoys light satire. Fans of anime and manga will get the most out of the series, since they’ll see all the parodies. However, Mao-Chan is also accessible to newcomers. Akamatsu is smart enough to make the jokes stand on their own. I’m looking forward to the next volume to see how the storytelling continues to evolve as well as seeing what comes next for the Mao and the SDC. (A complimentary copy of this book was provided by the publisher for this review.)

Gimmick Book 1
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The stories are action-packed, but with plenty of humor. In the first chapter, Kohei is crushing on a young actress. When his butt-kicking agent shows up to chew him out about not following the rules, and she reveals that his next job involves the actress, Kohei’s drawn as a begging wolf, tail wagging. His idea of a cute parlor trick to introduce himself is to pretend to have his eyeball fall out, then burst into confetti. The combination of goofiness with sometimes gruesome effects would fit right in with horror comedies like Shaun of the Dead.

The authors, writer Youzaburou Kanari and artist Kurko Yabuguchi, do a great job with scenarios where Kohei’s abilities make sense to save the day. They often take place in the entertainment world, adding another level of excitement. For instance, an actress who feels like she’s under house arrest is disguised so she can escape her abusive manager’s attention. Or one with major scars needs them covered up so she can do sexy, skin-baring scenes.

Kohei’s partner, assistant, and keeper is a stuntman, which allows for car chases and last-minute escapes. All of their skills come in handy for the central story, about a monster theme park being attacked by a former employee out for revenge. The previous expert had confused creating fear with grossing out the customers, making disgusting instead of scary zombies. To combat him, Kohei creates a makeup assembly line, giving visitors new faces to confuse the villain.

The transformation process is a chance for dramatic art. It’s treated intensely, as though it were life-saving surgery, but with the elements and techniques explained to the reader, providing a mini-course in movie makeup. They even drop names of famous effects creators like Rick Baker. Kohei affects reality by altering perception. The high-stakes action and visual trickery are perfect for comics.

(A complimentary copy for this review was provided by the publisher.)

We Were There Book 1
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Yano has a past, already: his previous girlfriend died the year before. Although most readers know this coming in, the book reveals how Nanami learns it in a reasonable, measured fashion. I’m used to feeling like I know more than a manga heroine, but here, the contrast brings a potent edge to comments between her and Yano. They have multiple meanings, and the narration reminds us that she would only know what he really meant later.

When I described the premise to a bookstore clerk recently, about coping with the memory of a dead girlfriend, she responded, “Yeah, that’s a Shojo Beat title.” (She preferred Del Rey’s books.) And I suppose it does sound like a soapy high school story. The reason I like it, though, is how honestly the emotions come across to the reader. Nanami doesn’t quite know why she doesn’t fit into the other groups of chatting girls; she just knows that somehow, subtly, she missed out. Her falling in love with Yano is a little fast, but we see it develop, in spite of their early missteps.

He follows his own path; without his background, he’d come across as lazy and self-centered, but with his emotional excuse, of grief and surviving loss at a young age, he instead reads as unconcerned with the usual social niceties that have no real purpose. He no longer has patience with doing things the “right” way. I like him more than her, actually, and I wish we saw more inside his feelings. That’s the flip side disadvantage of a slow build.

(A complimentary copy for this review was provided by the publisher.)

The Manga Guide to Statistics
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When Rui first meets her father’s co-worker, Mr. Igarashi, who uses statistics in market research, she develops an instant crush. She asks her dad for a statistics tutor in order to get closer to him. Instead, she winds up with Mr. Yamamoto, a younger geek, to learn more about mathematical analysis of samples from a population.

Each chapter is predominantly comics, with text sections providing more depth, plus an exercise and answer. The art is clear and readable, with mostly static head and figure shots. It’s standard shojo style, with plenty of patterned backgrounds. The characters are one-dimensional: Rui is an over-emotional, impractical, lovesick teen. The tutor is something of a fanboy. The dialogue is stodgy, as is to be expected with an explicitly didactic project, and often jargon-heavy.

The text is partially Americanized, using “Mr. So-and-So” instead of “So-and-So-San”. I found more amusing when the tutor sees what are clearly manga volumes on Rui’s shelves, and the two talk about how she reads “comics”. However, this isn’t consistent: there are numerous references to the way Japan does things, like “home prefecture” instead of “state” or the “English proficiency step test”. The real-life examples cover things like ramen shops and bowling scores.

We’re given formulas for calculation, but the purpose isn’t always explained. Instead, their use supports rote memorization. (In that way, it seems to me culturally Japanese.) As a result, this book seems more like a supporting text than a primary one. If you know when you need, for example, a histogram, then this book will help you remember how to make one. It can’t take the place of a teacher, though, because too much is thrown at the reader without room to practice or understand the context.

Although the comics are nothing to write home about, the gimmick does draw attention to the material from those who’d otherwise ignore it. See sample pages at the publisher’s website. (A complimentary copy for this review was provided by the publisher.) Here’s another review that has more concerns about the gender roles.

Time is flexible with this series, what with its narration frequently taking a nostalgic tone of wistful memory. That’s even more obvious in the first chapter, in which we’ve jumped ahead to see Hachi and her daughter (!) Satsuki and her friends gathering for a summer fireworks festival, just as they did back then (which is the reader’s current time).

Nana Book 12
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The flash-forward drops hints, based on which characters appear and which don’t. I like this approach, because later, when all the strands come together, it’s neat to see how now led to then, yet it still leaves surprises to come. And it’s, in a way, happier, knowing that some of them, at least, are still talking, even if there’s plenty of foreshadowing that not everything ends well.

Once we’re back in present-day, things become much more melancholic. Nana’s trying to get Hachi and Nobu back together, even though Hachi’s engaged to Takumi. She has a misguided idea that Nobu’s better for Hachi, which may even be true, but it’s really a way for Nana to keep her friends together and make herself most comfortable. And she’s right about the appeal of a girl who seems like she needs to be rescued to a certain kind of boy.

It’s even more odd that Nana’s focused more on Hachi than her own upcoming marriage plans with Ren. But then, when a record company has to approve the idea and the date, maybe it doesn’t seem as romantic. They’re all seeking comfort, stability, the sense that they belong somewhere, and they’re hoping to find it in official recognition of their relationships. But that brings its own problems, like press conferences and celebrations that are really marketing events.

Nana Book 13
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It all comes to a head at Reira’s birthday party, the same day as Shin turns 16, in Book 13. All this promotion turns them into celebrities, causing people to concentrate on them instead of their music. Yazawa does a particularly good job with the art in these sequences, balancing the confusion of a celebrity crowd with powerful solo emotional moments, trying to find someone or avoid being seen by a particular person.

Takumi comes off particularly hard-hearted in this episode, as he always puts work first, above his fiance and her feelings. He’s breaking up couples left and right, sometimes without even recognizing it, and lovers are forced to realize that more mature considerations — like reputation or career or future plans — may take the place of acting on feelings. The key question is how to balance love and control: of yourself, of your emotions, and sometimes of others. Especially in the face of desire.

Takumi isn’t that bad a guy, but I think I’ve figured out why he seems like such a villain. Many of the characters are driven by not wanting to be alone. They need attention, whether from a crowd at a performance or fans buying the CD, or from friends or lovers. Takumi, on the other hand, makes it clear he’s putting business first. (Some other characters do the same, like Shin asking for money for sex, or Yasu’s mysterious silences, but we can see that they don’t really mean it or that they’re wrong for doing so.)

Nana Book 14
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Nobu’s getting together with a porn star. Shin’s been warned away from Reira. Hachi is torn between Takumi and Nana. Meanwhile, Ren and Nana are wrapping sex and death and rock’n'roll together into one sexy couple. Although their never-ending love drove the series premise, as the books continue and we see more than one kind of relationship, I’m not sure that their love is really the way things should be.

On a completely different note, I love the way couples take baths together to have serious discussions. I’m sure part of it’s cultural, but it seems so warm and comfortable and intimate and potentially sexual (but not necessarily so).

In Book 14, Nana’s band Blast is on a press tour, making appearances to promote their album. There’s a lot of discussions about fans and groupies and how they should behave, and separated, the guys start misbehaving. One’s into women, another’s doing drugs, and the more I learn about Yasu’s past, the more I want to know. He attracts the most beautiful women. Ren, on the other hand, was more attractive before I knew more about how he thinks. As life moves faster, more characters retreat into memories (which means flashbacks for us, distinguished by a different font) to reassure themselves of who they are now.

Typical for me, Book 14 ends on a cliffhanger, in which Nana, kept apart from Ren by the tour, learns something she didn’t want to know and may not listen to him explain.

Here’s a review of Book 13 that explores the depth of character development with some spoilers.

This volume continues Usagi’s struggle to find her place in the world now that her clan has been destroyed. One decision that she’s made is to leave behind her life as a ninja and become a professional herbalist. Ueda’s excellent storytelling continues as Usagi is confronted with two great challenges. The first is learning to navigate this new and strange world of the Japanese feudal court. It’s a world where deference and biting your tongue are the highest virtues. Only the most powerful people are permitted to be open and honest in their expressions. Usagi finds she needs to learn new forms of stealth and discipline. For someone as outspoken as Usagi, this is providing as challenging as any of the physical demands of her ninja training. (I’m reminded of a line from Mark Heard’s song “Hold Back Your Tears”, “a frank and honest face could well destroy society.”)

Tail of the Moon Book 14
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I can’t help but think that this serves as a metaphor for young women leaving behind their families and trying to build a career in the business world. Where Usagi is giving up the ways of the ninja, the modern young women is giving up her schoolgirl ways. The workplace world can be just as strange and frightening to those fresh out of high school or college as Usagi finds the feudal court. Usagi’s struggles and successes become a way to encourage young women also trying to make it on their own for the first time.

The second great challenge for Usagi is having to work for the man who ordered the destruction of her village, Lord Nobunaga. In the last volume, the surviving elders of her clan told her not to seek revenge, but to find a way to live and prosper as an herbalist. She’s obeying their advice even if she doesn’t understand it. Usagi is still working through her sorrow. Almost every day, she seems to be reminded of her old village and especially of Hanzo. It’s only through the example set by Mitsuhide that she finally comes to fully comprehend why revenge is wrong. It’s a beautiful moment of seeing Usagi mature as a person and begin to think about life on a deeper level.

After reading this volume, I would really like to know what the historical consensus in Japan is on Lord Nobunaga. Ueda doesn’t paint a very flattering picture of him in this series. Is she expressing the majority opinion about the man? He’s described as temperamental, but that’s putting it too mildly. Ueda depicts Lord Nobunaga as petty, cruel, abusive, selfish, and oblivious to the way his subordinates attempt to sabotage each other. He only rewards results and doesn’t care how a person achieves the objective. If you don’t complete the task he assigns you, then you’re immediately punished. He accepts no excuse for failure. It also appears that he keeps no record of the loyalty and success of his staff. What counts is what you did today, the past is dead and forgotten. I have to wonder why anyone would follow him or find him inspiring.

Ueda’s artwork is solid, if not particularly impressive. I do like the way she’s matured Usagi’s look. This strongly reinforces the narrative about Usagi now being a woman making choices about her life and career. It also helps to explain why so many men find her attractive. Ueda makes an interesting character design choice with Lord Nobunaga. First, she gives him pointed ears; he’s the only person will such a distinctive feature. Everyone else has nice rounded ears. Second, she gives him a very pointed Vandyke beard. In fact, he resembles some traditional images of the Devil. I wonder if I, as a western reader of the book, am just reading my own cultural history into this design, or did Ueda made the conscious decision to model Lord Nobunaga after a well-known, evil figure as a way of emphasizing his vile disposition? How odious a person does Ueda find Lord Nobunaga?

I continue to highly recommend this series to all comic readers. The key to this series is Usagi and how we as readers care about her and want to see her find happiness. This volume is no different. Because of her new circumstances, we worry all the more for her. Ueda has become one of my favorite manga authors. She crafts such great personal stories about people living in historical turbulent times. This series ends with the next volume. I’ve said before that I’ll be sad to have to say goodbye to Usagi and the others. Thankfully, Ueda is working on a new series, and I hope Viz will bring that to the US as well.

(A complimentary copy was provided by the publisher for this review.)

You Will Fall in Love
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One of the things I appreciated about this stand-alone volume was that it was primarily a love story. I don’t object to sex in my comics, but the politics of sex in many yaoi titles that I’ve sampled involve too much force or unequal roles for my taste. This one has minimal sex scenes, with more emphasis on the relationships. (And in this one, when a character says, “No!”, it’s listened to.)

And boy, the relationships were interesting! Haru gave up archery four years ago, although he was quite a good competitor, because of his crush on teammate Reiichiro. Haru thought such a love was forbidden and something to feel guilty about, which makes it all the more difficult when Haru winds up teaching at the school Tsukasa, Reiichiro’s younger brother, attends. It seems that Tsukasa had his own crush on Haru, only he’s not embarrassed by his feelings.

Haru’s inability to shoot because of his discomfort with himself contrasts nicely with the way Tsukasa’s acceptance gives him more skill, stemming from his centered personality. Not only is there a question of which brother Haru should pick, but there’s a bigger picture of how to believe in oneself, with the younger generation showing the way. Tsukasa’s determination extends beyond archery competitions, while Haru’s skill will only return when he quits thinking of his love as “wickedness” and reacquires the tranquility of spirit the art demands.

The sport of archery provides for striking undertones. On the one hand, all the visuals of shafts striking circular targets make me giggle inappropriately. On the other, it’s an elegant way to draw beautiful men striking a pose, as they draw back their bows. The scene early on where Haru coaches Tsukasa, almost against his will, to slowly “pull back with your whole body… Don’t rush… Hold it…” is both erotic and a testament to the character’s love of the sport, where he has to help someone improve even though he’d rather not be involved.

About the only quibble with the book I have is this: I was surprised that no one was upset that a teacher was dating his student. Maybe that’s so common in fiction of this type that it’s taken for granted.

(A complimentary copy for this review was provided by the publisher.)

Heaven’s Will

Heaven’s Will
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by Satoru Takamiya

20 pages in, we’ve met a shy girl who sees ghosts and is scared of the opposite sex; a gorgeous cross-dressing boy who hangs out in a haunted house; and a tall, quiet, good-looking boy who happens to be a vampire werewolf. Tall boy saves shy girl from the demons who haunt her. I can’t read any further for fear of suffering cliche overload.

I can see why some teens would be gripped by such a story; it’s reminiscent of current pop culture phenom Twilight in its goth exploration of beginning romance. But it’s much too generic and overstuffed for me. It’s complete in this book, at least.

Mixed Vegetables Book 1

Mixed Vegetables Book 1
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by Ayumi Komura

This premise should have been right up my alley. Hanayu is supposed to be a pastry chef, since that’s what her family does, but she wants to make sushi instead. She’s got the skills, but she’s convinced that to make her dreams happen, she has to marry Hyuga, a fellow student at cooking school. He wants to make pastry, but his family runs a sushi restaurant.

Everything would be simpler if Hanayu would just tell her parents the truth about her goals, but that would mean no story (tortured as it is). I had a very hard time getting into a premise where a person’s career depended on their family and/or their spouse. It seemed very old-fashioned, not at all suited for a modern girl.

The various mood changes among the characters seemed to come out of nowhere and didn’t make a lot of sense. Quickly, he’s in love with her (I still don’t understand why), and then she has to deal with her guilt over using him to get the job she wants.

I think it’s supposed to be funny that Hanayu is very bad at interpersonal relations. She thinks Hyuga will be impressed by her fish-cutting knife skills, but she doesn’t think at all about how she treats him or how scary it is when she comes on intensely. I didn’t laugh, though, at how pathetic she was. I wanted to sit her down for a good talking-to instead.

I wish there had been a lot more cooking or sushi preparation, instead of the unconvincing relationships. There are notes at the back to explain the Japanese-specific foods and techniques.

Sugar Princess Books 1 and 2

Sugar Princess Book 1
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by Hisaya Nakajo

This two-volume series is by the creator of Hana-Kimi, but it’s not as weird as that cross-dressing sports romance. Like the candy that the heroine shares with her friends, this story is a sweet temporary treat, light but enjoyable.

Maya goes skating for the first time and discovers she has natural talent on ice. She decides to pursue figure skating when she sees Shun, an older schoolmate, practicing. Their coach wants to pair them up, but Shun only wants to skate single for unexplained reasons.

Sugar Princess Book 2
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The coach tells Shun to teach her, but it’s only her determination that finally convinces him to bother. As she continues to struggle with the art of figure skating, she learns more about Shun’s past and develops many friendships.

I like the good feeling that surrounds Maya. She’s a nice girl, trying her best, and as she learns more about the world of skating, so does the reader. Of course, there’s a competition at the end, but before that, there’s good friends helping each other out and wonderful family support and funny bits about daily life.

It’s a well-meaning modern fairy tale that many girls can dream of. Figure skating is lovely, romantic, and feminine, making for a great background for a tale about discovering schoolgirl love, both for a boy and for a sport. This short series was a refreshing change of pace from lengthy tortured soap operas, much as I enjoy them too. I’d read it again.

Things haven’t changed much since volume two. Everyone, good guys and bad guys, seem to be sitting around doing nothing. The big drama in the first half of the book is Tenma’s feelings toward Akane and whether she has romantic feelings toward him. In the second half of the book, a mysterious woman claiming to be the Dragon Priestess shows up. Has the Dragon God picked a second priestess to aid humans battle the Demon Clan? Or could she be a false priestess?

Haruka: Beyond
the Stream of Time Book 3
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All the storytelling problems I detailed in my review of the previous volumes still exist here. The Demon Clan is in no hurry to destroy the human race, and the Dragon God is in no hurry to pick the final guardians. The first half of this book seems to be filled with petty bickering over petty concerns. It’s hard to believe there are another ten volumes of this series. At what point will the central plot of saving humanity actually start?

The second story arc in this book is actually well-written. It shows that Mizuno is capable of crafting focused stories with solid emotional content. That just makes reading the series more frustrating. It’s obvious that Mizuno’s strength is plot-driven stories and not tales of romantic angst. I wish she would play to her strengths and just make this a straight historical fantasy series. There is so much wasted space on trying to play up the shojo elements of this series.

The one high point of this book is the artwork. Mizuno does gorgeous free-form panel layouts. I don’t think there are two pages with same layout in the entire 179-page book. It’s definitely worth the time to flip through the book and see the variety. This volume could serve as a template book for shojo panel arrangements. It makes me all the more disappointed the story doesn’t lives up to the artwork.

This is the last volume of Haruka for me. There’s simply too much good manga available to waste any more time on a substandard series. I hope that the next series Mizuno does allows her to explore her strengths as a storyteller. This series is just wasted potential.

(A complimentary copy for this review was provided by the publisher.)

Yakitate!! Japan Book 14
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The first chapter is pretty interesting, too, taken on its own: it’s the story of Shadow White, who has perfect mimetic skills, but he quickly learns that being able to look like an expert doing something (like hitting a baseball) doesn’t mean you have expert performance. Unless, apparently, it’s bread-making; he’s been coached by a master chef into representing the US in this final bake-off.

The competition itself has, as its goal, making bread so good that it sends the judge to heaven, where he can temporarily reunite with his dead father. This is simultaneously mystically symbolic and immensely silly, just like the series. The bakers must also fulfill the goal of representing the flavors of their country to the fullest.

The competitor’s bread can send the eater into the cosmos, unless they’re particularly well-trained and sensitive, in which case they might go beyond. As one says, “Mortal minds can’t even begin to comprehend what we would find.” Maybe I should have paid more attention to the “story so far” paragraph, which mentions hemp bread. Might explain a lot.

I wish I knew more about Galaxy Express 999, since there’s a scene representing a vision that homages it. On the other hand, one of the winning breads — a bagel made with rice and fried in tea — sounds absolutely nasty, so I’m glad to miss out on that sense perception. And I’m a little confused as to why a donut best represents Japan. Oh, well, regardless of the outcome, it was fun and dramatic.

Gaba Kawa
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Instead of achieving any of her goals, Rara falls (literally) for Aku, a mysterious, in-demand human who thinks he’s saved her life. She’s got to figure out how to win his heart without using her powers. As the twists play out, there’s humor, magic, ghosts, drama, and schoolgirl romance. The story is complete in this single volume and provides entertaining escapism, especially for those tempted by Twilight and its ilk.

Rara is adorable, with her big eyes, shaggy bobbed hair, and generally happy demeanor. Her character development isn’t immense: she goes from fangirl stalker to loving sacrifice, but at least she’s learning how to relate to another person instead of an image in a magazine.

This paragraph is a spoiler: The conclusion, similar to the one in Xanadu, doesn’t sit right with me. This type never does. I know the author is trying to give everyone a happy ending while still remaining true to the story logic, but the idea that love continues with a different person like some kind of math equation (if A = B and B = C…) just feels superficial, undercutting the big romance earlier in the book.

Still, it’s a fun read, one I enjoyed even on the second time through. Rie Takada previously created Happy Hustle High and Punch! (A complimentary copy for this review was provided by the publisher.)

In volume three, things get deadly serious for the newspaper club, whose only members are Tsukune and his friends. Humans are forbidden from knowing that Yokai Academy exists, let alone being a student there. The punishment for finding out about the high school is death. Kuyo, the leader of the Security Enforcement Committee, takes great joy in enforcing all the rules to the letter. Now the newspaper club must figure out a way to prevent Tsukune’s execution. But if they live through this, there are finals coming up, and all of Tsukune’s extracurricular activities have caused him to fall so behind in math he might fail and have to attend summer school.

Rosario + Vampire Book 3
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Volume four opens with summer vacation. The newspaper club is going on a field trip to the human world to sharpen their investigate journalism skills. They’re dropped off at Witch’s Knoll. It’s a beautiful field of sunflowers that is slated to be leveled so the city can put up a new building. (It’s unclear what exactly is going to be built.) However, Witch’s Knoll isn’t simply a clever name. This field use to be a refuge for persecuted witches. As the last remaining witch, The Lady at Witch’s Knoll is ready to wage a war to keep her land. Tsukune and friends must find a way to stop her army of deadly plants before they attack the nearby city.

I previously reviewed the first two volumes of this series. As mentioned above, the manga takes a more serious direction with volume three. There’s still a sense of humor retained in the series. However, it’s not the driving force of the books, but rather a way to break up the tension.

In volume three, Tsukune and the reader are confronted with the yokais’ fear and hatred of humanity. This theme has been hinted at in the previous volumes but never explored. It becomes evident during this volume that Kuyo’s desire to kill Tsukune is more than just enforcing the school rules. He wants to exact revenge for the way monsters have been treated by humans. Furthermore, the newspaper club leader, Gin, doesn’t want to rescue a human. Gin finally consents to help only because the other club members are going to save Tsukune with or without him.

For the first time the enmity between monsters and humans begins to sink in for Tsukune. However, it’s still hard for him, and us the readers, to really understand all this animosity when Tsukune is the only human in a school full of monsters, all of whom are significantly stronger than him. In the food chain, Tsukune isn’t simply the weakest link. He’s the link made out of tissue paper, while all the other links are composed of various metals. Also, it’s hard to feel like a member of the oppressor species when the guy denouncing you is a member of a species once worshipped as a god by your ancestors and has the power to turn you into a human flambé.

It’s in volume four when Tsukune really understands how maliciously humans have acted toward yokai. The Lady of Witch’s Knoll tells Tsukune how witches were hunted and murdered by his ancestors. Back in the human world, Tsukune can see the true extent of human evil toward the yokai. He can’t ignore humanity’s bloody legacy. Now Tsukune understands why everyone back at the school hates and fears humans. It’s a powerful moment of enlightenment for both Tsukune and the reader.

One thing that impressed me about the series is how Tsukune and Moka have begun to establish a community of a co-existence for monsters and humans. They’ve done this organically from their own friendship and germinating romance and not organizationally. That is, their friendship isn’t based on some ideology but mutual affection. Moka is a very cute and nice girl that Tsukune wanted to be with. She initially liked him for his tasty blood, but she quickly developed genuine fondness for him as a person. It’s this emotional connection that forms the core of their growing circle of friends. They’ve unwittingly become a counterculture community at Yokai Academy. I’m sympathetic to this model of changing the world.

Rosario + Vampire Book 4
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Another impressive facet of this series is Tsukune himself. Physically and intellectually, he may be your average teen male, but spiritually, he’s exceptional. He has a sense of personal honor only seen among samurais in Kurosawa’s films. He also possesses a remarkable sense of empathy for other persons. It’s these characteristics that have drawn Moka and the others to him. Ikeda does a great job of making these traits come across as natural. Tsukune isn’t a monk or high-minded idealist. Instead, he’s an ordinary guy with a deep seated conviction to do the right thing. Were that I was as noble.

The depths of Tsukune’s character shine through in these two volumes, but most powerfully in volume four. The scene that floored me and made me stop to take a breath is when Tsukune asks forgiveness from The Lady at Witch’s Knoll. He confesses to be ignorant of what his ancestors have done, but now that he knows, he wants to atone for their evil deeds. Wow. Tsukune isn’t talking about holding a press conference, forming a political action committee, staging a protest, or anything else either political or structural in nature. We wants to know what he can personally do, right here, right now, to help balance the scales of justice. He literally offers to do anything to make reconciliation. Unfortunately, The Lady is too consumed by pain and loss for consolation. She wants an eye for eye and nothing less. Tsukune’s humility and profound sense of justice are admirable and thought-provoking.

I generally don’t believe in politicizing my reviews. But having reflected on these two volumes for the past week, I couldn’t help wondering if Ikeda wasn’t criticizing the slowness and reluctance that governments have shown in acknowledging and apologizing for atrocities like war crimes, slavery, genocide, etc. Tsukune doesn’t seek to explain away, justify, or even distance himself from the past massacres of witches. Instead, he immediately seeks reconciliation. Ikeda’s point is simple: people and governments of good conscience should have the courage to own up for their sins and do what is necessary to make atonement. It’s a profound message that speaks to people through the world. It certainly spoke to me a white southern American. It’s also a powerful reminder of how fiction can sneak behind our self defenses and deliver a word of truth unexpectedly.

I have to confess I was a little harsh with my previous assessment of the artwork. Ikeda is more dexterous an artist than I gave him credit for. He has a clean straight forward style that I mistook for simplistic. I finally realized Ikeda’s skill when I saw Tsukune’s transformation upon being given temporary vampiric powers. He goes from being a plain looking guy to a very attractive fellow. It’s done by subtle changes. Tsukune’s face is less round, the eyes are smaller and more almond shaped, and the lips are fuller and given detail. This demonstrates Ikeda’s understanding of facial anatomy and our standards of beauty.

The second aspect of the art that struck me was how dynamic the fight scenes are, not just in way they’re rendered, but even in how the pages are laid out. In normal narrative, Ikeda sticks to conventional panel structure using squares and rectangles. During battle scenes, Ikeda uses triangle shaped panels and parallelograms. This really conveys the energy and chaos of a fight. There’s no wasted space either; even the smallest panel on the page communicates important information about what’s going on. It’s easy to read through the books and on a conscious level miss the details that make the artwork so effective.

I’ve also fallen in love with Ikeda’s character designs. It’s evident that he’s put a lot of thought into each new monster we meet. They’re all visually interesting and horrifically beautiful. He does some great original interpretations of the old classical western monsters, too. His love for the horror genre shines in the art.

This is a must-read manga. Ikeda is infusing the horror manga with a depth not just rare for that particular genre, but comics in general. He’s not doing it with ham-fisted plot lines or long preachy speeches by the characters. Instead, he’s carefully crafting likeable characters and solid story lines and letting his message flow naturally from the narrative. In the first two volumes, he hooked me with the monsters and the laughs. In these two volumes, he landed me on the boat with an exceptional lead character. The only drawback to this series is having to wait three months between the publication of each volume. (A complimentary copy of volume four was provided by the publisher for this review.)

Official Casebook Volume 1: The Phoenix Wright Files is an anthology manga based on a popular video game series. Twenty-three authors give their interpretation of, and have fun with, the characters. The contributions range from four-panel strips to 24-page stories.

Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney
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I haven’t played this game and know next to nothing about it. This definitely put me at a disadvantage reading this manga. Almost all of the stories are comedic in nature. The humor is based on the reader being familiar with the characters and their relationships within the game. (It’s probably most beneficial if you’re a fan of the series.)

As can be expected of anthologies, both artwork and storytelling cover a wide range of styles. Everything from slapstick humor with cartoony art to one serious piece with appropriately somber art. Honestly, all of it just kind of blended together after the third or fourth story. Nothing was particularly memorable or stood out as being exceptional in quality. Somewhere around page two hundred I found myself pretty bored with the book and counting the pages until I’d be finished. The manga also failed to inspire any further interest about the video game.

I recommend you stay away from this book unless you’re an ardent fan of the video game. (A complimentary copy was provided by the publisher for this review.)

Allow me a brief aside: The Nibley sisters, who translated this book, write an excellent biweekly column on being translators. It’s recommended reading for all manga fans. I’d also like to commend them on their use of “twitterpated” in this manga. Seriously, it was the perfect word.

Inubaka: Crazy for Dogs
Book 11
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I was pleased to see store owner Teppei get a chance to demonstrate his knowledge and maturity when dealing with a difficult customer, one who owns a dog to play into his fierce self-reputation and his bullying ways. It’s the male version of pet as accessory to bolster one’s ego; in this case, he’s also using it as a way to pretend to be more macho than he is. While Teppei believes in excellent service to their customers, he also knows that it protects their dogs to choose their customers. Some aren’t worth the effort, because they aren’t or won’t be good dog owners.

The “spy in the shop” story (a worker sent by the competition) is wrapped up in a surprising fashion with potential for the book’s future. (Well, surprising to me, anyway, since I didn’t expect it to be shuffled quite so far offstage so quickly.)

The second half of the book introduces a new competition for Sugari (similar to the agility trials of Book 5). The shop boss wants her and Lupin to compete in K-9 Freestyle dog dancing as promotion for the store. The competitors are participating in the contest as well, although they’ve enlisted a ringer.

The plotline may seem reminiscent of an earlier story, but a competition is a great way to bring drama into the storyline, both for Sugari and the store. Plus, the athletic elements allow for showing sexy-cute girls’ bodies. It’s key, sometimes, if you’re reading for the dogs, to remember that this is considered a young men’s manga in its home country.

Tsukune is a very average student who has managed to fail all his high school entrance exams. His parents find a flyer to a school, Yokai Academy, that accepts most students regardless of their grades. Given the school’s name, Tsukune shouldn’t be surprised to find out that this is a school where the student body and faculty are all monsters. (Yokai is a Japanese term that includes woodland spirits, ghosts, and creatures of legend.)

Rosario + Vampire Book 1
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On his first day, he befriends Moka, a powerful vampiress who keeps her power in check by wearing a magical cross around her neck. They have some of the typical school struggles: figuring out which club to join, making friends, getting homework done, dealing with bullies, etc. However, with monster students, these typical problems take on new complications and in some cases can be deadly.

I’m not going to lie to you; Rosario + Vampire is a light, frothy read. I enjoy it because it pushes all the right buttons for me. Both the author Ikeda and I are fans of classical horror monsters. This series is a perfect blend of Western monsters, yokai, high school comedy, harem manga, and Scooby-Doo-style mysteries. I definitely feel a kinship with Ikeda, since we both share similar likes and a similar sense of humor.

For horror fans, this series has the stock creatures. There are succubi, vampires, lizard men, medusa, witches, slime creatures, etc. It’s fun to see them all in high school together forming the standard cliques and jockeying for power within the school. It’s everything you’d expect if you housed all the monsters under one roof. It’s interesting to see the pecking order that’s developed. Yokai Academy is definitely a place where you need to be part of a group so you don’t end up as someone’s late night snack.

Rosario + Vampire Book 2
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Ikeda does a marvelous job with the characters. The main characters, Tsukune and Moka, are likable, with great chemistry as a couple. Their genuine affection for each other is palpable. They are both kind-hearted and make friends easily with other outcast students. Yukari, the eleven-year-old witch they befriend, is cute and marvelously energetic. She has all the mischief a pre-teen with magic power should have. Kurumu is a succubus who is vying for Tsukune’s affections. She’s the most emotionally complex character and works as a nice counterpoint to Moka.

The artwork is pretty standard. Since there’s a wide range of creatures in this series, that probably works for the best. By sticking to the basics, it’s easy to identify not just who a character is, but also what they are. This is imperative if you want the reader to understand what’s going on. Since this book has elements of a harem comedy, that means fan service. It’s relatively rare, but be warned, it does exist.

I first read a complimentary review copy of volume two. I liked it so much I went out and bought volume one. It’s a good series for horror fans looking for some light comedy. It’s also good for comic/manga readers looking for some light reading as a change of pace. I’ll definitely be picking up future volumes myself.

Volume three starts in familiar territory. Yura is still waiting for sexual satisfaction and her first orgasm. Makoto is still the fastest gun in the East. Unsurprisingly, Yura has gotten bored with their sex life. This manifests itself in her experiencing dryness during sex. So Makoto needs to bring more variety and romance into the bedroom. To further add to Makoto’s troubles, his co-worker, Sugiyama, has become more aggressive in her pursuit of him and desperately wants to have an affair.

Manga Sutra Book 3
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I previously reviewed volumes one and two of this series. I had high hopes for this manga. This is the sex manual that suppose to show us satisfying relations in the boudoir are a result of a satisfying relationship outside the boudoir. That great sex is not just physical pleasure, but also emotionally and psychologically fulfilling, too. Thus, the focus would be on couples in committed relationships. The problem was that Aki chose to focus the majority of his attention on one newlywed couple.

Yura and Makoto are forced to become a generic every couple. In particular, since this really is a series written for men, Makoto has to make ALL the sexual mistakes that men make. There is no progression in either their relationship or their sex life. Even when a problem gets corrected, it doesn’t take them closer to sexual satisfaction, but instead brings them back to the place they were before the problem appeared. This causes Yura to have a very unsatisfying sex life and an equally unsatisfying read for the audience. Aki could have avoided this pitfall if he had chosen to write about three or four couples, each with their own unique strengths and weaknesses.

Makoto comes off as a putz in this manga. We are over a thousand pages into the series and Makoto has yet to seriously address his problem of premature ejaculation. His idea of romance and variety is having sex in unusual places like amusement parks. He watches a ton of porn but still only knows three sexual positions. (Which makes me question what kind of boring porn he is watching.) He only engages in foreplay until he’s ready for coitus, without regard to Yura’s wants or pleasure level. He knows that Yura isn’t satisfied sexually and hasn’t had an orgasm yet, but he doesn’t really seem to care. It appears that he thinks of Yura as a sex toy, cook, and maid in that order. He’s not just a lousy lover, but a lousy husband.

It’s not just Makoto, men in general come across as cretins in this volume. Makoto’s older brother Akira visited a brothel some time in the past. (It’s not clear whether this was before or during his marriage.) He keeps a picture of the hooker in his day planner. Yura’s sister Rika’s boyfriend treats her like a sex toy. His idea of a fun time is to force her to have sex in public places. In fact, his actions at times border on date rape. The new neighbors, married for five years, aren’t having sex because the husband has lost all libido. He shows himself to be as sensitive and caring as Makoto. It’s a wonder that most of the women in this series haven’t turned to lesbianism for emotional, psychological, and sexual satisfaction.

[Johanna here. Ed asked me to chime in with my take from the other side. I feel that the women are even more drippy than the men. They're stereotypically receptive and pliant, even when being pushed into sex regardless of their own wishes. New this volume is a next-door-neighbor and cousin whose characterization is a poor joke. She's a 30-year-old gynecologist who's also a virgin. I had a very hard time believing that someone as interested in sex as she is wouldn't have taken a tumble with someone in all her years. I was also put off by the pushy co-worker of the husband. He winds up in bed with her but no one considers it cheating (or worth mentioning to the wife) just because he was drunk and there was no penetration. And it's disturbing, as Ed points out, that in all this time no one (wife, husband, or author) seems to find it important to address Yura's lack of orgasm. Now back to Ed.]

Part of my dissatisfaction with the series may come from reading it in book form. I get the impression that this manga works better in serial form. Manga Sutra appears in Young Animal magazine, published biweekly. This means in Japan the reader is only exposed to sixteen pages (the length of the average chapter) of the series at a time. Not every chapter deals with Yura and Makoto, so there are times when the serial reader doesn’t see the main characters for a month. By digesting the manga in small doses, the reader has time to forget just how selfish a lover Makoto is, or how badly Rika is treated by her boyfriend. It’s only when you’re reading a couple hundred pages at a clip that the flaws pile up quickly and the male characters are revealed to be such nimrods.

My reaction to the artwork is mixed. Aki is still a competent draftsman. On the positive side, he is no longer using the medical insert illustration as a way to get around the Japanese censorship laws. They actually serve their original function of education about how certain positions work or some aspect of anatomy, usually female. On the negative side, Aki is no longer using sound effects, shadows, or conventionally placed body parts to obscure the female genital region. There are several panels that have full frontal female nudity. (Mind you, there are no corresponding panels of male full frontal nudity.) The women are still not anatomically correct from the belly button to the thighs, instead resembling mannequins. I found these panels disconcerting at best. More than once, I turned the page to some full-figure nudity only to find myself saying, “Yuck.” I don’t think that was the response Aki was looking for. I wish he would got back to the art conventions of the first volume.

I do want to take Tokyopop to task for the production of this volume. Volume three does not have the slip case of the previous volumes. There is still a recipe, but it is not in full color and printed on laminated card stock. Now, the recipe is simply a black and white page of the manga. I wouldn’t mind the changes so much if the cover price had dropped to correspond with the decline in production quality. Instead, the cover price stayed the same, so I’m now getting less for my money.

This is my last volume of Manga Sutra. It’s simply too frustrating a read for me to continue on. I can’t watch Yura continue to silently suffer an unfulfilled sex life and never speak up for her own needs. I want to wring Makoto’s neck for his callousness and general stupidity. There’s so much squandered potential with this series it breaks my heart. I give credit to Aki for pioneering this genre of manga. However, pioneers aren’t always masters of the new landscapes they present. Hopefully, someone else will come along and do it right.

Nana Book 11
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Yazawa does an amazing job wordlessly capturing Hachi’s feelings, as she checks her phone messages and finds the communication from Nobu. Hachi clutches the mobile to her chest and glances furtively at the man she’s in bed with, her fiancé and father of her child. She creeps into the bathroom and quietly shuts the door before reading the simple message. It’s clear from her actions that it’s not the message text that matters, it’s what it means to her.

The final panel of the scene is Hachi, eyes closed, bringing the phone to her lips, sup