Independent Opinions, News, and Reviews of Graphic Novels, Manga, and Comic Books
When I realized that a new volume of A Bride’s Story, my current favorite manga series, had come out FOUR months ago and I hadn’t read it yet, I knew the last few months had been busier than they should be. Yet the positive side of that is … new Bride’s Story! The twins, Laila and Leily, are getting married, which gives Kaoru Mori ample reason to draw beautiful historical garments and portray many customary preparations for the celebration, including […]
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Thor: The Dark World, the newest Marvel movie success, has been announced for Blu-ray on February 25. Typical of current release strategy, it will be available digitally earlier — you can rent it on Digital 3D and Digital HD on February 4 — and the DVD package will include promo for the next Marvel theatrical release, Captain America: The Winter Soldier. The actual physical purchase formats are 3-D Combo Pack ($39.99 list price), single-disc Blu-ray ($32.99), and DVD ($29.99). It […]
Read moreSince my New Year’s Resolution for the comic industry was to embrace diversity — formats, audiences, preferences, and all kinds of differences — I was thrilled to see Andrew Wheeler’s diversity resolutions for superhero comics. It’s a good column that captures how far we’ve come in some areas and yet how very far we have to go. Anyone tracking the issue won’t be surprised at the requests — more women of color, LGBT characters, LGBT love stories, women-focused stories, female-lead […]
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Jamie S. Rich, accomplished graphic novelist (A Boy & A Girl, You Have Killed Me), has entered the world of webcomics with The Double Life of Miranda Turner, a Monkeybrain series available through comiXology. Art is by George Kambadais, and it’s dynamite. There are two 14-page issues available so far for 99 cents each. Miranda is the superhero known as the Cat. Only the Cat used to be Lindy, Miranda’s sister, who’s now dead and guiding her in ghostly form. […]
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I don’t read zombie comics. Most frequent readers of this site know that. So it took me a while to decide to try Mitsuru Hattori’s Sankarea: Undying Love, the romance between a boy, Chihiro, and a zombie girl, Rea. I was willing to try it because it’s not really about her being a zombie — instead, it’s about her trying to fit in and be normal, given unusual circumstances. She could as easily have been a foreigner as undead, only […]
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The long-anticipated series from Makoto Yukimura, creator of the much-loved Planetes, is Kodansha’s first hardcover manga, a double-sized volume with twice the amount of tough-guy content. Vinland Saga is the story of Thorfinn, an Icelandic orphan raised by Viking pirates to be one of them. He’s a super-fighter, fast and tough, motivated by revenge for his father’s death, particularly since he’s working under the man who killed him. Thorfinn’s father was a great, noble warrior, one of a tribe who […]
Read moreMelanie Gillman has a year in review comic posted that’s a challenging read. It’s beautifully done, of course, but the content is disturbing, particularly the section about how teaching college as an adjunct isn’t financially secure. (And that’s a crime — our teachers should be better compensated, not living below poverty level.) Yet the end manages a note of optimism focused on creative work. It’s a good thing to remember… and I’d encourage those who can pay for good work […]
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I enjoyed How to Fight, Lie, and Cry Your Way to Popularity (And a Prom Date) from Zest Books, so I sampled three more of their list books. Reel Culture: 50 Classic Movies You Should Know About (So You Can Impress Your Friends) by Mimi O’Connor Preview pages The films covered in this volume are classics selected based on a general idea of cultural awareness — which movies you should know to recognize references and quotes and significant points of […]
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