Although I’m neither a cat owner nor a gamer, I enjoyed the first volume of this series by Wataru Nadatami because of the way it used the language of one hobby to talk about another. Cat + Gamer volume 2 has moved away from that premise somewhat to present more generic examples of how life works with a pet cat. Readers who enjoy seeing adorable animals will still enjoy these stories, because Musubi is drawn to be excessively cute. My […]

This quiet manga is very relatable. Riko Kozakura is almost 30, a hard worker who gets her tasks done so she can leave the office every day at the stroke of 5 PM. She spends all her spare time playing video games, treating herself to expensive food while finishing up her latest game. Then she adopts a stray cat on a whim in Cat + Gamer by Wataru Nadatani. Riko doesn’t know anything about taking care of a pet, but […]

The great famine is over. There’s a new Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service volume. The Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service volume 14 came out summer 2015, seven years ago. There’s a note at the end of that book that they’re about to begin the Omnibus reprints, and the future of the series likely will depend on how those do. They did well. Still, this fifth collection, the first with new material, was originally planned for 2020 (but we know all kinds of […]

I’m so glad to get another volume of The Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service! (The previous book, volume 13, last appeared at the end of 2012.) Although it’s horror, it’s one of my favorite manga series, with each volume featuring creative deaths and victim quests that say something about the modern human condition. And The Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service Volume 14 was well worth the wait, with two unique takes on the corpse-assisting team. The first story incorporates a hypocritical, corrupt […]

Following up on their re-release of Legal Drug, Dark Horse next week puts out the CLAMP sequel Drug & Drop. It’s just like the first series (although promised to continue, unlike the aborted first run), with the addition of “many crossover references to the CLAMP universe.” That’s what drove me away from their work previously — I got enough of that when I read superhero comics — but I admit, it’s fun to see Watanuki from xxxHOLiC requesting the boys […]

Although it’s horror, I really enjoy The Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service, because it’s attractively drawn, and the twists in the stories give me something to focus on beyond the occasional gory or scary element. While I wait for it to return, I decided to check out the earlier Mail. It’s a three-volume series written and drawn by Housui Yamazaki, the artist of Kurosagi, and it’s got a similar “ghost investigator” premise. The books, originally released 2006-2007, are out of print, […]

It’s never a good sign when a creepy girl says, early on, “Loving someone or hating them… it’s the exact same thing.” I’d forgotten just how spooky this series can be, but the lead story here in The Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service volume 13 rams it home in spades. The story is by Eiji Otsuka and art by Housui Yamazaki. A vengeful young woman is taking control of men who prey on runaway young women new to Tokyo — by […]

story by Eiji Otsuka art by Housui Yamazaki It’s been a long time — 18 months since the previous volume of The Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service — but I found no gap in my knowledge of these characters, and I welcomed them and their grotesque misadventures back in volume 12. I was also glad to have back the annotations and endnotes by editor Carl Gustav Horn, as he’s credited for his adaptation. He begins by explaining and apologizing for the […]