Independent Opinions, News, and Reviews of Graphic Novels, Manga, and Comic Books
The Limit series, about a group of teens left in the wilderness after a fatal bus crush, concludes with this volume by Keiko Suenobu. I’ve found the pacing inconsistent in the past, so I’m not surprised that this seemed like an abrupt wrapup, but the overall impression I’m left with is how Japanese the series seems to me. By that I mean that supporting the group is the primary virtue. Hinata tries a drastic action to atone for some of […]
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I stumbled across Fall in Love Like a Comic thanks to the sample chapter available in the Viz Manga app. The premise, about a high schooler who’s also a manga creator and needs some experience with real-life love, reminded me of Missions of Love. Fall in Love Like a Comic, though, is fluffier, a lot cuter in presentation, and shorter, complete in two volumes. Rena draws “manga that’s a little risque’… with kissing and hugging”. (Snicker. I think our definitions […]
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SuBLime Manga prints yaoi and boys’ love titles, and although almost all of their books are Mature rated, the actual amount of sexual content can vary widely among stories. Blue Morning turns out to be one of the books in the “not very much physical contact” category, which was fine by me, since I’d rather read about the emotions and relationships than watch scenes of the act. (However, please note: the one sex scene can be read as non-consensual, although […]
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I’m not sure where to start in describing this historical erotic fantasy manga. The Strange Tale of Panorama Island is for adults, certainly, with a bunch of (mostly female) nudes. It’s been anticipated since its announcement in 2009. That article gives some important basics that take on new context after reading. It’s true, the book is reminiscent of The Great Gatsby… if Gatsby were a Lovecraft character, willing to work out all the details of faking a death in order […]
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This second volume in the series by Mari Yamazaki has all the same great elements from the first book — the oddly addictive story of an ancient Roman using baths to travel through time, the wonderfully detailed art, the author’s notes “Rome & Baths, the Loves of My Life”, the oversized hardcover format, and the translation notes in the back. About the only thing that isn’t as good as the first book is the cover — the nifty clear plastic […]
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I really liked the early volumes of Yumi Unita’s Bunny Drop, when it was about raising an adorable child. By this book, Rin is firmly a teenager, trying to make her own decisions in life. Unfortunately, I don’t find her motives plausible or all that interesting to read. As volume 8 opens, Rin has been visiting her birth mother and her husband (a meeting begun in volume 7). Rin’s adoptive father Daikichi is concerned that seeing the mother with a […]
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After being disappointed in the slow pacing of the previous volume, I was surprised to see how much happened in this new installment by Keiko Suenobu. Limit volume 4 opens with a death, which brings the suffering and precarious position of the survivors into sharp relief. From that point, it’s a fast read. Everyone’s screaming at each other, confused over what they don’t know about the people they have to depend on. Several characters even reach the point of doubting […]
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I very much dislike the tendency for snappy manga heroines, the observant ones with a bit more bite to them than the usual good girl, to lose their spark as soon as love enters the picture. It’s too old-school “taming of the shrew” for me, playing into the idea that a smart girl who refuses to hold her tongue just needs romance to calm down and be properly feminine. Which is why I find the way this series has turned […]
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