The much-anticipated (and much-feared, because no one wants it to be over) final volume in the deservedly much-praised series is here, and the presentation is excellent. This volume, with 10 chapters and 254 pages, is over-sized compared to the previous, and it opens with 10 glorious color pages. This book feels substantial and important, and so it is. This is the manga series that converts any comic reader to appreciating the format. It has an immediately intriguing high concept — […]

It’s been almost half a year since we left Suguri at the pet shop, trying to find a suitable home for the abandoned mutt Hinomaru, but it took me no time at all to get right back into the story. The poor dog risks becoming a victim to a murderous pet abuser, but that overwrought drama soon settles down to more believable conflict. A new family wants to adopt Hinomaru, but to do so, they have to accept that the […]

I so admire Naoki Urasawa’s skill. Just when my interest in this series was starting to wane a bit — I loved the original idea of contrasting kid friends with adults trying to save the world, but I was less involved with the Buffy-like tough future girl and the self-indulgent manga artist in prison storylines — he reels me back in in volume 7, both with flashbacks to the characters I missed and by ramping up the action on the […]