February 2, 2010 Johanna Viz Manga Reviews 2 comments

Otomen Volume 5

This series by Aya Kanno has grown into one of the most reliable for amusing romantic comedy with a touch of gender-bending. The first story in Otomen volume 5 features one of those shojo standards, the embarrassing school contest. Somehow, martial artist and “eccentric beauty” Ryo has been selected by her grade to compete in the “Ideal Woman Contest”. Since the areas of evaluation are cooking, flower arranging, tea ceremony, and kimono dressing, she doesn’t seem to have much of […]

February 1, 2010 Johanna Comic Book Films 2 comments

Planet Hulk

Iron Man, Reed Richards, Dr. Strange, and an unidentified fourth member of their secret group (which by process of elimination and comparison to the comic story is likely Black Bolt, but he would be too complicated to explain to movie viewers) banished the Hulk from Earth because they couldn’t overcome his destructive force. His spaceship lands on another planet looking for a gladiator savior to free them from slavery. When the comic story started, I thought it was a good […]

January 30, 2010 Johanna Image Comics 2 comments

Underground

Stillwater Cave is a battleground. The townspeople of nearby Marion, Kentucky, want the cave open to the public for the business it will bring. Conservationists want its limited access status as a state park maintained, because they worry that tourists will destroy the natural formations. Two park rangers find the discussion becoming personal in Underground. They work together, they’ve just slept together, and now they find themselves with different opinions. One, Seth, is from the area and understands the economic […]

January 29, 2010 Johanna Other Manga Publishers Leave a comment

Stolen Hearts Volume 1

Those attracted to manga for its air of exoticism will find this cute shojo romance especially entertaining. In Stolen Hearts by Miku Sakamoto, Shinobu works as a kimono model, demonstrating some very attractive fabrics and patterns, while finding love with the scariest boy in class. After an accidental encounter, Shinobu is dragged to the kimono shop run by Koguma’s grandmother. Koguma is tall, silent, and has a dangerous reputation. He’s also named after a cuddly bear cub, providing a hint […]

January 26, 2010 Johanna Digital Manga Reviews One comment

Solfege

My exploration of Fumi Yoshinaga’s yaoi and shonen-ai manga titles continues with this stand-alone volume. I didn’t like Solfege as much as I did The Moon and the Sandals because it’s more traditional in structure and characters — older, established gay man educates a much younger guy in the ways of love and sex — and limited in story scope. It’s the story of a junior high music student who gets involved with his teacher. (“Solfege” means learning to read […]

January 25, 2010 Johanna Other Publishers 2 comments

Comic Book Comics #4

Fred Van Lente and Ryan Dunlavey pack issues of Comic Book Comics full of history and humor. Even when you’ve heard these stories before, you’ll find a new perspective or detail you weren’t previously aware of. And they don’t stick just with the obvious, well-known stories — this issue’s 40 pages covers The creation of Crime Does Not Pay, a notoriously horrific comic, and what happened to Charles Biro and Bob Wood, its founders. How Marvel Comics and Stan Lee […]

January 23, 2010 Johanna Digital Manga Reviews 3 comments

The Moon and the Sandals Volume 1

After enjoying the new books by Fumi Yoshinaga, Ooku: The Inner Chambers and All My Darling Daughters, I decided to try some of her earlier works. This Juné manga seemed a good place to start. I knew from the imprint that this would involve boys’ love stories, but it’s not at all explicit, more schoolboy romance than yaoi. The Moon and the Sandals is a series of six short stories about falling in love, each revolving around a different member […]

January 23, 2010 Johanna Comic Book Films Leave a comment

Howard the Duck

Now this is the way to handle a fan/cult favorite. I picked up Howard the Duck today, and I’m impressed. In addition to the movie, available relatively cheaply, the DVD has a documentary (almost a half-hour) checking in with all the bits I remember about the film: how they found the comic, modern-day footage with Lea Thompson talking about her portrayal of Beverly (and her horrible hair), footage from back then of Thomas Dolby in the studio with the band […]

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