On tap this week: mini-reviews of Forest of Gray City (Vol. 2; Yen Press), a Korean title with a josei vibe; Kekkaishi (Vol. 14; Viz), a shonen title that Chloe, Isaac, and I heartily recommend; and Pumpkin Scissors (Vol. 3; Del Rey), a military drama with topical themes.

Forest of Gray City, Vol. 2

By Uhm JungHyum
Yen Press, 200 pp.
Rating: Teen

Mourning the cancellation of Suppli? Still in Tramps Like Us withdrawal? Then I have something to help you heal that josei jones: Forest of Gray City, a two-volume soap opera chronicling a March-December romance between a twenty-something woman and her seventeen-year-old roommate. The first volume introduced us to the three principle characters: Yun-Ook, a graphic designer whose independent streak has complicated her search for Mr. Right; Bum-Moo, a brooding hottie with a killer wardrobe and a taste for older women; and Bum-Moo’s stepsister, whose loves her younger brother a little too much. Volume two begins with an extended flashback to Bum-Moo’s relationship with his stepsister, showing us how they met, and how tragedy brought them closer together.

Uhm JungHyum packs enough sudsy twists into the first sixty pages for a sweeps’ week worth of General Hospital episodes: second-chance weddings, fatal car crashes, law suits, and abusive husbands all factor into Bum-Moo’s backstory. Yet Forest of Gray City never veers into camp or melodrama, thanks to the beautiful artwork. Uhm JungHyum uses screentone and background detail sparingly, often relying on white space to suggest the isolation and sadness her principles are feeling. The story itself is a little rushed; the artist introduces a rival for Yun-Ook’s affections midway through the second volume, never allowing us to see this character as anything but a plot device. (His subplot barely merits twenty pages—a hiccup in the resolution of the central drama.) Narrative shortcomings notwithstanding, Forest of Gray City offers the same kind of compelling characters and elegant artwork as Suppli, Tramps Like Us, and Walkin’ Butterfly in a wallet-friendly, two-volume package, complete with gorgeous color plates. A must for josei connoisseurs!

–Reviewed by Katherine Dacey

Kekkaishi, Vol. 14

By Yellow Tanabe
Viz, pp.
Rating: Teen (13+)

In this volume of Yellow Tanabe’s utterly enchanting Kekkaishi, we see a return to the episodic storytelling of earlier volumes. Though the multivolume Kokuboro arc was quite fun, the episodic supernatural dilemma solving is where this series really shines. Whether it’s taking down rogue ayakashi or stymieing the sex drive of a lustful goblin king, Yoshimori always has many hurdles to overcome in his quest to become a stronger kekkaishi.

In my last review, I noted the remarkable similarities between this series and its Shonen Jump counterpart Bleach. To be sure, the series have a lot in common. Demon-slaying dominates, and they even both involve cross-dimensional travel to an enemy fortress. As Kekkaishi finished its Kokuboro arc though, it has accomplished what Bleach did not. After an epic conflict, Kekkaishi has taken the much more believable and entertaining route of returning to the episodic storytelling that made it so great in the first place. Where Bleach has all but abandoned its most compelling draw, the monster-of-the-day fare of the pre-Soul Society arc, Kekkaishi has made a triumphant return. For Bleach, any sense of grounding has been lost as increasingly boring non-stop epic battles have dominated everything since the impressive Soul Society arc. For Kekkaishi, the first long story arc of Kokuboro was likewise a triumph, but the aftermath has been a far greater pleasure.

In addition, Tanabe’s art has only improved since her early volumes. My favorite improvement has been how wonderful all of the characters facial expressions are now. Also, Tanabe has a rare gift for a shonen mangaka: her flashback arcs are awesome. They add a lot to the story, and make you love the characters even more. Cheers to Kekkaishi and Yellow Tanabe for making me genuinely hopeful for the future of shonen manga. Run, don’t walk to the nearest volume of Kekkaishi. You won’t regret it!

–Reviewed by Isaac Hale

Pumpkin Scissors, Vol. 3

By Ryotaro Iwanaga
Del Rey, 222 pp.
Rating: 16+

Volume three of Pumpkin Scissors is lackluster at best. The book picks up with the Pumpkin Scissors busting the President of Public Waterworks for meeting with the elusive Sterling Wheel. The operation then devolves into a “who’s had a sadder time at war” battle between a flame-thrower named Hans and PS’s own Corporal Oland. Hans dies, SW leaves (mysteriously) and Pumpkin Scissors is sent back to HQ where they laugh, cry and find out their leader, the tomboyish Alice, has a fiancé.

Though volume three has drama to spare, the childish art ruined any mood that was created. Hans’ dilemma was an interesting storyline, but he didn’t last long enough for his torment to matter. Alice’s engagement and the introduction of her sisters seemed like useless filler. And almost every event that occurred in this volume never seemed mature enough for the “war” tone the book is trying to give off, or to justify the 16+ rating.

The entire time I was reminded of Full Metal Alchemist, as the two stories share the same wartime European setting. Yet Pumpkin Scissors lacks the fantastical magic that makes FMA the interesting story that it is. Possibly the only “magical” object in Pumpkin Scissors is Oland’s Blue Light, which makes him “super-human.” However, it seems almost as ineffective as the book itself. Not recommended.

–Reviewed by Sam Kusek

Dorothea, Vols. 1 – 2

By Cuvie
Published by CMX
Rating: Mature

As Catholicism sweeps across feudal Europe, many of those who still practiced pagan religions find themselves ostracized, feared, or worse. In one small Germanic village, the practice of revering the local albino population leaves the area open to accusations of witchcraft and heresy from a neighboring king. Thus the young albino girl known as Dorothea is forced to leave her home and family for the first time as she sets forth on a quest to rally allies to help protect her people from persecution and a possible invasion.

The actual plot to get Dorothea out into the world is a bit confusing. While Catholicism spurs on an attempt to grab the land that Dorothea and her people inhabit, it also presents their own ruler with an opportunity to remove the albinos from his land, thus giving his sole control of the territory. With almost no where else to turn, an old friend pops up once more, presenting her and the rest of the albinos that live within the “White House” an opportunity to find allies. A returning friend is convinced to take her out into the world to find allies to help protect her friends and their land. The political in fighting and jockeying for positions of power takes a back seat to what’s essentially a coming of age story for young Dorothea. Accompanied by her friend, Gyruk, a boy who had left the village several years later to in his own search for adventure, she joins with a large mercenary battalion and is forced to confront the harsh realities of how the rest of the world treats albinos, not to mention the brutalities of warfare. Dorothea proves herself a strong and capable young woman, but still manages to have a certain emotional vulnerability that doesn’t impact her mental and physical abilities.

It’s the same emotional vulnerability of anyone going off into the world for the first time, not knowing what to expect and not truly prepared for the harshness of war and life outside of her little hamlet. The second volume really focuses on this, forcing her to deal with the repercussions and aftermath of her first skirmish with enemy soldiers, and the fact that the rest of the mercenaries she’s with tend to view her as a witch or demon. It shows her coming to understand the fact that evil is a rare thing and even those she calls allies are capable of doing some fairly horrible things, not to mention her wish to simply be accepted and not viewed as some sort of inhuman monster due to her appearance.

The artwork didn’t really blow away. It’s decent enough and it gets the point across, but something about it didn’t quite click with me. It just might not be my thing though, as I honestly can’t find anything bad to say about it. I found several of the characters to look alike and relied upon the dialogue and costuming to help tell them apart. Thankfully, Dorothea’s about the only girl who appears in both books, and she’s heavily designed to look unique due to her albinism and her rather snazzy outfit. The action sequences aren’t anything special; they tend be quick, taking only a few panels. The backgrounds also tend to be a bit sparse with toning being used to make up for the lack of detail in them.

Despite not blowing me away, I thought Dorothea was an interesting story. It’s always nice to see a strong and capable female lead, and Dorothea is definitely that. It seems like the kind of title that should be able to build up a strong fan base among girls in their early teens, but with CMX’s low profile, and the M rating warranting a shrink wrap, I get the feeling that many folks will over look or miss out on it.

Volumes one and two of Dorothea are available now.

In an effort to keep things fresh and cover more titles, we’re converting Manga Minis from a monthly to a weekly column. Expect an eclectic assortment of capsule reviews every Friday, along with our customary mix of longer reviews, con coverage, and recurring features throughout the week.

This week, we tackle four new titles: volume five of The Antique Gift Shop (Yen Press), a Korean import with a supernatural vibe; volume one of Classical Medley (CMX), a shonen romp in which the characters have musically inspired names; volume four of Her Majesty’s Dog (Go! Comi), a shojo romance with a demonic twist; and volume two of Hollow Fields (Seven Seas), Madeleine Rosca’s award-winning OEL series.

The Antique Gift Shop, Vol. 5

By Lee Eun
Yen Press, 200 pp.
Rating: Teen

The first four volumes of The Antique Gift Shop adhered to the same formula: unsuspecting customers purchase objects from a magical emporium, only to discover that said objects are possessed by spirits with agendas of their own, e.g. reuniting lost lovers, punishing bullies for bad behavior. Volume five is something of an anomaly, as the longer of the two stories is only tangentially connected to the shop. In it, a delivery man finds himself stranded at a compound whose gothic denizens shun the one seemingly normal resident, a curly-haired moppet with big, dewy eyes. Though Lee Eun channels Charles Addams’ iconic family with her marvelous character designs and atmospheric backgrounds, she has considerable difficulty with the actual storytelling. Each scene is weirdly self-contained, leading to a denouement that feels more like a bolt from the blue than the logical resolution of the story’s central mystery. The second chapter suffers from many of the same problems–disjointed storytelling, cryptic dialogue–but has a crucial advantage: it stars the proprietress of the gift shop, a character familiar from previous volumes. Her story is, at times, frightfully hard to follow–I think she plays a hand of go to save her mother’s soul–but I did learn a few fun facts about Korean playing cards, and and dug her opponents’ fabulous costumes, which struck me as something Cotton Mather might have worn after a visit to seventeenth century Korea.

The bottom line: the cover art is beautiful, but the interior is a mess. Wait for volume six or backtrack to the first volume if you’d been curious about this series.

–Reviewed by Katherine Dacey

Classical Medley, Vol. 1

By Sanae Kana
CMX, 162 pp.
Rating: Teen (T)

There are two magical orbs in the Classical Kingdom, one a ball of light and the other a sphere of darkness. The power of the latter has been sealed away since being abused by a king of yore, and a ceremony to renew the seal is required every 100 years. The ceremony goes wrong, and the current king winds up possessed by dark powers while Alto, protagonist of indeterminate gender and bodyguard to the prince, obtains the powers of light. Alto flees with Prince Soprano and trusty dragon companion Mezzo to seek help from Soprano’s brother, who is the only one not to have come under the king’s evil influence since he’s attending school in another country.

This title is rated Teen, but it’s hard to imagine any teen wanting to read this. The characters look and act younger than their established ages, the attempts at humor are not funny, and the story keeps getting modified as it goes along. I’d say it ought to be rated All Ages instead, but there are a few gratuitous images of the queen’s enormous boobs that might make that problematic.

Classical Medley is thoroughly mediocre, treading closely to the border with outright bad. I’m usually a completist, especially with a short series like this, but I couldn’t endure a second volume, even to know how it all ends.

–Reviewed by Michelle Smith

Her Majesty’s Dog

By Mick Takeuchi
Go! Comi, 196 pp.
Rating: Older Teen (16+)

In my review of volume seven, I noted some similarities between Her Majesty’s Dog and InuYasha. In both series, for example, the heroine is a teenaged priestess/schoolgirl who pals around with a moody demon dog. Though the two series diverge plot-wise, they share another trait: the filler arc. Volume nine of Her Majesty’s Dog feels like one of those “Hey, let’s have InuYasha disrupt the cultural festival at Kagome’s school!” storylines that Rumiko Takahashi likes to insert between long, drawn-out quests for jewel chards. Nothing of consequence happens: Amane and Ateko quarrel and reconcile; Amane and Hyoue help a tree spirit cross over; the gang attend–you guessed it–a cultural festival.

Mick Takeuchi’s art hasn’t evolved much from the first volume. Her character designs and backgrounds are crisply rendered, if a little generic, while her indiscriminate use of screentone would vault her to the top of Dee DuPuy’s Most Wanted list. Takeuchi still struggles with action sequences; the few scenes involving koma-oni combat are a hot mess of diagonal panels, facial close-ups, and sound effects.

That said, fans of the series shouldn’t skip volume nine, as Amane “makes a shocking decision” (to borrow a phrase from the dust jacket) in its final pages–a decision with the potential to end her relationship with Hyoue for good and bring the series to a dramatic close.

–Reviewed by Katherine Dacey

Hollow Fields, Vol. 2

By Madeleine Rosca
Seven Seas
Rating: All Ages

One thing I can credit Hollow Fields with as a series: the main character does get more interesting. In the first volume, Lucy Snow showed severe growing pains at her new school, whining how it was too cold outside to dig up corpses, and fainting at the sight of vats full of genetically-engineered fish-birds and formaldehyde. Not only was she in danger of failing her first week and earning detention–which according to the rules at Hollow Fields, means being sent to the ominous windmill no student has ever returned from –worse, she was almost no fun. And attending a school for aspiring mad scientists should be fun, right?

In volume two, Lucy toughens up and shows potential in certain forbidden sciences. Unfortunately, she still comes across as bland compared to her classmates, especially Summer Polanski, who would be the star if this were a more subversive series. But it isn’t; writer/artist Madeleine Rosca seems content serving up a routine adventure plot, in which Lucy has to get out of Hollow Fields or something terrible will happen to her. Worse, Rosca doesn’t even let the suspense build until the next volume. Instead, just when the dark twists on academic competitiveness and pre-teen girl rivalries start to heat up, a major plot development takes place, and things take a turn towards more run-of-the-windmill stuff.

As a reader, I wanted more scenes like the mid-term exam, in which Lucy and her classmates unleash destructive class projects on a scale-model city. At least Rosca’s art, which combines cute, nose-less children with spooky-looking backgrounds, continues to make an interesting-looking combination. Now if only the story itself were as twisted as it looked.

– Review by Phil Guie

You’re So Cool, Vol. 1

By YoungHee Lee
Yen Press, 192 pp.
Rating: 13+

Intelligent, affluent, polite, attractive…who wouldn’t like Seung-Ha, the resident prince of the school and beacon of perfection? Certainly not Nan-Wo, his klutzy, aggressive classmate who spends her days pining for him and replaying her seemingly endless string of slip ups in front of him. But when Seung-Ha asks her to date him, it all seems like a dream come true- that is, until she figures out that her dream prince is actually her worst nightmare!

Ah, the personality dichotomy: old as the hills but an ever attractive plot device. You’re So Cool may not be heading in any new directions, but a vicious bent and unflinching lead heroine manages to keep things interesting in spite of the title’s shortcomings. The first installment follows a remarkably simple path: girl likes boy, girl scores impossibly improbable date with boy, girl is victim of injustices and realizes boy is thug. It doesn’t make for great reading, and certainly doesn’t enamor one towards anybody other than Nan-Wo, but nonetheless serves as the right setup for future installments. Act One may be the big reveal, but act two will inevitably be sweet revenge.

Exempting a few forgettable background characters, You’re So Cool is almost entirely a two man show. Nan-Wo, the protagonist du jour, provides the levity and spastic humor the series revels in: she’s unfeminine, brash and thoroughly overeager, traits designed naturally to clash with her tormentor. Seung-Ha packs a vicious attitude and penchant for cruelty, but hints of emotional baggage and emotional instability promise that he has the Rich Boy Family Issues to explain it all away in future installments.

Artistically, the series remains firmly planted in the realm of serviceable manhwa style, improved by the occasional well done full page spread. Everyone suffers from a kind of angular lankiness, but the effect isn’t overwhelming enough to detract from the narrative. This being shojo, there’s plenty of elaborate toning, but never to the point of invasive excess. Yen’s treatment of the material is perhaps most admirable, as the oversized volume comes with an abundance of color opener pages and a well adapted (ten points for usage of the verb “shotgunning”) translation.

You’re So Cool may follow the usual love/hate dynamics, but an unstoppable female lead and appropriately nasty counterpart add an extra crackle that less outrageous titles fail to capture. There’s nothing new to amaze and delight anyone remotely familiar with the usual shojo tropes, but with so many simpering wallflower protagonists on the market, those searching for a little more spastic spunk are advised to take a look.

Volume one of You’re So Cool is available now.

Tokyo Is My Garden

By Frederic Boilet and Benoit Peeters
Fanfare/Ponent Mon, 152 pp.
No rating (Mature content)

To give full disclosure, I was a little reluctant to tackle this comic after crying my eyes out after a nineteen-volume Banana Fish marathon this week. After that kind of an emotional joyride, an arsty-fartsy nouvelle manga did not sound like a panacea. But fortunately I was pleasantly surprised. Boilet and Peeters’ moody tale of a Frenchman living in Tokyo is the perfect thing to quiet your worries and carry your imagination to Japan.

If you’re at all familiar with the duo’s previous work, such as Boilet’s Yukiko’s Spinach or Mariko Parade, it should not come as a surprise that the story revolves around a Frenchman in his thirties and the Japanese love of his life. You get the feeling after a couple of these nouvelle manga that there is at least some connection between this ongoing theme and Boilet himself, but I digress.

What truly fascinates is Boilet’s perspective into Japanese culture as a gaijin who has lived there for years. On page 113 the protagonist David says: “That there is a fundamental between the Japanese and the rest of the world is a lie… Hooey for lazy journalists… The Japanese are like us in every way. What changes is there way of being identical.” This is really a brilliant insight that smashes through the oft repeated BS in Japanophile circles that the Japanese somehow have an insurmountable culture barrier. But to David, who has lived in Japan for years and lived his life like he would anywhere else, this fallacy is revealed for what it truly is: a crutch.

In Tokyo Is My Garden, the protagonist David starts things off by breaking up with his model girlfriend. Turns out he’s a boutique French cognac salesman trying to expand his company’s market into Japan. Soon after his breakup, David meets a new girlfriend and prepares for his boss’ imminent checkup on him in Tokyo. The truth is, he’s sold only one case of the cognac in his years in Japan! And he left his last promo bottle on the train by accident! Whatever is he to do? Fate and chance actually factor heavily into this story as David’s career future is determined by strangers even as he focuses completely on his love life. The way his future is determined is beautifully depicted in a way that only clicks in the reader’s mind when things come to head in the comic’s conclusion.

The art’s minimalist comic-manga fusion style is a nice change from the pop manga that inundates our local bookstores. Boilet has outdone himself once again. What exemplifies his art for me is when David and his Boss go to a dance club and most of the people with in have very sketchy and minimal facial features. But when David and his lover are sharing intimate moments, the detail is jaw-dropping. The scene where David is photographing his love is one of the most iconic in Boilet’s work, a theme echoed from his earlier Mariko Parade. We are also treated in this work by brilliant shading by Jiro Taniguchi of The Walking Man and The Ice Wanderer fame.

Though this comic is unlikely to appeal to the vast majority of casual manga readers who drop in for their monthly fixes of Fruits Basket and Naruto, it’s definitely worth checking out for manga fans, comics lovers, and art enthusiasts alike. Its not one of my favorite manga of the year, but it certainly was nice to have a break from all the standard manga fare. Try out this nouvelle manga stuff, and you’ll sound as pretentious and crotchety as I do in no time. And while you’re feeling smug about being a part of real in-the-making comics history, take the time to give Tokyo Is My Garden a good long read. It’s worth it.

Tokyo Is My Garden is available now.

Fairy Tail, Vol. 3

By Hiro Mashima
Del Rey, 196 pp.
Rating: 13+

Though there are distinct differences, Fairy Tail can easily be compared to Mashima’s former series Rave Master. Yet, in my opinion, Fairy Tail is a more competent version of Rave Master. While similar to many Rave characters (Natsu is a Hot-Headed Haru, Lucy is Elie and Gray is Musica), Fairy Tail‘s are much more fully developed. Mashima’s characters are his strong point and with Fairy Tail, he is able to accentuate his characters with a much smaller, more manageable cast. The overall plot is also much tighter, restricting the story to short vignettes instead of long-winded quests. So it is no surprise that volume three of Fairy Tail embodies all of the traits that make this series a winner.

Volume three leaves us with Fairy Tail‘s strongest team at the hands of Erigor and the Dark Eisenwald Guild. At Erza’s request, Natsu and Gray are sent after the fleeting Erigor, while she and Lucy stay put to fight the rest of the guild. This volume is a good, deep introduction to Fairy Tail‘s stronger characters. Erza, throughout the volume, is given a chance to showcase not only her offensive tactics (which I must say is one of the more amazing powers that Mashima has ever conceived) but also her leadership abilities. She is an incredibly perceptive woman, constantly taking note of what’s going on and steering her team in the right direction. It’s no wonder that she is called “Titaina Erza” or “Queen of Fairy’s Erza.” Let’s not forget Gray though, our other new hero of Fairy Tail. Though he doesn’t get as much of the glory as Erza does, Gray still manages to show us his stuff during the Lullaby Arc. Gray also gets a chance to show off the “Maker Magic,” which allows him to put a form to his magic. Though both Erza and Gray are both given a great amount of face time in this volume, the real focus is on Natsu’s fly cat companion, Happy. Happy, during the course of this adventure, gets the group out of the Erigor’s Wind Wall by giving Lucy the Virgo Key. On top of this, he encourages Natsu (through some reverse psychology) to beat Erigor.

Just as Mashima is known for his clever writing, his stylized artwork is also very appealing. His action scenes are not overloaded, giving the reader just enough detail. He spells out exactly what is going on without it getting confusing or boring. His character design is also fantastic. Each character has their own unique style, matching their abilites and personalities quite well. Natsu, Erza and Gray’s costumes speak volumes about who they are: Natsu’s open vest suggests his heated temper, Erza keeps her heart hidden, figuratively and literally behind iron clad armor, and Gray wears a warm coat to contrast his cool and calculating ways.

Del Rey has picked another winner with Hiro Mashima’s Fairy Tail. I would say that it is one of the better representations of modern shonen to date. Its clever story and engrossing characters are reminiscent of older series, like Dragon Ball and Yuyu Hakusho, yet Mashima still manages to put a fresher spin on the classic genre. Fairy Tail is sure to please a wide audience.

Volume three of Fairy Tail is available now.

Slam Dunk, Vol. 1

By Takehiko Inoue
Viz, 208 pp.
Rating: Teen (T)

Sakuragi has never been a hit with girls. In fact, in three years of junior high he amassed an impressive fifty rejections! Now in his first year of high school, he once again believes he’s met the girl of his dreams. Haruko loves athletes, and basketball in particular, so to win her affections, Sakuragi becomes determined to join the school team.

This aim is complicated by Sakuragi’s overwhelming, almost painful stupidity and violent outbursts of temper. He mouths off within earshot of the captain (who also happens to be Haruko’s older brother) and publicly humiliates him in a basketball contest. Though he manages to control himself long enough to get onto the team, he is quickly frustrated by fundamentals training and ends up storming off the court in a huff.

I know Slam Dunk is a classic of sports manga, a genre I really like, but I didn’t enjoy it quite as much as I thought I would. Most of that has to do with Sakuragi’s temperament, though, so I’m hopeful that as he’s forced to learn discipline and teamwork, the ignorant boasting and random karate chopping will gradually subside. The actual playing and practicing of basketball is great fun to read, another reason I assume my enjoyment will increase in future installments.

I was both impressed and a little confused by Inoue’s artwork. The style is by turns realistic and comedic, and though sometimes it borders on unattractive, there are definitely moments of greatness. A page and a half spread of the basketball court is a particular standout; the way the panel is framed does an excellent job in conveying the size and height of the room.

The confusion stems from several characters that appear to be of African descent. Their names are Japanese, though, and one of them is Haruko’s brother, so I am assuming they’re not supposed to be a different ethnicity than their peers. I was also struck by the resemblance of one of Sakuragi’s buddies to the late Robert Goulet. Consider the evidence:

A number of extras are included in this volume, all without deviating from the standard Shonen Jump price of $7.99. The first chapter is printed entirely in color, and a glossy color section in back includes a profile of a real-life NBA superstar and some tips on how to perform a slam dunk. And a sticker!

I liked this okay, and I’m confident I’ll like the rest more. It’ll be a long wait until volume two–due out in February–but Viz recently announced that a new series is due to replace Slam Dunk in the magazine come March, so the frequency of releases ought to increase in the near future.

Volume 1 of Slam Dunk will be available on September 2, 2008.

Is a super-sized helping of Manga Minis an oxymoron? Or is it simply the equivalent of gorging yourself on Frosted Mini Wheats? Either way, this month’s column is jam-packed with reviews from Chloe Ferguson, Isaac Hale, Ken Haley, Michelle Smith, and me. The books run the gamut from shojo—volume eight of La Corda d’Oro (Viz) and volume three of Tears of a Lamb (CMX)—to shonen—volume 30 of Naruto (Viz)—seinen—volume seven of Kikaider Code 02 (CMX) and volume twelve of xXxholic (Del Rey)—yaoi—Ellie Mamahara’s Alley of First Love (BLU Manga)—OEL—volume one of Kasumi (Del Rey)—and manhua—The King of Fighters Art Book (DrMaster). And while there’s no explicit theme to this month’s column, its very eclectic nature is a statement in itself. So read, enjoy, and feel the sugar high from eating too many minis.

Ellie Mamahara: Alley of First Love

By Ellie Mamahara
BLU Manga, 186 pp.
Rating: Older Teen

Despite its lurid title, Alley of First Love isn’t about cruising—it’s actually about two childhood friends whose relationship takes a sexy turn in adulthood. Shusuke, a dark-haired hottie, is an injured soccer star who’s marking time at the family liquor store; Atsushi, a fair-haired innocent, is a graduate student who spent nearly six years abroad. When they’re reunited, Shusuke contrives improbable schemes for spending time with his old pal (one involving a giant panda suit… don’t ask) to gauge Atsushi’s interest in him.

Not much actually happens; most of the book is devoted to flirtatious exchanges and earnest conversations about feelings. That uneventfulness is both a plus and a minus. On the one hand, it’s refreshing to see character development take center stage in a genre known primarily for steamy man-on-man action. On the other, Ellie Mamahara lacks Fumi Yoshinaga’s flair for dialogue, so the script is rather pedestrian. The artwork, too, is serviceable but not great. Like many manga-ka, Mamahara favors lean boys with bee-stung lips, sleepy eyes, and impossibly broad shoulders—in short, characters who read as sufficiently masculine, but have a certain softness and sensuality that’s more feminine. Her backgrounds are spare, with shojo-esque screentone patterns frequently standing in for actual detail. For readers who prefer yaoi that depicts healthy, consensual relationships, Alley of First Love offers a welcome respite from some of the more explicit offerings in the BLU, DMP, and Kitty Media catalogs. Hard-core fujoshi, however, are advised to seek thrills elsewhere, as Mamahara’s book is a strictly PG-13 affair.

–Reviewed by Katherine Dacey

Kasumi, Vol.1

Story by Surt Lim, Art by Hirofumi Sugimoto
Del Rey, 208 pp.
Rating: 13+

Born out of an east-west creative partnership and helmed by Del Rey, Kasumi gets effort points, a couple cute points, and not a whole lot else. The setup smacks of been-there, done-that, from cheery everygirl Kasumi’s strange new powers (which, of course, manifest themselves in socially humiliating circumstances) to her rich girl rival and mysterious ice block of a love interest. Friend making, school hijinks, and magic usage naturally ensues. A quirky set of extras provides a bit of air, but even a bit of weirdness can’t liven up a series that seems dead set on crafting Kasumi a few token magical friends to move the background action along.

The okay vibes extend even to the realms of art and toning, with Sugimoto’s serviceable closeups marred largely by the occasional anatomical iffyness and, more gravely, by serious tone abuse. Every character has been lovingly toned with a healthy plethora of grays and gradients, but the backgrounds have been left to languish in obscurity. Who needs shapes or distinguishable features when a splash of black gradient will do? The end result- very few well-drawn backgrounds, or, worse, extant backgrounds proves a serious detractor in the long run. Kasumi may be a step in the right direction for global manga, but also proves that there’s still much ground to be covered in closing the quality gap.

–Reviewed by Chloe Ferguson

Kikaider Code 02, Vol. 7

Story by Ishinomori Shotaro, Art by Meimu
CMX, 178 pp.
Rating: Mature

The long awaited finale to the Kikaider Code 02 series is here! Unfortunately, I haven’t actually read any of the series prior to this, so it left me a bit lost. Still, it wasn’t too hard to grasp what was going on, though some of the plot twists were perhaps lost on me. Meimu’s artwork was lovely and the designs for Kikaider and the various other robots were fantastic. The story itself concludes the tangled web of intrigue involving Jiro (aka Kikaider), his pseudo-brother Saburo (aka Haikaider), the rest of their family, and a secret organization that was plotting to wipe out mankind. It’s a fast paced, action packed finale with an ending that might leave some scratching their heads. It’s open to interpretation, but seemed awfully grim to me. In addition there’s some nice sketchbook material included in the end, along with a short afterward by Meimu about the series. Interesting stuff that left me wanting to hunt down the rest of the series so I could better grasp this final chapter.

–Reviewed by Ken Haley

The King of Fighters Art Book

Created by Wing Yan and King Tung
Published by DrMaster, 92 pages
Rating: Unrated

From artists Wing Yan and King Tung comes The King of Fighters Art Book, 92 pages of full-color oversized reproductions of the duo’s covers for three different King of Fighters comic series (2001, 2002 and 2003). Each cover takes up a single page with a little notation at the bottom indicating which series it’s from. The duo have done a good job at capturing the likenesses of the various characters, and fans of the comics or games will be pleased to see characters ranging from Kyo to Bill Kane making appearances in the various pieces. While the covers are certainly lovely, it’s a bit disappointing that that’s all the book contains. No sketchbook material, rough pencils, rejected covers or anything of that nature. It’s essentially a cover gallery, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but it gives the book a really light feeling, especially since it comes with a $22 price tag. Still, fans of Wing Yan and King Tung’s art might want to give it a look, as might fans of the comics and video game series.

–Reviewed by Ken Haley

La Corda d’Oro, Vol. 8

By Yuki Kure
Viz, 178 pp.
Rating: Teen (13+)

Volume eight of La Corda d’Oro begins with every musician’s worst nightmare: in the middle of a performance, Kahoko loses her mojo. Her intonation wobbles; a string breaks; and worse still, the magic spell that allowed her violin to practically play itself wears off, forcing her to scratch and pick her way through the remainder of the piece. Though she’s demoted to last place in the school music competition, her fellow contestants (five of whom are cute, tousled-haired boys) praise her gutsy performance, squeaks and all.

This opening chapter has a certain intensity and honesty that’s generally lacking in La Corda d’Oro as a whole. Some of that is attributable to the beautiful artwork; many scenes are wordless, focusing instead on a facial expression or a hand poised to bow a phrase. Yuki Kure’s toning is superb, giving her characters and objects an unusually solid appearance—something that’s all too rare in shojo—while evoking Kahoko’s fragile, anxious state. The rest of the volume is conventional shojo fluff, as Kure introduces a potential rivalry between Kahoko and a button-cute girl from Ryotaro’s middle school, and sends Kahoko to an amusement park with the deadly serious—some might say pompous—Len. Volume eight also includes an utterly forgettable short story about a rich boy who behaves like a doormat in the presence of the girl he loves, despite the fact she’s a brusque pain the butt. From the rougher artwork and choppy narrative flow, I’d guess this story predates La Corda d’Oro, as it lacks the polish of Corda’s very best pages.

–Reviewed by Katherine Dacey

Naruto, Vol. 30

By Masashi Kishimoto
Viz, 178 pp.
Rating: Teen (13+)

I’d like to preface this review by saying I was a Narutard years before it was cool. I got into Naruto when Shonen Jump first hit newsstands in the US. Though admittedly, the series’ first fifty-ish chapters are unarguably Naruto’s heyday, this hasn’t stopped the ongoing series from still being a blast. Even though Naruto embraces pretty much every shonen meme and convention, it brings enough originality and sheer entertainment value to make up for it. Additionally, there’s just no getting over the fact that Naruto simply has terrific character designs. This series is a terrific balance of humor, action, and a healthy dash of manservice for the fangirls.

In this volume, Naruto and co. face off against various members of Akatsuki, this year’s super-secret evil badass hall of fame. Why is it that with each successive shonen story arc, the villains get less and less memorable? In my not-so-humble opinion, most shonen stories get stretched far beyond their natural life cycles and lose originality and fall back on conventions as a result. Naruto is no exception—this is volume 30 for Christ’s sake! The way the manga cuts from one fight to the next makes me consider going on Ritalin with every read. The way this manga really should be enjoyed is one chapter at a time (as you would if you were reading it in a magazine). With a week between each chapter, the extra-special scene shifts and fever-pitch action really work in Naruto’s favor. Regardless though, the graphic novels are quite a bargain at $8.00, and volume 30 should definitely be picked up if you’ve kept up with the series so far!

–Reviewed by Isaac Hale

Tears of a Lamb, Vol. 3

By Banri Hidaka
CMX, 192 pp.
Rating: Teen (T)

The greatest strength of this series is the relationship between its two lead characters. After getting off to a rough start—with Kei badgering Kanzaki to allow her access to his apartment so she can search for a lost ring—it has developed into a solid friendship, with each able to confide in the other about their problems. I particularly like how Kanzaki’s consideration of Kei is shown through his actions rather than told in mere words. The best scenes are when they are engaged in heartfelt conversation. Unfortunately, such moments do not happen often in this third installment of the series. The standout chapter actually focuses on the school doctor and her own experiences in high school. A nice character piece, it also provides a glimpse of the mysterious Suwa, the older man upon whom Kei is fixated and the owner of the ring for which she is searching.

Hidaka’s art is cute (I love the fleecy lambs sprinkled throughout) but my enjoyment is marred by the continual reliance on violence as a source of humor. Poor Kanzaki takes a pounding on practically every page and it’s really beginning to disturb me. If you can get past that, however, Tears of a Lamb definitely has something unique to offer.

–Reviewed by Michelle Smith

xxxHolic, Vol. 12

By CLAMP
Del Rey, 208 pp.
Rating: Teen (13+)

I’ll be the first to admit that I love xxxHolic to death. I love the art, love the creativity, even love the quasi-spiritual pretentiousness. And to be sure, this latest volume of xxxHolic has all that. Unfortunately, this latest volume takes the self-important pontification to a really obscene level, with the dialogue ascending to a fever pitch of narcissism. During a particularly emo moment, for example, Sakura says: “The only thing I could do until the ‘time’ that I changed the future was to act through the part I saw in a dream.” Trust me, this makes no more sense in context. Frankly though, if CLAMP can get its obligatory emo monologues out in this single volume, it’s a-okay by me.

Despite my bitching, this volume is still a pleasure to read. xxxHolic is easily the best series CLAMP has whipped up since Card Captor Sakura, and it shows in the one-shot stories and the jaw-dropping artwork. Seeing the chapter title pages in their ornate and sexy awesomeness makes me yearn for an xxxHolic artbook like nobody’s business. Though this volume is not nearly as good as it could have been, it’s still the same old xxxHolic, and for that it still gets my purchasing recommendation.

–Reviewed by Isaac Hale

In this installment of On the Shojo Beat, Isaac Hale proves once again he’s man enough to read shojo… and enjoy it. The series: Ai Yazawa’s addictive rock-n-roll soap opera NANA, a staff favorite here at PCS.–KD

NANA, Vols. 9-11

By Ai Yazawa
Published by Viz
Rating: Mature

If you look at the back of any book in Viz’s Shojo Beat line, you should see a funky little thought bubble stretching from the book’s title that says: “The Real Drama Begins in…”. This is a great marketing catchphrase, but it’s a little disconcerting seeing titles like Vampire Knight, Absolute Boyfriend, and NANA put on this same pedestal. That’s like comparing an apple to an orange to a Buick—or, as they used to say on Sesame Street, one of these things is not like the others.

Since the first issue of Shojo Beat magazine, NANA has been the label’s high point, setting a standard against which most other shojo releases seem pretty tame.. Despite NANA’s massive popularity in Europe as well as Asia (Japan’s bestselling shojo/josei manga ever), NANA has had a far rockier journey here in the US. Amid tepid sales and a slowing stateside release schedule, Viz decided to drop NANA from the magazine lineup and release it only in the graphic novel format.

Despite a release schedule that is agonizingly slow in comparison to its foreign counterparts, Viz has continued to put out regular and high quality releases. In volume nine for example, Viz opted to include a bonus story that Ai Yazawa drew about the humble high school origins of Trapnest and Blast. This extra is a real treat, and it warms my otaku heart to know that Viz is still giving NANA its full commitment despite sometimes disappointing sales. Additionally, each volume of NANA has included an extras section as well, which is always a treat.

Since the bombshell of volume eight where we find out that Hachi is pregnant, the drama and depth of NANA has ascended to a new tier. In volumes one through eight, Hachi and Nana unite and a seemingly solid social framework for the rest of the series unfolds. After volume eight though, it becomes increasingly clear that the first eight volumes were merely setup for the series’ true drama: the interaction of the members of Trapnest and Blast and the wild card in their midst, Hachi.

Throughout volumes nine, ten, and eleven, the reality of NANA as we’ve come to know it is turned on its head. Romantic realities are rattled; hopes and aspirations shattered and reformed overnight, and the lines of camaraderie and friendship are redrawn. With Hachi’s child on the way, Hachi becomes more and more consumed by her impending life as a mother and drifts away from her tried and true friends of Blast. Though Takumi treats her well for the most part, it is obvious that Hachi is making a very painful transition that could burn her bridges should her life with Takumi fall through.

The most rattling relationship change has been between the series namesakes, Nana Osaki and Nana “Hachi” Komatsu. Through the first eight volumes the two develop a bond that stretches beyond friendship and is absolutely paramount to the two women. As circumstances force them apart though, their bond is not broken. Nana Osaki pines for Hachi constantly, and they both weigh heavily on the other’s heart and mind. Even as it begins to appear that their paths are destined to be irreconcilable, the two women never forget for a moment that they are doing everything with the strength they garnered from each other.

Indeed, despite the Nanas’ separation, the series’ homoerotic tension only increases. Aside from a couple of jokes being made about Nobuo and Shin (yeah… no), Nana Osaki all but admits to having a romantic (or something even greater?) fixation with Hachi. She admits that Hachi fulfills her in a way that Ren does not. When Hachi leaves to live with Takumi, Nana descends into despair and begins having panic attacks. Despite her immense sense of loss, Nana does everything with Hachi, her new lease on life, in mind. With these ever-mounting homoerotic undertones and Ai Yazawa’s apparent infallibility in this series, I can only hope that these tensions can be resolved in a realistic and decisive fashion.

Despite all its laurels in the otaku community, NANA has yet to receive the attention it deserves in the American market. As it has done since its inception, NANA humanizes interpersonal relationships in a profound way that no other comic I’ve ever read has achieved. And with the first eight volumes being only the leaping off point for this already emotionally turbulent ride, we can be sure the best is yet to come. My hat is off to Ai Yazawa for creating the best shojo/josei title I have ever read. Accept no substitutes: the real drama begins in NANA.

Volumes nine, ten, and eleven of NANA are available now.

Tokko, Vol. 1

By Tohru Fujisawa
Tokyopop, 192 pp.
Rating: Mature (18 +)

In the near future, a special branch of the Tokyo Police Department is formed to deal with mysterious rash of mass murders that have been plaguing Japan. The murders are of a grizzly and inhuman nature and, to make things even more interesting, are often accompanied by earthquakes and the sudden appearance of mysterious holes. Enter Ranmaru Shindo, a new member of the Tokyo Police Department who’s assigned to the unit that’s the public face of the investigations, and a survivor of one of the early mass murders. Will he be able uncover the mystery behind the murders, and the mystery of a secret group within the police department know only as Tokko?

Tokko is not high literature. It’s a simple, over-the-top, pulpy action/horror series. The very set up is one that almost defies logic: a mysterious rash of mass murders that have been occuring over the span of about five years with dozens, even hundreds, left brutally mutilated each time, yet life continues along as always despite the fact that the police can’t even begin to come up with a suspect? I don’t know, I’d imagine that Tokyo would be emptied out by the time of the third or fourth one. Can’t imagine anyone wanting to hang around a city where hundreds of people mysteriously die at random, especially since they indicate that this seems to be happening with increasing frequency. So, the premise is a bit of a stretch, but what about the rest of it?

Well, the characters are interesting enough I suppose. Ranmaru’s a fairly likeable guy with a weird sister who’s constantly trying to hook him up with her friends, and who’s fond of teasing him by walking around their apartment half naked. He also suffers from a recurring dream of the day his parents and everyone in the housing project where they lived were murdered in one of the mass killings. (Unlike the actual event however, in his dreams there’s a half naked woman with a sword.) The mystery of the murders have driven him to join the police force in an attempt to bring the killer of his parents to justice and, as he learns in this volume, the descision to join the police force is about to bring him face-to-face with the woman from his dreams as well. Aside from Ranmaru, everyone else is just kind of there. Sure, his friends are likeable enough, but they don’t do a whole lot beside provide a way to feed us information on the world, the murders, and Ranmaru’s life. The Tokko squad, at this point are just mysterious ciphers, while his sister is just comedy relief. Then again, this isn’t the kind of story you read for deep character development.

The art’s very good, but that seems to be the norm for a Fujisawa book. The characters are very detailed and it’s quite easy to tell the various characters apart from one another. The gore and violence are surprisingly in short supply for a horror series. Outside of one crime scene most of gore and blood is just depicted by massive gushers of black ink. It’s certainly not as gorey as many of the horror offerings currently available. The action scenes are also a bit lacking. They tend to be handled fairly quickly and usually consist of a character leaping forward and killing someone in one hit, usually accompanied by the before-mentioned gushers of black ink. Even when the Tokko guys show up the fights tend to last a few panels, most of which will depict a single attack and a character or demon being cut to shreds in the process.

All in all, Tokko is a fun B-movie on paper. Crazy monsters? Check. Giant weapons? Check. Copious blood splatters? Check. A simple and vaguely goofy plot? Definitely a check. It’s light, it’s entertaining, it’s a quick read. Still, it does manage to entertain in a cheesy way.

Volume 1 of Tokko is available now.