Comments on: Manga Movable Feast: Mushishi Volume 1

By: Mushishi MMF: Today’s Updates (April 26) » Manga Worth Reading

Mushishi MMF: Today’s Updates (April 26) » Manga Worth Reading — Sun, 24 Jul 2011 14:41:31 +0000

[...] Henderson at Manga Xanadu reviewed volume 1 and found it a … very well written series. … The mushi are very diverse and [...]

By: Lori Henderson

Lori Henderson — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 00:08:11 +0000

I didn’t say they were helpful, just that I do use them. And in a way I do find them helpful. They can give me something to kick off my review with, especially when they are so far off the mark, as many Viz blurbs have been.

It’s been several years since I’ve read Mushishi. For the MMF I had to re-read the first volume, so I will for the others. But I’m rather curious to do so now, after seeing some of the not-so-positive comments about it. I like slow and episodic, because for me, this series seems to be more about the mushi and the people who encounter them.

By: Rob McMonigal

Rob McMonigal — Mon, 26 Apr 2010 23:34:04 +0000

With all due respect to the folk who write blurbs on the back of books, I never found them all that helpful to me, so after awhile, I’ve stopped reading them until after I finished the book.

That habit, actually, started with an English professor, who banned reading the book blurbs in her class.

Digression aside, I agree with you 100% about it being a change of pace manga, even within the horror division. Unfortunately, that difference might just be why someone would dislike it. I have a thing for slow-building stories and old-school writers like Poe, so for me, it worked well.

Curious to see what you think of the rest of the series. I know I want to get the rest, having read up to vol 4.

By: Lori Henderson

Lori Henderson — Mon, 26 Apr 2010 14:50:31 +0000

Using the blurb from the back was part of the format I was instructed to use when I started reviewing, and it’s just stuck with me. A lot of people do read the blurbs on the back though (me included), and it can make for an interesting contrast between what the publisher wants people to think about a series, and what it actually is.

By: Ed Sizemore

Ed Sizemore — Mon, 26 Apr 2010 11:31:36 +0000

Lori,

Thanks for the great review. Kate also mentioned that the back cover blurb of volume 1 gave her the wrong impression of the series. I never read the back cover because so many are poorly written and some even contain spoilers, I guess that habit served me well here.