Manga Xanadu

  This week I check out This Week’s Manga, some Viz Media stories In the News, Catch up on some Anime Expo announcements, the Top 10 Department, and look at some titles that have been hit by the H-Word; Hiatus! http://archive.org/download/MangaDomeEpisode66/MangaDomeEpisode66.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | Download

In the continent of Consume, an endless war rages between bitter rivals: the Segua Kingdom vs. the Ninteldo Empire. Upon his dinosaur steed, the stern Emperor Marcus has led the Ninteldo Empire to near victory. Now, with the majority of Consume under its control, Ninteldo has Segua up against the ropes. Enter a fleet-footed lad named Gear, who seeks vengeance against Ninteldo for his brother’s death. After joining Segua’s Army, Gear is enlisted in the Special Forces to put his preternatural speed to good use. But will the inexperienced, impulsive youth be ready to face the realities of war? World War Blue Volume 1 Story by Anastasia Shestakova; Art by Crimson Publisher: Seven Seas Entertainment Age Rating: Teen Genre: Action/Game Price: $11.99 Rating: When I first heard the premise of World War Blue, I was intrigued. I’ve always been interested in the console wars, and seeing them brought to life sounded like a fun idea. In practice, I found the execution problematic, though the story isn’t without it’s merits. World War Blue starts by introducing three characters; the fleet-footed Gear and his friends Tial and Nel. They are the only survivors of a Ninteldo attack five years previous, on their…

This week I check out regular departments This Week’s Manga and the Top Ten Department before diving headlong into all the license announcements from this year’s Anime Expo. http://archive.org/download/MangaDomeEpisode65/MangaDomeEpisode65.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | Download

The young Erwin Smith is a rising star in the Survey Corps, humanity’s only hope of defeating the man-eating monsters known as Titans. Ruthless and dispassionate, Erwin’s mind is devoted to strategies and intrigue. But beneath Erwin’s feet is another world, the Underground, where humans are born and die surrounded by the garbage the Capital throws away. Here, the criminal Levi survives on his wits and agility. But when these two ambitious men cross paths, who will prove himself stronger? Attack on Titan: No Regrets Volume 1 Written by Gun Snark (Nitropolis); Art by Hikaru Suruga Publisher: Kodansha Comics Age Rating: Older Teen Genre: Horror/Shojo Price: $10.99 Rating: I went into this volume with no preconceived notions. I started reading Attack on Titan late in the series, at volume 8, so while I had heard of the characters Erwin and Levi, I didn’t know who they were. I knew they were important leaders in the Survey Corps, and big deals to fans. This story alone was enough to increase the circulation of the magazine it was published by 10 fold. Even though this story is supposed to be about both Erwin and Levi, this volume at least, is really all…

This week I check out several news stories, the top 10 department and look at some soccer manga in honor of the FIFA World Cup ending this month. http://archive.org/download/MangaDomeEpisode64/MangaDomeEpisode64.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Having defeated Tenga Koganei of the Tiger clan and recovered from the poison, Koushi and Momoko continue to face challengers to their engagement from other clans. Koushi, seeing how much his friends go through to help, decides to start training seriously. While makes good progress, the Monkey clan makes their move and usurps the Inuzuka claim to lead the Eastern army. Koushi’s only hope to save the clans and regain his engagement to Momoko is to master the Myriad Seal and face Yuusuke in battle to the death. By Shinobu Ohtaka Publisher: Yen Press Age Rating: Older Teen Genre: Action/Comedy Price: $11.99 ea Rating: Sumomomo, Momomo was one of the debut titles in Yen Press’ Yen Plus magazine. It was also a title I despised. The art was bad, and the story was worse. I never dreamed I would ever read another chapter of it, but I had these review copies, and no one else seemed interested in reviewing them, so I decided to see if it had improved at all. I will admit, these later volumes weren’t as painful to read as the earlier ones, but the systemic problems of the series kept it from being memorable. There were…

  This week I make a minor change. The Weekly Wish List is now This Week’s Manga. I check out a few stories In the News, new titles at Crunchyroll Corner, what’s new in the Top Ten Department, and then I review Marvel Comics’ poor attempt to lure in manga readers with the unbelievably bad X-Men the Manga. It has to be seen to be believed. http://archive.org/download/MangaDomeEpisode63/MangaDomeEpisode63.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Shiro Kakei, lawyer by day and gourmand by night, lives with his boyfriend, Kenji Yabuki, an outgoing salon stylist. While the pair navigate the personal and professional minefields of modern gay live, Kenji serves as enthusiastic taste-tester for Shiro’s wide and varied made-from-scratch meals. What Did You Eat Yesterday? Volume 1 By Fumi Yoshinaga Publisher: Vertical, Inc. Age Rating: Older Teen Genre: Cooking/Slice of Life Price: $12.95US Rating: Fumi Yoshinaga is best known here in the US for her BL titles, but any porn that might be found in What Did You Eat Yesterday? will only be in the kitchen. Yoshinaga is also a big food enthusiast, and this title combines her love of preparing (and eating) food with the life situations of a gay couple. While at first appearance, this title is a foodie’s dream come true, there is still plenty of story to make the book interesting to us non-foodies. What Did You Eat Yesterday? starts with that very question being asked of Shiro and his co-workers. While the others are vague with their answer, Shiro recites a long list of dishes including ingredients. This is the first sign, other than the title, that food will be a…

This week I check out the Weekly Wish List, several stories In The News, the Top Ten Department, and the new licenses from Seven Seas Entertainment. http://archive.org/download/MangaDomeEpisode62/MangaDomeEpisode62.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | Download

The climax of our story is finally at hand! Mankind faces a crisis and Kenji is hustling to save the world and the people he loves. But he also must solve the mystery of the Friend. Who is he and why did he become evil? The answer is tied to a memory Kenji has from when he was a twentieth century boy. 21st Century Boys Volume 2 By Naoki Urasawa Publisher: Viz Media Age Rating: Older Teen Genre: Mystery/Thriller Price: $12.99USD Rating: In my previous review of volume 1 of 21st Century Boys, I had hopes of the this part would redeem what I thought was a non-ending of the first part, 20th Century Boys. While this volume does tie up many of the loose ends and does finally answer the question “Who is the Friend?”, it still doesn’t satisfy like I had hoped. The search for the remote to the proton bomb continues, both in reality and in the virtual world. The UN Forces show their distrust of Kanna and the rest of the group, but that doesn’t stop them from continuing the search. Kanna’s powers come into play in discovering the bomb’s button and the location of the…

This week I have a short Weekly Wish List, a couple of new stories In the News, the Top Ten Department, and the I look at the new licenses announced by Yen Press on Friday. http://archive.org/download/MangaDomeEpisode61/MangaDomeEpisode61.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | Download

The Seishu Gakuen baseball team is one win away from fulfilling Wakaba’s final dream of seeing Ko pitch in front of a packed crowd at Koshien. But they’ll have to beat powerhouse Ryuou Gakuin in the North Tokyo Tournament finals in order to get there. Meanwhile, Akane Takigawa’s health takes a turn for the worse, and she’s scheduled to have surgery…on the day of the big game. By Mitsurs Adachi Publisher: Viz Media Age Rating: Teen Genre: Sports Price: $14.99US Rating: When Cross Game first came out, it got a lot of praise. It was also featured in a Manga Movable Feast, but the first chapter preview Viz made available didn’t interest me. So, I passed on the series, until I received a copy of the final volume. I decided to give the series a shot and see what everyone was so excited about. I did enjoy the volume. It was easy to  get into, even with being the final volume, but ultimately it still didn’t make a convert out of me. This volume starts out with Ko and the Seishu Gakuen baseball team departing to play the final game that will decide who will go to Koshien. Any potential…