Manga Xanadu

This week I talk about features the Weekly Wish List, the Vizmanga.com update, New York Times Bestseller List, and new licenses from Crunchyroll, Seven Seas Entertainment, and Vertical, inc. Then I look at some manga titles in celebration of the Chinese New Year animal, the Horse. http://archive.org/download/MangaDomeEpisode43/MangaDomeEpisode43.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | Download

A condensed retelling of the beloved samurai tale–one of the best-selling manga series of all time—released in conjunction with a new live-action movie. During the violent upheaval of the Bakumatsu era, Hitokiri Battosai was a feared and ruthless assassin. But now that the Meiji Restoration has begun to heal the wounds of civil war, Battosai has taken up a new name…and a new calling! He is now Himura Kenshin , a rurouni wanderer who has vowed to only draw his sword to protect those in need. But not everyone is pleased with Kenshin’s new direction, and enemies from his dark past have vowed to bring him down! By Nobuhiro Watsuki Publisher: Viz Media Age Rating: Teen Genre: Historical Fantasy Price: $9.99 Rating: Buy the Volume It took a while, but I finally read all of Rurouni Kenshin last year. With a live action movie having been released last year in Japan, a re-imagining of the manga was created by original creator Nobuhiro Watsuki. This can sometimes lead to new and interesting directions for the title and characters to go. Too bad that’s not what happened here. It uses the same characters, but the story has been turned around a bit….

This week I check out the top 10s from Vizmanga.com and the New York Times Bestsellers list, new license announcements from Seven Seas and Crunchyroll, some titles starting and ending, and a look at the Manga Taisho nominees. http://archive.org/download/MangaDomeEpisode42/MangaDomeEpisode42.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Facing a royal summons, Eren and his friends make one final attempt to capture the female Titan. While they are successful, a new crisis faces them as it appears Titans have breached Wall Rose and are pouring into the interior. The 104th scramble to evacuate the villages in their path and find the breach. A night at Utgard Castle is meant to be a refuge, but instead becomes a battle for their lives as the Titans attack at night. By Hajime Isayama Publisher: Kodansha Comics Age Rating: Older Teen Genre: Horror Price: $10.99 Rating: I didn’t think Attack on Titan was going to be a series I would enjoy. It’s categorized as a horror title, a genre I’m very picking about. Reviews about the series were mixed with people either liking or hating it. I did read the first chapter in Kodansha’s Unreal sampler, and wasn’t impressed. But with the series rising steadily up the New York Times Best Seller list and Nielson Bookscan, there had to be something good that people were seeing about it. I received these volumes for review, and decided it was time for me to see for myself. I was a little unsure, jumping into…

I very rarely talk about amine here, since this is a manga blog, but there are times when I’ll make exceptions. Just recently, the return of an anime I love has been announced. Viz Media has rescued Moribito: Guardian of the Sacred Spirit. This 26 episode series first aired in 2007, and had a difficult time in licensing here. Geneon first licensed it, but then halted their US distribution, and the license went to Media Blasters. It showed on Cartoon Network during their late night Adult Swim block, but it took a while for a full run to show there. Now Viz Media is running it as part of their Neon Alley network. Moribito: Guardian of the Sacred Spirit is based on the first volume from a fantasy novel series published in Japan in 1996. It is about a woman named Balsa, who, after saving the second prince to the Emperor, Chagum, is charged by the Queen to protect him. Chagum carries the egg of the water god. The Emperor sees him possessed by a spirit, and other spirit chase him to eat the egg he carries. Balsa takes the assignment. With her mad spear-wielding skills, and help from friends…

This week I check out some news and regular features Weekly Wish List, Vizmanga.com update and the New York Times Bestseller List. I then rant about a reviewer’s comments about Wedding Peach. http://archive.org/download/MangaDomeEpisode41/MangaDomeEpisode41.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | Download

The truth about Xerxes Break’s past is revealed in these volumes as is more about Alice and her relation to the Intent of the Abyss. Oz continues to pursue the truth behind the tragedy of Sablier, and he, Gilbert and Alice go to the remains of the city. Vincent and Gilbert’s past is revealed along with more about Glen Baskerville and Jack Vessalius, but when Oz’s incuse moves forward, it is a reminder that his time is running out. By Jun Mochizuki Publisher: Yen Press Age Rating: Older Teen Genre: Fantasy Price: $11.99 Rating: There are a lot of revelations made throughout these volumes, about Alice, about the Abyss, about the chains about Alice and Oz, but not a lot of questions are answered. We know the who’s and how’s but still not a lot about the why’s, which is what will keep readers coming back. Keeping track of all the revelations got to be a bit of a task. The only real saving grace was the way they all connected that told more of the story of the tragedy of Sablier. It was really all very timey-wimey. Xerxes Break fits in as a figure from after the tragedy looking…

  This week I examine several news stories that piled up at the end of the year, the Nielson Bookscan for December, and regular features, the Weekly Wish List, the Vizmanga.com update and the New York Times Bestseller list. http://archive.org/download/MangaDomePodcast40/MangaDomePodcast40.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Hime Kino’s dream is to one day do voice acting like her hero Sakura Aoyama from the Lovely♥Blazer anime, and getting accepted to the prestigious Holly Academy’s voice actor department is the first step in the right direction! But Hime’s gruff voice has earned her the scorn of teachers and students alike. Hime will not let that stand unchallenged. She’ll show everyone that she is too a voice acting princess, whether they like it or not!! To make matters worse, Sakura’s grouchy son, Senri, is in Hime’s class, and he seems determined to stomp on her dreams. He even has the nerve to call Lovely♥Blazer stupid! But Hime won’t be deterred by naysayers, her new nickname (“Gorilla Princess”), or even getting demoted to the Stragglers group. She’s ready to shine, and nothing is going to stand in her way! By Maki Minami Publisher: Viz Media Age Rating: Teen Genre: Romance Price: $9.99 Rating: Voice acting has always interested me, and after ready Koetama on Jmanga, I became interested in reading manga about it. So when Viz announced this series, I was happy to finally have a series I could own about it. The only downside was that I hadn’t enjoyed…

    This week I take a look back at 2013 and some of the trends in manga that were seen over the year; What became popular, who started and who stopped publishing and comment on what I’d like see more of in 2014. I also have regular features the Weekly Wish List, Vizmanga.com update and the New York Times Bestseller List. http://archive.org/download/MangaDomeEpisode39/MangaDomeEpisode39.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | Download

    This week there’re the regular features of the Weekly Wish List, the Vizmanga.com update, and the New York Times Best Seller List, and Alex Hoffman of the Manga Widget Blog joins me for a discussion on Yen Plus, Yen Press’ digital online anthology which ceased publication this month. http://archive.org/download/MangaDomeEpisode38/MangaDomeEpisode38.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Going digital can be a big decision, especially if you are like me, and still like to hold paper in your hands. But there are times when buying digital is an advantage, as is when a publisher, like Viz, has a big backlist of titles that are lengthy or difficult to find. One thing you can say about Viz, they have been working hard to make their backlist titles available again in digital. With Viz having their 20% off holiday sale, now is a good time to catch up on some older titles you may have missed out on. Viz really made a name for itself with Shonen Jump and bringing over many of the well-known and loved titles from that magazine. Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z is probably the most beloved series to come out of Weekly Shonen Jump. The first half is action and comedy, while the second half all action that set the standard for fighting shonen manga for years to come. It is 42 volumes, but if you haven’t checked it out yet, what are you waiting? Rurouni Kenshin was another series that helped establish shonen manga in the US. This title brought both men…