Apparently, I’m in the minority when it comes to crossing over from manga to anime. Whenever I find out that an anime series I like is based on a manga, I want to search out that manga and visa versa. One place you can be sure to find crossover is in Weekly Shonen Jump. So many titles that appear in there get an anime series, where it’s a short thirteen episode series like Letter Bee, or a never-ending series like One Piece. The One Piece anime started in 1999, about 2 years after the manga. It has gone non-stop since then and is at about 478 episodes. A complaint a lot of manga fans have about anime adaptations is that it’s not always faithful, and it has a lot of filler. Filler can’t be helped. Weekly anime takes up a lot more chapters than mangaka can put out, so the anime often catchs up to the manga and has to wait. In general, these are short arcs and the show gets back to the manga storyline as soon as it can. As for being faithful, well, for the One Piece anime, it is, mostly, with a few exceptions. Something I’ve…
Most of the time, when comparing a manga to an anime, the anime takes liberties that can make it less like its source, and often not as good. 07-Ghost is one of those rare exceptions. The manga started in Japan in 2005 in the magazine Monthly Comic Zero Sum, the same magazine that publishes Saiyuki. Eight volumes are available The manga was licensed by Go Comi! here in the states, and there are 4 volumes published. The anime ran from April to Septermber 2009, and went for 25 episodes.
Back in 2003, an anime was made of the manga Fullmetal Alchemist. Because the story was still ongoing, and Arakawa didn’t want to give away any of her story, this anime took a turn at about episode 29 into a completely different direction. There’s nothing wrong with the remaining 20 episodes of the anime, but it doesn’t follow the manga. With the publication of the 20th volume of FMA, Arakawa announced another anime series, this one reported to follow the story of the manga more closely. Also called Fullmetal Alchemist, this anime is available in the US from Funimation, who is streaming it subtitled on their site. But how close is this new series to the manga? I’ve read most of the manga and have been following this new anime to see how well it stays on track, and I have to say, I’m impressed so far.
I was channel surfing last weekend, and happened upon the first episode of Buso Renkin on the Funimation Channel. I like to see manga I’ve read as anime. Reading static action scenes are okay, but seeing them move can really bring it to life. So, I try to at least see some episodes of an anime. I stopped to check out the first episode and see how Viz did with it. I have a habit of hoping for the best about these things. Sometimes I’m rewarded, sometimes not. The opening started as a good sign. It was the original Japanese opening “Makka Na Chikai” with subtitles. I liked the opening song, and the animation was well done. I especially liked at the end of the opening with Kazuki and Tokiko holding the Sunlight Slasher, and it switching from color and then to black and white with speed lines. Like a switch between anime and manga.
This week, I decided to check out some of the new titles I’ve gotten recently. I’ll be doing full reviews of these later, but I just wanted to give some general impressions first. I read Two Flowers for the Dragon Volume 1, Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion Volume 1and Ghost Slayers: Ayashi Volume 1. Two Flowers for the Dragon I ordered because it is by Nari Kusakawa, who also also did The Palette of 12 Secret Colors which I enjoyed a lot, and the main character turns into a dragon. I love dragons, so, I decided to take a chance on this one, and I wasn’t disappointed. I really liked the characters, and Kusakawa-sensei’s art. It was a fun read, and the cliffhanger the volume ended on made me ready to read the next. Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion is from Bandai, and this first volume was released simultaneously with the anime, which might cause some confusion for people, as the manga doesn’t follow the anime perfectly. And that’s just fine by me. The manga hits the major scenes it needs to, but some were altered to fit a manga audience better, I think. There is more attention…
Bandai Visual USA has announced that it will release the anime version of Haruka ~Beyond the Stream of Time. This is both good and bad. The good is that a shojo anime series has been licensed. There aren’t a lot of shojo anime out there, and with the manga version of this story being released in Viz’s Shojo Beat, a tie-in should help sales. Readers who like Haruka should check it out when it comes out. I do encourage people to check out the anime versions of manga they like. Especially a short series like this. Haruka is only 26 episodes long. Seeing the characters move and hearing them speak really adds another dimension to the story. I’ll admit that, while I usually end up preferring the manga to the anime, I have never regretted watching the anime. The bad thing about this is that Bandai Visual USA got it. If you aren’t familiar with anime, then you should know that Bandai Visual has a reputation for high priced volumes for less content. And it looks like this release isn’t going to be much different. According to Anime on DVD, this release of Haruka will be subbed only, and will…
ANN has reported that two new anime series’ for the spring have been announced that are based on manga; Golgo 13 by Takao Saito and To Love-Ru -Trouble- by Saki Hasemi and Kentaro Yabuki. Manly men can rejoice that one of their idols is finally getting his own series. Golgo 13 is about an amoral assassin that takes on assignments from all over the globe. This series started in the 1960’s, and is still published today. It’s 147th volume was published on December 5 in Japan. Duke Togo, code name Golgo 13, is a crack shot and a magnet for the ladies. He can pop off a target in one panel and then score with a beautiful woman in the next. Few men are more manly than Golgo 13. But for all his manliness, Golgo 13 has never had his own series. He’s only had a live action movie and 2 animated movies. Finally, he gets to come into his own. Viz Media has published 12 volumes of Golgo 13’s adventures under their Viz Signature line. To Love-Ru -Trouble- is a sci-fi romance comedy drawn by Kentaro Yabuki, best known here for his Black Cat series, also being published by…
Anime News Network has announced that the latest issue of Hakusensha’s LaLa shojo magazine has announced that the Vampire Knight manga, created by Matsuri Hino and published by Viz Media in the US will become an anime to be shown in Japan. Vampire Knight, published in Viz’s Shojo Beat magazine, is already very popular with girls here in the US. There are websites devoted to the characters and manga, as well as fans dressing up as characters at anime conventions. The bishonen (pretty) boys that make up most of the series is one reason for it’s popularity. Another is it’s school-horror theme. The story takes place at Cross Academy that has two class; the Day Class and the Night Class. Only a select few know that the Night Class is made up of exclusively vampires. We follow Yuki Cross, the adopted daughter of Headmaster, Zero, a latent vampire who keeps his urges at bay by drinking Yuki’s blood (against the academy’s rules), and Kaname, the vampire that saved Yuki, and considers her his. This is a shojo manga that has all the sexiness of vampires combined with hot boys and high school problems. Expect to see this licensed real fast.