Hunter x Hunter Volume 16, 17, 18 By Yoshihiro Togashi Publisher: Viz Media Age Rating: Older Teen (16+) Genre: Action Price: $7.99 Rating: These three volumes finish up the Greed Island arc (thankfully), though in retrospect it wasn’t as bad as it could be. Volume 16 continues “The Bomber” arc within Greed Island that was started in Volume 15. Genthru and his team has 96 and only need 4 more to win the game. Several teams of hunters, including Gon’s gather to come up with a way to stop Genthru. They decide to get a card no one else has and keep it from them. By creating a team of 15 they can activate the quest. After gathering the requisite number (including Hisoka), they reach the challenge of a killer dodgeball game. Volume 17 finishes the game, and starts the war between Genthru’s team and the winners of Plot of the Beach card. There’s more training for Gon and Killua while Tsezguerra’s team buys them time to come up with a strategy to beat Genthru. Volume 18 is the final three-on-three battle between Genthru’s team and Gon’s, and the end of the Green Island arc.
A Samurai during Japan’s Warring States period (1467-1573), Daigo Kagemitsu wants complete control over Japan. He promises his unborn son’s 48 body parts to demons in exchange for that control. When the baby is born deformed, Daigo throws the newborn into the river to die, but it is miraculously found by a doctor, Jukai, who makes prosthetics for the child and adopts him as his own. When the boy Hyakkimaru is grown, he leaves home and begins a journey to recover his body parts. Along the way he runs into a brash young thief, Dororo, whom he teams up with; together they battle demon and monster on their adventure to reclaim Hyakkimaru’s wholeness. By Osamu Tezuka Publisher: Vertical Inc. Age Rating: Teen Genre: Action/Adventure Price: $13.95 Rating: Dororo, first serialized in 1967, can be seen as a proto-shonen story. It has many of the elements we now see in shonen titles today, though these were new at the time. Tezuka spins a memorable supernatural action/adventure tale and characters that really draw you in, and only disappoints at the very end, though not in story, but lack of it. The first volume of this title is the introduction. Tezuka jumps from…
One of the regulars at Suguri’s pet shop finds out that his precious little French bulldog, Zidane, has a weight problem! He tried everything from diet food to yoga and even an exercise machine to help the little guy lose that doggy fat! Could someone else be feeding him, too?! By Yukiya Sakuragi Publisher: Viz Media Genre:Animal/Drama Age Rating: Older Teen Price: $9.99 Rating: Dog lovers rejoice! It’s another volume of dogs and their owners doing doggie things. Then for the second half of the volume, there’s a new plot stirring up, that could be the end of Woofles and the gang. The first half of this volume is all about Hiroshi Akiba, an otaku-goverment worker, and his bulldog Zidane. Zidane was teased by Chizuru about his weight, so Akiba decided to do something about it. He buys low-calorie dog food, he stops buying treats and even gets a doggie treadmill! This story is mildly amusing, though it has all the typical trappings and pitfalls of a diet storyline. The story of how Lupin, Suguri’s mutt, got his name is mildly amusing too. The source isn’t all that surprising, nor why she chose. This story really just seems to fulfill…
“I’m going to uncover the mystery of the ‘Blade Children’.”…World-class detective Kiyotaka Narumi’s last words prior to his sudden disappearance continue to haunt his younger brother, Ayumu. The cheeky 10th-grader becomes equally embroiled in the mystery of the doomed “Blade Children” when he is mistaken for the prime suspect in a murder at his school. Led by Ayumu’s sister-in-law, Kiyotaka’s wife and fellow detective, Madoka, the investigation into the murder gives Ayumu a chance to clear his name. But in doing so, he not only uncovers ties to the Blade Children but also more questions than answers about who and what they are. Story by Kyo Shirodaira; Art by Eita Mizuno Publisher: Yen Press Genre: Mystery Rating: Teen Price: $10.99 Rating: Spiral: The Bonds of Reasoning is a title that started out as a novel and was then turned into both a manga and an anime series. This first volume introduces us to the main characters and the overarching mystery of the “Blade Children”, with individual mysteries giving us the pieces to the larger one. Ayumu Narumi is a 10th grader at a private high school, and brother to Kiyotaka Narumi, a world-class pianist in his teens and a “Great…
King of Cards Volume 3 By Makoto Tateno Publisher: CMX Age Rating: Teen Genre: Fantasy/Romance Price: $9.99 Rating: Are Manami’s grades slipping because of her dedication to her favorite card game? Her math teacher thinks so and threatens to tell her mother — unless she can beat him in a Chaos match! Also, a seemingly unbeatable player who actually hates Chaos is gunning for Manami. What’s this girl’s connection to Manami’s card-playing cousin Tamotsu? In this volume, there is plot development in two different directions. The first half of the volume continues the love triange between Manami, Tamotsu and Misa, with a revelation relating back to the last volume that makes this a true triangle. The second half returns to a plot point not seen since the first volume revolving around the Sahgan card.
Case Closed Volume 1 By Gosho Aoyama Publisher: Viz Media Age Rating: Teen+ Genre: Mystery Price: $9.99 Rating: Parental Note: Yes, this title is rated for older teens, and yes, it has a lot of death and blood. However, this title is written for a younger audience in Japan, and is closer to an all ages in terms of characters and plot. That’s why I let my younger daughter read this when she asked if she could. I don’t have a problem with the blood and death if she doesn’t. What is the story about? It’s about a teenage detective that is turnded into a kid, and names himself after famous detective authors. He solves all the cases the adults can’t. What did you like about the story? I like it when Rachel does Kung Fu. I also like when the dad, Richard Moore would get drunk. The dog in the girl kidnapping story was cute but also ugly. What did you dislike about the book? Nothing. Would you recommend the story to kids your age? Why? No, because of the blood and deaths.
Hellsing Volume 8 By Kohta Hirano Publisher: Dark Horse Age Rating: 13+ Genre: Horror/Action Price: $13.95 Rating: London is already bathed in blood, its citizenry almost entirely slaughtered by vampiric, reborn Nazi soldiers. And marching through the rivers of blood–thousands of extreme Catholic warriors in creepy cloaks. But the focus of this chaotic either volume is the return of Alucard, the slave-paladin of the British Protestants, who’s just piloted an aircraft carrier up the Thames to join the fray. It’s a crazy face-off between three gory armies and their primary killers, and if you think that sounds nuts, wait until you dive into the crimson-stained new volume of Kohta Hirano’s creepy-cool Hellsing manga series. Now, I generally don’t read blood-spilling horror manga, but for Hellsing, I make an exception. My husband started getting this series originally, but, having nothing to read one day I picked it up, and was instantly hooked. This volume is a good example why. We are still in the middle of a battle that started back in volume 6 with first the vampiric Nazis and then the invasion of the Catholics to take back Protestant England. It was not a good day to be a Londoner….
I’m almost caught up with reading my back issues of Shonen Jump. I started reading October last night. Both October issues of Shonen Jump and Shojo Beat had previews for new manga, and I thought I’d share my thoughts on them. In Shonen Jump, the preview was for Nora: The Last Chronicle of Devildom. I wasn’t sure what to make of this title when it was first announced, and when I started reading it, the first thing that came to mind was that it seemed like a cross between Inuyasha and Death Note. We have a demon who can take the shape of a dog (or hell hound) that needs to be controlled. He is sent to the human realm and put in the hands of human high school student who is successful at everything and bored. I was thinking the “demon animal under human control” was also a genre that was getting old. Inuyasha, Her Majesty’s Dog, and Mugen Spiral (from Tokyopop), had all done it before, so I really wondered if this series could do anything better. By the end of the preview chapter, I was actually liking it! It doesn’t do anything new. But for some reason,…
When I like a magazine enough that I want to read it every month, I subscribe to it. That’s why I get both Shonen Jump and Shojo Beat. But, sometimes I don’t quite get my renewal in on time, and that happened unfortunately to me this last April with Shonen Jump. Sooo… I missed getting an issue. May 2008. By the time I realized I wasn’t getting it, It was already gone from news stands, and both my local and online comic shop didn’t have it. No big deal, I thought, it’d show up somewhere. And it did. Finally. Two weeks ago! So I have six months worth of Shonen Jump to catch up on, because I won’t read an issue without reading the preceding chapters. Silly sounding, I know, but I want the full story, in order. This weekend I dove back into Shonen Jump with this ill-fated issue. It would figure it was the April Fool’s issue too. Boy did I miss it! After two volumes of that overstuffed and over hyped Yen Plus, I was glad to get back into some real shonen stories and battles! It started with four chapters of Naruto. Not a lot of…
In my continuing evaluation of Yen Plus to decide if it’s worth subscribing to, I picked up issue 2. I read it the same way as last issue, reading the Japanese side first, and then flipping to the OEL/Korean side. With this second issue, most of my original impressions stand, if not becoming more ingrained. The entire Japanese side is a complete and total waste. The fan service continues unabated, and overrides any story that might be there, especially in Soul Eater and Sumomomo Momomo. Bamboo Blade has really deteriorated in it’s next two chapters. Higurashi and Nabari stand on the edge, but they are not intriguing enough to hold up the other three. The whole Japanese side is a write off as far as I’m concerned. The OEL/Korean side carries this magazine. Nightschool and Pig Bride stand as the strongest titles, with Maximum Ride and Sarasah close behind. One Fine Day is a take or leave title, and Jack Frost continues to show it’s Hellsing influence. Actually it’s just plain a rip-off, but still has some potential. All of these titles together as a package just doesn’t do it for me. I’m paying $9 a month or $50 a…
King of Cards Volume 2 By Makoto Tateno Publisher: CMX Age Rating: Teen Genre: Fantasy/Romance/Game Price: $9.99 Rating: A lovesick Manami passes out when she sees the object of her affection with another girl. When she wakes up, she finds herself in the world of the cards, where matches aren’t simply imagined: players summon actual monsters and gods to do physical battle! Later, back in the real world, she must take on Japan’s number one Chaos player! Finally! My long awaited review of this book! At least, I hope someone’s been waiting for it. After much trial and tribulation, I finally got an error free copy of this title, and then after another long time, I finally read it. This volume turns up the romance, though it’s more unrequited love, and it’s only through the Chaos cards can any resolution be found.
Eagle: The Making of an Asian-American President Volume 3 by Kaiji Kawaguchi Publisher: Viz Comics Genre: Drama/Politics Age Rating: Teen+ (16+) Price: $19.95/used Rating: Volume 3 picks up where Volume 2 left off, at the New York debate, with every waiting with baited breath for Yamaoka’s answer to Noah’s accusation of waffling on an environmental issue. It is here that we see how much of a work of fiction this title can be. Yamaoka gives a straightforward and honest answer. He is human and made a mistake. There is no way any politician that was looking to get votes would ever give an answer like this. But, with Yamaoka being our protagonist, he not only gets away with it, but turns the tables on Noah, and wins not just the debate, but the primary. Now the next big hurdle he must overcome is Texas. In order to win in Texas, he must win over Don Taylor, a democrat in charge of a large food corporation who holds sway over most of the farmers and ranchers not just in Texas, but in most of the South. But it won’t be easy, as Taylor doesn’t believe either Yamaoka or Noah has a…