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.
Worried that she’s been far too lenient with Lupin, Suguri starts him on a strict training regimen. But then Lupin disappears, and Suguri blames herself. When standard search methods fail, it’s time for some creative problem solving. With a little luck and a little talent she just might be able to find her precious pooch! By Yukiya Sakuragi Publsiher: Viz Media Rating: Teen+ Genre: Slice of life Price: $9.99 Rating: Lupin runs away during a thunder-storm, and jumps into a moving truck just as its finished packing. Lupin is whisked away from Suguri, who has been searching for him. Arriving in another perfecture (county), Lupin has his own set of adventures as he tries to find his way home. Suguri, devastated by Lupin’s disappearance, goes to any extreme to find him. I want to be honest here. I’m not a big dog person. I don’t mind having one around, but I’m much more of a cat person. This preference seems to have colored my view of this manga, as I just didn’t care for it. Not because it was badly done, I just wasn’t interested in the dogs or their owners. Neither the characters nor dogs really endeared themselves to…
Project D.O.A. Volume 1 By Jeffrey Nodelman & Wagner Fukuhara Publisher: Tokyopop Genre: Action Rating: 13+ RRP: $9.99 Rating: Reviewed by Brian Henderson I’ll do this review, even though I don’t really consider Project D.O.A. to be a manga. To me, and some may disagree, it needs to be written and published initially in Japan in order to be a manga. Graphic novels that come from Korea or China or France or the United States, while they may be generally modeled after the manga artform, are not manga, any more than animation that comes from anywhere but Japan is not anime. That said though, Project D.O.A. is from one of the minds that brought you the wonderful Cartoon Network show Venture Bros.and in a lot of ways has that kind of vibe. In other ways, it strikes me as similar in feel to Buckaroo Banzai and maybe a little bit like Crusher Joe although officially, Jeff Nodelman attributes his inspirations to films like Indiana Jones, Flash Gordon and the works of Raymond Chandler and Dashiell Hammett. In any case, it’s a not-quite-serious romp around the world, adventure-style. Meet Dr. Dylan Oliver (also the name of Jeff Nodelman’s real life son)…
(Originally posted on Popculture Shock) Rin Amami is a regular middle school student—regular, that is, except for his gruff, gravelly voice. Though his classmates tell him he sounds like Godzilla or a toad, Rin has a secret dream: he wants to sing. He has an idol’s looks, and can pick up any dance style after seeing it once, but his voice crushes any attempts to go after that dream. While working on a street corner selling pictures of pop stars and taking dance requests, he literally runs into The Beatmen, an up-and-coming boy band. He becomes entangled with the group when the owner of Red Shoes, The Beatmen’s agency, declares that Rin possesses the legendary “Dragon Voice,” possessing the qualities of both a demon and an angel. Boss is determined to prove that Rin that will blend with The Beatmen’s already balanced sound, and adds Rin to the group. Dragon Voice Volumes 1-7 By Yuriko Nishiyama Publisher: Tokyopop Age Rating: Teen Genre: Music Price: $9.99 Rating: So begins Rin and The Beatmen’s rocky journey to become idols in Japan’s cutthroat entertainment industry. Their career gets off to a rocky start after The Beatmen lose a bet to a rival band,…
Michio Yuki has it all: looks, intelligence, a pedigree as the scion of a famous kabuki family, a promising career at a major bank, legions of female admirers. But underneath the sheen of perfection lurks a secret with the power to shake the world to its foundations.