Manga News, Reviews and Commentary
This week I check out some news stories, the Top Ten Department (no NYT this week, don’t know why), and look at some manga titles that show the power of books and words. http://archive.org/download/MangaDomeEpisode52/MangaDomeEpisode52.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Lydia Carlton is a fairy doctor, one of the few people with the ability to see the magical creatures who share our world. During one of her rare trips to London to visit her father, Lydia’s quiet life is suddenly transformed when she is rescued by kidnappers by a mysterious young man! Edgar Ashenbert claims to be descended from the human ruler of the fairy kingdom, and he urgently needs Lydia’s help to find and claim his birthright, the legendary sword of the Blue Knight Earl. Things will never be the same for Lydia as she is pulled into a dangerous quest against dark forces! By Ayuko; Original concept by Mizue Tani Publisher: Viz Media Age Rating: Teen Genre: Supernatural/romance Price: $9.99 Rating: The Earl and the Fairy is a title I enjoyed the first volume of, but fell behind as subsequent volumes came out. I still collected the volumes and they have been sitting on my self until I realized the series would make a good addition to my St. Patrick’s Day themed manga. With only four volumes, it would be quick read too. It was easy to get back into the flow of the story and characters, for whom…
This week I check out new licenses from Viz Media and Crunchyroll, the top 10 from Vizmanga and New York Times Bestseller list, and I look at what was new in manga 10 years ago. http://archive.org/download/MangaDomeEpisode50/MangaDomeEpisode50.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | Download
With Nanamine’s manga struggling, he proposes an interesting challenge to Moritaka and Akito. But will the duo accept and risk what they’ve worked so hard to achieve? And when the news media puts the spotlight on their series for the wrong reasons, how will it affect Akito? Written by Tsuguimi Ohba; Art by Takeshi Obata Publisher: Viz Media Age Rating: Teen Genre: Comedy/Drama Price: $9.99 Rating: One of the things I’ve come to enjoy about Bakuman is all of the behind the scenes peeks it gives about the manga publishing industry. The importance of the creator-editor relationship, the support the publisher gives their creators and the shattering of the myths behind being successful are all covered in this volume. The relationship between creator and editor is a big deal in the manga world. When it doesn’t work out, the situation can get out of control such as what happens with Nanamine and his editor Kosugi. Both Nanamine and the manga suffers for it. But when it’s a strong relationship, such as with Moritaka, Akito and Hattori, the support Hattori gives them helps them, most especially Akito through a tough spot when a copycat criminal uses their manga to justify their…
This episode I have regular departments the Weekly Wish List, Crunchyroll Corner and the Top Ten Department. Then I check out some manga for the St. Patrick’s Day holiday featuring Fairies. http://archive.org/download/MangaDomeEpisode49/MangaDomeEpisode49.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | Download
This week I check out the Weekly Wish List, New manga app news, new titles on Crunchyroll and the Top 10 Department. Then I throw Viz some beads for their new license announcements. http://archive.org/download/MangaDomeEpisode48/MangaDomeEpisode48.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | Download
What wonderful news to come home to! Viz Media has licensed Master Keaton the one manga from Naoki Urasawa that I’ve wanted ever since I first heard about it. It combines two of my most favorite things in the world into one title; mysteries and archaeology! I mean, how awesome is it to have a detective who can solve cases and is an archaeologist, always struggling to uncover the truth. I didn’t think we’d ever get this title licensed in English. It had a few hurdles to get over for licenses today; it’s from the 1990s and is over 10 volumes. Then there was a disagreement over credits for the story, which actually sounded pretty petty of Urasawa to demand his name appear bigger than the original writer. But it looks like that problem has been solved, and Urasawa’s name is now known in the US. His work will sell no matter how old it is. Another thing that will make this a big seller is that it hasn’t been scanlated by anyone beyond the first few chapters. Trust me, I’ve looked. The only way to enjoy this series previously was the anime licensed by Geneon back in 2003-04. I…
This week I have out regular Departments Weekly Wish List and the Top 10, check out news stories after new titles from Yen Press, Viz Media and Kodansha Comics, and look at four new titles from 2013 that I was surprised I liked. Show notes: Weekly Wish List Fairy Tail vol 35 Insufficient Direction In The News New Bloody Brat from Yen Press New Manga Added to Weekly Shonen Jump Kondansha License Outed by Rightstuf Pre-Order Top Ten Department Vizmanga.com New York Times Bestseller List Four Surprises of 2013 Magi Knights of Sidonia Puella Magi Oriko Magica Happy Marriage?! Like the Facebook page! Music courtesy of Kevin MacLeod of Incompetech http://archive.org/download/MangaDomeEpisode47/MangaDomeEpisode47.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Shojo Beat, Viz Media’s romance and drama imprint has a fun surprise for fans of Arina Tanemura. They have available quick flash games based on the manga Mistress Fortune and The Legend of Princess Sakura. The Mistress Fortune game is a Whack-a-mole style game where you have to hit the EBE’s popping out of holes, but you don’t want to hit the bunnies! There is also a special attack when you fill up a status bar which can be used to hit all the EBEs on the screen. You get a rank at the end. I made Standard Angel on my first try. The Princess Sakura game is a basic platformer. You control Princess Sakura with the left and right arrows, up to jump and space bar to strike the enemy monsters that inhabit the level. There is a spell, Thunder Strike that will freeze the monsters for a few minutes and a piece to pick up. I generally suck at platformers so after a few tries I could only get to level two. But it’s simple enough for any one to play and if you have more skill or patience, you can see how high the levels go. I…
This week I check out some new stories, regular departments Weekly Wish List and top 10 at Vizmanga.com and the New York Times, and for Valentines Day I features some titles with couples that aren’t so lovey-dovey. http://archive.org/download/MangaDomeEpisode45/MangaDomeEpisode45.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Kaya Satozuka prides herself on being an excellent secretary and a consummate professional, so she doesn’t even bat an eye when she’s re-assigned to the office of her company’s difficult director, Kyohei Tohma. He’s as prickly-and hot-as rumors paint him, but Kaya is unfazed…until she discovers that he’s a vampire!! By Tomu Ohmi Publisher: Viz Media Age Rating: Mature Genre: Romance, Josei Price: $9.99 Rating: I’m picky about the vampire romances I read. Most I’ve read have been hit or miss. I hated Vampire Knight, but loved Millennium Snow. What sparked my interest most about Midnight Secretary was that it was a josei, a manga written for older women. It features not a high school girl, but a career woman and all the problems that come with working in an office. This part appealed to more than the romance. Well, maybe. I’m not really sure how I feel about Kaya and Kyohei as a couple. As separate people, I can see why they think and act as they do. Kaya is very smart and capable, and doesn’t want to be judged based on her appearance. This is exactly what Kyohei does at first, but she proves to him that looks…
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….
