Manga Village

Tokyopop gets its last hurrah this week as some last few titles that must have already been at the printer come out. Though if you didn’t pre-order them through Diamond, getting them might be a problem, as most online sites don’t show them available. But keep your eyes peeled! Kodansha releases something old and something new, while Viz releases something borrowed from CMX in the form of an uncut Tenjo Tenge. Something blue? Still Tokyopop… The List: DARK HORSE COMICS Neon Genesis Evangelion Campus Apocalypse Volume 4 TP, $10.99 **Weekly Pick** KODANSHA COMICS Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney Volume 1 GN, $10.99 Negima Omnibus Volume 1 Magister Negi Magi GN, $19.99 TOKYOPOP Deadman Wonderland Volume 5 GN, $10.99 Fate/stay night Volume 11 GN, $10.99 Ghostface Volume 1 GN, $17.99 Hanako And The Terror Of Allegory Volume 4 GN (Of 4), $10.99 **Weekly Pick** Happy Cafe Volume 8 GN, $10.99 **Weekly Pick** Maid Shokun Volume 1 GN, $10.99 VIZ MEDIA Afterschool Charisma Volume 3 TP, $12.99 Fullmetal Alchemist Volume 25 TP, $9.99 **Weekly Pick** Naoki Urasawa’s 20th Century Boys Volume 15 GN, $12.99 **Weekly Pick** Tenjo Tenge Volume 1 TP (Full Contact Edition 2-In-1), $17.99 The Picks: Amy’s Pick: I’m glad that…

Let’s face it – every single person reading this review right now has seen a sitcom. These shows are a pervasive part of TV culture in the United States, and the reason that they do well is because they are very easy to relate to. But sitcoms come and go. There are only a few names that stick out when I think about sitcoms, because the shows are a dime a dozen. Sitcom pitches happen each season, and only a few manage to make it. The reason for this is that it takes a special type of writer to understand what makes a sitcom tick. There have to be plenty of zingy one-liners, sure. But what makes a sitcom a powerful show as opposed to a string of laugh tracks is its human interactions and family dynamics. Written and Illustrated by Fumi Yoshinaga Publisher: Viz Media Signature Series Age Rating: OT for Older Teen Genre: Slice of Life/Josei Price: US $12.99 ISBN: 1421532409 I would like to say that the reason why All My Darling Daughters by Fumi Yoshinaga is so wonderful is due to its strength in these areas. It does have zing, it does have great interactions and…

By all appearances, Soichi Negishi is a sweet, well-mannered boy who loves Swedish pop music, trendy boutiques, and all things fashionable. But at the same time he’s also Krauser II, front man for Detroit Metal City, an indie death metal band whose popularity increases by the day. Once the DMC makeup goes on and Soichi takes the stage, his natural talents as a death metal god can’t help but flourish. Is this the band he’s truly destined to be in? By Kiminori Wakasugi Publisher: Viz Media – Signature Age Rating: Mature Genre: Music/humor Price: $12.99 When Detroit Metal City was first announced, there was a lot of excitement for the series, and reviews of the first volume were well received. By Volume 5 though, some of that excitement waned, and the cursing and jokes got tiresome. Now at volume 9, and not even having read the first 8, the jokes still come off as tiresome, but by the end, some plot-ty stuff leading up to the end of the series breathes back some life. DMC comes off as the same joke told over and over with some profanity to up the shock value. The series started with jokes about Soichi…

DMP and their BL titles dominate the list this week, something that doesn’t happen very often. But if BL isn’t your thing, Seven Seas releases their next new title while Viz brings out some Shonen Sunday titles. Or you can go in the complete opposite direction and pick up Strawberry Panic the Complete Novel Collection from Seven Seas for some Yuri fun.

Raiko, the demon hunter who has been staying at Misao’s house, is determined to save her–even if that’s the last thing she wants! Kyo won’t allow a threat to Misao to go unchecked and plans to take care of the problem in his own special way. Misao, however, hopes that she can broker a peace between Raiko and Kyo before things get out of hand. But when Raiko’s attempts to “free” Misao fall, he hatches a devious new plan that will use Misao’s bond with Kyo to destroy him!

New maid Keiko Kinoshita enters the Ashida household under the guise of helping out, but she’s actually a spy for the vice president of Soichiro’s company. As Sumi struggles to keep her past a secret, will Keiko’s insidious schemes destroy the couple?

Viz rains down their Shonen Jump and Shojo Beat titles this week, including the new 3-in-1s for Bleach, Naruto and Fullmetal Alchemist. Kodansha has some more releases, including some old Del Rey titles and the new license for Ghost in the Shell: SAC. And the Doctor is in again as Veritcal releases the next Black Jack volume.

Since the death of her father, Hikaru has been withdrawing from the world, hiding being her headphones drown out everything around her. While on a school trip, she sees a shooting star that seems to turn right for her! What seems like a dream becomes a horrible reality as she learns that she died, and is only alive now because of an alien entity called Horizon, who needs Hikaru’s help to find Maelstrom, another alien intent on destroying all life on Earth. But the only way to help Horizon and get her life back is to reach back out to the world she’s been trying to escape from. By Nobuaki Tadano Publisher: Vertical, Inc. Age Rating: Older Teen Genre: Sci-fi Price: $10.95 7 Billion Needles is a sci-fi story that was inspired by a classic sci-fi story, Needle by Hal clemet. It uses Needle‘s basic premise of a human and alien having to work together to stop a different alien threat, but then branches off in its own direction. while having plenty of action and suspense, this story really examines what it means to be human through Hikaru and Horizon’s interactions. When we first meet Hikaru, she is pretty much…

I’ve been fairly candid in the past about mentioning my love for Bunny Drop, a Yen Press title with a twice-yearly release. The series so far has been an absolute delight to read. I’ve neglected reviewing the first two volumes, so I will try to rectify that issue with a review of the third volume.

It’s a quiet week this week with only one title coming out.  Jason Thompson gets all the attention for his second volume of King of RPGs. So, with no real competition, our reviewers take a look at a genre of manga: sports.