Manga Village

When Kanro, one of the Seven Member Committee seeking to eradicate all contradictions, sniffs out the stragglers from Z-Loan at a rundown motel and attempts to flush them down the data drain like their “deleted” comrades, Chika and Shito end up not in the ether–but as characters in a video game! With the help of an old enemy they escape, but then must face the truth about Michiru as her true nature is revealed. Michiru must come to grips with it as well, and what she decides will affect not just those of Z-Loan, but of both the mortal world and the afterlife! By Peach-Pit Publisher: Yen Press Age Rating: 16+ Genre: Supernatural/Action Price: $11.99 I was surprised to hear that volume 13 was the final volume of the series, when the end of volume 11 started a new arc. Apparently it wasn’t a just new arc but the beginning of the end. But its an arc that feels rushed and slapped together rather than thoughtfully planned out. I’m sure Peach-Pit had the ending to this series all planned out. Some groundwork was laid as scenes from previous volumes that are referenced, such as Hakka telling Michiru about her true…

Black Jack’s three year journey ends finally comes to an end with these last two volumes. Unfortunately, the good doctor doesn’t go out with a bang, but more of a fizzle, as these last two volumes are the weakest of them all. The stories aren’t bad. They’re just not as engaging.

The exploits of Black Jack, the world’s greatest black market surgeon continue in these 28 stories. The themes turn again to Black Jack’s pride and his not-so-well-known generous side. But in quality of stories overall, volume 14 definitely outshines volume 15.

As a medical professional, I sometimes have a hard time reading medical dramas or watching medical shows on television.This is especially true with shows like House, where the way the series is set up forces it to be completely technical and still be somewhat accessible for the layperson. As part of a long-standing studying stress reliever, my friends and I would gather around the television during pharmacy school and analyze all of the things that were going wrong throughout a given episode of House. I remember running through lists of ways the medical team could have accurately diagnosed the patient and not half-killed him or her throughout the show.

Reviews are subjective things. A reviewer is drawing on many things when they write their review. Besides technical things such as story structure, character development and art, a reviewers personal preferences and experiences can affect their feeling about a book. And sometimes, even their gender can make a difference as to whether a book gets a good score or bad. In the following discussions, reviewers Alex Hoffman and Lori Henderson will look at different books and examine the similarities and differences they have over each of them. High School of the Dead Volume 1-3 Story by Daisuke Sato; Art by Shouji Sato Publisher: Yen Press Age Rating: Mature Genre: Horror Price: $13.99 ISBN: 978-0-316-13225-1/13239-8/13242-8 Lori: It’s been a while since we’ve been here, eh Alex? The holidays and RL hit me pretty hard. How did it go for you? Are you ready to get back to work? Alex: The holidays and even the entire month of January has been crazy for me, but I am glad to get back to our talks about manga. Let’s get right down to it with a synopsis of the series. High School of the Dead is the story of a zombie apocalypse. An outbreak…

Shonen Jump is entering a new era – with Weekly Shonen Jump Alpha coming down the pipeline in only a few short weeks, it appears that we are headed towards a place where the legitimate publisher can beat the scanlator on the terms of his or her speed. Sadly, the content on Weekly Shonen Jump Alpha isn’t the most impressive of what is being published under the Shonen Jump label. Of the six titles in the original offering; Bakuman, Bleach, Naruto, Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan, One Piece, and Toriko, only Toriko and Bakuman really interest me in some way (even if it’s only a guilty pleasure kind of way). The one gem of a series that isn’t being published in Weekly Shonen Jump Alpha which I really enjoy is Kazue Kato’s Blue Exorcist. (Perhaps that’s because it runs in Jump Square, but honestly, if it’s being published as a Shonen Jump title in the USA, that shouldn’t exclude it from a USA-centric anthology.) By Kazue Kato Publisher: Viz Media Age Rating: Older Teen Genre: Supernatural/Action Price: $9.99 I bought the first volume of this series on a whim at the VizManga.com webstore and read it on a combination…

With 2011 in the rear view mirror, the Villagers look back at some of the titles, publishers and events that made the past year good (or bad). What was your favorite new title(s) of the year? Connie: There are a lot of different titles, so picking, say, Lychee Light Club over Sakura Hime is tough, since I like them both, but one ran in Ribon (for little girls) and the other in Manga Erotics F.  Lychee Light Club was probably my favorite one-shot this year, a great and very shocking book full of violence and objectionable content, but with amazing art and a manic, intense plot.  Sakura Hime was probably my favorite general audience title, if general audience can mean people who read magical girl series.  I’m a fan of Arina Tanemura, and while I’m not an instant convert on all her books, Sakura Hime was quite good, and I’m enjoying the setting and mythological ties so far. But my favorite title this year was probably Wandering Son.  I have a hard time talking about Wandering Son, because I feel anything I say won’t do the story enough justice.  It’s simply a nice, quiet book about pre-teen classmates exploring their…

The new year starts out short but strong with Kodansha releasing the next round of new titles, including the surprisingly fun title Monster Hunter Orage. Viz has a nice mix of shonen and shojo titles including a countdown to the last print Shonen Jump and the next One Piece Color Walk art book as well as a new title for the kids, Fluffy Fluffy Cinnamoroll. The List: FANTAGRAPHICS BOOKS Wandering Son Volume 2 HC, $19.99  **Weekly Pick** KODANSHA COMICS Cage Of Eden Volume 3 GN, $10.99 Love Hina Omnibus Volume 2 TP (Kodansha Edition), $19.99 Monster Hunter Orage Volume 3 TP, $10.99 Negima Omnibus Volume 3 GN, $19.99 VIZ MEDIA Black Bird Volume 12 GN, $9.99 Dengeki Daisy Volume 8 GN, $9.99 Fluffy Fluffy Cinnamoroll Volume 1 GN, $7.99 Kimi ni Todoke From Me To You Volume 12 GN, $9.99 Naruto Volume 54 TP, $9.99 One Piece Color Walk Volume 2 TP, $19.99 One Piece Volume 60 TP, $9.99 Oresama Teacher Volume 6 GN, $9.99 Psyren Volume 2 GN, $9.99  **Weekly Pick** Rosario + Vampire Season II Volume 7 TP, $9.99 Shonen Jump Volume 10 #2 (February 2012), $4.99 Skip Beat Volume 26 TP, $9.99 Yu-Gi-Oh Gx Volume 8 GN,…

While searching for Alice in a dimension made up of her memories, Oz stumbles on the Sablier tragedy of 100 years ago and discovers some secrets about Alice, Gil and Vincent Nightray, as well as a secret about himself. Then it’s off for some lighter moments as Oz goes to visit his younger sister who he hasn’t seen in 10 years, before an old villain re-emerges; the Baskervilles, who are looking for Oz to find the truth of Sablier from the spirit inside him; Jack Vessilius, the “Hero of Sablier”. By Jun Mochizuki Publisher: Yen Press Age Rating: Older Teen Genre: Fantasy Price: $11.99 I had read the first few chapters of Pandora Hearts when it debuted in the print version of Yen Plus. While I had mostly enjoyed chapters, it wasn’t enough for me to keep following the series. I’m glad I checked in with these two volumes. The delving further into the mystery of the abyss was interesting, and the introduction of two new characters helped lighten things up after some grim chapters. It was a bit of a shock to jump back into the series at a pretty horrific moment. The scenes of the Sablier tragedy start…

2011 ends quietly as just two publishers have books coming out this week, but with some key titles for fans. Dark Horse makes it to 20 on the ultra-violent Gantz, and oh my goodness, is that a 40 on Oh My Goddess?! Kodansha releases their two kid friendly titles Animal Land and Tokyo Mew Mew, while Air Gear breaks the 20 volume barrier as well. Here’s to looking forward to another great year in manga in 2012! The List: DARK HORSE COMICS Gantz Volume 20 TP, $12.99 Oh My Goddess! Volume 40 TP, $10.99  **Weekly Pick** KODANSHA COMICS Air Gear Volume 21 GN, $10.99 Animal Land Volume 3 GN, $10.99 Bloody Monday Volume 3 GN, $10.99  **Weekly Pick** Tokyo Mew Mew Omnibus Volume 2 TP, $14.99 Sayonara Zetsubou-Sensei Volume 12 GN, $10.99  **Weekly Pick** Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney Volume 3 GN, $10.99 The Picks: Connie’s Pick:  I have to admit, my overwhelming favorite for the week is Oh My Goddess! 40.  While I normally enjoy the series in a sitcom-sorta way, the recent story arc has actually been really good, since it makes use of the fact that the characters are goddesses and demons and whatnot.  Plus, more of Hild…