Review: One-Punch Man vol. 9

One-Punch Man continues to be fucking brilliant. Depending on your genre preference, I don’t think there’s a better manga out there. In my last review, I mentioned that writer One was threading storylines and at that moment there were still a few options as to where the story could go. We get the answer to that question in this volume, but I think it’s more complex than it seems. To explain, I said that he was laying the groundwork for several storylines that would continue to play out over the course of the series, but now I may be wrong. I think that One might be threading all of these stories into one overall arc and that they’ll tie together in the near future.

Point in case the story picks up with Garo, the former top student of the old dude that’s always trying to recruit Saitama and Genos. He beats up and or kills everyone at the villain meeting and leaves to get stronger to face King. Who we know is a fraud that’s been living off of Saitama’s feats. Speaking of which they’re friends now and play video games against each other, though there’s no hint about King’s choice of either revealing himself or getting stronger.

The story then takes some time to introduce Tornado’s older sister who rules the B-Class as she comes to get Saitama to join her gang of heroes or to beat him up. You can imagine how this goes. Actually, you can’t because it’s way better and funnier than anything I imagined.

There’s plenty more to read and enjoy, but it’s clear that One is just getting started with this story arc. It doesn’t feel like typical shonen in that it’s drawn out to fill pages, but rather the story is just that damn big. The characters being introduced feel as if they have a purpose that’s yet to be revealed to us. One also manages to make you concerned about Genos, if you weren’t already. We’ll see how it turns out obviously, but he’s getting further and further from the character we first meet.

Not surprising, the artwork from Yusuke Murata continues to be something greater than fantastic. Whatever that is, he’s it. His work is incredible. He stays true to the style that manga is known for, but you can tell that he’s so talented that he could take on any style he wanted. In some ways, he reminds me of Jose Juan Ryp’s artwork in that it’s incredibly detailed and enjoyable because of the detail. Murata has an advantage of Ryp in that he’s a better visual storyteller and able to mix humor into his artwork.

The last thing I will say about this volume is that you get to learn what Genos and Saitama’s official hero names are… I won’t spoil it for you, but it is probably one of the best things in this volume.

If you’re not reading One-Punch Man, and you enjoy either A) comics, B) manga because you can’t just acknowledge that comics are comics, then you are missing out on the best superhero story being published at the moment. Marvel and DC wish they could produce something this fantastic and the kicker is that it’s a shared universe all within one series. It’s going to be a long wait until volume 10.

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One-Punch Man vol. 9 Writer: One Artist: Yusuke Murata Publisher: Viz Media Price: $9.99 Format: TPB; Print/Digital

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Review: Twin Star Exorcists vol. 6

Twin Star Exorcists manages to follow the shonen storytelling style, while also breaking a lot of the norms. When a story starts off following middle schoolers, you rarely expect it to jump ahead to high school by the sixth volume. Especially given the intense events of the previous five volumes. That’s what happens here, though, as the story jumps to high school and two years later with Rokuro and Benio having completed their training to go the island and now just waiting to be tested. Let me repeat that because I want it to be clear how different this is from typical shonen; the story actually chose to skip two years of training to get to the point. I’ve never read a story in which the creator passed up showing people training over and over. Sure, there’s some training shown in this volume, but it’s a part of the story rather than the focus of the story.

Where it stays faithful to the form is the harem element. We started off with the obvious childhood friendship angle between Mayura and Rokuro; then Benio, in fact, fell in love with Rokuro, and he might have feelings for her as well, but he’s an idiot in that area so of course, he can’t see either woman’s interest in him. Now with this volume, we add a female character that’s head over heels in love with him and very open about it. Before we get to that, let’s talk about the volume leading up to this.

The opening establishes that Rokuro and Benio are complete and total badasses now. It’s a quick opening, and we even check in with Mayura which I find to be a pointless aspect of the story now. Unless they have some trick up their sleeve for her, it would be better to move the story forward without her. After the opening, Rokuro is tested by Shimon Ikaruga who saved him and Benio in the last book. He hates Rokuro because of how formal he talks to people and for the fact that Seigen left him to train Rokuro. The battle is decent, and we do see how Rokuro has improved, but he still loses, and it leaves you as the reader wondering if he could really handle the island.

Ikaruga’s test wasn’t the real test, though. His was a strange, probably made up, pre-test. The real test isn’t even a fight. It’s a girl with extraordinary spiritual power that taps into your spiritual power to see if you have what it takes. Enter Chiko, who is of some relation to Ikaruga. Chiko’s never left the island because of how powerful she is and while we learn that she’s been very sheltered suddenly she’s allowed to dismiss her bodyguards and walk around on her own which goes against her character development later on. Rokuro is her hero because he unwittingly gave her a reason to leave the island, but the test… well, the test ends on a cliffhanger, and only Benio and the reader know why the test is a bad idea.

Other than all the time wasted with Chiko, this is a great volume. I wish it didn’t have so much harem elements, this time, around, but it does due to the genre. There is some good ecchi moments at the end between Benio and Rokuro and it just really shows why that’s the only relationship that the story should focus on. The rest is just page clutter. The point of the story isn’t “who will Rokuro pick,” but rather, will he and Benio do what they set out to do or will they need to have a kid to finish the job? That’s the focus, and so when it loses that focus, it’s frustrating. Thankfully the bulk of the book is spent in battle and with actual character development.

The artwork is impressive given the fact that seven people are now working on this title. It’s getting to the point that I don’t think it’s going to be allowed to fail, but as long as it continues being this damn good, I don’t mind. I would like to pretend that you’ve read my previous reviews for the series and remember what I said so that I don’t have to retype my feelings about the art here, but that would be foolish of me.

It follows the standard layouts, lots of panels intersected at angles which in a way breaks the flow of the action, but something about it works rather well here. It doesn’t feel as standard, but rather the creator and assistants are using it to further the action. The details are of course great and maintained throughout. I still really enjoy the blank bubble looking characters that are used with the story is humorous. A big standout in the art is the facial expressions and a number of default expressions there are. Everyone has a natural default face that doesn’t stem from a genre trope.

I was looking forward to this volume a lot, and I wasn’t let down. Watching the release schedule, though, I don’t think we’ll be seeing another volume until next year which sucks because I want to read it right now, but also for the best so that I’m never so caught up that I have to pick up the weekly Shonen Jump issues to read along. Having given up on the anime after three or four episodes, I can’t say if it’s in line with the anime. From what I saw of it and from reading all the volumes, I would say stick with the manga. It’s one of the best of its genre.

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Twin Star Exorcists vol. 6 Writer: Yoshiaki Sukeno Artists: Yoshiaki Sukeno, Erubo Hijihara, koppy, Tomohiro Fukuoka, Takumi Kikuta, Testuro Kakiuchi Publisher: Viz Media Price: $9.99 Format: TPB; Print/Digital

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Review: Arpeggio of Blue Steel vol. 1

Contrary to popular belief, Dustin is a really nice guy. Sure he may play the asshole part to a T, but when it comes down to it, he’s genuinely nice. Why do I bring that up? Well, it’s because of him that I’m able to do this review. He was kind enough to mail me this manga not for review but just out of the kindness of his heart. That being said, it’s going straight back to where it came from. The year is 2038 AD and mankind has been forced to live and operate out in the ocean. Why? Because some mother fucking “alien” battleships have taken over the world...THAT’S WHY. Yes, unmanned battleships, herein referred to as Fleet of Fog, are now in control. If it sounds like something familiar, I’m pretty sure you’re right. It’s an overly used trope. Hell, the thing that came to my mind initially was Neon Genesis Evangelion and their Angel situation. To further dive into the similarities to NGE, our protagonist, Chihaya Gunzou, is in control of his very own Fleet of Fog, the I-401, and only responds to him.

After successfully taking down a fog cruiser, Gunzou is approached by a man with a sick mullet and presents an opportunity for Gunzo and his team, Blue Steel. America has developed a weapon capable of dealing with the Fleet of Fog, and it’s up to the Blue Steel fleet to transport “humanity’s last hope.” After being hesitant at first, Gunzou accepts the request and so begins their adventure and many future battles.

We don’t get a whole lot of anything in this first volume of Arpeggio of Blue Steel. There’s no real backstory, and there certainly isn’t any character development. We’re not given any reason to have any sort of emotional connections with the characters. Because of that, I honestly didn’t give a shit about them. To be honest, I wish they would have blown up during their second encounter with a Fleet of Fog. What we do learn are these two things regarding Gunzou: 1) his dad was some big military shit and has since sided with the enemies, and 2) it’s been two years since Gunzou activated Iona (his submarine. What?! See below.)

Here’s the interesting part of this book. These Fleet of Fog are unmanned, but the thing is, they’re really not. They are occupied and controlled by a humanoid avatar, a “mental mode.” It’s an interesting concept, to say the least. These mental modes are well versed with each other and know their strengths and weakness. However, Iona, the 1-401, was out of commission of for so long, so she’s not up to speed with everyone and vice-versa.

The only real saving point of this book was the art. The art is fantastic. There is so much detail in all the mechanical aspects of these ships. You can tell a lot of time and effort was put into making sure they looked like battleships and not just any regular ol’ boat. The launching of torpedoes and the charging of the cannons looked amazing. I wish I could say the same for the character designs, though. Everyone has the same face with that damned pointy nose. Luckily that’s the only thing they have in common, so I’ll let it slide.

Story wise, Arpeggio of Blue Steel is a flop. Art can only carry a book for so long, you guys. Also, scroll down and see the price of this book. No way in hell I’m going to get Volume 2 unless by some chance we Bastards are provided with it. HINT HINT? Nah. You guys can keep it.

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Arpeggio of Blue Steel - Vol. 1 Creator: Ark Performance Publisher: Seven Seas Entertainment Price: $12.99 Format: TPB; Print/Digital

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Review: Twin Star Exorcists vol. 5

This volume is another interesting one because it breaks a lot of norms that I’ve come to associate with shonen manga. The first being that it doesn’t pick right back up with the battle from the fourth volume. That’s right; you’re left with that cliffhanger for a while as we actual jump to the future and find out about a few of the twelve guardians coming to town. It’s interesting and different because it gives you vague hints about the outcome of the battle. So much so that when it does return to the fight you could easily think that you know what’s going to happen. You don’t. I didn’t. I didn’t even have an accurate guess because Yoshiaki Sukeno busts out even bigger surprises than the last issue. While the fourth volume saw a huge change for Benio, the fifth volume cranks up Rokuro’s character to eleven. So that you understand, he was on nine; now he’s on eleven… it only goes to ten.

I won’t tell you what happens, but obviously, our two main characters live at the end. Saying that gives you nothing, though. After the dust has settled some, we learn about an island that is at the center of the battle to save the planet. Battles happen there 24/7 and so the exorcists there are more badass than anywhere else in the world. Rokuro and Benio want to go there, but they have to train first. Oh, and that’s after they convince the White Haired Weirdo that they’re not just going to sit around and have a kid and make them clean up the world as the “chosen one.”

One huge development from the battle with Yuto is that Benio has a new-found respect for Rokuro and has developed romantic feelings for him. Rokuro is the oblivious idiot male character and doesn’t know this, but he feels a closeness to Benio that he just doesn’t acknowledge because that would be too easy. Still, I applaud Sukeno on the character development done in this volume (as well as the last). Not only that, but the relationship development that didn’t rely on well-worn tropes, but instead was built on mutual respect in battle.

The last development is that Mayura begins doing hardcore training as an exorcist to try to catch up to Rokuro. Not the best aspect to add because it doesn’t feel relevant to the story anymore, but it’s manga and God forbid the main male character only have one love interest when he can have a dozen. My favorite part of the entire manga was one of the comic strips in the back in which Rokuro and Benio watch TV and afterward Benio expression her desire to tell Rokuro that she bought a bra. The rest was great as well, but I found this part to be particularly humorous.

After the last volume, I’m on board with the artwork. Perhaps it’s the fact that there’s a lot of artists working on the series. Nine to be exact, but due to how credit is given, I have no idea who to credit, and I’m not writing out nine names. It’s consistent; it looks great, and the designs continue to be cool. Especially the last page, which I won’t spoil, but it’s pretty relevant to the story.

This volume has an excellent pacing in that it eases the reader out of the big battle from volume 4, gives you time to catch your breath and then moves the story forward in a big way. I’m very excited for the next volume after completing this one. It continues to do some hotshot booking, but it's working for now. It makes Twin Star Exorcists stand out from the crowd and a lot of fun to read.

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Twin Star Exorcists vol. 5 Creator: Yoshiaki Sukeno Publisher: Viz Media Price: $9.99 Format: TPB; Print/Digital

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Review: Nisekoi: False Love vol. 17

Since reading this volume, I started watching the anime version; which is weird because as I say on this week’s episode of Super S (listen here), I strangely like the anime. It’s almost as if it has all the personality that the manga is missing. Perhaps better put, everything that this manga is now missing. Because that’s one thing that’s become painfully clear to me, this story is going on for far too long and could likely continue to do so. And that’s a shame because it’s burning through its best material and then left to stretch out its weakest material. Not that the anime has done it perfectly, but it does manage to add that extra bit of personality that I’ve been waiting for this manga to show me. No surprise here, this volume doesn’t give me that injection of personality either.

This volume is busy as fuck. It finishes the segment with Raku and Onodera at the hot springs and, of course, everyone is working to get them together so much so that they share a room, share a bath and sleep on each other on the bus back. From there the story goes right into field day in which Raku and Chitoge share cute moments along with the typical embarrassing moments with Tsugumi. Then a pretty large segment dedicated to Yui which establishes another forced marriage upon Raku and changes how Yui responds to him. The last part is a school trip that finds Raku and Chitoge spending the night alone together unbeknownst to the rest of the characters.

Sadly, as good as this last scene was it points out one of the details I mentioned about weakest aspects being drawn out. Claude is mentioned. I had no idea who this character was until watching the anime as he’s the lynchpin that forces Raku and Chitoge to pretend to be in a relationship at school. Having read five volumes this is the first time he’s mentioned, but he’s suddenly an easy story device to throw Chitoge and Raku together. Which shows the short sidedness of using a particular character to force the story along and the lack of development that’s been put into Chitoge and Raku’s relationship. That and it felt like the creator said, "Oh yeah... we have this character still don't we?"

That and I find that the more I read, the more I’d rather this be a one-sided story in which Chitoge and Raku are just forced into a relationship only to find out that destiny played a hand. Also, the mafia element that I spoke about in my last review makes another convenient appearance here and again to force Chitoge and Raku together even though for five volumes it never once affected the story or seemed to be an issue. It’s almost as the creator is struggling to remember the core plot of the series. Which also happens to be one of the few things that made the story stand out.

The art continues to be the art. I did notice that there are crazy facial expressions used here and there, but it’s not nearly as thick and funny as it is in the anime. Perhaps the earlier volumes were thick with it, but much like the basic plot it was forgotten or replaced by fan service.

It isn’t a bad volume, but it just feels like a story that’s gone on for too long. Now it’s starting to recycle its old elements with new characters, and that spoils any charm the story had. I’ll keep reading at this point just to see if it will end or if it’ll just continue forever and have a safe ending in which fans can just pick their own girl for Raku to end up with when the eventual conclusion happens. If anything they should do what Archie did and create two timelines in which Archie ended up with both Betty and Veronica and appease both fanbases. Though here you would need to create seven or eight timelines. It’s not bad, but you can easily see how it could be better and at this point, I think the readers are here out of habit rather than joy.

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Nisekoi: False Love vol. 17 Creator: Naoshi Komi Publisher: Viz Media Price: $9.99 Format: TPB; Print/Digital

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Review: The Osamu Tezuka Story: A Life in Manga and Anime

This biographical manga is a giant. It clocks in around 900 pages, more so when you consider all the info in the back and the foreword from the translator. I will be upfront and tell you that at the time of writing this review, I have only completed the first two chapters which is over half way through the book. The reason I’m not going to finish it before writing my review is simple. It’s a biography. The twists and turns in Tezuka’s life are to be enjoyed and appreciated by the reader and not something for me to judge. I read enough to talk competently about the material and rather than hold my review, I’d rather get this out there so others can learn and possibly appreciate the content as well.

Here’s my big secret too… I’ve never read or watched anything from Osamu Tezuka aka the God of Manga. But I really want to now. In fact, I want to read as much of his work as I can find because this biography has given me a new appreciation and understanding of his work. Previously I was just put off by his art style. That’s no longer the case since this entire biography is done in his art style. The narrator is even one of Tezuka’s characters, Shunsaku Ban.

I’m not going to recap what I have read. The title of the book tells you everything about the content. This story follows Tezuka throughout his entire life and with that comes some good and some bad aspects of the book. The good is that if you’re interested in biographies or Tezuka, then you’re going to get a lot of information. At times, the bad is that there are some dull points because no one’s life is thrilling or entertaining 24/7.

However, the pacing for The Osamu Tezuka Story keeps this biography from hitting too many of those low points. That and Tezuka’s life is pretty damn impressive. Another thing that benefits the story and the reader is that each page is kept to minimum text. There’s no exposition dumps or giant factoids. Rather the story and art work together. Speaking of the art, it embraces Tezuka’s storytelling. This is definitely one of the most interesting biographies I’ve read in that it still feels like a manga. The art and story still work together, and the art does it’s job while the narration does its own.

What it boils down to, though, is your interest. If you’re not interested in manga or comics or biographies, then you’re not going to sit down and enjoy all 900 pages of this. If you already have a pre-existing knowledge of Tezuka’s work and life, then you’re sure to love and enjoy reading his journey. Then there are people like me. I’ve always heard praise for Tezuka. I even know several of his properties, more than I realized. Now I do. Now I know and at least somewhat understand how this man captivated the world.

I have every intention of finishing this book, but now that I’ve finished the review I can sit back and just enjoy the read. Which is something I hope you will do too.

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The Osamu Tezuka Story: A Life in Manga and Anime Creators: Toshio Ban and Tezuka Productions Translator: Frederik. L. Schodt Publisher: Stone Bridge Press Price: $29.99 Format: TPB; Print

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Review: Goodnight Punpun vol. 3

At this point, I don’t even know if I can do Goodnight Punpun justice. I attempted to on this week’s episode of the CBMFP, but even then it still felt as if the words summoned failed to do it any real justice. To fix that, I will be providing spoilers because this material is just too complicated to continue dodging around events in the story or giving you general ideas. The main reason being that this very mature book doesn’t just fall into the “slice of life” category. In a lot of ways, it reminds me of independent films or even French films in which sex is a large aspect of the story, but not the defining feature. Punpun has always been thinking about sex from the very beginning of the first volume, but the opening of this volume changes everything. Punpun is essentially raped. He goes along with it, but his reaction and the damage done to him by having a woman older than him commit the act has messed him up terrible. The story tackles this in a very subtle way because this was Punpun’s first experience and so essentially the norm for him. So much so that it is and isn’t a surprise when he meets a girl and later tries to force himself upon her only then realizing that it’s not who he is or what he wants to do. It does take her firm rejection for him to snap out of it, though.

Punpun is a mess, but he’s not the only mess we deal with. Aside from his rape from someone who he trusted, he’s also on the major “outs” with his mother and just moved from his childhood home into a shitty apartment. With the second volume, the focus was split as it followed Punpun’s Uncle along with Punpun. With the third volume, we focus on Punpun’s mother who is a real mess herself.

At one point she ends up back in the hospital and befriends a teenage boy the same age as Punpun. The differences in the relationships just goes to show how messy family can be. That is what this volume is indicating to the reader as Mother and Son can’t connect on an emotional level. It’s difficult to say whose fault that is, but after reading it all you have to point to the mother/parents. After years of neglect she wants Punpun to love her and praise her, but she doesn’t see the damage she’s done. She doesn’t realize how far she’s pushed her son away. To the point that he goes out on his date while she goes under the knife.

As I said on the podcast, this volume took me the longest to read. There was simply more to read, and it wasn’t info dumps or anything like that. What I believe that creator Inio Asano is doing, is matching the reading level of the comic to Punpun’s age. The first volume set in elementary school was a quick read, but still a little complex. The second volume was at the middle school level, but maintained the maturity the series has always contained. This third volume is definitely at the high school level and shows the growth and development of the series. Point in case that we learn what actually happened between Punpun’s mom and dad way back in volume one. Which is brilliant because it’s also a statement of how we see our youth and that maturity brings about new info that we couldn’t see for ourselves.

I’ve always said that Punpun and family’s “ghost bird” design was intentional for two reasons. One, it’s funny and the second, because it allows you to see yourself and your family within the story. The simplicity prevents you from telling yourself this is someone else’s family. This isn’t mine, and this isn’t happening to me. It prevents that so that you are involved more. You are present. It's why you never see Punpun talk, but you read what he says. You. Read. What. He. Says. Asano makes you an active participant in the story, and that’s genius. I can only think of a tiny handful of books that have done this to me while reading them, but never so smart or consistent.

There is one catch to the intentionally vague illustrations of Punpun and peeps. During the sexual scenes or when hands directly interact with other characters, Asano adds human details. During Punpun’s rape scene we see him in pants and a shirt like he was any other kid. At first, this was off-putting, but again intentional. Asano needed it to be clear that what was happening was serious and not a playful or joking scene. He does keep it censored for the most part but in his own style.

Otherwise, the art continues to be incredibly detailed and some of the best I’ve ever seen come from a manga. After Goodnight Punpun, Inio Asano has made me a fan for life. Asano’s style defies the manga norms, while also just being incredibly detailed and enjoyable.

Even after 840 words or so I still don’t know if this review has given you enough insight. My goal has been to get your interest in this series and not as a manga reader, but as a comic reader or more importantly a reader of stories. At the end of the day, people who read comics and read a lot of them are just looking for great stories. Stories with visuals that they can’t get anywhere else and the origin of the created work doesn’t matter. If you give me a manga or a French comic book I won’t turn it away because it’s not from America. Rather, I’m more curious. Hopefully, you’re curious about Goodnight Punpun. You can’t start the series here, but if you’re willing to invest in the first two volumes, you’re in for one hell of an experience. One that I’ve never come across in all my reading.

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Goodnight Punpun vol. 3 Creator: Inio Asano Publisher: Viz/Viz Signature Price: $24.99 Format: TPB; Print/Digital

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Review: Yona of the Dawn vol. 1

The first Shojo Beat comic I read I didn’t like. I struggled to get to the ending and questioned the logic of the entire set up. Yona of the Dawn is entirely different from that. There’s one somewhat questionable aspect of the story, but nothing like the other series I read. Moreover, yes I am breaking a review taboo by bringing up another story in a review, but the reason is to point out that I steered clear of the Shojo Beat line because of that story. Yona has renewed my interest. The story for Yona is really simple, to sum up, but having said that it is not the reason this story is enjoyable. The outline is this, we meet Yona outside of the castle walls, thinking about how long it has been since she was home. It is a simple setup that clues the reader into the fact that she is on the run and can’t go back to her castle for a reason yet learned. The story then flashes back to the beginning, and we see Yona, her father the king, her personal bodyguard and a basic idea of her life. It’s Yona’s 16^th birthday, and her cousin is coming to celebrate it with her.

This is the part that gets a little weird, but you have to remember the time in which its set. Yona has a major crush on her cousin. To the extent that she asks her father if she can have him as her husband, but he declines for reasons unbeknownst to Yona and us. The birthday party sets the stage for the King’s death and Yona’s exile from her kingdom, but I will not spoil which of the characters introduced actually commit the murder. The story makes that fairly obvious.

As for what makes this a solid read, it’s the depth of the character development that the story goes into. After Yona has escaped the castle, she becomes lost in thoughts of the past about her time with two particular characters. It’s quite perfect because it establishes how much of a betrayal this event was, how different her world is going to be from now on. It gives the reader contrast to the Yona we meet in the beginning riding her horse and wielding a sword. As for the questionable story aspect, it's the fact that Yona is allowed to live when logic says she would be hunted to death.

With all that said, if you do not like over the top cuteness, then you will have a hard time looking past it to see the depth and layers of the story. Because the cuteness from the art and story are abundant. Even during the battle sequences, there’s a flair of beauty.

As for the art, cuteness aside, it’s quite talented. It has some of the pitfalls of the genre, excess flowers and panel work that breaks from the storytelling, but it’s not thick and obnoxious as others I have read. That and there’s a level of detail maintained throughout the book. Creator Mizuho Kusanagi does not rely on a billion close-ups of the face to fill the pages. That and the action is very easy to follow, while also being the most detailed part of the art. The characters do all have chins that could cut glass, but if you can overlook that you will be fine.

The most surprising part of Yona of the Dawn is that I genuinely wanted to read more. Not out of some obligations to continue the review or because I might get the next volume sent to me, but because I enjoyed what I read so much that I wanted to keep going. Which is so freaking rare for someone like me that has over a hundred reviews just this year alone.

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Yona of the Dawn vol. 1 Creator: Mizuho Kusanagi Publisher: Viz/Shojo Beat Price: $9.99 Format: TPB; Print/Digital

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Review: Persona 3 vol. 1

Those of you that have paid any attention to my unboxing videos will know that Udon Entertainment’s Person 3 vol. 1 was included in the August box. I’m a fan of getting manga in the box, but having never experienced anything Persona related, outside of a dance video game at E3 last year, I had very little to go on. I knew that characters killed themselves in order to release the magic in them or something, and that was about it. The start of this volume was no help. We’re quickly introduced to our main characters as they regroup to fight some monster that’s harder than they imagined. After the battle, we flashback, which even in a manga is an overused writing technique. Why? Because having no idea about the world, the characters or the story I was going to experience is a bad thing. Being thrown into a fight was the worst possible beginning. The real beginning eased me into everything, explained the world and still established the characters leaving me to wonder why the action opening was even needed? Even more so, when we get back to that point in the story, I will have completely forgotten what happened and instead will just remember being annoyed.

Outside of the opening, the rest of the story is okay. I found it easy to follow along with the world and especially easy considering how strange I’ve heard Persona to be. I like the concept, but I can’t see myself digging into this series and finishing it. The characters are all pretty generic. The threat seems beatable, and the only part that caught my attention was that people turn into coffins and that killing yourself lets out a monster that can fight for you. The author states that it will take a couple of years to finish the story and that it’s likely to be the last thing based in the world of Persona 3. This might move some of you; I won’t pretend to know.

Hey look at that, the art is splendid. No surprise that a manga has good art. It comes down to persona-l taste at this point when reading manga. The action wasn’t easy to follow. There’s just not enough pages dedicated to the battles to make them flow properly. There are numerous pages dedicated to people standing or sitting and talking. One thing I failed to mention above is that there’s a lot of exposition, but the art at least keeps your interest enough to make it tolerable.

Persona 3 isn’t as bad as I thought it would be. Having very little knowledge about the world, the games or if there was even a previous manga series, I thought I would be an outsider looking in. Thankfully, after the shaky opening, the story does manage to invite you into the world and get you up to speed. It leaves plenty of mystery for you as well, but for me personally, I can’t see myself returning. Maybe it’s the fact that this is a third the size of a typical manga or maybe it’s just that the material didn’t grab me. I’m sure it’ll do fine with the fanbase and kudos to Udon for the format and presentation. Even if it was short, I still liked that it wasn’t so cumbersome in my hand, but maybe it just wasn't enough to hook me.

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Persona 3 vol. 1 Writers: Shuji Sogabe/Atlus Translation: M. Kirie Hayashi Artist: Shuji Sogabe Publisher: Udon Entertainment Price: $13.99 Format: TPB; Print

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Review: Yowamushi Pedal vol. 1

While I’m a sucker for most sports manga/anime, I did not think I would like this particular one. I mean it is about bicycling. The craze for this sport has long since faded after numerous doping scandals and frankly, my general lack of interest in the sport. Then I read it. Is there any sport that manga can't make intersting? IS THERE!?!

Then I hated the ending because it meant I would have to get the second volume to find out the conclusion of the storyline. Since when did manga start having cliffhangers? How very dare you.

If you didn’t figure it out from the above statement, I actually enjoyed the hell out of this story. It’s not the typical “I'm already a sports prodigy” character, but rather about an Otaku that has no idea how good he is.

We meet Sakamichi Onoda as he starts high school and is excited to join the manga/anime club. He’s also very excited because he’s closer to Akihabara and with the money he saves by not taking the train he can buy an extra capsule toy. Clearly, he’s a young man with his priorities in order. He nearly gets run over one day by a rich kid’s driver because no one was expecting him to be on the huge hill leading to the school… on a “mommy’s bike.” Mommy's bike is the term that the book uses for what’s typically called a “cruiser bike” here in the states. It's the last bike you’d want to ride up a steep hill on because it’s heavy, only has one gear and… did I mention it's heavy?

Eventually, we learn that our rich kid is in the bike club, and that’s he’s looking to go pro. He rides his bike on a custom treadmill because that’s how intense this dude is. His path continues to cross with Onoda’s, and he’s just baffled how this kid can do what he can on a mommy bike, so he challenges him to race. The catch is that if the rich kid loses he’ll become one of the members of the anime/manga club that Onoda is trying to get started… because the old one was closed due to lack of interest, thus crushing Onoda who had looked forward to joining. Their race is what takes up a lot of the book and is the most interesting part. You’ll learn about bicycling in a way that you never knew possible and certainly wasn’t explained during the cycling craze years ago. That’s where a supporting female character is introduced as she begins to help Onoda during the race and changes how he sees cycling. Like me, you’ll have to wait for the next volume to find out if the rich kid joins the manga club.

The pacing of the story is the biggest strength of the volume. There’s enough downtime between cycling talk that you get to know Onoda quite well. He bikes to save money for his hobbies and yet there’s more to that. He’s waited for high school to find like-minded friends and felt the ultimate disappointment only to keep going and press on. There’s a charm to him and his ambitions that I’m sure a lot of people reading this particular manga can understand.

The art was also surprising because it has a western feel to it. If it weren’t for the tropey facial expressions and other aspects you could easily forget you were reading a manga. The art is detailed, but gritty giving the world a lived-in feel. It’s not your clean looking world with everything in place. It feels like a real town, a real high school with students. It’s the first time I’ve read a manga set in high school and thought, that’s a real high school. Mostly because the story isn’t so laser focused on Onoda that it forgets to build the other students and setting around him.

I will likely pass on the anime because I really want to keep reading the manga. I don’t want this unique reading experience spoiled for me, because again, it has a very different vibe than other manga I’ve read. It understands the genre but changes things just enough that it feels familiar, but not cookie-cutter.

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Yowamushi Pedal vol. 1 Creator: Wataru Watanabe Publisher: Yen Press Price: $24.00 Format: TPB; Print/Digital

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Review: Twin Star Exorcists vol. 4

I can see why this series became popular rather quickly. To use a wrestling term, think "hotshot booking." That is to say, in a way that makes sense to most people, that it takes the typical shonen formula and cranks up the speed. Think of Dragon Ball Z if there weren't several hundred pages of Goku charging a spirit bomb while Frieza sat and watched. Imagine instead if Goku just charged the fucker and sent it flying in three panels. That’s Twin Star Exorcists. Not only did this story reveal vital details about both characters’ pasts almost instantly, but it also did it in a way that still felt significant to the story. There was a weight to the reveals, but it’s so atypical of manga and shonen just to pull the trigger like this. Hence, the hotshot booking.

Because if you think that’s going to slow down with the fourth volume, think again. Originally I had planned to review the fourth and fifth volumes together. That changed the minute I finished the fourth because it absolutely needed to be reviewed on its own. Why do you ask? Because Rokuro and Benio actually go to fight Benio’s brother Yuto. A battle they both know they can't win.

I practically expected for the fight to be one of those bullshit fights in which the heroes get to show their moves, and the villain just laughs it off in the end. Telling them some shit like, “get stronger,” which does technically happen but from an entirely different villain that shows up. No instead, this fight has real consequences and changes not only the story but the characters as well. No one walks away from this battle the same, including the villains.

With that said, I’m not going to waste a lot of time talking about fights. The training before the fight is relevant to the story even if it looks like filler pages. Then the fight itself moves at a breakneck pace and is full of consequences. And the fight doesn’t conclude in this volume, but instead of that feeling like a rip-off, I was happy to catch my damn breath and be excited for more.

Yoshiaki Sukeno is delivering some of the most impressive storylines I’ve read since diving face first into manga again. You will see how much I’m reviewing, but you won’t see how much I’m reading (mostly because not all of it is review worthy). If I’m honest with myself, the only thing that’s in front of this series on my reading list is One-Punch Man, and that’s surprising even to me because first glance the plot seems pretty basic. The setting comes across typical, and when you add in the fact that they’re in middle school, the tropes just add up quickly. Sukeno manages to take all of that and make it fresh and unique, but above all else entertaining.

Originally I enjoyed the artwork, but I wasn’t blown away by it. That changed with this volume as the artwork became more dynamic. The battles had a real weight to them as punches are thrown, injuries are sustained, and our heroes are continually beaten down. The designs were always cool and stood out, which I assume is part of the success because manga readers love awesome designs. Something about the art just really hits its stride in this volume. The designs, the battles, the settings and the detail comes together to create one hell of a manga to look at and enjoy.

I know that this sounds crazy, but if you just want to dive into this series, you can do that with this volume. The recap and the beginning and the clever use of flashbacks during the story itself makes it easy to jump on. You’ll still enjoy the payoff and the things that develop because as I said, it’s so well done that you can’t help but enjoy them. If that’s not your bag, then pick up the first four volumes altogether, but you might want to get the next one as well. Either that or you’ll be kicking yourself later.

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Twin Star Exorcists vol. 4 Creator: Yoshiaki Sukeno Publisher: Viz Media Price: $9.99 Format: TPB; Print/Digital

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Review: My Hero Academia vol. 4 & 5

I ended up reading four volumes of this in a row. After really enjoying the first two volumes, I fell behind on the series and then the anime came out, which I watched and hated. It made me hesitant to go back to the manga. In the end, I did come back, and if you could not tell, I enjoyed what I read since I kept reading and reading. There is an imaginary “3” up in the title as well. I did not feel it needed to be fully included in this review because it is one of those annoying volumes that finishes a story arc and starts another and so you are left without much you can talk about because it is half spoilers and a half underdeveloped storylines. Before I dive into the review for both volumes, I will say that my biggest problem with the anime was that they focused on Midoriya’s crying way too much. Sure, he cries; that is part of his character in that he cares so damn much it brings him to tears, but the anime showed him crying constantly and it got old quickly. Jumping back into the manga, I again noticed he cried, but the emotions behind the tears had so much more meaning, and it was nearly as annoying. If and when the next season comes out I hope that the people adapting the story finally understand that and can then produce something that’s viewable and instead of laughable.

Onto the recap of sorts. Volume 3 shows the end of the battle with the league of villains, which is the end of the first season of the anime. It also starts the storyline of the sports competition at the school, which has replaced the Olympics according to the story. It is just a way to rank the students which readers of Manga seem to love. It is also a chance to pit them against each other in a fantasy type battle since they realistically wouldn’t fight each other being heroes and all.

Volume four has interesting aspects in that Midoriya has a target painted on his back or more accurately his head having come in first on the obstacle course. Now they are playing the classic game of Cavalry Battle. The game itself is not that exciting because it has been done a thousand times in manga and will be done a hundred thousand more. What is interesting is the relationships that are built or changed. More people throw down the gauntlet with Midoriya because of All Might’s favor being shown towards him. While this is all okay, it is what happens after the match that matters.

Here’s where it sets up the story for a solid fifth volume. Shoto Todoroki’s father is revealed and also the reason why he will not use both of his powers. It is casually mentioned that he would only use his ice powers and not his fire powers, but after Midoriya pushes him in battle he uses them for just a moment. This makes Todoroki open up to Midoriya. I will not reveal all of it, but it gave much depth to this powerful character.

The fifth volume finds all of the students facing off in one-on-one combat. Midoriya and Todoroki go up against each other, but Midoriya’s plan is not to win this time. It is to fix Todoroki. It is wonderful as the scene manages to build up both characters and set up an interesting, be it a different final battle between the winner of their match. We are also left with a stern warning about Midoriya’s future as the Nurse is no longer willing to fix his broken fingers leaving him with a deformed hand as a reminder to find a better way to use his strength.

All in all, both volumes have their strengths and weaknesses. The Calvary Battle apparently only exists in the story for its familiarity because it is a strange second round when you think about where it fits in overall. The entire event also seems like an afterthought, but one that works out in the end because of the focus given to the individual characters.

The art is, of course, is exquisite. It’s done in the manga style and while I enjoy some of the more unique designs aspects to it like All Might illustrated as a Western superhero and the exaggerated hands and feet. It does not break the mold or push the visual medium, but I know that is not the goal of the work, so I am not judging it based on that. The action sequences continue to be easy to follow, detailed and over the top. You can tell this series is popular and being built up because there’s already seven assistants helping out on the art. I do not know if I have ever seen that many and not that many given credit.

I have one more review for the series before I am caught up, but I am glad to be back on board with this series. I hope that Midoriya has a leap forward in his powers so that he can use them in new ways, but I am patiently waiting for that time to come. At some point, I do have to compare this to superhero comics from the West, and I would say that it stacks up in many ways. I would read this over X-Men any day, and this book probably wouldn’t exist without the X-Men.

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My Hero Academia vol. 4 & 5 Creator: Kohei Horikoshi Publisher: Viz Media Price: $9.99 each Format: TPB; Print/Digital

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Review: Kuroko’s Basketball vol. 1 & 2

Kuroko’s Basketball is a property that I heard a lot about when I started getting back into manga and anime. Mostly because of the crazy real world stuff that has sadly become attached to the series, but that is neither here nor there. This one also my first attempt at reading a sports-themed manga. I have enjoyed plenty of animes that take on sports: Hiakyuu, Ping Pong, Prince of Tennis, and Baby Steps to name a few. Yes, a lot of those were tennis related, but those were the first that came to mind. As a manga, this works okay because creator Tadatoshi Fujimaki understands that he cannot rely on showing a lot of actual Basketball being played. The problem with that is that the story is then forced to rely on long-winded conversations and exposition dumps.

Even with that said, you can see why so many people became attached to this story. It paired the shonen style to the sports genre perfectly. There’s a miracle generation of middle schoolers that have all gone their separate ways after being a powerhouse middle school team. Now on different teams, they want to see who’s the best. There're rumors of a sixth man, and he shares a name with the title of the book… because it is his book.

What’s strange about Kuroko the character is that he does not feel like the main character. Instead, Taiga Kagami tends to stand out as more of the main character. Perhaps this is intentional since Kuroko’s “super” power is to be unnoticed which becomes a running joke early on in the story and never lets up. The duo makes a great pair, but I have a problem with Kuroko’s motivation of making Taiga the best basketball player in Japan. Hopefully that will be amended in future issues to be the best basketball team, but otherwise, it is a terrible motivation to give a character.

The collection I read contained volume 1 and 2, which was a good thing. Sure it is a lot longer than an average manga, but I do not think I would have returned to this series if I did not have the second volume. A lot of time is spent setting up the team, but not on the court. There’s just a lot of wasted time getting to know things about the school, about the coach and it exposition after exposition because there’s not a good way to explain to the character and the audience that the coach can see your physical stats just by looking.

The art is decent. It was my least favorite thing since all the line work, and designs were light. It is not as light as something you would find on the Shojo Beat side of Viz, but definitely a lot softer in look and design than a lot of other books I have read. The designs are pretty dull as everyone looks like a character you have probably seen before or was inspired by this.

I can appreciate Kuroko’s Basketball for doing something new and different with the genre. I have already seen copies of it applied to other sports (that I like a lot more). While I can appreciate it, I do not particularly have the desire to read more. It is not that I would not recommend you to read it if you are looking for a sports manga or something specific to basketball, but the third volume would have to be pretty incredible for me to continue after that. I know that sounds cruel, but my problem is that I can read the books inspired by Kuroko’s Basketball and see them fix the problems that this story has. At the end of the day, it is inspired a lot of great work that I would rather read, but I am grateful this blazed the trail first.

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Kuroko’s Basketball vol. 1 & 2 Creator: Tadatoshi Fujimaki Publisher: Viz Media Price: $16.99 Format: Ongoing; Print/Digital

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