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Archive for June, 2011

Review: Bleach (Vol. 35)

Bleach (Vol. 35)
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Manga-ka: Tite Kubo
Publisher: Viz Media
Rating: Teen (13+)
Release Date: June 2011

Synopsis: “Higher Than the Moon While the Soul Reapers are entrenched in bloody one-on-one battles with the Espadas, their sworn enemy Aizen is preparing to make the next move in his elaborate plan. The battlefields of Hueco Mundo will soon give way to another battlefield where the price of losing will prove to be infinitely higher. “

The first volume of Viz Media’s 3-in-1 edition of Bleach comes out this week and finishing this thirty-fifth single volume of the series makes me almost envious of the omnibus format. Never has there been a series that keeps me flipping through the pages as swiftly as I do in Bleach. A part of this is obviously because I want to know what happens next, but predominantly it’s because of how text-light and attack heavy the pages are. I love how fast-paced and energetic it is, you’re completely drawn into the fight sequences! Unfortunately they’ll only last you a couple of minutes at most.

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Swag Bag: All The RightStuf With BL, Kai and Viz

Canada Post recently announcing their rotating strike was already bad news on its own but I was doubly cranky about it as my box of RightStuf goodies was presumably trapped somewhere between here and there. Luck was on my side though and on the morning the strike was set to start, my box arrived!

Replica (Vol. 01)Taking advantage of their Digital Manga sale a little while back, I picked up a bunch of my must-have titles at prices I couldn’t possibly refuse! Paying their sale price on the US price, and the Canadian dollar as it is, I got each book for 50% off what I would’ve paid here.

Continuing current series, I bought Target in the Finder (Vol. 03), Kizuna Omnibus (Vol. 02) and Tyrant Who Falls In Love (Vol. 02). Now that I’ve got a couple volmes of Kizuna and Finder, it’s time to retire my BeBeautiful version to the storage bins. I also purchased Replica (Vol. 01) and Countdown 7 Days (Vol. 01). Both are shonen (I think?) series that I was able to get an early preview of from Digital Manga. I really liked them both and hope they still get a chance to impress people despite being hidden within DM’s big boys’ love library.

Back to the boys’ love, I got one of BLU’s final publications: Crimson Snow. It’s a one-shot title that I’ve been dying to have in my hand since I saw the gorgeous cover on Amazon last year. Learning the plot only furthered my want so it was the first to have its plastic covering ripped off. I also picked up the last two volumes of breath – a five volume BL series by the so far one-series company Yaoi Generation who’s been disappointedly quiet since last year.

Crimson SnowAnd because a RightStuf purchase isn’t complete without some anime, I happily took advantage of the Funimation sale to buy Dragonball Z Kai Parts 2-4 and the second half of the series Welcome to the NHK.

Buying back on more local soil, I visited our big bookstore Chapters as the customary before-and-after seeing a movie ritual (aka, it’s right next door to the biggest theatre). Last week I was thrilled to get a copy of A Bride’s Story from Yen Press. It’s a really gorgeous book and you’ll want to spend some time oogling the hard cover design before  you even crack it open.

This upcoming week is Viz Media‘s huge shipping list, which generally always happens the first week of the month. This often means a big armful of books for me and this month was no exception, especially with some of my absolute favourites out. Books carried to the check-out included Pokemon Adventures (Vol. 13), Bleach (Vol. 35), Blue Excorcist (Vol. 02) and Toriko (Vol. 05). I also bought Full Metal Alchemist 3-in-1 (Vol. 01) because of a friends’ recommendation. To try and round out the shonen just a little, I also bought Grand Guignol Orchestra (Vol. 03) – battling doll-like zombies with music while wearing Victorian gothic attire!

Thankfully I just finished a big Spring cleaning revamp of my manga bookshelves (which of course included adding a new one), so there’s plenty of space to start adding in my new goodies. That said, I’ll be selling a couple boxes full at this upcoming Animaritime so East Coast Canadians have another reason to come enjoy the event ;)

So what was in your swag bag this week?


Review: Arata (Vol. 06)

Arata (Vol. 06)

Manga-ka: Yuu Watase
Publisher: Viz Media
Rating: Older Teen (13+)
Release Date: June 2011

Synopsis: “Hinohara discovers to his horror that his tormentor Kadowaki has followed him to Arata’s world. Recalling his suffering, Hinohara flies into a rage that triggers his transformation into a demonic entity!”

My prayers were answered after the Kadowaki-heavy volume five. He’s considerably less present in this sixth book after Hinohara forces a retreat of the group of opposing Sho. It comes with a price however. We learn that as much power as Hinohara’s weapon has for good, in his hands it still has the capability to cause out of control destruction. For the good of the world he aims to save, Hinohara will need to learn to control that temper, but as readers, it’s fantastic to see him get a chance to vent.

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PR: Receive 20% Off Naruto Digital Manga With Viz App!

RECEIVE 20% OFF NARUTO DIGITAL MANGA WITH NEW VIZ MANGA APP PROMOTION

World’s Most Popular Ninja Goes On Sale For A Limited Time Only For Digital Download For iPad, iPhone And iPod Touch!

VIZ Media has just launched a special digital promotion for its NARUTO manga (graphic novel) series. Digital versions of Volumes 1-27 of the classic action adventure story are available via the VIZ MANGA APP for the Apple iPad™, iPhone™ and iPod Touch™ for only $3.99 – 20% off the normal MSRP. The promotion kicks off today for a limited time only and ends Friday, June 17th at midnight PST.

Created by Masashi Kishimoto in 1999, NARUTO (rated ‘T’ for Teens) quickly became Japan’s most popular ninja manga targeting tweens and teens and has sold more than 85 million copies to-date. NARUTO is also one of the most popular anime/manga properties in North America. The NARUTO manga and animated series depict the adventures of a young boy named Uzumaki Naruto who trains to become a ninja. Naruto, cursed with the spirit of the nine-tailed fox demon sealed within his body, is forced to live a bullied life discriminated against by his fellow villagers. But Naruto is resilient and undaunted and his determination often inspires those around him. Through the adventures, the young ninja learns the importance of friendship, teamwork, loyalty, hard work, creativity, ingenuity and right vs. wrong. More information on NARUTO is available at www.NARUTO.com.

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PR: Viz Offers Librarians Free Heroes of Manga Library Kits

VIZ MEDIA OFFERS LIBRARIANS FREE
HEROES OF MANGA LIBRARY KITS

New Kits Highlight Popular VIZ Media Manga Properties And Help Foster Literacy And A Love Of Japanese Pop Culture Among Library Patrons Of All Ages

San Francisco, CA, June 2, 2011 – VIZ Media, LLC (VIZ Media), the largest distributor and licensor of anime and manga in North America, gives librarians across the country a useful new tool to promote reading, literacy and love of manga (graphic novels). The company has made available Heroes of Manga Library Kits, full of items to entice patrons to explore the exciting world of Japanese pop culture and comics.

Manga is one of the most requested categories in libraries today. The Heroes of Manga Library Kit features some of VIZ Media’s most popular properties, such as NARUTO, FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST, NURA: RISE OF THE YOKAI CLAN and POKÉMON, designed for a range of readers from All Ages to Young Adult. Each library kit contains 50 book covers, 300 bookmarks, 50 buttons, 5 assorted VIZ Media bags, and a full-color poster featuring NARUTO, and is available for FREE to library professionals. For more information, or to receive a kit, please submit information here before June 8, 2011. Please allow 4-6 weeks for delivery.

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Trigun Badlands Rumble In Canadian Theatres on June 22nd

Trigun Badlands Rumble In Canadian Theatres

Prepare to get nostalgic or witness why so many people are proud to have the story of a gun-toting pacifist as one of their first anime – Trigun: Badlands Rumble is officially coming to theatres across Canada!

“Vash the Stampede is a gunslinging, red-trenchcoat-wearing drifter with a giant bounty on his head. His biggest threat, however, may not be law enforcement, but an outlaw by the name of Gasback. Twenty years ago, Vash accidentally interefered with one of Gasback’s robberies, and now the villain’s back with a score to settle. Gasback has come to Macca City in hopes of stealing one of their major installations, and Vash has just coincidentally arrived at the same spot. Also involved in this caper are a beautiful lady with a grudge, a couple of insurance agents, and Vash’s old buddy Wolfwood. At first it seems that Gasback has succeeded, but one can never underestimate Vash’s legendary abilities—not to mention the secrets that his allies have up their sleeves.” – Cineplex

The movie will be a special one night only event on June 22nd at 7pm, local time.

Empire Theatres has confirmed with Animaritime organizers that the movie will have Japanese audio with English subtitles. Tickets through Empire Theatres will go on sale on their website tomorrow and tickets are currently available to purchase on Cineplex’s website.

You can see the full list of Canadian theatres below:

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Review: Arisa (Vol. 02)

Arisa (Vol. 02)
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Manga-ka: Natsumi Ando
Publisher: Kodansha Comics
Rating: Older Teen (16+)
Release Date: May 2011

Synopsis: “Unraveling secrets. Who is the mysterious “King” controlling the class? Tsubasa pursues Akira Manabe, a troubled boy who might know the King’s true identity. As Tsubasa closes in on Arisa’s secret, the King makes another move!”

Arisa‘s first impression continues to be its deceptive cover. Bright-eyed shoujo heroines and flowers give away nothing about the actual contents of the book – a continually compelling mystery about a school held in the grip of ‘The King’: a enigmatic figure who grants the wishes of students. When Tsubasa’s twin Arisa jumps from a window and goes into a coma, Tsubasa enters the school under guise of her sister to try and find out why.

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Review: My Girlfriend’s A Geek (Vol. 03)

My Girlfriend's A Geek (Vol. 03)

Author: Pentabu
Manga-ka: Rize Shinba
Publisher: Yen Press
Rating: Teen (13+)
Release Date: May 2011

Synopsis: “Lady Luck may have smiled upon fresh-faced college student Taiga Mutou in the form of his cute coworker Yuiko agreeing to go out with him. But little did he know that this particular lady was rotten through and through! When the couple’s first Christmas rolls around, Taiga decides to tutor a schoolboy for some extra cash. Only Yuiko’s fujoshi filter seems to have rubbed off on Taiga more than he ever anticipated, and now he’s seeing his new part-time gig in a whole new light?! Can Taiga hang on to the job, or will his Christmas plans be thwarted by his own fully ripe and rotten tendencies — not to mention Mr. Perfect, Kashiwabari, who still wants Yuiko for himself?!”

Yuiko is still a geek, specifically a huge boys’ love geek. The facets of her and Taiga’s individual personalities haven’t changed much since the beginning which makes the frustrating nature of their relationship a continued fault. Seeing as how the book is based almost entirely around this, you can see the problem. Some quirks are still entertaining though, and some occasional circumstances sweet, but they only just manage to balance out the moments that just painful – or as in this volume, even a little creepy.

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