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Posts Tagged 20th Century Boys

Otaku USA: On The Shelf – March 13, 2013

Otaku USA: On The Shelf - March 13, 2013

A new Wednesday and a new batch of comics! My knowledge of what day of the week it is often comes from when new books come out, so I’ve really been throwing myself for a loop lately with these late On The Shelf posts. Eep! Not this week though – Wednesday posting, on time!

Without further ado, you can read my thoughts on this week’s new books over at my On The Shelf article for Otaku USA.

07 Ghost (Vol.03) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
21st Century Boys (Vol.02) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
Arata the Legend (Vol.13) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
Blade of the Immortal (Vol.26): Blizzard [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
Fullmetal Alchemist 3-in-1 (Vol.04) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
His Favorite (Vol.03) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
Neon Genesis Evangelion 3-in-1 (Vol.02) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
Paradise Kiss (Vol.03) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
Rin-Ne (Vol.11) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
Tokyo Babylon (Vol.01) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]


Otaku USA: On The Shelf – September 19, 2012

Otaku USA: On The Shelf - September 19, 2012

It’s manga finale week! Not the end of manga of course (apocalypse!) but the end of a few different series that will all be greatly missed – 20th Century Boys (Viz), Cardcaptor Sakura (DH) and House of Five Leaves (Viz). Filling the gap in our manga buying lives just a bit is the start of Dark Horse’s release of Angelic Layer. This is one of my favourite CLAMP series, so it could definitely warrant a re-buy for me.

You can read more of my thoughts on this week’s releases over at my On The Shelf article for Otaku USA.

And new to my brief postings here on Kuriousity, and for your shopping convenience, a handy list of this week’s releases complete with links* to buy!

20th Century Boys (Vol. 22) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
Angelic Layer Omnibus (Vol. 01) [Amazon CAN, Amazon USRightStuf]
Attack on Titan (Vol. 02) [Amazon CAN, Amazon USRightStuf]
Berserk (Vol. 36) [Amazon CAN, Amazon USRightStuf]
Cardcaptor Sakura Omnibus (Vol. 04) [Amazon CAN, Amazon USRightStuf]
House of Five Leaves (Vol. 08) [Amazon CAN, Amazon USRightStuf]
Sailor Moon (Vol. 07) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]

*As a disclaimer, links on the site are affiliation links for Kuriousity with any and all proceeds from them going towards our hosting fees.


Otaku USA: On The Shelf – July 18-25, 2012

Otaku USA: On The Shelf - July 18-25, 2012

The recent lull of Kuriousity updates extended over to my On The Shelf article as well, but worry not curious list-seekers and manga-buyers (because I’m quite sure you were beside yourselves) – this week’s On The Shelf is a double-dose edition collecting what’s new and recent from last week and today!

My does-want-must-haves of this shipping stack include the first volume of Project-H‘s Velvet Kiss, Vertical Inc‘s classy looking one-shot, Sakuran, Viz Media’s new 20th Century Boys and the tenth volume of Black Butler from Yen Press.


Listings Up For 20th Century Boys Sequel & Nausicaa from Viz Media

21st Century Boys

Listings for the sequel to Naoki Urasawa’s 20th Century Boys were posted to retail sites late last week, acting as pretty good confirmation that Viz Media will be continuing on the story. The sequel is titled 21st Century Boys and will be released in November 2012. The last volume of 20th Century Boys is volume twenty-two and is scheduled for release in September.

21st Century Boys is two volumes long and continues right where the original left off as Kenji continues the fight against ‘the Friend’ while looking to his memories for clues that can help them.

21st Century Boys (Vol. 01)
21st Century Boys (Vol. 02)

Another listing of note is for a boxset containing two hardcover editions of Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind. The series, written and drawn by Hayao Miyazaki, is about our world in 1000 years when pollution has corrupted the planet. A young woman, Nausicaä, traverses this new world through forests and wars on a journey to discover what lead the planet here and what its future may hold. This edition will come with a bonus poster and interior colour pages.

To both of these releases I shout a resounding ‘yay!’ It seemed safe assumption that Viz Media would license a two volume sequel to 20th Century Boys but it’s great to see the listings for it. I’ve also never been able to read all of Nausicaä so an affordable, hardcover, extra shiny boxset offers the perfect opportunity!


Swag Bag: Very Merry Month of Manga In April – No Foolin’!

Swag Bag: April 2012

It’s the return of Swag Bag! In this once-was-weekly article I give a quick rundown of the books I bought that week and some brief thoughts, be it itty-bitty reviews if I’ve read them or first impressions if I haven’t. Since it’s been a long while since I’ve written one, this one is going to recap all my April purchases instead of just one week’s… so it’s a bit long. As always I encourage readers to share their recent purchases in the comments section!

Kamisama Kiss (Vol.08)I continued a few of my on-going shonen series with Viz Media‘s Blue Excorcist (Vol.07), Bleach (Vol.39) and Bakuman (Vol.10), the latter of which has just ended in Japan. Much as I wish sometimes series I like would go on forever, it’s comforting knowing there’s an end in sight. Kamisama Kiss (Vol.08) and Dawn of the Arcana (Vol.03) gave me a Shojo Beat fix, though I’m still not quite sure if I even like Dawn of the Arcana. Maybe now I’ll find out? So tricky to tell.

Arisa (Vol.07) was a quick-to-buy volume. I really like this series, though it is going on far too long. Suspense is one thing but get to the reveals already! And I hope comatose sister wakes up soon… I suppose I shouldn’t complain much about suspense in that kind of story after I finish reading 20th Century Boys (Vol.20). If you want a master of comic suspense, you need look no further than Naoki Usawara. So much suspense, all the time, and while sometimes it’s almost painful how much the story plays on that, it’s completely worth it. Definitely one of my favourites.

Digital Manga and Yen Press are publishing some of my other favourite currently running series, the kind that nestle neatly between the genres of shonen and shoujo. Of those I bought Black Butler (Vol.09), Countdown: 7 Days (Vol.02), Replica (Vol.02) and Durarara!! (Vol.02). I was surprised to see Durarara!! has a shiny gold finish on the cover letters; pleasantly surprised, of course. It’s a neat addition that hopefully means well for the book’s sales. It deserves them too, this series is great and I’m really glad it’s been licensed so I can finally read what all the fuss was about.

Speaking of high quality releases, Yen Press’s English edition of A Bride’s Story – WOW. It always amazes me how good it looks, not to mention of course how gorgeous the artwork is. It’s a beautiful piece of work all around. I was thrilled this month to pick up a copy of volume three. I also bought Bunny Drop (Vol.04) which is the start of the series’ time-skip to cute little Rin now being a teenager. So far my opinion on it is very… meh. Actually it’s more like, ‘I wish I’d stopped at three’. So sad.

Continuingly getting better however is Sailor Moon! Kodansha Comics recently released the fourth volume and while it was a little painfully episodic (one character after another being kidnapped), it had a lot of good Tuxedo Mask character development that the anime barely scratched the surface of. It makes me really like him as a character and even his relationship with Usagi more too. On the opposite end of the likeability scale are the characters of Itazura na Kiss (Vol.08) – why am I still reading this series!? Classic shoujo or not, the cons of the non-existant relationship are far outweighing the funny moments. Bleh.

Osamu Tezuka's DororoThankfully there were other omnibus to buy that were able to almost completely wash the ick of Itazura away – Vertical Inc’s Dororo (by Osamu Tezuka! and over 800 pages!) and Viz Media’s Cross Game (Vol.07). Cross Game has easily become one of my favourite comic series I’ve ever read – I get completely engrossed reading every volume. It’s just so good! The ability to make the everyday incrediably compelling and interesting is a skill Mitsuru Adachi definitely has. Another series that makes rather boring activities still charming to read is Seven Seas‘ Blood Alone (Vol.06). Don’t let the word vampire turn you off this one, it’s really sweet and has some good action sequences that are pretty realistic in their execution. Nothing too over the top and thus refreshingly believable.

This past week I also purchased my first digital manga volumes after buying myself an iPad (oh my credit card, it weeps!). Printed-versions are still my much preferred, but with some publishers now offering titles we’ll only ever see legally available in English via digital, I’d rather read them digitally than not at all. The iPad’s big screen and crisp graphics also offers a really nice reading experience, which I hope to go into with more detail at a later date.

After looking through different manga purchasing options, including Yen Press, Viz Media and Digital Manga’s apps, the site that earned my money was SuBLime – Viz Media’s new boys’ love publishing arm. The company sells digital copies you can then either read through your web browser on their website or download as a PDF to read however you digitally-please. This flexibility plus the tidy $5.99 price tag won me over. I bought three one-shots – Devil’s Honey, Oku-san’s Daily Fantasies and The Bed of My Dear King. All three were enjoyable in their own ways and I plan to share how and why soon.

…and that was my manga buying for April! What was in your swag bags this month?


Otaku USA: On The Shelf – April 11, 2012

Otaku USA: On The Shelf - April 14, 2012

Magic knights, vampires and supped up samurai – it’s another batch of new manga releases! You can read the list of shipping titles over at Otaku USA’s On The Shelf article for the week.

I purchased quite a stack from the books out this week with a number of series I’m collecting having with new volumes – 20th Century Boys, Cross Game, Replica and a few more must-haves. I’ll be giving my short thoughts on my recent purchases in the soon-to-return Swag Bag column. I hope readers will take  the time to let me know what you bought also!


PR: Viz Media Recieves Multiple Nominations for Eisner 2012 Awards

VIZ MEDIA RECEIVES MULTIPLE NOMINATIONS FOR THE 2012 EISNER AWARDS

NAOKI URASAWA’S 20TH CENTURY BOYS and
SATURN APARTMENTS Are Nominated For Annual Comics Industry Publishing Award

San Francisco, CA, April 4, 2012 – VIZ Media, LLC (VIZ Media), the largest distributor and licensor of anime and manga in North America, has announced that two of its critically acclaimed manga (graphic novel) series have been nominated for the 2012 Will Eisner Comics Industry Awards, as announced by Comic-Con International on April 4, 2012.

The nominations include NAOKI URASAWA’S 20th CENTURY BOYS, by Naoki Urasawa, for Best Continuing Series, and SATURN APARTMENTS, Vols. 3-4, by Hisae Iwaoka, for Best U.S. Edition of International Material. Both titles are published by VIZ Media’s VIZ Signature imprint.

Named for pioneering writer and comic artist Will Eisner, the awards recognize exemplary comics, graphic novels and other pop writings, and are given each year as part of the annual Comic-Con International convention, at which VIZ Media will be a major exhibitor and participant in the programs offered. Winners will be announced at a gala ceremony on the evening of Friday, July 13th during Comic-Con. In 2011, NAOKI URASAWA’S 20th CENTURY BOYS won an Eisner Award in the category of Best U.S. Edition of International Material – Asia.

Read more…


Otaku USA: On The Shelf – February 15, 2012

Otaku USA: On The Shelf - February 15, 2012

Post-Valentine’s Day, aka discount chocolate day! New manga and bags full of chocolate is a winning combination to me. There aren’t a whole lot of new titles this week but still plenty of quality, including a couple omnibus for added value.

The new volume of Viz Media‘s 20th Century Boys and Digital Manga’s Black Sun are my must-haves this week. It’s hard to believe I reviewed Black Sun (Vol. 01) back in December 2008! You can see the full list of this week’s releases over at Otaku USA in my On The Shelf article.


Diamond Manga Previews: January 2012

Diamond Manga Previews: January 2012

Diamond Comics is North America’s largest comic book distributor. If you have a local comic store in your area, it’s very likely they get their books from them. Every month Diamond releases a giant magazine, Previews, containing all the products they have – from comics, manga, DVDs and merchandise – that will be released starting in about two months’ time, giving retailers and buyers the chance to put their orders in before shipping dates.

Previews - January 2012

I’ve been picking up the Previews magazines for years, oogling all the different books coming out from publishers and wondering how long until the stacks of Preview magazines I’ve yet to get rid of will crush me in my sleep. Starting now I’ll be writing about the different manga content published in Previews each month here on Kuriousity. This includes all the manga titles listed, the top Manga sellers as tracked by Diamond and mention of other things of interest I spot. With the small two month window, Diamond Previews has rarely been the source of new licenses but it’s a great reminder and showcase of all the books coming our way soon, plus the perfect time to get your orders in, whether through Diamond or at your online retailer of choice.

I’ll also be including with these monthly Preview posts a downloadable PDF that you can print off and check off the manga  you’d like to order. Then it’s as easy as bringing it into your local comic or book store – wherever in your area that orders in through Diamond Comics! Currently the list is just the names and does not include the Diamond order codes. I’ve never come across a store that requires them for ordering but if yours does, let me know and I’ll include them on subsequent files:

January 2012 Manga Previews Checklist (PDF)

You may continue reading at your own discretion for my thoughts, elaborations, random pictures and the Top 10 Selling Manga of November 2011!

Read more…


Year In Review: Lissa’s Favourites of 2011

Lissa’s Favourites of 2011

There are no shortage of ‘Best Of’ lists this time of year. While I like popping around to different peoples’ sites and seeing what they thought, it’s a bit of a frustration that I can’t seem to write one myself. How people choose a solid list containing five or ten favourites, from across different genres and subject matters, is just something I can’t seem to muster the brain power for. Not enough conviction I suppose? There’s just so much to love!

But I can’t overlook the perfect chance to look back at all the great titles a year had to offer and 2011 had some really fantastic ones. So then where is this going, oh rambling one, you ask? My semi-traditional equivalent to the yearly best of – the random Lissa’s favourites and best-ofs list! Which really just means you get a lot more titles broken into a lot more categories so I can remain a lot more loving to a lot more series. And in some cases not so loving… From the Best Release Quality to the Favourite Fan Service and even to the most Gag Worthy – here are a bunch of my favourite titles from 2011!

Read more…


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