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Posts Tagged Manga

Review: Color

Reviewer: Lissa Pattillo

Manga-ka: Eiki Eiki/Taishi Zaou
Publisher: DokiDoki
Rating: Older Teen (16+)
Release Date: June 2009

Synopsis: “When art student Takashiro Tsuda chose to show his painting, Color, in a gallery exhibition, he never dreamed that an uncannily similar painting would hang next to his – with the same title, even. Works of art come from the deepest depths of an artist’s soul, so how can anyone else be expressing themselves so much like Takashiro? Filled with a yearning to find his artistic soulmate, Takashiro goes off to art school in Tokyo and meets classmate Sakae Fujiwara. Soon, Takashiro learns that this is the artist he’s been searching for – the one who created a Color so much like his own – but Sakae is a guy! Can such a profound connection between two people transcend gender and become something more?”

Takashiro is a young artist whose work has recently been displayed in an art gallery. However upon his visit he sees a very similar painting hanging next to it and immediately becomes enthralled with the idea of meeting its creator. When discovering that the painter Sakae-san is a young man, and soon a classmate at that, Takashiro’s quickly growing affections may’ve hit a speed bump but it’s only sent them flying.

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Review: Otomen (Vol. 03)

Reviewer: Lissa Pattillo

Manga-ka: Osamu Tezuka
Publisher: Viz Media
Rating: Teen (13+)
Release Date: August 2009

Synopsis: “Asuka takes Ryo to an amusement park where he plans to confess his feelings to her. Too bad all the rides Ryo wants to go on frighten Asuka! Can he overcome his fear for the sake of love?”

Asuka and Ryo continue their budding romance, a seemingly one-way affair that while now having feelings in the open still remains informally unpronounced. Asuka wants nothing more than to muster his courage to ask Ryo out while Juta continues to egg them on for fear that the inspiration for his secret-career as a manga artist will run dry.

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Review: Dororo (Vol. 03)

Reviewer: Lissa Pattillo

Manga-ka: Osamu Tezuka
Publisher: Vertical
Rating: Older Teen (16+)
Release Date: August 2008

Synopsis: “Daigo Kagemitsu promises to offer body parts of his unborn baby to 48 devils in exchange for complete domination of the country. Knowing the child to be deficient, Kagemitsu orders the newborn thrown into the river. The baby survives. Callling himself Hyakkimaru, he searches the world for the demons. Each time he eliminates one, he retrieves one of his missing parts. Hyakkimaru meets a thief named Dororo, and together they travel the country confronting monsters.”

Demons, sharks, a hunt for a gold and a family reunion all await readers in this third and final volume of Osamu Tezuka’s Dororo. While the ending may not be enough to entirely satisfy its fans, the volume possesses enough of the good stuff to sate the desire for more demonic quests and snarky sidekick commentary.

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Review: Butterflies, Flowers (Vol. 01)

Reviewer: Lissa Pattillo

Manga-ka: Yuki Yoshihara
Publisher: Viz Media
Rating: Mature (18+)
Release Date: December 2009

Synopsis: “Choko Kuze is the sensible daughter of a venerable family who went bankrupt. She joins a real estate company as an entry-level office worker, but her eccentric boss is harder on her than anyone else in the company! After hearing him inadvertently call her “milady,” she realizes he was the young servant boy she knew as a child. At work he’s a tyrant, but after hours he insists on treating her like a lady of the nobility. Is romance even possible for a couple locked in such a crazy role reversal?”

The cover of Butterflies, Flowers is quick to invoke the thoughts of a deep love between two individuals, one adorned in a suit with his protective disposition and the other a lovely woman in a kimono laying in his embrace – is this a sweet tale of adult romance? You may be inclined to think so but flip the book over and you’ll quickly realize something quite amiss with your initial impressions.

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Review: LoveCom (Vol. 01)

Reviewer: Lissa Pattillo

Manga-ka: Aya Nakahara
Publisher: Viz Media
Rating: Teen (13+)
Release Date: July 2007

Synopsis: “Risa Koizumi is the tallest girl in class, and the last thing she wants is the humiliation of standing next to Atsushi Ôtani, the shortest guy. Fate and the whole school have other ideas, and the two find themselves cast as the unwilling stars of a bizarre romantic comedy duo. Rather than bow to the inevitable, Risa and Atsushi join forces to pursue their true objects of affection. But will their budding friendship become something more complex?”

Above average in height, Risa Koizumi wonders if she’ll ever be able to enjoy the normalcy of an average stature. The only one who seems to understand her is Atsushi Otani, the shortest boy in their class. Seeing worlds from different views, and arguing on nearly every one, the two manage to come to an agreement when being in love is involved – as long as it’s not with each other.

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Review: Legend of Zelda – Oracle of Seasons

Reviewer: Lissa Pattillo

Manga-ka: Akira Himekawa
Publisher: Viz Media
Rating: All Ages
Release Date: April 2009

Synopsis: “In a small village in Hyrule, a boy called Link has the mark of the Triforce on his left hand. It is a mark of destiny that once again leads Link on a fantastic adventure! Transported to the land of Holodrum, Link meets Din, the Oracle of Seasons. When a plot to steal the seasons from Holodrum unfolds, Link must battle the evil General Onox to save Holodrum and his friends from a terrible fate!”

The Link of this story isn’t as enthusiastic at the prospect of being a hero as those before him – in fact, the last thing he wants to be is a Knight in service to the throne. But, in an effort to find out what it is he really wants to do, he goes along with his Grandfather’s wishes and attends the Knights’ trial. Yet then he accidentally activates a trial of a different kind and is suddenly whisked across the countryside to a land in need of a hero.

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Review: Love Code

Reviewer: Shannon Fay

Manga-ka: Sakurako Hanafubuki
Publisher: June
Rating: Mature (18+)
Release Date: January 2009

Synopsis: “We first met superstar actor Koji Mizuhara and rising pop idol Kyo Ayukawa in “Junior Escort,” where a passionate misunderstanding led to true love. Now, the “Sweet Slave Scandal” series continues in this second installment, “Love Code.” Despite their hectic schedules, Mizuhara and Ayukawa still manage to keep their relationship happy and lovey-dovey. The future of their careers seems bright as well. Mizuhara is about to make his Hollywood debut and Ayukawa is about to record a music CD. But Mizuhara’s dark past and some jealous people will try to break this couple apart. And, in the end, Ayukawa needs to decide which is more important—his career or Mizuhara.”

Love Code is the sequel to the yaoi manga Junior Escort and continues the story of actor Koji Mizuhara and his pop idol boyfriend Kyo Ayukawa. I wasn’t a big fan of Junior Escort. I found it dull and I wasn’t looking forward to reading the next book in the series, but I’m glad I did, as Love Code is a vast improvement. It’s still not as good as it could be, but at least now I want to keep reading the series and see what happens next.

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Omnibus: The New Manga Frontier?

Omnibus - The New Manga Frontier

Omnibus releases are not a new thing to the manga world but with recent changes in the economy and buyer habits, they’re becoming more and common. In fact in the past year alone it’s become evident that more than a few publishers are turning more and more of their attention to the omnibus format.

With tactics changing, buyers shifting and bookstore shelves reorganizing, are the omnibus editions we’re seeing now just the beginning of a new era of manga publication – could they be the future of manga in print?

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Review: Happy Boys (Vol. 01)

Reviewer: Lissa Pattillo

Manga-ka: Makoto Tateno
Publisher: Doki Doki
Rating: Teens (13+)
Release Date: September 2009

Synopsis: “Welcome home, madam!” For the patrons of Lady Braganza, an afternoon outing for tea and cake becomes an immersion in high-class lifestyle, where mannered servants attend to their each and every need. You see, Lady Braganza is a butler café, and the cheerful staff of Shiva, Renjo, Ivory, Silk and Eve are charged with the task of making each and every “sir” or “madam” feel like pampered royalty!”

The Lady Braganza is a butler café where patrons are treated as royalty, served the most delectable of teas and cakes while being served by the most wholesomely attentive staff. Happy Boy’s cast of characters all work at this café and it’s their job to make sure every customer finds themselves pleasantly lost in the illusion – but not all readers may find themselves as entranced.

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Review: Liberty Liberty!

Reviewer: Lissa Pattillo

Manga-ka: Hinako Takanaga
Publisher: BLU
Rating: Older Teen (16+)
Release Date: November 2009

Synopsis: “After fleeing Tokyo, trying to escape a personal crisis, hapless Itary winds up drunk and passed out on a neighbourhood trash heap. His misery is documented by prickly cameraman Kouki, who works for a local cable station, and soon the two end up roommates and co-workers. But with a company full of quirky characters, including a perky, winsome cross-dresser, and their own personalities to content with, will Itaru and Kouki ever truly understand one another?”

While out on assignment, Kouki stumbles across a runaway sprawled in an alleyway. A good deed not going unrewarded, he finds himself both puked on and his new camera smashed! None the less he generously takes the young man, Itaru, back to his apartment to get cleaned up – but with Itaru having no where to go and no money for payment, he soon becomes a more long-term tenant of Kouki’s home.

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