Author: Yumi Hotta
Manga-ka: Takeshi Obata
Publisher: Viz Media
Rating: All Ages
Release Date: October 2010

Synopsis: “The Hokuto Cup, a new tournament for young players from Japan, China and Korea, is looming, and Hikaru’s rival Akira has already secured one of the coveted three places on Japan’s team. While Hikaru battles his way to one of the two remaining spots, Akira’s father baffles the go world with his unexpected retirement!”

As Hikaru No Go draws near to the end it remains as entertaining as ever, though the dynamics and relationships have changed radically from how they were in the beginning. Hikaru and Akira are no longer rivals but team mates gearing up for a cross-Asia Go tournament. While it’s cute to see them spend time together as friends (and bicker like an old married couple) it feels a little weird considering their rivalry that was the main thrust of the series for so long.

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Manga-ka: Kiiro Yumi
Publisher: Viz Media
Rating: Teen (13+)
Release Date: August 2010

Synopsis: “When the director of the Kanto Library Base gets sick, a temporary replacement is assigned, according to regulations. But Iku and her roommate Asako discover a trail of missing books that leads back to the temporary director Has he betrayed everything the Library Forces stand for an handed books over to the enemy?!”

Readers looking to Library Wars for guns blazing in the name of saving books may be a little disappointed with volume two. I was a little let-down myself that there wasn’t much more actual book-defense than last time after the first volume had so much importance spent on training.

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Manga-ka: Natsumi Matsumoto
Publisher: Viz Media
Rating: Teen (13+)
Release Date: September 2010

Synopsis: “Mio has severed the red string of fate between Ryuga and Momoka that destines them to be soul mates. Momoka wants to tell Ryuga she loves him, but he has fallen victim to Mio’s magic spell. Will Momoka be able to repair her and Ryuga’s destiny?”

St.Dragon Girl’s charming mixture of fantasy, martial arts and flowery shojo visuals comes to a sugary end as Natsumi Matsumoto closes the chapter on Momoka and Ryuga’s youth. The gleeful combination of Chinese and Japanese mythology and adorable details common to Ribon magazine manga leaves a warm impression on its readers, leading one hopeful that VIZ will see fit to import the sequel series promised in the concluding notes.

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Manga-ka: Izumi Tsubaki
Publisher: Viz Media
Rating: Older Teen (16+)
Release Date: August 2010

Synopsis: “For a brief moment, Chiaki fears that another girl is giving Yosuke a massage on the sly. As graduation day approaches, she must untangle her feelings for Yosuke and tell him how she really feels. Love, romance and massage…the exciting conclusion to The Magic Touch!”

Having heard both good and bad things about this series, I decided to undertake a review of the final volume for team Kuriousity. Catching up on the series with a previous volume beforehand, reading this last instalment left me pleasantly surprised. Magic Touch takes a fairly odd concept and delivers an entertaining, offbeat shojo series.

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Manga-ka: Natsumi Matsumoto
Publisher: Viz Media
Rating: Teen (13+)
Release Date: June 2010

Synopsis: “Momoka is eager to give Ryuga the antique pocket watch she bought him for his 17th birthday, but when she gets to school, the Ryuga she meets is only 13 years old! A tiny trickster fairy who lives in the watch has taken Momoka back in time, and now Momoka must find her way back to the present day.”

As Matsumoto adds the element of dinosaur-obsession into an already panda-inclined manga, cuteness levels jump into overdrive in this volume of St. Dragon Girl. A personable narrative combines with clever design elements to make a very readable series that touches upon most of the basic elements of shojo manga for a younger audience, while also appealing to general manga readers. Everything is handled in an efficient fashion that endows it with endearing charm, whether it‘s time travel, sinister paintings or overly violent mermaids.

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