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Posts Tagged Viz Media

Review: Yume Kira Dream Shoppe


Manga-ka: Aqua Mizuto
Publisher: Viz
Rating: Teen (13+)
Released: September 2007

Synopsis: “They say that any dream can be made true in exchange for something dear to you. The Yume Kira Shoppe flies through the dusk sky as Rin the shopkeeper listens for wishes that travel on the wind. With the help of his assistant Alpha, Rin uses the magical wares of the Dream Shoppe to make desires a reality… but at a price.”

Yume Kira Dream Shoppe takes a plot that seems more suited to a horror story, reminiscent of mangas such as Petshop of Horrors, and gives it a fluffy shoujo twist. It’s a collection of short stories all strung together through the characters’ connection with the mysterious Yume Kira Shoppe. It’s shopkeeper, Rin, hears ‘wishes on the wind’ and grants them in exchange for something he deems equivalent.

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Review: Inubaka (Vol. 01)


Manga-ka: Yukiya Sakuragi
Publisher: Viz
Rating: Older Teen(16+)
Released: February 2007

Synopsis: “Alone except for her loyal mutt, Lupin, Suguri moves from the country side to the big city to find a career and a new life. In her first job at a pet store, she meets an assortment of quirky dogs and even stranger owners! On a walk to check out their new home, Lupin “courts” another dog while owner Teppei isn’t looking, shattering his dream of a litter of purebred puppies. To make up for her mongrel’s wayward wooing, Suguri offers to work at the pet store Tepeei manages.”

Inubaka is the story of Suguri, a young teenage girl out in the big city trying to find herself a home and a career. After a mishap with her dog, Lupin, getting a little too friendly with a female dog they came across, Suguri deems herself indebted to the female dog’s owner, Teppei. To make up for it, she offers to work in his pet store. It doesn’t take long for Teppei to realize that Suguri seems to have a sixth sense for dogs, a natural at taking care of them and hardworking, even if she is a bit clumsy and air-headed.

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Review: Death Note

A little change of pace today with a series overview review of the popular, Death Note. Beware, it’s wordy and plot vague for new readers’ convenience.

Author: Tsugumi Ohba
Manga-ka: Takeshi Obata
Publisher: Viz
Rating: Older Teen (16+)
Volumes: 12

Synopsis: “Light Yagami is an ace student with great prospects but he’s bored out of his mind. All that changes when he finds the Death Note, a notebook dropped by a Shinigami death god. Any human whose name is written in the notebook dies, and now Light has vowed to use the power of the Death Note to rid the world of evil. But when criminals begin dropping dead, the authorities send the legendary detective L to track down the killer. With L hot on his heels, will Light lose sight of his noble goal…or his life?”

At this point who hasn’t heard of the popular sensation, Death Note? With surging popularity around the world even before it’s English release, it was no surprise that Viz’s release of the manga, and eventual follow up with the animated series, caused the number of fans to rise without measure. But with just cause?

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Review: RalΩGrad (Vol. 01)


Author: Tsuneo Takano
Manga-ka: Takeshi Obata
Publisher: Viz
Rating: Older Teen(16+)
Released: January 2008

Synopsis: “During a bloody war, a child is born at cost of his mother’s life. From this baby comes forth a huge and powerful dragon born of shadow that lays waste to the landscape. A quick-thinking knight locks the baby in a cage of darkness, where he grows to be a young man, knowing only the kindness of his female tutor. Until the day the Shadows attack…”

After a powerful dragon is found born inside the body of an infant, the child is locked away in a dark cell for fifteen years. When the demonic beings known as Shadows finally overtake the castle, the boy is released in order to defend them all. Of course, like any good shonen story, the now teenage boy, Ral, does indeed save them all… in exchange for some boob groping and women lessons. What? Thus the book has been essentially summed up.

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