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Review Archive

To see a list of reviews in alphabetical order, please see our review index.

Review: Angelic Runes (Vol. 01)

Posted by Lissa Pattillo on Friday, July 3, 2009

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Reviewer: Lissa Pattillo

Manga-ka: Makoto Tateno
Publisher: Digital Manga
Rating: Older Teen (16+)
Release Date: July 2009

Synopsis: “A traveler in search of his father chances upon a pair of twins about to be buried by their village. The villagers claim the two are cursed but he rescues them. He soon finds out what makes the villagers fear them: the siblings have the power of angels and demons. But he has his own secrets as well…”

From the artist who brought you boys’ love detectives and romance on the superhero set, comes a western-based fantasy that sees a young mage, Sowil, and two deity-channeling twins, on a quest to discover the secret of the mage’s Father and the powerful runes that he was born with the ability to use. Angelic Runes is a light fantasy series catering to fans of pretty boys and magic. Ultimately it’s a book worth surviving the potentially off-putting pink cover design to experience the more compelling content within.

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Categories: Reviews
Tags: DMP, Makoto Tateno, Manga

Review: Don’t Rush Love

Posted by Shannon Fay on Thursday, July 2, 2009

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Reviewer: Shannon Fay

Manga-ka: Mio Tennohji
Publisher: 801Media
Rating: Mature (18+)
Release Date: January 2009

Synopsis: “Morino is the new arrival at an all-boys university prep school, who finds himself rooming with over-achieving honors student, Kusama. Apparently, Kusama keeps a secret that has him sneaking out late at night, barely returning in time for morning roll call. Morino becomes convinced it has to do with Kusama’s feelings for their teacher, Kanzaki-sensei. Are the two carrying on an illicit affair under the cover of darkness? To make matters worse, Morino finds his own fascination for his new roommate growing day by day. A simple kiss leads to more, and soon, exactly what Kusama is doing when he should be sleeping turns into Morino’s obsession.”

For Morino it’s pretty much love at first sight when he sees his new roommate, Kusama. But things aren’t so straightforward for Kusama. He has a one-sided crush on their teacher, and sneaks out every night for meaningless sex. When Morino finds out about Kusama’s nocturnal activities, he convinces Kusama to stay in the dorm and use him instead of strangers. Morino knows that for Kusama their relationship is just based on sex, but he holds out hope that one day Kusama will come to love him in return.

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Categories: Reviews
Tags: 801Media, Boys' Love/Yaoi, Manga

Review: Nightmare Inspector (Vol. 08)

Posted by Lissa Pattillo on Tuesday, June 30, 2009

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Reviewer: Lissa Pattillo

Manga-ka: Shin Mashiba
Publisher: Viz Media
Rating: Teen (13+)
Release Date: June 2009

Synopsis: “Dreams on the menu in this volume: a childhood friendship that has lost its innocence, Kairi caught up in his own delusion, a sinister trap set for a Baku, an inn with deadly secrets, a sea of drowned memories, a mother’s forgotten item, a man confined to an elevator, and Hifumi’s family affairs.”

Of all volumes of Nightmare Inspector, this one took the most reread to grasp what was going on chapter to chapter. Dialogue is relied on heavily to explain some pretty out-there conclusions, and many of the stories lacked that ‘oh!’ moment that previous stories had when foreshadowed events would eerily come together in a conclusion you likely didn’t suspect. While endings are still generally a well-kept secret here in volume eight, they never felt as coherently planned as before.

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Categories: Reviews
Tags: Manga, Viz Media

Review: You’re So Cool (Vol. 04)

Posted by Lissa Pattillo on Monday, June 29, 2009

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Reviewer: Lissa Pattillo

Manhwa-ga: YoungHee Lee
Publisher: Yen Press
Rating: Teen (13+)
Release Date: July 2009

Synopsis: “Though they’ve settled into an easygoing, playful relationship, Seung-Ha’s still far from opening up to his goofy girlfriend, Nan-Woo. But keeping his emotional cards close to his chest might not be the best idea when past tensions are once again stirred up by his family… Meanwhile, a sudden incident endangers Hyun-Ho’s life and forces Jay to examine his feelings. Will Seung-Ha and Jay be able to overcome their very different demons?”

After a rocky start, Nan-Woo and Seung-Ha are finally dating, becoming without compare the most unexpected couple in their high school. First Nan-Woo couldn’t wait to get away from the two-faced Seung-Ha but now she’ll do anything to be at his side. From cheery cell phone calls to her first visit at his home, after weeks of trying to avoid him she has a lot of catching up to do.

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Categories: Reviews
Tags: Manhwa, Yen Press

Review: On Bended Knee

Posted by Lissa Pattillo on Sunday, June 28, 2009

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Reviewer: Lissa Pattillo

Manga-ka: Ruri Fujikawa
Publisher: 801Media
Rating: Mature (18+)
Release Date: June 2009

Synopsis: “Hibiki serves as the personal bodyguard of Wu Xiong Wang – an outgoing entrepreneur, whose influential Hong Kong family has conducted business in Japan for many years. Having grown up together as children, the two have a bond that goes beyond the trappings of master and servant. Hibiki has dedicated his life to keeping Wu Xiong safe, and remains vigilant against any threat a man in his position might face. When it appears Wu Xiong is to be named the new head of his family’s corporation, the danger becomes even more evident as rivals conspire against him. Will the rise in alert cause Hibiki to see the truth behind his employer’s playful advances? Or does the responsibility he feels for Wu Xiong’s safety outweigh his own personal happiness?”

A collection of multiple stories, Ruri Fujikawa puts together an assortment of stereotypical short chapters that follow a number of different couples. Inevitably the stories are built solely around getting the two couples to sleep together and the sex scenes prove the literal climax of each portion. Sadly it feels evident that the artist hopes these scenes, and the shallow self-indulgent romances before them, will serve as compensation for the lacking substance of both plot and character.

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Categories: Reviews
Tags: 801Media, Boys' Love/Yaoi, Manga

Review: Wolverine (Vol. 01) – Prodigal Son

Posted by Lissa Pattillo on Saturday, June 27, 2009

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Reviewer: Lissa Pattillo

Author: Antony Johnston
Artist: Wilson Tortosa
Publisher: Del Rey
Rating: Teen (13+)
Release Date: April 2009

Synopsis: “Logan is a teenage rebel with a real good reason for having a real bad attitude. Ever since being left in a nearby forest–with no memory of who he was or how he got there–Logan (or Wolverine, as his classmates sometimes call him) has been stuck in a martial arts school in the icy wilds of Canada. No wonder he’s bored, restless, yearning. There’s a whole world out there, and Logan can almost taste it. But he’s chained to a past he can’t remember and can’t escape. Now it just may destroy his future.”

DelRey’s Wolverine takes the iconic Marvel character and aims to fit him into a manga-shaped mold. The story doesn’t trend new ground in either world of subject or style, but the familiar set-up just might pull off a winning combination along with Wilson Totora’s work, which finds a fairly solid style-compromise that both manga and comic fans can appreciate. It’s not the same Wolverine fans are used to, but many of the well-known features are intact, they’re just compressed into the body of a pretty- boy adolescent instead of the hairy 50+ man we’re used to. Big stretch, I know, and yet Wolverine still manages to work on some of its intended levels.

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Categories: Reviews
Tags: Del Rey, Global Manga

Review: Ichiroh! (Vol. 01)

Posted by Marsha Reid on Friday, June 26, 2009

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Reviewer: Marsha Reid

Manga-ka: Mikage
Publisher: Yen Press
Rating: May (16+)
Release Date: July 2009

Synopsis: “Nanako and her two best friends, Akane and Shino, have been in the same class since elementary school. Now with the entrance exam just around the corner, the girls have big plans for spending their college years together as well. Unfortunately, those big plans hinged on all three of them passing their exams…Now Nanako and Akane are ichiroh, first-year students at the local prep school. Nanako is determined to do better next year, but it’s going to be a real challenge — the bossy dorm/shrine manager puts the pair to work as miko, Akane can’t kick her video game addiction, and the neighbor’s pranks are getting out of hand! With all this nonsense, Nanako will be lucky to get any studying done!”

Nanako is a young girl with big dreams of going to college. Unfortunately, it becomes apparent that there are several forces working against her; mainly her friends, family, and life in general, but nothing holds her back like her penny pinching ways. Poor Nanako finds herself in more trouble by trying to save a dime than her lecherous brother or Akane’s video game addiction could ever get her in.

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Categories: Reviews
Tags: Manga, Yen Press

Review: Living For Tomorrow

Posted by Lissa Pattillo on Wednesday, June 24, 2009

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Reviewer: Lissa Pattillo

Manga-ka: Taishi Zaou
Publisher: Doki Doki
Rating: Mature (18+)
Release Date: May 2009

Synopsis: “High school student Tasuku Mizuochi has a secret he knows and a secret he doesn’t. Even though he punches, kicks, and otherwise abuses fellow karate team member, Ryouta, on a daily basis, Tasuku has hidden feelings for his childhood friend. Confused and embarrassed by his secret crush, Tasuku takes his frustrations out on Ryouta to keep him from ever knowing the truth. When Tasuku learns that his late mother may have been an “ageman” (ah-gay-man) – a woman who brings men good fortune – he starts to believe he’s inherited these powers, too. Can having the ability to influence luck give Tasuku and Ryouta a future together? Or will all the people crawling out of the woodwork wanting to use Tasuku’s power cause him to run screaming for the hills?!”

Right off the bat you know this isn’t going to be your average boys’ love story as Tasuku spends the first chapter criticizing and literally assaulting his friend, Ryouta, out of frustration. The interaction and banter between the two is very cute, albeit a little violent, and it becomes all the fluffier as you read further into the story and see how the high-strung Tasuku uses those opportunities to vent his uneasiness at the growing affection he feels for Ryouta, his own variation of the ‘tease-because-you-like’ reaction.

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Categories: Reviews
Tags: Boys' Love/Yaoi, Doki Doki, Manga

Review: Imadoki! (Vol. 01)

Posted by Lissa Pattillo on Tuesday, June 23, 2009

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Reviewer: Lissa Pattillo

Manga-ka: Yuu Watase
Publisher: Viz Media
Rating: Teen (13+)
Release Date: June 2004

Synopsis: “For Tanpopo Yamazaki, life at the elitist Meio Academy seems way out of her league. The daughters of wealthy families snub her, other students make light of the fact that she actually tested into Meio instead of relying on family connections, and the cute boy she saw tending a dandelion the day before wouldn’t even acknowledge her existence. Hoping to make friends and have some fun, Tanpopo starts up a gardening committee, but will this help her survive in a school where superficiality and nepotism reign supreme?”

It’s Tanpopo Yamazaki first day seeing her new high school and she’s eager to make friends. After crashing landing on her bike, she meets her first acquaintance, an attractive fellow student with a passion for plants named Koki Kugyo. She’s taken in by his kindness but meets with a cold truth the next day when he completely ignores her! What gives? What gives is a story that’s light on originality and heavy with the overdone quintessence of its genre, but can famed manga-ka Yuu Watase take a story riddled with predictabilities and make it work?

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Categories: Reviews
Tags: Manga, Viz Media, Yuu Watase

Review: Ludwig II (Vol. 01)

Posted by Lissa Pattillo on Monday, June 22, 2009

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Reviewer: Lissa Pattillo

Manga-ka: You Higuri
Publisher: June
Rating: Mature (18+)
Release Date: June 2009

Synopsis: “Ludwig II, the King of Bavaria, has unthinkable wealth and legions of retainers at his disposal… but he’s the victim of a madness that is capable of turning reality into a mere shadow! Has passionate fantasies and hunger for life’s most unreachable beauties seize control of his every waking thought and transport him away from the dire day-to-day problems of conflict-riddled Europe and into a hypnotic dreamscape of his own design. But when the shy and handsome footman Hornig suddenly appears, the King finds himself irresistibly drawn to the sweet boy’s innocence and pure heart. Will Ludwig’s spell of isolation finally be broken… by love?”

A loose retelling of the days of true-life historical figure, Ludwig II, the book opens with a brief, event-to-event summary of Ludwig’s life up until his death, foreshadowing the apparent end result of the story as a whole. Ludwig II himself is set up by this opening chapter as an introverted dreamer with his own unique take on the world, a seductively torn character who is introduced to readers in more detail as the story progresses.

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Categories: Reviews
Tags: Boys' Love/Yaoi, June, Manga