Archive for the English Manga Category


Jormungand Manga, Volume 9 (English)

July 20th, 2012

Jormungand, Volume 9 is no more “Yuri” than any of the preceding volumes, but there is something of note for all of us Yuri fans. I’ll get to that in a sec.

First, and way more important, Volume 9 is a more in-depth look at the past and inner life of Wiley, Koko’s demolitions expert. Wiley is ex-military, extremely smart and, like all of Koko’s team, just ever so slightly broken. His past is, for me at least, not nearly as interesting as his present.

Volume 9 ends with Koko contacting Karen, Mildo, Schokolade and Dr. Miami. Koko seems to be planning something far, far larger than just another arms sale…something that will change the game here permanently. Or so it seems, but in reality, it’s probably just the author creating a reason for all the chicks in the series to team up… ^_^ I’m not complaining.

What might make some of our ears prick up is this:  Now that Valmet has finished putting her past behind her, she’s much more open about her desire for Koko (not that she was particularly closeted about it…but now she’s totally overt.) And, for the first time, Koko seems perfectly comfortable throwing some tinder on that fire. It’s not like the two of them will go anywhere, but, I dunno, I kind of like looking at Valment blushing when Koko complements her on something butchy. It warmed the cockles of my heart.

Because this is Jormungand, there’s lots of presentiments of important things afoot without any actual information and some people die. A perfect way to end my week this week. ^_^

Ratings:

Art – 7
Characters – 8
Story – 7
Yuri – 3
Service – 4

Overall – 7

(No, I never did review Volume 8. There really wasn’t even the teeniest grain of Yuri to hold on to in that volume. This time we got groping instead.)





Yuri Manga: Sailor Moon, Volume 6, (English)

July 13th, 2012

You may have noticed that, although Sailor Moon has been out in English for some time, I have not yet written a review of it here. There was no ulterior motive, it’s merely because the first 5 volumes in this edition have no Yuri. It’s not until we reach Sailor Moon, Volume 6, that we’re turning our sights here on Okazu towards it. This is the beginning of what is referred to by fans of the series as the ‘S’ arc – a phrase that comes from the third season of the anime, Sailor Moon Super, or Sailor Moon S. (Those of you familiar with the series knew that, but there may be readers who have never read the manga or watched the anime before – after all, the series is 20 years old. That explanation was for them. ^_^)

Usagi is about to have a moment of unadulterated happiness with Mamoru when they are interrupted. Usagi feels as if, whenever they get a moment of complete quiet for themselves, it’s doomed to be brief. And she is completely correct, as a new enemy appears. With shared dreams and visions of destruction…and vague words about the “Talismans”, the Senshi are once again called upon to protect the Earth, this time from a group with  the ominous name Death Busters.

It’s very hard to read this volume of manga and not flip back and forth in my head to the anime. Eudial’s appearance made me laugh out loud…but there’s no reason why that should be, she’s merely another bad guy to be defeated here. Nonetheless, when she showed up, I immediately flipped over to the Eudial of the anime, who was one of the greatest bad guys in the history of anime, with her terrible driving, her migraines and the best Monster of the Day ever, Doorknobder. (Go ahead, let’s say it and get it out of our systems, shall we? “Doorknobder Desperate Attack!” Okay, there, we can move on now…)

But this is not the anime. The tension is deeper, the bad guys are far more ominous and the good guys are, as well. When Haruka and Michiru arrive, it is impossible for us or the Senshi to know if they are friends or enemies. And they appear, perhaps, to be playing a third side. Haruka gets close to Usagi and Michiru seems to have her eyes on Mamoru, but in their private time they seem to be a couple. Who are they? What do they want? Whatever it is, they know a lot more about the situation (we think), as they carry two of the Talismans.

Haruka is first presented as a guy, but when she’s seen in women’s clothes, then later as a Senshi, she’s understood to be a woman. Usagi will ask her which she is and unhelpfully, she will respond with a question, “Does it matter?” It doesn’t really, but it does matter that Haruka and Michiru are older, sexily hyper-competent and don’t know as much as they think they do about what’s going on.

Artemis and Luna offer useless information (as they always do) about the mysterious new Senshi that have appeared. (I am, and always have been convinced that the only one of the Senshi team with any brain cells to rub together is Diana.)

And what is the role played by the sickly girl, Hotaru?

We don’t really know by the end of this volume. Which means we want to get the next volume. ^_^

Ratings:

Art – 7
Story – 7
Characters – 8
Yuri – 8
Loser FanErica – 127

Overall – 7

I am reminded that the origin of the Yuri helicopters was Sailor Moon. (I should have remembered that Strawberry Panic! had no original elements of its own.)  Phew!





ALC Publishing and JManga announce a Yuri Summer with Three Comic Yuri Hime titles!

June 21st, 2012

ALC Publishing and JManga are proud to announce a hot new collaboration, with three new Yuri manga titles, all from Ichijinsha’s Comic Yuri Hime.

Look for Riakchi’s Sorairo Girl Friend and well-known BL-combo Zaou Taishi and Eiki Eiki’s first Yuri collaboration Haru Natsu Aki Fuyu and Namori’s super popular manga and anime hit Yuru Yuri to heat up your summer!

Details about release dates (and some exciting news about promotional extras) are forthcoming. (Quick note, I’ve been asked a number of times already if this is print…it is a digital release only. Jmanga is not, yet, working in print. If this changes, I’ll let you know.)

Check out the synopsis of all three series on our announcement on Yuricon!

Jmanga and ALC are very pleased to be working together to bring you, the world-wide audience, more Yuri manga!





Magic Knight Rayearth Manga, Volume 2 (English)

June 18th, 2012

Unlike the second season of the anime, Volume 2 of the Magic Knight Rayearth manga does not have a Yuri subplot. For which I am eminently thankful. In fact, the lack of Nova and her annoying mother went a considerable distance to cleaning up the exceedingly messy plot. What’s left, then, is a far more straightforward, much less morality-play like story.

Umi, Fuu and Hikaru, having returned to Earth after fighting Zagato, are…unhappy. They want to go back to Cefiro. Fuu particularly, has reason to go, as Ferio is there. And one day, when they meet up at Tokyo Tower, they find themselves transported back, but not to any place they recognize as Cefiro!

It turns out that now that Emeraude is gone, Cefiro is collapsing. Clef and the others are gathered in a castle floating above the planet surface. The Magic Knights return to find what’s left of Cefiro under attack from three nearby planets – Autozam, Fahren and Cezita.

Joined by old allies, the Magic Knights have to find a way to protect Cefiro. This is complicated by the fact that their enemies all turn out to be decent people who are just trying to help their own worlds – and the knowledge that the Pillar system of Cefiro is innately, dangerously flawed.

The story is mostly taken up with relationship building, rather than fighting, and the conclusion, while predictable, was far more satisfactory than the scattered, messy ending of the anime.

A great deal of the story follows our enemies and, instead of giving us reason to hate them, we learn to like them. Eagle and Lantis are presented very much as a couple, but when Hikaru comes en scene, she could reasonably be paired with either of them – or both – in a way that makes sense. Moreover, their dynamic is subtle enough that a child could read this without any concern.  Growing Ascot up into a tall, handsome young man for Umi was a nice touch and even Ferio gets a power up. All in all, a satisfying ending.

Which is odd, when you consider that the end is a modified form of colonialism. Having destroyed the Pillar system, the Magic Knights replace it with a completely alien system. This would all be very uncomfortable if the worthies of Cefiro were not already ready to see the back end of the Pillar system. So, its okay then, phew.

Ratings:

Art – Less wonderful than Card Captor Sakura, but still very CLAMP-ian
Story – Less messy than the anime
Characters – Less annoying than most, until Mokona’s true identity is revealed
Yuri – Less than none
Service – Less than usual

Overall – I’m less enthusiastic about this series than CCS, but more than I expected.

Many, many thanks to Okazu Superhero Amanda M. for sponsoring today’s review!





American Comic: Womanthology Heroic (English)

June 13th, 2012

By now, I hope all of you have heard of Womanthology Heroic, the anthology created by over 150 women comic creators. It had an amazingly successful Kickstarter (to which I contributed, so in the back, among the many, many names of supporters you’ll find mine ^_^) and is quite possibly the most beautiful book I have ever seen in my entire life.

The project came about on Twitter, where a number of female comic creators finally just lost their bacon at the industry trope of “women don’t x comics” (where x can stand for “like,” “read,” “draw,” “make” etc.,) despite the masses of evidence to the contrary.  It’s pretty apparent that there were plenty of folks – women and men –  who were very ready to read something just like this.

Womanthology is…a book of treasures. I’m not going to single out a story or three. It’s not for me to tell you which are the best stories in a collection of good stories. Buy the book, open it up and begin to read. Art and stories are variable, but none of them are less than excellent. You’ll like some better than others, some will touch you more deeply, but those particular gemstones are for you to find in this box of treasures.

Womanthology is…inspirational. Yes, some of the stories are about empowerment, but really not. What they are about sometimes is what it takes to grasp the power in ourselves. But that is so beside the point, because the underlying presumption in this collection is that we already have power, and we can use it any damn way we like. Some stories are just plain creepy, or sad, or silly. Some stories work with stereotypes, others bash them gleefully. There is love of the female form and psyche and not one person tries to “fix” that.

Womanthology is…luscious. Full color pictures, stories that run up to 6 pages, but many that are a chunky page or two. Some have morals, some have plots, some have messages, some are just explorations of “wtf can I draw today?” The paper is thick, the cover is beautiful and my first words upon getting this copy was, “There is no way I’m giving my Library this. I’ll get them a separate copy.”

Womanthology is…educational! I love the Pro Tips that run throughout the book, with real advice about art, writing, networking, getting and making jobs. For that alone I’d say every female who wants to be part of the comic industry needs to get this book. If I taught an art class, I’d make this my text book.

Womanthology is…layered. Read it through for the shorts, then again for the bios and info about the creators, then again for Stacie Ponder’s comic strip that runs through the entire book on the page bottoms, then again for the Pro Tips. You’d find something to love all over again every time you do. It’s too much of everything to take in one reading. Read it as you might eat a box of delicious chocolates, a few pages at a time.

Womanthology Heroic is about, by and for, women and girls who create, read and love comics. If you buy one book this year, it should be this one (especially if you’re buying for a library.)

Ratings:

Overall – 10 (But really way more than that.)

The really cool thing about this book is that so many of the creators are on Twitter, and many of them have their websites listed on their bios, and you can talk to them directly to tell them how much you love this book. And, of course you can always shout out to @Womanthology. I’m sure they’d love to hear from you.