by Sandy Ferguson, Guest Reviewer

In Volume 13 of Otherside Picnic, we have the whole version of ‘Pandora in the Next Room’, the opening to ‘Hot Springs Invitation’ and Kozakura’s rebuttal story, ‘Packing as the Night Deepens’.

Initially in this volume it seems we are having a pause from the action of the previous volumes.  Pandora in the Next Room is a fascinating story, with either the subtitle of Sorawo’s slice of life or the adventures of Sorawo the Introvert. But for Sorawo, slice of life also means the Otherside which intrudes on Sorawo’s domestic peace through her neighbour in Unit 103 in her apartment complex. This interference leads to the further adventures of Sorawo the Introvert who is so rattled by this Otherside presence she becomes a reluctant houseguest, first with Akari and Natsun, then Kozakura.

To no-one’s surprise Sorawo finds being a houseguest to be almost as frightening as the Otherside.
After some uncomfortable third-wheeling with Akari and Natsun, Sorawo’s next adventure is with Kozakura.  They have an important conversation with Sorawo discussing her future and the Otherside.  Kozakura responds with her concerns, as well as her hopes that she could keep Sorawo and Toriko rooted in this world and not lost to the Otherside, in other words she doesn’t want them to follow Satsuki’s path.
Then Toriko turns up, and you can guess her mood considering that Sorawo had been asking everyone but her for help…

Sorawo has two explanations for this. One on the surface is her concern for Toriko’s school work.  The other is based on her belief that like her Toriko would want to keep her home safe, and Sorawo doesn’t want to bring her troubles into Toriko’s home. But, when much to Sorawo’s chagrin, Toriko accepts her invitation to spend the night at Sorawo’s place, Sorawo is like, what just happened here?

Now that the accomplices are together it is time to take out the trash from 103.  Once Sorawo’s domestic bliss has been restored, there is the inevitable after-party.

We begin ‘Hot Springs Invitation’ with a generous offer from Kozakura to Sorawo and Toriko, an offer that leads to ‘accomplice panic’, the offer is two free tickets to a Hot Spring. The panic is caused by Sorawo and Toriko when due to the revelation of a big cultural difference when Toriko mentions they will need to buy swimsuits, leading to Sorawo’s confusion when she answers that there is no need to do so, as they will be nude. “Hot spring culture in Canada is different from that of Japan.” I confess I was tickled pink at this moment, as ‘I got that reference’ as I lived near the Radium Hot Springs in British Columbia for a few years and enjoyed them, and yes bathing suits/swimming trunks were mandatory

This leads to a glimpse of the ongoing process of Sorawo and Toriko trying to understand the nature of their relationship, and the challenge to face their own issues the relationship exposes. So, in their accomplice panic Sorawo and Toriko come up with a solution, invite Kozakura to join them. Kozakura is annoyed, this was not part of the plan, but eventually she accepts her fate. On the trip to the hot springs Sorawo continues to process what lies ahead for them, and shares her anxiety with us as we will join them at the hot springs in Volume 14.

With ‘Packing as the Night Deepens’ I appreciate that these bonus stories do such a good job in exploring Kozakura as a character, especially when it comes to her relationships with Toriko and Sorawo.  While dealing with her frustrations that Sorawo and Toriko are dragging her along to the hot springs, she reflects on how these relationships have developed.  And in doing so, she comes to an unexpected conclusion.

Ratings: 

Story – 9 An interesting combination of slice and life and horror.
Artwork – 9 The artwork is excellent in conveying both the slice of life nature of this volume as well as the terrors of Apt. 103
Character – 9 As Sorawo struggles with the various relationships in this volume, we see more of what makes Sorawo tick.
Service – 9 An interesting moment as Sorawo tends to a wound on Toriko’s ‘Otherside’ hand.
Yuri – 8 At this point it looks like Akira and Natsun are in the lead, maybe the hot pools will change things?

Overall – 9

It has been a while since we discussed this series. In 2021, I read and guest reviewer Mariko Shinobu reviewed Kaijuu-iro Shima, a mood, folkloric story that takes place on a small island of the Japanese archipelago in which two young women meet and their pasts and present merge.

This year I had the chance to review Monster-Colored Island, Volume 1 for ANN’s Fall manga guide and was interested once again in this tone-poem of a Yuri manga.

Kon is an island resident who has spent her life alone. Mostly invisible to the other residents, and rejected by the few other children, she lives an “othered” life from the rest of the community. When outsider Furuka shows up, they instantly connect, although neither really knows why. We don’t get much detail in this volume – we don’t really know whether the island’s monster exists, or is Kon is, as she seems to be, the sacrifice to it, or if it is all symbolic. But it doesn’t truly matter, as we do learn that Furuka and Kon have always known they were different from everyone around them in ways that many queer readers will understand and resonate to. 

There are some odd handwaves, especially Furuka and Kon “forgetting” how intimate they were, but these plot contrivances serve to heighten the mystery of these two girls and their meeting. It all feels very fated, and possibly more complicated than they know. 

I called this a tone poem of a manga. Yes, there is a story, but each scene is more evocative or a feeling, a sensation, rather than telling a linear tale. If you’re enjoying the heavy emotional impact of This Monster Wants To Eat Me, you might find this story to be similar in feel, if not in depth.

Ratings: 

Art – 8
Story  – 8
Characters – 7 
Service – There is, yes
Yuri – 9

Overall – 8

I’m interested to see if this story goes somewhere specific or not.

Thank you to Yen Press and ANN for the review copy for this!

In Rainbows After Storms, Volume 5, Chidori and Nanoha have kissed and nothing will ever be the same.

Having shared their first kiss as fireworks symbolically exploded above them, the kiss itself continues to reverberate inside them. They are reminded over and over that they have kissed and find themselves jumpy and unnerved when they have to return to normal quotidian activities and conversations.

Worse for them, after such a significant change in their relationship over the summer, they haven’t had a moment to talk about it and the school festival rushes in to take up the space they might have had to debrief.  So, 5 volumes in to this series, it is now moves from the realm of theoretical Yuri into romantic Yuri.

As much as they stress, of course they are going to be okay.They are nervous and more aware of one another, more in need of one another than previously. That’s to be expected. What isn’t expected is the appearance of one of Nanoha’s former basketball team kouhai, returning to school after a serious injury with a humongus crush on Nanoha, who happens up Nanoha and Chidori kissing. Mai is going to be a bit of a problem. But that’s for next volume. As I said in my review of this volume in Japanese, “We’ve dealt with Chidori’s past….now it’s time to set Nanoha’s past behind her, and move on to the future.”

I know this was and is a slow series, slow enough that it almost feels in real-time. We’re watching Nanoha and Chidori find each other and watching their relationship change. It can be a bit voyeuristic at times and will be mores so in upcoming volumes, but for now, we can be content watching these two just figuring it all out. I’m glad I gave this series a chance when I read it in Japanese and gladder to be able to read it in English now. But don’t think this is the end, we have a lot more volumes ahead of us!

Ratings:

Art – 7
Story – 7
Characters – 8
Yuri – 6
Service – 2 

Overall – 7

I have long stood by an axiom that human nature does not change, only technology does. inee’s Love Bullet, Volume 1, one of the most anticipated titles of the year, also follows this same principle.

Cupids are real. People who died before experiencing love are sometimes given the Goddess of Love’s gift and become cupids. As cupids, they can work their way back into life by pairing people up with their perfect partners. And, because technology indeed changes, cupids are now armed with guns, which really sort of puts an emphasis on how horrid the idea of a “cupid” is. We’re so used to Raphael and Caravaggio’s chubby cheeked mini-angels, that the idea of being SHOT THROUGH THE HEART with a hormonal imbalance that causes irrational behavior stopped being horrific. But, here it is, genuinely horrific once again, in the more modern form of being shot by a gun.

We join the story in the middle of a raging disagreement between a group of cupids, over which two member of three friends ought to be the perfect love for the third. Koharu, the newest of the group, feels that there ought to be a way to come to a compromise, but while one side might be willing, one of the cupids really wants a fight and so, a fight breaks out. There is collateral damage as unwitting humans get hit by love bullets, but Koharu’s team is able to manage to fend off the other until Koharu makes a risky shot to solve the dilemma. 

We then learn a bit about Koharu’s life and death and the girl who loved her. We, and Koharu, are appalled to find that her first mission is to pair her dear friend up with someone. It makes for a powerfully bittersweet story about love…and makes us question whther becoming a cupid is really a “gift.” inee’s art is cute, which makes scenes like Koharu shooting her first love through the head in order to set her up with someone both horrible and deeply  moving.  One can understand why Koharu is always looking for a happy compromise in her pairings. 

inee’s art is simple, often relying on no or limited backgrounds, and all but line art for the cupids, but the body language and movement in the gunfights is excellent, and her narrative tension is top notch.  I finished this very much hoping that the international campaign to save this series was fully successful and lo and behold!, Volume 2 is hitting JP bookstores this very month. I’m interested in the other cupids and would like to have my emotions flailed with their sad stories, but also hope to see some happy endings. 

Ratings:

Art – 8
Story – Bittersweet, with the emphasis on the bitter  – 9
Characters – 8
Service – Guns and other weapons
Yuri – 8

Overall – 8

Yen is saying that they expect this volume to be one of their best selling titles of the year, even with a release date in December. Imagine that. It’s really good, honestly, so I am delighted we’re getting it in English. Thanks, Yen for a review copy for ANN, I used it for both reviews.