Reviews

Black Bird Volume 3- The mangaka realizes that merely providing shocking porn might not be enough, so she decides to write some plot hinting about the backstory of this maiden of legend thing, and brings some other demon clans in. But don't worry- in this volume, Misao is tied up twice, and licked once. She of course is crying on the cover. Kyo also is shirtless for no reason in one scene.

All My Darling Daughters- Reminded me of the sort of American comics I like. Even though I'm sure this is not actually autobiographical. Good sparse artwork.

Bride of the Water God- But maybe I should have gotten the second volume of this again. Strong mythology with interesting costume porn.

Planetes- Watched volume 1. It's growing on me. I like office comedies.

I think I'm getting into this

Afterschool Charisma- I initially started reading it because of the similarity of the premise to Clone High- a high school of clones... but it hits the shoujo manga angst buttons I love, and it has hints of science fiction too... I hope they put this out in GN form.

The scene where Mozart says he has been chosen for a second life... It seems chilling, like a form of madness, even though it's been drilled into them- your predecessor, your predecessor... That's a lot of pressure for anyone.

Curious about Ratings...

I read Butterflies, Flowers and volume 2 of Future Diary today. Butterflies, Flowers is rated M despite the fact that the only nudity is basically a man taking his shirt off. There are some mild gay jokes [ha ha mr extreme sexual harasser! If you want a virgin, well...] and crossdressing, but personally, I don't think mention of gayness or crossdressing is deserving of an M and shrink wrap. I mean, we have tons of mention of crossdressing and gayness on that level in Ouran.

Future Diary only has an older teen rating, despite nudity{I think I saw a nipple], and more importantly, the fact that a junior high school student is running around murdering people with axes. Oh yea, and implication of past gang rape[...why the naked woman around a huge group of dudes while she's talking about them stealing her innocence otherwise?] and even a chained up woman wearing only underwear who has had her eye gouged out?

Personally, I think that's requiring a mature rating more than the light slapstick of Butterflies, Flowers...

Kare Kano

It seems to me like Arima and Miyazawa's whole 11th grade year isn't really depicted in this manga. But sadly, the way the manga is, I don't think it would work well in fic. The pictures just seem really central. The mood dissonance between A STORY OF CHILD ABUSE and HEY! I WORE HEMP TODAY is really jarring sometimes too.

Ouran Host Club 13

Ah, finally the plot deepens. Of course, in true Ouran style, I bet Tamaki's HIDDEN TRAUMA will probably end up just him being dense. The family has broken up, and I guess Haruhi and Tamaki's happy ending is coming up soon.

No String Or Ring on This Shaking Finger

Nana 19 is great, giving us a lot of payoff for the set up. The Stockholm Syndrome motif was interesting as well. The glimpses of the future seem closer and closer lately. Us Americans have only 2 volumes left until we end up having to wait much longer for the manga to come out, due to Yazawa's illness. But even if the manga stopped with this volume, even if Yazawa never draws or writes again, I'd like to thank her for writing this series. Every time I read this series, I'm struck by the intensity of it all- the joy, the pain, all of it. I'm really grateful from the bottom of my heart.

The Magicians

I loved this book, and for some reason, now want to write fanfiction. I especially liked the 'unlikable' main character. After this sentence, there are spoilers. I don't think the plot would have worked without our Quentin. If he hadn't messed up royally, if he hadn't had that ennui and emptiness, they would have not gone to Fillory at all. It's mentioned several times- that Quentin needs this. [and so does Eliot and Penny]. They really need Fillory. That's why they push through, with the delusion that it's like a story, even though it becomes more and more evident that this isn't a story. That it is dangerous. Notice that Richard stays back. He doesn't need this quest, so he is able to think rationally about the consequences. If they had been 'likeable', the whole group that is, heroic and kind and everything else that most people are only minutely, they probably would have given the buttons to the authorities, and they would have not been wandering aimlessly in Manhattan. No, they would be undercover humanitarians using magic to heal suffering, or scientists exploring the nature of magic. I get the feeling that it's a common fantasy novel conceit that people who have something missing in their real lives go to fantasy worlds. Grossman loves his fantasy so much he isn't going to leave that part out.

I think at the end, they haven't learned their lesson at all. Going back would be a mistake. Then again, staying on earth would be a mistake too. I hear there will be a sequel. I'm suspicious of that Watcherwoman. Yes, a great evil was vanquished, but will the results be that good?

Suppli

I have now read Suppli 1-3. Personally, I read it for the art. Fuji's tangly hair, and the different and interesting angles that the panels take- I love. The role that sexism plays in pushing our characters towards 'love' is interesting too. The glass ceiling is mentioned several times- women getting the worst projects, being stuck on the lowest ladder, etc, so that marriage seems to be the only option for a fulfilling life. The mentions of the generational mismatch between older supervisors stuck in the 'bubble era' and younger workers who have never known that flashy life give this manga extra dimension that keeps it from being blah blah romance.

The lack of wacky hijinks also makes me glad. I'm OK with hijinks in moderation, but the trend is to get so bogged down in episodic hijinks that the manga ends up with no plot at all.

Too bad it'll be forever until Suppli 4 comes out.

Can't People Write a Goddamn Story Anymore?

I read Otomen volume 2, and I am quite disappointed. Iruka could have been a good recurring character, but I'm sure we'll never see her again, as well as we won't see Asuka's little fanboy again. I guess they are having the Love*Com complex in which actual obstacles to the official couple's relationship won't endure past one chapter.

Personally, I'm OK with romance manga- for example, I'm rereading Fruits Basket. It's a romance, but both of the rivals seem to actually have a chance. There are also dark hints about the past and other story lines. Another example of a romance manga that handles things well is Skip Beat! I have the 19th volume in my hot hands now. The official couple may be pretty dull[standard I met him once as a child, slap slap kiss stuff], but the surrounding story about show biz and Kyoko working hard to achieve her new dream is interesting.

If you only have romance, spice it up. Otherwise, I'm not going to spend my cash on it.

Otamen!

Darn you comic book guy! I thought getting a volume of Otamen for $1 was a great deal. But the mixture of gender bending fun[yes, I somehow can't get enough of manly girls and girly men] and wondering if the manga substoryline and the fact that dude is totally gay for Asuka will be used in an awesome manner or not.

I am not caught up on fandoms. On anime/manga, I think I'm about at 2005 on average. Series I need to see include Eva,yes, but I have seen the 1st season of Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei, read up to volume 18 of Full Metal Alchemist, etc.

On American TV, I haven't seen Glee, am about 1 or 2 seasons behind on the Office, haven't seen Buffy at all, ever....

On video games and comics,hopelessly uncaught up. Due to the fact I've got no next gen systems.

I think I get behind on entertainment as it seems to require some sort of organization to prioritize what you want to watch, etc. I wonder how those folks who live twitter every episode of every show do it.

Nana 18

I got it today. The bonus story made me feel sympathy for the devil. I love Nana because it's a story of crushed dreams and broken ideals. Nobu and Takumi- I think they could have both had the women they loved if they had had the courage to shatter their own illusions. And of course, the true love story of Nana- Nana and Hachi. They didn't want to shatter each other's illusions about each other, so things fell apart. Hachi wanted Nana to believe that she was a 'good girl', their madonna not their lilith, and Nana wanted Hachi to believe she was strong, not weak and falling apart. This is why every time I get a new volume of Nana, I cry.

I LOL'd

Persona 3 fanart- Stupei Ace Defective!

I also love this drabble. Oh, Persona 3, you're so bittersweet.

Ouran Host Club 12

I find that I like manga better when they get more serious. In this volume, Kyoya shows the depth of his friendship for Tamaki, Tamaki becomes an adult, and Hikaru and Kaoru come to the end of their egg metaphor. Although I didn't notice before that the egg metaphor was because they are identical twins. I feel so stupid! But I'm certainly preordering the next volume.

I guess I prefer drama to hijinks. I can read hijinks and enjoy them, but my fannish enthusiasm isn't turned on until I get some emotional moments!

Flowers and Bees 2 and 3

Today is a happy day, as I got Flowers and Bees 2 and 3. I've been enjoying it, as Komatsu learns that getting some isn't the key to happiness. He also learns that innocent seeming girls aren't so innocent, that some women are swingers and that his friend can get hot trim even looking like a pig.

I also noted that drawing in pubic hair seems pretty naughty, and wonder what happened to the dudes in the World of Beautiful Men. I love the devil sisters- they are always doing something shocking and demeaning, not just to Komastu, but to complete and total strangers.

I'm also adding Flowers and Bees to my manga canons with condoms in them- Nana, Happy Mania, Flowers and Bees, Tramps Like Us...

Another fanfiction review

This Akihiko/Mitsuru story is a bit sappy in parts, but otherwise well written. I prefer the two of them as friends, but this story managed to sell them as romantic partners.

More I like this fic

I like this fic because it's not so much a pairing fic so the relationship does not have to be distorted. I thought Yukari went on a few sentences too long about the Arcana, but I enjoyed the integration of gameplay into the story here. Not forgetting that we spend a massive part of the game in a giant tower killing shadows instead of trying to hump our team members.

Free Comic Book Day

Etsy covers free comic book day. I therefore learn that Dame Darcy has a shop.

In a painful case of overbuying, I picked up Skip Beat 18 and Nana 16.

Skip Beat 18 had enough bits about Ren and Kyoko's past and Kyoko learning about how to really act that I didn't mind the Ren/Kyoko romance or the general lack of Sho. Ren and Kyoko are OK as a sort of background couple, but eh, they don't seem to have much chemistry.

Nana 16 was quite satisfying as usual. It had a lot of the themes I enjoy- such as the difference of the dream of being in a band and the reality, how people drift apart over time, etc. The glimpses of the future often confuse me though. A nice extra manga with Nobuo's past explored is included in this volume.

Buying used books on amazon is always an adventure. My Ouran 8 has a section that was bound upside down and backwards, and my crimson hero 6 is an old library copy. Ouran 8 was quite touching, but I'm wondering if I should buy a copy that isn't messed up or just keep the one I have. I missed this one, so I missed the making explicit of Tamaki's reasoning for being Haruhi's 'father'. The OT7 is breaking apart slowly, slowly. By vol 11, it's still together, but I need to see it dissolve some more.

Crimson Hero 6 was in fine form. I was worried the love story would take away from the volleyball, but luckily, they didn't obsess about it too much and got into the whole 'how to deal with a star player on a mediocre team' problem instead. I'm pumped for Crimson Hero 9 now, which I bought a day or so ago.

I broke down and bought the Fruits Basket fan book. *dies* I would have preferred more information on the mysteries of fruits basket and fewer love quizzes, but I understand that I'm too old to love Fruits Basket the way I do. ;_; But I also love the Mitsu/Ritsu comic... The truth is that the character I'm most like is Ritsu, even though my favorites are Shigure and Akito.

I'm really glad that I used to aspire to be a real writer, because I can't conceive of being too fragile for some concrit. It's not your baby, it's not you, it's some words you wrote, and sometimes they are less good than other times you write.

I wonder if Douglas Adams would enjoy this fic as well.

Also, I'm getting back into Crimson Hero. I was worried that the romance would over power the sport, but I think I'll give it a few volumes[I'm on vol 8] to see if it keeps that great sports energy or whether it peters out into will she or won't she with only a sports backdrop. I'm hoping that Skip Beat has more acting competition pieces as well- I'm nearly current, with volume 16 being needed.

The whole Scans Daily shebang is covered on fandom lounge.

I'm enjoying Unlovable. I love the grosteque funniness and the crude artwork. I also like the 'doodles' that illustrate the spaces between the stories.