My Week in Manga: May 7-May 13, 2012

My News and Reviews

So, I finally got around to reading Hiromu Arakawa’s manga Fullmetal Alchemist. I really enjoyed the first anime series (I haven’t watched Brotherhood yet) but I think that the manga might be even better. I took a look at the first omnibus and loved it. I also reviewed the last volume of The Guin Saga to be published in English, The Marches King by Kaoru Kurimoto. I’ve become quite fond of the series, so I wish there was more available in translation. It’s nice to have the first major story arc, though. And then there’s always the anime, even if it isn’t as good. I’ll probably make a point to review The Guin Saga: The Seven Magi manga now that I’ve finished the translated novels.

I reviewed Math Girls by Hiroshi Yuki soon after Bento Books published the novel in English last year (it was their debut release). I rather enjoyed the book. The second volume of the series will be published later in 2012. Bento Books also recently began a Kickstarter project to release the manga version of Math Girls. The translation itself is already completed but they need a bit of a financial boost in order to finish up the English edition of the manga. I hope the project is successful; I’d really like to see this niche manga made available.

And for a couple of other interesting things online: Erica Friedman of Yuricon and Okazu has posted videos for a five part series about yuri. Completely unrelated, if you’re interested in how the March 11 earthquake affected libraries in Japan, the National Diet Library has released a report on the subject. Part of the report, “The Great East Japan Earthquake and Libraries,” is available as a pdf in English. The report is fairly extensive and isn’t necessarily for casual reading, but it is one of the definitive resources for information about libraries and the earthquake.

Oh, and one final heads up! May’s Manga Moveable Feast, featuring Oishinbo and other foodie manga and hosted by Khursten Santos at Otaku Champloo, will begin on the 22nd!

Quick Takes

Brody’s Ghost, Book 1 by Mark Crilley. I picked up Brody’s Ghost on a whim. I’m glad I gave the series a shot, though. In fact, I liked the first volume so well that I immediately went out and bought the next two available books in the series. Brody is a very average guy (at least, he thought he was) who has caught the eye of a ghost. She’s determined that he will be the one to help her track down a murderer. The story is fairly average so far, but I’m really enjoying Crilley’s artwork. He has created a futuristic, rundown, urban environment that works marvelously well. My only real complaint is that the book is so short, well under a hundred pages. Still, I’m looking forward to continuing with Brody’s Ghost.

Flowers & Bees, Volumes 1-7 by Moyoco Anno. Komatsu wins a prize—I have never seen a character go through so many different hairstyles within the course of a single series. Even though it is completely different in so many ways, Flowers & Bees reminded me a lot of another of Anno’s manga, Happy Mania. Both series feature protagonists with extremely bad luck when it comes to love and who tend to overreact and freak out over the smallest incidents. The humor in Flowers & Bees is manic, raunchy, and cruel, frequently bordering on offensive, but I still found it to be hilarious. The second half of the series does sober up a bit, but not by much. The epilogue to the series seemed tacked on and unnecessary, but it was nice to see where many of the characters ended up after the series proper.

Let Dai, Volumes 1-5 by Sooyeon Won. So far, Let Dai is a very intense manhwa series. I wasn’t expecting it to be as violent as it is, but perhaps I shouldn’t have been surprised since one of the main characters is a notorious gang leader. There’s also quite a bit of manipulation and intimidation. Dai, the aforementioned gang leader, is vicious and terrifying and yet his charisma makes him captivating and strangely alluring to others. Jaehee, who was once a straight-laced student, has been caught up in Dai’s influence. Their relationship is complicated to say the least. At this point, I really can’t imagine anything turning out well for any of the people involved; the series has a very ominous atmosphere.

Princess Jellyfish directed by Takahiro Omori. As someone who is rather socially awkward, a lot of Princess Jellyfish hit pretty close to home for me. Amamizukan is an apartment building home to a group of women, all of who are some sort of otaku. Tsukimi, one of the residents, has her life thrown into turmoil when she meets the cross-dressing son of a politician. Princess Jellyfish is leisurely paced, paying more attention to characters’ development rather than intricate plots. The anime finds a decent place to stop in the story, but it’s not much of an ending as almost nothing is actually resolved. I loved Princess Jellyfish, it’s a wonderful series, but it leaves me wanting more. I’d like to read the manga upon which it was based.