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25 July 2012 8 Comments

Manga Giveaway: Love Hina Giveaway

Did July pass by quickly for anyone else? Before I knew it, it was time to announce the next manga giveaway here at Experiments in Manga! So, here you go. This month I have a new copy of the first Love Hina omnibus published by Kodansha. The omnibus collects the first three volumes of Ken Akamatsu’s manga series Love Hina. And, as always, the contest is open worldwide.

Ah, good ol’ harem manga. My introduction to the genre was through Kou Fumizuki’s Ai Yori Aoshi, followed closely by Ken Akamatsu’s Love Hina (back in it’s Tokyopop days). For me, harem manga tends to be a guilty pleasure. This is not to say that there isn’t good harem manga out there. But in my limited experience, as fun as harem manga can be, it can also frequently be a bit sexist. This goes for reverse-harem manga, too. Still, while I recognize some of the genre’s potential problems, I am not here to condemn harem manga. As I’ve already admitted, I even enjoy it from time to time. Often ridiculous and frequently unbelievable, harem manga, when done well, can be quite entertaining. (Who knows? Maybe I’m just jealous and want my own harem filled with attractive and likeable people.) Love it or hate it, harem manga seems to be a popular genre and will probably be around for a while.

So, you may be wondering, how can you win Love Hina, Omnibus 1?

1) In the comments below, tell me about your favorite harem or reverse-harem manga. If you don’t have one or have never read a harem manga, just mention that.
2) For a second entry, name a harem or reverse-harem manga that hasn’t been mentioned yet by me or by someone else.
3) If you’re on Twitter, you can earn a bonus entry by tweeting about the contest. Make sure to include a link to this post and @PhoenixTerran (that’s me).

It’s as easy as that! You can earn up to three entries for this giveaway. As usual, there is one week to submit your comments. If you have trouble leaving comments, or if you would prefer, you can e-mail me your entries at phoenixterran(at)gmail(dot)com. The winner will be randomly selected and announced on August 1, 2012. Best of luck to you all!

VERY IMPORTANT: Include some way that I can contact you. This can be an e-mail address, link to your website, Twitter username, or whatever. If I can’t figure out how to get a hold of you and you win, I’ll just draw another name.

Contest winner announced—Manga Giveaway: Love Hina Giveaway Winner

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4 July 2012 Leave a Comment

Manga Giveaway: From Eroica with Love Giveaway Winner

And the winner of the From Eroica with Love Giveaway is…Matt! (Matt also recently started a manga blog, Matt Talks About Manga. There’s some great stuff over there, so be sure to check it out!)

As the winner, Matt will be receiving a copy of From Eroica with Love, Volume 1 by Yasuko Aoike. From Eroica with Love is a great series that is unfortunately out of print in English. For this giveaway, I was wondering which out of print manga people would want rescued. I was also curious who else might be a fellow out-of-print manga collector. (See the From Eroica with Love comments for everyone’s complete responses.)

Here’s a few of the out-of-print manga on our wishlists:
2001 Nights by Yukinobu Hoshino
A, A′ by Moto Hagio
Banana Fish by Akimi Yoshida
Basara by Yumi Tamura
By the Sword by Sanami Matoh
Eden: It’s an Endless World! by Hiroki Endo
Emma by Kaoru Mori
Fist of the North Star written by Buronson, illustrated by Tetsuo Hara
Four Shōjo Stories edited by Matt Thorn
From Far Away by Kyoko Hikawa
From Eroica with Love by Yasuko Aoike
Happy Cafe by Kou Matsuzuki
Lone Wolf and Cub written by Kazuo Koike, illustrated by Goseki Kojima
Monster by Naoki Urasawa
Please Save My Earth by Saki Hiwatari

Most of the entrants didn’t consider themselves out-of-print hunters although a few mentioned that they had to resort to it on occasion. Two different people mentioned finding manga available in Japanese instead of tracking down the English equivalent. I really need to work on my Japanese reading comprehension so that I can do this, too. (Plus, that would mean I could read a ton of manga that will probably never be translated!) Still, tracking down out-of-print manga can be fun even if it is frustrating. Personally, I’ll probably be pursuing the hobby for quite some time.

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27 June 2012 5 Comments

Manga Giveaway: From Eroica with Love Giveaway

The end of June fast approaches, which means it’s time for another manga giveaway! This month you will be able to enter for a chance to win a new copy of the now out of print From Eroica with Love, Volume 1 by Yasuko Aoike. I’m rather fond of From Eroica with Love and I want share the…well…love. As always, the contest is open worldwide, so I hope you’ll enter!

I recently was able to complete my collection of the English volumes of From Eroica with Love. It had been a project of mine for quite some time; I discovered the series well after it had gone out of print. While searching for and finding out-of-print manga can be a thrilling adventure, it can also be terribly frustrating. Frequently, the prices can become ridiculously expensive. And sometimes it’s only a few random volumes in the middle of a series that are difficult to find while other volumes are still available. Some publishers, like Vertical, are wonderfully upfront about which titles will go out of print or change format. (I really love Vertical for that.) Other publishers seem content to let their series die out without much fanfare. I hold no illusions, there are plenty of legitimate reasons that manga goes out of print. Just to name two: the publisher or imprint itself may go under, or maybe the series is no longer pulling its weight. Still, I can’t help but be sad when manga, or any book, goes out of print.

So, you may be wondering, how can you win From Eroica with Love, Volume 1?

1) In the comments below, tell me about a manga that you would like to see be brought back into print or otherwise rescued.
2) I’m also wondering, are you a fellow out-of-print manga hunter/collector? Simply let me know in the comments.
2) If you’re on Twitter, you can earn a bonus entry by tweeting about the contest. Make sure to include a link to this post and @PhoenixTerran (that’s me).

And there you have it. Each person can earn up to three entries for this giveaway. You have one week to submit your entries. If you have trouble leaving comments, or if you would prefer, you can e-mail me your entry at phoenixterran(at)gmail(dot)com. I will then post the comment in your name. The winner will be randomly selected and announced on July 4, 2012. Good luck to you all!

VERY IMPORTANT: Include some way that I can contact you. This can be an e-mail address, link to your website, Twitter username, or whatever. If I can’t figure out how to get a hold of you and you win, I’ll just draw another name.

Contest winner announced—Manga Giveaway: From Eroica with Love Giveaway Winner

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6 June 2012 2 Comments

Manga Giveaway: Read or Die Giveaway Winner

And the winner of the Read or Die Giveaway is…Cassandra!

As the winner, Cassandra will be receiving a new copy of Hideyuki Kurata and Shutaro Yamada’s R.O.D: Read or Die, Volume 1. Because Read or Die features a phenomenal bibliophile, and as a librarian I love book lovers, I asked entrants to tell me about their favorite book loving characters from manga or anime. Thank you to everyone who entered and shared! I hope you’ll join me again for next month’s giveaway.

The bibliophile that got the the most mentions was, in fact, Yomiko Readman from Read or Die! Now, I’ve only read the manga so far (and I’ve gotten the impression that it is the weakest installment in the franchise) but I, too, am quite fond of Yomiko. She not only loves books, but they love her in return. I really need to watch the OVA series.

Sheska from Fullmetal Alchemist also received a mention, which I was quite happy to see. When Sheska was first introduced in the series, I assumed that she was going to be a one-off character (granted, one that was very important to the story). I was thrilled when she made her return as a recurring character. Her ability to perfectly remember and recreate anything that she has read is a very handy talent, indeed.

Shigure Sohma from Fruits Basket was outed as a book lover, too. Because he’s a novelist, this makes a good deal of sense. Shigure actually happens to be my favorite character from Fruits Basket. It never really ocurred to me before, but part of the reason I like him so well may be because of his literary bent.

Two librarians from Western comics were also declared to be favorites. First was The Librarian from Justin Jordan’s The Strange Talent of Luther Strode. I somehow complete missed this series when it was released; I’ll definitely be checking it out. The other librarian was none other than Giles from Buffy the Vampire Slayer, arguably one of the most well-known librarians in Western geekdom. And yes, I like him, too.

Here are a few more manga series you might want to check out if you’re looking for fellow book lovers: Kiichi and the Magic Books by Taka Amano, Kingyo Used Books by Seimu Yoshizaki, Library Wars: Love & War by Kiiro Yumi, and R.O.D: Read or Dream written by Hideyuki Kurata and illustrated by Ran Ayanaga. And if you enjoy Western comics (I certainly do), give James Turner’s Rex Libris or Mike Carey and Peter Gross’ The Unwritten a try.

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30 May 2012 7 Comments

Manga Giveaway: Read or Die Giveaway

The end of the month approaches and I’ll soon be heading off to a library conference for work. But, probably more importantly for all of you, it’s time for another manga giveaway! This month you’ll have a chance to enter to win the first volume of R.O.D: Read or Die, written by Hideyuki Kurata, illustrated by Shutaro Yamada, and published by Viz Media. As always, the contest is open worldwide!

As a librarian myself, I can’t help but be fond of libraries, librarians, and other bibliophiles in manga and anime. I’ll admit, the Read or Die manga isn’t my favorite representation, but it does have some fun elements and ideas in it. Granted, I tend to be a little more lenient when the love of books is involved. Book lovers show up as important characters in many series. (Sheska from Fullmetal Alchemist, anyone?) Librarians seem to be making more of an appearance lately, too—The Book of Bantorra anime was recently released by Sentai and Viz Media has the ongoing manga series Library Wars: Love & War. Personally, I don’t mind the trend and would love to see more.

So, you may be wondering, how can you win R.O.D.: Read or Die, Volume 1?

1) In the comments below, tell me who your favorite librarian, book lover, or bibliophile in manga or anime is and why.
2) If you’re on Twitter, you can earn a bonus entry by tweeting about the contest. Make sure to include a link to this post and @PhoenixTerran (that’s me).

That’s all there is to it! Each person can earn up to two entries for this giveaway. As usual, there is one week to submit your entries. If you have trouble leaving comments, or if you would prefer, you can e-mail me your entry at phoenixterran(at)gmail(dot)com. I’ll then post the comment in your name. The winner will be randomly selected and announced on June 6, 2012. Good luck!

VERY IMPORTANT: Include some way that I can contact you. This can be an e-mail address, link to your website, Twitter username, or whatever. If I can’t figure out how to get a hold of you and you win, I’ll just draw another name.

Contest winner announced—Manga Giveaway: Read or Die Giveaway Winner

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