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Review: Ran and the Gray World vol. 1 by Aki Irie
The first volume of Ran and the Gray World was one of the first Japanese language books I ever purchased. It’s a series that has long held my fascination; the whimsical setting piqued my interest, its use of magic so completely different from other manga in the fantasy genre. And importantly, the cover is beautiful,…
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Quick Picks #11 – More Manga
Quick Picks is an occasionally written series of microreviews of books I’ve read over the past two weeks. This episode contains 3 manga microreviews.
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Review: Astra: Lost in Space V. 1 by Kenta Shinohara
Astra: Lost in Space is one of the books that runs on Viz Media’s website in digital – chapters of the book are up online to read, and are pulled down when the printed edition comes out. At the end of the year, the first volume of Astra: Lost in Space was released in print,…
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Review: Golden Kamuy vol. 1 by Satoru Noda
The folks at Viz Media recently sent over some of their latest manga, and I’ve taken some time to read through a few new releases. One that’s been getting some hype is Golden Kamuy, a seinen manga set in the immediate aftermath of the Russo-Japanese War. An army veteran, Saichi Sugimoto, nicknamed “Immortal Sugimoto,” is…
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Review: Children of the Whales V.1 by Abi Umeda
Today’s manga review is the upcoming Children of the Whales from Viz Media. Running in their Viz Signature line, this is Abi Umeda’s debut in English. The first volume will be released on November 21st – a digital advance reading copy was provided for this review. Images used in this review are © 2013 ABI…
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Quick Picks #6 – Witches, Spirits, and Songs
Quick Picks is an occasionally written series of microreviews of books I’ve read over the past two weeks. Here’s a selection of manga I’ve been reading recently. Flying Witch #1 – Vertical Inc.’s big Spring debut, this series started its life in the USA with a relatively popular anime adaption. Vertical later picked up the title,…
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Review: 7THGarden, Vol 1, by Mitsu Izumi
Viz Media continues its hunt for a shonen action title that will replace Naruto & Bleach. It looks like One Punch Man is picking up some slack, but there’s still a hole in the lineup that a few new series are looking to fill – most notably Black Clover and My Hero Academia. Viz released the first volume…
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Quick Picks #5: Manga Manga Manga
Quick Picks is an occasionally written series of microreviews of books I’ve read over the past two weeks. Here’s a selection of manga I’ve been reading recently. Haven’t You Heard, I’m Sakamoto #1 & #2 by Nami Sano A series that recently ended with its fourth volume, Haven’tYou Heard, I’m Sakamoto is an oddball comedy by Nami…
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Review: Solanin by Asano Inio This week marks the release of one of the more highly-anticipated manga of the publishing year, A Girl on the Shore from Asano Inio. In 2010, I reviewed an earlier piece by him, Solanin, and I wanted to revisit that work before I wrote about his latest comic. Solanin is…
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Taiyo Matsumoto has a penchant for writing stories about children. He examines the world through a child’s eyes, a child’s hopes and dreams, and most importantly a child’s questions. Questions are how Matsumoto starts his latest English release, Sunny, published under Viz’s Sig IKKI line. Not with panoramas or images of far-fetched monsters like his…
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Review: Seraph of the End, Volume 1 Manga publishing has a lot more editorial oversight than most American comics. Nowhere is that more apparent than the first chapters of a new manga. These chapters can be written, rewritten, stretched, pulled, and pinched until they meet an editor’s approval. And when you’re proposing a brand new…
