Podcast manga review of Hayate Cross Blade Volume 1 by Shizuru Hayashiya. Translated by Adrienne Beck. Adapted by Ed Chavez. Originally published by Media Works in Japan. Published in US by Tor/Seven Seas, $9.99, Rated OT 16+.

The all-girls boarding school Tenchi Academy isn't just known for its quality academics--it's also known for training the top sword fighters in the country. Students in the special "Sword Bearer" program compete in a school-wide battle known as the Star Stealing, striving to win both money and fame.

Enter Kurogane Hayate. With her sister Nagi recovering from a lingering injury, the spunky and cheerful Hayate must take her place at the Academy until Nagi is well enough to return. When Hayate learns of the mountain of debt her old orphanage, the Dandelion Garden, owes to Yakuza loan sharks, she decides to become a sword-bearer and win the Star Stealing.

There's just one problem...she needs a partner to compete and the one girl Hayate has her eye on wants nothing to do with her!

My Grade: B+

You can view a free manga preview of Hayate Cross Blade at:

http://www.gomanga.com/manga/hayatexblade.php

Manga review of Negima Volume 4 by Ken Akamatsu. Translated by Douglas Varenas. Adapted by Peter and Kathleen O'Shea David. Originally published in Japan by Kodansha. Published in US by Del Rey, $10.95, Rated OT Ages 16+ for Mature Audiences.

Most of the third volume of Negima was taken up with Negi's battle with Evangeline McDowell, a vampire who had been cursed by Negi's dad, the Southern Master, and trapped in the body of a young girl. Evangeline believed that his father was dead but Negi tells her the story of how the Southern Master was the one who gave Negi his staff. Negi wants to find him but has no idea of where to look. Evangeline suggests he look in Kyoto, where his dad used to live. In a bit of a selfish act, mixing business with pleasure, Negi proposes that his class go on a field trip there. That way, he won't have to miss work. The headmaster of the school agrees to let them go to Kyoto but he also has a task for Negi to perform. Apparently, Kyoto falls under the territory of the Kansai Magic Association, which has a running dispute with Negi's Kanto branch. In an effort to smooth out the relationship between the two organizations, the headmaster appoints Negi as an ambassador of sorts and gives him a letter to be delivered only into the hands of the leader of the Kansai wizards. Unfortunately, there are elements of the Kansai group that do not want peace with Kanto and want to keep Negi from fulfilling his mission.

As always, the first thing that jumps out at you with Negima is the excellent art in which Ken Akamatsu cleverly combines cuteness, comedy, realism, sexiness, and and great layout to create a very unique style. The story is where this book could get a bit muddled. I mean how many times can we stomach someone's clothes getting blown off at least once a volume, if not more, without it becoming a cheap parlor trick? Well, the answer for now is...a lot more! This series hasn't worn out its welcome yet, seeing as how we know so little about the 31 girls in Negi's class. In this volume the spotlight focuses on Miyazaki, who is pining to declare her love to Negi, and Setsuna, a sword bearing student  who is a bit of an enigma. She seems to be obsessed with Konoka, but Negi has to figure out whether she's trying to protect Konoka, or working for the Kansai faction.

My Grade: B+

Well, hopefully, my feed is running smoothly again. I was having a bit of trouble getting Itunes to upload my newest podcast, #140.  As I mentioned in the blog a little bit ago, Feedburner was migrating its accounts over to Google without the permission of its users and somehow mine was getting lost in the shuffle. It pissed me off that they were mucking about with my feed. So I just took Feedburner out of the equation. And now it seems that my latest show has finally appeared on Itunes. It shouldn't affect your feed if you subscribe to my show, but if it does, again, my feed is:

http://sesho.libsyn.com/rss

I would say steer clear of Feedburner if you're looking for a site to get stats about your downloads, because those faceless phantoms could care less about the people that use its services.

Oh yeah, I guess it's about time that I came up with an illustration to put up for my show on Itunes. Right now its that oddly disturbing upside down ice cream cone with a ball on top of it. I've gone for over a year now without putting up a picture for my show. So maybe it's something I can work on during the holidays.

Podcast manga review of Inukami! Volume 1. Story by Mamizu Arisawa. Art by Mari Matsuzawa. Character design by Kanna Wakatsuki. Translated by Rhys Moses. Adapted by Lorelei Laird. Originally published in Japan by Media Works. Published in US by Seven Seas/Tor, $9.99, Rated Older Teen 16+.

A wacky love comedy about a boy and his dog-goddess.

Inukami: a sacred being with a dog-like appearance that forges a contract with a powerful human tamer to help them eliminate evil monsters and demons.

Though Kawahira Keita is the descendent of a long line of Inukami-tamers, he seems to lack the necessary ability and has been forsaken by his family. One day, he meets a cute Inukami named Yoko, who, at first glance, looks graceful, obedient, and beautiful...but upon forging a contract with her, Keita discovers that Yoko is a wild and mischievous Inukami that no one has ever been able to control.

My Grade: A

Here's the opening of the anime version:

Anime DVD review of Project Blue Earth SOS Volume 1: Invasion. Directed by Tensai Okamura (Wolf's Rain, Darker than Black). Series Composition by Ryota Yamaguchi (Cowboy Bebop, One Piece, Escaflowne). Published by ADV Films (license has been picked up by Funimation),  Running Time: 90 minutes, Episodes 1-2, Rated 15+.

Something strange happened on the boundaries of space far above the USA in 1995. A pilot named James was testing out the new G-Reaction jet engine, which would allow a plane to circle the Earth in one hour, when a strange sight confronted him. James' last report was that he saw rainbow colored lights, then a flying saucer, and then ground control lost touch with him. Especially hardhit was his friend and commander, Captain Clayton. Now, five years later, strange occurences around G-Reaction powered vehicles have been more and more frequent. Planes, vehicles, and even aircraft carriers have been disappearing. One such incident introuduces us to most of the cast of the show. It is the maiden route of a new G-Reaction train that brings out most of the movers and shakers of Metropolitan, the capital of Earth. That's right, the capital of Earth. Apparently, in this world, all world governments have given up their sovereignty to the United Nations, one consequence being that the world's military is also controlled by the UN. Any weapons which could be seen as other than defensive have been discontinued. Among the important people at the train ceremony is Billy Kimura, the child prodigy and billionaire heir of Kimura Industries, the company responsible for the design of the G-Reactor. Meeting him there is Lotta Brest (what an unfortunate name!), daughter of a famous scientist, and her tutor, the stunning Emely. Just as they are about to board the train, another boy genius named Penny Carter rushes through the crowd with his faithful dog, named Washington, to warn them that something bad is going to happen to the train. At about this moment, cue the rainbow lights, the train is lifted into the air, and disappears in a blink! Billy and Penny reluctantly decide to join forces to figure out exactly what is going on. Little do they know that they are putting themselves into the middle of an alien invasion. On their side is a secret organization named the Labyrinth Alliance which is devoted to protecting humanity from this threat, and a mysterious pilot named Sky Knight, who appears to have the only weapon that can fight the invaders.

 What little I had read about this series before viewing it was that it was a retro style anime with roots in 1950s pulp sci-fi magazines. I would say yes to that in theory. Back in the old days of sci-fi you could just name things like "black hole transponder" or "anti-matter gun" without having to explain how it worked and the readers let you get away with it. It almost seemed as if everything worked off of magic because there wasn't any scientific elaboration. Now, readers and viewers are a bit more demanding. While some of the plot devices seemed rooted in the 50's, I felt more reminded of 60's and 70's anime or even some of the old kid-friendly Godzilla movies where the little smug kid knew more of how to solve world threatening problems than the adults could ever dream of. Also, SOS kinda reminded me of Gatchaman and, surprisingly, Scooby Doo. So, I guess that whatever era you think SOS is a homage to, you have to accept it as a nostalgic trip. Almost as if it were written in another era. I enjoyed this show, especially its sometimes flagrant use of goofiness and whimsy. For example, cats and dogs help out our heroes at different times during the show.  The animation is definitely not retro though, and uses the latest cutting edge CG, and doesn't skimp during the action sequences. I thought it was cool that we don't even see a proper alien in these first two episodes (running 40 minutes each), except for a lone female preaching apocalyptic prophecies. Besides her, we see ships and robots for now. In fact, we don't even know if these aliens are FROM another world. So I liked the mystery of it. I also like shows with ensemble casts....as long as the characters are interesting and memorable. And the characters of Project Blue ARE interesting. I especially enjoyed the tug of war between Penny and Billy as they alternated between feelings of rivalry and respect. This is a really good start to a 3 volume series, but don't go in expecting hard sci-fi a la Ghost in the Shell. Just have fun.

My Grade: A-

Manga Review of Gon Volume 4 by Masashi Tanaka. Originally published in Japan by Kodansha. Published in US by CMX, $5.99, Rated T for Teen due to violence.

Well, Gon doesn't stay in any one place for long. He's already stomped across most of the world's continents, meeting and beating up animals all along the way. But besides taking bites, giving them super headbutts and kicking them in the face, he's also there to take up for the little guy, or more accurately, Gon is a little guy who takes up for animals that usually serve only as meals for vicious predators. In this fourth volume he inserts himself in a turtle shell, and sees the "survival of the fittest" concept in full bloom as he makes his perilous way to the seashore along with thousands of newly hatched sea turtles. He finds that just making it into the water is only the beginning of these fledgling's fight for life. Then he has to make it across a brutal desert after being thrown there by a powerful tornado along with an ostrich, a monkey, and an impala who show all the selfishness and selflessness of humanity. Lastly, we get to see Gon's posse of various big cat kittens as they strut about the plains of Africa, taking on any bully that gets in their way!

Wow, I'm a little behind in this series (it's currently on Volume 6) but it's one of my favorites. First, the drawings of Masashi Tanaka are almost divine. The dude uses no screen tone whatsoever. Even when he colors in shadows, most of it is just crosshatched linework. There is an incredible amount of work that is going into every page of this manga. Sometimes, you just turn a page and you just sit there, awestruck, thinking "Man, just look at this! It's insane!". The artwork is just that damn good. Even though the animals sometimes have anthropomorphic expressions, Tanaka is still able to retain their otherness even as he uses them as metaphors for the human condition. The animals that are dangerous SEEM dangerous, not because they are super villains, but simply because it is in their nature to kill. A scene in which Gon confronts a giant squid is a bit creepy, that is, until Gon kicks the crap out of him. This is masterful storytelling and panel layout that is lightyears beyond most other manga artists. Eden or Akira are two titles I would say are on the same level. And imagine this, Tanaka does this level of work without any dialogue or sound effects at all, only art. A great title. Not to be missed.

My Grade: A+

 

 

If you haven't seen the most recent episode of my podcast on Itunes, episode 140, in which I reviewed the first volume of Inukami, there is a good reason. The feed for my show goes through Feedburner.com because it tells you how many people subscribe to your show. Starting this week, I stopped getting those stats, and also how many downloads I get from Libsyn. Upon further investigation, I found out that Google bought Feedburner and that they are forcing Feedburner users to sign up with Google accounts and change URL's and stuff. They seem to think this is a minor footnote as evidenced by hardly a mention on the Feedburner website. So I've decided to take them out of the loop. So there might be a delay in Itunes updates while it redirects, but there might not. My feed is:

http://sesho.libsyn.com/rss

I'm basically computer illiterate so that is what really pisses me off. Everything that I do on here is through hard work and lots of scratching my head, so when a greedy company devouring entity like Google, or Gobble, throws a wrench into my fragile thread, it gets my goat.

Anime DVD Review of Black Blood Brothers Volume 2: Emergence. Directed by Hiroaki Yoshikawa. Series composition by Yuu Sugitani. Episodes 5-8, Running Time: 100 minutes. Published by Funimation, $29.98, Rated 15+.

Jiro and Kotaro have made it inside the Special Zone, with the help of Mimiko, professional compromiser. We still don't know exactly why Jiro has travelled to the Special Zone, but he seems to have come at the worst possible time. A Kowloon Child has infiltrated the Special Zone somehow and it appears it is the work of Jiro's old enemy, Cassandra Warlock, whose very presence nearly sends Jiro into a murderous rage. She seems to have something to do with Jiro's lost love, a girl named Alice who he was assigned to protect long ago. Not all is peace and harmony in the Special Zone, where a very delicate balance exists between human and vampire and even between vampire and vampire. Along with Company, three vampire families control everything in the city. All of them are concerned about whose faction Jiro will join, because they know how powerful this legendary hero is. Whoever he casts his lot with will be the main power broker of the Special Zone. Surprisingly, the majority opinion seems to be that the Zone would be better without Jiro in town. Only Zelman Clock, leader of one of the vampire clans, is willing to take Jiro and his brother in. His main goal is not to acquire power, but simply to stave off boredom. But one of his underlings has a different agenda that could start a vampire civil war.

Black Blood Brothers is a show that succeeds in spite of the fact that you can tell the creators didn't have a lot of money to spend on character design or animation. The costumes are mostly dreadful and there are quite a bit of static battles with action lines in place of animation. But the director makes up for this by staging the fight scenes with some interesting shots, dramatic effects, and close ups which convey the action quite well, and give you the illusion of more motion than is actually happening. One of the things I like about the show is the humor. Even though Kotaro is an idiotic pain in the butt, he still makes me laugh as he clumsily makes his way through the life and death stakes of the Black Blood world. Mimiko is also quite funny, but her goofiness is tempered by her extreme dedication to helping Jiro and Kotaro. She might even have a "thing" for Jiro, even though she won't admit it to herself. One criticism I have of the show is that it is two thirds over and there are still a lot of unanswered questions about the characters and the plot. I doubt that there are enough episodes left to get through the backstory in anything less than a quick flashback or exposition. Still, this is a series definitely worth watching.

My Grade: B+

Funimation just released the box set of this series for $49.98. Best Buy has it for $35.99, but be careful because I picked it up in store and saw it was missing a disc. So check to make sure it's all there before you purchase it.

You can also watch the first three episodes for free at Hulu.com. Here is episode 1. Just push the play button.

You can also download the series at Funimation.com

Retail Sesho to the rescue! If you're a fan of the Death Note anime, you should get over to Amazon.com quickly! They are selling the Death Note Box Set, which contains 5 dvds with the first 20 episodes of the series for $34.99. That's 50% off the list price. That's the best price I'm seeing. Plus, you don't have to pay shipping or tax. So put in your pre-order now. Here's the link:

http://www.amazon.com/Death-Note-Box-Set-1/dp/B001CZJP0S/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1226889503&sr=1-1

I have actually only watched the first volume of the anime but have read the entire manga series. I just never got around to watching the rest of the anime, but now I can. I didn't really have a lot of mony left this week to blow but this was too good a deal to pass up.

Manga review of xxxHolic Volume 2 by CLAMP. Translated and adapted by Bill Flanagan. Originally published in Japan by Kodansha. Published in US by Del Rey, $10.95, Rated T for Ages 13+.

Volume 2 of xxxHolic opens with the arrival of  Syaoran, Sakura, Kurogane, and Fai, events already recounted in Tsubasa Volume 1, the sister manga of this series. After the time/space travellers leave, it's back to business for Yuko and Watanuki. Of course, that return to normalcy means that Watanuki goes back to being the gopher slave of Yuko. But Watanuki has something occupying his mind, or rather his heart. His crush on his classmate, Himawari Kunogi, is becoming more and more intense. But Watanuki is not known to be one of the braver souls in Japan, so he's finding it hard to broach the subject of going out on a date with Himawari. Yuko tries to help him by giving him a quick crash course in divination, seeing as how Himawari is pretty interested in horoscopes and the like. She even agrees to go on a double date with the two lovebirds. Much to Watanuki's annoyance, the fourth member of the party turns out to be a guy named Domeki, Watanuki's hated rival. The question is, rival at what? Currently, it seems that Watanuki fears that Domeki could capture Himawari's heart. It's not going to be a normal date anyway as Yuko plans to have a "100 Ghost Story Night" at the temple where Domeki lives.

After finishing the first two volumes of Tsubasa and xxxHolic, I have to say that Holic is by far the superior series. Tsubasa sank into a pit of shonen spirit animal Pokemon fighting which bored me and reminded me why I gave up on the Tsubasa anime after one volume. Tsubasa seems more intent on fitting in every character of the CLAMP universe, no matter how insignificant. Holic doesn't have that burden and is the better for it. Instead of serving as the vehicle for cameos of all stripes, Holic actually concentrates on telling a story. The first thing I have to say about Holic is to make a comment on the beautiful covers that adorn all the volumes, so intricate that they would fit in well on an Oriental rug. Somehow, CLAMP is able to pull out the feat of making you laugh, creeping you out, and expanding your mind with mind-blowing concepts all in the same book. You can tell that CLAMP really went the extra mile in challenging their readers by grappling with the concepts of destiny, love, and the interdependence of all human beings. A really good book.

My Grade: B+

You can watch the first 12 episodes of the xxxHolic anime for free at www.hulu.com . Here is the link to the first episode. Just hit the play button on the video panel:

Podcast manga review of Ghost Slayers Ayashi Volume 1. Story by Sho Aikawa and Bones. Art by Yaeko Ninagawa. Translated by Shoko Oono. Price: $9.99. Rated 16+.

In Edo-era Japan, the land is under attack from demons called Youi and a secret group of ghost slayers known as the Ayashi roam the land, seeking to destroy the creatures wherever they appear. Ryuuda Yukiatsu, a vagrant samurai, might be the next ayashi, but will a secret from his past keep him from facing his destiny?

My Grade: B

Podcast anime dvd review of Otoboku:Maidens Are Falling For Me Volume 1: Crossplay Capers. Episodes 1-5, Running Time: 125 minutes, $19.99, Rated 13+. Directed by Munenori Nawa. Series Composition by Katsumi Hasegawa.

Mizuho can't believe his ears when Grandpa's will is read out. Grandpa's final wish is for Mizuho to attend the same academy as Mizuho's mother. The catch is it's an all-girls school. With the help of friend Mariya however, he gets a makeover good enough to fool everyone at the academy.

My Grade: B+

Manga review of Vampire Knight Volume 2 by Matsuri Hino. Translated and adapted by Tomo Kimura. Originally published in Japan by Hakusensha. Published in US by Viz Shojo Beat, $8.99, Rated T+ for Older Teen.

There was a pretty startling revelation in Volume 1 of Vampire Knight when we learned that Zero Kiryu, vampire hater and hunter, was actually a vampire himself, and had been fighting against his urges for a couple of years. In addition, the blood tablets that the vampires have been using to sate their thirst for blood do not work very well on former humans, so Zero has become more and more unstable. In Volume 2, we find out that Zero is classified as an "Level E" vampire. Yes, that's right, there's a pecking order, or should I say, a "biting" order even in the vampire world. At the top are the Level As, or Purebloods, who are the only ones that can turn humans. Then at Level B, we have the Aristocrats. Both Level As and Bs are the rulers of the vampire world. At Level C, we have the Commons. Level Ds are former humans. This is where we start to have problems. Eventually, Level Ds begin to go crazy with bloodlust and become nothing more than blood-craving maniacs, which are known as Level Es. The "E" stands for "The End". The Level A and Bs are responsible for keeping the Es in check, and sometimes they even kill them when there is no other option. Unfortunately, what this means is that Zero will eventually lose control of himself and turn into a Level E. He has even asked Yuki to kill him if this ever happens. Yuki has a special bracelet, a controlling mechanism a la Inuyasha, that she can use to keep Zero under control. Zero's former sensei, Toga Yagari, a powerful vampire hunter, is brought in as a temporary teacher to keep an eye on Zero.

I have a hard time figuring out why vampires are seen as erotic seducters. To me, they are simply superhuge leeches or humanoid mosquitoes. So when Zero takes a bite out of Yuki's neck, I feel a bit of revulsion and disgust, not gothic romanticism. I mean, in the end, vampires cannot live without sucking the life essence out of a human. But I guess humans aren't any different. We have to eat other life for us to have life. It's just meat and vegetables instead of blood. So I'm not into the current fad of urban vampire/werewolf/female detective/student novels/manga. But I do appreciate the characters in Vampire Knight. Sure, it can sink into melodrama at times, almost like a higher stakes Peach Girl, but Zero, Yuki, and Kaname, rise above the material. It also helps that Matsuri Hino is surprisingly adept during action sequences. It makes for quite an intriguing series. I am very curious to see how it all works out and if it has a happy ending.

My Grade: B+

Listen to my podcast of Volume 1:

http://sesho.libsyn.com/index.php?post_id=385148

Podcast manga review of Afro Samurai Volume 1 by Takashi Okazaki. Translated by Greg Moore. Adapted by Joshua Fialkov. Published by Seven Seas, $10.99, Rated OT Ages 16+.

When Afro Samurai was a young child, he witnessed the death of his father, known simply as "Number 1", a swordsman, get brutally killed by "Number 2", a mysterious gunfighter. What these numbers siginify are the ranks of the fighters. So, if you wear the Number 1 headband, it signifies that you are the deadliest warrior in the world. Over the years, a number of legends have sprung up around the Number 1 headband. For example, whoever wears it will rule the world, or the tale that it grants immortality. Nobody knows if any of this or none of it is true. But it doesn't stop people from coveting it anyway. Since then, Afro Samurai has grown into a brutally remorseless warrior, working his way up to Number 2. He now wants to take down Number 1. It has nothing to do with the power he would gain if he wins. It has to do with simple revenge. He wants to kill the guy that killed his father. But the problem when you are wearing one of the top headbands is that you always have those who want your spot. Afro has the additional complication of being a wanted man. A group of underworld kingpins, known as "The Empty Seven", have put out a contract on Afro because some of their number believe that even the Number 2 headband has some sort of divine power.

My Grade: B+

Official website: www.afrosamurai.com

You can download the entire first season from Funimation for $9.95

Podcast manga review of Dokkoida Volume 1 by Yu Yagami (Those Who Hunt Elves). Original Story by Taro Achi. Translated and adapted by Sheldon Drzka. Originally published in Japan by Media Works. Published in US by CMX, $9.99, Rated T+.

Space alien Tanpopo (who looks like a 10-year-old human girl) has  come to Earth to find a test subject for the Dokkoida Transformation Belt. It was made by a famous toy company called Otankonasu in hopes of landing a lucrative contract with the Galaxy Federation police force to mass produce the suits. Tanpopo enlists unemployed Suzuo to test the suit out. How will it be tested? The Galaxy Federation has let some of its most dangerous criminals loose on Earth to test the effectiveness of the suit. If they can defeat Dokkoida in battle and unmask him, their criminal records will be wiped clean. So, let's just say they are highly motivated. Suzuo also has to compete with Neruloid Girl, another superhero testing a suit for the Emerald Company, who is also vying for the police contract. The Federation has also taken the extremely comedic step of housing the heroes and the villains in the same apartment building! Of course, the characters in Dokkoida are so clueless that they never make the connection between the people they see in normal life every day and the enemies they fight while in costume. Very funny book.

My Grade: A

If you're a fan of Azumanga, you have to check this out. It's a compilation of some great music videos and user generated animation. It goes through many different types of music and skits. The full running time is around 10 minutes and is really funny.

 

Podcast manga review for Blank Slate Volume 1 by Aya Kanno (Soul Rescue). Translated by John Werry. Adapted by Carla Sinclair. Originally published in Japan by Hakusensha. Published in US by Viz Shojo Beat, $8.99, Rated T+ for Older Teens.

Zen has no memories of the past 20 years. All he knows is that he woke up and began to hear a voice in his head that urged him to kill, rob, and commit evil. He followed the commands of that voice and has become the most wanted criminal in Amata. The country of Amata was invaded by Galay 20 years ago and a war ensued that took a number of Amatan lives. Even after two decades, the Galayans have refused to leave the country. Instead, they have imposed their own ultra law and order morality upon the occupied populace. According to the propaganda, Amata is prospering under their rule, but under the surface, there is an Amatan resistance gaining more and more momentum. The biggest thorn in the Galayan side is not the strengthening insurgency, but the fact that Zen has not been captured or killed. To some people, Zen is becoming a sort of folk hero, someone who is unwilling to bend his knee and accept the Galayan occupiers.

My Grade: F

Podcast manga review of Castlevania: Curse of Darkness Volume 1 by Kou Sasakura. Translated by Ray Yoshimoto. Adapted by Jeremy Black. Originally published in Japan by Media Factory. Published in US by Tokyopop, $9.99, Rated T for Ages 13+.

Count Dracula's demon army has swallowed up the land of Walachia in 15th century Europe and is poised to invade the rest of the continent. A vast army was sent to Walachia by the Eastern Orthodox Church several months ago but none of the soldiers ever returned alive. Only a noble named Lord Belmont, a self-styled vampire slayer, has shown any backbone or skill in fighting Dracula's armies. Hoping to dispense of humanity's last hope, Dracula sends one of his two trusted generals, a demon alchemist named Hector, to kill Belmont. Somehow Hector ended up being found half-dead on the side of a road by a nun named Rosalee who has been nursing him back to health. Dracula sends his other general, Isaac, to find out Hector's fate. A young boy named Ted gets caught up in the story when a werewolf on Hector's trail comes to visit his village.

My Grade: B+

Podcast manga review of Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle Volume 1 by Clamp. Translated and adapted by Anthony Gerard. Originally published in Japan by Kodansha. Published in US by Del Rey, $10.95, Rated T ages 13+.

Sakura and Sayaoran live in the land of Clow and are currently in love, even though neither has directly stated it to the other. They also don't get to spend too much time together. Sayaoran is too busy helping in the excavation of some buried ruins, while Sakura, the princess of Clow, has very little freedom of movement.Even though she doesn't know it, Sakura is a very special girl. She has the ability to bend space and time and there is a mysterious villain that wants to kidnap her for his own nefarious reasons. Luckily, Sayaoran is able to save her, but in the process, Sakura loses her memory.Sayaoran is sent to Yuko, the mysterious wish granter from xxxHolic, to get help. He soon finds he is not the only one seeking her help. Kurogane is a ninja from Japan who was banished from his dimension by his princess that had grown weary of his ego and bloodlust. His wish is to go home. Fai, a wizard from Seresu also shows up, his goal the opposite of Kurogane's. He NEVER wants to go home. Yuko tells them that their wishes can only be realized if they work together.

My Grade: B+

Well, I had originally planned to do a review for Negima Volume 3 and got the review completely entered, but for some reason, the second paragraph got deleted.  I don't rewrite things. So I deleted what was already on the site. I did give it a B+.

Now, for your viewing pleasure, the closing montage from Five Centimeters Per Second, one of the greatest anime I have ever seen. Seriously, if you like a good love story, check out this film.

Hear my podcast review at this link:

http://sesho.libsyn.com/index.php?post_id=337878

I just added my XBOX 360 gamertag to my webpage. Surprise, its "Sesho"! Can you believe it? I have a ton of 360 games but I only play a few of them at any one time. Lately, I've been playing COD 4 and SoulCalibur 4 and I play a lot of Arcade games.  I've been meaning to review the excellent 360 Naruto: Rise of a Ninja game for some time now. It's just beautiful-looking. And the cool thing is that the actors in the anime do the voices for the game. You can hear the Japanese audio track too, if you're like me and hate the dub. When you are playing it feels you like you are really there in the Leaf Village. Plus, all the music from the anime is there as well. Awesome, Awesome, Awesome.

Anyway, if you ever want to play a game, send me an invite or a friend request. But when you do, tell me or write me that you know me from my show or site. I don't add just anyone. But if you listen to my show, you must be pretty cool. Even though I'm not.

Oh yeah, just to clear something up. Yes, my name comes from Inuyasha's brother, Sessho-Maru, and YES, I know it's spelled wrong. When I first registered my XBOX 360 gamertag back in 2006, Sessho was already taken, so I just modified the spelling. So that is where the Sesho name started and I liked it, so I used it as my nickname on my website as well. But over the past year, many people pointed out to me that Sesho was misspelled. This is just to let you know that I am not slow.

Manga Review of Arm of Kannon Volume 2 by Masakazu Yamaguchi. Translated by Takae Brewer. Adapted by Jordan Capell. Originally published in Japan by Gentosha. Published in US by Tokyopop, $9.99, Rated Mature 18+.

Mao and Maya have escaped from the clutches of the Garama Industries facility and are hiding in the nearby forest. Unfortunately for them, Garama has been doing all kinds of weird genetic experiments on animals and humans for years and some of these mutated lifeforms are crawling around the surrounding woods. The siblings have a lot of people looking for them. First, there is the swordsman from Isurugi Temple, who tried unsuccessfully to prevent the Arm of Kannon from taking over Mao in Volume 1. It is not known whether he can exorcise the evil from Mao or whether it is now his intent to kill the host body. Garama has called on a group known as Manma, who are imbued with supernatural powers no normal human can hope to defeat...oh, and did I mention that the members of Manma are almost evil incarnate? How evil, you ask? Well, in one scene, they force a husband to watch his wife being raped and then killed. What makes it even worse is that it's his decapitated head watching it all, somehow kept alive with black magic. Another group interested in catching up to Mao, who appear to be on the side of good, is C.I.R.O., or the Cabinet Information Research Office. They work for the government and have been taking an increasing interest in Garama activities. They have special powers as well, but based more on sci-fi than magic. Of course, with all these various factions vying to catch Mao, conflict is sure to ensue, and does.

The thing I like about Arm of Kannon is its logical realism that follows comic book cartoon violence and good versus evil to its appropriate end. What I mean is that the "bad guys" do really bad, really evil things and don't just seem like glamorized versions of Dr. Evil. No matter what the Joker does in a Batman comic, it is still sanitized for a young audience. Even the worst comic book villain hardly ever comes close to real monsters like Adolf Hitler or even the fictionalized evils of a writer like Stephen King. But the fact that Yamaguchi is writing for a mature audience allows him to portray some very vile acts and imagery that make you feel horror, an emotion that most writers, artists, and filmmakers, have lost touch with. And the crazy thing is that he does this in the midst of a shonen like battle atmosphere. The art has a creepy 1980s style to it combined with the slightly enlongated designs of CLAMP with a dark and strongly erotic tone. Yes, this title is about sex and action and violence, both graphic and more subtle. So if any one of those things frightens you, stay away. This is definitely not a series you want lying around on shelves that kids can reach.

My Grade: A+

Listen to my podcast review of Volume 1:

http://sesho.libsyn.com/index.php?post_id=358190

Manga review of Eden Volume 4 by Hiroki Endo. Translated by Kumar Sivasubramanian. Originally published in Japan by Kodansha. Published in US by Dark Horse, $12.95, Rated 18+ for Mature Readers.

As Khan and what's left of his crew along with Elijah and Helena try to escape from the clutches of Propater controlled territory, Hiroki Endo takes a little time to bring the deadly knife master Kenji to the forefront, which comes off as a masterful move. Up until now, Kenji has been a strong but silent killer who slaughters even Propater's superhuman genetically modified monsters with relative ease. But Endo reveals Kenji's past with such richness and masterful storytelling that he could have easily been the main character of this series.

It's one thing to "design" iconic characters but quite another to give them a background and hidden life that lives up to the surface coolness and fireworks. As always, the art on display here is some of the greatest I've ever seen in a manga. The writing can be a tad suspect when it tries to delve too shallowly in philosophy but that's ok. I'd rather see an attempt at addressing the big issues of life than no attempt at all. That overreaching writing and beautiful art is what makes Eden one of the greatest manga series ever produced.

My Grade: A+

Manga review of Eden Volume 3 by Hiroki Endo. Translated by Kumar Sivasubramanian. Originally published in Japan by Kodansha. Published in US by Dark Horse, $12.95, Rated 18+ for Mature Readers.

Colonel Kahn and his crew of deadly freedom fighters are surrounded by attacking Propater forces and it's just a matter of time before they move in for the kill. But his soldiers, along with Elijah, Cherubim, Kachua, and Helena, have had plenty of time to prepare the battleground among the ancient Indian ruins. The whole volume is really just a depiction of one battle but the drama contained therein and the insight we get into the character's pasts and motivations make it as riveting as the opening minutes of the D-Day assault in Saving Private Ryan.

Hiroki Endo is playing for keeps in this masterpiece of a manga that has deep connections to the core of human existence. Lots of characters have died in this manga, and many more will in this and future volumes, but that's what happens in war. The coup that Endo pulls off is making us care about these characters, even if all the story isn't out there yet. We don't really have all the details about what the fight is about yet, but I get the feeling that this manga will only get better. The art is EXQUISITE and ranks as some of the best comic art I've ever seen this side of Akira. The characterization, the panel layout and action, the dialogue, all at the levels of genius. I cannot praise Eden enough. One of the best manga out there. Buy it!

My Grade: A+ 

Manga review of Eden Volume 2 by Hiroki Endo. Translated by Kumar Sivasubramanian. Originally published by Kodansha in Japan. Published in US by Dark Horse, $12.95, Rated 18+ for Mature Readers.

The first volume of Eden was a little ambiguous in terms of setting and the reasons why Elijah was in the middle of nowhere with the human-like security robot Cherubim. He was taken captive by a group of fighters led by Colonel Kahn who wanted to use his vehicle to get out of Propater controlled territory. As it turns out in this second volume, most of South America is a battleground between Propater and the United Nations and various assorted warlords, drug kingpins, and bandits. It's pretty much like the Wild West where the person with the most firepower usually wins an argument. When Colonel Kahn's group wipes out a bandit emplacement, they unwittingly pick up two new members, Kachua and Helena, two women who were going to be sex slaves for the competing armies on the frontlines. The problem is that Kahn and the others don't like loose ends or baggage, so they might end up dead anyway, unless Elijah can save them. And Propater soldiers are hot on their tail!

I think Eden is great. The art is perfectly rendered and beautiful, beyond anything Western comic book artists are doing. Hiroki Endo captures the complexity of human beings, especially in their out-loud thinking sililoquies on the state of the world one minute showing gentleness and caring and then the next slicing through an enemies neck with blood bursting all over the place. That's really what Eden is all about, terrible moments of battle and violence and then, in the quiet afterwards, the battle between staying human or becoming a mindless killing machine. Cherubim doesn't have a choice at this point, he can simply be programmed to murder, but the humans have a choice.  I look forward to great things from this series.

My Grade: A+

 

I had to put the first episode of the Naruto anime which is based on one of my favorite manga. This is in Japanese with English subtitles and uncut. Enjoy!

This is pretty hilarious. A Japanese TV show has the real L'Arc En Ciel on and decides to do some skits based on the band's true life secrets. The first one concerns Hyde's reputation as a crybaby and the second parodies a meeting in which the band tries to name tour merchandise. Subtitled in English. The skits start at about the one minute mark.

Well, so I guess this is my first video I've added to the site. This is the first episode of Death Note from Hulu.com and is completely legal...that's why there are commercials in the video. It seems to be a cool site where you get anime and live action episodes for free. So, anyway, here we are...

Podcast manga review of Vampire Knight Volume 1 by Matsuri Hino. Translated and adapted by Tomo Kimura. Originally published in Japan by Hakusensha. Published in US by Viz Shojo Beat, $8.99, Rated T+ Older Teen.

Cross Academy, an elite boarding school, holds a hidden secret. Namely, at night it is attended by young and beautiful vampires. I'm not just talking bishojo, I'm talking girl fantasy bishonen as well. Since this book is shojo, there is a heavier focus on the guys. The students that attend class during the day are human and have no idea that the Night Class is composed of vampires. And it's the job of Yuki Cross and Zero Kiryu, acting members of the Disciplinary Committee, to keep it that way. They're also there to keep the vampires in line with their Bloody Rose pistols, which are harmless to humans, but dangerous to vampires. Yuki is indebted to the Night Class president, Kaname Kuran, because he saved her from a hungry vampire 10 years ago. She might even be in love with him. Kaname seems to show a special interest in her as well, which drives Zero up the wall. Zero doesn't have much love for vampires because their hated race killed his parents 4 years ago, not to mention the fact that he might have a crush on Yuki as well.

My Grade: B+

Good news for anime fans, both subbed and dubbed. Two online video services have announced free streaming anime episodes, completely legal and on the up and up.

First there is www.hulu.com which is featuring the following series:

1) Naruto Episodes 1-20 (English subtitled)

2) Death Note Episodes 1-37 (English subtitled)

3) Mushi-Shi Episodes 1-12 (English dubbed)

In addition they have episodes of Speed Racer and Astro Boy. They promise that they will be adding more series in the near future. Here is the direct link to their anime page:

http://www.hulu.com/channels/Animation-and-Cartoons/Anime

 

The other site launching free anime today is Joost.com which is featuring the same Naruto, Death Note, and Astro Boy episodes as Hulu, plus these other series:

1)Blue Dragon, Zatch Bell, and Mar (all dubbed)

2)Cosmo Warrior Zero

3)Gun Frontier

4) Ikki Tousen

Here is the link to their anime page:

http://www.joost.com/epg/shows/animation/anime/o/1/

Of the two sites, Hulu seems to be much more user friendly and is very easy to find shows and does not require registration unless you want to share it with a friend. From what I see so far of Joost, the site does not have a very good index and makes you waste time browsing to find shows. But who cares, these shows are free to watch and fully authorized by their publishers, so enjoy!

 

Podcast manga review of Goth. Story by Otsuichi and based on his novel. Art by Kendi Oiwa. Translated by Lori Riser. Adapted by Anthony C. Andora. Originally published in Japan by Kadokawa Shoten. Published in US by Tokyopop, $10.99, Rated Mature 18+.

Itsuki Kamiyama is a high school student that has always been a bit weird, if not dangerous, but he's been able to conceal his true nature with a fake smile and a charming personality. It's his inner life that is pretty twisted. Lately, he's been following the infamous wrist-cut case, a tabloidesque series of mutilations in which a psycho has been cutting off the hands of what appear to be random victims. The person is so crazy that even animals are not safe. Itsuki admires the wrist-cut perpetrator and even secretly longs to have some hands himself. Actually, he wants the hands of one girl in particular: Yoru Morino, a girl who is infamous throughout the school for having scar marks on her wrists. Things get even weirder when Itsuki begins to suspect that one of his teachers might be the wrist-cut case perp. This is only the first of four cases that Ituski and Yoru get involved in.

My Grade: B-

Manga Review of Rave Master Volume 2 by Hiro Mashima. Translated by Amy Forsyth. Adapted by James Lucas Jones. Originally published by Kodansha in Japan. Published in US by Tokyopop, $9.99, Rated Y for Youth Ages 10+.

Haru, along with Plue, has sailed to the main continent of Song after spending most of his young life living a carefree existence. Now he is the Rave Master, the only person that can defeat the evil Demon Card organization with its Dark Bring users. But before he can start an offensive against them, Haru must repair the 10 Powers Sword after breaking it in battle last volume. The only craftsman capable of fixing it is the legendary blacksmith named Musica. Their main problem is that they have no idea where to find him. The first city they reach is Hip Hop Town, which is controlled by Demon Card. It's easy to get into the city but you can't leave unless you pay Demon Card a high fine. In other words, the city is like a prison, and you have to bribe your way out of it. It doesn't take long for Haru to get into a jam when Plue is kidnapped and entered into a dog race run by Georco, the main rep of Demon Card in Hip Hop Town. While trying to rescue Plue, Haru makes a new friend, a girl named Elie, who bets all of her money on the most unlikely candidate to win a dog race....Plue!

The main thing that stuck out about this second volume of Rave Master was the wickedly awful job James Lucas Jones did with the English adaptation. There was just too much ghetto eubonic rapper language spread throughout this book. Haru's favorite phrase seems to be "Aw, Snap!". "Dawg" gets used way too much, "Ain't no thang" makes an appearance, and "You goin down" and other phrases bring "down" the language even worse. Of course, I've listed only a few phrases. Oddly enough, a 1950s "Daddy-o" even slips in. Even the backstory and preview page are written in horribly rhymed rap lyrics capped off by a "Word to your mother!". Oh my Lord, the attempt at appealing to street culture comes off as so pathetically bad. This language was cliched and goofy even back in 2003 when this book was first printed. It's even goofier now. The funny thing about Rave Master is that it uses  musical terminology heavily without being in the least about music. None of the characters introduced so far play an instrument or sing. So I'm wondering why there is so much emphasis on musical words without music being an important part of the story. In fact, it's non existent. If you can get past the bad English, Volume 2 is a bit more entertaining that the first volume, and also a bit funnier. Elie seems like she's going to be an interesting character. In fact, the oveall characterization seems a bit better than such a book deserves. I checked out the first two volumes of this series from my local library. I can read these books but Rave Master isn't good enough to spend money on...at least so far.

My Grade: C

Manga Review of Zombie Powder Volume 2 by Tite Kubo, creator of Bleach. Translated by Akira Watanabe. Originally published in Japan by Shueisha. Published in US by Viz Shonen Jump, $7.99, Rated T+ for Older Teen.

Volume 2 opens with the aftermath of Gamma's battle and ultimate defeat of Ranewater Calder, the leader of the Ash Daughter Bandits, and owner of a Ring of the Dead. Calder left Gamma and the others a present before he died, namely of rigging the entire hideout to explode skyhigh! Then it's on to the town of Alcantara, where rumor is that a Ring of the Dead is housed at the local hospital. Of course, Gamma isn't the only person interested in finding the Ring. A powerful super villain named Balmunk the Mystic arrives on the scene to look for it, sporting magical abilities that let him go toe to toe with Gamma's armor encased limb. Adding to the mix is a crusading investigative reporter named Wolfina Getto who feels it his her duty to protect the hospital from Balmunk. She is a champion of justice, but she also wants to protect her comatose brother, who is housed there.

While not as polished or as funny as Bleach can somtimes be, White Powder is nonetheless an interesting and entertaining debut work from Tite Kubo. Wolfina has quickly become one of my favorite characters with her personality stolen from Captain America and boobs supplied by Dolly Parton. She also serves as good comic relief. The art style is nothing new to fans of Bleach even though the character designs are a bit boring in this series. Kubo makes up for this with excellent panel layout and carefully choreographed action sequences. This volume also includes Kubo's very first attempt at writing and drawing a manga, called "Ultra Unholy Hearted Machine". It concerns a mercenary hitman, uncleverly called a "deleter",  and his android TinaTina (a young female right out of the 1980s) who are hired to take down a major drug cartel. That's about all I can tell you about Unholy since it was so dreadful, I didn't make it past the first few pages. One interesting thing about it was the art, which was much more generic and lacked the characteristic Kubo look.   

My Grade: B

Podcast anime dvd review of Emma: A Victorian Romance Season 1, Episodes 1-3. Directed by Tsuneo Kobayashi. Written by Mamiko Ikeda. Box Set published by Right Stuf, List Price: $49.99.

Emma is a maid in the household of ex-governess Kelly Stoner where she keeps the house spic and span and runs errands for her mistress. It's not a hard life but it's not a good life either. Her room is in the attic and it's pretty spartan. She has a bed and a dresser. That's it. She's beginning to want more. Enter William Jones, the heir of a rich merchant family that was raised by Mrs. Stoner and has to come to pay a visit on his old governess. He's instantly attracted to Emma and begins to court her, even though he would never admit that is what he is doing. After all, his parents want him to marry some noblewoman to bring prestige to their business, not a poor maid! Hakim, an Indian prince and friend of William, arrives on the scene looking for a wife and he also sets his sights on Emma. Uh Oh! A love triangle develops...or actually a quadrangle, because there is a young noblewoman named Eleanor Campbell who is in love with William as well.

My Grade: B

Podcast Manga Review of Rave Master Volume 1 by Hiro Mashima. Translated by Amy Forsyth. Adapted by James Lucas Jones. Originally published in Japan by Kodansha. Published in US by Tokyopop, $9.99, Rated Y for Youth 10+.

There is a war raging on the continent of Song, but Haru and Cattleya Glory know very little about it, living on isolated Garage Island. The brother and sister have been on their own for the past 10 years after the death of their mother and the disapperance of their father 5 years before that. The war is being waged by Demon Card, an organization in control of the Dark Bring, a demon stone wielding the power of darkness. The only force that can oppose it is Rave, a sacred stone imbued with the powers of good. But it needs a new wielder. Could Haru be the new Rave Master?

My Grade: C+

Manga Review of The Law of Ueki Volume 10 by Tsubasa Fukuchi. Translated and adapted by Kenichiro Yagi. Originally published in Japan by Shogakukan. Published in US by Viz, $9.99, Rated T for Teen.

After battling their guts out for 9 volumes, imagine the surprise of Ueki and pals when they find out that their battles were just the FIRST round of the Celestial King Tournament! Something that is different in the second round is that the fighters can form teams of up to 5 people. It goes without saying that Ueki's team consists of himself, Rinko, Seiichiro, and Mori. So all that's left to do is find a fifth member. Rinko remembers hearing of a fearsome combatant named Hideyoshi Soya. The only solid info she can give is that anybody that ever fought against him never wanted to go through the experience twice...oh, and that Soya looks like a gorilla. When they finally do meet him, Ueki and company find out that they are not the only team looking to add Soya. Another team, led by a thug champion named Zack wants Soya on HIS team. Unfortunately for both Ueki and Zack, Soya has decided to set this round out and has no interest in fighting. During this recruitment period leading up to the second round, king candidate champions are allowed to fight each other without penalty. So, technically, you can force someone to join your team...after you beat the snot out of them!

I've always enjoyed the wacky nature of this series, with all its dementedly sad super powers, but Volume 10 takes ridiculousness to a new height. For example, one of Zack's goons has the "power to turn beautiful hair into a drill" while another has the the "power to turn rubber balls into acid". I don't want to tell too many of the powers since finding out what they are is half the fun of The Law of Ueki. The character designs are as over the top and gaudy as the powers they wield. Zack, instead of looking the part of the evil villain, looks like someone pressed his head into a point, pulled and extended his eyebrows, and played makeup doll with him. I still enjoyed this volume but it goes a little too far sometimes in terms of goofiness. It is written as a semi-parody of shonen battle manga instead of trying to lay claim to that already cluttered genre. As long as Ueki continues to battle for justice, I will continue to read this series. Just make sure you don't take it too seriously.

My Grade: B-

Well, I went to sleep last night around 11pm and thought I might not even wake up when Ike came through. Boy, was I wrong! I woke up around 5am with no power and the sound of cyclonic winds hitting my apartment. I've never been through a tornado but the winds were so strong and so loud that I quickly got all of my stuff like flashlights, radio, and batteries into the bathroom. I called my brother and mother and learned that this had been going on since around 2am, so it was nothing new to them. So when I figured out I wasn't going to die right at that moment I felt a little relief. But not much. I laid down on the floor away from the window (which I had barricaded with boxes of books) and tried to get some rest. But it's kinda hard when you're listening to a radio which is declaring that your city hasn't even seen the worst of the storm yet.

It was pretty harrowing to sit in the dark and hear just all kinds of weird and unsettling noises like trees splitting, windows shattering, and then you hear the weird ghost sound of something rolling back and forth on top of your roof. And this wasn't a flat roof either. It was sloped and something kept rolling back and forth, back and forth. Who the hell knows what it was. I don't really say "I'm scared" but early this morning I have to admit I was. The last hurricane that hit Houston full blast occurred back in 1983 and I was here for it, but I was a kid and I didn't remember much about it. The really scary thing is that Ike was only a Category 2 storm. I can't even comprehend the damage it would have done if it was a Category 5.

With the sunrise, you could really get a sense of the devastation of the storm. My apartment was fine (I had a little water drip from the ceiling), except no power and no running water. But some of the other apartments in my complex suffered a lot of damage. Chimneys had fallen over, entire walls had been ripped off, windows had been shattered. The worst damage was to the roofs. The parking lots and walkways are covered with shingles that blew off during the night. I think the last estimate was something like 3 or 4 million people had no power in the Houston area. Cities closer to the coast suffered even more severe damage.

Now I'm at my mom's place. She's the only one among my friends and family that has power and running water. And I've talked to many people in different areas of the city. My workplace has been closed since Friday and is also going to be shut down on Monday. Who knows when I'll get power and water back. But you know what? I count myself lucky. Because a lot of people have lost houses, cars, valuables, and sometimes even their lives. What is my minor inconvenience compared to that?

I did manage to read a little manga today on my patio. It kinda helped my get my mind off things. So hopefully, I'll be posting a review later on tonight. Text only, mind you. I didn't bring my microphone.

Podcast manga review of xxxHolic Volume 1 by CLAMP. Translated and adapted by Anthony Gerard. Originally published in Japan by Kodansha. Published in US by Del Rey, $10.95, Rated Teen 13+.

Kimihiro Watanuki has always been able to see spirits that regular humans can't see. Unfortunately, the spirits can see him as well, and are always annoying him. For some reason they are drawn to his blood like moths to a flame. Sometimes Watanuki can't even walk down the street without being crushed by gigantic amorphous spirits. But there's hope for him yet when he meets Yuko Ichihara, a time space witch that can fulfill his desire to be rid of his power forever. Yuko runs a shop that specializes in granting wishes. But nothing in life is free. In return for the wish you must give Yuko something of great personal value. If the exchange is not even, the laws of the universe are upset and those involved will suffer great calamities. In other words, the more difficult your wish, the more sacrifice you will have to endure. What Watanuki is going to have to give up is his time. Yuko demands that he will have to work part-time at her shop, mostly doing menial work like cleaning, until he has paid off his wish debt. Of course, Watanuki becomes more involved in the business end of Yuko's shop than he wants.

My Grade:A-

Podcast manga review of Zombie Powder Volume 1 by Tite Kubo. Translated by Akira Watanabe. Originally published by Shueisha in Japan. Published in US by Viz Shonen Jump, $7.99, Rated Older Teen.

Zombie Powder was the debut work of Tite Kubo, the artist and writer of Bleach. Gamma Akutabi is a mysterious swordsman with an armor clad right arm that gives him superhuman abilities. He's killed a lot of people in his quest for the Rings of the Dead. If he collects twelve Rings he will be able to create Zombie Powder, a substance that can raise the dead or give the living immortality. Of course, he's not the only one searching for such power. It seems like a lot of the Rings are in the possession of armed gangs who are willing to shoot anyone in search of them. A young teen named Elwood works for one of these gangs called the Grey Ants, run by a powerful thug named Kinqro. Elwood is a good kid. He only works for the gang to make money to pay for his sister's heart operation. But his plans go awry pretty fast when he gets caught in the fight between Kinqro and Gamma.

My Grade: B+

Podcast anime dvd review of Black Blood Brothers Volume 1, published by Funimation. Episodes 1-4. Directed by Hiroaki Yoshikawa. Series Composition by Yuu Sugitani. List Price: $29.98.

10 years ago there was a great war in which humans and vampires teamed up to battle the Kowloon Children, a vampire bloodline that can infect and turn humans with just one bite. The normal vampires in this series seem to only use humans as food sources and very rarely if ever kill their victims. In fact, it appears that the only way humans can be turned into vampires is through directly swallowing vampire blood. There is still a lot of tension and suspicion between the Black Bloods (vampires) and the Red Bloods (humans) but a city called The Special Zone is seen as a model of human and vampire cohabitation. A vampire named Jiro and his brother Kotaro are headed towards the Special Zone but get caught up in a hunt for illegal vampire refugees. The Zone leaders and military are afraid that some Kowloon children are mixed in with the vampires and are sent to kill all of them. Of course, Jiro isn't about to sit by and let his beloved brother get executed.

My Grade: B+

You can watch the first two episodes for free at:

http://www.funimation.com/blackbloodbrothers/

You can also download the entire series at $1.99 per episode at the Funmation website.

Manga Review of GTO: Great Teacher Onizuka Volume 9 by Tohru Fujisawa (creator of Rose Hip Zero, Rose Hip Rose, GTO: The Early Years, and Tokko).  Translated and adapted by Dan Papia. Originally published in Japan by Kodansha. Published in US by Tokyopop, $9.99, Rated Older Teen 16+.

Ruraka is still trying to avoid the fated prophecy of her dreams in which GTO became her true love. She and her friends were willing to do anything to break the charm, including using black magic cookies to poison Onizuka. They finally have the last ingredient: GTO's pubic hair! Now they intend to cook up some cursed cookies, but how are they gonna get GTO to eat them? Azusa has some problems of her own as she begins to garner more and more attention from her male students. They think she is very cute and are basically willing to become her lapdogs in order to curry favor. This doesn't sit too well with the female students and their jealousy soon turns to rage as they begin to pull all sorts of pranks meant to hurt Asuza. And don't think that after nine volumes, GTO has made peace with all of his students. Miyabi and her pals are still deadset on getting him fired and blackmail another teacher in order to get his aid in their quest.

As always, GTO piles on the humor but also touches on some important issues in education. One of the main themes hit upon in this volume is the lack of a significant age gap in young teachers that are starting their careers in high school. Basically, the closer you are in age to your students, the harder it is for them to respect you as an authority figure. It's probably not a good idea for a young 22-year-old teacher straight out of college to begin their career as a high school instructor. Especially if you're a pretty woman or a handsome guy. It brings all kinds of weird factors into play as seen in GTO. Students can sometimes see you as a romantic interest since you are so close in age. Azusa made no moves on any of the guys in her class. Not in the slightest. It just comes naturally to guys to treat pretty women with more kindness than ugly ones. It's just something in the hormones I guess. Probably everybody male or female had a teacher sometime in their school career that was so good looking or pretty that everyone wanted to be in their class simply to be around them. It doesn't help that Azusa is a very kind person and seems a bit helpless. Again, it plays on the male chivalry gene. Fujisawa's art is sparkling and masterful as always and the humor is deadon hilarious.

My Grade: A+

 

Manga Review of Hikaru No Go Volume 10: "Lifeline". Story by Yumi Hotta. Art by Takeshi Obata (Death Note). Supervised by Yukari Umezawa (5 Dan). Translated and adapted by Andy Nakatani. Originally published in Japan by Shueisha. Published in US by Viz under their Shonen Jump imprint, $7.95, Rated A for All Ages.  

Hikaru just barely managed to survive the prelims of the pro test, not because he lacked the skill but because he lacked experience playing against adults. His playing has been pretty insular in terms of variety. He had only really been playing against the formal and quite dry styles of his Go study group. So when he went up against a maverick like Tsubaki he became quite rattled and let what were simply eccentric mannerisms ruin his concentration. But he's gained a ton of confidence after Waya and Isumi took him around to different Go salons last volume. Meanwhile, Akira Toya, still feeling the fear of being beat by Shindo at the beginning of this series, wants to find out just how far his rival has progressed. To do this he wants to set up a teaching match with Ochi. What he wants to do is teach Ochi to use his own style of play so when Ochi plays against Shindo, Toya will be able to tell how his own strategies would work. Unfortunately, Ochi doesn't want to be Toya's lab rat and refuses to accept his help. While he helped Shindo in volume 9, Isumi is currently the one that is suffering from a crisis of confidence and begins to lose games after being spooked by Shindo's newfound skill.

I'm still amazed after reading 10 volumes of this series that I still have interest in a book that is simply about playing Go! I mean, would I feel the same if someone wrote a manga about Monopoly? Weirdly enough, if the right Japanese artist and writer were doing it, I would probably give it at least a chance. I don't think a comic like Hikaru No Go could be done by an American comic book dude or dudette. I think the very foreignness of the concept is what attracts me to Hikaru No Go. The very oddity that a game could be taken so deadly serious that people become professional Go players. But really, I guess it's no different than people becoming professional baseball players or some other sport which is just a child's game really. The art by Death Note's Takeshi Obata is spot on as usual and he manages to convey a Rocky-like physicality and dramatic flourish to a game that is essentially an intellectual cat and mouse endeavour. Sorta like Death Note. I question sometimes whether I will get sick of this title. Then I find myself answering with a definite no. At least as long as Shindo and his friends don't develop superpowers and start swordfighting with demons.

My Grade: B

Manga review of Tetragrammaton Labyrinth Volume 3 by Ei Itou. Translated by Kenji Komiya. Adapted by Shannon Fay. Originally published in Japan by Wani Books. Published in US by Seven Seas under their Strawberry yuri imprint, $11.99, Rated Older Teen 16+.

As Meg and Ann continue their mission to Germany by train, we flashback many years ago when Meg and Ann first met in Nepal. At that time Meg was just a child and traveled with her father, a missionary preacher set on seeking out unbelievers to convert them to Christianity. His wanderings had taken him to Katmandu in Nepal where Ann is being worshipped as the earthly incarnation of a local goddess. Unknown to him, some of the natives had begun to grow resentful of his presence and felt threatened by his new religion. Some of the angriest decided to take matters into their own hands and deliberately sabotaged a tall wooden pillar so that it fell and critically wounded Meg. When he learned what really happened, he snapped, completely lost his faith in God, and sought out a darker power to save his daughter and take revenge. Coming back to the present, Meg and Ann are attacked on the train by Prelati, the high ranking demon that showed up last volume, and this time he isn't alone. Thankfully, neither are Meg and Ann as some old acquaintances show up to give them aid and new weapons.

First up, this manga should definitely be rated Mature 18+ because it has some pretty graphic violence. There are scenes of dismemberment and even bodies torn in half with their guts hanging out. Even though the title is marketed by Seven Seas as yuri, it has practically no girl on girl entanglements or romance. So if you're into that sort of thing exclusively, you should probably skip this book. The relationship between Meg and Ann is one of friendship. Very intense friendship, but not romantic. Both girls need each other not because they lust for each other, but because they need companionship. In the last volume, Meg was complaining that there were no "normal" people in the organization that they work for and Ann had to put her in check by replying that Meg herself was not normal. The true extent of that statement is fully revealed in this third installment. The fact is that the two girls cling to each other because each is a bulwark against solitude and loneliness. Tetragrammaton Labyrinth's style is more like that of Bleach or Chrono Crusade without as much humor and a better feel for horror. In fact, the author acknowledges his debt to Crusade and even recounts a conversation he had with the creator of that series, Daisuke Moriyama, and got his ok that his own work wasn't a ripoff. Moriyama even contributes a drawing of Ann for this volume. While I enjoyed the first half of Volume 3, the second half has me worried. When two characters from previous volumes show up to help Ann and Meg, it almost plays out like an American superhero comic, and the work suffers for it because it loses its hardwon sense of creepiness. Hopefully, volume 4 will get the series back on track.

My Grade: B+

Podcast Episode 125: Manga Review of Sola Volume 1. Art by Chaco Abeno. Story by Naoki Hisaya. Character Designs by Naru Nanao. Translated by Azusa Hatori. Adapted by Jan Suzukawa. Originally published in Japan by Media Works. Published in US by Broccoli Books, $10.99, Rated 13+.

Yorito Moriyama, a 15-year-old orphan, doesn't have the ideal life. His parents are dead and his older sister, Aono, is hospitalized with an unknown sickness. So he pretty much has to look after himself and make sure he keeps his sister's spirits up. While his life to some onlookers might seem a bit tragic, he seems to deal with the responsibility pretty well. Things turn a little weird when he meets Matsuri Shihou, a girl who looks Yorito's age, but is really a Yaka, an immortal being. She is actually about 350 years old. Hot on her trail is a swordsman named Takeshi, who wants to kill her and use her blood.

My Grade: B+

Manga Review of GTO: Great Teacher Onizuka Volume 8 by Tohru Fujisawa. Translated and adapted by Dan Papia. Originally published in Japan by Kodansha. Published in US by Tokyopop, $9.99, Rated Older Teen 16+.

Tohru Fujisawa starts Volume 8 of GTO out pretty cleverly by doing a whole chapter from Onizuka's first person point of view. In fact, we never even hear him talk. All the dialogue comes from Saejima, one of his old motorcycle gang buddies that holds an even more surprising job than GTO. Saejima is a cop! But he's not above swiping seized drugs and hiring call girls. He's probably not the best guy to go to in times of moral crisis. But Onizuka is desperate. He's being driven crazy by Urumi Kanzaki, the legendary school terrorist that GTO almost buried alive last volume. She's basically made him her slave by threatening to tell the authorities about the incident. GTO is looking for a way out of the situation or to reach Urumi and turn her to the good side. Or to at least make her value her life. You see, Urumi lost her faith in not only teachers, but in humanity and life in general back in the 6th grade. GTO and some other students, including Urumi, run into Ms. Fujimori, her 5th and 6th grade teacher. Back then, Urumi was recognized as being gifted and talented with a genius level IQ, and she never caused any trouble. Ms. Fujimori did something pretty horrible to her due to her lack of maturity and teaching experience that has caused a wound inside Urumi that continues to fester to this day. It's up to GTO to heal her soul and, as he quite eloquently states, "open up her butthole", to let out all the crap that she's been holding inside of herself.

The cool thing about GTO besides all the great art, vulgarity, and humor, is the fact that it takes up some pretty powerful issues that continue to be argued about in education and probably always will be. This volume takes up the debate about whether teachers coming out of college with no experience are equipped to deal with gifted and talented students. Fujisawa appears to give a big NO as the answer to this question. Everyone can probably recall a classmate sometime during their school career that always seemed to have the answer to a teacher's question. You might have also encountered someone that seemed SMARTER than your teacher as well. Some of them would even argue with the teacher when they found something wrong with their reasoning or a fact they found erroneous. The fact is that a lot of really smart kids are BORED in a typical public school. In the best case, these kids should be placed in more advanced classes, or if they must stay in a regular class, the teacher has to give them more intellectually challenging activities. Ms. Fujimori found herself ill equipped to serve Urumi's needs and started to resent her because she began to fear that maybe Urumi was smarter than her because she came from a second rate college. A teacher should never belittle a student because of their own insecurities. Tohru Fujisawa continues to crank out volume after volume of comedy, drama, action, outstanding art, and great theses on what is wrong with the current state of government run, assembly line education models. Excellent series.

My Grade: A

This is the start of my manga review index page covering titles that start with M-Z. Simply click on a title and it will take you to the review. Reviews that are in podcast form will say podcast. Otherwise, the reviews are text. If a review is a podcast, you can click on the pod button or click on the direct download located underneath the show notes.

Maison Ikkoku Volume 13

Maison Ikkoku Volume 14

Mar Volume 15

Monkey High! Volume 1 (podcast)

My Dearest Devil Princess Volume 1 (podcast)

Naruto Volume 1 (podcast)

Naruto Volume 2 (podcast)

Naruto Volume 3 (podcast)

Naruto Volume 4 (podcast)

Naruto Volume 5

Naruto Volume 14 (podcast)

Naruto Volume 22 (podcast)

Naruto Volume 28 (podcast)

Naruto: Innocent Heart, Demonic Blood

Negima! Volume 1 (podcast)

Negima! Volume 2

Orfina Volume 1 (podcast)

The Other Side of the Mirror Volume 1 (podcast)

The Outcast Volume 1

PhD Phantasy Degree Volume 1 (podcast)

Pick of the Litter Volume 1 (podcast)

Psycho Busters Volume 1 (podcast)

Psycho Busters Volume 2

Pumpkin Scissors Volume 1 (podcast)

Puri Puri Volume 1 (podcast)

Puri Puri Volume 2

Rose Hip Rose Volume 1 (podcast)

Rose Hip Rose Volume 2

St. Lunatic High School Volume 1

Samurai Commando Volumes 1-2

Sand Chronicles Volume 1 (podcast)

Shiki Tsukai Volume 1 (podcast)

Shinshoku Kiss Volume 1

Sorcerer Hunters Volume 1 (podcast)

Sorcerer Hunters Volume 2

Sorcerer Hunters Volume 3

Sorcerer Hunters Volume 5

Space Pinchy (podcast)

Strawberry 100% Volume 1 (podcast)

Strawberry 100% Volume 2

Street Fighter: Sakura Ganbaru! Volume 1 (podcast)

Sunshine Sketch Volume 1

Tetragrammaton Labyrinth Volume 1 (podcast)

Tetragrammaton Labyrinth Volume 2

Togari Volume 2 (podcast)

Togari Volume 3

Uzumaki Volume 1 (podcast)

Welcome to the NHK Volume 4

Wild Ones Volume 1 (podcast)

Yen Plus, August Issue, Part 1 (podcast)

Yen Plus, August Issue, Part 2 (podcast)

Yggdrasil Volume 1 (podcast)

Yotsuba&! Volume 5 (podcast)

Zombie-Loan Volume 1 (podcast)

This is the start of my manga review index page covering titles that start with A-L. Simply click on a title and it will take you to the review. Reviews that are in podcast form will say podcast. Otherwise, the reviews are text. If a review is a podcast, you can click on the pod button or click on the direct download located underneath the show notes.

10,20, and 30 Volume 1 (podcast)

10,20, and 30 Volume 2

Ai Yori Aoshi Volume 17 (podcast)

Alice on Deadlines Volume 1 (podcast)

Alive:The Final Evolution Volume 1 (podcast)

Angel Cup Volume 5

Arm of Kannon Volume 1 (podcast)

Atelier Marie and Elie Volume 1 (podcast)

Batman: Death Mask Issues 1-2 (podcast)

Chibi Vampire Volume 5 (podcast)

Chunchu the Genocide Fiend Volume 1 (podcast)

Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion Volume 1 (podcast)

Color of Rage (podcast)

Coyote Ragtime Show Volume 1 (podcast)

Cromartie High School Volume 12

Eden Volume 1 (podcast)

Dance in the Vampire Bund Volume 1 (podcast)

Dark Metro Volume 1 (podcast)

Dragon Eye Volume 2 (podcast)

The Drifting Classroom Volume 7

The Drifting Classroom Volume 8

Eden Volume 9

Elemental Gelade Volume 1 (podcast)

Gakuen Alice Volume 1 (podcast)

Gantz Volume 1 (podcast)

Gon Volume 2 (podcast)

Gon Volume 3

GTO: Great Teacher Onizuka Volume 1 (podcast)

GTO:Great Teacher Onizuka Volume 6

GTO:Great Teacher Onizuka Volume 7(podcast)

GTO: Great Teacher Onizuka Volume 8

Guardian Hearts Volume 1 (podcast)

Gunslinger Girl Volume 1 (podcast)

Gunslinger Girl Volume 2

Gunslinger Girl Volume 3

Gunslinger Girl Volume 4

Gunslinger Girl Volume 5 (podcast)

Gunslinger Girl Volume 6

Harukaze Bitter Bop Volume 1 (podcast)

Harukaze Bitter Bop Volume 2

Heavenshield Volume 1 (podcast)

High School Debut Volume 1 (podcast)

I, Otaku Volume 1

In Odd We Trust (podcast)

Inuyasha Volume 22

Kashimashi Volume 4

Kashimashi Volume 5 (podcast)

Koi Cupid Volume 1 (podcast)

The Law of Ueki Volume 8 (podcast)

The Law of Ueki Volume 9

Love Attack Volume 1 (podcast)

This is my anime dvd review index page of titles starting M-Z. Simply click on a title and it will take you to the review. Reviews that are in podcast form will say podcast. Otherwise, the reviews are text. If a review is a podcast, you can click on the pod button or click on the direct download located underneath the show notes.

Mar Volume 1 (podcast)

Maria Watches Over Us Season 1, Episodes 1-3 (podcast)

The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya Volume 1 (podcast)

Mushi-Shi Volume 1

Naruto Uncut Box Set 3 (podcast)

Peach Girl Volume 4 (podcast)

Phoenix Volume 1 (podcast)

Red Garden Volume 1 (podcast)

Red Garden Volume 2 (podcast)

Rescue Me: Mave-Chan

Simoun Volume 1 (podcast)

Solty Rei Volume 2

Step Up Love Story Volume 1 (podcast)

Tekkonkinkreet (podcast)

Tokyo Majin Volume 1 (podcast)

Tweeny Witches Volume 1 (podcast)

Venus Versus Virus Volume 1 (podcast)

Welcome to the NHK Volume 1 (podcast)

Witchblade Volume 1 (podcast)

Witchblade Volume 2

Witchblade Volume 3 (podcast)

Xenosaga: The Animation Volume 1 (podcast)

xxxHolic Volume 1 (podcast)

Yo Yo Girl Cop (podcast)

Zegapain Volume 1 (podcast)

This is the start of my anime dvd review index page. Simply click on a title and it will take you to the review. Reviews that are in podcast form will say podcast. Otherwise, the reviews are text. If a review is a podcast, you can click on the pod button or click on the direct download located underneath the show notes.

009-1 Volume 2

009-1 Volume 3 (podcast)

Ah My Goddess: Flights of Fancy Volume 3 (podcast)

Air TV Volume 1 (podcast)

Air TV Volume 2

Air TV Volume 4

Appleseed: Ex Machina (podcast)

Aquarion Season 1, Part 1, Episodes 1-5 (podcast)

Aquarion Season 1, Part 1, Episodes 6-9

Area 88 Volume 1

Batman: Gotham Knight (podcast)

Beck Volume 2 (podcast)

Best Student Council Volume 5

Black Cat Volume 6

Bleach Volume 7: The Entry

Buso Renkin Box Set 1, Episodes 1-4 (podcast)

Buso Renkin Box Set 1, Episodes 5-8

Buso Renkin Box Set 1, Episodes 9-13

Eureka Seven Volume 7 (podcast)

Flag Volume 1

Galaxy Angel AA Volume 1 (podcast)

Glass Fleet Volume 1 (podcast)

Gunbuster 2 Volume 3 (podcast)

Guyver Volume 3

Hell Girl Volume 1 (podcast)

Innocent Venus Volume 1 (podcast)

Innocent Venus Volume 2

Hey, everybody! I hope everybody is enjoying their summer. Mine ended this week. I had to go back to work on Monday, but I hope to keep on writing and recording reviews. It seems that right when I get into a groove, summer ends. But, anyway, what I wanted to say is that I'm fixing to begin making some sort of index system on the site for all the different anime and manga titles I've reviewed. The little search box on the right side that Libsyn has up pretty much sucks. So I'm gonna try to put a category over there that says something like "Index of My Reviews" or something so you can look them up by title. I won't be able to do it in a day, so I'll probably start with the most recent reviews and work backwards.

I'm computer incompetent and illiterate so I basically have to figure out things as I go. I had no idea how to write HTML code until I started working with my blog and podcasting. Libsyn is pretty cool and cheap but they only give you the barest bones on how to set up your site. I've been meaning to change up my colors on the page for a decade now. They only give you about 3 templates or so and they aren't very good. So you basically have to teach yourself how to make a webpage if you want to do anything unique, which I guess is good and bad at the same time.

Tetragrammaton Labyrinth Volume 2 by Ei Itou. Translated by Kenji Komiya. Adapted by Shannon Fay. Originally published by Wani Books in Japan. Published in US by Seven Seas under their Strawberry imprint, $11.99, Rated Older Teen 16+.

Angela needed a new weapon after her previous scythe was broken during the intense fighting we saw in Volume 1. The scythe she wants now is held at a Church research facility under lock and key. It is a weapon so powerful that it could kill that which could not be killed, a heavenly angel! In fact, the scythe is still stuck in the fossilized remains of the angel. Many people have tried to wield it, but in the end they were all killed and their spiritual power was added to the scythe. So, every person that has died trying to get their hands on it has made it even more deadly. Not only do Meg and Angela have to deal with the ghosts that haunt it, things get a bit crazier when they remove it from the dead angel and it comes back to life...as a fallen angel, with murder on its mind. After that, the duo are called to Germany for unknown reasons and encounter Hugh Williams, a demon's servant who uses the shipping lanes between England and the mainland to offer sacrifices to his master.

The biggest surprise I got from this second volume was the fact that Angela is around 400 years old. Just looking at the two girls from a purely physical standpoint, Meg looks much older, like around 18-20, while Angela looks about 12 or so. What we find out is that it is Angela who is the big sister figure and that even though she says she only exists because Meg needs her, it is Meg who leans on her most of the time instead of the other way around.  Something else that is revealed about Angela is that she has no compunctions about killing innocent people if it serves a greater good. For example, when Hugh Williams takes hostages on the boat, Angela takes out at least 3-4 of them to take away his bargaining chips. Let's just say she takes the Keanu Reeves option from his film Speed of "Shoot the Hostage" to a whole 'nother level. She seems a little inhuman in her dealings with anyone but Meg but it is that very relationship that gives her humanity. It is Angela who reigns as the star in this second volume. It closes with the promise of revealing how Angela and Meg first met in the next installment.

My Grade: A

Here is my link to my podcast review of the first volume:

http://sesho.libsyn.com/index.php?post_id=241904

Oh, Future Anime Magazine, of thee I blog, What piece of trash is this that hovers before my eye. What crap on yonder rooftop gleams? Could it be Future Anime Magazine? Yes, it is, quite so.

Let me just start with a simple imperative sentence. Do not buy this magazine. I will explain why shortly.

First, its pedigree. It is published by Future, US, Inc. If you dont know, Future is also the publisher of such castrated magazines as Nintendo Power, Playstation: The Official Magazine, and the Official Xbox Magazine. All these magazines are barely disguised, if not completely naked, mouthpieces of three huge and bloated companies. Yet all the writers of these magazines say how impartial they are and how their respective companies can't tell them what to like or not to like. That is, until they fire them for being too critical and they find themselves on the street. So you always have to take their coverage and reviews with a grain of salt. Kinda like a presidential news conference.

Then there's the editor's note in the opening pages of the magazine where Gary Steinman bitches at anime and manga fans. Bitching about what, you ask? Over the fact that anime and manga fans are no longer buying anime and manga. Instead, they are downloading anime and reading manga in the bookstore aisles. The mistake that Gary makes is that he never qualifies that SOME fans are doing this. Not all. He also probably doesn't realize the failure of both industries to keep their fanbase as they get older. Theoretically, as fans of manga and anime get older, they should be getting better jobs and be able to spend more money on books and dvds. If they kept their fanbase, both mediums should be EXPANDING, not CONTRACTING. I think a lot of kids now that are otaku will leave it behind when they go to college and start families. It's more like a cool fad. There's a difference between passionate, fleeting love for these artforms and passionate, longterm love. Unfortunately, I think the former describes the current state of these markets. I guess before I get any more pretentious I should shut my blog. But sometimes I worry if anime or manga will still be around in 10 years. Hey, I guess I might not be either!

Anyway, if you're not familiar with Gary, he used to be Editor-In-Chief of Newtype (which has since folded to be replaced by the already folded PIQ), which was a ventriliquist's dummy for ADV (which could be folding, and whose manga line might be folded....so many foldeds, like a blanket of failure.....) and who is the executive editor for the aforementioned lackey Playstation Magazine. So do you see how this magazine might have some issues?

Ok, now for the insides, the primal guts, the meat in the tamale of this magazine. First of all, the entire anime section of the magazine, except for the Gurren Lagann cover story, are written by one person, Lesley Smith. Well, I wouldn't say written, I would say summarized. The anime stories are almost identical to the format that Newtype used, with big anime photos, a tiny blurb summary, and then a more fleshed out summary with very little if any critical response to the show in question. Just like Newtype, this magazine never finds a series it doesn't like. The fact that the entire section of the magazine is written by one person flagrantly throws the fact that this is going to be boring and one dimensional flatly into your face. Even the Gurren Lagann cover story is written by David Smith, who I strongly suspect is Lesley's husband. Maybe Lesley used Shadow Clone Jutsu to write all these articles?

Then there's a summer manga guide, written by.........Guess who?.....David and Lesley Smith! Surprise!

It also includes 12 "sizzling posters". Now if two page posters are your cup of tea, more power to you. But I don't really want to put up posters with a fold and staple holes in them....owww, they're hot!

Once you've gotten past the pyrotechnic display of the posters, you get to the game section, which was such a ripoff, it almost made me lose my cookies. Why? Well, all the games are supposed to be anime related, even though some aren't. They're conveniently renamed "anime-inspired", which means they "look" animeish, but aren't based on any anime properties. So, anyway, they "ask" the editors of Playstation: The Official Magazine to give them their favorite picks. First up, what the hell is wrong with the Wii and the XBOX 360? You could've found plenty of real anime games from all three systems instead of Gary being lazy and relying on his own POM staff. What makes the reviews of the games even more insulting is the fact that they are almost all lifted word for word from the original Playstation Magazine reviews. Some paragraphs or wording has been changed, but very little. They even use the some screenshots, although they not so cleverly reorient and resize the pictures.

So in the end, what do I think of this magazine. Is it worth $9.99? Let's just put it this way, if this magazine was thrown on a koala bear, it would turn into a raging bloodthirsty beast. It is a blatant attempt by Future to cash in on a market that doesn't need any more pretenders to be cluttering up shelf space. In fact, you should use the $9.99 you would spend on this litter basket refuse to buy the manga volume that Gary scolded you in his opening statement. In fact, every issue of this magazine that sells does an equivalent exchange for a volume of manga so Gary is just contributing to the problem

My Grade: F

Anime DVD review of the first disc of the Season 1 box set of Maria Watches Over Us, Episodes 1-3. Published by Right Stuf. Directed by Yukihiro Matsushita.

Yumi Fukuzawa is a first year at the prestigious Lillian Girls' Academy, known for its piousness, elegance, and impeccable uniforms. The school is ruled by the Yamiyuri Council which has installed a system to keep student discipline from being a problem. Under the Souer system, older girls pick a younger classman to be their petite souer, or little sister. In practice, the older girl is supposed to look after the younger like she really is a sister by blood. Soon after her arrival at the school, Yumi encounters one of the members of the Yamiyuri Council, Sachiko Ogasawara, little realizing how entwined their lives are to become. It seems Sachiko, the star of the school, wants to make Yumi her petite souer. While Yumi is in awe of Sachiko (maybe even smitten with her), she refuses her because she is afraid Sachiko has ulterior motives.

My Grade: B+

Podcast manga review of Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion volume 1. Manga by Majiko! Original Story by Ichirou Ohkouchi and Goro Taniguchi. Character Designs by Clamp. Translated by Satsuki Yamashita. Originally published in Japan by Kadokawa Shoten. Published in US by Bandai Entertainment, $9.99, Rated 13+.

In the year 2010, war broke out between Japan and the Holy Empire of Britannia. Within a month, Japan had been defeated and absorbed into the Empire. In fact, it is not even recognized as a country anymore. It has been renamed Area 11, and its inhabitants are now called 11s. The Britannians move into nice settlements while the 11s are herded into crappy ghettoes. While we haven't mentioned the word genocide yet,the Britannians seem on the brink of committing such an act. Even as the Empire is tightening its grip, some 11s are trying to fight back, even though they are labeled as terrorists. Ironically enough, even some Brittanians have taken up arms against their own country because of its treatment of Japan. Lelouch Lamperouge, a Britannian, has sworn to bring down the Empire, even though he is the secret heir to its throne. Suzaku, his childhood friend, and also an 11, has joined the Imperial military to bring about a change from within. Both their lives will be changed by the arrival of a mysterious girl with the power to grant Lelouch's wish.

My Grade: A

Bleach Volume 7: The Entry. Directed by Norikyuki Abe. Series Composition by Masashi Sogo. Published by Viz Video, List Price: $24.98.

Ichigo is finally able to make a cannonball, the art needed to pierce the shield surrounding the Seireitei, the fortress of the Soul Reapers. He is able to do this after getting a few pointers from Ganju. He was the last one of his group comprised of Orihime, Chad, and Ishida that had yet to master it. And he still hasn't. While his cannonball packs a lot of power he lacks the skill needed to keep it under control so it tends to explode in his face. Nonetheless, time is running out for Rukia, and the group must rescue her before she is executed. Things don't go as planned when the cannonball gets stuck in the Soul Reaper shield, which causes it to explode and seperate our heroes. Chad and Yoruichi are by themselves, while Ishida is teamed up with the ever stumbling, ever ditzy Orihime. Ichigo lands with Ganju by his side, and they are the first to have to fight Soul Reapers, as they face off against the psychotic Ikkaku (he's not crazy, he just really likes to fight) and the overly vain Yumichika who is all about his looks. Even though both of them seem to have some major psychological hangups, make no mistake, they are deadly fighters, and perhaps too powerful for Ichigo and Ganju to handle.

You knew that Ichigo and friends were never going to make it to the Seireitei without getting seperated didn't you? Of course they had to be split up. It wouldn't have been any fun if they had arrived en masse and just started slugging their way to the tower where Rukia is being held. No, they had to be split up so their powers could be diluted and they would have to face foes whose powers might be stronger on an individual level. Through these battles we get to see if our main characters have indeed grown stronger or whether they've just been talking the talk. It's great to see them all rise to the challenge, albeit in very different ways. For example, Ichigo relies on his enormous spiritual energy and his enemy's tendency to underestimate his skills while Ganju uses his speed, wit, and guile to fight. Volume 7 of Bleach was quite good in spite of the fact that maybe some of the fights were a bit too long. But Noriyuki Abe keeps you engaged with some very well orchestrated battle sequences, choreographed with little or no static action lines. He always keeps a sense of coolness about the characters as he reveals their new powers with dramatic relish.

My Grade: A

Manga Review of Rose Hip Zero Volume 2 by Tohru Fujisawa. Translated by Emi Onishi. Adapted by Michael French. Originally published by Kodansha in Japan. Published in US by Tokyopop, $10.99. Rated Mature 18+ for mild sexuality, intense violence, excessive gore, and moderate fanservice.

Shohei and Asakura, alias Rose Hip, were almost killed by the crazed psycho who called himself  "The Sheep" (uh, is that a reference to Silence of the Lambs or what?). But Asakura was able to defeat him and hand him over to police custody. But we found out at the end of the last volume that the Sheep was just a lackey of "The Shepherd". His intent is to kill Asakura because he feels she is standing in the way of his "cleansing" of Tokyo. What he means by cleansing is to get rid of all the scum. And the Shepherd's definition of scum is politician (don't know if I completely disagree with that).  He's bored, sick, and tired of the current corrupt government that is running the show. He probably intends to extend his program to the whole country after he takes care of Tokyo. He has planted what amount to sleeper cells all across the city by using post-hypnotic suggestion. All it takes is a spoken word, whether it be in person or over a phone, to turn a normal person into his mind controlled slave. He even makes one of Shohei and Asakura's teachers blow her brains out! The dude is not messing around. Help arrives in the form of Natsuki Kuonji, who, just like Asakura, was trained to be a killer from an early age. But she isn't called the "Angel of Mercy" like Asakura, who never takes lives. Natsuki's nickname is "Bloody Angel" and also "Kiss Maniac Natsuki", and she is much more prone to take people out with her weapons. Just from their names, you can tell these two girl's methods of dealing with criminals is going to be like fire and ice. But Asakura, Natsuki, and the Shepherd share a connection. They were all raised by a league of assassins called ALICE.

John Keats once said that a thing of beauty is a joy forever. I'm tempted to use that in reference to Tohru Fujisawa's art. He's just great. Fujisawa achieves the perfect balance between highly detailed characters, liberal use of elaborate backgrounds, excellent action scene layouts, sympathetic characterization, and sexy women. Don't worry ladies, he draws pretty guys for you as well. We get more of a feel of Asakura's disconnect in this volume when we learn that she lives alone and doesn't ever remember having a family. All she remembers faintly is that she was raised by the assassin organization called ALICE. Fujisawa does a good job of showing that from time to time, if not frequently, Asakura longs for a normal life, longs for a family, regular friends. Maybe at this point, Shohei is the closest thing to that dream. There's even a bit of romantic tension between the two as we get to see that most lovey dovey quintessential scene in manga, the "oops, I fell, making you fall on top of me, isn't this awkward, why are you blushing" scene. Great read, action packed. Not for kids though.

Here is the link to Podcast Episode 119 where I did a review of the first volume:   http://sesho.libsyn.com/index.php?post_id=364248

(Is it just me or has Tokyopop been quietly raising prices on some of their titles to $10.99 even though you're not getting any more pages than the $9.99 books? Is this a page from ADV Manga? We all know where they are today, don't we?)

My Grade: A

Ok, so I'm really horrible at making headlines. Please forgive me. I haven't posted any reviews in a couple of days. I've been too busy completing an online Defensive Driving course for a speeding ticket I got a couple of months ago. Yep, I got caught burning nitrous on the city streets. Drifting on the roof of the Astrodome. Most of the course is actually text you read in small segments but as soon as I'm done I want to get off the computer. And then there's the rapid impending death of summer coming up on Monday when I return to work after a long vacation. But I have been watching anime and reading manga all the while. I plan to do text reviews of Rose Hip Rose Volume 2, Tetragrammaton Labyrinth Volume 2, and and a podcast for Code Geass Volume 1 (the manga) by weekend's end. Also, an anime text review of Bleach Volume 7.  I guess it could be worse. I coulda not had a vacation at all.

 

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Me and my best friend went to a comic store today, and then Borders where I picked up a manga or two. A manga bum that was there actually moved when I wanted to look at the manga! It was incredible! There were also two girls there talking about Yaoi, something about the guy that was on top and the guy that was on bottom (the exact Japanese terms for these positions escapes my mind at the moment....thankfully).  My friend wanted to go into Best Buy so I of course went straight to the anime section. I was standing there looking for about 3 seconds when this girl who looked about 13 or 14 asked "Are you a fan of anime?" I usually don't talk to strangers but we got into a pretty animated discussion about Naruto. She had been watching fansubs of the Naruto Shippuden anime while I had been reading fansubs of the Naruto manga.

Yes, I admit that. I have bought all 30 volumes of the manga so far and I will continue to buy them as they come out. But I love that series so much that I don't want to wait another two years to read what the Japanese already have. I also have to admit that this is the only series that I've ever sought out online. We talked about some things that would be spoilers for people that haven't read farther than the current releases....way farther, so I won't go into that. I asked her whether she thought Naruto and Sakura would end up together in the end. She said she thought they would. I think he will end up with Hinata. We also talked about whether in the end, Naruto and Sasuke will become friends again. She emphatically said they would. I think they will too, but I think there will be a lot of tragedy before it happens.

I soon found out that she was trying to figure out a way to butter up her mom to buy her a volume of The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya! About that time her mom showed up and I heard her say "Mooooom" in a way that kids do when they ask their parents for something that they know there is a chance they could get......"Moooooom, can I get......" I'll never know if she got that dvd or not.....hopefully she did.

Speaking of Haruhi, that's a series I need to go back and finish. I own the first volume and that is the only one I have watched. I liked it but for some reason never carried on with it. Now you can get it in a boxed set so maybe I'll wait and save for that.

I talked about the individual titles in Yen Plus but I just wanted to make a few general comments about this attempt by Yen Press to put out a more reader friendly rather than boy or girl centered anthology. Of course, I'm talking about Shonen Jump and Shojo Beat. It's not that I don't buy Shojo Beat because I think Shojo manga are too girly. I don't buy it because it TARGETS young girls so explicitly and the bright colors make my eyes hurt. I don't read Shonen Jump (at least, until recently) either (ok, I do buy it, but the only thing I read is Naruto!). But its Donkey Kong leveling up plots can be a little offputting as well. It targets young boys that like to hit people.

So I am very glad that Yen Press is trying something a bit different with Yen Plus. They just seem to have put a batch of titles together with no regard for genre readers. There seems to be a little bit of everything for everybody. The danger with this kind of strategy is that by trying to please everyone, you please noone.  Myself, I LIKE variety.

But there are some readers that feel uncomfortable wading into strange waters. Witness the incredibly negative reaction that Jack Frost got from some bloggers and board posters. They were put off by the violence and fan service mainly. Has anyone heard the words "dark comedy" before? If someone gets their head cut off and then sits there, oblivious to pain, and commenting on what jerks the two supernatural fighters are, you should know things are not meant to be taken seriously.

I remember someone commented on a scene in Maximum Ride when we meet a little girl named Angel and another character named Max is coming to wake her up for breakfast. One reader even said it was "straight up gross". The panel shows the girl fixing to get out of bed. To me, what is creepy is that someone can see the panel and get all kinds of weird connotations out of it. Same thing with a title like Strawberry Marshmallow. Some people have told me how that title is a moe title for perverts, but I don't get that out of it at all. I think it's just cute and funny. I guess some people just bring some weird thoughts into their manga reading experience.

In the Editor's letter at the front (back?) of the magazine, JuYoun Lee wrote that this magazine was going to be a way to introduce readers to titles before they are released as tankobans. So I asked myself which of the titles in this first issue would I buy in book form? The titles I could guarantee are Bamboo Blade, Higurashi, and Pig Bride. Borderline purchases would be Jack Frost and Nabari No Ou. I would probably pass up on Sumomomo. Titles I wouldn't take even if  they were free would be Maximum Ride, Sarasah, and Night School. I don't even count One Fine Day as a title. It was pointless drivel.

Some people have also complained about the running order of the OEL/Manhwa section, citing mainly the outrageously cute One Fine Day somehow being a antithetic prelude to Jack Frost. My suggested reordering of the titles would go like this. Put Pig Bride as the lead title, followed by One Fine Day, Sarasah, Maximum Ride, Night School, and lastly, Jack Frost. It seems like a more coherent arrangement of content.

You probably hear all the time about how Japan has one of the longest living populations in the world, but maybe you didn't believe it. Japan's Health Ministry conducted a study in which it concluded that Japanese girls born in 2007 would live to an average age of 86 years old. That makes them #1 in the world. Japanese boys born in 2007 are projected to live an average of 79.2 years, placing them third behind Iceland and Hong Kong. Ironically, even though the Japanese are living longer, they have one of the world's lowest birth rates, and it is projected that around 40% of the population will be 65 or older by the year 2050 if current trends continue.

Here's the link to the full article:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080806/lf_nm_life/japan_longevity_dc

Ok, so I live right outside of Houston, Texas and if you didn't know we had a tropical storm pass through here today, by the name of Edouard. Of course the local media tried their very best to make it seem like the Four Horsemen were coming to town. I woke up this morning around 10am and had to call someone to find out if it had upgraded to a hurricane or not. There really wasn't a lot of wind or anything. Just rain. But light enough to where there wasn't any widespread flooding. So I decided to hunker down with a manga. I started reading the Code Geass manga and I just loved it. So much that I had to drop it and go to Best Buy to buy the anime. This was after it had stopped raining. It was closed! Barnes and Noble was open and I would say over half of the businesses I saw were as well. Best Buy did end up opening around 4pm and I was there like a flash.

So here's the funny thing about the Code Geass dvd release. You can buy the slip cover version for $24.99, which contains volume 1 and 2 of the series...or you can buy volume 1 & 2 seperately for the extremely cheaper price of....$19.99 each! So I'm wondering who in their right mind would buy them seperately? I mean, even if you're just trying the show like I am sight unseen, if you're going to spend $20 on it, why not $5 more for an entire extra volume? It just seems a total waste of space on the retail shelves. There's also a limited edition that I THINK was going for around $40 (I don't buy the boxes or special edition of any show so I didn't really pay attention).

Two other releases caught my eye. The Gokusen TV Collection, a repackaging of an earlier show from Anime Works was only $14.99. This is a really funny show and well worth this extremely low price for all 13 episodes.

I don't know if this is going to be a steal or not but I also picked up Teknoman: The Complete Collection for $13.99. So get this, for that price you got 6 dvds, 43 Episodes, 1075 minutes of anime! It just sounded like a great deal. I've never seen the show, but I've heard about it. I can't remember if what I have heard is good though. But for that price, what did I have to lose?

I think at a $20 price point, people are reluctant to try out shows. But lower that just a bit to $15, and I think you're going to sell a lot more units. Anime Works dvds are usually around that price. I also applaud Bandai Entertainment (not the bloated warthog Visual (are they even a company anymore?)) for releasing a dubless version of their show. I mean, when I started thinking about it, I am subsidizing a anime dvd feature I don't even use. I never watch the dubs (Cowboy Bebop is the exception), so why should I have to pay for the dub? And the hardcore fans like me get to see the show early instead of waiting for the dub as well. So, thank you Bandai Entertainment. But can the seperate volumes. It's a waste of shelf space. Put them out in the 2 volume slipcases only. Thanks for Toward the Terra as well. It seems like only Bandai is trying something different to please their customers.

Check out the official Code Geass Site:

http://code-geass.bandai-ent.com/

In this podcast I review and discuss the OEL and Korean manhwa titles in the first issue of Yen Plus.

Maximum Ride by James Patterson and Narae Lee

Nightschool by Svetlana Chmakova

Sarasah by Ryang Ruy

One Fine Day by Sirial

Jack Frost by Jinho Ko

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See podcast Episode 120 for a review of the Japanese manga section. Simply click on this link to take you there or scroll down the page:

http://sesho.libsyn.com/index.php?post_id=364318

Anime DVD review of the third disc of Buso Renkin Box Set 1, Episodes 9-13, published by Viz Media. Price for the for the 3-disc set: $49.98 (I usually see it for around $35). Rated T+, Older Teen.

Kazuki has been training every day with Captain Bravo and he's worn out physically and spiritually. But he can't resist a challenge when he sees the star of the kendo team, Shusui Hayasaka, effortlessly defeating all comers. When he hears Shusui mention that he wants to get stronger, he senses a kindred spirit, and decides to take him on. Even though Kazuki has no training whatsoever in kendo. The two quickly become friends and training partners, lifting each other to new heights of fighting skill. Unfortunately, Shusui and his twin sister, Ouka, are agents of the League of Extraordinary Elect (LXE). The LXE knows that an alchemical warrior is attending the school, but they do not know which student he or she is. The one person that knows, Papillon, refuses to identify Kazuki because he wants to fight him alone and in his own due time. So the Hayasaka twins are enlisted to find and kill the alchemical warrior. Dr. Butterfly wants it done quietly as well, because the school is somehow involved with his plans to resurrect the king of the Homunculi, he who is neither human nor a Homunculus, but more powerful than both.

First thing up with this series is the fact that it should come out and admit its gayness. I don't mean that in an insulting way, but in an honest entreaty. For example, when Kazuki and his friends stop at a public bath house, all the guys start looking at each others schlongs and compare sizes. They seem especially eager to find out Shusui's too, almost falling over themselves to get a look. And then Papillon shows up with a washing bowl hanging off of his! And the League of Extraordinary Elect ratchets up the homosexuality by acting like they are in Rosie O'Donnell's favorite Broadway musical. It doesn't help that they strike effeminate poses and wear leotards either. Moon Face....need I say more. This guy jumps around shouting, or rather, flirtingly cooing "Mooooooooooooon!" as he leaps in the air clicking his heels. And why the hell is Papillion always reaching into his pants to get objects out of his thong? And he seems to be a little more busy in there than just reaching for his kakugane.

I have to say that the character designs in Buso Renkin are some of the worst and most ridiculous I have ever seen in a manga or anime. I mean, at times these guys, mostly the villains, made me laugh out loud just looking at them. What makes it more funny is that they think they actually look good in their costumes. Papillon goes on and on about how cool his suit looks, even though he looks like a dandified buffoon. While the villains are a complete wash, the heroes are done with at least a sense of good taste. How could the same guy that did Rurouni Kenshin design characters right out of Michael Jackson's wardrobe fantasies?

If you can get past the horrible design choices and the incredibly cheezy characters, Buso Renkin can be quite entertaining in a Shonen Jumpish sort of way. It seems incredible to me that the same writer behind the extremely well received Rurouni Kenshin could present something this goofy. Too often, the series looks very cheap as we are treated to static scenes with tons of action lines the like of which I haven't seen since the last decade. It seems like Xebec didn't spend a lot of time or money animating this show. Is it worth seeing? Yes. Is this show worth buying? I don't know yet. Probably not. I'll have to check out the second box set before I make a choice. Right now, it is not a series that I would watch more than once. Back in the day, the glory days of anime in 2004-05, I would buy almost every new show that came out. But I was burned too often and now I rent first. If I really like it, enough that I would watch it again, then I buy it.

Grade for disc 3: B

Grade for Box Set 1: B

Here is the link for my review of the first two discs, I did Episodes 1-4 in a podcast and 5-8 in a text review:

http://sesho.libsyn.com/?search_string=buso+renkin&search=1

Anime DVD podcast review of xxxHolic Volume 1. Directed by Tsutomu Mizushima (Genshiken, Hare+Guu). Series Composition by Ageha Ohkawa of CLAMP and Michiko Yokote (Bleach, Naruto, Genshiken). 100 minutes, Episodes 1-4. Published by Funimation, $29.98, Rated 13+.

Kimihiro Watanuki has had a problem ever since he was a child. Ok, he's an orphan but he's been able to do pretty well by himself up to this point. His real problem is that he can not only see spirits, but much like Ichigo in Bleach, he attracts their unwanted attention. It's gotten to be so bad that he can't even walk down the street without them piling on top of him. Of course, when he's rolling around on the street trying to get them off, regular people think he's crazy because the spirits are invisible to them. Watanuki meets a young woman named Yuko Ichihara who runs a wish granting shop. She says she can remove his power but only if he will work part-time for her until his debt is paid. Yuko doesn't do anything for free. She requires something precious from the person asking the wish in exchange for her services.

My Grade: B

For more info on the series, videos, wallpaper, and icons go to the official xxxHolic site at:

http://funimation.com/yuko/

This is a text review of the second disc of the Aquarion Boxed Set 1 comprising Episodes 6-9 from Funimation. Click on the following link to hear podcast review # 104 of  Episodes 1-5:

http://sesho.libsyn.com/index.php?post_id=356987

The Elements of Aquarion have become stronger and are functioning better as a team, but the pilots still have a lot to learn. First up, Gen Fudo, the strange Merlin-like commander of the Elements sets up a Thought Projection Exercise. Partners will stand a kilometer away from each other, with one facing away. The goal is to make your partner turn around with the force of your thoughts. You just know everyone is gonna be paired up with their least favorite person. Sirius and Reika are getting kinda cozy and it's starting to drive Silvia crazy. You see, she has a bit of a "brother complex". She wants so bad for him to be the Solar Wing, her reincarnated lover....uh, but if he is, that brings up some pretty weird issues. I think at this point everyone has decided that Apollo is the real deal. Everyone EXCEPT Sirius and Silvia, and that's probably due to their hypocrisy. Surely, the Solar Wing would be reborn as a noble and not as an animalistic street kid. All these weird resentments reach a boiling point when the Shadow Angels use a device that feeds off negative emotions. Two supporting characters take center stage in Episode 8 as Tsugumi and Jun contemplate what it will be like to merge for the first time with all the attendant innuendoes and comparisons to losing their virginity. But when the time comes will they be able to step up to the plate? And then there's a Mythic Beast lurking in the dreams of the Elements that brings A Nightmare on Elm Street to mind. 

I'm not really a big fan of giant robot anime but I don't dislike them either. As with any anime genre, if a show is good, it doesn't matter to me what it is about. I will tell you this. I think Evangelion was way overrated and that Rahxephon took the same path but did it even better. Aquarion falls into a cross between Rahxephon and Gravion (I mean the good parts of Gravion) and comes up with a very enjoyable anime. To start with, this show just looks good. The character designs are very beautiful and distinct. The sleek and acrobatic robot designs give a humanity to the battles. There are very few static cut scenes and the CG blends as well as it can with the traditional animation. Everything about this series screams the word EPIC with its attendant 12,000 year old battles between angels and humans and its take on Greek mythology and Christian scriptures. The music of Yoko Kanno just adds to the grandeur with her symphonic and choral score. But, like the director and writers of this show, she never forgets the more intimate characterization elements of the show, composing with simple instruments and singing and a variety of electronic instruments when the mood calls for it. A great show so far.

My Grade: A

You can view the first two episodes for free at the official Aquarion website:

http://funimation.com/aquarion/

Just browsing the Borders manga section today, not looking for anything in particular, and was nicely surprised to see a new Boogiepop novel from Seven Seas. This one is entitled Boogiepop at Dawn and supposedly tells Boogiepop's origin. The company had not put out any Boogiepop works since the end of 2006. I love this title in all its incarnations of anime, manga, and the novels and hope that Seven Seas is back on the ball with the franchise. You can read free previews of most of the books at the official Boogiepop webpage at:

http://www.gomanga.com/manga/boogiepop.php

The best resource on that page is where it says "Read Boogiepop: The Ultimate guide" which is a four part article about the chronology and story arcs of the entire Boogiepop Universe.

If you have no experience with this title, I would suggest reading the novels first, then the manga, the movie, and lastly the anime. I say the anime last because it does not adapt the first book and was made for fans already familiar with the novels. You can get the thinpack collection of the anime and live action movie for around $40 at most retailers online like Amazon or Right Stuff, and probably even cheaper on Ebay. The music soundtracks are relatively easy to find as well.

Boogiepop at Dawn goes for $7.95 and is bound in the small light novel format that Seven Seas seems to prefer. They give real weight to the term "pocketbook". Seriously, you can actually put these light novels in your back pocket, which is actually pretty cool when you're on the go.

This is the first of two podcasts reviewing the first issue of Yen Plus Magazine. In Part 1 I will be discussing and reviewing the Japanese manga titles. Part 2 will cover the OEL and manhwa section.

Part one contains reviews of the following titles:

Soul Eater by Atsushi Ohkubo

Sumomomo Momomo by Shinobu Ohtaka

Nabari No Ou by Yuhki Kamatani

Bamboo Blade by Masahiro Totsuka and Aguri Igarashi

Higurashi: When They Cry by Ryukishio7 and Karin Suzuragi

Manga Podcast Review of Rose Hip Rose Volume by Tohru Fujisawa, writer and artist of GTO, GTO: The Early Years, and Rose Hip Zero. Translated by Emi Onishi. Adapted by Michael French. Originally published in Japan by Kodansha. Published in US by Tokyopop, $10.99, Rated Mature 18+.

While this is billed by Tokyopop as the sequel to Rose Hip Zero, this series actually came out first, so in fact it is a prequel. Aiba Shohei is a kid not very interested in the elite high school he attends or the life his father has laid out for him. You know, the whole go to a good school, go to a good college, get a good job, have a good life, or face being a loser speech! Shohei would rather be a criminal than live such a life. Him and his friends have been profiting from an internet site they run in which they offer panty shots of unsuspecting girls they photograph on the train. But one of these girls is about to change his pathetic life. Her name is Kasumi Asakura. She catches him trying to take a picture of her and steals the memory card out of his cell phone camera to hold over him as leverage. Little does he know that this sweet looking girl is actually the ace police agent Rose Hip, the Angel of Mercy. He will soon be caught up in her hunt for the homicidal Goldilocks Killer, who has been murdering and mutilating women in Tokyo.

My Grade: A

Well, here we go, it seems John McCain and Barack Obama are going to be the subject of comic book biographies in early October. IDW, the comic book publisher, says that they are going to stick to the facts (Yeah, right). I wonder if any of the crew from Air Gear are gonna be in it? They also say that comic books are a more effective teaching tool than other media. I guess what they mean is any dummy can look at pictures, even if you can't read, and get some idea of a message. The article also says that the comics can already be preordered and will also be available for cell phone download. Here's the link to the full article:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080730/ap_en_ot/presidential_comic_books

 

Electronic Gaming Monthly is doing a 38 page Special on Japanese videogames and features Soulcalibur 4 on the cover. The game was released yesterday. The cool thing about the next-gen consoles, at least Xbox 360 and PS3 (Wii doesn't count), is that you usually have the option to change to the Japanese voice acting with subtitles on a lot of the titles developed there. It's always cooler to me to play an RPG in the original language. Right now I'm playing Naruto: Rise of a Ninja on 360 and it's cool because you have the option of playing it with the English dub actors or the original Japanese actors from the anime. Speaking of, that will probably be the first videogame review I do for this site. There's another Naruto game in development for the PS3 as we speak (or sorta speak).

 I got Soulcalibur 4 yesterday and have been playing it a bit. It features an online element as well as a custom character option where you can modify existing models of characters. There was a thread on the 360 forums asking whether anyone had tried making any Inuyasha characters. There wasn't any replies so I guess that was a no. But it got me thinking.....

 There was an article in the Houston Chronicle, you know, just one of those little throwaway stories in a far column. It said that a woman had flipped out at a train station in Hiratsuka, about 43 miles southwest of Tokyo. Apparently, she tried to cut her wrist with an army knife, but when she was trying to do it, someone bumped her, and she got pissed, so she stabbed seven men before a crowd held her down. For once it was good that a Japanese train station was crowded! Or was it? I mean she didn't kill herself because she got bumped, but if she had been alone, she wouldn't have stabbed anyone. I think if you try that type of thing in a crowded place, you want to be stopped.

On the lighter side of things the second Naruto movie came out yesterday. The cheapest I saw it for was $17.99. I was wondering why it was so expensive but it comes with two dvds in a hard case, almost like a hardback book. Pretty cool. Ok, I'm a Naruto nut but I'm a bit behind on the anime. I've read all the manga volumes and also some that have been translated. I've bought all of the uncut boxed sets as they came out, but I think I've only watched through the fourth set. So, yeah, even though I have both movies, I haven't watched either. Maybe I will watch one tonight.

Podcast manga review of GTO: Great Teacher Onizuka volume 7 by Tohru Fujisawa. Translated by Dan Papia. Originally published by Kodansha in Japan. Published in US by Tokyopop, $9.99, Rated Older Teen 16+.

Well, it looks like Onizuka has foiled the plans of Teshigawara and Mrs. Oda. He's become quite the celebrity after rescuing Oda's daughter, Hidemi, from some thugs who had kidnapped her to blackmail Hidemi's father, an important politician. But GTO got shot in the process. Can you believe he not only took the National Scholastic Achievement Test before going to the hospital, but also scored the highest in the country? So his job seems safe for the time being, but a new enemy rears its pretty head in his class. Her name is Urumi Kanzaki, a legendary classroom terror that had dropped out of school, much to the delight of the Holy Forest faculty. Now she's returning with the express purpose of torturing GTO.

My Grade: A

Manga review of Elemental Gelade Volume 1 by Mayumi Azuma. Translated by Alethea Nibley. Adapted by Jordan Capell. Originally published by Mag Garden in Japan. Published in US by Tokyopop, $9.99, Rated Teen 13+.

Cou has been trying everything he can to fit in with the Red Lynx Sky Pirates but he can't get his fellow crewmembers to respect him or take him seriously. It probably has something to do with the fact that he can't even pilot a plane by himself. Still, things begin to change when he opens a ancient sarcophogus-like object in the ship's treasury and finds a beautiful young girl inside it. At first he thinks it is a doll but then the girl opens her eyes. Her name is Ren and she is an Edel Raid, a living weapon that bonds with another person. She wants to go to a place named Edel Garden and Cou agrees to accompany her. Just then, the Red Lynx is attacked by a trio looking for Ren.

My Grade: B+

Podcast Anime DVD review of Beck Volume 2 and a general introduction to the series that will be released as a box set tomorrow from Funimation.

Koyuki didn't have too much interest in school before but now that problem is compounded by his increased interest in playing guitar. But his schoollife becomes a bit more complicated when he chips a piece off of Rikiya Kitazawa's Fender Jaguar guitar by accident. Kitazawa is the resident bad-ass of the school and the number one thug. Luckily, he wasn't around when it happened and Kitazawa's friend, Hyodo, promises to keep it secret. That is, IF Koyuki becomes his personal gopher and errand boy, and is willing to loan him money whenever he asks. Yes, that's right...BLACKMAIL. But things are looking up outside of school as Ryusuke's band, which he has dubbed Beck, seems to be fully formed, and Koyuki might even become a member.

My Grade: B+

Podcast manga review of Eden: It's an Endless World Volume 1 by Hiroki Endo. Translated by Kumar Sivasubramanian. Originally published in Japan by Kodansha. Published in US by Dark Horse, $12.95, Rated Mature 18+.

A viral pandemic has ravaged the Earth and killed off a lot of the population. Enoah and Hannah are two of the lucky few who are immune to its spread, and along with Professor Morris Layne, continue to eke out a living at a ruined research facility. They are the only survivors out of a group of scientists and their families who once walled themselves in the biodome type environment in an effort to find a cure for the virus. Now it is in ruins, and Layne is slowly dying. Nobody knows for sure if anyone else on the planet is still alive or whether a cure was ever found. But the arrival of armed troops in helicopters is going to change their little Eden forever.

My Grade: A+

Podcast Blu-ray review of Appleseed: Ex Machina. Directed by Shinji Aramaki. Produced by John Woo. Based on the manga by Shiro Masamune. Published by Warner Brothers, List Price: $34.98, Rated PG-13.

In a post-apocalyptic world in which war killed over half the world's population, mankind has started rebuilding out of the ruins. Olympus, the shining city on the hill, serves as an example of what humanity can achieve. But there is always someone who wants to throw a wrench into things, isn't there? A lot of the city's inhabitants have cybernetic enhancements or are dependent on a super Blackberry device called a Connexus. A terrorist element is able to send out a signal that can control cyborgs and Connexus users and make them kill, rob, pillage, or whatever strikes their fancy. It's up to Deunan, a human, and Briareos, a cyborg, to hunt down who is behind it all. But a conflict arises as Deunan is forced to partner up with a combat Bioroid named Tereus, who is a clone of her former lover Briareos, and sports all of his former bishonen handsomeness.

My Grade: C

I take a look at the new Anime Insider and a new magazine, Future Anime, which seems more style than substance and way too expensive, and comment on manga bums, which seem to infest bookstores, and are very hard pests to remove. Then it's on to a review of Guardian Hearts Volume 1 by Sae Amatsu, a new manga from Tokyopop which should be published under a new imprint called Tokyoslop!

Guardian Hearts Volume 1 by Sae Amatsu. Translated by Monica Seya Chin. Adapted by Erin M. Blakemore. Originally published in Japan by Kadokawa Shoten. Published in US by Tokyopop, $9.99, Rated Older Teen Ages 16+.

Hina has been sent by the Planet of Light to be the superpowered guardian of Earth. But her track record at beng a superhero isn't too great and this is her last chance to redeem herself. She is advised to not do anything stupid like reveal her secret identity. She says she won't but when she turns around, there is a guy that had been standing there the whole time. His name is Kazuya and he has instantly blown her cover. To make sure Kazuya doesn't reveal her secret, she moves in with him and his mom and also enrolls in his school. Pretty soon, other strange alien girls begin to move in to the house as well. There's Kurusu, who can absorb abilities through clothes, Ooba Maya the space ninja, Chelsea the magical princess, Koto the space Miko, and a little cat girl named Daisy.

My Grade: F

Manga Review of Negima volume 2 by Ken Akamatsu, creator of Love Hina and A.I. Love You. Translated by Douglas Varenas. Adapted by Peter David and Kathleen O'Shea David. Originally published in Japan by Kodansha. Published in US by Del Rey, $10.95, Rated OT ages 16+.

Negi sees a lot of students really putting pressure on themselves studying and wonders why his own Class 2A seems to be going about their usual business. When he asks one of the girls what the deal is, she tells him that in 3 days the school will be taking the all-important high school exam. 2A always has the worst average so none of the girls even bother getting upset about it, especially the Baka Rangers. They get a bit more serious when they hear rumors that Negi might be fired or their class might be dissolved if they don't improve their class ranking. The truth is that if Negi can somehow get his class out of last place, he will "officially" become a teacher at the Academy (up to this point he's been in a probationary type position). He starts to come up with some sort of magical solution, but Asuna talks him out of it, saying that the girls should fail or succeed on their own merits. Negi even goes to drastic lengths by taking away his own powers in the 3 days leading up to the test so he won't be tempted to use his magic. Asuna quickly changes her tune when she hears the rumors going round the school and enlists the Baka Rangers to help acquire a mythical book in the school library that supposedly makes you smarter if you read it. The Mahora Library is the largest library in the world and contains millions of books, with a lot of them being rare and irreplacable. Due to the nature of the tomes inside it, there are lots of traps on its first floor to keep out would-be robbers. Traps which Negi and company are going to have to deal with minus his magic.

The two things that instantly grab you just flipping through this manga is its beautiful art and sexy fanservice. Akamatsu is pretty much at the top of his form doing harem comedy. But the fact that Negi is so young eleminates some of the horndog nature that you find in some male protagonists of this genre. Instead of being a perverted male surrounded by pure and innocent girls, Negi is the pure and innocent one being played on by females that find him cute and irresistible, especially Ayaka, the class rep. Of course this wouldn't be Akamatsu if the writer didn't find a ton of ways to get the girls bathing naked, have their clothes blown off, or bend over for various reasons for panty shots. It's just the nature of Akamatsu's game. While he focuses a lot on comedy, he is not afraid to draw epic background environments pulled right out of Kurosawa's vast shot forte. This is something a lot of manga artists lack nowadays, the use of wide shots. The character designs are great. I never have trouble recognizing any of the 31 girls of class 2A. They are distinct enough, at least in outward form, so you don't confuse them very easily. We haven't really got to know them all as personalities but then again, this is only the second volume. I look forward to learning more about the characters. Negima is really funny and is a very entertaining adventure.

My Grade: A

 

Manga Podcast Review of Sand Chronicles Volume 1 by Hinako Ashihara. Translated by Kinami Watabe. Adapted by John Werry. Published by Viz under their Shojo Beat imprint, $8.99, Rated T+ for Older Teen.

Ann is a young woman preparing for marriage to a foreign businessman. As she is packing her stuff, a young girl asks her about a miniature hourglass she finds in Ann's room among her valuables. It makes Ann flashback 14 years ago when she was 12 years old, shortly after her mom and dad got divorced. All those years ago, Ann and her mom visited the Sand Museum in Nima, home of the largest hourglass in the world. Ann and her mom, Miwako, had to move in with Ann's grandparents in the small town of Shimane to make ends meet. This is a crushing defeat for Miwako, who always felt trapped in her old hometown. Meanwhile, Ann has to quickly adjust to life away from Tokyo as well and soon meets a boy named Daigo, whose father hunts, kills, and eats game animals he shoots in the countryside. She also finds out that Daigo's mom and her mom were close friends when they were younger and begins to learn about her mom's dreams and aspirations. She begins to realize she belongs in Shimane even as her mom realizes her disgust with the place has not changed.

My Grade: A+

This an anime dvd review of Episodes 5-8 of the second disk of the Buso Renkin Box Set 1. The box set is published by Viz and is available for the list price of $49.99. I've seen it at Best Buy for $34.99. Directed by Takao Kato. Series Composition by Akatsuki Yamatoya. Rated 16+.

The first dvd of this set ended in a cliffhanger, or in reality a FIGHThanger, as Kazuki and a handicapped Tokiko began their battle against Chono's servant, the hawk-type Homunculus named Washio. Tokiko is not operating at full capacity because she has a Homunculus embryo inside her that is slowly making its way to her brain, at which point she will turn into one of the very monsters she has been fighting. It is imperative that they finish the battle quickly so they can find Chono and get an antidote that will save her life. But Washio is not like the other Homunculi. He seems to have extremely acute reasoning skills and even exhibits a very human-like loyalty to Chono that causes him to fight to the death against Kazuki and Chono. And Chono is no longer the only villain of this piece. We are also introduced to the League of Extraordinary Elect, a group of humanoid Homunculi that are apparently led by a turncoat alchemist warrior that disappeared 100 years ago.

The highlight, or more accurately, the lowlight, of this dvd has to be the transformation of Chono as he assumes the powers of a Homunculus and begins to call himself Papillon. Ok, how low does this anime go? Pretty low. When Chono transforms, all his clothes strip away, revealing him in all the glory a grayish thong with a purple butterfly on it can impart. Instantly he reaches into his thong, moves his hand in a very subversive way and pulls out a huge butterfly mask that couldn't possibly have fit in that tiny little thong. Then he does a little ballet spin in front of a shojoesque background of yellow glitter and strikes a pose, even as he is getting shot at by some of his father's goons. The costume he adopts later on is almost in worse taste than the too-revealing speedo. Papillon has to be the fruitiest villain I have ever encountered in an anime but he fits right in with some of the utterly ridiculous character designs of the monsters and bad buys in Buso Renkin. One of the Elect actually has a head in the shape of a crescent moon! This seems to be weak point of a lot of Shonen Jump titles. For example, the Hollows in Bleach, the monster forms of Naruto and Sasuke in the Naruto manga and anime. I mean, these series are drawn by good artists but when they do monsters, bad guys, or demonesque figures, they just show a complete lack of imagination and make something that is supposed to appear scary look funny. Or they make the villain overly feminine like in Black Cat. So however disturbed Chono makes you feel in his insane rant phases, it is severely undercut when he prances around like he's in a Broadway cabaret.

Buso Renkin at times seems cobbled together from other manga and anime like Fullmetal Alchemist and Bleach, but all in all, I have enjoyed the first two volumes of this show even with the whole Papillon debacle. It was cool that we did get some backstory on Chono and that he is simply living his life like his father taught him. Taught probably wouldn't be the exact words I would use. It does seem as though he might not be quite beyond redemption though. I like all of the characters and the chemistry between Kazuki and Tokiko works quite well. They seem to respect each other and there is a very quiet relationship blossoming between them on the down-low.

My Grade: B

 

 

Podcast Review of the Batman: Gotham Knight dvd, a collaboration between American storytellers Greg Rucka, Alan Burnett, Brian Azzarello, Greg Olson and Japanese Animation studios Studio 4C, Production IG, Madhouse, and Bee Train. Published by Warner Brothers, $19.99, Rated 13+. Also available in a 2-disc special edition and Blu-ray for a higher price.

If you ever saw the Animatrix, which bridged the timespan between the first and second Matrix movies, you will be familiar with the concept behind Batman: Gotham Knight. This dvd doesn't really introduce many new characters or storylines taken up in the The Dark Knight movie. It seems to be a device to whet the appetite for Batman fans before the new Dark Knight opens in theaters. Nothing less and nothing more. You get six loosely connected animated tales of Batman from American writers and Japanese anime studios which vary in quality from decent to really good.

My Grade: B-

Podcast manga review of Yggdrasil Volume 1 by Lay Matsuki. Translated by Christine Schilling. Adapted by Mallory Reaves. Originally published in Japan by Media Works. Published in US by Go Comi, $10.99, Rated Older Teen 16+.

In 2010, Wood Soft Inc., a software company, ships the Leaves Operating System, which comes bundled MMORPG game Yggdrasil. It quickly picks up millions of players. Kaoru and Koki, two high schoolers, and buddies since childhood, are among those millions. But something seems to a little screwy in the online world of Yggdrasil. Monsters are appearing out of context, such as a creature usually only found in water appearing on land, or a forest monster appearing in a city. Not only that, but a legendary character from Yggdrasil's beta-test days, called The Phantom, has shown back up, and nobody knows why.

My Grade: C-

Manga Review of GTO: Great Teacher Onizuka Volume 6 by Tohru Fujisawa. Translated by Dan Papia. Originally published in Japan by Kodansha. Published in US by Tokyopop, $9.99, Rated Older Teen 16+.

Things were not going very good for GTO at the end of Volume 5. Representatives from "The Mother and Child Victim's Support Group" showed up at school demanding to observe Onizuka's classroom. It seems they have gotten word of inappropriate behavior in his class and they want to check it out for themselves. Wouldn't you know it that GTO is on one of his slightly crazy kicks and is walking the halls wearing nothing but suspenders, a bizarre elephant head tutu around his crotch area, and some boots! In a hard to miss Freudian metaphor, Onizuka sprays some sort of substance, which I can only hope was water, out of his trunk onto the face of the leader of the support group. He's on the verge of losing his position, but Teshigawara, the evil math teacher, wants to make sure Onizuka never gets another teaching job for the rest of his life. He wants to expose him for the unqualified joke that he really is. He proposes a plan to Ms. Oda, the support group leader, in which Onizuka will take the National Scholastic Achievement Test. This is an academic test that students take three times a year. If GTO is able to make the top score in the country, then he will be able to keep his job. If he can't do this then he will have to give up being a teacher forever. Of course, we all know Onizuka is a complete moron so there is little hope he will even pass it, much less ace it. Since he only has a week to prepare, Azusa invites him to stay over at her place so she can coach. You can imagine the fantasies that start going through our hero's head when he hears this proposition.

The main thing that this volume and the series as a whole has going for it is its humor. Tohru Fujisawa is a great master of the common joke. He can make you laugh. When Onizuka starts daydreaming about all the fun he's going to have staying over at Azusa's (He actually visualizes the info he has to study being written on her naked body), he is rudely awakened when he finds out the dictatorial study regimen she has laid out for him. And some incredibly horrifying dishes to eat as well. He goes to an almost exclusive diet of grilled tuna head. She even supplies extra tuna eyeballs for him to eat that supposedly increase brain activity. Besides that she has electric head bands, pyramid triangles, wave generators, memoryman headphones, alpha wave music, and computer software to aid him. It doesn't really bode too well for his confidence that she's willing to go to such extreme lengths. The art is great as usual and is drawn very realistically. While there are moments of visual morphing during moments of humor or high emotion, there aren't any chibi figures to be seen in this series. So while the humor can be very funny, it never achieves this through drawing characters in wacky styles. It is done more by having the characters react to certain situations or to each other. Fujisawa also handles the action sequences very well. A great read. A great series.  

My Grade: A

 

Anime DVD review of Step Up Love Story Volume 1: For Better, For Worse. Directed by Yuji Moriyama. Written by Chiaki Konaka. Based on the manga Futari Ecchi by Katsu Aki. Published by Media Works, $19.95, Episodes 1-2, Rated Mature.

Makoto and Yura are newly married, both 25 years old, and still virgins. Their first night of romance is ruined when Yura falls asleep before anything can happen. But both partners soon realize that neither have any idea of how to satisfy each other sexually. This is further hammered home by Yura's slutty sister, Rika, who soon realizes that Makoto is clueless in the ways of love and has no idea how to make her sister happy and tries to instruct him on how to change the situation. Yura's friends try to give her advice as well on how to satisfy a man. It doesn't help that two co-workers are coming on to Makoto at work, even though they know he is married.

My Grade: C-

Manga Review of Psycho Busters Volume 2. Story by Yuya Aoki, creator of Getbackers. Manga by Akinari Nao. Translated and adapted by Stephen Paul. Originally published by Kodansha in Japan. Published by Del Rey in US, $10.95, Rated Older Teen 16+.

Kakeru and his new psychic friends are holed up at his house after being attacked by two Category Ones last volume. They won't be disturbed since Kakeru's mom and sisters are on vacation in Hawaii and his dad has been out of the country on business for 3 years. He doesn't exactly have the most tight-knit family. If you remember, there was a ticket mix-up in volume 1 and they were short by one ticket. Instead of cancelling the trip, they dumped Kakeru and went without him! Pretty ghetto if you ask me. We learn a bit more about the "Greenhouse" facility that Ayano, Xiao Long, Kaito, and Joi escaped from. Psychics are taken there by hook or crook and experimented on or made to serve the ends of its directors, the Frontier Committee. Some of the psychics were driven insane or even killed due to the methods the Greenhouse used. Ayano, the faculty member of Kakeru's school is still along for the ride as well, and is beginning to show that she is more than just a simple teacher. While the kids try to get some downtime at the school pool, the Greenhouse sends out one of their most powerful Category Ones, Takemaru, who has a serious inferiority complex, which causes to kill a lot of people with his powers and suffer from delusions of godhood.

I'm beginning to really like this series. Mainly because of the changes that are occuring with Kakeru. In Volume 1, he was a computer game geek who looked forward to masturbating to his dad's high school girl porn. Slowly, he has evolved into a hero willing to sacrifice his life for his new friends. This is due mainly to his growing affection for Ayano, to whom he was attracted at first sight when she appeared in all her naked astral form last volume. As he gets to know her, his initial attraction is developing into love, even if he doesn't know it himself.  Kakeru wants to protect Ayano even though he is not really aware of what his psychic power is or how to activate it. It's always nice to see a cliched horndog manga character go beyond themselves and think about something other than sex. The art by Akinari Nao, while not great, is pretty good, and is an odd mix of bishonen and bishojo art styles that will appeal to both genders of manga readers. The story too, is a mix between superpowered battles combined with almost slice of life storytelling showing how all the kids are cohabitating. That's probably another reason Psychic Busters is growing on me. It takes some well known manga conventions and puts them together in an interesting mix.

My Grade: A

Check out Podcast Episode 100 for a review of Volume 1

Gunslinger Girl Volume 6 by Yu Aida. Translated by Javier Lopez. Originally published by Media Works in Japan. Published in US by ADV Manga, $9.99, Rated 16+.

The Social Welfare Agency believes that it has learned from its past mistakes and is ready to begin production of a second generation of cyborg assassins. There will be an initial run of 10 girls with design improvements. While the physical abilities of the cyborgs will be less than that of the first, the new "conditioning" process will double their lifespan and make them easier to maintain. If this new system works, the SWA has even started thinking about a way to make money by selling its cyborg girls commercially. The first candidate is Elizabeta Baranovskaya, a ballet dancer who is suffering from bone cancer in one of her legs. It's gotten so bad that the doctors say the only way to save her life is to amputate it.  But nobody realizes that Elizabeta's dream of being a great ballerina is stronger than her will to live. If she loses her leg, in her eyes at least, her life is over. End of story.  Meanwhile, Giuseppe and Jean take their fratello, Henrietta and Rico, on a rare vacation where they hope to get away from their job. Unfortunately, it ends up dragging up old memories as Jean is reminded of his dead parents, a dead sister, and a fiance killed by Padania. He's not really a happy fellow.

Gunslinger Girl really stands out in the writing and characterization departments. That's not to say that Aida can't handle the action sequences as well. In fact, while there is only one short battle in this volume, it is handled exquisitely and cinematically. The way the panels are laid out is something he couldn't do in earlier volumes. It's really cool to see someone mature not just artistically but as a writer too. The new girl, Petrushka, joins a cast that the reader was already very sympathetic to, but in a surprise move, her backstory is front and center. In the past, Aida has glanced over the lives of the girls before they became part of the SWA.  It was merely a footnote, so it was a clever twist for Aida to use the newest member to begin some character exploration. Alessandro, Petrushka's handler, comes across as a bit of a jerk, but maybe he's insensitive simply because of the nature of his job. It's pretty creepy that the handler can actually tell the doctors of the SWA exactly what they want their girl to look like. I mean, the hubris of these guys to play God like they do. Unfortunately, if you like this series, it is currently in publishing limbo. This volume was published in December 2007 and there's been no word when ADV will put out the next book. After losing most of their newer anime titles, I'm beginning to wonder if ADV will even be in business this time next year.

My Grade A-

Manga Podcast Episode 108: Gunslinger Girl Volume 5 by Yu Aida. Translated by Javier Lopez. Originally published in Japan by Media Works. Published in US by ADV Manga, $9.99, Rated 16+.

A brief overview of the series and then a review of Volume 5. Padania has begun to suffer from a bit of infighting and the first victim is going to be Cristiano, the leader of the Milan faction. His only allies are Franco, Franca, and Pinocchio. All of them feel a sense of loyalty to Cristiano, especially Pinocchio, whose life he saved many years ago. The Prime Minister of the government sees this as the perfect time to eliminate Padania once and for all, so he sends out the SWA girls to begin an offensive.

My Grade: A+

Check out Podcast Episode 90 for a review of Volume 1

Podcast Manga Review 107: Arm of Kannon Volume 1 by Masakazu Yamaguchi. Translated by Erika Jones. Adapted by Jordan Capell. Published in Japan by Gentosha. Published in US by Tokyopop, $9.99, Rated Mature 18+.

This Podcast contains mature language so keep the kids away!!

Mao and Maya's archaeology professor father has been missing for 3 years, but now he's come home to see his kids. But he's not the same devoted familyman he used to be. He has been corrupted by the evil Arm of Senju Kannon which, while granting unlimited power, only lets its host use it for evil until they become a burned out husk. Then the Arm chooses a new vessel. Mao, with his concealed sexual energy and lust for blood, would seem to be the next candidate. A strange nameless swordsman shows up on the scene to stop the transfer even as a military contractor seeks to capture the arm for itself to aid in making monstrous reptilian super soldiers. This first volume contains graphic violence and sexual imagery definitely suited to adults only. Fans of Gantz, Battle Royale, and Eden will dig it.

My grade: A

Podcast Manga Review of Gantz Volume 1 by Hiroya Oku. Translated by Matthew Johnson. Originally published in Japan by Shueisha. Published in US by Dark Horse, $12.95, Rated Mature 18+.

The highly violent, highly sexualized, and highly anticipated series is finally out from Dark Horse and it doesn't disappoint. Kei and Kato are saved from death in a subway accident only to find themselves trapped in a room with a group of people from all walks of life whisked away in a similar manner right before they died. They cannot leave and are commanded by a strange black globe to hunt down and kill an alien. 

My Grade: A+

Podcast manga review of Koi Cupid Volume 1 by Mia Ikumi. Translated by Rie Hagihara. Adapted by Jason R. Grissom. Originally published in Japan by Soft Bank Creative. Published in US by Broccoli Books, $9.99, Rated E for Everyone.

The job of the cupids Ai, Koi, and Ren, is to make sure that those that are fated to be lovers come together to fulfill their destiny. Sometimes it might be the shyness of the boy or girl that is keeping them apart. Or it could be a job or a misunderstanding. Whatever it is, the three girls must find a way to overcome the obstacle. They not only struggle with their own ineptitude at times, but also must faceoff against cute demons like Lizette, whose goal in life is to foil angel missions.

My Grade for 8-10 year old girl readers: B

My Grade for readers 11+: C-

Well, I had put in my order for the Dark Knight Blu-Ray dvd from Amazon, but after reading some negative reviews online, it just did not seem like a safe bet to buy it sight unseen. So I cancelled my order. I'm going to rent it before I put down money on it.

But I did find an unknown quantity to buy today. I bought the first volume of Gurren Lagann at Best Buy for $19.99. It's quite a good deal from Bandai Entertainment, which seems a complete antithesis of Bandai Visual with its overpriced monstrosities. Bandai Enter has always had very reasonable prices for its anime dvds. This first volume of Gurren actually has two dvds comprising episodes 1-9. You can't beat getting 225 minutes of anime for that price. Thank you Bandai Entertainment! I've never seen the show, but Gainax is doing it so it can't be that bad. (Even though I pretty much despise Evangelion, I like FLCL, Abenobashi). So, hopefully, my money will be worth it and I will enjoy it.

Manga Review of Harukaze Bitter Bop Volume 2 by Court Betten. Translated by Christine Schilling. Adapted by Kereth Cowe-Spigai. Originally published in Japan by Mag Garden. Published in US by Tokyopop, $9.99, Rated Teen 13+.

Souza of the North Wind still hasn't recovered his memory, and it might be a bit late anyway, as he is apparently killed by an assassin named Kurusu of the Sun. Or at least severely wounded.  Kurusu was sent from the Rokka corporation, which on the surface appears to be a normal career placement business. And this is not quite a lie. In reality it takes on ANY assignment as long as the money is right. They have even gone so far as to begin making an "ultimate man" called a "Yoh", which in essence is a kind of super soldier that Rokka can use to complete its missions. Souza was one such operative until he went rogue. Of course, Chiyoharu and Kaede have no idea that Souza has been captured by the company, but they have their own problems. Chiyoharu's buddy, Tomason, has been taken hostage by a Yakuza thug named Sanjuro Araki in an effort to extort money that their teacher, Ayame, owes the mob. I don't think we really know at this point exactly what sum it is or why Ayame had to borrow it from the Yakuza. But I doubt they would be coming after her for petty change.

If you listened to Podcast Episode 84 in which I reviewed Volume 1 of this series, you know that I did not particularly care for that book. I actually had second thoughts about buying this next installment but I decided to give it one more chance. Volume 2 was more of the same, but for some reason, I liked it more. Probably because there was some explanation of what was going on. For instance, we find out what Souza is and why his memories have been lost. Since the reader can understand why things are happening now, you can begin to develop a plot, which seemed to be largely absent from Volume 1. It just seemed to be a hodgepodge of different character types and genres thrown together under one title with no rhyme or reason. This is still the basic weakness of the book. You have Yazkuza, girl detectives, evil corporations, martial arts battles, mixed in with some metamanga. It almost becomes a parody of itself, with the characters sometimes being fully aware that they are in a manga. In the end, Harukaze is just meant to be a fun diversion, and is never meant to be taken seriously, even for a millisecond.

My Grade: B

Batman: Gotham Knight is out on DVD and Blu-Ray today featuring the animation of such popular Japanese studios as Production IG, 4c, and Madhouse. I haven't had a chance to see it yet. I looked at Hollywood Video today but for some dumb reason they did not receive any copies. Amazon.com has a pretty good price for the Blu-Ray version: $21.95 which I will probably order tomorrow. I'm pretty excited about the new movie. The official site link is:

http://www.warnervideo.com/batmangothamknight/

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Funimation has listed some of the release dates of series it picked up from Geneon:

August 19: Black Lagoon season 1, Black Lagoon: The Second Barrage volume 1, Elemental Gelade volume 1

September 2: Karin volumes 1-4, Kyo kara Maoh! season 2's volume 1-7

September 9: Shakugan no Shana series box

September 16: Black Lagoon: The Second Barrage volume 2, Fate/stay night
series box, Hellsing Ultimate volumes 1-4, Rozen Maiden series box

September 23: Kamichu! series box, Paradise Kiss series box

September 30: When They Cry - Higurashi volumes 1-4
(source: ANN)

I definitely will pick up the Fate/Stay Night and Kamichu sets. These are both great shows. From what I understand the prices for the box sets will be in line with Funimation, not Geneon. So I would expect them to run around $50. Rozen Maiden would be a borderline purchase for me.

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Lastly, on Madeleine Rosca's Live Journal, she posted a picture of a new character that was introduced in the Japanese manga Air Gear in chapter 206 who is purported to be a takeoff of presidential candidate Barack Obama. The character is named John Omaha. I can't vouch for the translation but one of the comments on her blog says the panel translates his dialogue as "Why is it on this night when I'm meeting such a lovely person, I have failed to bring my tuxedo" and the side panel reads "the candidate for the next president of the United States". Now if he would just put on some ATs! Of course, Rosca is the artist and writer of the exquisite Hollow Fields from Seven Seas, with two volumes out now. She makes me believe that OEL has a future and can be better than Japanese manga in some cases. You can click on my link to her Live Journal underneath blogs on my webpage.

Manga Review of Samurai Commando: Mission 1549 Volumes 1&2. Art by Ark Performance. Story by Harutoshi Fukui. Original idea by Ryo Hanmura. Translated and adapted by Sheldon Drzka. Originally published in Japan by Kadokawa Shoten. Published in US by CMX, $9.99 each, Rated T+.

35-year-old Yusuke Kashima is having a hard time finding a job that he can hold on to. Currently he's on the verge of losing his eighth one since being discharged from the Japanese Self Defense Force. In the SDF, he was part of the special marine brigade "F Unit" serving under his idol, the charismatic and now deceased Colonel Matoba. After F Unit was disbanded, Kashima became disillusioned with both the military and Matoba and has been trying to adjust to the civilian life ever since. He finds out how little his own problems matter when the military comes a callin'. They show him pictures of strange globes of black energy both large and small that have begun to appear across Japan. These black holes are replacing our space and if they continue not only will Japan be replaced, but our entire dimension. What does all this have to do with Kashima, you ask? Six years ago, his mentor, Matoba, was killed in action. Well, at least, that's what the military said. The actual truth of what happened to him is a pretty amazing tale. 6 years ago, while testing some new military technology, Matoba and his unit were somehow transported back in time to the year 1549! It is believed that these holes are being caused by Matoba changing the past. Their suspicions are correct. Matoba plans on using his technological know-how to conquer not only Japan but the entire world. Kashima is going to be part of a mission to go back in time and bring Matoba back to the present. How long is he given to save the world? 3 days!

Whenever you involve time travel in a story, you always run into questions that spawn more questions. For instance, if the black holes are caused by changes in the time continuum, it wouldn't make any difference if you brought Matoba back to the present. The damage has already been done, and any change in the past would result in a completely different reality, especially for Japan. And once the future technology was introduced by Matoba, the cat would be out of the bag as well. For example, Matoba fashions a hybrid armor for his men, blending the craft of  Japanese and European metalwork. It's too much to ask us to believe that someone back in 1549 would not emulate this armor and perhaps change the course of warfare in the past. The art is pretty good if lacking soul and passion. That pretty much sums up this two volume manga as well. Since the plot only allows 3 days to complete its mission, we don't get to spend a lot of time getting to know the characters, so the writer has to paint their personalites and motivations with very broad strokes with very little room to add nuances and depth. The main theme comes across loud and clear and has been echoed through the ages from ancient Rome to current America. Namely, that there are always those who wonder if their present country is living up to the ideals of its ancestors. Matoba and Kashima are very concerned that modern Japan has lost something very vital that it once had. Could it be the fact that our consumer culture has stripped men of everything they once cherished? Is our century even capable of fostering the traits of bravery, loyalty, and sacrifice? These are questions that other nations have asked themselves when the intelligent among them believed their country had lost its way. The problem is that this manga throws the moral of its own sermonizing message directly in your face too many times, especially in the second volume. For better handling of this same plot device, I would highly recommend watching the anime Zipang. This was an ok read, but there just wasn't time to flesh it out.

My Grade: C+

Anime DVD review of Episodes 1-5 of the Aquarion Complete Series Box Set Part 1. Published by Funimation.

12,000 years ago the human race was saved from defeat by the Solar Wing, a Shadow Angel who betrayed his own race for the love of a human girl. All of these thousands of years passed with no word of the Shadow Angels but they reawakened in the aftermath of the Great Catastrophe which devastated the planet 11 years ago. Now the only force that can stand against them is Aquarion, a giant mecha composed of three seperate vehicles called Vectors, that unite to battle the Angels. Only those with special psychic abilities, called Elements, can pilot the Vectors, so a world-wide search to find the best candidates has been launched. It is the hope of the searchers to find the reincarnation of the Solar Wing in the hopes that he can save mankind.

You can watch the first two episodes for free at the official Aquarion website:

http://funimation.com/aquarion/

My Grade: B+

Manga Review of Sunshine Sketch Volume 1 by Ume Aoki. Translated by Satsuki Yamashita. Originally published by Houbunsha in Japan. Published in US by Yen Press, $10.99, Rated Teen.

Sunshine Sketch is about 4 art students attending the prestigious Yamabuki Private High School. They are all neighbors in the Hidamari Apartment Building, which is notorious for housing weirdos from the Arts department. I don't know if you would qualify sophomores Yun and Miyu, and juniors Sae and Hiro as "weirdos" per se, but they are all a bit quirky in their own way. The story is mainly told from the viewpoint of Yuno, the stereotypical klutz airhead of the series. You can see the apple doesn't fall far from the tree when her mom takes her for entrance exams and is last seen waving goodbye to Yuno. Hours later, after the test is over, Yuno exits the building to find that her mom is STILL waving, with a hugely swollen arm! Miyu is the pushy energy ball who shows up as soon as Yuno moves into Hidamari, demanding moving Soba (it's a Japanese tradition to make Soba for your new neighbors). This is just the first act of sponging off of Yuno that Miyu instigates. She sees Yuno as a food source and a servant....and as a friend....I guess. Sae and Hiro live on the floor beneath Yuno and Miyu and since they are a year older, see themselves as kind of big sisters to the younger duo. Sae is the more intelligent of the two and seems much more mature, while Hiro is a bit spacier but hides a sly wit and sarcasm that she uses to insult the other girls. Whether she does this intentionally or not, she always plays off her insults as dumb coencidence.

Sunshine Sketch is a series of four panel cartoons that read vertically going down the page a la Azumanga Daioh. Because of this format and the subject matter I found it hard not to compare the two series, much to Sunshine's detriment. While Azumanga's jokes were always clear and almost always brought a laugh, the humor in Sunshine is much more hit and miss. Because the book is broken into pseudo chapters, the punchline for a joke can come pages later, much more like Cromartie High School, instead of being rapid fire like Azumanga. This spacing of the jokes tends to dilute the comedy. There were many times reading this book that I realized a joke had been told and I was supposed to laugh but I just didn't get it. But I felt that this was due more to the obscurity of the original writing than a misunderstanding of the Japanese translation or cultural references. The art is pretty average according to the unremarkable subject matter that is being drawn. The character designs and the personalities of the cast stand out a bit better upon a second reading but at this point are a bit formless and hard to distinguish. Sunshine Sketch shows promise at this point and could be quite funny once you get to know the characters a bit more.

My Grade: B

Sorcerer Hunters Volume 5. Art by Ray Omishi. Story by Satoru Akahori. Translated by Anita Sengupta. Originally published by Media Works in Japan. Published in US by Tokyopop, $9.99, Rated Older Teen 16+.

The Sorcerer Hunters had quite the Darth Vader moment facing off against the Sorcerer Hunter Killers last volume. Tira and Chocolat learned that the leader of the Killers was none other than their adopted father Sacher Torte, who had rebelled against Big Mama 13 years ago.  Also among Sacher's cronies is Gateau's sister, who he had thought long dead, and apparently has no memory of her brother. She seems more than willing to kill him without a second thought. Years ago, Sacher even tried to kill Tira and Chocolat in a fit of psychotic rage, so Chocolat in particular wants to take revenge on him. He was wounded by Carrot's father in volume 4 but continues to be a threat as long as he can draw on the power of his Platina stones, which allow him to wield a pure form of magic which was reserved only for gods. The Sorcerer Hunters must find these five stones and destroy them if they hope to defeat Sacher. But their mission is not going to be easy because Sacher has posted powerful guardians to watch over each stone. Each battle is different because each guardian is unique and has their own methods of trying to defeat the Hunters, whether they be physical or more psychological.

Even though the art has a definite 1990's look to it, Omishi's skills are on proud display as she is a master of action, comedy, and even illustrating a heartfelt flashback at how Carrot and Chocolat met when they were kids. To me, this was the best part of Volume 5. Yeah, we know that Chocolat has a thing for Carrot, but here we find out why. It is a welcome event to reveal that Carrot is not quite the mindless horndog and that Chocolat is not quite the mindless dingbat that she puts on. That there is a loving bond between the two, even though the love each feels might be different. Even at that early of an age Chocolat wanted to find and kill Sacher but Carrot put some sense into her head, knowing that she would only wind up dead if she confronted him. Even NOW, she would probably end up dead! But now she has friends that care about her and will help her out. Akahori almost always finds a way to get some comedy into each story even if there is a particularly serious arc, but it never seems forced or out of place. This series probably should have been rated Mature since it does feature a couple of full-on boob shots along the level of Ai Yori Aoshi.

My Grade: A-

Gunslinger Girl Volume 4 by Yu Aida. Translated by Javier Lopez. Originally published in Japan by Media Works. Published in US by ADV Manga, $9.99, Rated 16+.

Volume 4 of Gunslinger Girl begins with a focus on perhaps the saddest member of the cast of girl assassins: Claes. Her handler had begun to doubt the ethics of what he was doing and had thought about exposing the whole operation. To prevent this, he was liquidated by the SWF. The problem is that once a girl bonds to her handler, there is no going back and it is extremely hard, if not impossible, to give her a new partner. So Claes is pretty much excess baggage and is only kept alive for the sake of study and experimentation. Since her memory was wiped clean, she walks around with a sense of something missing from her life. A sadness she can't quite put her finger on. Triela, too, is having some life issues, as she grapples with her first major defeat by the killer Pinocchio. She would have gotten killed by him, but he had a flashback to something in his past and spared her life. She doesn't have a lot of time to dwell on it though, as she and Hillshire are assigned to protect a mob boss daughter because her father has decided to turn state's evidence against his former friends.

The aspect of this series that Aida handles so well is that there isn't a lot of exploitation of the "cute" factor that drawing and portraying such young girls could easily slip into. Instead the writer shows how the spirit of each girl finds a way to fight its way up through all the brainwashing and conditioning to desperately grasp at something of a normal life. While the story sometimes flirts with the idea that the girls are in love with their partners, again, this is never taken to moe otaku extremes and is explained by saying it is a result of their conditioning. Aida also handles flashbacks well, using them just enough to explain her character motivations and giving them depth, without causing jarring interruptions in the flow of the current storyline. This is a great series. It's too bad that ADV Manga sucks and a new volume hasn't been published in 6 months. At one time, the release schedule averaged one volume per YEAR. For example, Volume 3 was published in June 2005 while this fourth volume did not come out till July 2007! And now it seems like there has been another interruption. They should really just give up the license, along with Cromartie and Yotsuba and get out of the manga business.

My Grade: A

Well, never fear if you cowering in your boots about the demise of Geneon and consequently, the fate of your favorite anime series. According to ANN, Funimation has picked up the rights to

"manufacture, sell, and distribute "select" DVD titles in North America. Those titles include Ergo Proxy, Hellsing Ultimate, Black Lagoon, Black Lagoon: The Second Barrage, Karin, Kyo kara Maoh! Season 2, Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha, Elemental Gelade, Fate/stay night, Kamichu, the live-action Ninja Vixens work, Paradise Kiss, Rozen Maiden, Rozen Maiden - Träumend, Shana, Shonen Onmyouji, The Familiar of Zero, The Story of Saiunkoku, When They Cry - Higurashi, and The Law of Ueki." 

Hot on the heels of this news is the fact that Funimation has also picked up the rights to the following ADV series:

• 009-1
• Ah! My Goddess: Flights of Fancy
• Air Gear
• Air movie
• Air TV
• Blade of the Phantom Master
• Comic Party: Revolution
• Coyote Ragtime Show
• Devil May Cry
• Guyver: The Bioboosted Armor TV
• Jing, King of Bandits: Seventh Heaven
• Jinki:Extend
• Kanon
• Kyoshiro to Towa no Sora (once titled as Shattered Angels by ADV Films)
• Le Chevalier D'Eon
• Magikano
• Moeyo Ken TV
• Moonlight Mile
• Murder Princess
• Nerima Daikon Brothers
• Pani Poni Dash!
• Project Blue Earth SOS
• Pumpkin Scissors
• Red Garden
• Sgt. Keroro 1st & 2nd
• Tokyo Majin
• UFO Princess Valkyrie
• Utawarerumono
• Venus Versus Virus
• The Wallflower
• Welcome to the NHK
• Xenosaga

(ANN)

So, while this seems to be good news, to me it's also kind of ominous. If ADV or Geneon couldn't make enough profit off these titles, will Funimation be able to? It seems to invite a charge of hubris, at least to me. Maybe Funi has bitten off more than it can chew. Could this be a case of a company walking into a candystore and filling up their pockets with licenses and then realizing they only have one mouth to stuff it all in? And also, how are they going to handle the releases? I would suspect as boxsets.

I really felt bad for Geneon when they went down. They had good titles and almost always did quality work on their shows. They are sorely missed. ADV, on the other hand, has come to define everything wrong with the anime and manga business. They do crappy dubs with the same core group that they've had for almost the whole time I've been watching anime. And don't even get me started on their manga division. Where is Gunslinger Girl? Yotsuba? Cromartie? They don't respect their customers. In some figurative respects, they spit on them as well. I don't think that a lot of these companies know how to compete or market very well. At this point, they are becoming more and more irrelevant. Tokyopop comes to mind as well. But they still have time to change their fate.

So I guess I'll give a cautious hooray to Funimation for the time being but reserve judgement over whether this is the Second Coming until I see what they do with the product.

Manga Review: 10,20, and 30 Volume 2 by Morim Kang. Translated by Misun Jang. Published by Net Comics, $9.99, Rated 16+.

As this second volume opens, Belle has run away from the Krumb household. Well, if you call going to your mom's house running away. Belle's mom is still on about her finding a man and getting married, even if it means marrying the useless Beau. Meanwhile, Rok is having her own man problems as she continues to question why she treats Angel so badly, lashing out at him for no reason. And she gets even more upset when she finds out her best friend has been hanging out with him. Plus, Rok is trying her best to help her overworked mom juggle her roles of mother and breadwinner. Krumb herself is struggling over the guilt of becoming more and more attached to her boss, Mr. Choe, whose marriage proposal is still on the table. When he tells Krumb he is going to Hong Kong to see about a problem at one of the company's factories, he neglects to tell her that it the main retailer that carries their fashion line has gone out of business. Krumb's employer itself is now facing bankruptcy.

This second installment of 10,20, and 30 at times slips a little too close to over the top melodrama for my taste. But a little soap opera is ok if you care about the characters. And Krumb, Belle, and Rok are definitely interesting and sympathetic. You're not going to find any protagonists that have all the answers in their backpocket here. All three women (or should I say two women and 1 young lady) are desperately in search of something, even though they don't always know what it is. Perhaps it is happiness? So they fumble their way towards this goal, sometimes being bitchy and getting on each other's nerves, or snapping at the guys that like them. But in turn, they are just as likely to cry in each other's arms a moment after saying they can't stand each other. It's real life, man! Relationships, whether they are between family members or lovers, can be quite complex, unless you lead a really boring life. Kang's art, is very cartoony and lacks formal realism but she gets it to work within the framework of her story and is able to get just as much emotional mileage out of it as more detailed art might. While the plot is made up mostly of relationship problems, the characters will win you over.

My Grade: B+

See Episode 12 of my podcast show for a review of Volume 1.

Only two volumes of this series have been printed, but more volumes are available online at  www.netcomics.com

 

Podcast Manga Review of In Odd We Trust by Queenie Chan and Dean Koontz. Published by Del Rey, $10.95.

Odd Thomas is a young guy who usually keeps his nose out of other people's business, unless they are dead people. Odd has the ability to see the spirits of the dead. From time to time these spirits seek him out for a bit of help, or just to hang out. Elvis is a pretty firm fixture in the town. A seven-year-old boy is found stabbed to death by a housekeeper along with a letter from the killer. It appears that the murderer was the same person that had been stalking the housekeeper for the past two months. The housekeeper, Sherry, just happens to be the best friend of Odd's girlfriend, Stormy. The authorities think that other children that lived where Sherry was employed could also be on the killer's list of targets. Will Odd Thomas and his pals, along with the spirit of the dead boy,be able to find the psychopath before he strikes again?

My Grade: F

Manga review of Negima Volume 1 by Ken Akamatsu. Translated by Hajime Honda. Adapted by Peter and Kathleen O'Shea David. Originally published by Kodansha in Japan. Published in US by Del Rey, $10.95, Rated OT, 16+.

10 year old Negi Springfield has just graduated from magic school when he receives his mystic diploma which dictates a student's career. Negi has been assigned as a teacher in Japan. He arrives at Mahora Academy as their new English professor, replacing the popular Takahata-sensei. He gets off to a bad start with one student in particular, Asuna, who just happens to have a crush on Takahata. When she finds out he is being replaced by Negi she becomes hell-bent on getting him fired. Imagine her surprise when she finds out Negi will be rooming with her and her roommate, Konoka! One limit put on Negi is that nobody can find out about his magic abilities. If someone does, then he could be kicked out of his training and maybe even turned into a hamster. But you know Asuna is going to be watching him like a hawk for any type of weirdness she can take advantage of. And I haven't even mentioned the other thirty girls in his class.

My Grade: A

Manga Review: Gunslinger Girl Volume 3 by Yu Aida. Translated by Amy Forsyth. Originally published by Media Works in Japan. Published by ADV Manga in US, $9.99, Rated 16+.

One of the Social Welfare Agency's agents has gone missing while on the trail of a mysterious new threat. I know it doesn't sound frightening, but the name of this threat is....Pinocchio! No, he's not the wooden puppet but seriously, his skills as a cold-blooded killer make him a match even for the Agency's cybernetically enhanced girls. He's been enlisted to help the terrorist forces of the Five Republics in their efforts to rebel against the government. The girls are sent into action against these forces and in an effort to protect an important political leader.

While action is never far away in Gunslinger Girl, since Volume 2 this series has taken a more quiet and less bloody route in its storytelling. This is a good thing. Here we get a focus on the forces that plot against the Agency and all sides of the conflict seem to get an even break in terms of motivation. It's very hard to see it in terms of bad guys and good guys (or gals). Since both sides are willing to do atrocious things to better their causes. Buy it for the action, the intrigue, and the poignant relationships. Highly recommended!

My Grade: A

Manga Review: Gunslinger Girl Volume 2 by Yu Aida. Translated by Eiko McGregor. Originally published in Japan by Media Works. Published in US by ADV Manga, $9.99, Rated 16+.

Volume 2 of Gunslinger Girl has less violence and more character development than the first installment. We start off with the backstory of Claes and end with the backstory of the first girl agent, Angelica. The most touching moments of the series are when the girls remember their humanity despite all the conditioning they receive to rid them of it. Even some of the adult handlers begin to question whether they are on the right side. The middle section of this volume deals with the Agency trying to stop mad bombers and rescuing the money man of an underground organization. But the plot is interspersed with quiet moments such as the girls going out in the dead of night to enjoy a meteor shower, and the tragic story of Angelica, whose own father tried to kill her for insurance money. The same Angelica whose memory is completely shot due to the massive amount of experimentation that was done on her.

The premise of Gunslinger Girl is quite disturbing but it does show how adults corrupt the world of children with no regard to their welfare at times. In a war against terrorists just how far would people be willing to go? What is the difference in sending 18 year olds to fight and die? Are they any less children than the girls we see here? Another poignant thing about it is that all the girls seem to have been unwanted, in some cases, even by their own parents. And that they cling to their handlers and to each other as the only family they have. Yu Aida never exploits the plot. I think the author is trying to show how a blank slate can be turned into a killer if properly trained. But there is something in the souls of the girls that is trying to fight its way out and reject this whole messed up situation. Thought provoking manga!

Check out Podcast Episode 90 for an audio review of Volume 1.

My Grade: A

Podcast 101: Anime dvd review of the first disc of the Buso Renkin Box Set 1, Episodes 1-4.

Kazuki Muto is in the wrong place at the wrong time. He is witness to an attack by a Homunculus, a shape shifting human eating monster, on an innocent schoolgirl. Kazuki bravely dies in an attempt to save the girl. She ends up being a Alchemist warrior named Tokiko, who is in the business of exterminating Homunculi. She kills the monster and then revives Kazuki by replacing his heart with a kakugane, an alchemical device that gives its bearer the power of the Buso Renkin, a weapon that takes different forms depending on the mind of its owner. Kazuki decides to join in Tokiko's battle to rid his town of the murderous Homunculi.

My Grade: B

Podcast Episode 100: Psycho Busters Volume 1 manga review. Manga by Akinari Nao. Story by Yuya Aoki. Translated and adapted by Stephen Paul. Originally published in Japan by Kodansha. Published in US by Del Rey, $10.95, Rated Older Teen 16+.

Kakeru is a boy bored with reality. He lives mainly through computer games and is just waiting for something exciting and incredible to happen to him. With his mother and sisters gone on vacation to Hawaii and his dad off on a business trip, Kakeru has the run of the house. That's when a ghostly but cute girl appears naked in his room, asking him to come to where her real body is. Kakeru doubts whether he should go but then reminds himself that this type of adventure is exactly what he had been asking for. He quickly becomes involved with psychics on the run from a government facility that grew and used them for their own covert reasons. Joi, the leader of the psychics, declares that Kakeru will save the world, whatever that means. Meanwhile, the psychic hunters are closing in.

My Grade: B

Podcast Episode 99: Manga Review of Dance in the Vampire Bund Volume 1 by Nozomu Tamaki. Translated by Kenji Komiya. Adapted by Katherine Bell and Adam Arnold. Originally published in Japan by Media Factory. Published in US by Seven Seas, $9.99, Rated Older Teen 16+.

Mina Tepes, princess of the vampires, wants to found a vampire settlement off the coast of Japan. After she pays off the nation's budget deficit of 1000 trillion yen, she makes the goverment construct a man-made island called Tokyo Landfill #0. Mina then holds a press conference announcing her intentions. But there are some elements, both human and vampire, that want her dead. It's up to Kaburagi Akira, a young member of the Earth Clan, to protect her life.

My Grade: A-

Podcast manga review of Color of Rage. Story by Kazuo Koike. Art by Seisaku Kano. Translated by Naomi Kokubo with assistance of Jeff Carlson. Originally published by Koike Shoin Publishing in 2004. Published in US by Dark Horse, $14.95, Rated Mature 18+.

George and King, two slaves, have escaped from their servitude on a whaling ship only to find themselves washed up on the shores of a Japan in crisis. A volcanic eruption has just recently killed 20,000 people, and a poor harvest is causing famine across the land. Peasants have begun rebelling against their masters or abandoning their farms. Neither of which sit very well with the nobility, who count on the farmers to work their lands. George, who is Japanese, can fit into the situation very easily. But what to do about King, an African American, whose skin color alone will cause the two to stand out? It's not only his race that brings unwanted attention. King believes that he has to stand up against anyone that oppresses their fellow man. Even if it means killing a lot of corrupt lords and government officials. King and George fall into adventure as they seek for a place where people are judged on their own merits, not by race or money.

My Grade: A-

Heavenshield Volume 1 by Ryu Blackman podcast manga review. Published by Tokyopop, $10.99, Rated Older Teen 16+.

In this vague sci-fi adventure, the evil and demented General Oz has escaped from a high security prison to lead a military coup even as important members of the government are being killed by the Green Light Assassins. Enter Sepulveda Ramos, or Carrot, as she is more commonly called. Carrot is a prostitute who also takes up the government's dirty work as a secret agent. She has been charged with finding out what the connections between all the world's major players are and to find a way to preserve the government in some sort of working condition. If this means killing a few people, she can live with that. She also has a personal grudge against Oz, since he killed her boyfriend 3 years ago.

My Grade: F-

Episode 96: Comic book review of Batman Death Mask issues 1 and 2 by Yoshinori Natsume. Published by DC and CMX, $2.99 each, unflipped in black and white.

Yoshinori Natsume, artist and writer of the Japanese manga Togari, tries his hand with an American icon with these first two issues of the four issue Batman: Death Mask. Bruce Wayne is having a bit of a mid-life crisis as he wonders who he really is. Is he Bruce Wayne masquerading as Batman or vice versa? Then he meets an employee of a Japanese corporation holding an art and culture exhibition in Gotham that reminds him of a girl he met 20 years ago in Japan. He was there for martial arts training, but he also encountered the malevolent spirit of a long dead warrior who threatened to possess him. Now the same spirit seems to be running around the city cutting off people's faces!

My Grade for issues 1 and 2: B+

Podcast Anime Review Episode 95: 5 Centimeters Per Second. Written and directed by Makoto Shinkai. ADV Films, $29.98.

Takaki and Akari have been friends since they were young kids but when Akari moves away, their relationship gets a bit strained simply because of the physical distance between them. Now in high school, Takaki finds out he too is moving and he will probably never see Akari again. So he makes a desperate try to reach her via train on a night when heavy snow is making such a trip nigh impossible. Even though 5 Centimeters is packaged as a single movie, it can also be broken down into 3 distinct segments chronicling the continuing breakdown of the love between Takaki and Akari. Well, more accurately, the failure of Takaki to move on with his life when he realizes he will never be with Akari. The second segment offers a bit of hope as a classmate of Takaki's is just dying to tell him that she loves him, but will Takaki even notice?

My Grade: A+

Manga Podcast Review of Kashimashi: Girl Meets Girl Volume 5. Story by Satoru Akahori. Art by Yukimaru Katsura. Translated by Adrienne Beck. Adapted by Janet Houck. Originally published in Japan by Media Works. Published in US by Seven Seas under their Strawberry imprint, Rated 16+, $10.99.

In this concluding volume, Hazumu's life grains are running out, leaving her 30 days to make peace with her friends and decide whether she is going to declare her love for Tomari or Yasuna, or neither of them. Hazumu is trying to work out a plan whereby nobody's feelings will get hurt. But is that even possible in a love triangle? Meanwhile, Tomari and Yasuna are wrestling equally with the only way they can save Hazumu's life. Namely that of sharing their own life grains with Hazumu and sharing her fate for the rest of their lives, knowing that the day they stop loving Hazumu, she will die.

Grade for this Volume: A-

Grade for the series: B+

Kashimashi: Girl Meets Girl Volume 4. Story by Satoru Akahori. Art by Yukimaru Katsura. Originally published by Media Works in Japan. Published in US by Seven Seas, Rated Older Teen 16+, $10.99.

Kashimashi has rapidly changed from a pseudo yuri title to that of a tragic dying soulmate triangle in the space of one volume. In the third installment, we learned that Hazumu's life will end in 30 days due to the fact that her "life grains" have run out. In fact, she was supposed to have died the day he/she was crushed by an alien spaceship. Changing Hazumu into a girl only delayed the inevitable. Her temporary reprieve is over and now she is going to have make peace with her friends and herself. Volume 4 chronicles the different ways that Tomari, Yasuna, Ayuki, and Asuta deal with the news that they are going to lose their best friend, or in some cases, their true love in 30 days. While Yasuna resigns herself and tries to make Hazumu's last days on Earth full of happiness and memories, Tomari reacts with anger at the news. She can't figure out how everybody is taking it so well and remaining calm about the whole tragedy. There is one hope to save Hazumu. If someone wishes strong enough and purely enough to share Hazumu's life and fate, then that person will be able to share some of their own life grains with her. But the day the person puts themselves first without thinking of Hazumu, she will die.

Wow, how easily this book transformed from a light comedy or even light drama to a title that almost seems brooding with the ominous nature of Hazumu's impending death. I agree with Tomari that Hazumu's friends seem to be taking it a little too well. It just seems like no matter what your good intentions, if someone you loved was going to die, you would still be haunted by it at certain moments and would not be able to focus as much on making happy memories. The fact that nobody knows how Hazumu is fated to die also seems a bit cruel. Is she going to die without pain or is it going to be a horrible torturous death? Still, the writing is pretty good and is still able to keep a certain pastoral and gentle tone thanks to Katsura's graceful artwork. I'm looking forward to the conclusion of Kashimashi, hoping that Hazumu will be able to change her fate.

My Grade: A-

Tweeny Witches Volume 1 Anime DVD Podcast review. Episodes 1-7. Directed by Yoshiharu Ashino. Script Writer: Shinji Obara. Anime Works, $24.98, Rated Ages 13+.

11 year old Arusu is bored with our little planet. The only thing that keeps her interested is her belief in magic. Unfortunately, magic is nonfunctional in our world. Her dream comes true when she is transported to a magical forest in the midst of a fairy roundup by some apprentice witches about her own age. The fairies are needed for magic to be worked but Arusu sees them simply as victims of exploitation. She sets out to change this alternate world for the better, and see that magic is only used to bring happiness, never for aggression or fear. When she sets free all of the 100 fairy specimens the witches have collected, Arusu, along with the uptight discipline officer Sheila and her cute friend Eva are sent to gather them up again.

My Grade: A+

Ok, I grew up and still live in the South, so trust me, I know all about rednecks, but my experience at Best Buy tonight took the prize. I had went there to buy the boxed set of Noein that was on sale for half price, and picked it up and was browsing the other anime dvds. These two guys with hick accents (its ok, I can say that, since I have a hick accent), came down the aisle and one chuckled and said "Hey, look, it's aniporn!" as he looked at the anime dvds. The other guy, in a similar hick accent replied "Huh? What du ya mean? Are those videogames or something?" Then Hick #1 says back "Nah, these are like porn stuff, they're aniporn". Then they walked off.

Suffice it to say I was amused by the whole thing, and actually ticked off. It was funny because they were such dumbasses. The thing that pissed me off was the fact that even after all these years, there are people out there that still think all Japanese cartoons and manga involve pornography. And I mean, come on, does anyone really think that Best Buy is going to be carrying porn of any kind? I'll have to do an dramatic reenactment of the conversation on my next podcast.

Best Buy is selling the box sets of the following series for half price through 4/5/08:

Complete Series Box Sets

Tokko $12.49

Elfen Lied  $15.99

Noein  $17.49

Mars Daybreak  $19.99

Evangelion Platinum  $28.99

Robotech $37.49

Samurai Deeper Kyo $29.99 (also includes GBA game)

Dragonball Z Season 4 $19.99

Fullmetal Alchemist Season 2 Part 2  $19.99

Elfen Lied is a great show and Fullmetal Alchemist is as well. I would definitely recommend those two.

Air TV Volume 4. Directed by Tatsuya Ishihara. Series Composition by Fumihiko Shimo. ADV Films, $29.98.

The true finale of Air TV, which took place on Volume 3 as Misuzu fell dead into the arms of her adopted mother was pretty painful to watch. This last volume opens with a recap episode of her short life and ends, again, with her death. The other two episodes on the disc go back to the middle story arc in which the winged girl, Kanna, along with her handmaiden, Uraha, and her warrior guard, Ryuya, are trying to make their way to Kanna's mother while being pursued by soldiers from the temple where Kanna was confined. These two episodes are entirely new and fill out the relationships and adventures the three have, focusing more on the comedic side of things.

While the first episode was a waste of space, as are all recap episodes unless you haven't watched a series for a while (does anyone remember the one ripoff volume of Wolf's Rain which was entirely FILLED with recap episodes?!), the last two episodes were really enjoyable. Air TV was always a series that took itself too seriously, suffering from the bipolarity of being a moe comedy at one point, then shifting to a magical girl historical drama, then to a pathological torture session of Misuzu intended to make an otaku weep. The two episodes that close Volume 4 injected something much needed by the series as a whole: a little lightheartedness, a little more comedy, to take the edge off of the tragic hardships most of the characters go through. The final arc focusing on Misuzu's slow decay was especially hard to watch and seemed to have no point. In fact, Air TV had one of the worst endings that I've seen in a long time, even though it doesn't reach the depths of the aforementioned Wolf's Rain in terms of "Uh, what just happened so you're telling me this whole show was for nothing and that the characters are just going to have to repeat their struggles till infinity over and over..." but it comes pretty close. The landscapes of the Japanese countryside and the town are beautiful even though the female characters with their plate sized luminescent blue eyes seem a bit creepy at times. Overall, this series is worth watching, but don't expect to get a satisfactory conclusion. I'll probably be watching the movie version sometime soon.

My Volume 4 Rating: B+

My Overall Series Rating: C

Manga Review: The Law of Ueki Volume 9 by Tsubasa Fukuchi. Translated and adapted by Yoshiko Tokuhara. Originally published by Shogakukan in Japan. Published by Viz, $9.99, Rated T for Teen.

The story of why Robert has such a low opinion of humanity opens up Volume 9 of The Law of Ueki. His treatment by the inhabitants of the town where he grew up as a an orphan explains why he wants to destroy the world if he wins the tournament. It explains WHY but it still does not make it right. The relationship between Ueki and Robert is very similar to that of Naruto and Gaara. Naruto felt a lot of sympathy for Gaara simply because to him, the Sand ninja represented a possibility of what Naruto himself could have become if he had been left to his own devices. Ueki understands why Robert feels the way he does, but he is also disgusted that he let an incident in his childhood cloud his whole future and turned to evil. Ueki always looks for the good in others, a way to change situations to the positive, and to redeem those that have fallen into darkness. In fact, he says that his law of justice has to do with conquering the weakness within ourselves. Big items on that list are: never betraying his friends, never giving up, and respecting all life. But Robert is not agreeable to any of these ideas, so Ueki is going to beat his ideals into him! Ironically, Robert's power is to change ideals into reality. Ueki is going to have to level up a bit more if he hopes to win this battle and also save the lives of his friends.

I am a really big fan of this manga, and of Ueki especially. The dude just never gives up, no matter how big the challenge before him. Even if the battle with Robert takes up most of this ninth volume, the action never gets boring or excessively silly. It's all done with good taste. The reader feels that all the fighting will be worth something in the end, that it has a higher metaphorical meaning than that of kids beating each other with goofy powers. Fukuchi always offers the hope that the bad guys can be turned around, if not through reason, then by the purification of battle. The art by Fukuchi is not anything great, but is attractive and is very easy to follow, especially during the battle scenes. The manga is a great read, especially now that the anime is on hiatus due to the collapse of Geneon.

My Grade: A

Monkey High Volume 1 by Shouko Akira manga podcast review. Translated and adapted by Mai Ihara. Originally published by Shogakukan in Japan. Published in the US by Viz Shojo Beat, $8.99, Rated T for Teen.

Haruna Aizawa has just transferred from the elite K Academy to Kita High School. Why? Because her politician father was arrested on corruption charges and when her friends at K found out about it, they turned on her and started treating her like a freak. She moved to Kita in the hopes of having a fresh start but because of what happened at her old school, she has distanced herself from her peers. She even compares her fellow students to monkeys jostling and manuevering to be on top of a monkey mountain. She meets a cute boy, named Macharu, that reminds her of a baby monkey. Against her better judgement she begins to fall for him, but Macharu's friend, Atsu, the prince of the school, also has an interest in Haruna.

My Grade: C-

Area 88 Volume 1: Treacherous Skies. Episodes 1-3. ADV Films. Running Time: 75 minutes. Directed by Isamu Imakake. Screenplay by Hiroshi Ohnogi, $29.98.

Makoto Shinjo is a war photographer that shows no fear when it comes to capturing the essence of his subject, even if his life is on the line. He's come to the desert of Aslan to document the lives and battles of the mercenary pilots fighting against anti-government forces. It's pretty easy to sign up as a mercenary but very hard to get out after you agree to a 3 year tour of duty. You can break the contract early IF you pay the sum of 1.5 million dollars. Even though the pilots are paid very well for every enemy they shoot down and various missions they fly, they are also required to pay for room and board, food, weapons, and maintenence of their aircraft. So it's very hard for them to save up any amount of money. And that's just how the government forces like it. To have the mercenaries underfoot and in debt. Even if they allow them to break the contract they still get a million dollars to hire another one. Makoto is focused on one pilot in particular, Shin Kazama, the only Japanese pilot on the base, and one of the most enigmatic. He doesn't have much to say but he is possibly the best flyer of the whole group. The only things we know about him is that he is utterly miserable working for Aslan and is desperate to get back to a woman in Japan.

As is the problem for most first volume anime dvds that only contain 3 episodes, there is a shortage of material to truly judge the merit of the series. If you enjoyed movies like Top Gun or Stealth or the anime Yukikaze, you'll most likely enjoy Area 88. If dogfighting jets are not your cup of tea, then you would do best to avoid Area 88. The jets are all CG and look quite nice, if a little cold and flimsy, but they make you feel at times as if you are watching a promo video for the latest Ace Combat videogame. The main characters are not given enough space in these episodes to breath and show much individuality. That was Volume 1's main weakness. We don't learn enough about the characters to care about their dreams or hopes for the future or the extreme dangers they find themselves in. I will wait till I watch the other volumes before making an overall judgement about the series.

My Grade: C

009-1 Volume 2, ADV Films, $29.98

In the world of 009-1, the Cold War between the Western and Eastern Blocs has gone on for 140 years.  This is not a war fought between great armies on desolate nuclear battlefields. This is a war fought by covert agents on both sides in a cat and mouse contest for technological advantage. Mylene Hoffman, cyborg agent 009-1, is the best spy the Western Bloc has, but she has one distinct weakness. She still has a heart. Time and again, she has faced situations on her missions where her compassion has compromised her original orders. Her superiors are even beginning to wonder whether it's worth the risk to keep her in the field. Her old mentor, ironically named Ironheart, told her a long time ago that the worse thing an agent could do was to let their emotions get the better of them. Wouldn"t you know that Mylene would be seen to talk her one-time mentor into rejoining the Zero Zero Organization or face execution.  She also opens  a heap of worms when pity gets the better of her when she helps a stranded motorist outside Rome who is being chased by gunmen. Mylene  also uses a kid to get closer to a suspected enemy agent and faces another moral quandary. In the last episode we get a flashback to Mylene's past and how she came to become a 00 agent, which is unusual because in most series of this type, the lead character"s past is left a mysterious blank with nary a hint of how they developed.

This second volume of 009-1 suffered from a sophomore slump after an intriguing but sometimes flawed first volume. While I respect the complex emotions the writing was going for, the episodes were a bit too predictable. They seemed nothing more than a series of moral debates in search of a storyline, or a sequence of yes or no questions. Will she shoot her old mentor? Will she lie to the young boy? Will she help the stranded motorist?  With questions like this, you have a 50% chance of guessing the outcome of each episode. The animation quality was very high and the 1960's wardrobe and car designs were definitely cool in a chic retro sorta way. But the writing didn't aspire high enough for a series with such a beautiful look.

My Grade: B

Naruto: Innocent Heart, Demonic Blood by Masatoshi Kusakabe. Original Concept by Masashi Kishimoto. Translated by Tomo Kimura and Janet Gilbert. Originally published in Japan by Shueisha. Published in US by Viz under their Shonen Jump Fiction imprint. Price: $9.99

12 years ago a nine-tailed fox demon attacked the Hidden Leaf Village, and many of its ninja were killed in the battle. Unable to outright defeat the monster, the Fourth Hokage instead sealed the demon within the navel of a newborn infant named Naruto. The entire village was sworn to secrecy about the matter. But how could the adults react with anything but hatred to the growing Naruto, who held within him the beast that had taken the lives of so many of their loved ones?  Even though the adults kept the secret, their kids quickly picked up on their attitude towards Naruto and started a whole new cycle of hate. Helped along and mentored by Iruka, one of the few adult ninja who treats him with any respect, Naruto vows to become the next Hokage. He sees it as the only course that will make the Village acknowledge him. But first, he has to become a ninja, and he's having a hell of a time just mastering the most basic of skills.

Innocent Heart, Demonic Blood is basically a fiction adaptation of the first 4 volumes of the Naruto manga which starts with Naruto's woeful performance at the ninja exams, learning that he has the nine-tailed fox demon within him, the formation of Cell 7 with Kakashi, Sakura, and Sasuke, and their first serious mission, that of escorting the bridge builder Tazuna back to the Land of Waves. A mission that will bring them into a no holds barred confrontation with the deadly ninja Zabuza and his protege, Haku.

First off, I would have to say doing fiction adaptations of manga must be a pretty easy job. Why? Because there is nothing new added to the manga, at least with this novel. Most of the pages are taken up with dialogue and what little description is used is very dry and dull. In fact, the feeling I got from reading this book was of moderately polished fan fiction. In fact, I have read BETTER fan fiction than this novel. Kusakabe sticks so religiously to the original manga that there is no room to add any depth or further insight into the characters. The language is so basic and written so simply that this would probably make a good textbook for a Beginning Japanese course. In fact, I could have produced a more entertaining text just reading the Naruto manga in English and turning it into a novel rather than translating directly from Japanese. The book is needless except for the most rabid fan of the franchise. I didn't see the point of it and I am a mildly rabid fan. If you have watched the anime as well, it makes the reading of this book even doubly useless. If Kusakabe had been given a little more freedom, perhaps the novel would have been better.

My Grade: C

GTO volume 2 by Tohru Fujisawa manga review. Translated by Dan Papia. Originally published in Japan by Kodansha. Published in US by Tokyopop, $9.99, Rated Older Teen 16+.

Onizuka's training is over and he is all set to become a full-fledged teacher. He thinks he made such a good impression at Musashino High where he student taught that he will be getting a call anytime telling him that he has been hired. He even skips taking the teacher exam because he thinks the position is his. Imagine his shock when his friend brings his attention to a newscast that states that you have to pass the teacher exam to teach at a city school! Onizuka is relieved to learn that he can still teach at a private school and is able to arrange an interview at Holy Forest Private Academy. On the way there he headbutts a man groping a young woman's ass on the train. An ass that Onizuka himself was thinking about squeezing. By coencidence, it turns out that the young lady, Azusa Fuyutsuki, is also interviewing for a teaching job at Holy Forest. Unfortunately, the Vice Principal that interviews him is the very same bald old dude that he headbutted on the train! Will this be the end of Onizuka's teaching career?

My Rating: A+

Podcast review of Gunlinger Girl Volume 1 by Yu Aida. Translated by Eiko McGregor. Originally published by Media Works in Japan. Published in US by ADV manga, $9.99, Rated Teen 15+.

The Social Welfare Agency is seen as a great institution by most peopl because it helps out handicapped youngsters, but in actuality it is a secret government unit that recruits young girls to become cyborg killers. The girls have no choice since they are brainwashed, or conditioned, to follow orders. They are partnered up with older men and sent out on missions ranging anywhere from political assassinations, taking on terrorists, to taking criminal witnesses into custody. Their physical modifications make them deadly, hard to kill, and efficient agents but the psychological scars they bear can never be healed.

My Grade: A-

Sorcerer Hunters Volume 3. Story by Satoru Akahori. Art by Ray Omishi. Originally published in Japan by Media Works. Published in US by Tokyopop, $9.99, Rated Older Teen 16+.

Volume 3 opens during the climactic battle with Zombie Master, a powerful sorcerer who has further augmented his skills with the Necronomicon, the spellbook of immortality. Then it's on to a little rest and relaxation in Gamblin City, a city that makes Las Vegas look like a tiny village. Carrot is all pumped up to gamble his money away, but this welcome diversion is interrupted when he is arrested by Lord Vegas (don't you just dig that name!) and thrown in a dungeon to wallow in indentured servitude until he works off his debts. One of the card dealers, a girl named Luriko, enlists the Hunters to help find her lost boyfriend who she believes Vegas killed. They also have a run-in with the mysterious Snow Queen in another chapter. Two of the more comedic episodes involve a Lord who mistakes Carrot for the GIRL he loves while the other brings up the ever over used but entertaining hot springs trip. Of course, what hot springs manga chapter or anime episode would be complete without a horny male trying to climb over the wall that seperates the guys from the girls. And yes, this means Carrot!  But he has an unwelcome hanger-on in the form of Count Potato Chips, the pint-sized Lord that wants to score bigtime with the ladies.

Sorcerer Hunters has never been a title to make you ponder the deeper meanings of life. Instead it has been a title that offers entertainment and adventure mixed in with a bit of ribaldry. But it's not all fun and games. There is a an underlying current of seriousness that makes it a bit more realistic. The writer, Akahori, is not afraid to kill off characters, or to make some of the situations the Hunters get into tragic or sad for some involved. This is what gives it more of an edge than other titles of this genre where the characters spend most of the panels superdeformed and yelling at the top of their lungs. The art is pretty good, but lacking a lot of backgrounds and firmly rooted in the 1990s. Overall, an entertaining and funny read with a bit of nudity.

My Grade: B+

Podcast Episode 89: Manga Review of Dark Metro Volume 1. Story by Tokyo Calen. Art by Yoshiken. Adapted by Kereth Cowe-Spigai. Published by Tokyopop, $9.99, Rated Older Teen 16+.

Unknown to humans, the subway tunnels beneath Tokyo are the boundary between our world and the Underworld inhabited by demons, ghosts, and grudges. So it's not really a good place to get stuck during the dead of the night. Sometimes people miss a train, and sometimes they are even lured down there by vengeful spirits. But there is one guy looking out for the living, a pretty dude named Seiya whose job it is to guide spirits to the Underworld...and to keep out those whose time to die has not yet arrived. A collection of shojoesque horror tales.

My Grade: D-

It seems the light novels promised by Seven Seas have finally arrived in bookstores, along with some new volumes of manga. I was surprised to see the light novels. They're a bit smaller than regular manga, measuring 10.5 cm x 15cm, containing about 290 pages and costing $7.95. The two volumes I saw were Volume 1 of Pita-Ten and Volume 1 of Strawberry Panic. I'm not a fan of Pita-Ten. Well, I've never read a volume of the series is what I mean.

I have the first volume of the Strawberry Panic manga but haven't read it so I felt buying the first novel would be a little dumb....even though I did pick up the second volume of the manga while I was there. I find that Seven Seas books are pretty hard to find so I feel compelled to buy them when the going is good. If I like the manga, I'll get the novel. It had some nice presentation with lots of color plates and information about all the main characters. I almost started to get it, but just by reading a bit of it, the novel seem geared to a very VERY young audience in spite of its subject matter and it didn't seem written very well.  Lots of sound effects written out in the text. Like, instead of writing "She hit him in the face" it was "She hit him in the face. BAM!" or "She was eating her lunch" became "She was eating her lunch. MUNCH MUNCH". (Violence disclaimer--nobody gets hit in this manga...that I know of)

I am waiting for some of the more interesting light novel titles like Ballad of a Shinigami and Gun Princess...or at least more interesting to ME. I know there are a lot of Pita-Ten fans out there. I did pick up volume 5 of Kashimashi. Also picked up Volume 2 of Gakuen Alice and High School Debut.

WHERE IS BOOGIEPOP!!!???

Podcast Episode 88: GTO Great Teacher Onizuka Volume 1 by Tohru Fujisawa. Translated by Dan Papia. Originally published in Japan by Kodansha. Published in US by Tokyopop, $9.99, Rated Older Teen 16+.

22 year old virgin at large Eikichi Onizuka dropped out of high school but went on to complete a college degree at Eurasia College but is finding it hard to get a job. It might have something to do with his bleach blond pompadour and his three requirements for his prospective employers: an 8 million yen per year salary, opportunities to meet movie stars, and an unlimited expense account. You could see where he might have a problem, right? It's been 6 years since he came to Tokyo with his pal, Ryuji. Both of them made a promise to become great men. Ryuji has a good job as a store manager. But Eikichi's hopes are sinking lower and lower. Until he stumbles upon the idea of becoming a legendary teacher after meeting a young high school girl named Erica Nakajima seeking comfort from a bad relationship.

My Grade: A+

Podcast Episode 87: Naruto Volume 28 by Masashi Kishimoto manga review. Translated by Mari Morimoto. Adapted by Deric A. Hughes and Benjamin Raab. Originally published in Japan by Shueisha. Published in US by Viz Shonen Jump, $7.95, Rated T for Teen.

Well, I'm getting used to my new apartment and I like the extra space but I'm still arguing with people that have ripped off some of my money (I think of them as vampires). But anyway, I'm doing my first giveaway this podcast episode, a free copy of Naruto Volume 28 shipped to your door for one listener...or reader!

Two years have passed since Volume 27 and Naruto and Jiraiya have returned to the Hidden Leaf Village after their training tour. Naruto finds out that most of his companions have passed him in terms of formal ninja rank. Naruto has still not even passed his Chunin exam! The Akatsuki are moving out in the open more and more. This secret society not only wants to capture Naruto and bend his demon power to their will, they also want to kidnap Gaara. In the intervening years since the last volume Gaara has become the Kazekage of the Hidden Sand Village. Ironically, he has realized that true strength comes from loving others and being loved. But will this lead to his ultimate defeat by the Akatsuki?

My Grade: A

I have an extra copy of Naruto Volume 28 to give away to one listener so listen to the podcast episode for details. I will pick a winner on Saturday 3/22/08

email: seshos@hotmail.com

I was surprised to see an article entitled The Fangirl's Crush this week in The Houston Chronicle, our one and only newspaper (actually I just moved to a suburb of Houston for cheaper rent and a bigger place). The columnist writes about her daughter's crush on Sasuke, one of the main characters in Naruto. Her daughter seems a little embarrassed about it, to the point that she doesn't want her mom to use her real name, and instead uses the nickname, Mojo. Mojo reads and gets caught with manga at school, watches anime on YouTube, and even writes her own fan fiction about the characters she likes. Interestingly, on the site Fanfiction.net, Naruto has the largest number of stories next to Harry Potter. The writer goes on to comment about the power of girls in the anime and manga buying world. The link for the full article is:

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/moms/5611220.html

Manga review of Gon Volume 3 by Masashi Tanaka. Originally published in Japan by Kodansha. Published in US by CMX, Price: $5.99, Rated Teen for violence.

Gon is the last dinosaur left on the Earth but we don't know if he is a baby or his small size is just the trait of his species. We do know one thing for sure, he is one tough customer. In this globe-trotting volume, he takes on the wildlife of the world. Piranhas in the Amazon, ruins the day of a dingo mother searching for food for her pups in Australia, and takes on a drug crazed bear in the wilds of North America. It's not all about battles though as Gon shows a soft side, battling against a murderous tiger that killed Gon's adopted mother, a she wolf. Now he must help her cubs take revenge. Ok, I guess that counts as a battle as well, but uncharacteristically for this title, it contains a lot more emotional kick than most of Gon's encounters.

I would have to say that Gon is one of my favorite series. It is drawn so painstakingly beautiful. The linework is amazing. Tanaka uses absolutely no screen tones, instead relying on the organic detail of hand shading all of the panels. All the animals are drawn very realistically except for the anthropomorphic expressions that regularly cross their faces that remind us that Tanaka is spinning a fable commenting on the human condition and the way we treat each other. In nature, Might DOES make Right, but somewhere down the line of human evolution, there were those with power that decided to use it to help the weak, who became the first lawgivers and law enforcers, and I include Gon in these categories. Don't get me wrong, as I've commented on the podcasts of the first two volumes of Gon, the main character is anything but a saint. But let's lay off the intense social commentary of the title. Gon is hilarious and is one of the funniest manga I have ever read. The aspect that reveals Tanaka's genius is that he is able to accomplish so much with Gon without ever using any dialogue or narration. This gives Gon purity and grace.

My Grade: A+

Podcast Manga Review Episode 86: Pumpkin Scissors Volume by Ryotaro Iwanaga. Translated and adapted by Ikoi Hiroe. Originally published by Kodansha in Japan. Published in US by Del Rey, $10.95, Rated Older Teen Ages 16+.

Two warring states, the Empire and the Republic of Frost have signed a ceasefire, the so-called Thin Ice Treaty. Now, three years after hostilities, the Empire still suffers from starvation, disease, and rogue soldiers lording over the common people. A special army unit, Section 3,has been formed, dubbed Pumpkin Scissors, to aid in war relief and reconstruction. Its leader, Alice Malvin, born into the nobility, is a crusader who truly believes she can make the lot of the common people better. Joined by her subordinates, Machs and Oreldo, she is prepared to butt heads or battle with sadistic nobles or bloodthirsty soldiers in her quest. Section 3 is joined by Randel Oland, an anti-tank trooper, bred and trained to seek suicidal close range combat with tanks. This is the story of how one unit can bring hope to an entire empire.

My Grade: B+

I haven't really mentioned this on my website or on my podcast but I actually started watching and reading anime and manga because I had such an awful job at the time. Going to work was so dreadful back in 2004 that I was looking for something new to occupy my mind. It started with Cowboy Bebop and just ballooned from that point on. Then I started reading manga as well, starting with GTO. I truly believe that without anime and manga that year I probably would have quit my job. The stories were just so interesting and the characters of the type that try to get through the trials in their lives through thick and thin and never give up.

I finally made the move to a new apartment yesterday and Saturday and what a horrible experience it has been. When I got to the new one, the door key did not work, the A/C was not working, and the phone was not working. The A/C was later fixed. I am just now able to get online after a AT&T technician came earlier today. I was supposed to get $200 of the first month's rent but they tried to say it was only $100 which is still not resolved. We rented a UHAUL truck and when we took it back, the manager said that the moving dolly that was in the truck was not theirs and that I would have to be charged $75! For an item you could buy in a store for 10-20$.  Even though it was the one that was in there when we picked it up. I have boxes stacked everywhere. Man, what a mess. I'm actually going to start getting my manga out of my boxes as a first act on the long road back to sanity. I have been really run ragged this last week or so, so I apologize for not updating my blog/podcast show. I did manage to watch Volume 4 of Air Gear last night, but I just couldn't concentrate and enjoy it fully with so many things on my mind and getting adjusted to a new place. I have also started Volume 1 of the Pumpkin Scissors manga.

I still have a few items left to get from my old place which I have to formally move out of by Friday so hopefully once that is done I can get a little calmer and less stressed.  This new place just doesn't feel like home right now.  Moving is a pain in the butt....unless you have the money to pay someone to do it for you. I hope to do a podcast and write some text reviews very soon. I feel like I'll be reading and watching more anime and manga in the days to come just to get my mind off things.

Anime DVD Review of Phoenix Volume 1: Persistence of Time. Based on a manga by Osamu Tezuka. Directed by Ryousuke Takahashi, Running Time: 125 minutes, Episodes 1-5, $19.95.

Volume 1 is primarily taken up by a storyline set in ancient Japan as an aging queen attacks the Land of Fire to obtain the blood of the Phoenix.It is said that if you drink the blood of this mythical bird, you can gain immortality. As is often the case, when humans try to gain something that will extend their lives beyond their natural course, it usually ends tragically. One of the last survivors of the Land of Fire, a kid named Nagi, is spared and taken as a slave by the Queen's military commander, Sarutahiko. The last episode on the DVD starts a new story arc set on a far future dying Earth. Leona, a scientist trying to harness the power of the Phoenix on the Moon, ends up involved in a huge explosion. To save his life, half of his brain is replaced with cybernetic electronics. This has the weird effect of making him see humans as monsters while he perceives robots as humans!

My Grade: A+

The newest Album by L'Arc~en~Ciel, entitled "Truth", is now available for download in the Itunes store for $9.99. It has been out in Japan since November but in the US you can only obtain the physical cd by getting an import. Amazon has it listed for around $40. I'm sure you can find it pretty easily through your favorite Japan store but who can beat $10? As far as I can tell, the only other L'Arc album on Itunes is "Dune" for $11.99.

Truth features a remix of "Link", the opening song of the Fullmetal Alchemist movie.

The tracks are as follows:

1. Seventh Heaven

2. Pretty Girl

3. My Heart Draws a Dream

4. Sunadokei

5. Spiral

6. Alone en La Vida

7. Daybreak's Bell

8. Umibe

9. The Black Rose

10.  Link (Kiss Mix)

11. Yuki no Ashiato

12. Hurry Xmas

Here is the link to Itunes:

http://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewAlbum?id=269187920&s=143441

Togari Volume 3 by Yoshinori Natsume. Translated by Hiroko Yoda and Matt Alt. Originally published in Japan by Shogakukan in 2001. Published in US by Viz, $9.99, Rated T+ for Older Teen.

Tobei is still getting adjusted to being human again as he hunts down more toga in his effort to escape the underworld by killing 108 sins in 108 days. Probably the hardest thing he's done is trying to understand human kindness and that there are actually people in this world that care about his welfare. The battle to understand human compassion is perhaps a more difficult conflict that battling with Toga. But even that more straightforward task is becoming increasingly more complex as he finds that some of the Toga are exhibiting more intelligence and even show the ability to merge with their human hosts instead of being ghostly shadows that only he can see. On top of all this, Detective Sawazaki is determined to find out whether Tobei is the source of all the weird occurrences occuring in the city or whether Tobei is a hero battling to end them.

I would have to say that Volume 3 of Togari is one of the fastest reads I've had in recent memory, clocking in at around 30 minutes. Just because this title is simple and direct to the point of bluntness doesn't mean it suffers in the quality department. In fact its economy of storytelling gives it a momentum and excitement lacking in other titles. The action sequences are always well drawn and always easy to understand. Even though there are lots of battle pieces, there are actually less than you would think in a series of this type. In fact, Volume 3 delves a bit into characterization by telling about Sawazaki's past when he was a junior officer working with Itsuki's dad. Togari is a title that is unfortunately looked over a bit in a market inundated with demon-slaying titles. I also really enjoy Natsume's hand painted covers.

See Podcast Episode 33 for a review of Volume 2 of Togari.

My Grade: A

Manga Podcast Review Episode 84: Harukaze Bitter Bop Volume 1 by Court Betten. Translated by Christine Schilling and adapted by Kereth Cowe-Spigal. Originally published in Japan by Mag Garden in 2005. Published in US by Tokyopop, $9.99, Rated Teen 13+.

Highschooler Chiyoharu Hasumi is not enjoying school these days. A while back, him and some of his friends started a fire in one of the classrooms. Chiyo got off with a mere suspension while his friends were punished much more severely with expulsion. They think he somehow ratted on them. His other classmates want nothing to do with him either. That's when he encounters a man that looks like he fell out of a Street Fighter game committing suicide by standing in front of and getting hit by an oncoming train. The passing Kaede Tsubaki, who is actually a Special Female High School Detective arrives on the scene and thinks Chiyo killed the dude but the supposedly dead man gets up after being pulverized and declares that he is Souza of the North Wind. Suffering from amnesia, his name is about all he remembers.

My Grade: C-

Podcast Episode 82: High School Debut Volume 1 Manga Review. Story and art by Kazune Kawahara. Translated and adapted by Gemma Collinge. Originally published in Japan by Shueisha. Published in US by Viz Shojo Beat, $8.99, Rated T for Teen.

New high schooler Haruna Nagashima spent all of her middle school years playing softball and reading shojo manga. After dedicating so much of her life to athletics she's ready to move on to a new sport. Namely, that of falling in love and getting a boyfriend. Problem is, the only experience she has with guys is what she's read in the comics. When she gets to high school, she realizes that getting into a relationship is pretty hard. She can't get any guys to notice her at all. Her best friend, Mami, suggests that she needs a coach to advise her on what she us doing wrong. She finds one in the person of Yoh Komiyama. His only condition: Haruna is forbidden to fall in love with him.

This is the second posting of this podcast. That's why the episode number is out of order. For some reason it did not convert to the mp3 format the first time around.

My Grade: A

Podcast Episode 83: Manga Review of Gakuen Alice Volume 1 by Tachibana Higuchi. Translated by Haruko Furukawa. Adapted by Jennifer Keating. Originally published in Japan by Hakusensha. Published in US by Tokyopop, $9.99, Rated Teen 13+.

10-year-old Mikan Sakura lives in a small village and its just gotten a lot smaller since her best friend Hotaru has gone to Tokyo. She is attending the Alice Academy, the most elite school in the city reserved for those with special abilities called Alices. Mikan runs away from her home and makes her way to Tokyo where she finds that she too has an unknown Alice ability hidden within her. But she has to find out what it is and be accepted by her classmates within a week or she will have to go back home and be parted from Hotaru again.

My grade: B+

What can I say? This video is funny. Perhaps everyone out there has seen this video but I just saw it for the first time. I'm so out of the loop. It features a guy dressed up in full stormtrooper outfit dancing at the Akiba crosswalk to Earth Wind and Fire's "Let's Groove Tonight", where he is rapidly joined by cosplayers/maid cafe workers and assorted otaku. What's really priceless later in the video is when he is dancing on the subway and this Japanese guy looks at him in shock and then goes completely deadpan like if he just ignores him the trooper will go away. The link to the video is:

http://gloob.tv/movies/5_tokyo_dance_trooper

Manga Review for PhD Phantasy Degree Volume 1 by Son Hee-Joon. Translated by Sarah Kim. Adapted by Paul Morrissey. Originally published by Daiwon in 2001. Published in US by Tokyopop, $9.99, Rated 13+.

Sang has come to Hades, the Demon School in quest of a legendary ring. But humans are not allowed inside the school she soon learns as she encounters Dev the demon, Mordicus the vampire, Lukan the werewolf, and Pannus Tyrannus, a mummy. Mordicus turns her into a vampire so she can tour the school, but there's a bit of a problem when a bully named Katana and his demon thugs begin harrassing the group. It seems that demons think that monsters like Mordicus and the others are a lower class of lifeform.

My Grade: B

Podcast Episode 80 Manga Review: Yotsuba&! Volume 5 by Kiyohiko Azuma, creator of Azumanga Daioh. Translated by Javier Lopez. Originally published in Japan by Media Works. Published in US by ADV manga, $9.99, Rated All Ages.

Yotsuba continues her long road to understanding the world as she encounters the money powered Cardbo, a friendly robot made of cardboard, who is actually Miura. Then it's on to helping Ena's family with their housework, visiting a videostore, a planetarium, and on to a dip in the sea as the whole gang goes on a beach trip.

My Rating: A

The website I mention in the podcast is:

http://www.japanaradio.com/

It plays all kinds of J-pop and anime related music. You can listen for free or you can subscribe for better sound quality. You must download the orban plug-in on the top right corner under tune-in to be able to hear the streams. Then you just click on whatever format and speed you have. Or you can also find it on Itunes when you click on the radio icon then international.

Podcast Episode 79: My thoughts and information on PiQ magazine, which is replacing Newtype magazine. Also, I talk about the positives and negatives of Newtype, Otaku USA, Anime Insider, and Protoculture Addicts.

For more information about PiQ Magazine see Christopher Butcher's blog, Comics 212 at:

http://comics212.net/2008/01/18/first-look-advs-new-piq-magazine-mediavendor-kit/

The battle with the Man-With-No-Face called Muso becomes a stalemate as every signature move of Inuyasha's is tried on him, but even though the newest incarnation of Naraku is ripped to shreds, his body is able to reform. Inuyasha mutilates him again and again but no attack seems able to finish him. Inuyasha and company are shocked to learn that this mysterious enemy is actually the part of Naraku that is Onigumo, the burned bandit that gave his body for lust of Kikyo decades ago. Naraku, in a rare sign of weakness, sends out Kagura to hunt down his human half. It seems that even he cannot control Onigumo. Later, Inuyasha's band has to help rescue a half-demon girl named Shiori from the clutches of her ogre bat grandfather. A problem develops when Inuyasha realizes that in order to strengthen Tetsusaiga enough to kill Naraku, he must take the life of the kidnapped little girl.

Volume 22 is all about characters both good and evil, accepting or rejecting parts of themselves they might not like or be proud of. Naraku is always trying to rid himself of the human Onigumo whose original body he sprung out of. Mainly because Onigumo's love, or more precisely, lust, prevents Naraku from killing Kikyo. Naraku sees this part of himself as one of the only weaknesses in his otherwise perfect demon existence. Inuyasha too, experiences some memories he would probably rather forget when he finds out how Shiori was always discriminated against by the villagers because of her half demon heritage. This happened even though her parent's relationship was what stopped the ogre bats from attacking their village for years! Sometimes the humans in Inuyasha come off much worse than the demons in terms of cruelty and baseness. As usual, this series is a great read with simplistic but iconic artwork and sitcom- like plot development that never fails to grab while not carrying any of the main characters very far from their starting place.

My grade: A

Podcast Episode 78: Anime DVD review of Tekkonkinkreet. Directed by Michael Arias. Screenplay by Anthony Weintraub. Sony Pictures, $29.95, 100 minutes.

Black and White are two kids that have always lived on the streets using their wits and fighting abilities to survive in Treasure Town. But now their romanticized life of adventure is about to end when some Yakuza thugs arrive. Their arrival is just the beginning of a plan by Snake, a developer who wants to turn Treasure Town into a gaudy amusement park. Only Black and White stand in his way, striving to save the soul of their beloved town.

My Grade: A+

Podcast Episode 77: Manga Review of Naruto Volume 22: Comrades. Written and drawn by Masashi Kishimoto. Originally published in Japan by Shueisha. Published in US by Viz Shonen Jump, $7.95, Rated T for Teen.

As Choji and Jirobo's battle winds up, Naruto, Shikamaru, Neji, and Kiba continue their pursuit of the Sound Ninja who are desperately trying to deliver Sasuke to Orochimaru before the Third Hokage's curse kills their master. The mission of the Shikamaru team is to rescue Sasuke from their clutches but it wasn't like he was kidnapped. He made the decision to join the Sound Ninja in order to become more powerful after being beaten handily by his hated brother and seeing Naruto's skills improve faster than his own.

My Grade: A

Podcast review of Yo-Yo Girl Cop, a live action film based on the manga Sukeban Deka by Shinji Wada. Saki Asamiya is sent in as an exchange student at Seisen Academy to find the connection between an underground website's mysterious countdown and rumors of explosives at the school. She has 72 hours before the countdown is over. She also has something else hanging over her head. The trial of her mother on charges of espionage begins as well. If she completes her mission, her mother will be set free. Equipped only with a yo-yo, her wits, and her fighting skills, Saki prepares to enter the dangerous world of misunderstood teenagers and pompous cliques...and track down a killer.

My Grade: B

Podcast Episode 75: Manga Review for Orfina Volume 1 by Kitsune Tennouji. Translated and adapted by Sheldon Drzka. Originally published by Kadokawa Shoten in Japan 2005. Published in US by CMX, $12.99, Rated M for Mature.

The country of Granze is on the move, invading and conquering other lands with its advanced technology and dragons. Against the swords and Middle Ages style weaponry of Cordia and other nations, Granze uses firearms such as machine guns and pistols. Fana Risol, a girl warrior, has been sent to stop the man responsible for these forbidden powers. Instead, she ends up washing up on a riverbank, half dead. She is found by King Yoguf of Cordia and is brought to his palace, where Fana finds she is the spitting image of the royal princess, Orfina. As the two young women develop a close relationship, Granze sets its sights on Caluritia, the capital city of Cordia.

My Grade: C

Podcast Episode 74: Witchblade Volume 3 Anime DVD Review. Directed by Yoshimitsu Ohashi. Series Composition by Yasuko Kobayashi. Funimation, Episodes 9-12, Running Time: 100 minutes, List Price: $29.98.

Takayama is getting a bit more pressure at work in the form of his rival, a man named Wadou who is determined to see Takayama disgraced. Masane and Tozawa are continuing as a team with the scruffy photographer gathering evidence about the secret dealings of Douji Heavy Industries and the NSWF while documenting Masane's battles. Riko is feeling a bit of the strain as well as she faints in the street and has to be hospitalized. The NSWF doesn't really covet the Witchblade as much anymore as it is continuing to make a Cloneblade that is even more powerful than the original. And they already have a psycho kid named Maria to wield it.

My Grade: A

Podcast Manga Review Episode 73: Naruto Volume 14 by Masashi Kishimoto. Translated and adapted by Mari Morimoto. Originally published in Japan by Shueisha. Published in US by Viz under their Shonen Jump imprint. $7.95 Rated T for Teen.

As the attack on the Hidden Leaf Village continues, Orochimaru prepares to battle his old teacher, the Third Hokage. But it's not going to be a fair battle. Orochimaru summons the souls of the First and Second Hokage to inhabit the bodies of two of his minions and battle against the Third. Meanwhile, Naruto, Sakura, Shikamaru, and Kakashi's tracking dog, Pakkun, try desperately to catch up to Sasuke, who is chasing Gaara's fleeing Sand team. Unfortunately, a group of 9 elite ninja warriors are on the trail of Naruto and company.

My Grade: A+

Manga Review for Naruto Volume 5: The Challengers by Masashi Kishimoto. Translated by Mari Morimoto. Adapted by Jo Duffy. Originally published in Japan by Shueisha in 1999. Published in US by Viz Shonen Jump, $7.95, Rated T for Teen.

Cell 7 is getting prepared for the first round of the Chunin Exam to become journeymen ninja but first things first. Rock Lee challenges Sasuke to a one on one match before the test even starts! Naruto and company are a little intimidated by the assemblage of ninja at the Exam since a lot of them are not rookies like their team. Naruto almost wets himself when he finds out the first round of the Exam is a written test. We all know and even HE knows he's not exactly the brightest lightbulb in the room. There are 10 questions with a value of 1 point each with the total points of each team being the combined score of all three members. What makes it a bit tricky is that the ninja are not told what score it takes to pass. If any team member gets caught cheating, 2 points will be deducted from each member. If you lose all 10 points you fail and will be asked to leave. Sakura has no problem with the questions since she is the smartest on her team but Naruto and Sasuke are going to have to figure out some way to get the answers from other examinees without getting nabbed.

The reader is caught just as much off-guard as Naruto's team when you find out that the first item of business for the Chunin exam is a 10 question written test. I was expecting some sort of slam bang tournament in which fighters duke it out. What Kishimoto is able to do in Volume 5 is to give a hint of each ninja's powers without giving too much away as they use their various abilities to cheat without catching the eye of any of the proctors. Well, actually, some do get caught, but nobody worthwhile. Kishimoto also introduces two important relationships. The first is that between Sakura and Yamanaka Ino, who appear to be rivals for the affections of Sasuke (even though he hasn't shown interest in either). The second is that between Naruto and Hyuga Hinata, a shy girl that Naruto thinks is a freak, but she has an unuttered crush on him. Great character designs, art, and writing.

My Grade: A

 

Anime DVD review for Eureka Seven Volume 8. Directed by Tomoki Kyoda. Chief Script Writer: Dai Sato. Bandai Entertainment, $24.98, Episodes 31-34, 100 minutes.

The Tresoir technicians are feverishly trying to put the Nirvash together but a problem develops when Eureka tells them that it doesn't want to be put together in the same way. Nirvash tells her that he/she/it wants to "fly" so the scientists have to go back to the drawing board in terms of the body design. And who would be better to make the Nirvash a new modified board than Renton's grandpa? Now the problem is delivering it to the Gekkostate without it being captured by the military. And there's the small matter of gramp's risk of being imprisoned or even killed. The Tresoir team doesn't have all day as Dewey tests some mantle busting missles designed to stir up the Coralians. He hopes that if he coordinates them in the right places and with enough firepower, he will be able to annihilate the Coralians. Dewey isn't like Gekkostate, who are searching for some way to cohabit the planet. He wants to utterly eradicate the Coralians. When he shoots the missles into the planet, antibodies, monstrous surreal looking creatures swarm upon the nearest human cities, killing thousands. But Dewey is willing to sacrifice them if it means he can get some hard data on the missle tests. Because she is a Coralian, Eureka feels in some way responsible for the attacks and deaths of so many innocents.

Over the course of 8 volumes, Eureka Seven has gradually worked its way up to being one of the greatest anime series of all time, at least in my opinion. Renton and Eureka are way past the whole puppy love phase of their relationship, and because of the extreme circumstances, have been forced to a very adult space...minus sex of course. They  both have to deal with seeing the horrors of the Coralian attacks and ruined cities. In earlier volumes, both of them might have withdrawn into their own little rooms of despair to suffer in silence. But now, both Renton and Eureka are ready to share not only the good times, but the bad times as well. It's really a beautiful illustration of what a healthy relationship can be. Just think how happy they could be if their world was at peace. Holland and Talho are also ready to face the music, as they quit pussy footing around their love for each other and Talho makes him finally admit that he doesn't have all the answers doesn't have to act so tough.  Of course, the animation, music, design, and writing of the show continues with a gold standard. This sci-fi opera makes Star Wars look like a fantasy from Barney and Friends.

My Grade: A+

Manga Review for Sorcerer Hunters Volume 2. Story by Satoru Akahori. Art by Ray Omishi. Translated by Anita Sengupta. Originally published in Japan by Media Works in 1994. Published in US by Tokyopop, $9.99, Rated OT for Older Teen 16+.

The Sorcerer Hunter's latest mission from Big Mama is to take out the "Crystal Magicians", evil sorcerers who play on people's weaknesses to trap them in in crystal soul jewels. There are only three of the Magicians left, but they're not exactly just walking around in the streets in plain view. Qui Shu-Rein, a sorcerer whose Parsoner girlfriend has been captured by the Magicians, volunteers to offer his aid in defeating them. Gateau, the narcissistic strong man decides he can't trust him and goes off on his own, only to be confronted by an extremely sexy mind controlling Crystal Magician named Ruby Rulan who will turn him against his teammates. Later in the volume, the Hunters finally get a day off at the beach and then they have to fight an incredibly powerful necromancer named, appropriately enough, "Death Master"!

Sorcerer Hunters is a series very much loaded with sex comedy and eroticism, but not in an overtly pornographic way. Upstaging Tira's dominatrix transformation scenes in which she whips Carrot's animal forms, Chocolat finally shows her "true self" as well. When she takes off her outer layer of clothes, she reveals the uniform of a Nazi Gestapo officer, complete with knee-high boots, puffy pants, and a Third Reich cap. The only thing she is missing is a shirt! That's right, the only thing she is wearing above her waist is two suspender straps that just barely cover her nipples. Some might say this is bad taste, but since when has bad taste ever stopped Japanese manga artists!!??  I thought Carrot, Tira, and Marron were all siblings, but I don't think Carrot and Tira are. At least I HOPE they aren't because it's becoming rapidly apparent that Tira likes Carrot in more than a sisterly fashion, seeing Chocolat as her main competition. Her and Chocolat even write a kidnapping note to see who Carrot will rescue first, thus proving who he cares about more. The art by Ray Omishi continues to be of an extremely great quality with lots of detail and ease in drawing action sequences. The writing, while not Shakesperean by any means, suits the series, and is very funny with its fast and loose ribald humor.

My Grade: A-

Podcast Episode 72 Manga Review: Love Attack Volume 1: Junai Tokko Taicho by Shizuru Seino. Translated by Adrienne Beck. Adapted by Magdalena Sniegocki. Originally published in Japan by Kodansha in 2005. Published in US by Tokyopop, $9.99, Rated T for Teen 13+.

Highschool freshman Chiemi Yusa is about to get expelled for fighting. This is the third time she's gotten in trouble for punching people. Her homeroom teacher offers her a deal that will clear her record. If Chiemi can reform the biggest badass on campus, Akifumi Hirata, better known as the Deranged Devil, she will have a fresh start discipline-wise. Chiemi is perhaps the best choice for this task since she could probably go toe to toe with Hirata. After she kicks him in the face to break up a fight he is engaged in, imagine Chiemi's surprise when Hirata asks her to go out with him! What ensues is a fresh romantic comedy with a bit of fist fighting that will appeal to both girls and guys .

My Grade: B+

Podcast Episode 71: Manga review for The Other Side of the Mirror Volume 1 by Jo Chen. Translated by J.Y. Standaert and adapted by Kereth Cowe-Spigai. Published by Tokyopop, $9.99, Rated Older Teen 16+.

An unemployed college graduate named Lou earns his money in drinking contests but is barely surviving on the mean streets of New York City. He gets an unlikely companion, or actually maybe she's likely, in the form of the rookie prostitute named Sunny, a runaway from an abusive father. What they have in common is their unseemly professions but perhaps together they can break out of their dead-end lives?

My Grade: C

Podcast Episode 70: Wild Ones Volume 1 Manga Review. Written and drawn by Kiyo Fujiwara. Translated and adapted by Mai Ihara. Originally published by Hakushensha in Japan in 2005. Published in US by Viz under their Shojo Beat imprint. $8.99, Rated T for Teen.

In this romantic comedy, 15-year-old Sachie Wakamura is in a bit of a tight spot. Her mother has just died, leaving her with no living relatives. At least that is what her mother had told her. She's about to be kicked out of her home when a black limousine pulls up and an old man named Raizo Asagi steps out, claiming to be her grandfather. He offers her a place to stay but Sachie is shocked to find out that her grandpa is a Yakuza big shot with plenty of criminal thugs living at his home. A young man named Rakuto is assigned to be her personal bodyguard. He even attends her new school, where he is the student body president and is uber popular. Rakuto and Sachie finds themselves falling for each other, but Rakuto feels that he cannot start a romantic relationship with her because his duty to her grandfather outweighs any personal feelings he has.

My Grade: B-

Zegapain Volume 1 Anime DVD Podcast review. Directed by Masami Shimoda. Series Composition by Mayori Sekishima. Released by Bandai Entertainment, Episodes 1-5, 125 minutes, $29.98.

High schooler Kyo Sogoru has no academic interest except swimming, if that counts as an academic subject. He's still able to ace his classes though. His current problem is finding a way to attract new members to the swim team. As of now, he is the only member. His former teammates don't want anything to do with him because a couple years back, he lost his temper and caused an incident at a swim meet which disqualified his team. Bigger events begin to shape his world as a mysterious girl draws him into another world where he is a mecha co-pilot battling against the Gardsorms. Who knows which world is real, or are they both? All he knows is that if he fights, the mysterious girl will consent to be in a film promotion for the swim team!

My Grade: C

Podcast Episode 68 Manga Review: Naruto Volume 4 by Masashi Kishimoto. Translated by Mari Morimoto. Adapted by Jo Duffy. Originally published in 1999 in Japan by Shueisha. Published in US by Viz under their Shonen Jump imprint. Price: $7.95, Rated T for Teen.

After apparently seeing Sasuke get killed by Haku, Naruto flies into a rage, releasing the power of the demon sealed inside of him. Meanwhile Kakashi is locked in his own battle with Zabuza even as Inari tries to marshal the people of his village to rise up against Gato's legions of rogue ninjas and help his new found friends. Even if Cell 7 survives the battle, they will have to face an even tougher test...the Chunin Exam. If they pass, they will progress to the next ninja rank.

My Grade: A+

Anime DVD review for Solty Rei Volume 2. Directed by Yoshimasa Hiraike. Script by Noboru Kimura. Funimation, $29.98, Episodes 7-10, 100 minutes.

Things are getting shaken up in the Roy Revant household as the outlaw Rose moves in after her hideout is raided by the authorities. Roy has already had a difficult enough time adjusting to living with Solty so to put it mildly, he's not overjoyed at the prospect of a new guest. In fact he tells Rose that he never agreed to let her stay and wants her out. It turns out that Rose is there for an ulterior motive. She wants Solty to join her criminal gang. Ok, they're really not that bad because like Robin Hood, Rose and her two brothers steal to pay for medicine for the poor. If Rose gets a kick out of as well, who's to say whether she's bad or not? But she does have a bit of a dark past that is revealed when she passes the man that murdered her family on the street. It's not all bad news for Rose though as she hooks up romantically with a handsome RUC agent, complete with a silver plate covering part of his face Phantom of the Opera-style.

A big complaint I have about this show is that its characters are design challenged. For example, Rose has a big hunk of hair that falls in front of her face that looks like a plastic electric circuit. Her boots are too big and look like they would fly off the first time she ran. Solty's large green substitute cat/goat ears look like someone stuck a steel bar through her head. Roy Revant goes the opposite way and is probably one of the most boring looking anime characters of all time. The second volume of Solty Rei finds the show a bit adrift as Roy's job as a bounty hunter seems to have taken a back seat to the drama that is Rose's life. We hardly even see him battle one Resemble thug and that's not all bad. The writers seemed to want to focus more on the relationships and the personalities of the characters, mainly Rose. Sadly, Solty suffers the most within this focus because she has the mind of a elementary school kid and is playing the "blank slate" stereotype. Still, this second volume was entertaining in its own way if you were getting tired of all the tough guy posing from the first volume.  The animation is decent, but the CG can be jarring at times, and the character's faces lack a lot in the expression department.

My Grade: B

 

Podcast Episode 67: Manga Review for Naruto Volume 3. Written and drawn by Masashi Kishimoto. Translated by Mari Morimoto. Adapted by Jo Duffy. Originally published in Japan by Shueisha in 1999. Published in US by Viz under their Shonen Jump label. $7.95, Rated T for Teen.

Instead of waiting around doing nothing while they rest up for a second confrontation with Zabauza, Kakashi prepares a new training exercise for Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura. To teach them how to focus their Chakra, he wants them to climb trees...without using their hands! When they express disbelief at their assignment, Kakashi proceeds to walk up the side of the tree, crutches and all, and hang upside down while he talks to them. Sakura gets to see firsthand what Gato's grip has done to the city as she accompanies Tazuna through its depressing streets filled with people who have lost all hope of things getting any better. Naruto's team hopes to change all that.

My Grade: A+

Episode 66: Hell Girl Volume 1 Anime DVD review. Directed by Takahiro Omori. Volume 1 has Episodes 1-5 and runs 125 minutes. Funimation, $29.98.

There is an urban legend that tells that if you want revenge against someone you can log on to Hell Link at midnight and ask Hell Girl to accept your request. It is true that she use her powers to take revenge on those that are making your life miserable and can send them straight to Hell. The catch is that you too will go to Hell in the end. Are you filled with such hate and anguish that you would give up your own soul to see your tormentor suffer an eternity of pain and agony?

My Grade: A-

Podcast Episode 65: An overview of the series Ai Yori Aoshi  and a review of Volume 17 by Kou Fumizuki. Translated by Alethea and Athena Nibley. Adapted by Jamie S. Rich. Originally published in Japan by Hakushensha in 2005. Published in the US by Tokyopop, $9.99, Rated Mature 18+.

Aoi is still being held by Kaoru's half-brother, an odd sort of doppleganger, who wishes to take Kaoru's place as head of the Hanabishi and become Aoi's husband. He's been holding her captive but Kaoru has arrived on the scene to free her. But even if he does the two lovers still have to get the approval of Aoi's parents if they ever hope to make peace.

My Grade: B

Episode 64: Manga Review for Naruto Volume 2 by Masashi Kishimoto. Translated by Katy Bridges and Mari Morimoto. Adapted by Jo Duffy. Originally published in Japan by Shueisha in 1999. Published in the US by Viz as part of their Shonen Jump, $7.95, Rated T for Teens.

Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura have passed their Genin exam with a bit of hardship and now they are all primed for their new duties as junior ninjas. Unfortunately, they get all the crap assignments like hunting down a pet cat for an important government official. Naruto convinces the Hokage to give the team something a bit more challenging. Amused at Naruto's passion and lack of restraint, he gives them a mission a bit out of their league. Naruto's team must escort a bridgebuilder named Tazuna back to his home in the Land of the Waves. They're supposed to protect him from any dangers on the road like bandits, but they quickly find out that a very influential crook wants Tazuna dead, and he's willing to send out some very skilled ninja to do the deed!

My Grade: A

Podcast Episode 63: Manga Review for The Law of Ueki Volume 8 by Tsubasa Fukuchi. Translated and adapted by Yoshiko Tokuhara and Filomila Papakonstantinou. Originally published in Japan by Shogakukan in 2003. Published in the US by Viz, $9.99, Rated T for Teen.

Volume 8 picks up mid-battle in a contest between Rinko and Kabara as they battle in the Cat Field. Basically what this means is that have been shrunk down inside a normal house inhabited by hungry cats. The first one to get eaten by a cat loses the match. In addition, you can turn your opponent into a mouse by touching a cat's nose. Then it's on to one of the main events of volume 8 as Ueki faces off against the seemingly treacherous Sano, who for some inexplicable reason has joined Robert's 10. Can Ueki find out why he switched sides and free him from the clutches of Robert Haydn?

See Episode 37 for an overview of the series and a review of Volume 7.

My Grade: A

Book Review for Manga Sisters by Saori & Misato Takarai. Translated by Mieko Kurosawa. Published by Manga University, $9.99.

First up, Manga Sisters is not a manga in the normal sense of the word. Saori and Misato Takarai are sisters that illustrate and draw manga but this book is really about celebrating sisterhood, both its highs and not so lows. Saori is known in Japan for being one of the rare manga artists that works with color but this is Misato's first published work. They grew up in Gunma Prefecture, which is about 60 miles northwest of Tokyo. This hardback book is about two thirds the size of a regular tankoban and is labeled a "gift book" on the back. What it consists of is about 95 pages, half with little Hallmark sayings about sisters in both English and Japanese, with a color manga illustration of the saying facing it. Some of the words and pictures are heartwarming like " A sister's shoulder is the world's most comfortable pillow" that shows a girl asleep on her obviously loving sister's shoulder. Others can be quite humorous. For example, one caption says "She ain't heavy, she's your sister" accompanying a picture of a sister cringing in pain as she lifts her sibling up to see a tall sunflower. There's also a few pages in the back that list hiragana and katakana Japanese characters that gives you help in recognizing and pronouncing them.

Manga Sisters is obviously intended to be a book that would make a good gift between two sisters, especially if one of them is an anime or manga fan. I mean it even has "To" and "From" blanks following the title page. Does it have any worth to a manga fan in general? I guess I would have to go with "not much".  I mean the pictures are cute and pretty and in combination with the phrases can be amusing, but this is probably a book I will put on the shelf and never open again. Unless you're an absolute nut about moe, you should definitely spend your 10 bucks on a real manga and just glance through this in the bookstore...unless you have a sister that would appreciate it.

 

Podcast Episode 62: Tokyo Majin Volume 1 Anime DVD review. Directed by Shinji Ishihara. Series Composition by Toshizo Nemoto. Character Designs by Jun Nakai. ADV Films, $29.98, Episodes 1-5, 125 minutes.

Transfer student Tatsumi signals a marked change in the life of Magami High School in modern day Tokyo. He soon gets into an confrontation with thug and wooden sword wielding Kyouichi and gets challenged by wrestling club captain Yuuya. Aoi, student council president, and her best friend, archery club Komaki try to stop them from fighting, but the contest is put on hold when all the action stirs up a demon spirit. During the course of their struggle with the demon, they find that they have strange powers that augment their natural abilities. For instance, Kyouichi's sword and Komaki's bow give them the means to kill demons, while Tatsumi's martial arts skills become even more powerful.

My Grade: A+

Episode 61: Podcast review of Glass Fleet Volume 1. Directed by Minoru Ohara. Series Composition by Shoji Yonemura. Funimation, $29.98, Episodes 1-5, 126 minutes.

Vetti Sforza promised to overthrow the Allied Nobility and put in place a government that would do right by the people, but after securing his victory, he declares himself Emperor and enslaves the masses he once promised freedom. Another nobleman named Michel Volban fancies himself the savior of Vetti's duped victims and starts an insurrection, an insurrection that seems to be on the verge of failing until a member of the royal family named Cleo arrives on the scene with his glass-like ship that instantly outclasses any that Vetti can send against it. A space opera with hints of 18th century Europe mixed in.

My Grade: C

Manga Review of The Drifting Classroom Volume 8 by Kazuo Umezu. Translated by Yuji Oniki. Originally published by Shogakukan in 1975. Published in US by Viz under their Signature imprint, $9.99, Rated M for Mature.

Well, finally we have an adult in charge to keep a sense of order about the school in the form of Sekiya, who has come to his senses after being shocked into the mental capacity of an infant. Now he's back to normal, but unfortunately, that means his usual psychotic, murdering self! Most of the kids are so in need of a father figure they're willing to practically become his slaves. And he also begins to fan the flames that maybe Sho is responsible for the explosion that cast them into this wasteland Hell. Sekiya lowers Sho and his buddies into a dry well and tells them they're not coming back up until they strike water. As they begin to dig, they don't find water, but they do find the entrance to a subway tunnel, and eerily, there is still a train running on it. A train that will lead them not only to some monstrous lifeforms, but will also reveal what has happened to their world.

If you've been reading my blog you've probably aware of my growing frustration with this series. Kazuo Umezu seems to be taking a bit too much glee in torturing these poor kids. We finally get some explanations about what happened to the world so you think maybe the manga is reaching a turning point. But, think again. Just as soon as the kids find a rich water supply, a pipe breaks off from the ceiling, falls in the pool of water and sets off a volcano! I mean, come on, give me a break! Imagine you're watching a movie where a character is wandering through a desert, dehydrated and dying. He finds an oasis with a glistening pond at its center. As soon as he kneels down and puts his lips to the water, he activates a volcano and it starts spewing liquid magma. This is just about as much sense as The Drifting Classroom makes. Sometimes I get the feeling that Sho is just going to click his heels together and say "There's no place like home" and he'll wake up in bed with all the main characters from the manga around him saying he's been asleep with fever and it was all a dream. The whole Sho talking to his mother telepathically thing is becoming equally stupid, as his mom leaves things for Sho in areas that would no longer exist or be able to withstand such extreme aging conditions. Like she left him some glass vials of antibiotics that survived over what might be centuries without breaking or losing their potency. There are just too many ridiculous events to keep me reading in good faith. I want to find out how it ends, but if the next volume is only as good as Volume 8, I will probably stop reading The Drifting Classroom.

My Grade: C-

Here is the link for the new Speed Racer Movie Trailer due out next summer and directed by the Wachowski Brothers:

http://movies.aol.com/movie/speed-racer-2008/28066/main

You can download it in standard format or you can see it in hi-definition, 480p, 720p, or 1080p. Watching the trailer made me go out and buy the Speed Racer manga. There's only one volume and it is out of print but my comic store has a lot of out of print titles. A boxed hardcover set of the Speed Racer manga is due out in February of next year from DMP for 40$. It's called Speed Racer Mach Go Go Go Box Set. You can pre-order at Amazon.com.

Speed Racer was the first exposure I had to anime like when I was 6 or 7 even though at that time I had no idea what anime was. Then it was on to Battle of the Planets and the rest is history. So it's cool to see the franchise getting such star treatment. You can really see the anime/manga influence in the trailer, best evidenced by the side shot of Speed racing with motion lines running past his head instead of scenery. It looks a bit too videogame-like to me but I trust the Brothers since they made one of the highest intensity car chase sequences in film history in the Matrix Reloaded. Should be exciting. Looks like it will have a lot of color and more humor than you usually see in their movies.

 

Episode 60: Uzumaki Volume 1 by Junji Ito Podcast Review. Translated and adapted by Yuji Oniki. Originally published by Shogakukan in 1998. Published in the US by Viz Signature, $9.99, Rated T+ for Older Teens.

Kirie Goshima is just trying to enjoy her high school years in the small coastal Japanese town of Kurozu-cho, but her boyfriend, Shuichi, is beginning to think there is something terribly wrong. His father has become more and more obsessed with spirals, even going so far as to stop working. He just sits in his room all day staring at his collection of items with spiral shapes. He can even make his eyes move in circles independently of each other. Things really get out of hand when Kirie sees Shuichi's father hideously extend his grotesque tongue and then curl it like a snail's shell. This is just the beginning of a collection of horror tales about the mysterious pattern which seems to be taking more and more possession of Kurozu's inhabitants. Awesome art combined with creepy storytelling.

My Grade:A+

Witchblade Volume 2 Anime DVD Review. Directed by Yoshimitsu Ohashi. Series Composition by Yasuko Kobayashi. Funimation, $29.98, Episodes 5-8, 100 minutes.

The second volume of Witchblade opens with a confrontation between Masane and the "Cloneblades", minions of the NSWF, who wield copies of the original Witchblade. NSWF sees itself as the rightful owner of the Witchblade and is willing to use hook or crook to get it back from Douji Industries. Reina Soho, the daughter of NSWF's founder, was actually the host of the Witchblade until the big earthquake 6 years ago that devastated Tokyo and led to its choosing of Masane as its next wielder. Now Reina is a Cloneblade but she is beginning to suspect that the copies are somehow absorbing their hosts. Her suspicions are confirmed when Shioro Tsuzuki's Cloneblade begins to drive her to kill innocent people in its lust for blood. We also learn about the one time alliance between Douji and NSWF to research the Witchblade and of the relationship between Reina and Douji's head, Reiji Takayama. And then there's Yusuke, the sometimes seedy photographer that is beginning to become convinced that the bumbling and dim-witted Masane is actually the superpowered monster fighting Witchblade wielder as well.

The thing I like about Witchblade is the fact that it can be convoluted without becoming confusing. There are a lot of subplots going on with this show, like the former relationship between Reina and Reiji, that are given just enough exposition to make them make sense, but without overloading the viewer's brain with pointless info. This goes for most of the other plot points as well. Volume 2 also fleshes out the characters a bit more and gives them more depth. Reina is especially intruiging because she seems to be a prime factor in the giant earthquake that rocked the country. The battle sequences are handled very well, even if the Cloneblades and Witchblade look a little awkward, moving so fast and agilely in what are essentially costumes taken from an old 1970's KISS concert. And did I neglect to tell you that those costumes have a lot of skin on display? Masane's figleaf barely covers her genital area and most of the females are ready to bust out of their bras...if they even wear one. Sexy fun with gory action and some domestic comedy.

My Grade: A

Podcast Episode 59: Gon Volume 2 Manga Review. Written and drawn by Masashi Tanaka. Originally published by Kodansha in 1992. Published in the US by CMX, $5.99, Rated T.

Gon, the last dinosaur left on Earth, is up to his usual adventures in this second volume of one of my favorite series. First up, he is swallowed by a Great White Shark that gets more than he bargained for. Then, Gon is laid low by one of the smallest creatures....a tick that crawls up his nose! Then he gets involved in a battle with an entire forest when a squirrel steals some of his fruit. Then Gon gets cast as an extra in the March of the Penguins. Beautifully drawn, Brilliantly executed, and hilarious. One of the best manga being published.

My Grade: A+

Manga Review for The Outcast Volume 1. Story by Vaun Wilmott. Art by Edward Gan. Published by Seven Seas, $9.99, Rated Teen.

Riley Smythe's parents died mysteriously a couple of months back and she's been hiding out in her grandmother's New York apartment ever since. Now her grandma thinks it's time for Riley to get back into the groove of things. Plus, her grandmother, Maggie, is busy in her job as a Theological Archaeologist, excavating the inner sanctum of the Brotherhood of the Balance that lies beneath her apartment. The Brotherhood was a secret society of warrior scholars that were dedicated to exterminating "The Outcast". The Outcast are fallen angels, incarnate evil, that take human forms.  Maggie doesn't really believe the Outcast exist. She's just interested in it for academic reasons. One of their fellow boarders, a weird horndog man-child named Michael, says that the whole of New York is filled with spirits, ghosts, demons, and other weird phenomena. And he should know. He fancies himself a "Hunsupu", or ghost hunter. Riley's new school is pretty weird as well, looking at times like the delapidated innards of a castle or Gothic cathedral. Then she incurs the wrath of one of the most popular girls by casting her eyes at the guy she likes named Carter. Riley does make one friend, a rougish girl named Kit who says there is only one rule at the school: Never be there after dark!

Most OEL manga I read give me the creeps, because even though it tries to be manga, there's always an x-factor it seems to be missing, mainly the alienness of a foreign culture. Only Hollow Fields, another OEL manga published by Seven Seas has ever bridged that gap for me. It's kinda like watching the Matrix when Keanu is in a big action scene and all of the sudden a digital actor is substituted for the real, or the many CG scenes of Spider-Man. Ok, they look like humans, but there is something vaguely disturbing about the whole thing. The Outcast is another figment of fake manga in my eyes. It looks like manga, it's flipped like manga, but the art and storytelling techniques are not quite up to par. It just doesn't seem like manga imitators have mastered how to tell a slow-moving story without making it boring. Yes, there is art in The Outcast, yes, there is a story, but it never seems to go anywhere. You never get the sense that it is building a world. The inclusion of 1990's slang also drags it down, like "don't bogart my stuff", "young jedi learns fast", and the instantly outdated "He's my boo", all hint that whoever is writing this is in their 30's and trying desperately to write about young people. I could be wrong about that. We even get an endorsement from Samuel L. Jackson on the back of the book, for what reason I cannot fathom. There is zero chance of me picking up the second volume of this series.

My Grade: C-

Podcast episode 58: Manga Review for My Dearest Devil Princess Volume 1. Story by Makoto Matsumoto. Art by Maika Netsu. Translated by Satsuki Yamashita. Adapted by Elizabeth Hanel. Originally published by Jive in 2004 Japan. Released in US by Broccoli Books, $9.99, Rated 16+.

When highschooler Keita Kusakabe buys a family heirloom from his friend Natsuki which is purported to grant wishes, he doesn't have much faith that it will work. When he opens the magic box, a cute girl comes out of it, floating in the air and right into his arms, which allows for an accidental boob grab. It turns out that the girl is a devil named Maki who wants to make a contract with Keita. She will give him three wishes....if she can have his soul!

My Grade: B

Manwha review for Angel Cup Volume 5. Written by Dong Wook Kim. Illustrated by Jae-Ho Youn. Originally published in Korea by Daiwon in 2002. Published in US by Tokyopop, $9.99, Rated Teen 13+.

The Armageddon-like battle between Han Shin and Gai Leung comes to its climax as the psychotic Hee-Na Yoo is determined to prove that she is the best player on the field, even better than Shin-Bee. She doesn't need to be in a rush to prove anything since Shin-Bee isn't exactly living up to her star billing. Her team is becoming increasingly frustrated with her lackluster playing and her inability to get past some mental and physical roadblocks that are keeping her from doing her best. Perhaps it's going to take a pep talk from So-Jin to get her out of her funk. But Shin-Bee is going to have to make peace with her own past before So-Jin's words will reach her. And even then, will the Han Shin team be able to overcome the nationally ranked Gai Leung team?

I started out a big fan of Angel Cup and initially thought it was one of the best Korean comics being published in the US. It was really fun to see the different Han Shin team members being recruited and tested a la The Seven Samurai and seeing them doing their best against the boy's soccer team. The action scenes were crisp and exciting and the characters were intriguing. Where Angel Cup began to go wrong was the beginning of the Gai Leung story arc. From a realistic and grounded soccer comic we went overnight to an almost Dragonball-like work when Hee-Na Yoo began to use mystical attacks! And then when one of the players on the Gai Leung team looked like a reject from Fist of the North Star, the book went totally south. Volume 5 gets back to the more basic approach of portraying the hearts and souls of girls on the soccer field, but it too suffers from an ulterior motive. The writer takes the match and twists it into a flag waving advertisement for Korean women's soccer and ruins any credibility that Angel Cup had as a work of art. It's like you get to the end of Slam Dunk and find out it was all just written to promote Nike or something. The fact that the final showdown between Han Shin and Gai Leung had to be delayed by the months between each publication didn't help the continuity or momentum of the match. Probably would read better if you read entire series over a couple of days.

My Grade: C

Anime DVD review for Flag Volume 1 from Bandai, Episodes 1-4, 100 minutes. List Price: $29.98.

If you were born in the last 50 or so odd years, then you are part of a multi-generation raised on images, especially those emanating from television, film, and, more recently, buzzing across the internet in a single lightspeed bound. The traditional news media like newspapers and magazines are outdated almost as soon as they are published and are casting an increasingly nervous eye at websites and bloggers. These days images can spark wars or take a hand in ending them. This is the case with Flag, a 13 episode anime series that was originally broadcast as a pay per view web video show.

The focus of Flag is a on a single photo taken by a war photographer named Saeko Shirasu in the civil war-torn country of Uddiyana which at times seems a cross between Afghanistan and Tibet, if that makes any sense. The United Nations has come in to help stop the fighting. Saeko takes a shot of a UN flag that highlights a silhouette of someone on their knees praying behind it, which comes to symbolize the call for peace between the government and the insurgents. But as is always the case in wars, there are some individuals or groups whose agendas are best served by fighting. On the eve of the peace talks, the famous flag from the picture is stolen by an insurgent group and is spirited away to a heavily protected fortress. A special forces military unit, the SDC, is prepped to steal the flag back before the fragile peace is shattered. The SDC is equipped with HAVWC technology, which in anime terms means "Mecha"!  The UN wants someone to document the mission and the best person to do that is Saeko.

Flag has a very weird storytelling strategy, or "gimmick". The anime is shot from the perspective of  image making machines, whether it be still shots from a camera, video footage, computer menus, sometimes, even through a character's reflection on a monitor.  While this is somewhat unique, in the end it becomes annoying to see every cutscene done with a clicking mouse icon on a computer monitor or some such. It also makes the anime seem very cheap, like maybe that didn't do the camera perspective to be original, but to cut costs. I would say that about 75% or more of this first volume is still shots, menu screens, or scenes where there is very little motion. I will say the music is well done and atmospheric. But that's pretty sad when I can say that is the only thing done well. I think the MESSAGE of the show is very important and timely and it deserved a lot more tender loving than Flag gets. It also suffers from the whole Blair Witch Syndrome. I mean, do people actually record everything they do and and leave their cameras on even when they're eating? At some point the constant filming becomes a little unrealistic. The characters seem quite interesting and I would like to see them in a more traditionally styled anime instead of a dehumanizing fishbowl view.

My Grade: D-