I first heard of Ōoku about a year ago from a friend.  The premise, she said, was that due to a disease that targets only men, the power hierarchy in Japan was genderflipped.  Women filled roles that had, up until the disease struck the male population, been traditionally done only by men — including that of the Tokugawa shoguns.  It sounded completely like something I would like but since I’m unable to read Japanese, it was one of those things I resigned myself to never having access to.  Thankfully, other people thought it sounded interesting too and it’s now available in English.

In Ōoku, a strange new disease breaks out among the Japanese male population.  It’s characterized by a high fever that’s then shortly followed by red pustules that spread all over the body.  These pustules soon fester and the victim dies within a few days.  Because of these symptoms, the disease is dubbed the Redface Pox.

Although the Redface Pox originated in a small farming village, it becomes apparent that the plague is highly contagious and virulent as well.  It spreads from one village to the next, striking down only the men.  And unfortunately, no cure is ever found so it becomes a common disease that’s simply a part of life.

Eighty years after the Redface Pox first appeared, the male population has stabilized at 25% that of the female.  Because of their low survival rate, men are carefully protected as seed-bearers while women took over the labor in the land.  Another result of the decreased male population is that marriage as an institution collapses.  Poor women had no hope of ever taking a husband, a right now reserved only for the samurai class, wealthy merchants and government officials.

The only exception to this, of course, is that of the Tokugawa Shogun.  As the supreme leader of Japan, she alone is allowed the luxury of keeping an interior palace populated solely by 3,000 beautiful men (this number later turns out to be an extreme exaggeration) and from which all other women are banned from entering.  This interior palace is called the Inner Chamber, or the Ōoku.

One thing I didn’t expect when I started reading this first volume was that while the gender roles are inverted, the Japanese history portrayed in Ōoku is pretty much identical to that of our own.  For example, when the sixth shogun dies, her daughter assumes the title.  But the seventh shogun is merely a child, and a sickly one at that.  When she dies, so does the main bloodline of the Tokugawa clan, which means the mantle of shogun falls onto one of the three branch bloodlines, ushering in the era of the eighth shogun, Yoshimune.  How it plays out in Ōoku is nearly identical to how it happened in our history, right down to Yoshimune’s background.  I found that I really liked this choice because in keeping the major details the same, readers can focus on the alterations that inverting the gender roles causes and the social critiques that I believe Yoshinaga is making about traditional gender roles.

That said, I was initially put off for the first half of this volume.  The main story begins with Mizuno, the handsome son of a poor hatamoto (shogunate retainers) family who is in love with his childhood friend, O-Nobu.  O-Nobu, however, is the daughter of a rich merchant family and thus, Mizuno is an unsuitable marriage match for her.  Spurred on by the fact that he can never marry the one he loves, he chooses to enter the service of the Inner Chamber.  To be honest, I actually have no problem with this storyline in and of itself.  It’s just the manga is about a historical Japan in which the gender roles are switched but yet we still begin with a man and his angst.  That isn’t exactly what I signed up for.

But through Mizuno’s eyes, we catch a glimpse of the Inner Chamber and the politicking that’s a daily way of life for the men who live there.  It’s a fascinating contrast to see the coping mechanisms and machinations of men in a situation that, traditionally speaking when it comes to fiction, has belonged to women.  This fact alone is what carried me through the first (80-page) chapter.

Thankfully, the second chapter introduces Yoshimune and with her entrance, my interest substantially increased.  In our history, Yoshimune is widely considered to the best of the Tokugawa shoguns, instituting a lot of financial reform during his reign.  The female Yoshimune of Ōoku is no different.  Because she comes from a far province, she finds the excesses of the Inner Chamber distasteful, particularly when Japan’s financial situation is in dire straits.  I’ve seen various portrayals of Yoshimune over the years, in period dramas and movies, but I really enjoyed this version of a no-nonsense, pragmatic female Yoshimune who refused to put up with any B.S. And not only that, but one who is unapologetic about her sexual appetite.

Knowing what I knew about the historical Yoshimune Tokugawa and the decisions he made during his reign, I was really interested in seeing how his decisions would play in the manga via this alternative female version — particularly with regards to the Inner Chamber.  The translation of Yoshimune’s historical decision to the female Yoshimune’s edict in the manga takes on a completely different note given Ōoku’s premise.  It’s a brilliant reimagining in that sense.

I do think I should point out to potential readers that the dialogue used in this manga might take some getting used to.  It is accurate because the manga does take place during the Edo Period and most of the characters belong to the upper classes.  Even so, the old-fashioned formality might be a shock at first, especially when compared to other manga set during this time period and which show virtually no difference between the dialogue depicted and that of our own.

Because this is a Viz Signature title, the production values of the actual manga itself are beautiful.  Both the front and back cover have fold-out flaps, and the first page in this volume is black with translucent lettering for the title. I initially thought it was vellum but under further examination, I don’t think it is.  All of this frames Yoshinaga’s artwork, which is lovely.  The chapter pages are gorgeous.  I wish my scanner was working so I could include a sample.

So despite a rocky start, I really ended up enjoying this volume and I look forward to the next.  I do wonder how the publisher intends to handle the English release since Ōoku is infamous for having a slow release schedule in Japan — one volume per year versus the multi-volume releases that characterize other manga series.  I checked the release date for the next English volume and it’s at the end of this year.  That’s already half of what’s available in Japan.  This might pose a problem in the future but for now, I’ll look to volume 2.  I can’t wait to see what Yoshimune learns about the history of the Redface Pox and how the transition between male shoguns to female ones occurred.  B+

My regards,
Jia

This book can be purchased at Amazon.

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• REVIEW: Beautiful C*cksucker II: Such a Good Boy by Barbara Sheridan
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• REVIEW: Indiscreet by Carolyn Jewel
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Netcomics is a publisher that publishes manga and manhwa online. No e-reader is needed, just $0.25 per chapter. They publish not only their own but Luv Luv and Yaoi Press comics among others. The way it works is that you buy e-cash in $10 amounts, then pay as you view each new chapter.

You don’t own the chapters, not at those prices. You get to view them for 48 hours. But, so you have a chance to look at a manga before starting to pay, the first 1-2 chapters are always available free (one for short works, 2 for longer).

Last, almost all the books are or will be available in hard copy if you find you truly love them and can’t live without them. There are a couple of series I follow that I purchase in hard format. What I love most about Netcomics though is that the net-version is usually 1-2 volumes ahead of the print, and with chapter releases the wait time is generally much less for updates, 2 weeks for my favorite series.

The series tend to be focused on women’s and girls’ comics. There are romances both het and m/m, and fantasy and drama with strong female leads. Only a few of the series are what I’d consider to be male-oriented. There’s a lot of variety though, and a number of the series look interesting. Browsing through their lineup I found 20 series that looked interesting enough to try, a third in various stages of completion, the others completed and (most) also in print.

The comics are quite easy to read on the screen. Some adjustments can be made for size, one or two page viewing, auto vs manual page turning. One thing that does annoy me about the reading window is the scrolling text on the upper left menu bar. It keeps catching my eye and distracting me. But the window can be slid to the side so it’s off screen so it’s not that big a deal. Other than that, I enjoy reading the manga this way. The print and art are clear and crisp, and there seems to be very little issue with things like lag or memory overload.

Today I’m looking at three ladies’ het oneshot manga volumes (single volume series) that can be viewed on the site for a really reasonable cost. The quality of writing varies wildly between them. I’ve not included samples, because the website itself offers a sample of every manga it sells. I’ve linked to the pages for each.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Luv Luv Press is bringing Japanese adult comics for women to the US. Sadly, the economy is hitting them hard, so if any of the titles here interest you, you may want to try them while you can. Their titles are all complete within one volume. The subject matter is adult romance and relationships. Their latest title on Netcomics is Make Love & Peace by Takane Yonetani. The volume is 7 chapters, or $1.50 (the first chapter is free). It consists of the 5 chapter main story and two oneshots.

The story has Ayame, a college student in a relationship with Koichi, a detective, when he saves her from a mugging. Koichi saves Ayame a lot. Between saving her they have lots and lots of sex (The sex is softcore level of explicitness, ie no graphic depictions of genitalia.). But it’s boring sex, not the least bit erotic to me, for two reasons. One is that the characters look like teens. I know the conventions of a lot of manga result in this, but I prefer manga where the guys look like they’re over fourteen, especially if sex is involved. Second, the art just feels amateurish. Not only are the character designs mediocre, but the pacing of the stories is off, and the drawing of the sex is stiff (no pun intended) and without eroticism. It felt like this was an early comic by someone who didn’t know how to draw sexual tension.

The entire volume had that shortcoming. There wasn’t much story, just several flimsy plotlines about an underwear burglar and lots of boring sex. It was painful to read. Honestly, if I hadn’t bought it for review I would have stopped after one chapter. I’d call this a skip-worth volume. I really found nothing redeeming in it, so I’d have to honestly give it an F.

~~~~~~~~~~~

The next Luv Luv volume I tried was much better. It’s Real Love by Mitsuki Oda , and is 6 chapters, or only $1.25!

The art in this is beautiful, professional, a complete opposite to the previous volume. It reminds me a lot of Ai Yazawa (Paradise Kiss, NANA) only a little less cluttered. It’s very pleasing to look at. The story is an improvement as well. Of the 6 chapters, the first 4 are devoted to the cover story. The last two chapters are a lesser story about a young woman musician who has to learn to write music from her heart, and it’s fairly average.

I enjoyed the cover story more. A young woman in university, Shu, is surprised to meet the young man, a popular actor named Naomichi, who took her virginity. She had loved him but found he was a cold womanizer and she dropped him. His career went downhill after that and he’s back in school, and determined to win her now. She’s not interested, except the sex was hot and she’s still attracted for that reason. Her waffling and our not being sure of his motive or feelings supplies the tension. As does the presence of her twin brother Shun, who seems to be having some crises of his own centered around both his sister and her ex.

For only having four chapters I thought I got to know the main characters remarkably well. I felt like I’d been reading something several volumes long, not because it was tedious, but because the mangaka told us a lot in the space she had, and that made this feel much deeper than a typical one volume manga.

However the ending of it felt way too rushed. In fact, I was shocked when I turned the page and found another story starting, and that’s not a good thing. I hope there’s a volume 2 being worked on out there that someday makes it to our shores. As it stands, it gets a B-.

~~~~~~~~~~~

The last single-volume manga I looked at for this group was cm0 (Centimeter Zero) by Kazumi Tohno and published by Netcomics. It’s 5 chapters, so would only cost $1! Honestly, at these prices how can you not try some?

This was a sweet and slow-paced love story about a university student, Hasumi, and a young woman, Miharu, who is one of his professors. They live in the same apartment building and know each other on a friendly basis. When her fiancée dumps her because of rumors about them, she turns to Hasumi for comfort, but that night they spend together drives a wedge between them. Eventually they begin to reconnect, slowly drifting back together, first as friends, then both gradually realizing it’s something more.

I love the artwork in this. The character designs are so normal, and the drawing style is soft and expressive. There is no explicit sex on the pages of this story, though there is some in their relationship that’s referred to.

I do have a complaint about typos and grammar. I’m not one to notice them, so when I do it generally means it’s bad enough to annoy most people. There were several instances of letters dropped off or left out of words. And one thing that annoys me to no end is when someone says “between you and I”. The character is an English professor. I think she’d know that after a preposition you use “me”, not “I”. This is a translation/editing mistake, and one that shouldn’t occur in a professional publication.

However, despite that, the story is a lovely one and I do recommend it the most of the three books here. This book is only available online. I’d give this story a B+.

No matter what I thought of these books though, the fact remains that I read three volumes of manga that would normally put me out $30 plus shipping and leave me stuck with one I wanted to give away but couldn’t because of its adult nature. I only spent $3.75. That makes it a great way to try manga, and a cheap way to buy manga for teens as long as you’re aware of the offerings on the site and what they’re reading. I’ll be reviewing more of the series in upcoming installments, and focusing on both the manhwa and BL (m/m) offerings.

Sincerely,
ジェーン
(Jān)

Related Posts:

• MANGA REVIEW: Ooku: The Inner Chambers
• COMIC REVIEW: Solanin

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I just have to tell you about this manga. This isn’t a typical manga for me to review because it’s not a romance manga, and it’s not really about the characters. It’s about food. I’m a serious foodie. I love exploring foods of all cultures, from low cuisine to high. And I love reading about it as well. Viz Manga has decided to bring over to the US part of one of the most influential food manga series of all time, and if you’re a foodie you’ll probably love it.

First, a note about food manga. The Japanese love them. There are a surprising number of action manga where the hero of the series has special food talents. Yakitate! has a boy with a gift for creating breads unique to Japan. Addicted to Curry is about a chef dedicated to, yep, curries. Kitchen Princess is a shoujo (girl’s) romance about the orphan daughter of pastry chefs who has inherited their talent to please everyone with some dessert.

There are also manga that seek to educate adults. The Drops of the Gods is fairly new one that’s educating the Japanese about Western wines. It has sparked an enormous rise in the sales of wines, especially those discussed in each chapter.

The granddaddy of these manga series is Oishinbo. This massive and extremely popular series of 102 volumes, still ongoing, started in 1983 and sought to educate the Japanese about their cuisine and food customs and give them pride in them. The author says in a short essay that the best word for Japanese cuisine(s) is washoku. The wa means Japanese, but also means harmony. That, he says, is the essence of eating Japanese style. All the elements are present and recognizable, but in harmony. This series attempts to explain all the elements and how they fit together.

Now, Viz can’t bring all 102 volumes over. Well, they could, but they’d probably lose money on a lot of them. Even though I’d buy every one. But they are bringing over select chapters and sections on things Westerners tend to be curious about: sake, rice, noodles, sushi/sashimi.

This first volume covers quite a few basics. Some chapters seem downright silly, as in the cook-off between the demanding bastard father and the (anti-)hero over rice. The father’s chef wins because he goes through every grain of rice and pulls out the ones that are broken or odd shaped so each grain finishes at the same time. It’s so anal it’s ridiculous, but it also serves to support a point all cooks know, and that’s that you want portions you’re cooking to be of equal size so they finish cooking together. It’s a good principle applied in a goofy manner so you remember it.

The book covers why sashimi is an art and not just chopping up raw fish, simplicity as a technique, etiquette with chopsticks, purity of ingredients and letting them stand on their own, and making sure your palate as a chef is clean. It explains several dishes (though doesn’t provide recipes) like daishi broth; it’s more concerned with explaining the heart of it than the how of it, though often the how is involved. There’s also a lengthy section of footnotes, 14 pages in the back, that explain all Japanese customs and words that might not be clear to Western readers. It’s quite thorough and good.

There is a plot of sorts. A young man, Yamaoka Shiro, is a gourmet with a very discriminating palate and an ability to cook that matches it. However, he now works at a newspaper and his main concern is betting on the ponies. One day his editor decides that for their 100th anniversary they will serve the ultimate feast, and knowing Yamaoka’s background appoints him to be in charge (along with a young woman to whom he eventually gets married in a minor part of the story which we don’t really see).

This appointment angers the most important gourmet in town, Yamaoka’s nasty father, a renowned potter who demanded such perfection from his wife in their food that it drove his wife to her grave. Yamaoka in revenge destroyed all his father’s artwork. Needlesstosay, they’re not getting along. Yamaoka’s father sets up a rival feast and constantly challenges his son. (He seriously needs his ass kicked.) The most annoying chapters are when he’s right. But even jerks can teach us things.

The graphics in this are really old-style manga. They’re not bad by any means, but they may look dated to people used to newer manga, especially in their use of block panels a la Western comics. They always illustrate points clearly though, and that’s what concerns me most. Here an American friend of Yamaoka’s has been training in how to make water-chilled sashimi to teach some know-it-alls a lesson (as usual, please start reading from the top of the right page, and please forgive my homemade scans).

As you can see, expressive as they are, the faces leave something to be desired. But the portraits of the food and technique come through clearly. I also included a page from the notes from the back of the book so you could see how useful they are.

The book itself is quality, softbound and larger with a dust-jacket. Viz did a lovely job with it.

I’d read parts of this before, but none of these sections in this first volume. I seriously couldn’t put it down once I got it in the mail yesterday. I found everything about it fascinating, even the irritating father and how he was dealt with by the author, and the anal-retentive bits, because being picky about techniques and ingredients is part of being a good chef. I think anyone with an interest in Japanese cuisines or culture would eat this up. It’s a little choppy because of the way the story was taken apart and put back together, but it should just be read as a series of related short stories, A-.

Sincerely,
ジェーン
(Jān)

Oishinbo, by Kariya Tetsu, illus by Hanasaki Akira. Viz. Retail: $12.99. 272 pages. 1/8 compilation volumes. Rated T for teen (probably because kids probably wouldn’t understand terms and such, but there’s no sex or violence; if you’ve got smart young-uns though go for it.). This book is available for discount at most manga stories like Rightstuf.com

Related Posts:

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• REVIEW: Can’t Stand the Heat by Louisa Edwards
• MANGA REVIEW: Ooku: The Inner Chambers
• COMIC REVIEW: Solanin

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Iris Print:

Iris Print is a Yaoi publisher who apparently closed up shop and failed to tell its authors. Giapet.Net first reported this on May 17:

Something I didn’t mention in my Yaoi Press report was that Yamila Abraham, when asked about publishing yaoi novels as well as comics, said that it tends not to work very well, and pointed to Iris Print as an example– saying that the company has actually closed up shop.

Emails to the owner of Iris Print have seemingly gone unanswered. From an Iris Print author:

Well isn’t that swell? Iris Print closes up shop and doesn’t bother to tell the creators they have under contract. Nice. So what about our books? What about our titles? :/ I don’t know what to say about this, except that I’m truly disappointed. I’m beyond pissed; I wonder though, where is Amazon getting their re-stock if Iris is out of business? What about all those people who paid pre-orders for Queer Magic? It would’ve been nice to know if she was filing for bankruptcy.

Another author hasn’t had her first quarter 2008 sales report even though she’s written 3 times now.

I can’t get through to my publisher. I haven’t heard anything about my first quarter 2008 sales, so I’ve written 3 times now. Nothing. Nada. Zilch. Not even a ‘I got your email, am working on it, please be patient.’ Not even bounce messages, so I can only assume my email is getting through and being ignored, or that something very awful has happened to my publisher. I can’t express how frustrating that is. Seriously, any response is better than silence. Even ‘eff off and die, you annoying author b***h’ would be an improvement. ‘Nuff said for now, but there may be more on this topic if things don’t improve. –Rebecca Day

Doesn’t sound good. A non responsive publisher is not a good sign.

Toyko Pop

Tokyo Pop has a Manga Pilot Program wherein an aspiring author or an established author can create a 24-to-36 “pilot” of a manga to convince Tokyo Pop that it is worth continuing into a full fledged manga. The contract for the program has the comic world up in arms over this. Some of the terms are draconian and some of them seem very standard to me (i.e., the indemnification clause). What is unusual is that you sign over your rights to the Manga Pilot for a flat fee (no royalties) and only get your rights back if TP rejects you.

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Here are two more first volumes, these two from popular series that I found I didn’t like as much as their popularity suggested I should.

Honey and Clover by Chica Umino. Viz. Retail $9.99. Rated T+ for older teen. 10 volumes (still ongoing in Japan; 1 released here).

Honey and Clover centers around a group of poor eclectic students at an art college that live in the same tiny, rundown apartment building. There’s a large cast of characters but these are the main ones: Morita is a weirdo genius slob who’s been in college for many years, and who leaves for weeks at a time and comes back exhausted and loaded with money. Mayama is a fairly normal architecture student about to graduate, but with hints of a mysterious past. And the last is a very average guy, the hero, Takemoto, who doesn’t have any real aim in life except he’s studying architecture as well.

One day they meet a tiny relative of a professor who enters the school as a Freshman. She’s Hanamoto Hagumi and both Takemoto and Morita instantly fall in love with her cuteness. They fall for her but she’s never anything but a doll, even in the drawings. It’s a bit disturbing. She’s not much interested in them though; she’s a genius as sculpture and lives for that. And shiny pink mules. And meat. She isn’t your typical heroine. But then, this isn’t exactly a romance.

The story goes on, with little slices of life, some more interesting than others. Takemoto tries to find common ground with Hagumi and ends up trying to design a rococco warddrobe for her caveman-inspired doll clothes. A tenant returns from the country with meat and vegetables, and they feel better for eating until he leaves again.

You know, what this manga reminds me of is Seinfeld. It’s really not about anything. It’s just episodes about their lives, revealing their characters and friendships, but not really taking you any place. It’s kind of interesting. It’s kind of funny. It’s good at revealing who the guys are. I’m assuming the love story goes somewhere, maybe. But all in all, it seems something to relax with when you don’t want to think about anything yourself. Not that there’s anything wrong with that. B.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Swan by Ariyoshi Kyoko. CMX. Retail $9.99. Rated E for Everyone. 21 volumes (complete in Japan; 12 released here)

This is one of the toughest reviews I’ve had to write. I’m just not sure what to make of this rather famous shoujo series.

On the one hand, it’s a serious story about ballet, and the rise of a ballerina from being someone who has a lot to learn, to the top of her form. The art used to tell the story is gorgeous, albeit a little dated since it’s from the 70s. The heroine isn’t a genius who rockets to the top, but someone at the bottom of her class who keeps screwing up. Because of that, both she and the reader learn a lot about what it takes to be a successful ballet dancer. This is a story about the sweat and the work and the sacrifices and the pain of being a great dancer.

But on the other hand, it’s so freaking melodramatic, tears and wailing and gushing over everything. I’ve never seen so many exclamation points. This her revelation over ballet after she’s lost a big contest and had her bubble burst, when she sees the winning performance by the people she met. Her thoughts surround her jumping through the clouds, tears overflowing:

“I get it now!

I can feel it exploding in my heart… Like I’m going to burst! Because of them, in just that short time!

Everything they told me… Everything they did…It was all about the discipline of ballet!

Now I want the harsh world of ballet! I want it more than ever!

I want a teacher who will mold me into something beautiful! I want it now, more than ever!

I want to dance!

I want to be with the others, those brilliant, beautiful dancers.

I want to take this passion and pour my heart and soul into training!”

Good thoughts really, but the way they’re expressed… I want to read it, and yet don’t.

I will recommend this with caveats. If you are an aspiring ballet dancer, or even if you just love ballet this might well be a great series for you to buy. And those with youngsters should note that this is the first series I’ve reviewed here with a general rating, acceptable for everyone, so those with children 8-12 who are thinking about ballet could buy it for them. It would be the perfect introduction to the real world of dance, I think. But I recommend buying the first volume or reading it in the library so you or they get a feel for what it’s like.

Many people have loved this series through the years. I do not love this first book, but I don’t want to discourage others from trying it if they’re interested in the subject and think they can get past the melodrama. B-.

Sincerely,

ジェーン

(Jān)

These can be purchased or pre-ordered at most bookstores, or they can be found at a discount at one of my favorites places to buy manga: Honey and Clover; Swan

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• MANGA REVIEW: Ooku: The Inner Chambers
• COMIC REVIEW: Solanin

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Two more vol 1’s from Viz. But the first is a Vol 1 from CMX, another publisher who brings quality shoujo to the US.

Land of the Blindfolded by Tsukuba Sakura. CMX. Retail $9.99. Not rated, but I’d say high school and up. 9 volumes (complete in Japan and in the US.)

(I should mention that the main story only takes up about 2/3 of the first book. There are also two unrelated short stories at the end that are rather sweet, both romantic.)

I actually heard of this story back when I first started reading manga and the concept intrigued me. I never knew it was released over here though until recently, and so I bought the first volume. It’s definitely a cut above other shoujo.

The story involves a high school girl named Kanade who can sometimes see the future when people touch her. She thinks of it like living in the land of the blindfolded, only her blindfold sometimes slips. One day she bumps into a young man in the hallway, Arou. He can see the past when he touches someone. He’s a bit bitter about the fact that he can’t change anything, but Kanade can. Kanade thinks she was given her gift to make things better. Arou’s philosophy is that they were given this gift to observe, and he won’t help Kanade.

The book plays with both of these ideas a lot, showing the good and bad of interference and non-interference, and how both Kanade and Arou are torn by what they have and what they can and can’t do with it. It hurts, being able to see what they do when they can’t change things, or when they screw them up worse. This draws them to each other, because no one else understands what they’re going through.

There are a few interesting side characters in this book as well. Kanade’s best friend, who is shallow and self-depreciating in her pursuit of the boy she likes, but completely aware of what she is doing and why. The boy she’s chasing almost qualifies as @sshole of the year, until the author shows that maybe that girl got through to him. And then there’s the new kid at school, another psychic who can see the future, but one who likes to play games with it, a jerk but one there seems to be hope for. All of them are three dimensional, and I look forward to reading more about them.

Most high school romances don’t concern themselves with the ethics of the special gifts the characters have, or about the characters surrounding them. The fact that this one does, and does it well, makes it a special series above and beyond the average shoujo romance. I hope it sustains that. B+.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I.O.N. by Arina Tanemura. Viz. Retail $9.99. Rated: T for Teen. 1 volume, complete.

Ms Tanemura is the mangaka of the very popular Full Moon wo Sagashite and Kamikaze Kaitou Jeanne, so I was familiar with her work. KKJ doesn’t have much depth and really is rather silly (a magical girl reincarnation of Joan of Arc who fights demon-possessed paintings? Okaaay.), but Full Moon wo Sagashite does have depth and I recommend it, only be prepared to cry. But considering how different those two works are I had no idea what to expect from this single volume story.

ION turns out to be a fairly standard shoujo romance that didn’t do much for me. Like Monkey High the characters are quite young looking, and act it. And while I don’t mind this in a book like oh, Kitchen Princess where the focus isn’t so much romance but following your dream, when the focus is solely on romance older is just better for me.

The book is about a young girl, Ion, who chants her name when she’s in trouble because it makes her feel better, maybe like a mantra or something (funny, when I do that it sounds conceited). But when she comes in contact with an experimental substance made by the psychic research club at school and starts chanting, she’s suddenly telekinetic! This leads to hijinks galore!

Young teens might think this is a cute story. Or they might be bored from comments I’ve seen on message boards. I tended to agree with the message board commenters. Another DNF.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sand Chronicles by Hinako Ashihara. Viz. Retail $9.99. T+ for Older Teens. 10 Volumes (complete in Japan, 2 out here)

I instantly fell in love with this series. It’s so good. 26 year old Ann is getting ready to marry and move overseas, and is packing up her things. An old hourglass falls out and makes her remember when she got it 14 years before, the year she met, I think, her husband to be.

It starts when her parents have just divorced and she and her mother have gone to live in the country with her grandmother. She’s such a real 12 year old, emotional, volatile, cynical, vulnerable, trying so hard to act the adult and help her mom make it through tough times yet still child enough to enjoy the world around her. Her own older self comments at one point, “I was still so innocent.”

I think everyone could identify with Ann. Her troubles are shown honestly, from her serious family ones to less serious problems with her period and friends. But the fun times are shown honestly too. Her friends never let her forget to laugh. Sometimes it’s the only thing they can give her. That leads to some incredibly funny moments, as does the mangaka showcasing everyone’s foibles through asides and comments in the background.

Volume one shows Ann gradually making friends, in the real way young people drift toward one another in small communities. Two of her best friends are boys her own age, the athletic Daigo, who she falls for and who likes her, and the upper class Fuji, who falls for her. It’s a love triangle that I have the feeling will last for the next 14 years, and we won’t know the outcome until we see just who she’s going to marry in the future. The whole set up lets me know that these relationships will be treated seriously, and that there will be some hard decisions for all three after they learn to see themselves and each other honestly. This has the makings of a great romance.

If there’s a short-coming, it’s in the second half of the story where for a moment it veers close to shoujo cliché territory when a rival for Daigo appears. But the reason for that section is all in how Fuji and Daigo respond, which seems to foreshadow an awful lot to me.

OK Viz, you sold me. I am a complete and utter fan. I want more of this story NOW. A-.

Sincerely,

ジェーン

(Jān)

These can be purchased or pre-ordered at most bookstores, or they can be found at a discount at one of my favorites places to buy manga here:Land of the Blindfolded, I.O.N., Sand Chronicles

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I got some first volumes of some shoujo series from Viz for review. I’ve not read any of the series, so I’ll just be providing my first impressions based upon all the Vol 1’s, a couple at a time.

Wild Ones by Kiyo Fujiwara. Viz. $9.99. T for Teen (innuendo, some cartoony violence). 6 volumes (still ongoing in Japan, 2 volumes out here)

I’m a sucker for yakuza (Japanese gangster) stories, especially the ones that are comedy so I was looking forward to this manga. Unfortunately this one, unlike Gokusen, didn’t have much special to make it rise above the rest.

The main character, 15 year old Sachie, is orphaned and trying to figure out what to do when her presumed-dead grandfather shows up and asks her to live with him. She’s a little shocked to find out that he’s the head of a yakuza family, and she is his heir. She finds herself thrown into this family of idiot gangsters with hearts of gold and decides to try to live as normal a life as possible. Unfortunately for her, her new bodyguard, the young and handsome Rakuto, is as nutty as the rest of the gang and just won’t leave his “princess” alone.

This is pretty typical shoujo ‘fantasy’, with pretty average drawing. The character is no doormat, but she is a Mary Sue. The gangsters adore her –she can do no wrong even when beating them up, because they’re proud she’s yakuza– and she’s worshipped by her bodyguard who’s also the student council president who of course met her and fell in love when they were children (though she doesn’t remember him). There doesn’t seem to be anything here that I can’t get in countless other shoujo series, so I’d give this a very average C and recommend if you want to read it to do so at the library.

~~~~~~~~

Fairy Cube by Kaori Yuki. Viz. $9.99. T+ for Older Teen (violence, no sex). 3 volumes (complete in Japan, just starting here)

I’m a big fan of Kaori Yuki’s. She’s the mangaka of the very popular Angel Sanctuary and Count Cain / Godchild series. She has an intricate and expressive style of art, and her stories are often gothic in tone, occasionally veering into the macabre. They don’t always work, sometimes sinking under the complexities she can layer into them, but when they do work they’re better than much of what’s out there. But there’s one thing for sure about her stories, and that’s that you’ll get angst, angst, and more angst, and teenagers eat this stuff up. This one is no exception.

This is a series of hers I hadn’t read. As usual, the premise is a complex one. Ian’s mother was a fairy. No one believes it. But she left him a legacy of a twin spirit who hates him and the ability to see fairies. It’s an ability that got him named Ian the Liar and abused by his father. No one except Rin believes him. She’s a girl his age and his one true friend and love.

The twin spirit, Tokage, makes Ian’s father murder Ian, and Tokage takes over the body sending Ian into the spirit world while he lives Ian’s life and hurts those Ian loves. Ian finds out that a number of fairies have done this, and the device they use is the fairy cube, a dormant state that lets them lie in wait for a body to possess. Ian makes a deal with a devil of shopkeeper who holds the cubes. He gets a body of his own and revenge, but in return he must betray the world.

To be honest, that doesn’t even scratch the surface of the plot I read in this first volume. Trips to Faery and battles with monsters from Celtic mythology, a battle between the Seelie and Unseelie court taking place in the human world, plots to rule the world, plots to rule the high school. No one is who they seem. Everyone has ulterior motives. Everyone has an angsty back-story to explain their behavior.

This story is definitely intriguing, albeit a little confusing. I have no idea where’s she’s going with it or even if she can manage to hold it together, but this first volume shows enough promise that I’m going along for the ride. B+

Sincerely,

ジェーン

(Jān)

These volumes can be purchased / pre-ordered at most any bookstores, but I like Anime Castle and their prices: Wild Ones and Fairy Cube

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From Far Away by Kyoko Hikawa. Publisher: Viz. Retail: $9.99 each. 14/14 volumes released in English. Rated T for Teen (some fighting, no sex).

Dear Readers,

I’m starting to feel a little like Harriet Klausner, with all the positive manga reviews I’ve been doing. But everyone knows there’s a lot of mediocre manga out there. I’m trying to share the good ones that I’ve come to love. This next one I came to love overnight just a few weeks ago and the romance is still new and sparkly in my eyes. That’s probably not the best way to review, but consider yourself forewarned. But for that reason I’m giving this a B+, since A’s really need to stand the test of time with me.

First, thank you to you readers! You recommended this to me after my Basara review, and I read it overnight. “So what?” you might think. “Manga reads fast.” So it was 14 volumes, I dropped $70 for it (yay for coupons and sales), and I couldn’t put it down, except where I had to because I was stupid enough to only buy the first seven the first night. But I was up and hitting the bookstore first thing the next morning.

This is young adult romance and fantasy/adventure, just what I would have wanted to read as a young teen. Had these books been available back in the ??’s, they’d have become instant favorites of mine, up there with The Three Musketeers. Reading them now I know that they’re an instant comfort read for me whenever I want to be swept away into a world that, while it contains evil, is also chock full of warmth.

This isn’t a complex or a deep story. Manga readers have read many variations of it, though since this one is by one of the mangaka of the golden age, chances are she’s one of them who taught them their tricks. A girl gets transported to another land where she’s the key to saving it from a great evil and meets a handsome but lonely hero who needs her love. But as we know in romance, it’s not so much the plot as how you tell it.

The heroine, Noriko, is cute as a button. But not stupid-cute, or martyr-cute, or inept-cute as so often happens in these tales (including others by this author). She’s smart. For the first book or so she doesn’t even speak the language, but uses her head to figure out what’s going on, and makes it her first responsibility to learn to communicate. She’s very positive and loving. She comes from a close-knit family and has a loving background, no angst baby she, and she’s able to spread that to others. But most of the others don’t fall in love with her – this is not a harem story. They form other connections, those of family and friends. Noriko’s no Mary Sue. OK, she’s a little too good, but darn it, she’s so *cute* at it!

The hero Izark is the source of angst in the story. Noriko is The Awakening (stupid name but you get the point) that opens Izark up to becoming the Sky Demon, who is foretold to be a monster of great evil that will destroy the world. As a human, however, he’s about the nicest guy imaginable, though a very withdrawn one. As one might guess, neighbors and relatives weren’t inclined to think the potential Sky Demon was very loveable and shunned him, leaving him with serious angst. But Noriko only saw her rescuer and a hero and a lonely man and fell in love. And therein lies his redemption and the redemption of the world. Here a fight with a demon has thrown him into the pain of childhood flashbacks, until memories of Noriko intrude and he realizes what she means to him (the three pages and two have some fighting and running between) (as usual, reads right to left below and on the page):

<-then <-start here

Like all good fantasies, there’s a great group of side characters that you come to care about, good and bad, and most people are a bit of both. There are also some excellent action and fight scenes, as good as the better ones I’ve seen in shounen manga (for boys); they had me on the edge of my seat. The comedy is pretty silly and I got a kick out of some things like the village where everyone made up background stories for travelers, each more ridiculous than the last. And there are some wonderfully romantic and emotional moments throughout that had me tearing up.

The art is very 80’s shoujo, but I loved it because it also has a lot of elements from the 20s. I mean, get a load of the villain (on the right). His palace is totally art deco. The artwork throughout the book is mostly clean and simple lineart. There’s not a lot of shading, and not a lot of background detail except where it’s needed to establish a setting. But while there are books where I love intricate art, I didn’t miss it here.

Some people won’t like this because the world is a fairly standard fantasy one, though it seems to be based upon an ancient Indian or Middle Eastern one from the costumes. There’s one main plot thread and not a lot of divergence. The h/h’s relationship never progresses beyond kissing, no sex here, but plenty of romance. The story isn’t realistic and gritty, though the lessons it teaches about friendship and love and how to live are as important and real as you’ll find in any adult manga. The morals are positive but not childish. I found the story very uplifting, which to me is what a comfort read is all about.

All in all it’s a great series for kids and adults who still love kid’s books. This is one longer series I recommend buying, especially if you have teenage girls who love manga. It can be found as a complete set at some places like justmanga.com for $114 with free shipping, or bought individually from discountanimedvd.com for $7.50 a volume for $105. But if that’s too much, do go to the library and try this one out.

I just realized I’ve reviewed three fantasy manga in a row, albeit very different ones. Next time I’ll try to do something different.

Sincerely,

ジェーン

(Jān)

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Manga Sutra by Katsu Aki. Published by TokyoPop. Retail: $19.99. 1/37+ released in English. Rated M for Mature (graphic sex). Note: Each single English volume contains 2 Japanese volumes.

Dear Readers,

This one is slightly different for me. Some people might just call it hentai (Japanese porn). But while it does contain scenes that qualify, its purpose isn’t just to titillate, but to educate. The author put it this way in his short preface:

This isn’t just a hentai manga. It’s about love, sex, and how-to… I wrote this with the hopes that it would serve as a bible to those who dream of having the best sex ever! And I really mean that.

That’s cute. So to serve that purpose Aki-san gives us Makoto and Yura, virgin newlyweds in an arranged marriage (still fairly common in Japan with businessmen and women who are too busy to date). They’re basically pretty nice people, though not very outgoing (hence their virginity), and they eventually fall in love.

But they don’t have a clue about sex. Not. A. Clue. Sure, they know that Tab A goes in Slot A. But even basics like kissing techniques are beyond them. However, they’re stupid so the reader doesn’t have to be. There’s someone around to explain it every step of the way, like Yura’s very sexually active sister Rika and Makoto’s loud-mouthed jerk of a brother Akira who prides himself on being a stud in bed. (Know-it-all people are always interrupting in this book, something which annoyed me to no end, like perverted Akira showing up to spoil their honeymoon.)

To show you the way things are often explained, here Rika explains the basics of kissing to Makoto after Yura has turned him away because he never turns her on (as usual, please read right to left):

<- with diagrams <- start here

And then he tries it out (with an intermittent page removed):

<- start here

As you can see, the graphics are kind of useless and almost comical. However the information is good, and in a culture like the US where half the people won’t talk about sex much less try to figure out how to do it right, it could only help. This volume covers topics ranging from kissing, hymens and virginity, honeymoons, foreplay, love hotels, premature ejaculation, non-sexual intimacy and communication, breasts, erogenous zones, and the ever-popular reverse cowgirl. There’s even an afterward question and answer session with a sex therapist. Facts pepper the pages (–>).

But, I have to wonder if the book would really be of interest to most English speaking people. I showed this to my non-manga-reading husband and the following conversation took place:

Me: What would you think if someone, like a girlfriend, gave this to you?

Him: My girlfriends know I don’t need it.

Me: *swats*

Him: Seriously? I’d laugh and think it was a joke.

Me: Why? The information in it’s good.

Him: The format. It’s cartoons. It’s a cultural thing. The Japanese are used to getting information in this format. But in the US, cartoon = kids stuff or comedy.

Me: Except to the people who know better.

Him: Those are the only ones who would take this seriously.

Me: A small niche — even smaller since only the adults could buy it.

Him: *nods* Adult manga readers are probably the ones who need it most though, living in basements without ever meeting the opposite sex, and not having a clue about what to do with them if they do.

Me: …. I’m an adult manga reader.

Him: …. This is one of those ‘Do I look fat?’ situations, isn’t it?

Those who wish to contact my husband over the next few days may try the doghouse.

But his initial point was valid. If you’re capable of gleaning information from a book regardless of the format, you might find the Manga Sutra full of useful and interesting facts. But the presentation makes it a hard sell in this society unless you’re already a manga fan; I wouldn’t suggest buying it for someone who isn’t. And even for manga readers the presentation is kind of eye-rolling and can be very annoying at times because of the side characters. So in the end, despite its potential usefulness, I’d have to give this a C+.

Sincerely,

ジェーン

(Jān)

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Dear Readers,

This is my favorite manga release of 2007. There are some with loftier ambitions that I might admire more, like Town of Evening Calm, but when it comes to pure enjoyment of a book, The Crimson Spell wins hands down.

The story is a fairly simple one. Prince Vald’s country is overrun by demons and there’s only one way to save them, to take up an accursed family sword. For the sake of his people he does so, but the sword’s demon begins to take him over. At first it’s only at night, when he changes into an erotic beast-like version of himself (and whoo boy is he one erotic looking beast). His country’s wizards are able to give him ensorcelled shackles that keep the change at bay each night. But he knows it’s only a matter of time until the demon takes over, endangering everyone, so he sets off to find the one man who could remove the curse, the sorcerer Halvir.

Halvir (Havi) is beautiful, but he isn’t what I’d call an upstanding citizen, being greedy and lascivious. He not only wants the magical sword for himself, but once he finds the demon-controlled version of Vald at night and realizes he can absorb its power (through sexual contact of course), he begins an affair with the beast-half of Vald that the human half doesn’t know about (read right to left as usual, and don’t worry, I stopped right before the naughty bits)(sorry for my crappy scans):

<- start

To gain the sword and keep Vald nearby, he makes a deal with him. He’ll break the curse if Vald helps him gain certain magical objects. Vald agrees and they set off on a journey.

However, the journey, like in all good books, isn’t just a trip from here to there, but one of change for both the characters. Halvir is immediately touched by the prince’s beauty and spirit, and he’s captivated by the beast’s sensual nature, and he begins to fall in love with both. For the first time in a long time, he starts to think of another. The changes to Vald aren’t all that pleasant. His demon and human forms slowly begin to meld as the change approaches a time when it will become irreversible and control him completely. But this also brings a growing realization of an attraction to his companion, one that at this point he still pushes away in denial as a human but which he fully embraces as a beast.

Concerning the sex in the book, I’ve never heard anyone complain about it, but the fact that Halvir is having sex with the beast half of Vald while keeping it a secret from the human half might bother some people. Also, while the first sexual encounter between Halvir and the beast verges on non-con, that primal side of Vald loves his sex and jumps Halvir if he isn’t getting enough. The beast Vald doesn’t have the inhibitions of the human half and thoroughly enjoys himself no matter what they try. One side note, there is an extra story in the volume that has that staple of hentai, tentacle sex, when Vald encounters an aphrodisiac plant that works on him in more ways than just chemical. One friend labels that chapter “Tentacle Sex Done Right”. …. There’s really nothing I can add to that.

While sex and romance are an important part of the story, there are a lot of parts to the story that are just plain funny. Yamane-sensei has a way of drawing humor from the characters: Halvir’s greed and utter lack of concern for anyone but himself and Vald; Vald’s naivety about what’s happening to him each night. And then there’s Rulca, a very sexy spiritual being who likes to take the form of a bunny, and who delights in annoying Halvir and in trying to seduce Vald. This adds up to a story that’s much lighter in tone than the other work of Yamane’s released stateside, the Finder series.

Then there’s the artwork. Yamane-sensei is renowned in yaoi circles for it. The attention to detail makes each panel gorgeous to look at. She obviously revels in drawing the trappings of fantasy. (click for a bigger view)

Yamane’s men are breathtakingly beautiful and masculine. No emasculated ukes (bottoms) here, as happens fairly often in yaoi. Vald has fire and strength in both his forms, enough to make me suspicious that he’ll be turning the tables on Halvir before the end of the series.

Finally, the book’s quality deserves recognition. In the past Kitty has put out volumes that are on par with TokyoPop, quite average though great value for their low price. But for this book they worked directly with Ayano Yamane, and at her direction turned out a top of the line volume. This book is gorgeous with color plates, a high paper quality, and an exceptional translation. There were one or two typos, but really this is a premium piece of manga that’s a pleasure to hold and read. Honestly, the only thing that will be nicer than having this book in my hands will be to have this book plus volume two (hint hint, Kitty).

So, who is this one recommended for? Any adult who wants to see a great example of the sexier side of yaoi manga as done by one of its most popular mangaka. It’s beautiful to look at, a pleasure to hold, full of engaging characters, and funny and sexy to boot. That’s why it is my favorite of the year. Grade: A.

Sincerely,

ジェーン

(Jān)

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• COMIC REVIEW: Solanin
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