Archives for 2012

Keiji Nakazawa, the creator of Barefoot Gen, has died at age 73. I wrote about him for Robot 6, and Jonathan Clements reprints an interview he did a few years back at Schoolgirl Milky Crisis. David Brothers recalls the impact the anime had on him when he watched it as a pre-teen:

Barefoot Gen is an important movie to me because it turned an abstract idea concrete. “The atomic bomb is awe-inspiring and amazing, a true triumph for America!” turned into “The atomic bomb is awful. We murdered innocent people and the effects are still being felt today.” I’ve spent most of my life on or around air force bases, and as a kid, war was exciting. Fighter pilots, right? Glamorous. Awesome. But I didn’t understand the cost. I didn’t understand collateral damage, acceptable losses, and war crimes.

I was a kid then. I’m glad I learned better.

Johanna Draper Carlson takes a look back at the year 2012 in manga at Comics Worth Reading.

The Manga Bookshelf bloggers discuss their picks of the year for 2012 as well as this week’s new print manga and this week’s new releases from JManga. Also at Manga Bookshelf, Melinda Beasi and Michelle Smith devote their final Off the Shelf column of the year to two books of short stories, Kaoru Mori: Anything and Something and Takako Shimura’s The Devil Is So Cute, Melinda posts a new episode of her video series My Week in Manga, and Travis Anderson has a license request, Fumi Yoshinaga’s Kinou Nani Tabeta? Also: Matt Blind compiles his list of the manga best-sellers for the week ending December 23.

Tony Yao discusses a moment from Pandora Hearts that reflects his own feelings about the burdens of life.

News from Japan: Rumiko Takahashi will draw a special InuYasha one-shot for the tenth issue of Shonen Sunday, which is a benefit for the Heroes Come Back earthquake charity. Kekkaishi creator Yellow Tanabe plans to launch a new series in Shonen Sunday in the spring.

Reviews: The Manga Bookshelf bloggers file their final set of Bookshelf Briefs for the year. Ash Brown looks at a week’s worth of manga reading at Experiments in Manga.

Lori Henderson on vol. 1 of Alice in the Country of Hearts (Manga Village)
Ash Brown on vol. 1 of Aron’s Absurd Armada (Experiments in Manga)
Sakura Eries on vol. 1 of Aron’s Absurd Armada (The Fandom Post)
Erica Friedman on Asago to Kase-san (Okazu)
Erica Friedman on Akaniero Confiture (Okazu)
Kristin on vols. 16 and 17 of Bakuman (Comic Attack)
Andre Paploo on vol. 3 of Blood Blockade Battlefront (Kuriousity)
Sean Gaffney on vol. 1 of Blood Lad (A Case Suitable for Treatment)
AstroNerdBoy on vol. 6 of Bunny Drop (AstroNerdBoy’s Anime and Manga Blog)
Justin on chapter 12 of Cross Manage (Organization ASG)
Richard Bruton on Danza (Forbidden Planet)
Lesley Aeschliman on vol. 2 of A Devil and Her Love Song (Blogcritics)
Leroy Douresseaux on vol. 7 of Dogs: Bullets and Carnage (The Comic Book Bin)
Leroy Douresseaux on vol. 4 of The Earl and the Fairy (The Comic Book Bin)
Erica Freidman on Eden no Higastotsuka (Okazu)
Matthew Alexander on vol. 19 of Higurashi (The Fandom Post)
Lesley Aeschliman on vol. 19 of InuYasha (Blogcritics)
Leroy Douresseaux on vol. 7 of Itsuwaribito (The Comic Book Bin)
Sean Gaffney on Kaoru Mori: Anything and Something (A Case Suitable for Treatment)
Phillip Anthony on vol. 1 of A Kiss on Tearful Cheeks (Manga Bookshelf)
Erica Friedman on Kisu wa Owari de Hajimari de (yuri doujinshi) (Okazu)
Erica Friedman on K-ON! College (Okazu)
Alex Hoffman on vols. 1 and 2 of The Limit (Manga Widget)
Matthew Warner on vol. 4 of March Story (The Fandom Post)
Sean Gaffney on vol. 1 of Mayo Chiki! (A Case Suitable for Treatment)
John Rose on vol. 1 of Missions of Love (The Fandom Post)
Leroy Douresseaux on vol. 13 of Natsume’s Book of Friends (The Comic Book Bin)
Sean Gaffney on vols. 1-3 of Neon Genesis Evangelion (omnibus edition) (A Case Suitable for Treatment)
Manjiorin on vol. 2 of Oreimo (Organization ASG)
Lesley Aeschliman on vol. 3 of Oh My Goddess (Blogcritics)
Matthew Warner on vol. 65 of One Piece (The Fandom Post)
Ken H. on Orion (Comics Should Be Good)
Connie C. on Parasyte, Skip Beat! and Onward Towards Our Noble Deaths (Comics Should Be Good)
Anna on vols. 3 and 4 of Pride (Manga Report)
Matthew Warner on vol. 7 of Psyren (The Fandom Post)
Erica Friedman on vol. 3 of Puella Magi Madoka Magica (Okazu)
Matthew Warner on vol. 10 of Rosario + Vampire: Season II (The Fandom Post)
Erica Friedman on vol. 8 of Sailor Moon (Okazu)
Lesley Aeschliman on vol. 1 of Slam Dunk (Blogcritics)
Kate O’Neil on vol. 2 of Soulless (The Fandom Post)
Shannon Fay on vol. 1 of Start With a Happy Ending (Kuriousity)
Matthew Alexander on vol. 1 of Triage X (The Fandom Post)
Leroy Douresseaux on vol. 2 of Yu-Gi-Oh! ZEXAL (I Reads You)

Deb Aoki and Rebecca Silverman discuss the best manga of 2012 and what lies ahead for 2013 in the latest ANNCast.

At Blog of the North Star, Milo looks back on the past year’s manga releases and isn’t too impressed.

News from Japan: Namco Bandai Group will open a Shonen Jump theme park in Ikebukuro next summer. Akiyo Satorigi is bringing his Durarara!! Saika Arc to an end. Yen Press, which licensed the original Durarara!!, will publish the first volume of Saika Arc in March. Minami Ozaki, creator of Bronze: Zetsuai since 1989, has just launched a new series, Devil x Children x AS, in Enterbrain’s web magazine Comic B’s Log Air Raid. A new Rozen Maiden spinoff, Maite wa Ikenai Rozen Maiden, is coming to the next issue of Shueisha’s Miracle Jump. Black Lagoon will return to the pages of Sunday GX magazine in January or February, according to creator Rei Hiroe. And Five Star Stories will resume in the May issue of Newtype.

Reviews: Carlo Santos rounds up the latest manga releases in his latest Right Turn Only!! column at ANN. Ash Brown looks at My Week in Manga at Experiments in Manga.

Leroy Douresseaux on vol. 21 of 20th Century Boys (I Reads You)
Sean Gaffney on vol. 1 of Alice in the Country of Hearts: My Fanatic Rabbit (A Case Suitable for Treatment)
Kristin on vols. 14 and 15 of Bakuman (Comic Attack)
Justin on vols. 3 and 4 of Drops of God (Organization ASG)
Katherine Hanson on vol. 1 of Himawari-san (Yuri no Boke)
Lesley Aeschliman on vol. 8 of Pokemon Black and White (Blogcritics)
Helen on vol. 1 of Soul Eater Not! (Narrative Investigations)
Ben Leary on vol. 2 of Witch and Wizard (The Fandom Post)
Justin on Wolf (Organization ASG)
AstroNerdBoy on vol. 11 of Yotsuba&! (AstroNerdBoy’s Anime and Manga Blog)

Tezuka Productions director of licensing Yuriko Fukuzawa and Diamond vice president for business development John Parker discuss their plans for next year; Diamond has just become the worldwide distributor for TezukaPro. They identify Astro Boy as the most important property, and Kimba the White Lion as one with a lot of potential for the U.S.

The Manga Bookshelf team discusses their Pick of the Week, and they also look at this week’s new releases from JManga. Melinda Beasi and Michelle Smith talk about some recent reading in their Off the Shelf column.

Erica Friedman has the latest yuri news, and she also has an interesting post for would-be manga creators on how to write a query letter to a publisher.

Matt Blind counts down the manga best-sellers for the week ending December 16.

Reviews: The Manga Bookshelf team takes a quick look at some recent releases in their latest set of Bookshelf Briefs.

Connie on vol. 36 of Berserk (Slightly Biased Manga)
Ash Brown on vol. 16 of Blade of the Immortal (Experiments in Manga)
Lissa Pattillo on vols. 50 and 51 of Bleach (Kuriousity)
Lesley Aeschliman on vol. 2 of Chi’s Sweet Home (Blogcritics)
Johanna Draper Carlson on Danza (Comics Worth Reading)
Connie on Devil’s Secret (Slightly Biased Manga)
Kylee Strutt on vol. 3 of Durarara!!! (Animanga Nation)
Leroy Douresseaux on vol. 24 of Excel Saga (The Comic Book Bin)
Jocelyne Allen on Golondrina (Brain Vs. Book)
Johanna Draper Carlson on Honey Darling (Comics Worth Reading)
Connie on vol. 13 of Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service (Slightly Biased Manga)
Andre Paploo on vol. 1 of The Limit (Kuriousity)
Connie on Love Syndrome (Slightly Biased Manga)
Johanna Draper Carlson on vol. 1 of Message to Adolf (Comics Worth Reading)
Lori Henderson on vols. 10 and 11 of Oresama Teacher (Manga Xanadu)
Connie on vol. 20 of Slam Dunk (Slightly Biased Manga)
Ben Leary on vol. 20 of Slam Dunk (The Fandom Post)
Lesley Aeschliman on Songs to Make You Smile (Blogcritics)

Guest writer Shaenon Garrity discusses the works of Inio Asano, including Solanin, What a Wonderful World, and a few others that haven’t made it into English yet, in the latest House of 1000 Manga column at ANN.

The Manga Bookshelf bloggers take a look at next week’s new releases.

Victoria Martin presents the second part of her countdown of the top manga of 2012 at Kuriousity.

Tony Yao looks at the theme of deception, including self-deception, in Sakuran.

News from Japan: The Daily Yomiuri takes a look at the popularity of manga courses in Japanese universities, what they can offer an aspiring manga-ka, and the attraction they hold for students from overseas. Mitsukazu Mihara will resume her series The Embalmer in the January 8 issue of Shodensha’s Feel Young magazine after a three-year hiatus. Manga professionals ranked their favorite titles of the year for the Kono Manga ga Sugoi! guidebook. And ANN has the latest Japanese comics rankings.

Reviews

Rebecca Silverman on vol. 7 of Bunny Drop (ANN)
Justin on chapter 11 of Cross Manage (Organization ASG)
Sean Gaffney on vol. 1 of Demon Love Spell (A Case Suitable for Treatment)
Connie C. on Dorohedoro, Itazura na Kiss, and Bakuman (Comics Should Be Good)
Angela Eastman on vol. 10 of Kamisama Kiss (The Fandom Post)
Carlo Santos on vols. 1-7 of Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (box set) (ANN)
Lesley Aeschliman on vol. 6 of Pokemon Adventures Diamond and Pearl Platinum (Blogcritics)
Erica Friedman on vol. 1 of Rock it GIRL!! (Okazu)
Ken H on vol. 7 of Rurouni Kenshin (VizBig edition) (Comics Should Be Good)
Lori Henderson on vol. 1 of Thermae Romae (Manga Village)
Leroy Douresseaux on vol. 13 of Toriko (The Comic Book Bin)

Lissa Pattillo looks over this week’s new manga releases in her latest On the Shelf column at Otaku USA.

Seven Seas confirmed that it has licensed two more Alice in the Country of Hearts manga, Alice in the Country of Clover: Ace of Hearts and Alice in the Country of Hearts: The Clockmaker’s Story.

Melinda Beasi treats us to another episode of her video feature My Week in Manga.

Erica Friedman takes a look at Hana to Yume, the magazine that has been the source for many series that made it big in translation (Fruits Basket, Kamisama Kiss), as well as a number we have never heard of.

Reviews

L. B. Bryant on vol. 1 of Demon Love Spell (ICv2)
Sean Gaffney on vol. 13 of Neon Genesis Evangelion (A Case Suitable for Treatment)
Leroy Douresseaux on vol. 12 of Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan (The Comic Book Bin)
Sakura Eries on vol. 11 of Oresama Teacher (The Fandom Post)
Erica Friedman on vol. 8 of Pure Yuri Anthology Hirari (Okazu)
Lexie on vol. 1 of Strobe Edge (Poisoned Rationality)
Victoria Erica on vol. 2 of X (three-in-one edition) (Inside AX)

It’s Pick of the Week time at Manga Bookshelf!

Shonen Jump Alpha will publish Kurapika Tsuioku-hen, a two-chapter Hunter x Hunter flashback arc; the first chapters is in this week’s Japanese Shonen Jump.

ANN looks at the manga best-sellers in U.S. bookstores last month; Naruto was the top seller, at number 7 on the graphic novels best-seller list.

Otaku News has a (NSFW!) interview with tentacle manga creator Toshio Maeda.

Reviews: The Manga Bookshelf team has some short takes on recent releases in their latest Bookshelf Briefs. Ash Brown sums up a week’s worth of manga reading at Experiments in Manga.

Sean Gaffney on Danza (A Case Suitable for Treatment)
Lori Henderson on vol. 1 of Demon Love Spell (Manga Xanadu)
AstroNerdBoy on vol. 1 of Genshiken: Second Season (AstroNerdBoy’s Anime and Manga Blog)
Alex Hoffman on vol. 1 of Heroman (Manga Widget)
Johanna Draper Carlson on Kaoru Mori: Anything and Something (Comics Worth Reading)
Kristin on Kaoru Mori: Anything and Something (Comic Attack)
Sean Kleefeld on vol. 1 of Real (Kleefeld on Comics)
Katherine Hanson on vol. 3 of Paros no Ken (Yuri no Boke)
Anna N on vol. 8 of The Story of Saiunkoku (Manga Report)
Michael Buntag on vol. 1 of Sundome (NonSensical Words)
Johanna Draper Carlson on vol. 11 of Yotsuba&!, vol. 13 of Otomen, and vol. 13 of Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service (Comics Worth Reading)