MangaBlog

I reviewed the first two chapters of Barrage, the new Shonen Jump series, at MTV Geek, and Justin at OASG is way ahead of me with his look at chapter 3, which just came out yesterday in the newly weekly Shonen Jump Alpha.

The Manga Bookshelf bloggers (myself included) discuss our Pick of the Week.

David Brothers talks about why he likes the classic Cyborg 009.

At Blog of the North Star, Milo discusses wrestling manga.

Matt Blind calculates the manga best-sellers for the week ending April 22. It’s always Sailor Moon, isn’t it?

News from Japan: It looks like the magazine to pick up is Asahi Shimbun’s Nemuki; the latest issue features new stories by Gekidan Inu Curry (one of the production designers on the Puella Magi Magica Madoka TV anime), Reraku and Kiriko Yumeji (Le Chevalier d’Eon), and Junji Ito (Uzumaki). Manga-ka Tohru Fujisawa is working on a new GTO spinoff that will focus on Onizuka’s pal Ryūji Danma. The series, titled GT-R, will run in Kodansha’s Weekly Shōnen Magazine. Hideki Ohwada, creator of The Legend of Koizumi, just started another new series, Fūhyō Hakai Tenshi Lovekyuri, in Akita Shoten’s Champion RED.

Reviews: The Manga Bookshelf bloggers post some short takes in their latest Manga Bookshelf column. Ash Brown looks at another week of manga at Experiments in Manga.

Leroy Douresseaux on vol. 10 of Arata: The Legend (The Comic Book Bin)
Danica Davidson on vol. 1 of AX (Graphic Novel Reporter)
Lori Henderson on vols. 1-3 of Black Gate (Manga Xanadu)
Rebecca Silverman on vols. 4 and 5 of Cage of Eden (ANN)
Kristin on vol. 6 of Dorohedoro (Comic Attack)
AstroNerdBoy on vols. 21 and 22 of Hayate the Combat Butler (AstroNerdBoy’s Anime and Manga Blog)
Rebecca Silverman on Honey Darling (ANN)
Danica Davidson on vols. 1-4 of Library Wars: Love and War (Graphic Novel Reporter)
Erica Friedman on vol. 2 of Magic Knight Rayearth (Okazu)
Manjiorin on vols. 1-4 of Please, Please Me (Organization Anti-Social Geniuses)
Sean Gaffney on vol. 1 of Puella Magi Madoka Magica (A Case Suitable for Treatment)
Rebecca Silverman on vol. 8 of Rin-Ne (ANN)
Lesley Aeschliman on vol. 5 of Sailor Moon (Blogcritics)
Rebecca Silverman on vol. 1 of Starry Sky (ANN)

Over at MTV Geek, the Kodansha folks allowed us to post an interview with Attack on Titan creator Hajime Isayama that first appeared in Bessatsu Shonen magazine, along with a preview of the book, which is due out this week.

Shaenon Garrity introduces us to the goofy 1980s wrestling manga Ultimate Muscle (and its sequel, which was published by Viz) in the latest House of 1000 Manga column at ANN.

Melinda Beasi and Michelle Smith discuss Attack on Titan, Until Death Do Us Part, and other new releases in their latest Off the Shelf column at Manga Bookshelf.

Erica Friedman interviews Girl Friends manga-ka Milk Morinaga at Okazu, and she also has the latest Yuri Network News for us.

Lissa Pattillo looks at the best of the past week’s new releases in her latest On the Shelf column at Otaku USA, and back at her own site, Kuriousity, she shows off the latest additions to her Swag Bag.

Three Steps Over Japan checks out the manga magazine Comic @Bunch.

News from Japan: Katsuya Takahashi, the last fugitive from the Aum Shinrikyo cult, surrendered to authorities after being spotted in a manga cafe in Tokyo. Apparently police were aware that Takahashi was a manga reader and had been keeping an eye on manga cafes.

Reviews:

Leroy Douresseaux on vol. 11 of Bakuman (The Comic Book Bin)
Ash Brown on vol. 10 Blade of the Immortal (Experiments in Manga)
Leroy Douresseaux on vol. 6 of Bokurano: Ours (The Comic Book Bin)
Danica Davidson on vols. 4-6 of The Drifting Classroom (Graphic Novel Reporter)
Sweetpea616 on vols. 3-5 of Eternal Sabbath (Organization Anti-Social Geniuses)
Kristin on Honey Darling (Comic Attack)
Leroy Douresseaux on Honey Darling (I Reads You)
Kristin on vol. 1 of Kamen (Comic Attack)
Anna on vol. 14 of Kimi ni Todoke (Manga Report)
TSOTE on Onward Towards Our Noble Deaths (Three Steps Over Japan)
Lesley Aeschliman on vol. 12 of Ranma 1/2 (Blogcritics)
Milo on Tough (Blog of the North Star)

Sean Gaffney looks ahead to a bumper crop of new manga releases next week.

Matt Blind has posted another list of manga best-sellers, this one for the week ending April 15.

Tony Yao posts some results of a survey that show that Japanese readers still prefer print to pixels.

Three Steps Over Japan takes a look at Monthly Comic Birz.

Wal-Mart will carry Otaku USA in the slot formerly occupied by Shonen Jump, which is no longer published in print form.

News from Japan: Translator Tomo Kimura shows off the variant cover for vol. 14 of Black Butler. Hajime no Ippo creator George Morikawa has is launching a new series, Ai ni Iku yo, which was inspired by Nobumi’s book about the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, Ue wo Muite Arukō! (I look up when I walk down). Yellow Tanabe (Kekkaishi) will draw a one-shot titled “Mori no Naka” for Shogakukan’s Gessan magazine. Gaku – Minna no Yama has come to an end, but creator Shinich Ishizuka already has another series in the works. Shueisha’s Young Jump magazine has launched a free spinoff website, for which Eyeshield 21 manga-ka Yuusuke Murata and web manga creator ONE are collaborating on a remake of ONE’s Onepunch-man. Manga creator Jun Hatanaka has died at the age of 62. And ANN has the latest Japanese comics rankings.

Reviews

Sean Gaffney on Alice in the Country of Clover: Bloody Twins (A Case Suitable for Treatment)
Leroy Douresseaux on vol. 41 of Bleach (The Comic Book Bin)
Anna on vol. 10 of Dengeki Daisy (Manga Report)
Rob McMonigal on issue 4 of Gen Manga (Panel Patter)
Manjiorin on vol. 1 of Hikaru no Go (Organization Anti-Social Geniuses)
Michael Buntag on vol. 1 of Sailor Moon (NonSensical Words)

The newest series from Kodansha Comics, Attack on Titan, is due out next week, and we have an exclusive preview at MTV Geek.

Also, I talked to Robert Newman of JManga about how that digital manga service has evolved over its first year—and the changes yet to come.

The Manga Bookshelf bloggers discuss their Pick of the Week.

Seven Seas confirmed two new licenses this week: Alice in the Country of Joker: Circus and Liar’s Game, a spinoff of Alice in the Country of Hearts, and Crimson Empire: Circumstances to Serve a Noble, a manga adaptation of another game by Alice creator Quinrose.

Kate Dacey is looking forward to the next Shigeru Mizuki manga, GeGeGe no Kitaro, so she asks her readers: What is your favorite yokai manga?

Matt Blind posts his list of the manga bestsellers (online sales) for the week ending April 8.

News from Japan: There was lots of Baki talk at the launch of Akita Shoten’s Bessatsu Shonen Champion magazine: Keisuke Itagaki announced that he was ending Hanma Baki, which features his character Baki the Grappler, although he may return to the series after a break. Meanwhile, Yukinao Yamauchi announced his new Baki spinoff, Baki Gaiden: Kizuzura, which will run in Bessatsu Shonen Champion. Peach Girl creator Miwa Ueda will wrap up her current manga, Rokomoko, in July.

Reviews: This week’s roundup of Bookshelf Briefs from the Manga Bookshelf team includes quick looks at new volumes of Bakuman, A Devil and Her Love Song, and Fluffy, Fluffy Cinnamoroll, among others.

Connie on vol. 11 of Bakuman (Slightly Biased Manga)
Kate Dacey on chapter 1 of Barrage (The Manga Critic)
Justin on chapter 2 of Barrage (Organization Anti-Social Geniuses)
Connie on vol. 12 of Black Bird (Slightly Biased Manga)
Erica Friedman on the May issue of Comic Yuri Hime (Okazu)
Karen Maeda on vol. 9 of Dengeki Daisy (Sequential Tart)
Matthew Warner on vol. 1 of Is This a Zombie? (The Fandom Post)
Connie on vol. 2 of Lizard Prince (Slightly Biased Manga)
Connie on vol. 7 of Maoh: Juvenile Remix (Slightly Biased Manga)
Sean Gaffney on vol. 18 of Ouran High School Host Club (A Case Suitable for Treatment)
Kate O’Neil on vol. 9 of Soul Eater (The Fandom Post)

Vertical has a new license for next spring: The sci-fi manga Knights of Sidonia, by Tsutomu Nihei, creator of Blame and Biomega.

Houbunsha has just put six previews of their manga on JManga; Deb Aoki has a roundup and some short reviews.

Manga-loving librarian Robin Brenner explains why reading manga on a scan site is not the same as checking it out of the library.

Erica Friedman has the latest edition of Yuri Network News at Okazu.

Ryan Holmberg has a fascinating post on the 1920s-1930s magazine Shin Seinen and its influence on manga-ka Shigeru Sugiura. I don’t believe any of Sugiura’s work has been translated into English, but Holmberg’s “visual essay,” done for a Japanese zine on Sugiura, has some interesting juxtapositions of cartoons that appeared in the magazine and Sugiura’s later works, which may have been inspired by them. Be warned that the selection includes some caricatures of Africans that will strike modern eyes as racist, but there is also an interesting full-page cartoon by Dr. Seuss.

Molly McIsaac lists ten manga that are great for children at iFanboy.

News from Japan: Bunny Drop creator Yumi Unita previews her new series, Yokke Kazoku, in the July issue of Manga Life Original. Risa Itou, who won the Kodansha Award for her series Hey Pitan!, has launched a comedy manga about her efforts to lose weight. Hanaukyo Maid Team manga-ka Moreshige has a new series, Sakura Sakura, starting in the premiere edition of Bessatsu Shonen Champion, Akita Shoten’s new shonen magazine. Renjuro Kindaichi’s new series, Arumi-chan no Gakushūchō (Arumi’s Study Guide) is about a robot who passes as a girl—go figure! The Shonen Jump series Inumarudashi has come to an end. And the final volumes of K-ON! will be out in September and October.

Reviews: Ash Brown shares her latest week’s worth of manga reading at Experiments in Manga.

Leroy Douresseaux on vol. 40 of Bleach (The Comic Book Bin)
Lissa Pattillo on vols. 40 and 41 of Bleach (Kuriousity)
Lori Henderson on vol. 2 of Durarara!! (Manga Xanadu)
Lesley Aeschliman on vol. 1 of La Corda D’Oro (Blogcritics)
Kristin on vol. 9 of Oresama Teacher and vol. 18 of Ouran High School Host Club (Comic Attack)
Matt Brady on vols. 1 and 2 of Princess Knight (Warren Peace Sings the Blues)
Greg Burgas on Rohan at the Louvre (Comics Should Be Good!)
Lesley Aeschliman on vol. 1 of xxxHoLic (Blogcritics)

I was at Book Expo America this past Wednesday, taking part in the Hot Graphic Novels panel (in which I recommended several manga, including Sakuran and Jiu Jiu). Linda Yau has a concise writeup of the panel for the Lincoln Heights Literary Society, and Torsten Adair has posted covers, sample spreads, and other info for all the books at The Beat. This was my first time at BEA, and I wasn’t sure what to expect; although it’s not about manga, I enjoyed Emily Gould’s writeup at The Awl, Four Hours in the Totebag Capital of the World. It’s worth the click just for her description of walking to the Javits Center (“conveniently located at the intersection of 34th Street and the Hudson River”).

I went over this week’s new releases at MTV Geek, and Sean Gaffney looks at the week ahead at his blog.

Melinda Beasi and Michelle Smith discuss some recent releases and even take a request in their latest Off the Shelf column at Manga Bookshelf.

Matt Blind has the list of manga best-sellers (online sales) from the week ending April 1.

Shaenon Garrity sings the praises of CLAMP’s X/1999 (now being re-released by Viz simply as X) in her latest stint as guest writer for ANN’s House of 1000 Manga column,

Derek Bown’s latest Combat Commentary is Armstrongs vs. Sloth in Fullmetal Alchemist.

And at Manga Therapy, Tony Yao looks at a key battle in Air Gear.

News from Japan: Puella Magi Madoka Magica illustrator Hanokage is launching a spinoff in October, to coincide with the release of two Madoka Magica movies. Yuna Kagesaki is bringing AiON to an end in the next issue of Monthly Dragon Age. And ANN has the latest Japanese comics rankings.

Reviews

Kate O’Neil on chapter 1 of Barrage (The Fandom Post)
Ash Brown on The Bible: A Japanese Manga Rendition (Experiments in Manga)
Leroy Douresseaux on vol. 7 of Cross Game (The Comic Book Bin)
John Rose on vol. 1 of D.Gray-Man (The Fandom Post)
Connie on vol. 2 of A Devil and Her Love Song (Slightly Biased Manga)
Matthew Alexander on vol. 5 of Istuwaribito (The Fandom Post)
Connie on Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure, Part 2 (Slightly Biased Manga)
TSOTE on vol. 2 of Konjaku Monogatari (Three Steps Over Japan)
John Rose on vol. 55 of Naruto (The Fandom Post)
Sean Gaffney on NonNonBa (A Case Suitable for Treatment)
AstroNerdBoy on vol. 34 of Negima! (AstroNerdBoy’s Anime and Manga Blog)
Leroy Douresseaux on vol. 9 of Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan (The Comic Book Bin)
Lissa Pattillo on vol. 1 of Puella Magi Madoka Magica (Kuriousity)
Connie on Rohan at the Louvre (Slightly Biased Manga)
Sweetpea616 on Samurai Girl: Real Bout High School (Organization Anti-Social Geniuses)
Connie on vol. 3 of Shadow Lady (Slightly Biased Manga)
Connie on Tank Tankuro (Slightly Biased Manga)
Sean Gaffney on vol. 1 of Until Death Do Us Part (A Case Suitable for Treatment)
Kristin on vol. 2 of X (omnibus edition) (Comic Attack)