The Honolulu Star Bulletin has a positive review of the anime version of Kodocha, which my kids love. The opening credits even inspired my younger daughter to do a “Sana dance,” to the puzzlement and amusement of the adults.
The manga was one of the first that my kids read, and they literally laughed until they cried as they read it. I found the relationship between Sana and her chauffeur a bit disconcerting, and the humor more elusive, but I can see why they liked it. The cliff-hanger at the end of one volume meant I got no peace until we bought the next.
I was just looking for the link and noticed that it’s no longer listed on Tokyopop’s website, so now I’m wondering if it’s out of print. No problem for us—we already own all 10 volumes—but I hate to see books disappear so fast.
The absence of Kodocha from Tokyopop’s website isn’t new, and has been discussed serveral times on various forums. Here’s the situation as I understand it: Kodocha is published in Japan by one of the publishers that own Viz, and it was originally licensed to Tokyopop back when manga wasn’t so big in the U.S. (It was actually one of the first batch of unflipped titles from Toyopop.) Now the company that licensed it regrets having done so, and won’t renew the arrangement. This means that Tokyopop can keep the title in print (I think), but can’t put out a new edition, and can’t publicize it on their website either, for some reason.