Welcome back, manga fans! You should all be proud of me. There’s a new Naoki Urasawa book out this month (“Asadora” Vol. 3) and I didn’t put it on the list. There were just so many other books I wanted to highlight, I couldn’t justify giving it a spot, even with my usual cheating. With that said, read “Asadora,” it’s AMAZING.
10.5. A Broken Promise
“The Promised Neverland” ended around a year ago but for those reading in print, like I am, there’re still a couple months to go until the finale comes out. For anyone who has not read “Promised Neverland,” now is the time to catch up. For those who were burned by the anime’s disastrous second season and want to know what could’ve been, volume 20 is here to answer your, and my, questions. May we see more from this creative team soon.
The Promised Neverland, Vol. 20
Written by Kaiu Shirai
Illustrated by Posuka Demizu
Published by Viz, LLC
Find out what becomes of Emma, Ray, Norman and the other children in the final volume of The Promised Neverland.
For older teen audiences.
10. Immortality, The Greatest of Curses
More Tezuka is always good. More Tezuka that’s short and weird and definitely not “Astro Boy” or “Buddha?” Sign me the fuck up. This book sounds like the kind of sci-fi morality play that would have fallen out “Amazing Stories” and that is my jam. If you’re into Tezuka’s adult manga, which is real dark with his trademark style, then check this out when you can.
Record of Glass Castle
Written and illustrated by Osamu Tezuka
Published by Digital Manga Distribution
IMMORTALITY, AT WHAT COST?
In the Glass Mansion, a family has been frozen in cryosleep for 20 years under the orders of their patriarch. When the oldest son Ichirou awakes, he struggles to accept the reality that he has slept away 20 years of his life. Ichirou plans to exact revenge on those in his family that stole his life from him. As Shirou, the youngest brother, attempts to stop Ichirou, he becomes aware of the dangerous side effect of cryosleep that led to its national ban years ago. How far will Ichirou fall, and will Shirou be able to stop him?
9. Dude, Get a Handkerchief or Something
I’ll be frank, I have absolutely no idea what this is about. The preview is deceptively short and cryptic. The cover is strange and offers few hints beyond a stressed, worried teen and a classroom environment. This has the potential to be really good, really messy or both. I suspect it’ll be more of the former but if it’s the latter, at least we got this hilarious cover.
Captivated By You
Written and illustrated by Yama Wayama
Published by Yen Press
High school relations are moody, quirky, and full of surprises. But most of all, they’re downright captivating.
8. The Dame Walked Into the Classroom, Bento Box in Hand and I Knew…Someone Had Stolen Her Rice Balls
Quirky, off-beat comedies that lean into the absurd are my jam. This has the potential to fill the “Mitama Security: Spirit Busters” shaped hole in my heart, though I suspect it runs more like “Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-Kun.” Hopefully it’s more like those than any of the other million school comedies that just don’t connect with me: “Don’t Mess With Me, Miss Nagatoro,” “Teasing Master Takagi-San,” etc. I mean, the concept of a kid convincing himself he’s the tortured lead in a thriller is a gold-mine for jokes and asides and also so true to life. Who hasn’t, at their most pubescent, absolutely imagined themselves as being the lead in a life that follows a specific genre?
…Just me? …Welp.
Continued belowThe Dangers in My Heart, Vol. 1
Written and illustrated by Norio Sakurai
Published by Seven Seas Entertainment
Quirky courtship awaits in this comedy nominated for the 2020 Manga Taisho Award! Ichikawa Kyotaro, a boy barely clinging to the bottom rung of his school’s social ladder, secretly believes he’s the tortured lead in some psychological thriller. He spends his days dreaming up ways to disrupt his classmates’ peaceful lives and pining after Anna Yamada, the class idol. But Kyotaro’s not nearly the troubled teen he pretends to be… and it turns out Anna’s a bit odd herself!
7. It’s Been 87 Years
“Noragami: Stray God” is an absolute romp that went on an extended hiatus a few years ago. Basically, you’ve got a layabout almost forgotten God who has literally one follower and they get into hijinx around Yato taking odd jobs and mooching and deeply serious fights with the literally gods of heaven and all the might they command. It’s great! It’s also back on a regular schedule of every 6 months a volume so I thought I’d highlight it before it disappears into the ether again.
Noragami: Stray God, Vol. 23
Written and illustrated by Adachitoka
Published by Kodansha Comics
Yato is a homeless god. He doesn’t even have a shrine, not to mention worshippers! So to achieve his ambitious goals, he’s set up a service to help those in need (for a small fee), hoping he’ll eventually raise enough money to build himself the lavish temple of his dreams. Of course, he can’t afford to be picky, so Yato accepts all kinds of jobs, from finding lost kittens to helping a student overcoe bullies at school.
6. Magic Wishing Bones Don’t Fail Me Now
“Mad Max meets…well, honestly this just feels like a really messed up version of Mad Max, which is saying something. From the creator of “Dorohedoro,” which if you’re familiar with that work should tell you all you need to know about whether or not you’ll be into this one, “Dai Dark” really seems like the successor to “Fist of the North Star” but more bonkers and I’m here for that. Did you see that cover?? Dude’s wearing a skull as he rides a motorcycle to escape people who want his bones to make wishes while all he wants is spaghetti. True art right there.
Dai Dark, Vol. 2
Written and illustrated by Q. Hayashida
Published by Seven Seas Entertainment
Zaha Sanko’s body has great and terrible powers – they say that possessing his bones will grant you any wish, even the desire to become ruler of the universe. But Sanko is still a teenage dude with his own life, and he isn’t about to let every monstrous lowlife in the galaxy rip him limb from limb. He and his skeletal buddy Avakian will use their dark powers to fend off any murder attempts while they search space for whomever put this curse on Sanko’s bones… because killing them might end the madness. And then Sanko can celebrate with his favorite spaghetti
5. You’re My Second Favorite Son
I have mourned the loss of “Mitama Security: Spirit Busters” for many months. I love that book, for its many flaws near the end, and I wished to see it grow and prosper beyond what it was. I bring this up because “Mashle,” which came out at the same time, was by far and away the weaker series in my eyes. Hilarious, yes, but with less legs. Turns out I was dead wrong and “Mashle” had far more legs, and much stronger Quadriceps Magic, than I gave it credit for in those early chapters.
It’s shaved off some of the more odd-ball aspects to sustain a more traditional battle manga format but this book has skyrocketed in popularity and so, with a heavy heart, I must recommend the first volume to you all and fight back my tears at the little brother surpassing the older brother…but seriously it’s a lot of fun and you’ll be busting a gut at the ridiculous ways Mash gets around a magic world with only his BONKERS muscles and love of cream-puffs.
Continued belowMashle: Magic and Muscles, Vol. 1
Written and illustrated by Hajime Komoto
Published by Viz, LLC
In the magic realm, magic is everything-everyone can use it, and one’s social status is determined by their skill level. Deep in the forest, oblivious to the ways of the world, lives Mash. Thanks to his daily training, he’s become a fitness god, but he harbors a secret that could turn his life upside down-he can’t use magic! When he’s found out, rather than his life being over, he’s unexpectedly enrolled in magic school, where he must beat the competition!
4. Wandering the Desert for A Decade
Ikki magazine went defunct in 2014 after a 14 year run. I have a soft spot for the titles from Ikki’s magazine, as many of them fed Viz’s “Signature” line and were some of the weirdest, most creative Seinen titles I’d ever read. My favorite has to be “Saturn Apartments” by Hisae Iwaoka but it also published, prior to ending, the aforementioned “Dorohedoro” and “Children of the Sea.” This is all prelude to say: “No. 5” is a forgotten gem from Ikki by “Ping Pong” and “Tekonkinkreet” creator Taiyo Matsumoto and that, alone, should get you to give it a look.
The last work of his to make it over here was “Cats of the Louvre” but this looks like it’s a bit more out there than that. I don’t always love his art style but there’s something deeply compelling about his narratives. They’re raw and human and, again, deeply, deeply odd.
No. 5, Vol. 1
Written and illustrated by Taiyo Matsumoto
Published by Viz, LLC
In a world where most of the earth has become a harsh desert, the Rainbow Council of the Peace Corps has a growing crisis on its hands. No. 5, one member of a team of superpowered global security guardians and a top marksman, has gone rogue. Now the other guardians have to hunt down No. 5 and his mysterious companion, Matryoshka. But why did No. 5 turn against the council, and what will it mean for the future of the world?
For teen audiences.
3. Immortality, the Greatest of Blessings
You will cry. So hard. So many times. “To Your Eternity” is just one of those books and if you’re not willing to do that, or to read about a shape-shifting orb that wants to learn what it means to be human as they wander the ages, then I don’t know what to tell you. This series is excellent, in only the way that Oima can do. I don’t know what else to say except read this series today and get ready for many tears.
To Your Eternity, Vol. 15
Written and illustrated by Yoshitoki Oima
Published by Kodansha Comics
A lonely boy wandering the Arctic regions of North America meets a wolf, and the two become fast friends, depending on each other to survive the harsh environment. But the boy has a history, and the wolf is more than meets the eye as well. To Your Eternity is a totally unique and moving manga about death, life, reincarnation, and the nature of love.
2. Denpa Doing it Again
Who else would have brought this manga over? Seriously. I cannot think of anyone else who would’ve taken the risk to bring something as potentially niche as a manga about the behind the scenes of the original Gundam over to the states. Maybe this is me underestimating Gundam’s popularity – which I highly doubt since while it is HUGE, I suspect the markets don’t overlap as much as one might think – or maybe this is me just wanting to puff Denpa up some more but either way, I’m excited to see what kind of antics went on with the creators of one of the most influential anime’s of all time.
Continued belowMen Who Created Gundam
Written and illustrated by Hideki Owada
Published by Denpa Books
In 1978 animation director Yoshiyuki Tomino set forth to change the Japanese animation industry. For decades prior, Japanese science fiction had churned out numerous tales of semi-autonomous robots that would often come to the aide of humanity, but as someone who worked on a number of those works, Tomino came to the realization that he wanted to see a more realistic robot narrative. His vision was one where the robot, while just slightly more human in appearance, was utilized more as a tool manipulated by man. With renowned artist Yoshikazu Yasuhiko by his side, and occasionally as his artistic rival, Tomino would change the way the whole world came to see Japanese animation and the broader toy and comics industries built around it. This evolution would be a war in its own right! Battles were fought in the offices of the animation studio! Conflicts were equally as heated in the recording booth!
1. Immortality, the Greatest of Romances
Another Denpa book?? What is this, Presentmas? Yes, it seems that Denpa is starting to solicit more books at once, perhaps because they’re getting back on schedule after 2020’s hiccups but whatever the reason, more books are good. “Vampeerz” doesn’t have the most unique of hooks owing to, well, it being a vampire story but the solicit makes me curious since it emphasizes Ichika’s own isolation and the pressures of her family as well as the burgeoning relationship between Aira (the vampire) and Ichika.
Harkening back to the progenitor Vampire story Carmilla at least in the broadest strokes is always nice too and that cover is the right balance of mysterious and romantic. It’s striking and draws you in, exactly what this type of story should do.
Vampeerz: My Peer Vampires, Vol. 1
Written and illustrated by Akili
Published by Denpa Books
Ichika’s life has taken a sudden turn. Her grandmother has passed away, so as family and friends come from far and wide to pay their respects, she finds herself in the spotlight as many of these old faces have taken an interest in her youth. As a fourteen-year-old Ichika could be dating. She could be participating in extra-curricular activities. She could be looking to her future. But she hasn’t done any of that. All of that will change, when a young guest who she does not recognize visits her home. Aria seems to know quite a bit about her family and property, and while she may be there to say goodbye, she may have found her way into Ichika’s heart.
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Anything I missed? What are YOU looking forward to? Let me know in the comments! I’m particularly interested to hear from anime fans of The Promised Neverland and if they’re gonna read the manga now. Till next month!
