Welcome back, manga fans. For those who may not have heard, we lost a manga great this past month. Kentaro Miura, author of “Berserk,” “Giganto Maxima,” “King of Wolves” and others, has died at the age of 54, leaving his opus unfinished. His life was cut short by and it is a tragedy, not because we lost a consummate storyteller, thought that is true, but because it was sudden and too early. He will be missed and I wanted to offer some space for him here. Dark Horse seemed to solicit the eighth deluxe edition early so it won’t show up here despite coming out at the tail end of August.
Let’s take a moment to remember him here.
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Thank you. Now, onto this month’s comics.
10.5. [SPICY LADY] vs. [NOTORIOUS CHASE]
I think I just need to change this to Top 11 because I’m so bad at eliminating this final spot. Anyway, here’s the book that broke the rules. Normally I drop the Jojo volumes from my picks because I don’t really think it needs a spotlight once I whittle my list down but this month we’re getting the first volume of Part 5 and I couldn’t pass up the opportunity.
If you haven’t read any “Jojo,” this may be either the worst place to drop in or the best depending on who you ask. 99% self-contained but perfectly emblematic of the series as a whole, “Golden Wind” has some of my favorite (read: most ridiculous) localizations of stand names and two perfect, golden moments of comedy that, once you read them, you’ll need to see in motion if you haven’t already. This volume doesn’t have any of those but it is the start of it all. You probably won’t see me highlight this series for a while but know it has a standing rec, especially if you’re collecting the physical volumes. Those hardcovers are beautiful, as befits this man’s opus.
Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure: Part 5: Golden Wind, Vol. 1
Written and Illustrated by Hirohiko Araki
Published by Viz LLC
Golden Wind is here! The highly-acclaimed fifth arc of Hirohiko Araki’s JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure shifts the action from Japan to Italy, as Koichi Hirose heads to Europe to find an aspiring gangster named Giorno Giovanna, the secret son of Dio Brando, scourge of the Joestar family. Organized crime meets family drama and unbelievable enemy Stands in JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Part 5-Golden Wind!For older teen audiences.
10. I Wish…for “Drug & Drop” to Finally Finish
Dark Horse has been re-releasing all their old CLAMP titles in these new omnibi. The optimist in me thinks it’s so that a new generation of fans can be brought into their titles. The cynic in me wonders if it’s to stave off Kodansha from claiming the titles like they did to “Cardcaptor Sakura” and “Sailor Moon” (from Viz.) Whatever the reason, it’s always great when long out of print manga returns in a nice, new format. Now if only CLAMP would stop putting their series on hiatuses to make something new and FINISH THE DAMN THINGS.
Wish
Written and Illustrated by CLAMP
Published by Dark Horse Comics
Walking home from work one day, handsome young doctor Shuichiro notices an adorable little thing trapped in a tree . . . not a cat, but an angel, Kohaku. In gratitude for rescuing it, Kohaku offers to grant Shuichiro a wish-but to the angel’s surprise, Shuichiro says no thanks . . . everything in his life is great! But little Kohaku isn’t going to give up that easily, and moves in with Shuichiro. Soon they’re joined by the demons Koryuu and Kokuyo, and the household becomes an earthly haven for love that’s been lost-and a sanctuary for love that can’t be run from . . .A crossover title with Dark Horse’s previous Drug & Drop.
9. Long Time Coming
“Kaze Hikaru” is a long running Shojo/Josei manga that I have never read. Why recommend its 29th volume then? Mainly the cover grabbed me with its classic Shojo Beat design. You don’t see it very often nowadays, as it’s only these long running titles from the late 90s and early 2000s that retain it. I have a soft spot for Shojo Beat titles of this era so I’m excited to find another book to read! If you’re not into Edo period Japanese romances, then this will probably not be for you. But if you did like the “sneaking into the army” part of Mulan, then you’ll probably love this.
Continued belowThe other really interesting thing about “Kaze Hikaru” is that while this is the 29th volume, the series finished up in 2020 at volume 45. It seems like they’ve released one volume per year since the great manga bust of the late 2000s, as it likely doesn’t have a huge audience, but I hope they can speed that up to two a year so we don’t have to wait 15 more years for the ending. That kind of stuff smarts.
Kaze Hikaru, Vol. 29
Written and Illustrated by Taeko Watanabe
Published by Viz LLC
After attempting to seduce Sei, the aristocrat Yoshinobu begins to tell her about his past. With Sei’s support, Yoshinobu makes up his mind to take on the role of shogun. However, his decision to call off the Choshu expedition and request an imperial order to stop the fighting enrages Councillor Ito to the point that he decides to overthrow the Bakufu. Nakamura Goro, who is on Ito’s side, has always had feelings for Sei, and he comes up with his own plans to separate her from troop captain Soji, who is the love of her life…For older teen audiences.
8. This is the No Shame Corner
There’s a very specific subgenre of manga that skirts the line between actual kink exploration re: submission and roleplay and using that as a backdrop for comedic situations that can lead to romance. There’s also a fine line between these relationships feeling healthy and not when they’re presented as healthy, as that’s not always the case, which is always tricky with rom-coms. This is all to say, “I Belong to the Baddest Girl at School” has me curious as to how it’s gonna handle the material, as it’s also a flip of the usual gender roles in these kinds of stories. Even if it never goes far into that, I hope we get some great yakuza style comedy.
I Belong to the Baddest Girl at School, Vol. 1
Written and Illustrated by Ui Kashima
Published by One Peace Books
The hit Pashiri na Boku to Koi-suru Bancho-san, in English for the first time! Unoki has always been bullied, and high school is no different. Right away, the top troublemaker, Boss Toramaru, makes him her personal errand boy. The only thing is… she thought she was asking him out?! So Toramaru is sure they’re dating, while Unoki is convinced he’s under her thumb. The stage is set for a rom-com of misunderstandings!
7. Gay Chaos Gremlins
The description of “School Zone Girls” gives no hints as to whether or not this series can actually pull off the chaos necessary to make troublemakers at high school funny but the cover gives me hope that Ningiyau knows how to inject these characters’ personalities into every situation with just the right level of petulance and charm.
School Zone Girls, Vol. 2
Written and Illustrated by Ningiyau
Published by Seven Seas Entertainment
A quirky yuri comedy about the chaotic daily life of high school girls! Yokoe and Sugiura have been together forever, and they’ve mastered the art of making trouble when life’s a bore. High school might be a drag, but these girls in love know just how to inject a little chaos and comedy into their sloppy school life.
6. Bad Title, Intriguing Premise
Yeah, there’s no getting around the title on this one. I don’t like it. I can’t put my finger on why but it doesn’t work for me. The actual meat of the story, however, makes me want to give it a shot. It’s a well-worn sci-fi concept – can robots love – with the important added consideration of is it possible for that to ever be an equitable situation. It’s a story that, I believe, will tackle the power dynamics of Takuma and Mina’s relationship in addition to asking the logistical and philosophical questions of robotic love.
Continued belowMy Wife Has No Emotion, Vol. 1
Written and Illustrated by Jiro Sugiura
Published by Seven Seas Entertainment
A bittersweet love story between a lonely salaryman and his household robot.
Takuma is a single guy who does nothing but go to work and come home. Too tired to do chores, he decides to get a robot to cook and keep house. “Mina-chan” is such a good housekeeper, Takuma jokes that she should become his wife. Mina takes Takuma’s joke seriously, and slowly the two start doing more things together, like having a picnic outside. As time goes by, Takuma starts to fall for Mina, but can a human and a robot ever have an equal, loving relationship?
5. [GOLDEN WIND]
It’s a Junji Ito story, a full-length one too, of course I was gonna highlight it. Get your spooky on!
Sensor
Written and Illustrated by Junji Ito
Published by Viz, LLC
Did she wander in? Or was she drawn in…?
A woman walks alone at the foot of Mount Sengoku. A man appears, saying he’s been waiting for her, and invites her to a nearby village. Surprisingly, the village is covered in hairlike volcanic glass fibers, and all of it shines a bright gold. At night, when the villagers perform their custom of gazing up at the starry sky, countless unidentified flying objects come raining down on them, the opening act for the terror about to occur.
4. Traumite: A Gem Made from Shattering Other Gems
Do you like Steven Universe? Do you wish it had more thorny existential questions? Do you wish it had even more trauma and isolation? Well “Land of the Lustrous” is the work for you! I have a feeling we’re approaching some sort of ending in the next couple volumes, or at least some major culmination of the moon threads, so this is a good time to jump onto the tears train before the next volume drops in, like, a year.
Land of the Lustrous, Vol. 11
Written and Illustrated by Haruko Ichikawa
Published by Kodansha Comics
Two hundred years after a failed attack on the Lustrous, Phosphophyllite is reassembled and tries again to get Kongo to pray for the Lunarians. This attempt seems likely to succeed, and the Lunarians prepare to depart to nothingness, while the gemstones on the moon prepare to be left behind. Meanwhile, Euclase is awakened by the commotion between Phos and Kongo!
3. This is Why You Don’t Vape in the Woods
Kaori Yuki is a name you may recognize without being able to place it. It’s OK. The same happened to me. She’s a prolific mangaka so stop me if you’ve heard of any of these: the “Earl Cain” series, “Angel Sanctuary,” “Godchild,” “Alice in Murderland.” Even if none of those rung a bell, her longevity in the industry is evident in the gorgeous, haunting cover to this book. This thing looks like it’s gonna be something dark and special, so keep your eye on it.
Beauty and Beast of Paradise Lost, Vol. 1
Written and Illustrated by Kaori Yuki
Published by Kodansha Comics
The story of Belle and her beast as you’ve never seen it before, with sinister, creeping shadows suffusing a door to a wider, magical world. Young and rambunctious Belle insists on going out to play in the forbidden woods, but her adventurous streak abruptly ends when her mother is spirited away by a beast known to kidnap beautiful women. Twisted by the loss of his wife, Belle’s father keeps his daughter, who has unusual, violet hair, locked away in an effort to “protect” her from prying eyes. Finally emerging after years of solitude, Belle ventures back into the woods where she lost her mother and encounters the beast once more!
2. Revenge Sex Never Looked So Sad
Among the usual glut of scantily clad women who embody various fetishes and not much narrative depth, “Shiori’s Diary” stands out. It’s cover is suggestive but there’s something more to it, a melancholy and pensive mood that is one moment away from breaking. It gives the impression that this is a story that favors its plot over its “plot,” utilizing the latter to tell the former rather than using the former to justify the framing of whatever sex scene is coming up. That’s a dismissive attitude, one I’ve skirted around before, but I wanted to highlight the difference between sex as an end and sex as a means. “Shiori’s Diary” may ultimately have the goal of titillating within the framework of a form of revenge fantasy but I have a feeling that Tsuya is also interested in exploring marital failure, cheating, and, potentially, the cultural acceptance around married men cheating but not women.
Maybe I’m projecting what I hope to see. Maybe people are just coming at this for the sex. But I hope it’s more than that, as there are plenty of amazing stories to tell that can accomplish both.
Continued belowShiori’s Diary, Vol. 1
Written and Illustrated by Tsuya Tsuya
Published by Ghost Ship
The story of a woman who decides to cheat on her philandering husband… again and again. Three years into her marriage, 34-year-old Shiori finds that the sex has dried up along with whatever connection she had to her husband. When she finds her husband’s diary and learns that he’s taken a lover, Shiori turns a class reunion into a passionate hookup with her first boyfriend. With her world rocked and her lust reignited, there’s no way she’s going to stop with one hookup – or one guy, for that matter.
1. Endings and Shameless Plugs
The final volume of “Demon Slayer” drops this month and you think I wouldn’t have it top the list? This shit is so popular it’s breaking records left and right. It’s so popular I decided to cover the series for my 2021 Summer Comics Binge despite it technically not being over in print in the US, as evidenced by this entry. I’ll save my talk and thoughts on this volume for my review so join me for that if you want to know more! If not, get hyped for the final volume in August.
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu No Yaiba, Vol. 23
Written and Illustrated by Koyoharu Gotouge
Published by Viz LLC
In an epic confrontation, Tanjiro and his fellow Demon Slayers have fought on through the night, suffering terrible losses against the King of Demons, Muzan Kibutsuji. Dawn is breaking soon, and if they can keep Muzan at bay just a little longer, it will be the end of the centuries-long struggle. But Muzan will stop at nothing to destroy the Demon Slayers and unleash his most terrible powers. And if he can’t defeat them, he may even be able to cause the Demon Slayer Corps to destroy itself from within. All fates and destines will be decided as the sun begins to rise…For teen audiences.
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Anything I missed? What are YOU looking forward to? Let me know in the comments!
