DAYS
Soccer manga by Over Drive manga artist Tsuyoshi Yasuda.
Maybe the most feel good sports manga I’ve read in a long while. Main character Tsukushi is the weakest of weak protagonists with an endless determination to keep trying. A 100% feel-good manga. It’s a little generic but I think DAYS is the best current serialized shonen sports manga right now. There was an anime a couple years ago which was also great.
Available from Kodansha Comics.
~dakazu
Antique Bakery
Found this older manga by Fumi Yoshinaga. I really enjoy her work and this is no exception. This one follows a bakery run by a genius playboy pastry chef, his high school crush with a dark past, and the former boxer who is his disciple.
While Yoshinaga often writes yaoi/BL manga, I appreciate that she doesn’t focus on sex but instead focuses on relationships and the emotional weight they carry. I want to track down the anime version and watch it as well.
~dakazu
Shin Shirakawa Genjin Oopa!
Manga version of manga artist Shin Morimura’s crazy DIY chronicles about leaving city life to start living in a cabin in the woods. I talked about it on the podcast, but I really enjoy these non-fictional stories about the artist’s outdoor activities such as Sanzoku Diary.
~dakazu
Uwabami Kanojo
Food manga that focuses more on alcohol than food itself. The main character’s girlfriend loves drinking and each chapter focuses on different alcohol. Chapters are presented in 4-panel yonkoma style so it focuses more on comedy.
It’s a nice manga with a cute art style. I don’t drink a lot but I can appreciate the subject matter.
~dakazu
Go with the clouds, North-by-Northwest
A manga about a young man living with his grandfather in Iceland who uses psychometric powers to do odd jobs.
The artwork is quite good and the character designs remind me of CLAMP: Lots of long limbs and pretty faces.
The manga initially focuses on the problems revolving around the protagonist’s younger brother but by the 2nd volume they drop the mystery in lieu of introducing Iceland’s scenic locations. It’s very strange and I wonder if they’ll get back to the mystery.
The setting of Iceland makes this manga unique so I’ll keep reading it.
Available from Vertical Comics.
~dakazu
Juuza no Ulna
Holy crap. This is the best manga I’ve read since BEASTARS. A powerful blend of science fiction and war drama, this manga follows a new female sniper fighting against alien creatures on an alternate world. It immediately reminded me of WOMBS because of the special division of women soldiers the story focuses on. The design of the enemy Zudo creatures are fantastically bizarre and the story quickly swerves you with twist after twist.
I could not put it down. Unfortunately it’s only been translated to Spanish so I’m going to have to spam Seven Seas Entertainment’s monthly surveys with this A+ series until we get a proper English release.
…I’m being 100% serious when I say this is the BEST manga I’ve read, only 2nd to BEASTARS!
~dakazu
Yakumo-san wa Ezuke ga Shitai.
A food manga about a young widow who starts cooking meals for her high school boy neighbor with a huge appetite. The series constantly teases the audience along with the two always being on the verge of starting a romantic relationship.
Personally, I really dislike the romantic angle between them. Ms. Yakumo convinces herself that she’s just being motherly to young Yamato but her buxom figure screams fan service. My guess is that they will eventually cross that line of intimacy and will probably end up together in the future. I think I would’ve preferred a nuanced story about a simple widow who copes with the loss of her husband by feeding this young boy and them becoming friends. The series is still ongoing so maybe I’ll be happily wrong about this.
~dakazu
Dance Dance Danseur
Manga about ballet dancing by George Asakura.
Asakura’s art style is fantastic. The fluidity of motion in the pen work is perfect for a manga about dance. I put this one easily over Welcome to the Ballroom.
~dakazu
Wakako Zake
Cute food manga about an office lady Wakako who loves drinking and eating. Every short chapter presents a type of food that paired with booze. It was adapted into an anime short and a popular live-action series as well. I’m not a big drinker but still enjoyed this manga.
~dakazu
Semai Sekai no Identity
Rensuke Oshikiri’s crazy manga about a dystopian manga industry where battles break out Scott Pilgrim-style between manga artists fighting for serialization.
From the 1st chapter where a young, hopeful manga artist is defenestrated and impaled on a spike while they insert the “This is a work of fiction” warning, I knew I was in for a wild ride. Oshikiri inserts real-world gripes about the manga industry but turns them up to 11. The result is a mix of dark humor, excessive violence, and brutal commentary with a nice sprinkle of reality. Real manga artists like Inio Asano, Tooru Seino, and Rensuke Oshikiri himself appear to both self-deprecate and destroy their critics.
This manga is absolutely insane and I love it.
~dakazu