Author Archives: dakazu

Jagaaaaaan

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Jagaaaaaan

A manga where strange parasitic frogs transform people into monsters representing their most base desires. Shintaro Jagasaki is a police officer who gains the ability to shoot blasts from his right hand and uses it to hunt down other monsters.

We discussed this on an older episode.

This is a a good action manga. Since this runs in Big Comic Spirits it doesn’t shy away from sexual content. But the focus here is on the monster designs and exciting action drawn by Kensuke Nishida. The author Muneyuki Kaneshiro is known for his work on As the Gods Will series and they’re also currently writing Blue Lock for Weekly Shonen Magazine. Kaneshiro does a good job examining Jagasaki’s guilt of killing people with his powers and the pleasure he feels by destroying his enemies. It’s makes for a dark super hero story where the protagonist isn’t necessarily a good person.

My main complaint about the story is it’s treatment of female characters. They’re mostly used as victims or even if they have powers they’re killed off or sidelined to make way for the male characters. Unfortunately it’s not surprising to see in these types of seinen action manga but I’m still enjoying Jagaaaaaan for what it is.

~dakazu

dakazuddkz

Paruno Gurafiti

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Paruno Gurafiti

A collection of autobiographical stories by Paru Itagaki about her family.

We’ve discussed this on a recent episode.

Man this is a terrific series. I learned so many interesting things about Paru Itagaki, like her eldest sister with the visage of Buddha that never changes or her other sister who taught her about adultery and blackmail when they played with dolls. Interesting enough, Paru had to come clean about legendary manga artist Keisuke Itagaki being her actual father because she started this series. I also love how Paru draws her father as a scary looking dark figure to drive home the fact that their family dynamic was very strange at home since Keisuke Itagaki was usually off drawing Baki at his studio.

These stories just got collected and released as a tankobon in Japan. Since VIZ has already licensed BEASTARS and now Beast Complex, I hope they’ll try to bring this manga over in English as well!

~dakazu

Cromartie High School

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Cromartie High School

A wacky comedy manga about the residents of Cromartie High School, a place infamous for it’s delinquents.

Man this manga takes me back. This hilarious comedy was such a mega-hit in the early 2000’s. Eiji Nonaka might not be the most gifted artist but his jokes were razor sharp. Bizarre characters like Mechazawa and Freddie just add to the zany charm of this series. Unfortunately the manga is currently out of print and I don’t expect Kodansha to relicense this older title. However I can still enjoy the anime adaptation on Crunchyroll and RetroCrush.

~dakazu

Slime Life

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Slime Life

A manga about a black mage and her adorable slime underling.

This is a super cute manga by Megasawara. At first the black mage is upset that the demon dispatch agency sent her a lowly slime but she becomes completely enamored by his cuteness. She even tries to find excuses to hug him. Eventually the story follows this slime and black mage going on adventures. The slime is earnest and honest and hard working and befriends everyone, friend or foe. This manga is really a lighthearted iyashikei that’s about best-boy slime and I think that’s great for what it is. Currently serialized on Jump+.

~dakazu

Witch Hat Atelier

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Witch Hat Atelier

A manga about a young girl who accidentally discovers the secret behind the magic that exists in her world. Now she must train to become a witch and undo her mistakes.

We’ve discussed this on an older episode.

This manga is beautifully drawn by Kamome Shirahama. I love the concept of magic being linked with drawings as Shirahama herself says the idea came to her after someone commented about her art being like magic. While we’ve seen this premise of a student who trains in the ways of magic in series like Harry Potter, Shirahama’s amazing art work brings her magical world to life in it’s own unique way.

Available in English from Kodansha Comics.

~dakazu

308 – Kasane part 4

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308 – Kasane part 4

Our penultimate episode on Kasane has brought us on a story trajectory we’re not happy about! We desperately try to predict where Daruma Matsuura is trying to lead us with the upcoming ending to these literal dramatics! We also talk about I Don’t Know How to Give Birth!, Meshi ni Shimashou, the cancellation of Act-Age, and more!!!

Continue reading →

Soredemo Ayumu wa Yosetekuru

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Soredemo Ayumu wa Yosetekuru

A manga about upperclassman Urushi Yaotome and freshman Ayumu Tanaka, who are the only members of the high school shogi club. Urushi tries to get Ayumu to confess his love but he refuses until he can beat her in a shogi match.

This is a very cute series. The dynamic is a bit similar to Kaguya-sama: Love is War but this book is going for a more sweet high school romance than ridiculous comedy. I like the title being a play on shogi as Ayumu’s name is the same kanji for the pawn piece in shogi. The pawn(Ayumu) keeps advancing past Urushi’s schemes and it’s really cute to see her get flustered. The character designs by Souichirou Yamamoto really work well. Reading makes me cheer them both on!

~dakazu

‘Tis Time for “Torture,” Princess

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‘Tis Time for “Torture,” Princess

A manga about a captured warrior princess who is tortured by the demonic enemy forces. She fails to resist against “horrific” temptations like food and video games, and she always reveals her kingdom’s secrets but luckily the hell lord is too busy taking care of his daughter to take advantage of them.

We’ve discussed this on an older episode.

At the beginning the shtick gets old quickly as the grand inquisitor always presents a simple pleasure like fresh toast and at first the princess resists it and her magic sword praises her spirit. Then the grand inquisitor raises the stakes by adding a new element like the remains of beef stew and the princess is powerless to resist this. After she gives up a kingdom secret the hell lord never takes advantage because he’s caring for his young daughter. Rinse and repeat.

Eventually the series focuses more on the growing friendship between the princess and all the demons. The tortures all become exceedingly sweet and the series transitions into a full iyashikei/feel-good story about a princess being friends with the demon forces. I give Robinson Haruhara a lot of credit for keeping the story upbeat. The artist Hirakei worked on another comedy manga Shinmai Nitta-ism which was also hilarious and heartwarming so they are a prefect fit for this series.

I really enjoy this manga but I can see how it’s not for everyone. You can read it in English now on Manga PLUS.

~dakazu

Fire Force

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Fire Force

A manga about a world destroyed by a great disaster and the survivors live in fear of spontaneous human combustion that transform them into flaming demons known as Infernals. The story follows Shinra Kusakabe, a new recruit of the Fire Force: fire fighters who specialized in pyrokinesis to battle and extinguish Infernals.

I’ve never read Atsushi Ohkubo‘s previous hit series Soul Eater so I didn’t have any expectation for this series when it started in Weekly Shonen Magazine. I was really surprised how great Ohkubo’s art was, especially his stylish action scenes. The world of Fire Force is also super engaging with lots of mysteries about the great disaster that decimated the lands. It’s got great characters with lots of personality.

However the character Tamaki is extremely problematic. Her character quirk is that her clothes keep falling off, making her a walking epitome of “lucky fanservice”. While she has her own agency and strong pyrokinesis powers, every appearance is accompanied with nudity. I find it extremely off putting that female characters in shonen are usually reduced to these kinds of representations. We’ve talked about this on the podcast as well but whether it’s for popularity sake or it’s mandated by the editors, many shonen action series seem to be stuck in an endless cycle of including fan service characters and I honestly wish it would stop.

I enjoy Fire Force a lot but it also really reinforced my issues with shonen manga in general. It’s available from Kodansha Comics.

~dakazu

Aozakura Bouei Daigakkou Monogatari

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Aozakura Bouei Daigakkou Monogatari

A manga about a young man from a poor family that decides to attend the National Defense Academy of Japan to save money. There he learns discipline and duty as he begins his journey to becoming a commanding officer.

We’ve discussed this on an older episode.

This is one of the few manga I read regularly in Weekly Shonen Sunday. I like the comradely the protagonist gains with his fellow students as they train under the watchful eye of their seniors. It’s also an interesting look into the daily life at the National Defense Academy, which actually exists in Yokosuka, Kanagawa, Japan. It seems very similar to the United States Military Academy West Point. While might seem like this propagandized entertainment but I think Hikaru Nikaidou does a good job of balancing the brutal schedule the students face with the merits of strict training.

~dakazu