Author Archives: dakazu

Blue Lock

Posted on by

Blue Lock

A soccer manga about an elite Japanese training facility, Blue Lock, that pits high school athletes against each other in a cutthroat elimination contest to create the ultimate egoist striker.

I wasn’t sure about this series when it started in Weekly Shonen Magazine because the magazine already had a well established popular soccer manga DAYS. However the author Muneyuki Kaneshiro has made the smart choice of ignoring the usual focus on high school soccer leagues and creating an almost reality game show scenario where different athletes butt heads and compete against each other to become the best. The story starts with players setup into teams to fight against each other and eventually moves on to individuals playing against each other. The mix up of competition helps keep things interesting and moving at a good pace. Yusuke Nomura‘s art has also really improved as the series has progressed and now every chapter has some really stylish action scenes.

A very solid soccer manga that is trying something different and making it work.

~dakazu

Dansei Kyofusho datta watashi ga AV Joyu ni naru made no Hanashi

Posted on by

Dansei Kyofusho datta watashi ga AV Joyu ni naru made no Hanashi

An autobiography by former adult film star Nazuna Nonohara about how she went from being afraid of men to working in the porn industry.

We’ve discussed this on a recent episode.

This was very rough to read. Similar to Fumiko Fumi‘s Ai to Noroi, this is a terrible story about sexual molestation and trauma. I was impressed by Nonohara’s willingness to be so open about the horrible experiences she went through. The first volume was extremely dark but I’m going to keep reading since I know she found some fulfillment working as an adult video star. Hopefully she will reach that point soon in the story.

~dakazu

Last Order -Saigo no Sentaku-

Posted on by

Last Order -Saigo no Sentaku–

A manga were targets of assassination are given 24 hours to have their last meal.

We’ve discussed this on a recent episode.

This manga is a 100% a case of bad writing. I’m can kind of tell that Hanta Kinoshita was going for a heartfelt drama but the execution here is just bad. An assassin who informs the targets of their death and making them wait a day so they can eat isn’t compassionate. He’s psychotic and torturous. And while some people were legitimately doing bad things that would make them a target, others were innocent victims like the high school girl who’s killed by a jealous girl. Also you can’t feel an emotional connection to these characters who come to terms with their imminent death because we just met them and it’s way too unnatural to be OK with suddenly dying. The only positive I can give for this series is the artwork by Hikari Sumi, which was done very well. Not recommended.

~dakazu

Derodero

Posted on by

Derodero

A horror comedy manga about a middle school delinquent Hino Mimio, who’s enhanced sixth sense frequently gets him mixed up with ghosts and apparitions.

We’ve discussed this on an older episode.

Before Rensuke Oshikiri became famous for Hi Score Girl he focused on a lot of horror and comedy series. It’s fitting that he got his start with this horror comedy hybrid Derodero. It’s filled with hilarious jokes that poke fun at horror cliches and take advantage of many spooky urban legends in Japan. The chapters are short vignettes that either end with Hino getting punked by a ghost or Hino punking the ghost. It’s all hilarious.

Since this is Oshikiri’s debut his artwork is still pretty green but it was interesting to see how where he started from. I really enjoyed this.

~dakazu

To the Abandoned Sacred Beasts

Posted on by

To the Abandoned Sacred Beasts

A manga about how experimental monster soldiers who helped win a war are losing their humanity and becoming true monsters themselves. These sacred beasts are hunted down by their former captain who is in turn hunted by a young woman who swears revenge for her murdered father.

I checked out this series after the anime adaptation started. It’s a completely decent action series but the story is predictable. You have episodic arcs where the captain hunts down a former comrade and the young woman sees the prejudices the scared beasts endure and that leads to some dramatic payoff as each soldier is put to rest. There’s supposed to a major mystery about the origin of the sacred beasts that tied with the captain’s lover along with a betrayal of a childhood friend but this too seemed pretty rote. By the time I reached the flashback I wasn’t interested with the storytelling or art work so I dropped this.

It’s available from Kodansha Comics if you’re interested. Not for me.

~dakazu

298 – Yu Yu Hakusho part 5

Posted on by

298 – Yu Yu Hakusho part 5

Join us for the penultimate episode of our Yu Yu Hakusho Retrospective! We discuss Yoshihiro Togashi’s deteriorating art quality, major issues with the English translation, and parallels between the events of Chapter Black and current events! Also Seamus talks about Ooku: The Inner Chambers, dakazu follows up on last week’s INVESTOR-Z and I Want to Hold Aono-kun So Badly I Could Die, and we discuss the manga nominees for the 2020 Eisner Awards!!!

Continue reading →

Fire Rabbit

Posted on by

Fire Rabbit

A manga about genius Mahiro Todaka who quits his dream of becoming a professional gamer after a fighter fighter Itsuki Tendo loses his life saving him. Mahiro is aided by the ghost of Tendo and joins the Fire Rabbit squad to become a fire fighter who will someday surpass Tendo.

I really enjoyed this manga. The setup was pretty straight forward but I liked the dynamic of the Mahiro and the ghost Itsuki. They make a competitive ranking system for the different fire fighter squads. I thought it was pretty silly but it made sense since the Mahiro analyzes everything through statistics and video games.

Unfortunately this series ended after six volumes. It’s a shame because I felt like there could’ve been more story to tell but I guess it wasn’t popular enough to continue. I’ll be keeping an eye out for more works by Aya Hirakawa in the future.

~dakazu

Butakai Ouji to 100 Kai no Kiss

Posted on by

Butakai Ouji to 100 Kai no Kiss

A manga adaptation of Hans Christian Andersen‘s fairy tale The Swineherd.

We’ve discussed this on a previous episode.

Yeah, this manga has some serious problems. The original fairy tale is already ridiculous with the prince disguising himself to seduce the princess and then shaming her after he reveals his identity. Tsunami Umino takes it even further with the prince then forcing the princess to become his sex slave. And after the princess learns about the princes true feelings she falls in love with him? Yikes!

Umino commented in the after thoughts that she just wanted to draw some sexy stuff. I just wish sexy stuff didn’t have to include sexual assault and ridiculous logic. And it’s a shame because she mixes in some fun modern day elements into the story.

~dakazu

Biomega

Posted on by

Biomega

A manga about a synthetic human agent on a mission to track down a young girl who is immune to the deadly virus that transforms people into zombie-like drones.

We’ve discussed this on a previous episode.

As a fan of Tsutomu Nihei I should have read this much sooner. This series is extremely similar to BLAME!. The main character is basically Kyrii but they gave him a cool motorcycle and an even bigger gun. The story focuses on a dying Earth that’s about to be over run with horrible mutated creatures. The Earth get’s transmuted drastically midway through the story and it’s fantastically drawn by Nihei.

If you prefer BLAME! over Nihei’s later stuff like APOSIMZ then I think you’re really enjoy this book.

Available in English from VIZ.

~dakazu

VS Evil

Posted on by

VS Evil

A manga about a female college student who get’s haunted by a vengeful spirit with amnesia. The college student much survive dangerous run-ins with terrifying apparitions and help the spirit with his missing memories to be free of him.

So this manga is a prime example where a manga artist’s artistic ability alone completely carries the series. Takashi Yomoyama‘s art is amazing. Whether it’s exciting action, horrific monster designs, or excessive fan service, he delivers on all accounts. I especially liked the sequences where the spirit would possess the college girl which transformed her physical appearance. Also loved how on the covers of the volumes it says “Uncensored version for Adults” because the original online published chapters needed to be censored.

This series was publish online on Cycomi but will be moving to a print magazine due to popularity. I hope Yomoyama continues to find success with this book because he definitely deserves it.

~dakazu