Genshijin Kareshi
A high school girl is sent back in time to the prehistoric era where she is saved by an australopithecus garhi or primitive man.
I’m usually not big on shoujo manga but the premise of a prehistoric boyfriend x high school girl was interesting enough that I enjoyed it. I think shoujo with comedy elements are usually easier for me to read.
~dakazu
Back Street Girls
Three yakuza goons are forced by their boss to undergo surgery and become cute girls to break into the Idol market.
The premise is absurd and hilarious. Lots of dirty jokes. Sometimes the manga would get excessive with the amount of torture it put the 3 main characters in. Otherwise I enjoy this series a lot. Looking forward to the anime this summer!
~dakazu
“Kodomo wo Koroshite kudasai” to iu Oyatachi
Tales about two social workers who work with parents dealing with children who have grown to become emotionally disturbed adults.
As someone with experience with social work, I really appreciate how the creative team of artist Masakazu Suzuki and author Takeshi Oshikawa take time to address the issue of these troubled adult from all sides. Many stories include the problems with parenting that help foster these violent behaviors. They even cover how mental care workers and doctors can be neglectful and release patients from care before they are ready.
Many tales end in tragedy but they all address the importance of mental care and healthy family relationships. I think this manga is very informative.
~dakazu
Golosseum
This manga is INSANE. Russia vs USA via martial arts involving fake versions of Hilary Clinton, Putin, Hulk Hogan, and Rasputin. Throw in a decendent of Hijikata Toshizo and a Godzilla sized Andre the Giant because WHY NOT?!
Baba Yasushi is known for martial arts manga but the concept of technology that renders humans impervious to firearms and explosions so that we can have World War of the Fists is so crazy you kinda get sucked in to reading more.
~dakazu
197 – Darfox Dabbles 3 – JUMP START
On this Seamus-less episode we check out some new manga that have begun their serialization in Weekly Shonen Jump this year! Will darfox be able to guess which ones are popular, struggling, or outright canceled? Tune in to find out!
Continue readingTensai Yanagisawa Kyouju no Seikatsu
A manga chronicling the eccentric, introverted, and genius professor Yanagisawa. Story arcs cover various stages of his life from childhood to present a look into his sometimes humorous interactions with people around him.
I love this manga because it supersedes slice of life manga with the entire life of it’s protagonist. There is something very special about how manga artist Kazumi Yamashita is able to endlessly add to this character with a variety of stories.
Some of them focus on professor Yanagisawa and his family though out his life. Others focus on his various students. Sometimes he is just the bystander to strangers going through a mid-life crisis. Every tale is different but related through Yanagisawa in someway and makes wonderful use of a long-running manga format.
I also love that the professor is based on Yamashita’s actual father who was just as essentric as Yanagisawa.
This is a special manga. Highly recommended.
~dakazu
Chi no Wadachi
A fantastic thriller about a mother obsessed with her son.
The chilling tension that Shuzo Oshimi brings us in this series is amazing. It’s such a slow burn but that makes the tension more palpable. It’s definitely my favorite book that Oshimi has done to date.
~dakazu
Agnes Kamen
Manga about a professional wrestler who ends up working for a rival company as Agnes Mask.
I’ve only read a few manga about wrestling but this one was pretty mediocre. Artwork was decent with lots of focus on muscles but pales in comparison to Baki’s Keisuke Itagaki. The story covers the time period when pro-wrestling wasn’t businesslike and more crazy so that’s something at least. It also ends abruptly which means it was probably canceled. For a good wrestling manga I suggest Lock Up by Tetsuya Saruwatari.
~dakazu
Boku ni Kanojo ga Dekirumade
An autobiographical tale of 31 year old manga artist Dyne Satou’s quest for start his first romantic relationship.
I was immediately hooked after Satou reveals he’s still a virgin in the first chapter. To have to admire someone’s willingness to share something potentially embarrassing to a public audience. The rest of the manga is filled with his experiences with group dating, speed dating, different match sites, and other attempts to date women.
It ended and I won’t reveal what happens but I liked this a lot and hope Satou continues to write more autobiographical manga because I think he has a talent for it.
~dakazu
Ranpo no Gourmet
A food manga about a private detective who’s senses are as sharp as his tastebuds. He follows his targets to their favorite diners and enjoys the menu while solving the case.
This is a good mix of covering tasty foods and simple cases of stalking suspects. I especially liked the detective’s obsession with being a dandy gentlemen mentor to his younger assistant.
~dakazu