Thermae Romae

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Thermae Romae

A manga about an ancient Roman bathhouse architect Lucius, who time travels to modern Japan and gets inspired by their bathing customs and advancements.

We’ve discussed this on an old episode.

Here it is! Mari Yamazaki‘s hit comedy that led her to do other historical Roman and Greek manga like PLINIVS and Olympia Kyklos. The premise is so zany but fun, it’s an intersection between historical edutainment and a reverse isekai. I revisited this after Yamazaki teased Lucius’ return in Olympia Kyklos and it’s still as hilarious as ever.

You can buy digital English language omnibuses from Yen Press.

~dakazu

Isekai Izakaya “Gen”

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Isekai Izakaya “Gen”

Story about a modern day Japanese pub that’s serves citizens in the fantasy medieval kingdom of Oilia.

This series is directly linked to Otherworldly Izakaya Nobu as they’re both written by Natsuya Semikawa. They take place in the same universe and even have some characters cross over between the series. “Gen” is a bit different in some ways because the master of the pub focuses on more Western style foods than the Japanese foods found in Otherworldly Izakaya Nobu. It also has a family dynamic with the titular master “Gen”, his daughter Hinata, and Hinata’s boyfriend Shotaro. Besides those main differences, you have similar stories about different citizens of Oilia loving modern foods they’ve never tried before. Tsukasa Usui does a nice job drawing everything but I personally prefer Nitouhei Virginia‘s art in Nobu. Regardless, this was great additional reading for me.

You can buy English editions of Otherworldly Izakaya Nobu from Udon Entertainment.

~dakazu

Tsuma to Boku no Shoukibo na Ikuji

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Tsuma to Boku no Shoukibo na Ikuji

A biographical series by Shigeyuki Fukumitsu about raising his children.

I’m a big fan of Shigeyuki Fukumitsu‘s manga. He’s drawn multiple series centered around his wife but this new series is all about his kids. Fukumitsu’s negative and defeatist attitude leads to a lot of humorous disagreements with his wife about how to raise his sons. What I wasn’t expecting was Fukumitsu to be so open about the complications about possible deafness his eldest son went through after being born. I’m glad that his son is able to hear now thanks to hearing aids, as the series continues to cover the growth of the kids.

Available to read in Japanese on Comic Days.

~dakazu

Boys Run the Riot

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Boys Run the Riot

A manga about a teenager transman Ryo who struggles with finding acceptance from the world around him. He teams up with the new transfer student Jin to start their own fashion brand.

We’ve discussed this on a previous episode or two.

I’m pretty conflicted about this series. This is a transgender narrative drawn by a transman manga artist Keito Gaku. That’s already an impressive feat unto itself. But some aspects of the story seem forced like a generic narrative you see in commercial media. It’s hard to say if these choices were mandated from editors at the publisher or from Gaku himself. I’m interested in revisiting the series for the podcast and having a discussion about it when the final 4th volumes comes out.

You can pick up English editions from Kodansha.

~dakazu

357 – Shojo Showdown 1 – Magic Knight Rayearth, From Far Away, Red River

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357 – Shojo Showdown 1 – Magic Knight Rayearth, From Far Away, Red River

This week dakazu reads about an adorable/horrifying cat creature with Neko wo Hirotta Hanashi. and about a romance between divorcee and spoiled teen with Promise Cinderella! Then we launch another Triple Dip offshoot called Shojo Showdown by looking at isekai shojo titles Magic Knight Rayearth, From Far Away, and Red River!!!

Continue reading →

Bota Bota

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Bota Bota

A manga about an extremely germophobic woman, who can’t touch men without spraying blood from her nose, trying to lose her virginity and find love.

We’ve discussed this on a previous episode.

As a mega fan of BEASTARS and its creator Paru Itagaki, I was predisposed to check out this series. When I read the first chapter and saw the main character Mako running naked through the streets, covered in blood, chasing a man, and shouting “I need to disinfect your penis with this boiling water!”, I knew why Itagaki decided to draw this manga. What follows is a whacky dark comedy about Mako overcoming her upbringing and finding love.

This is short, weird, and wonderfully entertaining. There are plans to release this book in five other languages so hopefully we’ll get to read it for the podcast in the future.

~dakazu

An Invitation from a Crab

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An Invitation from a Crab

A collection of surreal stories and essays by panpanya.

We’ve discussed this on a previous episode.

Reread this recently and it’s still great. Themes of surrealism are heavy throughout An Invitation from a Crab but it’s never off-putting. There’s just something unique in the way panpanya weaves together story, art, perspectives, and backgrounds that leave you feeling like you’re dreaming. Even the glossary for items in the back adds to this experience. Highly recommended.

You can pick up an English copy from Denpa.

~dakazu

Smoking

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Smoking

A manga about four homeless people who are actually a team of lethal assassins known as ‘Smoking’. They are hired to by criminals to exterminate those who can’t be brought to justice by the law. Juzo Sabe, the leader of ‘Smoking’, skins their targets and makes fluid preserved specimens to present to his clients. Other team members include a former underground martial artist, a weapons expert, and a chemist who specializes in chloroform.

I like the general premise of this series. There is a certain satisfaction you get reading a story about evil people facing retribution for their sins. But as a hardcore crime drama it doesn’t shy away from extreme violence. Sexual assault and torture are common place within each story arcs. Luckily, creator Hiroshi Iwaki doesn’t draw detailed gore which makes the manga easier to read. Iwaki has made other manga that are connected to this series so I’d like to check those out as well.

~dakazu

Mujina

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Mujina

A manga about young ninja Mujina who pretends to be useless so he can take revenge against the ninja clan leader who has taken advantage of his family.

I really enjoy Koji Aihara‘s manga but it’s a bit difficult to explain his appeal. Aihara is known for his low brow comedy and his simple character designs. When you combine that with what is essentially a parody of Kamui Den, you get Mujina. This book is very bloody and Aihara’s simple characters actually make the gore more effective. This is a manga for adults that doesn’t shy away from sex or violence.

~dakazu

Gotouge Koyoharu Tanpenshuu

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Gotouge Koyoharu Tanpenshuu

A collection of one shot stories by Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba creator Koyoharu Gotouge.

It’s always fascinating to read though these collections of manga prototypes. They really give you a sense of the manga artists interests and aesthetics. For Koyoharu Gotouge, I noticed common themes of supernatural powers, hand drawn sound effects, and lots of contrasting patterns throughout their stories. There’s even a prototype for Demon Slayer called Kagari Kari that features the characters Tayamo and Yushiro. This is a great read for Gotouge fans but I doubt it will ever be released in English.

~dakazu