263 – One Shot 23 – All My Darling Daughters
Our regular host dakazu is away this week so it’s up to darfox8, Seamus, and Morgana to do a One Shot on Fumi Yoshinaga’s All My Darling Daughters!
Continue readingGunjou
A manga about a lesbian who murders the abusive husband of the woman she’s in love with.
We’ve discussed this on a previous episode.
Wow this is amazing. I’m incredibly impressed with Ching Nakamura‘s ability to write such an deep and dark narrative. The relationship between the wife and the lesbian is so wrought with drama but at sometimes comes off as too melodramatic. The story begins with the murder of the wife’s husband and everything that follows is uniquely intense but still grounded in reality. It’s really beautiful how well Nakamura is able to lead you along this almost bitter relationship as it works through the aftermath of everything until the end. It really matches the title of the series that is the Japanese word for ultramarine.
One of my favorite things about this story was that none of the the characters get named until the end of the volume. Even the two main characters are never named and it’s a unique characteristic for the story.
I’d love to see this series get an official release.
~dakazu
Gerekushisu
A comedy manga about a baumkuchen chef who ends up being transformed into a strange butt-faced creature who can’t leave an empty lot or be seen by other.
What an strange tale. There’s a bit of a slow grind before the chef ends up becoming a literal butt-for-a-face but once that happens the story goes into some weird shit. It’s all played for laughs too.
I remember reading the creator Minoru Furuya‘s Ike! Inachuu Takkyuubu which was also a comedy series that went into some wacky absurdist material but this on one is on a whole different level. I can at least say that this manga was 2 volumes and knew not to overstay it’s own foray into it’s bizarre concept.
~dakazu
BLACK-BOX
A manga about a genius boxer who’s father and brother are murderers.
I’m a fan of Tsutomu Takahashi‘s amazing artwork and it was great to see it applied to boxing. Takahashi’s use of ink brushes work great with the fluid motions of swinging punches. The story is pretty interesting as well as the protagonist off-kilter personality plays into his notoriety as a member of a “murder family”. I’m interested to read more and follow his career and learn more about his backstory because it’s hinted that he may have been involved in the murder his brother committed.
~dakazu
Gau-chan to Issho
A manga about an office lady living with her humanoid pet called a gaucho samurai.
This manga is strange but hilarious. I was immediately taken aback with the concept of the titular Gau-chan but he really is cute. There’s a lot of great comedy that comes from Gau-chan’s serious expressions over his disapproval of food or the strange movement he does to intimidate cats. It’s genuinely funny to see him slap his owner accompanied by the look of a grumpy old man. Big props to Daishiro Kawakami for his creation. My wife said she would totally get one as a pet.
~dakazu
Kegare no Uta
A fantasy manga about special warriors who absorb the “taint” that corrupts the monsters they hunt.
Looks like Yusuke Osawa is continuing his MO of borrowing from video games. Much like his GREEN WORLDZ series, everything from the designs of the transforming weapons to the monsters are heavily inspired from games like Bloodborne and Monster Hunter. His artwork in action scenes are always decently impressive but I can’t laugh at his “inspired” aesthetic.
~dakazu
Pansuto
A manga about a high school boy’s sexual fetish for pantystockings being awakened by the school nurse.
Kazuto Okada has made his manga career by focusing on stories revolving around eroticism that is usually focused on young male sexual desires revolving around some fetish or another. I actually enjoyed his Sundome series that was based around edging and orgasm denial because there was an interesting arc in relationship between the main characters at the end.
Unfortunately this series seems only made for titillation, and the worst kind as well. The older female nurse catches the boy trying to film her crotch on his cellphone so she films him masturbating in return. When she basically gives him a handjob under the guise of checking his foreskin they start “counseling” sessions where she encourages the growth of his sexual fetishism. She takes the tone of an educator teaching a student but she’s also clearly leading him on.
Making a story about a teacher sexually molesting a student doesn’t come off as sexy, just gross. Also Okada draws almost every female character where their perfectly round nipples can be seen through their shirts and it looks really dumb. I don’t recommend this.
~dakazu
262 – Triple Dip 38 – Our Dreams at Dusk: Shimanami Tasogare, Erased, O Maidens in Your Savage Season
On this episode as we have a great time discussing Our Dreams at Dusk: Shimanami Tasogare, Erased, O Maidens in Your Savage Season for an epic episode of Triple Dip!!!
Continue readingItadakimasu
A manga about a large scary looking but kindhearted man who start working as a cook at a rural elementary school.
This was a really heart warming book, albeit simple in scope. There are only three stories but each one focuses on the cook saving the day through his skills as a former food show knowledge and personal kindness. Each story had some pretty melodramatic moments such as a child with food allergies being saved from the cook’s experience losing his young daughter in a similar way. I can see why the series didn’t last and there was only 1 volume released but I really liked Riku Kurita‘s cute art style that worked well with this story about children.
~dakazu
Shissou Sengen
A comedy manga about a woman who decides to disappear from her current unfulfilling life and then struggles through the logistics of actually doing it.
Though the subject matter may seem dark this manga actually strikes a really lighthearted tone. It’s in part due to Yori Kurokawa‘s cute super deformed character work. Also the protagonist isn’t escaping any ties to a job that fulfills her or any relationships with friends or family either, which makes her decision to disappear seem like something that could actually make a positive difference for her.
The comedy begins when she actually goes through and starts planning everything. Learning how to setup a camping tent causes her to have severe muscle cramps and buying a motorcycle ends up prolonging her stay because she has to finish her monthly payments first. I really enjoyed watching her plight as every step forward was two steps back.
~dakazu