Teru Teru X Shonen, vol. 1

Written and illustrated by Shigeru Takao
Released in the US by CMX Manga


Slugline: Could it finally be? A spoiled girl that isn't really hiding a heart of gold? Nahhhh.

Shinobu is the haughty princess of the school, loved and hated at the same time by many there. She is also the literal princess of her family, which according to rumor, once supported to ninja. Everyone in school is shocked to determine that there is someone new transferring in, someone from Shinobu's past that she doesn't hate. But Saizou is nothing at all what they expected. He, despite being small and slight of build, is a ninja, admittedly one who is loathe to use his skills unless it is necessary. He fends off several attacks on Shinobu, quickly determining that it was all a test to determine his fitness to protect Shinobu from a real threat that is still coming.

This is like several high school comedies, where there is one really competent person dedicated to protecting someone else, even though that other person treats him like dirt. Here it is depicted realistically without the giant hammers and chibi-like knock out effects. Without the over the top effects to show that this is not real, the tasks that Shinobu inflict upon Saizou come off as cruel rather comedic. But the threat that she is supposedly really under is not as fleshed out or concrete as her seeming cruelty. It is no wonder it is hard to feel sympathetic with the characters or feel their jeopardy. I do think that there are some interesting character work here, but the story itself is letting the characters down as it is not giving the characters much to work with.

BTW, this has turned into a early review, for some reason CMX Manga sent me this one way early.



Teru Teru X Shonen, vol. 1 is also available from Right Stuf, Intl., an online retailer specializing in anime and manga.

-Ferdinand

Orfina, v.1

by Kitsune Tennouji
Published in the US by CMX


Slugline: A military fantasy version of "The Prince and the Pauper" complete with assault weapons and fiery dragons.

The inclusion of guns as the enemy's strange new weapon comes across as rather unoriginal in a manga -- the genre has a history of strange and fantastic weaponry, so a 9mm or a shotgun is downright mundane in this context.

Otherwise, this fantasy world is presented in a fairly standard manner with a fairly standard cast of characters, particularly Fana who is more competent injured and in her undies than the entire Royal Guard.

Princess Orfina's country is being invaded, and though either innocence or incompetence the kind does not go out to investigate, issue any orders, or do more than worry out loud until the enemy is at the gates. By the end of volume 1, the capital city is well on its way to falling.

I didn't find the story compelling and the art is in a somewhat older style than readers may be accustomed to. It's all right, but unless volume 2 pulls out some real surprises, I doubt I would keep reading.



Orfina, vol. 1 is also available from Right Stuf, Intl., an online retailer specializing in anime and manga.

-Miranda

Fall in Love Like a Comic, vol. 1

Story & Art by Chitose Yagami
Released in the US by Viz Shojo Beat


Slugline: A teenage girl becomes a successful mangaka and gets a boyfriend raised by a shoujo writer. Seems like a Penthouse Letters version of Shojo Beat.

Rena is secretly a mangaka, and her manga is all about tawdry teenage school romances. But despite what she writes and draws about, she does not have a boyfriend herself, and her friends and her editor all suggest that her work will only become stronger if she did. Tomoya is the hottest boy in school, and when he discovers some pages of Rena's work in progress, agrees to become Rena's boyfriend so that she can research boyfriends and dating. But of course as time goes on she discoverers that she really does like him and he reveals that he was looking for a girl just like Rena, one who was passionate about something other than going out with him.

First of all, Tomoya was raised by his mangaka sister and ends up dating a mangaka? Can we say 'romantic transference' class, I know you can! Okay, all drama, irrespective of their medium have some fudge factor and need some coincidence to work, so other than the fact Tomoya starts out all perfect bishi-boy, the manga itself is pretty good. Rena's insecurities come off as real to me, as Tomoya is her first real boyfriend and in those sort of relationships someone is always wondering just what is attracting the other person in the relationship. It might also help that almost a third of the volume is not directly involving Rena and Tomoya , with a prequel short and the creator's first story also included in this volume. This is a story I think, that will rely on its second volume to determine whether or not it really holds together as we dig deeper into the characters, so I will try to keep my eye out for it and give you an update if I can.



Fall in Love Like a Comic, vol. 1 is also available from Right Stuf, Intl., an online retailer specializing in anime and manga.

-Ferdinand

Amazon Gift Cards

Just letting people know, in our neverending quest for Prospero's Manga to break even, that if you buy Amazon Gift Cards as gifts, if you buy it through that link, we get a small percentage.

Prospero's Manga does take time for us to run, and sales through this Amazon Gift Cards link or any of our other Amazon links kicks us a percentage, which helps pay for the site. So everyone wins!

-Ferdinand

CBG Review: Style School, vol. 1

I have written a review for Style School, vol. 1, available on the Comic Buyer's Guide website. Please remember that the CBG website uses a 4 star rating. Check it out!



Style School, vol. 1 is also available from Right Stuf, Intl., an online retailer specializing in anime and manga.

-Ferdinand

My Dearest Devil Princess, vol. 1

Story by Makoto Matsumoto and Art by Maika Netsu
Released in the US by Broccoli Books

Slugline: Why do I think this devil's cute and innocent act is the best con job ever?

Natsuki has a magical box that she says has been in her family forever, but she as never been able to open it, so it wants to sell it to her good friendKeita. Imagine Keita's surprise when a 'genie' pops out of it to give him three wishes. He quickly figures out that the genie is actually a devil, and thatMaki will take his soul and kill him once he makes his three wishes. But despite that, he manages to accidentally make a wish, and thus has started a contract withMaki that cannot be broken except by his death. Needless to say, this is not a good thing from the perspective of heaven so they send an angel to make sure that the contract is not fulfilled, even if that means killingKeita themselves. Of course, since Maki is a cute yet powerful demon, she can't let her contract die on her, and so wackiness ensues.

As for the slugline, how else are you going to make a Japanese schoolboy lower his defenses and make three wishes but act all hapless and helpless? This 'innocent' act is the perfect way to getKeita to lower his defenses and make his three wishes. At which point cute little Maki will turn into a 150 ft tall being of crawling chaos and eats his soul. Well, maybe not, but it is still a good image, right? This is a fan-service filled story, but it has been portrayed in a natural way, such asMaki taking a shower. In a public fountain. They seem to flow more naturally out of the characters, rather than being contrivances of the plot. I also like the portrayal of angels here, because it hearkens back more to the original iconography of angels, where in the Bible the first words out of the angel's mouth usually was "Be not afraid" because angels were the kick ass of the Lord, as compared to the modern representation of them being more like "Touched by an Angel." So while there is a lot of the standard plug-in story elements there are also some interesting background character bits.

My Dearest Devil Princess, vol. 1 is also available from Right Stuf, Intl., an online retailer specializing in anime and manga.

-Ferdinand

Blog Maintenance

We did some fine-tuning of the blog and other maintenance today. Let us know what you think of the changes!

Shinshoku Kiss, vol. 1

Created by Kazuko Higashiyama
Released in the US by TokyoPop


Slugline: Why is it that the dolls she makes seem to have more spine than the female protagonist?

Kotoko is in high school but she has already decided to make dolls for a living. In that pursuit, she has been inspired by the works of the reclusive doll maker Fool. But when she submits her work to a contest in which Fool is a judge, she attract his interest in the worse way. Fool has his brother (who I somehow doubt is his real brother) lure Kotoko to his home/workshop and curses her to a rather rapid death by aging her internal organs so that she sprays out blood from her mouth. That is how I always want to go through at a job interview. Fool lifts the curse in exchange for her becoming his apprentice (something that I suspect that Kotoko would have be happy to do anyways pre-blood spewing) and then tells her she has to kiss the human models for the dolls in order to capture their essence and mood, so that they can place those feelings into the doll. So in addition to being needlessly cruel, he is also an emotional vampire and grants that same ability into Kotoko.

So of course Kotoko promptly forgets the fact that Fool caused her to upchuck blood and turned her hair white and treats it as if something that was merely annoying. If she laughs this off and quickly forgives him, I hate to see what hazing is really like in Japanese high schools. The fact is, Fool for all of his supposed ability, merely captures someone essence via mystical means and puts it into a doll. We don't see him do any work, so we have no idea whether or not he has any real skill or does he rely completely on his hocus-pocus . So the reason he does not make mass market versions of his doll is that he can't replicate the process on a mass scale, not any particular desire to keep quality high. The art is nice and open, and Higashiyama is credited as a co-creator of the series tactics as an incentive for fans of that work to check this out, but I hope that all he contributes to that series is the art, for the writing and the character's motivations here is scattered all over the place and doesn't hold together.



Shinshoku Kiss, vol. 1 is also available from Right Stuf, Intl., an online retailer specializing in anime and manga.

-Ferdinand

Midara, 2nd ed.

Midara, 2nd ed. and all other explicit titles have been moved to Prospero’s Manga – Mature, a review blog for explicit manga titles. Please check there for reviews of such titles.

The Other Side of the Mirror, vol. 1

Created by Jo Chen
Released in the US by TokyoPop


Slugline: Is this a title without teenagers in high school?!? Do people that old even have romance?!?

Lou makes his living, barely, by winning drinking contests in New York City while Sunny have been abandoned by her boyfriend and has been forced to sell herself to survive, even though she is not very good at it. She goes home and sleeps with Lou in a very badly handled pickup, and when he can't pay, she stays at his place. They come to rely on each other, and when the opportunity comes up, they flee New York City and try to create a new life for themselves out in the boondocks. They manage to get jobs and start to actually become the people that their roles have demanded of them. In addition, the short 99 Roses sets up a tragic love story, then reveals it to be really a farce.

Jo Chen has gotten some good press due to her work on some of the mainstream comic titles, such as Runaways and Buffy, Season 8, and while she claims that her style here is in transition, it is still recognizable at her, just not as light as it will become. As for the title itself, I give TokyoPop points for allowing themselves to escape the endless releases of high school romances. I admit that this is not an especially original take on adult dysfunctional relationships, but it is one that is rarely seen in manga and it is well executed.



The Other Side of the Mirror, vol. 1 is also available from Right Stuf, Intl., an online retailer specializing in anime and manga.

-Ferdinand

CBG Review: NOiSE

I have written a review for NOiSE, available on the Comic Buyer's Guide website. Please remember that the CBG website uses a 4 star rating. Check it out!



NOiSE is also available from Right Stuf, Intl., an online retailer specializing in anime and manga.

-Ferdinand

Good Witch of the West, vol. 1 (novel)

Written by Noriko Ogiwara
Released in the US by TokyoPop


Slugline: A version of the Cinderella story that I haven't seen before.

The manga has been previously reviewed here.

Firiel has lived with her father, an astronomer, at the very edge of her country for her entire life. But after begging to go to the annual ball, she is gifted with a piece of dead mother's jewelry by her father. At the ball she learns that the jewelry reveals that she is the daughter of an exiled queen to be, and upon returning home she discovers that her father has left. Quickly her life falls apart, and the only person that is left that she can rely on is Rune, her father's apprentice who was left behind, and even he is quickly kidnapped by people who want her father's knowledge of the stars. She is forced to turn to her recently discovered royal cousin Adale for assistance and in exchange for Rune's safety she must take her place in the intrigues of the nobles and the royal succession.

I was not impressed at all with the manga (I would have rated it lower than Miranda did, for instance) and was preparing myself for a slog through this, but I was pleasantly surprised on how quickly the pages flew by. It is a variation of the Cinderella story, but while some of the characters start out ignorant, they are not dumb and rapidly put together evidence about their own lives. And rather than Firiel immediately starting on the path of the throne, she is intelligent enough to not reach for that, and support someone who is better qualified. If anything Rune, the smarter of the two, does not have a surfeit of common sense considering their situation. There are fudges, people who are nice for no other reason that it makes it easier for the story to flow, but it is not presented out of nowhere or a radical change, merely the defaultpersonalities when characters are introduced. And wildly implausible and spur of the moment rescue plans are handled appropriately, and not everything goes according to plan, so that these small injections of reality help ground the story.



Good Witch of the West, vol. 1 is also available from Right Stuf, Intl., an online retailer specializing in anime and manga.

-Ferdinand

King of Cards, vol. 1

Written and illustrated by Makoto Tateno
Released in the US by CMX Manga


Slugline: You know that feeling when you get that you have a target on your back? Sometimes that is a really big target.

Disclaimer: I also work in the hobby gaming industry, so perhaps I have a little bit of a soft spot for this.

Manami has been convinced by her cousin to try out the card game Chaos, so she begins with a starter deck. She has the good and bad fortune of pulling the rarest card of the game, Sahgan the Sorcerer, in her starter deck. That immediately puts a target on her, since virtually no one has even seen the card, so people in the gaming community start offering to trade for the card and challenging her to games, with Sahgan as the prize. Some of her competitors become friends and some remain her enemies, but she manages to keep her card, for in her dreams she receives guidance from it.

I have some sympathy for the main character here. In another uncomfortable hint on just how old I am, back when Magic: the Gathering first came out, I bought a starter and some boosters. Played a couple times, then the Magic frenzy hit, and I put away my deck because no one would just play. Fast forward a few years and I take out my deck to play a couple friendly games, and everyone in the store wanted to start trading for my black-bordered Beta printing Magic cards. Those friendly games didn't stay friendly for long as everyone started to want playing me for ante. Of course, King of Cards ramps that up to the nth degree. There is the fudge factor that Manami is not naturally talented but rather relies on dreams that Sahgan sends here in order to win, but that is still better than the Yu-Gi-Oh! GX vol. 1 I reviewed a while back, where it seemed that main character's ability relied solely on his ability to draw the right card at the right time. As far as I know, there is no Chaos game, but the rules seem simple enough that one doesn't have to be a card game master to understand the various strategies. The concept of respecting your cards shows a little bit of naivety, because that sort of emotional connection to your deck very rarely happens. But with clean art style helps compensate for some the simplistic story elements, and while I don't find this title particularly awe-inspiring, it was an entertaining read.

King of Cards, vol. 1 is also available from Right Stuf, Intl., an online retailer specializing in anime and manga.

-Ferdinand

SERIES UPDATE: Trinity Blood vol. 2 & 3

To check out our earlier reviews of Trinity Blood, you can click here for Miranda's review of vol. 1 and here for the link to Ferdinand's review at CBGXtra. Also, here is a review of Trinity Blood: Return on the Mars, vol. 1 The Star of Sorrow.

By the end of v.3, signs of the larger plot and the factions involved are emerging. Some are more interesting than others, but on the whole they are keeping me involved in the series. On the down side, the arrival of some visually complicated opponents means that the action sequences require careful reading. Also on the down side, all Sister Esther has to do to get called "exceptional" is not be totally useless. But still, Trinity Blood will stay on my short list for the time being.



Trinity Blood vol. 2 and vol. 3 are both available from Right Stuf, Intl., an online retailer specializing in anime and manga.

- Miranda

Sgt. Frog, Ultimate Edition, vol. 1

By Mine Yoshizaki
Released in the US by TokyoPop


Slugline: Amphibians make lousy invading hordes. Unless you live in Australia.

This Ultimate edition has the first three volumes of the original series packaged together.

The Hinata family has managed to accidentally capture an alien invader. Which wasn't too difficult, since they are two feet tall frogs with advanced technology and a love for Gundam action kits. Wackiness ensues.

If there was anything ever made to be turned into an anime, this was it. An episodic structure, simple clean lines, super competent kids with comically over the top impulse control issues, hapless aliens and random rich folks and evil geniuses to make any impossible situation or item possible. And while it is rated 13+, considering today's environment, it would not be jarring for most kids a few years younger. Though if Sgt. Keroro was among the best Sergeants that his world has to offer, well, I think they don't conquer that many planets. Or that his proclamation of being an alien invader is all in his own mind and that he and his platoon was left behind at the first sign of trouble, because who wouldn't want to find any excuse to leave these guys behind? It is competently written, but it is not very exciting, and it relies a lot on telling us stuff and using many of the cliches of manga and anime. And when that well runs dry, they start pulling MacGuffin plot devices, a 'magical' alien ray or device that is used once, never seen again and is mostly used for comic effect. I think I about hit my limit with this collection. I suspect that if I read much more of this, the rating will start dropping.



Sgt. Frog, Ultimate Edition, vol. 1 is also available from Right Stuf, Intl., an online retailer specializing in anime and manga.

-Ferdinand

CBG Review: Key to the Kingdom, vol. 1

I have written a review for Key to the Kingdom, vol. 1, available on the Comic Buyer's Guide website. Please remember that the CBG website uses a 4 star rating. Check it out!



Key to the Kingdom, vol. 1 is also available from Right Stuf, Intl., an online retailer specializing in anime and manga.

-Ferdinand

Gakuen Alice, vol. 1

By Tachibana Higuchi
Released in the US by TokyoPop


Slugline: A happy, fun-filled tale of an authoritarian government exploiting children for the good of the state and favored corporations.

Mikan's best friend Hotaru has been recruited for the government school for Alices, special geniuses who are educated separately from other students in Tokyo. Just as an aside, they call students Alices, even the boys. Why not call them Alans, let them retain their gender identity at least. Oh wait, I forgot, this is Japan. Never mind. Mikan is depressed and alone in her school, but when discovers that Hotaru went to the Alice school because the payment for her going to the school would keep her and Mikan's old school open. So yeah, the government is now buying kids, nice. Once Mikan learns that, she decides that she has to see Hotaru at the Alice school, and runs away from home to Tokyo to see Hotaru. Once there, one of the teacher's talks to her on the sidewalk outside of the vast walled compound where the Alice live and learn, and invite Mikan to join them. Once he prevents one of the Alices from escaping. Once inside Mikan learns that the Alices are not only geniuses, but many of them have extranormal abilities such as mind reading and pryokinesis. Mikan is normal, so she is mystified on why she was invited to join, but is happy to be reunited with Hotaru. Through a series of challenges laid out by pyrokinetic boy, a fellow student in her class, Mikan discovers that her ability is to be normal, as in to shut down other Alice's powers.

I snark, but there is a sad little subtext running through the title, of kids under the control of the government for their own good, and for the good of the nation. And its economy. I'm not sure what it reveals more of, I or the society of Japan. This title is fairly predictable, I could tell what Mikan's ability within a couple of her pages of her meeting the teacher that admits her. But it is a solid kid's tale, which makes me wonder why it is rated for 13+. No major plot holes that you could drive a bus through, though once again the fact that being a parent is one of the most dangerous jobs in Japan is proven here, because Mikan is living with her grandfather, who doesn't seem to panic too much that his pre-teen daughter has run off to the big city.



Gakuen Alice, vol. 1 is also available from Right Stuf, Intl., an online retailer specializing in anime and manga.

-Ferdinand

Magical JxR, vol. 1

By Lee Sun-Young
Published in the US by UDON


Slugline: It is not a good sign when I tell you to skip the first 70 or so pages.

I did for Publisher's Weekly a while back an article on UDON called UDON on the Upswing.

Jay and Aru begin the volume as two magic students in the second grade whose magical style clash wildly. After a bunch of adventures while in second grade that show that they care for each other despite not being very similar, we suddenly jump ahead at least five years, in which Jay andAru turn from chibi children to bishonen (pretty boy) adolescents. They have to complete a year long contract with Cho -Ah, a combative student whose plans to start her life over in a new school and attract a boyfriend is derailed by the appearance ofbishonen Jay and Aru.

As far as I can tell, the stories of Jay and Aru in the second grade doesn't really add anything to the rest of the story. Other than Jay and Aru, the characters in the first half of the book don't really appear in the second half of the book and the theme of Jay and Aru being mismatched does not seem to be touched upon again. In other words, the first half of the book is very skippable. Which was almost, almost a fatal flaw with this book. What pulled it back was some very attractive art spreads and a relatively solid story in the rest of the book, even if it was nothing out of the ordinary. And since I am reviewing this title based on a preview copy, I am not sure how the art will look in the final version (UDON's preview books are printed on 8.5 x 11 paper, so it is hard to judge how the page crease will affect the final version.) And I'd better end this review before I talk myself into lowering its rating even further.



Magical JxR, vol. 1 is also available from Right Stuf, Intl., an online retailer specializing in anime and manga.

-Ferdinand

Zombie Loan, vol. 1

By Peach-Pit
Released in the US by Yen Press


Slugline: Death has easy financing but the installment payments are a killer.

Michiru's parents have passed away and she lives with her aunt and uncle who barely tolerate her presence. If anything, she barely tolerates her own presence in the world. She allows herself to bullied around, by the girls in her school, and by Chika and Shito, two fellow students that miraculously survived overpass collapse. But Michiru has the ability to see rings around people's necks that show whether or not a person is going to die soon, and they both have solid black rings. It turns out that they are both dead but were allowed to bargain for their lives. They were given a chance to return to life, but to repay their debt they must recover zombies, people who had died but hadn't realized it yet and satisfy their hungers on human flesh. Despite using and bullying her, when Michiru is in danger of dying by a zombie attack, Chika and Shito take on more debt to save her. Bolstered with the knowledge that she didn't want to die, Michiru begins making changes to her life.

For once the timing of the episodes complements the volume, so that one complete story arc is completed in this book. And that makes the story more effective, because we can see the characters' progression without being immediately reminded of any backsliding. The first half of the book I wondering how I was going to make my way through it because Michiru was such a push over, but then she acknowledged that fact and was given a push. But it was merely a push, so the choice to change was still left up to her, which she did make. There is no doubt she is at the very beginning of a very long journey, but it is one that she is taking the very steps on her own. Chika and Shito remain mostly enigmas, but at the moment Michiru's journey is one that is interesting to me, which wasn't at all what I expected when I picked this up.

Zombie Loan, vol. 1 is also available from Right Stuf, Intl., an online retailer specializing in anime and manga.

-Ferdinand

Gyo, vol.1, 2nd ed.

By Junji Ito
Published in the US by Viz


Slugline: A man-made horror story more in the vein of "Godzilla" than"Ringu."

This story starts out well enough, traditionally creepy, then bizarre, and then a good chase sequence. After that, things start to lose momentum a bit and an awkward scientific explanation retroactively drains the tension from the earlier chase scene. The story sticks to its guns, but by the end I was losing interest as the loose ends began to pile up. I was also starting to remember the “Land Shark” skit from SNL, which was distracting. (For people who are too young to remember, here is a Naruto AMV set to the original skit. There is a naughty word on the screen at the very end, so just close your eyes for that bit.)

The characters included a standard-issue girlfriend, a mildly crazy scientist and a guy. The funniest inadvertently funny line came when the girlfriend worried the guy would leave her, when she got sick with The Terrible Disease Humans Invented, because she wasn’t pretty anymore. Yes, dear, your being dead will have nothing to do with it, I’m sure.

Sea critters on legs swarming up the beach is a weird and potent image, but the lack of monster motivations and the sketchy scientific side don’t help at all. There were some good moments, but on the whole this was a mild disappointment. Maybe all will be better explained in the next volume.

Gyo, vol.1, 2nd ed. is also available from Right Stuf, Intl., an online retailer specializing in anime and manga.

-Miranda