9 posts tagged “manga”
Yay, here’s the continuation of CLAMP’s Suki. If you’d like to read about volume 1, please go here. ^^
The second volume starts with Hina receiving calls without knowing who the caller was. Her teacher, Shirou, comes over for breakfast (at Hina’s invitation) and finds out about it leaving him a little disturbed. Later on, Hina’s bestfriend, Touko, confronts Shirou and openly says that she is suspicious of him. OF course, the teacher dismisses this and leaves her on her own.
Sometime later, Hina (this time with Shirou) meets Tomo once again to the complete shock and disdain of her teacher. We are also introduced to Kizu – a very large and no-nonsense looking guy who is in charge of being Tomo’s bodyguard. Hina also finds out (and rather overjoyed of the discovery) that Tomo is actually the Tomo-kun who is the author of her favorite “Suki” books (the one about bears).
Then, Hina’s class goes on a field trip and Touko and their other friend Emi are rather shocked to see Hina and Asou arriving to school together. This prompts Touko to request Emi to look for some information about their teacher.
On their way home, Shirou questions HIna’s unbelievable trait of trusting people quickly. She says it makes her more comfortable that way which frustrates the heck out of Shirou. When he arrives in his home, he goes up to his room and watches over Hina through a surveillance camera.
Finally, Hina meets up with Tomo again and tells him how much she loves his books. Tomo also hints that it may be up to Hina’s actions on how the story will progress. Hina later invites Tomo and Kizu over to her house for dinner and she also persuades Shirou to come along. The teacher is rather annoyed with how Kizu kept on following them while the other man says that he’s only tagging along because he needs to protect Tomo. During dinnertime, a blackout occurs and surprises everyone.
There was a time when I liked Ken Akamatsu’s “Love Hina” because the story was somewhat cute (especially for a gal person like me who likes the idea of keeping old promises since childhood). Unfortunately, it didn’t leave a lasting impression on me and as the series went on, I grew tired of it (heck, I sort of forgot the ending of it, I think). So when we saw his latest work “Magister Negi Magi” (or Negima for short), I wasn’t very excited about it, the first reason being the fact that I saw Keitaro and Naru clones in the cover page. But for the heck of it, we decided to try it out anyway.
And I’m happy we did. Negima’s story was by far, much better and funnier than its predecessor. Though there were some flaws, it’s an overall good story. And with the right timing because of the Harry Potter hype. Negi seems to be Japan’s answer to the currently most popular boy magician. ^^;;
But Negi does not go to school and learn magic (well, he did but not now), instead he’s just in a regular school and is actually a part of the school faculty. Hailing all the way from England, Negi’s mission when he graduated from magic school was to be a Japanese school teacher. So off our 10-year-old hero to Japan where he got assigned in Mahora Academy (probably the biggest and most luxurious all-girls school I’ve ever seen).
While the class of 2-A find the idea of having a child teacher adorable, one girl is obviously against it – the Naru-clone Kagurazaka Asuna. The girl has a killer crush on their middle-aged teacher and she won’t let him be replaced by some brat. However, because of some unfortunate circumstances, Asuna witnessed Negi’s display of magic and must keep it a secret or else Negi gets in big trouble. Thus, the start of their chaotic relationship.
Ken Akamatsu seems to love putting lots of obligatory fan service shots in his work (read: panty and naked-ish girls shots) which are in my opinion, unnecessary but I guess it had become a trademark in his work ^^;;. But other than that, the whole story is quite amusing as well as the bevy of cute and unique students of Negi’s. It’s worth the buy because the volume includes a lot of extra information like Japanese/English references as well as Ken’s character sketches.
Yup, another CLAMP title. These women's works seem to be a mainstay in my features, lol. This time, I'd like to talk about one of their ongoing series, xxxHolic.
The story is about a young man named Watanuki Kimihiro who possesses a strange ability to see spirits and ghosts. Furthermore, he also seems to emit a bizarre aura of attracting them to him. As much as Watanuki attempts to rid himself of this major burden, his efforts are futile, until he met the mysterious Ichihara Yuko.
Yuko claims that she could fulfill any kind of wish - including Watanuki's desire to not have the ability to see paranormal things anymore. She also tells Watanuki that their meeting was a manifestation of hitsuzen which roughly means "inevitability". At the end of the day, Watanuki's wish was taken in by Yuko in exchange of being her personal maid.
The first thing that struck me about xxxHolic is the artwork. It may not be as visually nice as their past titles but I'd call this one nicely different and unique. The story, on the other hand, is superb. xxxHolic tackles different kinds of issues, human nature, habits and addictions (thus, the name "holic" in the title) and adds a mysterious and magical element to it. Every story is finished whether short or long which I think is great (and has the re-read factor, lol). The characters are also very interesting especially Yuko who appears to be neither a protagonist nor an antagonist.
The first volume features two stories. The first is about a woman who seems to have the habit of lying, and the second wants to get rid of her addiction with computers and internet surfing. I think one of the greatest parts of xxxHolic is that it features stories in a magical but still realistic in some way. Some have a happy ending, some are tragic (that usually results to death) - we cannot expect life to always turn the way we want it to even if we try our best.
Now what do I have..? CLAMPaholic! *lol* Corny.... :P
Getting this manga was completely accidental. We had no idea about the author or how popular the series was. But it kind of look nice so we decided to try it out anyway. It was a good thing, it has been a funny read for both of us. :D
"The Wallflower" (or Yamato Nadeshiko Shichihenge) is about four handsome guys - the violent but uber-popular Kyohei, effeminate-looking Yuki, ladies' man Ranmaru and intelligent Takenaga. A few years ago, these four got together and lived in a rented mansion for various reasons. Later on, the landlady strikes a deal for them - convert her niece into an elegant and "true" lady and these guys can live in the mansion for free! The job sounds reasonable and easy and so they take the challenge.
Unfortunately, Sunako, the niece, happens to be a bigger challenge than they expected. The girl is simply in love with the darkness, the occult, slasher movies and actually owns a collection of creepy skeletons, coffins and anatomical figures. She also seems to be very cautious of the four guys whom she refers to as "creatures of the light" and tends to break down in an intensive nosebleed reaction when she gets in contact with them.
The first volume was in my opinion, very good and very funny. At first I thought it was a potential Hana Yori Dango clone (F4 and Makino Tsukushi, anyone?) but it can actually stand on its own as an original story. It was very cute that the guys are actually giving a lot of effort to face the challenge of giving Sunako a major makeover (with the exception of Kyohei who seems to show the least effort ^^;;)
Interestingly, Sunako isn't really as ugly as she thinks she is. She's actually pretty in her own way and she also has the fierce and no-nonsense aura that can rival to Gokusen's Yamaguchi Kumiko. It's up to the guys to make her realize that she's not actually that repulsive, lol.
The author, Hayakawa Tomoko, also happens to be a horror and occult fan so expect to see a lot of these references (both Western and Eastern) popping up every now and then.
When I first found out that there would be a "sequel" to the Card Captor Sakura series, I was immensely thrilled. So when the first translated volume of Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle came out, I was more than willing to try it out.
Lo and behold, teenager versions of Sakura and Shaoran plus a whole new story. Apparently, the couple didn't only age but they were also thrown in an entirely different setting. It's a not a sequel after all. This time, Sakura becomes a princess while Shaoran becomes a son of an archaeologist (who used to be CCS Sakura's dad) and they are childhood friends. Sakura seems to possess a great power which was awakened and taken away from her in the form of her memories that looked like feathers. It is Shaoran's job to go on a journey to find these memories in order to save Sakura.
Reading Tsubasa made my head spin at first. In my mind, the CCS versions of Sakura and Shaoran were still fixed along with the roles of the supporting characters like Touya, Yukito or Tomoyo who all had different roles in the Tsubasa story. Many of CLAMP's characters from their other series also made appearances along with a roster of new ones. Some (including me) might call it the ultimate CLAMP cross-over series.
But after a while, I got used to their Tsubasa versions and it was a real treat to see CLAMP characters popping up every once in a while whether they are comrades or villains. All in all, the story of Tsubasa made me feel like I was playing a very good RPG.
The first volume introduces Sakura and Shaoran's story and the sudden disappearance of Sakura's memories that left her unconscious. With the help of Sakura's brother King Touya and the high priest Yukito, Shaoran is sent to an alternate world in order to meet Yuko, a space-time witch who has the possible solution to Sakura's situation. Meanwhile, two other characters, Fay and Kurogane, are sent to Yuko as well but for entirely different reasons. They reluctantly got pulled in to help Shaoran in his mission to travel in different worlds to retrieve Sakura's feather memories. And to complete the gang, Mokona joins them as their guide from one world to another as well as taking care of the communication problem since everyone came from a different world and speak different languages.
In this volume, Chobits' Chii, X1999's Sorata and Arashi and Magic Knight Rayearth's Sang Yung and Primera make their appearances in the first world called the Hanshin Republic.
I first heard of Genshiken through a forum where the members were discussing about how cool this series is. It didn't take me long to have an interest on it as well. Imagine a story about a group of otakus and their day-to-day activities that resemble the reader's to the highest level!
The story is quite simple. Put together a group of otakus in a club. Add in a few incoming members plus one character who is rather out of place from the rest. And voila, a unique story for everyone!
The cast of Genshiken is relatively few and concentrates most of the time in the club members and their activities. But the best thing about it is, in that small roster, there's someone that fellow otakus can relate to. In my case, it's a mix of Sasahara Kanji, Madarame Hironobu and Ohno Kanako. ^^;; Yes, I know, Sasahara and Madarame are a clash but I still feel that I can relate to both of them in different ways, lol.
The first volume of course, introduces the main characters with the addition of non-otaku Kasukabe Saki which will be the character that most "ordinary" people who just picked up this manga by mistake could relate to. Rivalry with other related clubs appear also. And of course, the birth of the supposed hero and his realization of his love for anime, game and manga culture.
All in all, Genshiken was a bit tiring (but enjoyable!) to read even for an otaku like me. I think it's because I wanted to digest every page, hahaha. :D
I always thought the anime series of Matsushita Yoko's Descendants of Darkness (or Yami No Matsuei) is too short! So unfair. They should make a new series of it! Anyway, the manga is waaay longer than the series so it's a great buy because you get to learn more about the other characters of YnM. For one thing, there are actually more villains than Muraki!
The first volume, of course, introduces the main character, Tsuzuki, a shinigami (supposed to be an elite but everyone treats him like an idiot, heh). In the beginning, Tsuzuki was actually working with another partner. They solved only one case, though. ^^;;
Later on, Tsuzuki gets started with his new case in Nagasaki, this is the Maria Wong arc (featured in the first three episodes of the anime). It's good that the anime was faithful at least to the manga version. So then, he meets his latest partner Hisoka as well as the other supporting characters, Tatsumi, Konoe and Watari (the secretary, chief and scientist respectively). And of course, how can we leave out Muraki, the resident psycho-pervert doctor, bwahaha.
The last part of this volume is devoted to an independent one-shot story by the same author. It's about fairies, and it's kind of cute. ^^;;
Lastly, there are two pieces of trivia that I found out here. First, the author is actually a guy (though he comments that he does have a girl's name). And second, Tsuzuki wasn't meant to be the main character (his previous partner was supposed to take that role) but the author says that Tsuzuki kind of "took over" in the story. Hahaha, good for you Tsuzuki~! XD
I have heard about this CLAMP manga series before but I was quite happy that I got a copy of it from the now defunct CCHQ (gad, I miss that place). Anyway, the story of Suki (or Suki, Dakara Suki) didn't strike me as "Wow! I gotta find the next volume asap!!" at first because the story's a bit cliche and in a way, childish. But gradually, I grew to like the series even though it's like that.
Basically the story revolves around a childish young girl named Asahi Hinata. She's the embodiment of the super cheerful type of character. Goodness, I'm so curious as to what makes her sad or angry. She's that happy-go-lucky and carefree kind of girl. One night, she meets the stoic Asou Shirou, her new neighbor as well as a temporary teacher at her school. As days go by, Hinata finds herself liking her teacher more and more (at the beginning, it wasn't implicated yet that it was romantic love) and they spend a lot of time together much to the disdain of Shirou. Hinata's bestfriend, however, is another story. She feels that there's something strange and suspicious about the new teacher.
In this volume, Hinata also meets Tomo, a friend of Shirou's and a porno novelist. It's funny because Tomo looks like an average bishounen nice guy but he actually writes erotic stories. ^^;; Anyway, there will be more development about Tomo in the next volume. ^_^
Like Chobits, this manga also make use of a story book that actually mirrors the day to day life as well as the future for the characters. The title of the book in Suki is "White Bear and Black Bear". More about that in my next entry about Suki. ^^
CLAMP's "The One I Love" or Watashi No Suki Na Hito is in my opinion, the kind of book that you'd want to read over and over again (heh, in my case, I did). The manga is quite thin but it's still worth it. It contains 12 short stories Tsubaki Nekoi and each is followed by an essay by Ageha Okawa. I especially like this book because it gives the readers a chance to get to know a little about CLAMP's personal life (since it was always written that they prefer not to reveal too much about their private lives).
One of my favorite stories there is entitled "Pretty" (or Kirei). It tells the story of a girl who is so frustrated and angry because of the day she's supposed to meet her boyfriend, rain went pouring down. The night before, she spent hours selecting the perfect outfit which obviously will be ruined (or at least have a lesser impressive effect) if it rained the next day. Most girls would of course make an effort to look their best when going out with their boyfriend and she's no exception. After ranting to God on how He just ruined her chance to look pretty, she decided on a normal outfit and ran to meet her boyfriend.
I love this line: "Oh God, why couldn't you be on my side just this one day. If it were sunny, I'd look better than I do now. He might've even thought I was a little pretty. But no, today I have to be the ugliest girl on Earth".
In the end, her boyfriend didn't notice anything and even said that she looked extra-cute that day. And that's enough to put her on cloud nine.
And so she said: "I take it back God. Thank you for letting it rain".
