Manga List - August

I've actually been super super busy this semester with uni and finding a job because I WILL BE DONE WITH UNI AFTER THIS SEMESTER (can I have a hallelujah?) but yes, it's been stressful so unfortunately I haven't been reading much!

Ok not much is a bit of an understatement. I've read one new series, and pretty much just been keeping up with the existing ongoing series like ajin, second brain, soredemo sekai wa utsukushii, toukyou kushu, taiyou no ie, and watashi ni xx shinasai.

Taiyou no ie introduced a new character which I'm not too happy about because I'm still basking in the happiness from the last few chapters where things finally started working out and them BAM. No my heart is not ready for this to start all over again.

Watashi ni XX shinasai also suddenly dropped a bombshell. It's been ongoing for quite a while so if you got bored and dropped it (like I did), then perhaps it's time to revisit because drama is heating uppppp!

And also Hirunaka no Ryuusei released two mini chapters with Hibi Chouchou cameo! I looooove Suiren & Kawasumi even though the story is retardedly slow-paced and unrealistic as heck. The cameo chapters are super cute as expected~~ here's to hoping for more cameos!


Right, anyway onto new manga!


Shiki (complete)

"Sotoba is an old-fashioned Japanese village nestled deep in the mountains. It has a small population of about 1300, and the villagers strictly follow age-old traditions and customs.
One sweltering summer, a mysterious and deadly disease begins to spread rapidly among the villagers, affecting young and old alike. In the midst of this spate of puzzling deaths, a family of beautiful and elegant individuals moves into the abandoned 'Kanemasa' mansion on the hill-side over-looking Sotoba... " - Baka Updates
Genre: horror, suspense, drama, mystery, supernatural

 This series started off pretty well - I was very happy with the fact that they started off the story with a girl who dressed in all sorts of alternative jfashion. However, the art wasn't too appealing in any particular way. I guess it worked well for the horror element but it wasn't really creepy/weird enough to actually be scary? Anyway, the story progressed along pretty well, but once the identity of the Shiki was discovered, the story took on a very predictable route and people just started dying left and right not unlike Ousama Game (reviewed in last month's manga list). Also something I didn't like about this manga is that there was no clear protagonist. Out of the three characters that could be the protagonist (Natsuno Yuuki, Muroi Seishin, and Ozaki Toshio), only the ending of the first two was actually defined. WTF happened to Ozaki Toshio?? Anyway the ending was really rushed and left many many many questions.

The last thing that irked me about this story is that it became very very philosophical. About halfway through the plot, the author introduced the story of Cain and Abel as an analogy of the relationship between humans (or just one /possible/ protagonist) and the Shiki. But then they didn't explain it very well so it just became hella confusing.
Rating: 3/5

Apocalypse no Toride (ongoing)

"What can you do when you get mistaken for murder? Nothing. You go to prison. Lucky for you, your inmates are some of the biggest cutthroats in the prison. Seriously, you are lucky. Especially when zombies attack."
Genre: horror, supernatural, sci-fi, mystery, action (LOTS OF ACTION)

This is easily one of the creepiest/weirdest horror manga I have read in recent months. I loooove all the weird as heck mutations the author thought up. Am I weird? Haha either way this manga is ridiculously grossly intriguing and I love it! The art style is perfect too.

The protagonist is not a very well developed character - he sorta just suddenly went from the weakling little nublet to a zero-sympathy plotter with too much power for his own good. Actually he's a pretty stupid character - most of the action fighting is done by his comrades, and then occasionally he swoops in to save the situation by some amazing ability that he doesn't understand. It's kind of weird, but if you don't mind the semantics too much this is a very enjoyable manga.

It's up to chapter 33 at the moment but feels a lot longer (perhaps it's 1 month releases so more pages per chapter?) anyway, I suppose it will go to at least 50 chapters if the plot doesn't extend. Can't wait for the next chapter!!

Rating: 5/5

Actually I spent much of this month trying to find nice shoujo/yaoi manga but somehow all the ones I could bear to even start turned out to be really cliche or grossly cheesy /sigh. Andddd so, this month's manga list is tiny because I really could not bring myself to share stories that were so unspectacular (even unspectacularly bad). SORRY! Hopefully I will find some nice manga next month ne?

Though... it may be a good time to make a start on this season's anime soon..... fufufufufu :3


=^.^=

Manga List - July 2014

Akame ga Kill (ongoing)

"AKAME GA KILL!, written by Takahiro and illustrated by Tetsuya Tashiro, follows teenage country-bumpkin Tatsumi, who dreams of earning enough money for his impoverished village by working in the Capital—but his short-lived plans go awry when he’s robbed by a buxom beauty upon arrival! Penniless, Tatsumi is taken in by the beautiful and kindly Lady Aria, but just when his Capital dreams seem within reach once more, Lady Aria’s mansion is besieged by Night Raid—a team of ruthless assassins who target high-ranking members of the upper class! As Tatsumi is quick to learn, appearances can be deceiving in the Capital, and this team of assassins just might be…the good guys?!" - Baka Updates
Genre: shonen, action, fantasy, drama, romance (mostly for humor)

First of all, Akame is the name of the girl in this cover photo for those that are confused. As of where I am right now (chapter 30ish), I still don't know why the title has her name when Tatsumi appears to be the protagonist, and Akame doesn't even get many panels out of the other main characters .-.

This manga is one of my favourites of this type - the art is CUTE but still fitting for the genre, the gags are good, and there is a good amount of gore (though stumpy arms look like sausages but what do you expect right?). Some of the characters have that element of madness which is rather reminiscent of higurashi no naku koro ni.

As usual, I am reading the manga version, but I do know that this has been turned into an anime too and has only recently started airing.. so I guess I'm not too late jumping on the bandwagon! The manga also has a prequel which I look forward to reading while waiting for it to update. The main story is probably going to be veeery long ❤

I think the story starts improving around chapter 20 - up until then, you may have to grit your teeth a bit to get through. The battle scenes are very...fast paced? I get lost a lot in the battle sequence and I feel like too much is missed between the panels, and also it's hard to actually understand each panel. It may be because I skim the battle scenes quickly but still, a little irksome.

For those that like No Game No Life, I think you will like this story too. Though there is a lot more gore, the humor is somewhat similar, and the characters are equally likeable ^^
Rating:  4/5


Jisatsutou (ongoing)

"Treating non-successful suicidal patients requires a lot of money and resources. With low budget and a personal respect argumentation, a doctor will ask a non-successful suicidal patient if he/she still wants to live on or not. If not the government will respect his/her wish. However, the government doesn't just simply kill them." - Baka Updates

Genre: survival, psychological, drama, tragedy

Ok so I usually avoid anything with jisatsu in the title because I had previously read a horror manga and it creeped me out so much (Jisatsu Circle for anyone who's interested. It's a psychological neverending loop horror. Also has a lot of violence and nudity and just overall depressing as heck).

Still thought I'd read this one because the synopsis didn't say much. Perhaps it would become some alternate universe survival action story? No, actually it's just basic human survival set in our universe, nothing sci-fi at all. It's actually kind of nice, reading about how some of these people who previously felt completely useless suddenly realised that they had important survival skills that other people didn't. Despite being a tragedy, I really like how the protagonist thinks about the meaning of life and is empowered / empowers others. This manga also has an over the shoulder narration that forewarns you about the future.

One thing I really don't like about the manga is the art. Can it be any less appealing? This is actually my third time attempting to read it and I'm finally making my way through. The previous two times I just couldn't get past the first chapter.

In a way, I guess this manga is really depressing too. So idk. Perhaps read it if you're super down or being NEET? It's not really something I'd like to pick up any old day lol.

Rating: 3/5

Ousama Game (completed)

"A mysterious command arrives from a "King"-----The life-threatening "Game" has now begun for the 32 students of the first year's B Class. One day, all of the students in Nobuaki's class received their first message from someone calling themselves the "King", in which was written a baffling command. That first command was very easy. However, the commands began to escalate until a life-threatening game had begun--- Failing to obey the orders leads to death!! Their friendships are being undermined by a bottomless terror!!'

Genre: action, drama, horror, supernatural, mystery

The art in this manga is likeable, and makes it really easy to read. As you can guess by the art, the horror aspect of it isn't through being super gruesome (though there are 'gruesome' scenes), but rather just fear of what will happen next. The suspense isn't too strong for me, probably because the art was cute xD

The story was pretty good for the first 2/3 or so, but as it drew closer to the end, the logic started not adding up, deaths happened too fast, and it was all just a big mess of an ending. Perhaps the author's funding got cut or something? Either way, I think the ending could have been executed much much better. On Baka-Updates there are apparently a prequel and sequel to the story which I didn't know about till now. Perhaps I'll give that a go next month.

Rating: 2/5 (because the ending was just terrible)

Second Brain (ongoing)

"Ichihara is a boy living with supernatural powers and is treated differently by everyone except by his mother. He is trying to live a normal life but instead everyone wants to fight him and calls him a monster. One day an android with supernatural powers, named number 5 kills Ichihara's mother when she tries to protect him. How will the story unfold?" - My Anime List

Genre: action, sci-fi, shonen

First of all, the art and the fight scenes are very likeable. So far, there are 5 chapters out in English, and the story has been paced pretty well. I'm expecting this series to be fairly good, but the storyline isn't all too exciting. I'm a sucker for stories with curious powers xD

The story has a very un-turbulent (is that a word?) progression. That's why I categorized it shonen. Personally I'd like there to be some heavy conspiracy and whatnot but there's none of that here!

Somehow the world in this manga reminds me of another manga, but I can't remember which at the moment... Will edit this post if I ever remember.

I would wait a while before starting on this series, since the updates are a little slow and with only 5 chapters out, it's not hard to just throw it aside. It will be good!

Rating: 4/5

Tokyo Ghoul / Toukyou Kushu (ongoing)

"The suspense horror/dark fantasy story is set in Tokyo, which is haunted by mysterious "ghouls" who are devouring humans. People are gripped by the fear of these ghouls whose identities are masked in mystery. An ordinary college student named Kaneki encounters Rize, a girl who is an avid reader like him, at the café he frequents. Little does he realize that his fate will change overnight." - My Anime List

Genre: horror, action, tragedy, sci-fi, mystery, drama

I've been seeing posts about this EVERYWHERE recently, so I finally went and took a look. Tenshi and I watched the first 2 episodes together, but because not many episodes were out, I hopped on over to read the manga which is weirdly only listed as Toukyou Kushu instead of the English name (much confusion).

It is 110% worth the hype. Out of the recent manga I have been reading, this one wins by miles and miles. It has the tragedy, mystery, backstabbing, drama all down pat PLUS some pretty awesome superhuman skills. The fight scenes were really confusing on the anime, but in the manga it was alright. I think the anime version of this story isn't bad per se compared to the manga, but the censorship is hella annoying.

The only thing to be aware of with the manga right now is that for some stupid reason, the chapters aren't being consecutively uploaded.

Because Shingeki no Kyojin scenes jumped all over the place, I thought perhaps this manga just had the same issue. NOPE I just skipped a whole bunch of chapters ==;

I am so mad right now. Of all the ways I could have been spoilered. Seriously. I was starting to be annoyed at the main character gaining strength and status so quickly, but now I know it's not the mangaka's fault, but rather because I had pretty much been jumping my way through 30 chapters. Fair enough.

Anyway, if you read the manga, just watch out and stop before you skip chapters and it'll be all good. 87 chapters right now is a pretty good amount to read until they fill in the missing chapters anyway ^^

Rating: 5/5

There is such a distinct lack of good shoujo manga right now that I want to cry inside. I used to never venture into shonen but there's legit nothing left to read. It's really sad ~.~

Anime I plan to watch this year

Of the spring 2014 anime, Selector Infected WIXOSS and Isshuukan Friends are the two cryfest series I have yet to take a look at, but plan to do so eventually. The first one was recommended by Tenshi so it's definitely going to be good! I also watched the first episode of M3 ~Sono Kuroki Hagane~ and it was very very disappointing. Don't think I will bother with the rest of the series.

From summer 2014 (which I haven't started on at all), I really want to watch season 2 of Free! but I will hold out until I can marathon the entire season. Also want to watch Love Stage!! which uses the seiyuu for Rei and Nagisa (my favourite ship from Free!) for the main characters but Tenshi told me the anime is pretty awful :'(

Also SAO 2, I will hold out until it's completed ;v;

For the fall series, I am really looking forward to

• Psycho-Pass 2
• FSN: Unlimited Blade Works (I am a massive FSN fan, though I wish they'd make an anime for Hollow Ataraxia so I can creepily admire Saber in casual clothes)
• Kiseijuu sounds pretty interesting, but I'm definitely not feeling the art

It's a little sad, but I think I will be very bored this winter. The only definite series that I am interested in is Romantica Clock, but it's by the artist of Pika Ichi / Aishiteruze Baby, etc. and I prefer her manga. No anime for me this winter it seems ~ QAQ

=^.^=

Manga List - June 2014

From this month on, I have decided to keep a little post each month reviewing the manga I start reading~
funny story: I realised today (14th june) that I had named this list the May manga list rather than June. I'm so bad with keeping track of time hahaha...

Some of the manga may have come out a long time ago, but occasionally I look through the archives of manga in genres I don't usually read. Sometimes I read really weird manga ne ^^;

I will keep these posts smut-free, and spoiler free!

Let's begin ~

Hiki (ongoing)

"While searching behind his desk drawer, Rin finds a hand drawn map of his neighborhood with a big X marking a specific spot. He doesn't recognize it, because he must have drawn it a long time ago, but he's curious to see what he marked with that X. Three childhood friends join him, and they discover an abandoned chest of drawers at the X location. Wondering if there might be something inside, Rin pulls open the drawers and unknowingly unleashes a horrific chain of events..." - Baka Updates.

Genre: horror / mystery

I felt like reading some horror recently, And this was one of the titles I thought I'd tackle. The manga is incomplete with only 4 chapters out in English on mangafox atm, though I doubt it's going to be a long story anyway. Characters and plotline are both not very original nor developed. The scare-moments are definitely not terrifying for people who like horror, but they creeped me out because I'm fairly weak to jump scares and I stupidly read this at like 1am in the dark on my phone QAQ

Rating:3/5

Ajin (ongoing)

"The story follows a high-school student named Kei Nagai, who is caught in a traffic accident, dies, but immediately revives and learns he is not human, but an Ajin, a mysterious creature that cannot die. Scared, he runs away from humans but is helped by his friend Kai, who joins him in his flight from civilization. He then becomes involved in a conflict between human and Ajin and must choose a side." - Baka Updates

Genre: action / mystery / supernatural

Although it was under horror, it's not actually scary at all. The world in this story is quite interesting, and the logic behind the Ajin is well spun so far. I am on chapter 14 right now (rest haven't been released in English) and the progression has been at a very good pace. There are no filler chapters, and I don't expect there will be for a while at least. The story will probably be quite long (I'm hoping 80ish chapters) which I look forward to! Unfortunately the manga tends to 'forget' about side stories and side characters entirely when it's concentrated on the main story development, but perhaps that doesn't matter much to some people. This title reminds me of elfen lied in terms of the violence, but severed body parts are even more stumpy and detail-less than elfen lied (I wish it weren't so, but this point can be overlooked). The story touches on humanity, but doesn't really dive into the mentality of the bad guys which is a little frustrating. Hopefully it will be covered more in the next few chapters.

Rating: 4.5/5

Yoshiwara Hana Oboro (complete)

"Hana is a normal teenager who goes to school normally, that is until she gets run over by a car... or did she? Suddenly, she finds herself in a weird place known as the "Red Light District"... in EDO PERIOD?! Trying to find a way to get back to her own time, she somehow gets mistaken for a Prostitute and has to escape. Not expecting to be saved by a gentleman, she suddenly ends up in a geisha house.. but then she is bought by the same guy who helped her earlier?!"

Genre: historical / romance

This is one of the few historical setting titles I've read. The english translation is up to chapter 7, but I finished the remaining chapters (up to chapter 13) in Chinese. The character design is really nice - the regular look is clean and elegant, but the expressions are really exaggerated hehe. There is a manga called Nosatsu Junkie that finished a couple of years ago which also had super exaggerated facials that really add to the humor. However, I think the art style itself is a bit love or hate - I used to hate this style, but now I'm okay with it. Up to the individual really.

Unfortunately the story and characters are quite cliche and the logic behind the time-leap doesn't quite add up. But if anyone is like me and enjoys the super cheesy cliche shoujo manga on rare occasions, this is still a fairly good title :)

Rating: 2/5

Meiji Hiiro Kitan (ongoing)

"It’s the middle of the Meiji Era and our heroine, the little Suzu, is sold to the red lights district. However, the rich heir of a dry goods store Tsugaru buys her freedom for no apparent reason. She is deeply grateful for being saved, but she doesn’t understand why he paid so much money for her and the only explanation he offers is “we have a bond.” She tries to unravel the mystery of his feelings and gradually grows from a little girl to a young woman, always by his side. A gentle and slow-paced love story set in the Meiji Era."

Genre: historical, drama, slice of life, mystery, romance

First of all, I really love the art style of this manga. Suzu has got to be THE cutest heroine ever! It's a little strange in terms of romance because Suzu is drawn as such a young character, while Tsugaru appears quite old. I don't think their exact age is mentioned (unless there was a character profile, I don't usually read those). The age gap is very very big judging by the art so it's a little odd. Of course, the whole illegal age gap romance is in Love So Life! too, but Shiharu is drawn pretty mature and her character is really mature too, so it wasn't so strange... Anyway, romance is not actually a massive part of the story, rather the manga shows Suzu and Tsugaru go through problems after problems with the people around them, mostly relationship problems. It's a little bittersweet and I actually cried at the en

Darwin's Game (ongoing)

"Sudo Kaname suddenly gets involved in a death game through the mysterious mobile app "Darwin's Game."

Genre: mystery, psychological, action

First I would like to say that though I didn't put horror in the genre, there is a decent amount of gore in this manga.

It's a bit like a crossover between mirai nikki and psyren in terms of borrowing mirai nikki's augmented reality setting and reliance on a mobile phone, but the game's premise is more like psyren, although I have yet to read any hints in Darwin's Game about how the game could end. Actually it definitely reminds me of another manga I had read in the past in terms of the zero-point death system and how anyone who loses the game is unable to pass on information about the game... Well, there is Accel World, but I think there was a more gory manga of a similar setting too...
With regards to the actual manga alone, I quite like the art style - it's a little cute and takes away from the otherwise very gory storyline. The paradox of such cute characters in such a twisted game really adds to the psychological theme of the story. So far there are 7 chapters translated online into English, and 15 chapters in Chinese even though it started in 2012!? I hope they can release faster from now on!! QAQ

While I was trying to find what manga Darwin's Game reminds me of, I came across Alive: The final Evolution, which was recommended in one of the forums I peeked in on. The synopsis sounds pretty interesting, so that manga is next!
Rating: 4/5


Alive: The Final Evolution (completed)

"A strange virus is making its way around the globe, causing its victims to commit suicide. In less than a week, it's become a lethal pandemic. Now a group of Tokyo teens who have survived the outbreak are wondering why they are still alive." - Baka Updates

Genre: sci-fi, adventure, action, psychological, supernatural

The setting is similar to Ajin in terms of the main character being 'changed' and is forced into a situation where he is fighting for humanity, despite being hated/hunted by humans. The synopsis for this manga is also terrible, I know, but to say any more than that would be giving spoilers. The storyline develops quite quickly (I'm around chapter 25 and the first large battle has ended), and there are no filler chapters. However, the one time the author attempted to make a gag in the middle of the manga, lol it was so fail. I think the manga has been so serious the entire time that it's not possible to insert gags without being really obvious about it. The fight scenes are coordinated, however the clarity at which the battle plan is explained feels belittling. It's the first time I've felt this way about battle scenes lol ==

Sometimes, I feel like the characters are too 2D - especially Yuichi Hirose whose background and mentality is hardly articulated despite being the direct antagonist (out of the evil bunch) in the story. The art isn't particularly interesting in any way, but I really dislike how they had to make the one crazy bitch in the story a gyaru!!! :<

Comments after finishing the series: I originally thought that my opinion would not change by the end of the manga, however, I was so entirely disappointed with the ending. I don't even remember the last time I have felt so unhappy with an ending. Not only was the ending something I didn't like, it was the number one most cliche scenario I ruled off because it was so cliche. The pacing of the story was perfect up to the last battle, and then it just sort of went berserk. Wtf??? Edit: I just found out that the author Tadashi Kawashima finished writing this series on his deathbed (liver cancer) so that's probably why it's rushed...I'm sure that, given more time, the ending would be much better ><;;

Rating: 4/5


Aishiteruze Baby (completed)

"Kippei Katakura is a 17-year-old playboy who spends his time chasing girls, careless of their feelings. But when his 5-year-old cousin Yuzuyu comes to live with his family after her mother's sudden disappearance, Kippei is put in charge of taking care of her. As Kippei gets to know Yuzuyu and starts to understand how she feels, he also begins to realize that all girls were like Yuzuyu once..." - Baka Updates

Genre: family, romance, drama, school life, slice of life

I did say to myself I wasn't  going to start a new manga after finishing Alive, but that lasted all of about 2 days. /fail

Aishiteruze baby is actually a ridiculously old title from early 2000s, but honestly it doesn't look that old at all. The manga mostly centres on Kippei looking after Yuzuyu, and the daily things that happen around them. It also has a few extras that explore some of the side characters (which is nice, doesn't distract from the main storyline, and the length is perfect). There's a lot of family stuff in here hence why I put family in genre even though it's not a typical genre category. There's also a persisting romance line between Kippei and his crush Kokoro (yes that's her actual name), which is actually quite strongly intertwined with the family aspect of the story. Overall, the manga was really good - I cried so much like wtf, I don't even remember the last time I read a manga and tears streamed down my face .-.

The only thing I wish could have happened is if they put an afterstory for Kokoro's family. Perhaps it was in one of the extra chapters (I didn't read them all), but I really wanted to know if things worked out with her family :<

Also, the ending was quite abrupt. No actually, it was VERY abrupt. In 10 pages, the author managed to end the manga AND have 2 or 3 pages of 'after story' wtf.

Rating: 4/5

It seems that this month I have been (mostly) enraptured with psychological stories. Perhaps the stress of exam season has really gotten to me hahaha. That and the fact that there are no good new shoujo manga coming out wtf. I'm so desperate for new chapters of Love So Life! that I've gone over to the dark side and started following the Chinese scanlations as they come out... hopefully July will bring some awesome new titles onto the net QAQ


=^.^=

Shoujo manga, and a little heart to heart

These past few weeks have been an interesting experience. Since December, I've been working full time, and I am currently still working at the same place.

Every week, it's been working, coming home, showering, cooking, eating and then spending the night on facebook chatting till the early mornings, waking up tired, then back to working. Every weekend, it's been going out late - even when I don't plan to go out! and then sleeping in...

I really should be enjoying this time of my life when i can go out, and not feel bad for spending all this money, and just partying away, but it feels like such a waste of time and resources.

Yesterday, I started reading manga again. It's funny how I got back into it actually. I was discussing books with a friend, then it went on to how terrible 50 shades is, and then I remembered this (warning: very fan-servicy) manga I started reading last year, or the year before.

It's a very unique manga, and I doubt any other artists are writing stories on a fetish theme (S&M), yet with such a pure underlying romantic plotline. If you want the title, just ask me. It's actually a pretty popular manga judging by the views, and the fans are very loyal - myself included!

Anyway, once I finished catching up on that manga, I started going through the other manga I bookmarked. Yes, I have a bookmark folder of manga I'm in the midst of reading...

Today is the second evening I have spent reading manga, and I'm not even a third of the way through the list. Today I read an omake from Cousin, Love So Life, and Watashi ni XX Shinasai, and I am currently making my way through Taiyou no Ie which I had bookmarked, but not started.

Point is, reading all these manga today, I feel like I haven't changed much, since the start of uni, or even back in yr9. I'm still reading shoujo manga, with bittersweet plotline developments that make my heart go waku waku... Like, why am I still reading all these manga? It's painful, yet at the same time it's so addicting. Somehow, I get some kind of satisfaction reading these stories, and sobbing my eyes out, and virtually stabbing my heart out. I kid you not, these stories are sometimes so painful, like, don't underestimate manga. lol.

At least I know I'm not the only one hooked on these, since there's clearly enough of a market for these manga to be published?



Anyway, when I take a step back and analyse the situation objectively, I guess it is easier to just go with stories, and experience these heart-wrenching feelings of the protagonist and the happy and sad moments of the story from her POV. And then I can just let go of it afterwards and continue on with my life. Which, by the way, seems so much more bland, and un-captivating in comparison.

But that's also a little sad.

#otakuforever

Oh also, if there are any bittersweet manga you can recommend, please do comment. I am always on the hunt for good manga ;w;