Title: Elfen Lied

Author & Artist: Lynn Okamoto

Chapters: 1 – 107 (Complete)

Summary

Diclonius are a mutant species with a human type body, but are distinguished by their two horns (which look like rabbit ears) and their “vector” ability, transparent telekinetic arms that manipulate and cut objects within their reach. Lucy is the main diclonius character who was rejected by humans as a child and takes her murderous vengeance upon them. But her double personality and relationship with Kohta, a teenage boy with repressed traumatic memories, eases the murderous rage. Though these two things don’t stop the vengeance completely. The diclonius researchers want Lucy for their purposes and are willing to use any means to get her.

The Good

Fight Scenes

The action and fighting is pretty good. If you force yourself to keep reading, it’s probably because of the action. It is easily the highlight of the manga with regards to artwork. But there is another highlight in the manga that doesn’t have to do with the artwork.

The Main Character

Lucy is quite a unique character. I especially like her drive to kill, which separates her from other characters I have read. She doesn’t care for morals or justice, she only cares about herself which is fine considering her harsh treatment as a child. She is made out to be a villain, but a sympathetic one who the reader wants to see win. Sadly, she is the only character I cared for throughout the manga.

The Bad

Everyone Else

Lucy is the unique and most interesting character of the manga, but everyone else isn’t. Kohta, Yuka, and the diclonius Nana are just some of the most annoying characters in the manga. Nana can’t get over her papa complex, showing that she never really grows throughout the manga. Yuka never gets over Kohta and his love for Lucy, which leads her into self loathing mode pretty much all the freakin’ time! And then there is Kohta. Not only is he the most wimpish character in the manga, he is the least interesting character that had the best setup to be something more.

His repressed memories are of him on a train with his sister and father. Both family members die in a murderous fashion by Lucy’s hands, leaving Kohta the only survivor on the train. But the manga does not use this memory as a setup to sympathize with Kohta. It’s used to sympathize with Lucy, and it works very well to its advantage. What’s funny is when he remembers the incident, to tries to say to Lucy that he’ll get revenge on their behalf. No, his sorry ass can’t do shit. That sudden urge to get revenge doesn’t change his character growth at all (damn wimp). So in the long run, Kohta is just a wimpy character who can’t do anything but be Lucy’s main conflicting love interest. That is all.

The Artwork

I won’t say the artwork was terrible, since I don’t usually mind it much, but here it was very obvious that it wasn’t the right type of style that fit an action/mature manga. It looked like the manga was trying to mixing some type of shoujo style artwork (an “okay” type of artwork) into a seinen manga. The problem is it just doesn’t work. If you don’t believe me just look at the cover of the manga. Does that look like a manga with murder, dismemberment, and boobs? Boobs maybe, but not the other two. Speaking of boobs…

Excess “Fanservice”

Now I defined “fanservice” as a part of a manga that is made to please the fans, but the common use of the word has come to be know as panty and nude shots. This is what’s used in the manga and it doesn’t add anything to it. There is a point where the nudity, underpants shots, and girl on girl action are pretty much all the manga has to offer. Really, just look at all the good things I said about the manga. It doesn’t have much going for it except Lucy, not Nyu (Lucy’s second personality) groping Yuka’s boobs.

The Ending

The ending…sucked. Instead of having an ending that ties things up, it made more confusion than sense.

Mayu is cleaning a beach in memory of her lover Bando, a douchbag solider that wanted to kill Lucy but “died” by her hands. Once she is done cleaning, Bando somehow magically comes back to life and greets her. She hugs him which means he is alive, but there isn’t an explanation of how. Nor is there an explanation of how Anna or that other guy (sorry, don’t know his name) survived, though it would have been better if they weren’t added in the last chapter. They were side characters after all. And then there is how Kohta and the others survived Lucy’s third personality’s rage. Illusions of consciousness of Lucy and Nyu saved them from being killed…WHAT THE HELL! Just how the hell do you explain that bullshit! Illusions saved me from being killed. You know what? SCREW IT ALL, I’m done with this crap!

Overall

Elfen Lied had potential, but gave it all up on panties, boobs, and useless characters that didn’t drive the manga anywhere. The artwork didn’t help it at all. But it wasn’t a complete waste of time. I did like Lucy’s character and the interesting power. I’ll go easy on it. I give it a 2 out of 5. YES I WENT EASY ON IT!

Rating:**~~~ (2/5)

Title: 07 Ghost

Author: Yuki Amemiya

Artist: Yukino Ichihara

Chapters: 1-50 (Ongoing)

Summary

Teito Klein is an orphan who is a promising student at an elite military academy. This academy trains their students to use a type of magical power called Zaiphon in order to be well-crafted soldiers of the Empire. Casted out by other students for his past life as a slave, though his real past is a mystery, his only friend Mikage helps his survive the day. However, all does not goes well for Teito once he learns of the Empire’s secret. He soon realizes there is a power to save or destroy the world and the Empire ruthlessly is after it. He journeys to find this source of power and his past with the help of three mysterious priests.

Sorry for the half-assed summary. Very busy this week.

Why You Should Read It

There is so much going on in the story it would be a spoiler if I said anything. Though the first chapter has some familiar elements like a child of prophecy, amnesia hiding a secret life, or homosexual undertones, there is something about the series that just engages me to read more (though not so much the homosexual part). And this engagement is the plotlines to the story. There is so much happening throughout the story (Empire on Teito’s tail, Teito trying to remember past, the 7 Ghost mythology, etc.) that keeps me on my feet the whole time reading. Some people may not like complex plotlines, but I think it’s a very special element in 07 Ghost which does a good job keeping everything together.

For those who like shounen manga, this is not so far from the actually thing. Though it is a joesi type manga, that does not mean it’s “watered down” to let female readers in on the action. On the contrary, it has just as much action as a regular shounen title. But there is a downside to this approach.

Downside

The main characters are all male. Is that bad? No, but I don’t know why many of the male characters have feminine characteristics. They are a little too caring if you ask me. This is probably not a big deal to others, but it just seems odd to me (especially with religious connections to the story). But then again, I have not read a lot of manga where the characters are the same gender (except for Claymore…somewhat). There are some female characters, but they are either stock characters or foils. For those who don’t know, a foil is a character that is only in the story to make another character look better. Kind of like the black material that surrounds diamond rings in those velvet box. There is one female character introduced in the manga, but she is buried in the later chapters.

The distinguishing features of characters is problematic. Hair and accessories are what separates one character from the other. I’m not good with names though I’m much better with appearances. But when two or more characters have a similar hair style, I can’t really tell who’s who. Bother bother.

Even though this is a male dominated manga title, 07 Ghost has some interesting plot lines going for it. The manga was well worth it. Just give the first chapter a read.

Title: Apple

Author & Artist: Naoshi Komi (First name, last)

Chapters: 1 (one-shot)

Summary:

Aramiya Satoshi has the ability to shapeshift into any living thing on earth, as well as some psychic abilities. Life is simple and swell in his junkyard home, except for the fact that the Government wants to capture him and use his abilities to control the outcome of the Earth. And all this trouble was due to a theory that the Earth created him in order to save itself. In other words, he is the key to saving the Earth. Hopefully the whole thing will blow over after dinner.

The Good

Story

The story is pretty interesting. A boy with a power is the one to either save or destroy the Earth. Doesn’t sound interesting, but on the other hand there isn’t many heroes that shapeshift with their own story. There also seems to be a green feel about the story. You’ll see what I mean when you read the ending.

Humor

It isn’t much, but there are funny parts to the manga. Certain humorous scenes stick out more than the manga itself.

Short Read

I know this is a one-shot, but this is good for those looking to pass the time.

The Bad

Nothing Memorable

Though I did like the story, there was nothing memorable about the manga once I was done reading. It was probably due to the fact the characters couldn’t be fully explored in one chapter.

Overall

For those looking for a short read, this is a good one-shot to start with. But it didn’t exactly leave a lasting impression afterwards. It wasn’t bad, it wasn’t great. It was okay. A three out of five.

Rating:***~~ (3/5)

Title: Skyhigh

Author & Artist: Takahashi Tsutomu

Chapters: 1-10 (Complete)

Summary

You live, you die, and rest forever in either heaven or hell (or somewhere else that isn’t heaven or hell). But what happens to those whose lives have been wrongfully taken away? Welcome to the Gate of Grudges where your guide Izuko will give you three choices: go to heaven by passing through the Gate of Grudges to be reborn, refuse death and remain a ghost on earth, or proceed to hell by killing one person on earth. Each soul gets one choice, which will they pick?

The Good

Story

Each chapter presents a different circumstance for the dead characters. The craft of these different stories presents unique and interesting takes on the overall personalities of the characters. Will they kill someone or won’t they? The fact that they are given a choice with what to do is appealing enough. I love revenge stories, but this is much different. The victims are already dead and have to come to peace with themselves in one of those three choices.

The Artwork

I’m not picky. I think the artwork is great. The black ink controlling a majority of the pages drip grim comings, a foreshadowing effect for some chapters. Each character has a distinct feature; no two characters look-a-like. Not only that, but the emotions in the victims eyes. Readers can see pain in the dead eyes, and that helps fill in the readers’ thoughts of what choices will be picked.

The Bad

Not “Kid-Friendly”

This manga is not for the kids to read. Blood, brutality, nudity, and sex are in the manga and not exactly for a child’s eyes. In other words, adults or those matured only.

Not “Happy-Ending-Friendly” Either

If you don’t like sad endings, don’t read this. When it comes down to it, there is no “happy ending” in the manga — they are already dead! I didn’t mind this much, but I’m sure there are those that do.

Overall

I liked this manga very much. Mainly the story and the art kept me reading. May not be something I would recommend beginners, but it’s one hell of a read. A four out of five.

Rating:****~ (4/5)

Title: Beelzebub

Author & Artist: Tamura Ryuuhei

Chapters: 1-24 (Ongoing)

Summary:

Oga Tatsumi is the strongest juvenile delinquent. During a beating, Oga witnesses a mysterious man floating down a river. The man then splits in two to reveal a baby who then becomes attracted to Oga. And why not? If you were the son of the devil king and soon-to-be devil king, you would want someone as strong as Oga raising you. But Oga has to uphold battles with school gangs to uphold his title, all the while taking care of the young Beelzebub.

Why You Should Read It:

It’s funny…well not in the beginning. I was trying very hard not to judge the first chapter too harshly. The beginning includes some comedic performances that didn’t sink in, but that may have been the characteristics of the characters weren’t explored yet. Luckily in later chapters, the comedy is obvious and hilarious.

Oga’s growth is the main attraction to the manga. No he isn’t really growing, nor is it really seen. But the manga is about a delinquent who has to take care of a baby that will destroy humankind while he is in high school… Need me to repeat that? He will grow, as a character, in one of these chapters. It’s only a matter of time.

The artwork is pretty decent. It’s quite cartoon-looking on the surface, goes with its comedic part, but very striking during the fight scenes.

Downside:

Although I would like to see Oga grow, I want to see him grow away from his fighting status. The story arcs are more about him fighting the number [insert number] best of the school. Taking care of the demon baby is more of a side story. Yes I know it’s shounen, and taking care of babies is shoujo’s job, but switching up the story to the baby may spice it up a bit. An example: instead of taking on normal delinquents, how about angelic beings that have come to destroy the little Beelzebub? See, something that doesn’t involve school bullies. Maybe that’s too soon.

There is potential in this manga. Though only 24 chapters in, it is becoming a rising star in the shounen weekly. Give it a read.

Title: Tokyo Ants

Author & Artist: Kano Yasuhiro

Chapters 1-4 (completed)

Summary:

These are actually four different stories that only last one chapter commonly known as one shots.  The first is called Tokyo Ants and is about a group of skilled people who rescue a hostage.  The next two, Enma 1 & 2, are about two different people who can tell when someone is lying because they spark up electricity when around them.  The last is called Butterfly – Swallow Tail and is about a boy who sees Swallow Tail butterflies around people who are dying.

*Note: these are four different stories that were put into one book.  Since there are four of them I am going to give them each their own separate review.  It’s ten times easier than doing it all together.

The Good:

Pictures:

The artwork for Tokyo Ants was really up to par.  It really reminds me of something like Card Captors Sakura only with a touch of something from the nineties…The proportions for it were really good.  Their heads aren’t too big and their arms and legs seem to be the right size.  When it comes to the style of drawing I like Tokyo Ants the best.  The details of the eyes and the clothes made it look highly realistic while the hair brought you down to an anime level (spiky hair tends to do that).

Story:

The plot in this is really well done.  I could see it going on to become a really long series.  I don’t know if it could be another Bleach or Naruto, but I could see it going on to be a good series.  The dialogue is really good.  I mean, you can follow it and feel like you’re not reading something lost in translation.  For Tokyo Ants the background story has a very good explanation (even thought it’s only a chapter long).  It explains enough so that you don’t feel like you’re lost in the dark for that short time.  The ending like I said earlier I could see it go on and wish it would.  I could see this turned into an anime.

Characters:

Personalities were excellent and well thought out.  The girl was the typical brat-like girl in manga.  She’s the loud, in-your-face, I’m-the-boss type.  The guys were her followers, but the main guy was the kind that shirked his duties and defied his leader sort of personality.  But, the good guy in him comes out in the end.

The Bad:

Pictures:

I…couldn’t really find anything wrong…

Story:

Flow was kind of hard to follow for me.  I kept turning my head this way and that.  If it was put in a way that made it simpler for me to follow, it would have been perfect.

Characters:

The background was just not enough for me.  I wanted to see more of who they were, why they were there, and where they were going. (100 points to anyone who can name that movie). When talking about changes…none of them really had long to change so there weren’t any that I could really see.

The General:

Generally I liked it a lot.  But that’s because I love action and a good story.  I’m not really sure that I would recommend this to beginners, but if you go for this kind of stuff then by all means read it.  I give this story a four out of five.
Rating:****~ (4/5)

Character Names:

Main: Riku

Side:  Umi

Tsukuno

Title: School Mermaid

Author & Artist: Yoshitom Akihito

Chapters: 1-3 (Complete)

Summary

Yoshiko and Haruko are in love (not with each other). When one is in love, they must confess to the person of interest to see if they feel the same… right? Not in this case. Both girls decide to take a more subtle approach. When cleaning one of the floors of the school, the girls find an old book that relates to a concurring rumor. Late at night, mermaids appear in the school and if you eat their flesh your love will come true. Will the girls kill for love?

The Good

Setting:

It’s rare to complement a manga or a comic for the use of setting. Setting is usually the last thing people think about when reading a comic, but here it works. Being somewhere familiar (like a school), but in a different setting (at night) can be quite nerve racking.

The Mermaids

I am vaguely familiar with the Japanese myth around mermaids, though the story serves its own mythology. Without giving too much away, the mermaids were the main highlight of the story. Not only that, but the process of how they came to be is (to a point) horrifying.

Short Read

It’s short (like this sentence). However…

The Bad

Character

There is a point in the story where I found the character to be very unbelievable. Even in the beginning, I couldn’t believe the whole notion that girls would kill something for “love”. I want to say this may be a “cultural thing,” but I doubt that completely. This could also go under my hatred of the manga female archetype, but I would be wasting my time.

Not Really Horror

There isn’t really anything horror about the manga. Yes, there is an exploration of empathy and the loss of humanity, but other than that nothing.

Ending

I did not like the ending, but that is because of a “cultural thing” with me. I am used to the “happy ending” treatment and I am not afraid to admit that. I have seen movies and read stories that didn’t have a “happy ending,” and in the long run I did not like the majority of them. Here, however, I’m torn. I know I don’t like the ending, but I’m trying to see the meaning of it. It feels like a message hiding in the story rather than just a short tale. Even so, I still can’t see pass the badness.

Overall

It’s hard for me to recommend this manga to beginners mainly because of the ending. The ending may actually discourage beginners from reading any more manga, or I’m just thinking too much into it. My dislikes outweigh the likes, yet I think there is more to this story than what my current thoughts give it. This will be all on the reader to decide and debate. I give it a 3 out of 5.

Rating:***~~ (3/5)

Note: The story is very short so spoilers were out of the question. Sorry I couldn’t go into detail any further.

Title: Digimon Next

Author: Hamazaki Tatsuya

Artist: Okano Takeshi

Chapters: 1-25 (Complete)

Summary:

This is a story of digimon (digital monsters) and the hero, Tsurugi Tatsuno, a boy who competes in Virtual Digimon Battle tournaments. But things start to become real when one of the digimon comes to the real world and attacks Tsurugi.  He is then summoned to the Digital World to save it from the evil Barbamon. Tsurugi and his digimon companion Greymon embark on a quest to save it.  They find other kids destined to save the Digital World and they must work together to stop Barbamon from taking over both the Digital and real world.

The Good

Pictures:

There was a lot of high points in this comic.  I really liked how the artwork for the digimon was done.  It was very reminiscent of the anime series that aired back in August of 1999.  I also liked the way the artist drew the heads of the characters.  It was a mix between the realistic and anime approach.  That’s kind of my preference.  I don’t like manga that’s too realistic or too animeish(?) looking.

Story:

I think that the plot was a very Western-style of writing.  It starts out with an event that triggers an avalanche of unfortunate and often dire situations, but eventually ends up with a happy ending.  I don’t know if people who aren’t fans of digimon would really enjoy this because of the way it’s layed out in the manga, but I think that this is a great book for beginners to read.  I liked the flow of the pictures and how each picture was able to draw your eye to the next place.  It was not confusing to follow at all.  A good point about this story is that it has an ending.  Not what I would like to call “a loose-thread ending”.  Where the author has left some plot holes or parts of the story unexplained so that they can start another manga.  When you get to the end, it ends (Unlike Inyuyasha).

Characters:

For me there was some background given that I really liked.  Most of it was about Tsurugi, the main character and Shou, a side character, but there were enough tidbits of the other characters that you could understand them slightly.  My favorite personality was for the youngest of the kids Yuu Inui because he’s like the average joe in anime.  He doesn’t believe in himself in the beginning, but eventually gets the courage to help and become a stronger character.  I also liked those of Shou and Norn because they were those of two best friends, but one of them was misguided and the other was trying to fix a mistake made in the past.  When it comes to my favorites when talking about how a character changes I think that once again I will have to pick Yuu and even Shou.  Yuu gains more courage and eventually Shou matures into a kind of good character who later corrects his wrongs.

The Bad

Pictures:

Unfortunately with every good side there’s also a bad one.  When it comes to proportions on the part of the humans I will definitely have to say they got it wrong.  It was like I was transported back to the 50s when Astro Boy came out in the U.S. or even a couple of years back to the first season of Beyblade.  The arms, and legs were way too big.  The hands looked like they were plump sausages on a stump of meat.  As I read it longer I got used to them, but it almost distracted so much that I could hardly read anymore.

Story:

The dialogue was…to put it bluntly really corny.  It was kind of like watching an old Power Rangers episode sort of corny.  But it was really kidsy at the same time.  I thought that it was going to have this kind of dialogue for a long time, until I got past the beginning scanlations and saw that there was a lot of cursing added in.  It surprised me because, for me, cursing and digimon don’t really go together.  But, hey you get what you can.  The background story felt really rushed to me.  In one chapter they pretty much explain most of it, like dropping a big piece of meat on the floor it’s just there.  I would have liked it if they had done it a little better.  Slowly put parts of it in the beginning, a lot in the middle, and less in the end, but we can’t always get what we want.

Characters:

I did not like the personalities of Tsurugi and Ami.  They were really the typical characters you see in anime and manga all the time.  Tsurugi is the happy-go-lucky guy who doesn’t notice anything outside of friendship and protecting the ones he loves.  Ami, on the other hand, is one of those useless characters who don’t really do anything in the story whatsoever.  She doesn’t want to fight until she can’t, then all she can really do is what she’d been doing the whole time, standing back and watching.  When it comes to changing, Ami and Tsurugi are the ones who barely change if at all.  Tsurugi ends the story with the same attitude he came in with.  Ami barely changes in the last chapters, when she finally realizes that she needs to help.

The General

All in all, since this is a site for beginners, I recommend this manga for them.  It’s a good one to get started off with.  It can gradually help you get ready for more serious and strange stories and plots that those really creative Japanese people come up with.  My rating is three stars out of five.  This is for anyone ages fifteen and up.

Rating:***~~ (3/5)

Character Names:

Main: Tsurugi Tatsuno and Agumon

Side: Yuu Inui and Gaomon

Ami Kitajima and Pitimon

Shou Kahara and Peckmon

Barbamon

Piximon

Norn Mikihara