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Time for the third part of my Top 20 Favourite Manga list. If you missed the earlier parts, you can find them here and here.
(Just a reminder, this is a ranking based on personal preference, rather than just perceived level of quality; however, with each choice, my ranking of the series over at Anime News Network is noted in parentheses.)
Welcome to the second part of my Top 20 Favourite Manga list! You can read the first part here.
(Just a reminder, this is a ranking based on personal preference, rather than just perceived level of quality; however, with each choice, my ranking of the series over at Anime News Network is noted in parentheses.)
Bathtubs! Bathtubs! Bathtubs! The theme of my favourite book out this week, Yen Press’s Thermae Romae. It’s a downright classy book and I hope it does well.
For more of my thoughts on Thermae Romae and some of the many other books out this week (ahhhh, November you spoil us!), then head on over to my weekly On The Shelf article for Otaku USA.
Manga-ka: CLAMP
Publisher: DelRey
Rating: Teen (13+)
Release Date: February 2012
Synopsis: “Kimihiro Watanuki has passed through many trials by fire. Once an indentured servant, he has matured and become the poised and skilled keeper of the shop that grants wishes. But Watanuki’s final wish is for himself: to meet the witch Yûko one more time. With Yûko long vanished from our world, is it even possible? That question and others are answered now in the concluding volume of the bestselling manga xxxHolic.”
Ah, CLAMP. My relationship with them is a complicated one, because I love some parts of their work but have major issues with others. The only real consistent thing I can say about them is that, throughout their ups and downs, the art is always beautiful. But sometimes the story just isn’t there, and though it pains me to say this about one of my favourite CLAMP series from, this is definitely the case with volume nineteen of xxxHolic.
It’s manga finale week! Not the end of manga of course (apocalypse!) but the end of a few different series that will all be greatly missed – 20th Century Boys (Viz), Cardcaptor Sakura (DH) and House of Five Leaves (Viz). Filling the gap in our manga buying lives just a bit is the start of Dark Horse’s release of Angelic Layer. This is one of my favourite CLAMP series, so it could definitely warrant a re-buy for me.
You can read more of my thoughts on this week’s releases over at my On The Shelf article for Otaku USA.
And new to my brief postings here on Kuriousity, and for your shopping convenience, a handy list of this week’s releases complete with links* to buy!
20th Century Boys (Vol. 22) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
Angelic Layer Omnibus (Vol. 01) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
Attack on Titan (Vol. 02) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
Berserk (Vol. 36) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
Cardcaptor Sakura Omnibus (Vol. 04) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
House of Five Leaves (Vol. 08) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
Sailor Moon (Vol. 07) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
*As a disclaimer, links on the site are affiliation links for Kuriousity with any and all proceeds from them going towards our hosting fees.
Manga-ka: CLAMP
Publisher: Dark Horse
Rating: Older Teen (16+)
Release Date: August 2012
Synopsis: “A battle for supernatural supremacy rages in Kyoto! When a strange dimension overlaps with our reality, Hana and the members of her Inou Squad use their mystical dominion over the elements to protect humanity against a torrent of invading creatures. Thrust in the middle of this war, Chikahito is a seemingly ordinary boy who’s been accepted into Hana’s group–but it’s possible that he has latent powers of his own!”
Gate 7 is such a conflicting series for me. I’m forced to admit, against all my love for CLAMP, that this is a bit of a mess. At the very least it’s one of their weaker stories. CLAMP has taken many of the ingredients people love from their work – detailed characters, winding mysteries, subtle relationships and stunning artwork – and yet mixes them together in a way that makes for an overall unpleasant dish. But, in true CLAMP fashion, the good is always just good enough to keep you wanting to come back for more and this third volume is no exception to the trend.
It’s the week of threes! I have three top picks out of the manga this week and all are the third volumes of their respective series – Countdown 7 Days (Vol.03), Replica (Vol.03) and Gate 7 (Vol.03). All three are also some of the best manga eye-candy out there to my tastes right now so I expect lots of oogling will happen tonight. So, so pretty.
For the full list of titles available in stores and retail sites this week, check out my On The Shelf article for Otaku USA.
Manga-ka: CLAMP
Publisher: Tokyopop
Rating: Teen (13+)
Release Date: July 1995
Synopsis: “Combining CLAMP’s legendary storytelling, color artwork, and elegant prose, The One I Love provides insight into the creators’ intimate lives and passions. This unique and romantic 12 story anthology dives into the heart of the matter of insecurity and honesty, marriage and independence, and, of course, the single subject CLAMP seems to know best: love.”
The One I Love, consists of twelve collected works by CLAMP. The series of stories was in progress late 1993 and was published about a year and half later. Their work was mostly targeted towards younger girls before this book was created and at the time was CLAMPS first original, non-series anthology. The main female protagonists are each in their own walk of life, the ages varied and their relationships different.
I’m still reeling over the last volume of XXXHolic (not bad… but not good?) so it’ll be nice to read some new books this week and give my brain something else to compute for a while. I’ve been doing some much needed early Spring-pruning of my bookshelves too so what better time to fill them back up again?
With some new BL from Digital Manga, the final volume of No Longer Human from Vertical Inc. and a new volume of Gate 7 from Dark Horse (don’t let me down, CLAMP!), we’ve got plenty to choose from and those are just my personal favourites. The full list of shipping titles is in this week’s On The Shelf article for Otaku USA.
I was a bit late picking up my Previews magazine this month so my apologies to the two of you who were wondering where the heck my second installment of Previews was (I kid! …don’t I?). So here I am taking advantage of that extra day – Happy Leap Day! This month’s previews didn’t have as much manga content as January’s but still lots of fun stuff to look forward to and order in at our local comic stores.
February 2012 Manga Previews Checklist (PDF)
You may continue reading at your own discretion for my thoughts, elaborations, random pictures and the Top 10 Selling Manga of December 2011 and Diamond Comics top selling manga of all 2011!
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