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Review Archive

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Review: Sugarholic (Vol. 03)

Posted by Andre Paploo on Thursday, May 6, 2010

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Reviewer: Andre

Manga-ka: GooGoo Gong
Publisher: Yen Press
Rating: Teen (13+)
Release Date: February 2010

Synopsis: “Jae-Gyu and Whie-Hwan’s romantic charade is put to the test at President Ko’s engagement party. Jae-Gyu slips away while Whie-Hwan falters before his former girlfriend, Hae-Mee, who seems eager to reignite the flame despite her engagement. But what does Whie-Hwan want? If it’s Jae-Gyu, he’d better hurry. Accosted by Sung-Jun from the slave auction, Jae-Gyu’s put in a frantic call to Hee-Do, and the rock star is already on his way to snatch her out of danger…and out of Whie-Hwan’s life as well!”

After the previous volumes’ shenanigans of pretend relationships, unwanted drunken encounters and mandatory love triangles, it seems volume three brings us more of the same, including a return of the previously introduced scuzzy antagonist. A fluffy, light read with occasionally surprising silliness and some mild dark moments, Sugarholic is a manwha that floats between shojo and josei with it’s older yet naïve 20 year old lead, Jae-Gyu. For a book that could be an outright mess given it’s subject matter, Sugarholic somehow finds a way to entertain its readers and rise above its cliché subject matter. That said, this volume doesn’t fare as well as it could.

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Categories: Reviews
Tags: Manhwa, Yen Press

Review: Neon Genesis Evangelion Shinji Raising Project (Vol. 01)

Posted by Lissa Pattillo on Wednesday, May 5, 2010

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Reviewer: Lissa Pattillo

Manga-ka: Osamu Takahashi
Publisher: Dark Horse
Rating: Teen (13+)
Release Date: July 2009

Synopsis: “Stunning, hot-headed Asuka Langley Soryu has been friends with Shinji Ikari since they were little. And she always sort of assumed they’d stay together – until the day the beautiful, brilliant Rei Ayanami showed up in class! When Shinji starts to get curious about Rei, Asuka needs to figure out if she wants to be just friends with Shinji, or something more. But why are so many people keeping an eye on these relationships – people like homeroom teacher Misato, school nurse Ritsuko, and Shinji’s mother – NERV’s chief scientist, Yui Ikari…?”

An alternative universe take on the classic Neon Genesis Evangelion, Shinji Raising Project is a mixed bag of new ideas for old characters. Stripping them of their mechs and mental-drama, Shinji and co instead battle the trials of waking up for school on-time, reminiscing their childhood, avoiding those pesky trip-into-boobs potholes and momentarily questioning what their loving parents do for a living.

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Categories: Reviews
Tags: Dark Horse, Manga, Neon Genesis Evangelion

Fulfilling Some Kuriousity over at ANN

Posted by Lissa Pattillo on Tuesday, May 4, 2010

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Hey everyone, Lissa Pattillo here – quick post tonight to let Kuriousity readers know that in the near future you’ll be seeing all those great double-letters of my name over at AnimeNewsNetwork as I’ll soon be sharing some of my manga two-sense there with some regular reviews (reviews here still continuing of course!).

I’m both eager and honoured to have the opportunity to write some reviews for ANN and hope everyone will give them a read when they go live. Of course definitely check out the other reviews and articles they already have if you haven’t already – I’m jumping into the realm of some talented folk! A thank to you to ANN for the opportunity and friends, publishers and well-wishers for their support.

((And speaking of reviews, if you want some super-condensed takes of manga I’ve finished lately, you can check out my Twitter page for thoughts on a handful of recent reads. ))

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Categories: Reviews

Review: Rampage (Vol. 01)

Posted by Lissa Pattillo on Monday, May 3, 2010

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Reviewer: Lissa Pattillo

Manga-ka: Yunosuke Yoshinaga
Publisher: CMX
Rating: Mature (18+)
Release Date: February 2010

Synopsis: “China: 184 A.D., a time of great turmoil. A young drifter named Zhang Fei stumbles upon a slaughtered village and encounters the volunteer army of Liu Bei. He joins them in time to help in the defense of a walled city. But later, while attempting to save the life of a little girl, he’s struck by an arrow and thrown off a cliff. Rescued by two wizards, he is revived and given great powers. But the price could cost him his very soul!”

Coasting the countryside in search of his next meal, Zhang Fei enlists himself into a volunteer army fighting against the tyranny of another group’s assaults on local villages. But, when an adorable young girl destined for continued sidekick status is in peril, he takes an arrow strike that puts him on death’s doorstep. Before he knows it, Zhang Fei awakes with the arrow missing and a spear piercing his chest, now making him the vessel for a power he typically can’t control. So what’s a guy to do now?

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Categories: Reviews
Tags: CMX, Manga

Review: Gon (Vol. 01)

Posted by Lissa Pattillo on Sunday, May 2, 2010

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Reviewer: Lissa Pattillo

Manga-ka: Masashi Tanaka
Publisher: CMX
Rating: Teen (13+)
Release Date: July 2007

Synopsis: “The little dinosaur with the big bite and even bigger attitude returns, this time to CMX! Long before the dawn of man, savage dinosaurs roamed the Earth. Now, only one remains — the smallest, wildest of them all! GON marches across the wilderness defending the friendly and furry from the mean and hungry. Told entirely without words, these stories highlight the amazingly detailed art and visual storytelling genius of creator Masashi Tanaka.”

Gon, from what can be gathered from the first volume, is a series of self-contained chapters about its title character – the stern-eyed, do-what-he-wants-when-he-wants dinosaur, Gon. A manga series with no sound effects and no text is going to seem a little odd to readers at first but don’t let yourself be too thrown off. A little change is good and in the case of Gon, it’s also really refreshing.

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Categories: Reviews
Tags: CMX, Manga

Review: The Lonely Egotist

Posted by Jaime Samms on Saturday, May 1, 2010

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Reviewer: Jaime Samms

Author: Hikaru Masaki
Manga-ka: Masara Minase
Publisher: June
Rating: Mature (18+)
Release Date: March 2009

Synopsis: “Minami has gotten a hot start as a young interior designer. In fact, he’s just been chosen as the primary designer of a new luxury hotel. When Minami enthusiastically goes out to meet his client, Asakura, the hotel owner turns out to be a dazzling, sexy man. On top of that, the overwhelmed Minami finds his contract is actually for a love hotel! Seeing as how Minami lacks experience in this particular area, Asakura promises to show him the ropes. But is it really necessary to try out ALL the beds…?!”

To start off with, I have to share a bit of a personal preference. I’m not a huge fan of forced ‘seduction’. I know, it’s an often-used device in uaoi, and a legitimate plot within the genre – it’s just not one of my favourites. So, that said, now let’s now put my personal preference aside and talk about the book… it’s good.

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Categories: Reviews
Tags: Boys' Love/Yaoi, June, Light Novels

Review: Bamboo Blade (Vol. 04)

Posted by Andre Paploo on Friday, April 30, 2010

2 Comments »

Reviewer: Andre

Author: Masashiro Totsuka
Manga-ka: Aguri Igarashi
Publisher: Yen Press
Rating: Older Teen (16+)
Release Date: March 2010

Synopsis: “When word of Kojiro’s angry outburst at the supermarket gets around to the chairman of the school board, Kojiro’s future at Muroe High is in jeopardy! But there’s really nothing the kendo club can do to help…or is there? Surely the principal wouldn’t dismiss the coach of the kendo team that won the National Tournament?!”

Our technical protagonist Kojiro runs into trouble, while the team begins the search for the next member of the Kendo club. Totsuka and Igarashi continue to deliver the goods as we encounter even more nostalgic school days bliss, the horrors of being a newly employed recent college graduate, and the horrors hidden in a teenage girls’ relatively short past.

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Categories: Reviews
Tags: Bamboo Blade, Manga, Yen Press

Review: Oninagi (Vol. 02)

Posted by Andre Paploo on Wednesday, April 28, 2010

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Reviewer: Andre

Manga-ka: Akira Ishida
Publisher: Yen Press
Rating: Older Teen (16+)
Release Date: January 2010

Synopsis: “Average schoolgirl Nanami’s life is now anything but average! Having learned she’s the descendent of a powerful demon princess and gained herself three demonic minions – Tsurugi, Kusabi, and Mori – the poor girl has no time to let it all sink in… because she still has to go to class! And as if that’s not bad enough, Tomotaka, the demon slayer who wanted Nanami’s head on a silver platter when they first met, no longer sees Nanami as a demon to slay; now she’s the bait to lure in other demons!”

Leaping into the second volume for my first exposure to the franchise, I encountered a fairly standard manga representative of current trends in Japan, though not one without its charms. OniNagi stands solidly in the realm of myth-based manga, playing with the concept of the Oni to give us yet another demon slaying manga, but mixing things up slightly by making the protagonist a demon of sorts herself.

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Categories: Reviews
Tags: Manga, Yen Press

Review: Secret Moon

Posted by Jaime Samms on Tuesday, April 27, 2010

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Reviewer: Jaime Samms

Author: Siira Gou
Manga-ka: Sato Tomoe
Publisher: June
Rating: Mature (18+)
Release Date: December 2008

Synopsis: “Nearly a hundred years ago, a spurned lover ended Tomoe’s life. Madame had given him new life, but this gift was not without its limitations. Living again in Japan after an extended time abroad, Tomoe was on the prowl for a new lover. But he may have gotten more than he hoped for in young Taichi Yamagami. Influenced by the ebb and flow of the moon, he could be a sweet, naive intellectual, or a rough, demanding lover. Tomoe has never had a lover quite like this…”

This is by far one of the most interesting yaoi light novels I’ve read. Both characters are flawed, fascinating creatures with at once super human abilities and very human foibles. Tomoe has known too much loss in his life. The idea that he could lose this newfound love he’s discovered leads him to make poor choices. It’s natural that those choices could end up turning Taichi away from him anyway.

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Categories: Reviews
Tags: Boys' Love/Yaoi, June, Light Novels

Review: XXXHolic (Vol. 15)

Posted by Lissa Pattillo on Monday, April 26, 2010

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Reviewer: Lissa Pattillo

Manga-ka: CLAMP
Publisher: Del Rey
Rating: Teen (13+)
Release Date: April 2010

Synopsis: “Kimihiro is having some wish-granting success with his very first customer, but his first efforts are interrupted by a disturbing dream of witch Yuko vanishing forever. Even people Yuko has helped are saying they’ve never heard of her. Too bad there is no such thing as “just a dream” in Kimihiro’s universe…”

Easily being what could become one of the most memorable volumes of the series to date, the fifteenth volume of XXXHolic may not always be entirely coherent with its continued crossover calamities and abstract concepts, but like any volume of this generally artistic gem, once the ball gets rolling, prepared to be bowled over by it.

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Categories: Reviews
Tags: CLAMP, Del Rey, Manga