Why anime and manga? This week’s reviews give a glimpse into one of the aspects of manga and related media that we fans adore: the creativity of the art form. From fun shonen offerings (Welco…
May 9, 2023 • Subscribe
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The Reincarnated Villainess Won’t Seek Revenge, Vol. 2
By Akako and Hazuki Futaba. Released in Japan as “Tensei Shita Akuyaku Reijō wa Fukushū o Nozomanai” by Mag Garden Novels. Released in North America by Cross Infinite…
The Reincarnated Villainess Won’t Seek Revenge, Vol. 1
By Akako and Hazuki Futaba. Released in Japan as “Tensei Shita Akuyaku Reijō wa Fukushū o Nozomanai” by Mag Garden Novels. Released in North America by Cross Infinite…
Reader’s Corner: Solo Leveling, My Special One, and Alice in Borderland
Oh, the games we play! In our everyday lives, “playing games” could refer to video games or board games or, more figuratively, relationship games. But the world of…
Alice in Borderland, Alice in Wonderland, Puella Magi Madoka Magica
Reader’s Corner: Soichi, My Special One (Vol. 3), and The Way of the Househusband (Vol. 10)
Intro The Boxer (Vol. 3) • The Devil is a Part-Timer! Official Comic Anthology • Heart Gear (Vol. 1) • Honey Lemon Soda (Vol. 3) • I Kept…
Beast Tamer, The Devil is a Part-Timer!, The Way of the Househusband
Reader’s Corner: One Piece, Orient, and Oregairu
Ascendance of a Bookworm: Part 2, Vol. 1 After passing through the ornate gateway marking the threshold of the temple’s courtyard, lavished with lush floral arrangements, our pure-hearted…
Reader’s Corner: Mint Chocolate, One Piece, and The Intrigues of Haruhi Suzumiya
In Another World With My Smartphone, Vol. 1 (Manga) If you’re not familiar with this series either in its light novel or anime form, it pretty much is…
Your Lie in April, In Another World With My Smartphone, One Piece
Reader’s Corner: Higehiro, The Holy Grail of Eris, and Kubo Won’t Let Me Be Invisible
Higehiro, Vol. 3 It’s not easy to keep it secret that a runaway high school girl is staying at your home, especially when you’re the honest type who…
Reader’s Corner: A Sign of Affection, Dragon and Ceremony, and My Next Life as a Villainess Side Story
My Youth Romantic Comedy is Wrong, As I Expected @ comic, Vol. 17 The final arc of Oregairu (this is the 17th of 19 manga volumes) shifts heavily…
Reader’s Corner: A Disassociated Haruhi, Reincarnated Dragon Hatchling, and (Already) Dead Detective
Farewell to My Alter A collection of one shots including the debut commercial work by Nio Nakatani, the writer of Bloom into You, Farewell to My Alter is…
Maison Ikkoku, One Week Friends, The Detective Is Already Dead
Reader’s Corner: One Week Friends, Failure Frame, and SAO Progressive
Failure Frame: I Became the Strongest and Annihilated Everything With Low-Level Spells Mimori Touka and his classmates are spirited away to a fantasy world where they’re given skills,…
Reader’s Corner: Dandadan, Secrets of the Silent Witch, and My Gently Raised Beast
Cats in palaces, witches in boarding school, human heroes in the demon realm…it seems that our reviews this week feature plenty of protagonists dropped in unlikely places, and…
When I Saw the Stars: My Year of Idol Anime
Last year I cannon-balled myself into a genre of anime I’d largely left unexplored. Here is my reflection on that grand marathon and why I think you should…
Reader’s Corner: The Villainess Stans the Heroes, MonsTABOO, and Rascal Does Not Dream of a Lost Singer
It’s a Yen Press kind of week here on Reader’s Corner, with all nine of our reviews for manga and light novels released by the publisher. But that…
Reader’s Corner: Demon Slayer, Nerdy Nurse, and Play It Cool, Guys
Date A Live, Vol. 1 Having enjoyed the Date A Live anime, I was curious to check out the source material, and the first volume didn’t disappoint. It’s…
Otaku Reader’s Corner: Zipman, Marielle Clarac, and My Brother’s Husband
My Brother’s Husband (Vol. 1) On the last day my library was open before it was closed due to the pandemic, I picked up all of My Brother’s…
Reader’s Corner: Frozen 2, Those Not-So Sweet Boys, and My Friend’s Little Sister Has it it for Me!
The Apothecary Diaries, Vol. 1 This is quite a different light novel from what we’re used to seeing. It features a unique setting inspired by a historic Chinese…
Discussing Hiroshima, Hawaii, & Akiya (Abandoned Japanese Houses) w. J.J. Walsh of Seek Sustainable Japan
On this episode of the Japan Station podcast J.J. Walsh of the Seek Sustainable Japan podcast/YouTube show joins us to talk about Hiroshima, Hawaii and akiya (abandoned Japanese…
Reader’s Corner: Frieren, Pop Life, and Reign of the Seven Spellblades
Deserter: Junji Ito Story Collection Christmas season is a time for ghost stories, right? Just read A Christmas Carol to get the idea. So how about this collection,…
Reader’s Corner: Rooster Fighter, The Remarried Empress, and Tower of God
Reader's Corner: Rooster Fighter, The Married Empress, and Tower of God via @laura_a_grace @GamesAndGod @thetangles
A note about the rest of the season. I won’t cover it.
I am burned out writing about shows that aren’t worth writing about. Even the beautiful-looking epics Ooyokiumi no Kami and Hikari no Ou, the only shows worth watching…
Reader’s Corner: Cat + Gamer, The Magical Revolution of the Reincarnated Princess and the Genius Young Lady, and When a Cat Faces West
Reader's Corner: Modern Villainess, Cat + Gamer, and The Magical Revolution of the Reincarnated Princess and the Genius Young Lady via @JeskaiAngel @MDMRN @laura_a_grace @thetangles
My Special One GN 1
The romance moves abruptly in this one, as spurned schoolgirl Saho attempts to reconcile her feelings for hot idol Kouta despite being burned by a handsome guy in…
The Fruit of Evolution: Before I Knew It, My Life Had It Made (Season One)
When Seiichi’s class was teleported to a new world, something went wrong and he was dropped in the middle of a jungle. Alone and afraid, he had to…
Jinsei - Life Consulting, The Fruit of Evolution: Before I Knew It, My Life Had It Made
Day 5: Breathing Life Into Hiroshima In This Corner of the World
On the fifth day of Christmas, my house’s lock gets frozen, and I can’t get in. Over the top cold days like this makes me fantasize about visiting…
Day 5: Breathing Life Into Hiroshima In This Corner of the World
On the fifth day of Christmas, my house’s lock gets frozen, and I can’t get in. Over the top cold days like this makes me fantasize about visiting…
Reader’s Corner: The Villainess Stans the Heroes (Vol. 2), Looks Are All You Need (Vol. 1), and I Luv Halloween (Vol. 1)
We’re leading off today with the first volume of a ghoulish original English language manga series that have become a cult favorite: I Luv Halloween! Written by the…
Reader’s Corner: Romantic Killer, Dandadan, and At Night, I Become a Monster
Transformers or Demon King housekeepers? Youth doing romance “wrong” or boys that turn into monsters at night? Boys that turn into monsters PERIOD or a wizard cursing a…
Reader’s Corner: Ayashimon, Sweet Poolside, Tezcatlipoca, and Guardian of Fukushima
Fantasy, romance, and shonen feature prominently in our reviews this week, but so, too, do two rarer releases for manga-associated brands. They include Guardian of Fukushima, a Franco-Belgian…
Reader’s Corner: Record of Ragnarok, Higehiro, and Cosplay: The Fictional Mode of Existence
Banished from the Hero’s Party, Vol. 1 (manga) Having been surpassed in power by the members of his party—a group of chosen adventurers ridding the continent of a…
Reader’s Corner: Springtime of My Life, Fly Me to the Moon, and the Star Collector Audio Manga
The Springtime of My Life Began with You, Vol. 1 It is honestly times like these where I wish I could collect digital manga in paperback. The Springtime…
Reader’s Corner: Bloody Sweet, A Reincarnated Witch Spells Doom, and Apparently, Disillusioned Adventurers Will Save the World
Bullying, betrayal, and bombing—devastating events personally and, in the case of the bombing in Hiroshima, nationally—form the backdrop of several of the volumes we’re reviewing this week. B…
For the Kid I Saw in My Dreams Volumes 3 and 4 Review
For the Kid I Saw in My Dreams' remains remarkably slow and rambly for a creator who has already been working for decades.
Reader’s Corner: Though I’m an Inept Villainess, Manga Metamorphosis, and Alice in Borderland (Vol. 3)
While settings, archetypes, and genres are so often limited in manga and light novels, this week’s selection demonstrates how creative writers and artists can be within these confines,…
Reader’s Corner: Silver Spoon, Solo Leveling, and the Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya
Solo Leveling, Vol. 1 (novel) The immensely popular webtoon, Solo Leveling, features a basic premise about a young man rising from the lowest of ranks of “hunting” to…
Reader’s Corner: Zom 100, Medalist, and the Way of the Househusband, Vol. 5
The Way of the Househusband, Vol. 5 Tatsu’s former life as the “Immortal Dragon,” a legendary yakuza enforcer, has prepared him well to be a househusband, but is…
The Dark History of the Reincarnated Villainess GN 3
Konoha, as Iana, confronts the melodrama she fantasized about as an adolescent and, as a result, comes to terms with the psychological processes of teenage girls and their…
The Dark History of the Reincarnated Villainess GN 2
It's such a huge disappointment when a series appears to be doing something interesting and unusual in the first volume, only to slip immediately into a fairly uninspired…
Reader’s Corner: Last Dungeon, Talentless Nana, and Oregairu
The World’s Finest Assassin Gets Reincarnated in Another World as an Aristocrat, Vol. 1 When a proficient assassin gets “taken care of” after he is no longer needed,…
Reader’s Corner: Wandance, Rooster Fighter, and Rainbow Days
This week’s reviews ask the question: Who’s the king of the roost? Is it the talented but unmotivated boxer, Yu? Kaboku’s high school dance club? Or is it…
Otaku Reader’s Corner: KH3, Eniale & Dewiela, and Reset!
Eniale & Dewiela, Vol. 1 Eniale is an angel. Dewiela is a demon. But the two of them are buddies. It’s an Odd Couple situation with two celestial…
Reader’s Corner: The Villainess Turns the Hourglass, When I Became a Commoner, They Broke Off Our Engagement, and Chitose Is in the Ramune Bottle
I love the numbers reflected in our reviews this week: 1, as in the initial volumes of four series we review this week. 5, as in the volume…
Reader’s Corner: March 12, 2024
This week’s selection of manga and light novels features stunning and unique artwork, high ideals about love, and fantastical elements. In other words, they’re the kinds of creative…
Otaku Reader’s Corner: December 2020
Look Into My Eyes (One Shot) Look Into My Eyes is a one-shot manga about an idol group on the verge of disbanding. While it appears that most…
Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju, Skip Beat!, Descending Stories: Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju
LL x IR: My Special One
Beginning Note: This particular review does contain character and plot point spoilers. Read this at your own discretion. Additionally, this was written before volume 4 was available. Taking…
Pick of the Week: Atomic Devastation
KATE: Though this is a lighter week than usual, I found two titles on the list that piqued my interest. The first is Maiden’s Bookshelf: The Moon Over…
Pick of the Week: Atomic Devastation
KATE: Though this is a lighter week than usual, I found two titles on the list that piqued my interest. The first is Maiden's Bookshelf: The Moon Over…
Reader’s Corner: Tista, My Co-Worker Has a Secret, and Revolutionary Reprise of the Blue Rose Princess
A violent and more assassination-focused manga from the creator of Spy x Family and two new “reset” genre light novels are among the ten volumes we review this…
Legend of the Crystals: Final Fantasy, The Angel Next Door Spoils Me Rotten
Reader’s Corner: Higehiro, True Beauty, and The Saint’s Belated Happiness
Reviews of The Ancient Magus Bride (Vol. 5), Higehiro: After Being Rejected, I Shaved and Took in a High School Runaway (Vol. 1), A Returner's Magic Should Be…
Reader’s Corner: She’s the Cutest, Mint Chocolate, and Assassin’s Creed
Mint Chocolate, Vol. 1 Of all the variations of the incest romance one might find out there, the “stepsiblings who meet as teens” variant is probably the most…
Reader’s Corner: The Elusive Samurai, Kubo Won’t Let Me Be Invisible (Vol. 2), and Cowboy Bebop: Making the Netflix Series
We cover two upcoming releases this week: the second volume of romcom Kubo Won’t Let Me Be Invisible and the first volume of the historical manga, The Elusive…