Category: Manga

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Parasyte Vol. 1

By Hitoshi Iwaaki
288 pages, black and white
Published by Del Rey

I remember reading early volumes of Parasyte almost a full decade ago, when TokyoPop published its first English-language edition. It was a fun if slightly forgettable series, with ideas about invasive shapeshifting aliens and inventive visuals. With Del Rey bringing the series back into print in an eight-volume edition (TokyoPop’s version was 12 volumes and reversed to read left-to-right), though, it’s surprising what a difference the series has when read in today’s political climate. What was once amusing is now much more compelling with the idea of a world full of people that may be undercover killers.

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Empowered Vol. 1

By Adam Warren
248 pages, black and white
Published by Dark Horse

Adam Warren is a creator whom I’m almost embarrassed to admit I forget about. His comics are always really funny, he’s got a “good girl” art style that is attractive yet non-offensive, and he’s got an amazing sense of pacing. But maybe it’s because a both-written-and-drawn Warren project isn’t something that comes out on a regular basis that he seems to fall off my radar between books. Apparently Warren’s figured out the best way around this is to just pencil his books rather than ink them so he can release them faster. And if Empowered is any sign of things to come, well, I’m not going to be forgetting just how great Warren is any time soon.

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Yotsuba&! Vol. 4

By Kiyohiko Azuma
200 pages, black and white
Published by ADV Manga

There are few books that, to coin a phrase, are worth the wait. It’s with that in mind that I have to mention the return of Kiyohiko Azuma’s Yotsuba&!. After three volumes were released in English back in mid-2005, it’s been a long, cold 20 months since we’ve seen anything new. Except now, the drought is over. The fourth volume hit stores this week, and a fifth is scheduled for later in the year. And if you’ve never read Yotsuba&! before, trust me when I say that you are absolutely missing out on a series that could best be described as the celebration of pure joy.

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Phoenix Vol. 9: Strange Beings/Life

By Osamu Tezuka
256 pages, black and white
Published by Viz

Strange Beings/Life is one of the final volumes in Osamu Tezuka’s Phoenix saga, a series spanning over 3000 years of history, alternating stories set in the past and the future. The two stories in this book at a glance seem united only by the inclusion of the being known as the Phoenix, but a closer investigation proves otherwise. Strange Beings/Life shows Tezuka not only creating an uncanny prediction of the 21st century, but a larger statement on the nature of humanity in general, one that connects both of these stories together quite neatly. Some things, be it in our distant past or near future, apparently never change.

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Mail Vol. 1

By Housui Yamazaki
208 pages, black and white
Published by Dark Horse

When I first encountered Housui Yamazaki’s art in The Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service, I remember being impressed with not only Yamazaki’s art, but how well he worked with writer Eiji Otsuka. What I hadn’t realized was that Yamazaki is a writer as well, and that Dark Horse was also set to publish Yamazaki’s series Mail. Now that I’ve seen it as well, I’m glad I viewed them in this order, because as enjoyable Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service was, Mail is the book that’s truly entranced me.

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Mushishi Vol. 1

By Yuki Urushibara
240 pages, black and white
Published by Del Rey

There’s nothing quite like the discovery of something that was both an unknown and something you were looking for. It’s rather apt that Mushishi is just that on two different levels. The lead character of Ginko is forever searching for the mysterious mushi, even if he doesn’t know exactly what he’s trying to find at times. And as a reader, Mushishi‘s strange mix of cryptozoology, horror novel, thriller, and crazy biology is in many ways just what the doctor ordered.

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Tanpenshu Vol. 1

By Hiroki Endo
232 pages, black and white
Published by Dark Horse

It’s always interesting for a creator best known for one specific work to suddenly have something else published. Hiroki Endo’s main creation that’s been officially released in English is the epic Eden, a science-fiction dystopia set in the near future. Based on the book’s mix of thoughtfulness and extreme violence, the idea of getting a two-volume release of Endo’s other (primarily non science-fiction) stories is an appealing one indeed. And in the end? It’s a strange combination of everything and nothing that I expected.

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Old Boy Vol. 1-2

Written by Goaron Tsuchiya
Art by Nobuaki Minegishi
208 pages, black and white
Published by Dark Horse

When director Park Chan-wook’s film Oldboy won the Grand Prix at the 2004 Cannes Film Festival, I was amused and impressed to hear that it was based off of Goaron Tsuchiya and Nobuaki Minegishi’s eight-volume Old Boy series. I figured the chances of me seeing the movie before ever getting to read the manga were higher—but it’s two years later and while I still haven’t seen Oldboy, I have read the first two English translations thanks to Dark Horse. The big question is if I can be patient enough to keep from running out and renting the movie just to find out how it all ends.

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xxxHOLiC Vol. 8

By CLAMP
192 pages, black and white
Published by Del Rey

In an ongoing serial comic, it’s easy for creators to take the easy route, keeping the status quo from one installment to the next and no real lasting effects shaking out. In some ways that’s part of what helps xxxHOLiC stand out so much for me; not only are the individual stories that make up the book interesting, but the book’s characters continue to grow and change in interesting ways.

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Drifting Classroom Vol. 1-2

By Kazuo Umezu
192 pages, black and white
Published by Viz

When Viz released Kazuo Umezu’s Orochi: Blood back in 2002, I’d hoped it was the start of a long line of releases by the noted Japanese master of horror. It’s taken a few years, but Umezu’s works are now appearing in English again, both in Dark Horse’s Scary Book series of Umezu short works, and Viz’s The Drifting Classroom. With The Drifting Classroom two of its eleven volumes are now translated, and I can’t help but wonder if publishing the other nine books could somehow result in a worldwide shortage of exclamation points thanks to its relentless intensity.

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