About Heroes

Basara vol. 16
Story & Art: Yumi Tamura
Translation: Lillian Olsen
Adaptation: Gerard Jones
Publisher: Viz

There was a series called Chicago that I highly enjoyed when Viz ran their Animerica Extra Magazine. When I found out that Yumi Tamura had another series called Basara I jumped on from volume one and now I seem to be playing catch-up. This is probably one of the defining shojo titles of the 1990s, so don’t let the artwork keep you away from checking out this title. The story takes place in an apocalyptic future where evil kings rule and have tight grips on their kingdoms and peasants using murder and destruction. When Tatara, the Child of Destiny is murdered it’s up to his twin sister Sarasa to dress up like her blessed/cursed dead brother and lead the peasants to revolt in this world. After years of waiting Sarasa has finally clashed with Red King and her identity has been revealed. Now comes the aftermath of the epic battle. Basara is more than just your typical Shojo manga. Sure, there are drop-dead gorgeous guys, love interests, and cuteness abounds, but the character development and the intricacies of the plot are much deeper than the pretty exterior implies. Sarasa's quest to become a leader and come into her own as a person is fascinating, and the potential there are plenty of plot twists that even after 16 volumes still catch me off-guard. This is shojo at its finest. Intelligent, powerful, and inspirational are just a few words that come to mind. I know it may not look like your thing or your particular art style you enjoy, but I guarantee you will love it if you give a few volumes a try. A

Chunchu: The Genocide Fiend vols. 1 & 2
Story: Kim Sung-Jae
Art: Kim Byung-Jin
Translation: Jay So
Publisher: Dark Horse

I couldn’t wait to start reading this book because of those badass looking covers. I had no idea what kind of story I was getting into when I flipped through the book and saw the action heavy art. It is a time of chaos when the kingdoms of the Mirmidon and Yoong clans have been at war for the last three years, but all of this havoc ends when Chunchu, a Mirmidon soldier, kills the chief of the Yoong. Chunchu, seems to be the cursed child of a prophecy that was foretold the day him and his twin brother were born. While his own father wanted to kill the supposed cursed Chunchu, his mother spared his life and sent him to live with another general in Mirmidon army. He is now tortured by the demons that are in him and hunted down by his twin brother, Woolpaso. I ended up loving this Manhwa, while the story is not the most original or thought provoking the art really carries the reader and puts us in the middle of the brutal battles. While it hasn’t been as gory as Blade of the Immortal or Berserk, there is still plenty of violence to make the weak of heart to look away. Byung-Nin is a fantastic storyteller and knows when to zoom in to get facial expressions or haunting looks. He also knows how much action is needed in the battle fields to balance out the heavy dialogue. I have to say the translation is probably the weakest part of the story. While I had no problem with the main dialogue, some of its colorful dialogue seems a bit forced. Now I have no problem at all with vulgarity, but for some reason it just doesn’t seem to fit with the essence of the story. It was still an enjoyable story that makes you want to know what happens next. B

In the End vol.1
Story & Art: Pink Psycho (Heath & Nheira)
Translation: Erin N. Blakemore
Adaptation: Barb Lien-Cooper
Retouch & Lettering: Star Print Brokers
Publisher: Tokyopop

Let’s just say when I looked at that cover, I felt bad for Kaito Niikura, cause it seemed like he was in for a world of hurting or into some major bondage. Kaito Niikura is a high school student that seems to be suffering from the same problem most kids his age do; no one seems to understand him, not his dad, friends, or classmates. Enter his new teacher, Ren Ando, who for some reason seems to understand him better than he does himself. From the beginning Kaito just seems like a brat that has a lip ring, wears make up, and some horrible looking punk/goth clothes. He gets into angsty arguments with his father, because according to his dad, he is a disgrace to his entire family. Sometimes his inner monologue sounds like an emo kid that’s just had so much of the world he feels like posting it on MySpace. But I guess who didn’t feel like that at that age? The thing is that Kaito is starting to fall for his teacher Ren, who happens to have a girlfriend and has mixed feelings for Kaito. By the end of the book I had a different opinion of Kaito and a completely different opinion of his bastard of a father. So this was a typical story of love that was never supposed to be, but I really bought the realism of the characters. The book had a depressing ending and a lesson about never giving up on your true love. The art went from great pictures to some obscure figures. While it remained true to human figures during scenes that just involved dialogue between characters it changed to awkward looking characters when they would run or would interact with backgrounds. I’m sure with their next project the art will look better. B

Kurohime vol. 2
Story & Art: Masanori, Ookamigumi, and Katakura
Translation: Joe Yamazaki
Adaptation: Lance Caselman
Publisher: Viz

I can safely say that out of any covers that I have reviewed this week, this one by far is the best. With that being said, you can pretty much guess what this series is about. One look at the protagonist and you can tell it’s about gorgeous women with giant guns in the wild wild west. This manga borrows thing from everywhere; spaghetti westerns, Asian mythology, and even some fairy tales. This volume has a recap of what happened when we last left Zero and Kurohime (Himeko). But what seemed like a quick recap lasted longer than anticipated, because it seemed that I have already read this story with volume 1. It really didn’t seem to have any character development. Zero and Kurohime’s relationship seems to be in the same place it was when we began this story. That’s not to say that we get some more wacky hijinks in this volume. For the first time a character that shows up that also happens to be a bullet witch, Kashihime and she has a bit of a fascination with some Grimm’s fairytales. There was also another character, Saika, who I thought was a girl, until further inspection. Regardless of the same repetitive story this book still has great artwork, excellent comedy, and some really cool and unique battles. If you’re a fan of wild west shooting, mythical creatures, dragons, and magic in a world where the bad guys are really bad and the girls are drop dead gorgeous, then this is a manga for you. B-

Shaman Warrior vols. 1-3
Story & Art: Park Joong-Ki
Translation: Taesoon Kang
Adaptation: Dereck Kirk Kim
Publisher: Dark Horse

This is the second manwha that I read this past week and I’m glad I waited to read this one last. Shaman Warrior’s first volume sets up the background story of who is to become the protagonist of this title. We are introduced to Yarong, who is a Shaman warrior and his faithful servant Batu. They are in the middle of a mission from their general when they are ambushed and caught in a trap. With Yarong mortally wounded Batu escapes with the promise that he would take care of Yarong’s daughter Yaki. Yarong dies in battle against the death lord Yuda, who was working under direct orders of the general. 10 years later in the land of Kugai Shaman Warriors are now being hunted down and assassinated. This time we meet a young Shaman Warrior by the name of Horakaan, who leads his pursuers into the desert and right to Batu and Yaki. Death Lord Yuri heads to this desert town to find Horakaan and with a group of four Shaman Hunters, Batu and Horakkan are outnumbered as Yaki runs for her life. But, there are new powerful comrades that made their debut in volume 3. As much as I have enjoyed Park Joong-Ki's story, the artwork is nothing short of spectacular. He has a perfect blend of realism with some sketchy hyper-realism that puts those fight scenes on level only a handful of artist can pull off. Speaking of fight scenes, they are brilliantly rendered and choreographed. His pencils are extremely rich and detailed. I can’t thank Dark Horse enough for bringing out one of my favorite new titles over to the States. I highly recommend this book. A+

Zombie Powder vol. 3
Story & Art: Tite Kubo
Translation: Akira Watanabe
Lettering: Stephen Dutro
Publisher: Viz

I remember the first time I read this series, I was a little confused with the title, but I’m so glad I didn’t judge it purely based on that. This volume picks up where we last left the old gang. Wolfina’s little brother Emilio, has had a Ring of the Dead fused into his body, leaving him in a coma. This of course makes him a target for Balmunk, the mystic leader of a circus troupe, who has stolen Emilio's body. With the help of Gamma Akutabi, his partner C.T. Smith and his flunky Elwood, Wolfina pursues Balmunk to his circus, where the gang finds themselves locked into individual battles against the circus clan combatants. However it seems that Balmunk has an additional motive for fighting Gamma. It seems they share a history one that goes back to their earlier days when Gamma took on a more monstrous identity. This is an excellent series that I am sad to see ends with volume 4. It’s deep rich story rivals that of Bleach in style and originality. It may not be better than Bleach but it is close, and it is better than so much of the manga being published these days. Tite Kubo's art is at once graceful yet powerful, and especially stands out during the frenetic fighting scenes. The details are especially lush and striking throughout the book. Kubo also takes the time to provide profile pages on the main characters which is always a nice addition. It’ll be sad to see this book go, but at least that is 4 volumes of great story telling! A