About Heroes

Berserk vols. 29 & 30
Story & Art: Kentaro Miura
Translation: Duane Johnson
Publisher: Dark Horse

Alright, we know that it has been a while since we have done manga reviews. Having a kid kind of puts a damper on things. But, we are all back and doing one of our favorite things; reviewing manga. So the first book on the list is one of my all time favorite books! I have stated before that every time I get a new volume of Berserk, I put everything else I’m doing down and read non-stop. So, my daughter was lucky that a new volume didn’t come out the day she was born. . On to the review: Guts and the gang have finally arrived at the port city of Vritannis. We finally get to see the Farnese’s family and the reason why she probably turned out the way she did. While Schirerke and Isidro are fighting some pirate slaves, Farnese’s brother has arranged for a ship to help the group out of the city, but he wants his sister to marry his friend. Now it’s up to Guts to get her back, but just when you think that everything will get back to normal (well, as normal as this book could ever get); Serpico steps in and starts fighting Guts. Of course it wouldn’t be Berserk without the occasional demon popping their head in during a party. I found volume 29 something different than the norm; it was very dialogue heavy. I never have a problem with too many words in comics, specially the way comics are published these days, but for some reason the scenes with Farnese’s brother and her father just didn’t click with me. Seriously it’s not enough to take away from the terrific story that Miura is building here. I’m still at the edge of my seat and we need a breather every once in a while. I mean, he can’t be killing demons all the time right? B

Blade of the Immortal vols. 20 & 21
Story & Art: Hiroaki Samura
Translation: Dana Lewis
Lettering: Tomoko Saito
Publisher: Dark Horse

Two of my favorite series in one review! I can’t believe I have been reading this book for 15 years. I’ve been buying them since they came out in comic book format. I have to say the translation technique is still unique compared to other manga released these days. It is still printed from left to right, and has a price tag that some may consider high for a manga. The thing you have to remember is that much work goes into the translation of this manga. Each panel has to be cut and re-pasted on the new pages in order to capture the real essence of Samura’s art style. The sound effects have to be as close to the original as they can make it, because sometimes the sounds are part of the art style. To put it bluntly; it’s worth the price of admission. It’s been a long time since I read the last volume of Blade of the Immortal, almost a year to be exact. Be that as it may, it still feels like I just read volumes 18 and 19 yesterday. It seems like Rin and Manji have been apart for years and it starting to feel like Rin will never get her revenge on Itto Ryu. Finally, after five volumes Manji and Rin are back together again and as they stated are completely invincible. Watching Rin and Doa sneak in to the underground prison was really nerve racking. The scene where Manji explains where he was hiding the hairpin was pure genius. The artwork is excellent as always and has more diverse locales now that the action has taken a step back. Samura’s art always has been one of the best amongst the seinen category. There is a huge glossary for terms used in volumes 1 through 19 that help remembering names and places. These two volumes are a grand pay off for a storyline that has been setting up for 6 volumes. Long time fans of the series will be glad to see Manji get those shackles off and cut loose again! A

Takeru: Opera Susanoh Sword of The Devil volume 2
Story: Kazuki Nakashima
Art: Karakarakemuri
Translation: Stephen Paul
Adaptation: Tim Beedle
Publisher: Tokyopop

The first thing I remember noticing about volume 1 was that for some reason I had a hard time reading the title. Was it Takeru Opera Sword or Opera Susanoh? I guess I should have known I was going to have a hard time following the title. I was really excited because it was based on the play written by the same guy that did Gurren Lagann. The plot was easy enough to follow; three guys named Takeru, (Kumazo the dumb brawny type, Oguna the silent-dark emo type, and care free Izumo) who by fate end up traveling together in search of the mystical sword of Susanoh. Weird enough the sword was inside of Yamato all along. Now they must come to the realization that the three queens have turned on them and are sneaking the Amamikado into the palace. While the story is just okay and reminds me of Saiyuki you do get caught up in the action because the art is easy on the eyes. The fight sequences are easy to follow and even though the main characters are pretty boys, they all have their unique style that sets them apart. The second volume read better than the first, but I think that’s because the main players are coming together. If fantasy adventure is your kind of book than look no further. B-

X-men: Misfits volume 1
Story: Raina Telgemeier & Dave Roman
Art: Anzu
Letterer: Michaelis/Carpelis Design
Publisher: Del Rey

Assuming you have been visiting the website or listened to the podcast in the last four years, you know I am as big an X-men fan as they come. Recently you’ve heard me gripe about the quality of the X-titles these days. I wanted to branch out and read something different featuring my favorite heroes….something like Ultimate X-men but with a twist. So what happens when two of my favorite genres (manga and American comics) collide? Should be gold right? Well, not exactly, but I did enjoy more than I ever thought I would. What I ended up reading was a story of a girl that didn’t fit in because she was a mutant and about love and school and who you can and can’t trust. Sure it sounds like your typical shojo manga, but it does have the X-men thrown in there. Kitty Pryde always seemed like an anime character to me. A 15 year old girl trying to cope with the fact that she is a mutant finds a place she belongs at the Xavier institute. Here we see classic characters given a make-over that almost makes them unrecognizable like Forge who know looks like a tanned Greek God and Beast who looks like a mixture of Totoro and a Pokémon. The story is entertaining enough to keep me reading and having cameos by popular characters really pushes me to want to check out the next volume, although I don’t know how I feel about Colossus given that tin man look. As far as the art is concerned….well it’s really nothing to write home about. It’s your standard pretty boy Shojo manga art and unfortunately Anzu does nothing special to make this particular work stand out. It’s a unique take on the X-men and I guess that’s what I was looking for. So it’s safe to say I was satisfied with the overall product. B

Zone-00 volume 1
Story & Art: Kiyo Qyo
Translation: Nan Rymer
Adaptation: Ysabet Reinhardt MacFarlane
Publisher: Tokyopop

From the artist of Trinity Blood comes Zone -00! I have to admit that I never got around to reading Trinity Blood; I know that’s really blasphemous. I’m not really sure why I didn’t, because I enjoyed the anime so much. Having read Zone, I am definitely going back and picking up Trinity Blood. The story is really straightforward. We have demons that coexist with humans, but a new drug is making demon’s go back to their old way. So a Saburo Kujo, who unleashes a demon from within and Ango Shima; an exorcist team up to go up against this conflict. While we have seen this plot over and over again, I have to say Qyo’s art is what really carries this story. The character designs are amazing. They look like they come from a Persona (Shin Megami Tensei) videogame or a fighting game. She really knows how to draw some drop-dead gorgeous women, which usually comes with pretty boys. And even though this book has its share of pretty boys, there are some manly men in here too; with rippling muscles too! I really didn’t think I would enjoy this book, but the art really made it an easy and fun read. B-

I’d also like to take this time to bring up some bad news. Usui Yoshito creator of Crayon Shin-chan passed away this past weekend. His book was one of the most hilarious comic I have ever read. Very controversial, but damn funny…he will be missed.