Manga Review: Manga Dogs, Volume 3, by Ema Toyama

Rating (Out of 5): ~4

Publisher: Kodansha Comics

Release Date: February 17, 2015

Volumes: 3

Spoilers?: No.

Buy it here: Amazon. Barnes and Noble. Book Depository. Powells. RightStuf.

Volume: 1. 2.

Goodreads Synopsis:

END OF THE LINE Teenage manga artist Kanna Tezuka's series about a high school for Buddhist statues is facing cancelation! Meanwhile, the manga course that's given her so much free time to draw at school is under threat from a principal taken with the next big thing: light novels! Their teacher's solution to this existential crisis is an inspiring field trip, but will it be enough to get these dogs to start drawing at last?!  A sharp-witted satire of the manga world from the creator of I Am Here! and Missions of Love!

Review:

I will admit to being a little disappointed about the lack of romance in this series. I wanted more, but I’m not surprised. There were possibilities, but no real hints.

This is mostly comedy, and it’s good comedy. The group deal with possible cancelation of both Kanna’s manga and their class, they have a contest, they have a school festival, they help a potential student (badly), the boys try to motivate Kanna. A lot of hilarity, with the boys being absolutely useless, pretty much.

There wasn’t really an ongoing plot line here for there to be a conclusion, but I think it ends pretty well nonetheless. The artwork is gorgeous, of course. The characters are hilarious, and I did enjoy all of them. And really, you’re reading this for the comedy, the parody of being a mangaka (or trying to), because that’s what this is about, and it’s done really well.

Overall a very enjoyable series by Toyama. I hope more of her series are picked up, and continue to enjoy Missions of Love.

Manga Review: Manga Dogs, Volume 2, by Ema Toyama

Rating (Out of 5): ~4

Publisher: Kodansha Comics

Release Date: December 16, 2014

Volumes: 3

Spoilers?: Light on plot.

Buy it here: Amazon. Barnes and Noble. Book Depository. Powells. RightStuf.

Volume: 1. 3.

Goodreads Synopsis:

MANGA’S BEST FRIEND?

Kanna had just gotten used to balancing her two lives as a high school student and a professional manga artist when three starry-eyed bozos intruded on her well-ordered life! But as she faces down a rival, a kidnapper, and her dismal popularity rankings, her dim-witted disciples have her back. Maybe having pets isn’t so bad after all?

A sharp-witted satire of the manga world from the creator of I Am Here! and Missions of Love!

Review:

This is an adorable comedy. I know there’s only one volume left, and I already wish there was more. Not to mention my love for Toyama’s art already, but the characters are just great here, as is the humor.

The mangaka-related antics and jokes are so great here.

The group go to a convention, are entered into a manga writing contest, try to help Kanna turn in her work on time. The new guy actually is a manga artist, though not published. Kanna has a signing, gets her manga made into a book, deals with a possible cancellation. We meet friends of Prince, and then Shota’s sister. All kinds of antics in this volume. And along the way, a lot of humor.

I love the antics here, the way the boys are so oblivious and idiotic, but do genuinely like Kanna and look up to her. I will say that I think I like Prince the best, in terms of Kanna. Shota is adorable, too, and Specs is oddly humorous.

I was laughing through most of this volume, and can’t wait for the next one. I suspect it will be just as good.

Manga Review: Manga Dogs, Volume 1, by Ema Toyama

Rating (Out of 5): ~3.5

Publisher: Kodansha Comics

Release Date: October 7, 2014

Volumes: 3

Spoilers?: No.

Buy it here: Amazon. Barnes and Noble. Book Depository. Powells. RightStuf.

Volume: 2.

Wishlist Thursday.

Goodreads Synopsis:

MEET THE COMIC RELIEF

Kanna Tezuka is a serious 15-year-old manga artist, already being published as a pro. So when she finds out her high school is starting a manga drawing course, even she gets excited. But it's a fiasco! The teacher is useless, and the only other students — three pretty-boy artist wannabes — quickly adopt Kanna as their (unwilling) sensei. But they all have ridiculous delusions about being an artist, and if Kanna can't bring them back down to Earth, she'll never get any work done!

A sharp-witted satire of the manga world from the creator of I Am Here! and Missions of Love!

Review:

I was not quite expecting this. I’ve read and enjoyed both of Toyama’s other series released, and was looking forward to picking this one up as well. Her art is just so pretty, and her characters are also very enjoyable. And given that her two other series were rather different from each other, I was looking forward to seeing what this one was going to bring to the table.

I was definitely expecting a reverse-harem romance, along with some comedy. But this is actually pretty straight-forward with the manga-making parody. It’s full of comedy, and while there are some hints of romance (since Kanna is very inexperienced and is suddenly surrounded by three boys), none of it is really brought to the forefront. There isn’t really even a leaning toward one particular boy. It’s more comedy, all around.

And the comedy bits are quite funny. Kanna is a new mangaka, having debuting but still trying to make a name for herself. And the three boys want to become rich mangaka, only they’re thinking about everything but actually drawing manga. And the chapters are short, too, dealing with one of the boys’ ideas at a time, like a pseudonym or research by reading or what to do with the money. The boys are similar, but different enough—one a quiet ‘smart’ type, the cutesy boy, and the happy-go-lucky type. Then we meet a new boy at the end, who seems to have a problem with people debuting. Not to mention that they’re in a manga program at school, consisting of them, with no real teacher. It all adds up to a lot hilarity, and frustration for loner Kanna.

There are only three volumes in this series, and I’m looking forward to reading more, especially now that I’m expecting comedy. This should be good.

Wishlist Thursday[76]: Honey Blood by Miko Mitsuki and Manga Dogs by Ema Toyama

Two manga for you to look forward to this week:

Honey Blood 1 by Miko Mitsuki

Publisher: Shojo Beat (VIZ Media)

Release Date: October 7, 2014

Volumes: 3

Buy it here: Amazon. Barnes and Noble. Book Depository. Powells. RightStuf.

Volume: 2.

Goodreads Synopsis:

When a girl at her school is attacked by what seems to be a vampire, high school student Hinata Sorazono refuses to believe that vampires even exist. But then she meets her new neighbor, Junya Tokinaga, the author of an incredibly popular vampire romance novel... Could it be that Junya's actually a vampire--and worse yet, the culprit?!
When a girl at Hinata Sorazono's school is attacked by what seems to be a bloodsucking vampire, everyone is on edge and wonders who's next. Hinata refuses to believe that vampires even exist, but then she meets her new neighbor, Junya Tokinaga, the author of an incredibly popular vampire romance novel. Dressed in a kimono with an old-world air about him, Junya has a taste of Hinata's blood and tells her it's sweet... Hinata can't help but be drawn to Junya, but could it be that he's actually a vampire--and worse yet, the culprit behind the attacks?!

Why?:

As usual, I pick up just about any new series from Shojo Beat; I’m a sucker for their series. The art, as of the cover, looks nice, it sounds good, and it’s only a few books long, which is also nice. I’m kind of getting a Black Bird vibe from it, at least from the color and image on the cover; I have hopes of similarities, but it could be very different.

&

Manga Dogs 1 by Ema Toyama

Publisher: Kodansha Comics

Release Date: October 7, 2014

Volumes: 3

Buy it here: Amazon. Barnes and Noble. Book Depository. Powells. RightStuf.

Volume: 2.

Goodreads Synopsis:

MEET THE COMIC RELIEF

Kanna Tezuka is a serious 15-year-old manga artist, already being published as a pro. So when she finds out her high school is starting a manga drawing course, even she gets excited. But it's a fiasco! The teacher is useless, and the only other students — three pretty-boy artist wannabes — quickly adopt Kanna as their (unwilling) sensei. But they all have ridiculous delusions about being an artist, and if Kanna can't bring them back down to Earth, she'll never get any work done!

A sharp-witted satire of the manga world from the creator of I Am Here! and Missions of Love!

Why?:

I’ve read Kodansha’s other Toyama series, I Am Here! and Missions of Love, and enjoyed both of them quite a bit. I’ve been made a fan of her series at this point, so I’m definitely planning on picking up this one. It already seems to have similarities to her other series, but I don’t mind at all. It’s also only a few volumes long, so that’s nice, since Missions of Love is still going. I’m looking forward to picking it up.