Manga Review: Ao Haru Ride, Volume 3, by Io Sakisaka

Rating (Out of 5): ~4

Publisher: Shojo Beat (VIZ Media)

Release Date: February 2019

Volumes: 13.

Spoilers?: No.

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Volume: 1. 2. 4.

Goodreads Synopsis:

The popular shojo manga series that was adapted into the Blue Spring Ride anime!

Futaba Yoshioka thought all boys were loud and obnoxious until she met Kou Tanaka in junior high. But as soon as she realized she really liked him, he had already moved away because of family issues. Now, in high school, Kou has reappeared, but is he still the same boy she fell in love with?

Futaba Yoshioka has encountered her first love again in high school, but he seems different from the boy she once knew. She realizes her feelings for Kou are not because of who he was in the past but who he is now. When she discovers that her friend Yuri has a crush on him too, Futaba is unsure what to do.

Review:

Futaba tries to be in denial about her feelings, but that doesn't last very long. I really appreciate how maturely all of this is handled. Futaba accepts her feelings, and then she understands that she needs to be honest and upfront with Yuri. Despite how dramatic this could have been, it's handled in a really sweet manner. It's a little rough for both of them, but it ends up forming a nice friendship between the three girls.

Of course, it could go either way at this point. Love rivalry can be messy.

Despite how roughly the group started in the previous volume, they've somehow formed a rather close friendship, and they get together to try to help Kou up his grades, even if he protests and tries to keep them away.

It's a little iffy where this is going next, and we're close to where the anime ended, so I'm excited to see how it continues.

 A review copy was provided by the publisher, VIZ Media, for an honest review. Thank you so, so much!

Manga Review: Kiss Him, Not Me!, Volume 11, by Junko

Rating (Out of 5): ~3.5

Publisher: Kodansha Comics

Release Date: June 2017

Volumes: 14.

Spoilers?: Some.

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Volume: 1. 10. 12.

Goodreads Synopsis:

It's Kae, coming to you from a crazy situation! After running into my childhood friend, Mitsuboshi, at a voice actor event, I was excited to introduce him to everyone. But something wasn't right about Mitsuboshi, and now he's tricked me and separated me from the group!

He has an extreme plan to keep me from Shima and the guys forever, and it's going to take everyone's efforts together to stop him. I've grown so much with the help of my friends, but Mitsuboshi just wants to keep the old me. Can we stop him before it's too late, and will someone have to put themselves in danger?

Special bonus story! If you thought what happened with Mitsuboshi was wild, wait until you see what happens when we fall prey to a body-switching mystery! With the boys' bodies, I can finally take all the BL-inspired photos I want! Oh, and I guess we should solve the mystery too...

Review:

This is one of the first long-standing plots that we've seen, which makes me wonder if the series will continue to be more serious as it reaches its end.

The previous volume ended with Kae being kidnapped, and this volume continues with Mitsuboshi's crazy plans to take Kae away, keep her as her old self, and force her to marry him. This plot line goes a bit crazy, honestly. I appreciate that Kae doesn't just let it happen, and even attempts to run away. She also protests and refuses him, and even tries to explain to him why he's wrong.

He's just a crazy obsessed person at this point, though.

This volume ends in, honestly, an even worse cliffhanger than the previous one. Similarly to the previous one, though, I still don't think anything serious is going to happen, I'm sure it'll all turn out okay. But it still has me worried for the moment, and eager to start the next one.

I think that the reason the crazy plot line of this series works, is because of the way the humor is done, and how it doesn't take itself seriously, at all. It feels a bit like a childish cartoon; everything is exaggerated and over-the-top and crazy, and the villain's motives and character are a bit weak, and sometimes the issues it handles are a bit sketchy, and yet it's still entertaining to read. It's not meant to be serious, and I think that's part of why it works.

Manga Review: Dimension W, Volume 1, by Yuji Iwahara

Rating (Out of 5): ~3

Publisher: Yen Press

Release Date: 2016.

Volumes: 15+

Spoilers?: No.

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Volume: 2.

Goodreads Synopsis:

2072 AD. With the invention of cross-dimensional electromagnetic inductors known as "coils," the world's energy crisis has long been solved. Kyouma Mabuchi is a "Collector" who makes his living by recovering illegal coils for the powers that be. When his latest gig brings him upon a mysterious girl named Mira, little does he know that their meeting will bring them both closer to the secrets behind "Dimension W"-the fourth dimension, beyond X, Y, and Z, that powers the world...So begins this progressive sci-fi tale where the future of science and humanity itself may very well hang in the balance!

Review:

I was intrigued by the cover of this series. When there's a robot girl, I'm always a little curious. I didn't expect this to be so technical of a series, though.

In this world, coils are all that really matter. Just about everything is run by them, so of course the government has a lot of rules governing them. There's legal ones, and illegal ones, and scientists constantly working on them. Kyouma appears to hate technology, but he's a collector, who gets paid for collecting illegal coils. He stumbles into Mira, a robot girl created by a brilliant scientist family, who've been missing for years. Only a few people know what happened to them, and she's one of them.

As is expected, they end up teaming up together. Kyouma is reluctant, and Mira is excited to finally be out in the world and seeing things with her eyes for the first time.

This volume was a bit more in-depth with the science/fantasy than I expected, and probably more than I would prefer in general. They're on their first mission as the volume ends, and I am a little curious what will happen with it.

Manga Review: Take Me to Heaven by Nase Yamato

Rating (Out of 5): ~3

Publisher: Deux/Aurora Publishing

Release Date: 2009.

Volumes: 1.

Spoilers?: No.

Buy it here: Amazon. Barnes and Noble.

Goodreads Synopsis:

He sees ghosts... and one sexy guy!

High school student Fumiya possesses the ability to see things normal people can't: ghosts and spirits. Every time Fumiya sees one, he turns to the tall, handsome and popular Shogo, the son of a temple priest, for help. After being rescued time after time by Shogo, Fumiya can't resist developing certain feelings towards his savior. Watch as ghosts and spirits work to drive these two together!

Review:

Meh. I wasn’t really impressed.

Fumiya sees ghosts, and he cries whenever they’re near. Shogo is the son of a priest and knows how to exorcise them, only he doesn’t actually believe in them or want anything to do with it.

Mostly, I was annoyed with how insensitive Shogo was to Fumiya. He teases him a little too much, and Fumiya is rather weak and annoying of a character. On the other hand, I did like how open Shogo was with his relationship with Fumiya, and that while he had female groupies, they all believed he was actually in love with Fumiya.

In the end, it was an okay story. I liked the episodic ghost story chapters. The art was okay, nice to look at.

Manga Review: Horimiya, Volume 11, by Hero and Daisuke Hagiwara

Rating (Out of 5): ~4

Publisher: Yen Press

Release Date: June 2018

Volumes: 13+

Spoilers?: No.

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Volume: 1. 10. 12.

Goodreads Synopsis:

Not everyone is as quick on the draw as Hori and Miyamura when it comes to love. Ever the trustworthy friend, Ishikawa has seen the couple through thick and thin, but his own heart seems to be taking a more meandering road to romance. Having realized that he and Yoshikawa might be more than "just friends," Ishikawa is now stuck attempting to navigate the murky waters between friendship and love. But one thing he does know is that the time he spends with Yoshikawa, however mystifying, is special in its own right...

Review:

The final chapter of this volume sums up Hori and Miyamura's relationship really well, I think. They have rather different perspectives, and wants at times, but they go along with it. They accept what the other wants rather easily, and they work together really well. Hori is odd, can be demanding, and Miyamura does what he can for her, just as she does for him.

Tooru and Yoshikawa are taking slow steps closer, while still in the friend stage. But most of this volume focuses on the odd relationship between the group. They're welcoming Yanagi in, and I like him. He's a sweet underclassman. And the guys are still too close for Hori's comfort. And Shuu has a younger sister, who he's rather protective of.

Aside from that, there's a lot of cuteness between Hori and Miyamura. I just love them so much.

I almost wish this were a more mature series, just so we could see more of their romance. They're just perfect.

Manga Review: Takane & Hana, Volume 6, by Yuki Shiwasu

Rating (Out of 5): ~4

Publisher: Shojo Beat (VIZ Media)

Release Date: December 2018

Volumes: 14+

Spoilers?: Light.

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Volume: 1. 5. 7.

Goodreads Synopsis:

A strong-willed high school girl and a hot, young scion of a business empire can’t help wanting to outwit each other every chance they get… But could these opposites be conning themselves out of the perfect match?!

After her older sister refuses to go to an arranged marriage meeting with Takane Saibara, the heir to a vast business fortune, high schooler Hana Nonomura agrees to be her stand-in to save face for the family. But when these two utter opposites pair up, get ready for some sparks to fly!

Takane is suddenly confronted with a major crisis when his grandfather, the chairman of the Takaba Group, strips him of his wealth! When Takane instantly goes from being super rich to penniless, how will Hana deal with a dejected Takane who has lost everything?

Review:

The volume starts normal, with Christmas and then some friend drama. Of course, Takane goes over the top for Christmas, because he wants it to be special for Hana. And then we see how Nicola's flirty personality affects one of Hana's friends not-quite-as-intended.

But then, in the latter half of the volume, Takane has to see his family for a get-together, which leads to a surprise turn of events for Takane. He gets thrown a curve-ball, in which he's going to have to experience life like a normal, poor person. My main issue with this idea, is that all of Takane's money and everything goes away, even what he has worked for himself. He wasn't given everything, he did actually do an important job for the company. But, I see the reason behind it—and, I do love seeing it humble Takane. It's a big difference to what he's used to, and despite how Hana has always reacted to his money and actions, he doesn't think she'll be okay with this version of himself.

The facial expressions in this series are kind of epic. They're ridiculous, and often for humor, but done so well and so purposely, that I love them. The reactions between Hana and Takane, too, are great. They work to surprise each other, to pretend they don't feel as strongly as they do, but sometimes the surprises are just natural, like when they're honest with each other, as they are at the end of this volume.

I'm really enjoying this series. It's grown on my to where I look forward to each volume, and I'm really interested to see what happens next with Takane.

Manga Review: Kiss Him, Not Me!, Volume 10, by Junko

Rating (Out of 5): ~3-3.5

Publisher: Kodansha Comics

Release Date: April 2017

Volumes: 14.

Spoilers?: Light.

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Volume: 1. 9. 11.

Goodreads Synopsis:

Hey, Kae here! After confronting my feelings and Mutsumi-senpai reassuring me to take my time, things have calmed down again.

Shima-chan and I are super pumped to meet the voice actors of our beloved Akane and Master. But at the event, something shocking happens. It turns out that Akane is none other than my childhood friend, Tah-kun!
Though we haven't seen each other in forever, he transfers to my school and asks for my support. I don't see why he can't join in on the fun! The others don't seem too happy, though. Before long, I'm worried, too, because Tah-kun is weak and gets sick almost every day.

I'm ready to do whatever it takes to help a friend, but why does everyone else seem so wary of him? Even Mutsumi-senpai is on guard! Is there something I don't know about Tah-kun?

Review:

Given how far in the series we are, I don't really appreciate them throwing in a new guy character, a supposed childhood friend of Kae's. He's her favorite voice actor, and for some reason she never realized it. And then he conveniently gets transferred to her class.

At this point, it's a little annoying, and seems a little unnecessary, but okay, sure.

Aside from my annoyance at this, it also makes sense that he's evil. I do appreciate, at least, that they were both big kids growing up, and did seem actually close. Kae still tries to protect him, and then they throw in the surprise of him fattening her back up. He's under the ideal that they didn't like her when she was big, and are solely shallow.

It is another point of contention, how she so easily goes from being tiny to huge—but I'm going to let that go, and be interested to see how they all react in the next one, instead. There's really only one way this could go, so I'm probably not going to be surprised, but still.

I do wish this series dealt with these issues better, though.

Manga Review: My Hero Academia: Vigilantes, Volume 3, by Hideyuki Furuhashi and Betten Court, and Kohei Horikoshi

Rating (Out of 5): ~3.5

Publisher: Shonen Jump (VIZ Media)

Release Date: January 2019

Volumes: 6+

Spoilers?: No.

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Volume: 1. 2. 4.

Goodreads Synopsis:

Not everyone needs a license to fight for justice!

In a superpowered society, there is nothing ordinary about evil anymore. Heroes, trained and licensed to protect and defend the public against supervillains, stand above all the rest. Not everyone can be a hero, however, and there are those who would use their powers to serve the people without legal sanction. But do they fight for justice in the shadows, or for reasons known only to themselves? Whatever they fight for, they are called...vigilantes.

Review:

The plot doesn't move too much forward in this volume; instead we meet a new character, and Koichi's mother comes for a visit.

Koichi meets Makoto at school, and she turns out to be a reporter. This could be trouble for Koichi, given that he's an undercover vigilante. Koichi decides to help her out, despite all this, and then when his mother shows up, there's some drama, and a life or death situation. This takes up most of the volume. Pop shows up a few times, and we meet a new narcissistic hero.

It was an all right volume, not too exciting for me, and the plot line didn't feel very necessary to me. At the end, we got to see some extras with the heroes from the original series. That was a little interesting, as well.

A review copy was provided by the publisher, VIZ Media, for an honest review. Thank you so, so much!

Manga Review: Baseball Heaven by Ellie Mamahara

Rating (Out of 5): ~3

Publisher: Blu Manga

Release Date: 2010

Volumes: 1.

Spoilers?: No.

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Goodreads Synopsis:

Ogata is a shortstop for the baseball team, the Tokyo Elephants. A new rookie pitcher named Uno is popular among the team. But for some reason, Uno is cold only to Ogata. Ogata is worried that it's his sexual orientation that is keeping Uno away. So one day Ogata decides to confront Uno. But what he finds out from Uno is completely different from what he expected.

Review:

The artwork was more average in this story, pretty in some panels and more okay in others. The expressions and faces were just average to me. The story line and the characters didn’t really stand out for me, and I found it a little slow-going at points; it did drag on with open endings for several chapters, and that annoyed me a little. Not much in the way of smut, and the romance was slow and just a little meh.

Otherwise, it was okay, and a little cute.

Manga Review: We Never Learn, Volume 1, by Taishi Tsutsui

Rating (Out of 5): ~3

Publisher: Shonen Jump (VIZ Media)

Release Date: December 2018

Volumes: 11+

Spoilers?: No.

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Volume: 2.

Goodreads Synopsis:

When studious Nariyuki tutors two supergeniuses who are total dunces in their favorite subjects, he’ll get a crash course in love!

Nariyuki Yuiga comes from an impoverished family, so he’s eager to secure a full scholarship to college when he graduates high school. His principal agrees, with one stipulation—he must tutor the two smartest girls at the school and make sure they get into their target colleges! Rizu is a science genius who wants to study liberal arts. Fumino is effortlessly good at literature, but math makes her head spin. Nariyuki is stuck between a rock and a hard place, but who can complain about tutoring a couple of cute girls?

Nariyuki is facing the chance of a lifetime if he can just make sure that Fumino and Rizu excel and get into the schools they want to attend. He comes prepared to tutor them, but he isn’t prepared for burgeoning high school romance! Sparks begin to fly, no matter how much Nariyuki tries to avoid it—and things get even more complicated when a third girl joins the study group!

Review:

Nariyuki excels at most school subjects, and is trying hard to be the top student so he can get the recommendation he needs. And yet there's one girl in each subject that just beats him. He isn't bothered by this so much as impressed, and worried that he won't get the recommendation he needs to go to the school he wants.

The principal finally tells him he'll get it, but he has to tutor these girls to get it, because while they excel in one subject, they're terrible in another, and determined to work in that area instead.

It feels rather hopeless to him at first, but the girls have less hope than he does. They don't think they'll ever be taught, but when they explain why this is important to them, he becomes determined to help them.

Thus starts a study group harem. I'm not sure how I feel about this yet. It was an okay first volume, but it didn't really stand out to me, and the characters were just okay. Eh so far.

 A review copy was provided by the publisher, VIZ Media, for an honest review. Thank you so, so much!