Monkey King, Vol. 1

Created by Wei Dong Chen, Illustrated by Chao Peng

JR Comics, 176 pp.
Rating: All Ages

Monkey King, Vol. 1, the first release from new publish JR Comics, is an adaption of the classic Chinese tale, Journey to the West courtesy of Wei Dong Cheng and Chao Peng. The opening volume kicks off with the birth and origins of the Monkey King, Sun Wu Kong, and chronicles some of his earlier exploits.

Monkey King’s story is incredibly fast paced, breezing along from one tale of Sun Wu Kong’s trouble making ways to another. It barely stops to breath and at times it feels very plot driven. Despite being the main character not a whole lot of time is given to exploring the ins and outs of Sun Wu Kong’s personality in this first volume. Events that seem like they’re meant to motivate and drive him are often depicted but then abandoned in favor of depicting more of his antics. The result is that there’s a lack of emotional resonance with these events. We see them occur but so little time is given to examining their affects upon Sun Wu Kong that it’s left up to the readers to fill in the blanks. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but going from tragedy to a silly scene of Sun Wu Kong causing chaos seems to undercut the emotional impact they’re meant to have on him. It’s possible that these will be brought up and discussed at greater length in the future, but right now they just seem to lack the oomph that they should have.

Visually the book is pretty solid. Chao Peng does a fantastic job at illustrating the various gods, demons and mystics that populate the story. The action scenes aren’t as decompressed as those of similar manga and most fights are over in a matter of pages. Peng does a great job at avoiding the pitfalls of making characters look too much alike and is quite good at conveying expressions and emotions through the faces of his characters. The backgrounds are always fleshed out and the book’s in full color to boot, making it a bit of a visual treat with plenty of interesting things to look at and get absorbed into.

Monkey King is an interesting creature. I haven’t really seen an attempt at getting Chinese comics published in the US since the ComicsOne days so it’s nice to see someone trying again. That said I’m not sure if this is the right way to go about doing it. It’s a fairly entertaining read but something about it is just lacking the “it” factor to really make it stand out from what else is on the shelves now a days. Still, it seems like a solid adaption of a Chinese classic and I’m tempted to hunt down another volume or two in the future. 


Monkey King, Vol.1 is published by JR Comics and is available now.

Gunsmith Cats: Burst, Vols. 1 + 2

Created by Kenichi Sonoda
Dark Horse
Rating: Mature Readers


After nearly seven years Kenichi Sonoda’s Gunsmith Cats return to the printed page! The first two volumes of Gunsmith Cats: Burst see the return of all the familiar faces from the original series and promises a return to the same high octane action that made the first series such a hit! But after such a long time off can it possibly live up to the hype?

Yes and no. Gunsmith Cats: Burst starts off incredibly slowly, opening with several short stories that aren’t terribly memorable and in at least one case is just downright boring as it involves Rally spending about ten pages explaining the ins and outs of gun modifications to her partner in crime, Minnie May. While this might be fascinating for some people who are really interested in guns and gun modification, my interest in them begins and ends with how well they’re used in action sequences and the whole thing just about put me to sleep. Thankfully afterwards things begin to pick up and return to form as Rally finds herself involved in a convoluted mod plot to manipulate stock prices via terrorist attacks. While the villains aren’t quite as memorable as those of the original series, at least not yet, they manage to give the ladies of Gunsmith Cats enough trouble that we’re able to get some fun action scenes and stand off’s out of it. Still, it feels like it falls a little short of the insanity of the original series. In the second volume things continue their upward trend thanks to a lengthy tale focusing on Bean Bandit and a crazy looking cop obsessed with taking him down. While I do love seeing Bean in action and he’s ridiculously bad ass in the story it’s a little disappointing to see the most exciting and interesting tale of the first two volumes given over to Bean rather than Rally and company.

Sonoda’s art is a little shaky at times. There are a few times were the characters look a little stiff and awkward with their limbs looking a little off, stiff or bizarrely skinny here and there. His action sequences are still solid and entertaining but none quite live up to the reputation of the original series. Sonoda continue to do a great job at conveying motion and controlling the flow of time across the page, allowing him to churn some incredibly complex and speedy action scenes that are clear and easy to follow regardless of the number of people involved. And of course it wouldn’t be Gunsmith Cats without some fan service and elaborately detailed guns and cars and those are here in abundance as well!

If there’s anything wrong with Gunsmith Cats: Burst it’s that it feels like more of the same old, same old. None of the characters seem to have grown or developed a whole lot and the stories feel a bit rote and predictable at times. Still, the American manga market tends to be dominated by Shonen heroes, fantasy tales and more so despite it’s flaws and familiarity Gunsmith Cats: Burst manages to feel like a breath of fresh air and scratches that itch for contemporary action stories. And honestly? Sometimes more of the same can be like hanging out with an old friend and that’s definitely the case with this series.

Gunsmith Cats: Burst, Vols. 1 + 2 are published by Darkhorse and are available now.

.hack//Cell, Vol. 2

Written by Ryo Suzukaze, Art by Akira Mutsuki, Translated by Jackie McClure
Tokyopop, 224 pp
Rating: Older Teen (16 +)

The tale of two Midori’s reaches it’s conclusion in the second volume of .hack//Cell by Ryo Suzukaze. The Midori of the real world lies stricken by an unknown disease desperately hanging onto life in her hospital room. Meanwhile the Midori of the World, the MMO, becomes aware of her true origins and searches out her reason for existing. The connection between the two is made clear as both Midori’s face their final fates.

Sadly this volume is a bit of a let down after the rather enjoyable first half. More of the story seems to take place in the real world and the origins of the World’s Midori just feels off. The connection between the two is revealed but feels oddly anti-climatic. Add in to this an extended period of time with the World’s Midori attempting to interact with the real world and the strange way with which everyone she encounters seems to accept her origins and existence with no problem and her existence takes on a weird every day feel despite it apparently not being an every day event. Still, the World’s Midori is rather compelling at times as she wrestles with the revelations of her existence and what it means to her as an individual. The rest of the supporting cast lumbers rather unremarkably with only Adamas showing some growth as he moves from coward into something that more closely resembles a traditional shonen action hero at times, albeit an unsuccessful one.

Akira Mutsuki’s artwork continues to be weird and ungainly throughout the book. Beautifully detailed pictures depict scenes from the book, the characters are clothed in elaborate and gorgeous looking costumes, and then they’re perched on unnaturally long and strangely deformed legs and you’re left wondering how they’re capable of supporting their own weight on those broken tooth picks. Still, there is something undeniably pretty about the artwork, even if it does border on the incomprehensible a few times during this volume.

I really wanted to love and enjoy this book but ultimately it just fell flat for me. The origin of The World’s Midori is weird and feels like a huge stretch and I didn’t really feel the ultimately resolution held together terribly well. Still, I’m glad I know how it ends if only to warn folks away from bothering with this series. In the end .hack//Cell starts off well but sputters to a fairly uninteresting conclusions with this second volume.

.Hack//Cell, Vol. 1 was published by Tokyopop and is available now.

Vampire Hunter D, Vol. 6

Original story by Hideyuki Kikuchi, Adaption by Saiko Takaki
DMP, 239 pp.
Rating: M (Mature Readers)

Saiko Takaki’s adaption of Hideyuki Kikuchi’s Vampire Hunter D novel saga continues with the sixth and latest installment. D finds himself accompanying a group of hunters across a mysterious desert. With the revelation of the desert being a living creature, will D and company survive the deadly crossing?

Well, D will obviously since the novel series is up to volume 20 or so, so that was never really in question. Then again Vampire Hunter D is less about D himself and more about his supporting cast for that particular story. Discovering who they are, uncovering tidbits about the post apocalyptic world they inhabit and the sheer weirdness are really the driving points for the series and here they’re in fine display. A massive, sentient desert? A girl who was the prisoner of the Nobles (vampires) for years? A mysterious old lady who’s also a bounty hunter? Plenty of interesting hooks in this volume and it is rather interesting to see how they all play out. Unfortunately certain elements of Kikuchi’s formula are starting to show through and become incredibly predictable at times. Hopefully in future volumes he’ll vary it up a bit more, but about three pages into this book and two of the characters practically have “will be dead by the end” written on their faces.

Takaki’s art is getting more and more polished with each volume. Her layouts are becoming easier to follow and her action sequences are getting clearer with each new release. It’s fascinating to watch her grow and develop as an artist. Her use of heavy black to contrast the stark white pages does a fantastic job at conveying the bleakness of the desert and the weird, threatening nature of the forests or stone formations that pop up. Her characters are expressive and interesting to look at, particularly the older woman. She does a fantastic job at rendering some of the more bizarre and weird powers and abilities I’ve seen in a Kikuchi novel too. I mean, deadly bubbles that snare you into a dream state? And on top of that the man using them looks like Alan Moore in a duster!

The Vampire Hunter D are rarely life changing reads that challenge or change the way we view things. No, they’re pure entertainment and Vampire Hunter D, Vol. 6 is no exception. Kikuchi’s plot is light and enjoyable, despite not being as fast paced as some of the previous volumes, and Takaki’s artwork is the best I’ve seen from her so far. It’s definitely a fun, enjoyable romp in the weird hell scape that is the world of D.

Vampire Hunter D, Vol. 6 is available now. Digital review copy provided by the publisher.


Princess Knight, Vol. 1

By Osamu Tezuka
Vertical, 340 pp.
Rating: Mature

From the fine folks at Vertical comes another classic courtesy of Osamu Tezuka, Princess Knight! Often credited as the first ever shojuo manga, it tells the tale of Sapphire, a young princess born with two hearts, one male the other female. Forced to hide her true gender in an effort to stave off the attempts of an evil Duke Duralumin from inheriting her fathers throne, Princess Knight shows her trials and tribulations.

I’ve generally enjoyed all of the Tezuka releases I’ve read so far but I was a little hesitant about this going into it. The basic premise of two hearts and how each one instills a different set of gender specific attributes seems problematic to my slightly liberal and open sensibilities and, quite frankly, it is. There are moments in the volume where I couldn’t help but roll my eyes and groan out loud as Sapphire’s story played up the roll of the hearts to reinforce concepts of traditional gender roles and traits. There are moments in the story were certain characters knock the idea of traditional gender roles, including a moment where some people complain about the idea that only a male can rule a kingdom, but these brief moments of lip service are overwhelmed and quashed by such moments as Sapphire losing her male heart and becoming a scared, simpering, helpless “woman”. There is a whole raft of questions that the idea of the hearts brings to mind as well. For example, if a “female” heart is weak and helpless while the “male” heart is brave and strong, then what about the cowardly villains? Which heart do they have? In fairness to Tezuka this was written in the 50s and 60s so you shouldn’t exactly be looking for progressive and challenging ideas that smash the traditional concept of gender roles, but it’s still a bit disheartening at times nonetheless. Thankfully most of the story ignores the concepts of the hearts and simply plays Sapphire as a bit of a tomboy forced to hide her true gender due to the pressures of her kingdoms traditions and society. With that in mind the book reads pretty well and is surprisingly charming, whimsical and fun. Sapphire rolls from one bizarre situation and challenge to another, ranging from Duke Duralumin’s conspiracies to unseat her, to the machinations of a demon intent on gaining her “female” heart for her daughter, to a clash with pirates and more. At times the idea of the two hearts seems to play a minimal part in things while at other times it’s hugely important and crucial. Throughout the book there’s also a second underlying theme of a generational clash. The demons daughter wants nothing to do with the “female” heart and would be quite happy to continue being her tomboyish self and Sapphire’s love interest, a prince from a neighboring kingdom, clashes with his father over his interest in Saphhire’s wig wearing “female” alter ego. It’s something I’d like to see played up in the second volume.

Tezuka’s art is charming in it’s cartoonish ways and is incredibly easy to follow. On occasion he plays with the idea of movement and borders, featuring characters literally smashing through panel borders and more. Still, there’s something about the art that feels a bit more simplistic then what I remember in Black Jack or Dororo but I can’t quite put my finger on it. It just feels a bit more stripped down and streamlined than usual I guess. That said it’s still fun and interesting to look at and it fits the light hearted tone of the story perfectly. In addition the characters are all instantly recognizable from one another through both their looks and mannerisms and while that’s something that’s to expected with Tezuka it’s still something I enjoy and appreciate about the artwork and is something that both American and Japanese contemporary comic artists could stand to use more often.

In the end Princess Knight is surprisingly charming despite some incredibly uncomfortable and questionable moments with regards to traditional gender roles and the traits one usually associates with them. Since it’s so short, only two volumes, I’m pretty interested in getting my hands on the second volume and seeing where Tezuka takes the whole story and how it all resolves itself.

Princess Knight, Vol. 1 is available now from Vertical.

Dorohedoro, Vol. 4

By Q Hayashida
Viz, 176 pp.
Rating: Mature

The fourth volume of Dorohedoro the beautifully weird series from Q Hayashida sees Caiman and Nikaido continuing their search for the mage that made Caiman into the lizard man he is today. As per usual it gets a bit sidetracked by the general weirdness of the world they inhabit. This time around they find themselves recruited for a baseball game which ends up dominating a large portion of the volume.

The volume’s a bit of a mixed bag with a little bit of plot development and a fair amount of silliness. The silliness actually outweighs any forward momentum the plot makes. Hayashida also dedicates a fair amount of this volume to the antagonists, primarily Shinji and Ebisu and their attempt at rescuing one of Shinji’s old comrades. That in turn leads into the baseball game which is the centerpiece of this volume and chalk full of weird, off beat silliness. While some of the events of the volume are indeed funny and entertaining to read, not to mention that they’re probably laying down foundations for something further on, at the moment they just seem to kill any forward momentum the story develops. I’m not expecting everything to be wrapped up by now, but I just wish it didn’t feel so directionless at times.

While the story is a bit hit or miss with me Q Hayashida’s artwork is anything but. Every page of this manga is a visual treat. Her dense, detailed style lends everything an aged, gritty and run down look to it that I absolutely adore. The grimy buildings, the dirty streets, filthy hall ways and more do a great job at conveying the decaying state of the Hole’s society. What’s perhaps most interesting is the way the grim and oppressive atmosphere of the world doesn’t clash horribly with the odd ball visual humor that’s also present in the book. The baseball game, Fujita’s ridiculous mask and hat combo and more all fit in perfectly with the visual feel of the book but are clearly on the silly and goofy side of things rather than the grim and gritty side. It’s a bit of a testament to her skill as a story teller that she can insert such visual humor and goofiness as a giant cockroach wearing sneakers and a baseball uniform and and have it mesh so perfectly with the rest of the oddball and post apocalyptic looking urban sprawl that you don’t even bat an eye.

Despite my minor complaints I do still enjoy reading this, but a combination of the meandering story and the lengthy wait between volumes keeps it from becoming an absolutely must read for me. Still, in a manga scene that’s still dominated by Shonen Jump titles Dorohedoro is an undeniable breath of fresh air and a rather fun little read to boot.

Dorohedoro, Vol. 4 is available now from Viz.

MPD Psycho, vol. 10

Story by Eiji Otsuka, Art by Sho-U Tajima
Dark Horse, 208 pp
Rating: 18 +

After a year long absence the twisted tale of serial killers, international conspiracies and multiple personalities returns. The tenth volume in Eiji Otsuka and Shou-U Tajima’s MPD Psycho sees Detective Sasayama investigating a series of knife attacks which ultimately leads him once more into the tangled web weaved by the enigmatic Gakuso group.

While this volume was engaging and surprisingly easy to get into, I do have to wonder if it’s a bit too late to do the series any good. The plot stumbled a bit over the past several volumes and when you add in the fact that it’s taken Dark Horse over a year to get this volume out I’m left wondering how many people are still interested enough to care about the massive revelations promised for volume eleven. I’m also left wondering if It’ll come out before 2013. That said one of the good things about the past few volumes and something that continues wonderfully in this one is the growth and development of Sasayama. While he’s still far from a super genius or brilliant investigator he’s clearly grown and moved beyond the hapless, comedy relief he started out as. In fact, in this volume he shows a certain amount of investigative and tactical cunning at several points. It’s nice to see the character being allowed to grow and change.

Shou-U Tajima’s art is as lovely as always. I think I had forgotten how slick it could be and how his use of heavy blacks against the white pages could be so striking. Everyone and everything in the book is slick and stylish, ranging from the club kids to the politicians and the police and detectives. Even the incredibly nerdy Aoshima ends up looking rather slick and cool despite her bottle thick glasses. Tajima’s story telling is smooth and easy to follow, though after such a long break I did have a small problem telling some of the more minor characters apart.

It was nice to see this volume on the shelf as I do really enjoy this series. It’s just that like I said above, it’s been such a long time that I had forgotten much of what happened in the more recent volumes. I can only hope that there are enough fans kicking around to keep the series alive and allow Dark Horse to publish it to it’s conclusion, even if doing so means changing the stock and removing the raised and textured aspects from it’s cover.

MPD Psycho, Vol. 10 is available now from Dark Horse Comics.

Sailor Moon, Vol. 1

by Naoko Takeuchi
Kodansha Comics, 240 pp
Rating: Teen (13+)

After nearly a decade of being out of print, Naoko Takeuchi’s Sailor Moon returns to America thanks to Kodnasha Comics! Arguably one of the most influential manga series in the US, it kicked down doors and welcomed an entirely new generation of young girls into the sequential art form! The tale of Usagi, a school girl chosen to lead a group of other school girls in a battle against the forces of evil begins here.

The story in this first volume is surprisingly simple and straightforward almost to the point of predictability. Luna, a magical cat from the Moon arrives and informs Usagi, your typical, hapless school girl that she’s been chosen to help save the world as Sailor Moon. She’s tasked with several quests, including finding a powerful gem, gathering her allies and finding and defending a princess. Much of the volume is devoted to introducing the various characters and ideas, such as powerful, otherworldly aliens sucking energy from helpless earthlings, and some of the different girls who are Sailor Moon’s allies. At this point, emotionally, it feels a bit hollow and empty. There’s a lot of mystery and questions surrounding mysterious dreams and the enigmatic man Tuxedo Mask, but at this point it feels awfully plot heavy with villains and allies popping up randomly in each chapter. For their part, Sailor Moon and her allies are fairly straight forward and almost archetypal in their personalities and characteristics. The vaguely ditzy, blonde brimming with love and good will, the quiet and intelligent brainy girl, the tall and strong girl with a protective streak and so forth and so on.

The visuals are… sparkly. I haven’t read too many shojo series but I have to admit that Sailor Moon is quite possibly the most stereotypical looking one that I’ve come across. It’s dripping with slightly chibi-esque moments, sparkles, flowers, toning patterns and more. Nearly everyone in this book is incredibly pretty and those that aren’t are usually villains or, possibly, secretly pretty! The panel lay outs are surprisingly dense and busy with lots of images bleeding into other panels, patterns splattered across the page and more. While the visuals do do a fantastic job at complimenting the emotional content of the text and at conveying various moods and emotions, the story telling seems a bit messy and stiff. The panels don’t really flow and motion and action are almost nonexistent. Confrontations with the villains are bland, un-engaging and often times incredibly short and quick.

Sailor Moon is an interesting read in terms of it being a classic and hugely important to the development of the American manga market, but at this point it’s not quite blowing me away or making me fall in love with it. There are moments that seem interesting and are amusing, along with story elements that seem to hold a lot of promise, but there’s just something lacking from the first volume to pull it all together and make it fantastic. As it is, knowing it’s importance and having a vague idea of what’s to come, I’ll probably be sticking with it for a bit longer. If I didn’t I really couldn’t see myself following the series for much longer.

Sailor Moon, vol. 1 is available now from Kodansha Comics. 


Breathe Deeply

by Yamaaki Doton
One Peace Books, 474 pp
Rating: Not Rated

Breathe Deeply by Yamaaki Doton is the latest release from One Peace Books, a relative newcomer to the US manga market. On it’s surface Breathe Deeply is the story of a love triangle between Sei, Oishi and Yuko, a sickly girl who’s the object of their mutual affection. However, as the story progresses it becomes apparent that rivalry and conflicts between Sei and Oishi aren’t limited to those over Yuko’s love, but include the different schools of thought with regards to medical ethics and research that they come to represent.

Yamaaki Doton crafts a fantastic story, hooking readers with the romantic rivalry and the tragedy that Sei and Oishi share through their mutual love of Yuko, and uses it to frame a lengthy and compelling look at a myriad of ethical questions that modern medicine must deal with. This ranges from organ transplant, stem cell research to issues regarding the quality of life, brain death and more. For the most part it handles these issues rather well, though on occasion it does seem to cross the line into anti-organ transplant propaganda. This is heavily due to the sketchiness of several of the doctors involved with the procedure throughout the story. While most of the book is a complex and thoughtful read, it’s hard to ignore the fact that the one of the doctors who’s a proponent of organ transplants often comes off as ghoulish and villainous. This would seem to go beyond the idea of a cultural fear or uneasiness over the issues and into the realm of manga villainy as it features a sequence where the aforementioned doctor engages in the kidnapping and drugging of another doctor after a brain dead patient goes missing. Thankfully this seems to be something that’s limited to certain members of the supporting cast and Oishi and Sei are depicted as wonderfully complex and multidimensional characters who approach the same problem from vastly different points of view.

The artwork is gorgeous and really a treat to behold. I understand that Yamaaki Doton is the pen name for a husband and wife duo, so I’m not sure who contributes what to the artwork, but it really is a beautifully drawn book. The characters all look different, not just in clothing or in hair style, but physically their facial features, body types and even body language varies greatly. The backgrounds are detailed and help ground the story, giving it a nice solid feel and adding detail to certain characters backgrounds and personalities.

So far Breathe Deeply is the only release I’ve read from One Peace Books and I have to say that if their other manga releases match this one in terms of quality then that’s something I need to rectify. Breathe Deeply is a compelling read which touches upon political and ethical issues that are relevant in much of the developed world. And if the social issues it raises and deals with aren’t your cup of tea, you still have a very engaging, entertaining and gripping read.

Breathe Deeply is available now from One Peace Books. Review copy provided by the publisher.


Blade of the Immortal, Vol. 24

by Hiroaki Samura
Dark Horse, 208 pp
Rating: 18 +

The twenty fourth volume of Hiroaki Samura’s award winning series, Blade of the Immortal, arrives! Old enemies return to form and a small group of Itto Ryu members engage in a daring raid on the political heart of Japan.

Subtitled “Massacre”, this volume has certain expectations to live up to. It’s safe to say that it meets those expectations, if not surpassing them altogether. The first chapter sees the return of Shira in more ways than one. It’s been a long time since we’ve seen him indulge himself, not since volume seven, and here we get a chance to see him indulge himself once more. It’s a rather dark and disturbing way to but it does a lot to reestablish Shira and remind us of why he’s so memorable and dangerous, something that might have been forgotten during the lengthy prison arc. If Shira’s past time of torture and mutilation isn’t your thing then you’re in luck, because it’s only the opening chapter of the volume. Indeed, the bulk of the book is given over to a massacre of another sort as Anotsu, Magatsu, Baro and Ohzuan return to Edo Castle. What ensues is essentially a one hundred plus page massacre. While the volume doesn’t do a whole lot to move the over all plot or character development forward, it does show us some rather interesting things about the world of Blade of the Immortal that we might often forget. Namely that the Itto Ryu and their founding members are indeed that damn good. When you see Itto Ryu struggling or getting offed throughout the series it’s easy to forget that they’re meant to be an incredibly strong, skilled and unorthodox group of swordsmen. That’s usually because they’re going up against the immortal Manji or specialized groups like the Mugai Ryu who’s members are often on par with them. Here though, we get to see what happens when four of the Itto Ryu engage the rank and file of the Japanese military in battle and the results are a bloody good read.

As always Samura’s artwork is fantastic and enjoyable in nearly every aspect. His story telling is wonderful and the action sequences flow across the page beautifully and are clear and easy to follow, even with the odd combination of panel rearrangements/flipping that the series undergoes. As usual the fight scenes are one of the book’s highlights and the massive raid on Edo Castle is an intense and exciting visual treat. Samura handles the few quiet and lighter moments with equal skill. The recent introduction of Megura and Tanpopo, a pair of female ninja who are clearly intended as comedic relief has given him a chance to show off his lighter side. While some of the comedy certainly comes from the dialogue, Megura’s spit take in this volume is actually pretty hilarious and shows off Samura’s flair and ability with comedic visuals and timing.

After a huge, two volume battle in Edo Castle only a few volumes ago, returning to the idea again may be a bit odd but after seeing it pulled off I’m rather glad they did. It was a fantastic moment in the series that really served to show just how extraordinary the Itto Ryu, and by proxy Manji and those they fight, really are when it comes to the sword.

Blade of the Immortal, Vol. 24 is available now from Dark Horse Comics.