Throw-Back Thursday Review: Get Backers V.01

Title: Get Backers
Volume: 1 (of 39)
Creator: Rando Ayamine & Yuya Aoki
Format: Unflipped
Original Publisher: Kodansha Ltd.
US Publisher: Tokyopop
Release Date: 2/10/04
Pages: 216
ISBN: 1591826330
MSRP: $9.99
Genre: Action/Comedy
Rated: OT (Older Teen Age 16+)

Description: The job of a retriever is not a very lucrative one, at least not for Ginji Amano and Ban Mido. Unable to attract even one client, they're so down on their luck that they've ingested nothing but water for the past three days. They attempt -- unsuccessfully, we might add -- to land a date with some girls in the hopes they'll buy the starving duo some hamburgers. And having lost their last yen to a maliciously dysfunctional vending machine, death by starvation seems imminent ... until a homeless man takes pity on them and shares some of the food he's been able to scrounge.

Upon learning that Ginji and Ban are the GetBackers, he offers them all he has left to get his daughter back from the Yakuza ... and so begins our saga ...

Contains 5 Parts:

• Act I: Enter the Getbackers
• Part 1: No Such Thing as a Free Lunch Date
• Part 2: His Daughter’s Keeper
• Part 3: Undead Men Tell No Tales
• Act II: The Case of the Lucky Cat
• Part 1: Like a Bat Outta Heaven
• Part 2: A Cat Always Lands on its Face

Review:

Cover: Boy, where do I start with this piece of work. Well, let’s begin with the front. First off, Tokyopop changed cover designs. The first cover design was decent. The new cover design just hurts the eyes.

The front has a bright orange background, with a sideways slash on the top that is black. On the black background is the series title in white, which was about the only thing I was impressed with. From the G on the “Get Backers”, we have a white looking strip that goes down to the bottom of the manga, and then makes a right turn where it meets the spine, which is also white. We have a relatively . . . well, I am not going to say nice picture. I don’t like it, let me just get to it. It’s a very red pic of Ban and Ginji, the two main characters of the Get Backers series. They have some black ink on it as well, which fills in the details, but as a whole, the front cover is one of the worst covers I have seen Tokyopop release in a LONG time. We also get the mangakas gracing the bottom of the cover as well.

The Spine is half way decent. From top to bottom we have the new “Tokyopop Logo” which I don’t care for as much (it is too big in my opinion). Under that we have the series title, the mangakas, the volume number, and a picture of Ginji in red and white. The picture is from the front cover, but it looks better then the red and black pic they used on the front cover.

The back cover is the same color as the front (shudders). We have the black slash on the top with the series title. Orange background, again, with the manga volume summary. Under that we have the 100% Authentic Manga Stamp, and to the left we have a pic of one of the main characters from the first act of the manga.

As a whole, the cover could have been a lot better. For your next cover, Tokyopop, please don’t use so many bright colors. It hurts the eyes.

Artwork: The artwork of Get Backers flows rather nicely. It is very consistent in style, which makes it more enjoyable for me to read. The mangakas also put a lot of detail where it should be put (emotional and action scenes). For the most part, the art inside the cover is rather nicely done, which deserves to be noticed, since the cover may scare some people away from the series due to its brightness.

Translation: Since this is my first time reading or taking anything in from the Get Backers franchise, I can’t really say that much on the translation as of yet. The character names and Japanese honorifics are all in here though. Plus sound effects are left intact.

Content (Warning: May Contain Spoilers): Not to get too much into detail with this series (it is definitely worth checking out), I will go over some of the minor aspects of this volume.

In Act I we start off with these two teens, Ginji and Ban, who are looking for work because they are flat broke. They want something to eat, so they find a vending machine with some health drinks. All they need is a lousy 10 Yen in order to purchase the drink. They see a kid who has the 10 Yen they need, but the kid has a mission for them; get back his copy of Final Fantasy IX from someone who stole it. So, Ginji and Ban decide to take up this case, so they can at least eat. In the process of getting the game back, they get beat up by the thief’s older brother.

The second mission involves a little more then just stealing back a video game. An old man wants to see his daughter, who was supposedly kidnapped by some Yakuza, before he dies. In this main part of the first Act, a lot of angst is revealed, and we also get to see a nice display of our heroes in action as Ginji uses his static powers for the first time and Ban uses his Evil Eyes.

Act II, which I don’t believe finishes in this volume, introduces a few other main characters: Hevn and Natsume. Our Get Backers get a new mission, this time to retrieve a stolen good luck neko. As our heroes retrieve the item, they manage to break it. They bring it back to their client who is thankful that they brought it back to her. However, there is a new enemy in the room with them. Hishiki, a shady character in a black suit, attacks the Get Backers. Ban uses his Evil Eyes to create an illusion that brings Hishiki to his demise. However, another black suit man appears behind them with a knife to Natsumi’s throat. He asks for the contents of the beckoning cat. . .

The manga ends rather abruptly, making the reader want more. This series so far his drawn me in, and I cannot wait to get my hands on the next volume to this series. Other then the cover, this series is almost 100% perfect in my opinion. So, go get your copy of Get Backers V.01 today!

Objectionable Content:

• Language: Yes
• Violence: Yes
• Nudity: Yes
• Sexual Situations: Yes

Overall Rating: 4/5

Where Purchased: Orbits

Review: School Judgment - Gakkyu Hotei V.03

Title: School Judgment - Gakkyu Hotei
Volume: 3 (of 3)
Creator: Nobuaki Enoki & Takeshi Obata
Format: Unflipped
Original Publisher: SHUEISHA
US Publisher: VIZ
Release Date: 6/7/16
Pages: 208
ISBN: 1421585685
MSRP: $9.99
Genre: Shonen Jump
Rated: T (For Teen)

Description: In order to curb the crime running rampant in the elementary school system, a new solution has been enacted in the form of the School Judgment System. Now the young students themselves will be responsible for solving the issues that befall them. But are they up for the task?

Tento once again finds himself in a tight spot when he’s accused of trying to murder the school’s Madonna, Reiko Shiratori, and locking her unconscious body in a shed. Can Abaku ronpa his friend to freedom? Meanwhile, the Red Ogre sends out a warning to Abaku, Sarutobi and Yui: discover his identity before graduation or he will murder all of their classmates again! Can Abaku solve this final mystery in time?

Contains Chapters 17-22:

• Chapter 17: The Beginning of the End
• Chapter 18: Dog vs. Pheasant
• Chapter 19: I'm Not Afraid
• Chapter 20: The Key
• Chapter 21: Where the Ogre Dwells
• Final Chapter: The Session That Started It All
• One-Shot Part A: Case Arc
• One-Shot Part B: Courtroom Arc

Review:

Cover: The cover for the final volume features the four members who were all part of the Bloody Classroom Session, the final trial of the series. The background is purple, with a shattered glass effect. The series title is across the bottom, with the volume number under it on the lower right.

The spine from top-to-bottom contains the Shonen Jump brand logo, the series title, the volume number, the mangakas, and the VIZ company logo.

The back cover features Shuichi Higashide, the class police officer, shining his light baton. Behind him looks to be some sort of fortress with a monstrous like structure coming out the top of it. The volume summary is across the top of the cover.

The imaging used for this cover is very powerful, especially with the overall content that is contained within. It's cool to see our four main characters on the front, all together. Also love the back with Higashide, since he looks like he's trying to get to the bottom of whats all going on. My only complaint, again, is the same as the last two volumes. I really wish there was was some kind of image on the spine.

Artwork: The artwork is once again consistent, just like the other two volumes in the series. However, with the bonus content, the artwork does suffer due to Obata not being the artist, but the original creator of the series. I really love Obata's style however. The art appeals to me due to it reminds me of Death Note, but a bit more cartoonish. It's really worth checking out just for the art.

Translation: Character names, cultural references, and locations are left intact. Sound Effects have been changed like the rest of VIZ's titles.

Extras: There are a lot of notes from the writer, which I really enjoyed reading, as it explains to the reader the process of how this manga's chapters were produced from beginning to end. There is also the creator's original two chapters that lead to this series being created. The artwork for these two chapters is drastically different from the rest of the series. Due to that I wasn't able to get through both chapters (it really was a pain with just that art style). Overall it was still nice to get such a hefty amount of extras for the final volume of the series.

Content (Warning: May Contain Spoilers): This review this time around is going to be relatively short since we only had one actual case to deal with this time around that spans the rest of the series.

Early morning before school we Tento is busy feeding the schools rabbits since he is in charge of taking care of them that morning. One of them ends up escaping and when he goes after the rabbit, there is a scream heard and a loud crash. Abaku goes to investigate, since he is nearby and he finds his teacher inside of the rabbit enclosure, knocked out and bleeding. This is a definite big crime scene and we then learn that Shuichi, the class president who has been involved in several of the previous cases, is actually a classroom officer who was put into their class to investigate it from within. He brings in a new character, Yui Kijima, to help solve the case. She is also the last member of the original Bloody Classroom case that was never solved. Now all three members are officially brought back together, their memories begin to get pieced back together and they begin to remember there was a fourth student who survived the original case years ago and now that person is a member of their class.

The case involving the attack on their teacher is solved rather quickly, as she was just knocked unconscious and we get the resolution when she awakes (no spoilers). But that case is looked over fast as the original Bloody Classroom mystery takes full focus as we learn the truth behind that entire day. We learn that Tento was the fourth child and the other three found him wearing a mask and covered in blood the day of the incident. But none of them were the killers. The ending is pretty shocking actually from the past cases; this one is truly a game changer and I really was not expecting the outcome we received.

Like I mentioned earlier, this is the final volume, and as it stands, it had a pretty clear overall ending. I do wish though that this series would have received a few more volumes. I fond it to be very fun and entertaining. If you love a good mystery, even though half of it takes place inside of a courtroom setting, this series is definitely worth checking out!

Objectionable Content:

• Language: No
• Violence: Yes
• Nudity: No
• Sexual Situations: Yes

Score:

• Cover: 7/10
• Artwork: 8/10
• Translation: 8/10
• Extras: 10/10
• Story: 7/10

Overall Rating: 8/10

Where Purchased: Barnes and Nobles
Original Review Date: 6/28/16

Manga Collection Page!

Something I have been working on for a while is a new page, which keeps track of my collection, as well as let's fellow readers see what manga volumes in my library! Head on over to the new Manga Collection page. It can also be found in the directory tab on the right! I have up to Monster Hunter -Flash Hunter done! More will be added soon, so stay tuned for more updates on this new section!

Update: Reading List Change

I've changed the review order of what will be reviewed next, since two volumes of one of my all time favorite series has finally been released. Currently reading Black Clover, which will be the first review following Magi V.18. After that, Fruits Basket Collector's Edition will be reviewed, before I get to reviewing the next My Hero Academia. I hope to have both read during Anime Expo weekend (that will be my reading material while I wait in line for panels, take rest breaks, and eat). Not gonna actually post it yet, but here is what July will be looking like...

NEW REVIEWS

• 7/5 - Magi V.18
• 7/10 - Black Clover V.01
• 7/12 - Fruits Basket CE V.01
• 7/19 - Fruits Basket CE V.02
• 7/26 - My Hero Academia V.04
• 7/31 - Inuyashiki V.04

I will be trying to do double duty with manga reviews, since I haven't decided on a new anime to review at the moment. This will also give me a chance to catch up a bit with other mangas that I have been meaning to review. The weeks I review Fruits Basket, there will only be 1 review those weeks (still will be getting TBT Reviews). The reason is those are double sized volumes with a lot more content I will need to read and cover in the review.

Throw-Back Thursday Review: Saint Seiya: Knights of the Zodiac V.01

Title: Saint Seiya: Knights of the Zodiac
Volume: 1 (of 28)
Creator: Masami Kurumada
Format: Unflipped
Original Publisher: SHUEISHA Inc.
US Publisher: Viz
Release Date: 1/12/03
Pages: 192
ISBN: 1591162254
MSRP: $7.95
Genre: Shonen Jump
Rated: T (For Teens)

Description: This series follows the adventures of five handsome, heroic boys: Seiya the Pegasus Saint, Shiryuu the Dragon Saint, Hyouga the Cygnus Swan Saint, Shun the Andromeda Saint, and Ikki the Phoenix Saint. It begins when they first earn their armor and slowly learn the secrets and responsibilities of being Bronze Saints.



Contains Chapters 1-4:

• Chapter One: The Knights of Athena
• Chapter Two: The Pegasus Cloth
• Chapter Three: The Golden Cloth
• Chapter Four: The Galaxy Wars

Review:

Cover: Having not been familiarized with the original Japanese covers of Saint Seiya, I can only judge them based on VIZ’s release. The front cover has a very nice design. We have somewhat of a tie-dye effect background, with a burst of white in the center. Seiya also appears in “silver” armor, which is rather surprising since he has “bronze” armor in the series. Behind Seiya is his Zodiac character, the Pegasus. For the title we have Saint Seiya (small text), followed by Knights of the Zodiac (Big Text). This kind of surprised me since the material they are basing the manga on is more Saint Seiya and less Knights of the Zodiac (all names are kept original and nothing is really edited). The bottom of the cover has the volume number.

The spine from top to bottom is like most of the Shonen Jump titles so far. We have the Shonen Jump logo, the series title (Knights of the Zodiac), the volume number, the Mangaka’s name, and a picture of Seiya.

The back is neither too colorful nor too bland. We have a light blue strip at the top of the page with the Shonen Jump logo in it. After that we have a darker blue strip with the series title that overlaps the two blues (same series title like the front). In the center we have a nice description of the manga volume on the left, and a picture of the Pegasus Cloth on the right. Under that is the volume number.

As the cover as a whole goes, I like it. The only problem I have is with the spine, which lists Knights of the Zodiac only. Because of this little title, I can not keep it on my shelf with the “S” Mangas. Yes, I am weird, but if a manga has a name change, or uses both names, it should be consistent and leave it with every series title on the manga. The series is called Saint Seiya: Knights of the Zodiac, not just Knights of the Zodiac.

Artwork: The Artwork of Saint Seiya is a little old . . . who am I kidding, it was made in the early to mid 80s. The artwork of Saint Seiya IS old, but it does not suffer that much damage as it still looks fairly new. The detail of the characters however is not all that interesting. They are done rather dully, however, the battle scenes make up for this.

Translation: The translation so far is fairly accurate. Most, if not all of the names have been kept the same. Also something to note, the plot is kept truer to Saint Seiya then Knights of the Zodiac. I find the translation one of the best aspects of this release.

Content (Warning: May Contain Spoilers): Saint Seiya is just your average typical shounen manga. In the first volume, it starts out with a boy named Seiya, as he is competing in a small tournament in Greece for the Pegasus Cloth. Seiya’s last opponent (we don’t see the other matches) Cassios. Seiya easily wins this match and gains the Cloth. He then must return to Japan before the Galactic Wars begin (another tournament whose winner receives the Gold Cloth). Currently all that Seiya has is a Bronze Cloth.

As Seiya tries to go back to Japan, he is confronted and attacked by a female warrior, Shina. If it wasn’t for the help of the Bronze Cloth, Seiya would not have been able to get past Shina.

Seiya finally makes it back to Greece and the Galactic Wars begin. His first match is against Geki who has the Bear Bronze Cloth. Geki has the upper hand because his Cloth gives him super strength, but Seiya uses his Meteor attack on Geki when Geki has him in a headlock. The attack destroys the armor on Geki’s Arms, removing his super strength. Geki gives up, and Seiya wins the first match.

As far as this Volume goes, it is not really all that exciting. Besides the fight scenes that were entertaining, the main plot of the first ARC did not really begin. Buy this volume only if you are a true Saint Seiya fan. If you are not that big of a Saint Seiya fan and still want to try the series out, don’t hate it cause of one volume; read on to the next.

Objectionable Content:
Language: No
Violence: Yes
Nudity: No
Sexual Situations: No

Overall Rating: 2/5

Where Purchased: Frank and Sons (Collectible Show)

Review: My Hero Academia V.03

Title: My Hero Academia
Volume: 3 (of 8+)
Creator: Kohei Horikoshi
Format: Unflipped
Original Publisher: SHUEISHA
US Publisher: VIZ
Release Date: 2/2/16
Pages: 192
ISBN: 1421585103
MSRP: $9.99
Genre: Shonen Jump
Rated: T (For Teen)

Description: What would the world be like if 80 percent of the population manifested superpowers called “Quirks”? Heroes and villains would be battling it out everywhere! Being a hero would mean learning to use your power, but where would you go to study? The Hero Academy of course! But what would you do if you were one of the 20 percent who were born Quirkless?

A sinister group of villains has attacked the first-year U.A. students, but their real target is All Might. It’s all that Midoriya and his classmates can do to hold them off until reinforcements arrive. All Might joins the battle to protect the kids, but as his power runs out he may be forced into an extremely dangerous bluff!

Contains Numbers 18-26:

• No.18: Heroes' Counterattack
• No.19: All Might
• No.20: The World of Pros
• No.21: In Each of Our Hearts
• No.22: That's The Idea, Ochako
• No.23: Roaring Sports Festival
• No.24: Mad Dash and Knockdown
• No.25: In Their Own Quirky Ways
• No.26: Chase Down the Leader

Review:

Cover: The cover this time has a lot of action going on. Characters represented are Midoriya, Bakugo, Todoroki, Kirishima, and the villain Tomura Shigaraki. The heroes look desperate while the only lone villain looks pretty meanacing. The background coloring is black and blue. The series title is across the top, with the usual upper left corner volume number design that makes it look like an American  comic book cover. The character represented on the volume number this time is Bakugo.

The spine from top-to-bottom contains the Shonen Jump brand logo, the series title, the volume number, the mangaka, an image of Bakugo (from the volume number logo on the front), and the VIZ company logo.

The back cover is split in half vertically right down the center. On the right we have a Perfume Ad for a new hero featured in this volume, Midnight. The left side has the volume summary on the top half, with an image of Midoriya reaching forward on the bottom (image from the front cover).

I still am digging how they are doing these covers and making them look like the American comics that the mangaka is clearly inspired by. My only real issue, like the last volume as well, is the horrid color scheme and design used on the back cover. I love the whole Super Hero Ad segment being used, but the volume summary is overlayed across a neon yellow bubble with tons of different colors used for the actual text. It is truly a bother for my eyes, and I am sure other fans will agree with me here as well.

Artwork: The artwork continues to amaze me as well, especially with this volume. We have two very different types of action going on in this volume as we move from our first story arc and segue right into the second which have completely different feels. The art however is consistent with every page and panel and I really love the mix of style that the creator uses with the way he designs this series. It truly is an American styled of comic done in a manga type of world.

Translation: Characters, attacks, cultural references, and places are all left intact. Sound Effects have been made into English text.

Extras: Tons of character profile pages (one after each chapter). There is also a Meet the Assistants page, introducing Horikoshi's assistants who help him out with the manga.

Content (Warning: May Contain Spoilers): As mentioned above, this volume kind of has two stories, as we finish our first story arc with our heroes taking on the supposed Villains (more like terrorists), and move into the Sports Festival Arc. Both are filled with tons of action, but probably a bit different from what we have come to understand in terms of action by now with this series.

The main event of the USJ story arc begins as All Might enters the battle after recharging for several hours and being able to become his heroic form. Although he enters the fight, the rest of the students continue to help and fight back as they see there is just way too many villains for one hero to handle on their own. And just because All Might is on the scene doesn't mean that this fight is going to be easy. His powers are draining faster now that he has transferred some of them for Midoriya, and eventually there will come a time where he may need to give up being a hero forever.

The battle reaches a conclusion as Iida returns to the battle, after he left it last volume to tell the other teachers at UA Academy that their lesson was interuppted by this villain riot. The main villain who started the attack, Tomura Shigaraki, decides it is time to flee and regroup for another day as they might not survive with this many heroes just arriving. Back at the villains hideout though, we learn that Shigaraki isn't the head villain, someone else is pulling the strings behind the scene, but us readers won't be learning that for much later.

There were plenty of casualties during the fight, leaving several of our heroes injured pretty bad. Luckily no one really died. We then meet Tsukauchi, a news reporter and also a close friend of All Might's who also knows of his secret. Tsukauchi wants the story behind the Villains attack and is there to help make the press see that the villains were truly at fault for this destruction and that no harm was really done with the students.

After the overall conclusion of the USJ arc, we move to the Sports Festival arc, where the entire UA Academy must compete in games and try to win the favor of veteran heroes in hopes of being picked up as sponsors to help them in their training and future careers as heroes. The first event is a relay race which is pretty much a neck on neck race to the finish between Bakugo and Todoroki. However in a last ditch effort at the very end, Midoriya uses his skills, without his quirk, and jumps to the finish line, becoming the winner. Now that Midoriya has won, he gets top points, leaving him as Target #1 for the remainder of the Sports Festival on who needs to be taken down first.

I absolutely enjoyed this volume from cover to cover. I really love how the Villains aren't really just Villains, but almost like terrorists; Once Heroes gone bad? Also being able to move right into the next story arc and not being a full on slug fest but more of a competition is really cool. It reminds me almost like Naruto's Chunnin Exams. I am really looking forward to seeing where this story goes and also all the new characters who will probably be introduced over the coming volumes with this new story line.

Objectionable Content:

• Language: No
• Violence: Yes
• Nudity: No
• Sexual Situations: No

Score:

• Cover: 7/10
• Artwork: 8/10
• Translation: 7/10
• Extras: 10/10
• Story: 10/10

Overall Rating: 8/10

Where Purchased: Barnes and Nobles
Original Review Date: 6/21/16

Late Post, Wrong Post...

Sorry for the late TBT Review post, and I actually posted the wrong review. I posted Battle Royale V.06 when I meant to post V.05... Both were originally done in my ListerX days... Volume 05 will be posted now in July... I am sorry about that... Next review will be Tuesday!

Throw-Back Thursday Review: Battle Royale V.06

Title: Battle Royale
Volume: 6 (of 15)
Creator: Koushun Takami & Masayuki Taguchi
Format: Unflipped
Original Publisher: Young Champion Comics
US Publisher: Tokyopop
Release Date: 3/2/04
Pages: 208
ISBN: 1591824184
MSRP: $9.99
Genre: Action/Adventure/Drama
Rated: M (Mature Ages 18+)

Description: If the smart and athletic Shinji, hot-blooded musician Shuuya, and the kind-hearted kung fu master Hiroki were to work together, it might be possible to end this death game. But will this dream become reality? Is the god of destiny working for or against them?




Contains Chapters 33-39:

• Chapter 40: Sworn Friend
• Chapter 41: Flower of Courage
• Chapter 42: Parting
• Chapter 43: Raid
• Chapter 44: Hard Charge
• Chapter 45: Rescue
• Chapter 45: Encounter
• Chapter 46: Departure

Review:

Cover: The Battle Royale covers have all stuck to the original Japanese layout. The front is all black background, like the past 5 volumes. We have the series title on the top, with the volume number to its side. The main picture on the front this time has our four main supposed heroes, Kawada, Shuuya, Mimura, and Sugimura. The picture looks really good, as it has them doing some memorable poses from the series. We then have the Parental Advisory Stamp. The Right side continues to used the dried up blood art, with the Tokyopop Logo on the top.

The spine is the same as usual. From top to bottom we have the series title, the mangakas, and the volume number on a picture of a bullet.

Back cover is really plain. On the left we have the continued dried blood artwork. The majority of the back cover is black. The series title is on the top, followed by the summary of the manga underneath it. We are also graced with the 100% Authentic Manga Stamp.

The covers to the Battle Royale series continue to make me feel good. Tokyopop has shown a lot of devotion to their titles, as well as their fans, and this is a big example of it.

The Artwork: This volume has the best Artwork I have seen out of the entire series, not just by the design and the consistency, but also because of the action scenes in this volume. The mangakas really put a lot of work into this volume with all of the clever shots they used for the majority of the “Battle,” which I will explain in the content section of this review.

Translation: The translation is very accurate. All names are left unchanged and there is no editing what-so-ever to the blood or sound effects.

Content (Warning: May Contain Spoilers): I have seen the movies, I have read the novel, but nothing could compare to the manga version of my favorite fight of Battle Royale, Kiriyama vs. Shuuya and Sugimura.

The majority of this volume, well, all of this volume is dedicated to the escape of our heroes from the dreaded Kiriyama, who starts a mini attack by throwing grenades at our heroes, while they are trying to cross an empty corn field. Shuuya tells Kawada to take Noriko and bring her to safety, and he will handle Kiriyama. So Kawada and Noriko run for it, giving way for a 1-on-1 showdown between Kiriyama and Shuuya.

Shuuya lures Kiriyama out of his hiding spot and the two take off into a nearby forest area. Kiriyama is right on Shuuya’s tail, jumping from tree to tree, with a semi automatic weapon in his hand. Shuuya manages to only get so far before Kiriyama catches up to him. Kiriyama manages to get a few shots at Shuuya, injuring our hero. As Kiriyama is about to finish his prey, Sugimura arrives and takes over the battle with Kiriyama. Sugimura manages to get away with Shuuya as they jump into the sea. Kiriyama loses his targets . . . for now.

Sugimura and Shuuya wind up back on shore, where they are found by six armed female students. Are they friends or enemies?

The last chapter of the manga goes back to the story of Mimura and Sato. Thier plan of blowing up the school is about to be set in motion, when they are caught by Iijima. The tables turn as Iijima only has a knife, while Mimura has a gun. Can Mimura and Sato trust Iijima?

The scenes in this volume were very breathless. The shots of the grenades being thrown at out heroes and Shuuya trying to deflect them just made me say “WOW.” As far as this volume goes, even though it had no deaths whatsoever, it had the most action so far out of the six released volumes. We also get to see another side to Shuuya, which was quite interesting. Let’s hope the next volume will top this one.

Objectionable Content:

• Language: Yes
• Violence: Yes
• Nudity: No
• Sexual Situations: No

Overall Rating: 5+ (out of 5)

Where Purchased: Orbitz

Review Plan For July!!!!

The convention season is upon us, and as I previously stated, reviews are slowing down a bit for me as I prepare myself for my yearly trip. However I do have the rest of June covered completely! One-Punch Man V.06 was just posted! Tomorrow will be a Throw-Back Thursday Review as we dive back into Battle Royale, with V.05.

Next week is another volume of My Hero Academia, as I continue to catch up with this series slowly. V.04 will be coming soon as well. Look for it Mid July to beginning of August most likely! Then we look into a personal favorite series of mine, Saint Seiya V.01.

Finally the week AX begins, I have the final volume of School Judgment and the first volume of Tokyopop's Get Backers.

After Anime Expo is all done with, expect Magi V.18, Black Clover V.01, My Hero Academia V.04, and then whatever else gets released during July that I typically review. I may start to try and do two new manga reviews a month due to just finishing up Sailor Moon Crystals Season II reviews. But it just depends on how quickly I can get through the mangas and how fast I can type them.

Also, Boruto is coming! So keep a look out!

Review: One-Punch Man V.06

Title: One-Punch Man
Volume: 6 (of 10+)
Creator: ONE and Yusuke Murata
Format: Right-to-Left
Original Publisher: Shueisha
US Publisher: Viz
Release Date: 5/3/16
Pages: 216
ISBN: 1421585278
MSRP: $9.99
Genre: Shonen Jump
Rated: T (Teens)

Description: Nothing about Saitama passes the eyeball test when it comes to superheroes, from his lifeless expression to his bald head to his unimpressive physique. However, this average-looking guy has a not-so-average problem—he just can’t seem to find an opponent strong enough to take on!

An emergency summons gathers Class S heroes at headquarters...and Saitama tags along. There, they learn that the great seer Shibabawa left the following prophecy: “The Earth is in danger!" What in the world is going to happen?!

Contains Punch 30-34:

• Punch 30: Class S
• Punch 31: The Big Prediction
• Punch 32: From Outer Space
• Punch 33: Men Who Don't Listen
• Punch 34: Are You Stupid?
• Bonus Punch: Salmon

Review:

Cover: The cover for this volumes features the sexiest character of the entire series, Puri-Puri Prisoner, and he looks absolutely fierce! Saitama is behind him eating a bento box and ready for action. The series title is across the top in hot pink letters, with the volume number underneath it on the left.

The spine from top to bottom contains the Shonen Jump brand logo, the series title, the volume number, the mangakas, an image of Puri-Puri Prisoner puckering his lips and awaiting a kiss, and the VIZ company logo.

The back cover has another image of Puri-Puri Prisoner, this time in a ballet class. Saitama and Genos can be seen in the background, looking in on him as he's practicing his routine. The bottom third of the cover is used for the volume summary. It is on a hot pink background, with white lettering.

I honestly could not wait to get to this cover of the series, and I must say it was handled very well! Every piece of art is still intact with nothing changed at all. Puri-Puri is probably my favorite character of this series, besides the leads, so seeing that his presence on this cover was left entirely like the original cover, I am extremely pleased!

Artwork: This volume is filled with intense Shonen Action from practically cover to cover. There isn't really a lot of Saitama comedic moments, but when there is, its handled in a way that doesn't distract from the overall artwork, and really just lets the reader laugh out loud!

Translation: Character names, locations, attacks, cultural references, and plot were all left intact. Sound Effects have been modified and changed to Romanji characters.

Extras: There is a few four panel comedy mini-comics. Also an extra chapter that deals with Saitama eating lunch on top of a building where someone is about to jump and commit suicide. You gotta read this and see what Saitama's response is to him as he's about to jump!

Content (Warning: May Contain Spoilers): The entire S-Rank Class gathers together in this volume to discuss Madame Shibabawa's prediction that the world was in danger from the previous volume. There are so many characters that are introduced all at once, I will not be going into detail on them all here. They all decide though that they need to stay on high alert in case the threat level reaches Dragon or Demon level.

And just like that, the Earth starts to shake and be invaded by aliens. As the Sky King and all of his underlings (maybe distant relatives of the Sea King?) are about to attack a city, they are blown out of the sky by an alien UFO and one of its alien inhabitants. Iaian, an A-Rank hero is the first to arrive, and he's no match for the alien warrior. Luckily the S-Rank heroes, and Saitama, arrive and manage to cut the alien warrior into pieces. The bad news is, this alien has a regenerative ability and he splits himself into multiple aliens (one for each of the S-Ranks to fight). Saitama manages to sneak aboard the UFO.

So while the S-Rank heroes take care of the threat outside, we get a glimpse of what lurks in the inside, as Saitama explores the spaceship and takes out any alien he comes into contact with, all while trying to reach the leader, Lord Boros. Saitama manages to make quick work of everyone inside the ship and reaches the boss with ease. Lord Boros attacks him and Saitama hits him with his usual One-Punch move. Apparently Boros was wearing armor to hold back his power, and Saitama has just broke the one thing that really will show what Boros can really do.

Back outside, Terrible Tornado is using her powers to stop a bombardment of bullets from hitting the planet, managing to launch them back into the ship and at the enemies outside of it. The S-Rank heroes however are really feeling the onslaught of these enemies.

The volume ends there and we don't have a definitive conclusion on the battle. Like I said in the last review, this is the first multi-volume story arc, and besides the ton of action, there are also tons of cliffhangers like most Shonen titles typically deal with. My only real complaint is we are introduced to so many characters at that briefing mission in the beginning of the volume and it really doesn't get to much into any development where their characters are concerned. We do get to see some of them in action, it just would have been a bit cooler not having so many introduced at one time.

Although Saitama also makes quick work of the aliens aboard the ship, and I am sure he could have taken care of the alien invasion outside as well, it was cool to see Lord Boros; he seems like a worthy adversary for Saitama now that his power limiters are off and it is a good thing for the series as we don't want to just continuously see Saitama beating every single one of his enemies with his signature one-punch move. Just like its boring for him, its boring for us readers to continuously see it from his character, so this new turn of events has just brought a lot of interesting roads that this series can truly go down.

Objectionable Content:

• Language: No
• Violence: Yes
• Nudity: No
• Sexual Situations: Yes

Score:

• Cover: 10/10
• Artwork: 10/10
• Translation: 8/10
• Extras: 10/10
• Story: 10/10

Overall Rating: 10/10

Where Purchased: Barnes and Nobles
Original Review Date: 6/14/16

Review: Sailor Moon Crystal Act 26 - Replay - Never Ending

As the Sailor Senshi and Tuxedo Mask get pulled deeper into the void created by Death Phantom, Sailor Moon uses her Moon Rod on him pushing everyone back to Crystal Tokyo, except for herself.

Tuxedo Masks begins to glow, as he feels the power of Sailor Moon going through his body, when he suddenly vanishes. The Crystal Palace begins to glow, and Neo Queen Serenity finally wakes up. She makes her way to King Endymion's resting place, and with a single kiss revives him from his eternal sleep. They both go outside to greet the other Sailor Senshi. Sailor Chibi Moon apologizes for everything that she did. Neo Queen Serenity tells her everything is fine, it was just a few mistakes, and now with her new power, Sailor Chibi Moon can help protect the future as well. Neo Queen Serenity teleports Sailor Pluto's body back to the palace as she thanks her for what she did to prevent even more destruction. Neo Queen Serenity tells Sailor Chibi Moon that only she can find Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Mask. She gives her a space time key and tells her to help them. Neo Queen Serenity also gives Chibi Moon a Moon Rod like the one Sailor Moon has before she leaves to find Sailor Moon.

Tuxedo Mask and Sailor Moon are floating somewhere in space, when they see Death Phantom. He tells them he will kill them and then use the Malefic Black Crystal to control the entire Universe. Tuxedo Mask encourages her to keep fighting, When they kiss, the light of the Silver Crystal brings Sailor Chibi Moon to them. Death Phantom taunts them, but Sailor Moon encourages Sailor Chibi Moon to fight with everything they have. They use both their Moon Rods at the same time and with their combined strength, they destroy the planet Nemesis and Death Phantom, but with the consequence of Sailor Moon's compact shattering.

Back on the moon, the Malefic Black Crystals are destroyed, and Neo Queen Serenity uses her Heart Moon Rod to return the moon back to normal. She also gives the Sailor Senshi new Planet Powers to help Sailor Moon continue to fight. The Sailor Senshi go to the Time Door to meet Sailor Moon. Neo Queen Serenity can not go with them because her future self can not meet her past self. She still bestows new powers to Sailor Moon, Cosmic Powers.

Back at the Time Gate, everyone is their to greet Sailor Moon. As they are about to head home, Neo Queen Serenity broke her rule, wanting to meet her old self and they meet for a moment.

Back in the present day, Usagi wakes up in her room, remembering everything that has happened. Chibiusa wakes her up and they both head out because Chibiusa needs to go back to the future. This makes Usagi sad, who rushes home. Chibiusa follows her back to try and comfort her, only making them both cry. They hug it out, but Chibiusa still needs to leave. They go back to the park where they first met, Mamoru shows up with the Tuxedo Mask doll he won for her at the arcade. Chibiua gives Usagi a Heart Moon Rod like the one Neo Queen Serenity has, before she uses the Time Key to go back to the future. Usagi and Mamoru are back on their date like they never left it that fateful day when Chibiusa fell on top of them, when all of a sudden Luna P falls out of the sky, followed once again by Chibiusa. Chibiusa gives them a letter from Neo Queen Serenity, telling Usagi to take care of Chibiusa and train her to be a strong warrior.

The end of this arc was a bit bland. The action wasn't as great as the original Sailor Moon R final episodes, and I really wish the sequence to kill Death Phantom was a bit longer. There was a ton of narrative however that cleanly rapped up this story, which was actually good. We do have the ending leaving more opened for the Death Busters Arc, having Chibiusa return to the past to train with Sailor Moon. In terms of following the manga, yes, it stayed truthful entirely to the mangas chapter, which I am so happy about and can not wait till the third season of this series!

Rating: 7/10

Throw-Back Thursday Review: Digimon V.02

Title: Digimon V.02
Volume: 2 (of 5)
Creator: Yuen Wong Yu
Format: Unflipped
Original Publisher: Toei Animation Co.
US Publisher: Tokyopop
Release Date: 5/13/03
Pages: 160
ISBN: 1591820901
MSRP: $9.99
Genre: Action/Sci-Fi
Rated: A (All Ages)

Description: Now that every Digimon except Patamon has Digivolved, the Digidestined kids become the targets of the powerful and cruel Devimon. And Devimon isn't the only threat -- Etemon, a rockstar-gone-wrong Digimon with countless lackeys under his control, won't settle until he has the Digidestined in his own evil grasp. But the kids, in their travels, discover a hidden chest containing empty tags. If the Digidestined can each find a personalized crest, the tags will help their Digimon Digivolve to an even higher level. It's new quests and new dangers in this second exciting volume of Digimon!

Contains Chapters 8-14:

• Chapter 8: Heartbreak Hotel
• Chapter 9: Ghost Town
• Chapter 10: A-Maze-Ing Race
• Chapter 11: The Lion’s Share of the Battle
• Chapter 12: An Angelic Transformation
• Chapter 13: A Whale of an Adventure
• Chapter 14: Tokomon’s Great Escape

Review

Cover: The second cover of the Digimon manga looks rather nice. Just like the first volume, volume two has another profile picture of a DigiDestined. This time it is of Matt and his Digimon Garurumon, and its Rookie form as well. The background is green with some white blended into it, which gives it a cool effect. The top has the series’ title, with the American logo. The bottom has the volume number and underneath it is a lot of info concerning the Digimon manga staff. The right side has a yellow strip with the Tokyopop logo on it.

The spine is done up nicely. From top to bottom we have the Tokyopop logo, the mangaka’s name, the series title, the continued picture of Patamon from volume one as well as part of Agumon, and the volume number. I like how they use pictures that connect to other volume pictures in this series. It’s a little extra bonus, since it makes the collection look more complete with all of the pictures connecting as a whole.

The back cover has the continued yellow on the right with the Tokyopop logo. We have the same green background from the front, but more white exposed, making it look like a ray of light. The top has the series title followed by a summary, which doesn’t give a lot of info on what to expect in this volume. After that we have the ‘100% Authentic Manga Stamp.’ On the right of the stamp we have a picture of Matt and Gabumon.

As a whole, this cover was nicely done. One of the better covers I have seen from Tokyopop.

Artwork: The Digimon manga artwork looks almost exactly like the anime art. The pictures all run smoothly together and not one bit of bad transfers from the original master copies that were used. All the title pages are kept intact as well.

Translation: The translation of the Digimon manga is closer to the original storyline then the translation of the domestically released anime. The plot is left unchanged. The only things that were changed were character names and sound effects. The sound effects are translated, but, they do it in such a way that it does not take away from the artwork.

Content (Warning: May Contain Spoilers): Volume two of Digimon continues where the first volume left off. Our heroes have just encountered Leomon and another new Digimon, Ogremon. A battle begins for two chapters, well one chapter really (the DigiDestined end up at a giant mansion, where the two Digimon attack them again. The mysterious Devimon is also at work and splits the DigiDestined up for most of the remainder of the volume.

The main focus of this volume is on the separate DigiDestined as they try to find a way to get back to their friends. In the end, they all manage to get back to the main part of File Island, where Devimon attacks the DigiDestined one last time. In the end Patamon finally Digivolves to Angemon, and Angemon defeats Devimon, then regresses back to a Digi Egg.

Our DigiDestined think the battle is over, but a new adventure begins for them; a mysterious hologram of a man named Gennai appears. He gives them details of tags and crests to help their Digimon Digivolve to a higher level. Thus the second arc begins and a new villain, Etemon, emerges. Will the Digidestined be able to find their crests?

This volume contained a lot more content that was worth reading then volume one contained. Also, the story begins to take a darker turn in volume two. Digimon is worth picking up for a quick read. It has plenty of action and comical humor that a lot of people will enjoy.

Objectionable Content:

• Language: No
• Violence: Yes
• Nudity: No
• Sexual Situation: No

Overall Rating: 3 (Out of 5)

Where Purchased: Orbits (Local Anime Store)
Original Review Date: 12/19/03

Review: My Hero Academia V.02

Title: My Hero Academia
Volume: 2 (of 8+)
Creator: Kohei Horikoshi
Format: Unflipped
Original Publisher: SHUEISHA
US Publisher: VIZ
Release Date: 11/3/15
Pages: 192
ISBN: 1421582708
MSRP: $9.99
Genre: Shonen Jump
Rated: T (For Teen)

Description: 

What would the world be like if 80 percent of the population manifested superpowers called “Quirks” at age four? Heroes and villains would be battling it out everywhere! Being a hero would mean learning to use your power, but where would you go to study? The Hero Academy of course! But what would you do if you were one of the 20 percent who were born Quirkless?

Getting into U.A. High School was difficult enough, but it was only the beginning of Izuku’s long road toward becoming a superhero. The new students all have some amazing powers, and although Izuku has inherited All Might’s abilities, he can barely control them. Then the first-year students are told they will have to compete just to avoid being expelled!

Contains Numbers 8-17:

• No.8: Rage, You Damned Nerd
• No.9: Deku vs. Kacchan
• No.10: Breaking Bakugo
• No.11: Bakugo's Starting Line
• No.12: Yeah, Just Do Your Best, Ida!
• No.13: Rescue Training
• No.14: Encounter with the Unknown
• No.15: Vs.
• No.16: Know Your Enemies
• No.17: Game Over

Review:

Cover: The cover for this volumes features Midoriya and Bakugo, both looking at each other in an intense stare down. The cover is red, with a black line effect going down the center, separating our two heroes. The series title is on the top in yellow lettering, with a Shonen Jump comics logo to the left of it, with the volume number and a picture of All Might in his non-hero form; it gives the volume an appearance of an actual comic cover.

The spine from top to bottom contains the Shonen Jump brand logo, the series title, the volume number, the mangaka, the image of All Might from the front cover, and the VIZ company logo.

The back cover is seperated in half right down the middle. The left side is red, with the volume summary on top, and the image of Bakugo and Midoriya from the cover, but with a blue background. The left side showcases another hero, USJ, who is featured in this volume.

The dynamic of this cover is very appealing. I love the color schemes and the way the characters are presented; looks like they are about to go to war on each other, which does somewhat happen and we will get to that later. I also like the idea that the cover looks like a comic book cover and the continued theme from the last volume is really working for me greatly. My only complaint is the back cover design, The colors used on the volume summary make it a bit hard to read. Also the reuse of the same image from the front was a bit of a let down when the artist could have really showed off another amazing piece of art.

Artwork: A bit more Shonen style in this volume then the last. Tons of explosive action sequences as we begin to move away from introductions and get right into the down and gritty of what this series is about, an action filled explosive super hero series. None of the artwork suffers however when we transition scenes, its pretty on point and amazing. If you thought volume 1 was great, this one is no exception either.

Translation: out of ever section that I typically review, this is VIZ's overall downfall. Character names, attacks, places, and cultural references are all left intact. The Sound effects have been changed to English.

Extras: There are highly detailed character profiles for a lot of the characters after every chapter. I really enjoy these and I hope they never stop!

Content (Warning: May Contain Spoilers): Our hero students finally enter the world dressed in full costume as this volume starts out, but the costumes are just the beginning when we rush right into our first real lesson. Eraser head creates teams of two who have to act out a Hero and Villain scenario and the heroes must do their best to take down the villains.

First up is none other then Villains Bakugo and Ida, and the Heroes Midoriya and Ochako. What was supposed to be a simple drill ends up being a battle of rivalries, as Bakugo wants to prove how much of a loser Midoriya really is. It doesn't end well though, as Midoriya and Ochako quickly beat him, and then he has to rethink his life.

Next is a simple chapter where we deal with who is going to be the class president. Everyone elects Midoriya, cause of how organized he is, but Midoriya gives the role to Ida.

Last is a Rescue Drill where the students all convene at Universal Studios Japan, or so they think it is a rescue drill. Several real villains enter the scene, and their target is none other then All Might himself. While All Might rests, its up to the students who are available to try and protect him, as well as make sure the students are all safe. This however doesn't last long as the students decide to help out the cause of the fight. The volume ends with All Might finally recovering and entering the fight, with the villain Tomura Shigaraki saying "To Be Continued."

This volume really ups the stakes in this series. We finally see how real the threats of villains can be. We got a glimpse of one of them in the first volume, but this one just proves there are just as many villains as heroes. I really enjoyed the fight with Bakugo and Midoriya in the beginning of this volume as well, it really made his character grow as a character and just shows this might be just a typical rivalry.

But back to the climax of this volume, the Rescue Training, Several of the students really get to finally show what they are made of. It was great seeing characters like Minoru (Mimette) and Tsuyu (Frog Girl) take the scene, and they both have some crazy abilities that if they formed a super hero team-up they would work very well when their powers mature more. I would get more into the other characters, but there were just so many in this volume that truly shined. All in all, this volume was amazing, and its highly on my recommendation reading list.

Objectionable Content:

• Language: No
• Violence: Yes
• Nudity: No
• Sexual Situations: No

Score:

• Cover: 8/10
• Artwork: 10/10
• Translation: 7/10
• Extras: 8/10
• Story: 10/10

Overall Rating: 9/10

Where Purchased: Barnes and Nobles
Original Review Date: 6/7/16

Review: Sailor Moon Crystal Act 25 - Showdown - Death Phantom

Prince Demande brings the two Silver Crystals closer together, when Sailor Pluto arrives. Pluto uses her power, and freezes time just at the right moment. She undoes the freeze on the Sailor Senshi, Luna, and Artemis. Tuxedo Mask is also free, and regains his normal personality. Because of this, Sailor Pluto broke the most sacred law of time, so now she must die. Before she dies she tells Usagi to retrieve the two Silver Crystals. She brings them back over to the Sailor Senshi and Pluto. Pluto tells Usagi to save Chibiusa. She summons Diana back to her as well and thanks her for protecting the door and apologizes to King Endymion that she couldn't protect Chibiusa before she finally dies.

Black Lady still tries to convince herself that she is alone, when she begins to have memories of her original self when she first went to the past, stealing the key from Sailor Pluto. She begins to remember that Sailor Pluto was her friend. Black Lady begins to cry from the memories, breaking her curse and changing back into Chibiusa. A new Silver Crystal is formed by Chibiusa and she transforms into Sailor Chibi Moon.

Everyone is shocked with Sailor Chibi Moon's transformation, since she can now carry on the legacy of Sailor Moon. Sailor Chibi Moon goes to see Pluto and tried to see if her friend is still alive, but she is not. Usagi transforms back into Sailor Moon. Sailor Moon tells Wise Man she will make him pay for what he did to both Sailor Chibi Moon and Sailor Pluto. She uses her Moon Rod, but it doesn't have much affect against him.  Tuxedo Mask lends his power to her and repairs the Moon Rod. The Sailor Senshi help out as well, all using signature attacks to try and finish Wise Man for good. Wiseman is then blasted away.

All looks peaceful again for our heroes, but then Wise Man resurfaces and tries to attack, but Demande steps in the way and uses his third eye to protect the Sailor Senshi and Tuxedo Mask. Wise Man increases his attack and hits Demande, killing him. Wise Man then traps everyone in a distorted time space, threatening to smash them all. Everyone begins to get sucked into the darkness, where Wise Man's true self is, he is known as Death Phantom, the real form of Nemesis.

This episode saw a lot of things happening. We have the Death of Sailor Pluto, the death of Demande, and Black Lady turning back into Chibiusa, with Sailor Chibi Moon finally making the scene. I feel it was done very well. It reminded me a lot of that moment when Gohan went Super Saiyan 2 in DBZ when Sailor Chibi Moon was finally born. As a whole, there isn't really a lot of plot holes now that we are this close to the end of the second season. I am very happy with the way this season has progressed as well over the Dark Kingdom Arc. It has followed the manga extremely well, and with one final episode left, I can't wait for the explosive conclusion.

Rating: 8/10

Throw-Back Thursday Review: Miyuki-Chan in Wonderland

Title: Miyuki-Chan in Wonderland
Volume: 1 (of 1)
Creator: CLAMP
Format: Unflipped
Original Publisher: KADOKAWA SHOTEN
US Publisher: Tokyopop
Release Date: 10/7/03
Pages: 128
ISBN: 159182303
MSRP: $9.99
Genre: Fantasy
Rated: OT (Older Teen Age 16+)

Description: There are many worlds in the universe outside of our own, connected by doors that are hidden to the eye. But if you chance upon those doors, you can be transported to a place where supple beauties reign supreme and all of your fantasies come alive. Should you pass through the doorways, be most careful, for the creatures you will meet can be as dangerous as they are beautiful. Many would die for a glimpse at those worlds-Miyuki would do ANYthing to have them go away.

Contains 7 Stories:

• Miyuki-Chan in Wonderland
• Miyuki-Chan in Looking Glass Land
• Miyuki-Chan in TV Land
• Miyuki-Chan in Part Time-Job Land
• Miyuki-Chan in Mah-Jongg Land
• Miyuki-Chan in Video Game Land
• Miyuki-Chan in X Land

Review:

Cover: The Cover of Miyuki-Chan in Wonderland is one of thee blandest covers I have ever seen done by Tokyopop. On the front cover we have an Orange background, wait a second, the whole cover is orange. The top of the front cover has the Manga Title, which only deals with about the first 10 pages of the manga. Then we have a nice pic of Miyuki-Chan falling down with a sunset background, as well as a few falling CLAMP rabbits (these rabbits can be seen in so many of CLAMPs works). The bottom of the page we have the Mangakas.

The Spine is just. . . Terrible. It’s a lighter orange then the covers background, but we don’t get any interesting side pics. What we have from top to bottom is the Tokyopop Logo, the Manga Title (which takes up most of the Spine), and then the Mangakas. Rather boring.

The Back Cover continues to give us more blank space. All we have with the back cover is the orange background, the Manga Title (which is more centered then on the top of the page like most Tokyopop titles), and the Manga Summary. We also have the 100% Authentic Manga Stamp.

As far as this cover goes as a whole, I don’t really care for it. They have enough room on the back of the manga to include some type of little pic or something. It’s just too plain.

Artwork: The Artwork of Miyuki-Chan is rather nice, as that is what this Manga is known for. We have quite a few color pages, which is a rather nice bonus. All of the images are of the same quality and the same style, which makes me happy to see as well. Plus, it’s pretty much all Fan Service, so this is not just a shoujo title people; lots of women dressed in practically nothing.

Translation: The Translation was pretty decent. I have not read the original, but I have seen the Anime. The Anime and the Manga are almost the same when it comes to the first 2 stories. Also, sound effects are left untranslated.

Content (Warning: May Contain Spoilers): I can not really get into the content of Miyuki-Chan in Wonderland, since there really isn’t any. Each story is like a stand alone story, and none of them really make any sense.

One story I really liked though was the Miyuki-Chan in X Land, as they had quite a few cameo appearances from the characters from the X/1999 manga. Out of all the stories, this one probably would have been the only story that was worth my time reading out of the manga.

Only buy Miyuki-Chan if you are an avid CLAMP fan (like me). If you are not a CLAMP fan, I would rethink this title for purchasing. This manga lacks a plot and it barely has anything to do with the CLAMP Universe line. So if you have not bought it yet and her planning to, you should rethink your choice.

Objectionable Content:

• Language: No
• Violence: Yes
• Nudity: No
• Sexual Situation: Yes

Overall Rating: 1 (Out of 5)

Where Purchased: Waldenbooks
Original Review Date: 12/12/03

Chapter Review: Assassination Classroom Side-Story 4 - Time To Say Thank You

Azuza blows herself up in an attempt to finally assassinate Korosensei, but not realizing that Korosensei is much faster then what she was expecting, he manages to prevent both of them from not getting hurt. The reason behind her assassination attempt is Azuza is very sick with a brain tumor and only has about 3 years to live. She figures the money she would have gotten from killing Korosensei would help her with the surgery, or at least help her daughter after she dies. Korosensei reminiscences about the day Nagisa first tried to kill him and how Azuza had the same drive as he did. He then uses his abilities to cure Azuza from her brain tumor.

Fast forward a few years, Nagisa is in college and taking a nap when he is woken up by one of his classmates. He's still a clutz, but no matter what, his friends are with him and their friendships continue to blossom even as they get older.

To be honest, this chapter wasn't better then any of the other chapters of the side-story. It was cool to get another glimpse at Nagisa's life after the end of the series. I really wish though that this story had a bit more of what made Assassination Classroom the awesome series that it was. We didn't get much of Korosensei's wittiness in this chapter, however over the course of the entire story I guess the real thing that we got out of this was a story that took place out of the school antics that the main series showed us. All-in-all, I wish there was a bit more here then what we got for one last stroll through Korosensei's world.

Rating: 3/10