Showing posts with label Mayumi Kobayashi. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Mayumi Kobayashi. Show all posts

Sunday, January 19, 2014

Review: D.GRAY-MAN 3-in-1 Edition Volume 1

D.GRAY-MAN 3-IN-1 EDITION, VOL. 1
VIZ MEDIA – @VIZMedia

CARTOONIST: Katsura Hoshino
TRANSLATION: Mayumi Kobayashi, Toshifumi Yoshida
ENGLISH ADAPTATION: Mayumi Kobayashi, Lance Caselman
LETTERS: Elizabeth Watasin
EDITOR: Nancy Thislethwaite
ISBN: 978-1-4215-5567-6; paperback (July 2013); Rated “T+” for “Older Teen”
576pp, B&W, $14.99 U.S., $16.99 CAN, £9.99 UK

Debuting in 2004 in Japan’s Weekly Shōnen Jump magazine, D.Gray-man is a manga (comic) series written and illustrated by Katsura Hoshino.  The series stars a boy named Allen Walker, who becomes a member of the Black Order, an organization of Exorcists.  These Exorcists make use of an ancient substance called “Innocence,” which they use as weapons to combat the Millennium Earl and his army of demons, the akuma.

Allen lives in a fictional version of 19th century Earth, where he searches for Innocence.  Some Innocence has bonded with his left arm to form an anti-akuma, bladed weapon.  Allen is also a very special Exorcist, and the Earl knows that.

VIZ Media is currently republishing D.Gray-man in its 3-in-1 editions.  This is a kind of mini-omnibus paperback that collects three volumes of a manga series as a single graphic novel.  D.Gray-man: 3-in-1 Edition Volume 1 reprints D.Gray-man, Volumes 1 to 3

D.Gray-man, Vol. 1 (entitled Opening; Chapters 1 to 7) introduces Allen Walker, a boy who hunts akuma.  They prey on the weak and grieving, so Allan finds the akuma in the middle of a tragic tale of a priest and his wife.  Then, there is the story of John, who wants to be an exorcist, and his friend, Leo, who is seduced by the Earl.  Later, Allen is recruited by the Black Order, which allows him to learn about Innocence and its history.

D.Gray-man, Vol. 2 (entitled Old Man of the Land and Aria of the Night Sky; Chapters 8 to 16) finds Allen and fellow Exorcist, Yu Kanda, on a mission.  They travel to the city of Mater, in southern Italy, to retrieve Innocence, but what they find is a Level 2 akuma that can copy other beings’ powers.  The mission is complicated by the fact that Kanda does not like Allen, especially after the new exorcist befriends a man named Guzol and the singing doll, Lala.

D.Gray-man, Vol. 3 (entitled The Rewinding City; Chapters 17 to 26) opens with the attack of Komlin, a labor-saving robot that takes its programming too seriously and incorrectly.  Then, Allen and fellow Exorcist, Lenalee, find themselves trapped in “The Rewinding City.  The encounter Miranda Lotto, a woman connected to the mystery of the city, and also Master Record, a surprising adversary.

One of the good things about VIZ Media’s 3-in-1 editions is that they allow readers to get a look at the early chapters of manga series in what amounts to 500-page chunks.  Early in the series, D.Gray-man resembles an amateur comic (doujinshi).  At that point, series creator Katsura Hoshino is still obviously discovering her creation and getting a feel for it (or “feeling it out”).  With each chapter, the narrative gradually becomes more polished.  By the end of Vol. 3, the story is not only stronger, but it is also more self-assured, as Hoshino reveals more back story and mythology.  Even the art is stronger compositionally, and the graphic design more practical, even if it remains flashy and stylish.

The D.Gray-man manga has some similarities to various Batman and X-Men comic books.  Its fight scenes remind me of superhero fight comic books, resembling in spirit and tone what readers will find in The Avengers or a Justice League comic book.  I highly recommend D.Gray-man, and I think D.Gray-man: 3-in-1 Edition Volume 1 is the best place to start.

A-

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux


The text is copyright © 2014 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this site for syndication rights and fees.




Monday, March 28, 2011

Shiki Tsukai 32nd to 41st Season

I read Shiki Tsukai 7/8

I posted a review at the Comic Book Bin (which has FREE smart phone apps).  This is a mini-omnibus that collects Shiki Tsukai Volumes 7 and 8.


Friday, November 5, 2010

I Reads You Review: SHIKI TSUKAI, VOL. 3



Creator: To-ru Zekuu (story) and Yuna Takanagi (art); Mayumi Kobayashi (translation and adaptation)
Publishing Information: Del Rey Manga, paperback, 200 pages, $10.95 (US), $12.50 CAN
Ordering Numbers: ISBN: 978-0-345-50415-9 (ISBN-13)

Rating: “T” for Ages “13+”

Shiki Tsukai is a shonen manga (comics for teen boys) from writer To-ru Zekuu and artist Yuna Takanagi. The Shiki Tsukai are supernaturally powerful people who control the seasons through the use of magical objects called “shikifu.” Shikifu are magic cards from which the Shiki Tsukai derive their powers.

Teenage Akira Kizuki discovers that he is a Shiki Tsukai. In fact, Akira may be the great “Shinra,’ the warrior with power over all seasons. Because he may be the Shinra, the Shiki Tsukai of Summer want his powers in their war to destroy humanity, which they see as the cause of Earth’s environmental degradation. Koyomi Sakuragi, a Shiki Tsukai of March who can transform herself into a sword, fights by Akira’s side.

In Shiki Tsukai, Vol. 3, the Shiki Tsukai of Summer and their allies, Fall, increase their aggression. They launch an attack on the headquarters of Sakuragi Corporation, a business owned by Koyomi’s father, Kenshin, a co-leader of the Shiki Tsukai of Winter and Spring. Then, Rinsho Matsukaze, a radical Shiki Tsukai of Summer, kidnaps Satsuki Inanae, Akira’s childhood friend. Satsuki’s father, Kengo, races to her rescue, but he may need Akira’s help. Is Akira ready to be the hero the world needs?

I don’t think that Kodansha would send assassins after me for saying that Shiki Tsukai reads like it should be in Shonen Jump. It really seems like one of those quasi-superhero shonen manga about a boy who discovers that he has magical/super powers and is destined to be the one (or least a pivotal player) in a great conflict. That is basically Naruto, Bleach, and D.Gray-man. Now, the art in Shiki Tsukai is nowhere near as good as it is in the aforementioned three manga – not in terms of composition, draftsmanship, or storytelling, but it has a quirkiness to it that serves this concept well. The art looks like the work of an inexperienced, raw talent, but the overall graphic package that is Shiki Tsukai is still very entertaining.

Shiki Tsukai is wild and, at times, quite energetic, so fans of shonen superhero will enjoy it. I know I want more.

B+