Yo-Kai Watch: Beware the Bristly Germs

I read Yo-kai Watch, Vol. 2

I posted a review at the ComicBookBin.  Follow me on Twitter and Tumblr or at Grumble.  Support me on Patreon.

Review: YO-KAI WATCH Volume 1

YO-KAI WATCH, VOL. 1
VIZ MEDIA/Perfect Square – @VIZMedia

MANGAKA: Noriyuki Konishi
ORIGINAL STORY: Level 5, Inc.
TRANSLATION: Tetsuichiro Miyaki
ENGLISH ADAPTATION: Aubrey Sitterson
LETTERS: William F Schuch
EDITOR: Joel Enos
ISBN: 978-1-4215-8251-1; paperback (November 2015); Rated “A” for “All Ages”
192pp, B&W, $9.99 U.S., $12.99 CAN

Yo-Kai Watch is a video game created by Japanese video game developer, Level-5.  It is published by Nintendo for the Nintendo 3DS.  Yo-Kai Watch inspired a manga produced by mangaka, Noriyuki Konishi.  This manga is the latest addition to VIZ Media's “Perfect Square” imprint, and November sees the release of the first two volumes of Yo-Kai Watch.

Yo-Kai Watch, Vol. 1 (entitled Nate's Lucky Day; Chapters 1 to 7) introduces Nate Adams, an ordinary elementary school student.  One day, Nate meets a strange yokai (called “yo-kai” in this series) named “Whisper.”  The floating, blob-like Whisper gives to Nate a gift.  It is the “Yo-Kai Watch,” which allows Nate to see yo-kai that are invisible to the human eye.  Soon, Nate is helping yo-kai and collecting from each one a “Yo-Kai Metal,” a memento of friendship that allows him to call on each one when he needs help.

[This volume includes the bonus story, “Late to School!!]

The Yo-Kai Watch manga is a good graphic novel series for young comics readers, especially those already familiar with Yu-Gi-Oh! manga.  In fact, I would not be surprised to learn that Yo-Kai Watch is inspired by Yu-Gi-Oh!  Both franchises encourage fans to collect franchise-related creatures and creature-inspired objects and ephemera.

That aside, Yo-Kai Watch Volume 1 is a good read.  The stories are not exactly taken from the “wheel of morality,” but each offers a lesson to learn.  Also, Nate Adams is an all-around good guy, who is always up for adventure and discovery, which is a good thing in a lead character, whether the story is for young or old.

B

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux


The text is copyright © 2015 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

Review: LBX Volume 6

LBX, VOL. 6
VIZ MEDIA/Perfect Square – @VIZMedia

MANGAKA: Hideaki Fujii
ORIGINAL STORY: Level 5
TRANSLATION: Tetsuichiro Miyaki
ENGLISH ADAPTATION: Aubrey Sitterson
LETTERS: Annaliese Christman
EDITOR: Joel Enos
ISBN: 978-1-4215-7700-5; paperback (July 2015); Rated “A” for “All Ages”
152pp, B&W, $9.99 U.S., $12.99 CAN, £6.99 UK

The video game, LBX (Little Battlers eXperience), is a series of role-playing action games created by Level-5 for the Sony PSP.  Hideaki Fujii created an “all ages” manga based on LBX, which VIZ Media has published in English as a bi-monthly graphic novel series under its “Perfect Square” imprint.

In the world of Fujii's manga, the LBX is the hottest toy in the year 2050.  The LBX (Little Battlers eXperience) is a miniaturized robot made of a new super-strong industrial cardboard.  Van Yamano is a rising LBX player, but he doesn't just play with these battle-robots for fun.  In order to save his father, Professor Yamano, he has to keep the LBX, named “Achilles,” out of the hands of evil at all costs.

As LBX, Vol. 6 (Chapters 23 to 25 to Final Chapter, entitled World Battle) opens, the “Duck Shuttle” arrives at the powerful new military satellite Eden, which orbits the Earth.  Aboard the shuttle are Van and his partner and LBX rival, Hiro Hughes, with Cobra piloting.

Van has LBX Icarus Zero, and Hiro has LBX Icarus Force.  The duo plans to use their LBX to stop a plot by Alfred Gordon, Vice-President of the American Union and also leader of “The Directors,” a terrorist group.  Gordon wants to bring peace to the world by taking control of the world, and he has the powerful and perhaps unstoppable LBX Zeus to enforce his will.  Van, Hiro, and Gordon are in for a big surprise.

[This volume includes bonus comics.]

I am still surprised that I enjoyed the LBX manga, which proved to be quite entertaining.  The series is really directed at elementary-age readers and also fans of the LBX, an actual, real-life media and merchandising franchise.  Alas, LBX Volume 6 is the end of the series... for now at least.  Still, this short, six-volume graphic novel series is perfect for readers who are enjoying or have enjoyed the Yu-Gi-Oh manga.  Those readers may even want to have an LBX toy.

B

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux (Support Leroy on Patreon.)


The text is copyright © 2015 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

LBX: New Hope

I read LBX: New Hope, Vol. 5

I posted a review at the ComicBookBin.  Follow me on Twitter or at Grumble.  Support me on Patreon.

Review: TOKYO GHOUL Volume 1

TOKYO GHOUL, VOL. 1
VIZ MEDIA – @VIZMedia

CARTOONIST: Sui Ishida
TRANSLATION: Joe Yamazaki
LETTERING: Vanessa Satone
EDITOR: Joel Enos
ISBN: 978-1-4215-8036-4; paperback (June 2015); Rated “T+” for “Older Teen”
224pp, B&W, $12.99 U.S., $14.99 CAN, £8.99 UK

The horror manga, Tokyo Ghoul, is the creation of Sui Ishida.  After winning the Young Jump 113th Grand Prix award in 2010, Tokyo Ghoul debuted as a series in Japan's Weekly Shonen Jump magazine in 2011.  A bestselling and popular manga, it was adapted into an anime series in 2014.  Tokyo Ghoul focuses on a young man who, through no fault of his own, becomes a creature that must eat dead human flesh to survive.  Tokyo Ghoul is the latest addition to VIZ Media's VIZ Signature line.

Tokyo Ghoul, Vol. 1 (Chapters 1 to 9) introduces shy college freshman, 18-year-old Ken Kaneki.  He attends Kamii University where he studies in the Department of Literature, specializing in Japanese literature.  His best pal, Hide Nagachika, wants Kaneki to read less and date more, so Kaneki is thrilled to go on a date with the beautiful Rize.

However, there are Ghouls that live among us.  They look the same as normal people in every way, but that only hides the truth, especially their craving for human flesh.  Rize is a ghoul, and her actions will change Kaneki.

I was interested in the Tokyo Ghoul manga when I first got a press release from VIZ Media that they were going to publish this series as a digital manga release.  VIZ is now publishing the series in print and sent me a copy for review.  I'm glad that they did; I would have had to buy this otherwise.

Tokyo Ghoul Volume 1 slowly, but gradually brings the reader into a world that is both similar (through the eyes of a young college student) and also into a dark world that is just around the corner from the world in light (the world of the Ghouls).  Creator Sui Ishida presents the life of a shy kid as if Tokyo Ghoul were a BL or shojo drama.  Then, he presents a fantastic world that offers both mystery and intrigue and also violence and death.

So the narrative reflects the dual nature that comes to define Ken Kaneki.  This first volume is a joy to read, but I wonder if the narrative will become trapped in its internal mythology around the Ghouls.  Will character drama remain strong, or will it become subservient to genre trappings?  If the drama remains strong, Tokyo Ghoul will be one of the best new series of the year.

A

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux; support on Patreon.


The text is copyright © 2015 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog for syndication rights and fees.

Review: NURA: Rise of the Yokai Clan: Volume 25

NURA: RISE OF THE YOKAI CLAN, VOL. 25
VIZ MEDIA – @VIZMedia

CARTOONIST: Hiroshi Shiibashi
TRANSLATION: John Werry
LETTERS: Annaliese Christman
EDITORS: Megan Bates, Joel Enos
ISBN: 978-1-4215-6480-7; paperback (February 2015); Rated “T” for “Teen”
208pp, B&W, $9.99 U.S., $12.99 CAN, £6.99 U.K.

Hiroshi Shiibashi is a manga creator known for his debut series, Nurarihyon no Mago (Nurarihyon Grandson).  The series debuted in the Japanese manga anthology magazine, Weekly Shonen Jump, in March 2008.  VIZ Media published an English version of Nurarihyon no Mago as a series of 25 graphic novels under the title Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan.  VIZ recently published the final graphic novel in the series, Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan Volume 25.

Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan takes place in a world where the day belongs to humans and the night belongs to yokai, the supernatural creatures of Japanese folklore.  Middle school student, Rikuo Nura, is three-fourths human and one-quarter yokai.  His paternal grandfather is Nurarihyon, the Overlord and Supreme Commander of the Tokyo-based, yokai consortium, the Nura Clan.  He wants Rikuo to become the next leader of the Nura Clan – the Lord of a Hundred Demons.  When Rikuo’s yokai blood awakens, he becomes the clan’s future leader (“the Third”) and current “Underboss.”

As Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan, Vol. 25 (entitled He Who Equips True Fear – Chapters 209 to 210) opens, Rikuo and Yuki-onna race to Aoi Spiral Castle.  There, the ayakashi (yokai) monsters, Abe No Seimei and Hagoromo-Gitsune meet.  Surprise: Seimei is Hagoromo-Gitsune's son, and now they prepare for battle – the son for a world of superior yokai and the mother for a world for both yokai and humans.  Now, Rikuo, who is connected to both of them, joins the battle for a three-way showdown that will decide everything.

[This volume also includes five bonus stories:  “Inherited Bonds,” “The Third Heir Gone Wild?!” “Dawn Pawnbroker,” “In the Village of Half-Yokai,” and “Extra Bonus.”]

The Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan manga reminds me of Naruto, but it won't last as long as that manga starring the world's favorite boy-ninja.  Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan Volume 25 is the final volume of the series.  This last graphic novel is for longtime readers of the series.  It is our happy ending, but those who become new readers by going back to the beginning will discover something wonderful and will eventually get to enjoy Vol. 25's happy ending.

I can say that I am surprised at how things have come to pass in the story.  Some villains and monsters turn out not to be the adversaries that they seemed initially.  Along the way, Hiroshi Shiibashi did not let things stay the same, and the series thrived for it.  At the end of the book is a two-page goodbye and thank-you to fans in which Shiibashi says that we will see some of these characters again.  That's a good thing.  Also, “Bonus Story 4: In the Village of Half-Yokai” features some of the most beautiful comic book art that I have seen in awhile.

So in my final estimation:  readers looking for imaginative shonen manga will want to see the Night Parade of a Hundred Demons in the Shonen Jump title, Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan.

A-

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux


The text is copyright © 2015 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog for syndication rights and fees.

LBX: Artemis Begins

I read LBX: Artemis Begins, Vol. 2

I posted a review at the ComicBookBin, which is seeking donations.  Follow me on Twitter or at Grumble.

Review: LBX Volume 1

LBX, VOL. 1
VIZ MEDIA – @VIZMedia

CARTOONIST: Hideaki Fujii
ORIGINAL STORY: Level 5
TRANSLATION: Tetsuichiro Miyaki
ENGLISH ADAPTATION: Aubrey Sitterson
LETTERS: Annaliese Christman
EDITOR: Joel Enos
ISBN: 978-1-4215-7695-4; paperback (November 2014); Rated “A” for “All Ages”
192pp, B&W, $9.99 U.S., $12.99 CAN, £6.99 UK

The video game, LBX (Little Battlers eXperience), is a series of role-playing action games created by Level-5 for the Sony PSP.  Hideaki Fujii created an “all ages” manga based on LBX, which VIZ Media is publishing in English as a bi-monthly graphic novel series.

LBX, Vol. 1 (Chapters 1 to 4, entitled New Dawn Raisers) introduces Van Yamano, a boy who really loves LBX!  These miniaturized battle-robots are the hottest toys in the year 2050.  The problem is that Van's mother does not want him to play with LBX because she blames them for the death of her husband and Van's father, Professor Yamano.

Little does she know that the professor left a very special LBX just for Van.  However, the C.I.O. and the New Dawn Raisers know about the special LBX and are interested in Van.

[This volume includes the original LBX story from Coro Coro Comics magazine.]

VIZ Media publishes the LBX manga through its Perfect Square imprint, which offers “all ages” books.   These are comic books for elementary age children, and if they have the patience and can read at their grade level, then, young readers can grasp the uncomplicated LBX.

I must admit that I find LBX Volume 1 to be surprisingly intense with a relatively believable sense of impending death directed at the heroes.  This isn't the kind of guaranteed death that comics like Kick-Ass or Preacher presented.  Still, the duels between LBX players seem painful, but I also have to admit that I would read this again.  LBX may be genuine kids' comics, but it offers up some interesting questions to which I want to know the answers.  Young comic book readers who are ready for graphic novels will want their own LBX.

B

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux


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

Nura: Rise of the Yokai - Purification

I read Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan, Vol. 22

I posted a review at the ComicBookBin, which is seeking donations.  Follow me on Twitter.

Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan - Ghost Story: Aoandon

I read Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan, Vol. 21

I posted a review at the ComicBookBin, which has free smart phone apps and comics, and is now seeking donations. Follow me on Twitter.

Graphic Novel Review ALL YOU NEED IS KILL (OGN)

ALL YOU NEED IS KILL GN
VIZ MEDIA/Haikasoru – @VIZMedia; @haikasoru

STORY: Hiroshi Sakurazaka
SCRIPT ADAPTATION: Nick Mamatas
ART: Lee Ferguson
COLORS: Fajar Buana
LETTERS: Zack Turner
EDITOR: Joel Enos
ISBN: 978-1-4215-6081-6; paperback, (May 2014)
96pp, Color, $14.99 U.S., $17.99 CAN

There is a new Tom Cruise movie arriving in theatres in the coming weeks.  This movie is entitled Edge of Tomorrow, and it is based on the novel, All You Need is Kill. Bestselling author John Scalzi (author of Old Man’s War), called All You Need is Kill “science fiction for the adrenaline junkie.” 

First published in 2004, All You Need is Kill is a Japanese science fiction novel written by author Hiroshi Sakurazaka.  Back in July 2009, All You Need is Kill and The Lord of the Sands of Time (by author Issui Ogawa) were the first two novels published by Haikasoru, a science fiction imprint of North American manga publisher, VIZ Media.

In the past few years, VIZ Media has been producing original graphic novels based on various media properties (Hello Kitty, Ben 10 – for example).  Now, its Haikasoru imprint is publishing an original English-language graphic novel of Hiroshi Sakurazaka’s All You Need is Kill.

All You Need is Kill: Official Graphic Novel Adaptation is created by Nick Mamatas (script adaptation of the novel), Lee Ferguson (artist), Fajar Buana (colors), and Zack Turner (letters).  The story focuses on Keiji Kiriya, a Japanese soldier of the 301st division of the United Defense Forces (UDF).  Kiriya is just one of many recruits shoved into a suit of battle armor, which is called a “Jacket,” and then, sent out to kill the alien invaders called “Mimics.”

Keiji dies on the battlefield, only to be reborn each morning to fight and die again and again.  However, he is not only starting to remember the previous iterations of his fight, but he is also learning more about the enemy and how to fight them.  After one particular rebirth, Keiji gets a message from a mysterious ally, Rita Vrataski – the American female soldier known only as the Full Metal Bitch.  And she may have a way to stop the Mimics.

Of course, All You Need is Kill is a fantastic title for a book, for a manga, and even for a movie.  Yes, producers of the Tom Cruise movie, All You Need is Kill is an even better title than Edge of Tomorrow, which is itself a cool title.

What about the quality of this original graphic novel?  It is a fantastic read.  When VIZ Media first sent me a copy for review, I did not expect much from it, after giving the book a cursory glance.  What surprised me the most is that the graphic novel is not like any other comic book on the market and shelves today.  And it is not Groundhog Day meets Starship Troopers.  If I had to compare it to anything I would compare it to Stanley Kubrick’s 1987 film, Full Metal Jacket.

Like Full Metal Jacket, All You Need is Kill the graphic novel tackles the absurdity of the war machine – from training soldiers and equipping them to sending them into battle.  At the same time, writer Nick Mamatas finds space in cutting the original text to present Keiji’s training method for survival as something that is plausible.  Basically Mamatas has adapted the novel into a graphic novel that does not seem like a collection of plot points and a narrative stream of the original novel’s best action scenes.  It is a complete comic book story with a good plot and well-developed characters and settings.

Artist Lee Ferguson draws the story in a spare style that establishes mood, captures the sense of desperation, highlights the absurdities, and clearly tells the story.  Fajar Buana’s colors depict the bloody horror of war, and some of the coloring also captures that otherworldly sense which classic science fiction has.

After enjoying this truly fine science fiction original graphic novel, I really want to read the original prose novel.  Readers looking for imaginative alien invasion science fiction will realize All You Need is Kill.

A

www.haikasoru.com

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux


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

Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan - Kusozu

I read Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan, Vol. 20

I posted a review at the ComicBookBin.

Psyren: Nova

I read Psyren, Vol. 14

I posted a review at the ComicBookBin (which has free smart phone apps and comics).

Review BEN 10: Omniverse Volume 2 - Joyrides

BEN 10: OMNIVERSE VOLUME 2
VIZ MEDIA/Perfect Square/Cartoon Network – @VIZMedia and @cartoonnetwork

STORY: B. Clay Moore, Joel Enos
ART: Alan Brown, Albert Carreres
COLORS: Alejandro Torres
LETTERS: Zack Turner
EDITOR: Joel Enos, Elizabeth Kawasaki
ISBN: 978-1-4215-5742-7; paperback (January 2014), Rated “A” for “All Ages”
64pp, Color, $7.99 U.S. $9.99 CAN

Starting in Fall 2013, VIZ Media began producing a brand new series of original graphic novels inspired by the Cartoon Network animated series, "Ben 10: Omniverse." Debuting in 2012, it is the fourth installment in the “Ben 10” cartoon series.  The previous series are Ben 10 (2005-08), Ben 10: Alien Force (2008-10), and Ben 10: Ultimate Alien (2010-12).

In December of 2005, the pilot episode of a new animated series, Ben 10, aired on Cartoon Network.  It introduced viewers to Benjamin Kirby “Ben” Tennyson, a typical 10-year-old boy.  Ben’s life changes when he finds a mysterious, watch-like, alien device called the Omnimatrix (Omnitrix for short).  It becomes permanently attached to Ben’s wrist, but allows him to transform into 10 alien life forms or species.  Ben uses the device to become a superhero, fighting both alien and criminal menaces.

Ben 10: Omniverse finds Ben Tennyson as a solo superhero with a brand new Omnitrix that allows him to change into different kinds of aliens.  However, Maxwell “Max” Tennyson, Ben’s very own Grandpa Max, is not ready to allow his grandson to go solo.  He assigns Ben a new partner, Rook, who is one of the Plumbers (an intergalactic policing/counter-terrorist/black-ops organization).  Rook is highly skilled with his Proto-Tool, but lacks any field experience, in general and especially on Earth.

Ben 10: Omniverse Volume 2 – Joyrides is a 64-page full-color graphic novel that offers two original Ben 10: Omniverse stories.  In “Tim 10,” Ben is shocked to learn that the aliens generated by his Omnitrix are raising hell around Undertown.  But Ben doesn’t remembering doing any of it or even changing into the aliens.  He is running out of time to discover the truth and save his reputation.

In “Down in the Dumps,” Ben is teaching a class of Plumber recruits at a Plumber Academy.  He regales them with tales of his superhero derring-do, but they aren’t impressed.  He decides to show them how much fun being a hero can be and ends up putting them all in danger.

If you don’t like “Ben 10” cartoons, will you like VIZ Media’s Ben 10: Omniverse original graphic novels?  I don’t know, as I’ve barely watched “Ben 10” anything in the eight years of the franchise’s existence.  But I like this comic book.  Why?

The writers of the two stories herein, B. Clay Moore and Joel Enos, don’t treat Ben Tennyson as if he were a goody-two-shoes or a saint.  He’s a kid.  Sure, he’s a superhero, but he’s a kid.  For all his experience as superhero, he is still so young that he’s bound to make mistakes, or be an immature kid, sometimes.  Moore and Enos offer stories in which Ben’s position and decisions imperil him in some fashion.  Each story is a minefield of obstacles for Ben to overcome.  I found myself enjoying the stories and wondering how Ben would get out of each mess.

The artists and colorists of these stories show the kind of fidelity to the animation of Ben 10 that would make even the most devoted spouse envious.  I did find a few moments in “Down in the Dumps” to be confusing in the storytelling, but not enough to hurt the story.  I want more Ben 10: Omniverse, and I might even try the cartoon again.

A-

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux

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

Psyren: Infiltration

I read Psyren, Vol. 13

I posted a review at the ComicBookBin (which has free smart phone apps and comics).

Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan - Kirisaki Toryanse, The Ripper

I read Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan, Vol. 17

I posted a review at the ComicBookBin.

Psyren: Blood and Determination

I read Psyren, Vol. 12

I posted a review at the ComicBookBin (which has free comics).

Psyren: The Two Test Subjects

I read Psyren, Vol. 11

I posted a review at the ComicBookBin.

Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan: Fragments of the Past

I read Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan, Vol. 15

I posted a review at the ComicBookBin.

Naruto: Uchiha Brothers United Front

I read Naruto, Vol. 61: Uchiha Brothers United Front

I posted a review at the ComicBookBin.