#IReadsYou Review: CASTE HEAVEN Volume 1

CASTE HEAVEN, VOL. 1
SUBLIME MANGA/Libre – @SuBLimeManga

[This review was originally posted on Patreon.]

MANGAKA: Chise Ogawa – @ogawaccc
TRANSLATION: Adrienne Beck
LETTERS: Deborah Fisher
EDITOR: Jennifer LeBlanc
ISBN: 978-1-9747-1245-8; paperback (March 2020); Rated “M” for “Mature”
220pp, B&W, $12.99 U.S., $17.99 CAN, £8.99 UK

Caste Heaven is a yaoi manga from mangaka, Chise Ogawa.  Yaoi manga is a subset of boys' love (or BL) manga, which depicts amorous situations between male romantic leads.  Yaoi manga usually features explicit depictions of sex between those male leads.  Caste Heaven focuses on a group of high school students who play a cruel game that determines class rank... and who's on top.

Caste Heaven, Vol. 1 (Chapters 1-6) introduces Class 2-1.  The students in this class play a secret game called the “Caste Game.”  Students hunt the campus for playing cards that will determine the class' rigid hierarchy.  The highest value card is the “King” card, and the lowest card is the “Joker.”  The one who finds the “King” card becomes the king (or queen).  The one who finds the “Joker” card becomes “the target” or “the bullied one,” and is subject to extreme pain and humiliation from all the other students – especially from the king.

The past school year, Yuya Azusa, has been the king.  Ruthless and arrogant, he lorded his status over the other students.  This is a new school year, however, and it is time to play the Caste Game again.  Azusa plots to be king again, but after he is betrayed, he may have to accept a new position – the new king's bitch!

[This volume includes bonus story, “Behind the Game,” and an “Afterword.”]

The Caste Heaven yaoi manga tells a story in the spirit of many manga.  There is an implausible scenario, but if the author (or mangaka) can weave a captivating story from that implausible premise, the result can be a winning manga.

Caste Heaven Graphic Novel Volume 1 starts off from its first page with a ridiculous concept.  Honestly, I didn't think that I could finish this first volume, but then, I started to enjoy the struggle that creator Chise Ogawa depicts.  Azusa and the other characters in these first chapters struggle with what they really want, with what they really think, and with whom they really want.  There is a conflict between what they present to society at large (in this case, their high school class) and what they reveal in intimate settings when they are with the person they (might) love... or the person that makes them hot and horny.

Adrienne Beck's translation expertly captures the inconsistencies, the vagaries, the fickleness, and the angst.  Beck reveals how this series moves from raunchy lust to love and hot sex... that could end up being real love...”?

7 out of 10

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"

SubBLimeManga.com


The text is copyright © 2020 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and  syndication rights and fees.

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#IReadsYou Review: DRAGON BALL SUPER Volume 4

DRAGON BALL SUPER VOL. 4
VIZ MEDIA – @VIZMedia

STORY: Akira Toriyama
ART: Toyotarou
TRANSLATION: Toshikazu Aizawa
LETTERS: Paolo Gattone and Chiara Antonelli
EDITOR: Marlene First
ISBN: 978-1-9747-0144-5; paperback (January 2019); Rated “T” for “Teen”
200pp, B&W, $9.99 US, $12.99 CAN, £6.99 UK

Dragon Ball was a long-running Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Akira Toriyama.  It was originally serialized in Weekly Shonen Jump from 1984 to 1995 and was comprised of 519 individual chapters.  The hero of Dragon Ball was Son Goku, and the series began with the story of his childhood.

Dragon Ball Super is a sequel to the Dragon Ball manga and to the “Dragon Ball Z” anime series.  Dragon Ball Super is written by Toriyama and drawn by Toyotarou, a writer-artist who has already produced Dragon Ball spin-off manga.  This new series is set several months after Goku's victory that brought peace back to Earth.  Goku and his friends must defend Earth, this time from fighters from other universes and timelines.

As Dragon Ball Super, Vol. 4 (Chapters 21 to 24; entitled “Last Chance for Hope”) opens, Goku and Vegeta return from the world of “Future Trunks.”  It was there that they got their butts handed to them by “Goku Black,” a mysterious warrior who looks exactly like Goku.

It turns out the Goku Black is really Zamas, the Lord of Lords from Universe 10, teamed-up with another Zamas.  Now, Goku trains with Master Roshi to perfect the technique, “Matū-ba,” which he can use to seal Goku Black.  When Goku and Vegeta return to the Future Trunks future parallel universe – with more allies – they find the two Zamas have come up with a way to make themselves seemingly unbeatable.

[This manga includes a bonus story.]

THE LOWDOWN:  While I am an occasional reader of Dragon Ball manga, I do enjoy the series.  The Dragon Ball Super manga is a nice fresh start for new readers.

Dragon Ball Super Graphic Novel Volume 4 follows Vols. 2 and 3, which moved the series beyond its original premise – the fight between Universes 6 and 7.  It is true that the new direction can be a little confusing because the reader has to keep up with characters from multiple universes and timelines and also with a few duplicate characters from other timelines and universes.

Still, Vol. 4 is an example of a quintessential battle manga, and I have to admit that it is a fun read, and Toshikazu Aizawa's translation is quite useful  Letterers Paolo Gattone and Chiara Antonelli continue to pack the chapters in each volume with explosive sound effects that go just right with the kinetic battles.  And thanks to that cliffhanger, I want to come back for more.

I READS YOU RECOMMENDS:  Readers looking for more Dragon Ball will want to try the “Shonen Jump” title, Dragon Ball Super.

A-
7.5 out of 10

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"

The text is copyright © 2020 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint or syndication rights and fees.

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DC Comics On-Sale May 12, 2020

DC Comics New Comic Books – Tuesday, May 12, 2020:

New Comic Books:

Harley Quinn #72
Justice League #44
Justice League Odyssey #20
Lois Lane #10
Metal Men #6


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#IReadsYou Review: SQUADRON SUPREME #1

SQUADRON SUPREME No. 1
MARVEL COMICS – @Marvel

[This review was originally posted on Patreon.]

WRITERS: James Robinson
PENCILS: Leonard Kirk
INKS: Paul Neary
COLORS: Frank Martin
LETTERS: Travis Lanham
COVER: Alex Ross
VARIANT COVERS: Leonard Kirk with Jesus Aburto; Mike Del Mundo (Hip Hop variant); John Tyler Christopher (action figure variant)
28pp, Color, $3.99 U.S. (February 2016)

The Squadron Supreme is a Marvel Comics superhero team.  Created by writer Roy Thomas and artist John Buscema, the group first appeared in a story arc that was published in Avengers #85–86 (cover dated: February to March 1971).  The Squadron Supreme's membership was initially based on DC Comics' characters.  The core members of the Squadron Supreme were Hyperion (Superman), Nighthawk (Batman), Doctor Spectrum (Green Lantern), Power Princess (Wonder Woman), and the Whizzer (Flash).

Throughout its history, the Squadron Supreme has made sporadic appearances in various Marvel Comics titles.  For a time, the group's most memorable run came in Squadron Supreme, a 12-issue miniseries, published from mid-1985 to mid-1986 and written by the late Mark Gruenwald.

With the advent of the All-New, All-Different Marvel, the Squadron Supreme returns in a new ongoing comic book series, featuring, in some cases, alternate version of the characters that comprised the group's core membership.  Squadron Supreme is written by James Robinson; drawn by Leonard Kirk (pencils) and Paul Neary (inks); colored by Frank Martin; and lettered by Travis Lanham, with covers by Alex Ross.

Squadron Supreme #1 opens eight months after the destruction wrought by events depicted in the nine-issue miniseries, Secret Wars.  Hyperion (Marcus Milton of Earth 13034), Nighthawk (Kyle Richmond of Earth 31916), Doctor Spectrum (of Earth 4290001); Power Princess (Zarda Shelton of Earth 712), and Blur (Jeff Walters of Earth 148611) have gathered as the Squadron Supreme.  Their first move is to exact revenge against the man they hold responsible for the destruction of their worlds, Namor.  Their next move will put many on Earth on edge.

I was a few pages into this comic book when it became obvious that it was not for me.  I knew that it was unlikely that I would read another issue unless someone gave me a hard copy, because I could not see bothering to read a digital copy.  It looks as if writer James Robinson is trying to recreate Warren Ellis' brilliant Wildstorm comic book, The Authority, but without a sense of humor.

There is nothing that inker Paul Neary can do for Leonard Kirk's pencils, which are... average; I don't think another word is more appropriate.  This comic book is not awful.  It's just average – there goes that word again.

C

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"


The text is copyright © 2016 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog for reprint and syndication rights and fees.


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#IReadsYou Review: THE WATER DRAGON'S BRIDE Volume 11

THE WATER DRAGON'S BRIDE, VOL. 11
VIZ MEDIA – @VIZMedia

[This review was originally posted on Patreon.]

CARTOONIST: Rei Toma
TRANSLATION/ENGLISH ADAPTATION: Abby Lehrke
LETTERS: Monaliza de Asis
EDITOR: Amy Yu
ISBN: 978-1-9747-0958-8; paperback (November 2019); Rated “T” for “Teen”
200pp, B&W, $9.99 U.S., $12.99 CAN, £6.99 UK

The Water Dragon's Bride is a shojo fantasy romance manga from writer-artist Rei Toma (creator of Dawn of the Arcana).  It was serialized in the Japanese shojo manga magazine, Cheese!, from 2015 to 2019.  VIZ Media published an English-language edition of the manga as an 11-volume graphic novel series from 2017 to 2019.

The Water Dragon's Bride focuses on Asahi.  A modern-day girl, she is pulled into a pond and is whisked away to a strange and mysterious new land.  She meets a boy, Subaru, the son of a prominent family from a nearby village, but his mother immediately dislikes Asahi and plots to sacrifice her to the god of the Great Lake.  The Water Dragon God wants Asahi to be his wife, and though she refuses, some locals still see her as a priestess.

As The Water Dragon's Bride, Vol. 11 (Chapters 41 to 43 to Last Chapter) opens, the Water Dragon God continues to weaken because he previously transferred his powers to Asahi.  Now, he wants to return Asahi to her world before his powers disappear, but when he sends her home, this god will die.  Although she struggles to stay with him, Asahi knows that the day when they must part is coming – sooner than either realize.  Is it truly the end for these two star-crossed lovers?

[This volume includes the four-panels comics, “The Water Dragon God's Chill Zone #1-3” and bonus manga.]

The Water Dragon's Bride manga sometimes suffered from a sense of the sameness.  As the series approached its conclusion, however, it recovered some of the edginess it showed in its earliest chapters.

The Water Dragon's Bride Graphic Novel Volume 11 is the final volume of the series.  Creator Rei Toma has more surprises in store for her readers.  Vol. 11 depicts the love between Asahi and the Water Dragon God at its most passionate.  I found myself racing through this volume, hoping for a happy ending, and Toma does not disappoint.  The resolution is off-beat and edgy, and she makes us work for our happy ending; real love is bittersweet, and it doesn't come easy.  Toma offers the perfect ending because she leaves us wanting more.

To that end, Abby Lehrke makes the most of this volume's sparse dialogue, as she captures the wanting, the desperation, and the yearning.  Monaliza de Asis splashes her lettering like glittering water droplets throughout the art, helping to give this timeless tale of love an ethereal quality.  So, dear readers, The Water Dragon's Bride gives me the substantive ending for which I had hoped.

9 out of 10

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"


The text is copyright © 2020 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.


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#IReadsYou Review: BATMAN: Last Knight on Earth #1

BATMAN: LAST KNIGHT ON EARTH No. 1 (OF 3)
DC COMICS/DC Black Label – @DCComics

[This review was originally posted on Patreon.]

STORY: Scott Snyder
PENCILS: Greg Capullo
INKS: Jonathan Glapion
COLORS: FCO Plascencia
LETTERS: Tom Napolitano
EDITOR: Mark Doyle
COVER: Greg Capullo with FCO Plascencia
VARIANT COVER: Jock
56pp, Color, $5.99 U.S. (July 2019)

Mature Readers

Batman created by Bob Kane and Bill Finger

Parts (One) “The Cave,” (Two) “The Right Hand,” (Three) “The Asylum,” (Four) “Echolocation”

Batman: Last Knight on Earth is a new three-issue comic book miniseries written by Scott Snyder and drawn by Greg Capullo (pencils) and Jonathan Glapion (inks).  Colorist FCO Plascencia and letterer Tom Napolitano complete the creative team.

Batman: Last Knight on Earth is the second release in DC Comics' new prestige and event publication imprint, “DC Black Label.”  The series follows Batman as he travels a ruined Earth, trying to find the mysterious power that devastated the world.

Batman: Last Knight on Earth #1 opens with Batman facing a strange crime wave in Gotham City.  There are no victims.  For the past 363 days, someone has drawn a chalk line across a different, random five-foot stretch of Gotham – every morning.  The next day, it is gone and replaced by a new chalk line somewhere else.  Batman has discovered the chalk lines have something to do with him, and the answer to this mystery seems surprisingly to be at “Crime Alley,” the place where Bruce Wayne's parents were murdered.

After he wakes up in Arkham Asylum, however, as a young man, a sane young man, Bruce Wayne realizes that he has never been Batman.  And the world, destroyed by an unspeakable force, really needs Batman.

Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo are not only the most popular Batman writer-artist pairing of this still young twenty-first century; they are also among the most prolific of the last 50 years.  Snyder has portrayed Bruce Wayne as young and sleek with a humanitarian bent and Batman as being closer to Iron Man than to Frank Miller's Batman the Dark Knight.  In fact, I would say that Snyder's Batman/Bruce Wayne is really a continuation of the superhero/alter-ego pair Miller and artist David Mazzuchelli introduced to readers in the Batman: Year One story arc (originally published in the comic book, Batman, issues #404-407).

Greg Capullo's illustrations during his run with Batman presents a Gotham City where the Justice League fit as well as the Joker does.  Science fiction and technology sit side by side with dark conspiracy and horror.  Even Capullo's clean-line style makes Batman and his world seem fresh, thanks to the contributions of inker Jonathan Glapion.

FCO Plascencia colors this book as if he were coloring Moebius' art, with colors that shimmer, shine, and glow.  Tom Napolitano, who apparently does not contribute enough to have his name on the cover of this comic book, is one of the most distinctive and talented letters in comic books.  Neapolitan makes the shifting settings and surreal-like turns in plot coalesce into a single narrative.

That is the championship creative team that Batman: Last Knight on Earth #1 has.  I am reluctant to spoil anything in this first issue.  The sudden changes in plot and setting are bracing and promise a Batman story that may indeed by memorable... and worthy of the ambitions of DC Comics' “DC Black Label” imprint.

If Batman: Last Knight on Earth is going to be a “last Batman story” it should be better than most “last particular superhero” stories.  Batman: Last Knight on Earth #1 alone is quite a humdinger.

8 out of 10

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"


The text is copyright © 2019 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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#IReadsYou Review: SP BABY Volume 1

SP BABY, VOL. 1
VIZ MEDIA – @VIZMedia

[This review was originally posted on Patreon.]

CARTOONIST: Maki Enjoji
TRANSLATION: JN Productions
LETTERS: Inori Fukuda Trant
EDITOR: Nancy Thislethwaite
ISBN: 978-1-4215-9540-5; paperback (November 2017); Rated “T+” for “Older Teen”
192pp, B&W, $9.99 U.S., $12.99 CAN, £6.99 UK

SP x Baby is a manga written and drawn by Maki Enjoji (who also created Happy Marriage?!).  It was serialized in the Japanese shojo manga magazine, Petit Comic, from 2014 to 2015.  VIZ Media published an English-language edition of the manga as a two-volume graphic novel series, entitled SP Baby, from 2017 to 2018 under its “Shojo Beat” imprint.

SP Baby, Vol. 1 (Chapters 1 to 5) introduces a young woman named Tamaki Hasegawa.  One day, she is on the way to a much-needed job interview when she stops to help a young man whom she believes is being assaulted.  That young man turns out to be Kagetora Sugou, the nephew of the prime minister of Japan.

Kagetora starts to pursue Tamaki to be his bodyguard because he was impressed with the way she handled the assault.  At first, Tamaki is put off by Kagetora's playful, teasing demeanor.  She is determined, however, to get a job so that she can earn money to prove herself as a good worker and to help her younger brother, Taishi, pay for college.  Although she does accept the job, Tamaki does not realize that she and Kagetora have met before...

The SP Baby manga is from one of the reigning queens of shojo romance manga, Maki Enjoji.  She specializes in chronicling the evolution of a romance between people whose personalities clash, as seen in VIZ Media's current Enjoji project, An Incurable Case of Love.

SP Baby Graphic Novel Volume 1 isn't so much a love story as it is a “Me Too” era violation.  Kagetora is a bore and does not respect Tamaki's space.  He acts like a privileged brat, and his actions sometime border on being criminal.  Tamaki is plucky and determined, but if she really had any good sense, she would quit her job as Kagetora's bodyguard.  In fact, if she had trusted her feelings, she would not have taken the job in the first place.

Vol. 2 is going to have to come up with a really good reason for Kagetora's behavior and personality.  It will likely have something to do with the characters' shared pasts.  I do give credit to JN Productions' translation, which really conveys Tamaki's struggles to succeed and her stubborn determination to get what she wants.  And, as usual, I thoroughly enjoyed Enjoji's art and graphic design.

4 out of 10

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseauxa a.k.a. "I Reads You"


The text is copyright © 2020 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and  syndication rights and fees.


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