Is This Still The 20th Century?

 

 

A long time ago, volume after volume of Naoki Urasawa’s “Monster” was released in the US.  I read every volume I could get my hands on, if only to make sense of all the mysteries that were teased throughout the work.  It seems to be a hallmark of Urasawa’s that he never just plops the main conflict and the main villain and their main goal down right in front of you.

 

No, you have to work for it.

 

And the same holds true for 20^th Century Boys.  The story jumps wildly between the present day, what is implied to be the future, and the friend group’s shared past growing up in the 1960’s-70’s.

 

Several loose threads are present: a mysterious group that is led by a mysterious man with mysterious powers and up to no good, an unknown threat to the world itself, and an unseen group of heroes who will eventually defeat this threat.

 

To be honest, there is so much going on in this series that is almost impossible to tell where it all begins.

 

A children’s group in the 1960’s-70’s has a bunch of mundane adventures, witnesses history and discusses deep topics.  In the present day, many people connected to the group are meeting with mysterious fates.  And one member from the old group has started a cult, based around their old playtime secret symbol, and gained strange powers with the implicit intent to destroy or otherwise upend the world.

 

We follow Kenji Endo, our protagonist, as he attempts to unravel this twisted web of intrigue.  And, as he does, so do we.

 

As I said before, the whole business of following all the threads and finding out how they all connect is a big part of why one reads something like this.  It’s like Evangelion, or Urasawa’s previously-mentioned Monster in that way.  The artwork is stark, enough to fit the serious themes that, yes, are still present in a story containing a worldwide cult with mysterious powers.  We get to watch the protagonists and others as they grow up and try to find their way in a world that is not always kind to them.  There is a real gritty realism to it.

 

That being said, there are a lot of characters and, yes, threads to keep track of, so it can sometimes be hard to remember what is what, particularly if you buy/read only one volume at a time.  By the time you have finished reading Volume 1, you may very well have forgotten all of it by the time you get to Volume 2.  (Which would be more than understandable.)

 

And the time jumps are definitely not helping.

 

That being said, this series is allegedly one of Urasawa’s best-known works.  Monster wasn’t too bad, either, and that is the only series of his that I am actively familiar with, so that is my only frame of reference.  So I get the feeling that 20^th Century Boys is also going to wind up being something I was glad I read, and held onto for as long as I could.

 

Links and Updates, Updates and Links

 Dear Readers,

Here we are, at more than four months since my last manga review.  As always, you can blame the pandemic, my own lack of time to spend at the bookstore, and my local library system being too slow to get in anything actually good half the time.

 But all is not lost: I come bearing news related to some of my favorite series, ones that I have even mentioned before on this blog!

1. Spy X Family has recently gotten an anime!  It's true!  You can find it online in both subbed and Funimation dubbed format, depending on where you look.

And, if you're one of those people who likes to try things out before you buy them, like myself, there are plenty of free clips available on Youtube.

I have been following the series in the official English-language Shonen Jump manga format ever since Vol. 1 and, I must say, it has yet to disappoint me, even up to the current latest release of Vol. 7.

2. Both Black Clover and My Hero Academia are nearing their ends.  This news leaves me with a heavy heart, as I have blogged postings extolling the series since their first volumes released on our shores.

I follow the manga of My Hero Academia every week on the Shonen Jump website, but for Black Clover I have only been following the Funimation English-dubbed release on Toonami.  (I felt as though I had no choice at the time, given how quickly the anime overtook the English release of the manga.)

My point is that I can only pontificate on the current state of the manga for My Hero Academia.  Months after the greatest war we readers have ever seen, the villainous All For One continues to warp/fuse together with his protege, Tomura Shigaraki, the Symbol of Fear.  Izuku has been betrayed, found a new ally, and is currently teleported away from the main battle.

Meanwhile, Dabi's past is revealed as he faces Todoroki, and Shigaraki's power continues mutating and growing out of control.

I mean, we know that Izuku will survive and go on not only to narrate the story, but also to "become the greatest hero in the world", but he and his friends are still facing an uphill battle.

But at least Black Clover is taking a three-month hiatus in order to work on their final arc.  Academia, however, looks like it's going to be a doozy.

3. Do you readers remember when I said that I had found a site with free translations of the One Piece In Love ("Koisuru One Piece") manga, but I didn't have the link for you?

Well,  now I do!  And here it is: https://scansofmetsudo.weebly.com/one-piece-in-love.html

Boy, do I sure hope that works!

The link above should take you to the work of a dedicated fan who, with his friends, has managed to translate all of the manga's Volume 1 chapters and one or two of Volume 2's.

Well, readers, that's all for now.  But please, stay with me and, with luck, I will once again one day have new manga reviews, written just for you!

Beauty and the Beast (As Seen on Disney+)

 

My Love Story "Ore Monogatari"

 

As always, this book was relatively new at my local library the last time I went there.  There was no sticker saying when exactly it arrived, but I am just going by the pristine condition of the actual book itself.  All I know is that the series has been out in the States for a relatively long time already.

 

(Side Note: As we move into Year Two of Coronavirus quarantine, I have seriously begun to debate on whether or not to continue the whole “found it at the library” spiel that I do, or just chalk it up as a given.  Ooh, or maybe leave a special remark any time I DON’T find it at the local library?  Because God knows I’m not going to the bookstore any time soon!”

 

For years, the big-hearted yet ugly Takeo Goda has watched girl after girl fall for his hot best friend Sunakawa instead of him, even though he was the one who actually liked them back in the first place.

 

The thing is, Sunakawa always turned them down, in no uncertain terms, with even a touch of meanness thrown in here and there.

 

So, when Takeo saves a sweet girl named Rinko Yamato from a molester on the train, and Sunakawa just happens to be there, Takeo feels like he knows where this is going.  After all, the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.

 

What follows is a looong first chapter (one of the bigger problems with the series) of Takeo failing to realize that, whenever Rinko invites him out somewhere to thank him for saving her, it is not an excuse to meet with Sunakawa.

 

The author of this series, Kazune Kawahara, also wrote the series “High School Debut”, which also wasn’t half bad, albeit so bog ordinary that I stopped reading after the first three volumes.

 

What works in this series is its blurring of the lines between believable characters and unbelievable characters.  I mean, it’s believable that Takeo would not believe that an attractive girl like Rinko would be into him.  The sad truth of this world is that outer beauty is all that some people see, plus, again, he has his entire history with Sunakawa backing him up.  But, at the same time, it is slightly unbelievable that anyone could be so oblivious to the fact that anyone actually likes him, to the point where he and Sunakawa are forced to pull off ridiculous, anime-esque schemes in order to Takeo to hear the truth straight from Rinko’s lips, as, unsurprisingly, he does not initially take Sunakawa at his word when he tells him point-blank what is up.

 

There is also plenty of Japanese-style humor in the work, surprisingly, whether it be Takeo’s being forced to catch a falling I-beam and lift it off of Rinko and Sunakawa, or Takeo’s general appearance in general, looking much more like he would be more at home in something like Mob Psycho 100 or One-Punch Man.

 

But, believable or not, it is the characters that really drive “My Love Story”.  (The artwork is detailed and pretty enough, I suppose, but that’s beside the point.)  Sunakawa and Takeo are true friends and true men, where Takeo constantly puts aside his own feelings for the sake of Sunakawa and his relationships (even though they never really work out), and Sunakawa’s brusqueness actually turns out to be him standing up for Takeo when every girl who asks him out badmouths his giant friend.

 

There’s even something sweet about Rinko’s desiring closer physical intimacy (of the simple closeness and hand-holding kind; these are Japanese high school kids, after all), contrasting with and despite Takeo’s declaration that he will not touch her until she’s ready, out of the need to not frighten or harm her with his size and strength.

 

All in all, as usual, I am not disappointed that I took the time to pick up and read this manga, but I wouldn’t exactly say it left me jumping for joy or broke any new ground.

 

But maybe it’s right for you.

Did Not Light A Fire Under Me

 

First of all, Happy New Year 2022 to all my friends.

And now, onto my review of Tite Kubo's newest project, following the end of Bleach in 2016, "Burn The Witch".

 

In an alternate version of London, two similar dimensions exist side-by-side.  These worlds are Front London and Reverse London.  In the latter, the people are constantly plagued by monsters known as Dragons, which are usually invisible to those on the Front side.

 

Sound familiar?

 

The services of Wing Bind help to keep the people of both Londons safe from Dragons in need of either destruction or else harvesting for their useful abilities and resources.  And two of these such people are protagonists Noel Niihashi and Ninny Spangcole.

 

It is illegal for anyone outside of Wing Bind to come in contact with Dragons.  Violation of this rule results in imprisonment or death.  This is because ordinary people who get too close to Dragons become infected with their cells and become known as Dragonclad, those who inadvertently attract Dragons.

 

And it’s even worse on the Dragon side, as prolonged exposure to humans can pass on their negative emotions to them and turn them into destructive Dark Dragons.  Dark Dragons want to eat witches like those in Wing Bind in order to become immortal.

 

To her Ninny tell it, this will not actually happen.

 

One day, Noel fan Balgo and his pal Selby attempt to follow Noel through the magic phone booth (It’s bigger on the inside) into Reverse London, when Balgo’s dog Osushi explodes into a Dark Dragon.  Turns out Osushi is a Disguiser Dragon that can possess a corpse in order to live.  And so, it turns out, is Selby.  And he has been hiding out inside Selby’s corpse for ten years.

 

No way Balgo isn’t a Dragonclad by this point.

 

Behind the scenes, the higher-ups who run Wing Bind, the Tops of Horns, seek to eliminate Balgo for being a Dragonclad and essentially unwittingly spending a long time with hidden Dragons and making them into Dark Dragons by accident.

 

An investigation into a Dragon attack by Ninny’s former bandmate Macy leads the heroines to learn of the Top of Horns’ plot when member Bruno Bangnyfe appears to contain Balgo for elimination, aiming to pin the blame for the damage on him.  They flee from both Bruno and Macy’s Dragon Elly, only for the latter to molt in the moonlight and mutate into its true form: Cinderella, one of seven destructive Marchen Dark Dragons themed after fairy tales, and labeled as Kill On Sight.

 

Bruno attempts to fight Cinderella and destroy it, in order to stop its rampaging, but nothing works.  Ninny and Noel can only watch and try to defend the powerless Balgo and Macy.

 

In the end, an unlikely person shoots Cinderella in its weak point from far away and destroys it.  And Balgo’s kill order is lifted by Bangnyfe, thinking that his brief contact with Macy two months prior may have been a factor in Cinderella’s appearance, and that he may be useful in their plan to eliminate all of the Marchen Dragons.

 

BTW, Macy also joins the team as another Dragonclad.

 

Now, I am only a moderate fan of Bleach.  I lost interest early on, in both the anime and the manga.  A couple of years aback, I finally decided to catch up on the Bleach manga for some reason or another, and so began nearly a year-long quest to read the entire series from the beginning, one volume at a time.

 

Now, don’t get me wrong: it has its good points.  The character designs and superpowers are all great.  But it still seemed very forgettable at the end of the day.  The anime I liked more, though I have only watched a few episodes with my favorite characters and voice actors in them, over and over again.

 

The world was just too big and intricate for me to really absorb or memorize or care about, much as I fear it is in Burn The Witch.

 

Granted, this is only the first volume, but I get a distinct sense that things won’t always stay as black-and-white as Wing Bind vs. Dragons, the same as it did when Bleach branched out from Soul Reapers Vs. Hollows.

 

Tite Kubo is a very weird creator, all things told.  His works thus far (aside from, I think, Zombie Powder) have been liberally sprinkled with bizarre English-esque titles made seemingly out of Word Salad and snippets of foreign languages thrown in here and there like some kind of language stew.  When the people aren’t flat or comical, they are ultra-deep and brooding and speak in odd sentences and terms that sound like the half-formed thoughts of a monk who is deliberately trying to be obscure about everything.

 

And the naming also gets very bizarre, very often.  For example-one of the Tops of Horns is named Cquntnire Milieve.

 

Cquntnire.

 

How the hell do you pronounce that?  Does Kubo know English or not?  With names like these, it’s hard to tell, but then he drops in English words and things that almost make sense, like even the series’ title “Burn The Witch”.  It has nothing to do with the story, aside from the main characters being witches, but I guess it still technically counts as a coherent English sentence (which they aren’t always!), so I guess they were all like “throw it in”.

 

(FYI, the wiki says it’s pronounced like Kyuntonia.)

 

And Kubo has apparently set both Bleach and Burn The Witch in the same world?  The Dragons already operate like Hollows, and the magic used by the main heroines is an awful lot like the Hado used in Bleach.  Wing Branch’s full legal name is even Soul Society West Branch.

 

But this seemingly-cool move on his part only serves to raise more questions than it answers.  Are Hollows confined only to Japan?  I’d have thought that any soul that died anywhere had a chance to become either a ghost or a Hollow.  Do Hollows exist in Reverse London, as well?  Is Reverse London like the Soul Society “across the pond”?

 

Are Witches Soul Reapers?  Are Soul Reapers Witches?  Are Hollows Dragon?  And are Dragons Hollows?

 

There is a mention that Dragons are outright killed as a regular thing in Japan, not like how they are sometimes kept around to provide services in Reverse London, but what does that mean?  Is there a Reverse, say, Tokyo, or Karakura that is killing these Dragons?

 

Give us some more details, Kubo!  I’m all for a bit of mystery here and there, but this is, to use the British vernacular, “taking the piss”!

 

Now, I haven’t watched the anime of Burn The Witch, but, so far, none of the characters are physically or personally appealing to me, just from the first volume.  Nobody’s design is incredibly unique or super-hot or super-cool.  Nobody has the kind of personality that I would love to watch play out in an anime or read playing out in the pages of a book.  For the most part, everyone is either stupid or a jerk.

 

But, when all is said and done, this is only the first volume (even though it was a chore trying to read the whole thing in one night in order to write this review).  So I suppose Burn The Witch has nowhere to go but up.  I will continue following this series for as long as I can, if only to see where it goes.

 

That being said, my final gripe about this series is the bizarre release schedule.  Wikipedia says that the “first season”, which I guess is the four or so chapters we read in this English release, came out and ran from August to September of 2020, and that a second season has been announced.

 

No idea what that means, but it sounds like they will only be releasing a few chapters at a time, spaced out over some unknown time span.

 

And I’ll admit that Coronavirus has thrown a massive spanner into everybody’s works worldwide, but maybe one could try and change their whole schedule plan, just a bit?

 

I mean, One Piece and Academia are still putting out one chapter a week, aren’t they?

 

Here’s wishing Tite Kubo and everyone else on the planet a safer, possibly returning to normal, New Year in 2022.

 

Look At What Just Drifted By

 

Back when I was in college, my dorm was not too far from the local downtown.  Naturally, this, of course, included a library.  I can remember spending at least a few hours down there, mostly reading manga and graphic novels that my own hometown did not possess.  One of said manga series I read there was Kazuo Umezu’s haunting series “Drifting Classroom”.

 

Now, it’s been around 10 years since I was in college, and, being younger then, I hadn’t quite seen enough of the world of horror to realize just how gripping and terrifying this series was.

 

But I know now.

 

Grade-school student Sho Takamatsu has not had a good day, and it’s about to get worse than he, or anyone save Umezu, could possibly imagine.

 

After a dramatic falling-out with his mother, in which both declared they never wanted to see each other again, Sho arrives at school like any other day…and then all Hell breaks loose.  A massive boom shakes the building.  No one can contact the outside world.  And what lies beyond the school’s gates has been transformed into a lifeless wasteland.

 

Left to survive with limited water, limited food and (soon enough) no adult supervision, save for the monstrous and cruel lunch delivery man, Sho and his fellow students are forced to band together as a community.  Dangers await them from both without and within.  Every chapter brings about a new challenge or mystery, up until the reveal that the school itself has been blasted forward in time, hence the “Drifting” in the title.

 

Most adults would find it hard to maintain their sanity in the grips of such a situation (and they indeed do find it so), so one can imagine how hard Sho and his fellows will have it.  And, from what I hear, things will often get worse before they get better.

 

Told in stark ultra-white paper and ultra-black ink, the real-life terrors of scarcity, the risk of death by starvation and dehydration, the terror of the unknown and the darkness that humans can be reduced to are all on stark display in this manga.

 

Now, I must admit, the library only had a small handful of the first few volumes on its shelves when I was there, so I only know so much firsthand.  But the series has recently been re-released in large, omnibus formats, one of which had just appeared on my own local library’s shelves when I just happened to go there yesterday.

 

My point is, I have apparently been exposed to only a fraction of what will soon lie in store for me if I continue to read “Drifting Classroom”.  (SPOILER) I have more-or-less read up to the end of the third volume or so, where, having encountered and failed to defeat the giant mutant insect monster (shown above), the children agree to posse up and hunt it down in order to avenge those it ate when it attacked the school.

 

So my horror is apparently just beginning.

 

And that’s saying something, with how bizarre and disturbing even the first major alien threat is on its own, with its realistically shiny, chitinous shell, its too-many legs and its mouthful of mammalian sharp teeth, all of which combine to make it thoroughly alien, yet just familiar enough to show us just how badly it was warped.

 

All I can say is, do not come into this series expecting the happiest of endings.  Many people, especially children, die in the first three volumes alone and, with a total of 824 people in the school to feed and contend with, you just know no all of them are going to survive.

 

I know it’s going to be horrible, but I just can’t look away.  It’s like listening to right-wing radio, in that way.

 

One final word of note: this being an older series, there may occasionally be some outdated ways of thinking on display, most notably in the form of a statement from resident genius Gamo, who claims that “females allow their emotions to impede their logic, and are better off giving birth and raising children”.

 

Needless to say, as horrifying as this is, it is by far one of the least horrifying things you will find if you pick up this series.

Like Most Candies, Over Too Quickly

 

In a world not unlike modern day Japan, a certain candy company put out a new product that accidentally gave 100 random people candy-generation superpowers.  Not long after that, someone with the power to generate lollipops used them to cause massive destruction and devastation in Tokyo.  Since then, lollipop-user Tsumugi has been on the run and determined to keep her powers a secret, for fear that she be mistakenly arrested as the culprit, which she is not.  But the kicker is that no one has any reason to believe this because, as far as anyone knows, there can be only one kind of candy power per person.  When she finally is discovered, Tsumugi is recruited by the candy-power-using police to help clear her name and hunt down the actual culprit.

 

That is Candy Flurry in a nutshell.

 

This manga is funny enough in its own way, often resorting to what I have previously referred to as “Japanese-style humor”, where someone does/says something completely mundane/unusual out of nowhere, completely breaking the tone of an otherwise normal/unusual scene.  The battle system is very unique and likable as well.  I greatly enjoyed the Whole Cake Island arc of One Piece, filled with several similar food/candy-using baddies, but even they didn’t do crazy awesome things like:

 

·         Using popcorn kernels as bombs

·         Using donuts as wheels

·         Using chewing gum to make sticky spider web nets

·         Using macarons as Venus fly traps to open up and snap shut on the opponent, also encasing their immobilized parts in sticky goo

 

Sadly, this series has recently ended, after only three volumes.  It may not have lasted long, but I do not regret having read it.  Who knows-maybe if this series is translated and sold here across the pond, I just might purchase a copy.