My Bride is a Mermaid

 

 My Bride is a Mermaid is a manga by Tahiko Kimura. 

"A young boy gets saved from drowning by a mermaid but according to mermaid law, if a human sees a mermaid's true form, both are to executed. The only solution to the problem is for him to marry her and become part of the mermaid family."

General Thoughts: I enjoyed this as an anime. It was pretty good. I think the anime got better as it went on and the conclusion was engaging and thrilling. The manga... I didn't finish because there were so many cliches and it wasn't going anywhere. Once I got into the "I'm forced to work in a Maid Cafe" and it went on for an entire volume, I just put it down. 

<< Spoilers Beyond This Point>>

Plot: I think it has a promising storyline. Sun has to go live Nagasumi and be his bride and not get found out that she's a mermaid. Things get worse for Nagasumi when all of her yakuza family starts teaching at their school. What get could more entertaining than that? It had so much promise, but then got to the point where the writer probably didn't know what else to do and it floundered hard. I read on for a while after I wanted to quit, but it just kept going in this maid cafe and just wasn't funny anymore. The humor got lost and I just needed to stop. 

Setting: The setting wasn't a really important part of the story so it wasn't given much development. The  under-the-sea moments and development could have worked really well, but they let it slide. The other parts on land were a typical Shoujo or Shonen in Japan, sometimes visiting Tokyo or Kyoto, but nothing spectacular. 

Characters: I like the fact that Nagasumi tries hard not to be a perverted teenage boy, but I can understand why he fails at times. Sun is alright and I like the rivalry between her and Lunar. (The music in the anime is really good.) Chimp is obnoxious and Lunar is kind of annoying. Neither of them have super redeeming qualities in my opinion. The Seto Gang is kind of funny, but they lost a lot of their humor as the story went on. 

Spice: 3/5 Spicy Chilis. I'm putting this one here because panty shots, boob grabs, and "oh no I fell on you in an awkward position" happens often enough to be annoying. There are also moments that are rather inappropriate where he has to help the girls clean off their fins, but it looks like he's touching their butts or touching them inappropriately. The Fan Service is annoying. 

Writing/Illustration Style:  The illustrations weren't particularly amazing. It's an older style of illustration and it didn't particularly age well. And the narration was bland. 

Overall: If I felt inclined to have this story again, I'd go for the anime and leave the manga by the wayside. I didn't get far enough (though quite a few volumes in) for it to get good in the manga. The anime had a better overarching theme of "what would I really do for her?" whereas the manga lacked and floundered. It drowned with no mermaid to actually save it. 

That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime

 The manga That Time I Got Reincarnated As A Slime was a really fun isekai to read and anime to watch.

"Mikami's a middle age hasn't gone as he as he's planned. He never found a girlfriend, he got stuck in a dead-end job and was abruptly stabbed to death on the street at 37. So when he wakes up in a new work straight out of a fantasy RPG, he's disappointed buy not exactly surprised to find that he's a not a wizard but a blind slime demon. But there are chances for even a slime to become a hero..."

General Thoughts: I enjoyed this story and am glad it's continuing onward. This is actually a series I'm interested in purchasing for myself.

Plot and Theme: Slime is a typical isekai. Going from weakest creature alive to the top demon lord that everyone is scared of so that way you can protect your friends. There are many clichés and tropes that pop up here, but what was surprising was that it was done well. There are many isekai manga that don't run through their tropes well or where the story is so bad it just flounders. Slime doesn't. Rimaru gains friends and helps lift up others along the way. It's fun to see the village going from Goblin shacks that are barely standing to a major city with a Coliseum and Rimaru as a Demon Lord. There is political intrigue, massive disasters, death, humor and comedy, battles, and road construction. I like the ideas of helping each other out and living our best lives without having the "my friends are my power" trope which has gotten very old and long winded. It's a fun adventure story. 

Setting: It is an basic fantasy setting with goblins, orcs, demons, elves, dryads, vampires, humans, and whatnot. But each of these different clans have well developed cultures. Each kingdom has it's own boarders and concerns which leads to altercations and friendships. I'm in love with a good map at the beginning of any book and this one has them throughout the story as Rimaru becomes more important in society. 

Characters and Style: Many of the characters are very unique. There a lot of them, but each are drawn differently enough and have prominent (loud or quiet) personality that they don't get mixed up with other, which can often happen in these large scale books. Rimaru is a good leader, has his flaws (though few seem to be fatal flaws at the moment), but is always looking out for the people who've come under his slimy wing. 

Spice: 2/5 Spicy Chilis. Slime is not ecchi, which is great, but, however, there are some times with the elves one other character who are big and busty or a Demon Lord who wears only panties that I have found to be uncomfortable. There is also a moment toward the beginning where Rimaru needs to decide how he is going to look and because he's a slime and technically doesn't have a gender, he gets to pick and explores that a little, technically nothing is shown, but it gets to be kind of close at times. My son, who very much enjoys this series, chooses to look away because it can get awkward. Thankfully, it happens rarely enough that we don't have to turn it off. 

Final Thoughts: I do enjoy the series. It's got an engaging plot, fun characters, and it does the isekai genre good. I have very few qualms with it and can't wait for more chapters to be made. 

The Scarlet Letter (Manga)

I've never read this classic and when scanning through the comic section of my library, I came across it and finished it in a day. 

1642, Hester Prynne is married to a man in England whom she doesn't love and has a baby with another man. She won't say who this man is and lets the blame fall completely on herself. She is given a scarlet letter to put on her chest so that everyone in town knows of her sin and will treat her with the distain she deserves. Her husband makes arrives in town but tells her now to reveal who he is and they can go about their business, an ever present demon as he seeks to find who is the baby's father and take his vengeance on the man's soul. Hester raises her daughter, Pearl, on her own and tries to do her best to receive redemption for the sin she committed. As the years go by and by her good works in her community, the letter on her chest starts to represent her "ability" to do good as opposed to the "adultery" she is convicted of and she creates a good name for herself although her sin is never far from people's minds. 

This was a very interesting book. My friends were forced to read it in school and many didn't like it (who does when it's mandatory reading?). So I didn't know what I was really getting into. The fact that it's a manga and the pictures helped illustrate what the metaphors in the story were trying to convey what was going on much better than I think I would have gotten the first time through on a normal book read. My brain is kinda like that. Roger Chillingworth becoming more demonic as time goes on and the amount of guilt that radiates from poor sickly Arthur Dimmesdale is very well portrayed, along with how the town slowly changes their opinion of Hester as she proves that one mistakes is what makes her up as a person. 

The overarching theme of how guilt can impact people is extremely interesting and probably why it is a classic. The fact that because Hester's sin is in front of everyone and that her guilt is boldly on her chest for everyone to see, as opposed to Arthur, who is looked up to greatly by all of the community, hides it and becomes sick because of the gnawing guilt of it all; and the way it compares the two, their reactions and that of the community, and how freeing it can be to... forgive themselves...? Is that what it is? To let the guilt be lifted and how freeing that can be. 

The artwork in here was extremely well done, as was the "summary" of the story. Obviously it's not all of it. I'm sure many of the conversations and sermons were shortened or no in there at all which is fine. From the other "Manga Classics" that I've read, they do a very good job at portraying the most important things of the story without missing as much as you thing. 

In Another World With My Smartphone (Part 1)

 One of the few Isekai ("different world")  manga I've read. 

Touya Mochizuki finds himself talking with God. Apparently he wasn't supposed to die, so in order to make amends God gives him a chance to go to another world. Touya asks if he can take his smartphone with him and God says yes, and that he'll also have magical powers in this world as well. Excited to start his new life, he hitches a ride with a clothes merchant (who wants his clothes and pays top dollar for the fine pieces) and makes his way to the nearest city. He runs into twin girls who help him find the Adventurer's Guild so he can make some money and stay at the inn. The girls help and they split bounties. Touya finds that not only is his smartphone super helpful, but he has the ability to use all magics in this world. Being a helpful person he makes many friends especially among the nobles which helps him move up in society to where he eventually gets his own kingdom. But not all is as easy as it seems. Crystalline beasts are awakening and nothing, not magic or brute force, seems to be able to stop them. 

The plot of the crystalline creatures and Ende (who I think is a bad guy, though we don't know yet) has a lot going for it. The fact that the Hanging Gardens of Babylon is going to help defeat them is pretty awesome, though I personally could do without the mechtechs--but that's just me. I think it has a lot of promise. 

Touya, though, is a MarySue or Gary-Stu if you like, which would normally make me grade it a bit harder, but I still gave it a 4 Star because as the story goes on he finds challenges that are really difficult to overcome. I do think there are still problems with Touya as a character besides his Gary-Stu-ness--which I guess they give a bit of an explanation for but that isn't until later in the series. He doesn't really change throughout the course of the 12 volumes that are out at present. He's completely awesome (Gary-Stu) and girls flock to him (it is a harem after all) but he doesn't change. There are no faults to over come so there is nothing too change. 

I could also do without the perv-y moments that are sprinkled throughout the series. Because Touya is the only boy who isn't a dad or king of a country, all the perv-y people are robot girls or their female creator who's gross. I end up skimming or skipping through parts whenever they are around. Ugh. It' gets tiresome. 

But over all the characters are fun and the plot is creative. I even find that I enjoyed the "building a kingdom" part of the story where much of it was just trying to straighten things out. It's well illustrated and has a good story. We just need to have the main character not be so powerful at the beginning (give him some training sores) and less "panty shots" or plain sex talk. 

The series isn't complete yet, so when another huge bunch comes out, my hubby will probably have me check it out. 

Haikyu!

 This is one of my favorite series I've read this year. 

Haikyu! is about these boys on a volleyball team in Japan. Hinata is short and had little volleyball experience, but can move really quickly and jump very high and is beyond willing to take whatever he can get. Kageyama is a brilliant setter who needs to work on his people skills. In middle school the faced each other and became rivals for life, but then suddenly they find themselves at the same school trying for the same volleyball team. They have to learn to work together and make the Kurosono team fly to nationals. But it isn't just them on the team. All of the boys have things to work on with skills and personality to bring to the court. With dedication, determination, and a willingness to never give up, they become a sensation amongst the other volleyball teams as they work their way to nationals. 

I've always loved volleyball and since I started reading manga, I've love that too. So this was amazing. It was well drawn, and well written. Each of the boys have great personalities (whether it is part of Kurosono or the many other teams). I think Haruichi Furudate did a great job in keeping everyone boy an individual with a separate personality (HEY HEY HEY!!!) and back story from the others which is no easy feat when there are so many characters going on and off the page. So good job. 

I also loved the character development of all the characters. AND EACH OF THEM DEVELOPED AS THE STORY WENT ALONG! Taking the title "King of the Court" and making it his own was pretty  much my favorite. It was refreshing to be so engaged in the story. 

The ending was a little weird with it being a few years in the future some times it got a little confusing trying to remember all of the individuals (there were a lot of them). However, it was fun to see everyone either having moved on to different careers or progressing in volleyball. And the fact that it never actually ends and that the volleyball games will keep going and that Hinata and Kageyama will always be rivals (on the same team or on different teams) was icing on the cake with plenty of cherries on top. 

It was fabulous. I can't wait for the anime to finally be completed in English (though obviously subs are good too). 

Please Take My Brother Away

Please Take My Brother Away was a hilarious manga that was turned into an anime as well as a life action K-Drama. 

A brother and sister live together after their parents sticky divorce and must survive each other. It is a short, fast, slice of life that is just too funny. 

I don't know much more to say other than it's hysterical and I finished it in a day. I really want to find the anime for it, but the K-Drama is on Netflix. 

If you're looking for a pickmeup story, this one is great. 

Fly Me To The Moon (Tonikaku Kawaii)

 

Fly Me To The Moon is a slice of life story for a boy named NASA (like the space association) and a girl who saves his life. He vows he will marry her, but she disappears. He goes through school, graduates at the young age of 16, and suddenly she shows up and asks if he still wants to marry her. He's been looking for her for years and says yes, so they get married. They live in his tiny little apartment and get to know each other. Part of the suspense and intrigue in this story is that neither of them knows anything about being intimate and they both think it would be very improper to touch much let alone sleep with each other (other than actually resting). When his apartment burns down, they move temporarily into a bathhouse (run by a mom and her two daughters who are his age, whom he's helped out with accountant work in the past). Jealousies and friendships accrue. 

In going into it, I didn't realize it was a slice of life, so I was anticipating a thick plot and was slightly disappointed. There was this implication that she is some kind of moon spirit or guardian, but then that never really goes anywhere. I haven't finished the whole series because it was getting king of long (as slice of life stories sometimes do), but I did enjoy what I did complete. 

There were many really cute moments that I don't think would happen in real life (because of the attitude of "we shouldn't touch more than hand holding," "kissing makes me embarrassed," "I shouldn't look because I'm not supposed to" when they are actually married and all of that is fine in practically ever culture that I'm aware of). They are sweet and kind to one another and shows a good marriage which is nice for a change when there are so many awful marriage or the "Mom and Dad are off on business trips for the whole story or don't exist all together." 

I really wish they would have added more into the whole Moon Guardian thing. The slice of life aspect of it is fine, but I really wanted them to do something more with her paranormal powers--like how the heck did she actually safe him! 

Nineteen, Twenty-one

 This is a short completed manga with a short 21 chapters. 

It is about a girl named Yun-lee who got in an accident and can't remember the last two years. She is in college classes and feels very behind with no friends. She will soon be 21 and must be an adult, but she doesn't feel ready. One day on her lunch break she runs into a boy, named Ju Dong-hwi, who feeds stray cats which is something she also does with her lunch money. They have lunch and he tells her about all the other stray cats he takes care of. He is 19 and plans on working all summer, taking care of the cats, and to go on a trip before he has to become an adult and get a real job. 

Theirs is a cute little story. She finally finds a friend and is able to find a place where she feels it's okay to be. Their mutual love of cats and looking out for their wellbeing was sweet. It was also nice to see that the neighbor lady who originally didn't like having all the strays around changes her toon just because Yun-lee is kind and asks her if she needs help with her gardening. In small, simple ways she is able to make a difference in the community around her. 

I also really liked that it was short and complete. Sometimes it's nice to have a long drawn out story with a great plot and fascinating characters, but other times it's nice to have something short, simple and sweet. Still with good characters and arcs but completed. 

If you're looking for a light read, it was really sweet. 

The Quintessential Quintuplets

The Quintessential Quintuplets is a manga about a guy who is insanely smart and is asked to tutor five sisters who are awful at anything academically. They are quintuplets and look so much alike that no one can tell them apart. They are all dramatically different from one another so if someone were to take the time to get to know them individually, they could figure out their quirks enough to tell them apart. Tutoring them, figuring them out, and trying to help them all graduate is a high task for anyone Uesugi has his work cut out for him.

Throughout the series there was a good bit of character development and I, as a curious reader, was able to figure out who was who and remember names by about volume 2 with their different hairstyles and personalities, but when they dressed alike, I was at a loss. "If you love them, you'll be able to tell them apart" was something repeated over and over again which seemed directed at the reader who was still probably having trouble alongside Uesugi, our main character. It was rather fun to pick out who was who and wanting to be right.

The plot was fun and the drama between the girls' father and Uesugi was driven. I even liked the side characters brought in, though there could have been more of them for the girls to like and be friends with other than our main character male. It was good. There was drive to finish it. I ended up finishing 3-4 volumes in one day (under gov mandated quarantine). I wanted to read more.

For the fact that it was a rom-com written by a guy, it was fairly cleanly drawn. No pantie shots or things like that. But there was a lot suggested. It defiantly was written by a guy because of the excessive amount of (covered) boob and "coming out of the shower wrapped in a towel" moments, but they weren't hung onto and grossly emphasized. It could have been far worse and comparatively to other manga, I was able to skim over them without much attention.

If you were to take out the last book, I'd have given this a 5 star rating, but I didn't like how it ended. I read it originally because my husband found it and said it was really good. I started, but then he finished it and really wanted to complain. So I finished it faster and found that I had the same problem. *SPOILERS-ish* I was not content with "who he picked" do to lack of deep character development and her lack of thorough drive to do anything after high school. She wanted to "be a bride." What kind of life goal is that? How is she honestly going to survive mentally if he were to be away on a business trip or some other nonsense when the kids are grown out of the house? She will "be his support" and that's it. She had no arch other than the "sporty girl who helps out everyone because she feels bad." She didn't grow. She didn't change. The other sisters changed, at least in part. There was some "eureka" moment for them all though for one of them it happened more before the story actually started. They all moved. They all progressed even a little except for the one he chose. Bad writing author. Bad writing. *End of Spoiler*

I did give it a 4 because the rest of the story and writing was pretty well done. There were some parts that were drawn out (like a thirteen chapter segment of the end of school festival, seen through the eyes of everyone; over and over and over again), but there was a good story there. It was just the ending that killed it for me. Way to ruin it, dude.

House of the Sun

This manga was a cute, simple and muchly needed story.

Mao is a girl who's family is broken. Her parents have divorced, her mom has practically vanished, and her cold dad is now remarried to a woman who already has a young daughter. She feels replaced by her new sister and unwanted by her father. There is one place she can go and has gone to every time she's needed to get away, the shrine. The shrine is where she is always found by Hiro who always somehow saves her. Hiro has his own problems and troubles. His parents are both dead, his two siblings are living with relatives, and he is left very much alone in his parents big house.

With Mao having no where else to go and feeling very much abandoned and so much room at his house, he offers his home as a place she can rest her head and sort out her troubles. He is older than her by eight years, but have known each other for years and years so it's not super weird. Except for the fact that they start liking each other, obviously!

Eventually Hiro's brother visits, new friends are made, crushes are realized and denied, and high school love drama ensues. Although it runs side by side with the need for families to come back together. Mending broken families.

I really enjoyed this manga series. Mao is a somewhat shy but strong girl who will do what needs to be done realistically. It takes time to gain the nerve and gumpshin to do it. Broken families aren't mended in a week, normally. Often, I think, not even a year. And this goes through the somewhat sticky process of real life and people and their choices.

I enjoyed the characters and how different they were. They grew in their own ways, each with their own moments of love in different varieties. Love and loss and denial and sadness, all real things in life and they were presented well.

This is one that I would probably read again. Enjoy.

School Rumble

School Rumble is a part slice of life, part romantic comedy with an engaging story. At the beginning of the series, there are lots of small incidents that happen and as the story goes long the plots of the different characters interweave more and more. It isn't some high flying adventure or much of a gut wrenching romance, but it is a story that is light hearted and funny. I feel it very much resembles what high school romances end up being: twitterpated hearts, communication problems, secret crushes, group get togethers, and more.

Harima, the glasses-guy on this cover, was a deliquitent, the big, scary man on campus. But then upon seeing/helping Tenma, our pig-tails girl here, he found himself in love with her and got himself back to school. But the big, aloof manly-man can't be seen in love with a ditz like Tenma. But he must confess and let his choice be heard! Right? Only everything always seems to go wrong. And Tenma is in love with another, more somber boy in class named Karasima. Yes, it's a love triangle, but not an annoying one.

I think the thing that I like most about this series is that it's light and charming. Harima is such a fun character who is very determined and willing to push through anything "for the woman I love." He gets himself into entertaining situations which often made me laugh. And although Tenma can be obnoxious at times you can shake your head at her misunderstandings and move forward. Hanai, Yakamo, Makoto, Akira, Lara (Lala), Karin, and most of the other characters that are Harima/Tenma/Karasima's classmates and friends are all funny. They each get ample amount of time "on screen" and are developed fully as characters. School is not just a "whirling romantic comedy" about our main two characters, but it's about the entire class. Everyone is important. Everyone has their own backgrounds. I was able to find something I like about (most) everyone. There were one or two characters that I didn't care for in that they were overly perverted, which I do dislike, but they were only a small part and I could quickly skim/skip over them. Everyone else was fantastic.

My favorite set of chapters was a war that they had over deciding what they would do for their school festival. They sneak into the school at night, armed with bebe guns and fight it out. I get with the school shootings and things, that some people night not care for it such situations, but it was very comical. Not in funny, "haha" way, but in the intense atmosphere that they all created. I found it entertaining both in the manga and anime. But that's my own opinion. Most of the rest of the series wasn't nearly as intense, again it was light.

The only thing that I disliked really was the ending. I wanted firm confessions of love and solid relationships, and while we got some there were some relationships that I felt didn't get the ending that I wanted to have. There was a build up to it, but then the characters let themselves fall a bit flat in proving that relationship and solidifying it. At parts it was kind of a let down.

Still, read it. Enjoy it. And down get bogged down by the shortness of the chapters.

Dengeki Daisy

A great series of amazing characters. 

Dengeki Daisy is about a high school girl named Teru who lives on her own since her brother passed away from cancer. However she is not alone. She has Daisy. Her brother gave her a phone before he died and said that when she needed someone to talk to, talk to Daisy. At first she didn't want to, but as the mental need arose she began emailing him. Daisy has been her biggest support through her hardest times and she's never seen him in person. 

Enter Kurosaki. The janitor and groundskeeper at Teru's high school. Through some forced persuasion, he gets Teru to help take care of the school grounds. They start becoming friends and their punky relationship is one of the funniest things. The way they act around each other is hysterical. 

This series has computer hackers, gun fights, kidnappings, cute and amazingly funny romances, and secrets from the dead. Each of the characters is unique and has their own stories, which is sometimes hard to get. Teru's brother is such a good guy and I wish he was around for all of them. 

I think my favorite part in the series was when Kurosaki was trying to leave and Teru, in her own mischievous way, gets him to come back. Teru is a much different character than most of the other typical "shoujo mangas" heroines. Instead of being clingy and having little stars or flowers every time something cute happens, she often does something to change the subject or bops him on the head or something obnoxious. And what's awesome is that Kurosaki does the same thing back to her. Their relationships if funny and different. And they still have very cute moments to make your inner-chick-flick watcher squee. 

The premous of the stories and their adventures are different too. They are more high stake and the fact that computer hacking is even a thing makes it engaging and, again, different. Throughout most of the series there was always something that kept me going. If life hadn't gotten crazy, I would have finished it a month ago. I will warn that, for me, volume 14 and bits of 15 were slow in my opinion. There was lots of meetings that didn't seem to really do anything. But if you push through you'll very much enjoy the end. 

I very much enjoyed the series. 

Chibi Vampire AKA: Karin

Chibi Vampire other wise known as Karin is the story of an un-vampire.

Karin is a strange young girl not only in the human world where she has the occasional nosebleed and is considered sickly at times; but also in the vampire world where she doesn't bite people to suck their blood, instead she bites people and gives blood. She can also walk around in sunlight, doesn't have the heightened senses a normal vampire does, and can't wipe people's memories as needed after biting someone. All in all, she is strange.

Things seem to run smoothly in the Marker household with Karin going to school and the rest of her family staying up all night, until a transfer student enters the class. Karin finds that her blood level increases quickly and nosebleeds happen more often when ever she is around Kenta Usui. In him she's found her bloods affinity, the type of emotion her body yearns to bite. When they bite a person normal vampires suck that emotion out. So if a person is super stressed and a vampire bit that person they would become stress free for a short period of time. This could be considered helpful and kind of a cool take on vampires. It is a 14 volume series so after she finds out how to cope with Usui, her grandma wakes up, and a new girl comes into town looking for the Markers and a specific vampire in their family.

I think it is a very well thought out and well done story. The overarching plot was interesting and cute, engaging and hysterical at times. I love the family dynamic throughout the series and the ending kind of had me angry. I really liked the epilogue episodes. They satisfied me enough to accept the decision that the writers made. The Marker family was full of fun, intersting characters with their own personality that rounded the family.

If you have enjoyed the anime before you read the manga, that's great. But know that the manga and anime are vastly different. The anime derails from the manga after only a few episodes. Sadly Winner St. Clair makes no appearance in the manga. This fact made me very sad. But the manga is really good and I do recommend it. An oldie but a goodie.

My Neighbor Seki

In one word, I'd call My Neighbor Seki "delightful."

This slice-of-life manga is about two middle school aged kids in the back of a classroom. Seki, the boy, is always goofing off in class and is never paying attention. But instead of simply staring out a window, Seki has a teddy bear rescue going on via remote control helicopter. His games are elaborate and well thought out and Yokoi, the girl, is constantly being distracted by everything he does. Simple games of "Go" get turned into a massive battle between good and evil. Seki refinishes his desktop to look like stained glass and so on. These are small skits are comical and good for a much needed laugh or (at the very least) a good smile.

I enjoyed how they seemed to get closer and closer as the series went on though a romance doesn't actually happen, no matter how much Gato (Yokoi's friend) believes there is a relationship between the two. At the beginning Yokoi gets so very angry that Seki and his games are so distracting, but as the series goes on she gets into it. On the book covers, their desks move closer and closer as Yokoi becomes more engulfed in the stories Seki ends up telling as well as the intricacies of the contraptions.

I also think it's fun that not only does Seki have the imagination to come up with his games every class period, but that Yokoi gets it. She gets upset that he's playing and distracting himself from studying, but then she is distracted as well and ends up understanding what Seki is trying to do.

It is also interesting that throughout the whole series, Seki never says a word. A lot of it is Yokoi's internal dialog with little bits of dialog from surrounding students, though they don't actually notice the games. This way of conversing and getting the information across to the reader is different and is helped out a lot by the artwork. This too is well done and fun to look at and read through.

This would be a good series as in introduction to slice of life for anyone, most especially middle schoolers. It is a simple series, but very much fun.

Orange

This manga was a sweet book that I constantly wanted to go back to. One that I would curl up with in bed.

This is a story of a group of friends who suddenly receive letters from themselves ten years in the future. They are told to save their new friend, Kakeru. These letters are accurate about the day to day things and tell Naho, our main character,  to do things that the older self has regrets of not doing. 

From stepping up to the plate in a softball game to confessing to Kakeru. She isn't the only one to receive letters,  so together with her friends they work to save Kakeru.

It is well drawn with lovable characters. Although there are six of them,  each character has his/her own temperament and quirks. I really like Sawa.

This book, though, is about coming together as friends to support and lift one another. Suicide is very prevalent throughout the story. The grief and depression associated with it is real. I think Ichigo Takano did a good job conveying that emotion, as well as the need to help but feel like you're not doing enough.

The day when all of the letters were revealed, I cried. That is one of the biggest recommendations I can give. Tears were shed. Read it!

Fruits Basket Another

FRUITS BASKET!!! My all time favorite manga has made a very short sequel series.

And it's not finished yet, but man I wish it was. When I say short, I mean short. Three volumes, or so, short--which comparatively to the original series at 23 volumes is not a lot. Natstuki Takaya is still releasing chapters every week in honors of the new edition of Fruits Basket. I love them so much. But sadly none of the original cast shows up.

This story follows a very "shy and self-conscious" girl named Sawa Mitoma. She constantly feels like an inconvenience and a burden to all who are around here and believes if she looks only at the ground, she won't be a hindrance to anyone. But bumping into a Sohma (what every other girl in the world wants to do) has started to turn her would upside down. She has suddenly, somehow, made it into the student body presidency alongside Hajame and Mustuki Sohma. All kinds of Sohma's come out of the woodworks in order to help Mitoma find a bit of self confidence.

It is sweet, well drawn, and fun to see the next generation of Sohma's and the people associating with them. From and expanded YUKI-club, to stepping on someones face because they are laying on the floor like a cat *cough cough*, to many other little things. *sigh* It is really cute and I can't wait for the rest of it to come.

I may update this once all the chapters are out.

Ouran High School Host Club

Ouran High School Host Club has been a favorite of mine for such a long time. This series is what got me into anime then to manga and actually led me to a bunch of my favorite music selections with Ouran as the AMV that I found on youtube-- with the help of my best friend, of course.

I loved the anime though it was far to short. Ouran is one of the most favored shoujo mangas out there and for good reason. It's fantastic. For those who love the anime or are in need of a cute romantic comedy, this is for you.

Haruhi Fujioka is a scholarship student at the renowned Ouran Academy. Ouran is a place where rich kids from rich families come to learn and socialize. The Host Club is where some of the richest and smartest kids come to entertain themselves because they "have too much time on their hands." The boys fawn over the girls and the girls love it. Haruhi stumbles into Music Room 3 where the Host Club meets and accidentally breaks a very expensive vase. In order to pay it back, Haruhi becomes the Hosts' "dog," running errands and whatnot, and quickly becomes a Host as well. What most don't know is that Haruhi is actually a girl. "How do you miss that?" Because she couldn't afford to buy the school uniform and got gum in her hair the night before--therefore cutting her hair herself and doing a horrendous job of it--she looked like a boy and everyone thought she was one. She didn't see the need to correct it, because a person is a person no matter their gender, and she rolled with it. The Host Club, of course, found out but let the girls who visit believe she was a boy so then Haruhi could pay back her debt.

The story goes on and, as any romantic comedy goes, some of the boys start falling in love with Haruhi. However because some of them are socially inept and others are idiots they don't realize it. Haruhi herself doesn't realize that she is falling in love with one of the boys. But they go on many adventures where they all grow, except for possibly two of them (maybe), and develop past themselves. I love the way they develop. They all grow in many ways, they all have their weaknesses, they all have their own personalities. It was a great feat, or so I think anyway, when I finally figured out which twin was which. I felt very happy with myself. They are so much fun.

I enjoyed the development with Tamaki's dad, as well as Kyoya's dad, and how they are portrayed here in the manga differently than in the anime. In the anime, Tamaki's dad is a doting father, who loves his son so much, whereas in the anime he seemed colder. Kyoya's dad isn't as lovey dovey as Tamaki's but he is very proud of Kyoya and all the work that Kyoya does do. He wouldn't actually slap Kyoya, because he's proud of him.

The artwork is really good and full of fun things. Beautiful artwork of places and cute moments. If you get iffy on the first few chapters, keep going. The artwork gets better and less rigid. It progresses  just like any writers, well, writing. They get better and by the second or third book, you won't be disappointed.

Ah, this story is amazing. Such fun and so lighthearted.

Part of the ending did remind me of Maid-Sama. Super rich boy who falls for a girl who is struggling to make ends meet. Parts of the stories were similar, maybe slightly cliched, but we're okay with it because the story is so much fun. I recommend both books, because they are great.

The anime is only about a forth of the manga series where you get the brief glimpse of the awesomeness that is Ouran High School Host Club. If you enjoy the anime, please read this one. If you cannot find a physical copy of the book there are manga reader apps, such as "My Shelf," to read it.

Read it. Enjoy it.

Hadi Girl

Hadi Girl is really cute. If you are looking for a short, cute story to maybe get you out of a funk, this is a good suggestion.

Hadi Girl is about a super shy girl who is easily embarrassed. She can't even watch two characters kiss on a movie without having to hide her face. One night a love angel and an egg pop into her room and she is given tasks to do and complete otherwise she will never find love. These tasks start out simple (hugging someone or looking at someone for 10 seconds), but then escalate from there (stepping into a boys bedroom, confessing her love). For most people it wouldn't be too difficult though some might be challenging, but for Kagura Sae, it is torture. However as she completes the challenges with one boy who ends up being her helper (though he is unaware of it) she actually starts falling for him and she starts doing the tasks because she wants to instead of being forced to.

Ahhh, cute! I really enjoy these little romantic comedies. This is a shorter manga (about 30 chapters/5 volumes) and so it was a quick pick me up from the heavier book I'm trying to read.

Kagura-san is a different character than is normally depicted. Most of the time anime girls are seen as ditzy or super brazen or simply kind or plain simple, but they are hardly seen as just shy, let alone brutally shy. This was different and goes to show that you can push through your weaknesses to get what you want. She was willing to face her fears and work through it.

I did find that it was harder to get my hands on. There was no physical copy anywhere here in the US that I could see (through my library anyway). But if you are interested you can find it on the app called "MyShelf." They have a great selection there.

P.S. A shout out to David for the suggestion.

A Certain Scientific Railgun

A Certain Scientific Railgun is a manga based in "Academy City," what once was Tokyo but has become the base for all espers--or those who have psychic abilities. The story follows Misaka, a middle school girl who is already one of the top seven espers in the city and is super powerful. She has friends who are in Judgement, an esper focused police force, but somehow she ends up being in the middle of everything.

Over the course of the first ten volumes (70 chapters) *there are actually twelve volumes but two of them aren't in english yet, and I can't read Japanese :/  ), there are three story arcs that for a while seem like they don't correlate, but then somehow kind of do. The first (in volumes 1-3) we get to know the characters and find out that there is something called a "Level Upper" which can make the abilities the espers have go up a "level" and become more powerful. However what the public doesn't know is that after a few days you fall into a coma that is really hard to come out of. When they find the culprit, a major battle ensues, and Misaka finds that there is more to Academy City than she thought.

Arc two (4-the first half of 7) turns dark. Like rather gory dark. So much so that if it didn't lighten up I was going to put it down. Volume 4 is probably the darkest and most gory, but then once the reader understands what is going on, they step back from the gory and  become more investigative and they find that scientists in Academy City are making clones of Misaka. The plan is for 20,000 of them. However, already about 10,000 of them have been killed already. What is going on!? Stay tuned to find out.

Arc three (7.5-10) corresponds with a citywide festival, every good anime/manga needs at least one right? But now that Misaka has the clone thing under control, they are disappearing and people are after her. So many people with unknown agendas and suddenly none of her friends remembers her. It's as if the whole city is out to get her.

It's because they pretty much are. Of course.

Overall, it was okay. There were moments of "yuri" and moments were girls had no clothes on (though nothing drawn that would be porographic, but might make some uncomfortable) and the battle scenes seemed to last novels. Volume 5 consisted of mostly two fights. They happened in different stages, but it was long. She fought. "Yay!" Can we move on now? Some of the fights were pretty cool, but others seemed to drag on. Easy in a manga to skip, I guess.

At the beginning it teased a romance between the only boy mentioned in the series and Misaka, but almost nothing happened. It almost seemed out of character for her to even be talking with the guy at all. But he is needed at the end so I guess he has to stay around because of what he does.

At the last climax, which I was really into and was really cool, we jumped between characters because Misaka is incapacitated... kind of... and the only reason they were able to get out of the mess was odd. While I got how things started to collapse for the bad guy, I felt like it was too easy. I mean the girl who finally took out the bad guy had a heck of a time doing it, but I saw how it was going to be done a volume before it actually happened. But then the bad guy died (is he actually dead?) and things calmed down real quick and it was weird. Maybe the next two volumes, that I can't read, work things out, but this just felt weird. It summed up, but it felt unfulfilling.

This one I probably wouldn't read again, but for those people who really like blowy-uppy books, you'd probably like it. I have a feeling this series was meant for boys. Fight/action scenes, obnoxiously big boobs, sometimes naked girls, a little girl loving girl thing... Yeah. Misaka was a very powerful main character who could take on the world... But there were a bunch of questions I feel were left unanswered or were given a quick <insert answer to major problem here> moment. Eh, yeah. Probably won't read it again or the remaining volumes.

Maid-Sama Part 2

I was able to find the last half of Kaicou Wa Maid-Sama! (The Class President is a Maid) and I loved it. Not only now is Misaki wanting to keep her working life and school life separate, but now there are deeper feelings between Usui and herself that she has to face as well. He also isn't all that he appears, beside the charming, annoying, good at everything, guy that he is.

Misaki is introduced to Usui's half-brother and glimpses of his background. Now there is trouble with social standing not only with Usui's past but the Student Counsel President of the other (very much annoying), rich school (I'm not even going to try to spell it, sorry).

I believe I read somewhere that Usui got an award for being the best love interest or something along those lines. I'd completely agree. He is charming, funny, again annoying, cheeky, and does his best to show Misaki that he loves all sides of her: maid, president, and simply herself.

This is a great, lighthearted read that I was fun to enjoy. It made me laugh a lot. I wouldn't mind buying the whole series.