30 Day Manga Challenge

One Shot Spotlight: Hello Baby

April 27, 2018

Morita’s no-holds-barred writing and Obata’s realistic artwork offer a pretty bleak look into the oft-romanticized yakuza lifestyle. Sure, things might look good from the top of the pyramid, but for the little guys at the bottom, life is hell.
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The Many Adventures of Space Pirate Captain Harlock

April 17, 2018

Captain Harlock, with his disheveled hair and scarred face, serves well as the series’ intrepid protagonist. Unlike the other complacent Earthlings, Leiji Matsumoto’s iconic character chooses to carve out his own destiny rather than follow Earth’s totalitarian leaders, human or otherwise.
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Grazie mille, Natsume Ono

April 10, 2018

Like a warm breeze on a spring day, Natsume Ono’s manga breathes fresh life into a medium overrun by saccharine plots and hyperbolic characters.
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Beautiful Disaster: The Artistic Legacy of Kyoko Okazaki

April 9, 2018

Harsh contrasts of black and white. Loose penwork applied with reckless abandon. Lavish models drawn in the finest caricature of high fashion. Such are the hallmarks of Kyoko Okazaki, one of the most avant-garde mangaka of our time.
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Hot Gimmick is a Hot Mess

April 8, 2018

Convoluted romances and dangerous relationships can be entertaining—when handled well. But Hot Gimmick left much to be desired.
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Reading Blush-DC for the Plot [NSFW]

April 6, 2018

Reading Blush-DC is like watching a train wreck: you just can’t look away. If you’ve got a hankering for some good ‘ole schadenfreude, then this is the manga for you.
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Exploring Russian History through Harukaze no Snegurochka

April 5, 2018

Harukaze no Snegurochka is a single-volume manga that highlights the tempestuous atmosphere of the 1930s Soviet Union. It follows the story of a young woman named Belka and her servant, Shchenok, as they evade the OGPU, the Soviet secret police.
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My Manga Wishlist: Kyou no Kira-kun

April 4, 2018

At face value, Kyou no Kira-kun looks like just another shoujo manga, with staples like the unpopular girl, a charismatic boy, a cute animal sidekick, and endless high school drama. But this manga’s charm lies in how it handles all these cliches.
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What Went Wrong With Usagi Drop

April 3, 2018

Usagi Drop could have been a fantastic josei manga that dealt with real-world issues in a lighthearted, fun way. But its ending had many readers, myself included, asking some uncomfortable questions and wondering just where things took a controversial turn.
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On Chobits: From Technophobes to Technophiles

April 2, 2018

At first blush, Chobits seems like your run-of-the-mill ecchi manga. But beyond the provocative illustrations and suggestive dialog lies a poignant story that taps into a classic sci-fi conundrum: can man love machine?
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