Board 8 > Tom reads through the Bolo Family Manga Collection (spoilers)

Topic List	Page List: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
Tom Bombadil 05/07/18 12:45:06 PM #1:	In accordance with the traditional summer project poll series, I will be reading through all of my and my wife's manga, with writeups in this topic! It's a summer project, but I'm starting early because it's already the slow season and it'll take me a long time anyway. My goal is to read through a book a day. Wifebolo has a decently large collection, most of which I have never touched. She has a buncha shoujo stuff and a buncha dark stuff. I have a bigger collection than I care to admit, most of it collected a decade or more ago and read exactly once. I have lots of moe trash, shonen, and slice of life. By our powers combined, we have a giant overflowing weeb shelf! It's also not very organized because somebody just threw a buncha stuff in there after I'd alphabetized everything. Pretty sure we have more in boxes somewhere too- all that to say, expect missing volumes and stuff out of order and all that. A corollary project is that I'll be trying to re-organize the shelf as I go >_> I will start RIGHT NOW --- Look at all those chickens There's a hunger in the land, there's a reckoning still to be reckoned <cite>Tom Bombadil posted [p:900943379] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>In accordance with the traditional summer project poll series, I will be reading through all of my and my wife's manga, with writeups in this topic! It's a summer project, but I'm starting early because it's already the slow season and it'll take me a long time anyway. My goal is to read through a book a day. Wifebolo has a decently large collection, most of which I have never touched. She has a buncha shoujo stuff and a buncha dark stuff. I have a bigger collection than I care to admit, most of it collected a decade or more ago and read exactly once. I have lots of moe trash, shonen, and slice of life. By our powers combined, we have a giant overflowing weeb shelf! It's also not very organized because somebody just threw a buncha stuff in there after I'd alphabetized everything. Pretty sure we have more in boxes somewhere too- all that to say, expect missing volumes and stuff out of order and all that. A corollary project is that I'll be trying to re-organize the shelf as I go >_> I will start RIGHT NOW</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
Llarian 05/07/18 12:57:25 PM #2:	Tag --- essentially shizuo "eat your vitamins and say your prayers" heiwajima in an apron. <cite>Llarian posted [p:900943997] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>Tag</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
Tom Bombadil 05/07/18 1:29:35 PM #3:	Antique Bakery, Vol. 2 Whose fault is this: Wifebolo Genre: Slice of life, Comedy, Romance, is there a separate term for yaoi where nothing too racy happens? Author/Artist: Fumi Yoshinaga https://imgur.com/a/1qJCaSs Right off the bat, a random second issue of a thing! I'm told this is indeed our only issue. The first thing I notice is that there is a SCRATCH AND SNIFF area on the cover. Unfortunately I can't smell anything, but that could be my shortage of fingernails and sense of smell. I think Wifebolo has read a couple different bakery manga that I have conflated, but I'm pretty sure this is the one I always think she's talking about. Eiji's old friends with benefits show up in a group, thus contradicting one of my assumed premises of this manga. Maybe everybody's bi instead. Anyway, we find out that he had a rough backstory even though he has presumably become the nice bishie now and is a super baking nerd. He lost his virginity in 5th grade and is bored with sex now. We're off to a good start, man. Main character-san seems to get around a lot, and now there's a weird triangle with him, his boyfriend(?), and his primary(?) love interest....'s inept sidekick. I like the sidekick guy- he's one of those guys who looks cool and is pretty much useless. We have to leave him in charge of the store while the owner runs around being Santa for deliveries and scaring all the children. Turns out he's just grumpy, not old and grumpy. My rating: 4/10 I'm, uh, not the target audience here. Nonetheless, there were a few moments and characters that amused me. --- Look at all those chickens There's a hunger in the land, there's a reckoning still to be reckoned <cite>Tom Bombadil posted [p:900945458] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>Antique Bakery, Vol. 2 Whose fault is this: Wifebolo Genre: Slice of life, Comedy, Romance, is there a separate term for yaoi where nothing too racy happens? Author/Artist: Fumi Yoshinaga https://imgur.com/a/1qJCaSs Right off the bat, a random second issue of a thing! I'm told this is indeed our only issue. The first thing I notice is that there is a SCRATCH AND SNIFF area on the cover. Unfortunately I can't smell anything, but that could be my shortage of fingernails and sense of smell. I think Wifebolo has read a couple different bakery manga that I have conflated, but I'm pretty sure this is the one I always think she's talking about. Eiji's old friends with benefits show up in a group, thus contradicting one of my assumed premises of this manga. Maybe everybody's bi instead. Anyway, we find out that he had a rough backstory even though he has presumably become the nice bishie now and is a super baking nerd. He lost his virginity in 5th grade and is bored with sex now. We're off to a good start, man. Main character-san seems to get around a lot, and now there's a weird triangle with him, his boyfriend(?), and his primary(?) love interest....'s inept sidekick. I like the sidekick guy- he's one of those guys who looks cool and is pretty much useless. We have to leave him in charge of the store while the owner runs around being Santa for deliveries and scaring all the children. Turns out he's just grumpy, not old and grumpy. My rating: 4/10 I'm, uh, not the target audience here. Nonetheless, there were a few moments and characters that amused me.</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
Tom Bombadil 05/08/18 1:48:09 PM #4:	okay good response so far!! ALIENNINE, Vol. 1 Whose fault is this: Tombolo Genre: Sci-fi, action Author/Artist: Hitoshi Tomizawa https://imgur.com/a/9IFi6et Between rising prices, pickier taste, dwindling time and space, forgetting which issue I need, and just plain not going to bookstores that often, I don't buy much manga at all these days. However, there's something about Half-Price Books that destroys my willpower, and so here we have my newest addition. We're introduced to Yuri, Kumi, and Kasumi- three elementary school girls selected for the "alien party," which apparently involves putting a symbiotic winged frog alien called a 'borg on your head in order to fight less benevolent aliens. Rollerblades are also part of the uniform. It's one of those stories that makes me wonder how much it fits the author's fetishes. Anyway, Yuri is really not a fan of the gross aliens, which is fair. Kumi (why are there two light haired girls with such similar names) appears to be the cool one, and took the job because she was tired of being class president. We also learn that the 'borg can go out of control, and that's bad because we don't wanna kill the bad aliens. It seems the aliens are a recent development. We get a quick peek into everybody's home lives through a teacher visit, and it seems that something deeper is going on- the kids here and elsewhere are being scouted for something, and the the teachers are setting these incidents up themselves. Also, a buncha other 'borg attack Yuri, although the other two are able to bail her out....until she gets triple teamed, and her 'borg goes berserk and kills a buncha stuff and makes her hair weird. Luckily, the 'borg can reincarnate or something, but the teacher is in hot water for letting that happen, and Yuri is pretty bummed out. They do a summer vacation montage, though, and she's able to get herself together. There's an ad in here for an anime con in 2003. I would've guessed this was a 90s thing, but sure. One of the previous guests was Rudy Giuliani. My rating: 7/10 This was as weird as it looked, but I kinda liked it! The art is creepy, cool, and cute in turns as needed. A lot of stuff was left unexplained, even in the basic worldbuilding, but in a way that keeps you curious. I do get a slightly sleazy vibe from the premise and the author interview, but nothing unsavory actually happened, so I'll give it the benefit of the doubt. --- Look at all those chickens There's a hunger in the land, there's a reckoning still to be reckoned <cite>Tom Bombadil posted [p:901003087] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>okay good response so far!! ALIENNINE, Vol. 1 Whose fault is this: Tombolo Genre: Sci-fi, action Author/Artist: Hitoshi Tomizawa https://imgur.com/a/9IFi6et Between rising prices, pickier taste, dwindling time and space, forgetting which issue I need, and just plain not going to bookstores that often, I don't buy much manga at all these days. However, there's something about Half-Price Books that destroys my willpower, and so here we have my newest addition. We're introduced to Yuri, Kumi, and Kasumi- three elementary school girls selected for the "alien party," which apparently involves putting a symbiotic winged frog alien called a 'borg on your head in order to fight less benevolent aliens. Rollerblades are also part of the uniform. It's one of those stories that makes me wonder how much it fits the author's fetishes. Anyway, Yuri is really not a fan of the gross aliens, which is fair. Kumi (why are there two light haired girls with such similar names) appears to be the cool one, and took the job because she was tired of being class president. We also learn that the 'borg can go out of control, and that's bad because we don't wanna kill the bad aliens. It seems the aliens are a recent development. We get a quick peek into everybody's home lives through a teacher visit, and it seems that something deeper is going on- the kids here and elsewhere are being scouted for something, and the the teachers are setting these incidents up themselves. Also, a buncha other 'borg attack Yuri, although the other two are able to bail her out....until she gets triple teamed, and her 'borg goes berserk and kills a buncha stuff and makes her hair weird. Luckily, the 'borg can reincarnate or something, but the teacher is in hot water for letting that happen, and Yuri is pretty bummed out. They do a summer vacation montage, though, and she's able to get herself together. There's an ad in here for an anime con in 2003. I would've guessed this was a 90s thing, but sure. One of the previous guests was Rudy Giuliani. My rating: 7/10 This was as weird as it looked, but I kinda liked it! The art is creepy, cool, and cute in turns as needed. A lot of stuff was left unexplained, even in the basic worldbuilding, but in a way that keeps you curious. I do get a slightly sleazy vibe from the premise and the author interview, but nothing unsavory actually happened, so I'll give it the benefit of the doubt.</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
Tom Bombadil 05/09/18 3:19:19 PM #5:	maybe we will get readers once we get to manga people have heard of today's won't help though! and there are a few issues so neither will most of this week :P --- Look at all those chickens There's a hunger in the land, there's a reckoning still to be reckoned <cite>Tom Bombadil posted [p:901065853] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>maybe we will get readers once we get to manga people have heard of today's won't help though! and there are a few issues so neither will most of this week :P</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
Tom Bombadil 05/09/18 4:16:54 PM #6:	Apothecarius Argentum, Vol. 1 (of 6) Whose fault is this: Wifebolo Genre: Fantasy, romance Author/Artist: Tomomi Yamashita https://imgur.com/a/yedbNmA This is one I've been meaning to try for a while! The artstyle is right up Wifebolo's alley (not so much my own, but I don't dislike it) and while you do have a bishie-lookin' dude on the cover, the setting seems like something we could both get into. The Lady Primula is feeling ill, and sends for the healer, but gets a backup. She appears a bratty, tomboy type, and the guy who shows up apparently used to work for her but got fired. I can't decide whether I like her or not, but she is reckless and a good swordfighter so signs point to my deciding yes. We meet the newish chef Garna, who reminds me of Gohda from Umineko right down to the design, as we tease out a bit more of the backstory between Primula and Argent, the apothecary. He used to be her food taster, and kept her company in addition to absorbing numerous poisoning attempts. Primula goes out to visit him after he pre-emptively gives her an antidote (dangit, not-Gohda!) and she re-iterates that she's too stubborn to worry about poison and such. On the way back (alone) she successfully baits a followup attack from Garna and a rescue from Argent, who has spent his life slowly building up an immunity to poison (and in fact a poisonous touch) as alluded to previously. We get the full backstory in a flashback- they both served to inspire the other. Primula staged Argent's escape because he was suffering, inspiring to become a healer to protect her after she risked her own life to save his a couple of times. In turn, he saved her from his poison, and inspired her to be strong on her own. Well heck now I ship this. Come to think of it, it's a not-dissimilar setup to Pushing Daisies, where it's a cute ship but they really can't touch. Also a show Wifebolo's pretty into and I'm cool with. Next up, Primula has to do princessly things at a festival, which is very much not her strong suit, but important for superstitious reasons. Rival factions try to sabotage her, but Argent has her back and her hard work pays off. Primula hires him as the royal apothecary, but her father shows back up immediately and whisks Argent away. He gives him a test by asking him to assassinate a young boy, but Argent refuses. The two of them are betrayed by the boy's father and captured, but Argent is able to MELT THE WALL and break them both free. The King claims to be pleased at Argent's ideals, but ultimately wants to use him as a weapon. Finally, we find out that Argent is not a part of the apothecary guild, and they're not too happy that he's barging in on their turf. They send Soda the apprentice to spy, but Soda just winds up going over to be Argent's apprentice after bonding over a few cases. Argent and Primula also come to a bit better understanding- Argent becomes willing to accept help, and Primula learns that she's shut out of his workshop for safety reasons. Development! My rating: 9/10 ...I like this a lot actually. Art's cute, story's cute, characters have depth and development, setting's my kinda thing. This should be good! --- Look at all those chickens There's a hunger in the land, there's a reckoning still to be reckoned <cite>Tom Bombadil posted [p:901068950] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>Apothecarius Argentum, Vol. 1 (of 6) Whose fault is this: Wifebolo Genre: Fantasy, romance Author/Artist: Tomomi Yamashita https://imgur.com/a/yedbNmA This is one I've been meaning to try for a while! The artstyle is right up Wifebolo's alley (not so much my own, but I don't dislike it) and while you do have a bishie-lookin' dude on the cover, the setting seems like something we could both get into. The Lady Primula is feeling ill, and sends for the healer, but gets a backup. She appears a bratty, tomboy type, and the guy who shows up apparently used to work for her but got fired. I can't decide whether I like her or not, but she is reckless and a good swordfighter so signs point to my deciding yes. We meet the newish chef Garna, who reminds me of Gohda from Umineko right down to the design, as we tease out a bit more of the backstory between Primula and Argent, the apothecary. He used to be her food taster, and kept her company in addition to absorbing numerous poisoning attempts. Primula goes out to visit him after he pre-emptively gives her an antidote (dangit, not-Gohda!) and she re-iterates that she's too stubborn to worry about poison and such. On the way back (alone) she successfully baits a followup attack from Garna and a rescue from Argent, who has spent his life slowly building up an immunity to poison (and in fact a poisonous touch) as alluded to previously. We get the full backstory in a flashback- they both served to inspire the other. Primula staged Argent's escape because he was suffering, inspiring to become a healer to protect her after she risked her own life to save his a couple of times. In turn, he saved her from his poison, and inspired her to be strong on her own. Well heck now I ship this. Come to think of it, it's a not-dissimilar setup to Pushing Daisies, where it's a cute ship but they really can't touch. Also a show Wifebolo's pretty into and I'm cool with. Next up, Primula has to do princessly things at a festival, which is very much not her strong suit, but important for superstitious reasons. Rival factions try to sabotage her, but Argent has her back and her hard work pays off. Primula hires him as the royal apothecary, but her father shows back up immediately and whisks Argent away. He gives him a test by asking him to assassinate a young boy, but Argent refuses. The two of them are betrayed by the boy's father and captured, but Argent is able to MELT THE WALL and break them both free. The King claims to be pleased at Argent's ideals, but ultimately wants to use him as a weapon. Finally, we find out that Argent is not a part of the apothecary guild, and they're not too happy that he's barging in on their turf. They send Soda the apprentice to spy, but Soda just winds up going over to be Argent's apprentice after bonding over a few cases. Argent and Primula also come to a bit better understanding- Argent becomes willing to accept help, and Primula learns that she's shut out of his workshop for safety reasons. Development! My rating: 9/10 ...I like this a lot actually. Art's cute, story's cute, characters have depth and development, setting's my kinda thing. This should be good!</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
Tom Bombadil 05/10/18 1:42:52 PM #7:	Apothecarius Argentum, Vol. 2 (of 6) https://imgur.com/a/oYHbQLy Our first day with a continuation! We don't have tons of long ones, but we do have a couple, and a bunch of shorter collections like this one, so, uh, hope you like Rave Master and Saiyuki? Actually I just hope anybody is reading this, period >_> Soda is still determined to be Argent's apprentice, and Argent is still being a tsundere about it, mostly because of the whole poisontouch thing. Apparently he still suffers effects from poison, even though it doesn't kill him. We are also still coming back frequently to the theme of "poisoning one's heart," and finally expand it a bit. Argent's seen some crap and it's messed him up a bit. Argent tries to save an old woman by eating her daughter's poisoned desserts instead, but the old woman finds out in the end and eats them anyway. Poignant stuff, although I wonder how many more stories we can get out of this skill set, y'know? Also Soda keeps trying to "help" Argent get with Primula, so that's fun. The previous story (the daughter was poisoning her mom because the war left them with insufficient means to feed everybody) inspires Primula to go on an incognito journey among her people. I appreciate the continuity! We also get a bit more of the backstory- Argent had been jailed for overturning a table of (poisoned) food. He also caught a conspiracy with Primula's aunt and maid. Got pretty dark. Apparently the son of the aunt is still alive, despite having been executed for treason! We get a really intense sequence where Primula kisses Argent to put herself under and fake succumbing to her cousin's poisoning attempt. This allows a rescue to move forward without harming the townspeople! Primula offers Cousinguy the throne to keep the peace, but the townspeople won't have it. Looks like Cousinguy learned something from this! He also manages to meet his father, who became an amnesiac after the mom faked his death. My rating: 9/10 Like I mentioned above, I feel like this somewhat restrictive concept that has a limited shelf life, but I think they've done a very good job with it so far. We're getting well-written romance, deep and reasonable characters (if you can suspend disbelief on the whole basilisk thing Argent has), and a story that has been ramping up in intensity. I think it's about time we start transferring into a longer, meatier story, but I'm hyped to continue either way. --- Look at all those chickens There's a hunger in the land, there's a reckoning still to be reckoned <cite>Tom Bombadil posted [p:901117205] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>Apothecarius Argentum, Vol. 2 (of 6) https://imgur.com/a/oYHbQLy Our first day with a continuation! We don't have tons of long ones, but we do have a couple, and a bunch of shorter collections like this one, so, uh, hope you like Rave Master and Saiyuki? Actually I just hope anybody is reading this, period >_> Soda is still determined to be Argent's apprentice, and Argent is still being a tsundere about it, mostly because of the whole poisontouch thing. Apparently he still suffers effects from poison, even though it doesn't kill him. We are also still coming back frequently to the theme of "poisoning one's heart," and finally expand it a bit. Argent's seen some crap and it's messed him up a bit. Argent tries to save an old woman by eating her daughter's poisoned desserts instead, but the old woman finds out in the end and eats them anyway. Poignant stuff, although I wonder how many more stories we can get out of this skill set, y'know? Also Soda keeps trying to "help" Argent get with Primula, so that's fun. The previous story (the daughter was poisoning her mom because the war left them with insufficient means to feed everybody) inspires Primula to go on an incognito journey among her people. I appreciate the continuity! We also get a bit more of the backstory- Argent had been jailed for overturning a table of (poisoned) food. He also caught a conspiracy with Primula's aunt and maid. Got pretty dark. Apparently the son of the aunt is still alive, despite having been executed for treason! We get a really intense sequence where Primula kisses Argent to put herself under and fake succumbing to her cousin's poisoning attempt. This allows a rescue to move forward without harming the townspeople! Primula offers Cousinguy the throne to keep the peace, but the townspeople won't have it. Looks like Cousinguy learned something from this! He also manages to meet his father, who became an amnesiac after the mom faked his death. My rating: 9/10 Like I mentioned above, I feel like this somewhat restrictive concept that has a limited shelf life, but I think they've done a very good job with it so far. We're getting well-written romance, deep and reasonable characters (if you can suspend disbelief on the whole basilisk thing Argent has), and a story that has been ramping up in intensity. I think it's about time we start transferring into a longer, meatier story, but I'm hyped to continue either way.</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
Emeraldegg 05/10/18 1:51:26 PM #8:	I am skimming it at least! --- I'm a greener egg than the eggs from dr. seuss <cite>Emeraldegg posted [p:901117708] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>I am skimming it at least!</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
Tom Bombadil 05/11/18 1:21:05 PM #9:	Yay! Apothecarius Argentum Vol. 3 (of 6) https://imgur.com/a/194KvEF We're introduced to Ubella the peasant and Prince Lorca from the enemy kingdom of Navara when they ruin a ball intended to arrange a marriage for Primula. Lorca proposes! He's a shifty guy who is probably up to something, but he's playing the wholesome shota for now. He is indeed quickly able to start chipping away at Argent and Primula's relationship, and planning to take the whole kingdom through marriage. Lorca face turns- he is terminally ill from a plague that is wiping out Navara, and trying to save them by doing all this. He is deemed an acceptable candidate for Primula's hand. We quiz the chef from the very beginning, and figure out that pesticide is what's causing Navara's issues, so now we're on a mission to fix that somehow. Argent and Primula are starting to be a bit more open about their feelings, but there's still the part where they can't have physical contact without hurting or potentially killing her. My rating: 9/10 Hey, we're getting the long-form story I asked for! --- Look at all those chickens There's a hunger in the land, there's a reckoning still to be reckoned <cite>Tom Bombadil posted [p:901172705] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>Yay! Apothecarius Argentum Vol. 3 (of 6) https://imgur.com/a/194KvEF We're introduced to Ubella the peasant and Prince Lorca from the enemy kingdom of Navara when they ruin a ball intended to arrange a marriage for Primula. Lorca proposes! He's a shifty guy who is probably up to something, but he's playing the wholesome shota for now. He is indeed quickly able to start chipping away at Argent and Primula's relationship, and planning to take the whole kingdom through marriage. Lorca face turns- he is terminally ill from a plague that is wiping out Navara, and trying to save them by doing all this. He is deemed an acceptable candidate for Primula's hand. We quiz the chef from the very beginning, and figure out that pesticide is what's causing Navara's issues, so now we're on a mission to fix that somehow. Argent and Primula are starting to be a bit more open about their feelings, but there's still the part where they can't have physical contact without hurting or potentially killing her. My rating: 9/10 Hey, we're getting the long-form story I asked for!</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
Regaro 05/11/18 1:23:50 PM #10:	Wow, I've heard of exactly zero of these series (Not a knock on them btw, especially since it sounds like they're just genres I'm not usually into. Actually a bit impressed) --- Congratulations to BKSheikah, winner of the BYIG Guru Contest <cite>Regaro posted [p:901172828] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>Wow, I've heard of exactly zero of these series (Not a knock on them btw, especially since it sounds like they're just genres I'm not usually into. Actually a bit impressed)</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
Tom Bombadil 05/12/18 1:25:00 PM #11:	by our powers combined we are CAPTAIN DIVERSEWEEB --- Look at all those chickens There's a hunger in the land, there's a reckoning still to be reckoned <cite>Tom Bombadil posted [p:901224735] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>by our powers combined we are CAPTAIN DIVERSEWEEB</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
ScareChan 05/12/18 2:16:54 PM #12:	tag because I love tom --- https://imgur.com/iuSjE6B <cite>ScareChan posted [p:901226929] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>tag because I love tom</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
Tom Bombadil 05/12/18 6:47:35 PM #13:	<3 Apothecarius Argentum Vol. 4 (of 6) https://imgur.com/a/OocsbE7 The very end of last book introduced us to Lorca's big brothers Adona and Daniel, who promptly take the gang prisoner as suspected kidnappers of Adona's infant son. It also looks like Daniel has a thing for Adona's wife and/or every girl. Lorca tries to bail the gang out, but nobody is willing to listen to a kid. Turns out that Lize (the wife) actually just hid Zeslan (her son) away to cover up his illness. Argent is to heal the kid with the pressure of an international incident if he fails, but needs dandelions from outside the walls. The brothers send him, Lorca, and Lorca's sidekick (slash love interest???) Infree out to gather what they need, knowing that they will be attacked by bandits. Infree disappeaers, Argent takes a bad wound, Lorca runs the goods back, and Primula stays to help with the treatment instead of taking this chance to get to safety and/or Argent. The chef from volume 1 shows back up (I guess he's gonna be a recurring character- his name is Garna) to save (maybe) Argent. Primula takes him into her service since he's got nowhere else to go. The actual king of this place is bedridden and will only allow a woman named Corda in his presence. The brothers are naturally suspicious of her, and I have a feeling Infree is also doing some sabotaging. The King and Ubella show up- turns out they hired Garna to come here in the first place. And then a buncha stuff happens really fast for the rest of the book. Corda might actually be a basilisk herself, and seems interested in Daniel. Infree was indeed a spy trying to sabotage relationships between the two kingdoms, and attacks. Garna says Argent is no longer poisonous? Infree kidnaps Lorca, and was working for a people's uprising. They have guns, which are pretty new tech in this world. Lorca wants to make antidote for Infree's group, and will probably win him over. The (bullet) wound Argent took is what's messing with his toxicity. Dadking (I don't think he's had a name yet!) was planning to take Navara over this whole time, and Primula was just a distraction. King tells Primula the only alternative is a marriage to Lorca. Corda is indeed a basilisk, working with Infree's group to avenge all the people the pesticides killed. Argent gives Primula a good kissin' to knock her out (...I am pretty sure this happens exactly once per book, lol) and then has the bullet removed to restore his deathtouch. Corda finishes off the King, and Daniel gets KO'd trying to investigate. Primula agrees to marry Lorca. Argent shows up to the rebel camp and immediately starts winning them over with his medicine and hotness. The natives get restless when Lorca finally runs out of steam (he'd been working hard on the medicine and not taking care of his own illness) and Infree takes a bullet for Lorca for WUV~~~. Adona ascends, Corda's existence is covered up, and the Primula/Lorca engagement is going through. Argent is accepting of his fate, because Primula pushed him away. (on Garna's advice) Lorca had been realizing that Argent had already won her heart, so he has mixed emotions. Turns out Corda was using THE MARIJUANA to mess with the king's head. King Dad's political takeover of Navara is proceeding nicely. Lorca postpones the wedding at the altar. He wants to focus on bugs and dyes since plants aren't working out well. If they can get independent of external aid in two years, Dadking agrees to not take over. My rating: 10/10 Boy this was a dang ride, and wrapped up the arc nicely. Hyped for the next one! --- Look at all those chickens There's a hunger in the land, there's a reckoning still to be reckoned <cite>Tom Bombadil posted [p:901239426] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote><3 Apothecarius Argentum Vol. 4 (of 6) https://imgur.com/a/OocsbE7 The very end of last book introduced us to Lorca's big brothers Adona and Daniel, who promptly take the gang prisoner as suspected kidnappers of Adona's infant son. It also looks like Daniel has a thing for Adona's wife and/or every girl. Lorca tries to bail the gang out, but nobody is willing to listen to a kid. Turns out that Lize (the wife) actually just hid Zeslan (her son) away to cover up his illness. Argent is to heal the kid with the pressure of an international incident if he fails, but needs dandelions from outside the walls. The brothers send him, Lorca, and Lorca's sidekick (slash love interest???) Infree out to gather what they need, knowing that they will be attacked by bandits. Infree disappeaers, Argent takes a bad wound, Lorca runs the goods back, and Primula stays to help with the treatment instead of taking this chance to get to safety and/or Argent. The chef from volume 1 shows back up (I guess he's gonna be a recurring character- his name is Garna) to save (maybe) Argent. Primula takes him into her service since he's got nowhere else to go. The actual king of this place is bedridden and will only allow a woman named Corda in his presence. The brothers are naturally suspicious of her, and I have a feeling Infree is also doing some sabotaging. The King and Ubella show up- turns out they hired Garna to come here in the first place. And then a buncha stuff happens really fast for the rest of the book. Corda might actually be a basilisk herself, and seems interested in Daniel. Infree was indeed a spy trying to sabotage relationships between the two kingdoms, and attacks. Garna says Argent is no longer poisonous? Infree kidnaps Lorca, and was working for a people's uprising. They have guns, which are pretty new tech in this world. Lorca wants to make antidote for Infree's group, and will probably win him over. The (bullet) wound Argent took is what's messing with his toxicity. Dadking (I don't think he's had a name yet!) was planning to take Navara over this whole time, and Primula was just a distraction. King tells Primula the only alternative is a marriage to Lorca. Corda is indeed a basilisk, working with Infree's group to avenge all the people the pesticides killed. Argent gives Primula a good kissin' to knock her out (...I am pretty sure this happens exactly once per book, lol) and then has the bullet removed to restore his deathtouch. Corda finishes off the King, and Daniel gets KO'd trying to investigate. Primula agrees to marry Lorca. Argent shows up to the rebel camp and immediately starts winning them over with his medicine and hotness. The natives get restless when Lorca finally runs out of steam (he'd been working hard on the medicine and not taking care of his own illness) and Infree takes a bullet for Lorca for WUV~~~. Adona ascends, Corda's existence is covered up, and the Primula/Lorca engagement is going through. Argent is accepting of his fate, because Primula pushed him away. (on Garna's advice) Lorca had been realizing that Argent had already won her heart, so he has mixed emotions. Turns out Corda was using THE MARIJUANA to mess with the king's head. King Dad's political takeover of Navara is proceeding nicely. Lorca postpones the wedding at the altar. He wants to focus on bugs and dyes since plants aren't working out well. If they can get independent of external aid in two years, Dadking agrees to not take over. My rating: 10/10 Boy this was a dang ride, and wrapped up the arc nicely. Hyped for the next one!</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
Tom Bombadil 05/13/18 8:16:29 PM #14:	might miss today, might not tew modding is first priority and I can't get myself motivated to finish today's block --- Look at all those chickens There's a hunger in the land, there's a reckoning still to be reckoned <cite>Tom Bombadil posted [p:901294397] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>might miss today, might not tew modding is first priority and I can't get myself motivated to finish today's block</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
Tom Bombadil 05/14/18 4:08:22 PM #15:	Apothecarius Argentum, Vol. 5 (of 6) https://imgur.com/CMAModq (oh huh didn't realize that it mirrors) Zantak, the former royal apothecary and head of the guild, is trying to save his business by forbidding the marketplace to sell him ingredients, and by opening a cafe and trying to make his medicines more pleasing. Primula sets up a medicinal "duel" between the two, and tells Argent to consider Soda's future and stop focusing so much on his own status as a basilisk. Argent wins when Zantak rushes too much and makes a mistake, but afterwards Argent is unable to get a kid to take his bad-tasting medicine, so they both learn a lesson. We'll keep doing these challenges for the title of royal apothecary, and Argent and the guild are going to start exchanging ideas and knowledge. Garna has been rehired as head chef, entertainingly enough. We get his backstory- he wasn't that into cooking until his Lady really liked his desserts....and then got fat and fired him. She later got addicted to poppy-spiked wine, as did her entire country, which tore itself apart, and that's how he started with poisons. Anyway, his old contacts still want Primula dead, but he refuses, and has in fact been tasting the food to screen out poisons they'd been sneaking in. It's caught up with him, and he ain't doing too hot. He tries to kill himself before the messenger assassin guy can, but turns out Argent had slipped him some antidote. Also, Primula has been working on her cooking for several books now, and has improved to "not that good." She wants people, and Garna especially, to enjoy her cooking. Also, Garna ships Argent and Primula just as hard as everybody else. And then, acting on info from Garna and Prince Daniel, Argent decides to go to Castoria to seek a cure for himself. The King forbids Argent to return, prompting him to confess to Primula before he leaves. But before Castoria, Argent (with Soda tagging along) swings by to check on Lorca et al and help them with the dye industry. The takeaways here are that basilisks are hunted in Castoria now (Argent cuts and dyes his trademark silver hair as a disguise) and Corda is back, supposedly working with the comically inept villainous prince of Kent but actually just trying to destroy Kent. My rating: 9/10 More development for characters I like, and setting up for the next big arc....but we only have one more volume, so I am not holding my breath to resolve everything from said arc. --- Look at all those chickens There's a hunger in the land, there's a reckoning still to be reckoned <cite>Tom Bombadil posted [p:901335546] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>Apothecarius Argentum, Vol. 5 (of 6) https://imgur.com/CMAModq (oh huh didn't realize that it mirrors) Zantak, the former royal apothecary and head of the guild, is trying to save his business by forbidding the marketplace to sell him ingredients, and by opening a cafe and trying to make his medicines more pleasing. Primula sets up a medicinal "duel" between the two, and tells Argent to consider Soda's future and stop focusing so much on his own status as a basilisk. Argent wins when Zantak rushes too much and makes a mistake, but afterwards Argent is unable to get a kid to take his bad-tasting medicine, so they both learn a lesson. We'll keep doing these challenges for the title of royal apothecary, and Argent and the guild are going to start exchanging ideas and knowledge. Garna has been rehired as head chef, entertainingly enough. We get his backstory- he wasn't that into cooking until his Lady really liked his desserts....and then got fat and fired him. She later got addicted to poppy-spiked wine, as did her entire country, which tore itself apart, and that's how he started with poisons. Anyway, his old contacts still want Primula dead, but he refuses, and has in fact been tasting the food to screen out poisons they'd been sneaking in. It's caught up with him, and he ain't doing too hot. He tries to kill himself before the messenger assassin guy can, but turns out Argent had slipped him some antidote. Also, Primula has been working on her cooking for several books now, and has improved to "not that good." She wants people, and Garna especially, to enjoy her cooking. Also, Garna ships Argent and Primula just as hard as everybody else. And then, acting on info from Garna and Prince Daniel, Argent decides to go to Castoria to seek a cure for himself. The King forbids Argent to return, prompting him to confess to Primula before he leaves. But before Castoria, Argent (with Soda tagging along) swings by to check on Lorca et al and help them with the dye industry. The takeaways here are that basilisks are hunted in Castoria now (Argent cuts and dyes his trademark silver hair as a disguise) and Corda is back, supposedly working with the comically inept villainous prince of Kent but actually just trying to destroy Kent. My rating: 9/10 More development for characters I like, and setting up for the next big arc....but we only have one more volume, so I am not holding my breath to resolve everything from said arc.</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
Tom Bombadil 05/15/18 2:07:46 PM #16:	Apothecarius Argentum Vol. 6 (of 6) https://imgur.com/a/wK2pa7i Welp, according to Wifebolo, this is all we have, and only two more were translated anyway. (8/11 total) Hope you're not expecting anything conclusive! This will be the first of many incomplete runs >_> We've arrived in Castoria, a merchant republic. We meet a girl named Popola- a desperately poor girl who may or may not have eyes under all her hair. She is the last surviving co-worker of an old secret basilisk named Jade, and they want to get in the city to get some vengeance. She's pushing Jade to find something or other in the mines because they're being sold off tomorrow, but the mines are empty and Jade's dying from the fumes. Instead, they find a hot springs (with requisite Soda walking in on Popola- turns out she has nice eyes. The one bit of fanservice we get and the girl is 13 ;;>___>) and the pair immediately starts a resort. A thief steals Argent's entire stock as soon as they get into Castoria, so, following a tip from Jade, we look for the cleansing stone in what turns out to be a red-light district. After some shenanigans with Argent and Popola running a spa, we run into the thief from earlier, who is actually a doctor named Lulu. Lulu can tell Argent is a basilisk (which is punishable by death here) and blackmails him into assisting her in exchange for his stuff back and more info about the healing stone. They slowly earn each other's respect despite some philosophical differences. Popola is slowly gathering info about the people who sabotaged her family's mine, and it looks like one of them is kinda screwing up the whole country through de-regulation. Meanwhile back home, it's already time for the harvest festival again. Pretty much everybody still in the area shows up, including the Navara Bros and the comic villain Goriel...with Corda in tow, and a couple assassin buddies. Corda makes an attempt on King Dad, but he is too crafty for her. Daniel (who has the weirdest thing for Corda) convinces King to take her hostage and spare her life. King uses this as leverage to get Goriel to take over Kent for him. Business is about to pick up! .....or would, if we had any more. My rating: 9/10 Solid new characters, and a chance to see Soda do romance-y things for a change. Overall rating: 9/10 I'm not often into reverse harem-ish stuff like this, but this was fun! The medical stuff wasn't too dry for me. (except for the author's notes, which I skimmed) Art was nice, characters were developed well, and setting was interesting enough. Solid read from outside my usual boxes! Oh, and I'm gonna steal from SD's board game topic because it worked well for him: Bonus question: What's your favorite special ability or unique trait in manga? (or anime- you can generally assume I'm asking about either) Hint for next: To my knowledge and memory, this had cute girls doing cute things before it was cool. --- Look at all those chickens There's a hunger in the land, there's a reckoning still to be reckoned <cite>Tom Bombadil posted [p:901387118] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>Apothecarius Argentum Vol. 6 (of 6) https://imgur.com/a/wK2pa7i Welp, according to Wifebolo, this is all we have, and only two more were translated anyway. (8/11 total) Hope you're not expecting anything conclusive! This will be the first of many incomplete runs >_> We've arrived in Castoria, a merchant republic. We meet a girl named Popola- a desperately poor girl who may or may not have eyes under all her hair. She is the last surviving co-worker of an old secret basilisk named Jade, and they want to get in the city to get some vengeance. She's pushing Jade to find something or other in the mines because they're being sold off tomorrow, but the mines are empty and Jade's dying from the fumes. Instead, they find a hot springs (with requisite Soda walking in on Popola- turns out she has nice eyes. The one bit of fanservice we get and the girl is 13 ;;>___>) and the pair immediately starts a resort. A thief steals Argent's entire stock as soon as they get into Castoria, so, following a tip from Jade, we look for the cleansing stone in what turns out to be a red-light district. After some shenanigans with Argent and Popola running a spa, we run into the thief from earlier, who is actually a doctor named Lulu. Lulu can tell Argent is a basilisk (which is punishable by death here) and blackmails him into assisting her in exchange for his stuff back and more info about the healing stone. They slowly earn each other's respect despite some philosophical differences. Popola is slowly gathering info about the people who sabotaged her family's mine, and it looks like one of them is kinda screwing up the whole country through de-regulation. Meanwhile back home, it's already time for the harvest festival again. Pretty much everybody still in the area shows up, including the Navara Bros and the comic villain Goriel...with Corda in tow, and a couple assassin buddies. Corda makes an attempt on King Dad, but he is too crafty for her. Daniel (who has the weirdest thing for Corda) convinces King to take her hostage and spare her life. King uses this as leverage to get Goriel to take over Kent for him. Business is about to pick up! .....or would, if we had any more. My rating: 9/10 Solid new characters, and a chance to see Soda do romance-y things for a change. Overall rating: 9/10 I'm not often into reverse harem-ish stuff like this, but this was fun! The medical stuff wasn't too dry for me. (except for the author's notes, which I skimmed) Art was nice, characters were developed well, and setting was interesting enough. Solid read from outside my usual boxes! Oh, and I'm gonna steal from SD's board game topic because it worked well for him: Bonus question: What's your favorite special ability or unique trait in manga? (or anime- you can generally assume I'm asking about either) Hint for next: To my knowledge and memory, this had cute girls doing cute things before it was cool.</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
Tom Bombadil 05/16/18 2:08:58 PM #17:	am looking forward to it :D --- Look at all those chickens There's a hunger in the land, there's a reckoning still to be reckoned <cite>Tom Bombadil posted [p:901447948] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>am looking forward to it :D</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
Tom Bombadil 05/16/18 6:30:00 PM #18:	Aria, Vol. 1 (of 3) Whose fault is this: Tombolo Genre: Slice of life, relaxing By: Kozue Amano https://imgur.com/nVlB889 This came pretty early in my career, before I had entirely figured out that I liked slice of life, relaxing things, and female leads. I remember liking it a lot, but it has dropped off my radar altogether for a long time, and I'm hyped to bring it back. It has an anime now, which I should probably watch. This story takes place on Mars, which has been renamed Aqua ever since melting the polar caps covered the planet in water. Akari Mizunashi is our heroine, having come to Neo-Venezia a year ago to start as a gondolier (or Undine, as they're called here) for the Aria Company. We briefly meet her senpai Alicia, as well as our resident mascot character- a fat cat named President Aria. All companies have a blue-eyed cat for good luck, apparently. Anyway, Akari is still an apprentice, so she can only take passengers while supervised by an instructor like Alicia. We win over a cranky old tourist to the slow-paced, low-tech ways of the locals. Even the pacing of the panels is serene! Next to be introduced is Aika, a fellow trainee from a different company, and Akari's best friend. The serene mood is broken when a ship from Umineko Transport and Carry shows up. something something closed circle mass murder something. We proceed to spend an entire chapter cleaning the gondolas. Akari is a bit of a flake, but very pure and into her work. Aika gives me a tiny bit more of a Nico Yazawa vibe, probably because of the hair more than anything. They both really look up to Alicia. Next chapter, we meet Akatsuki- Akari's first customer ever, and seeming to take a Mamoru role to Akari's Usagi. He's a salamander in training, meaning he lives on one of the numerous floating islands where the weather is regulated. You get the sense that he's always cranky, but he is especially so today because his brother is late to hang out. Akari takes him on a quick tour, and they hang out on a bridge for a while. This whole series may or may not just be Akari drawing people into her relaxed tempo, and I'm okay with that. Apparently Italy isn't the only place that got a town on Mars, and we're off to the Japan place, where there's a fox shrine. We meet some fox people/gods/inari after some very mild horror, and learn that rain during sun is called the fox's wedding. That phrase still pops in my head every time it happens and now I remember why! They're supposed to take you away, but Akari gives one some inarizushi and they're cool. It's a gondola race! The Volgalonga is a big annual event, and Aika is convinced it's secretly a test for trainees for promotion. Even here, the presentation and Akari herself are both just laid back and having a dandy time. She does poorly because she stops to help people and wave, but it turns out this wasn't a test after all. My rating: 9/10 I keep coming back to how relaxing this is, but that's because it's really dang relaxing. Everything's nice. This is a manga to read when you're stressed and cranky and need to chill. --- Look at all those chickens There's a hunger in the land, there's a reckoning still to be reckoned <cite>Tom Bombadil posted [p:901462174] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>Aria, Vol. 1 (of 3) Whose fault is this: Tombolo Genre: Slice of life, relaxing By: Kozue Amano https://imgur.com/nVlB889 This came pretty early in my career, before I had entirely figured out that I liked slice of life, relaxing things, and female leads. I remember liking it a lot, but it has dropped off my radar altogether for a long time, and I'm hyped to bring it back. It has an anime now, which I should probably watch. This story takes place on Mars, which has been renamed Aqua ever since melting the polar caps covered the planet in water. Akari Mizunashi is our heroine, having come to Neo-Venezia a year ago to start as a gondolier (or Undine, as they're called here) for the Aria Company. We briefly meet her senpai Alicia, as well as our resident mascot character- a fat cat named President Aria. All companies have a blue-eyed cat for good luck, apparently. Anyway, Akari is still an apprentice, so she can only take passengers while supervised by an instructor like Alicia. We win over a cranky old tourist to the slow-paced, low-tech ways of the locals. Even the pacing of the panels is serene! Next to be introduced is Aika, a fellow trainee from a different company, and Akari's best friend. The serene mood is broken when a ship from Umineko Transport and Carry shows up. something something closed circle mass murder something. We proceed to spend an entire chapter cleaning the gondolas. Akari is a bit of a flake, but very pure and into her work. Aika gives me a tiny bit more of a Nico Yazawa vibe, probably because of the hair more than anything. They both really look up to Alicia. Next chapter, we meet Akatsuki- Akari's first customer ever, and seeming to take a Mamoru role to Akari's Usagi. He's a salamander in training, meaning he lives on one of the numerous floating islands where the weather is regulated. You get the sense that he's always cranky, but he is especially so today because his brother is late to hang out. Akari takes him on a quick tour, and they hang out on a bridge for a while. This whole series may or may not just be Akari drawing people into her relaxed tempo, and I'm okay with that. Apparently Italy isn't the only place that got a town on Mars, and we're off to the Japan place, where there's a fox shrine. We meet some fox people/gods/inari after some very mild horror, and learn that rain during sun is called the fox's wedding. That phrase still pops in my head every time it happens and now I remember why! They're supposed to take you away, but Akari gives one some inarizushi and they're cool. It's a gondola race! The Volgalonga is a big annual event, and Aika is convinced it's secretly a test for trainees for promotion. Even here, the presentation and Akari herself are both just laid back and having a dandy time. She does poorly because she stops to help people and wave, but it turns out this wasn't a test after all. My rating: 9/10 I keep coming back to how relaxing this is, but that's because it's really dang relaxing. Everything's nice. This is a manga to read when you're stressed and cranky and need to chill.</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
Mr Crispy 05/17/18 12:21:05 AM #19:	tagging. I have a lot of manga (understatement), though I kind of fell out of buying new volumes for a while. mostly. starting to get back into it again, having recently splurged and bought all of the omnibus releases for Servant x Service, Paradise Kiss, Franken Fran, and Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service. also I guess I should mention that I've seen the antique bakery and alien nine animu at least. and I have both volumes of aqua and the first couple of volumes of aria. so you have at least one person who knows what you're talking about. --- The only certain death in the universe is Mother Hitton's Littul Kittons. Not changing this line until I beat Seven Heroes (2/24/07) - Fulfilled 2/20/18 <cite>Mr Crispy posted [p:901479288] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>tagging. I have a lot of manga (understatement), though I kind of fell out of buying new volumes for a while. mostly. starting to get back into it again, having recently splurged and bought all of the omnibus releases for Servant x Service, Paradise Kiss, Franken Fran, and Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service. also I guess I should mention that I've seen the antique bakery and alien nine animu at least. and I have both volumes of aqua and the first couple of volumes of aria. so you have at least one person who knows what you're talking about.</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
Tom Bombadil 05/17/18 6:30:53 AM #20:	I am impressed! Thought those were all on the obscure side. Wifebolo likes Kurosagi, although I don't remember offhand if we actually own it. Sounds interesting although it may or may not be my thing ....it occurs to me that this would be a really good lead up to SAVE TOM'S MANGA 2 lol --- Look at all those chickens There's a hunger in the land, there's a reckoning still to be reckoned <cite>Tom Bombadil posted [p:901487701] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>I am impressed! Thought those were all on the obscure side. Wifebolo likes Kurosagi, although I don't remember offhand if we actually own it. Sounds interesting although it may or may not be my thing ....it occurs to me that this would be a really good lead up to SAVE TOM'S MANGA 2 lol</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
Tom Bombadil 05/17/18 3:55:04 PM #21:	Aria, Vol. 2 (of 3) https://imgur.com/a/IAVE9YS Winter has come to Neo-Venezia, and apparently that means that the snow bugs come out of hiding. Akari bonds with one of the fluffy lil' guys until it has to go away for the real winter. We also get a fire going in the fireplace, which is a novel experience for her. The real takeaway though is that President Aria gets a dapper winter hat. We take a trip to the hot springs! I have been conditioned to expect a much more fanservicey experience than what we got, but I don't really want fanservice for this manga so I'm kinda glad they went a PG-ish route. Alicia seems to like adult beverages. Aika seems to like Alicia, although it could still plausibly be just a rather heavy amount of respect for a senpai. Maybe. After a brief feature on President Aria, (he has a crush on Aika's company's cat, President Hime) it's time to meet the gnomes. I like that we have kinda a theme going with "Undines" and "Salamanders" and "Gnomes," although it's worth noting that they appear to all be humans, just with given jobs. Anyway, the youngest of them (Al) brings them to the gnomes' underground city where they live and keep the gravity regulated. Al explains how they manipulate the gravity using special stones and a pipe organ lookin' thing. I guess it makes music too? Aika tsuns her way through the whole thing. New Year's is even nicer than most of these chapters, as Akari reflects on how nice the year has been. It's customary to throw things at the stroke of midnight to rid yourself of the bad fortune of the old year, and also to eat beans. Both of those are holdovers from Italy. Akatsuki puts in a quick appearance for no real reason, too. Finally, it's time for Carnival! Seems pretty equivalent to Mardi Gras, but maybe they have it in Italy too, I dunno. President Aria disappears for it every year, and we don't know why- Alicia brings up the fairy tale of a "cat's meeting," presided over by Cait Sith, the King of Cats. At the festival, there's also a famous and mysterious Casanova who shows up among the masked partiers every year, accompanied by a band of tiny musicians. Akari and Aika try to investigate, and Akari finds Casanova after somehow getting separated. She's got a knack for that, it seems. After parading around with them for a little, Casanova gives her a flower, and one of the drummers reveals himself as President Aria. She gets a glimpse of Casanova going back to being Cait Sith. Next volume is Spring! Also my last one. My rating: 9/10 I promise I'm not just gonna rate everything 9/10- I just really like most of these so far. Be warned though- my average tends to skew pretty high because I am easy to please and don't often read/buy/play/watch things without a good chance I'll like them. Anyway! This manga is really starting to remind me of Studio Ghibli stuff, and that's a plus in my book. You get all these cool Japanese-folklore-ish fantasy settings and events, and there's never any major conflict. Especially in the Snowbug and Carnival chapters, it felt like we took some Miyazaki storyboards and tossed out all but the beginning and the happy ending. It's still very peaceful! I don't think I'd wanna read, like, twenty books of this, but the three that I have is a very nice taste if I'm in the right mood, and I'll probably be left wanting more. --- Look at all those chickens There's a hunger in the land, there's a reckoning still to be reckoned <cite>Tom Bombadil posted [p:901512315] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>Aria, Vol. 2 (of 3) https://imgur.com/a/IAVE9YS Winter has come to Neo-Venezia, and apparently that means that the snow bugs come out of hiding. Akari bonds with one of the fluffy lil' guys until it has to go away for the real winter. We also get a fire going in the fireplace, which is a novel experience for her. The real takeaway though is that President Aria gets a dapper winter hat. We take a trip to the hot springs! I have been conditioned to expect a much more fanservicey experience than what we got, but I don't really want fanservice for this manga so I'm kinda glad they went a PG-ish route. Alicia seems to like adult beverages. Aika seems to like Alicia, although it could still plausibly be just a rather heavy amount of respect for a senpai. Maybe. After a brief feature on President Aria, (he has a crush on Aika's company's cat, President Hime) it's time to meet the gnomes. I like that we have kinda a theme going with "Undines" and "Salamanders" and "Gnomes," although it's worth noting that they appear to all be humans, just with given jobs. Anyway, the youngest of them (Al) brings them to the gnomes' underground city where they live and keep the gravity regulated. Al explains how they manipulate the gravity using special stones and a pipe organ lookin' thing. I guess it makes music too? Aika tsuns her way through the whole thing. New Year's is even nicer than most of these chapters, as Akari reflects on how nice the year has been. It's customary to throw things at the stroke of midnight to rid yourself of the bad fortune of the old year, and also to eat beans. Both of those are holdovers from Italy. Akatsuki puts in a quick appearance for no real reason, too. Finally, it's time for Carnival! Seems pretty equivalent to Mardi Gras, but maybe they have it in Italy too, I dunno. President Aria disappears for it every year, and we don't know why- Alicia brings up the fairy tale of a "cat's meeting," presided over by Cait Sith, the King of Cats. At the festival, there's also a famous and mysterious Casanova who shows up among the masked partiers every year, accompanied by a band of tiny musicians. Akari and Aika try to investigate, and Akari finds Casanova after somehow getting separated. She's got a knack for that, it seems. After parading around with them for a little, Casanova gives her a flower, and one of the drummers reveals himself as President Aria. She gets a glimpse of Casanova going back to being Cait Sith. Next volume is Spring! Also my last one. My rating: 9/10 I promise I'm not just gonna rate everything 9/10- I just really like most of these so far. Be warned though- my average tends to skew pretty high because I am easy to please and don't often read/buy/play/watch things without a good chance I'll like them. Anyway! This manga is really starting to remind me of Studio Ghibli stuff, and that's a plus in my book. You get all these cool Japanese-folklore-ish fantasy settings and events, and there's never any major conflict. Especially in the Snowbug and Carnival chapters, it felt like we took some Miyazaki storyboards and tossed out all but the beginning and the happy ending. It's still very peaceful! I don't think I'd wanna read, like, twenty books of this, but the three that I have is a very nice taste if I'm in the right mood, and I'll probably be left wanting more.</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
Tom Bombadil 05/18/18 12:43:06 PM #22:	Aria Vol. 3 (of 3) https://imgur.com/a/Dp8gIXn The color illustrations at the beginning of the book throw me because they are not hair colors I imagine! Spring has come, and that means Akari's been here for a year. While training, we encounter Alice, a beginner from the upstart company Orange Planet. Despite being a beginner with two gloves, (Akari and Aika have one glove because they're farther along, and you lose that one when you are a full Undine) Alice is really good, and has a quiet, loner nature that comes off as arrogance. Aika gets mad and challenges her to a race...but she's tired from earlier training, so Akari will be the one rowing. It doesn't take a psychic to guess how this will go! Akari is actually really fast when she wants to be- apparently there's a technique called "reverse rowing" that you're not supposed to do with customers on board, and it appears to be a specialty for her. Akari shoots ahead, but gets distracted by picking flowers and loses. It's a bonding experience for all parties involved. On a day off, Alicia takes Akari to "look for spring" and have a picnic along some abandoned train tracks. Alicia is trying to find a special place of some sort, but we take the wrong fork, and instead find a big cherry tree that is showering a roofless, abandoned train car with petals. It's a nice scene, as Alicia talks about how sometimes mistakes work out well. President Aria even manages to get the electricity running, adding some nice lighting, although it's a bit scary for about two panels as he climbs up to a transformer. After our previous expedeetion, one of our boats sprung a leak, so we are taking it in to the shop and replacing it with a mildly dilapidated boat. It's old, but well cared for. Aika finds a hidden treasure map in a compartment, and Alice shows up to join the hunt. It takes us on a lovely tour of the town because everything in this manga is lovely. Now we have a treasure in our hearts! We go back and reset all the clues for the next person, and realize that others before us have done the same. Aika has left Hime-ya and is crashing with Akari. Aika is sick of her boss, Akira, (do we really need an Akari AND an Akira AND an Alice AND an Alicia and everybody else in this business has an A name too?) who is one of the top three Undines around, in addition to Alicia and somebody from Orange Planet. Having been thus prefaced, Akira shows up to yell at everybody, including her childhood friend and one-sided rival Alicia. We get Aika's backstory- one day when Alicia was still a trainee, she was very kind to Aika, inspiring her to also become an Undine. Oh by the way she's also the heir to Hime-ya! Aika and Akari are set to race for reasons I don't entirely understand, but they have to do with Akira playing a bad guy to get Aika back. Really this whole incident was their tsundere-ness rubbing against each other. Next comes a combination of rainy season and high tide. Buildings flood and everybody stays home to relax because there's not enough relaxing in this town. Akatsuki calls out Akari because today you're supposed to give a girl a single rose and he needs help carrying all the roses he got for Alicia. Due to a misunderstanding, though, Alicia comes to think they're for Akari. The roses fall into the water and float away prettily, Akari gives Akatsuki a pep talk, and he gives her one of the roses just because. Also, Aika shows up at the empty office to try to give Alicia one, lol. In the omake the author reveals that Presidents Aria and Hime are based off his actual IRL cats! That's pretty cool. --- Look at all those chickens There's a hunger in the land, there's a reckoning still to be reckoned <cite>Tom Bombadil posted [p:901572483] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>Aria Vol. 3 (of 3) https://imgur.com/a/Dp8gIXn The color illustrations at the beginning of the book throw me because they are not hair colors I imagine! Spring has come, and that means Akari's been here for a year. While training, we encounter Alice, a beginner from the upstart company Orange Planet. Despite being a beginner with two gloves, (Akari and Aika have one glove because they're farther along, and you lose that one when you are a full Undine) Alice is really good, and has a quiet, loner nature that comes off as arrogance. Aika gets mad and challenges her to a race...but she's tired from earlier training, so Akari will be the one rowing. It doesn't take a psychic to guess how this will go! Akari is actually really fast when she wants to be- apparently there's a technique called "reverse rowing" that you're not supposed to do with customers on board, and it appears to be a specialty for her. Akari shoots ahead, but gets distracted by picking flowers and loses. It's a bonding experience for all parties involved. On a day off, Alicia takes Akari to "look for spring" and have a picnic along some abandoned train tracks. Alicia is trying to find a special place of some sort, but we take the wrong fork, and instead find a big cherry tree that is showering a roofless, abandoned train car with petals. It's a nice scene, as Alicia talks about how sometimes mistakes work out well. President Aria even manages to get the electricity running, adding some nice lighting, although it's a bit scary for about two panels as he climbs up to a transformer. After our previous expedeetion, one of our boats sprung a leak, so we are taking it in to the shop and replacing it with a mildly dilapidated boat. It's old, but well cared for. Aika finds a hidden treasure map in a compartment, and Alice shows up to join the hunt. It takes us on a lovely tour of the town because everything in this manga is lovely. Now we have a treasure in our hearts! We go back and reset all the clues for the next person, and realize that others before us have done the same. Aika has left Hime-ya and is crashing with Akari. Aika is sick of her boss, Akira, (do we really need an Akari AND an Akira AND an Alice AND an Alicia and everybody else in this business has an A name too?) who is one of the top three Undines around, in addition to Alicia and somebody from Orange Planet. Having been thus prefaced, Akira shows up to yell at everybody, including her childhood friend and one-sided rival Alicia. We get Aika's backstory- one day when Alicia was still a trainee, she was very kind to Aika, inspiring her to also become an Undine. Oh by the way she's also the heir to Hime-ya! Aika and Akari are set to race for reasons I don't entirely understand, but they have to do with Akira playing a bad guy to get Aika back. Really this whole incident was their tsundere-ness rubbing against each other. Next comes a combination of rainy season and high tide. Buildings flood and everybody stays home to relax because there's not enough relaxing in this town. Akatsuki calls out Akari because today you're supposed to give a girl a single rose and he needs help carrying all the roses he got for Alicia. Due to a misunderstanding, though, Alicia comes to think they're for Akari. The roses fall into the water and float away prettily, Akari gives Akatsuki a pep talk, and he gives her one of the roses just because. Also, Aika shows up at the empty office to try to give Alicia one, lol. In the omake the author reveals that Presidents Aria and Hime are based off his actual IRL cats! That's pretty cool.</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
Tom Bombadil 05/18/18 12:44:25 PM #23:	My rating: 8/10 It is indeed starting to feel a bit one-note, but it's a note I enjoy! Overall rating: 9/10 Not a ton I haven't already said- it's just a super nice, relaxing manga that never goes anywhere. I feel like the girls are cute, but not in the in-your-face-moe-all-the-time way that everything's doing these days. It's a nice change of pace from both that and from....anything serious, really. Don't read this if you want plot or conflict or anything intense. Do read this if you're having a bad day and need to de-stress. ...And do it in small doses because three books in three days is kinda a lot. It's like a dessert- not really substantial, and not something you'd wanna eat 24/7/365, but extremely pleasant all the same. Bonus question: What's a manga that you read for a particular emotion or feeling? Hint for next one: Pretty sure this is the oldest manga in my collection --- Look at all those chickens There's a hunger in the land, there's a reckoning still to be reckoned <cite>Tom Bombadil posted [p:901572559] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>My rating: 8/10 It is indeed starting to feel a bit one-note, but it's a note I enjoy! Overall rating: 9/10 Not a ton I haven't already said- it's just a super nice, relaxing manga that never goes anywhere. I feel like the girls are cute, but not in the in-your-face-moe-all-the-time way that everything's doing these days. It's a nice change of pace from both that and from....anything serious, really. Don't read this if you want plot or conflict or anything intense. Do read this if you're having a bad day and need to de-stress. ...And do it in small doses because three books in three days is kinda a lot. It's like a dessert- not really substantial, and not something you'd wanna eat 24/7/365, but extremely pleasant all the same. Bonus question: What's a manga that you read for a particular emotion or feeling? Hint for next one: Pretty sure this is the oldest manga in my collection</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
Tom Bombadil 05/19/18 3:19:17 PM #24:	should get one in today but not yet sure when --- Look at all those chickens There's a hunger in the land, there's a reckoning still to be reckoned <cite>Tom Bombadil posted [p:901633987] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>should get one in today but not yet sure when</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
Tom Bombadil 05/20/18 4:25:16 PM #25:	lol --- Look at all those chickens There's a hunger in the land, there's a reckoning still to be reckoned <cite>Tom Bombadil posted [p:901688253] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>lol</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
Tom Bombadil 05/20/18 5:27:40 PM #26:	conversely I didn't think I was gonna get to this today but here we are Astro Boy, Vol. 1 Genre: Sci-fi, shonen By: Osamu Tezuka Whose fault is this: Tombolo https://imgur.com/a/dIEXZ2P This is published by Dark Horse, and has a nice little translator's introduction along with a disclaimer for the racist-type stuff. That's nice. Astro Boy is created by Dr. Tenma, who appears slightly mad with grief over the loss of his son. Robots have become commonplace, sentient, and well integrated with society, and Tenma has the resources at his disposal to make Astro Boy the cream of the crop. Things are going okay, but soon Tenma realizes that Astroy Boy is not really human, and can't grow like a human. Therefore, he sells him off. Astro's a bit too human for society's tastes, and bounces around before landing in the custody of one Professor Ochanomizu (...tea water?) who takes better care of him. It's kinda interesting because frequently Tezuka himself makes appearances to just kinda break the fourth wall and talk about whatever's on his mind. Next chapter (this appears to be a curated selection) has a guy whose very smart dog got kidnapped! Turns out that's Astro's teacher. A weird guy in a jet shows up at school, gives his name as Jirori, and has a scuffle with Astro upon leaving. He returns to an Arctic Ocean base, where the lady leader of the dognapping operation chastises him for leaving his post as head of the guard, and refers to him as #44. Looks like he and some other identical robots are acting up a bit- #44 doesn't know WHY he flew to Japan, and another one has been stealing and chewing up shoes. Anta Maria (our villainess for today) sends a squadron under #44's command to destroy a Japanese moon rocket, and they are successful. Astro Boy is on the scene, having tracked the plane. He has a rough time infiltrating the arctic base, and quickly realizes that the enemy troops are robots who have been programmed without the universe's equivalent of the Asimov Laws. He manages to get in, though, after being eaten by a fish that was in turn caught for dinner. Looks like Anta Maria has a vested interest in keeping everybody away from the dark side of the moon. #44 has developed an odd attachment to some dog pelts he's found, and he is enjoying one he was given as a reward when Astro shows up. Astro identifies that pelt as that of Pero, the missing dog from the beginning. A monologue informs us that Anta Maria thinks of the moon as belonging to her mother, who disappeared on a flight there. Junkovitch the robot maker confirms that these robots have dog brains to circumvent the rules against harming humans, and that the dog instincts are re-awakening across the whole "Hot Dog Corps." Astro retrieves the fur ("Stay" works on #44), and #44 gives chase back to earth, with his comrades giving chase in turn. Astro defeats #44, and the home team figures out his origin. With Pero/44 in the teacher's custody, Astro leads an air raid on the arctic base, but his support is driven away by an artificial lightning storm. He's captured by some freezing bots after a good fight, and #44 doesn't fare much better on his return. Junkovitch tries to brainwipe #44, but he howls for help and gets it. #44 is able to make the save before Junkovitch kills Astro, but #44 was only doing this for the teacher, and still considers Astro an enemy. Astro baits an attack by flying a rocket to the moon, but the aftermath leaves him stranded on the moon, with several Hot Dog ships, including #44's, doomed to crash into it. More fighting leads Astro and #44 to an abandoned moon city that was destroyed by meteors as a result of a poorly thought-out diamond manufacturing process. The thrilling conclusion when I get home from game night! ...Maybe! --- Look at all those chickens There's a hunger in the land, there's a reckoning still to be reckoned <cite>Tom Bombadil posted [p:901691262] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>conversely I didn't think I was gonna get to this today but here we are Astro Boy, Vol. 1 Genre: Sci-fi, shonen By: Osamu Tezuka Whose fault is this: Tombolo https://imgur.com/a/dIEXZ2P This is published by Dark Horse, and has a nice little translator's introduction along with a disclaimer for the racist-type stuff. That's nice. Astro Boy is created by Dr. Tenma, who appears slightly mad with grief over the loss of his son. Robots have become commonplace, sentient, and well integrated with society, and Tenma has the resources at his disposal to make Astro Boy the cream of the crop. Things are going okay, but soon Tenma realizes that Astroy Boy is not really human, and can't grow like a human. Therefore, he sells him off. Astro's a bit too human for society's tastes, and bounces around before landing in the custody of one Professor Ochanomizu (...tea water?) who takes better care of him. It's kinda interesting because frequently Tezuka himself makes appearances to just kinda break the fourth wall and talk about whatever's on his mind. Next chapter (this appears to be a curated selection) has a guy whose very smart dog got kidnapped! Turns out that's Astro's teacher. A weird guy in a jet shows up at school, gives his name as Jirori, and has a scuffle with Astro upon leaving. He returns to an Arctic Ocean base, where the lady leader of the dognapping operation chastises him for leaving his post as head of the guard, and refers to him as #44. Looks like he and some other identical robots are acting up a bit- #44 doesn't know WHY he flew to Japan, and another one has been stealing and chewing up shoes. Anta Maria (our villainess for today) sends a squadron under #44's command to destroy a Japanese moon rocket, and they are successful. Astro Boy is on the scene, having tracked the plane. He has a rough time infiltrating the arctic base, and quickly realizes that the enemy troops are robots who have been programmed without the universe's equivalent of the Asimov Laws. He manages to get in, though, after being eaten by a fish that was in turn caught for dinner. Looks like Anta Maria has a vested interest in keeping everybody away from the dark side of the moon. #44 has developed an odd attachment to some dog pelts he's found, and he is enjoying one he was given as a reward when Astro shows up. Astro identifies that pelt as that of Pero, the missing dog from the beginning. A monologue informs us that Anta Maria thinks of the moon as belonging to her mother, who disappeared on a flight there. Junkovitch the robot maker confirms that these robots have dog brains to circumvent the rules against harming humans, and that the dog instincts are re-awakening across the whole "Hot Dog Corps." Astro retrieves the fur ("Stay" works on #44), and #44 gives chase back to earth, with his comrades giving chase in turn. Astro defeats #44, and the home team figures out his origin. With Pero/44 in the teacher's custody, Astro leads an air raid on the arctic base, but his support is driven away by an artificial lightning storm. He's captured by some freezing bots after a good fight, and #44 doesn't fare much better on his return. Junkovitch tries to brainwipe #44, but he howls for help and gets it. #44 is able to make the save before Junkovitch kills Astro, but #44 was only doing this for the teacher, and still considers Astro an enemy. Astro baits an attack by flying a rocket to the moon, but the aftermath leaves him stranded on the moon, with several Hot Dog ships, including #44's, doomed to crash into it. More fighting leads Astro and #44 to an abandoned moon city that was destroyed by meteors as a result of a poorly thought-out diamond manufacturing process. The thrilling conclusion when I get home from game night! ...Maybe!</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
Tom Bombadil 05/20/18 11:13:02 PM #27:	A dying message informs Astro and #44 that the diamonds are cursed and have a giant guardian robot. Maria and her posse show up and claim the diamonds while Astro searches for a way to disable the guard robot. When the city's defense mechanisms kick in, Astro is forced to destroy the core...causing the whole city to explode with everybody but Astro and #44 inside. Astro and #44 return to earth, and #44 is given a dog-like body to go back to being Pero. We conclude with a short story, introduced by Tezuka as one of his favorites. Astro tells his friends about a special flower that commemorates a visit from an alien. The alien warns about a ship from Alsoa 12, which we find out is a recently exploded star. There's a robot invasion from Alsoa 12 the next day, trying to take Earth's water because their planet is gone. The boy is the last organic survivor, and he is powerless to stop the robots...but it's nothing Astro can't stop. The boy stays behind and takes the form of a flower. In the present, Astro and his gang leave him to bloom in the snow. My rating: 7/10 Wasn't super my thing, but I was impressed with the tone for a children's manga. Both the long and short stories left me with a sense of bittersweetness. The storytelling itself was pretty straightforward, but went in some interesting directions. That's what makes him Tezuka, I guess! Discussion question: What's your oldest manga/anime? Hint for next: Probably still my favorite after all these years. --- Look at all those chickens There's a hunger in the land, there's a reckoning still to be reckoned <cite>Tom Bombadil posted [p:901708078] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>A dying message informs Astro and #44 that the diamonds are cursed and have a giant guardian robot. Maria and her posse show up and claim the diamonds while Astro searches for a way to disable the guard robot. When the city's defense mechanisms kick in, Astro is forced to destroy the core...causing the whole city to explode with everybody but Astro and #44 inside. Astro and #44 return to earth, and #44 is given a dog-like body to go back to being Pero. We conclude with a short story, introduced by Tezuka as one of his favorites. Astro tells his friends about a special flower that commemorates a visit from an alien. The alien warns about a ship from Alsoa 12, which we find out is a recently exploded star. There's a robot invasion from Alsoa 12 the next day, trying to take Earth's water because their planet is gone. The boy is the last organic survivor, and he is powerless to stop the robots...but it's nothing Astro can't stop. The boy stays behind and takes the form of a flower. In the present, Astro and his gang leave him to bloom in the snow. My rating: 7/10 Wasn't super my thing, but I was impressed with the tone for a children's manga. Both the long and short stories left me with a sense of bittersweetness. The storytelling itself was pretty straightforward, but went in some interesting directions. That's what makes him Tezuka, I guess! Discussion question: What's your oldest manga/anime? Hint for next: Probably still my favorite after all these years.</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
249USDollars 05/20/18 11:22:28 PM #28:	Makes me want to read through my manga again. Granted that would just be re-reading Yotsuba for the billionth time since that's the only series I actually own. <cite>249USDollars posted [p:901708470] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>Makes me want to read through my manga again. Granted that would just be re-reading Yotsuba for the billionth time since that's the only series I actually own.</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
Tom Bombadil 05/20/18 11:23:40 PM #29:	I mean if you're only gonna own one then --- Look at all those chickens There's a hunger in the land, there's a reckoning still to be reckoned <cite>Tom Bombadil posted [p:901708520] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>I mean if you're only gonna own one then</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
5tarscream 05/21/18 2:29:15 AM #30:	Tag. I don't care about the content I just enjoy your write up style. --- User ID: 4002777 <cite>5tarscream posted [p:901714795] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>Tag. I don't care about the content I just enjoy your write up style.</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
Tom Bombadil 05/21/18 4:25:55 PM #31:	Well thanks, I guess! Azumanga Daioh, Vol. 1 (of 4) Genre: Slice of life, comedy, 4koma By: Kiyohiko Azuma Whose fault is this: Tombolo https://imgur.com/a/HQTIfxQ Ah, Azumanga Daioh. I have been looking forward to this one. It has been my favorite for years and years straight (disclaimer: it might have flipflopped with Rurouni Kenshin once or twice) in both manga and anime. I haven't done much with it recently, so I imagine it'll be like catching up with an old friend you haven't seen in a while. Since there's not much plot, and it's broken up so small, I'm planning to speak more generally instead of my usual plot synopses. 4koma is honestly one of my favorite...genres? Formats? Presentations? For those of you unfamiliar, it's where a manga is organized into a comic-strip like arrangement of four identically-sized panels- however Japan does these vertically instead of horizontally, usually. I'm not sure what exactly draws me to these (other than how much I gravitate towards light comedy and slice of life to start with), but I suspect it has something to do with the familiar format, combined with jokes and pacing you wouldn't commonly find in Western comic strips? I don't see tons of manga like this, but I'm a sucker for it when I do, as we'll see over the course of this topic. As a bonus, there are occasionally extra stories that break from the 4koma format, getting an art upgrade as well as telling more of a long-form story. The first volume does a nice job of setting up all the characters. (except Kagura, who I believe gets only a brief cameo until next book) We get a sports festival, a cultural festival (where we run a stuffed animal show), and a bit of summer vacation. Some of these gags are actually a bit funnier now that I know a lot more about the language and culture! They localized it pretty heavily though, so that gets kinda jarring at times. I'll give you a couple character profiles per book to pad this out: Chiyo Mihama: Still among my all-time faves, Chiyo-chan is a ten-year-old who is smart enough to start high school. As expected, this leads to issues keeping up with everybody in physical activities and life experience, but she's a very nice, very smart, very put together kid. She's a bit timid, and tends to get picked on a bit, but tries hard to get along with everybody, and is the smartest of the bunch. Ayumu "Osaka" Kasuga: Another fave. Osaka got stuck with her hometown as a nickname, given the reputation Osakans have for being boisterous and outgoing. That said, she doesn't fit the stereotype at all- she's very slow and spacey. She's not DUMB per se, she just thinks differently and not that quickly. She's good at riddles and stuff. Still, she's usually around to just say something weird that may or may not have any context. It's funny because the manga translation gives her a New York accent and stereotypes to defy, while the dub of the anime equates Osaka with Houston instead. My rating: 10/10 Did nostalgia give Azumanga that last half a point or so? Yep, fight me. I was worried that maybe some of the magic would be gone, but it's not. I remember in the past comparing this series to Peanuts, and upon review I'm inclined to stick with it. Nobody ever really does anything important or dramatic or stressful, and it's just....laid-back and funny. I also feel like the characters and interactions are closer to how people actually behave and talk than a lot of comedy. I see a lot of myself and my wife in these characters. It's not quite on the Aria level of chillness, but it's close. There's no huge overarching plot, it's not about fanservice or shipping, and even when Tomo is doing something hyper, it just feels like hanging out with friends and relaxing. This is what I want in a slice of life, and with one or two exceptions, I've not found anything that delivers quite the same. --- Look at all those chickens There's a hunger in the land, there's a reckoning still to be reckoned <cite>Tom Bombadil posted [p:901743762] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>Well thanks, I guess! Azumanga Daioh, Vol. 1 (of 4) Genre: Slice of life, comedy, 4koma By: Kiyohiko Azuma Whose fault is this: Tombolo https://imgur.com/a/HQTIfxQ Ah, Azumanga Daioh. I have been looking forward to this one. It has been my favorite for years and years straight (disclaimer: it might have flipflopped with Rurouni Kenshin once or twice) in both manga and anime. I haven't done much with it recently, so I imagine it'll be like catching up with an old friend you haven't seen in a while. Since there's not much plot, and it's broken up so small, I'm planning to speak more generally instead of my usual plot synopses. 4koma is honestly one of my favorite...genres? Formats? Presentations? For those of you unfamiliar, it's where a manga is organized into a comic-strip like arrangement of four identically-sized panels- however Japan does these vertically instead of horizontally, usually. I'm not sure what exactly draws me to these (other than how much I gravitate towards light comedy and slice of life to start with), but I suspect it has something to do with the familiar format, combined with jokes and pacing you wouldn't commonly find in Western comic strips? I don't see tons of manga like this, but I'm a sucker for it when I do, as we'll see over the course of this topic. As a bonus, there are occasionally extra stories that break from the 4koma format, getting an art upgrade as well as telling more of a long-form story. The first volume does a nice job of setting up all the characters. (except Kagura, who I believe gets only a brief cameo until next book) We get a sports festival, a cultural festival (where we run a stuffed animal show), and a bit of summer vacation. Some of these gags are actually a bit funnier now that I know a lot more about the language and culture! They localized it pretty heavily though, so that gets kinda jarring at times. I'll give you a couple character profiles per book to pad this out: Chiyo Mihama: Still among my all-time faves, Chiyo-chan is a ten-year-old who is smart enough to start high school. As expected, this leads to issues keeping up with everybody in physical activities and life experience, but she's a very nice, very smart, very put together kid. She's a bit timid, and tends to get picked on a bit, but tries hard to get along with everybody, and is the smartest of the bunch. Ayumu "Osaka" Kasuga: Another fave. Osaka got stuck with her hometown as a nickname, given the reputation Osakans have for being boisterous and outgoing. That said, she doesn't fit the stereotype at all- she's very slow and spacey. She's not DUMB per se, she just thinks differently and not that quickly. She's good at riddles and stuff. Still, she's usually around to just say something weird that may or may not have any context. It's funny because the manga translation gives her a New York accent and stereotypes to defy, while the dub of the anime equates Osaka with Houston instead. My rating: 10/10 Did nostalgia give Azumanga that last half a point or so? Yep, fight me. I was worried that maybe some of the magic would be gone, but it's not. I remember in the past comparing this series to Peanuts, and upon review I'm inclined to stick with it. Nobody ever really does anything important or dramatic or stressful, and it's just....laid-back and funny. I also feel like the characters and interactions are closer to how people actually behave and talk than a lot of comedy. I see a lot of myself and my wife in these characters. It's not quite on the Aria level of chillness, but it's close. There's no huge overarching plot, it's not about fanservice or shipping, and even when Tomo is doing something hyper, it just feels like hanging out with friends and relaxing. This is what I want in a slice of life, and with one or two exceptions, I've not found anything that delivers quite the same.</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
Tom Bombadil 05/22/18 6:47:30 PM #32:	Azumanga Daioh, Vol. 2 (of 4) https://imgur.com/a/xixHusj This volume marks the first appearance of Chiyo-chan's dad, a strange cat-like creature who shows up in random places. We're also into the second year, and Kagura joins the class and the main cast. Our special revolves around trying to cure Osaka's hiccups. We also see Osaka, Kagura, and Tomo bond over their terrible grades. Kimura's perfect wife makes an appearance as well, and there's a second special just of Chiyo's PoV going through a normal day. Forgot to mention yesterday that we met Mr. Tadakichi, Chiyo's Great Pyrenees. He's a good boy, and big enough for Chiyo to ride him. He's solely responsible for that being one of my favorite dog breeds (not that it takes much) I can't put my finger on what separates out Azumanga's characters from others. I think they just feel a bit more complex than what we usually get these days? I'm not gonna go calling this some sort of masterful high art, but I do feel like there's more to the girls than just plucking the next four moe tropes off the assembly line. Yeah, Chiyo's a loli, but she's smarter than most of them, and yet has struggles that a kid would be expected to have in this situation. Sakaki has the hidden girly side, but she's not particularly mean otherwise, and her foiled attempts to pet cats and have cute things are a unique twist. Tomo....okay, Tomo's a bit more of a standard issue charmingly dumb tomboy, but that is one of my favorite archetypes so I'll let it slide. I also don't feel like it's about fanservice or moe. I'm not opposed to either of those, but it's nice to have a slice of life manga about girls where it's not jammed down my throat. Some of the more detailed drawings get a little male-gaze-y (moreso than I remembered), and there are occasional discussions of boobs or Kimura doing pervy things, but the main 4-panel content doesn't really objectify them at all ever. This manga has a lot of my favorite characters, but none of them have ever been waifus for me because that's just not the point. ~~or maybe I just read this so early on that I'm stuck in an innocent mindset, but there's SOMETHING refreshing about this I'm pretty sure.~~ Speaking of which, more character profiles! Sakaki: Might have been my favorite character if I had been introduced to this in 2018. She's reasonably smart, very good at sports, and tall with a nice figure. She's got her own fangirls (especially Kaorin, who just misses the cutoff of importance to get a writeup) between that and her detached demeanor. That said, she's actually very soft and girly, she just doesn't really let anybody see that, and her shyness is interpreted as aloof coolness. It's a running gag that she always wants to pet cats but they just hate her and bite her or run away. Then she comes in all scratched up and people think she was in a gang fight or something. Those are the kinds of misunderstandings that happen with her constantly. She's a good kid, and somewhat protective of Chiyo-chan. Kagura: The sports kid of the bunch. She hasn't done much yet here, but will be a main character for the rest. She's very competitive with Sakaki, even though Sakaki usually manages to beat her despite not really caring. She's not the brightest kid academically, but seems to have a BIT more social awareness than Tomo and Osaka. Sometimes she's the straight man to the dumber characters, and sometimes she's the dumb one to the smarter ones. IIRC, the tan she gets in this book stays for the rest of the series. My rating: 9/10 Perhaps the nostalgia has worn off because I didn't feel this one AS much. It's also a tiny bit more fanservicey between Kagura showing up and Kimura getting more time. I was gonna write about how there's no sexualization at all but I can't now >_> --- Look at all those chickens There's a hunger in the land, there's a reckoning still to be reckoned <cite>Tom Bombadil posted [p:901809982] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>Azumanga Daioh, Vol. 2 (of 4) https://imgur.com/a/xixHusj This volume marks the first appearance of Chiyo-chan's dad, a strange cat-like creature who shows up in random places. We're also into the second year, and Kagura joins the class and the main cast. Our special revolves around trying to cure Osaka's hiccups. We also see Osaka, Kagura, and Tomo bond over their terrible grades. Kimura's perfect wife makes an appearance as well, and there's a second special just of Chiyo's PoV going through a normal day. Forgot to mention yesterday that we met Mr. Tadakichi, Chiyo's Great Pyrenees. He's a good boy, and big enough for Chiyo to ride him. He's solely responsible for that being one of my favorite dog breeds (not that it takes much) I can't put my finger on what separates out Azumanga's characters from others. I think they just feel a bit more complex than what we usually get these days? I'm not gonna go calling this some sort of masterful high art, but I do feel like there's more to the girls than just plucking the next four moe tropes off the assembly line. Yeah, Chiyo's a loli, but she's smarter than most of them, and yet has struggles that a kid would be expected to have in this situation. Sakaki has the hidden girly side, but she's not particularly mean otherwise, and her foiled attempts to pet cats and have cute things are a unique twist. Tomo....okay, Tomo's a bit more of a standard issue charmingly dumb tomboy, but that is one of my favorite archetypes so I'll let it slide. I also don't feel like it's about fanservice or moe. I'm not opposed to either of those, but it's nice to have a slice of life manga about girls where it's not jammed down my throat. Some of the more detailed drawings get a little male-gaze-y (moreso than I remembered), and there are occasional discussions of boobs or Kimura doing pervy things, but the main 4-panel content doesn't really objectify them at all ever. This manga has a lot of my favorite characters, but none of them have ever been waifus for me because that's just not the point. or maybe I just read this so early on that I'm stuck in an innocent mindset, but there's SOMETHING refreshing about this I'm pretty sure. Speaking of which, more character profiles! Sakaki: Might have been my favorite character if I had been introduced to this in 2018. She's reasonably smart, very good at sports, and tall with a nice figure. She's got her own fangirls (especially Kaorin, who just misses the cutoff of importance to get a writeup) between that and her detached demeanor. That said, she's actually very soft and girly, she just doesn't really let anybody see that, and her shyness is interpreted as aloof coolness. It's a running gag that she always wants to pet cats but they just hate her and bite her or run away. Then she comes in all scratched up and people think she was in a gang fight or something. Those are the kinds of misunderstandings that happen with her constantly. She's a good kid, and somewhat protective of Chiyo-chan. Kagura: The sports kid of the bunch. She hasn't done much yet here, but will be a main character for the rest. She's very competitive with Sakaki, even though Sakaki usually manages to beat her despite not really caring. She's not the brightest kid academically, but seems to have a BIT more social awareness than Tomo and Osaka. Sometimes she's the straight man to the dumber characters, and sometimes she's the dumb one to the smarter ones. IIRC, the tan she gets in this book stays for the rest of the series. My rating: 9/10 Perhaps the nostalgia has worn off because I didn't feel this one AS much. It's also a tiny bit more fanservicey between Kagura showing up and Kimura getting more time. I was gonna write about how there's no sexualization at all but I can't now >_></quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
Tom Bombadil 05/23/18 1:25:47 PM #33:	Azumanga Daioh, Vol. 3 (of 4) https://imgur.com/a/ux3naCK This volume has: -another sports fest -another culture fest, (stuffed animal CAFE, complete with Penguin Chiyo!) -an extended discussion of Santa Claus (Tomo doesn't believe in reindeer) -more new year's dream (and thus more Chiyo-dad) -everybody being jealous of Yomi's New Years in Hokkaido -Chiyo turning 12! -Senior year starts -Tomo cuts her hair -Kaorin goes to Kimura's class :( -No full-format stories, but a page here and there Today's tangent: the anime adaptation. I made the Peanuts parallel once already here, but I think it applies to the anime as well. I don't offhand remember any point where the anime isn't just a straight presentation of the manga, organized into slightly bigger chunks than the strips. As you may have guessed, it's also towards the top of my anime rankings! It also bears the record for weirdest soundtrack- lots of recorders and other instruments you might hear in a music class or school band. In high school (and earlier? Don't remember the timeline) it was like my go-to anime when I was feeling sick or having a bad day. I'd just pop in the DVD, lie down, and feel better about life. It's not QUITE as feel-good as Aria, but it's probably #2 on my relaxation list, and I still haven't seen the Aria anime. Character profile time! Tomo: There's an archetype here, but I'm not sure how to describe it. She reminds me of Cirno or Nero- somewhere between "genki" and "tomboy" and "idiot." Tomo predates my interest in that archetype, so she is not as high in my rankings as those two, but she's still a fun character who drives a lot of the comedy, and I suspect she's probably one of the most popular among the general fandom. She just kinda goes for stuff without considering the consequences (or anybody around her, which might be why she never quite reached waifu status with me) and fails in a highly energetic and entertaining fashion. Then she gets up and does it again. She has Kagura's competitive streak, but it's with EVERYBODY over EVERYTHING, not just trying to beat Sakaki at sports. Kagura actually always kinda seemed like a slightly more competent Tomo to me, making Kagura feel a bit redundant. Tomo's meaner, though. Kagura doesn't realize she's upsetting people when she does stuff, but Tomo picks on Chiyo a fair amount and likes to troll Yomi. Yomi: The only main character that didn't really grab me back in the day, and still doesn't for this re-read. She's always kinda struck me as just kinda being there, usually as a foil to Tomo or to fill in the other side of a conversation. She's somewhat smart, more or less down to earth, and pretty much always the straight man. Her only real shticks are concern over her weight, which is not particularly entertaining to me. There's nothing WRONG with her, and I'm always a fan of glasses, but I just don't see much personality to her. My rating: 10/10 Some of the most memorable bits are in this one! --- Look at all those chickens There's a hunger in the land, there's a reckoning still to be reckoned <cite>Tom Bombadil posted [p:901852306] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>Azumanga Daioh, Vol. 3 (of 4) https://imgur.com/a/ux3naCK This volume has: -another sports fest -another culture fest, (stuffed animal CAFE, complete with Penguin Chiyo!) -an extended discussion of Santa Claus (Tomo doesn't believe in reindeer) -more new year's dream (and thus more Chiyo-dad) -everybody being jealous of Yomi's New Years in Hokkaido -Chiyo turning 12! -Senior year starts -Tomo cuts her hair -Kaorin goes to Kimura's class :( -No full-format stories, but a page here and there Today's tangent: the anime adaptation. I made the Peanuts parallel once already here, but I think it applies to the anime as well. I don't offhand remember any point where the anime isn't just a straight presentation of the manga, organized into slightly bigger chunks than the strips. As you may have guessed, it's also towards the top of my anime rankings! It also bears the record for weirdest soundtrack- lots of recorders and other instruments you might hear in a music class or school band. In high school (and earlier? Don't remember the timeline) it was like my go-to anime when I was feeling sick or having a bad day. I'd just pop in the DVD, lie down, and feel better about life. It's not QUITE as feel-good as Aria, but it's probably #2 on my relaxation list, and I still haven't seen the Aria anime. Character profile time! Tomo: There's an archetype here, but I'm not sure how to describe it. She reminds me of Cirno or Nero- somewhere between "genki" and "tomboy" and "idiot." Tomo predates my interest in that archetype, so she is not as high in my rankings as those two, but she's still a fun character who drives a lot of the comedy, and I suspect she's probably one of the most popular among the general fandom. She just kinda goes for stuff without considering the consequences (or anybody around her, which might be why she never quite reached waifu status with me) and fails in a highly energetic and entertaining fashion. Then she gets up and does it again. She has Kagura's competitive streak, but it's with EVERYBODY over EVERYTHING, not just trying to beat Sakaki at sports. Kagura actually always kinda seemed like a slightly more competent Tomo to me, making Kagura feel a bit redundant. Tomo's meaner, though. Kagura doesn't realize she's upsetting people when she does stuff, but Tomo picks on Chiyo a fair amount and likes to troll Yomi. Yomi: The only main character that didn't really grab me back in the day, and still doesn't for this re-read. She's always kinda struck me as just kinda being there, usually as a foil to Tomo or to fill in the other side of a conversation. She's somewhat smart, more or less down to earth, and pretty much always the straight man. Her only real shticks are concern over her weight, which is not particularly entertaining to me. There's nothing WRONG with her, and I'm always a fan of glasses, but I just don't see much personality to her. My rating: 10/10 Some of the most memorable bits are in this one!</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
Tom Bombadil 05/24/18 1:42:52 PM #34:	the end of the azumanga this evening! --- Look at all those chickens There's a hunger in the land, there's a reckoning still to be reckoned <cite>Tom Bombadil posted [p:901912334] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>the end of the azumanga this evening!</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
Tom Bombadil 05/25/18 12:08:18 AM #35:	Azumanga Daioh, Vol. 4 (of 4) https://imgur.com/a/F7dy66B I opened up the book and a Borders bookmark fell out so I am already sad. This one has the school trip to Okinawa! I will never forget what a Shiisaa is, but more importantly, Sakaki gets to bond with a cat! In probably the closest thing to a serious arc Azumanga has, Sakaki befriends a rare Iriomote cat in Okinawa, and is on cloud nine finally getting to pet and hold one. We have to leave the cat behind...but her mom gets hit by a car, so she tracks Sakaki back home, showing up just in time to make the save from a literal gang of cats. The cat is named Maya, and will live with Chiyo until Sakaki graduates and moves to college. (away from her cat-allergic mom) It's also time for graduation, so we get lots of exams and cramming and college plans. Kinda weird that my students are graduating next week, so that kinda hits close to home! Everybody goes to the theme park together as they close out. Not much more to say about this'un. Last couple character profiles Yukari: The gang's homeroom teacher. Now that I'm in her age bracket (and field!) rather than the kids, I relate much better to her than expected. She's self-centered and lazy and just pretty funny in general. She has almost as much capacity for derp as Tomo and Osaka, but does show some book smarts once in a while. Nyamo: Teaches PE, and friends (frenemies?) with Yukari. While she's more well-grounded than most of the cast and serves primarily as a straight man to Yukari, Yukari does somehow get the better of her a lot of the time. Kimura: Pervy teacher, and the only real stain on the series for me. He spends most of his screentime being as creepy as possible (he is a particular fan of gym uniforms) but then also has a surprising charitable side, and a perfect wife. My rating: 10/10 Solid close with some more meat to it than previous books. A lot of the more memorable moments for me, too. (I STILL pull apart chopsticks very carefully) Overall rating: 10/10 ....And STILLLLL champion! I can't deny that it's partially running on nostalgia with me, but it's just a nice, feel-good time, and I think a lot of the humor and characters actually connect with me MORE now than they did back in the day. Discussion question: It is too early in the topic for this but heck. What's your favorite manga? Hint for next: Most popular one so far. Off the top of my head, might actually be the most popular in the whole library! We're weeb hipsters. --- Look at all those chickens There's a hunger in the land, there's a reckoning still to be reckoned <cite>Tom Bombadil posted [p:901945231] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>Azumanga Daioh, Vol. 4 (of 4) https://imgur.com/a/F7dy66B I opened up the book and a Borders bookmark fell out so I am already sad. This one has the school trip to Okinawa! I will never forget what a Shiisaa is, but more importantly, Sakaki gets to bond with a cat! In probably the closest thing to a serious arc Azumanga has, Sakaki befriends a rare Iriomote cat in Okinawa, and is on cloud nine finally getting to pet and hold one. We have to leave the cat behind...but her mom gets hit by a car, so she tracks Sakaki back home, showing up just in time to make the save from a literal gang of cats. The cat is named Maya, and will live with Chiyo until Sakaki graduates and moves to college. (away from her cat-allergic mom) It's also time for graduation, so we get lots of exams and cramming and college plans. Kinda weird that my students are graduating next week, so that kinda hits close to home! Everybody goes to the theme park together as they close out. Not much more to say about this'un. Last couple character profiles Yukari: The gang's homeroom teacher. Now that I'm in her age bracket (and field!) rather than the kids, I relate much better to her than expected. She's self-centered and lazy and just pretty funny in general. She has almost as much capacity for derp as Tomo and Osaka, but does show some book smarts once in a while. Nyamo: Teaches PE, and friends (frenemies?) with Yukari. While she's more well-grounded than most of the cast and serves primarily as a straight man to Yukari, Yukari does somehow get the better of her a lot of the time. Kimura: Pervy teacher, and the only real stain on the series for me. He spends most of his screentime being as creepy as possible (he is a particular fan of gym uniforms) but then also has a surprising charitable side, and a perfect wife. My rating: 10/10 Solid close with some more meat to it than previous books. A lot of the more memorable moments for me, too. (I STILL pull apart chopsticks very carefully) Overall rating: 10/10 ....And STILLLLL champion! I can't deny that it's partially running on nostalgia with me, but it's just a nice, feel-good time, and I think a lot of the humor and characters actually connect with me MORE now than they did back in the day. Discussion question: It is too early in the topic for this but heck. What's your favorite manga? Hint for next: Most popular one so far. Off the top of my head, might actually be the most popular in the whole library! We're weeb hipsters.</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
Tom Bombadil 05/25/18 12:49:00 PM #36:	Bleach, Vol. 1 (of 3) Genre: Shonen, fantasy? By: Tite Kubo Whose fault is this: Wifebolo's I think https://imgur.com/a/3LDmfaf A rare departure from the norm for both of us- I don't have the attention span for super long series and am not that into ghosts and horror-adjacent stuff, while Wifebolo doesn't really like shonen or super popular things. And yet somehow we both gave this one a shot, mostly independently of each other, and both of us made decent progress. She got annoyed with something about it eventually, and I stopped when the library didn't have the next volume. I think I got farther than the three volumes we apparently own, but don't remember many specifics about what to expect. I like Rukia, Ichigo's dad, the hat guy's sidekicks, and maybe Chad. That's about all I've got for ya going in. We meet Ichigo "Strawberry" Kurosaki (that's...one way to localize it, I guess) as he beats up some punks. He can see and talk to ghosts, so that's fun. His dad's weird and super into his dead mom, and his little(?) sisters have a lesser ability to see ghosts. Suddenly a SOUL REAPER (Rukia) appears and gives us some exposition about how humans aren't supposed to be able to see her, and how she's supposed to send good ghosts on to Soul Society and bust bad ghosts, called "hollows." There's more slapstick than I remember, giving me kinda a Ranma 1/2 vibe while the rough nature of Ichigo and ghosts being a thing reminds me of Yu Yu Hakusho at the same time. A hollow attacks in the middle of Rukia's lecture, and Ichigo continues to do things he shouldn't be able to do by sensing it before Rukia and breaking out of her paralysis spell. Rukia takes a nasty wound protecting Ichigo and his family, forcing her to give some of her power up to Ichigo so he can fight in her place. ...Except he sucks ALL of her power somehow. He's just the specialest. Monster go splat. The next day, Ichigo's family have no lingering wounds or memories of the encounter, which is good since they were all on death's door. Time for school, and characters we might meet there! We meet Orihime the moeblob love interest, Tatsuki the tomboy, and Mizuiro the non-descript. (Mizu...iro...does that mean something along the lines of "clear"?) Rukia has transferred into the class to inform Ichigo that he has all her powers so he has to do her job. He agrees when he sees a ghost in danger, but he's gonna be cranky about it. I guess he has to leave his body to do the soul reaping? Orihime interrupts Ichigo's training session while holding a leek. That should be a meme or something. Info dump time: Ichigo's family clinic failed to save Orihime's big brother, and Hollows all used to be humans so HEY GUESS WHO SHOWS UP TO ATTACK? Luckily Rukia has been hiding in Ichigo's house like a creeper for just such an occasion. She's the best. More info: Hollows first seek to eat their surviving loved ones, as big bro is currently doing with Orihime, before moving on to random attacks. So if Ichigo's mom is dead, then.....??? That didn't occur to me on my first read, although Rukia speculated the Hollow was after Ichigo's immense energy. Tatsuki manages to look cool while getting wrecked, and buys enough time for Ichigo to make the save for Orihime....or not, since she's already dead. Awkward since she's gonna be the main love interest IIRC. Her soul is chained up outside of her body. Ichigo's having a rough time and we get some tragic backstory about how Big Bro Kakei basically raised Orihime after they fled their abusive parents. Now he feels lonely, and blames Orihime's relationships with Ichigo and Tatsuki. Also turns out that he gave Orihime her signature hair thingy the day he died, right before they had a fight and he left for work on bad terms. They talk him down, and send him on. I guess reaping the Hollow purifies them rather than killing them? --- Look at all those chickens There's a hunger in the land, there's a reckoning still to be reckoned <cite>Tom Bombadil posted [p:901967404] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>Bleach, Vol. 1 (of 3) Genre: Shonen, fantasy? By: Tite Kubo Whose fault is this: Wifebolo's I think https://imgur.com/a/3LDmfaf A rare departure from the norm for both of us- I don't have the attention span for super long series and am not that into ghosts and horror-adjacent stuff, while Wifebolo doesn't really like shonen or super popular things. And yet somehow we both gave this one a shot, mostly independently of each other, and both of us made decent progress. She got annoyed with something about it eventually, and I stopped when the library didn't have the next volume. I think I got farther than the three volumes we apparently own, but don't remember many specifics about what to expect. I like Rukia, Ichigo's dad, the hat guy's sidekicks, and maybe Chad. That's about all I've got for ya going in. We meet Ichigo "Strawberry" Kurosaki (that's...one way to localize it, I guess) as he beats up some punks. He can see and talk to ghosts, so that's fun. His dad's weird and super into his dead mom, and his little(?) sisters have a lesser ability to see ghosts. Suddenly a SOUL REAPER (Rukia) appears and gives us some exposition about how humans aren't supposed to be able to see her, and how she's supposed to send good ghosts on to Soul Society and bust bad ghosts, called "hollows." There's more slapstick than I remember, giving me kinda a Ranma 1/2 vibe while the rough nature of Ichigo and ghosts being a thing reminds me of Yu Yu Hakusho at the same time. A hollow attacks in the middle of Rukia's lecture, and Ichigo continues to do things he shouldn't be able to do by sensing it before Rukia and breaking out of her paralysis spell. Rukia takes a nasty wound protecting Ichigo and his family, forcing her to give some of her power up to Ichigo so he can fight in her place. ...Except he sucks ALL of her power somehow. He's just the specialest. Monster go splat. The next day, Ichigo's family have no lingering wounds or memories of the encounter, which is good since they were all on death's door. Time for school, and characters we might meet there! We meet Orihime the moeblob love interest, Tatsuki the tomboy, and Mizuiro the non-descript. (Mizu...iro...does that mean something along the lines of "clear"?) Rukia has transferred into the class to inform Ichigo that he has all her powers so he has to do her job. He agrees when he sees a ghost in danger, but he's gonna be cranky about it. I guess he has to leave his body to do the soul reaping? Orihime interrupts Ichigo's training session while holding a leek. That should be a meme or something. Info dump time: Ichigo's family clinic failed to save Orihime's big brother, and Hollows all used to be humans so HEY GUESS WHO SHOWS UP TO ATTACK? Luckily Rukia has been hiding in Ichigo's house like a creeper for just such an occasion. She's the best. More info: Hollows first seek to eat their surviving loved ones, as big bro is currently doing with Orihime, before moving on to random attacks. So if Ichigo's mom is dead, then.....??? That didn't occur to me on my first read, although Rukia speculated the Hollow was after Ichigo's immense energy. Tatsuki manages to look cool while getting wrecked, and buys enough time for Ichigo to make the save for Orihime....or not, since she's already dead. Awkward since she's gonna be the main love interest IIRC. Her soul is chained up outside of her body. Ichigo's having a rough time and we get some tragic backstory about how Big Bro Kakei basically raised Orihime after they fled their abusive parents. Now he feels lonely, and blames Orihime's relationships with Ichigo and Tatsuki. Also turns out that he gave Orihime her signature hair thingy the day he died, right before they had a fight and he left for work on bad terms. They talk him down, and send him on. I guess reaping the Hollow purifies them rather than killing them?</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
Tom Bombadil 05/25/18 12:56:14 PM #37:	Orihime is save-able because that chain is still attached to her soul. That'll probably be important at some point! She gets the Men in Black treatment so she remembers something else weird for that whole time frame. We meet a bunch of minor characters and get in a fight with one, while Rukia spends the whole scene trying to figure out how juice boxes work. Oh also there's a super strong and tough dude named Chad who saved the life of a talking bird. The bird is harmless for now, but Chad shows up at the clinic with Hollow-lookin' wounds. My rating: 8/10 Like I said, it's not my first choice of setting, but it hooked me pretty well all the same. I like the art and the characters, and there's more comedy than I remember (although it IS the first volume so that'll probably change) --- Look at all those chickens There's a hunger in the land, there's a reckoning still to be reckoned <cite>Tom Bombadil posted [p:901967753] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>Orihime is save-able because that chain is still attached to her soul. That'll probably be important at some point! She gets the Men in Black treatment so she remembers something else weird for that whole time frame. We meet a bunch of minor characters and get in a fight with one, while Rukia spends the whole scene trying to figure out how juice boxes work. Oh also there's a super strong and tough dude named Chad who saved the life of a talking bird. The bird is harmless for now, but Chad shows up at the clinic with Hollow-lookin' wounds. My rating: 8/10 Like I said, it's not my first choice of setting, but it hooked me pretty well all the same. I like the art and the characters, and there's more comedy than I remember (although it IS the first volume so that'll probably change)</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
Tom Bombadil 05/26/18 3:48:53 PM #38:	woo long weekend --- Look at all those chickens There's a hunger in the land, there's a reckoning still to be reckoned <cite>Tom Bombadil posted [p:902025599] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>woo long weekend</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
Tom Bombadil 05/26/18 11:18:09 PM #39:	wifebolo is watching Nacho Libre, which feels oddly appropriate Bleach, Vol. 2 (of 3) https://imgur.com/a/UMOkxpt Chad disappears, and Karin is sick after seeing a vision from the parakeet. The parakeet has a human soul sharing its body, and Karin sees the human's memory of his mother's murder. Karin implores Ichigo to help the boy in the parakeet, while the Hollow that's after said boy beats up the still-mostly-neutralized Rukia. Chad shows up for the save, even though he can't actually see what he's fighting. Between his great strength and toughness and her ability to acutally see the enemy, they're able to hold of the Hollow until Ichigo arrives. We get a Fastball Special in there, even! As Ichigo fights, we get the backstory. The Hollow was a serial killer, and the kid managed to knock him off a balcony after his mom was murdered. The Hollow took his soul, stuck it in the parakeet, and told him his mom would come back to life if the kid could dodge him for three months. He just likes playing with him and killing whoever tries to help. Ichigo gets the win. His/Rukia's Zanpaku-to cleanses the sins of the HOLLOW, but not from their life as a human, so jerks like that get dragged to Hell in terrifying fashion. File that one under "probably relevant later." We send Parakeet Boy to the Soul Society to be with mom. Rukia vaguely buys some stuff from a dude with a hat and his underlings. They're important later, IIRC. Rukia gives Ichigo some Soul Candy- a substitute soul to occupy his body so he can leave it and do soul reaper things. Unfortunately, we figure out too late that this was actually a defective one. The soul is pretty excited to be in a living body, and demonstrates some super human abilities, steals a kiss from Orihime, and wreaks general havoc. Mod konpakus like him were created as a failed experiment, and supposed to have been all destroyed. It appears that his experiences have made him a pacifist, even if he's kinda a jerk- he saves some kids from a Hollow, and Ichigo shows up to finish it off. The shopkeepers show up to eliminate the mod, but Rukia doesn't let them. My rating: 7/10 Bit combat-heavy for my tastes this time around. (at least considering that I am enjoying the characters more than the combat for this particular series) Still a good time though, and from what I remember it's a good intro to some characters that will be showing up more later. Then again we have one volume to go so I'm not sure how much that'll matter here. --- Look at all those chickens There's a hunger in the land, there's a reckoning still to be reckoned <cite>Tom Bombadil posted [p:902045712] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>wifebolo is watching Nacho Libre, which feels oddly appropriate Bleach, Vol. 2 (of 3) https://imgur.com/a/UMOkxpt Chad disappears, and Karin is sick after seeing a vision from the parakeet. The parakeet has a human soul sharing its body, and Karin sees the human's memory of his mother's murder. Karin implores Ichigo to help the boy in the parakeet, while the Hollow that's after said boy beats up the still-mostly-neutralized Rukia. Chad shows up for the save, even though he can't actually see what he's fighting. Between his great strength and toughness and her ability to acutally see the enemy, they're able to hold of the Hollow until Ichigo arrives. We get a Fastball Special in there, even! As Ichigo fights, we get the backstory. The Hollow was a serial killer, and the kid managed to knock him off a balcony after his mom was murdered. The Hollow took his soul, stuck it in the parakeet, and told him his mom would come back to life if the kid could dodge him for three months. He just likes playing with him and killing whoever tries to help. Ichigo gets the win. His/Rukia's Zanpaku-to cleanses the sins of the HOLLOW, but not from their life as a human, so jerks like that get dragged to Hell in terrifying fashion. File that one under "probably relevant later." We send Parakeet Boy to the Soul Society to be with mom. Rukia vaguely buys some stuff from a dude with a hat and his underlings. They're important later, IIRC. Rukia gives Ichigo some Soul Candy- a substitute soul to occupy his body so he can leave it and do soul reaper things. Unfortunately, we figure out too late that this was actually a defective one. The soul is pretty excited to be in a living body, and demonstrates some super human abilities, steals a kiss from Orihime, and wreaks general havoc. Mod konpakus like him were created as a failed experiment, and supposed to have been all destroyed. It appears that his experiences have made him a pacifist, even if he's kinda a jerk- he saves some kids from a Hollow, and Ichigo shows up to finish it off. The shopkeepers show up to eliminate the mod, but Rukia doesn't let them. My rating: 7/10 Bit combat-heavy for my tastes this time around. (at least considering that I am enjoying the characters more than the combat for this particular series) Still a good time though, and from what I remember it's a good intro to some characters that will be showing up more later. Then again we have one volume to go so I'm not sure how much that'll matter here.</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
Tom Bombadil 05/28/18 12:09:30 AM #40:	didn't quite make it today --- Look at all those chickens There's a hunger in the land, there's a reckoning still to be reckoned <cite>Tom Bombadil posted [p:902100492] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>didn't quite make it today</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
Tom Bombadil 05/29/18 6:46:47 AM #41:	Should be back on the wagon today tho --- Look at all those chickens There's a hunger in the land, there's a reckoning still to be reckoned <cite>Tom Bombadil posted [p:902168378] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>Should be back on the wagon today tho</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
Tom Bombadil 05/29/18 1:14:32 PM #42:	Bleach Vol. 3 (of 3) https://imgur.com/a/SJyrdBb Turns out we put the mod soul into a teddy bear, and have named him Kon. Tatsuki wants to be a prizefighter when she grows up. (and also Orihime wants to be a robot or smth) It's the anniversary of Ichigo's mom's death, so time to visit her grave and dump some backstory. Ichigo blames himself for it- he was trying to save a girl (probably a ghost) and mom died trying to save HIM. Some weird holes in that story, which are probably gonna be filled in soon, because the girl from the flashback shows up and attacks Karin! Side note after some dialogue: I LIKE Orihime, I just ship Ichigo a lot harder with Rukia and really like their interactions. Heck I'd take Tatsuki, too. Turns out our little mystery friendo is a puppet of a Hollow, kinda like the lure on an anglerfish. "Grand Fisher" has been using that trick to devour people with high energy for fifty years, and has been a long-standing issue for Soul Society. Ichigo is just a bit unhappy with this thing for killing his mom. Ichigo is able to get the win, but not to finish Grand Fisher off. We'll be getting a rubber match down the line somewhere, no doubt- Ichigo is now all in on Soul Reaping so he can protect people, and Grand Fisher got a good scolding for not taking him seriously enough. My rating: 7/10 Solid character development, but not much else besides fighting, and Bleach is not a manga where I particularly like the fight scenes. Some I do! But here it's just a bit too straightforward so far. Overall rating: 8/10 I'd be interested in reading more (and have, in the past), but not necessarily enough to really seek it out, especially considering its ponderous length. Good art and characters though, and that's something I value no matter the genre. Bonus question: What's the most mainstream thing you've read or watched? Hint for next: I don't even know how many different sub-series are under this banner, but you're getting three of them here. --- Look at all those chickens There's a hunger in the land, there's a reckoning still to be reckoned <cite>Tom Bombadil posted [p:902182581] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>Bleach Vol. 3 (of 3) https://imgur.com/a/SJyrdBb Turns out we put the mod soul into a teddy bear, and have named him Kon. Tatsuki wants to be a prizefighter when she grows up. (and also Orihime wants to be a robot or smth) It's the anniversary of Ichigo's mom's death, so time to visit her grave and dump some backstory. Ichigo blames himself for it- he was trying to save a girl (probably a ghost) and mom died trying to save HIM. Some weird holes in that story, which are probably gonna be filled in soon, because the girl from the flashback shows up and attacks Karin! Side note after some dialogue: I LIKE Orihime, I just ship Ichigo a lot harder with Rukia and really like their interactions. Heck I'd take Tatsuki, too. Turns out our little mystery friendo is a puppet of a Hollow, kinda like the lure on an anglerfish. "Grand Fisher" has been using that trick to devour people with high energy for fifty years, and has been a long-standing issue for Soul Society. Ichigo is just a bit unhappy with this thing for killing his mom. Ichigo is able to get the win, but not to finish Grand Fisher off. We'll be getting a rubber match down the line somewhere, no doubt- Ichigo is now all in on Soul Reaping so he can protect people, and Grand Fisher got a good scolding for not taking him seriously enough. My rating: 7/10 Solid character development, but not much else besides fighting, and Bleach is not a manga where I particularly like the fight scenes. Some I do! But here it's just a bit too straightforward so far. Overall rating: 8/10 I'd be interested in reading more (and have, in the past), but not necessarily enough to really seek it out, especially considering its ponderous length. Good art and characters though, and that's something I value no matter the genre. Bonus question: What's the most mainstream thing you've read or watched? Hint for next: I don't even know how many different sub-series are under this banner, but you're getting three of them here.</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
Llarian 05/29/18 1:30:12 PM #43:	Going to guess you mean most mainstream within anime/manga, probably BLEACH/Sailor Moon. Speed Racer if you count the prior generation's mainstream. --- well, what's wrong with a little destruction? <cite>Llarian posted [p:902183428] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>Going to guess you mean most mainstream within anime/manga, probably BLEACH/Sailor Moon. Speed Racer if you count the prior generation's mainstream.</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
Emeraldegg 05/29/18 2:08:02 PM #44:	bleach is sooooooo long Hey you should read one piece next :p --- I'm a greener egg than the eggs from dr. seuss <cite>Emeraldegg posted [p:902185498] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>bleach is sooooooo long Hey you should read one piece next :p</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
5tarscream 05/29/18 8:43:25 PM #45:	Maybe Hellsing or Black Butler is my favourite mainstream one. --- User ID: 4002777 <cite>5tarscream posted [p:902208754] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>Maybe Hellsing or Black Butler is my favourite mainstream one.</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
Tom Bombadil 05/29/18 8:46:10 PM #46:	Emeraldegg posted... bleach is sooooooo long Hey you should read one piece next :p It is also in the "I am interested but holy crap not THAT interested" pile! ...Most long shonen are, really 5tarscream posted... Maybe Hellsing or Black Butler is my favourite mainstream one. you're squarely in the wifebolo camp then! --- Look at all those chickens There's a hunger in the land, there's a reckoning still to be reckoned <cite>Tom Bombadil posted [p:902208916] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote><cite>Emeraldegg posted...</cite> <quote>bleach is sooooooo long Hey you should read one piece next :p</quote> It is also in the "I am interested but holy crap not THAT interested" pile! ...Most long shonen are, really <cite>5tarscream posted...</cite> <quote>Maybe Hellsing or Black Butler is my favourite mainstream one.</quote> you're squarely in the wifebolo camp then!</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
249USDollars 05/30/18 1:14:50 AM #47:	Tom Bombadil posted... What's the most mainstream thing you've read or watched? Watched Naruto weekly for years. Stopped before the War Arc in Shippuden. Regrettably following Boruto because its first arc hooked me. <cite>249USDollars posted [p:902224715] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote><cite>Tom Bombadil posted...</cite> <quote>What's the most mainstream thing you've read or watched?</quote> Watched Naruto weekly for years. Stopped before the War Arc in Shippuden. Regrettably following Boruto because its first arc hooked me.</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
Tom Bombadil 05/30/18 1:52:09 PM #48:	speaking of "the Wifebolo camp" Blood+, Vol. 1 of several By: Asuka Katsura Whose fault is this: Wifebolo Genre: ? https://imgur.com/a/6Mejj0a This is probably the biggest ratio in the collection of "Wifebolo likes it" to "Tombolo is unaware of it." Doesn't look much like my kinda thing, but I've thought that before and been wrong! It's got a girl with a sword at least, and some sorta demon butler or smth, but on the other hand I have seen a gif of Blood-C that ensures that is not a thing I am ever gonna watch. (Wifebolo assures me that she doesn't like that one either) There are three different headings within our Blood+ collection, and I have put Wifebolo in charge of making sure I get to them in the right order. I think the other two are spinoffs or something, and this appears to be the main (and longest) one. I don't actually really know what I'm getting into here! Something about 'Nam and swords that drink blood and the guy plays the cello and a minor character needs to marry his girlfriend because they're cute. Saya Otonashi is here to fulfill the trope of being late for anime high school, with the twist that she keeps having bad dreams and hallucinations. She's got a brother (?) Kai, and a kid sister (?) Riku, and she does track stuff. Saya can only remember the past year of her life, which I guess is common knowledge. Cut to a buncha intel-lookin' people reporting to a young Dracula cosplayer named Charles, which is disorienting because that's my real name and not one that shows up too often in Japanese anything. We get some Evilly Vague Exposition about trying to find two "mice." Quick cut back to school, where Kai's fan club is out to get his (adopted?) sister. After a trip to the hospital so Boobs McGee, MD can give Saya an IV, we save Riku from some bullies and establish that none of the three are blood related. Also, a guy who is probably not a main character is wandering around with a coffin. Saya's getting annoyed with the whole amnesia thing, and runs into Coffin Man, who is playing a cello. Vague hints are dropped that they're connected and he's been looking for her, and Saya has some sort of power people are repressing. Charles is on the trail of...probably Saya, and Kai gives her a peptalk with multiple hard headbutts. I like Kai. Some government types want Saya back from her dad, but George the Dad doesn't wanna. A Hollow shows up a day late to the Bleach party, and almost has Saya killed before Cello Man makes the save with a sword. Those things are called Chiropterans, and only Saya can kill them apparently. Cello Man administers some sort of blood-related kiss, and Saya is able to trash the beastie real quick. Charles mentions that "the call of one of the mice has been extinguished"- kinda assumed he was the monster, honestly. Also worth noting is that there's an American flag wherever his base is. Saya has no memory of this incident, and Riku's hurt badly. Time for the government to take her back. David of the Red Shield informs her that she is the only thing capable of killing these vampiric Chiropterans, and demonstrates that she's able to tank a point-blank gunshot to the chest. He wants Saya to go back to her monitor/family until we can figure out what the US is up to with the Chiropterans. Charles has it out for Red Shield. --- Look at all those chickens There's a hunger in the land, there's a reckoning still to be reckoned <cite>Tom Bombadil posted [p:902252614] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>speaking of "the Wifebolo camp" Blood+, Vol. 1 of several By: Asuka Katsura Whose fault is this: Wifebolo Genre: ? https://imgur.com/a/6Mejj0a This is probably the biggest ratio in the collection of "Wifebolo likes it" to "Tombolo is unaware of it." Doesn't look much like my kinda thing, but I've thought that before and been wrong! It's got a girl with a sword at least, and some sorta demon butler or smth, but on the other hand I have seen a gif of Blood-C that ensures that is not a thing I am ever gonna watch. (Wifebolo assures me that she doesn't like that one either) There are three different headings within our Blood+ collection, and I have put Wifebolo in charge of making sure I get to them in the right order. I think the other two are spinoffs or something, and this appears to be the main (and longest) one. I don't actually really know what I'm getting into here! Something about 'Nam and swords that drink blood and the guy plays the cello and a minor character needs to marry his girlfriend because they're cute. Saya Otonashi is here to fulfill the trope of being late for anime high school, with the twist that she keeps having bad dreams and hallucinations. She's got a brother (?) Kai, and a kid sister (?) Riku, and she does track stuff. Saya can only remember the past year of her life, which I guess is common knowledge. Cut to a buncha intel-lookin' people reporting to a young Dracula cosplayer named Charles, which is disorienting because that's my real name and not one that shows up too often in Japanese anything. We get some Evilly Vague Exposition about trying to find two "mice." Quick cut back to school, where Kai's fan club is out to get his (adopted?) sister. After a trip to the hospital so Boobs McGee, MD can give Saya an IV, we save Riku from some bullies and establish that none of the three are blood related. Also, a guy who is probably not a main character is wandering around with a coffin. Saya's getting annoyed with the whole amnesia thing, and runs into Coffin Man, who is playing a cello. Vague hints are dropped that they're connected and he's been looking for her, and Saya has some sort of power people are repressing. Charles is on the trail of...probably Saya, and Kai gives her a peptalk with multiple hard headbutts. I like Kai. Some government types want Saya back from her dad, but George the Dad doesn't wanna. A Hollow shows up a day late to the Bleach party, and almost has Saya killed before Cello Man makes the save with a sword. Those things are called Chiropterans, and only Saya can kill them apparently. Cello Man administers some sort of blood-related kiss, and Saya is able to trash the beastie real quick. Charles mentions that "the call of one of the mice has been extinguished"- kinda assumed he was the monster, honestly. Also worth noting is that there's an American flag wherever his base is. Saya has no memory of this incident, and Riku's hurt badly. Time for the government to take her back. David of the Red Shield informs her that she is the only thing capable of killing these vampiric Chiropterans, and demonstrates that she's able to tank a point-blank gunshot to the chest. He wants Saya to go back to her monitor/family until we can figure out what the US is up to with the Chiropterans. Charles has it out for Red Shield.</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
Tom Bombadil 05/30/18 2:12:39 PM #49:	Cello Man introduces himself as Hagi, which means I've been mentally spelling his name wrong for years. Kai didn't get the whole "living weapon" memo and is a bit upset about how his sister is being treated, but Saya is ready to cut herself off and go fulfill her destiny. Charles And Friends crash the school play. Being meguca is suffering and Saya must not get close to anybody or this will happen to them. Apparently Saya's blood is what is able to kill the Chiropterans, but she also needs blood to fuel herself. Hagi has some of his ready. Saya slaughters a platoon of mooks, but Charles is able to snag her right in the middle of a nice scene where Kai intends to stick with her even though he's not some sorta vampire ninja. Also, Charles' boss is kinda annoyed, back home. We get a few 4koma strips and a preview of the novel as a nice end bonus. My rating: 7/10 Vampires and other horror-y things are not my jam, but the characters are solid so far, the art is fine, and so far I'm interested in what happens next. I'll suspend judgment until I get a better idea how much of this is standard shonen, how much BLOOD AND VAMPIRES AND MONSTERS, and how much...whatever else it might be. I could get into this if this is sword girl and faithful butlerman and oniichan busting some monsters. --- Look at all those chickens There's a hunger in the land, there's a reckoning still to be reckoned <cite>Tom Bombadil posted [p:902253828] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>Cello Man introduces himself as Hagi, which means I've been mentally spelling his name wrong for years. Kai didn't get the whole "living weapon" memo and is a bit upset about how his sister is being treated, but Saya is ready to cut herself off and go fulfill her destiny. Charles And Friends crash the school play. Being meguca is suffering and Saya must not get close to anybody or this will happen to them. Apparently Saya's blood is what is able to kill the Chiropterans, but she also needs blood to fuel herself. Hagi has some of his ready. Saya slaughters a platoon of mooks, but Charles is able to snag her right in the middle of a nice scene where Kai intends to stick with her even though he's not some sorta vampire ninja. Also, Charles' boss is kinda annoyed, back home. We get a few 4koma strips and a preview of the novel as a nice end bonus. My rating: 7/10 Vampires and other horror-y things are not my jam, but the characters are solid so far, the art is fine, and so far I'm interested in what happens next. I'll suspend judgment until I get a better idea how much of this is standard shonen, how much BLOOD AND VAMPIRES AND MONSTERS, and how much...whatever else it might be. I could get into this if this is sword girl and faithful butlerman and oniichan busting some monsters.</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
Tom Bombadil 05/31/18 12:15:26 PM #50:	Blood+, Vol. 2 https://imgur.com/a/9sfqizc When last we left our heroes, Charles was about to open up a can of whoopass on them. He's disappointed that Saya isn't fighting at full potential or remembering him, as he's been looking forward to this grudge match for a while. It takes both Haji (I'm told that this is the proper way to romanize his name even if it's not official) and Kai to get her away. People keep calling Charles a Chevalier. We get a random shower scene and some daddy-daughter time that includes a flashback to when they first met. They kidnap Riku and take him(?) to Vietnam, leaving a note written in blood on the late Dr. Boobs McGee. The mysterious bad guys dispatch Solomon to get Charles under control. The gang heads to Vietnam in pursuit, and while investigating the blue rose left as a hint, find a girl who might be able to give them a lead. Also Haji facetanks a semitruck. Apparently Vietnam is tied to both Charles and Saya's backstory. Solomon roughs up Charles a bit. (apparently he used to be called Carl, but left that name behind as well as the Chevaliers) The village where they get blue roses is tied to the backstory as well, and the bad guys seem to represent a pharmaceutical company that is drugging the populace and bribing them to do...something. Looks like Riku is working her(?) charms on Charles unintentionally. Mui, the girl we found earlier, catches wind of the villagers' plan, and tries to escape with Saya, at which point we find out that she can also hear the sound that summons(?) Chiropterans. Scratch that, it turns Mui INTO a Chiropteran, although this apparently isn't normal, as people compare it to the Vietnam War. Probably the bad guy drugs! David takes a hit, and Saya decides to accept her old memories so she can fight at full power. She's already got a lotta PTSD going on and I can't imagine it will get BETTER, poor thing. Solomon is enjoying screwing with Charles, especially now that he seems to have some level of feelings for Riku. I can't entirely tell whether Van the Sidekick is loyal to Charles or Solomon. Saya whacks the Chiropteran Formerly Known As Mui, with expected levels of unhappiness about it, and we find out that this "Diva" that has been mentioned a few times in Cryptic Villainous Strategy Meetings is Saya's sister. My rating: 8/10 Good character development here I think as we solidify the dynamics a bit better...but we'll see how that changes now that Saya has fully awakened to her stuff. --- Look at all those chickens There's a hunger in the land, there's a reckoning still to be reckoned <cite>Tom Bombadil posted [p:902308625] in Tom reads ... [t:76586176]...</cite> <quote>Blood+, Vol. 2 https://imgur.com/a/9sfqizc When last we left our heroes, Charles was about to open up a can of whoopass on them. He's disappointed that Saya isn't fighting at full potential or remembering him, as he's been looking forward to this grudge match for a while. It takes both Haji (I'm told that this is the proper way to romanize his name even if it's not official) and Kai to get her away. People keep calling Charles a Chevalier. We get a random shower scene and some daddy-daughter time that includes a flashback to when they first met. They kidnap Riku and take him(?) to Vietnam, leaving a note written in blood on the late Dr. Boobs McGee. The mysterious bad guys dispatch Solomon to get Charles under control. The gang heads to Vietnam in pursuit, and while investigating the blue rose left as a hint, find a girl who might be able to give them a lead. Also Haji facetanks a semitruck. Apparently Vietnam is tied to both Charles and Saya's backstory. Solomon roughs up Charles a bit. (apparently he used to be called Carl, but left that name behind as well as the Chevaliers) The village where they get blue roses is tied to the backstory as well, and the bad guys seem to represent a pharmaceutical company that is drugging the populace and bribing them to do...something. Looks like Riku is working her(?) charms on Charles unintentionally. Mui, the girl we found earlier, catches wind of the villagers' plan, and tries to escape with Saya, at which point we find out that she can also hear the sound that summons(?) Chiropterans. Scratch that, it turns Mui INTO a Chiropteran, although this apparently isn't normal, as people compare it to the Vietnam War. Probably the bad guy drugs! David takes a hit, and Saya decides to accept her old memories so she can fight at full power. She's already got a lotta PTSD going on and I can't imagine it will get BETTER, poor thing. Solomon is enjoying screwing with Charles, especially now that he seems to have some level of feelings for Riku. I can't entirely tell whether Van the Sidekick is loyal to Charles or Solomon. Saya whacks the Chiropteran Formerly Known As Mui, with expected levels of unhappiness about it, and we find out that this "Diva" that has been mentioned a few times in Cryptic Villainous Strategy Meetings is Saya's sister. My rating: 8/10 Good character development here I think as we solidify the dynamics a bit better...but we'll see how that changes now that Saya has fully awakened to her stuff.</quote> ... Copied to Clipboard!
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Board 8 > Tom reads through the Bolo Family Manga Collection (spoilers) (+) Yeah! (+)

Board 8 > Tom reads through the Bolo Family Manga Collection (spoilers)