When this series was wrapping up in Japan, I heard rumors about how it ended. Word was fans were peeved because, in the end, the heroine does not make a decision between the twin brothers for whom she has feelings. It turns out that this isn’t true, though author’s notes from Tanemura indicate that her original intention was for Haine to marry both boys and not just one. And … [Read more...] about The Gentlemen’s Alliance Cross 11 by Arina Tanemura: C+
Manga
Library Wars: Love & War 1 by Hiro Arikawa and Kiiro Yumi: B
At some point in the near future, the national government of Japan passes the Media Betterment Act, which “seeks to exercise censorship over all media, including restricting offensive books.” Libraries are the only institutions able to oppose them, and so local governments build up armed forces to defend their libraries, which continue to preserve banned works in their … [Read more...] about Library Wars: Love & War 1 by Hiro Arikawa and Kiiro Yumi: B
Fairy Navigator Runa 1 by Miyoko Ikeda and Michiyo Kikuta: C
Stop me if you've heard this one before. There's this clumsy, kind-hearted girl who learns she's really a princess and... Oh. You've stopped me. When the female protagonist of a series is “a completely uncoordinated fourth grader,” you just know you’re dealing with a magical girl story. Fairy Navigator Runa is an unoriginal example of the genre, starring a clumsy but … [Read more...] about Fairy Navigator Runa 1 by Miyoko Ikeda and Michiyo Kikuta: C
Spiral: The Bonds of Reasoning 1-3 by Kyo Shirodaira and Eita Mizuno: B
I've been curious about Spiral: The Bonds of Reasoning for a long time, and after really enjoying The Record of a Fallen Vampire by the same author, I decided to choose it for one of my Shounen Sunday picks. It's been two years since Kiyotaka Narumi, a brilliant young detective, disappeared after announcing he was pursuing the mystery of the “Blade Children.” Now, his wife … [Read more...] about Spiral: The Bonds of Reasoning 1-3 by Kyo Shirodaira and Eita Mizuno: B
Yokan 1: Premonition by Makoto Tateno: B-
Akira is the lead singer of a visual kei band and has somewhat of an attitude. He doesn’t care about the fans’ enjoyment, only his own, and refuses to sing anything he didn’t write himself. That is, until he overhears mainstream entertainer Hiroya Sunaga singing one of his own compositions. For the first time, Akira’s obsessed by someone else’s music and makes it his mission to … [Read more...] about Yokan 1: Premonition by Makoto Tateno: B-