Masago Kamoguchi is a normal girl: normal looks, normal grades, and normal athletic ability. But normal isn’t good enough for Masago when she’s constantly being compared to her older brother, Shiro, who is smart, good-looking, popular, and someone who draws people to him wherever he goes. As the story begins, Shiro is leading the student council in preparations for the school’s … [Read more...] about Oh! My Brother 1 by Ken Saito: B-
Shoujo
The Gentlemen’s Alliance Cross 10 by Arina Tanemura: C
After resolving some convoluted-sounding subplots involving Haine’s family—featuring maternal amnesia, uncertain paternity, and mansions afire—The Gentlemen’s Alliance Cross moves into the home stretch as Haine is pressed to finally choose between the identical twins with whom she is in love. Alas, just when she finally grasps the idea that the nice twin (Takanari) is probably … [Read more...] about The Gentlemen’s Alliance Cross 10 by Arina Tanemura: C
Skip Beat! 19 by Yoshiki Nakamura: B+
The famous Japanese native turned Hollywood actor, Koo Hizuri, is in town and Kyoko has been assigned to wait on him throughout his stay. He’d originally planned to treat her cruelly in order to elicit a rise from Ren, but can’t fight the temptation to polish the “uncut diamond” of Kyoko’s talent. As a result, he ends up giving her an assignment—create and enact the role of his … [Read more...] about Skip Beat! 19 by Yoshiki Nakamura: B+
Skip Beat! 15-18 by Yoshiki Nakamura: B+
I had no idea it’d been an entire year since I’d read any Skip Beat!. At least my procrastination produced an appealing side effect: a nice little stack of volumes to catch up on! Volume fifteen finds Kyoko shooting on location for the TV drama in which she and Ren are cast. Sho happens to be staying in the same hotel, since there’s also a ritzy recording studio nearby, and is … [Read more...] about Skip Beat! 15-18 by Yoshiki Nakamura: B+
Vampire Knight 1-4 by Matsuri Hino: B-
The first memory Yuki Cross can remember happened ten years ago when she was five: she’s attacked by one vampire but saved by another, the beautiful and pureblooded Kaname. Kaname brings the human girl to the home of a human he knows and his frequent visits throughout her childhood result in her growing very attached to him. Six years later, the introduction of a boy named … [Read more...] about Vampire Knight 1-4 by Matsuri Hino: B-