In my review of volumes 1-10 of Cheeky Angel, I wrote, "Sometimes I’m not a fan of episodic storylines, but Cheeky Angel pulls it off because Nishimori-sensei never loses sight of the most important aspect of the story: Megumi’s struggle to choose between accepting her current femininity and finding a way to return to what she once was." Unfortunately, this no longer holds … [Read more...] about Cheeky Angel 11-13 by Hiroyuki Nishimori: C+
Skip Beat! 20 by Yoshiki Nakamura: B
Kyoko takes a break from acting jobs in this volume to focus on throwing a fabulous non-birthday birthday party for the boss’s granddaughter, Maria, who refuses to celebrate the occasion since it’s also the date of her mother’s death, for which she feels responsible. What follows is possibly the most shojotastic volume of manga ever, filled with warm expressions, bright smiles, … [Read more...] about Skip Beat! 20 by Yoshiki Nakamura: B
InuYasha 45 by Rumiko Takahashi: B
A running plot in InuYasha involves the fact that the villain, Naraku, can never be wholly vanquished because he has secreted his heart away and as long as it exists elsewhere, he can’t die. It’s been dozens of volumes, so my memories of his methods are hazy, but his heart has resided for some time in the body of an infant, which has constructed itself a living fortress in the … [Read more...] about InuYasha 45 by Rumiko Takahashi: B
X-Men: Misfits 1 by Raina Telgemeier, Dave Roman, and Anzu: C-
Having fortified myself with some small exposure to Marvel-style Kitty Pryde, I felt equipped to tackle the first volume of Del Rey's X-Men: Misfits for Manga Recon. Whether you're an X-Men fan or a shojo manga fan, you're bound to be disappointed (if not dismayed) by this hybrid. In this shojo-style X-Men “remix,” Kitty Pryde is a fifteen-year-old girl who is an outcast … [Read more...] about X-Men: Misfits 1 by Raina Telgemeier, Dave Roman, and Anzu: C-
Astonishing X-Men 1: Gifted by Joss Whedon and John Cassaday: A
From the back cover: Dream-team creators Joss Whedon and John Cassaday present the explosive, all-new flagship X-Men series—marking a return to classic greatness and the beginning of a brand-new era for the X-Men! Cyclops and Emma Frost re-form the X-Men with the express purpose of "astonishing" the world. But when breaking news regarding the mutant gene unexpectedly hits the … [Read more...] about Astonishing X-Men 1: Gifted by Joss Whedon and John Cassaday: A