From the back cover: As a child, Monkey D. Luffy was inspired to become a pirate by listening to the tales of the buccaneer "Red-Haired" Shanks. But his life changed when Luffy accidentally ate the fruit of the Gum-Gum Tree and gained the power to stretch like rubber... at the cost of never being able to swim again! Years later, still vowing to become the king of the pirates, … [Read more...] about One Piece 1 by Eiichiro Oda: B+
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Maison Ikkoku 9 by Rumiko Takahashi: B+
From the back cover: Godai finally gets serious about finding a job. Unfortunately, Kyoko is the only one who takes him seriously—a little too seriously—when he talks about his "future." For the immediate future, he gets a position waiting tables at a resort, and an eyeful when Kyoko loses her top in the pool. Once he finally lands a gig student-teaching at Kyoko's old high … [Read more...] about Maison Ikkoku 9 by Rumiko Takahashi: B+
High School Debut 6 by Kazune Kawahara: A-
Not long after Haruna first met Yoh, she heard about the “beads incident.” Back in Junior High, Yoh was on the basketball team and was dating the team manager, Makoto. She had a fondness for wearing beads, and one day he accidentally hurt her feelings by saying that he didn’t particularly care for them. She turned on the waterworks and managed to get Yoh’s teammates to turn … [Read more...] about High School Debut 6 by Kazune Kawahara: A-
We Were There 1 by Yuki Obata: A-
Nanami Takahashi has just started high school and is eager to make friends. As she attempts to make conversation with some girls in her class, she finds that their favorite topic of discussion is a carefree-looking boy named Motoharu Yano. Yano is very popular, though more because of sheer presence than good looks. As Nanami puts it later, he’s the “kind of guy everyone follows … [Read more...] about We Were There 1 by Yuki Obata: A-
High School Debut 5 by Kazune Kawahara: B+
From the back cover: Just when things are going well for Haruna, in walks transfer student Leona Matsuzaka. Beautiful Leona's got only one thing in mind—to destroy Haruna's happiness! Who is this vengeful girl and why does she want to hurt Haruna so badly? Review: The Leona story in this volume isn't so great. If this were an anime, it'd be the part you'd swear was filler … [Read more...] about High School Debut 5 by Kazune Kawahara: B+