Ahiru no Oujisama by Ai Morinaga

Ahiru no Oujisama (Duck Prince) by Ai Morinaga



Genre: Comedy Shojo
Length: 6 Volumes – 22 Chapters plus an extra at the end

Art and story (c) Ai Morinaga

            The art style of this manga is very appealing, with good tone use on the faces and excellent facial differences between the characters. The head shapes are a little generic, and the backgrounds are sparse from time to time, but those are the only downfalls. The bodies have variation and the clothes fit the frames well, even all the silly things are given as much care as the full figures and faces. Its very appealing, though familiar, and the cover really grabs attention at a glance. The eyes have a nice sparkle and show the emotions well, and the hair has nice weight and style.
           The story goes that the ugly duckling became a beautiful swan when he was grown, but Reiichi Shiratori knows that that isn't true in real life, ugly stays ugly and he will never look any different than he already does. To drive home the truth, the girl he likes calls him cute, but only because he reminds her of her very strange looking dog. Yet, when the dog goes missing, Reiichi promises to help find him because he would do anything for the Yumiko-chan who was nice to him when no one else was, no matter her reasons. When he dives in front of a car to save the pet and gets hit, Reiichi asks the fates to make him handsome in his next life. The next thing Reiichi knows, he awakes in a hospital so handsome he looks nothing like the boy he was before! Is this fate, or something much stranger...?

The two funniest jokes, imho, put together for your pleasure.

            This is one of those 'bizarre' shojo manga, where, instead of a full romance plot, strange and wacky things happen instead. Now, I've got nothing against that type I loved Ouran Host Club, what I took offense to was the fact that at the end of all the wackiness everyone got a satisfying ending except for the main character! I read six volumes just to be teased with a will they won't they ending. I liked the art and the jokes, still, the lack of satisfaction though the ending really made my enjoyment plummet at the last chapter. I don't regret reading it, though, I just probably wouldn't read it again, I'm thinking I'll try another manga by this mangaka just to see if I picked the one that is the least comprehensible. Its always a disappointment when the art is just the way you like, but the plot is opposite of that. As far as Ahiru no Oujisama goes, the slap stick sort of runs away with the story too much for it to really be called a good manga, unfortunately, the main character hardly ever learns his lesson or even improves his terrible personality. It seems a lot of chapters start with "I'm such a coward, I need to fix that part of me....!” then something really silly happens and the chapter ends with “I'm such a coward, nothing changed...!” Seeing characters change and evolve is a major point of most stories so when that simply doesn't happen because funny stuff is funny, it detracts from the overall impression. The other thing that really bothered me was the rape, yes, whoa, rape. It was just thrown at you and regarded as another joke, since Reiichi is a man and that means it isn't rape. To be serious, it almost made me quit reading because of how it was so casually allowed (and, spoiler alert: his sister was the one who did it! Even if they are not blood related, incest, ew.). Several manga I've read have thrown the rape card in and I have to say, it just ruins everything for me, especially when it is handled as a joke or as if it is mundane. You've got to wonder when an author needs to use such a method to move the plot off in a separate third direction how the under thought things were, especially when they never give you a good resolution at the end.



2.5/5 Solidly middle ground, not enough plot and too much everything else.

666 Satan by Seishi Kishimoto

666 Satan by Seishi Kishimoto

Genre: Shonen

Length: 19 Volumes – 76 Chapters

Art and story (c) Seishi Kishimoto

            The art of this manga is a little off at first, in proportions mostly, but it has a strong look and is solidly put together, including the character designs and the world around them. Backgrounds are there, as well, giving more depth to the universe this is set in. Clothes are varied and interesting to look at, the detailing of just about everything in this manga is good, actually. There was a bit of a problem with some of the women's clothes though, aside from the obligatory naked shots, some times the clothes looked just the same as if the characters weren't wearing anything at all, and not just because they were skimpy, just a case of too many anatomy lines, it made for distraction instead of just looking like tight clothing. Going back to the details, they eyes are very expressive, though they often share the same shape, they are very distinctive still, especially the monster-like types. The monsters themselves also share the excellent detailing that the people do, its easy for the eye to stop and look at them, even in the middle of epic battles. Its very stylized, and I highly enjoyed it, but, perhaps, you think this art looks familiar, as if you've seen it every where for fifteen years or so, for example. Well, its not plagiarized, no, the reason this manga looks so much like a very famous manga titled Naruto is due to the fact that 666 Satan is drawn by Masashi Kishimoto's twin brother! A bit of the style is similar, especially when comparing the beginning of the two manga, but most of the similarities are only surface deep.

            Ruby Crescent is a treasure hunter, traveling alone and looking for the mysterious objects known as 'O-parts' that, when in the hands of technicians, become powerful weapons. When a giant monster attacks, Ruby expects her short life to be over, but thankfully a young boy is around and saves her life, claiming he will be her bodyguard so long as she promises to pay him. This strange kid, who's name is Jio, freely admits his dream is to conquer the world, still, he is strong so Ruby decides to take him up on his offer. At least, she figures, it is better to have a companion than to be always alone, Jio doesn't seem to agree, as he only believes in the power of his own self. The two of them begin their journey together this way, as opposite as Jio's own two-toned hair.

            666 Satan, or to use the much milder English publication name O-Parts Hunter, is a story that has a lot of surface elements similar to Naruto, considering twin siblings made each respective title I think allowances can be given, especially since the elements in common can mostly be applied to just about any shonen manga. At the time I first read this manga five or six years ago, the name appealed to me first and foremost (I absolutely love pseudo-religious type plots especially ones involving angels and demons), then when I looked at the art I quickly Googled the artist to get the skinny on why it was so similar to the very famous Naruto. After that I referenced to 666 Satan like so: “like Naruto but with an ending” but that doesn't really have same relevance anymore considering that Naruto actually got around to ending so I have changed it to say “like Naruto but much shorter” instead. All joking aside, my review will not compare the two manga, I never much cared about Naruto, I read a large chunk but only because a friend owned it but never had the interest to continue it on my own, so really can't say which one is “better” all I know is I liked 666 Satan very much. The beginning of this manga, though, is quite ham fisted as far as character development goes, and the plot is a little rushed in the first chapter especially, it seems like too much information is being thrown at you with no real reason as to why it need be revealed. At the second volume though a longer term plot is introduced and things begin to firm up and connect. After that, the plot grows larger and grander in usual fashion, bringing with it enemies and fights and friends. Its a bit typical for it's genre, but it also has a lot of interesting bits and characters that pull you to continue just to see how things will go for them. I wish I had something to really complain about but just about all I can think of is the pacing and the explanations. The pacing really moves quickly, and the fights can be over before you expect them to, still that's not really that bad of problem its just a preference on my part really. Now, the explanations were half bad translation, I think, which is also my fault for not having bought the manga physically yet, so again, not much a complaint. All I remember at the end of these nineteen volumes is how much I enjoyed seeing Jio and Ruby grow together, lots of people have complained about the ending but I feel it is very befitting the rest of the manga. On another note, putting my bad scans into the picture, I saw the name 'O-Parts Hunter' and shied away from buying it. I'm a bit of a purist who likes to see things in the way that the original creator meant them to be (i.e. original voice actors, faithful translations of the dialog), and the name change, in addition to sounding horribly bland, worried that part of me, I find the change detestable. Still, I plan on buying 666 Satan when I have the chance because I, as I have several times prior, want to read this amazing manga again.

5/5 Beginning may be a little shaky but once the plot is pointed the right way, thoroughly enjoyable all the way to the end.

RaButa by Kyoushinsha Cool

RaButa (LovePig) by  Kyoushinsha Cool

Art and story (c) Kyoushinsha Cool

Genre: Shojo
Length: One Chapter - 114 Pages


              I'm not going to lie, the art is unfinished, I'm actually not sure it was ever really published somewhere, but if it wasn't any good I wouldn't have read it so I'll just continue on. Despite the fact that it looks very much like it is at the stage before it has been inked, the art is solid. Some of the characters are a bit typical, but they have good personality on looks alone. The expressiveness of the eyes are lost once and again to the sketchy quality of the art, but the emotion gets through very well. Backgrounds come and go, but there is a good majority of them. Clothing is mostly school uniforms, but they still seem well proportioned. Looking at the art alone, I'm sure you may question the worth of reading this manga, but put that worry aside because the style is endearing enough despite it's incompleteness.
            Kurume is a petite, cute, rich girl who any boy would love to go out with, yet when she confesses, her crush immediately responds "No." Though she is shy, Kurume won't give up on Harundo, even if he is a delinquent called 'the school's strongest fatass' she truly loves him. He knows though, that she can do so much better than him.
           Look, if you can't get over the unfinished art nothing I say here will convince you, but I still want to say that you should give it a shot. All it took for me was two pages and I wanted to finish the rest of it right then and there even though I was in the middle of doing a longer review already. RaButa not the typical 4-Koma style as far as the plot goes either, its just plain cute romance set in four panel size pages. I definitely want more of this and I plan on perusing the mangaka's other work to see if I can get it. It really gets you in the heart, despite how genuinely funny it is. Sometimes manga with fat characters are all jokes, well it applies to more than just manga but ,  I was so pleasantly surprised when this manga didn't just rely on his weight for the humor. Of course there were fat jokes but Kurume's love really sees beyond that and its really how the two opposite character types get to know each other that gives the reader the moments they will remember. Its also where all the feelings come from, too, and there is a lot of that hidden here, too. There is no ending to speak of unfortunately, but all those unresolved issues fade in the glow of how much this story shines. I just can't praise this enough, really, the pacing is really good, especially considering it's format, the side characters are developed, and it isn't just nice-girl-meets-delinquent tropes expected by the premise. Was the art distracting from time to time because you could see skulls underneath the hair or it was a little unclear? Yes, but the story will have you wanting more despite that, and by more I mean like five volumes more when all you get is not even a full volume.

5/5 An excellent read, cute and sweet and funny. The perfect shojo cocktail.

Silva by Bakutendou

Silva by Bakutendou

Art and story (c) Bakutendou

Genre: Comedy Shonen, 4-Koma

Length: Two Volumes - 51 Chapters

            At first, judging from the cover I expected more of a Lucky Star look to the art, but it very much looks like Azumanga Daioh, though wether that is intentional or not I'm not sure, because the similarities run much deeper than the art. More on that point at the end, though. The art style consists of very round heads and two body types, either they are flat or they have large boobs, I don't think there is any in-between. The head shapes have more variety, but not by much. The hair is chunky style, in plenty of modern cuts but the eyes are generic ovals that seem exactly like Azumanga Daioh and the mangaka's other work. As far as detail goes, there is a lot of it when there isn't something really silly happening, and then it inexplicably disappears when something does happen. I can't really fault the art by itself, it looks good and professional, I just couldn't get over the fact of how much it looked like Azumanga Daioh, it is the only other 4-Koma manga I have read though, so I thought maybe that just was the style of the genre so I'll put the results of that search after the rest of this review.

            Silva Xenoskull Yasuda has just transferred to a new school, so she comes prepared for battle, literally, with her combat outfit and the scythe she inherited from her mother. This manga is the story of this young girl's life split between her school days and her home life as part of an evil organization trying to take over the world.

It got repetitive shortly after this joke

             Its really hard to review this manga, and since I didn't much like it, its just getting harder more I try. Like I mentioned before, I've only ever read one other 4-Koma manga before this, if you've never run into one its a little strange compared to other manga. 4-Koma, short for Yonkoma, is a bit like the comics you find in the newspaper, they are only four panels long, usually set vertically, and are very silly (a more detailed description is here). Personally, I find them hard to start, though Azumanga Daioh grew on me the longer I read it, Silva seemed to have the opposite effect on me, the more I read the less I liked it. It didn't help that this manga reminded me so much of the other that I cried out 'rip off' right from the beginning. I'm going to name a few things that are the same between Silva and Azumanga Daioh because it seemed like it was more than just the gag style was similar. Lets see, there was a strange female teacher who was irresponsible to her students and teaching, there was a bespectacled male teacher who was actually an otaku, the lead girl is new to class and is small and naive, one girl is a loud mouth and gets over excited by things, and there are more similarities but some I can chalk up to tropes so I won't mention them expressly, still just those four main things and the art put together felt way too similar. The premise, well half of it, is completely different so I felt bad comparing it so often, but I couldn't help myself. Still, for the sake of reviewing, I'll put that aside then, I said, and just read the thing as it is. About half way through the first volume, I started wondering how long it was going to take, never a good sign, any good entertainment whittles away the time effortlessly, yet here is a manga where the chapters are only nine pages long yet are not going by fast enough. Simply put, the humor wore off for me at a quarter of the way through and never really came back. True, 4-Koma aren't always very coherent when it comes to plot lines but even the silly situations began to seem reused and rehashed very quickly. The novelty wasn't enough to keep my attention, especially considering the fact that I was ignoring all the things that reminded me of something else, and I was longing for the end when I had another hour of reading to do. I also felt like the art was getting pretty lazy in the last half of the second volume, silly expressions suddenly were the only faces I was seeing as if they were the characters' only faces (the main character's kissy lips began to enrage me, actually) and the clothing disappeared more often than before to be replaced by plain white outlined bodies. Perhaps, though I have ranted enough, so I'll just simply say it:

1.5/5 I didn't like this manga except for about twenty minutes in the very beginning, then it quickly began to wear on my nerves.

Now on to my quick dive into other 4-Koma to see if my hatred is of a genre trope, not just the one manga I happened to pick up...

Hataraite Kudasai, Haruko-sensei! by Hyaku Fujishiro

Well, I didn't like this manga, either, but the art wasn't anything like Azumanga Daioh so I'll give it a quick grade and move on in the sake of research.

1/5 The subject matter was gross and pedophile-y

 

RaButa (LovePig) by Kyoushinsha Cool

 Art is also nothing alike, and I think I'll post a separate review of it all by itself later (shameless link right here) though, truthfully it isn't the same type of manga.

Sora-Roma by  Hayato Hoshimi

 Awww, this one was really cute, though also generic, it was in a shojo art way, something completely different than Silva and my problem with it.

5/5 By the way. 

 

So, even though I only read those three, I looked at lots of 4-Koma and have come to my conclusion. Yes, Silva looks way too much like Azumanga Daioh and it has nothing to do with genres. I stick to my review.

 

Samurai Usagi by Teppei Fukushima

Nothing says 'Easter' like the word 'bunny' so I went found a Jump manga with that word in the title. I think it fits the theme very well, the main character looks like a rabbit, people are often wearing rabbit masks, and rabbits are just about everywhere. So happy holidays and enjoy your Spring Break, if you get one.












Samurai Usagi (Samurai Rabbit) by Teppei 

Fukushima




Genre: Shonen

Length: 8 Volumes - 68 Chapters and some extras

Art and story (c) Teppei Fukushima

            Art is quite cute, in fact that’s all it seems at first but that’s only because the two main characters are drawn that way, it in fact has an interesting set of characters coming and going at all times. That said, it is rough at the beginning in getting across feelings, but as it improves it doesn't stray very far from it's original look which is amazing. As it is set in the past, the clothing is all period (well, generally), and is given good detail and pattern. The backgrounds are basically there all the time, from my recollection, whether it is street shots or inside of houses. I've already mentioned the character designs being varied, but they are also pretty well done, though some are a little cliché, its obvious that it is done on purpose for it's genre of samurai type, and familiar characters of that type do appear here as homage, or perhaps a bit of parody, in any case it does not detract from the experience. I actually really liked the way wounds and blood smear were done, and the faces were very expressive even through beatings.

            Gosuke Udagawa is a low ranking bushi (samurai*) who became the head of his family when his father and his brother had to commit hara-kiri (also called seppuku, that is, ritual suicide*) because they shamed themselves and their family name over trivial things. Gosuke, only 15, decides that he will not go the way his father and brother have and sticks to keeping his head down and doing everything he can not to shame his family's name any further and thus having to end his own life, too. But things suddenly change when he finds himself married to the strangest girl who loves rabbits not because they are cute or because they taste good, but because they keep trying to reach the moon no matter what. Gosuke begins to think that perhaps, he should be like that, too, instead of trying to remain down where he has put himself. (*Here is info on all this interesting stuff in more detail if you are unfamiliar with samurai).

            I will admit freely that I had a really hard time beginning this manga, in fact I wasn't sure I'd be able to make it through it I was having such a hard time. There were a few too many Japanese terms, and my poor translations weren't helping me make sense of this manga with out a plot. I'm not an avid samurai genre fan, so the set up was a little confusing because the hierarchy back in the age this is set is actually full of a million rules, and I was having a some trouble setting all my ducks in a row for what I was actually going to be in for. It didn't help that while it is obviously meant to be a joke that his father and brother kill themselves, the humor didn't really come through for a while, and luckily the 'funny' of his situation wasn't really pushed so its sort of just put aside and things are moved on. The silly side grows stronger, though, as you move along and even reaching a 'laugh out loud' in several occasions. Of course, I made it though all the problems (and a bit of stomach flu that I think contributed to my lack of concentration at the beginning) and I found a manga that I can look back on fondly. Because, despite it's shaky start of barely strung together chapters, and not even in a gag manga type of way like Dragon Ball or similar slap stick shonen, finally at chapter four Samurai Usagi got intensely more understandable and while an entire plot may not have appeared at this point, it was a start. From there, it is a much smoother ride, and the author begins weaving in some of the unexplained or fixing some of the confusing points made in earlier chapters so you can get to actually learn about the characters; in fact is is very obviously deliberate character development, which can seem heavy handed but the characters are so strange its far from typical. Now, I can't say it isn't full of tropes and obvious shonen plot lines, but I can say that it is a lot different than you may expect. For example, there is of course lots of manly crying, due to manly misunderstandings but there is also plots about how an actual marriage between two fifteen-year-olds would work (just to clue you in, its all cute and no fornication). The action is problematic though, as samurai sword fights are typically really short due to being comprised of one hit wins, but the action ramps up very nicely to the point where it lasts chapters instead of pages and you get good meaty sequences of it, that is until it abruptly ends. And by 'abruptly ends' I mean the entire manga. I think it just wasn't getting appreciated and was canned, so the ending is frustratingly glossed over for a jump forward last chapter when it could have easily carried on with what it had been set up with for at least three more volumes. Still, I recommend this and will definitely read it again in the near future. For a manga filled with the same Bushido terminology and plots seen twice over, it also shows a part of the era I didn't really know about and in a well drawn, cute but manly way.

4/5 I'd love to give it a five but its cancellation and rough start make it impossible I'm afraid.