What manga are you currently reading?

[Illuminage]

To be honest, I prefer shounen, and I'm a girl...maybe because [s]shoujo[/s]drama is like an everyday factor in my life and I prefer to read/see prolonged fights between two males duking it out any day. Hurr durr.

Not to say I dislike shoujo all-together...I kind of miss the mahou shoujo genre...like Sailor Moon and Cardcaptor Sakura.

Ah, those were the days.

[Maxine MagicFox]

CCS was one of a kind. I would kill for another like it. I don't tend to like the genre so I'm really not sure what it is exactly you are looking for.

I dunno about manga but I know there's at least one Mahou Shoujo title coming out in anime this season?

Mahou Shoujo Madoka*Magica - produced by Shaft and Aniplex

There's ALSO one called Kore wa Zombie Desu Ka that looks like it might fit the genre but I am not sure. .....Could be a shounen with lots of females running around.

[IceMage88]

Thanks, that does make me feel better about it. I like shonen and shoujo, but I didn't know if it was widely accepted as normal, whatever the hell normal is anymore

[Illuminage]

Read/watch what you want. Don't let others put you down or judge you.

[Maxine MagicFox]

Right o_O;

Tch, I'll be damned if someone who doesn't even know me tells me what I should read and enjoy.

Back in '99 it was unheard of for a girl to be A) a gamer or B) a site creator.
:3 It's a good thing I didn't listen to what everyone else had to say back then and just ignored the weird looks people gave me.

[noodles]

[Maxine MagicFox]

[Kinokokao]

[Illuminage]

Hanakisou 2.

[Twat]

The print of Teahouse Vol. 1 has some very interesting extras.

[noodles]

I'm glad you like Teahouse enough to purchase that

[Doktor_Q]

Just found "Mushibugyo," which is pretty awesome so far. I love the really exaggerated-yet-clean art styles.

[zamisk]

The Phoenix Requiem (very excellent webcomic, I recommended you all read it)

http://requiem.seraph-inn.com/about.html

and also:

[Kinokokao]

Yaoi Manga Review:



Title: Crimson Snow
Author: Hori Tomoki
Publisher: BLU

My Rating: A

This is definitely one of those one-shots I wish was longer, but in the same breath I have to acknowledge that it stands perfectly as it is. The book consists of the main story, Crimson Snow, plus two extra one-shot stories. Crimson Snow is in 3 parts with a bonus 4th part that takes place after the main story.

Crimson Snow is about a yakuza, Kazuma, who gets shot one night and collapses in the snow near young tea ceremony master Yukihiro's home. When Kazuma awakens and finds out that not only have Yukihiro's servants patched his bullet wound, they seem unphased by the man's yakuza tattoos and gun. As he recovers his strength, Kazuma finds peace in gentle Yukihiro's tranquil home, but, this being a yaoi manga, it's never that easy. Yukihiro's a bastard child, and his father rarely pays him any attention. But in his rescuing Kazuma, has unselfish, passive Yukihiro finally come across something he wants? Furthermore, Kazuma is troubled by the events that led up to his bloody arrival at Yukihiro's; will his yakuza past come calling?

Kazuma and Yukihiro are both likable characters. We see more of Kazuma's thoughts and feelings. He was an orphaned street tough who impressed a yakuza boss, who became like a father figure to him. For his tough exterior, Kazuma is revealed to be a kind soul, although one deliciously tortured by ill deeds. Yukihiro walks the line between too passive and gentle with naive youth and emerges a well-rounded character for it; his extreme selflessness is portrayed as a flaw, and it enriches his character. The two servants feature little but nevertheless are more than just stock characters; you get a real sense of who they are, especially Miya, who is also a former yakuza but was somehow saved by Yukihiro's father many years previous.



Did I mention the clothes are adorable and sexy? Yukihiro spends a lot of time in traditional robes or adorable sweaters, and Kazuma alternates between kimono and suits. Yukihiro's drawn young/cute but not too much so, and Kazuma's got facial hair, which you hardly ever see in yaoi, and here it's just incredibly sexy and well done. The art is entirely pretty and gorgeous and so nice; I will definitely keep my eye out for future works by this artist.

The romance is quite tender and very well down. The writing is top-notch, although I did get confused between flashbacks, dreams, and narrative at one info-dump point. Otherwise Tomoki-sensei does a notable job of conveying a lot of character development into a short narrative. She neither gives herself too little for interest nor too much to cover, so instead of feeling rushed you get a real sense of satisfaction in reading the story. The end is extremely bittersweet; the entire tone is very melancholy and tragic without drowning in angst. Yukihiro and Kazuma's romance builds up in a slow and believable way. There is a little sexual content, but it's tasteful and done with finesse.

The first extra story I enjoyed quite a bit. It's about Liam, an bespectacled English college student, whose favorite hobby is "Maddox-watching" -- that is, admiring from afar his hunky classmate. One day Liam is struck by a stray basketball and has his glasses smashed to pieces. Fortunately, a classmate offers to escort him to their Latin class, and Liam is shocked to realize it is Maddox himself! It's a cute "love at first sight" type love story. Nothing too deep, but that's perfectly fine, as it certainly does not need to be.



And did I mention I freaking love glasses? So cute!

The second extra story I did not like nearly as much. It's a far more serious piece about Ethan, whose father has just died and left him a large, successful company to run. Ethan detests his father and is completely dry-eyed at the ceremony, but just when he's about to leave he spots a stranger with tears streaming down his face. Ethan realizes there's something familiar about this person, but just as the memory stirs up he collapses in a faint. Back home, Ethan questions Wallace, an old family friend, and discovers a long-buried dark secret about himself, his father, and the mysterious stranger. I can't say much more without revealing the secret, but it's a rather psychological story. It suffers from poor characterization and doesn't really feel like a love story.

On the whole I very much enjoyed this book. As mentioned, I was impressed with the writing and art, and would certainly like to read more of this mangaka in the future.

[zamisk]

kino, I've been reading more of the Phoenix Requiem, and I'm pretty sure you'd love it. No Gay Wizards, but it's really classy~ B)