From the stack: Go! Comi sampler

I think I’m going to have to reserve judgement on Shioko Mizuki’s Crossroad (Go! Comi). There are lots of nice moments in the first volume, but as a whole, it’s all over the place.

The death of 16-year-old Kajitsu’s grandmother leads to an extended family reunion. Kajitsu’s hopelessly irresponsible mother Rumiko shows up, as do Kajitsu’s two step-brothers, 20-year-old goofball Taro and 16-year-old Natsu. Kajitsu hasn’t seen any of them in years, and lots of old resentments crop up. Things get worse when Rumiko vanishes again, leaving another step-sibling (cute grade-schooler Satsuki) in their care.

Left with few other choices and not entirely happy about it, the kids decide to stick together, mostly for Satsuki’s sake. The process of reaching that decision is complicated, with Taro demonstrating a surprising nasty streak. Kajitsu is also shocked that chubby, sweet Natsu has turned sleek and cold (and smart and popular) during his absence. The beats that come out of all this are alternately funny, sad, angry, weird, and tense.

They aren’t entirely coherent, though. It seems like Mizuki is spending most of the first volume finding her tone, fishing around until she finds one that suits. There isn’t really a cumulative effect from beginning to end. Something similar happens with most of the characters as well, though Kajitsu is a solid, consistent presence.

She’s also interesting and sympathetic enough to make me curious to see what happens to her next. She’s understandably angry and withdrawn, still dealing with abandonment and other losses, but she’s also very cautiously open to life’s possibilities. Kajitsu is the one element of Crossroad that really holds together, and I’m invested enough in her to want to see what happens next.

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I liked the nasty edge of the first volume of Takako Shigematsu’s Tenshi Ja Nai!! (Go! Comi). Things are a little smoother and sweeter in the second, but it’s still an entertaining read.

Closed-off Hikaru is helping schoolmate and pop idol Izumi keep a secret: he’s a boy pretending to be a girl to hold on to a lucrative career as a model and actress. Izumi and bodyguard Yasukuni initially had to blackmail Hikaru into helping, but the scheming duo has grown on Hikaru as she learns more about their motives and backgrounds.

Now, she’s a willing part of the conspiracy, though she isn’t particularly thrilled about the unwanted attention that comes with her role. She’s also got another distraction in the form of a handsome, romance-novel-ready music teacher named Ayase. Hikaru has to balance life as Izumi’s assistant and accessory, a budding and forbidden crush, and a steady stream of jealous and curious outside parties.

It’s fun stuff, a nice mix of mistaken identity comedy, complicated romance, and coming-of-age drama. Shigematsu gives more depth to her three protagonists and does an equally nice job introducing orbital characters like Ayase, mean girl Shiori, and self-proclaimed ladies’ man Kurobe, a co-star with romantic designs on Izumi.

Tenshi Ja Nai!! bustles along, throwing new twists at its characters with every chapter while deepening their relationships. I like it a lot.

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Speaking of Go! Comi, they’ve announced two new titles, Night of the Beasts and After School Nightmare. (I love the title of the latter.) David Taylor mentioned this development a couple of days ago, then Franklin Harris linked to the official confirmation.