The Manga Curmudgeon

Spending too much on comics, then talking too much about them

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Upcoming 2/3/2010

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I was surprised to discover that Tsutomu Nihei’s Biomega (Viz) isn’t an adaptation of an existing video game. Its set-up and execution are exactly like a good first-person shooter, with a well-armed guy on a tricked-out motorcycle entering hostile territory with a mission and a subset of shifting objectives. There’s melee combat with a horde of shambling zombies, timed vehicle rescues, and malicious opponents in the form of a shadowy government conspiracy. There’s even a holographic wrangler providing useful information and reminding the protagonist of pending tasks. A more suggestible person might try and turn the book’s pages with their Xbox controller. (It doesn’t work.)

With its fast pace and progressively escalating stakes, Biomega actually does a better job capturing the experience of playing a video game than comics that are actually adaptations of existing franchises. As a result of that, the characters are thin and serviceable and their consequence is a distant second to event and spectacle, but there’s rarely a shortage of either of those ingredients. It’s also drawn extremely well, with clear, kinetic staging and some inventive bits of design (but not too many, because if you stare at how neat things are, the zombies will get you). There’s also a talking bear with a rifle for reasons that are probably no more complex than “just because,” but he’s welcome, as he keeps things from being entirely functional.

Biomega isn’t a book that inspires any contemplation, and it only takes itself as seriously as it absolutely must. There’s nothing wrong with that, though, any more than there is spending a few hours shooting digital zombies in the head and making a last-minute motorcycle jump from a burning building. It’s a time-waster executed with style and craft. (Review based on a complimentary copy provided by the publisher.)

Now, let’s move on to the rest of this week’s ComicList, which offers a bounty of potentially appealing books for young adults:

I picked up Raina Telgemeier’s mini-comics at a Small Press Expo a few years ago and really liked them a lot. It was no surprise that publishers asked her to work on adaptations franchise properties like Ann M. Martin’s The Baby-Sitters Club (Graphix) and X-Men: Misfits (Del Rey). But it’s especially nice to see that Graphix is giving her original work such lovely treatment with Wednesday’s release of Smile. It heightens the average obstacles of life in middle school with a big bout of dental drama.

I expressed my enthusiasm for Chris Schweizer’s Crogan’s March (Oni) over the weekend, so I won’t repeat myself.

Collections of Jimmy Gownley’s terrific Amelia Rules! have been available for a while now, but they’ve found a new home at Simon & Schuster. One of those trade paperbacks, Superheroes, is due out Wednesday, and if you haven’t sampled the series yet, this is a perfectly good opportunity.

It’s also time for Viz’s monthly mangalanche, and the emphasis is on titles from their Shojo Beat and Shonen Jump lines. There’s lots of good stuff on the way, but I find myself unproductively fixated on the first volume of Ultimo, a collaboration between Stan Lee and Hiroyuki (Shaman King) Takei, with assists from inker Daigo and painter Bob. With that many credits, it’s easy to suspect that Lee has already been a bad influence. To be honest, I’m not quite ready to issue a verdict on the book, but please do go read thoughtful reviews from Erica (Okazu) Friedman and Kate (The Manga Critic) Dacey. In the meantime, I’ll continue my fruitless stare-fight with the book as I try and figure out what it is about it that irritates me so.

Previews review December 2009

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Why just look at what’s arriving when you can look three months… into the future? Yes, it’s time to peruse the December 2009 edition of Diamond’s Previews catalog.

New shôjo from CMX is always worth a look. This month’s offering is My Darling! Miss Bancho, written and illustrated by Mayu Fujikata. It’s a reverse-harem romantic comedy about a girl whose dreams of starting a new life go south when she realizes she’s the only female student at her new technical school. It was originally published by Hakusensha in LaLa, which has also given the world Ouran High School Host Club, Penguin Revolution, Venus in Love, and Vampire Knight, among others. That would make the magazine what one might call a “reliable source.” (Page 119)

On the ongoing front, we have the second volume of Asuka Izumi’s adorable The Lizard Prince and the 15th volume of Yasuko Aokie’s mad classic, From Eroica with Love. (Page 121)

CLAMP fans, rejoice! Not only is Del Rey publishing CLAMP in America, a richly detailed history of the manga-making super-group, it’s being written by the inimitable Shaenon Garrity. Del Rey also promises “a detailed guide to their work; a rare behind-the-scenes look at their creative process, together and separately; CLAMP’s role in the explosion of manga in America; interviews, and more.” Sounds like an essential for CLAMP fans, Garrity fans, and manga watchers in general. So that’s basically everyone, right? (Page 224)

I loved Raina Telgemeier’s Smile mini-comics, so I’m thrilled that they’ve turned into a new graphic novel to be published by Graphix. Publishers Weekly calls it a “charming addition to the body of young adult literature that focuses on the trials and tribulations of the slightly nerdy girl.” Graphix doesn’t seem to have added it to its web site, so I’ll point you toward the Barnes & Noble listing. (Page 236)

NBM has been translating a series of graphic novels created in conjunction with the Louvre museum in Paris. I loved the first, Nicolas De Crécy’s Glacial Period, and thought the second, Marc-Antoine Mathieu’s The Museum Vaults: Excerpts from the Journal of an Expert, was intriguing but problematic. But honestly, I’ll buy any of these books that NBM chooses to publish. Next up is Eric Liberge’s On the Odd Hours, about “a deaf night watchman who somehow manages to communicate with the souls of these ethereal and timeless works of art.” (Page 256)

Oni offers a softcover edition of Scott Chantler’s terrific historical adventure, Northwest Passage. I’ve already reviewed the hell out of this series, so I’ll link instead of repeating myself. (Page 257)

While I don’t usually point out books that are being offered again without any significant format changes, I have to make an exception for Osamu Tezuka’s demented bit of gekiga brilliance, MW (Vertical). If you missed it the first time around, now’s your chance. (Page 272)

Viz sent me a preview copy of Natsume Ono’s not simple, and I’m even more convinced that 2010 will be the year she explodes in stateside critical (and hopefully consumer) consciousness. It’s an amazing book. This edition of Previews brings the happy news that Ono’s Ristorante Paradiso will soon be in our hands (if you consider three months soon). It’s about family secrets and a restaurant in Rome staffed by hunky men of a certain age. I can’t wait. (Page 277) You can check out Ono’s splendid House of Five Leaves on Viz’s SIGIKKI site.

Other noteworthy Signature arrivals include the fourth volume of Detroit Metal City and the eighth and final volume of Pluto. (Page 277)

And speaking of Viz’s online initiatives, a Shonen Sunday title sees print. It’s shôjo superstar Yuu Watase’s shônen debut, Arata: The Legend. (Page 280)

So many comics

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goodneighborskinHow is it that I didn’t know that Ted Naifeh was working on graphic novels adaptations of with young-adult fantasy novels by novelist Holly Black? Admittedly, I’m not familiar with Black’s work, but I’m crazy about a lot of Naifeh’s comics (particularly Courtney Crumrin and Polly and the Pirates from Oni). And Graphix doesn’t even seem to have done the “bury the adaptor’s illustrator’s credit” thing that plagues so many projects of this type.

Anyway, there are two volumes out so far: The Good Neighbors: Kin (in hardcover and paperback) and The Good Neighbors: Kith (just in hardcover so far). (By the way, does the Scholastic store site look as horrible in other browsers as it does in Firefox?) I’m not wild about stories that involve someone being kidnapped to faerie, with the exception of Susanna Clarke’s Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell. Still, it’s Naifeh doing work in narrative territory where he generally excels, and I have a coupon from Barnes & Noble. It is settled.

Thanks to Michael May for tipping me off to the books in his post at Robot 6.

Conspicuous consumption

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The past few weeks have obviously lulled me into a false sense of security, because a look at the ComicList for Wednesday… well… it’s like Manga DEF CON 5. Pawn some heirlooms, clear space on your shelves, do what you have to do.

For simplicity’s sake, I’ll just go with a list of what I would like to buy, were money no object:

  • Anne Freaks Vol. 4, ADV
  • Mail Vol. 1, Dark Horse (written and drawn by Housui Yamazaki, artist on The Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service)
  • Emma Vol. 2, CMX
  • After School Nightmare Vol. 2, Go! Comi (first volume recently reviewed by Brigid here)
  • Train + Train Vol. 1, Go! Comi
  • Fruits Basket Vol. 15, Tokyopop
  • Sgt. Frog Vol. 12, Tokyopop
  • Shout Out Loud Vol. 3, Blu
  • Beauty Pop Vol. 2, Viz – Shojo Beat
  • The Drifting Classroom Vol. 3, Viz – Signature

    • And that doesn’t even count series like Aishiteruze Baby, Bleach and Phoenix where I need to catch up on previous volumes. Other corners of the shipping list seem a bit more forgiving to me, but overall, it looks like employees of manga-friendly comic shops are going to be swamped this week.

    Oh, and until teen girls can be liberated from comics poverty when Minx comes riding over the hill, they’ll just have to settle for stuff like this.

    Minx in Chief

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    Newsarama’s Matt Brady interviews DC’s Karen Berger about Minx. Berger provides additional detail on some of the titles and the philosophy behind the line.

    “There’s no one out there, when you think about it, doing a line of graphic novels for teenage girls. You have manga, but it’s import and, while there’s a lot of really great stuff, it’s not fully for teenage girls.”

    Discounting the heavily branded Shojo Beat.

    “Scholastic has a few titles, but those are skewing younger or older. No one is really attacking this area in a full-fledged way with a major imprint, and we’re doing it.”

    And I suppose it’s true that, while Tokyopop’s global books do feature a number of teen-girl-friendly stories, Tokyopop has always resisted the kind of categorization that Viz employs (Shojo Beat, Shonen Jump, Signature, etc.). She never actually mentions Tokyopop, though perhaps there might be some coded references:

    “We’re not bringing in manga storytelling devices, we’re telling clear straightforward stories in a way that we feel they should be told, but we’re not adapting any manga. We’re looking at this as an alternative to manga – as an alternative to young adult fiction – we’re trying to find a new area of contemporary fiction.”

    Consider me torn. I would like for this line to succeed, because more good comics for young adult readers always makes me happy, and in spite of the fact that I’m staring 40 square in the eye, I tend to like a lot of the comics already available for young adult readers. I’m glad that DC finally decided to engage this audience in a serious way and handed the enterprise to people who, as Warren Ellis put it, are “more curatorial than editorial.” And the quality of the talent attached certainly seems to bear that out; I’m genuinely excited by the possibilities of the books.

    But there’s just something about the way it’s being framed that’s making me stompy. Tons of publishers have released great material for this audience, whether original or licensed. Stamping “Minx” on it and hiring a marketing firm doesn’t make it new, no matter how shrewd the execution.

    "Vixen" was taken

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    Remember that advertising campaign that NBC had for its reruns, cheerfully suggesting that “It’s new to you!”? I’m often reminded of that when The New York Times covers comics. This time it’s about DC’s new line of graphic novels for teenaged girls, the horribly named Minx.

    As Johanna Draper Carlson and Chris Butcher have already noted, DC is rather late to the party (and already showed up in a different outfit), but they’ve previously managed to convince the Times that Identity Crisis represented the maturation of the graphic novel, so it’s not surprising that they’ve passed this initiative off as innovative instead of belated.

    It’s always mildly irritating when a comics publisher gets away with it, though, and frankly odd in this case. Draper Carlson noted at her blog that she mentioned Scholastic’s year-old Graphix line when interviewed, and she could just have easily brought up Tokyopop’s significant output of girl-friendly global manga, but the article sticks to the impression that DC is breaking ground.

    DC VP Karen Berger’s first quote, “It’s time we got teenage girls reading comics,” reminded me of Dirk Deppey’s “She’s Got Her Own Thing Now” from The Comics Journal #269:

    “It has now been conclusively demonstrated that the young female reader is, in fact, quite willing to buy comics. She just doesn’t want yours.”

    I wonder if another quote from Berger isn’t an indirect (and reductive) swipe at available shôjo:

    “Teenage girls, Ms. Berger said, are smart and sophisticated and ‘about more than going out with the cute guy. This line of books gives them something to read that honors that intelligence and assertiveness and that individuality.'”

    But perhaps I’m overly cynical. And what better name to express assertiveness, individuality, and a focus on more than mating rituals than Minx?

    Admittedly, this bid for that sector of the audience seems likelier to succeed than any of their previous efforts. I like a lot of the creators involved, listed at Butcher’s blog, and I’m pleased to note that, for the most part, they’re talented and versatile graphic novelists, even if they haven’t written specifically for this audience before. Mike Carey is the closest thing to a “house DC writer” in evidence, but the prospect of him reuniting with My Faith in Frankie partners Sonny Liew and Marc Hempel is welcome news, no matter who’s publishing them or under what imprint.

    Andi Watson is a versatile writer, and I’ve liked a lot of his comics, whether he’s worked as a writer-illustrator or just provided the script. (He also had the good sense to stand out of the way and let Simon Gane wow everyone in Paris from Slave Labor.) And the world needs more comics from Derek Kirk Kim, so First Second will just have to share.

    Butcher notes the manga-esque packaging and pricing, which are eminently sensible, as it increases the likelihood of the target audience finding these books in places where they’re already going for their manga fix. (In my experience, bookstores tend to shelve by size when it comes to graphic novels. If it’s shaped like manga, it’s shelved with manga.)

    I don’t know if I can really take issue with his assessment of CMX, DC’s manga line, as “designed to fail,” though I do think they’ve been making conscientious efforts to improve their product. They’ve spruced up the trade dress considerably (though it could hardly have been more generic at the outset) and are publishing intriguing titles like Emma, though marketing in general could be much stronger. (I’ll always be steamed by the fact that the wonderful Chikyu Misaki seemed to have to rely entirely on word of mouth.)

    Given recent claims about DC’s corporate culture, neatly summarized at the Newsarama blog, it would be easy to view this as a cynical cash grab. It probably is, but at least it’s targeted at a burgeoning audience that’s still underserved by traditional U.S. publishers instead of another bid to shake more money out of dedicated spandex fans. And it seems likely to produce some good books, so count me in the “cautiously optimistic” column.

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    Thumbs up to the ComicList. They now provide a full list of releases for the week, plus a manga-centric version. (Of course, David Taylor has been providing the latter for ages.) As the MangaCasters note, it’s a big Wednesday for manga.

    NETCOMICS releases six books, including the third volume of the excellent Dokebi Bride. If you’re curious, you can enter Love Manga’s Manhwa Competition to try and win a copy, or you can visit the publisher’s site and sample the first chapter for free.

    It’s not on the ComicList, but the aforementioned MangaCasters say Broccoli’s Yoki Koto Kiku gets wide release this week. Adorable, murderous triplets scheme to get their hands on the family fortune, and hatchets fly with alarming frequency. (If my shaky memory serves, you can fill out a Broccoli survey and receive a free dust-jacket for the book.)

    Graphix releases the second installment of Raina Telgemeier’s excellent adaptations of The Baby-Sitters Club books with The Truth About Stacey.

    Go! Comi offers two new titles this week. In Night of the Beasts, a mysterious, dark-haired figure introduces a good-hearted teen-aged brawler to a supernatural destiny. It’s ShôjoBleach! After School Nightmare is set in what has to be the worst sex-ed class ever.

    CMX enters the great Train Man race with its version of Densha Otoko, the story that launched a thousand manga. That just leaves Del Rey’s, right?