The Manga Curmudgeon

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

Cleansing breath

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I have to admit that I’m a little wearier than usual of comics publishers’ tendency to overstate their accomplishments and innovations to a degree that any actual novelty or merit gets crushed under the self-serving hype.

So I’m quite delighted with ICv2’s recent interviews with Mark Siegel, editorial of First Second. In spite of a year of genuinely noteworthy commercial and artistic achievements, Siegel comes off as level-headed and creative, appreciative of the successes First Second has enjoyed so far, and focused on what’s still to be done.

Spooky.

And it's really, really good

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Sure, the actual origins of the 2 million figure are a bit vague, but it’s hard for me to muster much cynicism about Tokyopop’s announcement of the Fruits Basket milestone. ICv2 attributes the accomplishment to “the way in which it appeals to both male and female readers with a combination of humor and emotion in its saga of an orphaned high school girl who finds refuge with a very eccentric family.”

That’s fair enough. It has performed remarkably well in the direct market since its debut volume in 2004. (Also worth noting is the tendency for older volumes to crack the DM list more than once.) Before the ascendancy of Naruto, Fruits Basket was the “surprising no one” poster manga for its frequent appearances on the BookScan charts, and it still charges up those charts despite generally longer waits between new volumes than one finds with Viz’s usual suspects.

(This month should offer an entertaining variation on “Who’d win?” with new volumes of both Fruits Basket and Naruto dropping. My money’s on Naruto, not because I prefer it but because it’s got other factors that contribute to its momentum. And seriously, coming in second in sales to Naruto is hardly the worst thing that could happen to any graphic novel.)

Still, suggesting that boys come for the funny and girls like the tears may be a little simplistic. I think the book has amazing cumulative power and creative narrative approaches that make it compelling reading and extremely rewarding re-reading. Nobody drops hints and builds payoff like Natsuki Takaya. It may be a comedy-romance-drama, but Takaya structures it in a fashion similar to the cleverest and most conscientious of mystery writers. She never cheats, or at least she hasn’t yet.

The combination of elements also lends the book a level of narrative urgency – a need to know what happens next – that’s unusually high in comparison to much of the shôjo I read. In most cases, the driver to pick up the next volume is primarily a desire to spend more time with the appealing cast of characters. That’s certainly in place with Fruits Basket, but Takaya has also invested emotional nuance with genuine suspense. I find the mix to be addictive.

Miki Aihara’s Hot Gimmick (Viz) had something of the same crack-like quality, though its appeal was a lot more lurid. Aihara kept readers guessing as to what form her characters’ torment would take next, and I rarely found myself caring much about happy outcomes for Hatsumi and her ilk, because the choices all seemed to be among varying degrees of unhappy outcomes.

I think it’s the difference between pity and empathy. The struggling youth of Aihara’s book inspired the former, and Takaya’s move me towards the latter. Don’t get me wrong. I found Hot Gimmick gripping and marveled at Aihara’s ability to manipulate an audience with such skill, but five years from now, I can more easily picture myself sitting down with a stack of Fruits Basket for a good, nostalgic wallow.

Peeves

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As people talk about downloadable comics, one thing that puzzles me is how rarely anyone mentions Netcomics, which has been offering pay-per-view versions of chapters of its manhwa titles since its inception. They aren’t downloadable comics per se, as you don’t get a file to keep on your hard drive, but the publisher has been offering inexpensive digital delivery of their manhwa for almost a year now.

I like Ed Chavez’s take on the Netcomics model, viewing it as the equivalent of a digital anthology. It allows readers to sample different titles cheaply (for around a quarter a chapter), possibly being driven to pick up the print versions if something really clicks, or motivating browsers to follow a title on-line with more frequent doses of a favorite story than paperbacks provide.

So good for Devil’s Due and Slave Labor, but once again, good ideas don’t necessarily equal new ideas.

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I was happy to see Graeme McMillan put out a call for resources on comics for younger readers at Blog@, thinking it would result in some attention for great sites like No Flying, No Tights, and possibly introduce me to some other resources. And there’s some of that in the comments section, particularly from Kat Kan, but there’s also plenty of “Why can’t they just read Justice Society?” on display.

I guess I shouldn’t be surprised to see a Marvel-and-DC-centric response to the question, even though it wasn’t central to the question in the first place. No one’s really saying that some Big Two titles aren’t great choices for younger readers (though it’s probably easier to point to ones that aren’t), and the suggestion that all-ages comics are automatically condescending and moralizing is just weird to me. Neither of those failings are exclusive to comics for kids, are they?

And really, are “all-ages comics” the same thing as “comics for kids”? My definition of a great, all-ages book is one that someone from any age group can enjoy, and the ones that I place into that category don’t talk down to any of their potential audience members, no matter how old they are. Some of my favorite comics and graphic novels are aimed at readers much, much younger than myself, and I like them because they’re great stories, executed with skill and imagination, and populated with interesting, appealing characters.

From the stack: PROJECT: ROMANTIC

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Project: Romantic (AdHouse) is one of the most exuberant books I’ve read this year. Beneath its sleek, Good-&-Plenty-colored cover lies an appealing riot of colors, styles, and narrative tones.

I admit that I anticipated the book with some stereotypes in mind. The prospect of a group of alternative cartoonists telling romantic stories suggested the potential for glumness to me. That’s certainly part of the emotional palette here, but it doesn’t come close to pervading. If anything, the book could just as easily have been called Project: Comedic, given the general light-heartedness and good nature of the stories.

Creators who are familiar to me (Debbie Huey, Hope Larson, Junko Mizuno, Aaron Renier) deliver appealing work, as expected. (Mizuno’s “Lovers on a Flying Bed” is especially stunning, an intense, dreamlike fable in her adorably disgusting style.) But the overall quality of the work is very high. There are a lot of delightful discoveries here.

I’m particularly crazy about the “Sweetie ‘n’ Me” shorts by Joel Priddy. The four pieces take a sunny, funny look at the domestic life of two mad scientists. I could have happily read an entire collection of these stories; my favorite would have to be the meditation on the pros and cons of their “starter island.”

Kelly Alder effectively heads for the darker end of the romantic spectrum with his gruesomely metaphorical “In & Out,” one of the few black-and-white pieces. Evan Larson’s “Cupid’s Day Off” seems to owe a lot visually to James Kochalka, but I like the story’s combination of wit and coarseness.

The book is primarily short narratives, four to eight pages in length, but there are also one-page strips and evocative pin-ups. The visual styles of the creators range wildly from cartoon-cute to stylish and elegant, with just about everything in between.

The variety, to me, is the greatest strength of the book. It’s like going to a tapas restaurant, with a whole lot of small plates of intense flavors on offer. Not all of them are precisely to my taste, but there’s always something to cleanse the palate coming up next. Even the ones I don’t especially like feel like they belong in the book.

Project: Romantic is just plain fun. It’s packed with appealing, diverse work, and it’s well worth a look.

(This review is based on a complimentary copy provided by the publisher.)

Batten down the hatches

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At first glance, there doesn’t seem to be a whole lot of interest in this week’s ComicList, but it does have its pleasures.

I think my initial lack of enthusiasm comes from the fact that I hardly ever buy floppies any more, but there are two this week that I’m eager to read. I’ve been enjoying Hero Squared (Boom! Studios), and the fourth issue arrives tomorrow.

I’m also looking forward to a comic by Gail Simone that isn’t in the thick of DC’s mainstream super-hero titles. Welcome to Tranquility sounds like fun, and I like both revisionist super-hero stories and murder mysteries.

For whatever reason, the paperback version of The Case of Madeline Smith from the Rick Geary’s A Treasury of Victorian Murder series showed up at my shop last week, but soft and hardcover versions seem to be arriving everywhere tomorrow.

Viz’s releases function more as a reminder that I’ve fallen behind in my reading list. How did Aishiteruze Baby get to its fifth volume when I wasn’t looking? And Crimson Hero is at volume four? The reason this sort of thing happens is that I keep getting distracted by charming new series like Beauty Pop, which is at volume two.

Oh, and if you’re wondering what’s going to dominate Bookscan graphic novel sales for the next couple of weeks, I’ll give you one guess.

Moto shôjo mojo

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Dirk Deppey points to a ComiPress blurb on Moto Hagio, who received an award for Otherworld Barbara, her most recent work. I seem to be in a mode where I really can’t shut up about Hagio, even though I’ve only read one of her works (A, A1).

Anyway, all of the recent discussion about DC’s new Minx line and its efforts to attract teen girls got me thinking about what I’ve read about the evolution of shôjo and some of the events that turned comics for girls into a creative and commercial force in Japan, so I tried to put those thoughts into some coherent form for this week’s column. I don’t think I was entirely successful, but that’s never stopped me before.

And it gave me another chance to beg for a translation of Rose of Versailles.

February debuts

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Here are the manga, manhwa, and global manga debuts from the latest Previews, covering titles shipping in February. Whenever possible, I’ve linked directly to title information. As always, if I’ve missed something, let me know.

ALC

Works, by Eriko Tadeno

CMX

The Time Guardian, written by Daimuro Kishi and illustrated by Tamao Ichinose
Go Go Heaven!!, by Keiko Yamada

Dark Horse

Appleseed Book 1: The Promethean Challenge, by Shirow Masamune

Del Rey

Mamotte Lollipop, by Michiyo Kikuta

Digital Manga Publishing/Juné

The Moon and the Sandals, by Fumi Yoshinaga
Wagamama Kitchen, by Kaori Monchi

Drmaster

Chinese Hero, by Wing Shing Ma

Icarus Publishing

Taboo District

Ice Kunion

You’re So Cool, by Young Hee Lee

Kitty Press

Thunderbolt Boys Excite

NBM

Unholy Kinship, by Naomi Nowak

Netcomics

In the Starlight, by Kyungok Kang

Tokyopop

Divalicious, written by T. Campbell and illustrated by Amy Mebberson
Kedamono Damono, by Haruka Fukushima
Metamo Kiss, by Sora Omote
The Twelve Kingdoms, by Fuyumi Ono

Tokyopop Blu

Innocent Bird by Hirotaka Kisaragi

Viz Shojo Beat

Backstage Prince, by Kanoko Sakurakoji
Gentlemen’s Alliance, by Arina Tanemura

Yaoi Press

Yaoi Volume 1: Anthology of Boy’s Love, by Izanaki, Wilson, and Studio Kosaru
Desire of the Gods, by Insanity Team

Quality dark chocolate is also always a good choice

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There’s a special feature in this month’s Previews: a Valentine’s Day Merchandise Checklist, compiling “a host of titles that are perfect to share with a loved one.” Okay, there’s more than a whisper of Team Comix to it, and some of the choices are a little odd, but many of them do provide extra exposure for some great books up at the front of the catalog, so I won’t complain.

The one that makes me happiest is the inclusion of Rebecca Kraatz’s House of Sugar from Tulip Tree Press (p. 344). I guess when Diamond reconsiders a rejection, they go all the way. That’s a good thing, as I like this book a lot.

ALC’s books (Yuri Monogatari 3 and 4 and Works, p. 208) make the cut. I thought the third YM book was kind of a mixed bag, but I do find the work of Rica Takashima hard to resist, and she brings her characters from the charming Rica ‘tte Kanji back in the fourth, so I might have to cave. Works, a collection of romantic shorts by Eriko Tadeno, sounds appealing as well.

If you missed it the first time, Diamond humbly suggests you consider the one-volume edition of Jeff Smith’s Bone (Cartoon Books) as a Valentine’s Day gift. Heck, just keep it, because you have to love yourself before you can love anyone else.

Moving on to the romantically unsanctioned, I’m taken with the premise of Keiko Yamada’s Go Go Heaven!! (CMX, p. 98). After her untimely death, an unhappy teen gets “49 days to relive her life and resolve unfinished business.” Sounds morbid, but fun!

What’s this I see on the Featured Items page? A collection of the intriguing Elk’s Run from Villard Books (p. 347)? It started out self-published, got picked up by a publisher who went bust, and never got to finish its run as a mini-series, despite general critical acclaim. Now, Villard’s offering the whole shebang, and high time, I think.

Juné lures me with the promise of more Fumi Yoshinaga in the form of The Moon and the Sandals (p. 264).

Marguerite Abouet and Clément Ouberie’s Aya (Drawn & Quarterly, p. 270) offers intriguing subject matter (the everyday life of young women in the Ivory Coast) and an excellent pedigree (the 2006 Best New Album award from Angoulême).

The Comics Journal devotes #281 to the best of 2006 (Fantagraphics, p. 275). I’m a sucker for lists.

My favorite bit of solicitation text in the catalog is found in the blurb for Cantarella Vol. 6 (Go! Comi, p. 280). Young Chiaro “finds comfort and warmth within the confines of a monastery.” Oh, I’ll just bet he does.

It’s nice to see a full-page ad for Viz’s Signature line, especially one that focuses on Osamu Tezuka’s Phoenix. Given the well-deserved attention Vertical’s production of Ode to Kirihito has received, it’s smart, too.

So what looks good to you?

The suspense is killing me!

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Well that was a pleasant surprise. I thought NBM was only shipping a new printing of Rick Geary’s The Borden Tragedy, but a copy of the paperback version of The Case of Madeleine Smith showed up in my reserves yesterday. New installments of A Treasury of Victorian Murder are always gratefully accepted.

Speaking of the accused Glaswegian, she’s made her way onto the list of nominees for the American Library Association’s Great Graphic Novels for Teens. (Yes, I’m still obsessively tracking those. Thanks for asking.) Nominations are now closed with a projected drop date for the final list in mid-winter of 2007.

It’s a little hard to tell what joined the list when, but accounting for my shaky memory, recent additions include:

  • Action Philosophers: Giant-Sized Thing #1 (Evil Twin)
  • American Born Chinese (First Second)
  • Brownsville (NBBComics Lit)
  • Chocalat (Ice Kunion)
  • Crossroad (Go! Comi)
  • Fables: 1,001 Nights of Snowfall (Vertigo)
  • Infinite Crisis (DC)
  • Inverloch (Seven Seas)
  • The Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service (Dark Horse)
  • Livewires: Clockwork Thugs, Yo! (Marvel)
  • Pride of Baghdad (Vertigo)
  • Same Cell Organism (DMP)
  • To Dance: A Ballerina’s Graphic Novel (Simon and Schuster)
  • Young Avengers Vol. 2: Family Matters (Marvel)

I hope the nomination list is still available after the final roster is chosen, because there are some great books on it. But barring some bizarre failure of decision-making, it’s hard to see how the final list could be anything but excellent.

(Edited to note: If I missed anything new to the nominations, let me know, and I’ll add it to the list.)