Latest booktore visit

Went to the bookstore to look for Ichigo Jikan (草莓时间) which I remember seeing before (now wondering if I saw wrongly as baka updates says there are zero volumes out?? But really thot I saw it cos I remember thinking the girl looks like a elementary schoolgirl...sidetracking) and ended up with Watashi no + Okusuri (baka updates link) (我的爱情魔药) because the cover was somewhat cuter than the rest of the limited stuff there. I didn't even know the Japanese title and had to google for it. Cos the Chinese title is just "My love potion". I was wondering where the other volumes are, but came to realise it's complete at one volume. I'll write a review once I complete it. Hopefully the impulse buy will prove to be interesting, but I should really stop buying on impulse!

Gakuen Ouji

I couldn't find the English cover online so had to settle for this one. I was surprised to see it in English and our local publisher has published four five volumes of it as well (in Chinese). Surprised cos some of the more popular titles didn't seem to be translated or were dropped whilst this one I'm wondering if it will appeal to that many people.

Just to say it is quite a strange manga that I really wouldn't recommend to those whose sensibilities are still intact. It's a rather brutal turn on the guy being the sex obsessed to the girl/s being the ones. It was amusing but it is rather exaggerated and can I guess, be distasteful for some, as despite it all I still think there is a bit of sexism and the girls are seen as having 1D personalities that only focus on that one thing. Also read comments of those who have ventured further than me and they weren't that good, including something about the guy not being very nice to the girl. I really need decent male protags. ;p (me and my happy endings...).

Merupuri

Finally bought Vol.1. Had vols 2-4 for a long long time (albeit in English, I never seem to be getting Vol 1 of anything). I prefer the English one, as it seems cleaner and the pictures clearer. Could be due to the fact that the Eng one is bigger. The Chinese words seem many more than English, though that could be my imagination? A bit of eye strain for some of the characters...

Some people didn't borrow this series of mine because there wasn't a vol.1. Ready for it now? Although I know some of my friends still won't borrow it cos they don't want to read it in Chinese.

Had a re-think on this since I bought the last (erm, rather first) volume and realised that it is rather shotacon don't you think?

It constantly reminds me of Bride of the Water God, which I've since abandoned (maybe until they release the entire series, I hear Vol. 3 will finally be out soon), cos it was way too slow. I've sorta stopped reading manhwa cos they seem to be too slow. Well, maybe with exception of Saver which was pretty action packed (but still slow in a sense).

Oh, super cheap thrills but realised the Chinese version had this little color pull out, nothing near poster size (smaller than A4 I think) of the main characters. Colors weren't that nice though.

Nabari No Ou (originally written in Sep 08, updated 13 March 09)

I'm reminded of this because of the beautiful ending song, called Hikari, and also because a friend wrote a review on it as well.

Anime: Finished, 26 episodes
Manga: Ongoing, No volumes published in English yet - May 2009!! (according to Gocomi's website, let's hope they stick to their schedule), cos if you look below I wrote March 2009 (in Sep 2008). Dunno if that was a typo or they delayed their date.

Starting to really like this manga. But the first volume will only be published in March 2009. The characters look a bit different in the anime, a bit more childish and young. Seriously tempted May want to get the manga when it comes out.

Not too dark and pace is quite fast. The characters are nicely drawn - hee, in fact the main character is so "pretty" some people thot he's a girl, though ya, in some angles he really does look like one. And his rather weak character matches that perception. And, well, so far no boy love! ;p hehhahahh... Oh, sad to say I've to take back what I said about there being no BL, although it is not anything close to yaoi.

Will try to write a bit more on this when I've the time.Looks like I write about it even when I don't have time.

Wanna see a cosplay of Yoite? Miharu? Thobari Sensei (done by a girl)?
Looks fun. Hahahha...Oh, but some of the fanart really ruin it! No no no no to the yaoi please! ;p


This part courtesy of Simplejoysinlife/Coboypb who watched the anime because of the Ending Song called Hikari (Light). Do have a listen if you have an opportunity, and if you google the lyrics you'll find them very very sad...but I'm sidetracking. Here goes Coboypb's review:

The story is about Miharu, a schoolboy who had some secret art/power in him - he didn't know about it at first and people (who were ninjas/samurai in the Nabari world) were interested in his power. Some became his friends and others just wanted to use the power for their own gains or to create their ideal world. It shows how misguided some people can be by destroying lives around them just to get what they want. There is also goodness where strangers became Miharu's friends and were there to help him. Another important character is Yoite who had the power of Kira and was also called the Death God. The scenes of him and Miharu were very touching as the 2 of them were similar in some ways and they shared a special bond.

I also like how the anime portrays some baddies with some goodness in them and even the good guys had some secrets they were keeping. Things were not what they seemed to be. It was fascinating to see how the story developed. I feel it's kind of unpredictable. Initially, I was attracted to the ninja fighting scenes, then in the later part, it was how the feelings and emotions of the characters were played out.

Most of the guys in the anime (especially Thobari Sensei)look cute and I initially thought one of them (Raiko) was a girl with his pink colour hair. Thobari sensei (another good guy) looks very cool and he was very funny to have a phobia of taking any form of transport.

Additional Ramblings:
Was additionally discussing this and told my friend (above) that I got the goosebumps when the characters appeared on Miharu but she said she thought it was cool. :)

Spoilers (please highlight the text below to read):

There seem to be some notable differences between the manga and the anime. Was discussing with my friend and realised that in the ending of the anime, the memory of Yoite's existance was not erased by the Shirabanshou as it is mentioned in the wiki. She considers the anime version a happier one for this, as I mentioned it was really sad that Miharu no longer remembered Yoite, but then perhaps it's not sad if one doesn't remember/know (the whole purpose of Yoite's wish). But, as a reader/viewer, it's really sad to know. She also mentioned that she thinks Yoite didn't want Miharu to use the Shirabanshou to erase him as it was unnatural and "what's done is done". I think all in all this series seems to set us thinking about deeper issues. :)

Ikoku Meiro no Croisee

Isn't this one of the most beautiful covers you've seen?



I'll eagerly await this in English but will look for it in Jap in Kino too (already got it, see post above :)).

Hmmm...maybe I like it for the backgrounds. ;p You know i'm a backgrounds person. The guy isn't bishi but the girl sure is cute (erm, hope it doesn't sound lolitacon). Somehow it reminds me of Otoyomegatari too.

More pictures and description here at another manga lover's blog.

B.O.D.Y.

Came across this a few times but never started it, probably cos for some reason I got the idea that the girl would be rather ill treated by the guy. I have wondered where I got this perception, esp after I read it and it's rather different. I think it's actually from the synopsis at the back where it says, "will she finally wise up?" and "She could hire him to date her, but she'd rather win his heart" making it seem like an arduous journey to get him to like/pay attention to her. So it was rather a pleasant surprise that he's actually rather decent to her, though there are times when he teases and makes use of the fact that she is so naive and gullible.

Story: B+
Art: B
Recommended? I actually only like the art somewhat; the characters aren't really that bishie. There isn't much detail in it and it is just about fine to tell a story with. The story itself is also not spectacular, but it can be sweet. The guy is pretty decent and not violent, whiny, arrogant (well, not too much).

Lovely Complex/Love Com

Didn't start this one earlier as it's going past 15 volumes. ;p The art is ok but it isn't really in the style that I like. The guys aren't bishonen for one thing. :)

This story is very very very slow. It's totally unlike B.O.D.Y. is all I can say. :) The development is so excruciatingly played out that I just wondered whether I should skip a few chapters, erm, volumes. But I guess in this instance one really can't complain that there isn't any development of the relationship and that they just jump into it without reason. :) It's innocent, and the classmates are for once, not the "push you down, throw garbage on you, put blades in your book" garden variety. There are times when I really felt for the girl as she's dealing with the difficulties in the relationship and loving the guy. I'm not very interested to read on after vol. 7 but apparently there is some angst coming up.

Visit the forum to discuss this!

Kitchen Princess

Brief Summary: An orphan girl who's very talented in cooking/baking enrolls in a school for chefs to find the boy that saved her from drowning many years ago.

I don't know if I could give a proper review of this seeing as how I read vols 3 and 5 and skipped all else. I couldn't resist and wiki'd it before I started and realised that there's something that happens later I'm not quite sure I like but it's just a personal preference cos I'm such a sucker for happy endings.

The drawing is very cute and sweet and plus, all the characters' eyes are drawn in (ok, another personal preference. ;p). However, the art doesn't go into details and is not very intricate. Besides the pastries, details on clothes and backgrounds are close to nil. In fact, if you notice, most of the panes have no backgrounds at all, except some splotches. But then again, quite a few manga series don't have backgrounds. The two main male characters are cute, but could be twins if not for the difference in hair color. Generally, probably because they are around 14 years old, the characters look very young and child-like. They are the very typical Jap anime/manga cutesies.

The story is quite simple up to vol.5 but I read from the author's notes that from there onwards, she is heading it in another direction. I can't give more details without spoiling but there is a major happening in Vol. 5 that may take the overall story a notch up in complication.

The recipes of the pastries/cakes/etc that are featured in the story are found at the back of the book, together with a few pages preview of the next volume, the latter albeit in Japanese.

I don't have the urge to finish this at the moment.

My Rating:
Story: B-
Art: B+
Recommended? Very simple, sweet story of a girl and two cute boys.

More info:
Wikipedia
Vol. 4 Review and Vol. 6 Review at Comics Worth Reading
Vol. 4 Review at Manga Life


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King of the Lamp, Tenshi Ja Nai and Ultimate Venus

King of the Lamp

Manga: Complete at one volume

Brief Summary: Five oneshots in one volume, with three on the same premise of a genie helping girls find love. The fourth and fifth ones have light supernatural themes building up to a romance.

Got this as I liked Ultimate Venus and I like the mangaka's drawings overall, for its clean and neat appeal. However, as mentioned below, once again the characters look exactly like her previous ones. For one of the stories, you would not be wrong to think the female protag was the one in Ultimate Venus and wonder if it was an extra/side story of sorts to that.

The first three are rather typical boy meets girl or vice versa and girl falls for him, tries to get his attention/affection. So fortunate there is a genie around the corner that is actually a womanising king that has been given the punishment of helping at least 1000 girls fulfil their love requests. Rather simple stories.

The fourth one seemed a bit different from any that I've read from her so far and it was the most interesting to me, although the ending was again predictable and came a bit too abruptly (mainly cos it's a oneshot I suppose so it couldn't be helped).

The fifth one, as I've also read on ANN, wasn't that good. I agree. It seemed a bit strange and fluffy. It was one of her earlier works.

This volume is a bit more "racy" (is that the word?) than the other series she's done (although nothing explicit). Think she was targetting a bit older readers (teens as opposed to tweens , although in this day and age...). I think I must add that a friend of mine who read this was a bit taken aback by it despite reading (and liking) Ultimate Venus. I would say it's not near smut but as mentioned, there are some intimate scenes. I must say that I wouldn't argue with my friend that we both hope it doesn't teach teenagers that it's a shame not to lose "it" and that sex equates to love, or that one needs to use sex to gain love from the man. Unfortunately, it might. And that's the worry.

My Rating:
Story: C
Art: B-

Recommended? An ok read, but nothing really out of the ordinary and each story is rather too short. A stronger linking background story (the part about the genie) would be have good for the first three stories. As it is the first three are rather disjointed and can be read in any order.

Tenshi Ja Nai

Manga: Completed at 8 Volumes.

Brief Summary: A guy pretends to be a girl and attends an all girl's school because he is in showbiz as a girl. A new student discovers his secret and...(you know where this is going)

This one is a break in the usual routine, being the opposite of the usual girl disguises as guy and gets into an all boys’ school (think Hana Kimi, Ouran High School Host Club and Girl Got Game). Instead, very strangely, it’s a boy that dresses and acts like a girl. Of course that provides the comedy and of course someone finds out early on. The whole premise thereafter becomes rather clichéd again but there are a few original twists and turns.

For one thing, I do appreciate that the girl is not so dotty, immature and ditzy as some others (really tired of the girl struggling with making chocolate for the boy – enough already, thankfully no such thing in this one). She usually has her head screwed on tight and doesn’t loose it to “love”. However, do feel she’s more like the guy in this series sometimes, as the guy is now a “girl”.

There is a bit of reverse harem as well, with at least three guys falling for the girl. There’s even a teacher-student element thrown in, together with blackmail and other side themes. There’s also a serious love rival with no big faults but I shall not give that away.

And then you must have the fangirls (I really wonder after reading all these whether Jap girls are really in any way like this - it’s really too exaggerated!). The guy, as a girl, also has a whole host of them. And fanboys too, obviously. So these cause the girl protagonist grief.

My Rating:
Story: B
Art: B-

Recommended? Interesting for the twist in concept, with many different other side stories thrown in. Not particularly wow, but readable.

Similar: All those others I mentioned above regarding the girl-boy disguises. Actually, it also reminds me of her new work, Ultimate Venus. The characters have you going deja vu!

Also someone mentioned Maria Holic was similar but there are more shojo ai overtones in that one (am not quite sure it is going to be "romance" boy girl style)

Ultimate Venus

Brief Summary: Orphaned girl gets adopted by super rich grandma.

The storyline is quite interesting, but still it is pretty much a Cinderella story where the poor girl realises she is actually a "princess" (I mean in the sense she is now super rich). There is some mystery behind the relationship between her mother and the grandmother that is still waiting to be hatched. There is also some ominous happenings when she's at school that is linked to her being the candidate to inheriting her grandma's companies (and thus wealth).

And then there are the bishi boys/men. There are two main contenders - the guy who is assigned to look after her bodyguard style and a classmate. Later there is another one but I won't give his role away. Their motivations are made a bit more clear in volumes 2 and 3, but the story is still quite slow going. Now after reading volume three, it's starting to develop into a reverse harem. :)

The girl follows the usual shojo school girl character somewhat - rather naive and ditzy, getting easily agitated. On the other hand, at least she's not too clumsy or stupid.

I must say that the characters look too similar to Tenshi Ja Nai, which was written by the same mangaka. Actually, in her extra story in vol 3, the characters look the same as the ones in the main story itself.

All in all, it sounds promising and hope the development gets better and not head down the hill of a routine shojo plot....even husband read it! ;p heeheh

My Rating:
Story: B
Art: B, the characters look alike mostly, and the drawing is clean but the scenes and characters are not very elaborately drawn or detailed. There is just enough to make the panes look pretty mostly.
Recommended? Sounds interesting so far.

More info:
Bakaupdates

Emma

Manga complete. by MORI Kaoru

Brief Summary: Rich guy falls for maid, and of course society is against it.

Maybe I shouldn't be reviewing this one since I stopped at two chapters, but I just wanted to note down the disinterest (altho to be fair I know this title has a lot of fans and it isn't that the artwork is bad per se, just that the drawing style isn't really the type I like and the storyline was just so flat).

In the first chapter you have the guy falling for the girl already, without exchanging more than ten words (erm, I didn't actually count). Ok ok, so bash me over the head, that's how shojos go right (is this a shojo?)? But the next thing you know, the guy's friend comes (chapter 2 if I'm not wrong) and falls for her too, without even saying a word this time. What gives? Scratch head.

My Rating:
Hmmm...I think I can't qualify to give a rating, as mentioned above. But I would say I'm not reading anymore (that should give you a hint).

On the other hand, I've read many people's comments about how they are fans of her work and this series, so perhaps there is something I'm missing. Also, her art may appeal to some people more than me. I read that this mangaka really does her homework on the eras that she draws.

Actually, she has another one out called Otoyomegatari which I've found quite interesting. The art there is also quite incredible, so it's quite strange that I have such differing views on the two. But at the same time I also find that story quite slow and meandering in a sense.

Coelacanth

Ongoing Manga

Brief Summary: A girl on her way home is saved from being caught in an explosion at her apartment complex when she is knocked down and injured by a boy in blood covered clothes riding a bike. This boy drops what looks like a toy fish scale, which the girl picks up and keeps. Ten years later, she meets a man who happens to have the toy fish, in which the scale fits perfectly. She is attracted to him but as he may have an association with the explosion that happened ten years ago, it may be a dangerous liaison as his intentions could be sinister...

The title of this series attracted me. Wouldn't you agree that it's not every day you get one named after a "living fossil" of sorts (very interesting deep sea fish)? :) Intrigued before starting the first page, but the mystery and ambiguous summary actually attracted me as well.

As with the mangaka's other stories, the emphasis is on the mystery (or rather mysteries as there is more than one happening at the same time), which makes it intriguing because it is not a typical shojo love-romance story (but neither is it an action packed dectective thriller). In the story, the girl is not particularly interested in acting as a P.I./detective but she wants to find out more about the boy who "saved" her in the past. So yeah, in a way, it veers towards romance, but there is a darker element as there is uncertainty about the boy's motives.

There are quite a few elements that one glued to the story, wanting to find out the whys that it poses, including why the girl seems to have some strange delusions. Characterisation is not that strong, but the girl seems independent and clear headed enough.

My Rating
Story: B
Art: B
Recommended? Interesting and unique so far.

Fantastic Detective Labyrinth

Ongoing anime and manga

Brief Summary: At the start of the story, 30 years have passed since a huge earthquake destroyed Tokyo. Only a few people remain in the old city and crime is rampant, some of which are unsolvable by the police and are termed phantom cases. Enter the young detective, seemingly rich cute and innocent little Mayuki, who manages to solve the crimes the police cannot.

I do seem to have a soft spot for detective/crime/mystery type stories, although for episodic ones like this I really focus on the background linking storyline as well. This one is pretty interesting and I tried to check out the full story on it on wiki but there just wasn't much. Surprised that even the episode guides haven't been filled out. Usually fans are more diligent! :) Or, maybe there just aren't that many fans of this?

The characters are cute and well, they are school kids so I guess characterization doesn't get too complicated; however, it's the same thing for the adults as well - there isn't much background on their motivations or personalities. Maybe we'll get to that later. For the children, the twin brothers are very easy to tell apart, something I realised from the beginning as they are quite different. Perhaps that was intentional or else we'd be lost half the time. The main character is cute (shotacon?) and the center of many females' affections. There seems to be a bit of fanservice going on here, with at least two of the women's breasts bigger than reasonable. None of the characters are particularly irritating, which is good. :) The main character is really overly saccharine sometimes until one feels it's unbelieveable and unrealistic. Very girly too for a boy, and I've read some commenters say the voice talent was so obviously a lady.

The one thing that kept cropping up in my mind is that it had some pretty similar elements to Kuroshitsuji - there is the young boy (with blue eyes no less), the cool looking able butler, and the "bumbling" maid, etc. But of course, that one is a darker and I would say the boy there is a lot more cool.

My Rating:
Story: B
Art: B
Recommended? Interesting so far and rather well done.

Similar to:
Has been compared to Matantei Loki Ragnarok, as there is also a young boy who is the detective.

I also see similarities between this and Kuroshitsuji.

Boku Wa Kiss de Uso o Tsuku

Ongoing manga

Summary: A girl finds herself kissed one day whilst asleep in the library. When she wakes up, she realises that there are four boys in the library and she has to figure out who did it by herself as no one is telling.

This is the best promotion for going to the library as any I've come across (and will likely!). Apparently, being a bookworm (bordering on nerdy?) and well read can get you plenty of attention. For the protagonist here, she is swatting away four contenders! There's the delinquent cassanova looking type, there's the studious one, the shotacon and the sporty (kinda reminds me of Ouran)! Nearly every bishie school shojo type is present. And, so the story goes, after the girl falls asleep in the library, one of them kisses her and it's up to her to shift through all the lies and the boys' shennanigans to find out just which of them it is. Really, a schoolgirl's fantasy to have such a wonderful harem of bishies...now now, just to find out who the kisser was...

Frankly, very unreal silly shojo. There is no real reason given on why the boys like the girl so things are a bit unrealistic and unlikely. :) Husband exclaimed after I told him briefly of the plot, "That can make a story??!!". Oh well.

My Rating:
Story: C
Art: B
Recommended? Very simple story. Eyecandy.

Bokura wa Itsumo

Ongoing manga

Cute innocent shojo. Two bishi guys, two pretty girls, all childhood friends, though it's not what you think - they don't really pair up, at least not in the beginning, as they are either with different people or not with anyone at all. The characters are really cute (as mentioned) but they are a bit youngish/more juvenile looking. Till now I'm still not getting how old one is supposed to be in their middle school/high school (is it the same as the US system?).

The guys, if they didn't have different color hair, might have ended up looking like twins though. For the girls, it seems like the usual shojo device where you have the main character (Nori) a bit more ditzy than her friend (Saeka), though spunky and happy go lucky.

My Rating:
Story: B-
Art: B+
Recommended? It's a cute story so far.
Similar to: Read someone mention it seems to be a better imitation of Marmalade Boy.
Also by author: Shuu 7

Penguin Revolution

Completed manga
by Tsukura Sakura

A simple sweet story about teens in showbiz, seems to be written for younger audiences (tweens?) The somewhat complex storyline twists on one hand but doesn't really delve enough into the characterization on the other hand. I wish there was more depth in the characters, especially Ayamori. Despite him being a protaganist and star in the story, he comes off as rather bland. The other male protagonist (starting to sound like a harem? Ya, come to think of it she does have these three bishis and at least two of them have shown interest in her, so perhaps...) isn't much better. The usual shojo devices and feel. Despite the bishi guys, for most of the story, the romance element isn't much there. The story/premise taken by itself is rather unbelievable so be ready to suspend disbelief completely.

My Rating
Story: C
Art: C+
Recommended? Just ok for a light read and innocent characters.

Also by author/artist: Makakushi No Kuni, Yoroshiku Master, Amai Kamiato, Birthday Presents, Shiro no Keiyaku, Tonari no Inuyama-kun

Skip Beat on Okto

Didn't realise that the rather popular romance/comedy shojo manga/anime, Skip Beat, is on Okto at 11pm on Fridays until I read the wiki entry. It comes out about a week after showing in Japan if I'm not wrong. So it isn't that delayed. The subs are a bit different from the fansubs; I actually trust the latter more. :) Episode 7 correlates quite closely to vol 3 in the manga.

Not too sure about finishing the manga though, as it's 22 volumes and counting! Not sure if I have that patience...but so far it's an interesting story, refreshingly different and though the girl is a bit ditzy at times she hasn't been oppressively irritating...yet..

I've just gotten onto the second half and so far find it quite innovative how the heroine solves her problems, especially in her acting. The writer sure is creative. However, as it goes onto vol 13 and 14, the storyline gets a bit more convoluted and complicated.

My Rating:
Story: B
Art: C
Recommended? A bit different in the sense that there are quite a few different scenarios which avoids it being too repetitive and is a bit more creative. However, I'm getting a bit tired, as it's rolling onto 22 volumes and counting.

Monkey High

Ongoing manga

A rather strange but cute shojo. Quite a sweet (and so far innocent) story that seems more for a younger audience. The guy is a bit childish but that's his character style and he's supposed to resemble a monkey(thus the title). A very unlikely "hero" for a romance but refreshing. The girl is the "cooler" one, calm and composed. It's heartwarming when she realises that his endearing and innocent ways are what attracts him to her, despite his silly and not so sophisticated ways.

I would say this is different just for the fact that the guy is not your average oh so cool rich kid. He's just the kid next door, sweet and unassuming, a bit too silly and immature. However, the story does get a bit repetitive from chapter to chapter when the same formula runs that the girl gets embarrassed with the guy but then realises how sweet he is...then, repeat.

My Rating:
Story: C
Art: B-
Recommended: ok, for a different story but think in some ways it is a bit repetitive.

Full House Kiss

Ongoing Manga
Author: Yuwa Shiori

This is the somewhat common formula of having the girl become an orphan and coming to stay with some handsome guy (or guys in this case) due to some dire consequences (I think we've read one or two like this?). The only thing that stands out is that there is some underlying mystery concerning the deaths of her parents and the disappearance of her sister.

The guys are all different and the girl is so far not that silly but she is not that smart either.

Strangely this is based on/related to ? some game which I've never seen before but the description I read on wiki was quite funny and strange (and a bit ambiguous).

My Rating:
Story: B-
Art: B-
Recommended: Interesting, but besides the mystery it's also quite typical.
Similar to: I saw quite a few comments that this is very similar to Fruits Basket, but I've not read that so I can't say. I haven't really gone through Wallflower but in essence there is a similarity, though I would say the emphasis for that one is really quite different.

More info:
Bakaupdates

Pet Shop of Horrors and Tokyo Pet Shop of Horrors

Completed manga
Ongoing follow up Tokyo series

Brief Summary: In a pet shop in Chinatown the owner, Count D, will be able to recommend you the perfect pet, with some conditions, some of which you may not be able to live up to...

Ok, this may seem like a different addition to the site (it is not shojo romance obviously), but this actually has a rather "special" (for want of a better word) place in my manga "journey" (for want of a better word) as it's the first manga I searched for and read myself and bought. Ok, those of you who know should know why (and those of you who read my below reviews can chance a guess since I hint at being partial to some things ;p).

Perhaps in my rush now it's not the best time to review this, but I've been wanting to add this for ages. This manga is probably the widest read of those I've tried to introduce to friends. :) Seemed the most acceptable to both guys and gals, though some thought it was a bit too weird-ish. We've had debates on Count D, the main character, and whether he's ultimately good or evil. There seems to be some morals somewhere but you get a bit lost on whether it's kangeroo court or real justice.

The episodic nature of this series makes it easy to start just about any volume, as long as you get the basic of that Count D sells strange pets that have special/strange/eerie/supernatural/dangerous qualities. These pets may also take on human form in some people's perceptions as well.

The first stories are actually a different format from the latter stories, especially when it gets to the new "Tokyo" series. The stories range from "huh? What was that about?" to "oh, that was cool". Some are quite intriguing and the pets' qualities are usually surprising or horrifying. There are some stories which seem to have some morals as well, or lessons to be learnt. The underlying story of Count D and his dad, and grandad and where they come from, who/what they are (and their motivations), is given an ending too as the story wraps up in the original series, but somehow it wasn't as satisfying as I was hoping it would be.

Anime and Tokyo Series

Four of the original stories were made into an anime, which weren't bad overall. And after the first 14 volumes were completed, the artist started another set based on the same Count D but set in Tokyo instead of Chinatown, USA. I guess it was just so popular so she decided to go back to the same formula.

My Rating:
Story: B (it ranges actually)
Art: C, the art is not that great and "clean" and there are no bishis. :)
Recommended? Interesting premise and some stories are better than others. Easy to pick up at any volume and perhaps reading a few volumes would give a better idea of the series than jus one or two stories.

Beauty Pop

Ongoing Manga

Thought this would be a bit different as there is some refreshing storyline about the girl having some talent (hairdressing), but in the end, I don't think I'll continue to follow this as they just keep showing episodic makeovers of different people in different situations, and there isn't much interaction between the girl and the guy and if you're looking for romance it's kinda disappointing when you don't find any after a few chapters. Ok, so I didn't finish this so perhaps it gets better. Those who read it will have to enlighten me cos I'm dropping this from my reading list until I get really bored/free.

My Rating:
Story: C-
Art: B-
Recommended? As far as the first two volumes or so goes, I don't think so.