Red Angel is a masterfully drawn manga with an awesome color cover that gives just a hint at the gothic art inside. Author and manga artist, Makoto Tateno, brings to life the story of Mika & Eru who are brother and sister vampires.

For those of you who might have read her other works Happy Boys or Yellow and didn’t like them, I believe that Red Angel deserves a chance.  You see, Mika & Eru are not like other vampire brothers and sisters. They have one unique quality that sets them away from the bunch. They just happen to reside in the same body.

Reminiscent of the novel, The Need by Andrew Neiderman, the brother and sister pair have a problem… whatever one of them does, the other has to live with. In Red Angel, this has to do with them moving constantly to keep their secret. Their crimson wings often leave mortals in a state of awe. Whether they feed or not, they usually cause death somehow and flee the scene.

Artwork in this book is beautiful with a nice dark feel throughout and gothic vignettes portraying a couple enjoying a kiss as massive wings shelter them or a flight of crows bordered by intricate crosses and lace. Tateno has a way of portraying action in the still shot so convincingly that the reader can almost feel the wind whip around them as wings flap, causing feathers to float by.

Each chapter is a different town and the vampire pair is not always the focus. We get to meet a couple of “bat men” who turn into bats but are not vampires, and Anney, who is holy and able to suck energy from vamps. Mika meets another vampire and finds out the hidden truth behind who she is and where she fits into creation.

There is a four-page extra in the back by the author, explaining the characters, ideas, and how the book was first published. Categorized as a Yaoi, I disagree. Perhaps it is just stuck into that category because of the woman and man in the same body. I find that the story is very unlike many Yaoi and the difference between the brother and sister is so definite, the reader really believes they are two different people simply sharing the same mortal-like shell.

You can find out more about Red Angel at Amazon.com.

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It’s pretty bad when you look at the cover of a manga a week after reading it and can’t for the life of you remember what it was about. It’s even worse when you flip through it and still can’t remember. That’s how it was with X/1999 Prelude.

For those of you mesmerized by words like Voom, Woosh, SKRTCH, and Shaaaa… you will find pages upon pages of them with the confusing swirl of vortex art that denotes quick fighting sequences. Unfortunately, Dragon Ball Z-like action scenes overshadow this plot. Zombies are supposed to be attacking the main character, but you can’t really see anything but glimpses.

What is X/1999 about?

I am still not sure. It seems the lead character has been away and returns to Tokyo to get attacked a lot. It is not clear what his goal is or if he even has one.

Highlights?

Well, there are a couple. First, a cool sword forms from a girl’s hand. Second, there is an awesomely drawn princess with white eyes and an elaborate costume.

You might ask why I purchased X/1999 Prelude in the first place. Well, this was definitely a case of cover misleading. I saw the moon and the red splotches (which I assumed blood), along with what looked like bridge girders in the background and an ebony-haired hero. This is a good example of me not following my own advice. As I said in a preview post titled, How To Choose A Manga, I missed step #5, which is:

5. Flip through the book and check out the art. Is the detail inside as good as the cover art? Is it appealing to you? Is the printing bad, or is it crisp and clean? Do you stop every so often to let a “wow” or a “ooooohhhh” slip from your lips? If you realize it’s a steampunk fantasy once you get inside and you don’t like that sort of tale, please don’t buy it just because you like the cover. You will be disappointed.

Luckily, I bought this one early in my manga-buying days and hopefully have learned my lesson. I wouldn’t recommend buying this series unless you are a big DBZ fan or enjoy constant action with little plot.

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KAMUI by Broccoli Books is a manga that I found a bit more interesting than the last one I read, Until The Full Moon.

This manga has an edgy, tech infested, post apocalypse feel.

The world has been destroyed by a technology overload and resulting earthquakes. Humans cower in the face of robots, their only saviors being the NOA, an organization of scientifically enhanced twenty-somethings.

Atsuma is an unknown who allows himself to be recruited by the NOA in order to gain knowledge about an ancient being who may be able to help the humans regain earth control.  Atsuma has an orb that talks inside him. As a reader, it’s not clear who or what it is, but it seems to be helping his mission.

In a sexy, gamer-style, this manga has a lot to offer video game enthusiasts and those interested in post-apocalyptic life.

The storyline, though intriguing, didn’t really get anywhere in this first book. I’m not sure it’s inspired me to buy any other volumes. The art was pretty good and the read wasn’t bad. Unfortunately, Broccoli Books don’t ever seem to wow me, which is probably why they ceased operations in December 2008.

If you’d like to learn more about Kamui, you can check out the volumes on Amazon.com.

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Black Knight by Kai Trurugi is one of the best Yaoi I’ve ever read.  A touching love story between a Prince and his protector.

Black Knight offers much for hardcore Yaoi fans. With a good storyline, several battle scenes, and a bit of graphic love scenes sprinkled in, these guys are well on their way to becoming an epic romance.

Chris is the sheltered, innocent Prince who is just learning to battle. Zeke is the tall, dark, handsome swordsman that can get out of any scrape no matter the odds. Together they have a passionate love affair in the midst of danger.  This book shows the love of a family when their loved one comes home, the love of a master to his long-owned horse and a special, genuine love between a young prince and his protector.

The art is very Knight’s of the Round table, swords and sorcery, with a bit of Asian influence here and there.

Parental guidance is suggested for adult content and explicit art.

Extras: Yaoi called Deadly Sin
A romance between a Priest haunted by ghosts from the past and a tourist who shows him he can break-free from depression and guilt to be happy. This new Yaoi might be a promising read in full book form.

Black Knight is available at Amazon.com.

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The National Psychic Academy: A place for psychically gifted youth to expand their powers, be hit on by frisky co-eds, and meet talking bunnies. Poor Ai doesn’t even believe that he has psychic gifts. How can he be expected to survive at a school where his brother is a hero and his talking bunny keeps pushing him into embarrassing situations?

Psychic Academy rated 13+ reads like a schoolboy locker room chat. With many racy shots, young girl’s bathing, naked little fairies, and several “accidental” boob grabs, this book seems written by a young boy, for young boys.

The bunny, who claims to be Master Boo, speaks like Andrew Dice Clay and seems to want to pick up girls more than help Ai learn his skills.

“Now watch an’ learn as I pluck a copula young, unsuspecting, ripe tomatoes.”

Ai’s brother, Zero or “The Vanquisher of the Dark Overlord”, is over the top with his two page intro where the artist paints him like an old-time comic book hero, metal codpiece, cape blowing in the breeze. It get’s worse later, when Zero fights off a bully, using the clothes vanishing technique and tells the bully.

“That’s terrifying coming from a fool with his wee wee hanging out.”

Ai’s roommate is portrayed as the “stupid foreigner”.  I think he is supposed to be Middle Eastern and the way they treat him I find offensive. He wears robes, sleeps like some sort of Kama Sūtra pretzel, has a symbol on his head and is always doing dumb things.

If you’re not a male pre-teen, you’ll probably hate this one. For me, it was slightly entertaining because of the few magic fights involved, but not worth reading more volumes.

Extras:

None. But you do get to see a preview of the next volume. Featuring another accidental boob grab!

Still interested? Check out Psychic Academy at Amazon.com

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Before I go into this review, I’d like to bring up the subject of Yaoi. Yaoi is a form of manga that features male to male romantic stories usually written by women, for women. Often erotic, these tales at times are little more than porn, or they could be truly beautiful stories of love that transcend race, sex, and even species. The best Yaoi I have ever read is the topic today.

Anima written by Dany & Dany, two women from Italy who write and draw all their own comics. Daniela Orrù and Daniela Serri are known as paranormal manga creators by those in Japan and around the world. They also work as instructors at two major comic schools in Italy. Dany & Dany are also Vampire Chronicle fans and because they have an interest in portraying Louis and Lestat in a Yaoi light, you may sense a vampire feeling in their work. Some of their works have characters that look so much like Louis and Lestat, you may find yourself looking twice to see if it is our beloved vamp boys.

The cover of Anima shows just a glimpse of the coolness you will find inside the book. Anima features crisp, clean art in a steampunk setting. On a ship like the Titanic, a beautiful love story ensues between a gorgeous writer and an angel-like ballet dancer. A beautiful android dancer, Danya, is injected with “Anima” to allow him to feel human emotions, but what his creator doesn’t realize is that the injection also allows him to fall in love. Patrick, a cynical journalist and admirer of Danya, just happens to be there as Danya’s emotions are released. They fall in love, but Patrick doesn’t know Danya is an android. Though Patrick is an android sympathizer, will he be able to over look the fact that his new love is one? And once Danya’s creator finds he loves another, will he be able to let him go?

This is an erotic love story that may not be for everyone. Parental guidance suggested.

Extras: The Terrible Plot Demon is a one page, silly, chibi cartoon where the characters torture the authors.

Get your copy here from Amazon.com

To find out more about Dany & Dany, go to their website at: www.danyandany.com

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At the end of the Taisho era in Japan, a small tea house draws patrons to Hiruko. He is a Baku-he or eater of dreams. It is said Hiruko can enter a nightmare and release the victim from suffering. He can put people to sleep with the wave of his cane and accompany them into the nightmare.

The stories in Nightmare Inspector are very odd and don’t seem to make much sense. In one case, a boy walks into the tea house and asks for help. It turns out he is a weather vane. I’m confused how a weather vane could walk into a tea shop and do weather vane’s have nightmares?

Another tale features a girl who always writes the same thing in her dream. She asks him to change it, but when they get to the part where he can, she ends up writing the same thing. There is a secondary character in the tea house who sometimes asks Hiruko what happened and his explanations don’t make much sense either.

There are also repetitive chapter beginnings which are common in mangas that were serialized in magazines.  I always think it is better for the editor to cut these out when composing the manga book.

I absolutely love the art in this manga. It’s a very interesting sort of steampunk/cosplay mix with long art deco kinds of lines. The styling of the Baku-he is awesome.

In back, there is a short letter from the author. The best thing in the whole book is a full page illustration/explanation of Hiruko’s cane by the friend of the author. It’s hilarious and informative. It makes me wonder what sort of manga would come from the author and best friend collaborating.

Check out this manga for the art. The story is not worth the read.

You can find this manga at Amazon.com.

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You gotta love the storyline for Vampire Doll.  A powerful vampire prince, Guilt-na-Zan, was sealed into a cross necklace by an exorcist. Years later, the exorcist’s descendant, Kyoji, releases him but there’s a catch. You see, instead of letting the vampire free to hunt, feed, and generally be his good old evil self, he awoke in the body of a wax doll. Not only has the exorcist handicapped Guilt-na-Zan by placing him in a cute blonde-haired girl with ruffles, he also expects him to be his maid.

Such a concept probably has you wondering if it’s a horrible joke. Nothing like this could ever be good, right? Wrong. Though I was skeptical at first, I found Vampire Doll funny and entertaining. Example? There are many.

First, when Guilt-na-Zan first awoke, he tries to summon tempest and beasts, but with his new found doll body, all that comes is flowers and teddy bears.

Next, when he is given an apron by Kyoji, he asks what it is. Kyoji says,

“A special battle apron. Now your maid skills are at level two and your cuteness level is at five!”

Something about a powerful vampire prince being treated like a dress up doll is just too funny for words.

Other characters include Guilt-na-Zan’s faithful bat servant, Vince, who is now in a man’s body. Although he has his own room with a bed, he insists on sleeping hanging from his feet in the closet.  He is cute, but very dumb.

Kyoichi is Kyoji’s brother and they have a bitter rivalry in which they try to kill each other regularly. Kyoji’s sister Tonae seems to be the only sane one. She adores Guilt-na-Zan’s doll form and every time she lets him drink a drop of her blood, he is able to transform into his male vampire form. These rare occurrences conveniently coincide with an event where they need his vampire skills to survive. Though Guilt-na-Zan’s male form is like a 1980’s hair band reject, he’s still rather intimidating as the vampire prince.

In volume two, a master doll maker and his doll arrive to mix things up. The doll has scissor hands and a soul!

The Extras

• Glossy color pictures of the characters
• Bonus comic strips which put the characters into silly positions or to tell jokes.
• Author notes.
• Trivia and Japanese word/concept definitions.
• A funny manga about how the book is made.
• A one page manga called “Sweets and Me” where the author explores why strawberries on cakes look so arrogant.
  “Nothing is done to them. They are naturally born with that shape. Yet, they have the attitude of a main ingredient!”
• Cross over comics with the characters of Strange Plus.

Entertainment for hours awaits you in the pages of Vampire Doll.  If you’d like to purchase them, they are available at Amazon.com.

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Planet Ladder by Yuri Narushima isn’t exactly something I would normally pick up. There is a teal and purple cover with “planet” in the title and a very doe-eyed heroine on the front. Nevertheless, somehow it appeared in my shopping bag. Perhaps it was the tarot card reference on the back.

I was turned off from page one because of the poor printing quality. I suppose this art technique was used to outline a dream sequence, thankfully the art production was better once the character woke up.

Kaguya is a school girl who is kidnapped on the same evening her father is arrested for money laundering. Instead of just taking the girl, this kidnapper removes her entire room from the house. She finds herself in her room, but in some strange land with an android. The doll man filters water by sucking it in and then kissing the girl to give her a drink. Although this is a cool concept, it wasn’t enough to save the book for me.

There are a large amount of mangas that start with a dream sequence that makes the reader unsure of what is going on. Normally that is okay because it’s like a clue that you will slowly find out about later. In this instance, the book is full of these dream sequences and by the end of the book I still did not understand what was going on. It definitely did not make me want to find out what confusion would await me in the following volumes.

One cool aspect of this manga is the extras in the back. The artist gives an awesome two page android sketch with notes.

If this sounds like a manga that would interest you, check it out at Amazon.com.

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Calling all goth-loli girls and Alice enthusiasts! Rozen Maiden is going to make you want to buy every single one of these volumes.

A boy named Jun, who has decided to no longer attend school, becomes addicted to mail ordering. He accidentally orders a doll who takes over his life. The doll then involves him in a game with her other doll sisters where the playfulness can lead to injury, missed bedtimes, and death.

In the first volume, the package arrives and the doll, Shinku, awakes. She starts ordering Jun around and commands that he swear to protect her. When he refuses, Shinku sends a butcher knife wielding, foaming-at-the-mouth teddy bear after him. Jun reluctantly agrees to her demands and she brings all of his action figures to life to kill the teddy bear. This opening scene tells you, you aren’t reading any old manga… this one is going to be good!

Just when Jun gets used to having the irritating doll around, others start showing up. Jun’s sister, Nori, is no help as she adores the dolls and makes them all the little sweets and tea they want.

Even though they do tackle deeper issues such as depression and human frailty, there remains an element of little girl silliness to the story line. In volume three, a standoff ensues between the youngest doll and the other dolls. Their threat is cutting her off from the sweets!

“Listen up. We’ve secured the kitchen and fridge. If you ever want sweets again, you will give yourself up!”

This manga is more than a chaotic romp in a doll’s fantasy “Alice” game. It is a comment on teens who sequester themselves away from others in hopes to hide from ridicule from mean classmates. The message in these volumes is that if you go too far, your spirit and all your talents that make you special will be lost. While the authors seem to agree that there are some social situations that make us all want to cower in the attic, they also show us that we can’t let those haters keep our creative spirit down.

For you horror lolita’s, there are several freaky aspects I think you’ll enjoy. The first being Suihuintoh, the spooky doll sister who has black wings and tries to destroy the other dolls by terrorizing them in a mirror world called LaPlace.  In LaPlace resides a freaky rabbit in a tux and top hat. He is what they call the Demon of LaPlace and seems to be there more to confuse them than attack them.

Although Jun thinks the dolls have ruined his life, they really save it by making him face his fears and come out of hibernation. By the end of volume three, the story has changed to a serious nature when Suihuintoh kills one doll and takes a part of Shinku.  Jun risks his life to retrieve the part of Shinku and in the process learns more about his depression.

By the end of volume four, the creator has added another doll for comic relief. She speaks to a kitty cat about how she is going to infiltrate the house and begin killing dolls. It’s a throw back for me to those comics of Snoopy when he pretended to be in combat and snuck through the bushes to the enemy camp.  I think perhaps she was brought in for volume five in which Jun goes into a massive depression and the book is rather dismal if you don’t count the breaks they take to bring in the silly doll on a quest.

Spookiness (and Jun) return in volume six when an new doll is discovered. She has to be the scariest doll yet, wearing all white with a rose and thorny vines growing out of her right eye.

Over all this manga is very entertaining, but perhaps has a more dismal storyline than others I’ve read. The ups and downs in this plot might make you more emotional that you would think. The art is detailed and beautiful. As for extras, there aren’t many.  Volume three has a few interesting collaboration comics with the mangas Zombie Loan and DearS. Volume four contains a cute comic on how the manga is made.

If you’d like to check these manga’s out, they are available at: Amazon.com

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