By Mat K.
As you may have been able to extrapolate from the title, this is another Viz heavy week, and none too soon. Everything this week with the exception of two books is either Shonen Jump or Shojo Beat. So let us start with this week’s nonconformists from DMP. The first of the two is an exciting release. Hideyuki Kikuchi’s Vampire Hunter D and the form of it’s manga adaptation Volume 5. I know lots of you love Yoshitaka Amano, but you know you also love Vampire Hunter D no matter what form, and Saiko Takaki is a perfectly elegant artist. This time, in a world where even the smallest and most remote village is being terrorized by the monsters that stalk the night, there is a hamlet, prosperous and peaceful, where mortals and vampires have lived in peace for years. It is there that sleeping beauty, Sheavil Schmidt has slept, neither waking nor aging, for thirty years since first receiving the vampire’s immortal kiss. The mysterious Vampire Hunter D is lured to the tranquil oasis by recurrent dreams of the beautiful, undying girl bathed in an eerie blue light and dancing in a ghostly chateau.
The second non-Viz book is Yokan Premonition Noise Vol 02 by Makoto Tateno. Akira is a lead vocalist of a popular band called CHARON. Hiroya Sunaga was a singer once before but he left the music scene to pursue acting career. But he realizes that his first love is music. He makes a decision to abandon his acting career and comes back to music business and joins a legendary band called NUNE as a lead vocalist. Akira and Hiroya are rivalry-friends. They love each other and they respect each other but rivalries always seem to get in their way. They are trying to make this relationship work but can they put their ego and talent aside?
The only brand new title premiering this week is Kamisama Kiss by Juliette Suzuki. Nanami Momozono is alone and homeless after her dad skips town to evade his gambling debts and the debt collectors kick her out of her apartment. So when a man she’s just saved from a dog offers her his home, she jumps at the opportunity. But it turns out that his place is a shrine, and Nanami has unwittingly taken over his job as a local deity. The art is definitely shoujo and cute, and who can resist a boy with silver hair and kitty-ears?
There are plenty of other books including Hoshin Engi, JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure, and Rosario Vampire. Definitely plenty of fun things to read, but I want to make a gaming announcement. Yu Gi Oh Hidden Arsenal 3 booster packs just came out this week and it is definitely full of goodness. Hidden Arsenal is always full of neat cards, good cards, and the whole pack is foil, but you might get a real kick out of this new set. Not to mention it is also a little bit cheaper than Hidden Arsenal 2 was. 50 cents is still 50 cents.
Anyway, that’s all for this time. Check the list in the back for all the manga coming out. Til next time.
Ja Ne!
