Category: manga

#867 “Goodnight, Punpun”

Goodnight Punpun

Inio Asano’s Goodnight Punpun gives us what appear to be a family of ghostly birds living in a much more realistic-looking world. People within that world don’t see them that way, though. It’s a world where authority figures act like ADHD kids, where every parent seems to be abusive or alcoholic (or both), and all seem to be fighting relentless depression. It’s well done, but is it worth reading? Tim and Kumar discuss the story, the weirdness, the varying concepts of God, Asano’s arguments with fans and with himself, and more.

The Shima Kosaku bus

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#853 The strange history of “Robotech”

Robotech: Sentinels

What if your first Star Wars movie were Return of the Jedi? You’d have questions! That’s how Tim felt once he got started reading Robotech II: The Sentinels volume 1, a comics continuation of the animated Robotech show that hit the U.S. in 1985. Robotech was a combination of three different anime — why?? And why is it that, after all these years, the Robotech story doesn’t really progress? Tim discusses with longtime Robotech fan Erik Amaya of Comicon.com.

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#828 Japan’s mythical “oni” in manga

oni

Oni are mythical monsters similar to the ogres of Western tradition. Like many of the legendary Japanese creatures, their characteristics are often adopted for manga characters, including series such as Lum, The Promised Neverland, and Demon Slayer. Our own Patrick has compiled a lot of data on them, and he’s here this time to fill us in. He also discusses the main points of monster theory.

Watch Patrick’s videos on oni and other Japanese creatures

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#827 “Cross Game” Omnibus 2: Subtle Shifts

Cross Game v2

The second omnibus volume of Mitsuru Adachi’s Cross Game focuses largely on a scrimmage between the varsity team and the “portables”, which doesn’t go how anyone expects it to. Things are shifting subtly under the surface; we’re pretty sure what the series is leading up to (it’s a baseball manga, after all), but it’s fun to watch it develop. And of course, it never lets us forget vol. 1’s tragedy, even as Adachi hits us with goofy jokes. Tim and Kumar brush up on their baseball terms as they go through this volume.

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#437 “Real” is a slam dunk

Real

FLASHBACK! Sports have rarely been subject matter for comics in the US; perhaps comics’ inherent static-ness has seemed antithetical to an activity with so much movement. But Japan has seen comics about various sports, and some of them have been quite popular, even iconic.

Takehiko Inoue’s Real is not only about basketball, but about physical handicaps, relationships, and more. Kumar and Ilango find a whole lot to like about it — including the satisfying ways in which it translates sports action to the comics page. (Originally published February 16, 2015.)

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#813 “Cross Game”: Baseball manga that’s not about baseball (much)

Cross Game

Mitsuru Adachi’s Cross Game is a baseball manga for people who don’t care about baseball. A tragedy early in the story helps to shape the narrative, but there’s also a good dose of unexpected comedy, and sequences that really make us want to cheer for Ko and his friends as they work toward the goal of reaching the high school baseball championship. Kumar at last succeeds at getting this one on the podcast schedule, and Tim is happy to come along.

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#809 Pidge interview: “Fiction is a way to tell the truth”

Pidge - Infinite Wheatpaste

Sure, comics are great for fantastical stories, but they can tell intimate, personal stories as well — or sometimes the personal and the fantastical mix well. Artist and writer Pidge is the creator of the series Infinite Wheatpaste, which employs this method. Avery Hill has just published a collection of the series, called Infinite Wheatpaste vol 1: Catalytic Conversions. This week Pidge talks with Emmet about her attraction to the comics medium, but concern that it doesn’t cover all the aspects of life that it could: “Having coffee with your friend is worth putting in a comic.”

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#806 “Berserk” v. 13 & 14: Is this scene necessary?

Berserk 14

Berserk volume 12 left us at a crucial point: The Band of the Hawk were to be sacrificed so that Griffith can join the Godhand. Horrified, Tim and Kumar moved quickly on to volume 13, which left us… horrified, in a less fun way. Casca is raped, in an unnecessarily long, confusing, and (ick) titillating scene (and we have to talk about it, so be warned).

The rest of 13 and the start of 14 finally bring us up to the status quo of the first 2 1/2 volumes, and get us started on a new story of Guts and Puck which…. doesn’t seem to move the story forward at all. While there are good points, our feelings about Kentaro Miura‘s series have become more complicated. And, by the way, how necessary was this 11-volume flashback?

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#804 “Berserk” v. 11 & 12: Cartoonish violence, epic horror

Berserk v 12 cover

Kentaro Miura’s Berserk can be upsetting, fascinating, offputting, incredible, and even sometimes a bit comedic, as Tim and Kumar have found over the past several months. All those qualities appear again in volumes 11 and 12, as the story of the extended flashback reaches its climax with Griffith’s horrific accession to the God Hand. Join us as we discuss the cartoonish violence of volume 11 and the epic horror of volume 12.

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#799 “Berserk” v. 9 & 10 deep dive: Genre hopping

Berserk 9-10

Kentaro Miura’s Berserk can be confounding. Reading volumes 9 and 10 prompts us to ask “Just what genre IS this comic, anyway?” While it still has plenty of over-the-top action and violence, it also has gratuitous sex, comedy, and even some horror elements. And now we finally have hints toward why the “present” of volumes 1-3 had so many magical elements that have been mostly missing from the ongoing flashback. Tim and Kumar ask “Could it be the magic at last?”

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