S.Q. Eries's Blog, page 2

Manga Review: Takahashi from the Bike Shop Vol. #1

Opposites attract is a popular subgenre of romance. In Yen Press’ Takahashi from the Bike Shop, the mismatched couple is a timid office drudge and a striking bicycle repairman with a foul mouth. Read on for my review of Volume 1.

Back Cover Blurb

From unwanted advances from her boss and work dumped onto her by coworkers, thirty-year-old Tomoko Hanno, or Panko for short, struggles to stand up for herself. But when her rusty bike breaks down, she meets Ryohei Takahashi from the neighborhood bike repair shop. Although he can be a bit overbearing, Panko finds herself relying on his considerate nature and her world begins to shift…

The Review

30-year-old office worker Tomoko Hanno is drifting through life. She has slimy supervisors, and her younger colleagues are disrespectful slackers. And because she has a hard time saying no, she gets pushed around. So when an intimidating bike repair man tells her to take her broken bike to his shop, she obeys. But Tomoko quickly discovers that Ryouhei Takahashi is not nearly as scary as he looks.

Tomoko is the type of character that pops up in a lot of isekai. She’s got a timid personality with airhead tendencies, a dead-end job, terrible coworkers, no boyfriend, a bad relationship with her mother, little cash, and no aspirations beyond eating and watching anime. In other words, easy to relate to but not particularly interesting on her own. But instead of getting supernatural powers or a new life in a new universe, romance blooms between her and a hot guy who looks like a gangster.

However, their love story gets off to a slow start. They are not in the same social circles, and it is only because Ryouhei’s bike shop is along Tomoko’s commute that they meet. He fixes her loose bike chain in their first encounter and gives her a soda in their second. In both brief instances, she’s mostly terrified because of his blunt manner, crude speech, and bleached hair. When she treats Ryouhei to dinner at his friend’s restaurant as repayment for her bicycle repairs, she spends as much time talking to his two friends as she does to Ryouhei. And it’s not until the morning after that dinner that she gives her name to Ryouhei.

By that time, she realizes he is a decent person with a mutual interest in anime, but she’s not thinking of romance at all. Because of that and her own unremarkable personality, getting invested in this romance was difficult.

As for Ryouhei, the progression of his feelings for Tomoko are difficult to read. He notices her first, and he approaches her first (to fix her loose bicycle chain). However, it’s unclear whether he’s attracted or annoyed by her at the start. Because the story is mainly from Tomoko’s point of view, it’s impossible to tell if the treatment she receives at Ryouhei’s shop is common to all customers or because he’s trying to hit on her. While Ryouhei has looks and his gruff kindness to appeal to Tomoko, I’m not sure what he finds attractive about Tomoko. As a male lead, he’s not the type to impress a woman with words or displays of affection. Rather, he’s more of the comfortable drinking buddy who happens to have a wild appearance and sailor’s mouth.

The artwork is on the rough end. Body proportions tend to be off. You can tell which characters are supposed to be attractive, but these drawings are not exactly the kind you drool over.

Extras include the first eight pages printed in color, creator afterword, translation notes, and bonus manga.

In Summary

It’s “opposites attract” in this slow-paced romance. And when I say slow, I mean really slow. This is largely due to the main character’s wishy-washy personality. It’s mostly up to the male lead to drive the story forward, but it’s unclear in the first 100 pages if he’s actually interested in her or not. As such, it’s difficult to get invested in this odd couple.

First published at the Fandom Post.

Graphic Novel Review: The Mythology Class: Where Philippine Legends Become Reality

There’s been growing interest in fantasy based on non-European folklore. If you’re interested in a graphic novel involving Philippine mythology, Tuttle Publishing has released The Mythology Class: Where Philippine Legends Become Reality. Read on for the review.

Back Cover Blurb

The Mythology Class follows Nicole Lacson, an anthropology student at the University of the Philippines. When she is summoned to a secret meeting by the mysterious Madame Enkanta, Nicole finds herself face-to-face with living creatures from mythology and folklore that she never imagined existed in real life! Tikblangs, kapres and a range of engkantos—fantasy figures from her grandfather’s bedtime stories—challenge her previously-held notions of reality.

Nicole embarks on a quest through the streets of metropolitan Manila with a ragtag crew of college students. With guest appearances from legendary Filipino heroes like Sulayman, Kubin and Lamang, Nicole’s class must face down and repel an ancient evil.

The Review

Mysterious dreams and a strange class pamphlet bring eleven college students to a building far from university grounds. But instead of a professor, four figures from Philippine legend appear before them. And instead of a curriculum, they present the students with a quest: capture enkantos, mythical beings that have invaded the human world.

As you might guess from the Where Philippine Legends Become Reality subtitle, this is a Filipino fantasy story. It is set in the Philippines, has a Filipino cast, and draws heavily from Filipino legend and folklore. It was also created by a Filipino artist for a Filipino audience.

Because the text is in English, non-Filipino audiences can read the story. However, the graphic novel provides no translation or cultural notes, and it assumes readers have a certain familiarity with Filipino culture. For instance, one character speaks exclusively in Tagalog, and you can’t tell from the context what he says. Also, there is a joke toward the end that only makes sense if you know “asusena” means “dog meat.” Several times when the ancient interacts with the modern, dialogue is written in Babayin (also untranslated), and the nuance of using that pre-colonial Filipino script will be lost on those unfamiliar with it. Readers are also expected to know what kapres and aswangs are, the way Western fantasy readers are expected to know what elves and dwarves are.

If the artwork looks old-school, that’s because it is. According to the foreword, The Mythology Class was originally released as a four-volume series in 1999. At the time, its metropolitan Manila backdrop with its gargantuan Plaza of the Gods shopping mall was probably intended to reflect a near future setting, but it will probably come off as retro because of its clunky desktop computers, flip phones, and lack of Bluetooth.

Also retro are the illustrations themselves. Everything is hand-drawn and hand-lettered. In dialogue bubbles, you can see places where guidelines weren’t completely erased and where the artist’s pen started running out of ink. Moreover, there are no screen tones. All crosshatching, shading, and other effects are created with pen and ink. Although drawings may not look as sophisticated or sleek as more recent works, the visual impacts are impressive given the constraints of the media.

The book has a comic book format similar to American titles and is read left to right. However, the content is entirely black-and-white. The book is also dense. Not only is it over 300 pages, most pages are crammed with dialogue bubbles, narration blocks, and panels. With very few exceptions, each page takes a while to read. This is not a work someone can skim through. In particular, the opening is slow due to the immense world-building info dump that takes place up front.

This is due in part to the enormous cast. The main ensemble consists of no less than eleven college students and their four heroes-of-old guides. These 15 individuals are introduced in the first 36 pages, which gives you an idea of how much information each page must carry.

The college students are an ensemble cast that honestly could’ve been smaller. They are too numerous to fully flesh out so they mainly play the stereotypes of warriors, techies, psychic, and annoying idiot. The only ones that get a character arc are Nicole, the anthropology student with a lifelong obsession with Philippine mythology, and, to a smaller extent, Gina, the abused drudge of an escaped enkanto.

Calling them to and guiding them on this quest are the four time-traveling heroes. The narrative spends scant time explaining who Datimbang, Kubin, Aili, and Sulayman are; it expects you to know who them the way Western books assume familiarity with Hercules or King Arthur. It also doesn’t spend much time on the gathering process; the time-travelers simply summon those particular students because they been specially chosen by the gods.

Once the group is formed, the story dives into action, mainly their adventures capturing the creatures that have invaded the human world. Each creature has different qualities, so the team must devise new strategies for each target. Because ancients are working with modern folks, they utilize a mix of magic, traditional weapons, and circa 1990s technology. By the way, the time-travelers provide their protégés with knowledge and equipment, but they don’t grant them supernatural powers. Thus, all our college students are ordinary people, with the exception of Lane, who had psychic powers before the adventure began.

The encounters with these supernatural targets are the meat of the graphic novel. Despite the creator’s tendency to be overly wordy, these clashes deliver the action and thrills of a summer blockbuster. They also come with the comic dialogue common to action movies. Most of these exchanges are funny, but the squabbles between uber-annoying Misha and her ex-boyfriend Rey get old fast, as do the jokes with Misha as the butt.

In terms of the conclusion, the enkantos quest wraps up tidily, and Nicole’s character and romance arcs get a satisfying end. Not so satisfying are two other relationship arcs. Rey and Misha were pretty screaming insults at each other 90 percent of the book, so their abrupt reconciliation at the end felt like cheating. Also lacking was Gina’s abrupt reconciliation with the enkanto Nuno. Nuno had a history of being physically and verbally abusive to Gina, and the scene on page 167 where he blames Gina for his violence toward her could be triggering for some.

This graphic novel contains violence, swearing, and smoking. There is no sex, but the creator gets fan-servicey in a couple of places with his female characters.

In Summary

The Mythology Class is an award-winning Filipino graphic novel from the 1990s about 11 college students chosen by the gods to defend the modern age from rogue mythic creatures. Their action-packed adventure is reminiscent of American comics, but the story requires a degree of familiarity with Filipino culture and folklore to fully appreciate. Tuttle Publishing’s release does not provide any translation or cultural notes, but if you’re willing to do some Google searches as you read, you can follow along on this Filipino fantasy quest.

First published in The Fandom Post.

Book Review: The Amazing Beasts of Philippine Mythology

There’s been growing interest in children’s books about non-European folklore. If you’re interested in the mythical creatures of the Philippine Islands, Tuttle Publishing has released The Amazing Beasts of Philippine Mythology. Read on for the review.

Back Cover Blurb

This delightful compendium of mythical creatures (and where to find them) takes a tongue-in-cheek look at the ghoulish and gory things that go bump in the night—blood-sucking trolls, shape-shifting goblins and terrifying vampires who defend their turf with glee as they unleash chaos in the world.

The Review

The title The Amazing Beasts of Philippine Mythology is a little misleading. While the lineup includes dragons and werebeasts, it also includes ghosts and witches, which don’t quite fall into the category of “beasts.” It would be more accurate to title it The Amazing Supernatural Beings of Philippine Mythology.

The book is set up as an illustrated compendium. The Philippines consists of numerous culturally distinct regions, and these creatures fall into several categories. As such, the creators could have organized this collection in a number of ways. What they’ve chosen is to present them alphabetically by creature name. In lieu of a standard table of contents, an index by creature type is provided at the beginning of the book. These creature types are:

Demons (Demonyo)DragonsDwarves (Duwende)Ghouls (Impakto)Elves (Engkanto)Ghosts (Multo)Giants (Higante)Merfolk (Taong-Isda)Ogres (Dambuhala)Vampires (Bampira)Viscera Suckers (Aswang)Werebeasts (Taong-Halimaw)Witches (Bruha)

Please note that some of these creature categories may differ from what an American reader might associate with the term. For instance, the enormous beings classified as “Giant” are mostly human in form, but the Ikugan is a monkey monster.

Each entry gets a two-page profile that states its name, pronunciation, creature type, and region of origin. Its characteristics are detailed in a paragraph-long description that’s provided in English and Filipino. The written text, which tends to have run-on sentences, is formatted within a two-page spread illustration featuring the creature.

Each illustration was created by a different artist from the ANG Ink Artists Collective. Because there are 29 of them, there’s a wonderful spectrum of art styles and media, including clay, textiles, watercolor, and pencil. A look at the back cover will provide you with a taste of the variety within.

Something else to note about the illustrations is that these are creatures from Filipino myth and folklore, but the artists have placed their subjects in modern settings. Thus, the Batibat is depicted listening to a smartphone while squashing his slumbering victim, and the Ungo, a type of werebeast, is shown transforming from human to beast in the middle of a video conference call.

The book is marketed for children, but I would personally rate it as 12 and up. Among the featured monsters are ghouls which dine on corpses, and some of those illustrations are fairly graphic in showing entrails and other human body parts. Text descriptions of other creatures are downright disturbing. For instance, the viscera-sucker known as the Wakwak pierces a pregnant woman to “violently suck out the fetus, leaving the poor victim to bleed until she dies.” Then there are the raunchier entries, like the man-eating giant Gisurab, which “almost always appears naked, usually with its enormous testicles exposed.” (Although the Gisurab is naked in its profile illustration, the illustration doesn’t actually show those genitals.) While other entries in the book are fun and comical, the alphabetical categorizing mixes all the creature types, so you can go from a humorous drawing of a Dragon on one page to a gruesome viscera-sucker on the next.

In Summary

If you’re curious to see what creatures inhabit the myths and folklore of the Philippine Islands, The Amazing Beasts of Philippine Mythology provides an illustrated guide to a wide array of monsters and other supernatural beings. To make it fun, the creators have depicted these beings against the backdrop of present-day Philippines. While the artwork is wonderful, it tends to be graphic, so parents may want to review its contents before giving it to a younger or more sensitive reader.

First published in The Fandom Post.

Manga Review: Lady Murasaki’s Tale of Genji

Manga is not only great for entertainment, it’s great for education! Daunting literary works are often more accessible thanks to manga adaptions. One of these adaptions is Tuttle Publishing’s Lady Murasaki’s Tale of Genji. Read on for the review.

Back Cover Blurb

Tale of Genji, the world’s oldest known novel, tells the story of Prince Genji and his adventures in life, love, and power within the halls of the Chrysanthemum Royal Court. Handsome, romantic, and talented in the art of seduction, Prince Genji skillfully navigates the court and all its intrigues—always in search of love and often finding it. His story is the oldest and most famous tale of romance in the annals of Japanese literature and, as a representation of passion and romance, remains beyond compare.

The Review

In Heian-era Japan, the Emperor’s favorite consort bears him a son of such beauty and grace that he is called the “Shining Prince.” However, powerful rivals collude to prevent his consideration for the Chrysanthemum throne. But even without that political standing, the handsome prince charms his way into the hearts (and beds) of dozens of court ladies.

I attempted to read an English translation of The Tale of Genji when I was in college. I got through the initial pages about Genji’s birth, his mother’s early demise, and Genji’s obsession with his father’s young consort Fujitsubo, but after that, I became so confused about what was happening, I gave up on reading it. One difficulty was what this adaption’s introduction explains as the lack of a modern style plot structure; events simply happen, and there may be no resolution. Another difficulty was the characters and their names. Not only is the cast huge and interconnected in a way that requires a massive relationship chart, people are referenced by name or rank title, which can be confusing without knowledge of Imperial court hierarchy.

As such, having this manga version of the story would’ve been helpful to my college-age self. This adaption does not cover Murasaki’s work in its entirety as it concludes with Genji’s death, and the original continues beyond that. However, the manga provides clarity in terms of whom exactly Genji was interacting with and what her status and connections were.

So if you’re wanting to get a taste of a classic Japanese literary work, this manga is a good place to start. If you’re out for casual reading, maybe not so much. As mentioned above, the story structure is quite different from modern works. The book begins with Genji’s birth, ends with his death, and the content in between mostly chronicles his escapades with various women. If I had to characterize it, I’d call it a historical harem. The Japanese Imperial court setting, Genji’s charm, and the poetic language give it a romantic aura, but when it comes down to simple actions, Genji’s simply determined to sleep with whoever’s caught his eye.

For all his words of love, he generally has multiple sexual partners at any given time. Sex is often consensual, but not always. Twice, he adopts a beautiful girl into his household. One child winds up his wife. The other he nearly forces himself on, despite assurances to his wife that he sees the girl strictly as a daughter. When he is exiled for seducing the daughter of a political rival, he fathers a daughter with a local girl, and when allowed to return to the capital, he forces that lover to give up the child so his wife can raise her instead.

By modern standards, his behavior is appalling, if not illegal. Even by Heian-era standards, Genji’s behavior got him into trouble privately and publicly.

In terms of illustrations, the artist uses a realistic character design. Because nearly the entire cast has similar hairstyles and outfits, is difficult to tell characters apart, the women especially because there are so many of them. The only females who are distinctive are the ones who are homely and crude. Backgrounds reflect the imagery of the poetry exchanged by characters.

Speaking of poetry, Japanese aristocratic culture involved using poetic phrases rather than stating thoughts outright. As such, Murasaki’s original work was full of poetry, and this adaption includes several of those poems and poetic interchanges. Some have been translated to rhyme in English, but the word arrangement is often forced for those poems. I should also note that I caught several misspelled words, and the text is full of punctuation errors throughout.

In Summary

The Tale of Genji is considered by some to be the world’s first novel. If you are a casual reader curious about its content, this manga adaption is a good starting place. While the drawings, backgrounds, and poetic exchanges lend the story an elegance befitting the Japanese Imperial court, keep in mind that the focus is Prince Genji’s womanizing escapades, which are more befitting of an alley cat.

First published at The Fandom Post.

Manga Review: How to Connect, Share, and Play Safely Online

Manga is not only great for entertainment it’s great for education! How to Connect, Share, and Play Safely Online is a guide for kids that’s just been released by Tuttle Publishing. Read on for the review.

Back Cover Blurb

Getting your first smartphone means joining an online world that’s full of exciting opportunities—but also real-life risks. This book, written by a former police detective and expert on digital crime, helps you become a smart, safe digital citizen.

The Review

Four sixth-grade friends have just received their first smartphones. They’re excited about connecting to social media and beyond, but are they aware of the risks of going online? Never fear–former police detective Narumi is here to keep the kids out of trouble!

How to Connect, Share, and Play Safely Online is a pretty self-explanatory title. As for the subtitle, A Manga Guide for Preteens, Teens, and Parents, the characters are 12-year-olds so the narrative is more for preteens than teens. Ideally, a preteen and their parent/guardian would read it together as there are numerous topics such as rules/limits on device use and online purchasing that advise young readers to consult with their families. But even though it’s geared toward younger kids, the book can still be handy for teens as it offers advice on what to do and who to contact if they become victims of Internet crimes or cyberbullying. The guide can also serve as a primer for seniors unused to navigating technology and social media.

The book was written by Narumi Sasaki, a former Japanese police detective who now educates students on how to stay safe online. The guide has been translated for an English-speaking audience, and the data sections use statistics from the United Kingdom and the United States. The Helplines page contains contact information for resources in the United States, Canada, and Australia, as well as a few international agencies. By and large, the transition to English is seamless, but some dialogue bubbles and a decision flowchart come off as awkwardly structured because they were intended for vertical lines of Japanese characters.

After an introductory section where we meet the characters and get basic information about devices and social media, there are six chapters:

How to Spot Risky People OnlineWhen Insults Become DefamationCyberbullies and Online HarassmentIdentity Theft and Other Internet CrimesInternet MannersEssential Off-Line Information for Parents and Kids

Each chapter begins with a manga mini-story involving our child characters and the topic of the chapter. Whenever the kids are about to cross the line into risk or destructive action, Officer Narumi pops in to intercede. It is kind of hokey how Narumi abruptly inserts himself into a screen or group chat to educate the kids on the consequences of their actions. However, the manga depict relatable real-life scenarios to make warnings and advice more relevant and easy to remember.

The manga is followed by pages of text that expand on the chapter topic. These include tips on how to protect yourself, red flags to watch out for, and advice for victims. Each chapter concludes with a five-point wrap-up that summarizes the main takeaways. While not in manga format, these text portions contain illustrations and graphics that make it easier for young readers to digest.

As we all know, the Internet is a fast-changing landscape. This book is copyrighted 2025, and included in its list of popular social media is TikTok, which, as of the writing of this review, is at risk of being banned in the United States. However, the basic advice and skills outlined in the book are applicable across the spectrum of social media platforms.

Introductory chapters are printed in color. The rest of the book is in black-and-white. While there is much discussion about sex crimes and predators, the edgiest that the visuals get are teenage girl wearing a bra and a mooning prankster.

In Summary

If you are giving a child their first smartphone, you may consider giving them this book as well. With artwork and characters aimed toward a preteen audience, this manga can help guide family discussions about safe and appropriate smartphone use and even raise topics parents are unaware of. And even though it is designed to educate children, the book can be useful for anyone unfamiliar with technology and social media. (I personally know senior citizens who would benefit from reading the identity theft chapter!)

First published at The Fandom Post.

Graphic Novel Review: This Beautiful, Ridiculous City

New York City is the subject of many works, and artist Kay Sohini has turned her love for the city into a graphic memoir, This Beautiful, Ridiculous City. Read on for the review.

Back Cover Blurb

On her first night in New York City, Kay Sohini sits on the tarmac of JFK Airport making an inventory of everything she’s left behind in India: her family, friends, home, and gaslighting ex-boyfriend. In the wake of that untethering she realizes two things: she’s finally made it to the city of her literary heroes—Kerouac, Plath, Bechdel—and the trauma she’s endured has created gaping holes in her memory.

As Kay begins the work of piecing herself back together she discovers the deep sense of belonging that can only be found on the streets of New York City. In the process she falls beautifully, ridiculously in love with the bustling landscape, and realizes that the places we love do not always love us back but can still somehow save us in weird, unexpected ways. 

The Review

Kay Sohini has always daydreamed about New York City from her middle-class Calcutta suburb. At the age of 24, she finally makes the leap to New York. Partly pursue a PhD in English, partly to put an abusive relationship behind her. And amidst the city’s chaotic bustle, she finds healing and a place to belong.

This Beautiful, Ridiculous City is subtitled A Graphic Memoir, so the narrative is in first person. There’s no dialogue or scenes, just a lot of prose with sentences that tend to get overly long. The text is formatted into blocks that are arranged into accompanying illustrations, most of which take up a full page or two pages. The art style varies depending on the theme, but for the most part, illustrations are richly colored and digitally rendered. At certain points, photographs are inserted amid the drawings. The quality of the paper, binding, and printing are all top-notch.

Visually, the book is gorgeous, but in terms of written content, it’s all over the place. The contents consist of six chapters. “Chapter 1: New York before New York” is essentially Sohini fangirling over literature, specifically New York literature. “Chapter 2: The Nineties, the New Millennium, and a Postcolonial Nation” describes the cultural, social, and economic backdrop against which she grew up, which is helpful for those unfamiliar with India. In “Chapter 3: Clementines, Because in Bengali, We Do Not Say, ‘I Love You’,” she describes at length the various foods her family ate before concluding with an abrupt account of her grandfather’s death. “Chapter 4: A Death and a Disappearing Act” explores her dysfunctional relationship with her abusive ex-boyfriend. “Chapter 5: New York, New York” is Sohini fangirling over the city’s energy, architecture, landmarks, and diverse foods. “Chapter 6: A Room of One’s Own in This Beautiful, Ridiculous City” is a commentary about housing and the challenges to home ownership in New York.

As a life narrative, the book comes across as guarded and disconnected. Sohini is enthusiastic about sharing the details of the books she loves in Chapter 1, the foods she loves in Chapter 3, and the city she loves in Chapter 5. She is much less generous about relationships with family and friends. Beyond a description of the dishes her grandmother made to spoil her, we don’t get any sense of how Sohini interacted with relatives. It’s not until Chapter 6 that she mentions she grew up in a four generation household of 14. Also, the narrative might lead you to think she’s an only child, except for a single offhanded mention of an estranged sibling midway through the book, and she doesn’t even bother mentioning the sibling’s gender. She talks more about the Indian superstar Shah Rukh Khan than she does about the husband she met and married in New York. As such, when she mentions the huge personal impact of grandfather’s death at the end of Chapter 3, it seems to come out of nowhere.

Her personal journey from brokenness to healing also comes across as unbalanced. She goes into extreme depth about how her manipulative boyfriend destroyed her sense of self in Chapter 4, but she spends scant time sharing how she healed from it. Despite her refrain about arriving in America with holes in her memory, once in New York, the narrative’s all about how awesome the city is rather than the process of filling those memory holes.

As such, the book comes across more like social commentary and essays with bits of Sohini’s personal experiences woven in. If you love all things New York City, you’ll probably enjoy her gushing. However, keep in mind that the book contains as much content about India as New York.

By the way, Sohini supports her commentaries with quotes and periodical headlines, but her one chart in the section about disparity in home ownership makes no mathematical sense. The bar chart shows “Percentage of Statewide Owner-Occupied Units” by race. If you add the percentages for Asian, Black, Latino, and White, you get 175%. If you include Other, the total goes up to 200%.

In Summary

The illustrations are vibrant, but the writing not so much. The book is supposed to be a memoir, but Sohini is stingy with the details of her life. As such, it ends up being more social commentary and a laundry list of what she loves about New York City rather than a record of a unique life lived.

First published in The Fandom Post.

Manga Review: The Revenge of My Youth Vol. #1

There’s a ton of life do-over stories on the market, whether via time slip, reincarnation, or isekai. One Peace Books‘s The Revenge of My Youth takes the time slip route. Read on for my review of Volume 1.

Back Cover Blurb

Shin’ichiro Niihama works at a job he hates, for a company with no morals, under a boss who detests him. After years of corporate abuse, one day he collapses. He wakes, only to find―he’s returned to his high school self! Reunited with his once lost mother, Shin’ichiro realizes he’s leapt back in time. Given a second chance at high school, he vows to do things right this time. Most importantly, he must get close to the girl he always wished he knew better, Haruka Shijoin, to prevent the tragedy that awaits her!

The Review

Shinichiro Niihama is overworked, unappreciated, and has nothing but regrets about how he’s lived his life. So when he collapses beneath the abuse of his employer and wakes up 14 years in the past as his high school self, he vows to make things right this time. Especially in regards to his teenage crush, Haruka Shijoin.

The market is saturated with this premise: a middle-aged person suffering an awful existence gets to redo life via reincarnation, time slip, or transport to another world. The angle this particular story takes is an overworked corporate drone who collapses and inexplicably wakes up as his high school self. The only supernatural aspect of the plot is Niihama traveling back in time with his memories intact. There are no other time leaps, no magic, and no special abilities.

Having received this opportunity, he sets two goals. One: get the college education he never achieved to increase his career prospects and avoid the exploitative employers of his previous life. Two: avert the untimely death of the girl he idolized, Haruka Shijoin.

On the surface, Shijoin and Niihama are polar opposites. Niihama’s father died, leaving his mother a single parent and the family strapped for cash. Niihama’s also an introvert and easily intimidated. As his one friend quips, he’s on the bottom of the social ladder. On the other hand, Shijoin’s beautiful, from a rich family, and has a friendly personality. However, both share a love for light novels, and both suffer the abuse of bullies.

While Niihama pretty much fits the profile of a bully’s victim, Shijoin gets targeted by girls jealous of her beauty. And though all the boys want her as a girlfriend, any who dares approach her risks the wrath of her many admirers. Thus, Shijoin winds up isolated. The dynamic continues to her adult years, and ultimately she breaks down and takes her life at age 25.

Thus, Niihama throws himself into his studies to achieve Goal 1. Because he retains knowledge and skills of his past life, it works to his advantage academically. Moreover, his 30-year-old perspective helps him take on confrontations that previously destroyed him. Without intending to, he goes from bottom-feeder to the top half of the social ladder.

As for Goal 2, his key to attaining it is the fact that Niihama and Shijoin volunteer together as school library assistants. Instead of letting insecurity keep him silent, this time he makes the effort to talk to Shijoin at critical moments. His intentions are to build her confidence and self-esteem against the mental damage caused of her bullies. Not only does it work, the two start getting close. However, because Niihama had zero romantic experience in his previous life, dating doesn’t cross his mind. It’s up to his younger sister Kanako (whose reactions and commentary are hilarious) to push him to strive for being more than a “friend.”

So our protagonist gets ahead thanks to the awful experiences of his previous life. At the same time, he is having an innocent high school romance. I’m not sure who the target audience is for this series, but this former corporate cog is enjoying it so far.

The first page is printed in color. The artwork is clean, the characters are cute, and the expressions are on point. No fan service thus far; everyone looks and is dressed appropriately for their age and station. The font is fairly tiny, and there are several places with missing punctuation.

In Summary

This manga isn’t as aggressive as the title makes it sound. Rather than “Revenge of My Youth,” it’s more like “Redemption of a Corporate Slave’s Youth.” And “Re-Life” makes it sound like the angelic girl is a new element, but she was always in our introverted protagonist’s world. It’s just that this time regret motivates him to actually talk to her and set in motion a romance he missed the first time around.

First published at the Fandom Post.

Manga Review: A Sinner of the Deep Sea Vol. 2

Fairy tale retellings are a favorite genre of mine, and A Sinner of the Deep Sea brings a modern, very non-Disney twist on The Little Mermaid. Read on for the review of Volume 2. (For more reviews from this series, click here.)

Back Cover Blurb

Jo is willing to go to any length for Ryuu, even if the whole undersea society brands her a criminal for it. And Ryuu wants to see her beloved human again, so Jo will make it happen—but that means flopping out of the water and into the horrid world above the waves…

The Review

Whereas Volume 1 took a leisurely pace, a ton happens in Volume 2 and quickly. Just as in the original Little Mermaid story, there is a way for merfolk to become human. Only it’s not the lovestruck Ryuu who gets legs. Rather, Jo unwittingly triggers the transformation on herself, leading to a nail-biting race to get to the surface.

Conveniently enough, Ryuu’s love interest Yuki happens to be where Jo makes landfall. Thus her adventures on land begin. The human world is represented by modern-day Japan, and Jo’s struggle to get used to legs and human technology is engaging as well as her interactions with Yuki. However, she has no interest in staying on land – her goal is to reunite Ryuu with Yuki. But even though Jo and Yuki are intent on rescuing Ryuu, hints of attraction quickly pop up between the two, which points to a possible love triangle.

I expected Jo’s sojourn on land to last a while, but she’s back in the water within two days, thanks to an unexpected run-in with someone from her past. Maya’s a merfolk security agent. He’s also violent and a sexual predator, who has no qualms about groping a 13-year-old girl. Unlike the straight-laced Captain Akira, he sees his authority as a means of getting what he wants, and he’s got his sights on making Jo his.

In addition to giving readers a character to despise, Maya also reveals that merfolk agents have been sneaking ashore in human guise for some time. Moreover, a top merfolk official is aiming to do more than move secretly among humans. Thus, by the end of Volume 2, the plot swiftly expands beyond a romance between a lovesick mermaid and a human to a scheme that could change the world of merfolk as they know it.

Extras include translation notes.

In Summary

There is excitement and intrigue aplenty as Jo first winds up a mermaid out of water, then encounters the worst sort of mermen walking on land. In trying to save Ryuu, Jo’s stumbled into all sorts of merfolk classified secrets. It’s one hard-hitting surprise after another in Volume 2 of A Sinner of the Deep Sea.

First published at The Fandom Post.

Manhwa Review: A Business Proposal Vol. 7

Lots of Korean web comics and web fiction are successfully making the jump from the Internet to traditional media nowadays. One of these is A Business Proposal. Read on for the review of Volume 7 of the manhwa. (For other reviews of the series, click here.)

Back Cover Blurb

The new executive is the talk of the office―she’s capable, beautiful…and she used to date Taemu?! When Hari learns that Director Suhjin Chae has quite a history with her boyfriend, she’s thrown into panic and insecurity. Is this the beginning of a messy office love triangle, or is it just one big misunderstanding?

The Review

Now that Secretary Yoon has been scared off from pursuing Hari, a new arrival starts causing tension between Hari and Taemu. Meet Suhjin Chae. Characters describe her as the female version of Taemu, and she pretty much is Taemu with long hair and slightly thinner eyebrows. Because she’s nearly as tall as the CEO and only wears pants and button-down shirts, she gives off a very masculine vibe. Thus, when she appears as a new director in the office, both men and women – Hari included – go nuts over her. However, Hari’s feelings get complicated when she hears a rumor that Taemu and Suhjin used to date.

It’s pretty clear from Taemu’s prickly attitude toward Suhjin and Suhjin’s affectionate attitude toward Hari that Suhjin is never a real threat to the Taemu-Hari relationship. However, Suhjin does like to tease. In doing so, she pushes both halves of our main couple along. Hari, who’s still unwilling to tell people she’s dating the CEO, takes a firm stance when Suhjin’s antics go too far. Then Suhjin gets Taemu jealous by hanging out with Hari in a way he can’t because their dating relationship isn’t yet public knowledge.

Overall, Suhjin is a fine addition to the cast. She’s as intense and capable as Taemu but not nearly as grumpy, and she’s much better at interpersonal relationships. And though nothing’s official yet, her interactions with the heartbroken Mr. Yoon hints that sparks may soon fly between them.

The volume wraps up with the Sungwoon company sports tournament. In other words, it’s an opportunity for our characters to get out of their usual business wear and get physical in sports attire. It is also a chance for them to get competitive about more things than one.

Extras include translation notes.

In Summary

A charismatic new executive arrives to shake the boat known as Hari and Taemu’s relationship. Suhjin Chae’s not your standard rival-type character, but she is certainly a catalyst for sparking jealousy in Hari and Taemu both! Hari’s stance on the topic of marriage/going public about dating Taemu hasn’t yet changed, but it’s crumbling fast.

First published at the Fandom Post.

Manga Review: Bride of the Barrier Master Vol. 3

Bride of the Barrier Master has one of those “the fate of the nation depends on this elite magical group” settings. However, it’s less about the accomplishments of this group and more about how our underdog heroine abruptly surges from below average to far above. Read on for the review of Volume 3. For other reviews of this series, click here.

Back Cover Blurb

Hana has kept her recently emerged powers a secret from her condescending family. However, the new head of the clan, the beautiful and powerful Saku Ichinomiya, makes Hana into his bride to help strengthen the barrier of a pillar that protects Japan. Now, Hana’s powers are being tested by Saku’s family, and she’s even met with harassment at school!

The Review

Volume 3 opens a new arc, introducing new characters and new problems. After a brief seaside excursion (mainly to provide readers an update on the status of our main couple’s relationships with each other and their shikigami), the Association of Practitioners Headquarters gets infiltrated! The shadowy organization, The Skull of Nirvana, makes off with a collection of dangerous talismans (and conveniently leaves a calling card so they know who did it). This supposed major crisis doesn’t actually take center stage; rather, it serves to introduce the existence of the Nijouin clan to provide context for the newest members of the cast.

Meet twins Kikyou and Kiriya, grandchildren of Nijouin clan head. But even though Kiriya is the more capable of the two, the one doing all the talking and action is his sister Kikyou. She has a crush on Saku, and having heard about his marriage to Hana, she’s determined to break them up.

Thus, this volume is mostly a reprise of the “The Ichise washout isn’t worthy of the Ichinomiya head” theme. Except this latest opposition is condensed into one shrill individual with no self-awareness. The nation might be threatened by the loss of dangerous talismans, but these chapters focus on this spoiled rich girl’s efforts to oust Hana as a bride.

So plenty of teen drama but not many supernatural battles in this installment. Kikyou struck me as somewhat irritating in the light novel, but the manga version of her is truly annoying. Which might be fine if she was a one-off character, but Hana accepting her as a friend after her nonstop displays of whining and selfishness makes me question Hana’s judgment.

Because a ton of new elements (the Skull of Nirvana, talismans, the Nijouin clan, etc.) enter the story, they are accompanied by a ton of information. In other words, the panels are packed to the point of getting cramped in this volume.

Extras include an afterword and bonus story.

In Summary

Volume 3 brings in new characters, but the same storyline of Hana-can’t-possibly-be-good-enough-for-Saku. This time, the one challenging her is Kikyou, a candidate to be the head of the Nijouin clan. However, she is less a matched rival and more a tiresome brat who can’t even fight her own battles as she attempts to oust Hana as the lady of the Ichinomiya clan.

First published at the Fandom Post.