“Classic” is the word for today’s Reader’s Corner as we review releases of potentially classic manga like Giant Killing and The Climber; a “visual companion” for the new anime movie based on the classic, The Lord of the Rings; and a hardcover film comic release for the classic Studio Ghibli film, Spirited Away. All that and more in this week’s column!
After the Rain (Vol. 4) • The Climber (Vol. 1) • Giant Killing (Vol. 1-3) • The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim Official Visual Companion • The Remarried Empress (Vol. 9) • Spirited Away Film Comic: All-in-One Edition
The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim Official Visual Companion
This lovely little guide is a nice, short “companion” piece for The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim, a movie that unfortunately sunk at the box office despite being very good. It has pages for seemingly every single character, location, group of people, and creature, providing artwork from the movie and otherwise, explaining who they are, and often giving background from Tolkien’s writings. It’s a fun read. Unfortunately, it’s also a little perplexing; the way it doesn’t outright give spoilers from the film while in actuality giving tons and tons of them makes me wonder when viewers are supposed to read this book—before watching, in which case they’ll be spoiled; or after, in which case it feels somewhat incomplete. Similarly confusing are the illustrations themselves; I can obviously understand those which are taken straight from the film, but the more beautiful and lavish ones, which often depict locations, left me wondering—were they drawn for the film? Were they for this book? There’s no explanation. Even so, I appreciate these wonderful illustrations and getting lost in the lore that’s explored, even if just a bit, in this work. Brian Cox’s foreword is also wondrous; hearing his voice in my head as I read it, including him saying the word “anime,” is alone worth the price of this book! ~ Twwk
The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim Official Visual Companion is published by HarperCollins.
Spirited Away Film Comic: All-in-One Edition, Manga
Although it’s structurally the same and, except for the inclusion of two pages of character introductions, designed the same, the Spirited Away film comic is much longer than those for either My Neighbor Totoro or Kiki’s Delivery Service. It’s hard to prove why, but the reason seems to be obvious: Though the film this depicts is only ten minutes longer than Kiki’s, it’s so full of fantastic frames, one after another, that this adaptation of it demands a higher page count. And so, also, the Spirited Away Film Comic is a little more absorbing than the others, doing a fairer job at drawing me in as a reader and in valuing it as a collectible work, as I could treasure these scenes that I remember so well from viewings of the movie. That said, film comics are still odd works—they’re basically paper replications of exactly what was on screen, and without the animations, sound, etc. are far inferior. Even so, Spirited Away Film Comic: All-in-One Edition is a nice introduction for elementary-age readers and an interesting collector’s item for Studio Ghibli nuts and those with great nostalgia for the early ’00s. ~ Twwk
Spirited Away Film Comic: All-in-One Edition is published by VIZ Media.
Read Studio Ghibli Film Comic Reviews: My Neighbor Totoro // Kiki’s Delivery Service
The Remarried Empress, Manhwa Vol. 9
When it comes to sharing what this volume of The Remarried Empress is about, all I can do is point to the gorgeous cover, as it “says” everything you need to know. Yes, the moment we’ve been waiting for: Navier and Heinrey’s marriage ceremony! Granted, things may be going wonderfully for Navier now, but when a fellow acquaintance’s jealousy fuels him to take matters into his own hands concerning her happiness, what will exactly happen next for these newlyweds? I always get a little bit of whiplash when reading these volumes because I’ve been keeping up with the series digitally and it’s incredible to see how much Navier has grown in later chapters! But rewinding and focusing on this volume, I have to say I’m sorry for every person who is only reading this series physically because that was a brutal way to end this volume! Even knowing what happens next, I still went and read “ahead” on the Webtoons app just to give myself some peace of mind because up to this point, the Grand Duke had been pretty great. I’m not shipping him with Navier (at all), but I’m thankful he looks out for her and deeply cares for her well-being. However! He crossed a line, and I was deeply enraged! I didn’t do it this time when I read it, but when I read the ending for the first time digitally, I jumped out of my bed and slammed my pillow against it numerous times because the shock, the betrayal, the confusion, and the misunderstanding were overwhelming! I get jealousy can make any person do dumb things, but I’m beyond angry at his actions. Easily the highlight of this volume, though, was the wedding! Navier was stunning and Heinrey was dashing! Seeing their happiness and the scene with them alone on their wedding night was wonderful! Even when Rashta tried to put Navier down and mock her in front of everyone, it couldn’t steal from my happiness! As always, a very wonderful volume that left me in a constant state of emotional whiplash, but which was totally worth it! ~ Laura A. Grace
The Remarried Empress is published by IZE Press.
READ Reviews of The Remarried Empress: Vol. 1 // Vol. 2 // Vol. 3 // Vol. 4 // Vol. 5 // Vol. 6 // Vol. 7 // Vol. 8
Giant Killing, Manga Vols. 1-3
East Tokyo United is about as hard luck of a soccer club as they come. Fans are few, the budget is tight, the roster is dysfunctional, and excitement is nil. But it wasn’t always this way. Ten years ago, the club took Japan by storm in a miracle season led by a phenomenal young player named Takeshi Tatsumi. The miracle came to an end when Tatsumi signed a Premier League contract and left for England. ETU has never been the same since, but their former star has reinvented himself in the homeland of the sport as a coach with a knack for “giant killing”—the art of engineering upsets. The club needs a coach with that skill, and East Tokyo’s prodigal son is ready to return home; however, it’s going to take a lot of work to keep this marriage of necessity from quickly ending in an ugly divorce. Tatsumi burned a lot of bridges when he left Japan, and his eccentric personality and unconventional coaching style isn’t going to make repairing them any easier. But winning can heal a lot of wounds in the world of sports… Well, here’s a surprise. I’m pretty indifferent to sports manga overall, and honestly only care about soccer when Team USA is in the World Cup, but Giant Killing managed to overcome both of those hurdles to pique my interest. Although Takeshi Tatsumi would be the main character of this series if I absolutely had to name someone for the position, what we really have here is a large ensemble cast which series writer Tsunamoto Masaya and artist Tsujitomo have managed to flesh out remarkably quickly. The story is setting itself up to be a grounded exploration of the world of professional sports, rather than the typical story of a high school club aiming for nationals. I’m not in the superfan cheering section yet, but Giant Killing has convinced me to come back for the next match. ~ WacOtaku
Giant Killing is published by Kodansha.
The Climber, Manga Vol. 1
I’m long been fascinated with mountain climbing and, more recently, free soloing. But finding a well-made movie or series that captures the sport in all its glory and danger has been almost impossible—they’re either not engaging enough or badly written (or both). The Climber, a 2008 release getting a U.S. physical release for the first time in a double-length edition, may remedy that. The titular climber seems to be Buntaro Mori, a loner who transfers into a new school after some sort of tragedy from his past; there he meets a delinquent student, Miyamoto, and a teacher, Ohnishi, who are obsessed with climbing—and Mori finds that climbing seems to be calling him too. There’s a lot to love about volume one (combining the original first two volumes), particularly the passion it makes the reader feel for rock and mountain climbing through the characters’ passion and the lovely drawings of peaks, and Miyamoto, who is a rough kids and really likable character. But it also felt a little over-the-top with its characters’ extreme reactions in some panels and uninspired too, like when a female character takes a fall on a climbing outing. I’m also not particularly intrigued by the “evil photojournalist” angle that’s part of the plot. This is a well-regarded series and has potential, but for now, I don’t see anything better than The Vertical Limit; and if that ends up being the ultimate comp for this series, well, that wasn’t a very difficult peak to summit. ~ Twwk
The Climber is published by VIZ Media.
After the Rain, Manga Vol. 4
After the Rain has a really interesting dual tone; in its most thoughtful and meaningful chapters, it’s dreamy and a little dreary as Akira and Kondo deal with the pain in their lives and the even more painful process of getting through it. And then there are the light, cheery moments that punctuate the in-between. Both are compelling—more so, honestly, than the series’ build toward a “will they or won’t they” romance, which even ages aside is obviously the wrong choice for both of them. There is some emphasis on that romantic angle in this volume as Kondo begins to hide his feelings for her in literal ways, like keeping his phone messages out of sight and, through his typical bumbling manner, keeping Akira at arm’s length. The volume is more enthralling when it just focuses on the slow burn of two people trying to figure out how to move forward. Akira’s growth is especially captivating, as we have to mostly analyze it through other people’s interactions with her, since we’re privy to so little of what’s actually on Akira’s mind. Thankfully, this volume features heavy interactions between her and her old track teammates, which push Akira to display her motions more obviously than usually does and gives us a hint as to why she ultimately left the sport. Kondo is of course way more obvious, and I appreciate that; part of the charm of the story is in how different these two souls are. I think some would say that they’re different in all ways but their hearts, which hints at the romantic connection, but I don’t really even see that as connecting them; I think they’re just two hurting people whose paths have crossed in a very profound way. Their answers are not in each other, but in determining how they’ll live their lives from now and finding a way to do so. Volume five—the final one in this series—will show us that’s true or if Jun Mayuzuki wants to somehow bring these two together romantically. ~ Twwk
After the Rain is published by Kodansha.
“Reader’s Corner” is our way of embracing the wonderful world of manga, light novels, and visual novels, creative works intimately related to anime but with a magic all their own. Each week, our writers provide their thoughts on the works they’re reading—both those recently released as we keep you informed of newly published works, and those older titles that you might find as magical (or in some cases, reprehensible) as we do.
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