Two of our favorite recent manga from VIZ Media have new issues out today, and we’re here to tell you whether the series—Kagurabachi and You and I Are Polar Opposities—continue to live up to their previous volumes! Plus, we’ve got review of recent releases of Tearmoon Empire, Honey Lemon Soda, and—just in time for MerMay, In the Name of the Mermaid Princess. And much, much more!

Before the Tutorial Starts: A Few Things I Can Do to Keep the Bosses Alive (Vol. 2) • Giant Killing (Vols. 6-9) • Kagurabachi (Vol. 3) • Honey Lemon Soda (Vol. 8) • In the Name of the Mermaid Princess (Vol. 5) • The Person I Loved Asked Me to Die in My Sister’s Stead (Vol. 2) • Tearmoon Empire (Vol. 6) • Villains Are Destined to Die (Vol. 7) • You and I Are Polar Opposites (Vol. 5)

Giant Killing, Manga Vols. 6-9

Defeating Nagoya and its hated Coach Fuwa exorcised a lot of demons for both the players and fans of East Tokyo United. The team is still far from being a genuinely strong one in mindset or on-field results, however, and just as the momentum from their cathartic win wears off, ETU finds themselves staring down the barrel of the Osaka Gunners. Playing a relentless offensive style which both piles up goals and mentally overwhelms opponents, first-place Osaka doesn’t simply defeat other teams—it psychologically destroys them. And off the field, ETU’s first taste of success in years has started to bring back old fans back to the stadium. As great as that is, there are some worrying signs for the future in the bleachers. ETU’s ultras see these returnees as entitled fair-weather supporters, and the small but growing number of returning old-timers are starting to see the ultras as a bunch of punks who act as if they own the place… Call it strange, but in the sports series I’ve tried before, the least interesting part of the story is usually the sport itself. The matches are crucial drivers of the rest of the plot, of course, but ask me to watch or read a scripted game for too long and my eyes tend to glaze over and I start skimming. So asking me to stay invested for a single soccer match that goes on for about three full volumes of material is a tall order. And yet, writer Tsunamoto Masaya and artist Tsujimoto pulled it off because of two key factors: First, the large cast is handled expertly, so I can easily keep track of each major character. I never have to stop and ask, “Wait, who is this guy and what’s his deal again?” Second, they hide and foreshadow the twists of each major match with finesse. When Tatsumi unveils his strategies at climactic moments, it feels real rather than as a half-baked excuse for East Tokyo United to turn the tables because the plot demands it. Sure, every event in every manga is “scripted” and “predetermined” in some way if you stop and think about it, but Giant Killing is selling the illusion of unpredictability better than most. ~ WacOtaku

Giant Killing is published by Kodansha.

^{_{READ Reviews of Giant Killing: Vols. 1-3 // Vols. 4-5}}

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Honey Lemon Soda, Manga Vol. 8

Uka and Kai have both confessed their feelings! Now they’re officially a couple! Or are they—because what does it mean to date? Uka might have thought the hardest part was making her feelings known, but figuring out what dating is might be tricky all on its own too! Wonderful, wonderful volume! I was so excited to see that things picked up right where volume seven ended and that volume eight jumped right into exciting developments! Though, oh my goodness! Can people please leave our couple alone?! Ugh! If there was anything frustrating about this volume, it is that there is always someone who has something to say! I don’t know how many times I just wanted to yell, “Shut up already and leave them be!” Our girl Uka doesn’t need that kind of negativity in her life! She is trying to grow every. single. day. and doesn’t need anyone raining on her parade simply because someone feels she isn’t pretty enough or good enough to stand by Kai’s side! Girl is giving her all, and I am immensely proud of her and how she is growing! And good job to her for telling those teachers to watch her grow because, yes, watch her grow rather than use her for an ad for your school! You definitely aren’t genuinely caring for her well-being as you only care about how her slightly lower grades will affect your overall school’s image. Ugh! While I am over the moon about all the amazing romance, I confess I really loved seeing Kai showing all kinds of expressions, including a blushy one! He has really expressed himself more verbally, and I feel I have been thriving! Plus it was awesome to see how much he likes Uka, as he wants to tell everyone so! He is just as in love with her as she is with him! Really excited to see what happens next, even though I’m not too happy about an interloper coming in to cause problems. Like, no, please don’t. However, I know our leads are rock solid despite what anyone may say! Cheers to more exciting romantic developments in the next volume! ~ Laura A. Grace

Honey Lemon Soda is published by Yen Press.

READ Reviews of Honey Lemon Soda: Vol. 1 // Vol. 2 // Vol. 3 // Vol. 4 // Vol. 5 // Vol. 6

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The Person I Loved Asked Me to Die in My Sister’s Stead, Manga Vol. 2

Picking right up where volume one ended, Lady Wisteria quickly discovers that her new “guest” in the Predawn Realm is no other than Bright’s son, Lloyd! And he’s determined that Wisteria will be his new master and teach him all there is to know about magic in this world! How will Wisteria be able to teach someone who has the same face as the man she loved? I am quite impressed with this second volume! I still enjoyed the first volume more because I deeply love Irene’s character and admire how strong she was to make the decisions she did, but I never imagined that Lloyd’s backstory would be just as saddening as Irene’s! His character was deeply fleshed out, and I was shocked by a scene near the end and how “done” he was! I also am very surprised that with everything that happened in the past (from when Irene was there), Lloyd is almost looked down upon by his parents? I’m not quite sure what it is, but he doesn’t seem nearly as loved as his siblings, even though you can quickly tell that his siblings view him with so much love and admiration. I could not help but smile when I saw the smiles they gave Lloyd, because his parents didn’t seem to extend that to him, especially his father. I am unsure of where this series is going to go. I feel volume one focused on Irene and volume two on Lloyd. Will volume three focus on them both? There hasn’t been any romance before now, but I think how Irene treated Lloyd is impacting him in a greater way than either one of them anticipated. At this point, I truly want both of them to be happy, and that wasn’t something I wanted for Lloyd before now! Though, regardless of what happens with the romance, I need Sart to stay around and be his typical grumpy self! Ha! I have loved seeing his and Irene’s relationship so much in this volume! Definitely recommend reading this volume if you want to get to know the real Lloyd! ~ Laura A. Grace

The Person I Loved Asked Me to Die in My Sister’s Stead is published by TokyoPop.

READ The Person I Loved Asked Me to Die in My Sister’s Stead Vol. 1 Review

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In the Name of the Mermaid Princess, Manga Vol. 5

Mio’s adventures to meet Prince Chika continue, and with this volume, she has finally arrived at his kingdom! However, why is Prince Chika not at the castle, and why is her father there instead? Will her journey have been in vain, and will she be able to accept the real feelings she might have for another? I think this has been my favorite volume because of the emotional roller coaster Mio has been on when it comes to matters of the heart.  Granted, it’s been a very emotional journey in general thus far, but I think this volume really helped us to see into Mio’s heart when it comes to her feelings for Yuri/Chika. Maybe that sounds “shallow” compared to how inspiring previous volumes have been in Mio’s fight to bring justice for the unhumans, but there was something personal about this volume I think? We see her feelings of friendship and how those feelings Yuri/Chika have grown for into something so much more, as well as how she has to deal with the “fallout” of when her feelings are in the open. Plus, this volume has the moment we’ve been waiting for! I won’t expand on that because that would be a spoiler, but my heart hurt so much for Mio. Finding out the truth was hard, and I’m really unsure of what’s going to happen next, though the preview of the next volume leads me to believe that there is going to be even more heartache in Mio’s future. *sobs* However, she has continuously fought for those she cares for, and I know that will continue! When it comes to the worldbuilding, the new country Mio and the gang visited has been my ultimate favorite place! I loved it so much and definitely wish I could visit there! Lastly, when it comes to favorite characters, I love Mio, but I have really really loved seeing Prince Daibu grow as a character! He has been so fun, and I really liked that short story about him! Definitely excited he has joined the ever-growing entourage! Another wonderful volume! I can’t wait to read the next one! ~ Laura A. Grace

In the Name of the Mermaid Princess is published by Shojo Beat.

READ In the Name of the Mermaid Princess Reviews: Vol. 1 // Vol. 2 // Vol. 3 // Vol. 4

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Tearmoon Empire, Manga Vol. 6

Mia realizes that the dispute on the border could be a huge turning point in whether the future will repeat, with her demise in sight, or if future events will change and she’ll have a better “ending.” She has an idea of what she could do to help the dispute from escalating, but when she faces the very man that was in charge of her execution, can she overcome her fear in order to help prevent a war from breaking out? Hilarious volume! Granted, every volume has been really funny, but having Mia around the very man who took her head in the previous timeline makes her have some extreme facial expressions reflecting fear, and how could she not?! I would have been terrified as well! However, like with other characters, he soon begins to misunderstand everything Mia does and is now willing to support her. Ha! The narrator of course does an epic job showing all of this through peak snark makes it all the funnier! Plus, Dion is a really interesting character, and I liked how different he is compared to everyone we’ve met thus far? He is not “soft,” nor does he view nobles in any positive way, which creates even more tension between him and Mia due to her fear of him. I don’t think he’ll ever “mellow” out, but I’m definitely interested in seeing more of him in (hopefully) upcoming volumes! Overall, really enjoyable volume! I read this one so fast and am bummed I’ll have to wait a bit for the next one! Ha! ~ Laura A. Grace

Tearmoon Empire is published by J-Novel Club & Yen Press.

^{READ Reviews of Tearmoon Empire Vol. 1 // Vol. 2 // Vol. 3 // Vol. 4 // Vol. 5} 

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Villains Are Destined to Die, Manhwa Vol. 7

Once again, there is never a dull moment from Penelope! From Callisto “stealing” a kiss(?) to help keep her from drowning, to Eckles’ love meter at 99%, to her coming-of-age ceremony on the horizon, she is once again faced with many decisions in her quest to avoid her demise. However, with Eckles a sure shot to be at 100%, Penelope pours her time and effort into making certain Eckles says he loves her. I went from “I’m living my best life reading this!” to “I’m going to cry myself to sleep tonight…” What an emotional roller coaster this volume was! Those Callisto moments were everything! There is so much I want to say because of how good it was, but that would be a major spoiler. Just know, though—if you ship Penelope and Callisto, then you are in for a treat! Seeing Callisto genuinely smile and seem so happy around Penelope made my heart so happy, but then Callisto said something, which led to Penelope feeling something, and then slowly but gradually I felt my heart starting to break. But then Eckles basically made us fall off an emotional cliff because his actions were completely devastating. I have no words, because even though we got to see things from his POV for the briefest of moments, I never imagined he would turn on Penelope in the way he did. I’m definitely angry, though! Truly, there were some very good moments that I had been hoping for, but that last chapter was so tragic for Penelope that it’s like any happiness I felt vanished. Even when I was flipping through the volume again, I went from feeling really happy to wanting to cry on Penelope’s behalf. There are pages of her I never want to see of my faves, yet here we are. I hate the foreshadowing that seemed heavily implied, because my girl deserves nothing but happiness. Definitely an amazing volume, but it has so much pain for Penelope. I really hope there is something more hopeful for her in the next volume because I need her to smile once again. *sobs* ~ Laura A. Grace

Villains Are Destined to Die is published by IZE Press.

READ Reviews of Villains Are Destined to Die: Vol. 1 // Vol. 2 // Vol. 3 // Vol. 4 // Vol. 5 // Vol. 6

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Before the Tutorial Starts: A Few Things I Can Do to Keep the Bosses Alive, Light Novel Vol. 2

After a fun and brisk opening, volume two of Before the Tutorial Starts is slower, longer, and unfortunately not nearly as compelling. After connecting with a goddess and saving Haruka Aono from certain death, Kyouchirou continues life as an adventurer as he pursues his twin goals of keeping those he cares about in the game safe and growing into more than his character was made to be. The dialogue is fluffy and the action is repetitive, but those aspects were fine and even fun in the first volume where the plot moved swiftly, as if Kyouchirou and the book itself hadn’t a care in the world. But when your second volume is considerably longer and the story is—without the aid of character and story introductions that naturally accompanied the opening salvo—forgettable, you’re left with a book that’s a trudge to get through, even with admittedly fun and often charming dialogue. But dialogue only gets you so far in a fantasy adventure series, and when the “fantasy” and “adventure” aren’t very engaging, then what’s left is simply a tale, one’s that boring and no better than average. ~ Twwk

Before the Tutorial Starts: A Few Things I Can Do to Keep the Bosses Alive is published by Yen Press.

Read Before the Tutorial Starts: A Few Things I Can Do to Keep the Bosses Alive Vol. 1 Review

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You and I Are Polar Opposites, Manga Vol. 5

This manga is too cute. I love it so much! But not just because it’s cute—and again, there’s plenty of that with Christmas Eve dates and the “will they or won’t they kiss” storyline for Tani and Suzuki in this volume. What draws me in equally as much is just how well the characters are written. Tani is reserved but kind, a characteristic that Suzuki sees in him. He’s growing too, in small and often invisible ways that introverts would understand very well. Suzuki, too, isn’t just a gyaru, nor is she a simple genki girl; she is full of humility, anxiety, and all sorts of other characteristics that make her a well-rounded character. The supporting friends are also full of life and realism. Taira, to me, is one of the most interesting characters in any romcom I’ve read; he is so full of worries and middle school trauma that he overthinks every situation. His thoughts are played for laughs but are also presented with compassion; we “get” him and hope he’ll gain confidence as the wonderful people around Taira value him. But, somehow, he and Azuma, who I mentioned in a previous review is a character full of richness as well, work as weird friendship pieces that fit together (and who almost certainly will eventually date, if I’m reading this manga right!). In fact, the supporting cast of You and I Are Polar Opposites is as lovely as any in manga I’ve read in recent years, right up there with the incredible characters of The Fragrant Flower Blooms with Dignity. And to mention that masterfully written series in the same breath as one like this that’s supposed to more fluffy is as high a compliment as I can offer! ~ Twwk

You and I Are Polar Opposites is published by VIZ Media.

Read Reviews of You and I Are Polar Opposites: Vol. 1 // Vol. 2 // Vol. 3 // Vol. 4

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Kagurabachi, Manga Vol. 3

Kagurabachi reminds me so much of Jujutsu Kaisen—mostly in a positive way, though both share a similar weakness as well. But first, those strong points. In volume three, Chihiro looks to take back Shinuchi, the strongest of the enchanted blades, which will soon be put up for bid at a black market auction. Of course, between the secrecy of the auction, the deadly family that runs it, the guardians of the peace who have marked Chihiro as the enemy, and the mob-like group of mages who are intent on also retrieving Shinuchi, this won’t be an easy task. The energy in Kagarabachi is relentless, and the characters easy to root for. The fighting techniques are interesting and the action is nonstop. All these aspects are shared with JJK, one of the most exciting recent manga series; but also like Jujutsu Kaisen, Kagurabachi is moving too fast. And look, the series could go on for three dozen volumes—I can’t really tell how long this story will stretch out for—so it’s not really about the speed of the plot, but rather how the characters are already shrinking into the background while Chihiro’s journey of personal growth kind of seems complete already. I’m enjoying the fight scenes and the perilous tone in the series, but I would like to get to know Chihiro, his comrades, and even his enemies a little more. That said, it’s not like those flaws are going to cause me to put this series down; it’s too much fun to give up. And volume three sets volume four up for what’s likely to be an explosive confrontation, so I’m at the edge of my seat—even if I wish the seat was itself a little fuller. ~ Twwk

Kagurabachi is published by VIZ Media.

Read Reviews of Kagurabachi: Vol. 1 // Vol. 2

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“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.