Sci-fi, fantasy, horror, action, romance, isekai, and more on tap in this week’s column! WacOtaku, Negativeprimes, and Twwk jump into the latest volumes of favorites like Frieren and Laid-Back Camp and brand-new series like Moscow 2160 alike—and everything in-between. Check out our recommendations below!

Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End (Vol. 14) • Hinatsugimura • Honeko Akabane’s Bodyguards (Vol. 7) • Laid-Back Camp (Vol. 17) • Moscow 2160 (Vol. 1) • Rascal Does Not Dream of a Dear Friend • Sword Art Online Re:Aincrad (Vol. 4)

Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End, Manga Vol. 14

INTENSE. That’s the word that best describes volume fourteen of Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End, which is the most on-the-edge-of-your-seat volume of the fantasy series so far. As new characters are introduced—including the overpowered mage hunters of the Magic Special Forces and the incredibly skilled Shadow Warriors—and become enemies of our infiltrating teams, it seems possible, even likely, that important characters won’t survive this mission. Will Serie survive? What role will Denken play? And that’s not all that’s intense—a surprise encounter doesn’t leave time for joy, instead building a sense of dread as to why it’s occurring now. Oh boy. This exciting volume of Frieren is one of the best the series has produced in terms of action sequences; whereas actions scenes were a weak point for the mangaka duo earlier in the series, they now deliver the suspense and awe required. What a volume! The only problem is that the mangaka have slowed way down in their output, and it may be a long time before this amazing arc concludes. ~ Twwk

Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End is published by VIZ Media.

READ Reviews of Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End: Vol. 1 // Vol. 2 // Vol. 3 // Vol. 4 // Vol. 5 // Vol. 6 // Vol. 7 // Vol. 8 // Vol. 9 // Vol. 10 // Vol. 11 // Vol. 12 // Vol. 13

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Hinatsugimura, Manga One-Shot

Ethereal artwork, body horror, and an unfortunate lack of chills mark Hinatsugimura, the one-shot horror manga by Aki Shimizu. The mangaka sets the stage in the present time with students going missing after visiting a mountain clearing, long since declared haunted by the nearby village. One of the students is Minato, a quiet and timid young man, who survives his initial encounter and is brought to a mysterious village, where the people appear to be “patched together” and Kiriko, the “goddess” of the nearby shrine, is honored. All the trappings of a creepy tale are present here—ghostly woman, lots and lots of body horror, an ancient tale involving a woman who was wronged and a forgotten shrine, and an impending marriage to a demon. But none of it scary, perhaps in part because though this manga is rated mature, it’s a “soft” mature, if that’s possible. Decapitations aren’t drawn in gory detail, and nudity, while present, doesn’t add to the creepiness as it often does in horror material. However, I still found this one-shot to be a page-turner, not because I wondered was dreadful even would happen next, but because I found the artwork to be quite beautiful. Kiriko is drawn with a ghostly radiance, and every page is illustrated well. The story is lacking and sometimes feels disconnected, though I will say I enjoyed the characterization of both Kiriko and Minato, and thought the ending was pitch-perfect. You may not get the chills from Hinatsugimura, but if you’re looking for atmosphere and art, it might be worth it for you to pick up. ~ Twwk

Hinatsugimura is published by Yen Press.

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Honeko Akabane’s Bodyguards, Manga Vol. 7

Sojima Kodo, godfather of the Kodo Yakuza Gang, just dropped a series of bombshells on Arakuni Ibuki—and the simple fact that he’s still alive after being reported dead months ago was only the smallest of those revelations. After having everything he thought he knew about Honeko challenged, there’s a key piece of information that Arakuni now needs to reconfirm with Boss Jingu. One problem: The boss has been incommunicado for several days and his whereabouts are unknown. That’s deeply worrying, considering Class 3-4 is now up against a mafia family that is far more dangerous than those showboating buffoons in the Hunting Dogs and Funeral Garden gangs ever were. But finding Boss Jingu and the answers to his best friend’s tragic history just might require our hero to face something from his own painful past… As important as this volume is in terms of the overarching story of Honeko Akabane’s Bodyguards, I can’t help but feel frustrated at a bad case of tonal whiplash which undermines the impact. Two crucial chapters dealing with a pair of crimes and tragedies that set this story into motion are immediately followed with a fanservice-centric waterpark chapter. I know this series is built around gleefully embracing the ridiculous contradiction of pairing over-the-top high school romcom hijinks and slick shonen battle manga action, but this volume bounces between them a little too quickly. I think there should have been a “breather” chapter to reset the emotional tone a bit more naturally. I still enjoyed this volume, but I am also underwhelmed with how it handled such an important piece of the plot. ~ WacOtaku

Honeko Akabane’s Bodyguards is published by Kodansha.

READ Reviews of Honeko Akabane’s Bodyguards: Vol. 1 //Vol.2 // Vol. 3 // Vol. 4 // Vol. 5 // Vol. 6

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Rascal Does Not Dream of a Dear Friend, Light Novel

Well, friends, it’s been a long journey. Yes, we’ve come to the end of the Rascal series. Alas, all good things must come to an end. For Rascal has always been about adolescence, a time that is intense yet fleeting. And that’s the crux of this final act of the story: Sakuta, now fully grown and entering the world of adults, must face a final choice—to hang onto his conviction of the reality of adolescence syndrome, or to reject it forever. And each choice is fraught with loss: If Sakuta keeps grasping onto adolescence syndrome (a conviction which, after all, kicked off the entire story), the world he knows and loves, with all the relationships he holds dear, will be lost under the reality-distorting effect of the same syndrome. But if he rejects it, though the world will return to its proper state, he runs the risk of losing all of the memories and relationships that were built on his experience of adolescence syndrome in the first place. (I’m omitting a lot to avoid spoilers, but this is the gist of his dilemma.) And this catch-22 is itself a kind of image of growing up: Peter Pan must leave Neverland, and run the risk of forgetting about his friends and adventures there; Christopher Robin must leave Winnie the Pooh alone in the Hundred Acre Wood; and Emma from The Promised Neverland must…well, that would be a huge spoiler for the manga, but if you know, you know. The point is, a young person cannot remain in adolescence indefinitely, but moving forward inevitably entails loss. How is Sakuta—how are we—to reconcile this? For Sakuta (and I don’t think it’s too much of a spoiler to say this), his answer is beautiful; without giving too much away, I can say that it includes finding a new way of relating to adolescence syndrome, not experiencing it himself but helping others who might be experiencing it. There’s a beautiful line at the end where a young woman (of course) tells him of her unusual experiences and wonder whether he can understand her, to which Sakuta responds that he can’t experience the same thing—but he does believe her nonetheless. His role in life is now to help others who are wandering through the same maze that he has survived. And that, in a nutshell, is an insightful glimpse of what being an adult means. 10/10 for this beautiful end to a lovely series, and goodbye to a Dear Friend. ~ Dr. Steve

Rascal Does Not Dream of a Dear Friend is published by Yen Press.

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Sword Art Online Re:Aincrad, Manga Vol. 4

The present volume finishes Pina’s arc and opens the Griselda murder mystery arc. If you’ve seen the anime, you know that these are some of the more intriguing moments of early SAO, as various characters exploit the nature of the game world to subvert and surpass others’—and our—expectations. The background of world has been set up by now, but we’re not yet into the heavier, longer-lasting plot beats (which I mark as starting with the introduction of Yui’s character). This manga plays the stories almost beat for beat the way the anime does, which just occasional moments of switching things up in very minor ways. For me, as an SAO aficionado, the most novel part was the addition at the end of some of Pina’s backstory, which wasn’t presented in as much detail in the anime. So as with previous volumes of Re:Aincrad, there’s something here for both newcomers to SAO and old-timers who still have a soft spot for the series in their hearts. ~ NegativePrimes

Sword Art Online Re:Aincrad is published by Yen Press.

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Moscow 2160, Light Novel Vol. 1

In the mid 20th century, the USSR won the space race, and two hundred years later the Cold War is alive and well. Such is the alternate historical setting of Moscow 2160, the gritty story of Danila Kragin. A former street orphan, Danila is a “Janitor” tasked with cleaning up messes (read “inconvenient people”) for anyone who will pay him, criminals or KGB alike. The only people close to him are his adopted siblings, his sex worker girlfriend Stasia, and the locals who help him find or offload goods in the underworld. As the story alternates between present and flashback, we see Danila rise from a desperate orphan to one of the best at what he does (though he periodically reminds us that he is easily replaceable to those who hire him), crossing paths and blows with the mafia, rival government agencies, and a defector to the West. This is low-key sci-fi; there is not much sign of technological progress in this futuristic Soviet dystopia apart from cyborgs. The story is well-written, and the localization team has done an excellent job making it a smooth and enjoyable read. Be advised that it does contain blood and guts, sweaty sex, and a two-page color spread that made me glad no one was looking over my shoulder. Yet in the midst of this bleak and dark world, there are the barest hints of spiritual light: Though it’s not the main focus of the plot, Danila tentatively makes his way from dismissing the idea of God to believing at least in the human Jesus and St. Barbara, and eventually making an “If you’re there, please hear me” kind of prayer. The author has also (as far as I can tell) actually done serious research into Soviet history, culture, and language, as well as Eastern Orthodox Christianity. So there’s enough going for this story to appeal to those who can put up with or overlook its other content. ~ Dr. Steve

Moscow 2160 is published by Yen Press.

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Laid-Back Camp, Manga Vol. 17

Absence makes the heart grow fonder—how true that feels for me toward the Laid-Back Camp, which drops its first release in a year with volume seventeen. But it was worth the wait—oh was it worth it! Not that there’s anything monumental in the new issue—no one gets into a relationship, nor are new characters introduced. That’s obviously not the style of this comfy slice-of-life series. But as Nadeshiko, Ena, and Ema continue their Gunma trip, all that’s so wonderful about this series comes to light—the quirky and wonderfully lovable characters, the pleasure of seeing their food and camping excursion, and the humor of warmth of the series. Newcomers to Laid-Back Camp might read that and think that it’s another in a long line of such similar manga, but the blessing—and I would call it an absolute blessing—of reading a new volume after such a long time is that I was reminded that the series is brilliant. The characters are so cute and fun, but though the humor is similar, the characters are absolutely unique; mangaka often struggle with individualizing their characters, and it’s even harder when you have this sense of harmony among your entire group, but Afro excels in doing such, demonstrated through the challenge of pairing his uber-popular character Nadeshiko with Ena, who is generally the calmer, voice of reason, and a newer, quieter character in freshman Ema. The scenes of camping, hiking, cooking, and eating don’t just make us want to be there because of how fun (or yummy) it all looks, but because Afro adds little details that make the series feel like a really interesting guidebook in addition to a fun manga. And the humor is just so plentiful and silly, from Ena putting Ema’s hair in a crazy style to all three girls transforming into their favorite pups, this is one of the most smile-inducing manga you’ll ever read. I hope we’ll get the next volume in a shorter time, but if not, I will count my blessings that we’re getting any at all—this is a series worth waiting on. ~ Twwk

Laid-Back Camp is published by Yen Press.

READ Laid-Back Camp Reviews: Vol. 5 // Vol. 6 // Vol. 7 // Vol. 8 // Vol. 9 // Vol. 10 // Vol. 11 // Vol. 12 // Vol. 13 // Vol. 14 // Vol. 15 // Vol. 16

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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.