The adventures of a black cat, four stories of what it means to love, demihuman fantasy adventures, and more fill the volumes we cover on this week’s Reader’s Corner! Read our reviews of several brand new series and releases, as well as for the newest volumes of Sword Art Online: Ordinal Scale, Immortality and Punishment, and more below!
The Adventure of the Black Cat Nyango: Since I Got a Rare Attribute, I Aim to Be a Carefree Adventurer (Vol. 1) • Four in Love • Immortality and Punishment (Vol. 2) • Magical Midlifer (Vol. 2) • On the Boundary’s Road: The Works of Suzuka Morino • Sword Art Online: Ordinal Scale (Vol. 4) • Void: No. Nine (Vol. 1)
Void: No. Nine, Manga Vol. 1
Void: No. Nine is an unusual manga. Many of the visual details struck me as distinctly akin to Western comics, from the line work of the characters to the blocky layout of the panels. Were it not for the “right to left” page order and the fact that the story was first published in Japan by Kadokawa, I would have assumed it was a Western visual novel series influenced by manga, rather than the other way around. But beneath the exterior is a futuristic, postapocalyptic story akin to the works of Tsutomu Nihei (Blame!, Aposimz, etc.) in its bleak and often eerily calm setting. Reclamation City No. 9 is home to a variety of characters who risk life and limb in the ruins of the Old World; the cast is rather large, with nine workers plus their two handlers plus some friends and family, but distinct enough that I didn’t have much difficulty in telling them apart. Particular focus is given to Siang (real name Elan, but the characters use pseudonyms while at work in the ruins), a man who as a child was accidentally given into the care of a random stranger instead of his parents, thanks to a bureaucratic error when his family emigrated; and Ira (aka Itztli), who seems to have joined the search teams in order to hunt down someone he has a vendetta against. So the teams are beset by intrigue within their ranks as well as threats from “Emissaries,” beings who have somehow survived the fall of the Old World and who seem…not quite natural. The story itself works well, with a mix of plot tension and moments of humor and character against the unsettlingly quiet background. Author Shima Shinya gives us a relatively diverse cast for a manga: Besides Siang, who is depicted as gay in a “blink and you’ll miss it” moment, there are several Black characters, of whom Rain is notable for being identified as a trans man in a brief locker room scene. (Note that some readers may feel uncomfortable with how the manga shows the results of Rain’s top surgery.) Siang’s and Rain’s genders don’t really seem to impact the characters in any way so far, and the locker room scene felt a bit jarring to me, almost as if inserted into the story with little connection to what came before and after; I couldn’t help comparing it to Witch Hat Atelier, which includes a gender-diverse cast far more seamlessly and with greater impact on the plot and characters. On the whole, however, Void: No. Nine does a decent job of providing an entertaining story with a light amount of mystery and intrigue, so I’ll probably be back for volume two. ~ BtT Review Staff
Void: No. Nine is published by Yen Press.
The Adventure of the Black Cat Nyango: Since I Got a Rare Attribute, I Aim to Be a Carefree Adventurer, Manga Vol. 1
Cliché-sounding title aside, Black Cat Nyango is a relatively fun romp in volume one, with the hint of something grander in the offing. Take your typical “weakest adventurer who through the power of hard work will become the strongest” setting (which admittedly is superior to the “weakest adventurer who actually is the strongest” premise), and tweak it by throwing it into a world of anthropomorphic animals, of which “felins” (cat people) are well-known to be the wimpiest of the wimpy. Our hero Nyango (whose name I can’t help translating, with my minuscule knowledge of Japanese, as “Meow-speak” or “Meow #5″—clearly the series isn’t taking itself too seriously, and that’s a good thing) reincarnated from Japan after some high school bullies pushed him down a flight of stairs. In a world governed by the Goddess Fatima, Nyango receives a measly amount of magic and the power to make things out of…air. Yeah, not the most powerful combo, as Nyango finds when he tries to create projectiles, stepping stones, and honest-to-goodness cages out of condensed atmosphere. By and large, our hero keeps his spirits up despite his travails (and once again bullying by peers), but in a moment of desperation, he breaks one of the moral rules of the world in order to enhance his magic. (Think of it as something akin to the prohibition against eating the apple in the Garden of Eden.) This is where the story has the potential to become something greater: If there prove to be actual repercussions for his transgression, I will be very much intrigued. But that remains to be seen. Some readers may take objection to the “Goddess Fatima”: Fatima is the name of Muhammad’s daughter, whom Muslims honor (but would never worship as divine), as well as a city associated with Jesus’ mother Mary under the title Our Lady of Fatima, which Catholics use to honor her (but again, they would never worship her). At the same time, Black Cat Nyango is free from a lot of the more objectionable (and wholly unnecessary) content that stories in this genre all too often suffer from, making this in fact quite a clean and enjoyable entry. I could even see myself recommending it to my kids—while also enjoying it myself. ~ Dr. Steve
The Adventure of the Black Cat Nyango: Since I Got a Rare Attribute, I Aim to Be a Carefree Adventurer is published by Yen Press.
Sword Art Online: Ordinal Scale, Manga Vol. 4
Kirito continues looking for a way to help Asuna recover her recollections of her time in Sword Art Online, while Eiji keeps plotting to steal other players’ memories. And we finally get a glimpse of his end game, which is closely linked to his association with the virtual idol Yuna. Though I’m a fan of SAO, Ordinal Scale is not my favorite arc (nor my least favorite FWIW); but for all that, this volume pulls off the combat between Eiji and Kirito quite well. The tension is palpable, and the shifting tides of battle work well! It’s honestly rather impressive in a genre that has no lack of such scenes. And the “Extra Chapter 2” at the end of the volume covers Yuna’s time in SAO, which I don’t recall being in the anime, and which features dramatic irony in a way that borders on heartbreaking. Finally, here is the point where we find out the significance of the phrase “ordinal scale”! Good times all around—at least for the readers! ~ NegativePrimes
Sword Art Online: Ordinal Scale is published by Yen Press.
Immortality and Punishment, Manga Vol. 2
Brokenness—absolute brokenness. That’s the word that screams in my head when I think of Immortality and Punishment, the zombie thriller from Kentaro Sato. The leads in this story include a psychotic narcissist, an idol who prostitutes herself, and a child killer who, by the way, is our main protagonist. Volume two also introduces three murderous teens. It’s an insane cast—and a deeply compelling one. The zombie apocalypse that is happening is just the state of being for a series about broken—that word again—people who are trying to survive it while trapped in a love hotel. And nothing is quite as it seems; other than the hotel worker who desperately wants to save her children, you can’t trust anyone in this highly compelling series. It is graphic, frightening, ugly, and very, very good. ~ Twwk
Immortality and Punishment is published by Yen Press.
Read Immortality and Punishment Vol.1 Review
On the Boundary’s Road: The Works of Suzuka Morino, Manga
Demi-humans, if you haven’t noticed, are all the rage in manga and light novels—and have been for a number of years. In this collection of five stories, mangaka Suzuka Morino introduces his amazing art as he weaves fantasy tales that range from sweet to tragic. Some, like “Training a Griffin,” feel like they could absolutely be full-fledged series. And some stay with you long after you finish them, like the titular story. I deeply enjoyed most of the tales (“Birdcage of an Egg” was confusing and felt somewhat uninspired; it was also unsettling in the weirdest of ways), though the artwork stands out most of all. These are beautiful works—the character detail, especially, as well as the creativity in the types of and looks of the demihumans and beasts of these worlds. And to be frank, I do find demihuman characters a little off-putting in many manga, since they’re often used in romantic stories or interludes, but this volume rarely bothered me in that way. It’s a good pick for any lover of fantasy manga. ~ Twwk
On the Boundary’s Road: The Works of Suzuka Morino is published by Yen Press.
Four in Love, Hardcover
What is love to you? This is the question that Taiwanese artist and Pixar staffer Crystal Kung addresses in her deeply personal and intimate picture book, Four in One. A preface explains her own journey in love, and how each of the four stories she draws—dealing with themes like the red string of fate, online dating apps, and anti-gay violence—relates. The illustrations are absolutely breathtaking in this hardcover-bound work; each panel is a work of art in itself, with lovely details, colors, shadowing, and most importantly, beautiful expressions in the characters that speak louder than words could. The lack of words, in fact, is what helps the experience feel universal, connecting to our own hearts and emotions even if you’re like me, and haven’t experienced hardly any of the specific struggles that the characters have gone through or it’s been years since you’ve felt the way they have; I imagine those who are walking through these valleys in what’s generally considered a very challenging and lonely time for single people will relate very well. Emoting authenticity, asking challenging questions, and again, featuring lovely artwork and presented in hardcover, this is the type of work that can be placed on coffee tables and displayed proudly in homes, asking guests to open it up, experience something meaningful, and think to themselves or ask their hosts—what exactly does love mean? And I’m not sure if there’s a more important conversation to be had than that. ~ Twwk
Four in Love is published by Yen Press.
Magical Midlifer, Manga Vol. 2
Tanaka wakes up with back pain—his is a “midlifer” after all—though it couldn’t come at a worse time, as he has a new hire to train. But she’s the fearless type, which of course means that Tanaka will have to come to her rescue. Or maybe not, as his unusual group of colleagues comes to the rescue instead. It sounds like great fun, but two volumes in, Magical Midlifer feels rather uninspired. The central gag is that Tanaka doesn’t look the part of one who would support cute magical girls and be overpowered, but he is. And that’s about it. The satire quality of the series isn’t particularly strong, nor did I find much of it to be funny (though I admit I like the gruff hamster introduced in these chapters). And the mystery that takes up the final beats of this volume two? I don’t really care. Volume one had me somewhat interested, though it felt messy; volume two is tighter, but any interest I had has vanished completely. ~ Twwk
Magical Midlifer is published by Yen Press.
READ Magical Midlifer Vol. 1 Review
“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.
