Three typical slice-of-life girls arrive in the big city. There’s Himawari, the confident blond sporty one, Tsuyukusa, the sleepy-eyed, dessert-loving blue-haired one, and Tsutsuji, the reddish-pink haired one who is so normal she’s special, as befitting an MC. Only, what’s that beneath their hats? Horns?! Oh yeah, they’re oni or the demon-monsters of Japanese folk… Read More First Impression: Onipan!
A destroyed modern city. Why the destruction? I have no clue. Cut to former hero Leo Demonheart trudging through the snowy mountains to the ruin of Demon Queen Echidna’s castle. He marches into the throne room, and before her and her four great generals…applies for a job. After being summarily thrown out, Leo meets with… Read More First Impression: I’m Quitting Heroing
Wein (pronounced like “wane” rather than “wine”), crown prince of Natra, epitomizes the idea of being too smart for one’s own good. With his father the king in poor health, Wein is in charge of his small, impoverished kingdom, but in his heart of hearts, he’d much rather just live a life of laziness and… Read More First Impression: The Genius Prince’s Guide to Raising a Nation Out of Debt
The demon king has kidnapped the princess! Oh noes! The overly serious hero is working on the problem, but what’s going on with Princess Syalis in the meantime? The food is good, but she’s bored. And restless. Obviously the solution is to brush her teddy bear jailers to collect their fur, as well as borrow… Read More First Impression: Sleepy Princess in the Demon Castle
Spring shines outside as a new school year begins. Yukko Aioi, a schoolgirl of fourteen or so, is resting over her desk, groaning and grumbling. She has no motivation to do anything, she says. So Mio Naganohara, her best friend, suggests that she finds one. “But I lack motivation to do even that!” Yukko complains.… Read More Nichijou, comedic hope and my own ordinary life
Moriking is a new manga series from Shonen Jump by Tomohiro Hasegawa. The first chapter introduces elementary school student Shota Aikawa and his high school-aged sister sister, Shoko. In the first few pages, Shoko joins her brother to watch as his pet beetle Moriking begins to emerge from its pupal form. Instead of a normal… Read More Manga First Impression: Moriking
Teasing Master Takagi-San has been a joyful surprise for me. This slice-of-life school comedy about the excessively self-conscious Nishikata and his clever and humorous female deskmate, Takagi-san, is full of color and light and small moments in which I could find myself—and God—went much further than I thought it would, and really pulled me along… Read More Teasing Master Takagi-san, and an Easter after Lent