laceblade | Entries tagged with manga: shounen

A question for LJ people: Can someone please direct me to the post that explains how to get rid of the little white image and pop-up preview of every text link that goes to a page outside of LiveJournal? I had rectified this on my computer before I wiped it, but now it's gone back, and it's pretty annoying.

A question for anime people: I love watching Rightstuf.com, and keeping an eye on their sales. Are there other websites on the Internet that I should be watching?

Look at some sweet Scott Pilgrim art! The characters are super hero-fied. If you haven't read Scott Pilgrim yet, you totally should. Dave, I'm looking at you.

heyfoureyes linked to this in her LJ. Forgotten Detroit, a website with pictures of abandoned buildings in Detroit.

I haven't had time to read the entirety of this entry, but it's titled "Female, Muslim, and Mutant: A Critique of Muslim Women in Comic Books – Part 1 of 2," and it sounds very interesting.

( Spoilers for Tsubasa, volumes 14 and 15 )

OMG, there are so many crazy people in the public library!

I am trying to get better at dropping books that are difficult to get through, rather than forcing myself to read things. Thus, even though I only had 100 pages left in Holly Black's Tithe, I dropped it. I can't get into Shelley Jackson's Half-Life, so I'm not going to force myself to read that, either (I'll still go to Wiscon Book Club, don't worry!).

I think that part of why I grow tired with fantasy novels is that world-building makes me impatient. Sure, it's dealt with in science fiction too, but supposedly the SF genre is grounded in possibility - something that could happen - and therefore the world, however futuristic, is inextricably linked to our own.

With fantasy, it seems like more time is spent explaining societal structures like governments and schooling than I care to read at once (interpersed information is much better than infodumps, in my opinion).

Anyway.

This is partly why I find it difficult to stay wholly interested in the manga series Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle. The main characters are literally world-hopping, and each new world means another set of explanations to get through. Of course, they travel to a new world every time I get comfortable with the one I'm in. New worlds can be neat, but it's hard to care about every character, even though most of them are incarnations from previous CLAMP manga.

Of course, as soon as I am able to make sense of my mild dislike of the narrative structure of the series, I read volume 13.

( Spoilers through the end of Volume 13! )

( Spoilers for these volumes, as well as the video game Final Fantasy VII, lie behind the cut. )

Yay, Fai icon! It is simple, but I really like the line art in Tsubasa (I think my love of the line art in the xxxHolic manga goes without saying). ALSO, Fai is always smiling, and because this is CLAMP, HE IS PROBABLY TOTALLY EVIL! We'll see, though.

My boyfriend Antoine has been following the xxxHolic anime since it came out, I think. He has now excitedly read the available manga in its entirety (almost all in one day, I think. There is a reason this man is my boyfriend!). Apparently, the cross-over value increases as both xxxHolic and Tsubasa go on, because he was opposed to reading Tsubasa manga before, but has since changed his mind!

( Spoilers for these two volumes lie behind the cut )

I must get a CLAMP icon!

To see my past posts on CLAMP manga, I recommend using the tag system to your advantage!

Can I just say how much I love Del Rey's publishing style? I wish that their manga wasn't so expensive ($10.95/volume). Their post-volume character guides, cultural notes, and cross-over notes are absolutely fantastic. Also, their honorifics guide at the beginning of each volume is stellar. Huge props to Del Rey!

Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle

This will mostly be squee. References (but not particularly spoilery things) are made to the series Cardcaptor Sakura, X, Chobits, Legend of Chun Hyang, and xxxHolic.

( Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle notes )

xxxHolic

This will mostly be squee. References (but not particularly spoilery things) are made to the series Cardcaptor Sakura, Chobits, and Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle.

( xxxHolic Notes )

When I posted about writing my Global Cultures paper, I mentioned its topic: representations of gender in Japanese manga versus U.S. comics. I did say that the beginning contained an explanation of the differences between the two, and

_bequerel_ said, "Post it!" This is that post.

I should note that this is not an English class, and we received next to zero instructions on how to write this paper, or give the presentation on which it was based (Please excuse the poor writing). I was at a particular disadvantage because everyone in my class presented on their Study Abroad trips, and I have never studied abroad (it is not required to receive a Global Cultures certificate!).

Anyway, this is a slightly modified version of the introduction, and the transition in the middle.

( American Comics v. Manga )

If you have questions, ask them! Maybe I can answer them, or could find the answer for you. I actually read a lot more manga than I do American comics, :O

Hmmm, I was going to make one large post about three different series, but it's looking like I have more to say than I thought I did. Damn you, CLAMP!

This 5-volume series centers on the protagonist Misaki Suzuhara, a 7th grader who looks like a 4th grader. Her mom works a lot, so she has just moved to Tokyo to live with her aunt. She is quickly sucked into the sub-culture revolving a video game called Angelic Layer. In the game, players like Misaki are referred to as a "deus," and they control a small toy, usually about the size of someone's hand. The toy looks human, although they wear outfits designed by their deus, usually designed to look fantasy or sci-fi esque. The point of Angelic Layer is to have the "angel" (toy) of a deus battle another angel in a one-on-one battle, gladiator style. The deus controls their angel by putting on a helmet that covers their eyes, and using their mind.

Overall, not much happens in the series. Misaki is a typical shojo manga heroine: she is very polite and innocent, and receives help from lots of people who want to help her succeed in the video game of Angelic Layer. Misaki is a natural at the game, and goes through many tournaments with her angel. The entire plot of the series is Misaki battling these fights with her angel, Hikaru. There is one highly predictable sub-plot as well. Due to the lack of a plot that I cared about (guess who wins every battle?!), I was pretty bored throughout the series, and only finished it because I am a complete-ist.

I did enjoy the references to other CLAMP manga littered throughout. Every volume opened with newspaper clippings about Misaki's success in the Angelic Layer tournaments. Snatches of other articles were visible, including speculation about the "Man of Many Faces," and CLAMP School Defenders Duklyon having to go into rehab, due to their Angelic Layer addiction, :) In volume 4, Misaki is singing to herself, A field of peony pink... - from my investigation into the CLAMP School Detectives anime, I know that this is the theme song from that show! Unfortunately, it's not a great song.

Misaki also got the name for her angel from Magic Knight Rayearth. She names her angel "Hikaru," because she says that like Hikaru, she would like for her angel to be "a short girl, but strong and happy."

I would say that this series would appeal to younger kids. The gladiator fights provide action, and it's lack of a plot would mean not getting lost, as can often happen in manga (even for adults). The only caution I would have is that Misaki's friends seem to like to tease her by inexplicably knowing what color panties she's wearing. I think it's supposed to be funny, but I was a little WTF about the whole thing.

The internets tell me that Angelic Layer is set in the same universe as CLAMP's later series, Chobits.

Characters from Angelic Layer will appear in Chobits and Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle.

This series was made into a 26-episode anime series, but I have very little interest in seeing it.

I hope it's okay that I don't worry about spoilers here. The series is only 2 volumes long, and it's so silly that I don't think any of you are going to be reading it anyway.

Clamp School Defenders Duklyon is another 2-volume series by CLAMP that (surprise!) takes place at the Clamp School. As CLAMP reiterates from previous series, the school is home to students from kindergarten through graduate school. But now, CLAMP has more to say in its description of the school:
However, where that many people gather, trouble usually follows....
Given the volume of brilliant and eccentric minds housed in this community, security is of utmost importance. As a result, the school founders established a secret organization. A unit to solve all problems quickly, and to maintain peace - a do-it-all unit, if you will. (Here, two armored, masked men with a gun and a sword appear). This, in short, is the CLAMP School Defenders. Or more commonly known as DUKLYON!

( Notes on plot and characters )

This series is meant for the humor. When the Sukiyabashi/Eri storyline takes over, CLAMP makes fun of Kentaro and Takeshi for no longer being the main characters. Also, the dialogue is often just ridiculous:
(The enemy is in the cafeteria)
Takeshi: Can't we just seal off the cafeteria?
General: We don't have the right to deprive students of nutrition. Plus, lunch is the happiest time of day. CLAMP SCHOOL DEFENDERS DUKLYON! COMMENCE!
Takeshi and Kentaro: YES, SIR!!

My recommended order for reading these 3 series is Clamp School Detectives, Man of Many Faces, and then Clamp School Defenders Duklyon. I think that MoMF might come before CSD, but CSD gives a nice explanation of Clamp School, etc. Definitely save CSDD until after the other two.

Really, though, I recommend the three series only for people looking to read all of CLAMP's stuff. They're pretty silly, and don't offer much in the way of plot. Because they're so inter-connected, I kind of view them as a 7-volume series, instead of 3 separate ones.

The Internet tells me that Kentarou, Takeshi, and Eri will appear in CLAMP's current series, Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle.