One-Shot for the Weekend – Tsuki to Himawari

月とひまわり | Tsuki to Himawari | Moon & Sunflower

Manga-ka: Tanaka Meca

Genre: Comedy, Drama, Romance, School Life, Shoujo, Slice of Life

Asahi-kun is a carefree junior-high student, never attaching to girls even though he enjoys going with them. But when the school’s number 1 honor student Mitsuki “cyborg” Konno asked him to a 1-month date, in exchange for the front row ticket to his favorite singer’s concert, he was forced to accept. He only has to show her what it feels like to date, right? He is ready for that…however, what he’s not prepared for was his heart’s reaction…

Published as a one-shot in Lala magazine in 2007 and later collected in Volume 1 of Faster Than A Kiss. There is some sexual context used in a more humourous manner but I thought I’d highlight this element.

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There is something that talent cannot give you and that is experience. It arms you with a good grip of things – how to approach story-telling, art-style, polishing your work and pretty much gives you an identity. In shoujo manga, the usage of cliches are endless, after-all its more or less based around romance and slice of life, and its really up to the manga artists to renew over and over the distinguishable themes that is in shoujo manga. This one-shot illustrates such ability that is uses both skill and experience. Reading the blurb sounds like nothing new is put on the table, but the way it is executed by Tanaka Meca, proves she is an industry veteran who delivers a good story.

This one-shot reminds me very much about Natsu no Kakera by Amano Shinobu because of the cheery theme of sunflowers. This is the type of story you’d expect Haha and Haha til the end but yet it changes its gear in a direction that brought so much greater depth and intention. It is somehow so familiar, that weird initial shoujo manga setup that eventually opens a box of surprises that makes you think – hey, this is why I read shoujo manga. Its not all about frivolous love triangles, the unstoppable occurrence of school life, its often about life(albeit the less than RL circumstances) and very much with the real surprises we often discover when we least expect it.

This one-shot is set in the same universe as Faster than a Kiss. So, if you’re a Faster than a Kiss fan, read this, for this is in fact the story that invented FtaK’s universe for it was the predecessor.

Have a good weekend.

Rating: 4.3/5

One-Shot for Last Weekend – X-Tai Shinsho

X-Tai Shinsho 

Mangaka: Ezawa

Genre: Action, Comedy, Historical, Shounen, Supernatural

Sugita Genpaku made a contract with a demon in exchange for the ability to cure any disease.
But if he doesn’t find someone to treat within the time limit, his soul will be taken!

Published online on Gangan Online in 2011 by Square Enix.

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Okay, I admit, it’s kind of odd that I’m writing a one-shot post for last week considering the coming weekend is just around the corner. But, still, I don’t like leaving an odd bob of a weekend out while we’re active. The one-shot I’m bringing you to attention is X-Tai Shinsho, it’s really similar to another manga series I’ve written about before in a mushroom-manga post called Kaitai Shinsho Zero. It’s whole concept is almost identical in a way, a super-doctor which cures people of extra-ordinary illnesses. I had wanted this one-shot’s story to be more in lined with a Black Jack kind of doctor story. Like a doctor who is curing the weak and sick in a more humane manner than a ball-busting, demon killing-fest like Kaitai Shinsho Zero; but that was not to be, since the protagonist in X-Tai Shinsho also kinda went that route.

The thing that really caught my interest was the fact that the protagonist would die if he doesn’t cure a person with a deadly illness within a time-limit, it was like, wow Shounen manga really hates their protagonists don’t they. I always find that they always have some seriously depressing past but I suppose that’s how you build a extremely epic story? The manga-ka’s drawing style is also extremely pleasing on the eye, really similar to works from Comic Zero-Sum/Avarus/Gene(I’d fit GanGan Online into this group really). The one-shot was written in the way in which most Shounen manga one-shots are written – to allow a continuation to another extremely long serialisation. I don’t think this one-shot was extremely mind-blowing but I still really like the concept and the fact that the manga-ka chose to set it in a historical era; and having a light-hearted/little haughty protagonist is always a plus(keeps things less serious).

Rating: 3/5

One-Shot on an Impulse – Pinocchio Dreams

Pinocchio Dreams (ピノッキオは夢を見る)

Manga-ka: Fujitsuka Yuki

Genre: Comedy, Drama, Romance, School Life, Sci-fi,  Shoujo, Supernatural, Tragedy

Fubuki’s dog, Chloe, gets hit by a car. Kio spots her and tells her to come with him to save Chloe. After Toba Daisuke, who is famous to weirdo, saves Chloe, Fubuki finds out Kio is a robot! She is shocked and creeped out but they eventually become friends. 

The final one-shot in the Kara no Shounen(Empty Boy) anthology by Fujitsuka Yuki, published by Hakusensha. 

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It’s been a long while since we’ve posted anything, but I won’t go into details about our MIA-ness until I feel like blabbing so. Allow me to release upon anyone of you, a post I wrote on impulse, as well as a homage to our most frequent and fun posts – the one-shot recommendations. So how did I get inspired to write about this one-shot? It has to do with a game that some of you might heard of and that is, the League of Legends(which I have been quite obsessed with, although I’m totally into Diablo 3 at the moment). My favourite ‘champion’ or character, to make things simpler, is called Orianna – the lady of clockwerk. So each ‘champion’ or character has a lore and Orianna has a very sad story in which she is a product of her creator’s effort to replace his real daughter called Orianna. It’s a tragic story, but how does Pinocchio Dreams compare?

Well, the only relation is that both stories feature a character that is created through advanced technology. I’ve always been enthralled by the idea of robots learning and attempting to be more like humans, its melancholic yet so soft and gentle(not Orianna though, she’s a killing machine). It’s about a conscience that grows from childhood innocence into a character with much stature and care though they risk being insensitive which often leads to confusion. But, sometimes, the mere act of thought, the act of thinking, is enough to touch one’s heart. Pinocchio Dreams really unleashes a wave of emotions within me. Emotions that I would compare to ‘sympathy’ or ‘pity,’ but really not the words to describe so. It’s positive, full of heart and love. It is hopeful and sweet, melancholic. Like life, its fleeting, yet it is timeless, because those feelings that are experienced, will be remembered for a lifetime.

“It’s the thought that counts right?” – Kio, from Pinocchio Dreams

Fujitsuka Yuki is a great mang-aka, her art is unique and distinguishable, girly and manga-y(not sure myself what that means), yet they convey all the character’s emotions, and her story-telling beautiful. I have written about another one-shot from the same anthology before – Sunny Spots Typhoon, and I highly recommend the entire anthology. This one-shot is one of the best I’ve read and I love re-visiting it, over and over again. This one-shot was first published in Lala DX in 2006 and after being compiled in the Kara no Shounen anthology, Fujitsuka Yuki included a short little continuation which is just bliss.

A rather lengthy rant for a one-shot. Have a good week, and perhaps, we will meet again soon.

Overall Rating: 5/5

-chungky

Introducing Weekend’s Ani-Manga Mail~

Following the Manga Weekend poll(which for some reason hasn’t closed automatically and I’m too lazy to close it), the clear percentage of you guys out there want ani-manga recommendations! Okay, the poll only said manga recs but anyway. So here I am, hoping to introduce a new line up of posts to serve that demand. What is Weekend’s Ani-Manga Mail? Well, sometimes our recommendation posts of manga and anime are not up your street, which is why we introduce Ani-Manga Mail! It’s where you (yes, you), want some manga or anime recommendations/advice; and we and hopefully some readers, try to help you find something to occupy these various gaps in your life. I’m hoping to make this a weekly feature or monthly feature, depending on the feedback we get. I’m not sure if Manga Weekend is up to this level yet but reader participation will be a key factor in making these posts a success so if you’re a visitor of Manga Weekend, I hope you can join in our little discussions once we have our first participant. 

JManga, scanlations & the Laissez-faire attitude

This post is EXTREMELY late!!! It’d probably be a good idea if you just read it as if JManga was just launched…

A couple of months ago, I was prepping up a post about my 2 cents about the scanlaton community and the coalition. I eventually abandoned the post because of my severe case of laziness, lack of inspiration, as well as no courage. In hopes to revive the declining sales of manga, JManga was recently launched and my interest in the subject has been renewed. Now my information on JManga is outdated since I only caught up with what was going when it was first launched. Even so, I don’t have a 1st hand observation since I’m based in the U to the K. So if anything I say is totally old and irrelevant, I’d be happy if someone corrected me.

What is JManga? To put it vaguely and simply, a legal manga aggregation site. I won’t go on about what it is since many other sites have done so and even better than I, but I do strongly recommend reading About.com’s posts on JManga which you can find Part 1 here and Part 2 here. A good chunk of my thoughts about JManga I have shared on on Organisation ASG’s post on JManga which you can read here. I recommend this post as well, it has many various initial perspectives on JManga.

One-Shot for a Weekday – Shisei (刺靑)

Shisei (刺靑)/ Tattoo

Manga-ka: Yokobaba Ryo

Genre: Drama, Historical, Romance,  Shoujo, Tragedy

Forbidden to be together in the world they live in, two young lovers remain as one. They find a means to preserve what they couldn’t have, that they will be together their hearts, all in a form that is etched onto naked skin.

Published as a one-shot in 2009 in Melody magazine by Hakusensha.

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Here is a relatively short one-shot for a week-day, it spans about 22 pages. I’ve been going through a lot of short one-shots lately and though there aren’t that many pages, they still manage to make an impression. This is a period love story where a couple is forced to separation because of one’s profession and social standing. It is amazing how people can always find ways or means to be together again. In this case, with a tattoo. A permanent mark on the skin, to represent undying devotion or to say “I’ll never forget you.” As they forge a unity that would mean only in their hearts or distance. Perhaps that would be enough to keep them going, as they hope to be united again; in the future, or in another life-time.

Rating: 3.7/5 

One-Shot for a Weekday – Ovally Trap

Manga-ka: Usami Maki

Genre: Romance, Shoujo

Tokunaga-kun, Chiharu Taniyama’s classmate and recent neighbor, is always laughing at her, and it annoys her to no end. How can she be cute? Then, she finds a magazine with tips on being popular. Will she get her revenge on Tokunaga?

Published by Shogakukan in 2005.

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I totally forgotten all about last weekends one-shot! Anyway, here goes.

I’ve been a growing fan of Usami Maki ever since I read Kokoro Botan/Button. After reading Ovally Trap(not a very appealing name I must say); I think its the one-shot that initiated Kokoro Botan even if the publishing date between both is 4 years apart. It’s a nice simple one-shot where a boy and girl go through a little series of events which strengthens their attraction. Of course, you know the drill, this eventually leads to a confession. Like Kokoro Botan, the male lead had a polite appearance but mischievous & manipulating personality so I instantly clicked with this one-shot! I quite enjoy the manipulation in the story! The female isn’t a silly little girl even though she has that child-like innocence and I really like her honesty. I strongly recommend this for a good dose of shoujo manga cute-ness. Usami Maki is great with stories like this.

Rating: 4.3/5

Lala DX 09/2011~

Okay, this sneak-peak post is way overdue. I meant to complete this in August. August was actually a big fail since M.W only churned out SIX posts. Ah well…look out for Monthly Lala 10 soon. I need to get going with these posts since I’ll be travelling soon, so no scanner. I’m hoping to introduce a new feature post on M.W so please stay tuned…

This issue of Lala DX is like, the ultimate love issue for most of the serialisations(the ones I actually go through)!!! Lots of Kisses! It’s about time since I’ve been coming across all these serialisations ending with no love. Haruka takes the cover this time round, Tohko Mizuno is a very busy manga artist y’all.

One-Shot for the Weekend: Hibi Kira Kira (日々キラキラ)

Hibi Kira Kira | 日々キラキラ | Radiant Everyday

Manga-ka: Coga Mayumi

Genre: Comedy,  Drama,  Romance,  Shounen Ai

It’s summer holidays for Tomoaki and he is helping out at the daily morning exercise for kids. But recently, he notices that a young man living beside the park has been looking at the exercise group every morning. Is the young man a Lolicon that is targeting his kids, or is it entirely something else?

Serialised in Canna magazine and collected in the Blind of Mind anthology tankoubon, published by France Shoin in 2011.

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Whoa, M.W has been pretty empty this week. I’m actually working on a manga-talk post for a while now but it’s just using me a lot of brain juice…putting thoughts down can be so difficult…

Anyway, a 16 page Shounen-Ai one-shot for this weekend. I don’t venture into the Yaoi genre, but Shounen-Ai is becoming one of my favourites. I’m hesitant to use the term Boy’s Love since it seems to lean more on the Yaoi side of things which features more of the sexual aspect. One thing I really like about shounen-ai manga is that it has a more mature sort of story-telling.  From the titles I’ve read, they really concentrate on character development and their feelings. With this aspect in mind, it makes me as a reader think how sweet it is which is what this short one-shot did. It made me feel all bubbly inside. The one-shot is about one misunderstanding another. Meeting someone new through the most unexpected places, the least expected times, meeting someone who might just change your life forever.

Rating: 4.5/5

Mangaka of the Month – Takaya Natsuki (高屋 奈月)

Takaya Natsuki

(高屋 奈月)

-July–

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Pen name: Takaya Natsuki

Real name: Hatake Naka

Date of Birth: July 07, 1973

Home-town: Shizuoka, Japan

Horoscope: Cancer