Cabin-fever induced manga purchases
Feb. 4th, 2007 03:59 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
sub_dividedThis weekend has been a continual struggle. On the one hand, I enjoy leaving the house sometimes. On the other, it's negative degrees outside. -_- SO COLD. Yesterday I dragged myself out to the library and from there, some coffee shops (café-hopping: the homework-conscious individual's substitute to bar-hopping?) but each time it was a struggle to get up from the nice warm couch and head out into the bad cold night, just to ward off apathy. ^^; I eventually gravitated to Borders since it's the only place downtown that 1) has couches, 2) serves tea, and 3) is large enough that whenever I felt restless (TOO MUCH READINGGGGG) I could get up and walk around a little.
But of course it is very dangerous to spend too much time in a bookstore when you LOVE BUYING BOOKS but DON'T HAVE ANY MONEY.
Loot:
Land of the Blindfolded vols 1-2 by Tsukaba Sakura
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coffeeandink's recommendation. Kanade and Arou are high-schoolers; Kanade can sometimes (erratically) see the future and Arou can often (even when he'd rather not) see the past. The two become close, using their powers in small ways to help those around them.
It's enjoyable but...maybe a little dull? I mean, everyone in this story is so happy. ^^; I'd recommend it as a palette cleanser, if you have reached the point where you absolutely can't read another story about serial-killing idol vampires in nonconsensual relationships with their butlers, or if you would like to be reminded that there exist healthy, happy highschoolers who approach relationships in healthy, happy, straightforward ways, without all the melodrama and ridiculousness.
Is it horrible that I read the author's notes and couldn't see why such a nice, well-adjusted person would be driven to become a mangaka? XD; One thing I do feel is a legitimate complaint, and not just a matter of (exotic) taste, is how static the characters' expressions can be. Sakura-sensei draws a really wonderful beaming Kanade, teasing Arou, touched Arou, blushing Arou -- especially that last one, Arou and Kanade are SO CUTE when they're embarrassed -- but these panels often feel like set-pieces -- it can be hard to work out how a character has gone from Expression A to Expression B, or why Expression C is appropriate in this situation (beyond looking cool). Basically, Sakura-sensei busts out the show-stoppers on EVERY PAGE. ^^; Making the narrative a bit jerky and characterization hard to pin down.
But I can't deny that the message of this series is tremendously appealing. XD In the third chapter, another character appears: Namiki, who can see the future but only when he concentrates. Namiki uses his powers for personal gain and doesn't see the point of, for instance, saving one abandoned puppy when there are hundreds of other dogs he can't save. Kanade and Arou's retort is, we're high school students, of course we can't save everyone. All we can do is our best; no good act is ever a waste. (Also Kanade thinks that she does use her powers for personal gain since helping other other people makes her happy. It's sappy, but nice. XD)
Pearl Pink vol 1 by Meca Tanaka
Anothercoffeeandink (and octopedigenue) recommendation. SO MUCH FUN. This is almost a "but" book: I don't normally like we-promised-in-kindergarten, "I will become your bride!", crossdressing idol books, but.... actually that last part is a lie, I totally love crossdressing idol books.
Momono Tamako, the daughter of pop idol Momono Shinju, has grown up determined to be strong so that she can win the love of Inui Kanji, whose father owns a minor talent agency ("Dog Run"). Of course Dog Run is also the agency that employs Tamako's mother. Of course Tamako ends up living with Kanji and his father. Of course Kanji wasn't serious when he said he'd marry her if she stopped being a crybaby (at first he doesn't even remember saying so). Of course he's great at domestic things like cooking and sewing, leaving her frustrated in her wifely ambitions. Of course she's an innocent, energetic, immature, half-wild middleschooler (thirteen is middle school, right? Not elementary? *dies*).
BUT, a few make it better than your average run-of-the-mill:
1. Kanji's father and Tamako's mother are nuts in an exuberant, dramatic, embarrassingly-over-the-top way. In the case of the mother, it's sweet and a little sad: Momono-mom was in her teens when she had Tamako, and wasn't able to bring her up. Now that they're finally together, she tends to cling, and act childishly, and generally seem more like a sister than a mother. In the case of the father...he likes to crossdress. XD; the author's note at the back says, "Crazy parents are so much fun to draw!"
2. The author really, genuinely, honestly loves idols. And boybands. And cheesiness. XD
3. Kanji's unexpected strength as a character. You know when you pick up one of these titles that the guy will be noble -- or the author will say he's noble -- but, placed in a situation that continually offers chances for non-noble behavior through (of course) no fault of his own, a bit of inner pervert is bound to show up in any red-blooded teenager. But...not so here. Kanji is really just a decent guy. He really just likes dressing girls up with no designs on their (underaged!) bodies. He really is quietly macho in a way that does not rule out sewing, cooking, and being idolized by the teenage boyband member he saved from a life on the streets. ^^; And so on. Honestly, it's a little unbelievable, but everything about the character is so consistently UN-sleazy that you just want to go along with it.
The author's note, predictably, describes Kanji as "Serious, something of a busybody, and secretly a little perverted." But I am going to IGNORE this last part, because it doesn't show up anywhere in the story. XD; This manga is basically a fantasy about how a selfish, fearless prepubescent can win the heart of a responsible, talented, self-possessed guy who is NOT into shota. But it's a nice fantasy. *g*
Jojo's Bizarre Adventure vol 1 (Japanese vol 13?) by Araki Hirohiko
One fashion-conscious delinquent beefcake's quest to find and defeat the evil vampire Dio (who has a "dubious sexuality - the kind you wouldn't expect from a man") together with his surprisingly muscular grandfather, an undeniably chiseled shaman, a sunken-eyed-but-still-buff schoolmate and various others.
I didn't think very much of this series when I read it in scans (it's pretty formulaic fight-travel-fight stuff) but one thing I have definitely noticed now that I have an actual copy in front of me is that everyone is really hot. You know, in a hard gay kind of way. XD; Swear to God, Jotaro is like ten times hotter in print. Maybe it's just the circumstances under which I read the scans, but for some reason the continuous provocative posing, smoldering intense looks, strong features etc etc are more noticeable in hard copy.
In a nutshell: GOD, JOTARO, WHY ARE YOU SO HOT. -_-; Also, would you normally use someone's mother as the (rare female) fanservice? Not enough women around, or something?! And...I missed where Jotaro/Kakyoin was coming from in my haste get through this series the first time, on second glance it's kind of incredibly OBVIOUS that those are Significant Looks the two of them are exchanging. XD
Also read:
Glenn Altshuler, All Shook Up
Nonfiction: rock and roll in the fifties. Good for trivia but possibly not news to anyone who lived through the era. The author's pretty ambivalent about HOW, exactly, rock changed America, though he reports a number of contemporary theories.
Edwidge Danticat, The Dew Breaker
Beautifully written series of short stories about Haitian exiles in the US and how they continue to feel the aftereffects of state-sponsored torture and repression. Danticat writes about ordinary (and not so ordinary) people with incredible sympathy and insight. The style is deceptively simple but so, so beautiful, and the stories themselves, simultaneously about the pressure to forget and the impossibility of forgetting, are haunting.
Connie Willis, To Say Nothing of the Dog
Clever but mindless. I was happily reading along, enjoying the author's digressions and wallowing (in historical trivia, wittiness, wordgames, and cool but DEEPLY FLAWED worldbuilding) until about a third of the way through the book, when I figured out the ending. -_-; After that, a lot of the fun went out of it, and I only managed another few chapters before losing interest. Similar to Jasper Fforde's The Eyre Affair.
William H. Chafe, Civilities and Civil Rights
Nonfiction: civil rights in Greensboro 1956-1967. The author has a simple, consistent message: white progressives in North Carolina who called for "polite" discussion of racial issues did so as a way to prevent significant social change. Considering the topic, I found the book fairly soothing. ^^; Chafe is willing to award points for trying ("although" might be his favorite word), and he ends each chapter in a way that leaves room for pride as well as shame. Possibly he didn't want to scare away his audience? XD Anyway it's an interesting read, with some fairly well-chosen quotes. At times a little repetitive, but clear, and convincing.
Kazuo Ishiguro, When We Were Orphans
Very "inner life". I dunno, I liked it, but I can see why The White Countess was a horrible movie. There's stuff in this book that wouldn't translate at all to the screen -- take away the articulate, obsessively preoccupied narrator, all you're left with is a very childish way of looking at the world. Though I was amused by the book's central conceit, which is that for a while, at least, the world was willing to play along.
Also saw:
The Good Shepard and Dreamgirls, but I am media-blogged out. Maybe later.
But of course it is very dangerous to spend too much time in a bookstore when you LOVE BUYING BOOKS but DON'T HAVE ANY MONEY.
Loot:
Land of the Blindfolded vols 1-2 by Tsukaba Sakura
Following
coffeeandink's recommendation. Kanade and Arou are high-schoolers; Kanade can sometimes (erratically) see the future and Arou can often (even when he'd rather not) see the past. The two become close, using their powers in small ways to help those around them. It's enjoyable but...maybe a little dull? I mean, everyone in this story is so happy. ^^; I'd recommend it as a palette cleanser, if you have reached the point where you absolutely can't read another story about serial-killing idol vampires in nonconsensual relationships with their butlers, or if you would like to be reminded that there exist healthy, happy highschoolers who approach relationships in healthy, happy, straightforward ways, without all the melodrama and ridiculousness.
Is it horrible that I read the author's notes and couldn't see why such a nice, well-adjusted person would be driven to become a mangaka? XD; One thing I do feel is a legitimate complaint, and not just a matter of (exotic) taste, is how static the characters' expressions can be. Sakura-sensei draws a really wonderful beaming Kanade, teasing Arou, touched Arou, blushing Arou -- especially that last one, Arou and Kanade are SO CUTE when they're embarrassed -- but these panels often feel like set-pieces -- it can be hard to work out how a character has gone from Expression A to Expression B, or why Expression C is appropriate in this situation (beyond looking cool). Basically, Sakura-sensei busts out the show-stoppers on EVERY PAGE. ^^; Making the narrative a bit jerky and characterization hard to pin down.
But I can't deny that the message of this series is tremendously appealing. XD In the third chapter, another character appears: Namiki, who can see the future but only when he concentrates. Namiki uses his powers for personal gain and doesn't see the point of, for instance, saving one abandoned puppy when there are hundreds of other dogs he can't save. Kanade and Arou's retort is, we're high school students, of course we can't save everyone. All we can do is our best; no good act is ever a waste. (Also Kanade thinks that she does use her powers for personal gain since helping other other people makes her happy. It's sappy, but nice. XD)
Pearl Pink vol 1 by Meca Tanaka
Another
coffeeandink (and octopedigenue) recommendation. SO MUCH FUN. This is almost a "but" book: I don't normally like we-promised-in-kindergarten, "I will become your bride!", crossdressing idol books, but.... actually that last part is a lie, I totally love crossdressing idol books. Momono Tamako, the daughter of pop idol Momono Shinju, has grown up determined to be strong so that she can win the love of Inui Kanji, whose father owns a minor talent agency ("Dog Run"). Of course Dog Run is also the agency that employs Tamako's mother. Of course Tamako ends up living with Kanji and his father. Of course Kanji wasn't serious when he said he'd marry her if she stopped being a crybaby (at first he doesn't even remember saying so). Of course he's great at domestic things like cooking and sewing, leaving her frustrated in her wifely ambitions. Of course she's an innocent, energetic, immature, half-wild middleschooler (thirteen is middle school, right? Not elementary? *dies*).
BUT, a few make it better than your average run-of-the-mill:
1. Kanji's father and Tamako's mother are nuts in an exuberant, dramatic, embarrassingly-over-the-top way. In the case of the mother, it's sweet and a little sad: Momono-mom was in her teens when she had Tamako, and wasn't able to bring her up. Now that they're finally together, she tends to cling, and act childishly, and generally seem more like a sister than a mother. In the case of the father...he likes to crossdress. XD; the author's note at the back says, "Crazy parents are so much fun to draw!"
2. The author really, genuinely, honestly loves idols. And boybands. And cheesiness. XD
3. Kanji's unexpected strength as a character. You know when you pick up one of these titles that the guy will be noble -- or the author will say he's noble -- but, placed in a situation that continually offers chances for non-noble behavior through (of course) no fault of his own, a bit of inner pervert is bound to show up in any red-blooded teenager. But...not so here. Kanji is really just a decent guy. He really just likes dressing girls up with no designs on their (underaged!) bodies. He really is quietly macho in a way that does not rule out sewing, cooking, and being idolized by the teenage boyband member he saved from a life on the streets. ^^; And so on. Honestly, it's a little unbelievable, but everything about the character is so consistently UN-sleazy that you just want to go along with it.
The author's note, predictably, describes Kanji as "Serious, something of a busybody, and secretly a little perverted." But I am going to IGNORE this last part, because it doesn't show up anywhere in the story. XD; This manga is basically a fantasy about how a selfish, fearless prepubescent can win the heart of a responsible, talented, self-possessed guy who is NOT into shota. But it's a nice fantasy. *g*
Jojo's Bizarre Adventure vol 1 (Japanese vol 13?) by Araki Hirohiko
One fashion-conscious delinquent beefcake's quest to find and defeat the evil vampire Dio (who has a "dubious sexuality - the kind you wouldn't expect from a man") together with his surprisingly muscular grandfather, an undeniably chiseled shaman, a sunken-eyed-but-still-buff schoolmate and various others.
I didn't think very much of this series when I read it in scans (it's pretty formulaic fight-travel-fight stuff) but one thing I have definitely noticed now that I have an actual copy in front of me is that everyone is really hot. You know, in a hard gay kind of way. XD; Swear to God, Jotaro is like ten times hotter in print. Maybe it's just the circumstances under which I read the scans, but for some reason the continuous provocative posing, smoldering intense looks, strong features etc etc are more noticeable in hard copy.
In a nutshell: GOD, JOTARO, WHY ARE YOU SO HOT. -_-; Also, would you normally use someone's mother as the (rare female) fanservice? Not enough women around, or something?! And...I missed where Jotaro/Kakyoin was coming from in my haste get through this series the first time, on second glance it's kind of incredibly OBVIOUS that those are Significant Looks the two of them are exchanging. XD
Also read:
Glenn Altshuler, All Shook Up
Nonfiction: rock and roll in the fifties. Good for trivia but possibly not news to anyone who lived through the era. The author's pretty ambivalent about HOW, exactly, rock changed America, though he reports a number of contemporary theories.
Edwidge Danticat, The Dew Breaker
Beautifully written series of short stories about Haitian exiles in the US and how they continue to feel the aftereffects of state-sponsored torture and repression. Danticat writes about ordinary (and not so ordinary) people with incredible sympathy and insight. The style is deceptively simple but so, so beautiful, and the stories themselves, simultaneously about the pressure to forget and the impossibility of forgetting, are haunting.
Connie Willis, To Say Nothing of the Dog
Clever but mindless. I was happily reading along, enjoying the author's digressions and wallowing (in historical trivia, wittiness, wordgames, and cool but DEEPLY FLAWED worldbuilding) until about a third of the way through the book, when I figured out the ending. -_-; After that, a lot of the fun went out of it, and I only managed another few chapters before losing interest. Similar to Jasper Fforde's The Eyre Affair.
William H. Chafe, Civilities and Civil Rights
Nonfiction: civil rights in Greensboro 1956-1967. The author has a simple, consistent message: white progressives in North Carolina who called for "polite" discussion of racial issues did so as a way to prevent significant social change. Considering the topic, I found the book fairly soothing. ^^; Chafe is willing to award points for trying ("although" might be his favorite word), and he ends each chapter in a way that leaves room for pride as well as shame. Possibly he didn't want to scare away his audience? XD Anyway it's an interesting read, with some fairly well-chosen quotes. At times a little repetitive, but clear, and convincing.
Kazuo Ishiguro, When We Were Orphans
Very "inner life". I dunno, I liked it, but I can see why The White Countess was a horrible movie. There's stuff in this book that wouldn't translate at all to the screen -- take away the articulate, obsessively preoccupied narrator, all you're left with is a very childish way of looking at the world. Though I was amused by the book's central conceit, which is that for a while, at least, the world was willing to play along.
Also saw:
The Good Shepard and Dreamgirls, but I am media-blogged out. Maybe later.