Manga Corps

September was a big month for my family. We welcomed a new kiddo into the world, which comes with all sorts of joy and challenges having two under two. While holding the baby or resting, I’ve been primarily reading manga! Because I’m on parental leave with a bit more downtime than usual, I read a ton of manga in September 2024. Here’s what I read and my thoughts on them.

My full thoughts are available in the video above, but below you’ll find some short summaries of what I read.

Chainsaw Man
v1-11, Public Safety Arc

The first part of Chainsaw Man flew by. I borrowed all 11 volumes from my local library and couldn’t put it down. I really enjoyed the characters and art style. I can definitely see the inspiration in Fujimoto’s work from Q Hayashida and Tsutomu Nihei.

I thought the last four volumes were too fast paced though, I wished things slowed down just a little bit rather than barreling to the finish line.

I’m looking forward to continuing to read Chainsaw Man after taking a little bit of a break between arcs.

Hunter x Hunter c1-119

I read the first three major arcs of Hunter x Hunter—Hunter Exam, Heavens Arena, and Yorknew City. I didn’t fall in love with the series until Heavens Arena, and I really enjoyed Yorknew City. I’d consider myself a big fan already. It’s a special series. The characters are a lot of fun, and the action and storytelling are great. I really like Killua and Kurapika. I’m excited to see where the story goes and to keep reading along with the series. I’ll be reading Greed Island in the month of October.

Freieren v1-3

I read the first three volumes of Frieren, which I also got from the library. I heard good things about the anime and thought I’d give the manga a shot. I really like the art style. The premise is that Frieren, the main character, is an elf who was part of the party who defeated the demon king. Time has passed since their victory, and her fellow party members have aged while she hasn’t. It’s a reflection on humanity, life, and the passage of time.

I felt satisfied after those three volumes, and when I went to start the fourth one, I just couldn’t get it into and decided to drop the series. I could see that a new party was being formed, but there just wasn’t enough motivation driving the story forward to maintain my interest. I could see myself returning and giving it a try again in the future, but I’m good for now.

Mao c1-24

Mao is the latest series by the queen of manga—Rumiko Takahashi. I was surprised to find out it isn’t a historical fiction about Mao Zedong but is rather about a girl who can travel back in time with a special power and fights battles.

I enjoyed what I’ve read so far. Takahashi’s works are like comfort food. Not the best thing you’ve ever eaten but really enjoyable. Her art style hasn’t changed much, for better or worse depending on your taste, and it’s very consistent.

The series is already over 200 chapters long, so it’s quite the commitment. I’ll likely take a break and read it in chunks. I read Mao in the Viz app through their subscription service. It’s really fantastic that Rumiko Takahashi’s long series are available to read at a low monthly cost.

Daemons of the Shadow Realm v1-5

Daemons of the Shadow Realm, the latest series by the author of Fullmetal Alchemist (Hiromu Arakawa), has five volumes released so far, and I’ve been keeping up with the series as it gets published. I read the first few volumes again and Vol 4 and Vol 5 for the first time in September. The art is a good as ever and the characters are really interesting, but the series hasn’t quite found its groove yet in my opinion.

Fullmetal Alchemist has such a strong start with some really heavy hitting initial arcs. But Daemons just hasn’t quite reached those high highs. I’m still enjoying reading it though and will keep up with it as it continues. I really like the daemons (basically fighting spirits), in particular, they’re the most interesting part.

There’s clearly a larger story brewing, but without a simple and clear motivation like how the Elric brothers want to get their bodies back, the plot just isn’t quite as enrapturing.

Hellsing v1

I picked up volume 1-8 of the second editions of Hellsing for a great price, so I thought I’d read volume 1 right away. I read about half of Hellsing over 15 years ago when I was a teenager and watched the anime, both of which I liked a lot. The style, the darkness, the violence. It was really cool at the time.

Returning to it all these years later, and it’s just as cool and stylish as I remember. In particular, the art is fantastic. Hirano’s got a very unique style that is unlike any other mangaka out there.

I’ll be reading volumes 2 through 8 in October. 🎃

Not Simple

I read not simple by Natsume Ono—a tragedy of a story masterfully told. Ono’s art style is unique amongst mangaka, and I found it quite refreshing. The topics and themes covered in not simple are dark and quite mature and handled well.

I won’t spoil anything other than to give a brief plot summary: Ian, the main character, comes from a broken family and he seeks to reunite with his sister. The story covers decades and is told out of order. I highly recommend not simple for those looking for more mature stories in their manga. I was able to buy a used copy for US$4.60 with free shipping online.

I’d love to read more of her works. She’s clearly got a unique sensibility and approach that I found refreshing. I know she’s got a variety of other single volume manga and some series.

Tokyo These Days v1

not simple reminded me in a lot of ways of the works of Taiyo Matsumoto, another literary mangaka known for Tekkonkinkreet, No. 5, Ping Pong, Sunny, and more. He’s one of my favorites, and his works are truly great.

I read the first volume of Tokyo These Days, his latest series to see an English release in North America, in September. My library had it, I checked it out, and I thoroughly enjoyed reading it one afternoon.

Tokyo These Days is about a manga editor who quits his job after his pet project magazine is canceled. He views his quitting as a way for taking responsibility for the magazine’s failure, even though his colleagues viewed his quitting as taking it too far. He swears off manga and aims to sell his vast collection. He has a change of heart though and goes to visit the mangaka he’s grown to know over the course his career. It’s a tender story that’s incredibly drawn.

I absolutely loved the first volume and can’t wait to read the next two. It’s not a series for everyone though—Tokyo These Days is a manga for manga fans. Similar to Orson Welles’ F for Fake, you’ll most appreciate Tokyo These Days if you have an understanding of how manga is made and published in Japan.

Kagurabachi c1-20

I saw Kagurabachi while browsing the Shonen Jump app and was taken aback by the beautiful key art. It’s so cool. So I thought I’d dig into the first chunk of the story to see how it is. Kagurabachi follows the son of a famous bladesmith who crafted blades infused with powerful magic. Bad people want these blades and our main character doesn’t want that happen. There’s also a government entity at play who want to control the swords. Plus there are sorcerers with magic abilities. The art is well done and the story is interesting enough so far. I wasn’t instantly in love with the series, but I’ll keep on reading to see where it goes and how it matures. It’s an easy series to binge read on the Shonen Jump app. I wouldn’t be surprised if Kagurabachi becomes a major hit with an anime adaptation.

New Shonen Jump Series

I love how new series start up in the Shonen Jump app. It’s fun to check them out early on and see if any really stand out. I started three of the new series in September.

• Ichi the Witch — The story of Ichi, a feral hunter, who acquire magic power in a world where only women become witches. So-so so far. The art is fine and there are some impressive panels, but the story and world aren’t resonating with me yet.
• Shinobi Undercover — The main character is a ninja who is socially awkward and gets an assignment to go undercover at a school to protect a female classmate. His social awkwardness and other undercover ninja at the school lead to interesting encounters. I’ll be curious if the main character and the concept gets old or not.
• Harutaku — A bullied, naive, gullible student befriends a game making obsessed female classmate who never shows up to school and they make games together. I’ve got a bit of a background in game programming, so I really understand how they’re made. This is an interesting concept but it’ll require a stellar execution or it’ll be pretty rote and boring. Unclear what the end goal or main motivations of the characters will be.

Looking Forward to October

I’ll definitely be continuing on with Hunter x Hunter. Greed Island is a really long arc compared to the first three, so that’ll take me a decent amount of time to read. I’d also like to finish Tokyo These Days since the third and final volume recently got released.