So usually when I go to Japan, one thing I almost always end up with is a suitcase full of manga (most of it from used bookstores and the like when possible), about 23 kilos/50 pounds worth. This time was no exception. Here’s the breakdown of what I picked up, that I can remember off the top of my head from work.

Rinshi!! Ekoda-chan vol 3 (”Ekoda-chan, dying inside!”)- This is the picture from above. Pretty much my favorite manga these days, it’s a four-panel (4koma) manga about the real (?) life of the author, a single woman in Tokyo who drifts through relationships and works at various hostess clubs and the like. Lots of commentary on “Birds of Prey” (Moukin), girls who use their cuteness and affect stupidity in order to try to score men (who the author is constantly fighting against). It’s really fun, kinda dark, but I don’t know anyone who’s read this manga who hasn’t liked it.

Sumomomo Momomo vol 10-11 - The two latest volumes of my other favorite manga, the headlining Square-Enix comic about the “world’s strongest bride”, and one guy’s journey through the crazy world of martial arts families. The only problem with these comics are that, to me, they’re simply too interesting/fun, and I ended up reading both in a single evening. It’s like brain candy, but so much fun. Even now it continues to retain its humor, while at the same time actually advancing the plot and having characters change. Mad props to the author, who includes a new unpublished manga story in every single volume (some rough sketches, but still solid). Great manga. I hope it gets released in the US. Avoid the anime, it’s total shit.

Sketchbook vol 1-2 - Got this on Ewen’s recommendation. At first I thought it was too much trying to recreate the feel of Azumanga Daioh. But after giving it a second shot, it really grew on me. I like all the characters (though some of them just seem to blend together without having quirks/personalities of their own), and the little bits about art club knowledge, art club materials and the like are really interesting. I plan on picking up the rest of the series eventually. Not “blew my mind”, but it’s a solid contender.

Saint Young Men vol 1-2 - I mentioned this one earlier in my LJ: Jesus and Buddha come down to earth, and split an apartment in Tokyo. Hilarious sacrilegious antics ensue. Overall, it’s a really clever manga that plays out pretty well. Not “LOL” laughs, but lots of snickers, especially if you understand some Christianity and Buddhism.

Sakuran - The manga version of the movie about an Edo period prostitute’s life. It’s a single story wrapped up in one manga.

Nichijou 1-2 - Bought it on a whim. It ended up being a solid comedy manga, so I picked up the second one as well. It’s… Imagine Azumanga Daioh with child mad professors, cyborg students, possibly aliens. An absurd manga that still relies on the honobono feel of Azumanga. It’s pretty crazy, but worth a peek.

Arakawa Under the Bridge vol 1-7 - So the first volume was a gift from my cousin Eikichi, who give me a stack of manga as a “reimerse in geek culture” present. Another absurdist manga of the kind I love. I ended up buying all 6 other volumes, however on a deeper read it might not be *quite* as interesting as I first thought. I’ll have to back up and start over. It’s the story of an elite young businessman who lives by the motto of “never owe anyone for anything”. Unfortunately, due to some incidents, he ends up owing his life to a really strange girl who lives under a huge bridge crossing the Arakawa river. Eventually, he comes to live there, and meets with all the strange others that live there too: A man who is always dressed in a “kappa” suit, an ex-military nun, a man with a giant star for a head, and so on. Bizarre adventures in the grasslands under the bridge ensue.

Nononono vol 1 - Another manga given to me by my cousin. “It’s be the guy that wrote the story behind Elfen Lied”. I was like, “OK, I’ll have to find a polite way to throw this manga away”. However, Nononono is totally different - I checked. It’s basically a simple sports manga story about a girl joining the world of snow ski-jumping. Honobono. No one dying or peeing in shame.

Yotsuba to! vol 8 - A given. I mean, seriously. Azuma Kiyohiko is the greatest manga-storyteller writing today, period.

Manyu Hikkenjou vol 1 (Secret Scrolls of the Demon Tits) - This is another gift from Eikichi. Hmmm. The weird thing about this manga is that it’s so popular… even with women. It’s basically a reconceptualizing of the Sengoku era, but instead of “those with power control everything”, the phrase is turned into “those with breasts control everything”. It’s a manga that focuses on… tits. The drawing is excellent, the story is engaging, the characters, mostly all female, are strong leading characters with interesting personalities… and yet, it’s still all about tits. Maybe its popularity is due to the bizarre mix of “sexy and feudal era”? I don’t quite get it. It’s hard to give it a serious read, but I’ll try later and report if it’s worth a look. Normally I avoid this sensational stuff like the plague, but a lot of my friends, even women, recommended this one to me. Huh. Must be something more to it. Maybe.

Blame Gakuen -　The latest manga, or better said, “artbook” from Nihei Tsutomu. As always, the art is gorgeous, unqiue and individualistic (and damned creepy) while the stories are lackluster. Still, it’s fun to see the “Blame!” setting of isolationist techno-horror done up as a high school comedy in this one-shot.

Detroit Metal City vol 1-7 - This is the other latest craze in Japan, started with a manga but is now an anime and full-length movie. But it flies because it is awesome. It’s the story of Soichiro, a kid who just graduated from music school, living in Tokyo, whose dream is to start a gentle light pop band in the style of Pizzicato Five and the like. However, he ends up the frontman of an underground death metal band called Detroit Metal City, “Johannes Krauser the Second”. He lives a double-life, and although he hates death metal and everything it encompasses, he can not help to be totally awesome at it. He can play the guitar with his teeth. He can scream “Rape!” /11/ times in one second. He can out “FUCK!” the legendary American death metal artist Jack Il Dark.

Manga seven and it’s still going strong. I actually like the pace and feel of the anime a little more than the manga, but even at the completion of the anime, they haven’t gotten to manga 3 of the series. But the story still continues to be awesome and funny, with no sign of letting up yet. A must have.

Mitsurugi vol 1 - Another gift from Eikichi. As far as I can tell, it’s about a glamous school council that rules a school ala the likes of Utena, but it’s a comedy of sorts. Basically, they’re the elite of the elite, and they go around solving totally mundane problems. Glamorously. I’ll give it a read.

Franken-Fran vol 1 - Another gift from Eikichi: This manga is about a classic mad scientist, Frankenfran. Each chapter is a complete little story, usually involving gruesomeness and mad science. THe mad science is internally consistent and makes sense, which makes it even freakier and unsettling. Franken-Fran uses surgery to create crazy biological nightmares, which are the focus of the stories. In the first story, a father’s son gets in an accident and dies, save for his brain. THe father says that he’ll do anything to save him. Surgery ensues. When it’s over, she’s basically fused their two brains together, connecting their nervous tissue and eyes so that they can literally share each others’ thoughts… and the son’s face is on the back of the father’s head… Another story is about high school kids who go to Frankenfran for plastic surgery: It starts out small (rounder eyes, facelifts) and gets stranger and stranger. The last page shows basically a twisted school campus with bizarre kids crawling all over it, each the embodiment of their own twisted version of beauty.

Moyashimon vol 1 - It’s basically a biology/microbiology-themed manga that’s 1/3 comical, 1/3 mystery, 1/3 academic. It’s about a guy who comes from a long line of people who can actually see bacteria and microbes… and to them, they look like cute little figures (like those plushie disease dolls), and talk as well (not at length). Each time a new bacteria is introduced, there’s a sidebar that shows its cute picture, a biological description, and a psychological profile. Streppococcus, for example, doesn’t like talking about its parents.

It’s really entertaining, especially if you’re up for reading something that teaches about biology as it entertains.

Soredemo Machi wa Mawatteiru vol 1-4 - This was a total fluke. I looked up one of my must-buys (Yotsuba?) on Amazon.jp. I looked up 2-3 manga, and each time at the bottom there was a recommendation for this manga. I read some reviews, then picked up the first book. Then, shortly later, I got the other three. “Soremachi” is the best manga find I’ve made this trip, period. It’s incredible. Another honobono comedy story manga, in the end. It’s about a 16-year-old girl named Arashiyama Hayato, and her family and friend life. It focuses on her part-time job as a waitress at a cafe that recently was remodeled as a maid cafe. For the manga fans out there who know Azumanga Daioh, imagine a manga where Tomo (Ayashiyama) and Yomi (her friend and classmate Tattsun) work together at a part-time waitressing job.

Sumomomo-momomo was the best find I made three years ago, and Soredemo Machi wa Mawatteiru is this year’s find (DMC is hands-down awesome all around, but this one is the best “snuck up on me” manga). If you like manga, especially slice-of-life (ish) manga with memorable characters, you’ll love “Soremachi”. It’s incredible. I hope it makes its way over in English soon.
Orie picked up:
A pile of OL Shinkaron, Crayon Shin-Chan, and Ebi-chu (classics)

Didn’t Buy:
Mugen no Juunin/Blade of the Immortal - One of the manga that really got me into learning Japanese. But lately? I’ve just gotten tired of it. Once it ends, I’ll pick up the rest maybe at a used bookstore. It just dragged on too fucking long.
Ganmu (Battle Angel Alita) Last Order - The “new ending” of Battle Angel is taking far, far longer than the author anticipated. However, my friends tell me that it’s totally worth looking into, that Last Order rocks hard. So again, I’m going to wait for more volumes to be released (maybe once the series is complete) then pick them all up.

Anyway, that’s the report on the manga I bought. Next is console games, books and extras, and tabletop RPGs and materials.