For a supposed ‘anime’ blogger, I haven’t posted anything about anime yet. Tsk. Tsk. Still, Manga Weekly is here again. Shinshi Doumei Cross ends; One Piece, Bleach, and Inuyasha stay true to its genre; Hoshi wa Utau fails to glitter; and newest scans of Gokusen tickles the funny bone.

I’m expecting BECK and Skip Beat! raws to come out. But no such luck. And is School Rumble over? Was last week the final chapter? I was expecting SR continuation this weekend.

Spoilers after the jump.

image taken from EY&Co scan

Gokusen c.109

I know it has been a while since Shueisha released the last tankoubon. But the scans are catching up. While I own the complete set, my reading comprehension in the scale of one to ten is -2. Needless to say, I rely on translations, thankyouverymuch.

And please, can someone in North America license Gokusen? How can you not love a series where a chapter’s important elements are heavy drinking, vocal prowess, and equine sensibilities? Hey, I’m easy to please.

Shinshi Doumei Cross c.47

It is the final chapter, folks. And as we predicted, Haine goes bye-bye and Takanari follows; they reincarnate as Shizumasa’s twin kids; and they live happily ever after. That is, until chibi!Haine and chibi!Takanari go the Yori and Iku route.

I kid.

Of course, it ends in a gooey, feel-good, I-can’t-believe-I-have-a-heart place, where diabetics are ordered to prepare insulin shots. Running away used to be an option for me, but this time I embraced the thick chocolaty confection of radiant beings out-smiling every teeth-whitening ad there is. I should go ballistic at how happy these characters are in the end of the series. Everyone’s paired off. Except for Shizumasa, who comes back home from his treatment and subsequent studies abroad for Haine and Takanari’s wedding.

I get insane with pairings. (Yes, I can be that fan. You will be at some point.) But Shizumasa’s lack of OTL is acceptable to yours truly. Heck, he made several lives miserable so he can die or whatever. Think shoujo-fied Johan Liebert.

I’ll revisit Shinshi Doumei Cross again in the next few days. It deserves a lone post for itself. In the meantime, I need to oxy-clean away sugar that’s trying to permeate my bitter innards.

BTW, the dialogue in the image above is really there.

One Piece c.502

A long time time has passed since I’ve been utterly hyped with a single Luffy punch. Not as compelling but reminiscent of the uber-awesome Bellamy punch. Then again, I just want someone to kick his frakin’ ass.

To top off the chapter, the continuity gods shower Oda-sensei. Hachi redeems himself in front of Nami. Let’s bow our heads and flashback a few years ago when a voice in my head suggested to take on an OP anime marathon. A few dozen episodes later, I was entertained, but Arlong Park, dear readers, the scene where Nami stabbed her pirate tattoo, was the one that made vow loyalty, sealed and signed with my own red corpuscles, to the anime. Later on, an addendum was written, where I will forever stalk follow The Dude anywhere on the ‘Verse.

Hoshi wa Utau c.18 c.1-18

Hoshi wa Utau is about a girl living a simple life in the country side. An ordinary night under the twinkling stars intertwines her fate with a mysterious boy with a gentle smile. Sakuya, the female lead, has a rich back story, a land mine for a textured character. Only few chapters, far in between at that, showcase her history and her ‘real’ self. In those moments, it pulls the readers to that beautifully tragic place where it trancends from melodramatic tearjerkers to exquisite pieces of art.

Unfortunately, only her character has enough substance for me to care about. The supporting cast is either poorly developed or under-utilized. Even the male ‘love interest’ suffer from this.

I want to love this series. It’s a Natsuki Takaya manga, damnit! It has its moments of magic that is FuruBa. But too many subplots in too little time make for a uneven storytelling. Perhaps, I am too hard on this series. But chapter 18 lost the momentum built by the previous two chapters.

So yeah, what intended as a c.18 comment turned into a c.1-18 semi-review.

Inuyasha c.556

You know that thump-thump. That doki-doki. Those reserved for the gripping tension of your choice, ranging from romance to action, from thriller to comedy. Yes, dear readers, that one.

I can’t believe Inuyasha still induces the feeling. And what a feeling. Am I out of breath because of Kagome’s hesitation? Or because Naraku’s head is casually pinned in spidey’s web and he is about to be awaken? (And here I pause to say “WTF! Just frakin’ leave him alone!! He NEEDS to DIE! I’m sick of this mother–”) Or is it because Inuyasha’s internal monologue oozes tender loving goodness, which leads to the inevitable “Kagome, do you hear meeeeeee????” and of course, the also inevitable Kagome’s “Gasp! Inuyasha?”

C’mon, Ms. Takahashi. Torture us no more. Make the cut clean.

Bleach c.-99

Since I choose to be a shallow, shallow fangirl, let’s first focus on how I’m nominating Aizen’s features for the prototype of a male humanoid robot akin to the female one pictured in one of NY’s Japan Day posts. (I can’t remember who posted it. Sorry.) Creepy, but hott.

Going back to the chapter, let’s just say, Aizen dominated Hirako through trickery and sneak attack. Even my inner slut agrees with the sensible part of me, the dude is a complete asshole through and through. Even knowing Hirako’s eventual fate does not take away the harsh humiliation he suffered. The wonderfully written chapter closes with Urahara and Tsukabishi confronting Aizen.

With the exception of Aizen and his cohorts, the players of the fateful evening are exiled to the Human World. With Urahara knowing Aizen’s machinations, what kind of trade off or cover up happened? I also want to know when Isshin’s making an appearance.

Is this frashback counting down to 0? This could be a very good thing. Or a very sucky idea. Once the shock and awe and novelty wears off, I want solid storytelling from Kubo, not the crapfest he made us read a while back. Want to take bets on the good vs sucky? I’d be the bookie.

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Hm. I’ll be watching out for the same stuff again next week.