Writer: Alex de Campi
Artist: Federica Manfredi
Publisher: Tokyopop
Rating: 8+
Released: July 2006
Synopsis: “When Kat’s dad gets a job as a science teacher, things seem perfect – that is, until Kat’s rich, popular classmates shove her to the bottom of the social heap for being smart. And bad turns to worse when an anonymous student blackmails Kat’s dad to give the class better grades! Can Kat and her new friend, the rebellious computer nerd Mouse, find the real culprits before Kat’s dad loses his job?”
From page one, Kat & Mouse is a story that stepped straight out of after-school television. Starring a small, but all stereotype-inclusive cast, it’s perfectly aimed at its 8-12 market with the tackling of everyday issues following the life of the new kid. Of course, Kat isn’t just any new kid and seems ready with her brains and charisma to take whatever the new school throws at her, from snobbish rich kids to an embarrassing first meet with the impending crush.
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Author: Laila Reimoz
Artist: Studio Kosaru
Publisher: YaoiPress
Rating: 18+
Released: September 2005
Synopsis: “The street punk Noah made the mistake of pick-pocketing a crime lord right before he had a meeting with an embassy official. When crime lord Tokihiko can’t produce his identification he misses the important meeting. Tokihiko has Noah captured with the intention of torturing him to death. When he sees how beautiful Noah is, he decides to make him his slave instead.”
There isn’t really much that can be said for Enslaved by the Dragon that wouldn’t turn into an unnecessary, but unavoidable, drag through the mud. While having a full compiled book one can assume effort was put into it but unfortunately the finished project just really doesn’t show it.
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Manga-ka: Aoi Futaba/Kurenai Mistuba
Publisher: Kitty Media
Rating: Mature (18+)
Released: March 2005
Synopsis: “Mizuki is a popular male fashion model with a promising future. When the mysterious Haruno sees him, she wants to make him the centrepiece for her company’s latest promotion. To lure Mizuki in, she calls on the talents of her twin brother, Kazuomi. He is quick to seduce the young super-model, but things soon escalate beyond business as usual. As Kazuomi’s feelings run away with him, it looks like true love for him and Mizuki.”
Level C is one of those yaoi titles that any long time fan of the genre has heard of. It’s considered one of the classics and the staples, both the manga and its short OVA. Level C is a generally well-loved series but in different ways for different people; you either love it for being good or you love it for being bad, and probably for all the same reasons.
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YaoiSuki has posted on their website a YaoiPress sponsored contest. The winner will recieve five Yaoi Press books and a yaoi parasol. To enter, you have to guess (with the hangman-game type clues they supply you with) the name for YP’s upcoming Yaoi Hentai-replacing line up of books. I can atleast say it seems like an awfully long title for an anthology collection.
Read the rules and such over here.
Manga-ka: Sachi Oshimizu
Publisher: Media Blasters
Rating: Teen (13+)
Released: October 2006
Synopsis: “Young Nobuhiko has been given the chance of a lifetime. He gets to design the personality of Dr. Otoi’s latest and greatest robotic creation – “Signal”. Signal is a robot that looks exactly like a human, is designed for combat, and comes ready for action. A true accomplishment – but Nobuhiko only sees this as the perfect chance to finally have a big brother. Unfortunately, Nobuhiko’s plans take a turn for the worst when he blunders in the laboratory and things are forever changed.”
Twin Signal earns its name from the split personality of the main character, Signal: a robot who, at the sound of his ‘little brother’ sneezing, changes between over-confident fighting machine to mini chocolate-obsessed ball of energy. Volume one of Media Blaster’s release is actually a double volume, combining original volumes one and two, the same method used for Japan’s re-release of Twin Signal.
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Manga-ka: Mikiyo Tsuda
Publisher: DMP Books
Rating: Teen (16+)
Released: August 2007
Synopsis: “The Day of Reckoning has finally come for Mikoto! When his often-mentioned-but-never-seen girlfriend shows up for the school festival, Mikoto flies into a panic. It’s not the love of his life that has him sweating bullets, but someone far more terrifying – his sister! Can Mikoto trust his princess-pals Tohru and Shihoudani to keep the secret of their extracurricular activities from his suspicious sibling?”
Princess Princess volume four continues the school-life adventures of Tohru, Mikoto and Shihoudani. Living in an all boys’ school, the three have been chosen to play the role of princesses, cross-dressing in girl’s clothing to give support and eye candy to the rest of the student populous. Now it’s time for the school festival and Mikoto finds himself living in fear of his girlfriend finding out his secret. Then, from one minor crisis to the next, it seems the shy Akira has a new challenger for the position of student council president.
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Author: Shinobu Gotoh
Manga-ka: Shoko Takaku
Publisher: DMP Books
Rating: Mature (18+)
Released: October 2007
Synopsis: “A rendezvous with his long-distance lover leaves Hikaru’s heart aflutter, but things never seem to work out as planned with this couple. Hikaru ends up stuck at work and his co-worker Nagisa bumps into Shima-sensei as he waits for Hikaru in front of the school building. Nagisa finds Shima-sensei incredibly cute and adorable and invites him for a drink since his night with Hikaru is ruined. …And he says “Yes?!?”
Three years after the release of the first volume, Digital Manga’s first yaoi publication, comes volume four of Passion. It’s the conclusion to the story of Hikaru and Shima’s student-teacher relationship and its progression since Hikaru’s graduation.
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The pun had to be used; tell me I’m not the first. Yesterday Christohper Butcher over at Comics212 put up an overview on the media package for the NewType USA replacing magazine, PiQ. He states it has a more Wizard magazine feel to it which from the looks of the content breakdown, certainly seems an accurate thought. You can read all about it here at his blog.
Source: MangaBlog
A little off topic for the general content of my blog but I have to say that Cloverfield was hands down one of the most mind-blowing theatre experience I’ve ever had. I’m a big movie goer so it had a lot of competition but managed to blow everything prior to it out of the water. It was just something else. Call this some serious pluggage.
Manga-ka: Hyouta Fujiyama
Publisher: June/DMP
Rating: Mature (18+)
Released: September 2007
Synopsis: “Reni and Youichi were nothing more than drinking buddies. But when a night of imbibing goes a little too far, they find themselves drinking buddies with “benefits!” What begins as a drunken lark soon becomes a passionate affair. But Renji and Youichi aren’t really gay… or are they?”
Freefall Romance is a tale of two businessmen, Renji Tsutsumi and Youichi Nanase who meet each other through work. Teamed up on a joint project between their companies, the two take to spending their after work hours drinking together and soon become good friends. While Youichi is concerned with matters of his younger brother’s sexuality, Renji’s thoughts are on a more personal matter, realizing that he may have begun developing feelings for his friend that go far beyond business acquaintance.
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Manga-ka: Sakuya Kurekoshi
Publisher: June/DMP & Oakla Publishing
Rating: Older Teen (16+)
Released: November 2007
Synopsis: “You think your life is weird? Imagine being the reincarnation of an ancient priestess from a thousand years ago. That’s the unfortunate fate that has befallen Yuuto, a high school student and kendo competitor whose life is turned upside down when he is visited by a thunder god named Kazuchi. The disgruntled god claims that he is bound to Yuuto and that the only way he can be free is to have Yuuto remember something he’s never done in his lifetime! Will Yuuto be able to tap into his priestess past to remember the magic word to set the thunder god free? And if he does, would he really want the dashing Kazuchi to leave?”
The story begins with Yuuto, a young high school student, who finds he may not be as ordinary as he once thought, when a lightning strike leaves him without a scratch. What it did leave him, however, was a raijuu, a thunder god, who enters Yuuto’s life proclaiming the student is actually the reincarnation of a priestess, the same priestess that sealed the god away! Now the raijuu needs Yuuto to remember his true name so he can be free again.
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A link via ComingSoon.net leads fans to a movie blog where they can get some more peeks into the filming of the live action adaptation of Akira Toriyama’s globally popular, Dragonball Z (debatably Dragonball judging from released plot synopsises). Is that a glimpse of the classic orange gi I see in the background? Lots of pictures of the movie’s cast, including some video interviews.
You can check ‘em out for yourself over at hoyCinema’s Movieland blog.
Svetlania.com, personal webpage of Dramacon famous, Svetlana Chmakova, has recently had a nice overhaul with a spiffy new layout and some new artwork and information. Fans of hers should check it out, especially some particularly interesting news such as her confirmed appearance at Animartime 2008!
Manga-ka:Yuko Kuwabara
Publisher: DMP/June
Rating: Mature (18+)
Released: March 2007
Synopsis: “Broken-hearted Naru tried drowning his sorrows with fellow police officer, Kita, only to wake up the next morning naked… in Kita-san’s bed?! That arrogant smirk on Kita’s face tells a tale, but Naru can’t remember a thing. Did the alcohol cause him to do something he’s going to regret? Or is Kita simply playing perverted games with Naru’s mind? What’s worse is now the uncomfortable tension will play out at the station house – in front of all the other officers!”
After his girlfriend broke up with him, Naru began seeking comfort in bottle bottoms along with fellow co-worker Kita. He finds himself asleep in his friend’s bed the morning with no memory of what had happened. After several more nights of the same, Naru vows not to let it happen again only to find himself in the same predicament but this time completely naked! Kita tells him what a passionate night the two shared and now Naru isn’t sure what to think.
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Manga-ka: Shin Midorikawa
Publisher: DelRey
Rating: Teen (13+)
Released: November 2007
Synopsis: “Since ancient days, the Gaius School of Witchcraft and Wizardary has trained the fiercest swordsmen and the most powerful wizards. Now one boy could become the greatest of them all. If he studies hard; if he is true to his friends; if he believes; if he survives…”
Aventura follows the story of Lewin, a young student recently enrolled in the Gaius School of Witchcraft and Wizardary; which offers two types of classes, one for swordsmen and the other for wizards. Lewin falls into the swordsmen category, unable to use magic on his own. He befriends two students in the magic class and thus life in Gaius goes on.
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