"Magnolia" Chapter 19

Nagi's taking off the gloves...hee!  I think "Lost Lamb" describes Nagi's situation in this chapter more than "beast".  Hahaha!  This chapter is such a tease!  Still it's fun to see Nagi suffer sweetly.  He makes a great martyr.

Lala 4 AnS Freebie

Lala 4 includes a sweet "Akagami no Shirayukihime" alternative book cover.  It's so cute.  Do I sense wallpaper material??? (Hint, hint all you creative people out there!)

 

There are also "Ookami Heika no Hanayome" and "Gakuen Kindergarten",  book cover included.  Both are these are also very nice :).

Dual Release: Akagami no Shirayukihime Chp 31 and the February 2012 Omake

First, a shameless plug for Akidzuki Sorata!  There will be a dual release of "Akagami no Shirayukihime" volume 7 and the "Vahlia Bridegroom" one-shot compilation on March 5th.  Copies have been pre-ordered for those who have already sent requests to piggyback on my late February order.  Also, the extra copies I ordered have been reserved.  However, it's not too late!  If you want your own copies of AnS Volume 7, "Vahlia's Bridegroom", and "Ao Rhapsodia" (the Akane Ogure one-shot compilation), I can piggy back your order onto my first order for the month of March (you will receive the books mid to late March instead of early march).  Also, if any of you want the OHSHC Perfect Guide, I can orders those too for you.  The books are $8.50 each and OHSHC Perfect Guide is $21.  Those prices include shipping from Japan.  There is separate shipping from my house to your on top of that.  Please see the Piggy Back ordering information page for more information about domestic shipping.

And now onto the chapters!

Obi looks very nice on this title page.  I would like to see a clean version of this drawing. Moving on, this is the "onsen" chapter.  It always amazes how manga and anime, regardless of the over arching nature of the work, manages to either throw in an onsen, umi (beach), or swimming pool chapter/episode.  Honestly, I never expected to see such a chapter in AnS. Back to Obi...this chapter continues Obi's character development.  He is quite the "merry trickster" and his pot stirring rivals my own husband's (shh!  Don't tell him I said that.  Hee!).  Fortunately, it's all in good fun and extremely funny to read.

"Sekai no Hate no Sougen de" ("The Grassy Plain at the Edge of the World") by Keiko Ishihara

Update: The file have be updated to correct a couple translation errors.  Those of you with digital collections may want to re-download the file.

First of all, as you can see in the bottom left corner of the title page, "Ojousama no Untenshu" volume 2 will be available for purchase on March 5th.  Here's a link to pre-order it from Amazon JP.  I'll post links to other online stores once the book is actually released.

On to the one-shot!  This one-shot is rather subtle.  It took 3 readings for me to get the entirety of the message.  For those of you who find an anti-feminist message, I ask you to re-read the one-shot and chew on the end again.  This is more about influence being a barrier rather than gender.  That's not to say gender doesn't play a role, because it does play a big role.  Also, after you read through the first time, go back and read the first 3 pages again, for a big "aha" if you didn't get what was going on during your first reading.

"Fushigi no Maria-kun" Bonus Story: "The Wounds that Cover Us" (Manshinsoui no Futari")

This is the extra short one-shot included in "Fushigi no Maria-kun" Volume 1.  It's a cute little high school romance story.  I always like it when authors are able to tell a complete story in very few pages.

Oh!  This is also the debut project for our newest typesetter, Rien!  Let's all welcome Rien :)

January 2012 Manga Purchases

This post is quite late, but better late than never!

English Paperback:

• "The Guin Saga: The Seven Magi", Volume 1
• "Sumomomo, Momomo", Volume 1
• "Nabari no Ou", Volume 1
• "Durarara!!", Volume 1
• "Black Butler", Volume 5 & 8
• "Skip Beat", Volume 26
• "Black Bird", Volume 12
• "Dengeki Daisy", Volume 8
• "Oresama Teacher", Volume 6

Japanese Paperback:

• Hana to Yume Platinum
• "Joousama no Shiro Usagi:, Volume 1
• "Natume Yuujincho" Winter 2012 Special
• "Sayonara Chocolate"

One-Shot: "Kirara to Shiro Ookami" ("Kirara and the White Wolf")

As you can see on this title page, "Ao no Rhapsodia", a collection of Akane Ogura's one-shots is now available for purchase.  I have a copy and we will be translating some of the one-shots.  If you wish to purchase your own copy, here are some links:

• Amazon JP
• Yes Asia

I can also piggyback order it for you ($8.50 + postage).  If you are interested, send me an e-mail.

Okay, now onto the one-shot. This one-shot reminds me of a light comedic version of "Ginrou no Sakura" for a younger audience.  It's a super cute one-shot.  I really like Kirara's costume.  I'm a sucker for ribbon accents.

Commentary: My Views on the MangaStream vs. Viz News

There are a lot of things I want to say about this issue both as a manga fan and a scanlator.  As a fan, I say true fans show their support through rewarding creators with money.  I think if you are reading scanlations, whether you read Japanese or not, you have an obligation to buy at least one volume of the Japanese version of your favorite series.  You have the translation, so the "I don't know Japanese" excuse isn't valid.

As for the reading scanlations as a try before you buy option, reading 1 or 2 volumes of a multi-volume series in scanlation is understandable.  However, reading all 59+ volumes of something online is not "try before you buy".  There is no reason to have an entire series online in scanlation when the series is licensed and available for purchase.

Valentine's Day Special One-Shot: "Heart Assassin" by Sora Kakeru

This year for Valentine's Day I thought we'd present a "delinquent love story".  I think delinquents with a heart of gold are my favorite type of male manga character.  This story has a bit of a twist at the end...though.  I kinda wonder if it's a double twist.  Haha!  You'll see what I mean after you read it. Along with the potential double twist, the story has an unexpected bit at the end...actually, a theme in this story is "unexpectation" so it all makes sense in an unexpected way.  Haha!!

February at Omari's Sister -- Going into a Transition Period

As some of you may know, I am finally leaving the ranks of the unemployed and will be working full-time once again as an engineer at the end of the month.  I'm sorry, but I won't reveal where I'll be working, but I'll say it's such an appropriate job that it's kinda scary.  I'm very much looking forward to getting started, and I have no doubt that what I do at my new job will touch a great many of you.

January 2012 Statistics

In January, we made a big push to release chapters from some long neglected series and a couple of new series.  We introduced "Ojou-sama no Untenshu" and "Ore to Atashi no Kareshi-sama".  Both series were received well.  We also welcomed a new image editor, Kayori.  Kayori has been providing some of the wonderful banners you've been seeing on the blog lately.  Let's all welcome Kayori to the group!

Now onto the numbers!

Top 10 Visiting Countries:

1. US (CA, NY, TX, MA, WA)
2. Canada
3. France
4. Philippines
5. Indonesia
6. Germany
7. Australia
8. The United Kingdom
9. Malaysia
10. Singapore

One-Shot: "Detarame Mousouryoku Opera" ("Absurd and Fantastical Opera") by Bisco Hatori

This one-shot took forever to complete!  Everything about it was time consuming!  I'm so glad it's done!  I forgot how difficult Bisco Hatori's works are to translate. Fortunately,  I really like this one-shot so it was a pleasure.

According to Hatori-sensei's blog, this was intended to only be a one-shot, but she liked it so much that it's going to become a 3 chapter short series!  The second chapter is scheduled to release in Lala issue 5, which comes out in Japan on March 24th.  We will, of course, translate the rest of the series.

Romantic One-shots from the Past

Valentine's Day is a week away!  What better way to get into the mood than to read some romantic one-shots.  Here are some past love-dovey one-shots we've translated:

• Ginrou no Sakura 
• Bouquets of Flowers for the Sleepless Knight
• Blue Rhapsodia
•  
• Wait until it's Dark 
• The Honeybee Earl and The Flower Dress
• The Wizard and the Love Potion
• Shinobigoto 
• His and Her Sleepless Winter

Hugo Poll

Love him or hate him, Hugo is an interesting character.  Is he Ayato's friend, enemy, or both?  Seriously, what IS his deal?  Personally, I think he's there on a specific mission, but I don't think things are going as planned -- though, I admit I have no idea what his mission is.  I think Hugo is getting a little side-track because, regardless of the Magnolia smell, he likes Ayato.

I look forward to the development of Hugo's character.  Will someone eventually take him down a couple of notches?  Will Ayato eventually wrap him around his/her finger?  Or will he be a damned-dirty-dog forever?

What do you think?  Take the poll in the right hand column.  If you want to rant positively or negatively, please leave a comment.  Go all out!  Let's talk about Hugo :).