"Kanojo ni Naru Hi -- Another" Chapter 5

When I first saw this frontis page, I thought, "please let Sagara become the school bancho". That would be cool! Maybe it'll happen. Who knows. Anyhow, what does happen sets up for an interesting arc for the series as a whole. The question is whether anyone will actually do it and how does this bleed over into the main series "Kanojo ni Naru Hi".  Oh, ho, ho! I guess we released that oneshot just in time.

A reminder: "Kanojo ni Naru Hi" with Mamiya and Miyoshi is resuming in September in Ane Lala magazine. Of course, we will be translating the series unless and until it is licensed.

And now onto the release.

Manga Review: "Black Rose Alice" Volume 1 by Setona Mizushiro

Title: Black Rose Alice
Mangaka: Setona Mizushiro
Publisher: Viz / Shoujo Beat
ISBN: 978-1421571607
Purchase: Amazon / Barnes & Noble

Synopsis: LINK

First Impressions:  I've wanted to read this series for long time, but I've never had the patience to deal with Japanese because of the katakana for the non-Japanese names and the complicated story. I'm glad I waited because the name in the first half of the volume would have infuriated me. I had some inkling of the vampire mechanic in this series, but it's nice to finally read the details.

Breakdown: 

Artwork C+: All of the faces are typical Setona Mizushiro. In a way, the character designs feel recycled from past works. It's not a bad thing, but it did set character personality expectations based on past works for me. The cover isn't that interesting to me, but the artwork that is supposed to be in color are pretty. The backgrounds are serviceable but sparse. They don't really add much to the story and none of the story pages strike me as memorable. I guess overall the art work is just there.

What I Read Recently: "The Ice Queen" by Rikachi

Title: Koori no Joou / 氷の女王 / The Ice Queen Volume 1
Mangaka: Rikachi / リカチ
ISBN: 4063418960 / 978-4063418965
Publisher / Publication:  Kodansha / Bessatsu Friend (Betsufure)
Purchase: Amazon JP / Amazon US / Yes Asia

Synopsis:
Nika is a 3rd-year middle-school student with social anxiety. One day she drops her eraser in class, and slacker Akira picks it up. After school, Nika follows Akira to an ice rink in pursuit of her eraser. There, she discovers Akira's beautiful figure skating and her own love of the ice. Alternatively, Kiwako is a brash young champion ice skater and Akira's childhood friend. Akira tells Kiwako that one day Nika will become her rival. Which genius ice skater will become The Ice Queen?

First Impression:
Oh, the cover is so pretty and it's about ice skating! Uh-oh! Another timid shoujo heroine. Oh, but she's cute and she doesn't hate herself. She just has a hard time finding the words to say and speaking up. I can relate.

Breakdown --

Artwork B+:   The cover initially attracted me to his title.  I like the flaming red hair and the movement of the main characters in the illustration. In the comic, the skating sequences are very dynamic and give a sense of speed and whirling motion.

"Magical Change" Chapter 3

"Magical Change" is back! It kinda got lost in the shuffle, but now that it's found, we'll work to get the series done in a timely manner. There are only three volumes, so it shouldn't take long. The fourth chapter is really short, so we may release it this month.

Not much to say about this chapter other than it's the usual gag stupidity. Phantom shows his Demon Lord self, which I wasn't expecting. I thought he'd always be sweet. But it's good. He's really Maoh, so I'm happy.

And now onto the release!