fantasy graphic novel

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Lenni Reviews: “May I Have a Taste?” Vol. 2, by Amidamuku

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

Minoru is gravely injured trying to save Yamadera after he risks his life trying to become a vampire. An older vampire, Mire, comes to assist Minoru.

I like that the world is expanding. I don’t like Yamadera, so spending time with any other character is a net positive. We do get some backstory for Mine, another new vampire, Itachi, and introduce Mei, who reminds me of Kiku from Call of the Night. I’m glad what seemed to be a predatory version of Ko annoying Minoru, who just wants to live his life, is shaping into something more. 3.9 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Champion of the Rose” Vol. 1, by Cat Aquino & Dominique Duran

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

Princess Rosa’s brother tragically dies, making her hair to the throne of the Empire of Sagrada. As the largest kingdom in the Known World, Rosa looks forward to serving her people and the Dying God they all worship but instead, her father holds a tournament where the prize is her hand in marriage. Desperate to become queen and make real change, she enlists Rey as her champion. Rey is a swordsman from one of the kingdom’s colonies and only wants to earn enough money to return to his native lands.

It’s interesting that Rosa is a mixed-race princess of a kingdom fueled by colonizing others. She has to come to terms with what her kingdom has done to people who look just like her. She may have been relatively sheltered as a princess, but that doesn’t stop the whispers and judgment. Rey is a transman and a fucking badass, who literally and figuratively is infected by the evils done by those who’ve conquered his people. The combat is fantastically done. It’s ruthless and dark. It reminds me of Centuria, making this a damn good dark fantasy. 4.5 out of 5.

 

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Lenni Reviews: “Tsumiki Ogami’s Not-So-Ordinary Life” Vol. 7, by Miyu Morishita

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

Yutaka is doing a lot if inner work on his feelings and making friends; including his student council duties and helping Tsumiki make Valentine’s Day treats.

Much like with Komi, Tsumiki’s earnest and positive attitude is so refreshing and nice to read. I would like to know more about other beings – Raizen’s portion was interesting – but our main two are adorable. You can tell Tsumiki is working slyly to help Yutaka. 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Black Night Parade” Vol. 3, by Hikaru Nakamura

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The identity of the Red Santa who visited Miharu as a child is finally revealed as the intense testing to become a reindeer continues.

This volume also includes how other members of the cast were recruited into their current roles at the North Pole and how they relate to Miharu. I’m warming up to this series. It’s pretty fun and has some intriguing lore to keep things interesting. The humor is pretty good, too. I don’t wanna say too much to avoid spoilers. 4 out of 5

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Lenni Reviews: “Jungle Juice” Vol. 7 by Hyeong Eun & Juder

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Suchan and his friends are now second years and offered extra credit by being members of an elite group: Propolis. But Suchan is still dealing with the effects of Pumpkin Carriage.

Like other series, I am growing concerned about adding yet another group. There’s Nest, Breeder, and now the Stray Dogs. Now, I love me a good training montage and lore about the source of Jungle Juice, but I will withhold judgement about adding another group to this story because as of this volume, things are balanced and the new characters are cool. I so low key winder if this whole series is a conspiracy to trick the readers into learning more about bugs and insects. 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Black Night Parade” Vol. 2, by Hikaru Nakamura

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Miharu has been working hard at The North Pole in his new role of punishing bad children and while the benefits, salary, and coworkers are miles better than his previous job, his old coworker shows up to throw a wrench in the works.

While Kaiser (the old coworker) and his antics rode the fine line between funny and annoying, the best part of this volume was the latter half when we see Miharu as a child. It’s cute and heartwarming and has some cool (if not predictable) plot points that I will not spoil. It’s all still an interesting premise and it’s a decent volume once Kaiser is set aside. 3.5 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Black Night Parade” Vol. 1, by Hikaru Nakamura

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Hino Maharu spends Christmas working as his dead end job. He’s desperate for a decent full time job. When he expresses this wish to a dark Santa Claus, he’s offered a new job: working for this dark Santa, Knecht at the North Pole.

I don’t know what to think of this yet. It’s weird, has decent comedy, and has menacing parts as well. The art style allows for some great character designs, especially Knecht. Miharu is a classic sort of protagonist and the surrounding cast contrast around him well. But I can’t say how exactly this makes me feel. It’s decent enough to keep me reading and curious though. 3 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Rooster Fighter” Vol. 10 by Shu Sakuratani

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

Morio and Chicken Little head to the ocean while Keisuke and his group make a journey into underground caves on a quest to enter the Inner Yolk.

This is a lot of lore about the eggs and getting ready to train with whichever element the members of the group match with. I love that Elizabeth has her own side quest that’s relevant and shows off her skills. While this may feel a bit like filler, I’m hoping all this lore and training will have a good payoff. Chicken Little and Morio may be a complete side story, but their relationship is really sweet, and I enjoy it when they’re featured. 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Lumine” Vol. 4, by Emma Krogell

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

After an emergency teleportation, Kody and Lumine are stranded alone in Terranevo, Lumine’s home country.

I’m enjoying the location change. The new characters are interesting, and of course, learning more about Lumine is a treat. He has a classic tragic backstory for a protagonist, but it makes for a good tone only to bring back a bit of humor later on. We’re slowly learning more about other characters and the world around them, and all the magic and history is intriguing. 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Magical Girl Dandelion” Vol. 2, by Kaeru Mizuho

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

After Tanpopo’s battle with Alice concludes, Peony discovers her connection to Shade.

Peony reacts as you’d expect, unwilling to accept that some fiends can be different. This volume expands the world and lore, using Peony and Tanpopo’s differing views on how to fight fiends. I’m sure we’ll get more backstory about why Peony is so gung-ho about killing fiends as we go. It was cool to see the two magical girls working together. They have the odd couple thing going on, and it’s interesting to see them use their abilities. 4 out of 5.

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