graphic novel

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Lenni Reviews: “Bug Ego” Vol. 1, by ONE & Kiyoto Shitara

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

Hich schoolers Kokudo and Hitsujiya find a book of life hacks. As they try out the increasingly strange tips, the results of using it or failure to follow the rules result in some world-bending consequences.

Okay so…. I don’t have a read on this yet. I’m not sure if this is trying to be weird for weird’s sake or is building up into something bigger and more profound/intricate. There are some cosmic horror moments that are interesting and have some cool potential, but my confusion is outweighing my interest at this point. 3 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Boy’s Abyss” Vol. 13, by Ryo Minenami

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review and is suggested for mature readers.

Since Yuri and Yuko realize Reiji is in Tokyo, they work to get him to return into their clutches so he can stay in that small town forever. But Gen has other plans.

I don’t…. I just… Spoilers, fuck it.

Is this the dysfunctional Olympics here? What the fuck is going on? I don’t even have it in me to go into the themes of the cycle of abuse, despair, trauma, or how problematic Gen is for trans representation; I stand by what I said when I read the last volume: Reiji needs to run, change his name, forget everyone, and never look back. Other than that, my first impressions of this volume were the feeling of circling the drain, waiting for this to finally end. 2 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “May I Have a Taste?” Vol 1. by Amidamuku

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review and is for mature readers only.

Minoru Sato is a 40-year-old virgin salaryman who was turned into a vampire. His coworker, Yamadera, finds out Minoru’s secret and wants to be a vampire, too.

If this didn’t end on a cliffhanger, I’m not sure I would want to continue, since this is the second comic I’ve read in a row where the dynamic makes me uncomfortable. Yamadera is really creepy. He’s not like Ko from Call of the Night, who had this innocent charm. Yamadera is clearly not someone who should have any power, let alone be a vampire. He’s a manipulative twatwaffle who will use Minoru to get what he wants and Minoru doesn’t deserve that. 1.7 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “The Mortifying Ordeal of Being Seen” Vol. 1, by mmk

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review and is intended for mature audiences.

High school student Ikezawa makes a salacious comment to his classmate, Eguchi, expecting to offend her. Instead, she makes one right back, resulting in a flirtatious rivalry he was not prepared for.

As much as I can respect the “You’re being weird, then I’ll get weirder” behavior, this comes off as… Inappropriate. I ended up skimming this because it made me uncomfortable. I can see a young high school me thinking this was hilarious, but at 45, I don’t even wanna know more about these children, root for them, or want to continue reading kids making all these sexual jokes. 2 out of 5 because it’s just not for me.

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Lenni Reviews: “Rainbows After Storms” Vol. 9, by Luka Kobachi

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

Final exams are over and with Winter Break in full swing, the friend group decides to have a Christmas party. Nanoha searches for a goal to work towards for after graduation. 

What Nanoha will decide to do seems to be a ball that just keeps getting kicked down the line in favor of more slice-of-life events like New Year’s or Valentine’s Day. Those scenes are fine, but the way things are going, it’s just gonna be a bigger problem later on. Also, the way it’s just tucked in between Christmas parties and cookie baking makes me wonder if this will actually be a thing or if it just fizzle out. Guess we’ll see. 3 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Marriage Toxin” Vol. 12, by Joumyaku & Mizuki Yoda

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

Himekawa can see emotions in certain objects and uses her abilities to return stolen art. When the situation gets dire, she hires Arashiyama – The Hamster Master – to assist with her next job.

Arashiyama’s confidence in her abilities is awesome to see, as well as spending some time with the ladies without Gero. Of course, he does appear, but Arashiyama and Himekawa interacting without it devolving into catfights over a guy is so refreshing. The girlies fighting is a common trope and I’m glad it doesn’t happen. 3.9 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Firefly Wedding” Vol. 6, by Oreco Tachibana

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

After saving Satoko, Kotaro vows to help her with her dream of living happily with Shinpei. But they still need to get off this island, and Asagiri won’t make it easy for them.

Since they’re still stuck on this island, it gives us a chance to see more of Shinpei and Satoko growing closer and get some insight into Asagiri and why she’s making things so difficult. They’re working on a different way to get off the island. It’s nice to see Kotaro actually listen to Satoko and help her get what SHE wants, other than what her family obligations are. Her family sucks anyway. 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead” Vol. 19, by Haro Aso & Kōtarō Takata

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

Returning from space, the group visits a safari to ride ostriches. Here they meet Mora Miike, the caretaker who prefers animals to humans.

While it’s fun to see Akira fulfilling his list in the wackiest ways, it is nice to see some forward motion in the creation of a vaccine and get some insight into what the rest of Japan is up to. I love our core group, but having some characters from previous adventures pop back in for a bit was cool. I am VERY curious about how the vaccine will change the dynamic of the plot or if this story will decide just to have it not work to keep the status quo. 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Confessions of a 35 Year Old” by TEI

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

Jason (Junren Liu) is a single office worker who is also a virgin. When a new co-worker, Frank (Qianfan Ye), needs a place to stay, Jason offers his spare room. Over time, they grow closer, and Jason wonders if this will be a chance at love.

While I am loving bisexual men representation, even for a one-shot, this felt too short. Just when things are getting good, we’re getting to know our MC’s, their relationship is growing, the conflict is established… Then it just stops. And on a cliffhanger at that! I mean, it’s easy to assume what the outcome will be, but still. What the heck? I think this would have been better if it were a little longer. It’s a cute story, I love the art style, but it needed more. 3 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Sayuri” by Rensuke Oshikiri

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review and is suggested for mature readers.

Norio and his family move into a new home only to find nothing but pain and hardship.

While it seems like this is building up slowly to a typical haunted house story, the absolute mad frenzy this becomes was genuinely horrific. It’s scary and sad to watch this family falling apart. Some of the art for this defies the original expectation I had of the style not being able to handle it, as it’s fairly cute, but:

I don’t want to post too many screenshots, but yeah, fucking terrifying. If you read a lot of horror manga, you might find this predictable, and I personally prefer happier endings, but this is worth checking out. 3.7 out of 5.

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