manga reviews

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Lenni Reviews: “Not Your Idol” Vol. 2, by Aoi Makino

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Karen/Nina has allowed Hikaru to be closer to her, making their classmate, Miku, jealous.

I’m gonna call her Kamiyama for now since going back and forth between Karen and Nina is confusing. Again, trigger warning for more victim blaming and sexual assault. I was pretty spot on in that this comic is about Kamiyama struggling to feel safe again but there’s also the questionable things she was pressured to do when she was an idol. She was absolutely taken advantage of by an industry that would sexualize her EVEN AS A MINOR. Remember, she’s in high school at the time this series begins, meaning she was even younger doing racy pictures before she was attacked and quit. Just gross. And Miku… It bothers me that we’re going back and forth about if her assault happened. It’s so weird. I’m in this more for Kamaiyama’s journey. 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Colette Decides to Die” Vol. 8, by Alto Yukimura

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

Since Hades’ mirror has cracked causing a storm, Colette is working at a shelter while it gets repaired.

Aphrodite is in this volume and I dunno how I feel about how she’s represented. She’s got the silly with the serious undercurrent going on, which is a bit predictable. I think I would have liked to see more serious sides of her but she’s ok. I to enjoy how all the dead are just shades, a nice way to depict how in death everyone is equal. Baby Lord Chronos can get annoying when he’s throwing his tantrums but when he’s joined with the cast, he’s much better. The series still shines when Colette is being an amazing apothecary. Even being so skilled, she is still learning and I enjoy those parts the best. 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Mao” Vol. 25, by Rumiko Takahashi

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

The Bronze Mirror is causing havoc and when Mao and Nanoka go to fix it, Shiranui comes to claim the cursed item for the Goku Clan. When Daigo appears to aid in an assault against Shiranui, his motives are uncertain.

Off topic, the name Shiranui unlocked a core memory of wearing out this VHS as a teen. I think I still have it somewhere…

None of this went how I thought it would and that’s what I love about it. Even the supposed villain of the week stories are woven in to the larger story about the Goku Clan, Byokki, and all the interpersonal things going in. And it’s done in a way that I’m not confused about all the intrigue. It may sound silly at 25 volumes deep but I am SO invested in this story! 5 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “A Star Brighter than the Sun” Vol. 7, by Kazune Kawahara

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

Sae and Kamishiro are headed into winter break and rumors of how other couples will be spending their time makes Sae wonder what the next step in their relationship will be.

It’s silly to see them fumble around. And in the “aww, you young people” type of silly. They’re almost too wholesome, so we have Sui trying to confess to Ayukawa to provide some conflict. It’s all still pretty low stakes and the characters are mostly levelheaded for teenagers. 3 out of 5 because it’s cute, but not doing anything new.

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Lenni Reviews: “Fool Night” Vol. 10, by Kasumi Yasuda

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

While Ai, the leader of Paupertown makes her move, Hourai is at the Seien-Ji temple to find out why a transfloration graft has failed.

I’m not surprised religion would get entwined with the transfloration process. While I found this mystery plot interesting, it wasn’t enough for me to really get into it. It felt disconnected from everything else going on. Unless this will all factor in down the line? If so, what would justify how long we spent here; especially the reason why the graft was rejected. This was very interesting but the Ivy arc was still my favorite. 3 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Taika’s Reason” Vol. 2, by Paru Itagaki

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

Taika is enjoying typical high school things; playing with the basketball team, enjoying the sports festival, and befriending a humanized cat named Anna. But Anna is not to be trusted, willing to manipulate Taika to her own ends.

It’s kind if spoilery of me to say that crows get such a bad rep. They’re cool! It’s the seagulls that are assholes…

Even though we’re suspecting Taika of murder, in this volume he’s just the goodest boi; learning to navigate the world after being humanized. While we have that mystery in the background, I’d be fine just watching him slice of life style. He’s just fun! But this comic does make sure to have bloody violence to remind the reader that this ain’t just fun and games. 3.7 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Sound of a Blink” Vol. 1, by Shuzo Oshimi

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

Shuzi is in college with a girlfriend and has won his first manga award. Then he gets a call from his parents: his little brother has been diagnosed with a brain tumor.

This is a very introspective look at someone dealing with a sick family members, forcing them to face their childhood. All the little dark feelings he had are rendered in such a way where I almost felt like a voyeur who shouldn’t be seeing this. It’s amazing, the art really able to capture the confusion and malaise of not feeling like you’re a part of things or wondering why you’re not reacting “normally.” 4.7 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Choujin X” Vol. 13, by Sui Ishida

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

The Yamato Mori is in the upper level of the Tower of Mourning to eliminate Zora. When Zora makes an offer to go with the Yamato Mori, Batista has other plans.

Batista going berserk lets us go into his past and what happened to him to put him in this position. It’s a fairly classic tragic backstory. As that takes up a good portion of this, the battle against him isn’t concluded yet. The reality and time warping powers are amazing to see. You can tell it took a LOT of talent to make it look so overwhelming and off-putting. Very good volume. 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Magical Girl Dandelion” Vol. 3, by Kaeru Mizuho

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

While Tanpopo and Peony are on a mission to protect Peony’s friend, Karakusa, Ice goes to great lengths to get back his old friend, Shade.

Prima and Stella are frightening. They have some amazing character designs. There isn’t much down time in this volume. Once Peony asks Tanpopo to help with Karakusa, the fiends show up and the action goes full throttle. I’m not happy about the cliffhanger but other than that, this was a lot of fun. 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Vagabond Definitive Edition: Vol. 6, by Takehiko Inoue

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

Despite being deaf and mute, Sasaki Kojiro has incredible sword skills and an insatiable drive to be the best. This drive leads him far away from the small seaside village where he grew up.

It was genuinely sad to repeatedly see Master Kanemaki try to keep Kojiro from going down a bloody path but still teach the boy how to fight. He wants a better life for the kid, but he knows it’s inevitable and he can either get the kid prepared, or watch him die. The fight scenes in this are amazing and things moved at an enthralling pace. You do get some space to breathe and some humor is sprinkled in. This was a very enjoyable volume and it’s pretty bloody and really leans into the mentality of being a swordsman. 4.5 out of 5.

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