Seinen

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Lenni Reviews: “Hirayasumi” Vol. 5, by Keigo Shinzō

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

It’s been a year since Natsumi moved in with her cousin, Hiroto and since funds are running low, Hiroto is picking up a lot of odd jobs. His friend Hideki is worried he’s overworking himself. Meanwhile, Ishikawa gives some cleaning tips to Tachibana.

The ending story about Hanae is so bittersweet. I love how Shinzō keeps bringing her back because she’s amazing. I am worried about Hiroto because I enjoy his ease as he goes through his life with his simple pleasures. I don’t want reality to beat him down. 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Insomniacs After School” Vol. 8, by Makoto Ojiro

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

After the festival, Magari picks up her late-night radio streams again, confessing about the health issues she’s been dealing with most of her life. The previous astronomy club member, Shiromaru, gets more involved in helping Magari and Nakami start nighttime observations for the new club.

Kurashiki Sensei is so deadpan, I love it. Most of this is Magari and Nakami spending a supervised overnight at school for some stargazing but a storm blocks the skies. It’s very sweet and good to see them happy together doing what they love. It’s just a pure moment. We still don’t know what seems to be the deeper issue with Shiomaru, who clearly had more going on with the previous astronomy club that she’s still hiding. I doubt it will be very heavy or dark since that would be a major departure from the tone of this series so far. I honestly hope Magari having a heart condition is as dark as this series gets. 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Asadora!” Vol. 8, by Naoki Urasawa

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

After driving away the creature, Asadora is back to a relatively normal life. Her friends are pursuing their dreams, aside from Sho, who is addicted to drugs, but now in 1968, she is still a pilot awaiting more information about the monster in the sea.

It’s nice that Asa still tries to help Yono with her acting drama when her main goal is monitoring the airwaves for any news about the kaiju. She’s become a great pilot that her colleagues are impressed with and she’s such a hard worker with a positive attitude. You have to remember, she’s lost so much over the course of this series. Even though we don’t see the monster in this volume, we get some interesting photographic evidence and the rest of the story is sweet even if it feels tangential to the core problem of what’s living in the waters. 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Hirayasumi” Vol. 1, by Keigo Shinzō

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

Hiroto Ikuta works part time, has never fallen in love, and spends most of his free time with his elderly neighbor, Hanae Wada and develops a close relationship with her. They are such good friends, Hanae leaves Hiroto her home when she passes away. Since he lives alone, his cousin, Natsumi, comes to live with him while she attends art school.

Hiroto’s chill attitude towards life is refreshing rather than coming off at lazy. In fact, he’s quite diligent about his job and housework, he just doesn’t stress over every little thing. He has a positive influence on his cousin and obviously impacted Hanae deeply enough for the woman to leave her home to him. It’s  nice slice of life manga with nice vibes and some touching moments. 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Choujin X” Vol. 6, by Sui Ishida

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

After being kidnapped from training camp; Sora Siruha tells Toki and his friends that a dark future lies ahead. Their hesitation to immediately obey her drives Tokio and the others to flee for their lives to avoid her wrath. The enormity of what they’re facing makes Tokio make a life altering decision.

There is one heck of a time skip after the big battle against Sora that’s really well done and pushes the characters into some interesting scenarios. The weirdo cult around Sora is genuinely creepy to me and it still tickles me that they had this big ole dramatic prophecy around Tokio and he just turns it down. It’s intriguing to see them all grow and I am curious to see how this will all play out because I’m getting the sense Sora is full of crap. 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Mieruko-chan” Vol. 8, by Tomoki Izumi

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

After an incident concerning the new student, Michiru, Miko ends up in the hospital; a place filled with a ton of history and an abundance of disturbing spirits.

The hospital part was cool and also sad. Of course there’s a bunch of restless spirits in an old hospital and the art design on them is very good. The real meat of this volume is whatever is up with this Michiru girl and also her older sister. The doughnut shop scene was funny with Miko trying to interact with the human being obscured by the spirit only she can see. The levity around the horror was welcome, especially after the sad hospital story. 4.5 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Choujin X” Vol. 4, by Sui Ishida

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

This volume has a ton of lore dropped on us. There’s the Great Choujin War and a festival to honor those who were lost and the looming threat of a choujin able to destroy the world. It’s going to be interesting to see the friends Tokio and Azuma training together after their fight. Tokio is the brave, empty-headed one compared to the more calculating Azuna. And Azuna clearly has control issues with his abilities but this is mostly training after their face off and I’m excited to see what happens next.

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Lenni Reviews: “Asadora!” Vol. 7, by Naoki Urasawa

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

The creature appears in Tokyo Bay ready to attack but the crowds from the Olympics keep Asa from getting there to help, losing precious time to stop the monster before it reaches land. Meanwhile, Shota is still struggling with the high expectations with his running.

Even though we didn’t get much progress on whatever’s going on with the kaiju, more of this is about Asa and Shota. Shota is inspired by Asa and not handling it well; twisting it into some dangerous habits and Asa is really coming into her own and becoming stronger. While I do wish we learned more about the monster, the character development is satisfying. 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Insomniacs After School” Vol. 4, by Makoto Ojiro

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

Summer vacation as well as the photo contest and meteor shower party are on the horizon and the pressure is on for Magari and Nakami to make sure the event goes well and they are a properly recognized club.

These kids are just so earnest and I can’t help but root for them to have this club. Nakami and Magari are also helping each other manage their insomnia but getting the club to happen is the main focus. There is a budding romance between them and it’s sweet but I think I’m just as excited for the viewing party as the characters are. 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Tekkonkinkreet: Black & White 30th Anniversary Edition” by Taiyo Matsumoto

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

Two orphans, Black and White, are street kids who are fiercely loyal to each other. Black is the smarter of the two and takes his protection of White very seriously. Both of them are doing whatever they can to survive in a clogged, corrupt city and they are so violent, even the yakuza and the police are hesitant to mess with them until one man decides they need to be dealt with and is hunting them down.

This is a surreal ride, watching these two kids to what they need to do just to get through each day. It feels vaguely dystopian but this could be any place riddled with crime and poverty. It’s strangely poignant when it comes to the relationship between Black and White. It’s strange but also engrossing. The art style takes a little getting used to but it fits this gritty, desperate world. There’s a touch of nudity and plenty of violence so keep that in mind when you check out this interesting graphic novel. 4.5 out of 5.

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