Rocket Bomber - reviews

originally written for and posted on Comicsnob.com [Dec ’06 – May ’08]

Legend, Vol. 1
Published by: Ice Kunion
Writer: Woo SooJung
Artist: KARA

196 (176) pages.
Original Language: Korean
Orientation: Left to right
Vintage: 2004. US edition November 2006.
Translation: HyeYoung Im
Adaptation: J. Torres
Retouch & Lettering: Terri Delgado & Marshall Dillon
Graphic Design: EunKyung Kim
(six editors, including Im, Torres, and Dillon, previously cited.)
Publisher’s Rating: Teen Age 13+

Rating: 1 out of 5

##

Premise: Delinquent student Eun-Gyo Sung gets suspended from school, locked out of the house after she “runs away” long enough for Mom’s temper to cool down, and now she’s being kidnapped and dragged 1000 or so years into the past by a handsome stranger. All in one day.

Synopsis:

And the Premise blurb nicely summarizes chapter one. In chapter two, Eun-Gyo adapts quickly (really quickly) to finding herself transported to the past, in a fashion that totally upsets and frustrates her “captor”, No-Ah Joo. The pair rapidly get into a mess because of mysterious occurrences in the village they delorean into. It’s a strange village; everyone there is a child [*cue low-key but creepy background music*]. They run into a child fleeing the local guard, barely have time to introduce themselves, before they are caught and jailed for “helping” in the attempted escape.

I’d tell you more about this second chapter, since one might assume that the story would really get started now that Eun-Gyo and No-Ah are in his proper time, but it seems to be a side quest, and has nothing to do (yet) with any of the plot points alluded to in chapter one. (These are fairly long chapters, 70+ pages each, so two is all we get)

##

Review:

To be fair, I should probably reserve judgement until after I’ve read volume two (which releases at the end of the month). [edit 14 July 08: Ice Kunion ran into trouble, and was absorbed by Yen Press in the intervening 16 months, and release schedules… suffered — vol 2 released like, last week] To be fair, I probably will read it even though I found this volume to be disjointed and confusing, with a couple a characters I can’t bring myself to care too much about.

Each of the two leads is defined by only the broadest of bush-strokes, and minor characters seem to be cardboard cut-outs, at least so far. The whole second chapter is told non-sequentially, with scenes jumping time and POV in a way that makes me wonder if my copy is some kind of printing error; since none of the pages are numbered, there is no way for me to be sure. It could be intentional, building suspense with foreshadowing and all that jazz, but it makes no sense.

The art is pretty good– much more polished than say, Zero Six. If you like long flowing hair and big liquid eyes, then the character designs will likely appeal to you. That plus the decently rendered backgrounds and action, along with the frequent splash pages featuring full-page character art will be enough to pull you along to the end of the volume. The slightly larger (5.5×8in.) format and the fact that nearly every panel bleeds out to the edge of the page make this a big, beautiful book. Very pretty.

However, this particular style is a little too far down the “pretty” end of the spectrum for my taste. The lack of anything deeper in the characters for me to latch onto makes the two leads seem even more superficial: all whipped cream and icing, no cake.

And if you don’t have much of a sweet tooth for the romance fantasy time-travel adventure genre of manhwa/manga to begin with, it’s best to steer clear. I’m only giving Legend, Vol. 1 a single mark, out of five.

originally written for and posted on Comicsnob.com [Dec ’06 – May ’08]

Tail of the Moon, Vols. 1 & 2
Published by: Viz Media’s Shojo Beat
Writer & Artist: Rinko Ueda

204 (190) & 200 (186) pages.
Original Language: Japanese
Orientation: Right to left
Vintage: 2002. US editions October & December 2006
Translation & Adaptation: Tetsuichiro Miyaki
Retouch & Lettering: Kelle Han (1) & Mark McMurray (2)
Graphic Design: Izumi Hirayama
Editor: Pancha Diaz (1) & Nancy Thistlethwaite (2)
Publisher’s Rating: Older Teen

Rating: 3 out of 5

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Premise: Historical Tensho Era Japan and the mysterious ways of ninja are a backdrop for, you guessed it, romance! (maybe it wasn’t your first guess)

Synopsis:

Usagi is our heroine, a bit klutzy and a bit of a slacker, but she has a good heart — and while not beautiful in a classical way, she is down-to-earth and cute as a button. (that’s her on the covers.)

She’s also a ninja. In fact, everyone in these comics right up to page 111 of vol. 2, is a ninja. Ninja training, ninja clan politics, ninja feats — yeah, all that. Setting that to one side…

Usagi isn’t very good at the family business. Her great-grandpa, who is also the head of the local ninja village, decides in his own enlightened way (hey, the year is 1580) that the only thing Usagi might be good at, is having ninja babies. So her “mission” is to marry the head of the main branch of the clan, and have his kids. Usagi is lucky that Hanzo (the previously referenced head of the clan) is a young hottie, but since this is a Shojo Beat title we all should have expected that.

Hanzo is talented, serious, responsible, and gorgeous. Even before she knows who he is, and that he is in fact her assignment, she falls in love (vol. 1, pg. 20). And there you have it. As readers, we all know the eventual ending, but it’ll be a lot of fun getting there.

[Spoiler: you may want to stop reading here.]

Rivals for both Usagi and Hanzo are introduced, and a whole subplot forms around a noble-born contender for Hanzo’s heart, all while Usagi’s ninja training continues. By the end of volume two, quite a few of these twists have to back-seat it while the Big Plot Development unfolds: where Usagi (under duress, but still) gives up on her ninja heritage, and decides to take a job as an herbalist to a feudal lord.

##

Review:

OK. Shoujo isn’t my cup of chai, but this is pretty good.

Heck, I don’t even like ninja comics much (I already know a ninja modern student of several “ninjitsu” martial arts schools, and while Mike does in fact kick much ass, the fiction doesn’t quite match reality.) Still, like costumed crime fighters or high school students with magical girlfriends, the ninja thing is part of comics and particularly manga, so there we have it.

And in Tail of the Moon the ninja thing is incidental to the human relationships. Like the art or the humour, it’s just part of the overall flavour of this particular comic. Ueda is doing an excellent job with characterisation so far, and is also a fair hand with the occasional bits of humour… and while I’m not nominating her for any awards, the art is pretty damn good, too.

The frame story that Ueda is working with is also done well. There’s that plot twist at the end of volume two that leaves me wondering just where the story is going, and quite a few other surprises along the road up to that point.

I hope that this title doesn’t drag on through too many volumes, because now that I’ve started I want to read it through to the end. (which is praise enough of any series).

originally written for and posted on Comicsnob.com [Dec ’06 – May ’08]

Enchanter, Vol. 1
Published by: Digital Manga Publishing
Writer & Artist: Izumi Kawachi

184 (172) pages.
Original Language: Japanese
Orientation: Right to left
Vintage: 2003. US edition August 2006.
Translation: Sachiko Sato
Lettering: IHL
Graphic Design: Fred Lui & Wendy Lee
Editing: Stephanie Donnelly
Editor in chief: Fred Lui
Publisher’s Rating: For young adults, 16+

Rating: 2 out of 5

##

Premise: Demon lands in the lap of a mechanically savvy but academically challenged high school student. A female demon. In hot pants. She wants his body — but it’s not what you’re thinking…

Synopsis:

Generic Manga Hero #988 (gods, I’m starting to hate these guys; what’s this one’s name again?) high school student Haruhiko Kanou is an average mug whose only redeeming feature is a knack with machinery and gadgets. That and bland, manga-generic good looks. He starts out with problems, mostly that he’s slacked his way through classes and now really needs to study for upcoming exams. He’s finding it hard to concentrate though, because he has a huge crush on his science teacher, Yuka Fujikawa — who he also grew up with, since she happens to be the girl next door.

Into this set-up, let’s add a demon. Sure, why not? Eukanaria is on a quest, and she thinks Haruhiko has got what she needs. Not that she really wants him, it’s just that she’s been carrying around the soul of her lover for a while now, and needs a handy container to put it in — a roughly Haruhiko-shaped container.

Just one demon isn’t enough of a plot twist, oh no:
Because Eukanaria’s lover was the noted alchemist and inventor Fulcanelli, quite a few demons want his powers as an enchanter to make weapons (no doubt for evil, demon-y things that wouldn’t be good for mankind). So Eukanaria has been on the run for a while.

(I should mention that Haruhiko looks a lot like Fulcanelli… and aside from her much more revealing costume, Eukanaria is a dead ringer for Yuka. Handy coincidence, no?)

It sure would be handy to have an enchanter whip up a few demon-fighting devices right now, but Haruhiko doesn’t want to give up his body (he’s not quite done using it yet). An odd alliance of sorts is formed, since Haruhiko is pretty good with gadgets himself, and Fulcanelli seems to have an agenda separate from his girlfriend’s. It remains to be seen if this will be enough to allow Haruhiko to face the oncoming demonic assaults.

##

Review:

This first volume only contains three chapters, and there were quite a few introductions and all the background to cover, not to mention at least 2 big showdowns with demons. So it’s a bit hard to get a feel for the story, just with what we’re given.

And the manga has some flaws; I mean, if this title were just an excuse for some degenerate artist to draw teasing depictions of one of his favourite female fantasies, it would explain so much about Eukanaria’s character design, and the whole Eukanaria-Yuka plot angle. Let’s ask the artist:

(from the artist blurb on the dust jacket) “I’m a degenerate artist and like it”

Well then.

To comment on the other artwork, it’s pretty good, though with some flaws. The backgrounds are OK, nothing special but fine in application, but action & motion are decently rendered, and (to use the cinematic metaphor) there are a variety of shots and angles employed to keep panels visually interesting. Nothing sticks out, aside from the occasional object or weapon that gets drawn a bit wonky. While the artist may need to go back and study a few still lifes, he is (as was previously noted) well practised in at least one brand of anatomy.

Fan service is hard to separate from content in this title: teasing, sexually suggestive dialog, and adolescent male fantasies — leavened with a bit of action — are the order of the day for Enchanter. The odd relationships between the four “lead” characters (even though one is a disembodied soul) could in fact be called the primary plot, with the whole demon-fighting thing added as a side story to occasionally nudge things along.

With all that said, the story set-up isn’t that bad: a magic-MacGyver approach to demon fighting where the hero only survives if he can figure out and adapt an arcane and eldrich technology he’s never seen before. There’s also the dynamic of demon/human interaction, which is barely hinted at as yet — it would seem that some demons are invisible to most, and only apparent to a few people like Yuka and Haruhiko. There is a lot of backstory like that in this first volume, which is to be expected; the hints and clues are intended to keep us reading, and buying future volumes.

It’s a hardship, I know, but if you are willing to endure the fan service or can somehow read around it, there’s an interesting story here, with some potential for future volumes. 2 out of 5.

originally written for and posted on Comicsnob.com [Dec ’06 – May ’08]

Amazing Agent Luna, Vol. 1
Published by: Seven Seas Entertainment
Writers: Nunzio DeFilippis & Christina Weir
Artist: Shiei (Carmela Doneza)

192 (166) pages.
Original Language: English
Orientation: Right to left
Vintage: February 2005
Tones: Jay Jimenez
Background Assists: Roland Amago
Lettering: Michael David
Cover & Layout Design: Culture Crash
Editor: Jason DeAngelis
Publisher’s Rating: Teen

Rating: 3 out of 5

##

Premise: Luna (she of the title) is a genetically modified, specially trained, and awfully cute teen secret agent who has to go undercover for what may be her most challenging assignment: High School.

Synopsis:

We open in Paris, where Luna is infiltrating the Bruckenstein embassy, to find out what nefarious scheme the evil Count Von Brucken is hatching this week. The covert op is a bit of a wash, in that Luna got some good leads, but missed an even better opportunity. Her handler, known to Luna as “Control” (and to others as agent Jennifer Kajiwara) is a bit miffed that Luna didn’t manage a home run, and lets her know it. Luna’s poor little secret agent spirit is crushed (she’s only 15, after all)

The leads obtained in Paris point to Nobel High School, where the sons and daughters of the world’s elite get schooled, while their parents are busy running the planet. Given her age and appearance, Luna is ideal for this undercover mission –- except, she’s never really left the base before. High school is hostile and unknown territory.

As part of her cover, Control is now “Mom”, and thus able to provide close support. (Or nagging; I mean, she’s still Luna’s handler.) Fortunately, at least for Luna, “Dad” is Dr. Andy Collins, staff psychiatrist and one of the few who sees a vulnerable teenaged girl where others see only an agent.

With the support of her ersatz Mom and Dad, and a few new friends, Luna may just be able to survive high school. But social cliques can be at least as tough to figure out as the machinations of evil masterminds, and this isn’t going to be the quick in-and-out assignment Control was hoping for.

…Especially when Jonah von Brucken, the hunky son of yes, that von Brucken, arrives on campus as the latest transfer student.

##

Review:

I’m reaching a bit further back on the shelf for today’s review, but if you haven’t read it yet then it’s still new to you, right? Luna was one of the first titles out of Seven Seas, and alongside No Man’s Land and Last Hope (previously reviewed) might be considered as that company’s “statement” as to what OEL manga is, and might become.

(Or I’m completely off base. I invite comments.)

Besides, vol. 4 of Amazing Agent Luna should street in about 4 months or so, so I get to lay a little ground work now before I do a series overview when I get around to that latest release in June.

Let me heap some praise on both the writers and the artist first: I like Luna, she’s fun. The dynamic between her and Control is also good, but what makes it stand out is the addition of Dr. Collins. His doubting voice in the literally live-or-die world of high-stakes espionage is what makes Luna a character, not just a spy stereotype. And the cover story throwing all three together in one house as a “family”: genius, straight up.

It only seems predictable on our end. After the fact of course it seems like a natural or inevitable setup, but that only reinforces my contention that the addition of this one bit character, “dad” in both name and role, is what makes the rest of the character development work.

And the art is great. I really liked it, and the character designs. “Shiei” isn’t Japanese (at least, I don’t think she is…) but her art is. Talk about nailing a style.

If Amazing Agent Luna has a weakness, it’s that everything feels a little too familiar. The execution of the concept is good, but even the juxtaposition of secret career and high school life has been done before. And while the use of stereotypical elements (like our villain, the Count) are a launching point for the comedy and character development that follows, this title does rely on a readers knowledge of the spy-movie-conventions. The genre hasn’t been done to death, yet, and of course I like DeFilippis & Weir’s take on it, but for some there may not be enough original ideas in Luna to make it stand out.

I’m still giving it 3 marks. And I’m willing to up that rating, if subsequent volumes pay off on this début’s promise.

originally written for and posted on Comicsnob.com [Dec ’06 – May ’08]

Archlord, Vol. 1
Published by: Tokyopop
Writer & Artist: Jin-Hwan Park

232 (184) pages.
Original Language: Korean
Orientation: Left to right
Vintage: 2005. US edition February 2007.
Translation: Jennifer Hahm
Adaptation: Nathan Johnson
Layout & Lettering: Star Print Brokers
Production Artist: Mike Estacio
Cover Layout: Jason Milligan
Editor: Luis Reyes
Publisher’s Rating: Teen, Ages 13+

Rating: 2 out of 5

##

Premise: A human, a half-orc, and an elf have to overcome historic differences to save… heck, I could have stopped at the word “elf”.

Synopsis:

Five mystic gemstones, the Archons, can bestow fantastic power on those that possess them. Long ago, heroes quested for the stones, and they were set in weapons of power forged to make the most of their magics.

Fast forward a few centuries.

One of these mystic weapons –- Brumhart, the sword that houses the Archon of Fire –- has been tied to the line of Nathan of Manas for generations. Leon, last of that line save for his infant son, has been killed, and the Brumhart is taken — though it seems that it can only be properly wielded by someone of Nathan’s blood.

Didn’t I mention an infant son?

Fast forward 15 years… (can we start the story yet? geesh.)

Anyway, the rest of volume one has an introductory scene where we meet the trio who will presumably become our main characters, and a whole lot of side story. At least as much time is spent following the sword Brumhart, and the man who now holds it.

##

Review:

I would call this stereotypical, formulaic fantasy, but we haven’t even started the going-by-the-formula-bit yet. The heroes are introduced (the two guys — human and half-orc –- who just happen to be childhood friends, and a pretty elven archer) but most of the book follows Vile Traitorous Evil (not his real name) as he quests to make the sword truly his own.

(Actually, that’d be a good book. Evil wins, but has to use his usurped powers to fight Even Greater Evil. I should make a note and write that one, a sort of take on or homage to Moorcock’s Elric.)

But as much as I’d like to see something new, alas, our friend Vile Evil is not the hunking mass in armor featured on both the front and back covers. Someone else gets to be the hero, and the mythic model suggests it is the lost babe, now grown into an irresponsible slacker of a teen. He’s been raised in the “haunted” forest by his “grandfather”, the sorcerer Kenneth.

I’ve read this story a thousand times before. I know more or less how it is going to end. I’ll likely read the rest of this particular iteration anyway, because the art is decent and I like epic fantasy even if I do find myself rolling my eyes a bit at aspects of this one.

originally written for and posted on Comicsnob.com [Dec ’06 – May ’08]

Review: Pantheon High, vol. 1
Published by: Tokyopop
Writer: Paul Benjamin
Artists: Steven and Megumi Cummings

192 (160) pages.
Original Language: English
Orientation: Left to right
Vintage: February 2007
Lettering: Lucas Rivera
Cover Art: Steven Cummings
Cover Design: Fawn Lau
Editor: Paul Morrissey
Publisher’s Rating: Older Teen, 16+

Rating: 4 out of 5

##

Premise: Demigods face all kinds of challenges. At Pantheon High, the half-mortal, half-divine offspring of all your favourite dusty mythological powers get an education and learn invaluable social skills, though a few bad apples might occasionally attempt to upset the entire natural order and abrogate undue unholy powers upon themselves… Bad Kids! [*wrist slap*] Detention for you!

Synopsis:

…actually, I think the ‘premise’ blurb just about covers it. And a lot of the fun of this one is figuring out just who you’re dealing with (and how their parents’ baileywicks translate into high school, as seen through the filter of the representative scions).

Let’s just say that 4 baddies (daughters of Kronos and Loki, and sons of Set and Susano) are making their play, and while it seems like more-or-less innocent pranking to begin with, things soon get deadly serious.

So it is up to our heroes — one descendant each from the Greek, Egyptian, Norse, and Japanese pantheons — to work together and thwart the evil scheme. Good triumphs over evil, duh, but there are sacrifices, transformations, and inevitable fan service to consider before we get to a more or less happy ending.

##

Review:

It’s the side jokes that make this one so much fun, from Principal Prometheus & Hercules as a Gym Coach, to “Hall Monitor” Heimdahl (I may be one of just three or four people on this continent who laughed out loud at that last one)

Even if it’s all Greek (Norse, Egyptian, Japanese) to you, I think you’re going to like this book. Enough explanation is given, in context and as needed, and a fair amount of familiar myth (Greek and Norse) is applied for the important story points. And even if you strip all that away, there is still the underlying plot, where superpowered high school students save the world — That’s one part of this story that I know you’ll get.

The book also comes with a whole mess of end notes, which I doubt anyone will reference as they read (at least the first time) though like many other “translation” notes, it’s a handy coda to explain a few fine points you may have glossed over on a first read. The extras also include a ten-page preview of Volume 2, which ably shows that this isn’t just a one-off gimmick, and that the writers have deeper plans for both these characters and this concept.

Good show all around. 4 marks out of 5.

originally written for and posted on Comicsnob.com [Dec ’06 – May ’08]

Hibiki’s Magic, Vol. 1
Published by: Tokyopop
Writer: Jun Maeda
Artist: Rei Idumi

236 (224) pages.
Original Language: Japanese
Orientation: Right to left
Vintage: 2005. US edition January 2007.
Translation: Alexis Kirsch
Adaptation: James S. Rich
Copy Editor: Stephanie Duchin
Layout & Lettering: Bowen Park
Production Artist: Michael Paolilli
Cover Layout: James Lee
Editor: Carol Fox
Publisher’s Rating: Teen, Ages 13+

Rating: 2 out of 5

##

Premise: Hibiki (she of the title), as the only research assistant of Master Shirotsuki, is immediately offered a job at the Kamisaid Magic Academy –- but she’s just a kid, and while everyone assumes she learned much from Shirotsuki…

(may contain spoilers)
Synopsis:

Here’s the fallout from the first chapter: Shirotsuki, doing research into immortality, is interrupted at a crucial stage in his latest magic experiment by some ruffians who were looking to loot his home. Things go wrong, and the place goes up in flames; but part of the experiment is successful and Shirotsuki’s soul now resides in a small squirrel-like rodent. Hibiki still has her master’s emotional support, but for all practical purposes is now on her own.

She and the squirrel-mage (who can’t talk, for which this reader is thankful) make their way to the capital, where Hibiki sets about looking for work. She doesn’t have to look for long, and in fact work comes looking for her. The Director of the Kamisaid Magic Academy has sent people out to find Hibiki, since she is the only assistant of the noted (and presumed dead) Master Shirotsuki.

The twist is that she’s just a kid, and while everyone assumes otherwise, she can’t really do magic. She’ll even admit this on several occasions; when asked specific questions she just says, “I don’t know.” Director Asuma is a bit of an odd character, so maybe he just doesn’t mind.

She spends a short time as a member of the research faculty (which doesn’t work out) before being transferred to a teaching post. This leads to a confrontation with a jaded student who doesn’t believe in the value of magic anymore.

Hibiki accepts a challenge (magic vs. technology, in the form of a gun) and manages to win with a little timely help from her rodent-master. While she gets rebuked for dueling students, the incident proves her worth as a teacher, in her own unconventional way, and it seems that Hibiki won’t be fired anytime soon.

And we’re only halfway through the book.

The following three chapters deal with the creation of Homunculi, artificial beings once used as weapons on the battlefield. Hibiki meets a mage doing research in the field in an effort to replace a lost child. She just wants to help, so she gives it a try. The result is that a cute child mage (again with help from the squirrel) manages to produce an even smaller, cuter homunculus… with a humorous personality twist…

##

Review:

If I were reading an all-text treatment of this story, without benefit of visuals or any note of Hibiki’s age, I’d guess she was 12 or 13. Maybe a shade younger. Looking at art in the book (which doesn’t mention an age) I might go with 8 or 9, but it’s so hard to tell with a manga style that makes it hard to pin an age on anyone.

If you can get past the fact that someone wants to hire an 8 year old to work on the faculty of a magic school just because her old master was such a big name in the business, well, the rest of the book is going to be fun. If you happen to like cute (as in, Sanrio style cute) then you’re even better off.

In this case, judge the book by the cover: There she is. If you want to read more about Hibiki then you will be treated to a light but surprisingly thoughtful comedy that deals more with what people feel, and healing the pain of souls, than of magic on it’s own.

If Hibiki instead induces a diabetic coma because she’s just too sweet for your tastes, you’ll likely be able to tell that from the art style displayed on the cover. (Hibiki isn’t even the worst example of the oh-so-cute style that I’ve encountered: there is the aptly named Sugar, a Snow Fairy which is in it’s 3rd manga volume and runs 26 episodes on DVD. Just in case you need a reference)

Hibiki is going to be a fun read for most manga fans, but won’t appeal to all. While I’m only giving the title 2 marks out of 5, if you like über-cute characters or were a fan of harry-potterish magic fantasy then you might mentally add a point or two.

originally written for and posted on Comicsnob.com [Dec ’06 – May ’08]

Review: 0/6 (zero/six) Vols. 1 & 2
Published by: Netcomics
Writer & Artist: Youjung Lee

176 (162) & 192 (180) pages.
Original Language: Korean
Orientation: Left to right
Vintage: 1998. US editions December 2005 and March 2006.
Translation: Jane Choi (1) & Jeanne (2)
Graphic Designer: Eunsoon Cheon
Editor: Jason Lee Oakes (1) & Philip Daay (2)
Publisher’s Rating: Ages 13+

Rating: 3 out of 5

##

Premise: Boy, Moolchi, meets Girl (Robot?) Jong-e. She knows Kung Fu. She claims that her job is to protect Moolchi, which she does any way she can.

Synopsis:

Moolchi Ga is every bully’s favourite target: He is easy to beat up, always willing to fork over a little cash, and his athletic prowess is only developed to the point of being able to run away. He gets beat up daily.

One day after his beating, he comes home and is asked to sign for a package. A large package. Jong-e, to be exact. At first, she doesn’t move, which worries Moolchi a little. When she does start to move, he gets worried a lot. She beats up the bullies for him, which doesn’t solve his problem or improve their attitude. She follows him to school, which leads to more misunderstandings, a few more beatings, and another set of problems.

Jong-e either learns quickly, or is slowly gaining more and more of her personality the longer she is up and operating. While in chapter 3 her movements are still stiff, and her conversation skills severely lacking, by the end of volume one she is not only talking, but talking back, and it’s apparent this isn’t just some living doll sent to serve her ‘master’ but a much more complex problem, and relationship, for Moolchi to deal with.

Of course, Moolchi is changing, too. In volume two, he finds that he’s grown somewhat suddenly overnight, and he is both more capable and maybe, more attractive to the chicks. Kanghee Song is a girl who always sort-of liked Moolchi (not that he noticed) but now that he has more confidence, it seems things are developing on that front, too.

And then things get really complicated. Let’s just say that when Jong-e was sent to protect him, it wasn’t because of the bullies, and scarier things will soon be getting off a plane that has recently landed in Korea…

##

Review:

This is a very different style than a lot of manga fans might be used to. Lee uses a lot more ink, with a rather decided preference for hand-drawn effects and shading, and only uses a few grey-scale tones– and those sparingly. (Oh, and the eyes are roughly normal-sized too, not big doe-eyed moë platters.) The art reminds me much more of an independent American comic than of most manga. The effect is off-putting at first, but easy enough to adapt to. I wasn’t even halfway in when I was much more taken by the story, rather than distracted by Lee’s artistic style.

The story can be distracting enough, on its own. I found myself, many times in just these two volumes, thinking, “Oh. so it’s going to be that kind of comic,” when just 20 or so pages later, Lee takes my expectations, blows his nose with them, and tosses them out like yesterday’s trash.

I think he’s doing it on purpose. And the larger story, the one where forces unknown are converging on Moolchi for reasons unknown, still waits in the shadows like some hungry grue, and we the readers are given only scraps and crumbs as to how that’ll play out. There is so much going on in the meantime, though, that you can almost forget the vaguely-outlined frame story that brought (well, shipped) Jong-e to Korea in the first place.

With the high school drama and first romances, along with the occasional fight scene, and the usual hints and peeks (PG-13 teasing)–plus the whole boy and his robot angle–we might be justified in thinking that this is just another teen comedy manga. Except it’s manhwa, and I doubt anything will be manga-generic like we expect. Writer/artist Lee isn’t going to let us off that easy.

originally written for and posted on Comicsnob.com [Dec ’06 – May ’08]

Innocent W, Vols. 1 & 2
Published by: Tokyopop
Writer & Artist: Kei Kusunoki

208 (190) & 224 (198) pages.
Original Language: Japanese
Orientation: Right to left
Vintage: 2004. US editions September 2006 and January 2007.
Translation: Christopher North
Adaptation: Daniel Mishkin
Production Artist, vol. 1: Jihye “Sophia” Hong
Retouch & Lettering, vol. 1: Jennifer Carbajal
Layout & Lettering, vol. 2: Star Print Brokers
Cover Layout & Design: Louis Csontos
Editor: Paul Morrissey
Publisher’s Rating: Older Teen, 16+

Rating: 2 out of 5

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Premise: Six witches, a few innocent bystanders, and Makoto Hirasaka (uncanny private eye) find themselves stranded in the mountains, lost, and hunted. And then things get deadly serious.

Synopsis:

Makoto took the job from the lovely young lady who happened into his office; it seemed like an easy paycheck. Ride the 5 o’clock bus on a particular line, and find the witch.

Except there’s more than one witch. And this particular bus is going way off it’s usual route. And it all gets weirder from here.

It almost sounds like an odd game show: survive the challenges, be the last witch standing, and inherit the title of all powerful witchdom. Except… the witches all want to survive, and are willing to work together against the psychos, witch-hunters, revenge-nuts, and the animated near-dead to beat this thing and come out as a group. Methinks whoever set this up is not amused.

Through two volumes there have been casualties on both sides, and a few twists and reveals along the way. Through it all, the pragmatism and ever calm attitude of detective Makoto is the one thing that seems to be keeping the small group together, though it remains to be seen if anyone will come down out of the mountains alive.

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Review:

I’m not a big fan of horror comics. The gimmick/set-up here is pretty neat, though, and the past lives of each of the witches (Makoto included) all have a bearing on current events, and why these particular souls are in the mountains for this witchhunt. It plays out on a psychological level every bit as much as a physical or metaphysical one.

And the blood. And the gore. And the walking bodies, the spirits, the psycho killers and axe murderers and oy… [*swoon*]
It’s all a bit much. Though despite that (or perhaps because of the background carnage) the emotions and interplay between characters is heightened, and in volume two there are a number of twists that I’d like to see play out. You know, provided Kusunoki doesn’t just kill off those characters.

It’s a comic with a small cast, and a small but proportionately high body count. Don’t get too attached to any one character, because she will be dead or psychologically scarred in a matter of pages.

And the aforementioned blood, and gore, and bugs… It’s not a comic for the squeemish. But if a good horror show –- with some solid character studies –- is what you’re looking for, you’ve found it.