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Thursday, March 11, 2010

Real/Fake Princess - Overall Impressions


In all honesty, when I first started reading this series I wasn't sure if I wanted to finish it.  Almost immediately, I was put off by the fact that the inner artwork wasn't anywhere near as good as the artwork on the cover; the gorgeous detail was still there, but often body proportions looked wrong or the character's faces appeared distorted.  Generally, bad art throws me out of a story faster than anything else; however, knowing the series was only five volumes, I decided to persevere.

For the most part, this story was predictable in a generic, fairy tale sort of way, and it was actually the side characters that saved this series from my "To Be Sold" pile.  The main roles were all fairly stereotypical and didn't change much from volume to volume, so I quickly began to rely on the minor characters for enjoyment and entertainment.  Fortunately, they didn't disappoint, and with their antics the story stayed interesting...and even took one or two unexpected twists.

Something else that definitely needs to be mentioned is the fact that the publisher rated this series for "All Ages".  IT IS NOT!  These books SHOULD have been rated 13+; please do not buy this series and put it in your Children's section - put it in YA where it belongs. 

With that said, while this wouldn't be my first choice to put on any library's shelves, it's still a sweet romance with very few volumes (i.e. cheap!) and if your demographics are right, you'll have many female manga readers who will thank you for adding this series to your collection.

Dramacon - Overall Impressions



This super-cute ameri-manga is a must for any fan of cosplaying or conventions.  Although only three volumes long, the plot flows nicely and the characters actually get some development, each moving (at least a little bit) out of their stereotypes by the end.  There are some scenes that might seem over-the-top and maybe even a little cheesy to older readers, but the series doesn't have "drama" in the title for no reason.

One of the things I enjoyed most was how the passage of time was depicted.  Each book represents a new year (and a new con); this enabled the author to do things with the characters - their lives and personalities - that, with such a short series, might not have been possible otherwise.  I've read quite a few of Tokyopop's 3-volume ameri-manga releases, and this is one of the few that I've felt really managed to pull off a cohesive, completed plot.

As for the artwork, it's beautifully rendered with very few noticeable flaws and just the right amount of humorous imagery thrown in.  Even without the fun storyline, I probably would have bought these books just for eye candy alone. Ms. Chmakova has a wonderful eye for both beauty and detail.

Overall, I found this series to be a very enjoyable experience, with fun characters and a charmingly sweet storyline.  So, if you think Dramacon might fill an empty niche in your library, I highly recommend you give it a try.

Wednesday, March 10, 2010

Decision about Reviews

Okay, so I decided back when I started this blog that I wasn't going to be doing full-fledged reviews of anything, just the basics to help librarians (and maybe parents) make educated purchasing choices regarding manga.  However, I'm realizing now that some of these series may not have any reviews out there, so I figure it can't hurt to give a simple mini-review of some sort.  

From now on, once a series is completed on the blog, I'll also be posting a quick little summary based on what I thought of the books as a whole.  Because let's face it, when you've got a whole series, the story is really only as good as the last volume - the ending can make or break everything.  I'm not going to be giving away endings, and I'll try to avoid spoilers, too, but I want to give y'all my general impressions, so that when reviews are hard to come by, you've got at least one source to fall back on.

If you need/want my impressions of a series before it's been completed on the blog, then please leave a comment or PM me, and I'll be more than happy to talk with you.  :)

Over the next few days I'll also being going back to cover all of my previously completed series, so keep an eye out for those, too.

Tuesday, March 09, 2010

It Takes A Wizard

Volume:  1 of 1
Author: Thomas R. Hart
Illustrator: Sean Lam
Type: Ameri-Manga, OEL
Publisher: Seven Seas
Genres:  Horror, Fantasy, Action/Adventure
Age Rating: Teen

Public Libraries - Location Suggestion
This probably depends on your community, but definitely YA or Adult 

School Libraries - Location Suggestion
Elementary - Not recommended
Jr. High/Middle School - Not recommended
High School - Possibly; there's only some very subtle sexuality, the rest of the 16+ rating is for some fairly graphic violence
 
According to the Publisher - What the Age Rating Means
I could not find detailed rating descriptions.  However, on MacMillan's website this title is rated 16 and up.

Parental Eyebrow Raisers 
Language
 - It pales in comparison to the violence, but there is some mild cursing (ex. God, damn, hell, etc.)

Violence/Gore
 - There's so much in this story that listing it all here would take up several pages, so I'll do my best to summarize; basically horrific fantasy creatures take over Manhattan, so you've got trolls, harpies, goblins, etc. all over the place and all of them enjoy killing and eating humans.  There are many graphic depictions of this throughout the almost 500 page book.  In addition, you've got the humans fighting the monsters, so there's lots of monster blood & gore, too. Some random examples include the following: a man being torn in half with entrails oozing out, a man being decapitated, human heads put on pikes, a man's head being crushed and his eyeballs popping out of his skull, limbs being torn from bodies, and various creatures feasting on masses of entrails and other assorted human parts.

Non-sexual Nudity
 - There's one instance in which a female character is lounging nude and then changes into some clothes, however all of the "important bits" are always covered by her hair
 - I'm not sure if this really counts, but I'm adding it just in case; there are several depictions of obviously female monsters with no visible clothes, just patterns and scales that give the vague appearance of clothes

Monday, March 08, 2010

Roadsong, Volume 3

Title:  Roadsong
Volume:  3 of 3
Author: Allan Gross
Illustrator: Joanna Estep
Type: Ameri-Manga, OEL
Publisher: Tokyopop
Genres:  Action/Adventure, Drama, Comedy
Age Rating: Older Teen, Age 16+

Public Libraries - Location Suggestion
This probably depends on your community, but definitely YA or Adult 

School Libraries - Location Suggestion
Elementary - Not recommended
Jr. High/Middle School - Not recommended
High School - Possibly, be aware of your community
 
According to the Publisher - What the Age Rating Means
May contain profanity and strong language, moderate violence and gore, moderate sexual themes and sexual violence, nudity, moderate fanservice, and alcohol and illegal drug use.
 
Parental Eyebrow Raisers 
Language
 - There's a little cursing, but it's not heavy or over the top (ex. hell, damn, etc.)

Violence/Gore
 - One of the main characters is missing an eye; it's just an empty socket
 - Two characters get into a knockdown, drag-out fight
 - A character intentionally gives someone else a bloody nose; some blood is shown
 - Guns are fired multiple times
 - A man is shot, but no blood is seen
 - A male character gets beat to a pulp; blood is shown pooling around his head
 - A character is shot in the chest; blood is shown
 - A character is beaned in the head with a baseball, blinding him

Sexuality/Sexual Themes
 - Two older characters are shown in the shower together, but he has on a towel and she has on a swimsuit
 - A female character unbuttons her shirt and intentionally shows another male character her cleavage
 - Very mild homosexual references are scattered about
 - Scattered sexual references abound
 
Reviews
Okay, I couldn't track down any reviews for this volume, if someone knows of one please send a link my way.  Thanks!

Roadsong, Volume 2

Title:  Roadsong
Volume:  2 of 3
Author: Allan Gross
Illustrator: Joanna Estep
Type: Ameri-Manga, OEL
Publisher: Tokyopop
Genres:  Action/Adventure, Drama, Comedy
Age Rating: Older Teen, Age 16+

Public Libraries - Location Suggestion
This probably depends on your community, but definitely YA or Adult

 School Libraries - Location Suggestion
Elementary - Not recommended
Jr. High/Middle School - Not recommended
High School - Possibly, be aware of your community
 
According to the Publisher - What the Age Rating Means
May contain profanity and strong language, moderate violence and gore, moderate sexual themes and sexual violence, nudity, moderate fanservice, and alcohol and illegal drug use.
 
Parental Eyebrow Raisers 
Language
 - There's a little cursing, but it's not heavy or over the top (ex. bitch, damn, etc.)

Violence/Gore
 - One of the main characters is missing an eye; it's just an empty socket
 - Characters discuss killing others, but nothing is actually shown
 - A gun is fired multiple times and the back end of a car explodes, but no one is hurt

Alcohol/Drug References
 - One of the main characters gets very, very drunk

Non-sexual Nudity
 - A female character walks in on two male characters changing clothes, several panels of unclothed backsides are shown.

Sexuality/Sexual Themes
 - A mom tries to talk her daughter into sleeping with someone just to get something out of him
 - The use of condoms is mentioned
 - Two teenage characters are shown in bed together, but nothing is actually seen, only suggested
 - A female character is shown wearing nothing but some skimpy underwear; her torso is obviously unclothed but her hair is always drawn to discreetly cover the important bits
 - A male character is shown wearing nothing but a blanket, which he drops; only his backside is seen, but his front is commented on by a female character
 - An older female character is shown in nothing but her under garments
 - Scattered sexual references abound
 
Reviews
Okay, I couldn't track down any reviews for this volume, if someone knows of one please send a link my way.  Thanks!