Weeaboo traces the stories of three high school students. As Maya, James, and Dani survive senior year, they struggle to find themselves and each other in Alissa Sallah’s heartwarming graphic novel.
The Comic Book History of Comics #3: Disney, Manga, and Piracy
The Comic Book History of Comics #2 Fred Van Lente (Writer and Letters), Ryan Dunlavey (Artist), Adam Guzowski (Colours) IDW Publishing 21 February, 2018 The third issue of Fred Van Lente and Ryan Dunlavey’s The Comic Book History of Comics moves away from the US and UK to focus on Japan and the rise of…
Blade of the Immortal: Brutally Beautiful
Blade of the Immortal Omnibus V Hiroaki Samura (Art and Story), Dana Lewis & Toren Smith (Translation and English adaptation), Tomoko Saito (Lettering and Retouch) Dark Horse Manga 27 March 2018 Blade of the Immortal began its manga run in 1993, finally finishing in 2012. During this nearly 20 year run, it spawned one anime…
Remixing the Classics: Hideo Furukawa’s Novella Slow Boat
Slow Boat Hideo Furukawa Pushkin Press June 6, 2017 A review copy was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. The novella Slow Boat by Hideo Furukawa is, in his words, a remix. He states, “To take your love for the original and situate it in the present,” and he does exactly that…
Shinsuke Sato’s I Am A Hero Takes an Existential Stance on Zombification
I Am a Hero Director: Sato Shinsuke Original screenplay: Kengo Hanazawa (manga) and Akiko Nogi (screenplay) North American voice cast: Yo Oizumi, Masami Nagasawa, Kasumi Arimura North American premiere: March 13, 2016 (United States); June 16, 2017 (Canada) I feel pretty confident in saying that I probably wouldn’t last very long in the zombie apocalypse. For one, I…
Manufactured Fantasies: On Kyoko Miyake’s Tokyo Idols
Tokyo Idols Director: Kyoko Miyake North American Premiere: April 29, 2017 It’s sold as a platform where dreams come true. Tokyo Idols is a fairly straightforward film. Like its title, the documentary from Kyoko Miyake is direct in its introduction of Japanese idol culture. We meet 23-year-old Rio Hiiragi as she prepares for a show,…
YA Trope Crushing: A Mortal Song by Megan Crewe
A Mortal Song Megan Crewe Another World Press September 2016 If you’re even slightly familiar with young adult novels, you know that one of the more popular tropes found is “The Hero is The Chosen One.” With A Mortal Song, Megan Crewe flips this trope on its head and dropkicks it.
#TIFF16 Review: Sadako vs Kayako Is Funnier and Less Scary Than Expected
Sadako vs Kayako Director: Kôji Shiraishi Cast: Mizuki Yamamoto, Tina Tamashiro, Aimi Satsukawa, Misato Tanaka, Masahiro Komoto, Masanobu Ando, Runa Endo 2016
The Intimacy of Grief: A Review of Nagasaki: Memories of My Son
Nagasaki: Memories of My Son (Haha to Kuraseba) Director: Yoji Yamada Writers: Yoji Yamada and Emiko Hiramatsu Starring: Sayuri Yoshinaga, Kazunari Ninomiya, Haru Kuroki Japanese premiere: December 12, 2015 North American premiere: June 9, 2016 Few events in history have loomed as large in the fabric of American history as the atomic bomb attacks on Nagasaki and Hiroshima. Few…
News & Things: Wolverine’s Hair is Hot Stuff
Tiny Cute Avengers Manga Introduces Japanese Kids To the Team This completely adorable Avengers story ran as a one shot in Monthly Korokoro Comic in an attempt to familiarize Japanese children with Marvel characters before the release of a new japanese series: Marvel Disk Wars: The Avengers. Who else wants a copy of the re-print?…
