Internet Info 1994 March

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Path: bloom-beacon.mit.edu!news.kei.com!sol.ctr.columbia.edu!howland.reston.ans.net!newsserver.jvnc.net!igor.rutgers.edu!remus.rutgers.edu!pearl From: pearl@remus.rutgers.edu (Starbuck) Newsgroups: rec.arts.manga,news.answers,rec.answers,rec.arts.anime.info Subject: rec.arts.manga: Manga Guide Part 1/2 Keywords: monthly informative posting Message-ID: <Mar.21.13.09.51.1994.23263@remus.rutgers.edu> Date: 21 Mar 94 18:09:51 GMT Reply-To: axolotl@socs.uts.edu.au Followup-To: rec.arts.manga Organization: the Worlds Welfare Work Association, Rutgers Anime division Lines: 1549 Approved: news-answers-request@mit.edu Xref: bloom-beacon.mit.edu rec.arts.manga:6464 news.answers:16709 rec.answers:4560 rec.arts.anime.info:422 Archive-name: manga/guide/part1 Rec.arts.manga Manga Guide Part 1/2 Version 5.05 03 March 1994 Updates/new entries welcome - send to: Iain Sinclair (axolotl@socs.uts.edu.au) Updated monthly. PLEASE check this before posting to r.a.m. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Adachi Mitsuru ^[$@$"$@$A=<^[(B 09 Feb 19xx ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Touch ^[$@%?%C%A^[(B 1992-93 11F SS 680 There are three "parts" to Touch. In the first part, the main theme was the love triangle between Tatsuya, Kazuya, and Minami. Uesugi Tatsuya and Kazuya were twins, and Asakura Minami was the girl next door. The second part of Touch concentrated on Tatsuya trying to put himself into Kazuya's shoes. Tatsuya got "traded" from the boxing team to the baseball team for a picture of Lum with an autograph of Takahashi Rumiko. Tatsuya pitched the Meisei team into the second round of the regional tournament, but lost to Nishimura and Seinan High School in an extra inning game while pitching a no-hitter. Minami, who had been the baseball team manager, also became a member of the school's rhythmic gymnastics team. Minami did exceptionally well and made it to the national tournament. The third part of Touch concentrated on Tatsuya making himself good enough for Minami. Meisei got a new coach because the old coach got sick. The new coach worked the team like the devil. But it paid off as Meisei made it to the finals of the regional tournament to face Nitta and Sumi Technical High School. -HD (TV series: 108 episodes, 3 movies) Nine ^[$@%J%$%s^[(B 1990 2Fw SS 680 High school baseball (plus some other sports) and romance story. 3 TV movies. Miyuki ^[$@$_$f$-^[(B 1990 5Fw SS 680 ^[$@$_$f$-^[(B 19?? 12F SS 360 High school brother and stepsister romance story. Rough ^[$@%i%U^[(B 1987-89 12F SS 370 High school swimming and romance story. Slow Step ^[$@%9%m!<%9%F%C%W^[(B 1986-91 7F Flower Comics 390 High school girl's softball and boxing and romance story. H2 1992 6 SS 390 Adachi's current work; another highschool baseball story. ^[$B$"$"!*@D=U$N9C;R1`^[(B 7F Shougakukan ^[$@%7%g!<%H!&%W%m%0%i%`^[(B 1988 1F Shougakukan 980 ^[$@Fz?'$H$&$,$i$7^[(B 1990-92 12F SS 390 ^[$@M[$"$?$jNI9%^[(B! 1991 2F Shougakukan 680 ^[$@5c$-Cn9C;R1`^[(B 1993 1 Shougakukan ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Aihara Koji ^[$@Aj86%3!<%8^[(B ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Manga Class that even Monkeys Can Draw (Sarudemo Kakeru Manga Kyoushitsu) ^[$B%5%k$G$b$+$1$kL!2h65<<^[(B 1990 3 Shougakukan 1000 A pretty good study of the manga industry. The story is about two guys named Koji Aihara and Kentaroh Takeguma (the artist and story writer of the actual manga) who set out on an ambition to reach for the top in the manga business. -KM The manga industry is in trouble, and there's no better way to address the issue than to insult it with humor. You don't have to read too many mangas to appreciate the "in-jokes" in Saruman. All mangas today are so alike you'd only need to read one to guess what the rest of the genre looks like. The story of Saruman is told through a pair of manga wanna-be's, one a rookie artist of marginal talent, and another a seasoned veteran who knows the industry tricks inside out. The education began when the rookie tried to apply some common sense to solve manga problems, and the veteran refuting the common sense by providing examples that are totally counter-intuitive, yet strangly familiar in our manga reading experiences. This is the genius of Saruman; it exposes the madness without losing the humor. Aihara and Takekuma were able to bite the hand that feeds them, and then got permission to do more. Saruman gets wilder and more hilarious as it progresses, and not since Be Free have I seen a manga with so much energy spilling from beginning to end. Read it as a story, read it as a satire, or read it as a warning, Whatever a reader looks for, Saruman delivers. Read it, and rec.arts.manga will never look the same to you again. -DM ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Araki Hirohiko ^[$B9SLZHtO$I'^[(B Well known for unique art style and bizarre sound effects. However Jojo's Bizarre Adventure is beginning to show the limit of his imagination. -TK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Jojo's Bizarre Adventure ^[$B%8%g%8%g$N4qL/$JKA81^[(B 1987 36 Shonen Jump 390 Very violent, bizarre, cool, epic saga spanning continents and four generations. ``"Hokuto no Ken" meets "the Twilight Zone"''. The longest fighting manga to run on Shonen Jump (Jump novels are also available). Details of the OAVs are: Part No. Release Date Stand From Volume 1 11-19-93 The Fool - Iggy 20 2 12-17-93 continued from 1 20 3 July 94(?) The Gambler -Darby 23 4 Aug. 94(?) The World - Dio 27-28 5 Nov. 94(?) continued from 4 27-28 6 Dec. 94(?) continued from 5 27-28 JoJo 6251 ^[$B#J#O#J#O%8%g!<%9%?!<2H$NL[<(O?^[(B 1993 artbook Shonen Jump 2000 A mook full of color illustrations, excerpts from the manga, Jojo character profiles, a map of the Jojo saga, an interview with Araki, and more. Subtitled "Araki Hirohiko's world", it's a must-have for Jojo fans, and probably a good alternative for those who can't afford to fork out for the entire Jojo manga series. (Author: ^[$B=54)>/G/%8%c%s%WJT^[(B) ^[$B%P%*!<MhK,<T^[(B 1986 2F Shonen Jump 370 ^[$@%4!<%8%c%9!z%"%$%j%s^[(B 1986 1F Shonen Jump 370 ^[$BKb>/G/%S!<%F%#!<^[(B 1986 1F Shonen Jump 370 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Aro Hiroshi ^[$@$"$m$R$m$7^[(B (a pseudonym) An unusual artist/writer. Most of his stories have a clear, clean appearance with a surreal quality. This could also be said of his characters, tone, and attitude. He uses "hentai" with its double meaning of "metamorphosis" to describe weird backgrounds, assorted personalities, and other strangeness. His humor oriented stories usually share the same universe. -NA Aro has contributed to the Project A-ko and 4 Spirits+2 anthologies. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ MORUMO 1/10 1985 2F SC 390 Morumo 1/10 is a combination of super-hero, comedy, and love story. Morumo is an alien girl raised on earth. She is 16.3 meters tall at age 16 and weighs 43 tons. She looks human (with pink hair) if you are far enough away, well her proportions are human. She occasionally takes a shrinking serum that reduces her body by 1/10 in size. You and Me ^[$@M%!uL%0a^[(B 1986-89 8F SJ Monthly 360 You is a boy who just moved into the equivalent of a boarding house. Everything is not as it first seems, even the boy. Living in the same room is a ghost (female) named Me. The series is a combination of love, humor, and a general parody of anime and manga. Futaba-kun, Change! ^[$@$U$?$P7/%A%'%s%8^[(B 1991 5 SJ Monthly 390 Another high school hentai slapstick. Futaba changes his/her gender when he/she gets excited. But it's not only him. His family is filled with gender-changing people. Hunter Cats ^[$@%O%s%?!<!&%-%c%D^[(B 1992 1 Shonen Captain It is a semi-parody of the trouble-shooter genre. Basically, its about 3 women with inhuman capabilities in their specialties solving cases. It is derived and an improvement over his earlier work, Sheriff. One of the members is also from Sheriff. The names and titles are: Mei the cyberqueen (super hacker), Akira the iron fist (great strength, very athletic, has scars all over her body), and Hikaru the quick (unmatched pick pocket, has super speed, can grab a fired bullet from the air and steal bullets from guns without the user being aware; when she was younger she was in Sheriff and was a thief, but she reformed). Other works: Boogie-Woogie Alligator, Omisore Toraburikko, Tottemo Shounen Tankentai, Sheriff, Trickster, Unkai no Tabibito ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Asamiya Kia ^[$@Kc5\530!^[(B Asamiya Kia is the same person as the famous animator/character designer Kikuchi Michitaka. - TK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Vagrants ^[$@?@@15-%t%!%0%i%s%D^[(B 1988 2F Kadokawa Shoten 880 Quoting a certain alt.manga personality, 'The author is more lost than the readers'. Just when you think the story is beginning to make sense, it ends. -DC It at least tried to be serious, although I'm not quite sure serious what. Art is primitive, pre-Tron, low-zip Asamiya. While it is common knowledge Asamiya Kia can't write, Vagrant has proven beyond reasonable doubt that he can't READ either. The story, while messed up big time, is not complex in terms of players and situations. It tried to tell 4 different stories in utterly unrelated settings. The main characters teleport/dimension-warp/what- ever universes and solve problems, not unlike some old network scifi shows. The formula may yet work had the dialogues not been as corny, pace not as dreadful, and situations not as uninvolving. The story writer, Vauxhall Production, meshed together space colony, fantasy kingdom, desert village, and then a moon cult space opera into one blob; the teleporting was just a Monty Python excuse to move from one setting to another. If I sound angry, that's because it took me $25 original, $20 Chinese DX translation, 8 rereads, and hours of soul searchings to figure this out. Now that I have, you don't. If the only reason you're considering this title is because it's from Asamiya, then that should be good enough reason for you not to. -DM Mobius Klein (Silent Mobius) ^[$@%5%$%l%s%H%a%S%&%9^[(B 1990 5 Comp 950 In short, this is Bubblegum Bastard!. Asamiya can draw, except he doesn't know what to draw. -DM Kikuchi used to come up with only lame ideas but these days he can't come up with any. -TK Dark Angel ^[$@@;=CEA@b%@!<%/%(%s%8%'%k^[(B 1991 1 Kadokawa Shoten 850 The current storyline is about an impetuous young boy named Dark, his tiny assistant angel, and the mad spoiled lord who's on the verge of stumbling into a major war in his attempts to kill Dark. This series has some nice artwork, and good character interaction, though all of the character designs have equivalents in Compiler. -CH GUNHED 1989 Kadokawa Shoten 800 ^[$@%3%s%Q%$%i^[(B 1991-92 3F Afternoon 500 Assembler 0X 1992 1 Afternoon 500 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Asari Yoshitoh ^[$B$"$5$j$h$7$H$*^[(B 20 November, 1962 Asari Yoshitoh's style tends to be simple, almost cutesy...except for the times he does exploding entrails and shotgun wounds. Whereupon his attention to detail is impressive. -JE ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Short Stories Collection ^[$BC;JT=8^[(B 1989 1F Tokuma Shoten 680 A collection book of some of Asari's short comics from 1980 to 1988 put out as an Animage Comics Special book, this collection shows the variety of different stories and styles that Asari is comfortable with. My personal favorite is 'The Magnificent Seven Zombies.' (A somewhat paraphrased title.) Included is a list of all Asari's published stories up to 1988, for fanatical collectors. Space Family Carlvinson ^[$B1'Ch2HB2%+%k%S%s%=%s^[(B 1986 9 SC 390 When a motley band of travelling performers have a deep-space collision with another spacecraft, they find that the sole survivor of the other craft is a humanoid infant. They decide to raise the child as their own on the nearest planet as they wait for other members of the girl's race to come and find her. Corona-chan grows up as their daughter, and the manga details her five-year-old adventures with her fuzzball mother, her robot-soldier father, her living-central-nervous-system pet, and the other bizarre members of the local village. -JE Manga Science ^[$@$^$s$,%5%$%(%s%9^[(B 1991 3 Gakushuukenkyuusha 800 This is something Asari Yoshitoh did for one of those Gakken science magazines (I think the one for fifth graders) and each episode, he handles a different topic. It's really interesting because he talks about pretty recent developments. Cloning lettuce, milk-derivative cloth, food made out of crab shells,...neat stuff. The entire second volume is dedicated to the space program. -KT Wahhaman ^[$B%o%C%O%^%s^[(B 1991 3 Afternoon 420 Wahhaman is a special robot soldier built ten thousand years ago by the Atlanteans. Found and dug up in present-day Tokyo, he cannot remember any of his past, due to a nasty knock to the head he received at some point. People tend to mistake Wahhaman, who is unable to speak except for laughing when going into battle, for someone or something that they are looking for in their own lives. -JE (Asari has also contributed to the Party Beautiful Dream and Shonen Captain Select anthologies.) ^[$@CO5eKI1R>/=w%$%3$A$c$s^[(B 1990 2F 890 ^[$@Cf6uCNKI1R73^[(B 1989 1F Tokuma Shoten 680 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Chen Wen ^[$@E"Ld^[(B 27 Dec 1958, Tao Yuen (Taiwan) Chen Wen worked for a dozen design companies before starting his own studio, working as an illustrator and comic artist. His hobbies include collecting models, swimming, reading, and watching movies. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Heroes of the East Chou Dynasty ^[$@El<~1QM:EA^[(B 1991 3w Morning 1100 Chinese historical figures in the days of East Chou Dynasty. Magical Super Asia ^[$@?<$/H~$7$-%"%8%"^[(B 1992 3w Afternoon 1200 A story of psychics, beast-people, and powerful demigods, taking place in a near-future Asian setting. Like HECD, this was written for Kodansha, not a Taiwanese publisher. Other works (all on Taiwanese magazines): Leopard Warriors, Leopard Warriors II, The God of War, Story of the Assassins, The Armor General ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Chiba Tetsuya ^[$@$A$P$F$D$d^[(B Jan 11 1939 Debut: 1958 Formerly a popular shoujo artist. He went on to draw Ashita no Joe (author: Takamori Asao ^[$@9b?9D+M:^[(B), which had a tremendous impact on ALL action/violence/sports mangas. Without this manga, the history of Japanese manga would have been very different. (-via TK) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ^[$@$"$7$?$N%8%g!<^[(B 1968-73 8Fw 450 ^[$@%O%j%9$N@{Iw^[(B ? 6Fw 1100 ^[$@$"$7$?E75$$K$J$"$l^[(B ? 31F 640 ^[$@>/G/$h%i%1%C%H$rJz$1^[(B 1992 7 390 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ CLAMP 16 Jun 1968 (Mokona Apapa) 02 May 1967 (Ookawa Nanase) 08 Feb 1969 (Igarashi Satsuki) 21 Jan 1969 (Nekoi Mikku) CLAMP is composed of 6 talented ladies and each member has her own specialty. Core member of CLAMP is Mokona Apapa (main artist) and Ookawa Nanase (writer) who are DIRECTLY responsible for such manga as RG-VEDA, X and Tokyo Babylon. Without doubt, CLAMP is the hottest shojo-manga artist in Japan now. -TK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Shirahime Shou ^[$@GrI1>6^[(B 1992 1F Koubunsha 500 This book consists of 3 romance short stories about "snow". There is a legend that whenever it snows, it is the tears of a white princess. Artwork may not appeal to many, because to create the sentimental snow environment, the background is always dark. But the stories are quite good and romantic. -CM Seiden (RG Veda) ^[$@@;EA!J%j%0!&%t%'!<%@!K^[(B 1991 7 Shinshokan 490 Although CLAMP borrowed ideas and names from Hindu/Buddhist mythology, RG-VEDA has very little to do with them in terms of story. This manga is CLAMP's first major work and its story and art are getting better and better with each volume. IMO, RG-VEDA defines the current "state of the art" of Shojo-manga. HIGHLY recommended. Campus Police Dukylon ^[$@3X1`FC7Y%G%e%+%j%*%s^[(B 1992 2 Newtype 900 CLAMP did this manga as a joke. CLAMP Campus Detective Service ^[$B#C#L#A#M#P3X1`C5De^[(B 1992 3 Asuka 520 A light comedy featuring three whiz kids in Clamp Elementary School. Takes place in the same campus as Dukylon. -TK The detective team aims to help female students on campus to find clues to their lost stuff. Nokoru is very popular among female students, and he's quite glad to help them. He is sort of the "leader" of the team, and he is extremely smart. -CM Tokyo Babylon ^[$@El5~#B#A#B#Y#L#O#N^[(B 1991 7 South 580 Demon hunt story heavily influenced by Kujaku-Oh. However, it concentrates more on the social background and inner feelings of characters rather than violence and action. -TK X 1992 5 Asuka 390 Occult battle manga taking place in the near future. Features great artwork, intriguing characters and complex plots. It takes place in the same Universe as TB. NIGHT HEAD 1993 2 Kadokawa Shoten 1400 (story by Iita Jouji ^[$BHSED>y<#^[(B) This was originally a late-night TV series using real actors. It was about two brothers who were locked up in a lab because of their psychic powers, and what happens to them after they leave the lab. I think the video is already out. The novel, written by the director of the TV series, will finish at 5 volumes. -TKa REX Kyouryuu Monogatari ^[$@#R#E#X62N5J*8l^[(B 1993 1F Asuka 800 A promo manga for the REX movie. ^[$@%7%c%$%s%$%s%0%9%?!<^[(B 1987 1F Kadokawa Shoten 520 DERAYD 1989 1F Shinkigensha 1000 20^[$@LLAj$K$*4j$$^[(B! 1990 2 Kadokawa Shoten 800 CLUSTER 1990 0-2 Shinkigensha 880 ^[$@?7AuHG%G%i%$%I^[(B 1993 1F Shinkigensha 500 ^[$BIT;W5D$N9q$NH~9,$A$c$s^[(B 1993 s Kadokawa Shoten Chunhyang-Jun 1992 s CLAMP illustration book 1994 Kadokawa Shoten ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Egawa Tatsuya ^[$@9>@nC#Li^[(B A former disciple of Motomiya Hiroshi, he got his big break when his manga "Don't Give Up" won the Comic Morning Open contest. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ BE FREE! 1986-88 12F Morning 480 BE FREE! 1993 4w Morning 870 Mother of all hormone-overdosed-teacher stories. -DM Magical Taruruuto-kun ^[$@$^$8$+$k!y%?%k$k!<%H$/$s^[(B 1989-93 21F Shonen Jump 390 5th grader Edojou Honmaru is one of the weakest in his class, until he meets the little magician Taruruuto. Taru's magic helps him to deal with girls, triumph over bullies and meet other challenges. Lots of fun, slapstick and protracted battles, a real "feelgood" title that embodies the spirit of many Shonen Jump mangas. GOLDEN BOY 1992 2 Super Jump 500 Kintarou is a 25 year old genius, a dropout from Tokyo University, who likes to tutor and study. His favourite subject for research: women. ^[$@$^!y%?%k$k!<%H$/$sKbK!%"%$%F%`^[(B 1993 1F Shuueisha 480 ^[$BEl5~Bg3XJ*8l^[(B 1992 2 BC Spirits 500 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Fujishima Kosuke ^[$@F#Eg9/2p^[(B 07 Jul 1964 Fujishima is a keen fan of motorcyles and engine mechanics stuff. So expect to see a lot of things about them in his manga. -PY As you can see in AMG!, Fujishima also has a great talent for designing custumes and has done costume designs for KO Seiki Beast Sanjuushi. -TK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ You're Under Arrest (Taiho Shichauzo) ^[$BBaJa$7$A$!$&$>^[(B 1989 7F Morning P.Extra 420 The manga which made Fujishima famous. As commonly found in debut manga, the art style changes quite a lot from the first volume. The story is about the life of two policewomen, Miyuki (mechanical genius, expert vehicle driver, the brain of the pair, more introverted), and Natsumi (enormous strength, expert motorcyle driver, more action-minded). Both feel embarassed when faced with romantic situations. There are many interesting supporting roles. -PY Ah! My Goddess! ^[$B$"$"$C=w?@$5$^$C^[(B 1990 9 Afternoon 450 ^[$B$"$"$C=w?@$5$^$C^[(B 1993 1a Afternoon 450 Keiichi is visited by Belldandy, the goddess of the present, and given one wish. He doesn't believe her, and as a joke asks her to stay with him forever. His wish is granted, and she has to stay by him. Later on, her two sisters, Urd and Skuld also show up. -GS Striker, the Shining Star 1993 Morning Loosely based on the TSZ "weird baseball dude". ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Fujita Kazuhiro ^[$@F#EDOBF|O:^[(B ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Ushio to Tora ^[$@$&$7$*$H$H$i^[(B 1989 18 SS 390 Aotsuki Ushio was a normal junior highschool boy until he accidentally pulled the "Spear of the Beast" out of a powerful monster, imprisoned in the basement of his house. The monster tried to eat Ushio but the spear, which has strong magical powers, enabled Ushio to overwhelm the monster. Ushio named the monster "Tora", which means TIGER in Japanese. Together they engage in various monster hunts. Although Tora insist that he's helping Ushio because he don't want other monster/demons to rob him of his "food", they develop a strange friendship. -TK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ GONTA GONTA draws people with confidence and flair. His stories are full of drama, screwed-up people and sex. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Jigoku no Ie ^[$BCO9v$N2H^[(B 1992 4 Afternoon 500 A famous actor (Harou) and his son (Kyouichi) and their highly screwed-up relationships. Heaven 1991-92 3F Afternoon 500 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Hagiwara Kazushi ^[$@Gk860l;j^[(B A former Matsumoto Izumi assistant. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ BASTARD!! 1987-93 14 SJ Se. Special 390 A virgin's kiss turns bimbo boy Luche into the ancient sorcerer, Dark Schneider, just in time to save a kingdom from Osborne and his minions... if D.S feels like it. Bastard!! is RPG manga at its wildest, bursting with bimbos, violence, in-jokes, and spectacular art. -IS An utterly mindless manga that does not take itself seriously (until recent installment of course) You don't know manga until you've read Bastard!!. -DC They all came out of the same school at the same time, and they draw alike too. The story would score higher if Dark Schneider doesn't say the say lines over and over again. I like it, however, for the same rawness. The best no brain manga yet. -DM Made Genius d Bakuen Campus 1992 Virtual Jump ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Hara Tetsuo ^[$@86E/IW^[(B ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Fist of the North Star (Hokuto no Ken) ^[$@KLEM$N7}^[(B 1984-9 27F Shonen Jump 370 The definitive Shonen Jump macho-manga, and a (dubious) martial arts manga classic. ^[$@#C#Y#B#E#R%V%k!<^[(B 1989-90 4F Shonen Jump 370 ^[$@2V$N7D<!^[(B 1990 17 Shonen Jump 390 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Hiramatsu Shinji ^[$BJ?>>?-Fs^[(B Hiramatsu is one of the first generation of TRUE action/violence manga artist, along with other veterans like Wada Shinji (Sukeban Deka) Shibata Masahiro (Blue Sonnet), Kurumada Masami (Saint Seiya), Ikegami Ryouichi, etc (NOTE: They all debuted in early-mid 70s). -TK ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- ^[$B%^!<%@!<%i%$%;%s%92g^[(B 1989 18 Super Jump 390 ^[$@%V%i%C%/%(%s%8%'%k%:^[(B 1980-84 12 Shonen Jump 600 ^[$@%j%C%-!<BfIw^[(B 1991 4 600 ^[$@%I!<%Y%k%^%s7:;v^[(B 1986-88 19 Shuueisha 580 ^[$@%b%s%9%?!<%O%s%?!<J?>>?-FsC;JT=8^[(B 1989 Shuueisha 370 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Hirano Toshihiro ^[$@J?Ln=S90^[(B 3 Oct 1956, Osaka ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Iczer Legend ^[$@%$%/%5!<EA@b^[(B 1992 1 Comic Genki 900 Iczer Densetsu is only very loosely based on OAVS. It's Hirano's attempt to recreate the Iczer Universe. -TK Dangaioh Legend DOLL ^[$@??CF9oK1@;EA#D#O#L#L^[(B 1990 4 Comic Nora 800 Like Iczer Densetsu, it's very loosely based on OAVs. Other than the name of characters and their looks, not much similarity (no mecha). -TK ^[$@%4%8%i#1#9#9#0^[(B 1990 1 Kadokawa Shoten 800 ^[$@J?Ln%-%c%i%/%?!<%o!<%/%9^[(B 1987 1F Bandai 1854 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Hiwatari Saki ^[$@F|EO^[(B ^[$@Aa5*^[(B ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Please Save My Earth ^[$@KM$NCO5e$r<i$C$F^[(B 1987 18 Hana to Yume 390 A high school girl named Alice (yep, they found kanji for it) moves to Tokyo, where she finds that two boys in her class have been sharing the same dreams for several years. The dreams form a continuing story. She eventually finds herself having the same dreams. It turns out that these dreams are actually remembrances of their past lives, which happened to be as alien researchers stationed on the Earth's moon. Also, as the story progresses the other members of the moon research team are found reincarnated as well. The seven of them try to solve the mystery of what their past lives were, and why they are remembering it. Adding a bit of excitement to the story is the fact that (1) the reincarnated people have some special powers that remained from their past lives, and (2) certain of them harbor great enmity toward others, and are acting rather irrational. I think it is a good suspense story. It is definitely not merely one of those "love stories for junior high school girls". ^_^ A bit of advice though: It is very hard to keep the relationships between the characters straight, as you have to deal with rather complicated love tangles in both the present day Japan setting and the "moon story" setting. It doesn't help that the publisher for some reason decided not to put the usual "toujyoujinbutu syoukai" in the front of the issues until issue #6. I would strongly suggest that when you buy #1, buy #6 at the same time. You can refer to the character chart in the front of #6. -MC ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Hokusai Katsushita 23 Sep 1760 (Edo) - 18 Apr 1849 Famous for his ukiyo-e work, which borrowed from both Eastern and Western artistic traditions, influencing a great deal of subsequent Japanese art/design (and manga). ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Hoshisato Mochiru ^[$@@1N$$b$A$k^[(B ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Living Game ^[$@$j$S$s$0%2!<%`^[(B 1991 10F BC Spirits 500 A romantic comedy about a Fuwa, a guy living in a small apartment in overcrowded Tokyo, who wants to have a place of his own. Because of a building accident in their new office building, Fuwa's company (5 employees) had to move into his apartment, right after he had moved to a larger place. Also the new employee (Hiyama Izumi, a 15 year old girl) had to move into Fuwa's place, as she had just come from the country. Then Fuwa's old girl friend Tokiko, who had already gotten married, ran away from her husband and came to Fuwa's place. -HD ^[$@4m81$,%&%)!<%-%s%0!!^[(B 1988-89 4F Shonen Captain 370 ^[$@$$$-$P$?<gIW%i%s%V%k^[(B 1990 1F Shonen Captain 490 ^[$@$o$:$+$$$C$A$g$^$(^[(B 1991 1F Shonen Captain 500 ^[$@%O!<%U$JJ,$@$1!!^[(B 1991 2F BC Spirits 500 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Hosono Fujihiko ^[$@:YLnITFsI'^[(B The original artist of the Crusher Joe manga. -KM ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Crusher Joe ^[$B%/%i%C%7%c!<%8%g%&^[(B 1993 1F Asahi Sonorama 500 Over 12 works, including: ^[$@0&$7$N%P%C%H%^%s^[(B 1991 8 BC Spirits 500 ^[$@%^%^^[(B 1988 9F Young Sunday 500 ^[$@%.%c%i%j!<%U%'%$%/^[(B 1992 2 BC Spirits 500 ^[$@$4$a$s$"$=$P$;^[(B 1992 1 Comic Burger 680 ^[$BG.7}%`%5%7^[(B 1992 2 Shonen Captain 390 ^[$@El5~C5DeCD^[(B 1991 3 Super Visual C. 780 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Houjou Tsukasa ^[$@KL>r;J^[(B 5th March, 1959 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Cat's Eye ^[$@%-%c%D"'%"%$^[(B 1981-84 18F Shonen Jump 360 ^[$@%-%c%D"'%"%$^[(B 1994 1w Shonen Jump 1000 This is a story about three sisters who are in search of their lost father, who was a famous artist. They steal his works of art from museums/galleries to make him recognize their presence in the world.. (Personally, it's much better than City Hunter.. Houjou was compelled to draw City Hunter because he was tired of drawing from a woman's point of view.) Short Story Collection 1: Gift from Angel ^[$@E7;H$NB#$j$b$N^[(B 1988 1F Shonen Jump 360 There's one story about a pair of lovers always quarrelling and not admitting that they're suited for each other. But their future daughter comes and helps them realise their love. -CM CITY HUNTER 1985-92 35F Shonen Jump 390 A hentai trouble shooter and his hammer-wielding female assistant. Jackie Chan stars in the movie. ^[$@:y$N2V:i$/$3$m^[(B 1993 1F Shonen Jump 390 ^[$@KL>r;J%$%i%9%H=8^[(B 1991 artbook Shuueisha 1000 ^[$@$3$b$lM[$N2<$G!D^[(B 1993 SJ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Ikeda Satomi ^[$@CSED$5$H$_^[(B ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ B/W 1987-9 6 Flower Comics 370 This story progresses as a series of episodes about a young woman reporter for Tokyo's "Weekly Big Mouth" magazine. The woman, Watase Noriko, starts the job in issue #1. The premise of the stories are that she is assigned to some news story usually, but then she gets involved with the characters involved and it ends up with her trying to solve a mystery. It is a series of episodes - events that happen in one episode will remain "happened" in later episodes (for example, one of the main characters gets married), but the individual episodes are also complete, wrapped up stories that can be fully enjoyed by themselves. I really like this series for several reasons, but perhaps what I like best about it is that it takes place in a real Tokyo. The scenery is excellent - one might as well be looking at a photograph. It shows what Tokyo really looks like. Similarly, the people in the stories are quite realistic (okay, okay, forget the one "Indiana Jones" episode) and the problems they encounter are things that really might happen. This series is written for adults, so the subject matter tends to be things that one encounters in the working world, and there are no furigana. -MC ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Ikegami Ryouichi ^[$@CS>eNK0l^[(B Debuted in 1971 with "Aineo Boy", a story by Koike Kazuo. One of the famous and influential realist/violence artists. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Mai ^[$@Iq^[(B 1986 3F Super Visual C. 780 Story about a young, talented girl, and the attempts to either kidnap and exploit her, or simply kill her. -CH Crying Freeman ^[$@#C#r#y#i#n#g%U%j!<%^%s^[(B 1986-99 9F Big Comics 480 About a killer for the triads who cries whenever he kills someone. Plenty of H. Sanctuary ^[$@%5%s%/%A%e%"%j^[(B 1986 6 BC Superior 500 (story by Shimura Shou ^[$@;KB<^[(B ^[$@fF^[(B) Story about two young men working together to change the shape of Tokyo's politics -- one by becoming a politician, and the other by becoming a Yakuza. Doesn't pull any punches. -CH Offered ^[$@%*%U%!!<%I^[(B 1990-91 4F Shougakukan 500 (story by Koike Kazuo) The main character is an "offered" of Gilgamesh, (Gilgamesh preserved his semen in an iceberg...so it survived. The grandfather of the main character for some rason was able to gain the semen..) so he goes on this trip to Agartha, where all the secrets of his birth lie. -KM The Life of Ouritsuin Kumomaru ^[$@2&N)1!1@4]$N@836^[(B 1991-92 3F SS 500 (story by Hiroi Ouji) In the early 1930s, the son of a Japanese noble family travels to Europe to seek his fortune. But he soon becomes embroiled in the militarist conspiracy, running up against the militarists' ninja Juuzou, Chinese demons and fleets of zeppelins. Ikegami's art is better than ever, but its awkward story proved unpopular and it ended very prematurely. -IS Other works include: ^[$@?.D9^[(B 1988-90 8F Shougakukan 500 ^[$@#I!&2nCK%\!<%$^[(B 1992 9F Studio Ship 700 ^[$@CKAH^[(B 1990 9F Super Visual C. 700 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Inoue Noriyoshi ^[$@0f>e5*NI^[(B ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Mad Bull 34 ^[$@%^%C%I!y%V%k#3#4^[(B 1986-90 19F YJ 460 (story by Koike Kazuo) The violent exploits of NY cops. (It has ended on YJ, but there is some NEW Mad Bull 34 in recent Bears Club magazines). W.WOLF 1992 2 YJ 30 600 (story by Tohban Zenji) An international investigator, possessed by the spirits of wolves, turns from a nerd to a musclebound hunk in crisis situations. Gulf Hawk ^[$@%,%k%U$NBk^[(B 1991 2F YJ 460 About a Japanese cameraman in the Gulf War. -KM Chronicle of Japan ^[$@O"4DF|K\=q5*^[(B 1992 4F YJ 460 The reincarnates of the people who wrote the ancient Japanese legends in the 1990s channel across time to search for the true Japanese History. THE MISSION 1991 1F YJ 460 ^[$@%@%$%d%b%s%I%(%k%U%#%s^[(B 1991 2F YJ 460 ^[$B2+N6$N<*^[(B 1993 3 YJ 460 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Ishikawa Ken ^[$@@P@n8-^[(B ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Miroku ^[$@5uL5@o;N#M#I#R#O#K#U^[(B 1988-90 5F Shonen Captain 380 Getter Robo ^[$@%2%C%?!<%m%\^[(B 1990 3F Taitosha 700 (story by Nagai Gou) Getter Robo Go ^[$@%2%C%?!<%m%\iK^[(B 1991 2 Shonen Captain 390 Garou Densetsu: Wananaku no Maohkai ^[$B2nO5EA@b^[(B ^[$B@oXK$NKb2&39^[(B 1994 1 Kodansha 390 (plus at least 5 other works) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Itegaki Keisuke ^[$@HD3@7C2p^[(B ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Makeupper ^[$@%a%$%-%c%C%Q!<^[(B 1990 3F Studio Ship 500 Grappler Baki ^[$@%0%i%C%W%i!<?O2g^[(B 1990 11 Shonen Champion 390 "Real Grappling Comic", focusing the attempts of Hanma Baki (a highschool jujitsu-ka) to avenge his father. The main appeal for me is its slick look, solid character designs, and very competent action sequences. Probably Shounen Champion's most popular current title. -IS ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Itsuki Natsumi ^[$@<y$J$D$_^[(B ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Oz 1990-92 4F Jets Comics 700 A military action comic mixed with romance and combat androids. The art style is feminine but the action isn't... -ME ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Iwaaki Hitoshi ^[$@4dL@^[(B ^[$@6Q^[(B ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Kiseiju (Parasite beasts) ^[$@4s@8=C^[(B 1990 7 Afternoon 500 "One day, alien creatures appeared on Earth. They invaded other animals through their nose or ears, and lived in their brains, controlling their nervous system. These creatures were 'parabeasts', their numbers unknown. They can detect each other from their brain waves, and can change their shape freely. One parasite tried to invade his host, Shinichi, via his arm, but Shinichi stopped it reaching his brain by tying up his arm. "Eventually, a symbiotic relationship developed. Those parabeasts which lived on brains eventually consumed their host and matured. So, to save themselves, Shinichi and his parabeast 'Miggy' began to fight against other parabeasts." Kiseiju has horrific gore, but also features well-developed relationships, subtle dialogue, and good atmosphere. The SF story is suspenseful, chilling and plausible. It won Kodansha's 1993 award for best manga. -IS ^[$@Iw;R$N$$$kE9^[(B 1987-88 4F Morning 480 ^[$B2;$N9|^[(B 1990 1F Kodansha 500 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Kakinouchi Narumi ^[$@3@LnFb@.H~^[(B 21 Mar 19xx, Osaka Hirano Toshihiro's wife. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ "Comic Novel" It's basically a Miyu novel, with several illustrations by Kakinouchi. I remember there are five short stories in the novel, but I can't be sure right out of the top of my head. The prologue in the book describes the last scene in the first manga, so I suppose the stories come after the manga. Oh, yes. The book is written by Kakinouchi herself. The book is rather odd because you read quite a bit about Miyu's human character (Attending a disguised party with Larva, etc.). As a bonus, the last part of the book is a chapter of manga. I think this is the 'pilot' installment of Miyu, and I think the book says something about this chapter was never published before. Cordname wa Charmer ^[$@%3!<%I%M!<%`$O#C#H#A#R#M#E#R^[(B 1990 3 Akita Shoten 850 About psychics in school. -CM New Vampire Miyu ^[$@?7!&5[7lI1^[(B 1990 2 850 (story by Hirano Toshihiro) It's about the shinma friends of Larva before he became the servant of Miyu came to Japan to meet Larva, as well as planing to revenge against Miyu since she killed two of their friends. -CM Mermaid Trip Kakinouchi and Hirano worked on this book together, and just the book itself is worth the money. The book comes in such a cute size with a beautiful cover, it's definitely worthwhile. -HTH ^[$@5[7lI1H~M<^[(B 1990 1F ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Kanzaki Masaomi ^[$B?@:j>-5p^[(B Made his debut in 1985 at the age of 21. 'Unique, hard-edged graphic style', with highly effective action sequences. He favours fast-paced SF. -JJ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Xenon ^[$B=E5!9CJ<%<%N%s^[(B 1986 4F Shougakukan 370 A very dramatic story set in contemporary Japan about a guy with amnesia, who finds out he was turned into a super-cyborg in a corporate weapon research program. He goes on a mission of revenge. A little shallow, perhaps, but worth reading. Streetfighter II ^[$@%9%H%j!<%H%U%!%$%?!<^[(BII 1993 2 Famimaga 490 Aimed at addicts of the famous video game. KAZE 1992 2 Shonen Captain 500 ^[$@%"%7%e!&%.!<%M^[(B 1987 1F Shonen Sunday 360 ^[$@@;<T$,Lk$d$C$F$/$k^[(B 1987 1F Wings 490 HUNTER 1989 1F Shougakukan 500 GUN CRISIS 1991 1F Read-sha 500 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Katsu Aki ^[$@9n!z0!<y^[(B ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Fuhoushi Mandara-den Karasu 1986 3F Shonen Sunday 360 Katsu's attempt at occult action manga. Although it had decent plot, it had many holes and showed his limit as an artist. -TK ^[$@@1$/$:%Q%i%@%$%9!!#1#0^[(B 1990-2 10F Shonen Sunday 390 It's kind of a goofy little story about a boy that winds up in an incredibly rich family, and acting as a personal assistant for an idol star he has a crush on. It's kind of light, but it did hold my interest. ^[$@D6N6@o5-%6%&%m%9%J%$%H^[(B 1992 6F Shonen Sunday 390 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Katsura Masakazu ^[$@7K@5OB^[(B ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Wingman ^[$@0&B"HG%&%$%s%0%^%s^[(B 1986 12F Shonen Jump 390 ^[$@0&B"HG%&%$%s%0%^%s^[(B 1992 7Fw Shonen Jump 1000 One day, a guy finds a girl dressed up in weird costumes.... one of her belongings was a Dream Note - Whatever that's written in becomes true. He drew a fictional character called Wingman.... which he transforms when a bunch of bad guys from another world come to attack the strange girl he found. -KM Choukidouin Vander ^[$BD65!F00w%t%!%s%@!<^[(B 1986 2F Shonen Jump 370 A guy and a chick transform to become the Vander - the hyper policeman... They are on a mission to fight the aliens who had come from outer space to conquer Earth. -KM Video Girl ^[$@EE1F>/=w^[(B 1993 15F Shonen Jump 390 (v15, SJ, 6 OAVs+live action movie) Parental groups temporarily pressured Shuueisha into withdrawing vol.3 and vol.5 from sale, so that some of the artwork could be "corrected" (mostly, just the addition of panties). Nothing particularly explicit, but some scenes suggesting lesbianism/sexual slavery were judged to be unsuitable for SJ's typical "boys and girls" audience. Vol.1-13 is Video Girl Ai, while vol.14-15 is Video Girl Len (a different story set some years after VGA, with a brief appearance from Youta). D.N.A^2 1993 1 Shonen Jump 390 Panty scenes aside, the story has a reluctant hero, who has trouble dealing with girls, pretty girls who will fling their bodies to him the first chance they get, and a tomboy from the future to "help" the guy. Sounds familiar? Me think SJ's got itself another winner.... :-p -DM ^[$@%W%l%<%s%H!&%U%m%`#L#E#M#O#N^[(B 1988 2F Shonen Jump 370 ^[$@7K@5OB%3%l%/%7%g%s^[(B 1989 2F Shonen Jump 880 Shadow Lady 1992 Virtual Jump ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Kawaguchi Kaiji ^[$@$+$o$0$A$+$$$8^[(B 27 July 1958 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Medusa ^[$@%a%G%e!<%5^[(B 1990 7 Big Comics 500 The story starts in 1969, when the student movement in Japan was at its peak. -KM The Silent Service ^[$@D@L[$N4OBb^[(B 1989 19 Morning 500 The advanced US nuclear submarine "Seabat" is taken over by a Japanese crew, and renamed "Yamato". It then proceeds to waste a large portion of the superpowers' fleets. This manga has some infamy (being mentioned in the Diet), and is slightly derivative of The Hunt for Red October. Lots of suspense, politics, and well-done naval warfare scenes. However, it suffers from long and dull lapses in the action (partially due to Kawaguchi idling while military photographers took him to court for copying their work). The ending was determined by a Morning readers' poll. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Kenshi Hirokane ^[$@907s7{;K^[(B A lot of Hirokane's works are critical of the society we live in. He addresses problems that we have to deal with, as we see in all of his works. His wife is Saimon Fumi, who is also a manga artist, famous for the original works of art for the smash TV hits like Tokyo Love Story. -KM ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Kachou Shima Kousaku ^[$@2]D9Eg9L:n^[(B 1986-92 17F Morning 500 Kousaku Shima is a section chief of the Electronic Giant Hatsushiba. He gets involved with a lot of women, conspiracy inside the company, while he goes up and down the corporate ladder. Written in a span of nine years from 1982 to 1991, Kousaku Shima's character gradually changes from that of a normal, ambitious salaryman in the beginning as he emerges in the end to become a sort of a "super salaryman," a typical stereotype of the Japanese businessman. It has been made into a movie starring Toshihiko Tahara. (story: Masao Yajima) Human Scramble ^[$@?M4V8r:9E@^[(B 1985-91 27F 500 Human Scramble is a collection of short episodes of small incidents in everyday life we encounter every day. It is supposed to make us think of things we rarely realize about in this information society. Haro-hari Nezumi ^[$@%O%m!<D%$j%M%:%_^[(B 1984-89 23F Young Magazine 500 (v23F, Young Magazine KC) The main character is an assistant of a private eye.... He gets involved with the political scandals, corporate conspiracies, etc.... He used to do this in Young Magazine, but currently, he is on a hiatus and doing the other things we have below. The story is not yet finished. Last News ^[$@%i%9%H%K%e!<%9^[(B (v2, Big Comic Original) Last News is a 10 minute TV show that focuses on one event that happened on a particular day... It searches through to show what really happened, suggesting how the daily incidents we see could be like. (author: Inose Naoki) Ryuusuke Kaji's Argument ^[$@2C<#N42p$N5D^[(B 1992 4 Mr.Magazine 500 "Overridden with scandals time after time, Japanese politicians are shameful creatures. However, not all of them became politicians to get fortune. In fact, most of them in the beginning must have had an ambition to make the country into a better one. Yes, we must admit that we have a dark side in Japanese politics. However, I also wanted to focus on the good parts we have in Japanese politics today." This is a rough summary of what Hirokane said in some TV show as he was introducing this story. Ryuusuke Kaji, a son of a famous Japanese poplitician, undergoes the hardship of becoming a Member of Diet after claiming mandate as an heir of his father - in conservative Kagoshima Prefecture. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Kikuchi Hideyuki ^[$@5FCO=(9T^[(B Kikuchi is a novelist, not a manga artist. But he sometimes writes stories for manga, and several manga and anime have been based on his novels. Actually, he is one of two most famous novelists of the Horror/Action (Sex/Violence) genre. Unfortunately, for those who cannot read Japanese, his best works are among the ones which are available only as novels. <Shinjuku> seems to be his favorite setting. -YK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ---- Novels: Supernatural Beast City (Youjuu Toshi) 3F The OVA only dealt with the first volume. (The baby of Makie and Taki was born in the 3rd volume.) There is also a live-action movie. Demonic War in New York 2F Sequel to Youjuu Toshi. Makai-Toshi <Shinjuku> Mato Babylon (Sequel to <Shinjuku>) Aki Setsura, the Man-Searcher 12F Mephisto, the Doctor of Demon City 12F Makai Keiji/Detective of Demon City 2F (All the above stories are set in <Shinjuku>.) Vampire Hunter D 7F Killer Name 1F Kaze no Na wa Amnesia 1F ---- Manga: Makai Toshi Hunter ^[$@Kb3&ET;T%O%s%?!<^[(B 1984-89 17F Shonen Champion 380 Loosely based on the novel Makai Toshi Shinjuku. It had many interesting characters and fascinating ideas in the beginning but its ending was really lame. The art is OK but not spectacular. Recommended if you're interested in nonsense violence/fantasy/sci-fi mixture. -TK Makai Gakuen ^[$@Kb3&3X1`^[(B 1984-93 21F Shonen Champion 390 Another violence/sci-fi/fantasy manga from Kikuchi/Hosoma combi. Same old story with slighty different characters. ^[$@Kb?@3X1`^[(B ? 9 Shonen Champion 390 ^[$@%&%(%9%?%sIp7]D"^[(B 1992 1F Asahi Sonorama 880 ^[$@%@!<%/%5%$%I%V%k!<%9^[(B ? 2F Akita Shoten 1240 ^[$BL\<!O?@o;N^[(B ? 1FX ? ? ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Kishiro Yukito ^[$@LZ>k$f$-$H^[(B At 17, he won one of Shuueisha's manga contests, but opted to go onto art school instead of ploughing straight into the manga industry. Kishiro has admitted to being influenced by Western SF/action movies, and unusually, some Western comics (eg. `The Dark Knight Returns'). He has done a couple of short stories prior to Gunnm, none of which have been republished. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Gunnm (aka. "Battle Angel Alita") ^[$@=FL4^[(B 1991 6 Business Jump 460 Cyberpunk. Nice art, slightly influenced by Moebius (Jean Giraud, the French comic artist). The society is filled with many cybernetic androids, some normal but many are abnormal or punk, both in terms of appearance and mentality. All in all, the manga is a pretty and interesting mix of pleasant art-style (that is NOT the manly style as in Hokuto no ken or Saint Seiya) and gross fights. -PY ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Kitagawa Miyuki ^[$@KL@n$_$f$-^[(B ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Princess Army ^[$@$W$j$s$;$9#A#R#M#Y^[(B 1990-3 4F Flower Comics 390 It's a story about a high school girl from a family of judo experts. Her parents were killed in an accident and she was brought up by her three brothers who are all judo experts. But she's still much stronger than them. When Nonoka was 5 years old, some guy was picking on her. A little boy (about her age) came and saved her. The boy also threw the guy with a judo throw. But in saving Nonoka, this boy got cut in his lower back. This boy was Nonoka's "prince" but Nonoka had no idea who he was. In the first day of high school Nonoka meets this very handsome guy, Shinobu, who sat next to her in her class. Shinobu hates judo for some reason that Nonoka hasn't discovered yet. Also Nonoka meets a boy, Yuuya, who is very good in judo. He wants to set up a judo team because the school's team had been closed (because they were too weak). (For a shoujo audience.) -HD ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Kitagawa Shou ^[$@$-$?$,$ofF^[(B 28 Jun 19xx Kitagawa, as he describes himself, is a very tall, muscular, dark skinned fellow, and yet he's a major shoujo manga fan (and that caused him some embarrassing moments in bookstores in his high school years). His art reflects the shoujo influence, and yet his stories are tailored for men. He started drawing manga at age 13. -DM ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Nineteen ^[$@%J%$%s%F%#!<%s^[(B 1989-91 12F Young Jump 600 Commenced when the artist was only 21 years old, and yet it shows surprising maturity in both style and story. Most importantly, Kitagawa captured the essence of the age bordering adolescence and adulthood. In a sense, 19 is the GQ of manga. Our hero, Kazushi Kubota, will have his heart broken three times (and his virginity intact) before he finds a steady love, and that's just half of the story. The story can be very light hearted, and then very depressing sometimes. The tone is, IMHO, overall melancholic. Comparing with some other bland shonen stuffs that are out there, 19 scores far above the field. -DM B.B. Fish ^[$@#B!%#B!%%U%#%C%7%e^[(B 1991 13 Young Jump 600 More fantasy oriented, and it rivals other YJ series in degree of H-ness. Unfortunately, BBF doesn't have a well defined theme as Nineteen. It's trying to tell a love story, fantasy story, sports story, and a mystery story all at the same time. Well, doesn't stop me from buying it thou. :-) -DM (NB. This is NOT Banana Fish!!) ^[$@%F%#!<%s%:$7$h$&$+^[(B 1988 1F Young Jump 580 ^[$@%(%-%;%s%H%j%C%/%7%F%#^[(B 1989 1F Margaret 360 ^[$@%#P#U#R#E\!<%$^[(B 1986 1F Margaret 370 Cult Weekend 1992 s Young Jump 30 ^[$@$-$?$,$ofF%$%i%9%H%V%C%/^[(B 1993 artbook Shuueisha 1800 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Koike Kazuo ^[$@>.CS0lIW^[(B Koike Kazuo is well-known manga story writer (Gensaku-sha), not a manga artist (Manga-ka). -YK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Kouga Yun ^[$@9b2O$f$s^[(B 09 Jul 1965 08 Jul 1992 (married) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Alice in Wonderland ^[$@$"$j$9#i#n!!#w#o#n#d#e#r#l#a#n#d^[(B 1989 1F Comic Val 500 A prince from Wonderland is about to decide who he shall marry. But, he doesn't feel that he loves any of his bride-want-to-be. So he asked his personal advisor, who is also a wizard, to let him go to the human world and try his luck. The wizard agreed, but the prince has to go as a dog, he can only turn back as a prince only twice while he was there and most of all he cannot tell his name to the woman he wishes to get married with, or otherwise he won't be able to marry her. The prince agreeed to the terms. The wizard turned him into a puppy. The prince was picked up by Alice, a girl who loves dogs, she has a lot of dogs in her house. The prince falls in love with her. Later that night, he changed himself back to his human shape while she was asleep. But, Alice woke up and asked who he was. The dumb prince slipped his tongue and told her his name. So what happened then is that he still bring her back to Wonderland. He planned to stay with her even if they can not get married. Then the story goes on..... -LL You're My Only Shinin' Star 1991 1F Kodansha 420 An SF-Fantasy story. About moon people, with big insect-like wings and human. At that time, it's magic that rules. The main character Thomas is the greatest magician on earth. At that time, women are the ones who are working and they are the ones who protect the men. Humans had conquered the moon already, and killed all the moon people, because the moon people have a special power. The main female character is the last of the moon people. Thomas is actually a moon-person as well, but no one knows about it. It turns out that there is a guy within the heroine. It was a spell that happened during the war between the moon people and earth, so now they are actually two people in one. So Thomas has to show her that he really loves her, even though she is actually a guy sometimes. -LL Genji ^[$@8;;a^[(B 1988 6 Shinshokan 490 Very loosely based on the famous historical epic. Earthian ^[$@%"!<%7%"%s^[(B 1988 4 Shinshokan 490 "Earthian" is the term for people living on earth. This story is about "angels" from the planet Eden, who have been inspecting Earthians for more than 5 billion years. They are divided into 2 groups, "plus checkers" whose job is to find good points about Earthians, and "minus checkers" whose job is to find bad points about Earthians. They always go in pairs. If the bad points reach 10,000 (the score system is not important in the story and Kouga Yun did not really explain it in detail), Earth will be destroyed by the Angels. All the angels are white in colour, white hairs, white eyes and white wings, except one who got black hair, black eyes and black wings. (Black is considered to be a unlucky colour on Planet Eden.) His name is Chihaya, and he is a plus checker. He went to earth with a minus checker called Kagetsuya, and the story is about different people and events they came accross on Earth. -CM Flexible Sensation There is a group of aliens whose spaceship has lain crashed into earth for centuries. This group of alien is pretty weird. Each individual is composed of two bodies, and a male one and a female one. The male character was a descendant of the alien, without his other half, he is like a normal human. Other aliens try to get him to combine with her sister, so he can return to his alien form. -LL ^[$@%5%U%i%s!&%<%m!&%S!<%H^[(B 1993 1F Wings 580 ^[$@%m!<%i%+%$%6!<^[(B 1992 3 Akita Shoten 390 ^[$@;R6!$?$A$OLk$N=;?M^[(B 1990 2F Tairiku Shobou 500 ^[$@#B7?F1LA^[(B 1989 1 Kadokawa Shoten 780 ^[$@Lk>nDk9q^[(B 1989 1 Akita Shoten 380 ^[$@Nx0&^[(B 1989 1 Akita Shoten 380 ^[$@%a%?%k!&%O!<%H^[(B 1988 1 Koubunsha? 480 ^[$@%5%U%i%s!&%<%m!&%S!<%H^[(B 1993 1 Wings 580 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Kuruma Shinichi ^[$BMhN14V^[(B ^[$B?50l^[(B aka. Aki Kyouma ^[$B=)^[(B ^[$B63K`^[(B ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ The Hunter of Darkness ^[$B0G<m;N^[(B 1985 17F Shonen Captain 360 His debut, influenced by the Yumemakura Baku novel, was quite popular among SC readers. Led to Majinden, his own manga. Majinden ^[$BKb?MEA^[(B 1985-8 4F Shonen Captain 370 In the OAV (Shin-Majinden/Battle Royal Highschool), Riki Hyodo (school karate champion) and Toshimitsu Yuki (lone swordsman) are possessed by a sorcerer and a sprite queen from another dimension. They battle for control of both worlds, as Zankan (a special agent from an orbiting space station) attempts to stop them. This covers vol.1 of the manga, and is fairly different. The manga eventually progresses to a battle in a "virtual reality" Super Famicom world. Demons Attack Company ^[$BKb=C7k<R^[(B 1992 5 Shonen Captain 390 Occult cyberpunk. This title was started after he changed his name to Aki Kyouma. -TK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Kusakabe Akihiro ^[$@ApJI2ELf^[(B ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Holy War Armageddon ^[$@@;@o#H#A#R#M#A#G#E#D#O#N^[(B 1990 2F Yigen Comics 950 Mixture of short stories along the same theme of demons. The manga is light and humorous (ie little gore in its violence) and the boy always seems to get the girl :-) The stories alternate between a fantasy world and here and now. -ME ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Kusunoki Kei ^[$@Fo7K^[(B A pretty (!) and young manga-ka who draws horror stories. BTW, she is PRETTY, sure pretty enough to compete with idol singers. :) -CM ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Buchikamashi Sleeping Beauty ^[$@$V$A$+$^$7L2$jI1^[(B 1992 1F Asuka 390 "Buchikamashi" is a term use to describe the action when one uses his forehead to hit others' chest or jaws. This is about a girl who walks around when she sleeps, and this becaomes a problem when she falls in love with a guy whose mother was abandoned by his father because she was a sleepwalker! A comedy manga. Yagami-kun no katei no jijou ^[$@H,?@$/$s$N2HDm$N;v>p^[(B 1990 7F Shougakukan 390 ^[$@H,?@$/$s$N2HDm$N;v>p^[(B 1990 4Fw Shougakukan 680 Yagami has a crush on his own mother!!! :) Very funny story. ^[$B54Kb^[(B 1985 1F Wings 910 ^[$@Fo7`>l^[(B 1988 1F Wings 780 ^[$B9v1jF2^[(B 1F Wings 910 ^[$B54@Z4]^[(B 1993 4 Shougakukan 390 ^[$@$"$/$^$G%i%V%3%a^[(B 1992 3 Ribbon 390 ^[$@Fo7K7f:nC;JT=8^[(B 1990 1F Shougakugan 390 ^[$@#e#t#c!%!J%(%H%;%H%i!K^[(B 1991 1F Shinshokan 1200 ^[$@%5!<%+%9!&%o%s%@!<^[(B 1991 1F Ribbon 390 ^[$@?MO5Ap;f^[(B 1991 1F Wings 490 ^[$@MEKb^[(B 2F Ribbon 370 ^[$@BgET2q$K$[$($m^[(B 1992 2 Asuka 390 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Manabe Johji ^[$@??Fi>y<#^[(B ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Capricorn ^[$@%+%W%j%3%s^[(B 5F Shinshokan 490 SF-Fantasy. Other-dimensional planet tries to invade Earth. -YK Galaxy Warring State Chronicle Rai ^[$@6d2O@o9q72M:EA%i%$^[(B 6 Comp 950 An action adventure set in a parallel universe that resembles Japan in the Warring State Era. -TK Other works: The Key of Grasille, The Heaven Gods, Outlanders, Caravan Kid, Dorakuun (v3), Bananpera, Battle Zone (1990, author?), Junk Party (1991). ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Maki Kouji ^[$@4,Mh8y;N^[(B His mangas have certain uniqueness and creativity, although I find his knowledge of occult & mythologies too shallow and his character design ability severely limited (well, all the major characters in his manga look the same). Maki can write decent short to medium length stories but he just cannot write long, consistent stories. This was very obvious in Godsider, the manga that made him famous (he had two unsuccessful mangas in SJ before GS). -TK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Mikistori ^[$@%_%-%9%H%j^[(B 1991 6 Super Jump 500 Mikistori is an archaeologist who was searching an Aztec tomb, but an abnormal virus turned him into a reincarnation of an Aztec god. His wife was turned into a cripple, and he works as a hitman so that he can pay for her operation. ^[$@%a%?%k#K^[(B 1987 1F Shonen Jump 370 ^[$@%4%C%I%5%$%@!<^[(B 1988-89 8F Shonen Jump 370 ^[$@%6!&%0%j!<%s%"%$%:^[(B 1990 3F Shonen Jump 370 ^[$@5!3#@o;N%.%k%U%!!<^[(B 1992 1F Super Jump 900 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Matsumoto Izumi ^[$@$^$D$b$H@t^[(B ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Kimagure Orange Road ^[$@$-$^$0$l%*%l%s!y%8%m!<%I^[(B 1987 18F Shonen Jump 390 ^[$@$-$^$0$l%*%l%s!y%8%m!<%I^[(B 1992 8Fw Shonen Jump ? Matsumoto can't draw, but he can sure pick assistants. The story, if you dissect it, is somewhat corny (Even corny teen-love-comedy can have a decent story, like B-Virgin). KOR's characters and situations are excellent, however. It's no good and I like it. :-p -DM Sesame Street ^[$@$;$5$_!z$9$H$j!<$H^[(B 1990 3 Super Jump 600 Another love triangle: A ronin + his sister-in-law, a virgin widow + a 17 high-school girl who likes him. -PY ^[$@$^$D$b$H@tC;JT=8!!%0%i%U%#%F%#^[(B 1989 1F 370 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Matsumoto Leiji ^[$@>>K\Nm;N^[(B Debut: 1954? I don't like Matsumoto's art style (Sorry, I read quite a few manga of his but his style never grew on me) that much but he is a true genius at coming up with great stories and brilliant new concepts. -TK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Space Cruiser Yamato ^[$@1'Ch@o4O%d%^%H^[(B 2F Akita Shoten 600 One of the first ever mangas to be successfully animated. The TV series somehow ended up as the dreaded 'Star Blazers'. -IS Galaxy Express 999 ^[$@6d2OE4F;^[(B999 10F Shougakukan 1200 A total classic, Leiji Matsumoto's masterpiece, but I wonder how many American manga readers have actually seen it. I think Matsumoto's message of "the strength of the human spirit" comes through strongest in GE 999 than in any of his other works. The artwork may seem too loose and sloppy to some but it's a stylistic thing; it grows on you. Check out his mecha though--really amazing. This and Space Cruiser Yamato (also by Matsumoto) are probably the major factors behind the SF-boom (still ongoing) of the early 80's. -KT Bright Red Book of Revelation 1992 Big Comics This is a story supposed to take place in the contemporary world. Yuu, aged 28, doesn't care about money or women. One day he met a young woman, with a scar on her face. Without knowing anything about her, he made a contract with her to serve as a combat soldier of the Foreign Legion called CRIMSON 9999. -PY Space Pirate Captain Harlock ^[$@%-%c%W%F%s%O!<%m%C%/^[(B 1992 3Fw Akita Shoten 1000 (Other works number at least 20 mangas, including:) ^[$@CK$*$$$I$s^[(B 1971-73 6F SM 600 ^[$@@iG/=w2&^[(B 2F Shougakukan 1200 ^[$@%/%#!<%s%(%a%i%k%@%9^[(B 1990 2F Kodansha 1000 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Miyashita Akira ^[$@5\2<$"$-$i^[(B ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Sakigake!! Otokojuku ^[$@3!^[(B!!^[$@CK=N^[(B 1986-91 33F Shonen Jump 390 Violent highschool fights. ^[$@7c^[(B!!^[$@6K8W0l2H^[(B 1994 1 Jump 600 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Miyazaki Hayao ^[$@5\:j=Y^[(B The renowned director of anime films. Anime-only credits include Future Boy Conan and Famous Detective Holmes. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ People of the Desert ^[$B:=$NL1^[(B 1969-70 Shonen Shoujo Shinbun Written under the Akitsu Saburo pseudonym. The Journey of Shuna 1983 s Animage June AM JUJU An all-watercolor manga which looks more like a miniature roman album than a manga; considered to be a Nausicaa prototype by some. -EC It's based on a Tibetan folktale about a prince's journey to find wheat for his people. Nausicaa of the Valley of Wind ^[$@Iw$NC+$N%J%&%7%+^[(B 198? 4Fa Tokuma Shoten 690 ^[$@Iw$NC+$N%J%&%7%+^[(B 1989 6 Animage 380 Laputa, the Castle in the Sky ^[$BE76u$N>k%i%T%e%?^[(B 1986 4Fa Tokuma Shoten 710 My Neighbor Totoro ^[$@$H$J$j$N%H%H%m^[(B 1987 4Fa Tokuma Shoten 610 Kiki's Delivery Service ^[$@Kb=w$NBp5^JX^[(B 1989 4Fa Tokuma Shoten 690 The Age of Hydroplanes s Model Grafix mag. This color short story was the original inspiration for the Porco Rosso anime. -EC Porco Rosso ^[$@9H$NFZ^[(B 1992 4Fa Tokuma Shoten 590 Miyazaki Hayao Misc. Notes ^[$@5\:j=Y$N;(A[%N!<%H^[(B 1992 artbook Dainipponkaika 2300 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Monkey Punch ^[$@%b%s%-!<!&%Q%s%A^[(B (a pseudonym) Stated influences include Sergio Aragones and Harvey Kurtzman (from the US MAD Magazine). He also wrote a foreword for the Japanese edition of the 'Death of Superman' comic. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Lupin III ^[$@%k%Q%s;0@$%+%j%*%9%H%m$N>k^[(B 4 Y1500 The original Monkey Punch short stories have been reprinted in 4 large soft-cover volumes. I don't know how complete these collections are, but there may be some confusion with them since there's a second re-printing with different titles and covers, but apparently the same stories. The original Lupin stories were more violent, and had more implied sex (and naked bodies) than the current incarnation is. The artwork looks like something that came out of the 1960's Mad magazines. -CH <> -- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Edited by Steve Pearl- Moderator, rec.arts.anime.info Email submissions to anime-info@remus.rutgers.edu and questions about the newsgroup to anime-info-request@remus.rutgers.edu