Category: Comedy

Aishiteruze Baby, Just the two of us.

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Yoko Maki was one of the first manga-ka I discovered in the wondrous world of scanlations. Yoko Maki’s work often have fun female leads with a little bite and cute boys abound with a focus on friendship and budding romance. She also draws in the somewhere between simple and complex with a perchance for the sweet and cute. As I read more of her pieces she quickly climbed my charts for a wonderful shojo manga artist that remained untranslated (and all of her pieces besides this one remain so).

But it wasn’t until later, when VIZ picked up her (what was at the time one of her most recent works) sweet series about a boy who finds himself with a new responsibility in the form a cute little girl, did I actually get around to finishing this story.

Unlike Narutaki, my interest in Aishiteruze Baby came from a more unusual direction.

The last manga review on Anime Jump before it went into hibernation was a review by Chad Clayton for Aishiteruze Baby. What interested me was the odd dichotomy in opinions. I had heard quite a few enthusiastically positive reviews of Aishiteruze Baby. They usually involved some combination of sweet, funny, and heartwarming. But while no one was claiming it was high art the reviews almost always said that is was refreshing and delightful shojo dramedy.

Chad’s review on the other hand was pure venom. It was the complete and total deconstruction of the plot of the first book that makes the series out to be an artificial calculating monstrosity that was more emotional torture than entertainment. So I went into reading the manga with a great deal of anticipation. I had had long been curious where my opinion would come in on the matter. While I was pretty sure I was not going to love it as much as it’s most die hard fans I was also pretty sure I could never hate it as much as its extremely harsh critics.

What I was wondering is what side would I lean towards in the end and how much would I lean towards it.

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Manga of the Month: August

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Maid Sama by Hiro Fujiwara

Don’t let the title deter you, just about anyone can find something to love about Maid Sama. Ayuzawa is the president of her mostly male, and out of control, class which she rules with an iron fist, but after school she makes extra cash working at a maid cafe. Usui the leader of the boys discovers her secret causing mayhem, blackmail, and a bevy of other insane things to occur. What makes this great to read is that the Fujiwara doesn’t take it seriously, it is over the top all the time and pokes fun at itself. Usui is just too awesome for the human race, practically being a mary sue with all of his abilities. He is a super bad-ass fighter, he is a world class chess player, he can cook up a storm, he is incredibly good-looking, he leaps off the school roof and has nary a scratch, and he has the inexplicable ability to show up at just the right moments. By the way you will discover all that and more about him in just two volumes! A major thing that keeps this manga fun is that Ayuzawa is strong, stubborn, and able to take take of business. While Usui definitely catches her off guard in the love department, in the rest of the world she is a force to be reckoned with so there is this constant battle of who has the upper hand. Maid Sama is a delight to read and will have you throwing your hands up at its ridiculous antics. Sometimes you need a shojo manga that is cranked up to 11. This is that manga.

Hitohira by Izumi Kirihara

My favorite joke from the TV show Just Shoot Me was, “I would do my self-confidence exercises but I know they would never work.” That is part of the reason I really like Hitohira so much. It is a very good look at what a person with low self-esteem is like. It is also a positive story of how someone with low self-esteem can get out of the downward spiral of depression and grow into someone stronger.

Mugi Asai is immediately scouted by Nono Ichinose, the president of the Drama Research Club, after she is accepted to Kumataka Art Academy. She and Kai Nishida are essentially shanghaied into joining the club. Nono’s goal is to take the enormous amount of raw potential she sees in Mugi and shape her into the talent that Nono knows she can be. The major obstacle is that Mugi must realize she has the potential to grow before anything can change. Mugi also soon learns that there is a proper drama club also at the school and whose goal seems to be to shut down the Drama Research Club.

Aurora Publishing does not seem to be doing so great so I wanted to bring a little attention to one of their best titles. Hitohira is an excellent blend of intense drama, subtle romance, and light-hearted comedy. The characters are all delightful and easy to empathize with. I really felt a strong connection to Mugi and constantly cheer her on throughout the series. I have said and done so many of the things she has done so her story seems so very real. The story is very good at pushing all my emotional buttons without being manipulative or saccharine. The soft tones of the art add to this overall mood of the manga. This is a wonderfully warm series that I feel everyone should check out. 

New York Asian Film Festival 2009

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Last year I attended only one film, Dororo, at the New York Asian Film Festival. Though we did try to see L Change the WorLd, too, but it was sold out. In any case, this seemed like a big mistake in retrospect. There are tons of films from all different genres. Everything from pulpy mysteries to sex-centric surrealism to over-the-top samurai action to sweet romance was up for grabs at this year’s Asian Film Fest. Many of these films one might not have a chance to see otherwise. So with that in mind, and a little help from the NYAFF guide book, we set out to see some unique flicks.

I missed out on all the movies last year including Dororo but that is because if it were not for bad luck I would have no luck at all. On the other hand, Narutaki and I insisting on seeing the L movie no matter how many times life seemingly tried to let us dodge it is our own fault. But this year we are in it to win it and are hitting up a bunch of the movies playing. My priority number one was to see the 20th Century Boys movies not only because they are most relevant to the blog but also because I really enjoyed the manga. All the other movies are interesting experiments. I was not sure how many I would like but I was ready to be surprised.

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