Well, here we are. Kentaro Miura, the mangaka of “Berserk,” passed away on May 6, 2021, due to acute aortic dissection.  While his health issues had been mentioned, but not discussed in any detail over the years, their impact on the frequency of his output was obvious to see for any long-time reader.  Yet it […]

Inio Asano is one of those creators who has done such interesting work in the past that I’m always up for checking out what he’s done next.  In addressing post-college twentysomething angst in “Solanin,” charting a young boy’s troubled development through a clever visual metaphor in “Goodnight Punpun,” showing us the dehumanizing effects of life […]

Frieren is back… in time!  After touching that monument at the end of vol. 11, the elven mage has found herself transported back to the time when she was traveling with the party that eventually defeated the Demon Lord.  Eisen is in his prime, while Heiter and (more importantly) Himmel are still alive.  Time travel […]

Kuro Kumogakure’s infiltration of Kodan High School has hit a few hitches.  There was the gang of gals that tried to take him and his friends down at the start of the, and he found himself drawn into Eita’s bullying situation as well.  Yet he managed to deal with both of these issues, and has […]

With Aqua now satisfied regarding the identity of his father – and by extension, with the idea that the man behind Ai’s death is also dead – he’s content now to have an average showbiz career as he prepares for medical school (again).  However, with Ruby now aware of how the doctor who treated her […]

In this volume, things get worse for the survivors on the titular ship.  Some kids are using the chaos to settle old scores, while others see it as their last chance to, uh… score before they die.  Most of them have split up into two camps with the upper-class Hilltop kids taking control of the […]

The Five Digits came to Roanapur to take out Dutch for what they think is his role in a long-ago criminal action.  Then they found out firsthand just how little pity this city has for those who waltz into it unprepared.  Particularly when one of their own, Le Majeur, is just itching to settle scores […]

The arc that wraps up at the start of this volume may have started out annoyingly dumb, but it at least concludes with some likeable dumbness.  Which involves Nightfall overcoming the limits of a human’s built-in damage restrictions to take out the enemy double-agent and send herself into the hospital afterward.  It’s all quite silly […]

The “Tokyo Blade” stage play has completed its successful run and Aqua isn’t sure what his next move is going to be.  Now that he’s found out what has happened to his supposed biological father, he’s at a loss regarding what he wants to do with his life and career.  Ruby, on the other hand, […]