Anime Maki has moved!!!!!

Thanks for stopping in to say hi, but I've moved to a new domain! Anime Maki is now located at:

www.animemaki.net

Yup! No more free hosting for me! I'm moving up in the world and all that jazz. Please join me in my new home!

Manga Review: Mikansei No. 1 Volume 2

Clocking in at only two volumes Tokyopop's Mikansei No. 1 won't demand much from your shelf space. The first installment was released here in the latter part of 2009 and today we're looking at the second volume, which hit stores a little over a week ago. In case you're unfamiliar with this particular series, all you really need to know is that it's a shoujo romantic comedy. The book follows most of the genre stereotypes with regards to characters and plotlines, but the setting is more on the unique side.

Manga Review: Spiral: The Bonds of Reasoning Volume 11

The mystery manga series, Spiral: The Bonds of Reasoning, has been out for quite some time now. Originally the book by Kyo Shirodaira and Eita Mizuno ran for 15 volumes between 2000 and 2005 in Japan. In the States the manga's history is a little confounding considering Tokyopop had the license, but let it slide and Yen Press picked it up a couple years later. Along those lines Yen Press is releasing the eleventh volume of the book later this month.

DVD Review: The 14 Amazons

FUNimation's the Hong Kong Connection is their latest lineup. This particular diversion is a cooperation with Celestial Pictures and sees their live-action department focus on the kung fu cinema of yore. That means you can generally expect each of these films to be chockfull of action, cheesy dialogue, and bad English dubs. Then again considering these dubs are new, FUNimation obviously knows its audience (which it certainly seemed they did when they talked about the HKC at Anime Boston 2010). One of their first releases, The 14 Amazons, has made its way into my hands and I have just finished watching it.

DVD Review: Shaolin Hand Lock

Who doesn't love cheesy kung fu flicks?

Apparently that's the reasoning behind FUNimation's latest lineup of films, the Hong Kong Connection. At this past weekend's Anime Boston convention I sat in on the FUNimation panel where they talked about, made fun of, and previewed their latest line. Wouldn't you know? I happen to have one of their first releases, Shaolin Hand Lock, sitting right here.

Shaolin Hand Lock was originally released in 1978 and was directed by Ho Meng Hua. This particular film was one of those Shaw Brothers flicks you could randomly catch late at night while channel surfing. In other words, it's basically the stuff that kung fu films are made off; overblown sound effects, cheesy dialogue, and all.

DVD Review: Rin: Daughters of Mnemosyne - The Complete Series

Rin: Daughters of Mnemosyne is freaking awesome. Buy it.

That's it. That's my review.

Okay, it's really not, but in all honesty I just saved you the trouble of reading through what I'm about to type. This latest anime release from FUNimation is without a doubt and hands down one of the best shows to come along in the past decade. It is uniquely mature, entirely captivating, and engrossing from start to finish. To put it bluntly, you've never seen a show like this before and everything about it stands out in a huge way.

Blu-ray Review: Heroic Age - The Complete Series

At last year's Anime Boston I caught a preview of Heroic Age during FUNimation's business panel. The teaser left me a tad underwhelmed, but after checking out the show on DVD my early impressions were thankfully misguided. The series turned out to be a solid science fiction anime with plenty of space opera elements. It wasn't something I would have labeled as "epic" or a "must see", but it was a good quality sci-fi production with some very climactic moments. The battles were big, the characters were interesting, and the story was interesting right to the end. With that in mind when the opportunity presented itself to check the series out on Blu-ray I jumped at the chance.

Manga Review: Cirque du Freak Volume 5

While Cirque du Freak is a major motion picture at this point, it all started with a series of novels by Darren Shan. In 2006 a twelve volume manga was released in Japan with artwork by Takahiro Arai, and today we're looking at the fifth volume translated into English by Yen Press.

The manga follows the exploits of a young boy named Darren, who is turned into a half-vampire one fateful night. He struggles with the loss of his humanity and attempts to find acceptance in the world of vampires. Having left most anything from his former life behind, this installment of the book sees young Darren taking the necessary steps to moving to the next level. You see, typically it's unheard of for a vampire to be made at such a young age, and as such he isn't really accepted anywhere.

Figure Preview: Houkago Play Kanojo

The manga, Houkago Play, was something of a sensation when it was released in Japan in 2009. The was a Dengeki 4-Koma comic from Kurosaki Rendou sold out on its first run and became a hot topic shortly thereafter. Word of mouth was great for this particular manga and many likened its success to the characters, style of humor, and erotic content.

Manga Review: Yotsuba&! Volume 8

Ever heard of Yotsuba&!before? If you haven't then it's time to come out from that rock you've been living under. This hilarious manga series has been around since 2003 and is the brainchild of Kiyuhiko Azuma (the creator of Azumanga Daioh). The series is going strong in Japan and is up to the ninth installment, though no animation has been announced (sadly it seems Azuma doesn't want one). However, here in the States we have plenty to cheer about because the eighth installment is on the horizon thanks to Yen Press.

Figure Preview: Marvel Bishoujo Phoenix

Kotobukiya's Marvel Bishoujo line continues with the addition of the Phoenix, otherwise known as Jean Grey. This particular lineup of figures features some of the femme fatales from the Marvel Universe as rendered by popular anime artists and sculptors. The twist with Pheonix is there are actually two versions being released.

The first is the traditional version of the character:

Manga Review: Maid Sama! Volume 4

Maid Sama! came out a little while ago here in the States, but in Japan it started running in 2005. The manga was created by Hiro Fujiwara and hit the ten volume mark, with an animation set to be released sometime this year. That says something about the quality and popularity of the work, but does it have that kind of staying power in America? Not too long ago I had the chance to check out the third installment and it proved itself to be entertaining enough, but does that continue into the fourth volume?

Before we get going into what happens with this installment, let's backtrack a little and check out what the show's all about. The series follows the exploits of a girl named Misaki Ayzawa, who just so happens to be the student council president at her high school. She has a reputation for being tough as nails and single handedly changed the fact that Seika High used to be an all-boys school. She has a strong influence and is regarded by many to be strong of character, however, everyone needs a job. She gets a part-time gig at a maid café and much to her dismay a boy named Tamaki Usui discovers her "secret". Cue hilarious antics and the beginnings of a relationship.

Back up and running!!!

Okay, so there was a bit of a blackout on AnimeMaki recently. A couple of things happened that just really set me back:

1.) The internet at my house died and I had to wait for a week until Comcast had an appointment to come out and fix it.

2.) My laptop died and I was unable to use the wifi at my work to post articles.

This left me high and dry with an iPod Touch being my only source of contact with the outside world. Then on top of that I spent the past couple of days at Anime Boston. Okay, so that's a good thing, but it also meant I wasn't at home to work on stuff. Here I am today though, caught up, internet ready, and facing a giant pile of stuff to post.

Thanks for reading my blog and keep coming back for anime, manga, and figure reviews!

Todd

DVD Review: My Neighbor Totoro

Few names in anime are as prolific around the globe as Hayao Miyazaki and the production studio he co-founded, Studio Ghibli. After all their efforts are regarded as the best of the best, and have the most mainstream appeal here in America. Universally there's just a certain level of quality one can expect from a Ghibli film. From the story to animation, voice acting, and music, there's just such a fantastical atmosphere to each that they stand out like no other. There's a sense of magic and wonder to each release that truly speaks to the hearts of viewers young and old alike. Whether you're looking at one of their most recent efforts, or one of their oldest, there truly isn't a bad piece in Studio Ghibli's library.

Blu-ray Review: Trinity Blood the Complete Series

Vampires and anime go together like peanut butter and chocolate. Don't believe me? Look how popular Blood: The Last Vampire and Hellsing are. Beyond that there are other shows like Moon Phase, Rosario + Vampire, Karin, Vampire Princess Miyu, and Vampire Knight. See what I mean? Oh, and there's also a little show called Trinity Blood.

The show has been around in America for a while now, and chances are very good that you have at one point or another looked at either the individual volumes, or collection on DVD. Recently FUNimation took the next logical step for the franchise and retooled it for a Blu-ray release. All 24 episodes are presented here on three Blu-ray discs with an accompanying 22-page art booklet to boot.

Trinity Blood's main plotline all began several years prior to the show's current timeline. As the story goes humanity made it to the stars and even got as far as Mars, where they discovered two types of nanomachines which they naturally injected themselves with. This changed our fate forever and created two types of beings: the Methuselah and Crusniks.

The Methuselah were basically augmented humans who took on several vampiric traits. The Crusniks turned out to be a vampire to the vampires. While the Methuselah treated themselves to humans, the Crusniks liked the taste of Methuselah ("Tastes great! Less filling!"). With these two new types of people back on Earth all hell broke lose and a war erupted that nearly destroyed the world.

In this setting the Vatican stands as the last safe haven for humanity, but with diplomacy there's some wheeling and dealing going on in the background. There's a group known as the Rosen Kreux that is working on their own secret agenda (they're basically the bad guys), and beyond them there's yet another faction known as AX (basically the good guys). No matter how you slice it, that's a lot to take in and to say Trinity Blood is a complex show would be an understatement.

The lead character here is arguably a guy named Father Abel Nightroad, who works for the AX. Abel is one of the legendary Crusniks and was born nearly a thousand years ago and fights for the Vatican. The show follows most of his exploits as he tries to stop the Rosen Kreux. It's worth noting that Abel isn't exactly your typical hero since he suffers from Vash-complex (yes, of Trigun fame). What I mean by that is Abel is obnoxiously goofy at times in order to hide his fearsome power. I hated it in Trigun, and I'm not too keen on it here. Thankfully the rest of the cast built around him is solid and the concept is interesting, so it washes out in the end.

It should be said that Trinity Blood is a rather unbalanced affair. The first half is largely episodic and dry while the latter episodes really kick it up a notch. Because of this the pacing feels disjointed somewhat, and some of the details in the plot come to fruition a little too late in the game. Despite that the show is quite entertaining and there's some cool action, especially for those in the audience who enjoyed Hellsing.

The show looks fantastic on Blu-ray as well with a full 1080p output, AVC encoding, and an anamorphic widescreen transfer. The quality of the show was incredible to begin with thanks to the production by Gonzo, but in high definition it's even more gorgeous. Lines seem sharper, colors are more vibrant, and all throughout the compression rate is better with less noise. It's not a perfect picture, mind you, but it's definitely better than the transfer offered by the DVD. The same can be said for the audio as well with the Dolby Digital TrueHD English 5.1 track being the winner as far as presence on the soundstage is concerned. The Japanese Dolby Digital 2.0 track offered a much better dubbing cast, however.

For bonus features this collection is a little light. Clean animations, trailers, and some historical facts about the show are all you're going to find here. The booklet, while cool, unfortunately doesn’t hold a candle to the six booklets that were released with the DVDs when they came out.

Trinity Blood may be a somewhat unbalanced effort, but the show is quite entertaining at times. I enjoyed most of the characters, the setting, and the action, but felt the episodic pacing, goofy Abel, and certain points in the plot dragged the show down a smidge. It's strongly recommended though, and if you haven't seen it then by all means, consider this Blu-ray presentation the way to go. I wouldn't exactly call the video and audio light-years beyond what the DVD offered, but it's a step up in that department even if you forgo some of the material from the original booklets.

Maki Rating:



Review Material provided by FUNimation. Trinity Blood is rated TV-MA.

Manga Review: Spice & Wolf Volume 1

I'd be lying if I said I didn't fall in love with Spice & Wolf the animated series when I first saw it. The show just popped in every way from the intriguing characters to the story and personality. Everything about the anime caught me off guard in a positive way and stood out as unlike anything I had seen before. Then again, it all started somewhere, right?

Spice & Wolf began as a novel by Isuna Hasekura and was published in manga form back in 2008. It took a couple of years, but Yen Press has translated the book and we finally have the first volume in hands. How does it stack up? The short answer to that question would be that I enjoyed this first installment as much as I liked the anime. Then again, that wouldn't make a very compelling review now, would it?

Spice & Wolf is about a traveling merchant named Lawrence who is always out to make a dollar (or Trenni Silver coin, if you will). He roams the land with his carriage and horse making trades and working the market to his benefit. At the beginning of the story he travels to a village where a pagan ritual is underway involving a wheat crop and a wolf god named Holo. It would seem it has become a tradition for the villagers to chase someone with a stock of wheat as the embodiment of Holo, however it's more of a game now than anything religious. There used to be a time before farming technology improved that Holo was truly looked upon as a deity.

Lawrence takes all this in and winds up leaving with some of their wheat crop after a trade. That night he's surprised by a beautiful naked girl sleeping in his wagon, however, the fact that she had a long fluffy tail and ears were more startling to him. This girl happened to be Holo herself! After convincing Lawrence that she is indeed who she says she is, Holo goes on to describe how she had essentially become a prison of the wheat. She can only go where the wheat goes and will only disappear when the wheat dies, which is basically never in this case. She wishes to travel north to her homeland and Lawrence reluctantly allows her to tag along.

Holo and Lawrence become unlikely traveling companions, yet at the same time they are nearly of a kindred spirit. Lawrence's awareness of money and Holo's intelligence, abilities to lie, and ears that can decipher the slightest irregularities in the purity of coins go hand in hand. As they travel Holo finds ways to help Lawrence to repay him for freeing her and allowing her to head back home.

Much like the show, the book is really about Lawrence and Holo and the relationship that develops between them. They play off each other very well and whether Holo is teasing Lawrence, or they're working together on a deal, it's always a joy to see the two together. Adding to the richly developed characters is a robust world surrounding them. All the talk of markets, currency, and trading is quite unique in the manga world, and in that regard Spice & Wolf is truly fascinating. Hasekura truly went the extra mile to think of every minute detail in order to craft an original and expansive world.

As was the case in the anime, the artwork here is absolutely fantastic. With character designs by Jyuu Ayakura and detailed artwork by Keito Koume, Spice & Wolf literally leaps off the pages. Every panel is packed with careful brush strokes and the characters display all kinds of emotions and facial expressions. Likewise the translation job provided by Yen Press is certainly noteworthy. Holo has a unique way of speaking that I'm pleased to see represented here in true form.

Whether you've read the book, have seen the anime, or simply never heard of it before, Spice & Wolf is a franchise worth picking up without hesitation. The first volume of this manga is highly entertaining, full of charm, and features two of the most interesting characters to grace the manga world in some time. I can't say enough good things about this book and story. I loved every detail about it and highly recommend it without hesitation.

Maki Rating:



Review material provided by Yen Press. Spice & Wolf is rated M for Mature due to Language and Nudity.

Manga Review: Bokurano Ours Volume 1

Every once in a while you read or see something that hits you in a way that's unexpected. When VIZ's latest release, Bokurano: Ours, was announced everything I read about the title suggested it was just another giant mech piloted by kid manga. To be quite fair the genre has been played to death and anything remotely close to the genre feels stereotyped somehow. Now that the first volume of Bokurano: Ours has come out, I dare say that my preconception of this manga has been shattered.

Bokurano: Ours follows fifteen children over the course of a summer as they take part in a program called "Seaside Friendship and Nature School". The kids all attend the same junior high school and are in the seventh grade together (the exception being one girl who is in the fourth grade). When the book opens the kids are all on a beach doing some natural research for a project. After a while they discover a cave entrance and head inside to see what they can find. The cave is dark, but just a little ways ahead of them is a source of light so they decide to keep going. What they find is more than they bargained for.

A strange man named Kokopelli has apparently been working out of this area, as evident by a lot of computer hardware and such. He tells the children that he's working on a game and asks if they would like to participate. He convinces them to sign up by touching an object, and the next thing they know they all wake up on the beach thinking it was a dream or something. When a giant beast is summoned into existence before their very eyes the reality of their "game" hits home.

As it turns out Kokopelli is an alien of unknown origin who invites them to each take a shot at piloting the massive mech. In turn the kids will all have to defeat other massive monsters in an effort to save the world. Naturally some of the children are fearful of that prospect, and others jump at the chance to sit in the pilot's chair. What happens next once they start playing is something that simply has to be seen to be appreciated, in all fairness. There are some heavy duty spoilers that would be dropped if I continued going on about the plot, so I'll refrain from that direction.

Aside from the story, another thing that stands out about Bokurano: Ours is the dark nature of it all. Some unexpected stuff happens and a lot of people die. Adding to that sense of tragedy is the way it is played out with the children as they all deal with the gravity of the situation. It's quite unique in many regards and in between all the drama is the sense of a foreboding mystery working in the background.

Bokurano: Ours was created by Mohiro Kitoh and features some fascinating, unique artwork. There's a frantic look to every line and one really gets a sense of movement and emotion in each frame. There's a lot of detail in the book and some of the designs truly speak for themselves. The translation is smooth as well and there really is no problem as far as editing is concerned.

The first volume of Bokurano: Ours is quite a success. The book is fascinating and messes with readers in many ways. The mystery is compelling, the relationship the kids form shows promise, and the dark undertones really leave a sense of unease after putting the book down. It's not quite a horror, but rather a manga that's more adult and suspenseful than one might think. It'll be fascinating to see where the series goes from here and I for one look forward to the next installment.

Maki Rating:



Review material provided by VIZ Media. Bokurano: Ours is rated for Older Teen.

Manga Review: Arata the Legend Volume 1

Yuu Watase's Arata the Legend debuted last year in Japan, which makes the fact that we already have an English language release all the more impressive. Typically manga takes a little longer to make its way to our shores, but VIZ Media obviously wanted to get its hands on this license as soon as possible. With that in mind we dig into the first volume. Was it worth getting this manga to the masses as quickly as it did?

Arata the Legend takes place in another world where things are a little different than they are here. Some of the women can use magic known as Amatsuriki, while the men are powerless and can only use abilities from ancient weapons known as Hayagami. Their world is in turmoil and some things are set in motion before the book even begins, so readers may be a little fuzzy on the details because the book simply doesn't delve into the story's history.

Basically all one needs to know is the people of this world worship a princess who is only supposed to rule for a certain amount of time. Unfortunately her replacement can only come from a particular clan and they simply haven't produced a girl for quite a while. That's where Arata from the Hime Clan comes in, but he doesn't have the right "equipment" to take over for the current princess. His grandmother lied about his gender when he was born and has told him it is his destiny to portray a girl and take over the throne. Naturally he doesn't want that.

One thing leads to another and there's some political upheaval as Arata is falsely accused of murdering the princess. Soon he's chased into a mysterious forest and we're told that the only way he'll emerge is if he becomes a different person. From there the book changes gears to current day Japan where a high school student, also named Arata (let's call him Arata-B), is trying to get through his every day life. He's picked on at school, and in general finds that he doesn't have any trustworthy friends. Through a set of circumstances he and the other world Arata switch places and visit each other's worlds.

To say that Arata-B is lost from the get-go would be an understatement. He's being hunted for murdering the princess, Arata-A's grandmother is trying to shove destiny crap down his throat, and some of Arata-A's servants are clamoring over him. To make matters even more challenging for Arata-B he is chosen by a magical Hayagami blade and bestowed with the power of wind. From this point on he takes steps towards fulfilling his destiny in this strange new world, and there's even a meeting with Arata-A where they talk about these things.

If you're reading this and you're confused by all the "Arata-A and B" nonsense, I apologize. In all honesty the shift in setting and the fact that the characters have the first name is a little jarring at first from the perspective of a reader. The story is also rather perplexing as it leaves many details that have to do with the plot out of the picture. With the pacing and the way things unfold I'm sure more information will emerge down the road, but for now this first volume leaves readers in the dust a little.

As always, Watase's creativity and art designs speak for themselves; after all she was the creator of Fushigi Yuugi. The characters are wildly expressive, the backgrounds are richly detailed, and throughout this book there's just an overall sense of wonder in the artwork. It's whimsical and engaging, and because of that it really stands out as one of the book's strongest suits. The translation and writing is solid as well and there isn't a flaw to be found in this volume.

Arata the Legend's first volume is a success overall, but I do have some reservations about it. As is the case with any new book the introductory volume makes or breaks whether or not a reader will come back to it. I appreciate what I've seen of the story and the characters are developed well, but the lack of details as far as what's going on leaves one with a bag full of questions and not a single answer. I'm certain those answers will come in future installments, however. If Arata proves to be even half as entertaining as Fushigi Yuugi did then the trip will be worth it. Consider this installment strongly recommended.

Maki Rating:



Review material provided by VIZ Media. Arata the Legend is rated Teen.

Manga Review: Mugen Spiral Complete Series

Originally released in Japan in 2004 Mugan Spiral has made its way to the States in the form of a collection of its two volumes. Created by Mizuho Kusanagi, Mugen Spiral came out in America back in 2007. Tokyopop has collected both volumes and is presenting them as a massive 400-page edition slated to be released next week. If you already have the prior release then there's really no need to get excited about what's here (unless the special stories at the end weren't included in the first printing?), but if you haven't read the book before then you may want to give this a shot.

In some ways Mugen Spiral reminded me of a cross between Natsume's Book of Friends and Inuyasha. The series follows the exploits of a mystic named Yayoi who happens to be 78th in the line of Suzaku mystics. As it stands she's pretty powerful, but despite this ability she's also quite lonely. Her parents are both dead and she pretty much just gets by due to the fact that demons continuously try to kill her in order to ascend in rank. When one such demon, Ura, tries to take her down he finds much more than he bargained for.

Ura is strong, even by demon standards, and he's the son of the current demon king. Taking down Yayoi should have been an easy job, but she used her powers and the magic of some rosary beads made of cat bone to turn him into a black cat. Now Ura lives with Yayoi as a pet of sorts, though he becomes a trash-talking demon kitty hell-bent on taking Yayoi down and eating her. Normally people would be a little put off by that, but Yayoi just goes with it and brushes his constant tirade of threats aside.

Early on in the book it becomes clear just what kind of relationship the two are going to have. While Ura does remain in his cat form he is able to release his powers and turn into his true form whenever Yayoi kills off one of the beads on his necklace. She winds up having to do this quite a bit because Ura isn't the only demon gunning for her head. Sure she's more adept than most other mystics and she can pretty much take care of herself, but other demons want to become king and in order to that they basically have to kill her. Lucky for her Ura won't let another demon eat her before he does, so he becomes himself at just the right times to rescue her when she is in over her head.

Predictably over the course of the book a relationship forms between Ura and Yayoi, despite their adversarial beginnings. Yayoi sees through Ura's tough exterior and she begins to grow on the demon after a while. She perplexes him in ways girls often confuse boys and the manga is full of development of the character's personalities and their relationship. Through the course of the story other characters are introduced as well, such as Ura's brothers, and they certainly shake up the continuity and dynamic of the series.

Kusanagi's Mugen Spiral was a fun book with some fantastic artwork. The designs were sharp with a wide range of expressions (I particularly enjoyed Ura's cat form and how he was portrayed). Backgrounds were rather simplistic, but there were a few panels packed with details. The translation work was solid as well with some liner notes and sideline commentary.

Despite feeling rather familiar in some respects, Mugen Spiral is a fun two-volume manga presented at a very affordable price here. You can pick this up on Amazon for around $11 and frankly you can't argue with that. Sure it's a little predictable and the setup is nothing new, but it packs in plenty of laughs and personality.

Maki Rating:



Review material provided by Tokyopop. Mugen Spiral is rated Teen Age 13+ for Non-Sexual Nondescript Nudity, Mild Violence, Mild Gore, and Mild Language.

Manga Review: Happy Cafe Volume 2

A little while ago we got the chance to check out the first installment of Kou Matsuzuki's Happy Café thanks to the team over at Tokyopop. The book originally launched in 2005 and found itself with a second volume later that same year. In case you missed the review of the first volume here it is. If you don't want to bother with that link here's a brief description of the manga:

Happy Café follows the exploits of a 16 year old girl named Uru Takamura who comes to find herself working at a place named Café Bonheur. Her only goal in life is to basically make other people happy and when she sees the kind of pleasure the guys at Bonheur churn out she naturally must get a job there. The café is operated by a mysterious manager who leaves it run by two guys named Shindo and Ichiro. Shindo is the baker and all around gloomy gus, but he's happy when he's baking and his treats put a smile on anyone's face. Ichiro is easy going, but prone to falling asleep when he's hungry, which is a crux of the humor in this manga.

To put it bluntly, the set up for Happy Café is simplistic almost to a fault, but there's an endearing charm to it all. The first volume shows as Uru gets acquainted with Shindo and Ichiro, and in general, life in the café. Nothing really happens in the first volume and basically it kicked it into neutral only to introduce the characters and setting. Thankfully some of that changes with this installment.

The opening chapter presents more of the same with Uru, Shindo, and Ichiro operating business as usual. Things change, however, when a pair of troublemakers from a rival pastry shop shows up and causes quite the stir. Their appearance instantly creates tension in Café Bonheur, which is a good thing. Competition is good for business, they say, right? Well, when the guys post a "closed" sign on Bonheur's front door and spread rumors about the cost of their sweets the gloves come off, sort of.

In addition to their appearance this volume also heads down some amusing paths as Shindo hurts his baking arm trying to save Uru from a nasty fall. This sets up an awkward situation during a contest between the two bakeries. Not only does all this happen, but Strawberry Girl makes several appearances, and Uru's mother makes a café house-call. It all comes together to make a volume of the manga that's far more interesting and entertaining than the first. It's clear that Matsuzuki's book no longer relies on Shindo's mysteries and Ichiro's narcolepsy to provide interesting material for the reader and the events in this book actually left me curious about what would happen next.

Once again Matsuzuki's art style is a standout with some attractive designs and solid backgrounds. Again there's a simplistic nature to it all and not every panel is brimming with detail, but it's done for emphasis and it's effective. The translation is good as well and there were only a couple of minor mistakes in the book.

The first volume of Happy Café left me a little underwhelmed, but I'm pleased to report that things are far more interesting in the second installment. The characters are livelier, the world is developed more, and the secondary characters worked perfectly. I'm interested in seeing where it all goes from here, and if this installment is any indication, it can only get better (hopefully).

Maki Rating:



Review material provided by Tokyopop. Happy Café Volume 2 is rated Teen 13+ for Mild Sexuality, Aggression, and Moderate Language.