Manga/Anime Corner!

Welcome to Manga/Anime Corner again! This time I am going to recommend a lighter manga/anime and a darker one. Both are manga and anime. While I typically prefer the Japanese voices, I happen to really like the English Dubbed voices of both anime. So, this time around, I cannot give a “Subs v. Dubs” recommendation. All right, here they are!

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Ouran High School Host Club­ – Bisco Hatori

Both an anime and a manga, Ouran High School Host Club is a fun romantic comedy for guys and girls alike. Ouran is a satire, overall. It pokes fun at the stereotypical male characters girls are supposed to like. And it is downright hilarious!

The series follows Haruhi Fujioka, a scholarship student at Ouran Academy. Ouran Academy is an extremely prestigious high school, where only the richest attend. Their unofficial motto is “Lineage first, wealth a close second.” It is very rare when an exceptional “commoner” is granted a scholarship. When looking for a quiet place to study, Haruhi stumbles into the Ouran Academy Host Club.

A Host Club is a group of men who entertain women with conversation and drinks. Host and Hostess clubs are very popular in East Asian countries. The Ouran Host Club is a group of six male students. Each student epitomizes a male stereotype found in Japanese manga/anime.

Tamaki Suo is the princely, flamboyant, and narcissistic founder and president of the Host Club; Kyoya Otori is the secretive, pragmative, megane (glasses) vice-president of the Host Club; Hikaru and Kaoru Hitachiin are the mischievous, childish, twins in the Host Club; Mistkune “Honey” Haninozuka is the Lolita, sweets-addict, and eldest member of the Host Club; Takashi “Mori” Morinozuka is the protective, quiet, tall, and second eldest member of the Host Club. What is Haruhi to do when she meets all of these strange men? What happens when she accidentally smashes an $80,000 vase in the clubroom? Is working as a Host the only way to pay off her debt? Don't they realize that she's a girl?

Back Row: Kyoya, Mori (with Usa-chan), Tamaki
Front Row: Kaoru, Haruhi, Hikaru, Honey

The anime only spans 26 episodes (a rather short anime), and the manga is only 18 volumes long (a rather short manga). There are two seasons in the anime. A 3^rd season was rumored, but hasn’t been produced. There is a live-action drama and film, which I haven’t seen. The anime ends rather abruptly and very differently than the manga. To find out what happens, I suggest reading the manga for answers. Despite the ending, I adored the anime! Every episode had me cracking up and smiling. And, guys, don’t be afraid of it! I know quite a few men who really enjoyed it, too! Initially, Ouran is really weird… But, you grow accustomed to it!

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Cowboy Bebop – Keiko Nobumoto (anime) / Hajime Yatate (manga)

The 1998 award-winning anime, Cowboy Bebop, is actually one of the greatest anime I’ve seen. Granted, I say that about a lot of things on this blog… Cowboy Bebop truly is brilliant. With only 26 episodes and one movie, this show caters to everyone. Men and women alike will love this show. It’s science fiction, film noir, Western, and crime fiction all in one. The music is reminiscent of the 40’s-60’s with its jazz and southern tones, but also the 50’s-70’s early rock style. The animation is awesome for a 1998 show. The voices, both in Japanese and English, are perfect for each character.

The year is 2071, and the entire Solar System is accessible through hyperspace gates. The explosion of a test hyperspace gate, in 2022, severely damaged the Moon. The survivors abandoned Earth and colonized other planets. Now, Mars is the central hub of human civilization. However, it is also the hub of interplanetary crime syndicates. Those syndicates have an influence over the government and the ISSP (Inter-Solar System Police). In order to regulate the corruption, a bounty system – similar to one in the Old West – is established to deal with crime. Those involved are aptly named, “cowboys.”

Our main characters are aboard a ship called the Bebop, owned by a man named Jet Black. An ex-ISSP detective, Jet turned to bounty hunting to pursue justice. Despite his gruff exterior, Jet is protective and caring man. His partner in crime is a man named Spike Spiegel. Spike is an easygoing, skilled pilot and a master of hand-to-hand combat and firearms. While hunting for their next paycheck, the two encounter Faye Valentine – a novice, bounty hunter with a gambling problem and debt – and Edward – an eccentric computer genius and master hacker. As they pursue various criminals, the Red Dragon Crime Syndicate keeps popping up. Will Jet and Spike get involved in something far bigger than a little bounty? Who is this mysterious Julia woman? Will they keep the corgi?

From Left: Jet, Spike, Faye, Ed, and Ein.

The manga was written after the anime aired, but still is enjoyable. I started and finished this show in less than a fortnight (2 weeks). I can’t even begin to tell you how fantastic Cowboy Bebop is. I’ve remained pretty vague in my description of the show because the characters will be elaborated on when you watch the show. Both the Japanese and English voices are perfect for the characters. Ladies: Spike is unbelievably handsome no matter what language he’s speaking. Gents: Spike is unbelievably bad-ass no matter what language he’s speaking. Everyone: Cowboy Bebop is unbelievably awesome no matter what language they are speaking.

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Both anime can be found on AnimeReady.com, JustDubs.net, AnimeCrazy.net, and various others. Manga can be found on CityManga.com or MangaFox.com. Ouran can be found on YouTube in high quality in both languages. It was posted by FUNimation and is completely legal.

Don't forget to do your best to support the artists, too. Give both a try! They’re tons of fun!

Happy Reading and Watching!

-Isabel

Manga/Anime Corner!

Welcome to the first of (hopefully) many Manga/Anime Corner Posts! Upon request, haha! I’m hoping to do more of these as time goes on. I’ll do two, maybe three, per post to keep it interesting and have enough to actually talk about in the future, haha! Everything I talk about can be found via Anime Ready and/or Manga Fox. So, here goes nothing!

  

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Durarara! – Ryohgo Narita (also the author of Baccano) 

A manga and anime, Durarara! is one of those underrated shows. Admittedly, I have not read the manga (which is something I will do, eventually), but the anime is fantastic. I prefer watching this subbed because the voices seem to fit the personalities and characters perfectly. It has slight bits of romance, but overall Durarara! is an supernatural/action anime. 

Ryuugamine Mikado moves to Ikebukuro – a district of Tokyo – after being invited by his childhood friend – who he hadn’t seen in years – Kida Masaomi. Mikado longs for the exiting, “big city” life he imagines Masaomi has. But, he is also scared of the infamous Ikebukuro. Masaomi warns Mikado about the strange people and gangs that inhabit the district. There is the freakishly strong, Heiwajima Shizuo; who hates the cunning information broker, Orihara Izaya. There is a mysterious, colorless, gang called “The Dollars”; both the “Yellow Scarves” and “Blue Squares” – two Ikebukuro gangs – fear them, despite the war between the two factions. The “Black Rider” is a local legend; she is rumored to have no head under her yellow helmet. Sonohara Anri is a quiet, timid, schoolmate of Masaomi and Mikado. 

Other characters are introduced and reappear frequently, as the cast remains small. The plot follows characters through one of the most memorable, twisting, and unpredictable plot lines I’ve encountered so far. I absolutely loved this show. I would try to talk about it a bit more, but I would risk spoiling something! It'll become clearer once you watch the show. Honestly, it’s worth every moment!

  

(From Left)
Izaya, Masaomi, Mikado, Anri, Shizuo

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Hellsing (OVA) – Kouta Hirano 

Hellsing is a bloody, supernatural anime that follows the militaristic Sir Integra Fairbrook Wingates Hellsing – leader of the Holy Order of Protestant Knights. The Order is an organization was originally led by Abraham Van Helsing, the infamous vampire hunter. Sir Integra is protected by the faithful Hellsing family butler, Walter, and the original vampire, Alucard. Seras Victoria is a young police officer, who was turned into a vampire by Alucard. 

There are zombie-like vampires created en masse by the remnants of a Nazi group called Millennium. The Vatican have their own vampire extermination organization: Section XIII Iscariot. Over London, the three factions clash in an apocalyptic war-triangle. This ongoing manga and anime is awesome. The subbed anime has lots of fighting and fantastic voice acting. Alucard is the most epic vampire ever. There are only 9 OVA episodes, but they’re worth the wait. I absolutely love this show! All versions of this anime are good. The OVA is bloodier than others, though. But, I suppose, that’s what makes Hellsing great! That and Alucard's utter badass-ness.

(From Left)
Seras Victoria, Sir Integra, Alucard

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Those are my two anime/manga suggestions for this Anime/Manga Corner! I’m working on some more, too! I’m picking only with ones I know – meaning I’ve read or watched them. I also will only write about them if I can link you to a scanlated version online. I know it’s difficult (and expensive) to get your hands on a physical copy of any manga. Ditto with anime. I do not mean to deter you from purchasing the physical copies! It’s very important to support the artists! But, I’d like to give an alternative so you can actually enjoy them as much as I did! 

Happy Reading/Watching! 

-- Isabel