Title: Maid Sama vol. 1
Author: Hiro Fujiwara
Illustrator: Hiro Fujiwara
Publisher: TokyoPop Inc.
Copyright: 2009 (2005 Japanese)
Price: $10.99
ISBN: 978-1-4278-1403-6
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Summary and Quick Thoughts: Boy hating, student council President of Seika High School, Misaki Ayuzawa has a secret and one that she really, really doesn’t want the school to know: she works a part time job at a maid café.*(See bonus). For Misaki, this counterbalances her tough girl persona at the high school. To Takumi Usui, the school’s sexy bachelor, Misaki’s tough spirit hides something and he wants to know what it is. One chance lands him outside of Misaki’s café where she pleads him to keep the secret, which he willingly does in exchange for a bizarre, bantering friendship and some timed rescuing from a fan club and stalkers.
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Will Teens Like It? Teens who like shojo totally will.
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Things to be aware of: Cartoon violence, mild sexual situations.
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Further Thoughts: Maid Sama is a funny, crazy ride as Misaki slowly pushes away her tough girl exterior around Takumi Usui. This title has many of the stereotypical shojo elements: not so popular girl, sexy popular boy falling for girl, high school drama, school festivals (I’m really starting to notice how every manga involving high school includes a school festival where crazy things happen). The only twist on this title is that she’s a tough chick, who works at a Maid Café- and enjoys it. Beyond that, I feel like this title could easily replace any other popular shojo romantic comedy that is out there. I did grow tired of the fact that every chapter gave us a recap of Misaki and what she does at the high school (“I’m high school president!” Ok, GOT IT). I think it was because it was serialized before becoming a manga title, but usually manga titles don’t need such a recap. The violence and force that Misaki displays in the story does grow tiring, except when she defends herself just as Usui arrives (another shojo twist!), For its cheesiness, I’m interested in seeing where this goes.
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Bonus: *Maid Cafes are rather popular in Japan. It is a place where servers dress in maid outfits or other cosplay and serve the customers like they were maids at the customer’s home.
This title includes a bonus story by the author/illustrator. It is a sweet, sad story, but enjoyable nonetheless. It is an early work and some story issues are barely noticeable.
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Source: Library copy.
Showing posts with label TokyoPop. Show all posts
Showing posts with label TokyoPop. Show all posts
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Orange by Benjamin
Title: Orange
Author: Benjamin
Illustrator: Benjamin
Publisher: TokyoPop Inc.
Copyright: 2009
Price: $14.99
ISBN: 978-1-4278-1463-0
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Summary: Do not be fooled by the smiling girl on the cover of Orange for she is Orange, a depressed high school girl. The story opens up with Dashu as he jumps off of the apartment building to his death. Orange explains to the reader that he was a drunken artist that she may have loved. The story is a collection of her memories explaining her depression and how he played a role in her life until the moment he jumped from the building.
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Thoughts: It honestly took me a little while to get used to the photo-like artwork of the story, yet once used to it, I felt like I was reading a short movie instead of a short graphic novel. This book does not shy away from showing Dashu falling and crashing to his death (he lands on a car). Orange is not always a relatable character to me, but I do understand her depression and the feeling that the friends you hang out with are not really your friends. The afterword of this story by artist Benjamin was more intense than the story itself as he wrote about the creation and publication of Orange. While the images are memorable for the use of color and shadows, the afterword text is haunting. A story about depression, Orange is a book that you have to be aware is there and that it does serve a purpose like other books about suicide.
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Will Teens Like It? Probably high school students.
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Things to be aware of: sexual situations, suicide (shown), drinking and smoking
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Bonus: I was surprised that this was a TokyoPop book, but only because I’m used to their manga titles that are all uniformly the same size.
2010 ALA Great Graphic Novel for Teens
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Source: Library copy.
Author: Benjamin
Illustrator: Benjamin
Publisher: TokyoPop Inc.
Copyright: 2009
Price: $14.99
ISBN: 978-1-4278-1463-0
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Summary: Do not be fooled by the smiling girl on the cover of Orange for she is Orange, a depressed high school girl. The story opens up with Dashu as he jumps off of the apartment building to his death. Orange explains to the reader that he was a drunken artist that she may have loved. The story is a collection of her memories explaining her depression and how he played a role in her life until the moment he jumped from the building.
----------
Thoughts: It honestly took me a little while to get used to the photo-like artwork of the story, yet once used to it, I felt like I was reading a short movie instead of a short graphic novel. This book does not shy away from showing Dashu falling and crashing to his death (he lands on a car). Orange is not always a relatable character to me, but I do understand her depression and the feeling that the friends you hang out with are not really your friends. The afterword of this story by artist Benjamin was more intense than the story itself as he wrote about the creation and publication of Orange. While the images are memorable for the use of color and shadows, the afterword text is haunting. A story about depression, Orange is a book that you have to be aware is there and that it does serve a purpose like other books about suicide.
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Will Teens Like It? Probably high school students.
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Things to be aware of: sexual situations, suicide (shown), drinking and smoking
------
Bonus: I was surprised that this was a TokyoPop book, but only because I’m used to their manga titles that are all uniformly the same size.
2010 ALA Great Graphic Novel for Teens
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Source: Library copy.
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