Glass Mask

Japanese Title: Garasu no Kamen 「ガラスの仮面」
Mangaka: Miuchi Suzue
Genre: shoujo, drama

Synopsis: Kitajima Maya looks just like any other girl. But when she acts on stage, she captivates the the audience with her acting prowess. The story begins when she she runs away from home against her mother's wishes to pursue her love for acting. She joins the Tsukikage Theater under the tutelage of one Tsukikage Chigusa. Tsukikage-sensei used to be a famous actress herself. During her heyday, her greatest achievement was playing the lead in the critically-acclaimed The Crimson Goddess. However, a freak accident disfigured her face which caused her early retirement. Now, she is looking for a capable actress worthy of reviving the role of the crimson goddess and she has her eyes on Maya. Will Maya deliver?

Other Characters: Masumi, the director of Daito Corporation, is hell-bent on getting the rights to The Crimson Goddess for his own theater. Maya hates him for trying to force Tsukikage-sensei to hand over the rights for the play. Masumi is a great fan of Maya but because of the conflict between their theatres, he is unable to express his feelings directly. Instead, he becomes her anonymous sugar daddy benefactor and sends her purple flowers after every performance.

Himekawa Ayumi, a talent of Daito, is a celebrated young actress from a family of entertainers. No one was able to match her skill until Maya showed up. She, too, is after the role of the crimson goddess.

Comments: This is the stuff soap operas are made of. It's got rivalry, intrigue, love triangles, the works. It's also amazing how this series is still running after more 30 (?) years. May I just add that Masumi, Maya's love interest, is dangerously close to becoming a pedophile -- come on, Maya was 14 and he was 24 at the beginning of the story. Maya's performances are always fun to watch, even if they're just drawn pictures.

Scanlator: Mangasync (I think they also distribute subtitled copies of the anime version)

Tengoku no Honya

「天国の本屋」
Other Title: Heaven's Bookstore
Mangaka: Matsuhisa Atsushi, Tanaka Wataru, and Kirihata Ayumi
Genre: one-shot

Synopsis: A young man desperate for a job suddenly finds himself working for heaven's bookstore. He feels disgruntled at first but the people he meets soon changes his perspective on life.

Comments: This light, feel-good story is a short 40-page 7.5MB download. Look! It has a movie, too.

Scanlator: Snoopy Cool

Jisatsu Circle

「自殺サークル」
Other Title: Suicide Club
Mangaka: Furuya Usa-maru
Genre: horror, one-shot

Synopsis: Jisatsu Circle is a dark, disturbing manga about troubled high school girls getting involved in a cult-like suicide club. The club's esteemed leader, Mitsuko-san, is fanatically followed with reckless, thoughtless, and religious fervor. Each teenager is desperate, burdened with her own set of problems, and Mitsuko-san helps each girl ease her pain. Through Mitsuko-san's guidance, they realize that death is a better, happier alternative to their miserable lives. They hold self-mutilation sessions before finally committing mass suicide.

Kyoko is concerned about her childhood friend Saya, who was the lone survivor of the most recent mass suicide. Saya is more devastated than ever: about her life, and about not being able to die with the rest of the club. Worse, Saya seems to be involved in a new suicide club; this time, she is taking a more active role by filling in Mitsuko-san's place as the new leader. Will Kyoko be able to save her friend?

Comments: Jisatsu Circle is just bizarre. The gore is comparable to Battle Royale, but while the latter was trying to be funny with its acerbic, sarcastic, dark humor, Jisatsu Circle is sheer drama. All the talk about wanting to die is unsettling but it does make one think. If Jisatsu Circle is supposed to be a spat at how wordly, immoral, and uncaring modern society has become, it does so in the creepiest, most extreme of ways.

The manga is based on the movie Suicide Club although I've heard the plots are slightly different.

Warnings: really graphic images of death; nudity

Scanlator: Omanga has scanlated all 6 chapters.

DNA²

Mangaka: Katsura Masakazu
Genre: shounen, romantic comedy, sci-fi

Synopsis: Karin Aoi, a DNA operator, is sent from the future to alter the genetic sequence of one Momonari Junta who has the "Mega-Playboy" gene. Because of this gene, he has sired hundreds of children, and his children have sired hundreds more, and their children, and so on, thus causing a serious overpopulation problem. But when Karin sees Junta, she meets a pathetic man who's allergic to women -- he faints and throws up whenever women get too close. How can this loser be the rumored playboy?

Comments: Junta looks like someone who came from Dragon Ball Z -- big hair, super powers, and all. The fight scenes may also seem Dragon Ball-ish. The manga is mostly geared towards prepubescent boys but it does have its funny moments that the rest of us can appreciate, too. DNA² also has an anime version but it has been licensed by some company so I doubt if you can still find copies lying around the internet.

Scanlator: Manga Project

Sexy Voice and Robo

「セクシーボイスアンドロボ」
Mangaka: Kuroda Iou
Genre: shounen

Synopsis: Niko Hayashi, a.k.a. Sexy Voice, has a knack for voice analysis. She can determine someone's personality, feelings, temperament, appearance, etc. just by listening to the person's voice. She uses to this talent to solve cases for her big shot gangster boss.

Comments: Kinda interesting. If you're wondering about the Robo part of the title, it's the alias of Niko's lackey who doesn't do much so he's not even worth mentioning.

Scanlator: Mangascreener has completed all 2 volumes.

Aishiteruze Baby

「愛してるぜベイベ★★」
Mangaka: Maki Yoko
Genre: shoujo, comedy

Synopsis: When Yuzuyu's mom left her, the five-year-old was taken in by her aunt's family, and her older cousin Kippei was given the task of taking care of her. But Kippei is a known playboy and delinquent at school so how will he handle this new responsibility?

Comments: Ai Baby's feel-good story is pure sugar. Yuzuyu is such a cute and precocious child, and anybody would be crazy to desert such an affectionate little girl. Kippei turns out to be the archetypal onii-chan; who knows he had it in him?

Related Links: Official Manga Site; Official Anime Site; Anime Fansubs

Scanlator: Dragon Voice

Pretty Face

「プリチイフエイス」
Mangaka: Kano Yasuhiro
Genre: shounen, romantic comedy

Synopsis: When Randoh woke up from a one-year coma because of a bus accident, he was shocked to see that he had a new face. Since his old face was scarred beyond recognition, his doctor recreated the face from a picture found in Randoh's wallet. However, the picture was of Rina, the girl Randoh secretly likes. How will he get out of this mess?

Comments: Pretty Face's comedy lies in the awkward situations Randoh is subjected to as a boy pretending to be a girl. Its funniest moments include guys getting beaten up because they hit on Randoh, bathroom mix-ups, and girl-talk.


Why they won't flirt with boys.

Warnings: may get a little perverted at times but nothing hentai. PG-13 unless you're really touchy.

Scanlator: Akatsuki Manga does the scanlation but you could read it online at Anime-Source.

GANTZ

Mangaka: Hiroya Oku
Genre: seinen, action/adventure, sci-fi

Synopsis: Kei Kurono knows he's dead; he recalls being hit by the express train. So what the hell is he doing in a strange room, in the middle of Tokyo, surrounded by a bunch of people who are supposedly dead, too? Suddenly, the giant ball in the middle of the room starts playing music, hands out weird-looking black suits, gives them weapons, and tells them to beat the crap out of space aliens. What's going on?

Comments: As Omanga said, Gantz defies explanation. It's unlike anything you've seen before. You may want to see its anime version, too.

Warnings: expect to see nudity and violence EVERY chapter. The anime is a bit milder when it comes to sex.

Scanlators: I don't know why everybody is scrambling to scanlate Gantz. Omanga and Band of the Hawks were the first. Then came Shocwave followed by Evil Genius and now we have Kaizoku-ou. The last 3 scanlators seem to be involved in a catfight or something hehe.

Perfect Girl Evolution

Japanese Title: Yamato Nadeshiko Shichihenge 「ヤマトナデシコ七変化♥」
Other Titles: The Wallflower, Sunako of Many Forms
Mangaka: Tomoko Hayakawa
Genre: shoujo, romantic comedy

Synopsis: Four good-looking guys are given free rent by their landlady, on the stipulation that the boys turn her niece Sunako into a real lady. Being popular with the girls, they agree, but when they meet Sunako -- all gothic and messy, living in her own dark world -- they realize the task is going to be next to impossible.

Comments: Sunako's stewards are self-centered brats and I really don't get why she ends up taking care of them, doing their cooking, cleaning, etc. WTF? Her aunt owns the house, dammit! Nevertheless, PGE is a cute story, and Sunako is a beautiful girl, inside and out. Nobody realizes it just yet.

Scanlator: Anime Waves

Edit: PGE has been licensed by Del Rey :). The scanlator probably won't finish the series anymore. But try to get this when it comes out of stores hehe.

Route 20

Mangaka: Yoshiyuki Sadamoto
Genre: shounen, one-shot

Synopsis: In the future, everybody lives inside a giant dome where temperature, the weather, humidity, etc. are controlled. No one is allowed to get out lest the polluted air of the outside world kill you. For Utsuo, his only thrill is riding on his scooter, and feeling the wind blow on his face.

Comments: Route 20, with its existentialist philosophy, is a pretty serious story. There's also a bit of action (wheee! a motorcycle chase) and a hint of romance in it but for the most part, we get a glimpse of the main character's introspection.

Scanlator: Mangascreener (all 5 chapters are done)

Café Kichijoji

「Café 吉祥寺」
Mangaka: Kyoko Negishi and Yuki Miyamoto
Genre: shoujo, comedy

Synopsis: Cafe Kichijoji is about five men who work for a cafe. Each one's personality contrasts with the others' -- Tarou is an obsessive cleaner; Jun, although he looks like a girl, is incredibly strong; Maki is a womanizing slob; Tokumi is a klutz; and Minagawa is the weird one specializing in the occult. Each chapter tells of their misadventures as they try their manager's (and each other's) patience.

Comments: There seems to be no strong, solid plot as each chapter is unrelated to the next one but if you like male bickering, bishounen, and silly chibi chapters you might find this cute.

Scanlators: Mangascreener, Hemuloki, and Cabbit

Inviting Darkness

Mangaka: Yoko Matsumoto
Genre: horror

Synopsis: Inviting Darkness is composed of 5 short ghost stories. Tody is about a little boy who hates eating carrots and how he finally learns to like them at the expense of his mom. The Last Bus is about a treacherous bitch who messes with the wrong girl. Family is about Yuka who wonders how come she and the rest of her family never gets sick, never grows old, and never gets hurt inspite of falling down from the sixth floor. Evil Spirit is about seven people trapped in an elevator. One is a clairvoyant who claims that an evil spirit is among them. Then they start dying one by one. Which of them is it? Inviting Darkness is about a group of kids who goes into the mountains in search of UFO's and ends up finding more than what they should.

Comments: I liked the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th stories more than I did the 1st and 5th but they're all freaky so if you're looking for a scare, give this manga a shot.

Scanlator: Mangasync

Family Compo

Mangaka: Tsukasa Hojo
Genre: seinen (?), comedy

Synopsis: Masahiko, an orphaned boy, is overjoyed when his uncle's (his mother's brother's) family invites him to come live with them. However, things get a surprising turn when Masahiko discovers that his hunky uncle has boobies and his pretty young aunt actually has a thing between her legs.

Comments: Family Compo is a light, feel-good, funny story in a bizarre kind of way. Although gender roles are constantly reinvented at Masahiko's new household, a family is still family and as long as it provides love, warmth, care, and comfort, that is good enough for him.

Scanlator: Anime-Empire Nisei

Locker Trade Agreement

Mangaka: Tetsu Kasabe
Category: one-shot

Summary: This moment, a boy who left fast food in his locker finds it missing and sees money instead. With the money came a note that said thanks, requesting warmers next time...

In the future, ice age has again descended upon earth, and Dr. Toshiba seems to be the only human left alive. He suddenly finds an old locker and upon opening it sees warm food inside. He eats the food and leaves money in its place...

Thus began a barter of goods across time -- food for money, money for food.

Comments: just 16 pages long, 1 short download, no reason not to read it.

Scanlator: Mangascreener

Bowling King

「滾球王」
Mangaka: Tan Ai
Categories: shounen, comedy, bowling

Summary: Shautieh is infatuated with Tz'zuhn whose family owns a bowling alley. When he finds out that Tz'zuhn's family has a $3M debt and that Tz'zuhn has an American pro bowler boyfriend, Shautieh tries to resolve everything, with bowling of course. However, although Shautieh has an incredibly strong left arm, he doesn't know anything about bowling. What now, Shautieh?

Comments:　　Technically, this really isn't a manga because it's Taiwanese but what the hell, it's scanlated comics and it's funny. Shautieh is a silly and crazy idiot but whatever he lacks in brainpower he makes up with talent and strength.

Scanlator: Null

Zettai Kareshi

「絶対彼氏。」
Mangaka: Yuu Watase
Categories: shoujo, romantic comedy

Summary: Riiko (who just got dumped), by some twist of fate, tries an online dating site which enables you to specify the traits of your ideal mate. The ideal mate, a sort-of android with all the good stuff you are looking for, will then be delivered the following day. In Riiko's case, her perfect boyfriend came in the person of Knight. Good-looking, smart, sweet, devoted, romantic -- he was perfect. Her neighbor and childhood friend Shouji doesn't seem too pleased though. Could it be that he likes Riiko, too? (Note: Shoujomagic did a way better job of summarizing this.)

Comments: Zettai Kareshi, or Absolute Boyfriend, is your typical shoujo manga fodder. You have your love triangle with the girl-who-can't-decide-which-one-she-likes caught in the middle. I guess the best thing about love triangles is that you'll keep guessing on who is going to end up with who. However, given the android vs. childhood friend premise, we pretty much have an idea on how it's going to end, don't we? Success of the story then lies on what happens till then and how we get there. Will Yuu Watase deliver? It's likely given her track record and since so far, story development seems to be better than other shoujo mangas. And the android component, although not a new concept, adds an interesting twist. It's cutesy, it's mushy, it has bishounen -- if you like that kind of stuff then this is for you.

Warning: suggestive sexual themes but nothing too explicit. PG-13.

Scanlator: Shoujomagic

Addicted to Curry

「華麗(カレー)なる食卓」
Mangaka: Funatsu Kazuki
Categories: shounen, comedy

Summary: Sonezaki Yui cannot resist helping stray animals although this time, the stray happens to be a boy named Koenji Makito. It turns out that Makito used to be someone Yui's dad worked with a long time ago. After a bit of chit-chat, Makito learns that the curry house Yui's family owns is in danger of closing down. Customers hardly eat there anymore and Yui's dad is nowhere to be found. Makito convinces Yui to revive the dying business and volunteers to be the chef.

Comments: This manga is about, you guessed it, curry! All kinds, all flavors, all varieties of curry. The recipes are included, too, so if you're an aspiring cook you might want to try those out.

Because of their cooking themes, the manga is a bit similar to Yakitate!! Japan but not quite. And there are times when Makito looks like Seiji from Midori no Hibi.

Warning: ecchiness abounds; has mild nudity (how the hell did nudity get into a cooking manga?)

Scanlators: Yanime and Solaris-SVU

Gokusen

(ごくせん)
Mangaka: Morimoto Kozueko
Categories: shounen (?), comedy

Summary: Yamaguchi Kumiko, or Yankumi for short, is the new math teacher at Shirokin Gakuen. Although the school is notorious for its delinquent and ruthless students, Yankumi doesn't seem fazed. Inspite of her delicate and petite figure, she is actually the ojou-san (mistress/daughter of the house) of the Kuroda Yakuza Group and her martial arts skills are top-notch.

Comments: It's funny how anybody who tries to hurt Yankumi's students gets a beating. Yankumi's passion for teaching is admirable and she is really really strong. Plus she looks like this chem teacher I had in college.

Many people like to compare Gokusen with Greatest Teacher Onizuka because of the similarity in plots but for what its worth, I liked Gokusen but didn't like GTO. Dunno.

Gokusen also has a 12-episode live drama version (starring Nakama Yukie, who was Sadako in Ring 0, in the lead role) and a 13-episode anime version.

Related Link: Emily's Gokusen Page has info on the manga, drama, and anime.

Scanlator: Ushi

Angel's Share

Japanese Title: Tenshi no Wakemae 「天使のわけまえ」
Mangaka: Takahashi Tsutomu and Ohinata Go
Categories: seinen, one-shot

Summary/Comments: A man who killed himself wonders why he's allowed to go to heaven. Eight pages of colored goodness.

Scanlators: Omanga and Jinmen Juushin

Skyhigh

(スカイハイ)
Mangaka: Takahashi Tsutomu
Categories: seinen, horror

Summary: Skyhigh is a collection of short stories about Izuko, who stands at the gate of heaven, and the people she meets during her watch. Izuko gives people who died violently two choices: they could either 1) forget the past, shrug things off, and go to heaven, OR 2) return to haunt somebody, get their revenge, and go straight to hell.

Comments: Skyhigh freaked me out but the story is quite interesting especially since almost all of Izuko's visitors (mostly murder victims) chose hell. The illustrations could get really scary so I suggest reading this when the sun is still high and you have people around.

Warnings: contains sex, violence, and really graphic pictures of death

Scanlators: Omanga and Snoopy Cool

Angel Densetsu

(エンジェル伝説)
Mangaka: Norihiro Yagi
Categories: shounen, comedy

Summary: Kitano Seiichirou is an angel -- he's nice, kind and very helpful. His only problem is his scary face. Because of this, he often ends up scaring everybody, including the very people he's trying to help.

Comments: Don't judge a book/manga/person by its (his) cover/art/face.

Scanlator: Manga-Sketchbook

Death Note

(デスノート)
Mangaka: Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata
Categories: shounen, suspense

Summary: Seventeen year old Yagami Raito picks up a notebook dropped by the shinigami (god of death) Ryuuku. This notebook, or Death Note, enables anyone to kill another person just by writing that person's name on the notebook. The circumstances by which he would die (such as when, where, and how) can also be written or else, that person would have a heart attack by default. Raito starts by killing hardened criminals one by one. Soon, the police gets suspicious of the long string of mysterious deaths of several criminals and hires an investigator called L to help solve the case.

Comments: Death Note is a suspense/thriller, except that we all know who the killer is in the first place. The art is absolutely beautiful albeit creepy and the story is consistently an adrenaline rush as L and Raito engage in a cat-and-mouse game, trying to outwit each other.

Scanlator: Orange Tangerine

Midori no Hibi

(美鳥の日々)
Mangaka: Kazurou Inoue
Categories: shounen, romantic comedy

Summary: Seiji "Mad Dog" Sawamura is notorious for his fearsome right hook. Because of his image, most people from school, especially the girls, tend to stay away from him. During one of his loneliness bouts, Seiji wishes for a girlfriend and remarks that he would give anything in exchange for one. Lo and behold, his wish comes true the following morning, except that the girl happens to be attached to his arm, where his right hand should be.

Comments: Midori no Hibi is just hilarious. Add a couple of love rivals here and there, a mad scientist, a touchy foreign exchange student, crazy classmates, stalkers, and gangsters out for revenge, and you've got a winning formula for unadulterated entertainment. The cover designs are cute, too. By the way, the manga has been adapted into anime which you can get subtitled from Anime-Empire which has been licensed by Media Blasters for US distribution.

Scanlator: Snoopy Cool

Tokyo Crazy Paradise

(東京クレイジーパラダイス)
Mangaka: Nakamura Yoshiki
Categories: shoujo (?), romantic comedy

Summary: Setting is Tokyo in the near future. Since crimes, especially those against women, are predominant, Tsukasa was raised by her police parents as a boy. She knows martial arts, is incredibly strong, and she kicks ass. However, when her parents die in the line of duty, and she and her brothers are left starving and homeless, Tsukasa turns to her classmate Ryuji (who happens to be the leader of a powerful yakuza group) for help. Since nothing in the world is free, Ryuji slaps our heroine with a large debt and forces her to pay it by being his bodyguard. Although the two gets closer, Asago (Ryuji's betrothed) and a hunky cop named Akira (who likes Tsukasa) stand in the way. Who ends up with who? Tokyo indeed is Crazy Paradise.

Comments: The story may be a little farfetched (ex. the main characters don't look and act 14) but the manga is incredibly funny! It may get a little frustrating at times, since Ryuji obviously likes Tsukasa and Tsukasa obviously likes Ryuji so why don't they just get it on? :) Plus, I can never remember the names of all the yakuza organizations mentioned, and the Indian mythology bit lost me along the way. There is an abundance of cute SD (super deformed) forms which every comedy anime/manga must have. I'm not really sure whether to classify this as shoujo or shounen because inspite of the revolving love story, there are a lot of action scenes, too. And I like Tsukasa for not being your typical heroine; she can fend for herself and she can probably beat the crap out of anyone. Things not to be missed: Tsukasa wearing a wig and feminine clothes, Ryuji wearing a wig and feminine clothes, and when the supporting cast thinks everybody's gay.

Related Link: Kuryugumi's Home Page -- one of the most informative sites on the web on TCP. includes episode summaries, pictures, and more.

Scanlators: Manga-Sketchbook, Impossibility, and Terrad

Beck

Mangaka: Harold Sakuishi
Category: shounen

"A guitar is the human soul, speaking with just six strings."

Summary: Koyuki is a nobody until he goes on-stage, guitar on hand, and sings with his incredibly moving voice as vocalist for a band called Beck. Beck -- composed of Koyuki, Ryusuke (guitar-god), Taira (funky bassist), Chiba (rapper/vocalist with attitude), and Saku (friendly drummer) -- amasses fans and foes alike with its powerful music. This is the story of a small band's arduous and perilous ascent to fame.

Comments: Beck is one of my favorite mangas :). You don't have to actually hear them play to know that Beck is good, just looking at the audience' reactions make me wish I could see the band live, too. The story begins at a turtle's pace and the art is nothing out of the ordinary but as the manga progresses, the story gets exciting. Whenever they find new opportunities, opposition arises. One moment the band is on cloud nine; they're in the pits the next. Such is the fate of many bands who dream of making it big. But do dreams actually come true? Will it, for Beck? We'll see.

Scanlator: Mangascreener

Parfait Tic!

(パフェちっく!)
Mangaka: Nanaji Nagamu
Categories: shoujo, romantic comedy

Summary: Fuuko Kameyama's life was perfectly fine until one day, the Shinpo cousins move next door. Although both of them are equally hot, Daiya and Ichi Shinpo are as different from one another as night and day. Daiya is a wild and wacky playboy while Ichi is the cold, mysterious type. Which cousin does Fuuko fall for, and which will she end up with?

Comments: I love Parfait Tic! It's just so sweet and mushy and cute :) The premise may sound like your typical predictable shoujo manga but the story has many twists and turns. The story never gets too sickeningly sweet and the plot, though simple, will keep you guessing and rooting for a cousin until the end. The drawings -- the character designs, the clothes they wear, and Fuuko's hairdos -- are just as cute as the story.

Scanlator: Manga Project