Thursday, September 09, 2010

The Bride of the Water God


Name: The Bride of The Water God
Original Title: 하백의 신부
Type: Manwha
Author: Yoon Mi Kyung
Status: Publishing
Genres: Romance, Fantasy, Historical, Drama, Shoujo

Sypnosis:

When Soah's impoverished, desperate village decides to sacrifice her to the Water God Habaek to end a long drought, they believe that drowning one beautiful girl will save their entire community and bring much-needed rain. Not only is Soah surprised to be rescued by the Water God-instead of killed-she never imagined she'd be a welcomed guest in Habaek's magical kingdom, where an exciting new life awaits her! Most surprising, however, is the Water God himself... and how very different he is from the monster Soah imagined.


from Mangaupdates.com

Blogger airtime~

Story:

Bride of the water god's story setting is that of historical & fantasy. The mood of the story is one of elegance & grace.It gives you a fleeting refreshing feeling different from the heavy drama. The drama in bride if the water god comes in mostly in later chapters. Story wiise bride of the water god does keep me interested in some ways but the way the story does get confusing in certain parts. Scenes jump about easily & there are times where the romantic mood builds up to be brought down again by someone interrupting in the story.
The romance in bride of the water god has lofty feeling with a touch of sensuality. The drama is enough to keep u wondering how the plot turns but it is not one to exactly keep you at the edge of your seat.

Characters:

The characters in Bride of the water god are unique in a way although I do wish that the main character could have been livelier or more adorable in expressions. She can be too serious some times. I thought the way they portrayed Yeo Wha & the emperor was great though because I developed hatred for them haha.Its good because it means the characters have life on its own & that they caught my attention.
In terms of the background info of the characters it was done nicely. The flashbacks provided a lot of information among important characters. I did find the flashbacks on Nak Bin quite confusing though. It didn't quite seem to connect for me. The others were done nicely.
Interaction between Soah & Habaek can be a little "huh?" at times. Their elegance romance is always sweet to read but Habaek's random cold shoulder can get a little weird or maybe thats how he is: random & selfish. A natural character by himself.

Art:

The art is fabulous. Beautiful, elegant, lofty & sensual. Its historical theme brings out the elegance. The characters are drawn beautifully with a dazed look. I do wish they have more expressions at times but the main focuz on the art was on clothes & background. The background is gorgeous. Water scenes & old korean architecture are drawn. There is common usage of flowers such as water lilies & spider lilies. The clothes & flowers are done is such detail I really wonder how long the manag-ka takes to finish just one page.

The colours used for the covers are mainly pastel or red. Red suits Soah very well especially with her black hair it makes it seem so chinese traditional marriage like.
The manwha itself is good enough to keep as an artbook for collection :3

You may like this:
  • You are love stories with historical & asian mythical settings
  • You want to see beautiful art
  • Like Chinese styled drawings

Saturday, August 28, 2010

Kuro Bara Alice

Name: Kuro Bara Alice
AKA:
Black Rose Alice

Original Japanese:
黒薔薇アリス

Author:
Mizushiro Setsuna

Status: Publishing
Genres:
Psychological, Romance, Horror, Vampire, Fantasy


Sypnosis:

The young tenor singer Dimitri miraculously escaped with his life after a severe accident. But soon after that, strange cases of group-suicides started to happen all around him… A vampire-romanesque tale of love and survival! from Aerandria Scans
Blogger AirTime!

The Story:


Black Rose Alice is not your typical shoujo romance with all the lovey dovey sweet moments.Its gothic, twisted & dark. Romance isn't sweet in this manga instead its presented in a mysterious & dark manner.The setting for the start of the manga is that of old time Venice.Its historical which brings out the more Victorian goth like storyline.The remaing part of the story is presented in modern Japan. Black Rose Alice is creepy.Vampires take the main stage but they aren't what most people expect from series like "Twilight" & "Vampire Knight". Vampires here are parasitic & the whole shoujo idea of hot vampire guy just got twisted. The plot contains murder & psychological aspects such as the idea of not being able to forgive oneself & sinning. Despite the dark themes, the story is intriguing & is a great read.

The Characters:

The main characters in Kuro Bara Alice are fleshed out fine. We also see Dimtri's personality change quite clearly. Each character has an air of mystery surrounding them.The characters are mature & have their own sense of realism. The characters have their individuality & problems.They are mature & doesn't have anything that somehow seem to annoy you. They are all likeable but not enough for me to grow an unusual attachment to any of them.


The Art:

This is a vampire manga but please don't expect extremely hot bishounens. The art style is not the typical pretty characters but the art style does please me. A dark story with overly pretty wide eye shoujo heroines would freak me out. The art in here has no sparkles which would be a mistake if there is because the whole story is meant to be serious & twisted.

Note that the disturbing scenes of gore are present in Kuro Bara Alice.Its dark & bloody

You may like Kuro Bara Alice if:

  • you enjoyed Mizushiro Setsuna other works such as AfterSchool Nightmare
  • Up for something unique & twisted at the same time
  • A fan of Victorian & goth styles
  • Enjoy dark romances

Tuesday, August 24, 2010

Ilegenes - Kokuyou no Kiseki -


Name: Ilegenes - Kokuyou no Kiseki-
Original Title: イルゲネス ~ 黒耀の軌跡 ~
AKA: The Genetic Sodom Ilegenes
Author: Kuwabara Mizuna
Artist: Ishizue Kachiru
Status: Publishing
Genres: Military, Drama, Sci-Fi, Shoujo

The Story:

The island of Ilegenes is home to an internationally renown genetic engineering research institution. In addition to their research involving genetic manipulation, a dark underground organization exists called the Black Market. Great profit is gained from the mass production of clones and the sale of human bodies. Thus, people refer to Ilegenes as the place God has turned away from—The Genetic Sodom. Fon F. Littenber enrolled in the Ilegenes military school to become strong. He wants to avenge his parents' deaths by destroying the Black Market organization. Fon is a cool, collected young man whose attitude and parentage separate him from his peers. His father is Professor Littenber, the father of Genetic Sodom and the authority on brain research. Due to this, Fon is targeted by rival students and nasty rumors that claim he was subjected to genetic manipulation at the hands of his father. What awaits Fon in Ilegenes?

- From MAL

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Prior Reading:

I found out about Ilegenes from another blog which I forgot.. but I was fascinated by the gorgeous art. I have a military uniform fetish :3 Seeing bishounens in military uniforms just made me happier. Beautiful art never fails to make me so excited. I was reading GodChild before this & I was really excited to start on Ilegenes immediately after GodChild.I'm happy I did~

The Story:

The main plot focus is on revenge. The story rarely strays away from this main point which is good since a lot of stories would go serious & all happy go lucky the nest moment.We of course don't have whole entire plot on anger & resentment but we see slightly more relaxed moments of friendship being built. The setting of the plot is on the island of Ilegenes in which the story slowly unwraps itself to reveal the secrets of the black market & the people whom Fon (main character) know. As Ilegenes is a sci-fic that deals with issues such as cloning & genetic modification, issues of ethics are touched on. It leaves u thinking whether its fine to sell ur genes for money & the story gives the opinions on family members seeing others use their loved ones genes for their own.

The Characters:

The characters are somewhat alright..not very colourful & fascinating though. Most characters are serious but do have points that set them apart from one another such Jaques being mature but care free. Nicolas being overly seriously uptight & Fon as a cool but at the same time rash young guy.
Note there are no female characters in this series so far except for Nicolas's sister so there aren't any girly "kya kya" moments.
Fon is the main focus in the entire story & we hardly leave him :) He gets a lot attention but then again Jaques gets it too. We see a bond being built between Jaque & Fon with Jaque as a brotherly figure to orphaned Fon. The cast could have been more fun but then we wouldn't want to lose the seriousness of this great manga.

The Art:

Ilegenes Art = beautiful.
The guys are pretty (bonus point for me) & the body proportions are all completely fine. Fight scenes are fluidly drawn. The fights are clear & not messy.The only messy part was a scene in chapter 21.That would be a spoiler. :3
The covers are beautiful, colours are not bright but slighlty dark which suits the setting of teh story. Although there are hardly any female characters when they do appear (the peacock hybrid) she is absolutely adorable. Wish there are more female characters around.The art for them is so pretty too.

You may like this if:

  • You liked the series 07-Ghost. Both deal with the military & revenge.
  • Have a fetish for military uniforms like me haha
  • You enjoyed the manga series Switch.














Sunday, August 15, 2010

GodChild



Name: GodChild Original Title: ゴッドチャイルド
Author: Yuki Kaori
Status: Completed
Genre: Horror, Mystery, Supernatural, Historical

Sypnosis:
Deep in the heart of 19th century London, a young nobleman named Cain walks the shadowy cobblestone streets of the aristocratic society into which he was born. Forced to become an earl upon the untimely death of his father, Cain assumes the role of head of the Hargreaves, a noble family with a dark past. With Riff, his faithful manservant, and Mary Weather, his 10-year-old half sister, Cain investigates the mysterious crimes that seem to follow him wherever he goes.

From MAL

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Prior Reading:

I was dying to read this manga but was trying to find some time to try to squeeze into my anime manga schedule. I like Yuki Kaori's works especially after reading "Ludwig Revolution". Her twists on fairytales & gothic touch to the story made me so tempted to read this.

The Story:
GodChild is a mystery manga & I know some mystery mangas & stories end up having cheesy solutions or end up being very similar to something u get out of Sherlock Homes. GodChild's take on the supernatural provides solutions to mystery cases u wouldn't expect to have. I admit being really confused in the 1st chapter on the "March Hare" murder case. Of course that is to be expected. *Starts blaming self for not reading the parent story of the Cain series" It gets confusing but once u get the hang of it everything seems to flow naturally. Murder cases have a gothic & psychological twist to it. The story flows really well too, the murder cases all have something which links it the next one. A piece of the main story gets revealed in every case Cain handles. This slowly comes all together in the big finale.

The Characters:

The characters in Yuki Kaori's GodChild were great! Each character has an individuality to themselves & most of them have a reason to their actions in the manga. Although most of the story focuses on Cain. Cain's relationship with the other characters like Mary Weather, Riff & his own fathers Alexis were well portrayed.
In terms of the characters design & personality wise. The main character casts like example Jizabel was interesting. Mary Weather doesn't serve a purpose as a whiny girl but as someone Cain loves & wants to protect. The characters were not annoying & somehow twisted in a way I actually I like. Though I do wish that some characters had a better background info. I was very interested in 1 of the female characters due to her unique looks but sadly not much was revealed about her even in the end.

Art:

Yuki Kaori's famous image for drawing beautiful bishounens is still very evident in GodChild. The lolita dresses she draws are really adorable. If there is one thing I didn't quite like about the art was the excessive use of curls in Mikaila's hair. Its most likely a personal preference but the curls didn't go well with me. Another thing in which the art is great is gore. GodChild can be bloody & blood is frequently spilled in this goth manga. So get ready for the faces of horror & murder drawn. Its great but it doesn't make u feel like puking or freaking out. Then again it depends on how much gore one can take :3

You may like this if:
  • You enjoyed Kuroshitsuji. Both are very similar.
  • A fan of all thing Victorian era
  • Liked Yuki Kaori's works like Ludwig Revolution
  • Up for something gothic & not too sickening
Beware:
  • GodChild contains mature themes
  • E.g. Incest & Strong Violence

Monday, March 15, 2010

Skip Beat!




Title: Skip Beat!
Alternative Titles: スキップ・ビート!
Author: Nakamura Yoshiki
Status: Publishing
Genre: Drama, Comedy, Romance, Shoujo

Sypnosis:

Kyoko Mogami followed her true love Sho to Tokyo to support him while he made it big as an idol. But he's casting her out now that he's famous! Kyoko won't suffer in silence--she's going to get her sweet revenge by beating Sho in show biz!

from Viz

Blogger's Airtime!:

What I feel prior reading:

I watched the anime on TV & I have to agree I greatly enjoyed it :) Its plot is great & the anime was hilarious. The anime left me on a cliffhanger so I had to read the manga to know more.Oh ya don't underestimate this manga just because it has an old school style of drawing. Trust me shoujo lovers will love it.

The Story:

Skip Beat! has an unpredictable storyline. The story which tells us about acting incorporates the usage of psychology. As u see how Mogami (main character) goes through obstacles of being an actress she uses lots of psychology to apply to her problems e.g. how she portrays her roles well.
The story is also hilarious. The jokes don't leave u cold & Mogami's denseness to love doesn't always make u feel fed-up instead her very exaggerated responses to love are very entertaining to read.After getting dumped.. This is how she feels abt love

" An unlucky nightmarish day that threatens the peace & should be avoided at all costs!"

So if u wanna continue to read her very "loveable" comments read Skip Beat.

The Characters

The characters are lovable & quirky. Kyoko is the type of heroine I like. She's tough & her nvr say die attitude is awesome. U gotta love that evil aura emitting from her when she sees her ex-boyfriend.Although she's all tough girl.. she's very cute & naive.
The cast is quirky.. u gotta see that weird manager Rory.I mean which manager dresses up in a different cultural suit everyday?! Its like a cosplay convention for him everyday.
Ren (love protaganist) is of course the cool.. handsome... gentle guy every shoujo lovers drools over. Just don't see his dark side behind the gentleness... You wouldn't like that even Kyoko is scared of him.

Art

The art has this old school style to it. They have sharp chins & the guys faces look a little sharp. The chibis & funny scenes are the great points. The author must have had lots of fu drawing the evil aura.You should see the "evil chicken" in manga.Great facial expression :3 Ur gonna love those demon faces that will appear severa times in the manga.

You may like this if you

  • liked skip beat! anime & want to find out more
  • are a romance lover
  • want a good laugh
  • are interested in acting & showbiz

Togainu no Chi ( Yamamoto Kana Ver.)


Title: Togainu no Chi
AKA:Blood of the reprimanded Hound
Original name: 咎狗の血
Status: Unknown :(
Author: Yamamoto Kana
Genre: Action, Drama, Sci-Fic

The Plot

After being devastated in the third World War (known as The Third Division), Japan was divided in two. Several years after the end of the war, a crime organization called Vischio has taken control of the destroyed city of Toshima (formerly Tokyo, Japan's capital city), where they are holding a battle game known as "Igura". The game's main character, a young man named Akira, is falsely accused of a crime. Once arrested, a mysterious woman appears before him, offering him freedom if he agrees to participate in Igura and defeat Igura's strongest man: the king, or "Il-re". The story follows Akira's life in the harsh, lawless Toshima as he fights both to survive and to unravel the mysteries developing around him.
From MAL

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What I feel:


I can't believe it... I actually read something that has connection to BL. 0.0 The whole manga is base on a BL game of the same title by the company Nitro+Chiral
I was very attracted to the storyline & art so I decided to read online. Hahaha Lucky me This version is non-shounen-ai (I have yaoi phobia =.=) Anyway lets continue shall we...

The Story:


I didn't get to the end.. I only read till where they last released online. I've nvr seen it sold either *vein pop out* =.=
The whole story was what intrigued me to read. The whole fighting game seemed so cool. Yes.. the story was indeed great. It made me want to read chapter after chapter with suspense especially when u start finding Keisuke getting weird. Oops spoiler hint. :P The story follows the Keisuke Route of the game. Keisuke route or not the story is still interesting.

The characters:

Ahah! My favourite part to write about.I must say the range of characters are quite interesting... everyone has a different personality. The only 2 ppl who has the same personalities are Kiriwar & Gunzi. Remind me of mad dogs.. like there is a short circuit in their brain (>_<) but thats the fun part of it. Akira (Main character) is aloof but of course who doesn't like the cool ones in a manga (unless they act like arrogant jerks & emos XD). You have characters who have secret dark sides to their personalities. Hate them (Arbitro*cough* His "Erhumness" *vein pops out* ) Love them or pity them. U may choose :)

The Art


Say horray for the art because there are bishounens~ Unless u hate bishies of course.. The art is good & to me I think its a whole lot better than the art in the 2nd manga adaption of this game. No complaints about the art real nice ;)

U may like this if you:

  • Liked the original PC game or PS2 version (Togainu no Chi True Blood)
  • Like mangas about fights ( Not the shounen powerup ones so don't expect the characters to shout the names of their "special moves")
  • Like bishounens... (Stare all u want buffet :P)
Note:
  • Contains mature themes of drug usage (although it did tell us the bad effects of it...)
  • Violence ( Not too gory just a little blood here & there)