Mad Dash In August: New Manga Releases

By Mat K.

Mad dash? Why yes. Remember last week, when I mentioned how there were a ton of books coming out and I wasn’t sure if it was August coming early, or just a lucky week for the end of July? Well, as it turns out, July was just a very lucky month. And I mean that in the sense that just one week later, the first official release week of August, is another ton of books, both new and long awaited, that I know you are all going to be anxious to read. So let’s jump right in with the first of many interesting things, The Bleach Official Bootleg: Color Bleach+. This indispensable guide takes you behind the scenes of the shadowy world of the Soul Reapers. Read all about the illustrious Thirteen Court Guard Companies, study for the grueling entrance exam to Soul Reaper Academy, get tips on fighting effectively, take the personality quiz and more. This book includes 72 pages of full-color manga spun off from the original Bleach story.

Now for things that are long, long, LONG awaited, and I’ve got a few for you. Most excitedly for me, (because it is a damn good book and I love Matsuri Akino), is Genju No Seiza Volume 8. Volume 7 came out almost exactly two years ago, so yeah, it’s about damn time! Things were getting way too tense just to take an extensive hiatus like that! But I digress, I’m glad it’s here now. Also in the “it’s-been-years-since-our-last-release” category are Legends Of The Dark Crystal Volume 2 (the first volume came out in March of 2008), and Return To Labyrinth Volume 4 (the previous volume having been released in September of 2008). Oh yeah, I am so proud of Tokyopop finally getting back on the horse. They obviously finally noticed their massive back log of books they need to print, it’s only taken them 2 whole years to get to it. I know it sounds like I rip on them a lot, and I know they’re not the only company with book delays, but I do rip on them a lot, and it’s because they just behave awfully haphazardly with their properties.

Now on to the brand new series. First on the block is Code Breaker by Akimine Kamijyo (the creator of Samurai Deeper Kyo). Blending horror and action, this series follows the lives of Sakura, an ordinary student who loves food and martial arts, and Rei, a self-proclaimed “Code:Breaker,” he brings criminals to justice by eliminating their lives. Also this week is a new one featuring the artist from the series My-Hime. Qwaser of Stigmata (which admittedly sounds like they threw darts at a dictionary to name) actually looks pretty cool. Written by Hiroyuki Yoshino, and illustrated by Kenetsu Sato. In the near future, a dark war is being waged between Qwasers, supernatural “humans” made by the Church to control the elements. Oribe, a bullied school girl, is about to become the conflict’s center! Attacked by a Qwaser seeking a closely guarded Romanov family artifact that holds the power to grant wishes, Oribe pairs up with a mysterious silver-haired boy, another Qwaser, for the battle of their lives as they withstand the attacks of some very powerful-and curvaceous-super humans!