Manga: Our Dreams at Dusk: Shimanami Tasogare by Yuhki Kamatani

Our Dreams at Dusk: Shimanami Tasogare by Kamatani Yuhki is a very renowned series, it caught many peoples' attention when it had first released. It had caught my attention too. I read the first volume in a Barnes & Nobles when it first came out and then I could never find the rest of the series so I could finish reading it. My library just recently got the full series so now was my chance!

Kaname Tasuku is the new kid in school and is a closet gay. A friend of his scrolled through his phone and found gay porn on it and he is almost outed. He says some hurtful things that are offensive to other gays and himself so that he won't be outed. That same day, Tasuku contemplates committing suicide but then sees someone else jump out a window! Running over to the building he finds the Drop-In Center, full of all different kinds of people that help Tasuku.

Manga: Caterpillar Girl and Bad Texter Boy by Sanzo

Truthfully, this is a slightly strange story. Caterpillar Girl and Bad Texter Boy by Sanzo revolves around these two teenagers, childhood friends, Kikuo Suzume and Kuchinashi Akane. Suzume was in love with Akane or "Aa-chan" is how he is known in the manga. She confessed her feelings to him one day and he rejected her due to his own low self esteem. Then, Suzume goes missing...

Light Novel: The Garden of Words by Makoto Shinkai

 

I guess you guys didn't see this one coming! Or maybe you guys did... let me tell you though, I didn't. I had no idea about the light novel until recently, I just don't keep up to date anymore with anime and manga news all that often. So imagine my surprise when I went on the Kindle store to finally buy The Garden of Words the manga and found this instead! There were some discrepancies with me trying to buy it, mostly due to the fact that the light novel isn't it's own listing and is linked to the physical manga listing. I couldn't find the Kindle manga listing until I chatted with customer service who kind of fixed it. You can find the manga now, but the light novel is still linked to it, not yet a separate listing.

Anime: The Garden of Words by Makoto Shinkai

This review has been a long time coming! This is going to be a throwback to my very first review on this blog... The Garden of Words by Shinkai Makoto! This film has finally reached Netflix, really it's been on there for a while but I haven't gotten the motivation to watch it as of late. I finally motivated myself to watching it though, so here we go!

The Garden of Words is a coming-of-age, slice of life film that revolves around Akizuki Takao, a fifteen-year-old first year who dreams of becoming a shoemaker in this day and age. He always skips first period on rainy days, going to a nearby park. One of these days he meets a woman at the park in the gazebo, drinking beer and eating chocolate.

TV: Game of Thrones (Season 1)

So, I know I'm kind of late, reviewing this and all, but I do want to do it. Game of Thrones is a show that took America by storm, and Britain I think, not too sure on that one. It was such a big show during my time in high school and even still when I was in college, which wasn't that long ago. I was caught up until season eight, at which point I didn't have cable or anything so I missed out on all the events that took place. 

Unfortunately, I heard that the last season was absolutely dreadful and that I shouldn't even bother... So I'm going to watch it anyway! I am a completionist at heart and once I start something, like a book or a show, I am compelled to finish it. I am going to die watching both Supernatural AND Criminal Minds I hope you know that, all for you guys and my own entertainment. 

So, since my local library has all the seasons on DVD, thank the gods, I will be rewatching the first seven seasons and then the eighth for the first time. You guys will be getting my first reactions and thoughts to the season because I try very hard to keep myself spoil free when I want to read or watch something, so I have NO idea what is going to happen in season eight. I don't even have an inkling of a clue. 

TV: The Good Place (Season 4)

 

We are in the final stretch! Season four of The Good Place! This is the absolute final season of the series. Honestly, the journey these guys have gone through these last few years have gotten me emotionally attached. Severely so. This is a very emotionally charged season, not just because it is the last one, but because of the story that takes place. 

TV: The Good Place (Season 3)

 

We have finally made it to season three of The Good Place! Yay! This is where things start getting, kind of, really intense. The four humans are alive and well on Earth now, including Michael and Janet. Yes, those two also made their way down to Earth, after The Judge found out that Michael had gone down more than the initial one time to save the humans' lives, continuing his interference. Anyways, the four are back on Earth and it has been about a year since they almost died.

TV: The Good Place (Season 2)

The Good Place season two! We have made it through the perils and humour of the first season, now we shall follow our heroes while they try and defeat the demon named Michael. We left the four humans with their memories reset and Michael on attempt number two, using psychological torture instead of physical torture.

TV: The Good Place (Season 1)

I have been debating for quite a while whether or not I was going to start doing reviews on TV shows I've watched and decided to just start with this and see how it goes. The series just recently ended with its fourth season earlier this year, and with that finally releasing on Netflix, I have recently finished watching the whole series! Anyways, we are going to start with season one and make our way through the rest of the seasons in the coming weeks. 

The series revolves around six characters: Eleanor Shellstrop, Chidi Anagonye, Tahani Al-Jamil, Jason Mendoza, Michael, and Janet. It starts off with Eleanor waking up in an office waiting area and Michael coming out to greet her, having her come into his office. He informs Eleanor that she is dead and that she has arrived in The Good Place. Soon, he shows her around the neighborhood, her house, and her soulmate, Chidi, a philosophy professor. As soon as Michael is gone, Eleanor confides in Chidi that she doesn't belong there, chaos then ensues... 

Book: Voyage on the Great Titanic by Ellen Emerson White (Dear America)

This Dear America book was the first one I had read, completely enamoured with it when I was young due to my interest in history. I was really interested in learning about the Titanic at the time and even though I knew that this was a fictional book, there is some truth to it due to the authors having to research the time periods and events they set their characters in.

The Dear America books are written in a diary/journal type of format, so everything is told in first person point-of-view. This one in particular is written by a little girl named Margaret, actually she is a teenager, who boards the Titanic. 

Also, spoilers ahead! So read at your own risk! Enjoy!

Manga: Time Paradox Ghostwriter by Kenji Ichima

Time Paradox Ghostwriter by Ichima Kenji is a short-lived manga series, only fourteen chapters long, that in all actuality is not really all that memorable. I finished this manga the week the last chapter was released in the Shounen Jump app, so it has been a little while and honestly it has taken me a long time to get the motivation to write this review. Just like Guardian of the Witch by Sakano Asahi, this was a very short story that the mangaka could've played around with more and extended the story. The story was very plain and basic, but if you're looking for a quick read, this is something you might enjoy.

Book: Forced to Bloom by Alexis Adaire (Volume 1)

This is a novella I've been putting off for a while... It's not bad, I'm going to say this right off the bat, but there was no need for the story to be broken up into SIX little novellas. If all the novellas were to be combined, because it is one continuous story, it would be a full novel. Unfortunately, things like these happen for financial gain, which I can say because each of the books, after the first, is about $2.99 but there is a collected version that has all six books for $6.99. Obviously the collected edition is the one I will be getting, but the pieces really should just be combined to form one full novel instead of six little novellas.

Book: Things Not Seen by Andrew Clements (Things #1)

Okay everyone! This is the second review transferred from my book vlog! It was a summer reading assignment for school that I had put off for the longest and read the book and filled out the packet for it on the plane ride home from my vacation. Personally, I don't like school assigned books, I don't like that I am being forced to read a novel I had no interest in reading at the time. 

Anyways, all I remember from this is that the main character becomes invisible and it is a big problem for him. Now I have not much more to say, so let's allow 13-year-old me take it away!

Book: The Bet by Tara Crescent (Menage in Manhattan #1)

Last week, I discussed a novella that I thought was a full novel when I got it, dumb me forgot to look at the page count, but fortunately it was a free book on Kindle. Now this week, we are going to be talking about The Bet by Tara Crescent, previously published as Betting on Bailey. Full disclosure… I am absolutely in love with this book! The writing is very good… very detailed to the point where I could feel what was happening, and that my friends is when you know you have been captivated by the author and the world they have created. 

Book: Obsessed with His Curvy Girl by Autumn Summers (Navy SEAL and BBW Romance #1)

Alright, so this is my first book review that is exclusively on this blog! Yay! This book is really a novella, a long short story or a short novel, for it is only around 60 pages long. It was a really quick read, which is kind of disappointing, but it was enjoyable nonetheless. 

K-Drama: Possessed

I have decided on branching out a bit beyond just talking about anime and manga and talk about some other things I have been watching since this pandemic started. So... I have started to delve into the K-Dramas that are available on Netflix! This is not my first time watching K-Dramas but it is the first time I get to talk about the ones I have seen, solely due to the fact that I don't have many friends that enjoy K-Dramas as much as I do. 

Moving right along, this Korean drama centers around Kang Pil-Seong, a detective in the Violent Crimes unit at the Sangdong Police Station and Hong Seo-jeong, an online clothing store owner and extremely powerful psychic. These two meet and their fates become entwined with one another, especially after Hwang Dae-du, a serial killer that had been executed over twenty years ago, is resurrected and starts killing again... 

Manga: The Promised Neverland by Kaiu Shirai

This has been a long time coming! The Promised Neverland by Shirai Kaiu has finally ended! I had started reading this amazing story since last year and let me tell you... this is not your typical shounen manga. This manga centers around a plethora of characters but more focuses on the main three: Ray, Emma and Norman. 

 

They are residents at the Grace Field House, an orphanage that actually treats the children well: keeping them well-fed, clothed, giving them an education, and allowing them play-time. Their caretaker, who they refer to as "Mama," is Isabella, the only adult in their lives. The only rule that is enforced is that the children are not allowed past the fence, dictating the orphanage's grounds. The children are all adopted out by the time they turn 12-years-old, no older, and thus life goes on. But... considering that this is a shounen manga, not everything is as it seems...

Book: Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr (Wicked Lovely #1)

Alright, now this may come as a surprise, me posting about novels and the such. I have a YouTube channel that is dedicated to book reviews, strictly novels and nothing else, but I have not posted in over a year due to the fact that I haven't read any new books as of late. So, since I am here more often than over there, I decided that I am going to do an overhaul and transcribe the audio of my book reviews, posting those reviews here on the blog!

Manga: Guardian of the Witch by Asahi Sakano

This series, Guardian of the Witch by Sakano Asahi, had a lot of promise and potential. It was good in the beginning, but the story tapered off somewhat until its abrupt ending. Our focus this time is on Fafner, a guardian knight kind of guy, and Manasfa, the witch. Fafner is the one who guards Manasfa and it is his duty, when the time comes, to kill her...

Anime: The Seven Deadly Sins by Nakaba Suzuki (Season 1)

This highly popular anime, The Seven Deadly Sins by Suzuki Nakaba, has finally hit my eyeballs! The third princess of Liones, Elizabeth, goes on a journey to seek out a team of criminals, the Seven Deadly Sins, who were the strongest Holy Knights in the kingdom, until they tried to usurp the throne. Now the Holy Knights have taken over the kingdom in the king's place and Elizabeth is trying to put a stop to them. 

Manga: Miracle Girls by Nami Akimoto

Miracle Girls by Akimoto Nami is an old shoujo manga from the '90s when computers were a new thing in the world. Originally, this was published by TokyoPOP and has now been long out of print and in need of a rescue. I think it would be appropriate for Kodansha to pick this up due to the fact that their Japan office is the one who distributed it in the first place, and they can fix it up like they did to Sailor Moon. 

The story revolves around identical twins with psychic powers and their journey in high school trying to juggle their powers and love lives.

Manga: 7 Seeds by Yumi Tamura

As you guys know from the last two weeks, I have become obsessed with 7 Seeds by Tamura Yumi-sensei. I got into the series due to the anime being recommended to me on Netflix and I though "why not?" After the fact that I found out it was by Tamura-sensei, the anime art is so polished I had no idea until I googled the series, I wanted to read the manga...

Anime: 7 Seeds by Yumi Tamura (Season 2)

This anime is amazing right now and I cannot wait for the third season to release already when the second only came out earlier this year! I binged through this season as well as the first and let me tell you, things have gotten really interesting! The first episode starts the second where the last episode of the first season left off. There's no time skip or anything! If they didn't break this up into two separate seasons, season two came out a whole year after season one, I would've been satisfied with it just being one consecutive season. Nevertheless, this season keeps you on the edge of you seat, keeping you where season one left you. 

Anime: 7 Seeds by Yumi Tamura (Season 1)

I've been binge watching these small twelve episode animes in a day for a little while now and this one takes the cake! This is the third one that I've binged so far, the other two being Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon?! and No Game No Life. Now in comparison to the other two, this has a completely different feel to it, not at all related to games in any sort of way! It's actually a post apocalyptic anime where Earth is not how you remember it and try to survive and make the place inhabitable again.

Manga: Magical x Miracle by Yuzu Mizutani

Here I am trying to delve into manga again... unfortunately, this is a manga long out of print in the US when TokyoPOP went out of business way back when. Magical x Miracle by Mizutani Yuzu is definitely worth a read! I was one of my first manga series to read when I was young. A bunch of TokyoPOP manga that are out of print are! This was before the rest of the manga companies gained steam, when TokyoPOP was one of the only manga publishers in America!

Anime: No Game No Life by Yu Kamiya

No Game No Life is just as good as I remember it being when it released in 2014! I am still wishing on a second season but they've at least made a film since the end of the season, so hopefully that will fulfill my needs for the moment.

This was my first isekai anime I had ever watched and I can say that, hands down, that I absolutely love it! No Game No Life by Kamiya Yu is about a pair of siblings, Shiro, 11 and Sora, 18, who are NEETs. NEETs meaning they are not in education, employment, or training, meaning military. They stay home all day and play video games. They have insanely high intelligence and never lose any game they play. Their usernames on their accounts are left blank so they are called [ ], Kuhaku or "Blank" in English.

They are taken to a new world after beating Tet, the god of play, at an online game of chess. Prior to the game, Tet sends them an anonymous email asking these questions relating to whether or not they were happy in their world. Bottom line, no they were not happy, so after the game Tet took them to his world where absolutely everything is decided with a game. And he explains to them the ten pledges the world of Disboard runs by. Thus, they were reborn to their ideal world.

Anime: Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? by Fujino Omori (Season 1)

This was the anime that opened new doors, relatively speaking. Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? by Omori Fujino was not how I thought it was going to be at all. I really really like it, which honestly surprised me. When this had first come out, it became popular instantly and due to that, it turned me off. It's been five years since the first season released and I watched it for the first time! 

Anime: Ghost Hunt by Fuyumi Ono

A complete gem, Ghost Hunt is one of my favourite anime, the only one, in fact, that I own on DVD and only 25 episodes. This anime is a bit old, from '06, but it's really amazing and I wish there were more. The manga definitely has more, but unfortunately they never animated it into a season two. This story really takes place in Japan, where a young high school student named Taniyama Mai, somehow becomes indebted to a young CEO genius, Shibuya Kazuya. Some hilarity ensues along with some suspense and creepy creepy supernatural things with a wide cast of interesting characters!

Anime: Kakegurui XX by Homura Kawamoto (Season 2)

         

I know that I was going to hold off on season two, but I ended up with the urge to see what happens next, so I binged season two. This season picks up right where season one left off. The last episode of season one deviated from the manga, but this season puts it right back on track. 

Anime: Kakegurui by Homura Kawamoto (Season 1)

This thrilling, gambling anime has everyone sitting on the edge of their seats. I had to rewatch this to refresh my memory of everything but it's as good as I remember it being. The story centers around Hyakkao Gakuen, a prestigious private school full of rich kids and the more money you have the greater your status in the school, also did I mean that you have to be a great gambler too? All the students in the academy gamble, it's a pastime for them and it also can help them achieve a greater status with their peers with the accumulation of their winnings...

Anime: Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba by Koyoharu Gotoge (Season 1)

Quarantine is still underway as I write this, darn you COVID-19! Before everyone closed their doors, this series had caught my eye in Barnes & Nobles, especially seeing that it was getting really popular in the online world, I'm looking at you Karuta. I had picked up the manga and read the first four or so volumes in store and it had peaked my interest, but not as much as some other series I was currently reading. At the time, I couldn't tell why it was so popular. Was it really just because of this kid trying to save his sister or was there more to it? 

Anime: Children of the Whales by Umeda Abi (Season 1)

As we are are in quarantine, it has given me a lot of time to catch up of some anime that I've missed recently. These are crazy times right now as I am typing this up, for this post is going to be up weeks after I have finished typing it! I hope you are all still safe when you read this because I can't see the future. Stay inside and watch some anime or read some manga! If you're reading this blog I would hope you like to do one or the other. Moving on, we are going to get right into this review! 

I have heard a great many things about this anime and boy, they weren't wrong! This anime is a relatively new one, available on Netflix by Netflix. It's a coming-of-age, fantasy, adventure centered around a ship called the Mud Whale and going-ons that happen. 

Anime: Ponyo on the Cliff by Hayao Miyazaki

Here's another one! Man, I feel very productive, re-watching all these Studio Ghibli films and reviewing them. This is another film by dearly beloved Miyazaki Hayao and one of the more recent films of his career. This is a fun, children-friendly movie that revolves around a little goldfish that wants to become a human, a little like The Little Mermaid, the original story not the Disney movie. 

Anime: Death Note by Tsugumi Ohba

Despite this anime being out for years, I've never completely watched it, so now I can check it off my list as complete since it's available on Netflix. Anyways, Death Note by Ohba Tsugumi is an anime about shinigami, death gods, and what happens when they get bored, more specifically when Ryuk, the main shinigami, gets bored. The series is 37 episodes long which is quite odd for an anime to end with from this era. Usually anime are 12, 24, 48 or 52 episodes long but this one stuck out to me all these years because it doesn't follow the norm. From the couple of episodes I had seen prior, it's a really good show and I know why it's highly recommended and revered. Moving on though, this is the story of when a shinigami gets bored and decides to drop his Death Note, which will be explained, into the human world...

Anime: Howl's Moving Castle by Hayao Miyazaki

Another amazing film by Miyazaki Hayao, Howl's Moving Castle is a fantastical journey with great amounts of war and destruction. This is one of the more popular and higher grossing films made by Miyazaki, the above this being Spirited Away. This is loosely based off of a novel of the same name written by Diana Wynn Jones. Again, many people have watched these Studio Ghibli movies, but they are anime and I will post about them. 

The story follows Sophie, the daughter of hatter, who plans on taking over the business being the eldest. She somehow becomes entangled with Howl, a famous womanizing wizard, and thus an adventure ensues...

Anime: Spirited Away by Hayao Miyazaki

One of Miyazaki Hayao's masterpieces, Spirited Away is a title everyone who loves Studio Ghibli should know. I know that this is a film, but it is an anime overall, so I'm going to be rewatching all the ones I have access to. This is unfortunately not one of the one that has a manga series accompanying it, like Nausicaa does. This Miyazaki film is a coming of age featuring Chihiro, a young 10 year old girl, who's family is moving to a different town. While this happens she somehow gets involved with the Spirit World. I know that most people have watched the film before but I will still put a spoiler warning just in case.

Anime: My Hero Academia by Kohei Horikoshi (Season 1)

The anime that's taken the nation by storm, My Hero Academia has become such a phenomenon here in the US since it's release and it doesn't seem like it's going to be slowing down any time soon. Originally the hype put me off of this series myself. It just isn't interesting to me when something is really hyped up to the extreme, I usually wait a while so that people calm down then get into reading and watching it. Season four of this series has come out but I'm still only watching season two, if I catch up that's great, but that's not my goal. Moving on, this review will be focusing on season one since I haven't finished season two just yet. 

Manga: Kitchen Princess by Natsumi Ando

Kitchen Princess by Ando Natsumi is a really cute shoujo manga centered around cooking. This is a classic for me, it was originally published by DelRey, I believe, in America and after DelRey shut down, it was rescued by Kodansha, who published it in Japan. It is 10 volumes long, originally DelRey's publishing, but now it is available as a 4 volume omnibus series with Kodansha. There is a light novel that accompanies it but unfortunately Kodansha hasn't rescued that yet, I'm hoping that they will. Although, I'm really glad they brought this series back, it caused a spark in me, leading me to love flan! 

Manga: $100 is too Cheap by Kazune Yamamoto

$100 is too Cheap by Yamamoto Kazune is a oneshot set in the  midwest, following a bounty hunter named Petey, and despite what the name may portray Petey is a girl. She teams up with a boy named Suna who is a mystery solver and bartender. This one is really an interesting story and definitely one worth checking out. Although the mystery aspect of the story was easy to figure out if you were paying attention, it's still a cute mystery to watch unravel. 

Anime: Assassination Classroom by Yusei Matsui (Season 1)

I know that all my posts up until now have been all manga reviews, but now I've finally had the time to do an anime review! An amazing shounen anime that any otaku who loves comedy and action, with a great mysterious story line will fall in love with instantly! I know for a fact that I loved it. I had first heard about this when I was on YouTube watching videos of others' manga collections, it made me totally pity my really empty shelf, and this title was on about 90% of these people's shelves, so I decided to look it up. Lo and behold, the mangaka, Matsui Yusei, was someone whose work I had read before, Majin Tantei Nougami Neuro, which I loved also, so I decided to give it a try.

Manga: 0x0 Memories by Kozue Takeuchi

Another oneshot manga that never came over to the US, 0x0 Memories by Takeuchi Kozue is a shoujo manga about a young girl, Tsuda Rei, who lost her memories from a hit to the head with a soccer ball. This is a really good manga, I enjoyed the story and it was a cute little short that could definitely be published under the Shojo Beat imprint. 

Manga: "Suki" to Ienai by Yukino Miyawaki

This is going to be one of my shorter reviews due to the fact that this is a oneshot manga, originally sold in a book with two other oneshot manga. It is also only available to read off of a manga piracy website, due to the fact that it hasn't been brought over to the US. "Suki" to Ienai by Miyawaki Yukino is a shoujo manga about a girl, Shina, who is in love with her adoptive brother, Kiri, who does not know that he is adopted. 

Manga: +Anima by Natsumi Mukai

This is an oldie but a goodie! This is an amazing manga and I wish there was more to it. +Anima by Mukai Natsumi revolves around a group of four kids, ages varying from 10 to 17, traveling around the country trying to survive and find others like them. They are called +Anima, humans that can take on the qualities of one specific animal but only one part of them can take on the quality. The placement of the change doesn't move, the placement stays but the +Anima can change the one part of themselves from animal to human and back again. 

Manga: Red River by Chie Shinohara

One of my absolute favorite series makes its debut on my blog, Red River by Shinohara Chie! I cannot stress enough how much I love this manga. The series had a long run, ending with 28 volumes. It is a historical fiction manga dating back to the B.C. era in the Hittite Empire during King Suppiluliuma’s rule, really near the end of his rule. Many of the events that happen within the manga are actual events that was recorded in history, which I personally think is amazing. This manga, I believe, is the first of its kind. I have never see another manga to use this time period in this location, most mangaka write about Japanese history due to the fact that it’s what they know. You don’t normally get to read western history in manga unless it’s about Egypt, but this is not a story centered around Egypt, it is about the Hittite Empire during the peak of its reign.

Manga: Tail of the Moon by Rinko Ueda

Tail of the Moon by Ueda Rinko is a series I could not put down! I had originally read this manga way back in either middle school or high school and loved it enough to reread in recent months. This is a charming manga, depicted in the Tensho era of Japan, is about ninjas. Momochi Usagi is the great-granddaughter of the head of the Momochi clan, an elite family of ninja, but despite this fact, she’s still doesn’t have her qualification to be a ninja. Her great-grandfather, Momochi Tanba, sends her off on her first assignment, to marry Hattori Hanzo, one of the highest ranking ninjas in Iga and the handsomest man as well, and bear his children!

Manhwa: Snow Drop by Choi Kyung-ah

This manhwa, a Korean manga, is an epic love story, where love conquers all, literally! Choi Kyung-ah did a fantastic job with this title and I personally would love to read more by them. Snow Drop is about a young teen named Yoo So-na who lost her mother some years ago. So-Na’s mother had a nursery for flowers and now So-na has taken the responsibility of taking care of it because it’s where she feels closest with her mother. Along with a book her mother wrote about flowers called “Snow Drop,” too. Due to her mother’s death she didn’t feel well enough to go to school anymore until now. Her best friend, Jang Ha-da, ends up at school with her, where she meets Oh Hae-gi. Once they met, nothing would go back to the way they were...