One of the representatives this side of the globe for this years Singapore Toy, Game and Comic Convention was Japanese illustrator Kishida Mel. The artist is known for his soft pastel color drawings and is best known for his work on the Atelier series of video games by Gust. We had the chance last weekend to sit down with this talented artist at STGCC 2011.

Apart from illustrating for game and comics, Kishida has also more recently broken into the world of animation. His latest contributions are creating the characters of Hanasaku Iroha and Kamisama no Memocho that later of which is apparently airing in Singapore right now.

Despite his career picking off, Mr Kishida displayed his humble personality when we participated in a group interview together with someone from a Singapore anime fan forum and the local licensee for Hanasaku Iroha. Here’s the slice of the session, plucked out from our recording.

Answering questions posed.

Question (Forum): How did you start drawing and what inspires (you)?

Kishida: I got a lot of influence from CLAMP’s Kobayashi Tomomi.

Question (Forum): Because I understand (you) draw a lot of characters from different games. Is there any difference between how (you) draw characters for games and for anime.

Kishida: Drawing for a game and drawing for an anime aren’t different in the sense that their expressions are different. But when drawing for an anime I am able to have full reign over the character, like how it moves and any changes tend to be aesthetic and minimal.

When it comes to drawing for games, I have to keep in mind a lot more technicalities such as the polygon count. Another example, is if the character’s hair is very long it can be difficult to animate. Because of things like that, drawing for games is a lot more work as there are a lot of other things to factor in.

Artwork from the Artelier series.

Question (Forum): Are you able to share what you are currently working on?

Kishida: I’m not working on any games right now because I’m busy with the anime, Hanasaku Iroha but I may have some plans next year.

Question (Licensee): Are you happy with Hanasaku Iroha’s performance in Japan right now?

Kishida: I’m pretty satisfied with how it turned out. I’m happy that people are enjoying it and that it’s staying faithful to the concept.

Question (Supermerlion): The colors that you use greatly resemble those of classical mediums. Did you start straight off with digital or did you have classical training before moving on to digital.

Kishida: I’m all digital now. Until about two years ago I did start off with pen and paper but I would still scan it in for things like retouching and coloring.

Mr Kishida Mel (Meru).

Question (Licensee): What were your challenges in drawing for Hanasaku Iroha?

Kishida: One big challenge comes from the level of detail. For an animation there are many more things to factor in like the movement of the characters.

Question (Supermerlion): I noticed that you have a very distinct style to your drawings. Are there any particular feelings that you wish to portray in your work?

Kishida: I like to portray feelings of gentleness, sentimentalism and nostalgia, which is why I use a lot of soft colors and fine lines for warmth.

Question (Forum): Between Meruru, Totori and Rorona from the Atelier series which is your favorite character?

Kishida: Even though I initially liked Rorona, I fell out with the way she was portrayed in the middle of the game. So in the end it has to be Totori.

Signing his STGCC poster for one of the other interviewers.

Question (Licensee): What are the reasons for the different kinds of hairstyles for the characters in Hanasaku Iroha?

Kishida: For the main character Ohana, I decided to give her a more wavy hairstyle because it’s a hairstyle we don’t see often in animation. Because she’s the main character, I decided to give her a lighter shade (of color) than the rest.

As for Minko, the reason why I gave her long black hair was for realism as it’s a common Japanese style. For Nako, when she goes to work her hair is tied up as that’s a hairstyle (I) like quite a bit.

Question (Supermerlion): What are you working hours like as an artist?

Kishida: (As I’ve been busy lately) I don’t have any set hours. I’m always working as long as I have ideas coming in.

The characters of Hanasaku Inoha.

Question (Licensee): Do you have any advise for aspiring anime and manga artists?

Kishida: Aside from good skills which are a given it is important for people who want to break into the industry that they are willing to share (their work) with everybody, be willing to listen and make use of any constructive criticism. That’s always the most important thing for any artist.

Question (Forum): Is there any character from western culture that you like?

Kishida: I think western characters are really cool and grew up liking Superman and Batman. But the thing I’m most attached to is Transformers because it existed as a toy line called Diaclone many years ago by Takara Toys but is now Takara Tomy.

Hasbro brought Diaclone back over to America and used it as a basis for the Transformers and when the Transformers cartoon came out it further increased my liking for them. Now with the movie all the feelings of nostalgia have resurfaced.

(To answer the question, Kishida stated that he definitely like Optimus Prime)

Dates for STGCC 2011, the Singapore Toy, Game & Comic Convention 2011 have been officially announced to the public. The convention will be taking place much earlier this year on the 20th and 21st of August. We take a look at the first details of this upcoming event.

Last year, the folks here at Supermerlion were proud to be able to work with Reed Expo (the people organizing the STGCC) as an official site partner, providing up to date news and immediate on-the-ground coverage of the event. We’ll do our best to support the event this year too. The first press release below.

Last year saw a 3 day comic affair at an affordable price.

By popular demand, the Singapore Toy, Game & Comic Convention (STGCC), a popular culture convention, will be back four months earlier this year. Into its fourth year, the annual pop culture event will take place on 20 and 21 August 2011 at the Suntec International Convention and Exhibition Centre.

The event is a showcase of the latest and greatest in the toy, games, comics scenes, and the top-notch quality and variety it offers in these sectors have attracted legions of fans locally in Singapore and across the region.

Last December, the show drew more than 28,000 fans and a total visitorship of 72,000, and the online community is already abuzz with excitement and looking forward to the show being staged earlier this year.

Many were caught unaware last STGCC. This year we give you a much earlier heads up.

An Earlier Date for STGCC 2011

Ms. Yeow Hui Leng, Project Director of Reed Exhibitions Singapore, which organizes the yearly show, said: “Bringing the convention to August this year was a decision made after gathering feedback from fans, industry professionals, and exhibitors. The new dates do not overlap with fans’ holiday plans and the peak travel season, making it easier for all pop culture buffs to attend the event and cheaper for overseas fans to travel to Singapore.

“We have also consolidated the show into a two-day format to make the programme more compact, and fans will be able to catch all the action happening over the weekend.”

Ms. Yeow added that the earlier dates also provide benefits to exhibitors, retailers and fans. “August coincides with the period when companies launch new products, and we are looking forward to seeing more exhibitors join us at STGCC this year — promoting and premiering the must-have items for all toy, games and comics fans. We are also in talks to unveil limited-edition collectibles and STGCC exclusives with exhibitors who have already signed up for the 2011 show.”

Panels with visual novel heavyweights.

Same Scale with a Topical Focus

STGCC is co-produced by Reed Exhibitions Singapore and ReedPOP in the USA. ReedPOP is the team behind international events including the New York Comic Con (NYCC), New York Anime Festival and Star Wars Celebration.

Reed, which took over STGCC in 2010, upped the ante when Marvel Comics and its entourage of writers and illustrators such as C.B. Cebulski, Salvador Larroca and Matt Fraction made their inaugural appearances in Asia at STGCC last December.

This year, STGCC promises to delight, tantalize and inspire fans with up-close-and-personal opportunities with heavyweights and cult names in the toy, games and comics scenes. Ms. Yeow said: “We look forward to continue giving fans thrilling opportunities to meet and interact one-on-one with well-known comic creators, illustrators and toy designers.”

Free autographs sessions with many notable artists.

NYCC Veteran to Further Boost Programming for STGCC 2011

For this fourth edition of STGCC, Reed Exhibitions Singapore will again be working closely with ReedPOP to create a robust programme dedicated to Asian fans. NYCC veteran Mr. Peter Tatara, Director of Industry Development from ReedPOP, will be based in Singapore during the planning phase to construct a more focused programme with a healthy distribution of toy, games, comics content from both East and West.
Mr. Lance Fensterman, ReedPOP Group Vice President and NYCC Show Manager, said: “One of STGCC’s unique points is its merging of top quality content from the East and West into one nexus in Southeast Asia. We want to build on our successes to give fans a complete pop culture experience, with the bigger goal of developing STGCC into the leading catalyst for pop culture in Asia. With the support of our fans, industry professionals, and exhibitors, we aim to grow STGCC into Asia’s biggest pop culture show, equivalent in both size and scope to its sister events like NYCC.”

Representing Singaporean talents, the local grown Imaginary Friends Studios.

Discovering New Talent in Asia

In addition to entertaining fans in Singapore and Asia, STGCC will also continue its role as a talent-spotting platform in Southeast Asia via Artist Alley. Artist Alley is a special segment at STGCC which gives aspiring artists an international platform to showcase their creative talent and artwork. Not just home to pop culture super stars, Artist Alley at last year’s STGCC saw the participation of over 40 talented rising artists from Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand and the Philippines.

Day 2 coverage of STGCC or the Singapore Toy, Games & Comic Convention. As before, this is an overview of full day’s happenings with some observations from what is one of Singapore’s most ambitious conventions to date.

I had been up till 4 AM in the morning covering yesterday’s events. Half sleep, I accidentally knocked my camera off my bedside table while fumbling to switch off my alarm. The impact caused the whole body to dent and warp, the battery hatch also broke. Fortunately, it still shot photos which is crucial, since I’ll still be shooting for this post until I can get Wilson’s photos.

An omen this early in the morning? I had originally planned to sell it off to fund a fraction of the cost of a DSLR perhaps but there goes all hopes of that. Without time to lament, I nudged a piece of metal to hold the camera battery in place and rushed down for my second day at STGCC.

What the.

The plan was to meet Wilson over at Suntec City before noon. Thanks to a seriously messed up private tour bus, I was stuck in traffic for an extra 20 minutes. The vehicle parked itself in front of the public bus stop at Dhoby Ghaut station for its on-board live band to perform, obstructing all the actual buses that had to stop to pick up passengers here. The traffic for the entire stretch of Orchard Road came to a standstill.

Day 2 begins.

The prices of one day tickets at STGCC were more affordable than other fairs and there was a discounted 3 day pass too. After my past few experiences with conventions in Singapore, I was really expecting for the worst possible crowds.

Keep your tickets if you intend to return.

I was pleasantly surprised to find that while it was certainly more lively than yesterday, visitor numbers were still manageable this Saturday afternoon. Walking around the hall and bumping into people was an irritating coincidence rather than a norm.

Saturday's crowd.

The main reason for this was that while there were actually lots of people around, visitors were congregated into their own individual interest groups spread throughout the two halls.

While the contents of the exhibition weren’t as laser focused as say AFA, there was something for everyone at the STGCC. It also helped that there was a better aisle to booth ratio and dedicated queuing areas for each of the autographing areas. Sessions were announced ahead of time via the loudspeaker so patrons could begin queuing.

DEVILROBOTS signing queue.

Lots of autograph sessions throughout the day from all the big name guests in the comics industry. This has definitely been the best lineup of comics artists to step foot in Singapore too date. Salvador Larroca managed to get off his flight safely and was among the star lineup you could meet at the Walk of Fame.

We also spotted Esad Ribic and Harvey Tolibao signing posters over at the Marvel booth. Harvey even drew some sketches (to much fanfare) for some of his fans.

At the Marvel booth.

Toy, figurine and anime related shops occupied the front most quarter of the combined hall space. Photography and figurine enthusiasts were drawn to Toys N Toy’s collection of figurines.

Anime trading card games.

Toys on display.

Some of the shops have started to slash prices since yesterday. The Black Rock Shooter Nendoroid dropped a full $10 down to just $40. Action City was still as pricey as ever though.

Iron Man models at Action City.

Really detailed interchangeable parts. Looks just like Robert Downey Jr!

Not for sale. Part 2.

For practical reasons, I’ll only be dabbing on stuff I haven’t already covered in yesterday’s post. Imaginary Friends Studios (IFS) have set up a booth at STGCC beside some of the figurine shops. Hurray for local talent. Stanley “Artgerm” Lau and the lot were here offering autographs and promoting their works. Kendrick wasn’t around yesterday but he came down later this afternoon.

Imaginary Friends Studios.

For just $5 you could get a custom requested sketch from the folks at IFS. Getting Singaporeans to part with $5 may be difficult in such situations but when you consider that getting a normal commission from any artist (let alone famous ones) costs hundreds, this comes as a real steal.

Fulfilling fan requests.

Singapore Stormtroopers from the 501st Legion also have set up their own photo taking booth. For a token sum, you could have you photograph taken with their group of troopers at STGCC. Proceeds go toward the Singapore Children’s Society.

Noble trooper fights for a cause.

Gaming competitions under way.

Lots of teenagers were gathered around the gaming area at the center of the hall. There were gaming competitions going on, this was a first person shooter. Lots of their friends came in support of the contestants and they cheered loudly whenever someone made a kill.

Concentration.

Not even Team J Philips attracted as large a group as the gaming competitions. There was a large open space on either side of the stage where no one was standing. Moving closer, you’d learn why. Could feel the impact from the large speakers positioned there.

Team J Phillips.

Managed to catch a show from Team J Philips which I missed yesterday. Team J Philips is Hollywood’s largest martial arts group and their talents appear in some of the top action films. I had seen some of their recordings before and was looking forward to seeing them live in action.

Re-enactment from one of their fight scenes.

The team are holding multiple presentations each day at the convention. During this one, they played a short scene from one of their films before a couple of their professionals reenact it in person. Wilson was mighty impressed by this one guy who had the Prison Break thing going on. He did a full mid-air somersault more than 2 meters in the air.

Pushing the boundaries of physical limitation.

In between the shows, they gave out freebies from one of the Korean companies. Training chopsticks with one of their characters on it. Strangely no one wanted it, I happened to be there so I got one. Truthfully, I can’t really use chopsticks properly but these are too embarrassing to use! Maybe if it was Hello Kitty…

Free chopsticks.

Domokun.

A shop by the main stage sold various differently textured Domokuns. Wilson passed by the shop on at least 3 occasions as he was considering getting a large wood patterned version. It cost about $100. In the end, he settled for something much worse.

His fate is sealed.

Another life destroying game.

No one really bothered with the Kinect on display yesterday as it was running some ping pong simulation. The shop made the right decision in displaying Dance Central today instead. A big group crowded around to watch cosplayer after cosplayer jump in to the action, though they were probably more amused in watching girls dancing in funny costumes.

For some reason, the demo kept pausing every few seconds.

As expected, Saturday drew a larger cosplay crowd that Friday, the costumes were of a higher level too. Lots more people were more interested in taking part in the group cosplay event, rather than the solo competition but they’d have to split the same $1000 prize among a large group. Pretty much everybody, came as a Vocaloid group.

Apart from the dozen Vocaloid groups, most cosplayed as anime characters from recent history. There were also some who came as Western comic characters like a couple Iron Men and Predators. But all attention were focused on any cleavage bearing cosplayers spotting at least a B-cup. Standing on the audience side, I could catch lots of lewd remarks coming from the crowd.

Cosplay.

Left the photo-taking up to Wilson (will upload the pictures soon). But apart from a few shots here and there, he wasn’t that keen either as he was coming down with the flu since the morning. I’ve wrote about the whole problem with cosplay photography etiquette (or lack of) one too many times already so I’ll save the trouble. For the full rant, check out one of our past convention posts such as this Cosfest 2010 article.

Some comics fans were outraged by the presence of cosplay at this year’s Toy, Games & Comic Convention. Those complaining ought to learn that cosplay is a staple part of comics conventions even in Western countries. The misunderstanding is derived due to the way cosplay is pictured in Singapore as solely an anime thing.

It just so happens that most cosplayers here prefer to come as characters from Japanese animations. Then again, most of these animations are derived from Japanese comics, so I don’t exactly see what is wrong with that.

Cosplay is here to stay, whether you like it or not. There was similar ignorance and animosity towards AKB48 from some of the public, which you’ll find pretty silly after some explanation below. There is a different between pointless complaining and calculated critique. The difference is, the second is actually useful.

Theater at level 3.

Most of the Singapore public are still unfamiliar with AKB48. They were completely ignored by local media during their last visit in November and the sources that did pay notice, portrayed them in a negative light.

In The Straits Times (Singapore’s state owned public paper that most people trust word for word), reporter Joceyln Lee (a self confessed K-pop fan) even went as far as to insultingly call AKB48′s producer a “Svengali”, the equivalent of saying that he was evil and manipulating the girls. She also called him a “Puppetmaster” and the whole article made AKB48 success to be purely out of recent luck and crazy Japanese people. Come on, even if she would rather have Shinee’s Ding Dong in her, she could have had least do her job properly.

Perhaps there could had been a better way of describing AKB48, rather than calling them Japan’s number one top pop idols. For those that need a better introduction, you can check out some of the detailed coverage throughout this site, but here’s an abridged version.

AKB48 take the stage.

While AKB48 are indeed at the top of the Japanese market after having a ridiculously successful year, they’re position is a result of 5 years of hard work. The group has roots in Akihabara, the Japanese mecca of toys, games and yes, comics, where it performs in person daily (or at least when possible) out of their small theater in the Don Quijote building. The group was created by Akimoto Yasushi, a self confessed otaku and has always been targeted toward such an audience.

AKB48 have always been involved with all manner of otaku interests, which coincidentally cross over to what STGCC is promoting. Even before AKB48 had become successful, they had always played an active role in promoting such media, and many of its members are fans of comics and animation themselves.

They’ve come a long way since their first live shows which attracted an audience of just 7 fans. But it has already been a few years since they’ve become a staple at similar conventions in Japan and Western countries like France and the United States.

Very strong show of support from the South East Asian fans.

12 members from AKB48 were here today to perform their new songs. From the way things seem, their appearance seems to be sort of an emergency measure by their management to right the wrongs of their previous mishap stricken concert in Singapore.

Singaporean fans were treated to an exclusive concert and a meet-the-fan session. Their new song was released just two days prior to their arrival in Singapore, so they’re here at a time where it would be much more profitable to continue promotions in Japan.

The crowd cheered enthusiastically in sync to the songs.

Both AKS (the company managing AKB48) and Reed Exhibitions (the company behind STGCC) are clearly operating at a lost in holding this event. Tickets to the event were sold at only $30 each, less than what it costs to attend a daily show in Japan (AKB48 theater shows cost 3000 yen, or approximately SGD$48).

When multiplied by the 500 or less fans in attendance this day this worked up to just SGD$15,000, which doesn’t even cover any one of these things that made this performance possible: the cost to fly the 12 girls and an equal number of staff over to Singapore, their accommodation or renting the hall and organizing the event.

A pleasant surprise.

After the lessons learnt from last month, AKB48′s management have held more control over this event. The small theater venue is actually an improvement over a concert hall setting. Better acoustics all round and even the worst seats got a clear elevated view of the performance. I would go so far as to say, the conditions were better than even what the Japanese are used to.

In similar fashion to my past posts, you’d have to wait for a more detailed writeup of the AKB48 event. Having to subconsciously “work” while everyone else is fully engrossed in the concert is, I must admit, a vastly different experience. Apologies to anyone if I proved a hindrance at any point of time. Jump higher next time. I was quite surprised to find that everyone knew the Heavy Rotation MIX.

High Tension.

As promised, there was a Jankenpon (rock-paper-scissors) battle with the girls to decide how prize were given out. All attendees were given post cards with one of three symbols printed on the back in different colors. No one knew what it was for.

It turns out, the battle was to be decided en mass. To determine the winners, Uchida Mayumi (who won all the other members of AKB48 in the game to be take center position for their song) would throw a symbol and those who got the winning symbol on their post card would get a prize.

Uchida Mayumi throws scissors.

Between Yan and I, we had a paper and a scissors. So despite good odds of at least one of s winning, we walked away empty handed. Was really depressed after, since I would have killed for an autographed Kuramochi poster. I know it was spoilt of me to want one, but it didn’t help when I learnt later that everyone else I knew in the crowd like Melos and Kreme all won a poster.

Worst yet, according to some sources not all the posters were given out in full. It seems no one has gotten their hands on Kuramochi or Harugon autographed posters. So somewhere out there is a stack of unclaimed posters! (Dear STGCC, you’ve got my address, wink wink).

orz

Each and every fan was given the chance to greet the girls on their way out. To avoid confusion, the handshake session was changed to a “high five everyone” event instead. Still, better than what most fans for. This applies to all musicians.

A rare opportunity.

Favoritism aside, I think its a step in the right direction for all of the mediums present in this year’s STGCC. It’s amazing that some of the most talented guests actually made time to come down to this tiny island country to promote their arts.

From my perspective, STGCC is what a traditional convention should be like, business for those who need it to be and fun for everyone else. I’ve had the chance to speak with some of the people at the booths over the past few days and from the way things are held at STGCC it seems that it is really being marketed as a platform for entities to gain recognition and advance business contacts. This is as opposed to the type which Singaporeans are more familiar with, a means of selling products, services or tickets directly to the public at inflated prices.

Except for toy shops, the public doesn’t have to bare the burden of running costs and all that other business stuff. To the common person visiting STGCC, it is all benefit. The ticket prices don’t even cover the free gifts they are giving away at the door each day or the time and effort the artists and writers are putting in over these 3 days.

This is only the first time that Reed Exhibitions is holding the Singapore Toy, Games & Comic Convention so I’ve been more lenient with my analysis of the event. Mr Paul Lee has expressed his desire to expand STGCC into an all encompassing convention for fans of all types. Here’s to hoping it retains the same spirit next year.

It’s been a long but fulfilling first day at the Singapore Toy, Games & Comic Convention (STGCC). We’ll be posting more detailed coverage on the individual events soon enough. In the meantime here’s a photo tour of some of the things visitors got to experience today and a first hand look at of what to expect in the next couple of days.

Those who have visited the STGCC site in the past few weeks might had noticed our banner there. Though we never mentioned it, Supermerlion is actually an official partner site for the event. But you can still expect us to give our usual no nonsense coverage of the event.

The hall.

Yan and I headed down this morning to the Suntec Convention and Exhibition Centre where STGCC was taking place. Our most skilled photographer couldn’t make it for this day (he’ll be joining us tomorrow) so pardon the sub par photographs, I can’t afford a DSLR.

The public halls weren’t to open until noon sharp but a small group of eager patrons had started waiting downstairs. After getting to meet some of the people behind the STGCC, we headed into the halls first where the press were given a brief introduction to the event.

Where panels will be held for the next couple of days.

This is the Singapore Toy, Games & Comic Convention’s second year running and the first time it is being organized by Reed Singapore. After a short speech, the man that made this year’s STGCC possible answered some questions regarding the event.

For the media, most asked really ridiculous questions like “can you extend STGCC to a week long event” or “who will be coming next year” but he was nice enough to humor them. One of the few actually useful new facts that we learned is that STGCC is expecting 30,000 visitors this year, which they hope to attract with their wide coverage of the multiple new medias and 22 guests which represent it. This is a significantly smaller estimate than the 70,000 estimate from AFA, so could we hope to see more manageable crowds?

Short autograph session.

The guests of honor took the stage and were introduced in turn, most prominently of which were the gang from Marvel and Gail Simon. For more information, check out the STGCC Guest List post we covered earlier. Unfortunately, Salvador Larroca wasn’t around as his flight has been delayed due to the recent weather troubles. They were invited up to stage for some autographs first and sat down later to answer some questions.

Brief Q&A session.

These guys are pretty big names in the comic industry so you can expect the fanboy questions brought up. Still, it was sad to see that all of the questions were directed towards Cebulski, Matt Fraction and Gail Simon. No love for Asian talent.

Sads.

The whole press introduction lasted approximately half an hour, after which we were allowed to roam about the halls for a brief 30 minutes uninterrupted by the public.

Animax.

More capsule machines here than anywhere else.

Unavoidably, there are some of the same shops from the recent local event. Animax brought back their live anime subbing booths and someone’s toy collection is back, though with new additions since we last saw it.

Vocaloids.

Professor Layton!

Yan wanted to get this.

Lupin. As usual it's mine.

Not for sale.

Perhaps due to the lower booth rates, we’re seeing lots more local entities this time. There were a lot more toys and figure shops, such as Action City, which was selling the Itazura Cat Coin Bank.

At the Action City booth.

There was also a bigger show of local artists, who set up their own booths along the corner of the hall. One of them caught my attention for being really niche.

Photos for sale.

Of their precious.

We found the booth for a fairly a new local toy company called Play Imaginative, they’re the guys inviting Mori Chack and the DEVILROBOTS duo from Japan. They’re actually manufacturing their own toys with collaborations from famous designer toy artists as well as original local designs.

Singapore's own toy manufacturer.

These were cute.

Original Tofu Oyakos.

Lots of stuff for sale here and I was kind of considering getting a Gloomy Bear Tofu Oyako since it was the most familiar character for me here. I had actually learned of Gloomy Bear back from Japanorama, the same wacky documentary that began my love for AKB48 back in 2006.

Courtesy Lion project.

Yan on the other hand was attracted to these Courtesy Lion figures designed during a recent local competition. He ended up purchasing one to give to one of the AKB48 girls tomorrow.

Gets.

If it’s still as popular as it was half a decade ago, I’m guessing local designers and students will be most looking forward to tokidoki’s booth at the STGCC. As with last year, lots of merchandise up for grabs.

tokidoki.

Lots of merchandise here for sale.

Vector goodness.

It seems for once, SingPost (whom I am engaged in an eternal struggle in with my delayed mails), is doing something right. They’ve actually collaborated with tokidoki’s Simon Legno to come up with a line of exclusive Singapore stamps designs.

Something super in this picture.

Singapore exclusive.

It wasn’t long before the main doors opened. As I had predicted, security was greatly beefed up in Suntec City, so while you didn’t have to queue up to buy tickets for STGCC (they are available from Gatecrash), there was now a queue to board the escalator in an organized manner. Since it was just for the escalator, the line moved quickly.

The arrangement was probably made to prevent a similar situation (which I am sure I wrote about in one of Tokyo Anime Fair posts) where a whole bunch of people came crashing down from the escalator during a convention in Japan.

Crowd control.

First customers got free stuff.

Those who came early were dearly rewarded. As STGCC have and will be giving away over $500,000 worth of toys and comics to those who purchased their tickets early and the first visitors.

Manageable.

Despite the steady flow of people into the hall now, the crowds were still surprisingly manageable. Of course, this was a Friday afternoon so I’ll be keeping my fingers crossed till the weekend.

Phil Ortiz personally signs Simpsons comics that you buy.

There were ongoing events throughout the day happen simultaneously everywhere. The thing I found great was that these big names were right here personally at their booths. That’s what an exhibitions should be like.

On going autographs.

There are really too so many things going on everywhere this year and if you look at the schedule you’d notice that timings for many of the key events overlap. It’s pretty similar over in Japan, if not worse as every booth over there seems to have their own stage. Fortunately, lots of the events at STGCC repeat themselves over the 3 days but I can understand that some might be disappointed that they won’t be able to see everything in a single day.

Guys from DEVILROBOTS were actually customizing purchases.

As mentioned before, STGCC will be having three different cosplay competitions where anyone from the public can jump in and enter. There was a small booth on the left side of the hall where entries were documented and shortlisted for the finals later in each day.

Preliminary eliminations here.

So that is how Gundams are made.

Documenting the contestants.

Perhaps not many could find the time or resource to assemble their costumes due to how close the event is to this year’s AFA as there was actually a much smaller show of cosplayers today. There’s a pretty good chance for anyone with enough passion to net the $1000 prize.

Cosplay on level 3.

The cosplayers that did turn up today gathered downstairs at level 3. Here’s a few necessary shots to tide everyone over until we can post more. I’ll let Wilson handle this.

Nurarihyon from Nura.

Black Rock Shooter.

This BRS looks familiar but that’s probably because she was also Hatsune Miku in Geraldine’s Vocaloid group at AFAX. How to get recognized in Singapore. Come as anything related to Miku. Genius.

Hardcore.

Back upstairs, the stage prepared for AKB48′s appearance at STGCC this afternoon. Nakatsuka Tomomi, Uchida Mayumi and Ishida Haruka had flew in in the morning for this day’s segment. The first 50 people on stage were going to get handshakes with the girls so the SGP48 guys had queued up since 12 PM. The event was at 4. A group from the Indonesian fan community had flew in specially for this as well as the meet-the-fans sessions the next day.

Turnout.

Since it was an open event today, lots of passer-bys just seeing whats going on. Sadly as this is Singapore, lots of them were snapping or videoing away during the performance. Some have already been uploaded. I asked for permission from the management first, so my conscience is clear.

The stage.

I’ll cover the AKB48 articles separately over the next few days in a less sleep-depraved state. But here are some highlights of the event, in photos.

Zannen Shoujo

Tsundere.

Number one lucky girl.

Dreams Come True.

The AKB48 event lasted only a brief 30 minutes and was followed shortly by a fashion show from Merveilleux Boutique. They’ve brought in a bunch of talents to model the Indonesian label’s clothing line. Fresh young things in really lovely Asian, goth and renaissance inspired lolita dresses, which can only mean one thing.

Uncles. Lots and lots of uncles.

Couture.

This one seemed to be inspired by traditional Han dress.

Classic lolita.

Japanese influences.

Eitelkeit by Ellya Chao.

Really beautiful dresses if I must say myself. Even Yan was captivated. Next up was the cosplay finals for the solo category. Ms Ellya Chao, the woman behind Merveilleux Boutique was one of the judges.

Each of the cosplayers had 3 minutes to showcase their talents.

Kamen Rider Den-O strikes a pose.

Elementalist from Granado Espada. She did a solo skit with the screen.

Finally, a sneak peak of more to come.

AKB48.

Nakatsuka Tomomi.

Ishida Haruka.

Stay tuned for more surprises.

It’s only slightly more than two weeks till the Singapore Toy, Games & Comic Convention at Suntec City in December. Here’s a run through just some of the many guests STGCC have invited to appear in Singapore next month.

Comics

Chester B. Cebulski (Guest of Honor)
Marvel Comics will be making an official appearance in Asia for the first time at this year’s STGCC. The company will be sending a number of its distinguished talents to Singapore most notable of which is C.B. Cebulski, who earlier this year was promoted to Senior Vice President, Creator & Content Development of Marvel Worldwide, Inc.

Avengers Fairy Tales. Cover by Claire Wendling.

A writer by nature, Cebulski started his career as a manga editor before joining Marvel to create the Marvel Fairy Tales series. Now as SVP for Content Development, Cebulski is responsible for the companies’ creative direction. He will be coming to STGCC to hunt for potential talents in Singapore. Aspiring artists may have the chance to have their portfolio’s reviewed.

Gail Simone (Guest of Honor)
Gail Simone is a famous American comics writer who started her career writing Simpsons and Marvel comics but now works mostly on DC titles. She has penned for DC’s Action Comics, the Birds of Prey series as well as the Wonder Woman comic for the past 3 years. Gail will signing autographs on the 10th of December and will also be on stage to answer questions about creative writing.

David Llyod (G&B Comics Guest)
David Llyod is a British artist that has worked on a number of well known visual novels such as Doctor Who, Hellblazer and the one even non-fans should be at least familiar with, V for Vendetta which he conceived together with Alan Moore. Both V for Vendetta as well as Hellblazer (as Constantine) have been adapted into blockbuster movies. David will be appearing for Saturdays events.

Salvador Larroca (Guest of Honor)
A veteran artist in the comics industry, Salvador Larroca has been working with Marvel comics for more than a decade. While he has dabbled on an assortment of different titles, Salvador is noted for his contributions to the X-Men, Fantastic Four and most recently, The Invincible Iron, which he won an Eisner Award for last year.

The Invincible Iron Man by Salvador Larroca and Matt Fraction.

Matt Fraction (Guest of Honor)
Matt Fraction is an Eisner Award-winning writer and one of the most popular. He is best known for his work on The Invincible Iron Man (together with Salvador Larroca), Thor and Uncanny X-Men. Due to his contributions to the Iron Man series, Fraction was brought in as a consultant for the Iron Man 2 movie.

Fraction is STGCC’s most recently announced guest. He will be appearing on the first two days of the conference to hold autograph sessions with fans and appear in panels.

Tan Eng Huat
Tan Eng Huat is a Eisner Award winning artist from Malaysia. He began his career with DC Comics a decade ago and since then has worked on many popular series for both DC and Marvel such as the Batman, JLA, Silver Surfer, Ghost Rider, Punisher and Thor. Eng Huant also received the 2010 Singapore Young Artist Award for Literary Arts.

Phil Ortiz
Phil Ortiz is a five-time Emmy winning animator and an acclaimed cartoonist of over 30 years experience in the industry. He’s a lead for the Simpsons Comics, a supervisor for the TV series and is responsible for designing about 200 characters from The Simpsons. Over the years, Ortiz has also worked with many big entertainment companies such as Disney, Warner Brothers and Hanna Barbera for their comics, animations and merchandise.

Toys & Illustration

Simone Legno
Simone Legno is a Roman illustrator better known by the label tokidoki, a merchandising brand that Legno created from his love for Japanese culture. tokidoki started off as a series of simple vector art but has since expanded into a full range of products as varied as Hello Kitty herself. Over the years, Legno has collaborated with many other brands and pop culture icons including Kitty-chan. tokidoki’s goods have become so popular that they are now officially distributed by over 1000 outlets in more than 60 different countries (and pirated in many more).

tokidoki t-shirts. Photo by Liane Chan.

Nishiyama Koto & Kitai Shinichiro
Nishiyama Koto is the creator of the Tofu-Oyako character who also co-founded DEVILROBOTS Inc in 1997. Nishiyama’s Tofu-Oyako is a iconic pop culture icon in the designer toys community that acts as the mascot for DEVILROBOTS Inc. The character has been honored by other toys companies such as Medicom in their Kubrick series and Bandai’s Soul of Chogokin series (one of the highest grade of toys available).

Kitai Shinichiro the chief executive director for the DEVILROBOTS Inc. In addition to their toys, the company specializes in graphic design for print, tv and the web and have collaborated with many popular brands. Kitai also serves as the company’s art director, leading the rest of the team in creating their iconic designs.

Performing

Ellya Chao from Merveilleux Boutique
Merveilleux Boutique is an Indonesian fashion label founded by Ellya Chao that specializes in original Goth, Victorian and even Punk styled Lolita dresses. The company tailors costumes for stage productions and has previously showcased its works in Singapore, Japan and Indonesia. Among the Indonesian public, Merveilleux Boutique’s dresses are popular among cosplayers as well as those looking for a trendy evening dress for special occasions.

We’ll definitely see a line of the studio’s dresses on display at STGCC and Ellya Chao will be holding a panel where she will be joined by two local cosplayers to give tips on designing costumes for cosplay.

Goth dresses by Merveilleux Boutique.

Team J Phillips
Team J Phillips is a collective of the leading martial arts talents in Hollywood. The group is lead by the Singapore born Jennifer Phillips, an award winning stunt choreographer who has worked on high budget blockbusters such as 300, Charlie’s Angels, Mission Impossible III, Pirates of the Caribbean, The Twilight Saga, Wolverine and the upcoming Thor movie. Team J Phillips will be coming to Singapore for the first time to wow audiences with their acrobatic feats of strength and agility.

AKB48
As mentioned before, AKB48 will be making an appearance at the STGCC next month. It has been less than a month since their last performance but they will be returning to Singapore this time to promote the release of their next single Chance no Junban. Those who visit the fair on Friday will be able to see a brief appearance by the girls on the main stage while fans will be able to participate in a mini-concert and meet-the-fans session on Saturday. Tickets for the Saturday AKB48 event are a bargain at only $30, inclusive of entry to the STGCC main halls on the same day.

Title image courtesy of Jason Persse. New York Comic Con 2010.

Moving on, everyone’s looking forward to STGCC (Singapore Toy, Games & Comic Convention) next month. AKB48 will be visiting to promote their new single Chance no Junban with a mini-concert and an exclusive meet-the-fans session. If that isn’t your thing, STGCC will be holding its own cosplay competition to win between $500-$1000 in cash. It seems you won’t even have to be some famous invited cosplayer to stand a chance a winning this time.

Now in its second year of running, the Singapore Toy, Games & Comic Convention covers the hobbies of comics, anime, film, toys, collectibles and games (according to their website). STGCC has confirmed 21 big names in the comics and illustration industry so far including David Lloyd (V for Vendetta), Kitai Shinichiro (DEVILROBOTS), Nishiyama Koto (Tofu Oyako) and of course Simone Legno (Tokidoki). If it was anything like last year, it would mean you could meet all these illustrators at their booths, get some exclusive items and even their autographs.

Not a big fan of vector, since I used to do that stuff for a living many years back but some friends managed to grab some Tokidoki T-shirts and uchiwa at last year’s STGCC. Still, lots of amazing classical illustrators. Marvel Comics will be making their first appearance in Singapore too. The official presence of these artists and the companies they represent marks a stark contrast to other disappointments.

Another chance for cosplayers to shine this year.

As mentioned above, there’s going to be a cosplay competition at the fair which will be open to anyone from the public. There are 3 categories to take part in, a Solo contest (10th December) and Group contest (11th December) for those above 12 years old, as well as a junior category contest from those between 5-12 (12th December). The first prize for each category is $1000, $1000 and $500 respectively. You can take part in more than one category, obviously except for those taking part in the 3rd contest.

The themes are not limited to Manga and Anime, so it should make for an interesting contest. I can expect that the children contest should be quite amusing. Would be fun to be a cosplay judge.

Unsurprisingly, my greatest interest in STGCC is the presence of AKB48. Reed (the people behind the event) have invited Japan’s biggest pop idol group (in more than one sense of the word) to promote their upcoming new single Chance no Junban, which will feature the lineup decided by the AKB48 Janken Senbatsu tournament which I previously covered.

This time, the girls will be here for a two day event. They will be appearing at STGCC’s main stage on Friday the 10th December for a short performance and at the Suntec auditorium on the 11th for a closed door meet-the-fans session.According to STGCC’s website “Fans will have the opportunity to listen to their latest songs, play games with the girls and win autographed CDs”. Considering that the event is scheduled two days after the release of AKB48′s new single, an intelligent guess says that the Janken Senbatsu won’t be coming as they will be busy promoting the single back in Japan.

What are the chances of getting this signed.

Entry tickets to the fair on Friday will allow you to see them stage ($10.70), while access to the Saturday fan session costs $30 (which includes entry to the fair on that day). It is unlikely that that they will be performing nearly as many songs this time round, but it is still much cheaper than their previous visit. Tickets can be bought online from Gatecrash.

You can bet I’ll be heading over to check STGCC out next month. I’ll reserve any judgment till then. So far the only problem has been the lack of publicity for the event ahead of time. I only found out about it not too long ago (because of the AKB48 announcement). They could have called upon some more visible blogs for help. I’m giving STGCC a shout out here because it’s always nice to some people actively promoting the media (both classic and digital) industry in Singapore. You can find their website here.

Title image by Natalie.

Weekly Shonen Magazine recently released a new manga series, published in favor of the new idol trend in Japan, AKB49 ~ Renai Kinshi Jourei. The title is loosely based on the ever popular AKB48 group. AKB fans will be delighted to find manga versions of their favorite idols drawn into the comic. In this article below I’ll share with you some details and information regarding this series.

While I have no intention of spoiling the fun of reading this manga series yourself, I do have to give a heads up on what to expect from the AKB49 manga. Firstly, while most of the popular AKB48 idols will make an appearance, they are by no means the main cast of the story. Instead, the story follows a boy called Urayama Minoru and his misadventures of having to join the AKB48 team.

Pictures below will give you an general idea of how the AKB49 series feels like.

AKB49's debut in Weekly Shonen Magazine.

They look a little different when drawn manga style.

Color page of AKB49, drawn by Miyajima Reiji.

Maeda Atsuko makes an appearance.

Oshima Yuko appears too, whilst making some weird actions.

Followed by Shinoda Mariko's interaction with the main character Urayama Minoru.

Even AKB48's founder, Akimoto Yasushi makes an appearance.

The story follows a boy(?!) named Urayama Minoru through his adventures.

Having already covered several high profile Mangaka names like Toriyama Akira and Oda Eiichiro, this time I’ll be introducing a lesser known mangaka: Yagi Norihiro (八木教広). Calling him a lesser known mangaka might not be exactly appropriate, since anime fans should be rather familiar with the Claymore animation that appeared during 2007. What most people didn’t really take note of, is that the anime adaption of Claymore was derived from this mangaka.

Born 1968 and hailing from Okinawa Prefecture, Yagi Norihiro is definitely unique in many aspects. It’s a rare sight to spot any Okinawan mangaka and I’m guessing that his unique drawing style might be somehow derived from his exposure to the Okinawan way of life.

The reason why I regard his works as unique is from my impression when I first laid eyes on Yagi’s colored art. It gave the feeling of a artistic paintwork of sorts. By taking a look at his manga art, some might regard his drawings as minimal and I do realize he pays more attention to the shadows and atmosphere, for the lack of facial expression on some of his characters.

So far Yagi has done up 2 major series: Angel Densetsu and Claymore. Both of his works enjoy considerable attention but it wasn’t until after the Claymore anime which shot him up to the popularity he enjoys now. For the rest of this article, I’ll be guiding you through the finer details of each of his works.

From top, Angel Densetsu, Claymore.

Firstly, Angel Densetsu (エンジェル伝説). It was his first debut manga to be serialized in Weekly Shonen Jump and it ran from 1992 till 2000. A total of 15 tankobon volumes were published since then. Prior to his success in the Claymore manga, I would consider anyone who read Angel Densetsu to be a very brave or hardcore manga fan. Even I would have to admit that I only started reading Angel Densetsu after Claymore.

Angel Densetsu is a dark humor manga that follows the story of a collage boy named Seiichirou Kitano, a kind and naive boy with the sinister looks of a devil but a heart of gold (or alternatively a heart of an angel, where the manga’s title “Angel Densetsu” derives from). Due to his sinister looks, he has causes many misunderstandings between his peers and teachers, leading people to assume that he is a villain or heroin addict who would kill them should they stare at him for even a second.

You’ve got to admit that Yagi’s color works are rather rough looking and his manga art looks very minimal from the pictures below. But after a while one will notice that this is a very unique drawing style he has taken in his works. You could say that his art has a very dark feel to it (not every scene is dark, but at least most are). It does suit his manga concept and he’s managed to create a manga with a great atmosphere that is enjoyable to read.

Everyone who have taken their precious time to read through Angel Densetsu have given rave reviews on how Yagi Norihiro managed to bring through the concept of dark humor so cleverly. I would really recommend this manga series to anyone who is able to endure through the rather rough artworks. This is, after all Yagi Norihiro’s first serialized manga, so expect that his work will improve greatly through the course of time.

Angel Densetsu tankobon cover.

Most of his color cover pages feature a roughly colored style of art.

The initial outlook of the manga gives an imperssion that this is a very dark manga.

But in actual fact, it is a comedy manga. Go figure.

Next up is the still ongoing Claymore manga. Possibly his most well known work due to the release of a Claymore anime in 2007. The series initially premiered in the now defunct Monthly Shonen Jump in 2001 but has since then been shifting around other sister magazines like Weekly Shonen Jump, until it finally settled on Jump Square in November 2007. The individual chapters are released on a monthly basis on Jump Square (ongoing) and 18 tankobon volumes are currently published by Shueisha, as of 2010.

Claymore (クレイモア) is a dark fantasy manga that evolves around the main protagonist Clare, which surprisingly is a female half human, half yoma (妖魔) warrior (there’s not really a lot of shonen manga that uses a female character as a protagonist). Clare and her group of warriors are produced by an organization with the sole purpose of killing sentient monsters called Yoma that feed on human innards. These warriors are named “Claymores”, based on the swords they wield and have a cold outward appearance towards everything. Their distinctive silver eyes also give them the nickname “Silver Eyed Witches”.

Fantasy manga are a dime the dozen in the shonen manga world but Claymore definitely stands for being well developed. Besides the initial yoma slaying tale, there are also a recollection of plots through which the reader will understand the reasons why Clare was made into a Claymore and her motivations on carrying out her “duties” as a Silver Eye Witch. There’s a larger and very interesting story twist unraveling in the current part of the story, making Claymore an engaging read.

In terms of artwork and color, Yagi Nohiro has definitely pushed himself up a notch from his previous work “Angel Densetsu”. To some readers, the art in the first few volumes of the manga might still be considered rough. But believe me that once you get through this slightly unbearable part, the artwork only gets better and the story will definitely draw you into chasing the manga chapter by chapter.

Yagi Norihiro is noticeably better at drawing females rather than males. But even with that, I believe that some will still consider his characters expressionless or categorize them as “same faces with different hair styles”. But that’s Norihiro’s drawing style for you. Where he excels in instead, is his superb shadows and dark renderings that suits the needs of this manga perfectly.

Such a dark manga would usually not capture any mainstream attention in the shonen manga world, but Claymore is one of the few such that has actually made it this far. I would recommend this manga series to anyone who is able to look past some of the rough artworks.

Claymore tankobon cover.

Claymore's main protagonist, Clare.

Since Angel Densetsu, Yagi's color artworks have vastly improved in terms of linework.

This will give a slight idea of how the characters/monsters in Claymore looks like. Click to enlarge.

Yagi Norihiro’s works are not exactly meant for every reader. It will require some dedication and understanding on the readers part, to enjoy either Claymore or Angel Densetsu. Some readers might even mistake his manga for a Seinen genre. But once you get past the initial barrier, you’ll realize that Yagi’s works offer an alternate little paradise in the world of shonen manga. Go on and pick up one of his manga series. You won’t be disappointed by the dark worlds that Yagi Norihiro has imagined.

One Piece Strong World premiered in Japan on December 12 2009, taking theaters by storm. The film drew in fans with its original story, written by Oda Eiichiro himself in honor of One Piece’s Tenth Anniversary (in previous films Oda only supplied character designs and approved story ideas, and not to mention, some of the previous films were story arcs pulled directly from the manga itself with some heavy editing). Another reason for the film’s popularity, was the special promo for the movie. The first 1.5 million moviegoers who saw One Piece Film Strong World would receive the Volume 0 of the manga as a gift.

Releasing only 1.5 million of the book turned out to be a rather bad move as fans outnumbered the books (by many times, if foreign One Piece fans were taken into account as well). Fortunately, Toei Animation has decided to add another printing of 1 million copies for the manga. Unfortunately for me, I don’t live in Japan. So catching the movie live on theaters and getting a book for myself was deemed impossible. The only option left was to secure a book from a willing Japanese seller through auctions.

Pictures of my own Once Piece Volume 0 below.

One Piece volume 0, also known as Strong World.

It is really a very thin book, probably 1/3 of a normal One Piece volume.

Stated, not for sale.

Ramblings by the author Oda Eiichiro.

The “0th volume” bonus gift depicts the world of One Piece from 20 years ago. It is said that this volume is directly related to the plot of the movie – in particular, the Pirate King Gol D. Roger versus the legendary pirate “Golden Lion” Shiki. Also included in the rather thin book were various character, monster and background sketches done up by Oda Eiichiro. There are also interviews as well as comments on making the movie. Sample pictures below.

The book kicks off with a 30~40 page story prior to the story of Strong World.

20 years before the start of the adventures of Straw Hat Luffy, with various characters from the manga making cameo appearances.

The latter pages of the book consists of various sketches of the main characters, monsters, backgrounds etc.

One Piece Strong World monster art. There are also various interviews and comments about the movie included.

I recommend this be to be added into your collection, if you’re one of the serious and crazed One Piece fans too who do not care how much it may cost you to get a book. For the less crazed community, I hope my share will bring you some insight to what the book contains.

Oda Eiichiro (尾田 栄一郎) easily takes the #1 spot on my list of favorite mangaka and it is easy to see why. As the creator of the insanely popular One Piece, he currently stands as the most wanted man in the manga industry. While (as mentioned before) Toriyama Akira brought forth the golden age of manga when he was serializing Dragonball, Oda Eiichiro is now considered his spiritual successor and has brought along the 2nd golden age of manga in Japan. I’m sure crazed fans will protect him from any harm just to make sure that he churns out their favorite manga chapters every week without fail.

Oda Eiichiro, picture taken during 1999.

Oda Eiichiro was born January 1st 1975 in Kumamoto, Japan. As a kid, Toriyama Akira’s works had aspired him to work his way to become a manga artist himself and he eventually worked his way up to becoming an assistant to several established mangaka, one of which was Nobuhiro Watsuki of Rurouni Kenshin/Samurai X fame. It was during then that he started to draw with several adopted styles before finally create a new drawing style of his own.

To decipher Oda’s unusual art style, pay attention to the weirdly drawn characters and the minimalist dotted-eyes, verified as some of his signature trademarks. These character designs have since become one of One Piece’s selling points, allowing Oda to freely create even more eccentric and outrageous characters.

But things hasn’t always been as smooth in the past. At the time of One Piece’s release, the dot-eyed style of artwork was becoming less popular and manga and anime seemed to be moving toward the more popular Bishonen or the big-eyed style of drawing, made famous by shows like Sailor Moon. Eiichiro Oda was fully aware of the change of art style and was worried early on in its run that his style of  “ugly” or “weird” characters would put off people from reading his manga. As time progressed and One Piece’s popularity grew, Oda was able to relax the style more, resulting in One Piece’s drawing style becoming more loose and kinetic, exaggerated even.

Oda’s greatest accomplishment to date and his only long running manga series is the now legendary One Piece. But fret not, for I’ll also be covering his one-shot series collection “Wanted” and touching on the previously mentioned Cross Epoch to our readers.

From top, One Piece, "Wanted".

First up, One Piece.
The epic pirate adventure manga written and drawn by Oda Eiichiro, One Piece has been running in Weekly Shonen Jump since 1997. 593 individual chapters were collected and published in 58 tankobon volumes (ongoing). Since its debut, One Piece has established itself as one of the premiere manga series in the magazine. One Piece holds the highest total manga sales within Japan, and is currently Weekly Shōnen Jump’s most acclaimed and all-time best-selling title, having sold over 140 million copies domestically. It is also the fastest manga to reach sales of 100 million.

The story introduced Monkey D. Luffy, a straw-hat wearing boy who set out to sea to become a legendary pirate. One Piece has since evolved into more than a simple pirating tale. The manga is known to employ colorful and creative motifs that are taken from classic mythology, politics and musical inspirations. It is also mixed with pirate lore and the typical Shonen formula. Through the years of its serialization, One Piece has taken vastly differing directions in its storyline, at a time waving off the initial focus of the pursuit in becoming Pirate King. One Piece also has been noted to include many moral values such as what treasure is, the meaning of justice and the concept of chasing ones dreams.

For the last 13 years, One Piece was one of the few manga series that had me loyally chasing its weekly chapters and bi-monthly tankobon volumes. It has indeed secured its place as the number one manga series in my heart. I would heavily recommend One Piece to anyone who can afford the time, money and patience to read all 593 of the currently published chapters. It has all the passion, adventure and excitement that the best Shonen manga has to offer.

Volume 1 tankobon of One Piece.

Volume 52 tankobon of One Piece. Featuring the full cast of the Straw Hats Pirate crew and Silvers Reileigh, an important character in the current story arc.

As One Piece has expanded to an almost 600 chapter long adventure, One Piece Log books are also created to allow young children/budget readers to be able to afford all the back story of the popular series who might not have the fortune to read it right from the start of its release.

These large sized One Piece magazines usually include an average of 30 manga chapters, along with some additional info pages. They have the same format as the Weekly Shonen Jump magazines but are entirely dedicated to only one series: One Piece. As such, the chapters retain their colored pages/posters and even offer supplementary postcards or special tankobon book covers.

One Piece log book. Each Log have a subtitle giving a hint of the arcs it covers.

3rd One Piece log book. This edition covers the story arc of Nami, with an original artwork cover by Oda.

I’ll also include some of the One Piece guide books and other miscellaneous art books for reference while I’m still on the topic of One Piece. Please bear with me for this fanboyish behavior but I’ll try to cover some of other stuff that has been released with the success of One Piece.

One Piece Databooks are a series of tankobon format books that are regarded as Encyclopedias to the One Piece world. Until now, three One Piece data books have been released; One Piece Red Grand Characters, One Piece Blue Grand Data File and the One Piece Yellow Grand Data File.

Different books cover slightly different information that ranges from a Character directory, Devil Fruits Encyclopedia, Animal/Monster guide, World Navigation and some of the other miscellaneous stuff like Oda’s Workshop. It included not only series information but also specially drawn four-panel manga side stories, the Luffy Pirates 4-Panel Theater. Each of the shots featured one of the Straw Hat Pirates in absurd situations.

One Piece Red Grand Characters.

One Piece Color Walk is a book series containing past title page artworks in color. Originally, these artworks were produced in greyscale and featured in both Shonen Jump and the manga collective volumes like this. This is a standard for many manga in Japan due to the cost of producing color reproductions. The color walk presented a unique opportunity to see Oda’s title page artwork in color.

One Piece color walk. There are 4 different color walk books out currently.

Once Piece 10th Treasures is a special collectors book released in 2007 to celebrate the 10th anniversary of One Piece. It includes much information (and spoilers) as well as concept art by Oda. There is also an entire section dedicated to One Piece art done by other manga artists in their art styles.

One Piece 10th Treasures.

Grand Paper Adventure was a book containing various works by Oda Eiichiro placed into a pop-up format.

One Piece Grand Paper Adventure.

Popups.

While again slightly off-topic, I’ll also like to introduce readers to One Piece Strong World.

The film is an original story written by Oda Eiichiro himself in honor of One Piece’s Tenth Anniversary. In previous One Piece films, Oda provided character designs and approved story ideas. There were even 2 movies featuring heavily edited story arcs from the manga episodes itself. For Strong World, Toei personally asked Oda if he would write the story himself and as a result, One Piece Strong World was promoted as one of Oda Eiichiro’s original works. This is the first movie for One Piece that is written by Oda himself, so it is generally regarded as canon and not filler, even though the story drifts slightly from the main storyline.

One Piece Strong World.

One Piece Strong World Cover mural Oda did for Weekly Shonen Jump magazine.

As mentioned before, One piece is the only series he has run thus far, So the next thing I’m going to introduce is the tankobon compilation of one-shots Oda had done before he started on One Piece. “Wanted”! initially was the title of the first one-shot that he had written, but it became the title of the single tankobon book of his various compiled one-shots. I’ll cover through every single one with summarized introduction below.

Wanted! (1992)
God’s Gift for the Future (1993)
Ikki Yako (1994)
Monsters (1994)
Romance Dawn V.2 (1996)

Wanted!

“Wanted”! (ウォンテッド!) was the earliest and the first of the one-shots featured in the compilation tankobon. The story opens with Wild Joe, a bounty hunter, going after the head of wanted criminal, Gill Bastar but was unfortunately killed by Gill Bastar in a hilarious way. In turn, Joe becomes a ghost and starts haunting Gill in hopes of killing him.

God's Gift for the Future.

God’s Gift for the Future (神から未来のプレゼント) was the 2nd one-shot featured in the book. The story starts with god, who is furious with the pickpocket Bran and decides to punish him with death. He wrote in his special notebook: A meteorite will hit Bran’s house”, but accidentally writes “A meteorite will hit Branchi”, Branchi being a big department store. He tries to set things right by forcing Bran to do a cover up for this accident.

Ikki Yako.

Thirdly, Ikki Yako (一鬼夜行). Ikki Yako is a prologue of the monster slaying monk Gukou. Previously a timid monk who runs away from the slightest fear, he goes on a journey to look for his lost master/best friend. After knowing that the monster who was chasing him had eaten his master, he takes up the guardian’s sword and kills it, thus becoming a legend.

Monsters.

Next is Monsters (モンスターズ). The story follows the air-headed Ryuuma who’s a wandering samurai. Upon reaching a small town seeking food and lodging, he is unfortunately accused of summoning a dragon to town causing everyone to have to evacuate the town. Just as the dragon arrived, Ryuuma leaped from a building and with one mighty swing, slew the beast.

Interestingly, in Oda’s current manga One Piece, there is a appearance of a similar character named the Samurai Ryuuma. He is said to hail from Wano Country (a parody of “Wa no Kuni” or “Japan”) and was said to have slain a dragon just like in the story of Monsters. According to Oda, the two are the the same character, thus this makes Monsters the only previous story linked to One Piece other than…

Romance Dawn.

The last of the one-shots and a pre-sequel to the popular One Piece, Romance Dawn is actually a 45 page one-shot of One Piece that follows the similar cast of characters. It stars Straw Hat Luffy on his initial adventures of becoming the pirate king.

From the Romance Dawn series, you can see the evolution of Oda’s art style in his early works like Monsters to the art style used in the more current One Piece. By the time Romance Dawn V.2 was drawn, Oda’s overall style of drawing was much closer to that used during the beginning of the One Piece series.

Single tankobon volume of Wanted!.

I consider this single one shot compilation to be a interesting read. But of course all one-shots suffers from a lack of story depth, which comes from the restrictions of having to tell a story within 40~50 pages. Nevertheless, I will still recommend this book to all readers. Not only will you be able to enjoy the evolution of Oda’s artwork but also some award winning stories.

My final introduction on Oda Eiichiro’s one-shot and series will be on the previously mentioned before Cross Epoch. A cooperation of artworks between Oda Eiichiro and the Dragonball creator, Toriyama Akira. This one-shot is a crossover that presents characters from both One Piece and Dragon Ball. Sad to say, despite having the two greatest mangaka of Weekly Shonen Jump history art in a one-shot, there are zero story elements.

Cross Epoch. An evil decision by Shueisha to give hope for readers.

Oda Eiichiro has secured his place as the golden child of this generation of manga artists and made history by creating a series that secured the hearts of many. What he initially planned for One Piece to last for only about 5 years, it’s been running for 13 years and is still going story. Fortunately for us readers, his passion and drive beyond duty to give just that little more in his works has make One Piece the stuff of legends.

I guess its a mixed feeling to being able to surpass Toriyama Akira who served as both his inspiration and mentor who’s works has lead him to pursue the path of being a mangaka. Alas, Oda stated that after he finishes One Piece, he intends to take the same path Toriyama did and focus on creating short-story manga.

Till then, I can only hope that he will void any such plans and continue to dish out another epic long running manga series. But for now, One Piece stands as the best adventure manga one can get their hands on. Do pick up a volume of the One Piece manga to support him and do yourself a flavor by reading one of the most epic adventures ever to be told.

Otomen is an under appreciated late night drama that that aired near the end of last year. The romance comedy is a live action version of one of the best selling shojo manga series. It stars an assortment of fresh faces such as Okada Masaki (Taiyo to Umi no Kyoshitsu), Kaho (Engine) and Seto Koji (Kamen Rider Kiva, Atashinchi no Danshi).

The cast of Otomen.

The title Otomen, is a fictional term created by the author Kanno Aya to describe the stereotypical shojo manga pretty boy character. The whimsical story revolves around the “Otomen” Okada Masaki’s meeting and eventual romance with the clumsy and overly boyish Kaho. Unknown to them, their awkward relationship is being compiled into a manga by a close friend. Amusingly, the two air-headed characters follow the series faithfully. Effectively, Otomen is a drama based on a manga, about the creation of the manga, which is inspired by the two main characters, who love to read the manga. The plot hardly takes itself seriously.

Confusing.

In each episode, the characters tackle familiar high school problems. The exaggerated personalities of the couple and the supporting characters lead to situations being blown out of control. Like the manga, the scenarios are well thought out. The show further benefits from the silly expressions and comedic timing made possible through film.

The droopy eyed Kaho.

To the rescue.

The rookie cast in Otomen may not be the most recognizable talents available but they do put up a good show. While some were guilty of overacting, most of the main cast were worthy of praise. When compared to past undertakings, their performance in Otomen is certainly more natural and expressive.

When watching foreign comedies, many of the jokes are often lost in translation. I too have a hard time appreciating the slapstick gags found in many Japanese shows. Thankfully, most of Otomen’s humor is derived from recent pop culture and there’s even a surprisingly number of Western influences. Apart from witty puns, the show featured some delightfully dark humor, something rarely found in Japan. The scenarios were pulled off skillfully for maximum comedic impact such that I couldn’t help but laugh, despite already expecting the outcome.

Obama.

Danny Choo?

To top things up, Otomen features one of the coolest closing credits in a drama ever. Though I’ve never considered Shibasaki Kou as much of an actress, let alone singer, her song lover soul is brought to life skillfully in this dramatic scenario. Despite a completely separate theme, the conclusion of each episode blends in seamlessly into the credits.

Toriyama Akira (鳥山 明) is easily the most well known name in the manga industry. For the benefit of the clueless on who he might be, Toriyama Akira is best known for being the creator of Dragon Ball. In this guide, I do hope to do justice to this artist of the highest caliber. As a vivid manga reader, there was no way that I would not write a piece on this famous, talented mangaka who (it could be said) shaped the industry during the peak of his career and brought forth the golden age of manga in Japan and perhaps worldwide.

Toripo. Toriyama Akira's mascot and a character that he uses to depict himself.

Photo of Toriyama Akira.

Toriyama Akira was born on April 5th 1955 in Kiyosu, Aichi, Japan. From young, he was gifted with an exceptional design sense. This is most apparent in the characters he draws with his unique clean line style, a style that can’t be mimicked easily by any other artist.

Toriyama’s artworks are a sight to behold. His line art speaks so much for itself that with just one look, you could tell if a particular drawing was done by Toriyama Akira.

Though he has not mentored any mangaka under his wing, his works have inspired many many mangakas whom are now huge names in the industry. Two great examples are Oda Eiichiro of One Piece and Kishimoto Masashi of Naruto fame, the two leading mangakas in the current golden age of manga in Japan.

In this guide, I will be covering Toriyama’s 2 major works, Dr. Slump and Dragon Ball. Besides that, I’ll also dab upon several short series and one shots that he has drawn over the years.

From top, Dr. Slump, Dragon Ball, Kajika, Neko Majin. Sandland.

First on the list is Dr. Slump. Dr. Slump might not be Toriyama’s debuting manga but its was his first series to see popularity. It was serialized in Weekly Shonen Jump from 1980 to 1984 and Dr. Slump had a total of 18 volumes published under the Jump Comics imprint. Over the years Dr. Slump has been reprinted again and again, as a 9-volume Aizoban edition in 1990, a 9-volume Bunkokan edition in 1995 and a 15-volume Kanzenban edition in 2006. Other than the obvious milking of the title, you could also say that the popularity of Dr. Slump did not wane over the years.

Set in a little town named Penguin village, Dr. Slump plays on the concept of a mediocre inventor who creates a little robot girl named Arale. In general, the manga focuses on Arale’s misunderstandings of humanity, Dr. Slump’s inventions, rivalries, and romantic misadventures in a very funny way (yes it’s a gag manga). Dr. Slump is filled with puns, bathroom jokes as well as parodies of both Japanese and American culture. For example, one of my favorite character in Dr. Slump is “Suppaman”, a short, fat, pompous buffoon who changes into a Superman-like costume by eating a sour-tasting (“suppai” in Japanese) umeboshi.

For those who love gag mangas, this is the one manga that you definitely must pick up and read. For the rest who can’t get enough Toriyama Akira’s works after finishing the Dragon Ball series, this is the only other fairly long series he has written. The rest of his manga contribution are mostly one shots and short serials that stretch for 4 tankobon volumes max.

Volume 1 tankobon of Dr. Slump.

The main character of Dr. Slump, Arale.

A page of how Dr. Slump's comic is like, featuring Suppaman and Arale.

Possibly the single greatest manga series Toriyama Akira has contributed to the society is the legendary Dragon Ball. Dragon Ball had been serialized in Weekly Shonen Jump from 1984 through 1995, and the 519 individual chapters were published into 42 tankobon volumes by Shueisha. Due to its popularity, the manga was re-released in a collection of 34 kanzenban volumes in 2004. It included a slightly rewritten ending, new covers specially drawn by Toriyama for the version and colored artwork of its Weekly Shonen Jump run.

Dragon Ball became an instant accomplishment, initially selling over 35,000,000 copies in Japan. It eventually became a record-breaking best seller with over 120,000,000 copies sold. Aside from the Japanese fame, the series was equally successful internationally in Asia, Europe, Canada and Latin America.

Besides the manga itself, countless anime, games, movies and every other imaginable merchandise were created during the fad. While I’ll stick strictly to the manga when writing for this article, it is good to know that even right now there’s still new stuff being made for Dragon Ball. Quite a feat, considering that the manga is over a decade old.

Dragon Ball follows the adventures of Son Goku from childhood through adulthood as he trains in martial arts and explores the world in search of mystical objects known as Dragon Balls, which can summon a wish-granting dragon. The concept was inspired by the Chinese folk novel Journey to the West and the name of the main character Son Goku was derived from the Monkey God. Do not mistake Dragon Ball as a manga rendition to the Chinese folk novel though, for other than using the same name and featuring martial arts in the manga, the other aspects of the manga is totally Toriyama.

There is no point in questioning whether one should give this manga a read. If you like reading manga, you should never give the Dragon Ball series a miss. If you are a fledgling newcomer to the world of manga, this is THE book to start reading.

Dragon Ball Complete Edition cover. A reprint of the original book made bigger, with new original illustrations by Toriyama Akira.

Dragon Ball tankobon cover. That is Sun Goku (young ver) featured on the front.

Dragon Ball encyclopedia. A full cast of the characters is shown on the cover.

With his main two series covered, I will now introduce a few of the other short series and one shots that Toriyama Akira has written.

First up is Kajika, which was written during the stretch of 1998 (Kajika was written after Toriyama finished Dragon Ball). Kajika is a short series that spans 12 chapters. It talks about a boy (whose name is Kajika) that gets possessed by a fox spirit and the only way for him to revert back to normal is to save 1000 lives. The short story follows his little adventure of completing the deeds.

Kajika. Yes the series was compiled into 1 volume.

Next is Neko Maijin which was originally a one-shot bearing some relation to Akira Toriyama’s other series. The first chapter of Neko Majin appeared in Weekly Shōnen Jump in April 1999 as a series of one-shots of the character on his misadventures. It later became a self-parody of the Dragon Ball manga when he Toriyama started to introduce Neko Majin Z, which featured cameos of Dragon Ball characters. As of 2005, the series was completed in a total of eight chapters (five of which are Dragon Ball parodies). These chapters were compiled into a “Kanzenban” style package for release in Japan on April 4, 2005.

Neko Maijin Z.

Following up, Sandland. Written by Toriyama Akira for Weekly Shonen Jump during the summer of 2000, Sandland features the adventures of two demons and a human on their quest to find water to save both of their races. Interestingly, the main character featured for Sandland is the Demon Prince Beelzebub and the human Sheriff Rao serves as a storyteller in the series. After Sandland completed its run, all fourteen chapters were collected into a single tankobon that was released on November 11, 2000.

PS: Other than his talent in creating great character designs, Toriyama Akira also excels in creating unique vehicles. Some of the more interesting vehicles are featured in Dragon Ball, but right here I’ll show you the page where you can see a nice full view of a tank he has drawn from the Sandland series.

Sandland. Single tankobon volume.

Vehicle artwork in full view. Click to enlarge.

My final introduction on Toriyama Akira’s one-shot/short series will be on Cross Epoch. A cooperation of artworks between Toriyama Akira and One Piece creator Eiichiro Oda. This one-shot is a crossover that presents characters from both One Piece and Dragon Ball. Sad to say, despite having the 2 greatest mangaka’s of Weekly Shonen Jump history art in a one-shot, the are zero story elements.

cross epoch.

Actually there are a lot more other one-shots and the Akira Toriyama’s Manga Theater Vol. series to be introduced, but for the benefit of readers I’ve summarized only the main ones that I consider to be a must read.

To sum everything up, both Kajika and Sandland focus on more serious concepts and bear the similarity of featuring a main character on a journey to save oneself. Neko Maijin would be the gag relief one-shot to be read for fun. Do choose your favorite genre to start reading on. As for Cross Epoch…If you do like the works of both mangakas, you will still enjoy flipping through the pages to admire the character drawings that they have done for it.

After finishing the Dragon Ball series, Toriyama Akira has mainly come up with only rather measly short stories and one-shots that has left everyone yearning for more. Even while he was writing Dragon Ball, he had been planning to end it for a long time. His editors agreed to let him end the manga so he could “take some new steps in life,” as he put it. With that said, the chances are slim that Toriyama would write another long series ever again.

So is this the end of his career? Definitely not.

Fortunately, there have been a lot of other works by Toriyama Akira in places outside the manga world. One area that he often contributes to is the games industry. His unique character design and artworks has lead has translated well into jobs creating the characters and monsters for some of the hugely popular game franchise. Here’s a list of the games he’s involved in for reference.

Dragon Quest series
Dragon Quest Monsters series
Chrono Trigger
Tobal No. 1 , Tobal No. 2
Blue Dragon
Dragon Ball Online

Here are some pictures from the games, there is no way to mistake Toriyama Akiya’s character designs.

Dragon Quest Series.

Various Dragon Quest characters.

Chrono Trigger cover artwork.

Crono, the main character of Chrono Trigger.

Tobal No. 1

Blue Dragon.

Blue Dragon's Various character art.

His knack for character design is so impressive that you can also find his works in the most unlikely places. One great example is Ayumi Hamasaki’s rendition of Sun Goku on her single Rule/Sparkle. I also happened to find his artworks on the Finemolds brand of plastic model kits. Their boxes feature Toriyama’s take on the many different soldiers.

Toriyama Akira's rendition of Ayumi Hamasaki, with Sun Goku's outfit.

Artwork on the CDs too.

Toriyama rendition of a WW2 Japanese soldier artwork.

Toriyama rendition of a Gulf War infantry woman artwork.

There have been many occasions where Toriyama was invited to draw famous people and celebrities in caricature format, or renditions of their outfits. There are of course also countless occasions where he has to draw signboards for his fans as a memorial. Examples below.

Caricature drawing of a Japanese celebrity in a Dragon Ball outfit.

Signboard signature and artwork of Sun Goku.

Toriyama Akira's rendition of the Naruto character for Naruto's 10 anniversary.

As I have mentioned before, Toriyama Akira is not actively working on any manga series or even short stories as of now. Fortunately for Dragon Ball fans though, Toriyama and his studio (Toriyama’s studio is called Bird Studio, which is a play on his name, “tori” meaning bird) have begun work on Dragon Ball Online. It’s a video game follow-up to the Dragon Ball manga that is being developed by Bandai Namco Games and NTL for release in Japan and South Korea. The game will act as a direct sequel to the manga and Toriyama has been supervising all aspects of the game, from the storyline and setting to the character and location designs for the last 5-6 years.

Already though Toriyama Akira’s past contributions to the manga industry have been huge. He brought forth what was widely accepted as the golden age of Jump (Oda Eiichiro of One Piece can be said to be the 2nd era of Jump’s golden age, but more of that next time). Personally, I would really love to see more manga series by Toriyama. I’m not expecting another series that could take the world by storm like Dragon Ball. But will be glad for any enjoyable title that I can rely on each week for my manga relief. I hope you enjoy this rather long article on Toriyama’s manga biography. Do pick up a volume of his manga to support him.

At some point of time you might have heard of Death Note and even possibly had seen the Live action film in theaters. What you might not know of, is that Death Note was a manga collaboration between writer Ohba Tsugumi and the mangaka Obata Takeshi. In this guide, I will like to focus on the mangaka Obata Takeshi (小畑 健).

Obata was born on 11 February 1969 in Niigata, Japan. What sets him apart from other mangakas is that he usually works as an artist in collaboration with a writer, where his main focus is to dish out professional artworks and panels for the manga society. Obata is also unique among Shonen artist for the details of his artworks and his fashion sense. He often dons stylish clothing and trendy accessories on the characters he draw.

Up to date, Obata’s most successful manga has been the much mentioned Death Note. It’s a success that lead to the 2 part live-action film being made for it. While I’ll be touching on Death Note, I’d also like to introduce readers to the other manga that he has drawn for Shonen Jump. Hikaru no Go, Bakuman and Cyborg Jii-Chan G.

From top, Cyborg Jii-Chan G, Hikaru no Go, Death Note, Bakuman.

First up, Cybrog Jii-Chan G. It was his first debut manga to be serialized in Weekly Shonen Jump and also his only serialized work in which he did both the story and drawing. Another interesting note is that Cybrog Jii-Chan G was written under the name of Hijikata Shigeru(土方茂), his old pen name. A lot of fellow manga reading friends did not know about this fact. Comparing the art work of Cyborg Jii-Chan G and his more recent works (etc Death Note) you will find that they both posses a whole different kind of art style, so it does surprise readers that who have read either or both of the manga to realize that they were drawn by the same mangaka. Cyborg Jii-Chan G premiered in Weekly Shonen Jump during 1989, and its 31 individual chapters were collected and published in 4 tankobon volumes.

The story focuses on a granddad with a personality larger than life who has transformed his body into a almost entirely cyborg state. His ideas and actions cause major mishaps in a very hilarious way, with his family members bearing most of the brunt. The artwork is definitely not in the Obata style we know at best, but the story itself definitely makes up for it. The only drawback? Its only last for 4 tankobon volumes. Savor it while it last.

Cover page for Cyborg Jii-Chan G.

What the manga looks like.

Secondly, Hikaru no Go what could be said to be my favorite series among his manga works. It’s also the series that put him in the limelight of the manga industry. Written by Hotta Yumi and illustrated by Obata Takeshi, it was serialized in Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump in 1998. 189 chapters plus 11 “omake” chapters were collected in 23 tankobon volumes. Hikaru no Go gained tremendous success and even produced a huge Go fad in Japan. Interestingly, every single Go move in the manga isn’t just a gimmick. Professional Go player Umezawa Yukari supervised the creation of the manga series and anime, confirming the authenticity of every Go move and ensuring they could me mimicked in real life.

Hikaru no Go is a story a boy who’s life was changed after interacting with the haunted Go board, the desire of playing Go from the spirit, forces the boy to enter the world of Go. From this manga you will be able to see the transition of his art style from good to very good. It’s also a very interesting story to follow though. If anything, it certainly aroused my interest in trying Go. But alas, I’m not into mind games. Do give this series a try, and you might understand why it caused such a huge Go fad among its readers.

Hikaru no Go Cover.

Hikaru no Go Complete Edition cover. A reprint of the original book made bigger, with new original illustrations by Takeshi Obata.

Character illustrations of Hikaru no Go.

Next up, Death Note. This is the most well known title among his manga series and also the most popular. In Japan alone, 20 million copies of the manga have been sold and a 2 part live-action film was made. Even though I’m not a huge fan of suspense manga, I was still attracted to this series due to the well done artwork. Among all of Obata’s works (even his currently running Bakuman), Death Note’s art stands out as his best, the emotions carry through perfectly. Written by Ohba Tsugumi and illustrated by Obata Takeshi, it was serialized in Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump in 2003. 108 chapters were collected in 12 tankobon volumes.

What would you do, if you had gotten hold of a notebook which allowed you to kill anyone by just writing their name within? That was the premise of the Death Note series. In the story, a very intelligent teenager decided used it to dish out punishment to criminals and instill fear into the public. Of course bearers of justice stand up to try to counter the tyranny while risking their own death. This leads to interesting scenarios where amount of psychological games and tactics dished out by both sides reach staggering heights. If you have not seen the manga, you must give it a try.

Death Note cover. This is the 13th "Omake" book of Death Note.

Character illustration of Misia Amane.

Character illustrations of L and Yagami Light.

Lastly Bakuman, the currently running series Obata has been drawing since the end of the Death Note series. Written by Obha Tsugumi as well, Bakuman was serialized in Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump in 2008. 81 chapters are currently written and have been collected in 7 tankobon volumes (uncompleted). The amusing concept of a manga about drawing manga won me over.

Following the footsteps of 2 college boys aspiring to be mangaka, the manga brings you into the world of the actual manga making business. We watch as they compete with fellow mangaka rivals, writing and drawing the best manga they could to suit the taste of current readers while fulfilling their dreams of love and romance. It’s an interesting, never before seen insight into the world manga.

Even though Bakuman isn’t as huge a hit as Obata’s previously 2 undertakings (Death Note and Hikaru no Go), Bakuman still stands on its own due to its unique manga concept. Potentially Bakuman could become a very huge hit just like Hikaru no Go if given the chance, it’s still a young series that will take time to mature and gain fans.

Bakuman Shonen Cover.

Bakuman Tankobon Cover.

Other than the main running titles, Obata Takeshi has also been writing several one shots (single chapter manga) and providing artwork for video games. Of particular interest is his work on the Castlevania franchise and a very famous one shot in collaboration with the writer Nishio Ishin (the writer responsible for the manga Medaka box in Shonen Jump) known as Urooboe Uroboros. Interestingly, he also mentored several mangaka, who managed to produce their own successful manga series when they went solo. Does Eyeshield 21, To Love-Ruu, Black Cat and Rurouni Kenshin (Samurai X) sound familiar?

Urooboe Ouroboros One Shot.

Artwork for Castlevania.

Obata Takeshi has contributed well to the manga industry. Both through his bestselling mangas and his mentoring of other mangakas who in turn contribute other bestsellers themselves. I do have friends who think ill of a mangaka who has to rely on another writer, but I rather think that by doing so Obata can focus on what he does best, visualize interesting scene panels and draw beautiful characters. As what was sort of quoted in his Obata’s own Bakuman series, “Not everyone can write and draw well like some of the manga geniuses out there, but an equally well duo of writer and mangaka could have the same results, if they know what they are going for”. This holds true for Obata Takeshi, as a real life mangaka who coexists with writers to produce some of the bestselling manga in the industry.

In Jin, Osawa Takao and Ayase Haruka star in a drama based off the manga of the same name. Played by Osawa Takao, the titular character a talented brain surgeon who develops a fear of operating after an unsuccessful procedure on his wife. In an unexplainable incident, he is transported to feudal Japan where he is forced into picking up the scalpel once again.

Osawa Tako as Jin.

Possessing medical knowledge that must seem like miracles to the people of the past, Osawa becomes the center of attraction. The story follows him as he introduces modern medicine to the people of Edo Japan.

He finds himself lost in a different time.

Ayase Haruka plays the daughter of a samurai family whose brother is saved by Osawa. Intrigued by his medical skills, she finds herself attracted to him and chooses to become his assistant despite resistance from her family. The confidant to Jin’s secret as a person from the future, Ayase provides him with emotional support while struggling with her developing feelings for the doctor.

The curious Ayase Haruka.

Supporting the two leads are Uchino Masaaki and Nakatani Miki. Uchino Masaaki appears as the historical figure, Sakamoto Ryoma. Nakatani Miki plays the dual roles of Osawa’s comatose wife and her physically identical ancestor, Nokaze. As the ancestor, she plays a high ranking Oiran (courtesan) in one of Edo Japan’s segregated red light districts. Most of the show revolves around the conflicts and relationships between the many different characters.

While I was initially worried that the feudal Japanese setting would be a little dry, I ended up liking the atmosphere of the show. There is a certain charm in the bustling streets of Edo Tokyo. The case of Osawa as a person from the future also leaves the possibility for many interesting situations in this feudal era.

Uchino Masaaki won an award for his portrayal of Sakamoto Ryoma.

Nakatani Miki as the oiran Nokaze.

The show benefits from being able to refer to the manga for a strong script. Thankfully, nothing was lost in its translation to a drama. While a story like Jin cannot possibly end well, I enjoyed the fresh and interesting theme. Despite it’s science fiction premise, the story captures situations with much believability and I was able to understand many of the characters even if I didn’t necessarily like them. These characters were in turn portrayed well by the actors on screen. Most of the roles are performed admirably with the exception of a few minor, unimportant characters.

Surprised by the Japanese customs.

Unfortunately, the main flaws of Jin are also derived from the fact that it is based off a manga.

The biggest single problem is that while the show features multiple story arcs, the show lacks advancement in an overall plot. This is no doubt due to the manga’s ongoing status but it still hurts the show deeply that there is no main conflict or climax to the story. Each sub plot and its resolution, hardly affects the overall scheme of things and simply serves to introduce even more characters into the story. An inherent problem in long running mangas. The series ends up feeling like an introduction to an otherwise greater story. With all its characters in place, Jin would definitely benefit from a more focused sequel.

Osawa comes to rely on Ayase as his ally in this strange land.

While the show occasionally hints towards a more logical (and depressing) reason for Osawa time travel, it does so rather halfheartedly. Not wishing to take liberties with the source material, Jin lacks an actual resolution. The show would had been better off not featuring this element of the story at all. The 3 or 4 such scenes scattered throughout the drama’s 11 episodes served only to distract.

Despite it’s flaws though, Jin is still a thoroughly enjoyable show.While there are slow points in the series, it ultimately manages to capture back the viewers’ interests This is inherent from the 25.3% viewership rating Jin attracted on its final episode. This was the highest rating any series ended with last year, easily surpassing even Takuya’s Mr. Brain and the year long Taiga drama.

One of the most affluent mangaka in Japan – Takahashi Rumiko (高橋 留美子) is one of my favorites. Therefore, I would like to introduce to our dear readers. Born in 10 October 1957 Niigata, Japan. At 52 years age young, she has been faithfully publishing out chapters and chapters of manga in Shonen Sunday magazine.

Takahashi Rumiko, Yeah she is one of the few female mangakas in existence. This is one of her younger photos.

This is how she looks like by now.

So, how popular is she? Do you know of Inuyasha? Or if you belong to one of the older generations, how about Ranma 1/2 or even Urusei Yatsura? Those were her major works that have been adapted into animations. As you would probably know, only really popular and well received mangas make it into the anime scene (for example, Naruto/Bleach/One piece, but those are really big names in the manga world).

For the last 30 odd years, she has drawn up 4 major works (currently working on the 5th major work) and countless short stories. I would like to guide our dear readers through each of her major works one by one.

From top, Urusei Yatsura, Maison Ikkiku, Ranma 1/2, Inuyasha, Kyokai no Rinne, Mermaid Saga.

First up, her first major work: Urusei Yatsura. It is a romantic comedy series that premiered in Weekly Shonen Sunday in 1978 and ran until its conclusion in 1987. “A slapstick combination of Sci-fi, fairy-tale and ghost-story elements with plenty of cute girls” is a very good summary for this manga. Its 374 individual chapters were collected and published in 34 tankobon volumes. As her first few works and her first major work, her drawing style was still quite rough on the edges even though it slowly refined through the course of the series. I would like to give a little warning to readers that the drawing styles could be quite different from what you would see in the anime version. Still it’s a very good read once you have a little experience with Rumiko’s drawing and storytelling style.

Urusei Yatsura cover for Shonen Sunday.

Wideban Cover for Urusei Yatsura.

Secondly, her next major work: Maison Ikkoku. It is a bitter-sweet comedic romance series that was serialized in the manga magazine Big Comic Spirits from 1980 through 1987. It tells the story of a group of madcap people who live at a boarding house in 1980s Tokyo. 15 tankobon volumes have been collected and published for this particular series. Unlike her first major and other subsequent major works, Maison Ikkoku is a Seinen manga, which is generally targeted at an 18–30 year old male audience. Her art style by this series has been reasonably refined to what people knew of Rumiko’s style, but if you are looking for a Shonen manga to read, this would not be a good choice to begin with. I would recommend this to readers who have sufficiently read through Rumiko’s other works and are craving for more of her works to digest in.

Tankobon cover for Maison Ikkoku.

Wide edition tankobon cover for Maison Ikkoku.

Thirdly one of her more famous major works, Ranma 1/2. I would say this series was my first interaction with Takahashi Rumiko’s works and my favorite series. It is a gender bending, martial arts, romantic comedy series that was serialized in Weekly Shonen Sunday in 1987 and ran until its conclusion in 1996. The story revolves around the misadventures a 16-year old boy named Ranma Saotome, who as a result of an accident during a training journey, is cursed to become a girl when splashed with cold water, but hot water will change him back into a boy. 38 tankobon volumes have been collected and published for this particular series. Ranma 1/2 was extremely popular with overseas anime fans in the 1990s, especially the western countries. Ranma 1/2 and Inuyasha would be the 2 best works from Rumiko-sensei that I would recommend to readers who are interested in starting on Takahashi Rumiko mangas. But I would like to recommend this series to out dear readers first for the fact that this is the slapstick comedy style that I have came to know and love of Rumiko-sensei’s works.

Ramma 1/2 cover for Shonen Sunday.

Ramma 1/2 full cast portrait.

The next major work is also known as her most famous work, Inuyasha. It is an adventure, sword and sorcery romance series with the time line focused at Sengoku era. It was serialized in Weekly Shonen Sunday in 1996 and ran until its conclusion in 2008. The story revolves around a time traveling female high school student who met a half demon when she got warped into the Sengoku era by a demonic artifact she held. 56 tankobon volumes have been collected and published for this particular series. It is Rumiko-sensei’s current longest standing manga series and also the most popular, spawning heaps of animes, films, games and trading cards. Inuyasha is a very good read that readers will most likely start out with Rumiko-sensei’s works. It has a good blend of adventure, swords, sorcery and demon fighting elements, combined with a hint of Rumiko’s style of comedy and romance twists.

So for the million dollar question, should you read Inuyasha or Ranma 1/2 first? If you like a more serious adventure story, go ahead and pick up the first volume of Inuyasha. If comedy and slapstick is your choice, pick up the first volume of Ranma 1/2 instead. If you do find yourself liking Takahashi Rumiko works, do take your time to read both of her best works she has to offer.

Inuyasha cover for Shonen Sunday.

Tankobon cover for Inuyasha.

Her now current major work which is still ongoing is Kyokai no Rinne. It is a supernatural, comedy and romance series serialized in Weekly Shonen Sunday in 2009. The story evolves around a girl who was able to see ghosts due to a childhood incident, and has since gotten involved with a shinigami who also happens to be her classmate. So far 37 chapters and 2 tankobon volumes have been collected and published for this particular series. This new series is actually good and worth reading if you don’t mind reading and chasing for a new chapter every week for the next few years to come by. It has good elements of seriousness, Rumiko’s comedy and slapstick, combined with a good setting of the underworld and spirits.

Kyokai no Rinne cover for Shonen Sunday.

Tankobon cover for Kyokai no Rinne.

Now that i have covered on all her major works, I will now give our dear readers a little coverage on one of her numerous short stories she has done, The Mermaid Saga. It is an action, horror and romance series serialized in Shonen Sunday since 1984 and ended in 1994. 3 tankobon volumes have been collected and published for this particular series, each book with a different name. The first book was Mermaid’s Forest, the second was Mermaid’s Scar and the last book was called Mermaid’s Eye. The Mermaid Saga tells the tale of Yuta, an immortal who travel across Japan who meets others whose lives have been ruined by mermaid flesh, each book consists of a different story on a different time line, but the focus is still on the main character.

Mermaid Saga cover for Shonen Sunday.

Color Illustration.

To sum it all up, Takahashi Rumiko’s storytelling always has heavy elements of Japanese culture and a whole lot of folklore thrown into it. Not to mention that even her art styles have heavy Japanese influence. It is those elements that have made her popular in and outside of Japan. A lot of westerners have used her work as a very good cultural reference to get to know about Japan. Just a word of caution, almost all of her works have a little bit of nudity thrown into it, so I hope our dear readers could exercise some caution and be of legal age to purchase her works. If you like reading manga that is heavy in Japanese culture/folklore, with elements of comedy and slapstick, Takahashi Rumiko works are definitely the choice for you. Do pick up a series and start reading!

Mei-chan no Shitsuji (Mei-chan’s Butler) is a comedy drama based on the Shojo manga of the same name. Eikura Nana (who played the supporting role in Proposal Daisakusen) takes the lead role this time as Mei. Mizushima Hiro (Zettai Kareshi) plays her butler Rihito and Sato Takeru her other love interest, Kento. Mr. Brain was this year’s Change but could Mei-chan no Shitsuji be likened this year’s Hana Yori Dango?

Mei.

While the adorable Eikura Nana has had a successful career as a gravure idol, the tomboy tries to rely not just on her looks, opting to play unflattering roles in many of her shows. But a slapstick comedy like Mei-chan and its exaggerated scenes, provide little opportunity to showcase any acting ability. The producers must have some fun pitting the actors Mizushima and Sato against each other for Eikura’s affection. Mizushima Hiro played Kamen Rider Kabuto in 2006 and Sato Takeru was Kamen Rider Den-O back in 2007.

The truth is I can't really act.

Like most Japanese dramas, Mei-chan no Shitsuji doesn’t stray too far from its source material. The show features a conventional Shojo manga storyline. The nerdy Mei lived a simple life with her parents, till their accidental death one day. This resuls in her discovering that she is actually the heiress to one of the weathiest corporations in Japan and is forced to attend the St. Lucia Girls Academy, where she has to train to be a proper lady. In this school for wealthy girls, each lady has to have a butler, which is where the Kamen riders come into place.

What?

While some people might be put off by the story, it was one of the reasons why I was attracted to this show at the time. Not having any other show in recent times to fill the void of Hana Yori Dango, I turned to Mei-chan no Shitsuji. The show focuses on the troubles Mei faces while trying to earn her classmate’s acceptance. It leads her into many amusing situations. Unlike in the manga, the element of romance is kept to a low until the later parts of the show.

The show summed up in a single picture.

Kojima Haruna from AKB48 plays a background role.

What’s interesting about the story is that unlike other Shojo mangas, Mei doesn’t truly “transform” into her new princess role. Instead she stays as herself and tries to win the trust of the other girls and butlers.

The so called transformed Mei.

Mei-chan no Shitsuji is exactly what you would expect from a lighthearted romance comedy. The plot is predictable and the few serious events scattered in the show didn’t last long enough to warrant any concern. While endearing, the show doesn’t run long enough for viewers to invest emotionally in any of the characters. However, the comedic elements of the show are pulled off well and Mei-chan no Shitsuji did manage to put a smile on my face from time to time.

Lots of fangirl service.