[MB] The Mature Ed (December 2013)

WELCOME Nettaversers to my newest series~ dedicated to bringing you the best in manga (IMO) entertainment. :D Y'all get an anime every week and now you'll get anywhere from 3-5 manga (or manwha which is the Korean name) a month. Instead of doing this series weekly, I've decided to do it at least monthly with the possibility of bonus entries throughout the month. The main entry will feature at least one manga for girls, one for boys and a third for both. Sometimes there will be 5- one for young girls, one for 20+ gals, one for young boys, one for 21+ guys and one for all. For this month, I'm going to feature some of my all time favorite series~ LET'S GOOOO!

Wellllllllllllllllllllll, This would not be a list of my favorites without featuring the manga that got me into the *cough* smut *cough* Josei subsection of manga which is primarily aimed at older readers who want more than sparkly typical romance found in girls manga. I was debating between featuring this one or Midnight Secretary since I read them both around the same time (as well as Love Bird but that one wasn't all that great- you can check out a video review I made about the first 16 chapters here). buuuuuuuuuuut this one wins simply because it was the first and still holds a remembered place in my heart. Unfortunately this series was never released with an official English translation so the only way to read it is online. Oh, and I also made a video about the series back when I was part of Itadakimasu Studios. Check it out here!

Desire Climax // 欲情©MAX (Yokujo©MAX)

# of Chapters: 48

Where to Read: [1][2]

Status: complete as of 2006

Genres: Drama, Romance, Shojo, Smut, Josei

Synopsis: 

The Omori are a poor family.Mio Omori's father died when she was young, and her mother has been hospitalized for some time with an unspecified illness. She lives alone with her little brother Hinata, doing a number of part-time jobs to get by. One night, when going home after work, she encounters upon a violent young man who throws money at her, saying he'll 'buy her', after stealing her first kiss.

The next day her mother tells Mio that their landlord, who happens to be among her father's closest friends, has offered her a job as a maid at their mansion. Eager to help the family, he feels that it will be safer at night that way, and her mother agrees to this despite her daughter's opposition. To her horror, Mio finds out that the violent man who stole her kiss is none other than Shoei Jinnai, the son of their landlord and the most popular and high-achieving student at her high school; so much so that he is widely known as 'Prince Jinnai'

In his own strange way, the Prince starts to treat her as his girlfriend, going so far as to tell Mio he loves her. When they finally start dating, Mio's brother Hinata becomes extremely jealous and tries to interfere with their relationship. When Mio catches them kissing, she runs home, but the next morning their house is demolished on the Prince's order.

While this one is primarily written for the dudes, I really enjoyed the drama aspect of it. While most Seinen manga are meant to be a little more pervy, this one didn't really give off that vibe. Seinen manga is actually aimed at older business men who in a way get part of their sexual needs meet by reading comics... at least that's what a lot of websites have said. I can't really vouch for that since the only Seinen I've read is this and a few other series such as Sun Ken Rock (i really wanted to feature that series as well but I can't feature two for the older guys! Sadface.jpg).

Bitter Virgin // ビターバージン

# of Chapters: 32

Where to Read: [1]

Status: complete as of 2008

Genres: Drama, Romance, School, Seinen

Synopsis:

As a junior high school student, Hinako was sexually abused by her stepfather and became pregnant. Her mother learned of the pregnancy when Hinako miscarried, but did nothing. As a result, the abuse continued, and Hinako soon became pregnant again. She was told that the pregnancy may make her incapable of bearing children again, but since the doctors felt an abortion at that point would be dangerous, she carried the baby to term and her mother had it put up for adoption immediately after birth without Hinako ever seeing the child.

Hinako ends by saying that although she never wanted the child and was relieved to have it adopted, and had never seen him, she wonders whether it would be all right if she at least celebrated his birthday, which is today. As she breaks down in tears, a stunned Daisuke, desperate for a proper answer, assures her that she has the support of God. This manages to calm Hinako down, and she thanks him and leaves.

At first, Daisuke cannot believe Hinako's story. However, the next day a baby carriage's brakes slip, and it begins to roll down on its own. While Daisuke instinctively jumps to protect Hinako and manages to stop the carriage, both of them are knocked to the ground. In the process, Hinako's skirt gets hitched up, revealing a scar on her stomach which Daisuke recognizes as a Caesarean-section scar, similar to one he saw on his mother's stomach as a child.

With Hinako's story proven true, Daisuke realizes that her ordeal was the cause of her aversion to men. Unable to get her out of his mind and worried for her well-being, he resolves to keep her secret safe and to help her in any way he can, and soon finds himself falling in love with her.

#1 recommendation for the month!

I KNOW I already featured two manga for older audiences.... but this one is the only manga that even made straight up a waterfall of tears fall from my eyes. A lot of anime fans (well the ones in my age group) tend to recommend the anime version of this but they haven't read the manga which is far superior. Normally reading something, even if I feel sad, won't make me cry but I can't read this series without a few tears forming no matter how many times I read it. Everyone I've asked has said the same thing. While this manga does have a very slow, gorey start- don't let that off set you from reading it. Out of all the manga I'm featuring here this one is my number one recommendation for the month. Hands down the best manga I've ever read overall (it does take reading the whole series to get the full feel because it does start out seeming like it's just going to be fanservicy and gore filled without  any real pay out).

  

Elfen Lied // エルフェンリート

# of Chapters:107

Where to Read: [1]

Status: complete as of 2005

Genres: Action, Drama, Romance, Supernatural, Seinen

Synopsis:

Elfen Lied takes place in Kamakura, Japan, focusing on a new strain of the human race, Diclonius, similar to human beings with invisible arms called vectors but different at the genetic level and notable due to physical abnormalities, particularly a pair of short horn-like protrusions. One such Diclonius, Lucy, is the main character of the series: Initially held in a facility built for experimentation, located off the coast of Kamakura, she manages to escape and wreak havoc, but is injured in the process, an event which causes her to develop a secondary, childlike personality known as Nyu.
Lucy is found by two locals, Kohta, who studies at the local university, and his cousin Yuka. They take her in, and become involved with the numerous, often brutal, attempts to recapture her by a Special Assault Team and a number of other Diclonius, who shift frequently from oblivious to murderous.

 

V-Day 2K13// Warm Bodies [Review]// Nana To Kaoru

Image copyright AkiaTomiyo (r//w[g])

Well nettaversers, it's that time of year where you either have a loved/liked one to call a "valentine" or you complain about how the holiday is usuless and you just want it to be SAD (singles awareness day).... or you're one of the neutral parties who could care less either way. Anywhosills, Happy V-day to you regardless. In order to add some R//W[G] to this "holiday" I've decided to do a few things with this post. The first one being a mini-review of Warm Bodies that I got to see yesterday with my Valentine despite an incident that almost ruined my perfectly planned day. Second is a manga feature of Nana to Kaoru.

Image copyright Summit Entertainment

Theater Release Date: Feb 1st, 2013

Run Time: 1hr 38min

Type: Young Adult Novel Adaptation

Synopsis: After R (a highly unusual zombie) saves Julie from an attack, the two form a relationship that sets in motion a sequence of events that might transform the entire lifeless world.

I was really looking forward to this film despite my not liking this whole zombie surge that has been around lately. Summit Entertainment has been making strides in the movie industry lately. With the Twilight Saga being over, I was wondering if they'd try and branch out to broader audiences. It seemed like they were trying to do so with Red Ridding Hood but that movie was aimed much at the same audience. While Warm Bodies is based on a young adult novel, the content it much darker and much goreier at points... but does that add any broader appeal?

Yes and no. While zombies have next to nothing to do with teenage romance, in this movie romance plays a bit part in causing a change to those who were once %100 human. The source material for this series was a YA novel, and those tend to have to have romance in them. Rarely is there none.

The film contained some really nice comedic moments, my favorite being later on in the film which would be spoilers so I will not really go into them. The zombie effects may not have been on par with the Walking Dead, but the bonies weren't all that great... seems like Summit still has budget troubles. Hehe. Also the music was interesting...

Overall, if you're a fan of stuff like Twilight, Red Riding Hood, The Hunger Games- basically if you don't mind cheesy teen romances but with a mix of zombies; go ahead and check this out. Otherwise wait until you can rent it for little over a dollar (or even go to the $1 movies instead) because this movie really limits its audience.

Review rating:

***.5

((different take on the whole zombie genre, but there is not much here for real zombie enthusiasts and those looking for more than a teen romance))

 

Image copyright Ryuta Amazume

I really wish this manga would come out in English. I could give so many less cares about it being an S&M manga because while that is a main focus this is not the violent or looked down upon S&M... you know what, check out this Weekly Manga Recap from thatguywiththeglasses.com (I never new the same website that had Nostalgia Critic covered manga as well till I was browsing the site last week) it really explained how I feel about the series.

Type: Japanese Manga

Genre(s): comedy, romance, ecchi, seinin, school

# of Chapters: 87+

Synopsis: 

Kaoru is a 17-year-old virgin who has an S&M fetish. He has always dreamt about an SM relationship with his childhood friend Nana, who is looked upon as perfect and is always the target of boys' eyes. Their relationship has somewhat deteriorated through the years, due to them hanging out with different people and because Kaoru is not taking his education too seriously. One day though, Kaoru's mother gives some of his S&M toys to Nana for safekeeping. Nana finds the leather one-piece that Kaoru bought and tries it on but accidentally locks herself in it and doesn't have the key! Kaoru frees her of the one-piece, but then Nana realizes she may like Kaoru's hobby more than she thought. Subsequently, the two of them start engaging in so-called "breathers". These breathers are intended to relieve Nana of stress that originates from her attempts at keeping her grades and name perfect.