there it is, plain as daylight.

I haven’t come here to talk about manga for a while, and I’ve really read quite a bit of it in the meantime, though much of it has been a single series.  Work on my own graphic novel has been going slowly, but right now, I feel like talking about other people’s universes.

I think I mentioned that I finally got the last 11 volumes of Banana Fish (thank you to a generous birthday gift from my folks), and I gobbled them up in very little time.   

WARNING: NON-SPECIFIC SPOILERS BELOW

Banana Fish is one of those stories that just *consumes* you, or it certainly consumed me. It starts slowly, but the last half of the series just *races* by, with constant action and many plot twists. It is a story that chews you up and spits you out, and there you sit, bloodied and broken, and somehow you’re *thanking* it for ripping you to shreds. I said to one friend that it was like watching a really good production of West Side Story, only *more*, because you’ve spent so much more time with the characters by the end. It is dated and sometimes clunky, and the New York of the story is more a fantasy in the author’s mind than anything else. But really none of that matters *at all* because the real story is the growing friendship (romance?) between the two main characters, and that is intensely beautiful to experience. 

In other manga news, I am waiting anxiously to get my hands on xxxHolic volume 12, which was supposed to be on sale yesterday, but somehow did not reach any of my local stores in time. There is a copy now waiting for me at home, and I can hardly contain myself.

Next on my “to buy” list is volume 4 of Maison Ikkoku, now that I’ve finally read the elusive volume 3. Also, I believe I am two volumes behind on Mushishi.

For anyone who’s been reading Bleach scanlations, how awesome has that flashback arc been? So. Awesome. Now I’m more interested in the vizards than I have been before, though I’m worried they might not tell us any more about it right now.

I think that’s all I’ve got to talk about for the moment. More soon. 

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