Kodansha Comics kicks off this week's new titles with a new series, Genshiken Second Season. The first volume kicks off the sequel series to Genshiken which marks a whole new school year, and that means a whole new club. Well, almost. The club's president, Chika Ogiue, returns and needs to reevaluate how to run the club when there's a new flock of boys' love fans to reign in.
KODANSHA COMICS
• Genshiken Second Season
(Vol.01), ($10.99/US, $11.99/CAN)
Mature readers only for Project-H, who are releasing another hentai one-shot title this week, Colorful Harvest. Project-H keeps readers guessing with a synopsis that's short but sweet - “Introducing a wonderful tale of free-flowing food, wine, and sex!” A sexy title for foody manga fans?
PROJECT-H BOOKS
• Colorful Harvest
($17.95/US, $19.99/CAN)
Meanwhile Alice is still in Wonderland in Seven Seas' second volume of Alice in the Country of Clover: Cheshire Cat Waltz. In this spin-off of the sim game, Alice has found herself suddenly transported to the Country of Clover and under the ever curious, watchful eye of Boris, the Cheshire Cat. The series teeters between endearing comedy and creepy themes as everyone vies for Alice's heart while also thoughtlessly trying to kill each other.
In Gunslinger Girl Omnibus (Vol.05) – which collects the original volumes ten and eleven – the story focuses around another young girl pulled into the world of the Social Welfare Agency. With her memories wiped and her body altered for battle, Angelica was the first of their successful experiments. Now, however, her past memories are coming back and simultaneously replacing the person she's become. Is it possible to get back an old life at the risk of losing the only you thought you had?
SEVEN SEAS
• Alice in the Country of Clover: Cheshire Cat
Waltz (Vol.02), ($13.99/US, $13.99/CAN)
• Toradora (Vol.05), ($11.99/US, $13.99/CAN)
• Gunslinger Girl Omnibus (Vol.05),
($16.99/US, $19.50/CAN)
Viz Media's genre publishing partner, SuBLime, offers up this week's dose of pure boys' love with their print release of His Favorite (Vol.01). A title with more than its share of laughs, His Favorite tells the woefully hilarious story of Yoshida, a young man hated by the girls in his class because of his best-friend, Sato. Sato is the guy all the girls want to date but he keeps using Yoshida as a reason to turn them down. You only get one guess as to why, but suffice to say Yoshida and his classmates all have their own bones to pick and questions to ask.
SUBLIME MANGA
• His Favorite (Vol.01), ($12.99/US, $14.99/CAN)
And from Viz Media themselves comes another treat for the boys' love fans with the release of Loveless (Vol.09). This is the first time this volume of the popular cat-boy title has been released in English after Tokyopop cancelled the title at volume eight (back in 2009). While Viz will be starting the series over from book one in a few months, they've shortened the wait for those with volumes one to eight already lining their shelves. After all that suspense, leads Ritsuka and Soubi have hit their biggest obstacle yet when faced with the fact that Seimei is alive – though not exactly well.
On the other side of the manga spectrum comes a new volume of
Naruto which offers more zombie battling action. Sort of. Kabuto's hold on his deceased minions is dwindling but it remains strong enough to give everyone still breathing the fight of their life. Sasuke's brother, Itachi, is a few mental steps away from breaking free but he might not make it in time to escape Naruto's need to defeat him permanently.
VIZ MEDIA
• Arata the Legend (Vol.11), ($9.99/US, $12.99/CAN)
• Hayate the Combat Butler (Vol.20), ($9.99/US, $12.99/CAN)
• Loveless (Vol.09), ($9.99/US, $12.99/CAN)
• Naruto (Vol.58), ($9.99/US, $12.99/CAN)
That does it for this week's On The Shelf – what on the list are you most eager to buy? Any must-have recommendations? Share your thoughts in our handy comment area for all our readers to see!
* All dates are based on distributor listings and may not necessarily reflect exact release dates. Some books may ship prior to or after the date listed above varying by location and availability.