Weekly Power Rankings – 4/25 – 5/1
One Piece 583
[chapter link]
Loving the cover image. I wouldn’t mind a cover story with these two, or any of the Thriller Bark side characters.
It’s been hundreds of chapters since we got to see any kid Luffy. The shrill sound you hear in the distance is the female portion of the fandom (or the more effeminate males) cooing over how cute he was. Can’t say I disagree, though.
I’m finding distant-Ace interesting.
Sabo, hm? Clearly, we’re going to meet this character all grown up sometime, and hopefully soon. Also, for some reason, he reminds me of a young Setzer.
Porchemy’s tattoo looks slightly similar to the Sunny Pirates emblem.
Luffy lying is hilarious.
Final Flash: Everything I could have asked for from a Luffy/Ace flashback. Assuming the flashback doesn’t last for too many more chapters, this will be a welcome addition to the overall story.
Fairy Tail 182
When’s the last time you saw One Piece, Naruto, Bleach, etc., use a narrative box for recap purposes? Even Hunter x Hunter doesn’t do that, and it goes on hiatus for months at a time. Major series don’t need to refresh anyone’s memory.
Magic vs. … a guy who throws boats.
Wait, or is it magic vs. an amusement park?
Okay, two notes on the other, uglier baddie: 1. Kurama; 2. his weapon can make anything soft and limp? I don’t even have to say anything; the jokes write themselves.
Ugh, taking a roller-coaster picture? Really?
Dramatic Natsu panels have lost all their edge at this point. They’re like “shocking” twists in the last three pages of any given Bleach chapter.
Nice to see Aquarius facing a real challenge. She was too one-dimensional of a character.
Mashima would be well served learning to stagger fights in such a way that not every single protagonist is on the brink of the losing, while simultaneously the world faces some kind of cataclysm, before inevitably someone (Natsu) turns the tide and saves the day.
Final Flash: Stupid amusement park.
Defense Devil 47
[chapter link]
Little difficult to take Idamaria seriously with cat ears.
P2: Whoa. Apparently Idamaria’s stand is from RahXephon.
Why did Mario games never let you hitch a ride on those huge irritating fish?
P6: 6 + 2 = 7. You heard it in Defense Devil first.
P7: I… have absolutely no idea what’s going on in this fight anymore.
So, a bear, with other bears for hands, is punching demons in full-body spandex?
P8, bottom panel: Why, hello there, Yagami Light. How nice of you to cameo in another manga.
Hurry, Luffy! Escape from the stomach of the giant snake! … oh, wait.
I wish my heart looked like a smaller, angrier version of me.
Hell clothing: Designed with panty shots in mind.
Final Flash: Some solid action, some completely nonsensical action, some more fanservice.
Weekly Power Rankings – 4/18 – 4/24
Beelzebub 58
[chapter link]
Toujou would only make these fights better.
The cover page is Beel being adorable, yet again.
I love Baby Beel’s recent inclination towards swearing. Well, baby-swearing.
P10, top panel: Immensely gratifying.
Toujou went to the wrong school! Amazing.
Kanzaki! Whoa. Makes sense, but I didn’t see that coming at all. Good that he’s not down for the count (… yet?).
P17: Uproariously funny. Evoked huge laughter from me. Fantastic.
Final Flash: The slight disappointment of last chapter, along with the worry that Oga would too easily be beaten, is completely wiped away. Excellent chapter.
Kimi no Iru Machi 87
[chapter link]
How convenient; Haruto finally remembers to care after the damage is done.
After making us sit through the date with Nagoshi for so long, Kouji might as well have wrapped up her small storyline properly. Instead, Haruto explains that she left. That isn’t proper narration.
Wait a minute… who is this girl again? I feel like I’m supposed to know her. … oh, that’s right, it’s Eba, who we should have seen weeks ago.
Clearly, this isn’t going to go well.
So, it finally happened. I still don’t necessarily believe Eba, and will refuse to believe her outright until we see her supposed new boyfriend, but this is the storyline development that needed to happen. Unfortunately, it needed to happen several weeks ago, so most of the impact is gone.
Final Flash: The author made the audience wait too long; much like real relationship issues, one side’s indecisiveness has soured the whole experience.
Beamcast – April 26
[download link – 72min, 35mb]
In this week’s show:
News
Seitokai Yakuin-domo receives anime adaptation
Tokyo “2d child porn” bill postponed at least until fall
Kashikoi Ken Rilienthal canceled, Metallica Metalluca and Shonen Shikku to debut
Weekly Oricon rankings
New releases
Gintama Collection 1 (DVD)
Yotsuba&! vol. 8
Current/Classic Reviews
One Piece
Slam Dunk
This Week in Manga
0:28:45 – Naruto 492
0:31:32 – Bleach 401
0:34:44 – One Piece 582
0:43:45 – Bakuman 83
0:47:18 – Fairy Tail 181
0:50:00 – Hajime no Ippo 891
0:54:08 – Hayate no Gotoku! 269
0:57:08 – Psyren 116
0:59:39 – Zettai Karen Children 214
1:00:44 – Gamaran 45
1:03:54 – Lock On! 9
1:05:18 – Defense Devil 46
1:05:58 – Hunter x Hunter 306
1:08:20 – Katekyo Hitman Reborn! 287
1:10:10 – Kimi no Iru Machi 86
1:10:34 – Nurarihyon no Mago 102
1:11:10 – MiXiM☆11 92
Chapters of the Week
Final Flash
Comments / questions / additions? Email the show.
Want to share with friends? How kind. Have a shortlink: http://wp.me/pJOZe-fe
Credit: AnimeNewsNetwork
Weekly Power Rankings – 4/11 – 4/17
Psyren 116
[chapter link]
Kyle time!
Kyle vs. 5 Wise seems like a fair fight. Well, maybe not entirely fair. Kyle still has a bit of an edge.
P6, main panel: I can already tell this is going to be another series of fights that will look excellent once animated.
Kyle’s power is interesting. Reminiscent of Kekkaishi, obviously, but a totally different mechanic.
He’s able to keep up with all five of them. Excellent.
Ash, Necca, Varley, Odo, and Delboro. The names aren’t bad.
Final Flash: Very good stretch of chapters recently, and next chapter, a serious solo Kyle fight, should be no different.
Bakuman 83
[chapter link]
Finally. I’ve been anxious to find out what the postcard signifies.
P2, middle panel: Very reminiscent of Yagami Light. Except, you know… that it’s about trailing someone instead of murder.
It’s great how seriously they’re taking this, turning off their phones and all.
Masks and sunglasses! This is fun.
Hattori’s selections at the bookstore: Absolutely priceless. This is exactly how to properly weave a narrative. Characters don’t always have to come out and explain plot.
Wow. Iwase looks gorgeous. As always, Obata’s art makes a great story even better.
“Your youth is certainly dazzling”? Hilarious.
Follow that taxi! This will be a fantastic episode when the anime gets this far.
So happy to hear that Hattori wanted to be their editor after all. I (like many others) always presumed as such, but it’s good to hear reassurance.
Takagi is finally inspired. After such an enjoyable chapter, I have huge hopes for whatever he comes up with.
Final Flash: Excellent chapter. The tone was a refreshing change of pace, we got to see a little more than expected from some side characters, and Takagi has an idea. Very fun read.
Kimi no Iru Machi 86
[chapter link]
P1: Ah, unreasonable expectations.
Of course, Nagoshi is completely misunderstanding the situation. Not just a little. Completely.
Don’t be fooled, Haruto! Let Nagoshi have a bad time!
A haunted house. Cue standard “I’m scared, let me fall into your arms” scene.
Surely Eba is one of these ghosts.
What better way to wrap up an entirely stereotypical chapter than with Haruto falling on Nagoshi and revealing some skin?
Yep, Eba. I take no credit for seeing that coming. Painfully obvious.
Final Flash: Highly disappointing. Romance series can be somewhat derivative, but being outright formulaic is unacceptable.
Katekyo Hitman Reborn! 287
[chapter link]
Cover: “The All New Popular Series!”? This has been running fox six years. Maybe they mean “arc” instead of “series.”
P2, bottom-left panel: Again, Amano’s use of speed lines reflects poorly. She’s a great artist, but speed lines are not only tacky, but they make the scene harder to read.
Yeah, I pretty much have no idea what’s going on throughout page 3. Thanks, speed lines.
Short fight. I can’t tell if it was good. I know it wasn’t awful, because there was no excess melodrama, but the art made it too difficult to follow.
Yes, yes, Enma has hidden powers. We know that. Let’s just hope he’s not going to turn evil and fight Tsuna.
Katou Julie is stalking Chrome, readily admits it, and asks someone to say ‘hi’ to Adelheid’s thigh? Sounds like we have quite the winner, here.
Enjoying Gokudera’s increased role as a right-hand man so far.
Gokudera’s teams: Predictable, or most predictable?
Did we really need yet another chapter to establish that Enma is secretly the leader? Assume your audience has a little intelligence, Amano. Some things are better left assumed.
Final Flash: Another chapter that leaves me feeling hesitantly good about this arc. Good enough to be optimistic, but not quite good enough to feel confident.
Hayate no Gotoku! 269
[chapter link]
Few series deliver immediate punchlines as well as Hayate. Poor Alfred.
Mikado really is going through with this. Wow.
The Yakuza guy! Hayate’s interactions with him have always been amusing.
Hayako!
This has been a Klaus-intensive chapter… comparatively.
Final Flash: Some fun jokes and some nice scenes of Nagi’s friends worrying about her. Light chapter, but nice.
Defense Devil 46
[chapter link]
Why, hello there, fanservice.
P2: Fanservice!
Naruto certainly didn’t introduce nor revolutionize the concept, but given the recent popularity of Tsunade as a character, Brillheart and her similar age concealment gimmick feel a bit stale. (That said, we have no reason to believe Tsunade doesn’t wear panties; Brillheart certainly fulfills fanservice requests more directly.)
The Coneheads-esque outfits worn by all the subordinates in these fights are… well, not the pinnacle of design, let’s say.
P10: Okay, maybe these guys are supposed to be comical. I have no other explanation for this move.
About time Jupiler revealed her obvious hidden power. Why else would we focus on the same endangered child so many times?
P17: Fanservice!
Final Flash: Good action. In fact, notably good, since it’s difficult to keep good pacing with so many separate fights going on simultaneously. Also, fanservice!
Shonen Beam Social Network
Shonen Beam 