Manga Mondays Meme
I've been doing Manga Mondays every week since I started my blog 3 years ago. It started out as a personal feature, but I decided to turn it into a meme last year. There are quite a few people who do Manga Mondays. I don't claim by any means that I owned or created the idea of Manga Mondays - it's an obvious choice given the alliteration. I think a meme is a great way for everyone to publicize their own Manga Mondays and get a little more publicity.
The linky will be below my review.
Rosario Vampire vol. 2 by Akihisa Ikeda
All-around average teenager Tsukune can't get accepted to any high school save one...but on his first day he finds the rest of the student body doesn't appear average at all. Best of all, the cutest girl on campus can't wait to fling her arms around his neck! Wait a sec'--are those her teeth around his neck too...? Tsukune's going to have one heck of a hickey when he gets home from Monster High! But does he have a chance in H E double hockey sticks of raising his grades at a school where the turf war isn't between the jocks and the nerds but the vampires and the werewolves?
LESSON TWO: WITCHES QUIZ HAVING A WITCH FOR A CLASSMATE CAN CREATE A VEXING HEX SITUATION IF SHE…
a. casts spells stirring up all manner of mischief just to get attention.
b. has no qualms about using magic to break up you and your girlfriend.
c. becomes the target of a reptilian witchphobic hate group.
d. all of the above. (courtesy of Goodreads)
Review
*Warning: Potential spoilers. My manga reviews tend to be more of a summary than a review. I find it hard to review manga in the same way I do regular books.
At what point do you give up on a manga series? I'm pretty quick to drop a series that I'm not enjoying, but what do you do when you can recognize a series' potential, but the volumes have yet to achieve that?
That's my problem with Rosario Vampire. It's really silly. Most manga is silly, but this is verging on the eye-rolling ridiculous. Every chapter encounters a new classmate/monster who either wants to kill Moka (the hot vampire chick) or Tsukene (the human boy narrator). And you also have to deal with semi-nudity and glorification of large breasts - like Tsukene being hypnotized to squeeze Moka's breasts, which are so large in the drawing that she's probably fall over backwards if she was real. I tolerate the pandering to teenage boys, since I realize that's what sells copies, but it's still annoying.
My chief annoyance is the sameness of each chapter. New monster. Moka rescues Tsukene or Tsukene rescues Moka - or in this case, a character starts out as a monster villain, but then turns into a friend who rescues the others. Moka wants to suck Tsukene's blood. Tsukene's hiding as a human. I'd like to see some more character development and story movement.
And while I have more complaints the compliments about this volume, I still want to stick with it. I'm not sure why. I have read reviews that say it gets better. Mostly, there's just something about the concept that has drawn me in. We'll see how much longer I can go on.
Hi, this is my second post about Manga monday :D This Manga monday thing so awesome! And I never read Rosario vampire but I watch the anime. Maybe I read someday :D
ReplyDeleteThis is quite a popular series but I've never gotten around to actually reading it because its ecchi-ness turned me off. Also, this does sound really annoying. It doesn't sound like it has any substance. :/
ReplyDeleteI've not read this manga yet but I've seen the anime trailer on youtube. It's a really interesting concept and seems fun but it's annoying me with all the panties flashing.UGH. I don't know if the manga will be better. Anyway I think I'll wait and see how you like this series and decide later on if it's worth checking out =)
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure how it would differ with manga, but I'm starting to get very cut-throat about books that annoy me. I'll give them the 1st hundred pages but there's just TOO many other great books out there to get bogged down in ones that just aren't enjoyable!
ReplyDeleteAhh I'm so happy to find someone else who does a Manga Monday!! I'm excited to read more from you.
ReplyDeleteWhile I haven't read Rosario Vampire I have read manga that I was a bit iffy on at first. It doesn't always happen, but some have actually turned out to be really great like Hot Gimmick.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure if I could make it through a series like this. I usually give it 3 volumes and then give up if it doesn't pick up.
ReplyDeleteI only used this manga as comic relief. It does get better once we meet everyone who's part of the main cast but it takes a long time about it. I hope you enjoy it, but if not, give up :)
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