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 Skip Beat
Anime Review by John Martone
 Comics once taught us that any dream worth having, is a dream worth fighting for. Kyoko Mogami practices that, though it's for the wrong reasons. She moved to the big city with her childhood boyfriend Sho Fuwa, to help him fight for his dreams of becoming a music idol. Of course, that means working two jobs, and covering all of the upstart's expenses. This would have been worth it, if she didn't suddenly hear him admit that she was just a sucker, a means to an end. Read More...
Kyo Kara Maoh Season 1: DVD and Manga
Anime Review by Carolyn Whu
 Bacon! Do I have your attention now? I reviewed the second season of Kyo Kara Maoh a few months ago and compared it to FullMetal Alchemist meets The Twelve Kingdoms... with bacon. And so to bring more bacon into everyone's diet (everyone needs more bacon), I've decide: let's go back to the beginning to that flushing that started Kyo Kara Maoh.
For those that haven't seen or heard of Kyo Kara Maoh (aka God(?) Save Our King!), I'm talking about this manga/anime that began when the lead character got sucked into an alternate world by being flushed into a toilet.
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Fist of the North Star
Anime Review by Brian Cirulnick
 Yu Wa Shock! Allow me to introduce you to one of my favorite old-school anime series. Back in the 1980's, Hokouto No Ken (Fist of the North Star) was the most outrageous, unbelievable, over-the-top anime series you could ever imagine. And frankly, nothing that has come or gone since has ever topped it for sheer brutality and unimaginable violence.
The series plays out as a combination of MadMax/Roadwarrior and every Bruce Lee film ever made. It's the grand-daddy of all fighting games, and EVERY fighting game ever made usually has a Bruce Lee character and a Kenshiro(ish) character. He's usually the stone-faced Sylvester-Stallone-parody big-guy who has some 100-fist superpunch or can shoot beams of power from his hands. Read More...
Daria
American Animation Review by Brian Cirulnick
 You're standing on my neck! Let me tell you why Daria is the greatest animated TV series ever. There are no explosions, no buxom babes in skimpy outfits, no martial arts action, no giant robots, no vampires, spirits or demons, no magical girls, no strange bunny-cat critters, no starfleets, no wavy-haired psyonics, and no transforming gizmos.
In short, there's nothing to distract you from the actual story, which is a well-written, cynical look at high-school life as viewed through the eyes of one Daria Morgendorfer, who endures each day even though she knows the fates of fortune are conspiring to make each day a living hell of humiliation and annoyance. All she wants is to be left alone to read a good book. It took MTV a lifetime to get around to releasing this onto DVD, but now that it's here, we're happy campers. Read More...
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Black Mokona Fleece Cap Okay, it's still only September, but it's time to start thinking about how cold it will be in a few short months. And what could be better than a Mokona Fleece Cap to keep you warm while you grant wishes... for a price. From xxxHolic, Yuko's annoying little pet/assistant, and CLAMP mascot can travel with you where-ever you roam, keeping you happy and warm. Just remember to keep plenty of Sake handy!
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Deadman Wonderland
Manga Review by
Linda Yau
 What happens when a world falls apart and a young man is sentence to death? Wrongly accused of murdering his entire class and imprisoned, this is the reality of Ganta Igarashi. The world that Dead Man Wonderland takes place in is a post apocalyptic futuristic alternate world with Tokyo suffering after a world-altering earthquake. Read More...
Shinobi Life
Manga Review by
Carolyn Whu
 There hasn't been a manga that made me look like a complete moron in a while so, quite unknowingly, I whipped out Shinobi Life in public and proceeded to make a fool of myself. I mean a pink manga with a ninja hugging a girl on the cover is not literary gold but I didn't expect it to be a complete riot of a comedy either. I thought it was going to be a straight girlie girl romantic ninja love story kind of thing. I guess I should have paid attention to that little itty bitty label on the top right corner of the back that says "Romance/Comedy", huh? Read More...
Japanese Schoolgirl Confidential: How Teenage Girls Made a Nation Cool
Japanese Culture Book Review by Brian Cirulnick
 How did the Japanese schoolgirl develop into a brand that can be used to sell anything from kimchi to insurance? The image of the Japanese schoolgirl has gained iconic recognition all over the globe. With inspiration from all facets of Japanese culture, from samurai to geishas, she's every woman — a pop star, a muse, a heroine. One part sexual fantasy, one part demure bookworm.
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