Love Manga goes through the sales charts and points the way to a couple of articles. Broken Frontier reviews the first issue of Shojo Beat and there’s a review of the old school title Grey over at Comic Book Resources. I have to dig up my old issues of Grey, it was a great apocalyptic hard science fiction story.
One new manga that I read on my road trip was Yotsuba&!, by Kyohiko Azuma, the author of the funny four panel manga Azumanga Daioh. Yotsuba is a girl who is so clueless and/or innocent about the world around her that when she encounters everyday objects like a swing or an air conditioner, she misinterprets everything. In the first volume Yotsuba moves to a new neighborhood with her father and gets accustomed to her new surroundings. I was laughing out loud several times while reading this manga, the humor at times reminded me a bit of a more slapstick Amelia Bedelia. Yotsuba should appeal to a wide age range - I thought it was much funnier than Azumanga Daioh, and the characters are charming. ADV is releasing the English language version.
8:35 am on June 30th, 2005 1
I finally yielded to the inevitable and ordered the English version of Yotsuba yesterday. Although I was getting the gist of what was going on, the Japanese is so colloquial and informal and slangy that my scribbled translations had about as many question marks as English words. (Unfortunately, the textbooks used in class are geared towards business travellers, so it presents only formal Japanese, and the vocabulary’s all wrong. Not to mention the fact that they don’t even really get into hard-core grammar per se until the second book.) At this rate, I’ll never do better than kidlit … [sigh]
9:02 pm on July 2nd, 2005 2
I just got the official english opy of Yotsuba&! today and I’m on chapter four already. It’s hilarious & I’m a big fan of Azumanga Daioh so I bet I’ll love Yotsuba&! The characters are nice. The Asegi(Is that how you spell it) sisters are all pretty in ways. Well, I’m wondering if it’s gonna be out on dvd though. If they get through like a few more mangas though.WAH
1:29 am on July 3rd, 2005 3
There isn’t currently an anime planned for Yotsuba&!, unfortunately. However, there are some audio dramas out there in Japanese and they’re apparently planning a live-action TV drama as well.
11:41 pm on August 4th, 2005 4
I gotten both the volumes out in English, and I can safely say I love it. Even though there’s not much of a plot to it, it’s just my kind of humor.
12:05 am on September 5th, 2005 5
i have the english virsion of yotsuba&! it’s a super cute anime i even made a yotsuba&! website!
10:22 pm on September 17th, 2005 6
omg! yotsuba&! is so kool!…i already read the first two books, their so funny it reminds me so much about azu manga diaho..i like that kind of manga : )
9:06 pm on November 25th, 2005 7
OMG I LOVE IT CICADAS :p:) YAYAYAAYAYAYAYAYAYAA
9:07 pm on November 25th, 2005 8
I MEEN IT IS LIKE THE BEST EVER IT IS SO COOL
4:56 pm on December 29th, 2005 9
“it reminds me so much about azu manga diaho”
Actually it’s made by the same person… don’t know if you knew that or not. And for those who don’t know, #3 came out already… just as funny if not better!
9:45 pm on April 14th, 2006 10
I love Yotsuba&! It is so cute! I have 3 books so far and I am waiting for the fourth to come out in english version. I just HAVE to read it.
O:D
9:51 pm on April 14th, 2006 11
Wow… I don’t know how to express my…ecstaticity(is that a word?) anticipating the fourth book. It is a funny series. Poor Jumbo! Will he and Asagi ever hook up? I have seen Asagi’s friend, Torako, Ena’s friend, Miura, but I have yet to see Fuka’s friend. And who is this “Yanda” character anyway, and when will we see him?
9:59 pm on April 14th, 2006 12
Oh! I spotted 2 errors in the third book! One page is where Yotsuba is yelling “I’m Yotsuba Koiwai”. She calls Miura “Fuka”. And on the page after the color picture of the fireworks she calls Ena and Miura “Asagi and Fuka”. Just thoughgt I’d bring that up.
12:23 am on May 3rd, 2006 13
Ciara, Yanda shows up in Chapter 30 (volume 5, which means a long wait for the official English publication stateside -_- ). It is my personal favorite so far–Yotsuba and Yanda do NOT mix. At all. And it’s great ^_^ .
8:55 pm on May 16th, 2006 14
me2 i so love yotsuba so much that i never get tired of reading the books. i cant wait 4&5 to come out. im so excited.
YOTSUBA&! 4ver
9:00 pm on May 16th, 2006 15
yotsuba is the best manga ever. i got 3 books so far though. yotsuba makes me luagh. the creater of yotsuba is great too she should make more of more YOTSUBA.
YOTSUBA&! 4VER
9:03 pm on May 16th, 2006 16
i cant wait anymore. does any1 knows when YOTSUBA 4&5 comes out in english. im so excited to wait much longer. i had to get 1 now.
YOTSUBA&! 4VER
9:09 pm on May 16th, 2006 17
by the way i know i talk too much about YOTSUBA, i ddrew her once. its was kool and cute as the original YOTSUBA. oh mizzyia wat is your YOTSUBA website called. i want to see it
YOSUBA&! 4VER
9:10 pm on May 16th, 2006 18
YOSUBA&! IS THE BEST
6:05 pm on May 18th, 2006 19
can some1 pleace tell me when does yotsuba&!vol.4
comes out?
YOTSUBA&! 4VER
6:19 pm on May 18th, 2006 20
dis jonathan guy keeps on exagerating.anyways yotsuba is the best.haha.i cant wait to get the manga
YOTSUBA IS DA BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEST!!!
10:46 pm on May 18th, 2006 21
Jonathan, calm down and stop posting so many comments, if you don’t mind. I don’t know when the 4th volume of Yotsuba&! is coming out, not for a few more months at least.
5:20 pm on May 19th, 2006 22
thanks tangognat and yes i will not put so many comments.
YOTSUBA&! 4VER
7:16 pm on May 19th, 2006 23
i got the azumanga daioh. i heard is really funny so i bought it. it was really funny.HAHA
YOTSUBA&! 4VER
1:28 am on July 7th, 2006 24
hey it me agian i have been here for awhile, i think july or augest yotsuba vol.4 comes out. im really excited about it. i hope u guys still like yotsuba well i do and i will forever until the series ends. anyway im really excited that vol.4 will come out. ^-^
yotsuba&! is the bomb and 4ever
1:59 am on August 2nd, 2006 25
……….aaaaargh….Ive been waitin for vol 4 foreverrrr!!!!! darn adv….o well…..just gotta keep waiting…. u know they dont even have a yotsuba&! section on their own website? dang…
2:05 am on August 2nd, 2006 26
oh i forgot.
YOTSUBA&! IS THE BEST!!!!!!!!!!
hmmm I also really like deathnote a lot too. and bleach and DNAngel and Azumanga……o well. personal opinion and all that crap
9:48 am on September 24th, 2006 27
lol vanaran i no how that feels waiting for yotsuba 4 man i cant wiat