Manga Tak

Buntarō Mori transfers to a new school in the hopes of being left alone... Only for a school bully to send his life down an unexpected path: a new passion for solo climbing! Mori, a gloomy loner, soon opens up under the watchful eye of his teacher, Oonishi and the students form a climbing club... But after a climbing trip gone wrong, Mori's life starts to catch up with him... Maybe this is one climb he must face alone!

This week, Mat is joined once again by Georgie (aka Mainly.Manga) to discuss The Climber by Shin-ichi Sakamoto, Yoshio Nabeta & Hiroshi Takano. We discuss not only the book's high-highs, but it's interesting publishing history, Sakamoto's other works and the author's own journey from a young Mangaka to almost retiring from Manga altogether before the success of this work! 

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Show Notes

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Manga

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Innocent by Shin-ichi Sakamoto

#DRCL Midnight Children by Shin-ichi Sakamoto

Monster by Naoki Urusawa

GTO by Tooru Fujisawa

The Summit of The Gods by Jiro Taniguchi

A Journal of my Father by Jiro Taniguchi

The Solitary Gourmet by Jiro Taniguchi

The Walking Man by Jiro Taniguchi

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Interviews Etc.

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Shin-Ichi Sakamoto Manben Episode!

Kerastyle Interview with Shin-ichi Sakamoto

Thanks to Juliano Zucareli for our theme music!

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The passing of world-renowned wine critic Yutaka Kanzaki sends shockwaves through the industry... but perhaps nobody is more surprised by his passing than his son, Shizuku, who has been estranged from his father for many years and in an act of defiance after his harsh upbringing, never touched a drop of wine...

But upon hearing from his father's lawyer, Shizuku discovers that if he wants claim his inheritance, the world's most expensive wine collection, he must correctly identity 13 wines: 12 'apostles' and a wine cryptically referred to as 'The Drops of God' in a competition against another renowned wine critic, Issei Tomine, who was adopted by his father just before his passing!

This week, Mat sits down once more with Árni Beck Gunnarsson to talk The Drops of God by Tadashi Agi and Shin Kibayashi! Join us as we discuss if this wine manga had us reaching for another glass, or if it's approach to wine left us longing for something stronger. We speculate on it's tone and target audience, while Mat also gets into his thoughts about the Live Action TV show currently streaming on Apple TV!

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Show Notes

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Manga

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Death Note by Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata

Midnight Diner by Yarō Abe

Great Teacher Onizuka by Tooru Fujisawa

Oishinbo by Tetsu Kariya Akira Hanasaki

Food Wars!: Shokugeki No Soma by Yūto Tsukuda and Shun Saeki

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TV Shows

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Drops of God (Apple TV)

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Jarret Melendez' story about a Tokyo Jazz Bar can be found in Vol.1 of IDW's Full Bleed Anthology!

Listen to Mat and Arni talk Manga more broadly on Tegenseriessnak here!

Thanks to Juliano Zucareli for our theme music!

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After agreeing to marry a mysterious, beautiful girl after a near death experience, Nasa Yuzaki has his world turned upside down on his 18th birthday when she suddenly appears on his doorstep with a marriage form in hand! Who is this woman and why does she remind him so much of the fabled moon princess Kaguya?

This week on Manga Tak, Mat is joined once more by AC Yoshimura (aka prodtally) to discuss T̶o̶n̶i̶k̶a̶k̶u̶ ̶K̶a̶w̶a̶i̶i̶ Fly Me To The Moon by Kenjiro Hata! Join us as we discuss the dangers of 2am Don Quixote visits, how the manga compares to the anime, and watch in real time as Mat does a complete 180 turn on reading on based solely on the mention of one of his favourite movies...

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Show Notes

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Manga

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Urusei Yatsura by Rumiko Takahashi

Ranma 1/2 by Rumiko Takahashi

Love Hina by Ken Akamatsu

Trigun by Yasuhiro Nightow

Revolutionary Girl Utena by Chiho Saito / Be-Papas

Neon Genesis Evangelion by Yoshiyuki Sadamoto

Wash It All Away by Mitsuru Hattori

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Other

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Highlander 

Mamoru Oshii

Seikima-II 

Japan's Culture Council

Thanks to Juliano Zucareli for our theme music!

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In the world of competitive ballroom dancing, there are two competing styles: standard and latin, but in order to be the best in the world, two Japanese 'kings of ballroom' will have to come together in order to rise to the challenge of 10Dance: a glittering triathlon that would see them compete in both styles! 

This week, Mat is joined once again by Ida to discuss 10Dance by Inouesatoh. It's the first BL on the show, so after taking some time to discuss what the genra is and isn't, we get into what's so appealing about the book! It's tension, the romance and at times, the artwork! 

Along the way, we talk BL tropes, the Netflix live action adaptation of the manga, as well as give some recommendations for other books that contain other queer stories that will leave you smiling at the end!

Show Notes:

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J-Pop Con Info!

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BL Descriptors!

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Shonen-ai / BL / Yaoi

Bara 

Fujoshi 

Yuri / GL

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Manga

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Our Not So Lonely Planet Travel Guide by Mone Sorei

What Did You Eat Yesterday? by Fumi Yoshinaga

Blue Flag by Kaito

Boy Meets Maria by PEYO

I'm Kinda Chubby and I'm Your Hero by Nore

Witch Hat Atelier by Kamome Shirahama

Gorgeous Carat by You Higuri

Love Hina by Ken Akamatsu

Gravitation by Maki Murakami

Excel Saga by Koshi Rikudo

She Loves To Cook, She Loves to Eat by Sakaomi Yuzaki (podcast episode!)

Even Though We're Adults by Takako Shimura

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Movies

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10Dance Live Action on Netlfix

Thanks to Juliano Zucareli for our theme music!

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Just a quick message from me to ask with your help picking the manga and guest for the 100th episode of the show! 

Get your vote in now using this link - https://forms.gle/oiXmaX24ry6sHvEf9

Voting will close on February 20th, so be sure to get your vote in ASAP!

Thank you in advance!

Mat

Thanks to Juliano Zucareli for our theme music!

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A young Fujino publishes a weekly comic strip in her school paper to the fanfare of all her classmates, dreaming to become a Mangaka when she grows up... However, after another student named Kyomoto is published in the same paper, the way Fujino and her classmates see her work changes forever. It's the start of an unlikely friendship and a tragic story: one that echoes it's creator's feelings and real life incidents. But is it worth reading?

This week, Mat is once again joined by writer and illustrator, A.C. MacDonald, to discuss Look Back by Tatsuki Fujimoto. In this spoiler filled episode, we look at Look Back in relation to Fujimoto's other works, discuss how the creator reflects his own thoughts and feelings through the story, as well as asking each other questions on the nature of art and why we both feel the need to create things!

Join us for perhaps one of the most introspective episodes of the podcast ever, but we hope you'll agree: it's likely the kind of conversation someone like Fujimoto would want us to have about this book!

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Show Notes

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Twistwood Tales by A.C. MacDonald

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Other Works of Fujimoto:

Fire Punch

Chainsaw Man

Goodbye, Eri

Before Chainsaw Man

Look Back (the anime)

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Manga

Blame! by Tsutomo Nihei

Tower Dungeon by Tsutomu Nihei

Thanks to Juliano Zucareli for our theme music!

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Looks can be deceiving. Kaoru Suzuki is a towering boy who strikes fear into the hearts of his classmates with his intimidating looks... If they just got to know him, they're realise he's a kind, gentle boy but unfortunately nobody takes the time! 

That is until one day on the train to his new high school, he’s saved by a delicate but tough boy called Arata Haruna. The two boys hit it off immediately and slowly Suzuki begins to come out his shell to his new classmates, by revealing his unexpected passions for baking and gardening!

This week, I'm joined by once again by Marg (aka MargReadsManga) to discuss Suzuki-Kun's Mindfull Life by Yuhki Fujimoto. Can this Shojo slice of life win us over? What does this book about challenging gender rolls have to say? And more importantly, how do we feel about the prospect of an age gap romance...

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Show Notes

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Manga

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The Fragrant Flower Blooms with Dignity by Saka Mikami

Wash It All Away by Mitsuru Hattori

After The Rain by Jun Mayuzuki

Bunny Drop by Yum Unita

My Love Story!! by Kazune Kawahara & Aruko

Honey So Sweet by Amu Meguro

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TV Shows (and Podcasts)

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Pluribus (and the podcast!)

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Yuhki Fujimoto Interview (Japanese)

Thanks to Juliano Zucareli for our theme music!

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Duranki is book with two tales to tell... On one hand, it's the story of an androgynous child named Usumgal, born of the gods, but who is neither god nor human, neither male nor female. On the other, it's an experiment by Kentaro Miura to see if his manga studio, Studio Gaga, would be able to produce a work that could reach the high bar set by his masterpiece, Berserk. 

Unfortunately, with Miura's untimely passing in  2021, neither of these stories will see an ending. Like the ancient myths on which Duranki is based, we're only left with a fragment of those stories...And just like scholars do with those tales of old, Mat and Tom will speculate widely on what IS there!

Join us as we dig into Duranki: exploring the stories' 6 chapters, contrast it development concept also included in the volume on which it was based, before finally asking the question: should a creator's work continue after they're gone? And perhaps more fitting for a podcast that mainly recommends manga, is Duranki a good starting point for the Berserk-curious reader?

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Show Notes

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Berserk by Kentaro Miura

Giganto Maxia by Kentaro Mirua

Dragon Ball Super by Akira Toriyama and Toyotarou

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Production Interview on Duranki with Mirua (in Japanese)

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Thanks to Juliano Zucareli for our theme music!

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If you've spent years thinking that the work of Mitsuru Adachi isn't for you because you have no interest in baseball, pull up a chair! 

This week on Manga Tak, I talk to designer and illustrator Bastian Najdek, to discuss Short Game! A collection of 5 short stories from one of Japan's masters of romance, that proves that while the book is about baseball, it also REALLY isn't!

Join us as we take the field to discuss Adachi's beautiful compositions and writing, spend a little time in the outfield discussing badly dubbed Polish anime, before swinging for the fences and picking our favourite stories in the collection!

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Show Notes

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Mangaka

Akira Toriyama

Rumiko Takahashi

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Manga

Touch by Mitsuru Adachi

H2 by Mitsuru Adachi

Cross Game by Mitsuru Adachi

Short Program by Mitsuru Adachi

Ranma 1/2 by Rumiko Takahashi

Dragon Ball by Akira Toriyama

H̶e̶l̶l̶o̶ What's Michael? by Makoto Kobayashi

Thanks to Juliano Zucareli for our theme music!

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Vikings have seen a resurgence recently thanks to shows like (ahem) Vikings, and games like Assassins Creed Valhalla and Valheim, but what if I told you the best piece of Viking fiction of the past 20 years was actually a manga? And more importantly, that it's story is based on real vikings!

This week, Mat's not only joined by another passionate lover of comics, but a descendant of Thorfinn Karlsefni himself: author and translator, Árni Beck Gunnarsson! 

Join us as we really dive into Vinland Saga by Makoto Yukimura! We not only explore the book's story and themes, but actually talk at the length about viking history and the Icelandic sagas! It's an episode not to missed! 

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Show Notes:

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Podcasts:

The excellent Mangasplaining episode on Vinland Saga

Árni's podcast, Tegneseriesnak 

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Manga:

Planetes by Makoto Yukimura

Dragon Ball by Akira Toriyama

Akira by Katsuhiro Otomo

My Hero Academia by Kohei Horikoshi

Farewell My Odin by Chihiro Yoshioka

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Danish Viking Comics:

Valhalla 

Tall Tales of Midgard by Bjørk Matias Friis

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TV Shows / Movies

Vikings

Norsemen

Akira Kurosawa

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Thanks to Juliano Zucareli for our theme music!

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