don't be dull, be fannish

#40 "Renegade" by Gene DeWeese 2 stars (Star Trek: TOS)

#41 "Crying Freeman #1" by Kazuo Koike 4 stars (manga)

#42 "Bleach #14" by Tite Kubo 4 stars (manga)

#43 "Hostile Ground" by Sally Malcolm 5 stars (Stargate SG-1)

#44 "Servant of the Shard" by R. A. Salvatore 4 stars (Forgotten Realms)

#45 "Sherlock Holmes Mystery Magazine #11" 1 star (Sherlock Holmes)

#46 "The Kill Order" by James Dashner 2 stars (The Maze Runner)

"Duklyon: Clamp School Defenders Vol. 1" by Clamp

2 stars out of 5

Interesting characters, especially Kentaro and Takeshi, unfortunately, it's all lost in a sea of stupidity and forced cuteness. The same dumb, cringe-worthy plot time and time again. I bought this manga mostly because I wanted to learn more about Kenpi and Takepon, but I'm glad that I bought only one volume. I won't be continuing this series.

The card catching business makes up just a tiny part of this volume, mostly it's all about Sakura's family, Yukito and Eriol and his crew. This is the volume that I've been waiting for, the one where Toya tells Yuki that he KNOWS. Man, the scenes where Toya finds Yukito unconscious, knowing that he could help if Yuki just let him, are heartbreaking. And Toya's sacrifice... Man. Also, Eriol's so caring and gentle - but I still can't decided, with him having some hidden agenda, if his behavior is sweet or creepy.

Review: Obviously last in the "Category: Freaks" manga. And unfortunately a big let-down. I hoped that, with this being the last volume, we would learn more about the characters, gets some closure... We did learn more, but the story was rushed and boring. And as usually, there was a lot of nudity. The series started so well. Unfortunately, it ended with a whimper, not with a bang.

Review: The (in)famous adventures of Count Cain Hargreaves and his buttler Riff. Five stand alone stories, only three of them featuring Cain himself. All of them deal with a murder of some kind - and revenge. And all of them are painful and mostly dark. Great material that really touches you: a young a girl betrayed by her unfaithful fiancé, a young man murdered by his beloved brother, an innocent boy killed to make a movie more successful... All tragic cases. And I love that Cain knows no mercy: those who hurt his friends/family, die in a horrible way. Cain can't help the dead but he can avenge them.

Eriol's cute! And devious! And I love blushing Li-kun! Though I have to wonder why Eriol's so cruel to Shaolan when basically, Shaolan is his... uh, grandson? Interesting. Also, every time Toya opened his mouth to tell Yukito... something... someone interrupted them. It was so frustrating! Looking forward to vol. 8!

Vol. 4: Still insanely in love with this manga. I just adore the way Li-kun blushes so prettily whenever Sakura or Yukito smile at him. And Yukito and Toya, the loveliest couple in the whole universe of Clamp! I loved the part where Kaho had predicted that when she and Toya met again, Toya would have found someone who would be even more important to him than she. And she was right! When she saw the way he looked at Yukito, she was all \o/ Cute!

Vol. 5: I actually laughed out loud reading the part about the school play! Sakura as the Prince and Li-kun as the Sleeping Beauty with attitude! Toya's face! I also loved the part where Sakura met her great-grandfather. But what intrigued me most was Yue and Kerberos. Also, I'm curious what Kaho's role in the whole Clow business is. And, of course - Yukito and Toya are made of win! What else is new? ;)

Vol. 6: And with this volume, the first part of the series is finished. The cards are collected, the real forms of both Kerberos and Yue are revealed and a lot is explained. My favorite part of this manga? Still Toya and Yukito and their relationship. I just loved Kaho rooting for them, trying to convince Toya that he should finally tell Yuki what he wanted to tell him! So cute!

I have so much love for this manga, insane love! For real. I know that the whole card catching part is quite silly but the awesome characters make up for it. And all the slash vibes too, of course. Toya loves Yukito, Yukito loves Toya, Tomoyo loves Sakura... It's so cute! And the way Shaolan blushes every time Yukito smiles at him! And then there's the quite touching relationship that Toya and Sakura have, how they bicker and insult each other, but God forbid someone tries to hurt the one or the other! And the silly, silly banter between Sakura's dad and Tomoyo's mom! Ha!

What a cute manga! Sure, it's rather silly in places (especially the card catching part) and the heroine is just a ten-year-old girl, but it's a classic! I love Sakura and her family, the way Toya (her older brother) teases her and calls her a "Godzilla" just to annoy her - on the other hand, when Sakura's in danger, he gets fiercely protective and that's just awesome! The most interesting part for me, though, is the relationship between Toya and his best friend Yukito.

The style is also gorgeous - it's classic Clamp, before the mangakas modernized their style. And their chibis are especially hilarious. Chibi!Toya looks like an angry cat :)

I just realized that Amazon.de offers a reprint of Clamp's "Card Captor Sakura" manga! With new covers and new translation. I need to buy that! (Once I catch up on "Tsubasa Chronicle" that is - pft, only 10 vols to go and I'm up-to-date ;P) And no, not because of Sakura, Syaoran (or is it Shaolan? I never know what language spells it what way) or Tomoyo - but because of Touya and Yukito and their love. Their relationship is so quiet and... there, with no declarations of undying love or anything similar, but you just know that they love each other with a devotion that's simply stunning. And yup, because of that, I need to buy the manga! \o/