What a weird, yet intriguing series.

This has a ton of exposition, something I USUALLY hate but for some reason I was super intrigued about the world in this series. But the manga writer is same as the novel writer, and so I don't think they've done the crossover to let the art tell more of the story. However, manga/anime usually has a exposition dump issue.

Anyway to the main story. Kotoko is a girl who can see and interact with spirits and demons. Why? Because when she was a little girl she was kidnapped by them and her leg and eye were ripped out from her. But the main draw here is Kotoko meeting Kur, a handsome, older man, who she right away crushes on. So through hardships together they begin to bond. At the same time, two years later, Kur's ex girlfriend is now a cop and she's on a mission to find a girl who scares people at night with a big blade. Will everyone's world collide?

This is a odd story. Supernatural and world building heavy, romance is there, yet it works well because Kotoko is such a weird character. The way she speaks and talks is a "matter of fact' always and she is ALWAYS logical. On top of that she is pretty funny and makes plenty of funny perverted jokes too. Kur is a solid second lead with a cool backstory to make him different. The ending is a bit simple in terms of meeting but I gotta say, I'm intrigued to read more.

A 3.5 out of 5.

Redfork mixes a slice of life drama about a guy getting out of prison and going back to his family and a evil creature lurking underneath is town who gets free and begins to destroy everything he knows and loves.

Noah years prior to when this story takes place protects his brother from going to jail by taking the blame. Once he does he returns back home to set things right but it's not that simple. With a collapsed tunnel his brother is one of the only survivors. But the town begins to change and the deeper you get into the dark past of it the worst it becomes. Shady organization, family drama, and death everywhere...Redfork is real life horror mixed with supernatural.

And for that, and the art, this was a pretty enjoyable read. Well done characters with a nice family dynamic throughout and the brutal art helped push the horror part. I didn't love the pacing, at times feeling slightly sluggish, other times TOO quick to capture the emotion Paknadel was trying to portray. But overall, this is a nice modern horror comic that I enjoyed! A 3.5 but I'll bump it to a 4.

The end of Garth run on Punisher is here and...it's kind of a mixed bag.

Barracuda actually takes the spotlight in the first four issues of this book. The thing is, Barracuda is a fun character, but by himself? not as much. Still, the mini-series is entertaining enough and builds towards the next arc which is a million times better with the final showdown between Punisher and Barracuda. Then the next arc is Punisher dealing with the Military in a interesting way, and while overly long and unneeded letters from soldiers plotline was there, it still hit some good emotional moments. The last two stories are Punisher tying up loose ends on the people who killed his family, which is fantastic. Then there's Punisher The End, taken place in the future and it's pretty cheesy and not really all that interesting.

Like I said, mixed bag. Not as strong as volume 2-3. While nothing horrible it had some meh storylines that went on WAY too long. But still, the good parts worked well to give a good sendoff to Ennis who obviously gave Punisher a huge boost in popularity. A 3.5 out of 5.

Bleach continues this new arc with mixed results.

The fights themselves are formulaic at this point. "New form > other guys new form" but I will say the fight with Quincy verse hot girl with whip was pretty funny. Mostly thanks to the beetle character and his weird as hell powers. I also am enjoying the pacing as we wrap up THREE fights in one volume instead of drawing them out.

I can't help but feel like we're running through something to familiar. Maybe it'll change when we get to the big bad boys, but right now it's just some decent fun fighting. A 3 out of 5.

So this contains the end of the Uprising Arc (Which to me is the worst arc in the series, and when I say worst it is still a 4 out of 5) and the Return To The Wall arc (Which is my FAVORITE ARC) So...this is the greatest and worst of the series, but the worst of Attack On Titan is still better than 90% of people's best.

Let me also state some of my pages were blank. There was a misprint for this collection and some key moments were missing in my copy. Luckily already seen the anime so I know what happens but it was pretty fucking annoying.

Anyway, the uprising arc ends kind of how you'd expect. Still some great human vs human moments and oh man, the reveal of Eren and his past along with Hisotria's is all great. Wasn't huge fan of walking, talking, big blob titan but that's pretty much the only negative. Even had a few comedic moments that worked well.

Then we have the return to the wall. Where it all begin. Where Eren's mother was murdered and where he lost everything. The whole basic reason this series even started. So we march forward but both the Armored and Colossal Titan along with their new Ally Beast Titan are waiting for Erwin, Eren, and the rest of the Corp...things don't go so well.

Fantastic second half, some of the BEST and BRUTAL moments of the entire series, and a shocking ending that still shocks me even when I know what would happen. This is Attack On Titan at it's peak and we still have a few more chapters of this arc in the 5th volume.

If you don't know by now, Attack on Titan is top tier, easily top 10, maybe even Top 5 Manga/anime of all time. A 5 out of 5.

Red Border is a pretty disturbing, B-flick horror movie about Mexicans trying to escape the vicious life of the Cartel while dealing with Rednecks who are just as bad.

If you don't take it too serious it's actually pretty fun. A husband/wife are on the run after their friends and family are gunned down. This book doesn't take a second to breath as they are running away almost 4 pages in. When they get close to the border they are ambushed by more cartel but then a redneck comes and shoots them up and saves the couple...only for them to be thrown into a even more twisted world.

It's stupid, but it's fun. It's disturbing, yet I wanted to know what would happen next. While not grade-A writing or fantastic art, both are solid enough for me to read this is 3 sittings. Want some crazy texas chainsaw type fun? This one might be worth checking out. A 3 out of 5.

Monster somehow slows down when all the shit gets wild.

The best part about this volume if the Doctor's downward spiral into chasing a monster he might never actually stop. The results are watching a man tittering on the edge of life trying to hold it all together. The other great part comes in the last 2-3 chapters when we see a bodyguard's life protecting someone important to the doctor but we know it'll all go south eventually.

The downside is Nina's storyline and the past feel a little slow paced. Like snails pace almost that the middle of the book had me kind of wondering where the fuck are we going and why is it taking so long to get there.

Saying that, even if this isn't perfect, it is Urasawa and it's still written real well with amazing art. So still a very easy 4 out of 5.

UGH SUCH A CREEPY TITLE I LOVE IT.

Okay so I can't really talk about much but maybe our boy has found actual love. Not with a condition, someone who actually cares for him. But you know mommy dearest ain't gonna stand for that shit. She coming...and you better be ready.

This series is Oshimi at his finest. Letting the creepy art display a person who has snapped and is uncontrollably crazy. I need more of this series as soon as possible. A 5 out of 5.

Another just okay arc. Cool to see how they figured out how to kill titans but besides that it's so boring at times. None of these characters have the complexity the main series does to their characters. Just typical manga cutouts with a interesting world that isn't even made by this author. Skippable.

This series remains solid fun shonen. Nothing amazing, typical of what you expect, but it's still pretty fun and the humor can be funny if a little juvenile.

Astra goes head to head with the main enemy of the last book but you learn of why he is the way he is. It's actually a pretty good backstory and you can see where he's coming from even if it is very battle royale background. But the next arc picks up quickly and you get to see the magic chain and who's on the very top. But the big breakout of the baddies makes this meet up very short.

Again, fun and enjoyable with solid art and good fight scenes. The story itself is basic and doesn't stride to be something over the top or special. Very happy being the middle ground manga and it's a quick read. I read it on the shonen jump app and it takes me about 20 minutes to read a volume. So for what it is, fun times for Astra and his crew.

A 3 out of 5.