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Review: BAMBI AND HER PINK GUN
When it wasn't churning out one mediocre BL manga after the next, manga boom-era DMP would sometimes go out on a limb and license something crazy like this.BAMBI AND HER PINK GUN (Banbi), by Atsushi...
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Review: SEVEN OF SEVEN
There are certain people in Japanese media who are just as adept with anime as they are with manga.Today's review is not an example of that.SEVEN OF SEVEN (Shichinin no Nana), written by Yasuhiro...
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Review: ST. DRAGON GIRL
The older I get, the more I struggle with shojo manga. It's hard to maintain one's enthusiasm when faced with so many titles like this.ST. DRAGON GIRL (Kiyoshi Seinto Doragon Gaaru), by Natsumi...
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Review: THE LIFE-CHANGING MANGA OF TIDYING UP
A month like this gives me room to talk about manga that don't really fit any theme, which itself is fitting for a manga that's all about finding room for things.THE LIFE-CHANGING MANGA OF TIDYING UP:...
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Review: THE GORGEOUS LIFE OF STRAWBERRY-CHAN
No mangaka is perfect. At some point they will produce a less than great work, and it's worse when they work in comedy manga.THE GORGEOUS LIFE OF STRAWBERRY-CHAN (Strawberry-chan no Karei na...
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Review: X-KAI
It's never a good sign when a manga reminds me of one of the worst anime I have ever watched.X-KAI, by Asami Tohjoh. First published in 1998 and first published in North America in 2006.PLOT:Kaito is...
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Review: DI GI CHARAT: DEJIKO'S ADVENTURE
Broccoli was a short-lived anime and manga publisher in the US, but during their short time they did their best to promote their most profitable, recognizable mascot with manga like this.DI GI CHARAT:...
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Review: THE APOTHECARY DIARIES
As this 10th edition of the Merry Month of Manga comes to an end, it's time to cover one last oversight. This has been one of my favorites for the last two years. If not for the fact that its first...
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Review: TOTAL ECLIPSE OF THE ETERNAL HEART
Once again, we're doing a month of BL manga reviews here at the Test Drive, but this year it's going to be double the reviews! We're starting with a fairly recent book from a creator who has already...
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Review: GOLDEN CAIN
The history of BL manga in the US begins in the early 2000s. The first company to try their hand at it was Central Park Media, as part of their ill-fated Be Beautiful imprint, so how does its first...
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Review: ONLY THE RING FINGER KNOWS
Central Park Media might have been the first manga publisher to tackle BL, but DMP became famous for publishing nothing but BL, starting with the very book I'll be reviewing today.ONLY THE RING FINGERS...
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Review: INNOCENT BIRD
Tokyopop was one of the first manga publishers to find success in BL manga, first with their release of FAKE and Gravitation and later on through their Blu imprint with like Junjo Romantica. Sadly,...
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Review: OTAKU ELF
This month I'll be attending two different anime conventions, so I figured that the blog might as well get into the same spirit by reviewing some otaku-centric manga. That being said, maybe I should...
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Review: MANIAC ROAD
It's not like manga that are all about glorifying otaku and Akihabara are anything new, as this manga clearly demonstrates.MANIAC ROAD (Manii Roudo), by Shinsuke Kurihashi. First published in 2002 and...
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Review: MY DAD'S THE QUEEN OF ALL VTUBERS?!
Maybe I should shift my focus away from more old-school notions of otaku-dom to more modern concepts like this one.MY DAD'S THE QUEEN OF ALL VTUBERS?! (Oyaji ga Bishojo ni Nanetta Hanashi?!), by Wataru...
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Review: REBEL SWORD
It took me a bit to recover from the excitement of Otakon, but I'm back to deliver yet another Old School Month! Let's start with an obscure little treasure from my own personal collection.REBEL SWORD...
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Review: BOMBA!
Let's take a look at one of the most recent retro releases from this year - a new selection from the vast library of Osamu Tezuka. BOMBA! (Bonba!), by Osamu Tezuka. First published in 1970 and first...
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Review: EXCEL SAGA
Older comedy manga don't always age well, but here's a rare example of one that has. EXCEL SAGA (Ekuseru Saga), by Rikdo Koshi. First published in 1996 and first published in North America in...
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Review: HAGANAI - I DON'T HAVE MANY FRIENDS
September means back-to-school time, complete with kids joining and rejoining school clubs. We'll be doing the same by reviewing a month's worth of manga about school clubs, although today's review is...
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Review: IMADOKI! NOWADAYS
School clubs as a venue for friendship and romance are just as common in shojo manga as they are in shonen, but this one brings at least one welcome twist to the formula. IMADOKI! NOWADAYS (Imadoki!),...
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