[via]

Slick has kidnapped Ryan’s girlfriend and taken over River City High. Not only that, but he’s rallied together some of the toughest gangs in the city and sent them all after him. Now it’s up to Ryan and his best friend, Alex, to pummel their way through waves of bad guys and put Slick in his place.

Time to punch guys until they turn into coins!

[via]

Winner of the first Seiun Award, a prestigious award for science fiction, and the Shogakukan Manga Award for shonen/shojo manga in Japan, To Terra, directly translated as Toward the Terra, is a three-volume series about the future of Earth and humankind. In this future, Terra, or Earth, has fallen into ruin because of human neglect. Becoming uninhabitable, humans leave to colonize other nearby planets or far-off corners of the galaxy, never to be heard from again. But some humans decide to stay, with a desire to renew Terra into a livable and vibrant world. 

The humans that settle on Terra figured that humans caused Terra’s ruin—so, they create machines to rule over and control the humans. The lead machine Grand-Mother, brainwashes humans and breeds them in vitro. Although Grand-Mother controls the genes that create humans, a certain gene continuously pops-up. This gene gives rise to a new species called the Mu. Although weak-bodied, the Mu are blessed with physic abilities and are thereby hunted down by Grand-Mother. This is the story of a quest to return to Terra, told both from the perspectives of the Mu and the humans.

To put it lightly, Samurai Executioner is a spin-off of the famous manga, Lone Wolf and Cub. The same art style and storytelling in the latter is used in the former. However, the plot of the two are very different. As its name suggests, Samurai Executioner is about a Samurai who’s profession is that of an executioner. Yamada Asaemon, is an honorable man who is greatly respected, and feared, for both his position and demeanor.

Not only is the manga written with historical accuracy, but the original terms are transliterated in the translation.

Crying Freeman is the code name for the best assassin in the Chinese Mafia, otherwise known as the 108 Dragons.  Originally a genius potter, Yō Hinomura got involved with the 108 Dragons during an exhibition of his work. The organization noticed his talents and bent him to their will.

As an assassin, Hinomura dons the alias of Freeman; however, he hates killing.  After every kill he sheds tears, thus earning him the name of Crying Freeman.  He is the perfect assassin and successor to the leadership of the 108 Dragons.

What eventually became a landmark film in Japanese animation started off as this, the Akira manga by Katsuhiro Otomo.  Needless to say, this is a manga classic. 

Akira features a world after World War III.  The Japanese government becomes obsessed with funding research into espers, humans who have psychic powers.  Their research proves successful with the awakening of a number of espers.

Enter Tetsuo Shima. After getting injured by an explosion caused by an escaped esper he starts to develop powers himself.  His powers change him into a cold killer whose gripes with his once friend, Shotaro Kaneda, become magnified into hate.  Now the both of them become tangled in a fight between not just two teenagers, but the government and the resistance, esper verses human.

This was the winner of the 1984 Kodansha Manga Award for best general manga.

The world has been devastated by an apocalyptic war called the “Seven Days of Fire”. The world that survived is now host to the Sea of Decay, a large jungle filled with deadly poisons and even deadlier monster insects. The scattered villages that have been left behind all struggle for survival in a world that has become inhospitable to human life.

Their only hope for survival is a girl and a legend almost forgotten.

Even in real life, humans are slowly destroying the planet.  However, in Parasyte, Earth may have a chance due to alien invaders.  These aliens are parasitic, sometimes symbiotic, creatures that attempted to take over human bodies when they first invaded.  Most Parasites succeeded and took control over human brains. Others failed to take over humans but succeed in controlling other animals, although this is considered a failure by the Parasite population. These Parasites develop a need to eat others of the same species as their host.  Thus, Parasites in human hosts eat other humans.

Another failure is when a Parasite fails in taking over a human’s brain and instead controls a different part of their body. This is the case for Shinichi Izumi, who has a Parasite in his right hand.

Retroactive Reviews will be focused on media that most of you might not have even heard of, stuff that is either long gone, remade, or has a bazillion sequels and off-shoots. Each of them will be reviewed fairly as they are, and taking into consideration the time period they were created. While they might not seem as shiny and new as titles that are released today, they are in no way completely without merit.

Dr. Wily had seen defeat at the hands of one of his own creations. In his ploy to use six robots he had co-created with Dr. Light, he overlooked their first creation. This was his first mistake, and would prove to spell his downfall.

Dr. Wily thinks he’s learned from that mistake, though, and now he’s back once again. It’s time for Mega Man to prove Dr. Wily hasn’t really learned anything. 

A rather old manga, Dragon Warrior: Dai’s Great Adventure is based in the world of the video game series Dragon Quest. This story stays true to the game to such an extent that even the manga feels like an RPG (Role Playing Game) — the characters level up, learn new spells, and change classes.

As you can tell from the manga’s title, the manga is about Dai, a Dragon Knight, who goes on an adventure with fellow Disciples of Avan and other friends to defeat the Great Demon King Vearn.

What is like a plant and like an animal, but neither? What is a mirage,  but also physical? The answer is mushi.

Mushi are a third type of being. They are not plants, they are not animals, but a little of both. Few people can see these creatures, and even fewer of these become Mushishi — wanderers who protect the balance between mushi and humans.  It is best to think of them as wandering healers who are both in tune with humans and mushi. The mangaka often bases the mushi after folk lore and superstitions.  By borrowing from such lore we get creatures who have evolved and ripened for countless generations before being used in this work.

“We are in year 2035 on the Tinos planet, colonized 300 years before by some earthlings. With only half of Earth’s oxygen concentration and with cold arctic conditions over most of Tinos, the human beings are forced to wear a life support apparatus that supplies the oxygen necessary for survival. The black market in such apparatuses is a flourishing business in the criminal world of Junk City. Blue, the protagonist, is in desperate need of a life suport system after being mugged, but an unscrupulous bunch of criminals cheat him of his money and leave him with an outdated model with an old AI. He is tricked by the head of the police, Weiser, into committing a murder, and is then killed himself. The AI, called Fatso, decides to save his life, and gives him a new artificial body filled with extraordinary strength and the cumulative knowledge of their combined three hundred and seventeen years. The resurrected Blue decides to get revenge and protect all those suffering under the tyranny of Weiser.” - Animea.net

“By the author of Samurai Deeper Kyo…

John Elegadine, a curry lover and a professional thief, encounters Lu Larue, a thief lock picker, as he was taking a stroll through a bazaar. With the two together, they are to find the legendary demon stone that is scattered into thirteen pieces around the world. Once the pieces are put back together, the demon stone is willing to grant a wish upon the user’s desire.” -Bakaupdates

“It centers around the travails and battles of one Ushio Aotsuki (蒼月潮 Aotsuki Ushio), who is constantly being stalked and aided by a gigantic, supernatural and sometimes invisible tiger (Some people describe it as akin to Calvin and Hobbes on acid, but I disagree).

Ushio’s family maintains a Buddhist temple in Japan, where ~500 years ago, his samurai ancestor battled that same tiger to a standstill, and eventually trapped him against a rock using a blessed spear called the “Beast Spear”, which in addition to its intrinsic formidability as a weapon, can also boost the physical powers of the user. While cleaning out the temple storage, Ushio accidentally unseals the chamber Tora was trapped in. Initially, Ushio wisely refuses to remove the spear pinning Tora (とら, Japanese for tiger) down, as Tora unwisely makes the strategic blunder of mentioning that the first thing he would do upon being freed would be to devour Ushio; but Tora’s unsealed presence attracts various demons to the premises, and Ushio is forced to free Tora in exchange for his help. The series focuses on their relationship, interspersed with battles against mythological foes, and with Tora’s attempts to grapple with modern life and gobble up Ushio.” -Mangafox.com

“The angel Alexiel loved God, but she rebelled against Heaven when she saw how disgracefully the other angels were behaving. She was finally captured, and as punishment sent to Earth to live an endless series of tragic lives. She now inhabits the body of Setsuna Mudo, a troubled teen in love with his sister Sara. Setsuna’s misery mirrors the chaos among the angels, and their combined passions threaten to destroy both Heaven and Earth.” -Mangahere.com

“Sanctuary has everything that defines a seinen series: complex characters, a thrilling story, passionate sex, and ruthless violence. Sanctuary’s story revolves around Akira Hojo and Chiaki Asami, two childhood friends that took opposite paths in life. One joins the gang in Japan, the Yakuza, and the other joins the government. Some say it’s “The Godfather” of Japanese manga; we feel that if any manga is going to blow your mind, this series just might be it!” -thespectrum.net