This weeks reviews were submitted by Melanie Valdivieso, Tommy Pfeiffer and Omar Valdivieso

GTO: The Early Years vol. 11
Story & Art: Toru Fujisawa
Translation: Ko Ransom
Publisher: Vertical

The manga that served as a prequel (well, not really because it really did come out before GTO, but it’s known as a prequel here in the States because it came out after the regular GTO series….ummm where was I?) to GTO is back!! And fans couldn’t be happier!  The series was left in hiatus when Tokyopop went under a couple of years ago, but the wonderful folks at Vertical have decided to keep going with the series!  Originally called Shonan Junai Gumi (Shonan True Love Group), you can see why they changed the name here, chronicles the early life of Eikichi Onizuka.  Onizuka is of course the main star of Great Teacher Onizuka.  At the beginning Onizuka and his partner Ryuji Danma were the most feared gang members around, but they noticed they weren’t getting any ladies that way, sooo they decide to clean up their act more like gentlemen.  You know the same thing any virgin boy would do to try to get some action!  That is really all you need to know about the previous volumes to catch you up.  Most of what happens in this volume is Onizuka rescuing a damsel in distress who is in the sex slave market.  Of course this gets some gangsters involved and a new character with a death-wish named Joey is introduced.  How do you fight a guy that already thinks he is dead?  I guess we’ll find out in the next volume.  B

Naruto: The Official Character Data Book

Publisher: Viz

If you are looking for something different to get into this might be the book for you.  It is an indepth look at the world of Naruto and Shippuden. 

It contains: Chatracter guides, shinobi facts, jutsu data, technical files, a relationship chart, reader survey results, a naruto dictionary and a huge index.  It’s really the ideal book of fans of Naruto!

Not a standard manga by any mean, but perfect for the people trying to play catch up with Naruto or are just too lost and can’t keep up with this massive world. Well, at least till volume 43!  B

Oh My Goddess vol. 20
Story & Art: Kosuke Fujishima
Translation: Dana Lewis & Toren Smith
Lettering & Touch-up: Susie Lee & Betty Dong
Publisher: Dark Horse

Oh My Goddess is a book that makes me feel old.  I started reading the comic book format when I was a sophomore in high school and now I’m married and have two kids.  My Goddess that was 18 years ago! No wonder this is the longest running manga in America.  But still, when I started reading the book I was younger than all the characters and now I’m older than everyone, but the Goddesses.  So, enough with the weird nostalgia; on with the review!  Since K1 has moved on to the working world, someone has to take over as the Motor Club’s president. K1 picks Sora, much to her dismay. Sora is in need of some confidence built, and of course Belldandy is the one to do it. That’s much of what happens before the big race. The race itself is a bizarre cross-campus jaunt among three checkpoints using any available route. Again, this is geared to Sora as she knows all the short cuts from her experience as a messenger girl. These short cuts end up being bizarre at times, with one through a women’s locker room with a dire warning notice on the door. Keiichi needs some encouragement at this point, and it’s Urd’s turn to provide it, in her own weird way.  This volume marks the last of the Oh My Goddess books to be printed in its new format.  That means that you should have all the Oh My Goddess volumes 1 through 40 in the same format.  Another great volume by Fujishima! A

One Piece Vol. 60
Story & Art by Eiichiro Oda
Translation: Lance Caselman
Adaptation: Laabaman, HC Language Solutions Inc
Publisher: Viz

::SPOILER ALERT IF YOU HAVEN’T READ VOLUME 59!::

This story is so beloved over in Japan that fans uproared when Oda announced that he was halfway through, and I can see why.  I am definitely going to miss it.  Even though Oda has assistants to aide him in producing this story, I am still impressed that he has been going strong all these years with stories that are chock full of detailed art and tons of dialogue.  Many kudos to him and his crew.

This volume will inspire you with the back story between Luffy, Ace, and their childhood friend, Sabo.  By the way, I appreciate how Oda employs the technique of saving the back story for after a tragedy to make it even more…traumatic!  The three boys desperately fight for freedom and friendship in this multi-chapter back story that helps you to understand why Ace couldn’t die.  You also learn about the people Ace mentions before he dies, Dadan and Sabo.

Finally, Luffy’s crew members learn of his plight and are trying to return to their captain.  I only halfway paid attention to the chapter opening pictures that revealed where they were located, and it ends up I should have paid attention because this volume covers the ending of their stories.  Oh well!  It’s pretty cool that he afforded us glimpses of their predicaments though.

I highly enjoyed this volume.  In fact, I don’t think One Piece has ever disappointed me.  Well, I’m sure ten more years of this comic will come pouring out from Japan. A

You may also want to check out One Piece Color Walk 2 with beautiful color original and cover illustrations by Eiichiro Oda.

lXXXholic vols. 17-19
Story & Art: CLAMP
Translation: William Flanagan
Lettering: North Market Street Graphics
Publisher: Del Rey

It has all lead to this!  The final volumes of XXXholic have arrived and I get exactly what I wanted. Time has passed since Yuko disappeared from this plane of existence . Watanuki decides to stay at the shop that he inherited from Yuko How he handles each costumer being new to this whole thing, is pretty impressive.  It seems that he was having more than dreams when he keeps running into people that Yuko has helped in the past have no idea who Yuko is. It’s as if she never existed. It is a very disturbing and depressing thought, but it all makes sense . No, matter what hell she put him through, his life is better because of her.

Watanuki plays a pivotal part in the final act of Tsubasa as well.  That’s right!  Those characters all show back up in these pages as if to make one final appearance before their last hurrah in their own book.  But it’s not all fun and games; there are some serious moments in these books.  Watanuki comes to the realization that he is going to lose everyone he loves because of his new lifespan.  All the people he ever cared about will be gone soon Hiimawari, Kohane and Domeki.  This is a difficult moment of realization for him, but he takes it like a true hero and lives on.  He becomes a new character and this is mainly seen when he decides to protect the small spirit of a child from a malevolent being.

I was hoping to see Yoko one last time and by the end of the book I got my wish.  While it was a bitter sweet reunion it was too short and not what I was expecting.  The egg that they have been building up for volumes stays the same, it is never used.  All of Watanuki’s friends are long gone and their great grandkids are now around.  I think my main problem with the series is that you have to read Tsubasa to understand everything. I mean where else would you find out how Watanuki lost his memories or where Yuko died? It’s a bit of a confusing ending.  Watanuki decides to stay, but does he end up becoming Clow?  Does he indeed cause the events in Tsubasa because he wants to see Yuko once more?  If that is true than the manga has truly come full circle, but as I mentioned before to truly enjoy it: You must read Tsubasa!  A