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"Yasashii Sekai no Tsukurikata" was a pretty interesting work. Plot summaries and synopses available online don't really do it much justice since the implication is that it's a fish-out-of-water romantic comedy with a harem bent. And, well, this is frankly not true. The work is actually more or less a straight drama, and while romantic feelings play into it, it's a bit of a stretch to call it romance in a true sense.

Therein lies some of my disappointment. I enjoyed the manga throughout, but I was a bit turned off by the ending, which seemed a bit juvenile and was completely unfulfilling. Perhaps that's a ... matter of my personal preferences, and other people will respond to it differently. I wouldn't say it's poorly done, I'm just bitter that it ended differently from how I envisioned and wanted.

Perhaps my favourite part of the manga was the artwork, which was fairly close to that of "Horimiya" and other shojo-ish shonen/seinen works out there. Everything was such a joy to just look at, that a lot of the more underwhelming aspects of the story went by without too much trouble.

I'd recommend it more readily to people interested in a light slice of life drama with elements of comedy and romance than those looking for a harem rom-com (there isn't really a harem here in any meaningful way, just a majority of female characters).

It's rare that I finish (or even get very far) with an anime or manga that I end up hating, but it does happen from time to time. When it does, there's usually some sort of horrible reason associated with it, and in this case it was because of a recommendation from someone whose suggestions I have enjoyed in the past.

For anyone just starting the manga, I'll admit that "Wolf Guy" doesn't start off too poorly. It's never particularly great (or even a hair's breadth above "decent"), but it showed enough promise that I kept reading, waiting for the manga to improve. Things change suddenly ... with a very intense moment at school which dramatically shifts both the tone and plot direction of the manga. From there it continues to get worse, and worse, and worse, until we've hit rock bottom with just about everything bad about narrative. I read the last twenty chapters out of a kind of morbid curiosity over just how terrible "Wolf Guy" could get and how low it would go, and I never even expected or hoped for a moment of redemption. Yes, it is AGGRESSIVELY bad, a term I use exceptionally rarely.

I'd recommend this manga to no one, although people who exclusively enjoy ultra-violent seinens and who are not bothered at all by pedophilia or gang rape scenes lifted from bad hentai may have more tolerance than I did.

"Ibitsu" is fairly popular, and worth checking out for scares-starved horror fans, but I'm not really much of a fan. After blowing through a lot of (so-called) "horror" series that aren't focused on actually being scary it was nice to read something that is actually trying to generate a fearful response. However I found that it gets undermined by the fact that the plot is fairly predictable. As it's a very short manga (as it would have to be) it doesn't really leave a whole lot of options for narrative outcomes. As such, I knew where everything was going more or less from the outset. ... There's also a push away from realism, but without either supernatural elements or a strong thematic statement like those found in "6000" and "Dragon Head" "Ibitsu" feels very flat and one-dimensional. I read the entire thing in a single sitting because I had nothing better to do. I didn't drop it only because it was so short, but getting through the second volume was a chore.

Also: sometimes what isn't shown is scarier than what is. That's not the case here; my imagination did not run wild: it failed to run at all.

I'm not overly fond of shonen harem series, but they can be tolerable, and shonen stuff is typically better when helmed by a female author. "Yamada-kun to 7-nin no Majo" is a fairly enjoyable shonen series, although it's by no means perfect. There are a few big plot holes that get waved over in the final rush to clear up all the mysteries, and the series loses focus past the first arc(s) by creating unnecessarily convoluted melodrama while retaining predictable outcomes.

That said, I did enjoy the series. The art was reasonably well done, and the characters were lots of fun (particularly Urara and Miyamura), although ... plenty of them are either totally dropped from the plot or are reduced to one-dimensionality. Although readers who stretch this manga out over a very extended period of time are less likely to notice this, anyone who reads it quickly will be sure to see these flaws.

I wasn't particularly interested in solving the "mystery" of the supernatural elements of the series. They're fun without question, but were better served as an excuse for character interactions, especially early on. The development between total opposites Urara and Yamada was especially good because of this, but once things settle into full-on Harem mode after the initial arc it kind of gets dull.

One thing that I considered a bit weak was the ecchi. I'm never much of an ecchi fan (preferring actual erotic, sexual, and romantic content as opposed to fan service), but I was hopeful that the series would strike a better balance than it ended up doing. In the initial arc there are moments of great chemistry between Yamada and Urara, and lots of genuinely erotic moments that come up naturally over the course of their relationship. Unlike many shonen female leads, Urara is 100% in control of her sexuality and when this is displayed fully the series strikes gold. Considering there are both shonen and shojo series that handle sexual relationships in a much more natural and realistic way I don't think that my criticisms are asking too much. Sacrificing romance and healthy sexuality in favour of fan service is always disastrous to the narrative, and "Yamada-kun to 7-nin no Majo" definitely lacks both romantic and sexual payoff despite all the erotic buildup (largely in the first arc, and occasionally past that).

My final complaint has to do with the ending. I absolutely hate the style of ending used in "Yamada-kun to 7-nin no Majo." Not because it failed to give me what I wanted (aside from some nitpicks surrounding secondary characters and certain details it was satisfactory plot-wise), but because there's a time skip, and structurally it took me out of the moment. The ending is pretty common to shonen mangas however, so if you aren't the type that minds these things then be at ease. Overall the manga is quite strong, and I recommend it to people who are into shonen manga and like romance, but don't want it to be the most dominant or sole element of the storytelling. If, however, you're coming in looking for a romance with other concerns and narrative diversions then "Yamada-kun to 7-nin no Majo" might be of slightly less appeal.

"Kaichou wa Maid-Sama!" does not offer much new to fans of shojo romance, but its playful take on common tropes with some nods to outside genres. The basic premise is familiar: two seemingly opposite types (a somewhat unpopular but lowkey cute and talented girl and an seemingly impossibly talented and beautiful boy) share a chance encounter and grow close due to their mutual interest or activities. I would highly recommend this manga to anyone with serious interest in the genre. That said, I had some reservations along the way which tempered my enjoyment of it, and prevented me from loving it as much as I ... could have.

The biggest issue is probably an overall lack of focus. It seems that many changes to the plot direction were made mid-narrative, which results in sometimes absurd and incoherent moments or arcs. The initial premise has promise, but isn't exactly riveting. Once the story begins to pick up some pace (with a notable influence from the superhero-esque physical abilities of the laudable Gokusen). The middle third of the manga really hits its stride with a mix of genuinely romantic moments, hilarity, and wonderful character interactions. This is also, unfortunately, where some of the biggest problems lie. Many secondary characters are introduced in the first half and two thirds of the manga, but most of them are discarded, or mishandled. Aside from a few central characters, it's tough to really say what the point of many of them are. It's hard to get behind characters' problems emotionally if they only seem to exist to establish a set piece that's used once for filler. The filler seems to have stemmed from a desire to keep to a certain degree of chastity. Where sexual innuendo and content was present, I thought it was very well done, and added nicely to the overall narrative. Much more of it, and more sexual (or more explicitly sexual) progression forward for the characters would have added a lot to the core romance.

I also wish the narrative had stayed a bit more grounded. There is a kind of commentary on class interactions and conflict, and it seems like there could be a solid political statement here, but it is ultimately confused and weak in its wholly unrealistic resolution. From about the halfway point on, it seems that character motivation (something well established and realistic in the first half) is discarded in favour of a "but this is convenient for the set pieces" mentality. So although I did quite enjoy Kaichou wa Maid-Sama!, I found myself increasingly skeptical as it entered the final arcs and conclusion. I also found that the way the ending was handled (while cute, and pleasing) was not to my tastes at all. This is a matter of particular personal preference, but I wish it had been wrapped up in a different way.

All of this said, I will reiterate that the manga is worth reading for fans of the genre, but that I was a bit disappointed with some of the artistic choices regarding the narrative and themes.

Ito Junji's Gyo is a work that builds on the themes, art style and narrative structure of past works. Fans of Uzumaki, Tomie, and other past mangas will feel right at home with Gyo. That said, Gyo does not measure up to the best of Ito's work, or even the best of the genre.

Gyo starts off strong with a very solid premise, and a very interesting meta-narrative, however it fails to deliver as most of the characters and much of the plot manages to annoy more than frighten or startle.

I would recommend Gyo to fans of Ito's other work, as it remains fairly popular, but ... to me it is a lesser piece. Included are two one-shots, the second of which, The Enigma of Amigara Fault is my personal favourite Ito story, and which raises the overall score significantly. I consider it to be one of Ito's masterpieces, easily on the level of Uzumaki. It's unfortunate it wasn't also released separately.

All in all Gyo is a letdown as far as Ito's work goes, however it also comes with the masterpiece that is The Enigma of Amigara Fault, and that alone makes it worthwhile.

Like much of Ito Junji's work, Uzumaki focuses more on creating a disturbing atmosphere and feelings of discomfort in the reader. On those levels, Uzumaki stands as one of Ito's best works, helped along by its extremely well-paced and varied episodic plot. Each chapter brings a new story and a new terror, but with an overall arc and thematic unison.

The art style is one of the biggest draws here, as with all Ito. His drawings tend to be highly detailed with impressive shading work, and that's as true here as anywhere else in his canon. There are some impressive drawings of the horrors, and some ... of the bodily contortions created are simultaneously unbelievable and hideously grotesque in an extremely captivating manner. Once again like most Ito, it's not particularly scary in the grand scheme of horror, but its adherence to effective tropes and consistent atmosphere of dread will make it enjoyable regardless of how scared you actually feel while reading it.

My one and only real complaint about the series is the incredibly lackluster ending. Ito had a number of options for concluding the narrative, and in my opinion he chose one of the weaker ones. While it reflects a thematic unity and completes the spiral motif, the way he does it actually undermines some of the earlier narrative moments, and also doesn't fully realise some of the early promise that had been built up throughout the entire series.

Although this disappointment leaves me with a very bitter feeling (which is frequently my relationship with Ito's work, and almost entirely with regard to how he ends narratives), I don't think it takes away from the overall accomplishment of the manga.