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I've never been much of a gamer. Don't get me wrong, there are a few games I enjoy, but as someone with the attention span of a goldfish, investing hundreds of hours into a single story is not something I can easily accomplish. Because of this, I've always been particularly defensive when it comes to manga/anime adaptations of video games.

"Sure," I would say. "The game is almost always better, but the manga/anime isn't for the people who played the game. It's for people like me who can't or won't play it. As long as the story is coherent, who cares if details are left ... out?"

Well, today I eat those words. If there's one thing that the Earthbound manga taught me, it's that not all video game adaptations are meant for newcomers.

Mother 2: Ness no Boukenki starts off fairly accurate, but right off the bat, there were some major differences. Buzz Buzz and King, for instance, play a much larger role than in the game. This didn't really bother me - creative liberties are to be expected in game adaptations, especially for JRPGs with a silent protagonist like Earthbound. The story continued like that, skipping over some details, but also adding characterization to some of the side characters. Pretty standard game adaptation stuff, really.

However, things take a turn for the weird after Jeff joins the party. Instead of continuing onto Fourside, we are instead taken to a completely new location: Twin Pigs Village. From here, the story goes completely off-script, delving into a plot about parallel universes, featuring some new characters and a few references, here and there, to the original game.

I see what the mangaka was trying to do, of course - the parallel universe thing suggests that this isn't supposed to be an alternative to the game, but rather, a supplement. With only thirteen chapters to work with, my guess is that the manga took this angle because there simply wasn't enough time to delve into the full story. But by that point, can this even be called an adaptation? Had I not played Earthbound before reading this... Well, I wouldn't say I'd have been terribly confused, since the story does make sense on its own. But I certainly wouldn't have been given an accurate representation of the source material.

That being said, this manga does have some merits for those who have played the game. The art was really unique, and fit the retro vibes that made Earthbound so special. It reminded me of Garbage Pail Kids, Osamu Tekuza, and Dr. Seuss all at the same time - a weird combination, I know, but it was quite charming. The characterization was a lot of fun, too; I mentioned earlier that Buzz Buzz and King had a bigger role in this story, but I also really liked the softer, more sympathetic version of Porky we see here. (You can really tell this came out long before Mother 3 was conceived...)

Bottom line, if you haven't played Earthbound already, you're better off playing that than reading this. I usually loathe when people say "just play the game!" when reviewing an adaptation, but in this case, it really is the better option. If you have played Earthbound, feel free to read this - it's not great, but it's short, and offers an unconventional take on an unconventional game.

Ah, WataMote. What else can I say? I know I'm not the only person who, upon reading the first chapter of fail, declared "Tomoko is literally me!". The early chapters were certainly hard to get through, what with the sheer amount of secondhand embarrassment, but in the ten years since WataMote's debut, the series has gone through a remarkable metamorphosis. Tomoko is still socially awkward - and funny as hell - but sometimes, it can be hard to remember just how cringe she was in the beginning.

Enter WataMote Anthology. This manga is hardly new - it came out around the same time as the anime ... - but it was certainly new to me when I found it on [MANGA PIRACY SITE NAME REDACTED]. And let me tell you - when I read this, it really struck me just much I missed the old WataMote.

Don't get me wrong - I don't dislike the direction the series took. Frankly, if it didn't take that direction, I probably would've stopped reading it a long time ago. But these chapters were such a return to form, it was like a breath of fresh air. It really reminded me just what I saw in the series - and Tomoko - in the first place. The art made it even better; drawn by an array of talented mangaka, it just made the whole thing a real blast to read.

Sadly, as of writing this, I was unable to find all of the chapters scanlated on [AFOREMENTIONED SITE NAME REDACTED]. I hope one day someone else can scan the remaining chapters; we all need a little bit more cringe in our lives.

F*CK YOU, IT'S BATMANGA.

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Now that I have your attention, let me start this review with a disclaimer: while I obviously read this because I'm a fan of Batman, I'm still a pretty new fan. I'm not terribly familiar with Silver Age comics, and I've never watched the Adam West TV show. So please excuse any inaccuracies in this review; I'm only writing this because, as of right now, this manga has yet to be reviewed on MAL. It's a dirty job, but someone has to do it.

Anyway. Let's talk about Batmanga. It really needs no introduction, does it? Written in the late 1960s, Batmanga ... served as both supplementary material for the TV series and original content catered to a Japanese audience. And let me tell you, if this is what Japanese audiences were into in the 1960s, it makes me wonder what the hell was in the water during that decade.

Yeah, I'm just gonna come right out and say it: this manga sucked.

Like the show it's based on, Batmanga is completely episodic, with each story arc ranging from 1-5 chapters. And I admit, when I started reading the first arc, Lord Death Man, I was quite entertained! The villain was funny, the dialogue was campy - I thought I was in for a wild ride! The next arc, Dr. Faceless, was enjoyable enough; then The Human Ball, which was okay, but kind of dull. As the stories continued on, I began to notice a pattern: every single arc was exactly the same.

All of them - save for the final story arc, which was a breath of fresh air, albeit, too little, too late - involved some form of high-profile robbery, and many of them involved wacky technology and/or experiments gone wrong by some random scientist. There was absolutely no variety to be had. I get that this is for kids, but would it have killed Kuwata to include a story that didn't involve bank robberies, museum heists, or jewel thieves? And just how many laboratories does Gotham have, anyway?

I guess this brings me to the elephant in the room: Batmanga features an entirely original cast of villains. Now, this sort of thing isn't uncommon in Japanese adaptations of American franchises, but honestly, is Batman even Batman without the Joker? No Penguin, no Riddler, not even Catwoman for a little bit of romantic intrigue. I can't believe I'm actually complaining about a LACK of fanservice; that should really tell you how dull this manga is. But I'm getting off topic. Aside from Batman and Robin, the only familiar character who appeared on a regular basis was Commissioner Gordon. Alfred showed up for one story arc towards the middle, but frankly, the way they bastardized him was awful and shouldn't be talked about. So I won't.

This wouldn't be a problem, of course, if the new villains were at least interesting. But like I said before, almost all of them were some combination of thief, mad scientist, or superhuman, and all of them had the singular goal of "steal lots of money/expensive goods and kill Batman" with little to no other motives. It grew very old, very quickly. To make matters worse, Kuwata was clearly pressed for time when he drew this, because the character designs are straight up recycled for the villains and various side characters. Every criminal mastermind had the same scar and black pompadour; every scientist had the same bushy hair. So believe me when I say I'm not just nitpicking - the villains were, quite literally, indistinguishable.

But honestly, this wasn't even the worst part about Batmanga for me. For me, the icing on the cake was the characterization of the Dark Knight himself. Tell me, what is the one thing that everyone knows about Batman, as a character? No, not that his parents are dead - the other thing: his moral code. Batman doesn't kill people. Everyone knows this! It's his greatest strength, and arguably, his greatest flaw. It's what makes him so compelling, especially when he's up against such insane villains.

So imagine my shock when, during some of the later arcs of Batmanga, Batman not only kills people, but doesn't even give a sh*t that he's done so. The first time it happened, it was bordering on accidental, as it involved breaking the laws of physics in a way that made my brain hurt. Accidental death of the villain is a common trope in Batmanga, but this was the first time that the "accident" was directly caused by Batman.

But the second time, when Batman straight up smashes a dude in the head with a medieval flail - yeah, what the f*ck?! Even Commissioner Gordon was baffled! And Batman's response was to just shrug and say that "there was no other way" because the guy was trying to kill Robin. Really?! There was really no other way AT ALL?! World's Greatest Detective, folks. What a sham.

Maybe I'm being too harsh. Like I said, I'm not familiar with Silver Age Batman. Maybe all of this is perfectly on brand for the era - DC buffs, feel free to spam my page's comment section with "WELL ACKSHULLY" and tell me what a fake comic book fan I am. (That was a joke. Please don't do that.)

But I can at least say this: if you, like me, are a fan of the more modern incarnations of Batman, and have no real nostalgia for the old stuff, you should probably just skip Batmanga.

What's this? Looks like Peach Girl Next doesn't have any reviews! Well then, I guess it's up to me to write one!

Like many weebs of the female persuasion, Peach Girl was one of my first forays into manga. The candy-colored covers caught my attention at the library, and it wasn't long before little 13-year-old n3k0rin was hooked. Every twist and turn in the story left me clamoring for more, and let me tell you: at the time, it was TEH BEST LOVE STORY EVARRRR!!!111

But times change. Recently, I revisited the series, now twice the age I was when I first read it. And to say ... "YIKES" is a massive understatement. The unhealthy obsessions, toxic girl-on-girl hatred, and not to mention, the sheer amount of times sexual assault was used as a cheap drama tactic left me with...well, several questions, really, with the biggest one being: WHERE ARE THESE KIDS' PARENTS???

And yet, despite all of the above, I still found myself just as enraptured with Momo's twisted love life and Sae's dastardly schemes as ever before. I don't know how Miwa Ueda does it - though I suspect witchcraft was involved - but I couldn't say I disliked Peach Girl, even knowing that it was 100% Grade A Garbage.

So naturally, when I found out that a sequel series was released in 2016, I was intrigued. I mean, the original was 18 volumes long, and we also had the, admittedly mediocre, Ura Peach Girl (aka Sae's Story) spin-off - what more could be done with the convoluted world of Peach Girl?

Well... Not much, really.

Peach Girl Next takes place ten years after the events of the original Peach Girl. Now 27-years-old, Momo and Kairi are still a couple, but - gasp! - not married yet. Aside from that, though, their lives are absolutely perfect...that is, until Sae decides to move in right next door to them, with Toji, of all goddamn people, as her roommate. Throw Misao into the mix a few volumes later, and everything goes right back to the old status quo: misunderstanding after misunderstanding after misunderstanding, with a bit of blackmail, sexual assault, and attempted murder (!!) thrown in for good measure.

As with the original series, I'm left with several questions. Like, first and foremost, why does everyone let Sae get away with this sh*t? I could sort of understand it in the original - most of the characters were in high school, and teenagers aren't exactly known for their rationality. But here? They're adults! There is no reason for Momo, Kairi, or anyone else not to call the police on this lunatic! And make no mistake, some of Sae's antics are straight-up criminal.

But an even bigger question I'm left with, is how the hell Momo and Kairi's relationship lasted ten years if misunderstandings and petty jealousy are enough for them to nearly call off their engagement. Sure, they may not have had Sae, Toji, or Misao around at all during that period, but their communication skills have not seem to have improved since high school. They even make a point of promising each other, numerous times, to actually communicate with each other, and then forget that promise moments later once jealousy gets in the way.

The other characters don't fare much better. Toji is still a beta doormat, though I can't help but feel bad for him - poor guy just can't catch a break! (I might be biased because I was on Team Toji from the beginning.) Misao, on the other hand, is a complete train wreck. I never cared for her, but Next made me go from apathy to flat-out disgust. This disgust is further amplified by the fact that she and Toji are never given proper resolutions for their arcs; like with the original, Peach Girl Next just kind of ends, with all of the characters suddenly forgiving and forgetting the drama that, just pages before, seemed like a life or death situation.

After all this, it must seem like I hated Peach Girl Next, right? Well, you'd be wrong. As I said earlier, even though I was rolling my eyes at the stupidity of these characters most of the time, I still found myself completely enchanted by the web of melodrama Miwa Ueda wove. The fact that the art, though lacking in the 90's charm of the original, was absolutely gorgeous, certainly helped that feeling of enchantment.

Peach Girl, and by extension, Peach Girl Next, is not a series for everyone. But if you, like me, sometimes enjoy turning your brain off and getting lost in the manga equivalent of a Mexican telenovela, then look no further than Peach Girl.