Manga Retrospective: My Hero Academia Last week, the long-running shounen manga series My Hero Academia (Boku no Hero Academia) by Kouhei Horikoshi finished its publication in Weekly Shounen Jump. So it’s time to look back fondly at this homage to Western comic book-style superheroes. In the world of the story, several decades ago, a glowing… Continue reading Manga Retrospective: My Hero Academia
Tag: heroism
Anime Review: Soaring Sky! Pretty Cure
Anime Review: Soaring Sky! Pretty Cure (Japanese title: “Hirogaru Sky! Precure”) Pretty Cure is a franchise series of anime shows aimed at preteen girls, which began in 2004 with Futari wa Pretty Cure (“We Two are Pretty Cure”). The recurring basic plot is that girls in their early teens are given magical items (usually by… Continue reading Anime Review: Soaring Sky! Pretty Cure
Book Review: The Railway Children
Book Review: The Railway Children by E. Nesbit Life takes some odd turns. For example, one day you’re an adorable trio of children living a comfortable upper-middle class life in London. The next, your father is sent to prison for a crime he did not commit and you have to go live in a much less impressive house out in… Continue reading Book Review: The Railway Children
Book Review: Age of Daredevils
Book Review: Age of Daredevils by Michael Clarkson This book covers two generations of the William “Red” Hill family of Niagara Falls, Ontario. They were river men, swimmers, rescue workers, boat handlers–and some of them were driven to perform dangerous stunts. And around Niagara Falls, the most daring stunt imaginable was to go over the Horseshoe… Continue reading Book Review: Age of Daredevils
Book Review: Kaiju: Lords of the Earth
Book Review: Kaiju: Lords of the Earth edited by Essel Pratt Kaiju (“strange beast”) is primarily a subgenre of the monster movie that became codified in Japan. They’re mostly gigantic monsters that are nigh-unstoppable by conventional armaments, and run around destroying cities or fighting other giant monsters. The seeds of the story type were sown… Continue reading Book Review: Kaiju: Lords of the Earth
Book Review: Hokas Pokas!
Book Review: Hokas Pokas! by Poul Anderson & Gordon R. Dickson The Hoka of the planet Toka are the galaxy’s best live-action roleplayers. Given a story they find interesting, the teddy-bear-looking aliens will take on the characters as their own personalities. And they especially love Earth stories. Thus it is that they have entire subcultures… Continue reading Book Review: Hokas Pokas!