Shojo Beat

Hiya Everybody! So, last February I started getting a subscription to the manga magazine Shojo Beat. It's published by a Viz Media, which is a publishing company that licenses and prints a great deal of Japanese manga. At first, I wasn't sure what I thought of it, but now that I've gotten a bunch of issues - I have an opinion. Want to hear them? Of course you do.

Basically, it's a sampler of the manga that Viz Media is planning on printing ( gigantic ad for manga volumes). During the time that I've received my subscription they've run:

Absolute Boyfriend: It's about a girl who orders a robot boyfriend from a catalog (or something like that). I'm not a fan. BTW - it's about a love triangle.

Vampire Knight: The fact that they were running this one was one of the reasons why I wanted to get a subscription, but I wouldn't have gotten very far on this one if I had been reading it online. It's about an academy where the day class is made up of humans and the night class is made up of vampires. BTW - it's about a love triangle.

Crimson Hero: This one is about volley ball. It's mostly about volleyball, but there is a little bit of romance. BTW - it's about a love triangle.

Nana: This one was my personal favourite, but they won't be running another chapter as a serial. Something about it deserving an M rating instead of an older Teen rating. I can see that. BTW - this one is about numerous love triangles.

Backstage Prince: This one was really cute, but it was over only a couple issues after I started getting my subscription. I think it was only two volumes. It was about a girl whose boyfriend was an actor (I like ones with this theme). BTW - there was a love triangle in this, too.

Baby and Me: This one is about a family with two boys and a father. Because of their situation the older brother has to take care of his younger brother. This one is getting cut in a couple issues. BTW - there isn't much romance in this one.

I might be missing something. There have been some one-shots (which are good) and there have been a lot of previews for other manga like Punch, The Gentleman's Alliance, Millenium Snow, and Lovely Complex. But those are all really popular manga that don't need a lot of promotion. All you have to do is let people know they'll be available and they'll fly off the shelves, right?

I have to say that I haven't enjoyed any of these titles on a regular basis. I guess my favourite was Nana, but other than that - I haven't exactly been a fan. Maybe it's partly because I've been leaning more towards Korean manhwa (Goong was so good it made my heart melt, but that wasn't the only one I've read). Or maybe it's because I'm getting too old to enjoy something geared towards older teens. However, if that day has really come then I am VERY SAD.

HOWEVER, I have to say that they have a segment called D.I.Y. (do it yourself) that is incredible. They have instructions on how to make a purse out of a noodle wrapper, and how to downsize your massive shirts so that they fit you, and how to make little rice and leaf plushies. On their website awhile ago (no idea if it's still there) they had instructions on how to assemble your own electrical circuit in a wrist band ... so your bracelet will light up. Cool eh?

They have lots of other segments about Japanese rockers and actors and let's not forget about Japanese culture. It's interesting, but the majority of the magazine is manga. We're only talking about maybe ten pages in the back.

Anyway, the whole experience has led me to believe that I would be better served to get a subscription to a cheaper magazine (Shojo Beat is like $8 an issue) and save my extra cash to buy their released volumes of stuff I know I like. Besides, they don't run whole series' anyway in their magazine and I have great plans for what magazine I could get instead - a craft magazine - since I seem to be more interested in rice plushies than electronic men.