So far, the comics we’ve been pursuing always had a theme of some sort. It was either about love, fantasy, romance, or something or other. So today, I’ve decided to mix up three completely different genres into one review, carefully picking the comics so that they won’t clash among their personalities – yet at the same time making sure that they’re a great read for someone looking to browse through them one after the other.
Language: Bahasa Malaysia
Publisher: Art Square Creation Sdn. Bhd.
Cartoonist: Chiba Kozue
Category : Shoujo
The first book, Rashia Waktu Ketujuh, consists of three individual love stories. It revolves around the high school lives of three high school girls, the men they meet in their lives, and how they deal with the challenges of love. Chiba Kozue, the author, obviously has a great imagination, as the love stories don’t come out of cliché plots like some shoujo titles.
The first story tells of young Shun, a new transfer student who finds it hard to mix among her new classmates. As a result of that, she puts on a mask of happiness, and quickly becomes the class joker, earning the reputation of Miss Sunshine. Despite being tired of acting, she feels that she hasn’t got a choice in it and decides to press on for the sake of her friends.
But when a childish, cute looking male teacher starts teaching their class, things start changing for Shun. She finds herself becoming more and more vulnerable around him, and slowly finds herself developing feelings for him – and realizes that he reciprocates in kind. But what happens, just as she finds someone she can really trust, when the rest of the school rejects their student-teacher relationship?
The second story revolves around Eri, a young girl who has a childhood friend who is a guy, Kaoru. Now, Kaoru is at first glance a shy guy, so Eri take sit upon herself to be his “big sister”, always protecting him wherever he goes. What she doesn’t realize, though, is that Kaoru has been hiding his persona of being a “playboy” in school, and isn’t at all who Eri thinks he is.
One day, Eri stumbles upon Kaoru while he is mingling with some of the other girls. She is shell shocked at his real behavior, and finds it hard to grasp that the real Kaoru is so different from what she has perceived. And when Kaoru starts using his charms on her, Eri finds herself falling for him. What is she to do?
The third story is about Ookubo, who feels that she has made the biggest mistake of her life by openly declaring her feelings to Rio, the class popular; only to be turned down in front of everyone. After that, she swears of getting near to Rio and all men in general, for fear of being hurt again. However, circumstances begin to put Rio constantly near her, and her feelings evoke within her a sense of insecurity again – plus, it seems that this time, Rio has feelings for her too. Should she learn from her mistakes and protect herself? Or should she take another chance for happiness?
***
Language: Bahasa Malaysia
Publisher: Art Square Creation Sdn. Bhd.
Cartoonist: Kim Yeon-Joo
Category : Shoujo
Nabi Prototaip is a rather contemporary story, in that the plot is rather unique. It starts with So Ryu, who is a daughter in a family with complicated ties among its members. For political reasons, So Ryu is ordered to be kidnapped by her own father.
As luck would have it, the kidnapper who is in charge of kidnapping So Ryu turns out to be a nice guy. As the family troubles deepen, the situation forces the kidnapper and the victim closer to each other, and things start turning upside down. The environment makes their relationship even more complicated, and things come to a peak when So Ryu saves her kidnapper’s life! Can So Ryu predict the future?
***
Language: English
Publisher: Gala Unggul Resources Sdn. Bhd.
Cartoonist: Taufan
Category : Shonen
High Time is written by Malaysian writer Taufan, and his work is surprisingly good for what we take for granted to be “Malaysian standards”. The story revolves around Jack, a too good to be true cop, who takes down extreme mafia bosses in a fictional regional setting with his partner, Fat Cat.
The story starts with a bang, when Jack and Fat Cat chase down one of the city’s drug lords and corner him. Just as they are about to capture him, he kills himself, removing the threat of him revealing his boss’ location. Jack and Fat Cat reel from their failure, but little do they know that their adventure is only beginning.
***
Ratings:
Rashia Waktu Ketujuh: 4.1 out of 5
Nabi Prototaip: 3.6 out of 5
High Time: 4.6 out of 5
***
Rashia Waktu Ketujuh is your standard shoujo manga with a unique touch, and will be a delightful read for high school students who relate to the character’s situations. Nabi Prototaip is more of a read for those who want a fantasy setting, but overall the story is pretty attractive.
Finally, High Time is a great story which expresses the Malaysian mangaka spirit to its fullest extent. The story is told remarkably well, and incorporates the plot of the challenges of a police fighting a drug lord in a very believable setting. Truly, it is a book worth considering.