Otaku Thursday Week 3: Fairy Tail

Welcome back to Otaku Thursday. We are taking a train and exceed flight to Magnolia, Fiore today to visit the wizards guild of Fairy Tail. Today will cover the first three volumes of Fairy Tail by Hiro Mashima, which I read through the omnibus Collector’s edition that holds the first five volumes which includes the first 39 chapters of Fairy Tail.

~*~*~*~ Synopsis~*~*~*~

MASTERS OF MAGIC AND MAYHEM!
Lucy is a young, rebellious celestial wizard with a dream: to join Fairy Tail, the world’s most rambunctious and powerful magical guild! When she happens to meet one of Fairy Tail’s top wizards, he turns out to be not quite what she expected: a slob traveling with a flying cat. But the promise of adventure is real, and together they escape from pirates and a devious magician! Their next task: to steal a book from the evil wizard-killing Duke Everlue, and outsmart his death trap. Eccentric new friends join along the way in this lushly-drawn modern classic, reissued from the beginning in a large size with a small price (for discerning guild masters).

~*~*~*~ Characters to Keep in Mind~*~*~*~

Natsu Dragneel – a Fire Dragon Slayer with a big heart and even bigger stomach. This Pyro is someone who will always have your back.

Lucy Heartfilia – a young woman who’s magic lies in the stars and is quick to become part of the heart of Fairy Tail

Gray Fullbuster – a kind-hearted Ice wizard with a certain proclivity for losing his clothes at all times. Has a fierce rivalry with Natsu

Erza Scarlet – The strongest female wizard of Fairy Tail, the woman of many armors. Titania, Queen of the Fairies

~*~*~*~ What you’ll find ~*~*~*~

The first 5 volumes of the manga is also the first 15 episodes or so of the anime. You will be introduced to Lucy and Natsu and the entire destructive Fairy Tail Guild. You will laugh, you will cry, you will fall in love with this story so quickly , you won’t even realize it’s happening.

This first Master Edition covers the first couple arcs that help get the reader acclimated to the world of Fiore and how the magic systems work. We get unique introductions to the types of magic and levels within the guild that mages can aspire to be. Each character gets his or her own introduction.

Fairy Tail has a bit of everything. It has the adventure, the magic, the humor, the stupid silly moments, the heart warming moments that make you tear up from having such a full heart of love and happiness. It really does appeal to just about everyone.

~*~*~*~ Otaku Rating ~*~*~*~

An Otaku Must. This manga has something for everyone.

Otaku Thursday Week 2: Fruits Basket

Welcome back to Otaku Thursday! In honor of the new anime coming in April and the Lunar New Year we will kick things off with a story around the Chinese zodiac. This week we will be covering the first 3 collector’s volumes of the manga that started it all, Fruits Basket by Natsuki Takaya. Each collector’s edition covers 2 volumes of the original manga.

Synopsis: A family with an ancient curse…

And the girl who will change their lives forever…

Tohru Honda was an orphan with no place to go until the mysterious Sohma family offered her a place to call home. Now her ordinary high school life is turned upside down as she’s introduced to the Sohma’s world of magical curses and family secrets.

Characters to keep in mind:

Tohru Honda – the main character who lives on her own before she meets the Sohmas and becomes completely engrossed in the Sohma Curse

Yuki Sohma – the Rat of the Chinese Zodiac and a close-guarded high schooler in the same class as Tohru.

Kyo Sohma – the Cat of the Chinese Zodiac with a chip on his shoulder and a grudge with Yuki.

Shigure Sohma – the Dog of the Chinese Zodiac that Kyo and Yuki live with who is a freelance writer.

What you’ll find in the first 3 Collector’s Editions Volumes: Tohru will not only get to know the ecclectice Sohma family but quickly become fully involved in the curse that surrounds them. As Tohru grows closer to varous members of the family, she opens her heart to love them all and expand her world.

You will get to meet some of the funniest, most loving and ecclectic people in a manga. The Sohmas are some of my favorite people in the manga and in just in general. But with the Sohma’s comes the head of the household, Akito Sohma who sees himself as the god of their chinese zodiac curse.

Fruits Basket is one of the most heartwarming mangas out there and has stood the test of time. While it may be of a shoujo manga and not have the kick butt action that stories like Naruto or My Hero Academia have, Fruits Basket is still something that any and everyone can enjoy. The first Three collector’s editions are just a start of the ringer that this story will go in. A majority of the zodiac is introduced and you can really see how the curse weighs on each of them differently and the impact it has on their relationships with the outside world and Akito.

Otaku Rating: The highest of ranks, top of the list of favorites. An Otaku must.

Happy Lunar New year! Year of the Boar!

Otaku Thursday

Good Morning Kitkats, and welcome to the newest feature on BooksofKings Blog. Otaku Thursday will feature mainly manga and anime reviews and anything else that strikes my fancy in the realm of my Otaku Heart like Cosplay or Convention highlights. So let’s get started!

~*~*~*~ Otaku Thursday Week 1 ~*~*~*~

First off, let’s define where i am on the “otaku” scale. Urban Dictionary defines Otaku as ” sometimes used to mean hardcore anime fan. Originally comes from the Japanese word otaku meaning house. If your a otaku it means you have no social life, love life, ect “. I would NOT measure myself at this level. I am quite a fan of anime and manga but i do have a life and I have no desire to talk/live like those i see in my manga. However I am beginning to add Cosplay , at conventions only, into my repertoire.

Now, let’s get to know the Otaku behind BooksofKings. I have been somewhat into anime and manga since i was a child when i first discovered Sailor Moon and Naruto. Back then, I did not know what “anime” was as a term. I just knew that the cartoons I watched were Naruto when i could remember, Yu-Gi-Oh, Pokemon and Sailor Moon. It wasn’t until much later that i found out these all were under the classification of Anime and were created in Japan.

It wasn’t until Junior high that i discovered Spirited Away, by both movie and manga novelization, and Fruits Basket, again both anime and manga. I LOVED Fruits Basket and it is still at the top of my all time favorites. In High School I found friends who had similar interests but my involvement dwindled as I was busy with many other things in life. But then i hit college and began to get back into Anime and thorugh that rediscovered a desire to read Manga again. And now i am slowly building up my collection as i discover animes and mangas that i enjoy.

~*~*~*~ Top Mangs/Animes I recommend ~*~*~*~

Fruits Basket by Natsuki Takaya

A family with an ancient curse…

And the girl who will change their lives forever…

Tohru Honda was an orphan with no place to go until the mysterious Sohma family offered her a place to call home. Now her ordinary high school life is turned upside down as she’s introduced to the Sohma’s world of magical curses and family secrets.

Fairy Tail by Hiro Mashima

THE WICKED SIDE OF WIZARDRY

Celestial wizard Lucy wants to join the Fairy Tail, a club for the most powerful wizards. But instead, her ambitions land her in the clutches of a gang of unsavory pirates led by a devious magician. Her only hope is Natsu, a strange boy she happens to meet on her travels. Natsu’s not your typical hero, he gets motion sickness, eats like a pig, and his best friend is a talking cat. With friends like this, is Lucy better off with her enemies?

The Ancient Magus Bride by Kore Yamazaki

Enter the Magician’s Apprentice

Her name is Chise Hatori, a penniless orphan troubled by visions. Sold as a slave to an inhuman mage, she is about to begin a strange new life, filled with magic, fairies, and other beings of a fantastical nature

My Hero Academia by Kohei Horikoshi

What would the world be like if 80 percent of the population manifested superpowers called “Quirks” at age four? Heroes and villains would be battling it out everywhere! Being a hero would mean learning to use your power, but where would you go to study? The Hero Academy of course! But what would you do if you were one of the 20 percent who were born Quirkless?

Middle school student Izuku Midoriya wants to be a hero more than anything, but he hasn’t got an ounce of power in him. With no chance of ever getting into the prestigious U.A. High School for budding heroes, his life is looking more and more like a dead end. Then an encounter with All Might, the greatest hero of them all, gives him a chance to change his destiny… 

Sailor Moon by Naoko Takeuchi

Usagi Tsukino is a normal girl until she meets up with Luna, a talking cat, who tells her that she is Sailor Moon. As Sailor Moon, Usagi must fight evils and enforce justice, in the name of the Moon and the mysterious Moon Princess. She meets other girls destined to be Sailor Senshi (Sailor Scouts), and together, they fight the forces of evil! 

~*~*~*~ Until next time, Kitkats ~*~*~*~