Good Morning, and welcome to the first day of the Rumiko Takahashi Manga Movable Feast! I am so excited to be hosting, and I can't wait to encourage discussion of not only a very talented creator, but also one of the ones that was a gateway for me into the genre of manga.
I owe Rumiko Takahashi so much, and it's nice to give back in this small way, even if she never sees it! Now on to your links for Monday morning, sorted roughly into categories so you can skip around to the aspects of Rumiko Takahashi that interest you the most.
General Posts
The Rumic World, an English fansite, was kind enough to point out four articles that fit perfectly with the Feast. First up is an article on Rumiko Takahashi's 30th year as a creator.
Lesser-Known Takahashi
For those looking to go down some more obscure Takahashi paths, Rumic World also has some artistic contributions and discussion of Lum, a character Urusei Yatsura, one of the Takahashi projects I've not had the fortune of finding (yet).
Not sure you understand enough about Urusei Yatsura? Sean Gaffney of A Case for Suitable Treatment can help. Here's his review of volume 1, which explains the premise of the series. Sean also has reviews of volume 2 and volume 3.
Maison Ikkoku
I'm not quite sure how I feel about Maison Ikkoku, something I plan to discuss sometime later this week. Johanna Draper Carlson of Comics Worth Reading recommends it without hesitation, however.
Ranma 1/2
Feel more comfortable in the world of Ranma 1/2? Here's a look back from Rumic World, even as I personally am taking this year to look forward at the series instead.
Johanna Draper Carlson had this to say about Ranma 1/2 Volume 2. Since it is my favorite of all of the Takahashi I've read, I simply love her description of Ranma as "justifiably a manga classic."
I would actually go a bit further. I think Ranma is one of the few comedy series that can actually take the concept of slapstick, Looney Tunes style humor and translate it to the page, as I noted while reading volumes 13 to 15.
Inuyasha
The end of Inuyasha inspired the decision to do a Takahashi MMF in the first place. Our last Rumic World link today is a look back at reading this series for the past ten years.
Rin-Ne
Inuyasha is not the end of the Rumiko Takahashi story, however. She's still hard at work with another long-running series, Rin-Ne. Here is Johanna Draper Carlson's take on volume 1 and a shorter take on volume 2 as part of a set of reviews. To put it mildly, Johanna is not a fan of Takahashi's latest efforts.
Sean Gaffney is also reviewing Rin-Ne trade by trade. You can find his reviews of volume 2, volume 3, volume 4, and volume 5 at these links. While more gentle in his criticism than Johanna, Sean also notes in his volume 2 review that Rin-Ne is similar to what Takahashi has done before and seems to lack some of the bite of her previous work. Sean invokes the word "coasting" by the time he reaches volume 5, which I haven't read yet. Still, it's a little worrisome when two fans of Takahashi's older material are generally agreeing that this newest effort lacks something.
