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   the bones...sure, this is mostly not the sort of book where a pile of bones   
   or a skeleton in a car would fit the mood (OTOH, the rat swarm in an earlier   
   volume was not exactly light and frothy).  But 100% evacuation during the   
   lead-up before anyone died seems a touch implausible.  Then toss in what   
   seems to be genetic memory popping up for Youko, increasing suggestions that   
   her Big Sister is an AI, the fact she couldn't leave the bunker because of   
   environmental hazards that didn't seem to hurt the animals...and that's   
   before you get to the serious weirdness of these volumes.  I suppose it's   
   possible that this is mystery boxes all the way down and Sakai Saito doesn't   
   really have an answer yet and it'll end up being Lost-levels of   
   disappointing, but the core message of the series is that it's all about the   
   journey rather than the destination anyway.  I don't expect to travel to   
   Japan myself, but it's nice learning about places I could go if I was willing   
   to put up with all that time on an airplane.  Recommended as long as you   
   don't mind a very slow burn mystery that might not ever resolve.   
   $13.00/$17.00Cn rated Teen LV (still no idea what Language needs warning).   
      
      
   Easygoing Territory Defense (etc) vol 6: Seven Seas Entertainment - There's   
   three main stories this volume.  In the first, Lord Van visits the newly   
   discovered Dungeon and builds a small adventurers' outpost for the expected   
   delvers.  This is pretty standard (for this series) stuff, with Van casually   
   building structures and weapons and the like while needing to deal with the   
   fact he's still treated as a kid.  The middle story leans hard into Van's   
   modern enlightened view, but from the point of view of a slave who Van buys   
   and puts to work in the town's defense as a free villager...as I've mentioned   
   in previous reviews, as overpowered as his magic might be, his real power is   
   "treating people like people rather than things," a truly disruptive thing   
   for an aristocrat to do in this world.  It helps that along the way he gets   
   news of his official entitlement, so he's no longer fully dependent on his   
   father's benign neglect, and he'll be in a stronger position once his   
   progressive views get him in serious trouble.  Finally, from the grand to the   
   personal, Lady Arte finally admits to Van what her power is, "Marionette."   
   It's also a frowned-upon magical talent like Van's, but in this case not   
   because it's seen as useless in the absence of nigh-infinite mana (Van still   
   hasn't found a way to help someone with normal mana levels better use   
   production magic, FWIW).  No, it's because the ability is not limited to   
   inanimate dolls, so it's got a reputation as an assassin's art (Van's   
   servant/friend Khamsin's talent is similarly disreputable).  Big damn   
   emotional climax here for Lady Arte, as well as for how she and Van see each   
   other.  Before, each was polite but a bit distant for various reasons, but   
   they're definitely friends after this.  Hm...there's also something that was   
   important for not really happening, lemme double-check (skims volume again).   
   Yep, while he does still sometimes get caught off-guard being treated like a   
   child, he doesn't berate himself over the mismatch between his practically   
   middle-aged mind and ten-year-old body.  Like, he's finally accepting himself   
   as he is...precocious and a prodigy, but he's a lot more comfortable with it.   
   As a result, the potential for eventual marriage to Lady Arte isn't nearly as   
   creepy, they interact more comfortably as peers.  (No hint of romance, FWIW,   
   but a caring friendship and shared empathy.  Good foundation for a marriage,   
   particularly if it's to be arranged by their parents anyway.)  Sou Akaike is   
   doing a good job of threading the needle of "reincarnated as someone much   
   younger" romance subplots here, as it's very easy for them to be creepy as   
   hell, or for the running gag to be that the protagonist refuses to get   
   involved because it'd be creepy.  It probably helps that Van reincarnated as   
   a toddler, so he's had a lot more time to get used to being a kid.  It's not   
   that he's losing who he was in favor of what he was born into, more that he's   
   better integrating his past and his present.  Strongly recommended.   
   $13.99/$17.99Cn, rated Teen 13+ (fantasy violence, frank discussion of   
   slavery).   
      
        Spy x Family vol 15: Viz/Shonen Jump - The other side of Mister   
   Elegant's backstory gets told, and then it's largely one-chapter stories for   
   the rest of the volume as everyone relaxes over holiday break.  The backstory   
   is related to Becky, who effectively lampshades all the ways a standard   
   romance Should Go, while Martha points out that real life isn't that   
   convenient.  While Martha was hurt by Henry marrying while he thought she was   
   dead, she didn't resent his wife and they got along well.  Martha and Henry   
   continued to disagree about important things throughout life, and while   
   they're still friends, Becky's dream of a romantic ending seem unlikely...and   
   that's okay.  One can have a good life without experiencing the typical Happy   
   Endings, a lesson Becky is slowly learning and which many never learn.  I do   
   wonder if this is Endo's way of foreshadowing that this story won't have an   
   archetypal Spy Story ending either, but it'll still be good for those   
   involved...such as Operation Strix eventually failing, but war not being a   
   result either.  Truth coming out without shattering the family, that sort of   
   thing.  Anyway, the other stories focus more on the kids and side characters,   
   but there's a major plot advancement nonetheless.  Things happen whether or   
   not they conform to the tropes, even when it's still very much a story and   
   not trying to be realistic.  Recommended.  $11.99/$15.99Cn/#8.99UK, rated   
   Older Teen (themes of bloody warfare and loss).   
      
        Infini-T Force vol 5: Nakama Press/Mad Cave Comics - The volume opens   
   with a story about a reporter for a fourth-rate newspaper determined to   
   figure out what's up with the mysterious heroes, which tends to hew to the   
   usual tropes, at least for now.  The rest of the volume brings in a new Boss   
   type, who is much more aggressive about using the whole multiverse thing as a   
   weapon, or at least to mess with the heroes and test their mettle.  More   
   antagonists from the source worlds are brought into Emi's world, including   
   one who knows more of the true threat (which may be caused by the mysterious   
   bosses, or might be opposed by them, there's a lot of "we need to do these   
   bad things to safe the multiverse" vibes floating around.  A BIG theme   
   running through this volume, particularly involving Casshan, is the meaning   
   of humanity and who does and does not count as human.  A very good pep talk   
   scene, which pays off in a strong "trust your allies and know they trust you"   
   fight.  Oh, and Emi has a bit of an astral trip, which counts as the fan   
   service for this volume, I suppose.  Recommended.  $10.99/$14.99Cn rated Teen   
   13+ (fantasy violence, dismembered robots, not-actually-naked Emi).   
      
        Expected next month: Tank Chair vol 6, After God vol 8, Magilumiere   
   Magical Girls vol 11, Way of the Househusband vol 15, Heterogenia Linguistico   
   vol 6.  Asadora! vol 9 and Happy Kanako's Killer Life vol 8 are due at the   
   end of the month, likely won't have them in hand until February, but the   
   local B&N did get Asadora! vol 8 on the shelf, so there's a chance.   
      
      
   Other Trades:   
      
        Trade paperbacks, collections, graphic novels, whatever. If it's bigger   
      
   [continued in next message]   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)