The Voices of a Distant Star


Makoto Shinkai - 2002
    She ventures out into space, leaving behind Noboru, the one young man she loves. As she travels deeper into this new frontier, her only connection with her boyfriend is through cell-phone text messages. But the years pass, and Mikako barely ages in the timelessness of space--while Noboru grows older and considers moving on with his life...In this timeless romance between star-crossed lovers in the most tragic of settings, there are some places man may not be ready to go.

Parasyte, Volume 1


Hitoshi Iwaaki - 1990
    They descend from the skies. They have a hunger for human flesh. They are everywhere. They are parasites, alien creatures who must invade - and take control of - a human host to survive. And once they have infected their victims, they can assume any deadly form they choose: monsters with giant teeth, winged demons, creatures with blades for hands. But most have chosen to conceal their lethal purpose behind ordinary human faces. So no one knows their secret - except an ordinary high school student. Shin is battling for control of his own body against an alien parasite, but can he find a way to warn humanity of the horrors to come?

Deadman Wonderland, Vol. 1


Jinsei Kataoka - 2007
    Ganta Igarashi, a middle school evacuee, has finally begun to live a normal life... that is, until the day 'Red Man' appears at his school and Ganta's fate is changed forever.

Chobits, Vol. 1


CLAMP - 2001
    She can't do word processing, she can't connect to the Internet, and she's incapable of networking with other persocoms. Even her sound card seems broken. No wonder Hideki found her tied up in a pile of trash. But when the 19-year-old technophobe takes her home, he finds that she may be more advanced than her childlike behavior lets on.Chapters 1-12

Neon Genesis Evangelion, Vol. 1


Yoshiyuki Sadamoto - 1994
    1, contains a Japanese sound FX glossary plus special bonus commentary by series mecha designer Ikuto Yamashita, as well as the famous "confession letter" written by director Hideaki Anno in the months before the original TV series premiere that laid out his deeply personal motivations to make Evangelion.

Battle Royale, Vol. 01


Koushun Takami - 2000
    As part of a ruthless program by the totalitarian government, ninth-grade students are taken to a small isolated island with a map, food, and various weapons. Forced to wear special collars that explode when they break a rule, they must fight each other for three days until only one "winner" remains. The elimination contest becomes the ultimate in must-see reality television. A Japanese pulp classic available in English for the first time, Battle Royale is a potent allegory of what it means to be young and survive in today's dog-eat-dog world. The first novel by small-town journalist Koushun Takami, it went on to become an even more notorious film by 70-year-old director Kinji Fukusaku.

Afterschool Charisma, Vol. 1


Kumiko Suekane - 2009
    Kleio Academy is a very exclusive school. To enroll, a student must be the clone of a famous historical figure. Wolfgang Mozart, Queen Elizabeth, Sigmund Freud, Marie Curie, Adolf Hitler—with such a combustible student body, it's only a matter of time before the campus explodes!SHIRO KAMIYA (2XXX– )The only non-clone at St. Kleio Academy, a school dedicated to the clones of great historical personages. Shiro's father is a professor at the academy. Why is a regular kid taking classes at the school? Nobody seems to know for sure.

7 Billion Needles, Vol. 1


Nobuaki Tadano - 2010
    In 7 Billion Needles, two lives share one heart as they race to protect each other and what they most cherish.Modern day Japan is the stage for a new form of hard science-fiction, as author Nobuaki Tadano revisits one of the  genre's Grand Masters, Hal Clement, in his debut work 7 Billion Needles.  Loosely inspired by Clement's golden age title Needle, 7 Billion Needles follows the life of a teenage girl whose quiet boring days are dramatically changed when her body is possessed by an alien life form caught up in an intergalactic manhunt.On a clear calm night, while on a class trip to the beach, Hikaru Takabe decides to go for a walk to escape the shackles of school and peer pressure.  While observing the stars above a calm dark sea in an instant she is disintegrated when struck by a meteor.Flash forward one page, and Hikaru awakes, from what seems like a horrible daydream of sorts, sitting amongst classmates in school without a scratch on her.  The meteor dream seemed so real she cannot believe she's alive, but given her relative aloof nature, she soon shrugs off the events and moves on with life.  However, one thing she cannot shake off is the strange buzzing she hears coming from her new pair of headphones...

Absolute Boyfriend, Vol. 1


Yuu Watase - 2003
    Then one day she signs up for a three-day trial of a mysterious "lover figurine," and the next thing she knows, a cute naked guy is delivered to her doorstep--and he wants to be her boyfriend!Has Riko died and gone to heaven? The cute naked guy turns out to be smart, super nice, stylish and a gourmet chef. Plus, he looks like a million bucks.... Trouble is, that's about what he's going to cost Riko because she didn't return him in time!

All You Need Is Kill


Ryōsuke Takeuchi - 2014
    Keiji dies on the battlefield, only to be reborn each morning to fight and die again and again. On his fifth iteration, he gets a message from a mysterious ally—the female soldier known as the Full Metal Bitch. Is she the key to Keiji's escape or his final death?

Attack on Titan: Before the Fall, Vol. 1


Hajime Isayama - 2013
    A child of carnage.Cut alive from his mother's womb after she had been eaten by a rampaging Titan, Kuklo has spent his life in chains as a freakish curiosity and a feared abomination. Eventually the boy they call the "Titan's Son" finds himself sold to wealthy merchant Dario Inocencio as a plaything for his cruel and ambitious son, Xavi. Kuklo knows nothing but abuse and neglect, but help may come from the most unexpected place...

ES: Eternal Sabbath, #1


Fuyumi Soryo - 2002
    Ryousuke will live to be at least two centuries old and possesses strange mental powers: He can enter people’s minds, discover their darkest secrets, even rearrange their memories so that complete strangers will treat him like family. Ryousuke acts not out of malice but for survival–wandering Tokyo for reasons known only to him. No one recognizes him for what he is . . . until Dr. Mine Kujyou, a determined researcher, meets someone who challenges everything she knows about science–ES, possessor of the Eternal Sabbath gene. But is he the only one?

Eden: It's an Endless World, Volume 1


Hiroki Endo - 1998
    In the near future, a large portion of humanity is wiped out by a brutal, new virus that hardens the skin while dissolving internal organs. Those who aren’t immune are either severely crippled or allowed to live with cybernetically enhanced bodies. Taking advantage of a world in chaos, a paramilitary force known as the Propater topples the United Nations and seeks world domination. Elia, a young survivor searching for his mother, travels towards the Andes Mountains with an artificially intelligent combat robot. When he encounters a group of anti-Propater freedom fighters, a maelstrom of unique characters unfolds. Graphic, cyberpunk, and philosophical, Eden is a place where endearing heroes face a constant struggle for survival and violent surprises wait around every corner!

Bokurano: Ours, Vol. 1


Mohiro Kitoh - 2004
    Saving yourself is even harder. One summer, 15 kids innocently wander into a nearby seaside cave. There they meet a strange man who invites them to play an exciting new video game. Sounds like fun, right? This game, he explains, pits a lone giant robot against a horde of alien invaders. All they have to do is sign a simple little contract. The game stops being fun when the kids find out the true purpose of their deadly pact.

Mobile Suit Gundam Seed, Volume 1


Masatsugu Iwase - 2003
    Struggling to catch up with the Coordinators’ superior technology, the Alliance secretly develops its own Gundam mobile suits. But through a twist of fate, a young Coordinator, Kira Yamato, becomes the pilot of the Alliance’s prototype . . . and is forced to fight his own people in order to protect his friends. This thrilling new series features all the best elements of the legendary Gundam saga—and reimagines the gripping story of men, women, and magnificent fighting machines in epic conflict. Includes special extras after the story!