Friday, May 18, 2012

Inokuma Shinobu may be holding to the timeline he set down in the first series after all. This series is set before the flash-forward that ended the first series.

The new series opens with the opening ceremonies for the 10th year. Oda Mari, cover girl once again, is now 25 and teaching at Mizushō. Kurosawa-sensei, Kondō-sensei, Ono-sensei, and the still nameless vice principal with the bad comb-over are all still at Mizusho too, although there is a new principal named Matsumoto. Tanabe-sensei and Yoshioka-sensei moved away to a new Mizushō High established in Sapporo's Susukino district (see Volume 16 of the first series.)

Nagasawa Daichi isn't married to Oda Mari (yet) but he is helping his sister Miwa and her friend Hanao Ayame run the M&A club in Roppongi.

The girl with glasses on the front cover with Oda Mari is Asakusahashi Riko. She's not on very friendly terms with Oda as yet because Oda is a rival for the affections of Kakimura Tatsuki, a student in the Host Group. If you look at the back cover, she's the one wearing trousers. That's right, he's a she, sort of the reverse situation from Teppei-chan in the first series. Kakimura knows Nagasawa; don't know how or why yet.

The other girl on the back cover is Fujimori Ami, Fūzoku Group. (You have got a copy by now, haven't you? Mine cost $10.95, plus tax, at Kinokuniya, not unreasonable, even if it was a special order.)

There's a first-year Manager student named Ozaki, with a Mohawk and a small chin-beard, who looks like he might get some more coverage in Volume 2.

Thursday, May 10, 2012

Volume 1 of Toritsu Mizushō 2

Well, my g/f forgave me and we're staying in a motel with internet, so I have full internet access, at least for a few days.. 

I've got the first volume in hand now. I have by no means translated it yet, but from a first look, it seems to be set sometime between the events at the end of the final chapter, before Tanabe and Yoshioka return. Or maybe, like the author of Gunnm Last Order, Inokuma wasn't satisfied with the hurried up ending and decided to change the timeline. Daichi Nagasawa turns up alive in a later chapter, but it's clear he isn't married to Mari, at least yet.