Comic Corner Roundup: January

Comic Corner Roundup is a bi-monthly segment that compiles mini-reviews of comics, graphic novels, and manga that I’ve read recently. Here are my reviews for the month of January which include a tale of found family, monsters rampaging through the city, and an amateur cook.

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Our Dining Table by Ori Mita (2017)

Eating around other people is a struggle for salaryman Yutaka, despite his talent for cooking. All that changes when he meets Minoru and Tane—two brothers, many years apart in age—who ask him to teach them how to make his delicious food! It’s not long before Yutaka finds himself falling hard for the meals they share together—and falling in love!

I love to read stories involving food because they can be warmhearted, complicated, and emotional. Our Dining Table delivers on these very three elements. Yutaka is a person who loves to cook but due to his past, he struggles to share in the joys of eating with others. Though he finds comfort in food, his solitary meals force him to confront his anxieties and fears. Despite Minoru’s initial reservations, I appreciated how he lent Yutaka an open hand and welcomed him into his family’s home.

It was heartwarming to see the three bond over the course of the story and how food brings them together. There is romance in the story but it felt natural in how it progressed. Moreover in the narraitve there was a theme of overcoming painful pasts and moving towards the future. The recipes looked so incredibly delicious in this story. Anyone who has ever been comvorted by food will find solace in this story. I didn’t want it to end.

Final Verdict:

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Kaiju No. 8, Vol. 1 & 2 by Naoya Matsumoto (2020)

With the highest kaiju-emergence rates in the world, Japan is no stranger to attack by deadly monsters. Enter the Japan Defense Force, a military organization tasked with the neutralization of kaiju. Kafka Hibino, a kaiju-corpse cleanup man, has always dreamed of joining the force. But when he gets another shot at achieving his childhood dream, he undergoes an unexpected transformation. How can he fight kaiju now that he’s become one himself?!

Kafka hopes to one day keep his pact with his childhood friend Mina to join the Japan Defense Force and fight by her side. But while she’s out neutralizing kaiju as Third Division captain, Kafka is stuck cleaning up the aftermath of her battles. When a sudden rule change makes Kafka eligible for the Defense Force, he decides to try out for the squad once more. There’s just one problem—he’s made the Defense Force’s neutralization list under the code name Kaiju No. 8.

There has been a lot of hype surrounding this series as of lately. It’s been a long time since I’ve been this excited to read a new Shonen series. It’s action packedm full of deadly monster, and has fight scenes that will put the reader on the edge of their seat. I also didn’t expect to be so comedic either, so prepare for lots of laughs. The story seems familar butbrings a unique take on the monster trope. For me this series felt like a mashup of Attack on Titan and Tokyo Ghoul.

The main character, Kafka, is a person who the reader can root for and the readers gets to watch him navigate a promsing yet frightening journey. The Kaiju designs are so detailed and are made out of the stuff of nightmares (while also being amazing). It only amps up the suspense on top of Kafa having to keep his new identity a ecret. There’s a lot of world building and character introduction within the first two volumes. This series showsa lot of promise! I’m looking forward to the anime adaptation.

Final Verdict:

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Chef’s Kiss by Jarrett Melendez (2022)

Now that college is over, English graduate Ben Cook is on the job hunt looking for something…anything…related to his passion for reading and writing. But interview after interview, hiring committee after hiring committee, Ben soon learns getting the dream job won’t be as easy as he thought. Proofreading? Journalism? Copywriting? Not enough experience. It turns out he doesn’t even have enough experience to be a garbage collector! But when Ben stumbles upon a “Now Hiring—No Experience Necessary” sign outside a restaurant, he jumps at the chance to land his first job. Plus, he can keep looking for a writing job in the meantime. He’s actually not so bad in the kitchen, but he will have to pass a series of cooking tests to prove he’s got the culinary skills to stay on full-time. But it’s only temporary…right? 

When Ben begins developing a crush on Liam, one of the other super dreamy chefs at the restaurant, and when he starts ditching his old college friends and his old writing job plans, his career path starts to become much less clear. 

Readng this New Adult graphic novel felt so relatable to me because I could connect with the main character Ben. Especially as his story is set around him navigating life after college and being an English major (just like I was). It’s a coming-of-age story about life’s choices and how sometimes what we desire in life is different from we actually want. I enjoyed reading about Ben and his tight-knit group of friends and how they confide in each other. I also appreciated how the story gives glimpses of all the characters struggles instead of solely focusing on just Ben.

The romance was very sweet, but I felt like overall it needed more development. It’s a very flirty and fun romance. The colorful illustrations reallly bring the food and kitchen’s recipes to life. The detail put into the care of each cooking scene added to the overall story. The staff of the restaurant was so vibrant in their personalities. I lost track of how many times they made me laugh out loud.

Final Verdict:

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What comics, graphic novels or manga have you read lately? Share your thoughts in the comment section below. If you have any recommendations, feel free to share those as well.