Rapid Reviews - More Manga

Planetes (Vol 4) by Makoto Yukimura. Wow, the action switches entirely from Hachi to the rest of the gang, and we see what's happening on Earth while Hachi is outbound for Jupiter. The war and the possible consequences make for a fascinating tale, though. I'm looking forward to seeing the finale, if I ever get a chance to see it.

Blade of the Immortal: Cry of the Worm by Hiroaki Samura. I'm still not sure what to make of this punk samurai style. It's very odd, with the same sort of gore that you see in other samurai books... but the sense of humor doesn't seem to match up for me. I still haven't figured out whether or not that's a good thing.

Mars (Vol 2) by Fuyumi Soryo. Hot biker dude goes out with shy artist. Shy artist discovers biker's deep dark secret. This one moves on nicely from the basics of the last volume. Still lots of stereotypes, but the story gets more interesting as it moves along. Rei started out as a basic punk, but the revelations in this volume flash him out and make him more interesting. This still isn't the best Manga I've read, but it works as a library read.