The Super Harsh Story of a Mangaka

Sachiko Usurai just wants an easygoing school life, and make some friends. But her head is inhabited by a strange being she refers to as "Neko-sama." A representation of her karma, in the form of a cat. These creatures that resemble animals, have been carried by humans for generations and generations and are said to influence a person's fate.

Nawoki Karasawa is one of the longer-active and more prestigious names in the typically small time, lesser-known world of gag manga. In a genre where art skill is second to just about everything else, Karasawa's dialogue is hilariously sharp and witty. A gag parody of Shinji Nagashima's immortal Mangaka Zankoku Monogatari (Karasawa's title only differs by adding "Chou" (Super) to "Zankoku"), a manga about the dreams, ambitions, and suffering of a group of bright young mangaka. Karasawa brilliantly takes the piss out of just about everything involved with being a mangaka. It's lewd, raunchy, endlessly cynical and laugh-out-loud funny. Originally published in Ikki and the Big Comic Spirits special issue "Casual" from 2000 to 2003, it was collected into a single book in 2005.

You’ve never seen manga like this before! No annoying speed lines or sappy, neotenic eyeballs here — just pure Japanese counterculture. This anthology of contemporary underground comics from Japan features a wide variety of styles and topics ranging from the humorous to the profound. There’s a whole world of comics out there, and it’s not all Godzilla and schoolgirls! A great introduction to the other Japanese comics featuring Asia’s answers to Robert Crumb, Dan Clowes, and Chester Brown! List of included Oneshots: "Horse Horse Tiger Tiger" by Imiri Sakabashira "A Hooker's Room" by Naoto Yamakawa "Kisses" by Kiriko Nananan "Kitty Court Drama" by Nekojiru "What a Mixed Up World!" by Yasuji Tanioka "Million Dollars" by Yoshiharu Mitsumoto "The Abalone Cat" by Naoki and Shunichi Karasawa. *Source: Fantagraphics*

A celebration by various mangaka and celebrities of the 2023 Japan Series winning Hanshin Tigers baseball team.

Collection of various Karasawa gag stories, each exploring a slightly different style of art and humor. Topics are super-heroes, samurai, martial arts, animals, and zombies.