Cel Shaded Jason Yadao

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Anime, manga with little buzz

CONTINUING with last week's gift-guide theme, this week here are lesser-known, but equally gift-worthy, anime and manga:

>> "Kamichu!" (Geneon): One day, Yurie is an ordinary student; the next, she's a god. What happens next is a quaint story similar to those seen in the best Studio Ghibli films.

>> "Love Roma" (Del Rey): A breezily quirky, charmingly cute story about two high schoolers and their sometimes awkward romance.

>> "Mangaka America" (Collins Design): This book is filled with pretty art and tips from 11 global manga creators, including Svetlana Chmakova ("Dramacon"), Tania Del Rio ("Sabrina the Teenage Witch") and Lindsay Cibos and Jared Hodges ("Peach Fuzz").

>> "Ninja Nonsense" (Right Stuf): Because everyone loves an anime comedy filled with pretty girls, bumbling ninjas and a perverted blobby thingy.

>> "Nerima Daikon Brothers" (ADV Films): This anime musical series about a trio that aspires to build a giant performance dome on the site of their daikon farm sounds good in English and Japanese.

>> "Reiko the Zombie Shop" (Dark Horse): Dark Horse has always been good to fans of horror manga. This is the story of a girl with the power to raise the dead ... that is, when she's not getting killed herself.

>> "Welcome to the NHK" (Tokyopop): Proof in manga form that, no matter how obsessed the fan in your life is, he or she can't possibly be as bad as Satou, the social recluse and main character of this story.

If you want to check out my recommendations from last year, visit starbulletin.com/2005/12/12/features/yadao.html and starbulletin.com/2005/12/19/features/yadao.html ...

In Sunday's 'D&Q' For a second straight month, Wilma J.'s going to school ... and this time, there's a healthy dose of magic sprinkled into the curriculum. The course material: "Psychic Academy" and "Someday's Dreamers." Enroll in the Sunday Today section, and don't be tardy ...