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Seisenki Elna Saga

Seisenki Elna Saga

ActionAdventureFantasy

The land in ELNA SAGA is called Gimrey, and supposedly in the far past, before magic became a part of every person, a great monster had swooped down from the north and ravaged the world. Fanning great gusts of destructive magical wind, it reduced nearly everything to empty wasteland before a knight appeared to challenge it. Bearing a sacred sword and shield which repulsed magic, this knight finally struck the monster down after a tremendous battle. But this creature would not die, and as it lay immobile, the wind poured forth from its wounds unrelentingly. With the last of his strength, the knight planted his sword high atop the mountain where the battle had been fought, so that it would shield a part of the land from the wind. This was the beginning of Gimrey, and the reason why everyone is born with innate magic. As time passed, people began to fight over fertile ground. ELNA SAGA begins right before the outbreak of yet another war, and tells of a princess named Elna. Born without any magic whatsoever and as such being the only person who can actually touch the sacred sword guarding Gimrey, she becomes a pawn used by her kingdom to threaten other countries with destruction. A rival kingdom's assassination attempt turns rescue, however, when the ones behind this plot reveal that they have no qualms about killing Elna as long as they can maintain a facade using a lookalike. With the help of her would-be assassin, who is drawn to her innocence and compassion, Elna journeys to define herself and stop a terrible war that her country has started. The first thing one notices is the richness of the world in which this series has been set. The ideas behind ELNA SAGA are drawn loosely from Nordic culture and mythology and the story, people, and names all bear a medieval Northern European flavor. There are no gods or non-human races, but Valkyries, Berserks, and the world tree Yggdrasil make their appearance in one form or another, and the castles and towns evoke nostalgic memories of old storybooks. (Source: MU)

Manga Nihon Keizai Nyuumon

Manga Nihon Keizai Nyuumon

HistoricalSlice of Life

They are burning Japanese cars in Detroit. The top management at Toyosan Motors must decide whether to begin offshore production of its cars in the U.S. But our hero Mr. Kudo fears that offshore production will devastate the numerous local subcontractors of Toyosan, leading to a hollowing out of the auto industry in Japan, leaving only a financial shell. The American color TV industry has already suffered such a fate. The villain, Mr. Tsugawa, calls Kudo a wimp and sees a splendid opportunity for union busting. Will our hero prevail? Thus begins the first episode of this rollicking yet incisive introduction to the world economy from the Japanese point of view. Other episodes treat the appreciation of the yen, the impact of the 1970s oil shocks, deficit financing, the internationalization of business and banking, and the post-industrial future of Japan and the Pacific Rim. The book is an English edition of volume 1 of Manga Nihon Keizai Nyumon, originally published in 1986 by Nihon Keizai Shimbun, the Japanese equivalent of the Wall Street Journal. It is based on a serious introductory text put out by the newspaper and is packed with informative charts and facts. When the comic book was first published in Japan, it was an immediate best-seller, selling over 550,000 copies in less than a year. The stories in the book reflect Japan's national mood during the "Japanese miracle" and into the 1980s economic bubble: apprehension and optimism jostle one another, and there is a sense of national self-pity. The book also reflects a deep suspicion of politics and bureaucrats. The prime minister appears more worried about his government's popularity than about taking the right economic course. Ultimately, the employees at Toyosan Motors demonstrate that the success of the Japanese economy will not depend on natural resources or politics but on business practices that are ethical, socially responsible, and forward-looking (Source: University of California Press)