Comics / Manga

THE RISING STARS OF MANGA, VOL. 3 - COMMENTARY

By Leroy Douresseaux
June 13, 2005 - 13:39

Welcome to Mr. Charlie Opens the Door #53:

With two winners from TOKYOPOP’s third Rising Stars of Manga contest ready to debut books (and the grand prize winner getting the chance to pitch a series), it’s time to take a look back at the book that collected the 10 winning entries from RSoM3, THE RISING STARS OF MANGA, VOL. 3:

Mark Paniccia: The editor for the volume writes a short and sweet introduction that simply says what is true – there is a lot of comic book and comix creating talent out there, and TOKYOPOP is going to find them. This untapped talent, these new artists, these unknowns, etc are not going to have to prove that they can write and/or draw Batman and Wolverine and/or know an insider to get a shot at creating comic book or manga.

Nathan Maurer: He is the Grand Prize Winner of RSoM3 with his entry, “Atomic King Daidogan.” While it’s not my favorite entry, I think that the concept behind “Daidogan” has the potential to be a long-running manga and to also cross over into animation. In fact, the art is more anime-inspired than it is manga. If TOKYOPOP ever crosses over into producing original anime, this “shonen action” tale should be one of the first produced.

The story follows, Goto Onishi, owner of the struggling restaurant, Dragon Noodle, who must protect his dignity and manhood from the Pimp King Oboe. The dispute between Onishi and Oboe finishes in a spectacular battle between giant, giant robots – the part of the comic I liked.


Felipe Smith: He is the second place winner with his semi-autobiographic entry entitled, “Manga.” One of the best winning entries I’ve ever read, the tale follows a struggling comic book artist (also named Felipe) driven to a murderous rage by a disingenuous editor, so he decides to kill the editor.

Smith’s art is similar to Michael Golden, with the added flavor of Golden fan, Jason Pearson. When I first saw this entry, I immediately knew that Smith was an undiscovered talent who should have a book right way; his storytelling and drawing skills were obviously pro level. In fact, since the RSoM3 winners were announced last year, Smith did get a book deal with TOKYOPOP, and MBQ, his series that expands upon “Manga,” debuts in July 2005.

Whitney Leith: Leith’s third place-winning entry, “Cupid’s Folly” also looks at the struggling artist – this time with the added presence of the artist’ muse. Leith has a drawing style similar to what’s found in many manga, but her drawing and storytelling isn’t close to being as solid as a professional’s. She’s about at the level of being a fan/semi-pro artist, but she has potential.

Ashly Raiti & Irene Flores: This Lompoc, CA duo has turned in one of the more evocative winning entries since the contest’s inception with their runner up winner, “Life Remains.” Written by Ms. Raiti and drawn by Ms. Flores, “Life Remains” is a post-apocalyptic survival tale about a little girl and the teenage boy who teaches her to survive and adapt to the new. Poignant and visually imaginative, this story shows that this duo has a future in comics simply because they understand how important a setting is to selling a story to readers.

Alex Jeon: Jeon’s runner up winner, “Moonlit Magnolia” reveals an artist who understands how varied the layout in authentic manga actually is, from the array of panel/frame sizes and shapes to the use of close-ups and medium and wide shots. She uses digital processing to create mood and atmosphere and to suggest the emotional state of her characters very well. Still, the South Korean-born Ms. Jeon is not quite ready for her own series, in my estimation, but her knowledge of how to use sequential illustrations to tell stories is strong. Combined with her use of the computer as a tool to create comics, she will be a pro soon, maybe within the next few years.

Yang Fan: The Chinese born, Ms. Fan turned in the most intricate and detailed art of the RSoM3’s winners with her runner up winner, “The New Little Mermaid.” Her stunning art would be perfect for a Neil Gaiman Sandman story, and “The New Little Mermaid” is by far my favorite RSoM3 winning entry. It’s a beautiful, “fractured fairytale” that re-imagines Hans Christian Andersen’s fairy tale, “The Little Mermaid” as a lavish horror fantasy full of dread and creeping evil right out of Lovecraft. Even if she’s not creating her own comics, she should be drawing someone else’s comic right now or providing illustrations and covers for fantasy fiction.

Sarah Ferrick: Sarah was only 16 when she was announced as a runner up winner for her entry, “A Little Rain.” Although the story suffers from structural problems and weak characterization, Ferrick is destined for greatness in comics if she chooses manga or mainstream American comics as her goal. In this story, her character designs tend to make her characters look too much alike, but visit her online portfolio at http://elf-shojo.deviantart.com, and you’ll see how highly developed her drawing skills are for a teenager in high school. With her flair for character and costume design and the fact that she draws pretty pictures, she is a big star-to-be.

Iain Gill: Gill’s runner up-winning entry, “Dorothy Needs Needles and Knives,” is the kind of open, high concept that could run for years as a manga and/or anime, not to mention that it’s tailor-made for Hollywood. A spin on the River Styx Ferryman myth, “Dorothy” is well structured as a teaser or introduction to Gill’s world. The beginning is slow, but the middle and end of this short tale is riveting and very fun to read, and it works quite well as a self-contained story that has a life beyond the initial chapter. I’d like to see more of Gill’s work.

Aldin Baroza: Aldin’s runner up-winning “Ozymandias” is the best-written tale of this lot in terms of structure. The plot, setting, and characters are sturdy and ring true, and Aldin can flat out draw. The story nicely leaves us with some unanswered questions – just enough to keep this tale somewhere in the back of our mind always wondering what all did happen and what lies in the future for the characters. I see a future in the small press for Aldin (who is a professional storyboard artist, which explains the facility of his story), as well as some possibilities in mainstream comics when Marvel or DC wants someone to do less serious (meaning dark) versions of their characters.

Christy Lijewski: By the time she was announced as a runner up winner in RSoM3, Christy was already prepping a series, Next Exit for Slave Labor Graphics. In September of this year, TOKYOPOP publishes her new manga title, RE:Play, which follows a young woman and her punk band.

The story that earned her a win, “Doors,” is an imaginative sci-fi tale and slightly reminiscent of the work of Jamie Hewlett, the co-creator of Tank Girl, although at the time of “Doors,” Christy’s drawing wasn’t nearly as accomplished as that of Hewlett. Since then, her skill has grown exponentially, and Ms. Lijewski should be a popular creator of American manga and independent sci-fi comix within the next few years.

Well, that’s it. The Rising Stars of Manga, Vol. 3 (ISBN: 1591825377, 232 pp., B&W, $9.99) is available from your local comic shop, in major book chains, and from online bookstores. Felipe Smith has a website, www.felipesmith.com, and you can see more of MBQ at www.tokyopop.com/mbq.

Last Updated: November 29, 2025 - 16:51