Though it's a couple of years old, the Majimoe Special Selection (まじもえ SPECIAL SELECTION) still looks awesome by today's standards, with art work by Tokumi Yuiko, Misaki Kurehito, Koge Donbo, Suzuhira Hiro, Chisato Naruse, Naru Nanao, Houden Eizo, Itoh Ben and so many more.

I hadn't seen much from the circle Canaria Mint before this year, but now I see art work by Kona all over the place. So I finally bought Canaria Mint Illustrations, a collection of Touhou illustration by Kona.

I figured I'd get through one of the monthly magazines while it's still relevant! I buy Animage Magazine every month because I like seeing the art work from new shows, and get general info about what's coming out and the extra goodies. The greatest focus is usually on the shows that have recently premiered.

In celebration of Ultra Jump Magazine's 10 anniversary, UJ has released an art book collection of magazine covers called Ultra Graphics 1999 - 2009. The covers for the magazine have been drawn by everyone from Range Murata to Oh! Great and Aoi Nanase. But the presentation for this collection does leave a little something to be desired.

This is a short review because Rokuwata Tomoe's Windward is a short book. Most doujinshi publications tend to be on the short side, but I do try to aim for ones that have at least 20 pages, unless I just really like the artist or can get it for cheap.

When I first saw the price of ￥952 for a "visual collection" I hesitated and asked myself, "Can they really make a good art book for such a low price?" Pleased to say, the answer is a resounding "YES!" And that only makes me wonder why similar books are double the price.

Like Headphone Girls: A Pictorial Book is meant to get you into buying expensive, stylish headphones, the Moeru Japanese Sword Girls book is designed to get you interested in (and hopefully buying) Japanese swords, through the use of anime girls holding these very sturdy weapons. This book is as much about the illustrations as it is about getting you to appreciate sword design, and if you can read Japanese you might just garner a lot more out of it that you bargained for.

If you'd asked me a month ago who Noriyasu Yamauchi (山内 則康) was, I wouldn't have had a clue. But his name was the only thing unfamiliar to me, because I'd definitely seen his work; he did the character designs for Agent Aika, AIKa ZERO, AIKa R-16, Stratos 4, Labyrinth of Flames, Megami Paradise and of course Najica Blitz Tactics to name a few. And I think the majority of these shows are most famous for their copious amounts of panty shots. So as you might guess, Tobimono Girls Noriyasu Yamauchi Illustrations is packed with girls, guns, and panties.