KingyoUsed Books is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Seimu Yoshizaki. It follows the happenings which revolve around a small used manga store, specializing in old and obscure manga. The series is loaded with several references to classic manga, such as Dr. Slump and Moretsu Ataro, as well as foreign comics like Jean Giraud's Blueberry. The series was serialized in Shogakukan monthly seinenIkki magazine from 2004 to 2014 and as of February 2013 serial chapters are collected in sixteen tankōbon. The series is licensed in North America by Viz Media under their Viz Signature Ikki label. On May 2020, it was announced Kingyo Used Books will end with 17 volumes. The final volume will be published on June 30, 2020.
Plot
The plot is focused around a used manga store, and has a series of vignette-style chapters revolving around different characters. It extols the value of reading manga in one's life, and is notable for having references to several well-known, as well as obscure manga, from the smash-hit Dr. Slump, to the nary heard-of Billy Puck.
Manga
This series is written by Seimu Yoshizaki and was serialized in Shogakukan monthly seinenIkki magazine from 2004 to 2014. The serial chapters are collected into sixteen tankōbon, the first released on December 24, 2004, and the sixteenth on July 30, 2020. This series has a two volumes prequel also serialized in Ikki, both volumes were released on December 24, 2004. In English this series is licensed by Viz Media under their Viz Signature Ikki label, and the first volume was released on April 20, 2010
Chapters
Reception
Carlo Santos in his Anime News Network column "Right Turn Only" gave the manga a grade of "B", saying that "if you want to get a non-manga fan into manga, this is probably not the manga to give them." The critic went on to say, "Kingyo is, if anything, too fixated on giving history lessons, trying to drown the reader in footnotes and details rather than letting the series speak for itself."
