Mine Yoshizaki

Sgt. Frog is supposed to be leading an alien invasion of earth... instead, he and his growing band of comrades are stuck doing housework for the Hinata family. After being joined by Corp. Geroro at the end of volume one, we get to see how the larger group of aliens interact with their human "masters," including the building of an underground base and nightly trips into the neighborhood to cause mayhem. The black and white art shows the action well, with great expression given to the humans. show more On the downside, readers not well in tune with Japanese pop culture (particularly other manga series) will miss some very funny parodies and visual gags, often feeling like something doesn't make any sense at those points. The fact that this is originally a serially published title is also readily apparent, as almost every chapter is a self-contained mini-story in an overall arch, which is nice for those wanting a few quick reads, but disappointing if you are looking for an engrossing story. It does end off with the appearance of a brand new alien, though, as a hook to move on to book three. show less

Volume 20 of the popular and ongoing Sgt Frog (Keroro Gunso) series.

This volume is somewhat unusual in that the story (and the chapter) actually encompasses the entire volume. Usually, these volume long events are far and few in between, and are sometimes written with future movie releases in mind. Normally, it's more of the case where the stories tends to be short and self contained within each chapter. Also, contrary to the usual gag filled chapter, volume long stories tend to more epic show more in nature and tend to involve plots revolving around a global crisis, which our cast would have to unite to defeat.

"Lost in the Abyss the Monster and Eden", Encounter(Chapter) 164 fills that description to the 'T'. The plot revolves around the fact that the Earth is once again in danger of alien invasion. Except, this time, it's a different race of extraterrestrials.

Overall, the art and action was a notch better than usual (especially the two page spread after the title page. Too bad it wasn't in color). However, the story itself felt somewhat lacking, maybe due to the fact that you never get a sense of actual danger from the antagonist throughout the story. Also, either the dialogue (or it's translation) is left something to be desired. There are several occasions where sometimes the dialogue is either confusing, or just doesn't seem to match the actions of the characters.

Possibly, this might be one of those cases where the story might actually improve as a movie, with its tighter focus on story and impressive action visuals. show less

Two siblings discover Sgt. Frog, an alien, observing them, when Sgt. Frog's cover is blown, the other aliens leave him behind and Sgt. Frog is torn between enjoying Earth and the temptation to destroy it. The story line is fairly intriguing and well drawn. Some cleavage panels, but more PG-13 than most manga and Sgt. Frog is down right adorable. Not recommended for sophisticated readers, but a worthy addition to a manga collection in the middle school age bracket.

Fun as usual, though by volume 17, nothing is really surprising anymore. You know what to expect. Keroro schemes, Keroro screws up, Keroro schemes again. Wash, rinse, and repeat.