Sai Taker, Volume 1, Chapter 2 is done!

After four grueling months, Chapter 2 is finally finished. I think I did a better job cleaning it, and my editor/wife and I did much better as far as redrawing this time.

I am having some difficulty adjusting to the use of large text/small text in this series. The (Japanese) text size varies a lot, and I'm having trouble sort of mirroring it in English.

Anyway, without further ado, here is Chapter 2! Please note that Sai Taker contains nudity and adult situations.

A couple of side notes:

Yuuma has been changed to Yuma, because that's how her name appears in English in Chapter 2.

My wife caught a slight error in Chapter 1. Takabayashi is not Mizuho's last name, it's Ichikawa. (Her full name is used in Chapter 2.)

This means that a) the Takabayashi mentioned in Chapter 1 refers to another person, or b) Mizuho is incorrectly referred to as Takabayashi in the Japanese version of the chapter. Chapter 1 has been corrected and is available here.

And finally, if anyone is interested in editing or knows where to get high-quality scans of this series, please let me know. We need all the help we can get! :)

Sai Taker, Volume 1, Chapter 1 is done!

I'm happy to announce that the first chapter is finally finished. Please note that Sai Taker contains nudity and adult situations. You can download the chapter here.

It would've been done sooner, but I ran into some issues. First, the only raws publicly available online have a giant watermark on the bottom right corner of each page, which looks hideous and obscures some of the artwork. So rather than using pre-made raws, I'm going to have to buy the volumes, then scan and clean the raws myself (yay).

Second, this series requires a LOT of redrawing, so I had to cut some corners to release the chapter faster. Hopefully my editor and I can work more quickly and produce a higher-quality product with the next chapter. The translation is great, but I'll admit the cleaning and redrawing needs a little work.

Also, I want to wish my editor (and wife) a speedy recovery. She's currently recovering from Gender Reassignment Surgery. Luckily, though, she doesn't have a counter on her chest. :P

Stay tuned for more Sai Taker! :)

Black Rain Chapter 8 is done, meaning that Black Rain is complete!

Chapter 8 of Black Rain is finished, which ends "Struck by Black Rain." You can pick up the chapter here and download the Extras here.

This chapter is super long (about 50 pages), and I no matter how hard I worked on it, it still took me about 5 months to finish. Real life stuff just kept getting in the way, as always. :)

A note about the title for this chapter. It's actually, "By/To/In the Scream of the Black Soil." However, I removed the preposition because it's meaningless in English without a verb. This is similar to the title of Chapter 4.

I have to say I've really enjoyed translating "Struck by Black Rain." Despite its anti-American sentiments and heavy-handedness, I feel it's an important manga and a testament to the tragedy of the atomic bomb. On another note, it was quite interesting to translate a manga that's 40+ years old.
The next project I'll be taking on after the holidays is Sai Taker, which will be a complete 180 for me because it's ultra-new.

Happy Holidays from Desert Bus Translations! :)

Black Rain Chapter 7 is done!

Chapter 7 of Black Rain is finished, and you can get it here!

This chapter was pretty good. It centers around a very important missing hat. I know the main character looks like one of the Village People, but don't let that throw you. The story's really good. :)

On a side note, when I was working on the part where Kitagawa gets kicked out of the main character's cab, this scene from the movie "Repo Man" kept going through my head.

Also, a brief announcement. After finishing the final chapter of Black Rain, I will be looking into translating Sai Taker, starting with Volume 1. I need something funny and lighthearted for a change. :P

Black Rain Chapter 6 is finished!

Chapter 6 of "Struck by Black Rain" is finally done! You can download it here.

I enjoyed this chapter more than the previous one, although I found I had very little sympathy for the brother. He was a dick. :(

Also, please note this chapter contains brief nudity and some stronger-than-normal swearing.

Black Rain Chapter 5 is finished!

It's been awhile. I've been through a building fire, dressed up as Snake Plissken for Halloween and most recently went on a trip to San Francisco. In the middle of all this fun real-life stuff, I managed to finish Chapter 5 of Black Rain.

You can pick it up here. Please note that (like the previous chapters) this chapter has some pretty serious adult themes, including a really creepy part near the end that I won't give away.

This chapter also has tons of text, a cliche prostitute with a heart of gold, and a really unlikable pimp. I honestly can't say that I liked the story too much, but don't let that stop you from reading it (I put a lot of work into translating it). Hopefully I'll enjoy the next chapter more and be able to get it done quicker.

Struck by Black Rain, Chaper 4 is (finally) done!

After a long hiatus due to moving to a new apartment, illness, and various other real-life inconveniences, I'm pleased to announce that Chapter 4 of Struck by Black Rain is finished. You can pick it up here.

I enjoyed this chapter much more than the previous one. The characters were more interesting and sympathetic. I admit I teared up near the end. Also, a quick note on the chapter title. In Japanese it's 黒い蝿の叫び声に or "By/To/In the Scream of the Black Fly". However, I removed the preposition when translating the title, because in English it's meaningless without a verb attached.

I would guess the full title is supposed to be "Shaken by the Scream of the Black Fly" or something similar, but it's just a guess. So I went with "The Scream of the Black Fly" instead.

Anyway, I hope to have chapter 5 our relatively soon. Enjoy!