My reputation exceeds me: Let This Grieving Soul Retire

Krai Andrey is a recent anime trope, the Weakest Hero. Except he isn't thrown out of his party; he tries to quit once he realizes he isn't able to adventure at the level his childhood friends are. Unfortunately for him, they respond by making him team leader. In hopes of convincing them to let him quit, he names their group Grieving Souls, suggesting that if they don't like it, he can leave the group. This does not work as planned.

He survives to level eight by collecting and making use of a ridiculous amount of magical relics, earning the nickname "Thousand Tricks," and getting an undeserved reputation as a genius adventurer. This is mainly the fault of his party, who really are overpowered sorts, talking him up like he's the best thing ever.

I listened to a read-through of the manga earlier this year, and it had enough of a hook that I was glad to see this one coming up.

The WOAT is a JOAT: The Healer Who Was Banished From His Party, Is, in Fact, the Strongest

Another version of the Weakest Hero, Raust is a healer who can learn only one spell - Heal. No area heal, no cure poison or cure disease, just Heal.

Because of this, he has a reputation as an ignoramus. He was kicked out of a party, spent several years training, joined a new party, and was kicked out after one mission.

Then a martial artist named Narsena comes along, forms a party with him, and discovers what those years taught Raust - including such useful skills as spotting traps, and the not-really-a-healer-skill of giving a monster's kidney an iron infusion.

The story of my wife: TsumaSho

Thirty years ago, Keisuke Nijima met Takae. They fell in love, married, and started raising their daughter, Mai.

Ten years ago, Takae Nijima died. Since then, Keisuke has been stumbling through life, existing rather than living. And that's when a ten-year old girl shows up, proves that she's the reincarnation of Takae, and proceeds to kick-start Keisuke and Mai into life again.

Money changes everything: Trillion Game

Haru and Gaku are schoolmates who formed a friendship when Haru saved Gaku from being mugged, and Gaku erased the video evidence of the fight that would have otherwise gotten Haru in trouble. Now, they're recent graduates.

Haru is a smooth-talking sort who makes me think of a meld of Faceman and Hannibal from the A-Team; his visible attributes are all about talking people into things, but he makes plans like he's six or seven responses ahead.

Gaku, on the other hand, is socially awkward, which hides his technological genius to the point that he can't get a job.

Haru's response to this is to form a business with Gaku doing something, get investors, and make a trillion dollars. This is not a business plan; it isn't even twelve percent of a business plan. But he's convinced he can do it...

Marriage or Alaska: 365 Days to the Wedding

A Japanese classic, the fake engagement, forms the core of this one. Takuya and Rika work at a travel agency. He's a homebody whose major interest is caring for the cat he rescued from the streets. She's a map-loving sort with Resting Grump Face.

And that's where it would end, except the agency is opening a new storefront in Alaska. In one year, somebody will be reassigned there, with preference being given to unmarried employees, in order to keep relocation costs down.

The basic arc is predictable - they'll fall in love in the course of pretending to be engaged. Sometimes it's more about seeing how the characters get there than being surprised by the destination.

The pauper is a princess: Nina the Starry Bride

Nina was orphaned in a plague, and has been making a living as a street thief. Then one of her friends sells her out to Prince Azure, and she's taken away to be the replacement for Princess Alisha. The princess died in a mysterious carriage accident, which presumably will be a thread to unravel later, but since she's been living in seclusion for most of her life, nobody knows what Alisha really looks like - just that she has stunning blue eyes.

This means that Nina is the best choice for replacement. She doesn't understand courtly manners, hasn't been trained as a priestess the way Alisha was, and doesn't really look like Alisha, but the eyes match, and she's actually female. Everything else can be faked, right?

Peter Eng
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So, what's got your attention?