title: AX Volume 1: A Collection of Alternative Manga
author: Various
description: Wilson has teamed with Asakawa, an editor of the bimonthly Japanese magazine Ax, which prints alternative and experimental comics, to select works from 33 artists for this first English-language collection. As with any collection, there are hits and misses that are dependent upon the individual tastes of the reader. Some of the comics presented here are deep and introspective, others rely on off-kilter potty or sexual humor, and others still are horrific looks into the human psyche. And, lest anyone forget that manga is not a style of art but merely the Japanese word for comic, the artwork in this anthology will be a forceful reminder: it wanders as far across the map of styles as the writing does, ranging from rough, almost childlike pieces to lushly detailed creations. Violence, sexual situations, language, and adult themes reserve this for assuredly mature audiences, but libraries with alternative-comic fans or manga readers looking to move beyond the usual translated works would do well to add this collection. --Snow Wildsmith
zlib_text:   1. [Light in the Dark](chapter-1.xhtml)
      1. [Prologue](chapter-1.xhtml#chapter-1-88)
      2. [Chapter One](chapter-1.xhtml#chapter-1-141)
      3. [Chapter Two](chapter-1.xhtml#chapter-1-183)
      4. [Chapter Three](chapter-1.xhtml#chapter-1-218)
      5. [Chapter Four](chapter-1.xhtml#chapter-1-280)
      6. [Chapter Five](chapter-1.xhtml#chapter-1-356)
      7. [Chapter Six](chapter-1.xhtml#chapter-1-419)
      8. [Chapter Seven](chapter-1.xhtml#chapter-1-516)
      9. [Chapter Eight](chapter-1.xhtml#chapter-1-568)
      10. [Chapter Nine](chapter-1.xhtml#chapter-1-677)
      11. [Chapter Ten](chapter-1.xhtml#chapter-1-758)
      12. [Chapter Eleven](chapter-1.xhtml#chapter-1-828)
      13. [Chapter Twelve](chapter-1.xhtml#chapter-1-898)
  
  
  
  
  
  ![cover-image, Light in the Dark \[Taking Chances\]](images/image1.jpeg)
  
  
  
  
  
  ￼![tg-light-dark-tc](images/image1-1.jpg)
  
  Taking Chances
  
  Light in the Dark
  
  Samantha Grey lived a totally ordinary, boring life. So she is totally
  unprepared to have someone fixated 