Skip Beat ! #5

Volume 5 of Yoshiki Nakamura's Skip Beat! brings together two sharply contrasted young women — one in a bold blue top and leopard-print skirt, the other in a cool white ensemble — posed before a bar-like backdrop with a striking leopard looming large behind them. The tension and attitude radiating between the two figures sets a perfectly charged dramatic tone for this shojo series. Published in 2009 by Casterman under the Sakka imprint, this volume is a great entry point into one of manga's most compelling stories of ambition and rivalry.