KEY TO THE KINGDOM (Ôkoku no Kagi, “Key to the Kingdom”) （王国の鍵) • Kiyoko Shitou • CMX (2007-ongoing) • Kadokawa Shoten (Asuka, 2003-2004) • 6 volumes • Shôjo Fantasy Adventure • 13+ (infrequent language, violence)
When the eldest prince and king of Landor die at war, the nobles decree that the kingdom will pass to the one who can find the legendary “key to the kingdom,” a magical artifact. Bookish young prince Astarion doesn’t even want to be king, but he sets out on the quest with the aid of Baddorius (”Badd”), a swordsman whose womanizing ways are matched only by his loyalty to Astarion’s family. As Astarion and Badd cross paths with other seekers, they gradually learn that the “key” has something to do with the existence of dragons, legendary creatures that have an elemental connection to the earth itself, and to the “dragon men,” mysterious immortals who look like “Vampire Hunter D” and have godlike powers. This engrossing young-adult fantasy balances several interesting characters, a little comic relief, and an intricate fantasy world. Especially notable is Shitou’s art, which abounds with detail, including faux-Medieval illustrations of dragons and alchemical art that adds greatly to the mood. It’s a great manga fantasy in the classic ’80s-90s style, which might appeal to fans of series such as Please Save My Earth and Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind.
Today’s winner is Mike R. of Virginia. Congratulations, Mike!
Today’s photo is from Sarah, who received volumes 1-4 of IWGP: Ikebukuro West Gate Park and volume 7 of Fullmetal Alchemist. Unfortunately, as your blog post reveals, you already had them all! 
Sarah, I’m sorry! I’ll send you some newer, better, awesomer manga soon, manga which you won’t already have! We’ll confer by email so I can make sure not to send you more duplicates.
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Your second batch of manga arrived in my mail today, and you sent me four volumes of “Shiki Tsukai”, which you awarded half a star to. What did I ever do to you? And, why, out of curiosity, do I have volumes 7 and 10 of Tsubasa: Resevoir Chronicle, and not volumes 1 and 2, or something?
Hi J — I don’t have full sequential volumes of all the series (I am continually sending out volumes 1-5 and sometimes 6-10, which means I end up with a lot of volumes 6+ and 11+), so occasionally I send out later volumes of one series mixed with volumes 1+ of another series. Sorry that in this case, the volumes 1+ was something less than desirable.