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Oct 1, 2008 11:27 PM
#1

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THIS IS AN MANGA ONLY DISCUSSION POST. DO NOT DISCUSS ANYTHING BEYOND THIS CHAPTER.
----------------------------------------
Well I got to say.
That was a pretty amazing manga.

I've started it a few days ago and it just hooked me right away. I can honestly say it is one of the best seinen manga I've read. Though the ending was a bit blunt, I guess it will make sense in the sequel.
9/10
Apr 2, 2009 2:48 PM
#2

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Apr 2008
7983
It was really a great series!! even though the ending was kinda meh but it's just as you said, maybe the sequel will make more sense.
"Every man shall reap what he has sown, from the highest lord to the lowest gutter rat. And some will lose more than the tips off their fingers, I promise you. They have made my kingdom bleed, and I do not forget that"
May 5, 2009 5:10 PM
#3

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Jul 2008
3525
The ending seemed to wrap up things too fast, but again as mentioned, I guess it makes a lot more sense in 21st Century Boys - which I can't wait to read! Overall, one of the best mangas I have ever read. Loved it to death! Really looking forward to checking out Urasawa's other work once I've finished this series in it's entirety.
I write about manga → morningroo.com
and movies → letterboxd.com/ugla
Aug 5, 2009 9:15 AM
#4

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May 2009
3818
Answers... I want them - Time to read 21st Century Boys.

Great manga. I was hooked from beginning to end. Awesome story.
Apr 22, 2010 9:18 AM
#5

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Jan 2009
806
Wah- ....? Time for 21st I guess... but that was just a bit too rushed for an ending for the first part (?).

9/10

My Anime List. | 皆は見つけられる必要がある。 | Relentless.
May 16, 2010 4:08 AM
#6

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I think the important thing is not to consider 21st Century Boys as a sequel so much as the TRUE final chapters of 20th Century Boys. I have no idea why Urasawa renamed the series for these last books, because it does kinda make the last chapters of 20CB seem a bit vague.

But yeah, so long as you move straight onto 21CB it's fine.

Saying that though, even after reading the end of 21CB, there's still a few things that didn't get completely cleared up that I would've liked, but nevermind, this is still one of the best Manga I've read in my life. XD
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Aug 5, 2010 8:48 PM
#7

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Dec 2008
372
Second time I've read 20th CB in 1-2 days; still as magic as the first time.
"Don't cry, Kanna." made it an amazing ending IMO; that's what most people wanted to see: the reunion of Kenji and Kanna: and as an extra bonus, there's a shitload of other people who each managed to survive like magic (but who cares, it's manga).

I might consider reading 21st CB this time, but I guess the only things making me hesitate are the facts that:
-I do not mind endings that don't 'end' or explain everything; this is a normal thing for this mangaka, you'd agree if you've seen/read Monster.
-If the ending of 21st CB isn't as satisfying as this one, I'll rage.

I'll decide tomorrow with a coin: head meaning I continue.
「Godspeed You! Black Emperor」
Sep 16, 2010 2:50 PM
#8

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Jan 2010
269
After finishing this manga, the ending wasn't quite what I had pictured. Though it was satisfying to some degree. I'll post my thoughts below:

My thoughts on 20th Century Boys:

- The introduction of Friend (1997) and how he relates to Kenji in the beginning was amazing and thrilling. One of the best introductions of a manga if not the best out there.

- Events up to "Bloody New Years Eve" (1997-2000) was done brilliantly. The 3 year time skip that showed how much the world had evolved and what happened to Kenji in that time period was awesome. And then going to face off against the robot on New Year's Eve was epic as well. I was a bit surprised this was done roughly 200 chapters before the end of the manga though because I had thought this was going to be the climax of the story.

- The time skip (2000-2014) at first had me concerned with where the story was going. But when Friend was revealed to have won the bout with Kenji and his scheme made him the savior of the world things were bound to get interesting. 1997-2000 was the getting ready to fight arc if I have to give an explanation of it. The time skip was more psychological as it dealt with "Friends" past and what happened exactly in the past. Skeptical for a while until Otcho and Yoshitune turned up badass as ever. I liked how both character's evolved into something much greater. I wasn't sure how I was going to adjust to 50 year olds saving the world now but it was more epic then the previous arc "Bloody New Years Eve". The introductions of Sadakiyo and Yamane were done brilliantly. I wasn't sure about this virtual world of 1970 at first but it turned out to be very interesting. The hanging hill and science room bits were explained in greater detail later on which was great. A thing that annoyed me for a while though as it was never truly explained was what exactly happened on "Bloody New Years Eve". Yeah we got to hear some vague stories from Yoshitune, Maruo, Kenji, and Otcho but it wasn't enough to satisfy me. I'm most curious about the face-off between Fukubei and Kenji on the robots. The most we ever got to see of that was Kenji saying "You...but you're dead." I was hoping we'd get more details on that part later on but I guess not. The death of Fukubei was surprising to say the least. But when he appeared again and saved the Pope's life I had thought it was just another one of tricks but...

- The next time skip (2015-2018 or Friend Year 1 - Friend Year 3) wasn't to me liking. Not quite sure why I didn't like it as much as the previous arc but to me it just wasn't as good. The whole "alien invasion" bit started to get annoying after a while. Not to mention Kenji was still nowhere to be found (I knew he'd pop up sooner or later but after going 140 chapters or so without him was starting to effect the story for me). I didn't like how they introduced a new character, the DJ, and that he was an old friend of Kenji. In my mind, I don't believe at this point of the story a new character needed to be added in. To me it felt there was too many characters to look after at this point and that it would start effecting the story. For me it did. I also thought it was unrealistic for Yanbo and Mabo to come back into the story and have designed the flying saucers for "Friend". Seemed ridiculous to me. It was a bit of a shock that the "Friend" now was not Fukubei, wasn't sure if I liked that or not. But it made for an even more interesting story now. When Kenji and "Friend" finally faced off, I wasn't too sure as to how it would play out. It wasn't exactly how I had imagined it would take place. Can't say for sure if I liked it or not.

-Final scene being the reunion of Kanna and Kenji wasn't a bad place to end. I was somewhat disappointed that the final scene wasn't with Kiriko as well. Overall I give it about a 9.6/10. One of the best manga's I've read. Would give a perfect 10 but I just didn't like how the story kept getting more and more jam packed with characters and having their character's being built upon and not having a real conclusion for them.
VitaXSep 16, 2010 3:37 PM
Oct 22, 2010 1:39 PM
#9

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May 2008
279
justice never dies
Nov 12, 2010 12:59 PM

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Jun 2009
15302
VitaX said:
After finishing this manga, the ending wasn't quite what I had pictured. Though it was satisfying to some degree. I'll post my thoughts below:

My thoughts on 20th Century Boys:

- The introduction of Friend (1997) and how he relates to Kenji in the beginning was amazing and thrilling. One of the best introductions of a manga if not the best out there.

- Events up to "Bloody New Years Eve" (1997-2000) was done brilliantly. The 3 year time skip that showed how much the world had evolved and what happened to Kenji in that time period was awesome. And then going to face off against the robot on New Year's Eve was epic as well. I was a bit surprised this was done roughly 200 chapters before the end of the manga though because I had thought this was going to be the climax of the story.

- The time skip (2000-2014) at first had me concerned with where the story was going. But when Friend was revealed to have won the bout with Kenji and his scheme made him the savior of the world things were bound to get interesting. 1997-2000 was the getting ready to fight arc if I have to give an explanation of it. The time skip was more psychological as it dealt with "Friends" past and what happened exactly in the past. Skeptical for a while until Otcho and Yoshitune turned up badass as ever. I liked how both character's evolved into something much greater. I wasn't sure how I was going to adjust to 50 year olds saving the world now but it was more epic then the previous arc "Bloody New Years Eve". The introductions of Sadakiyo and Yamane were done brilliantly. I wasn't sure about this virtual world of 1970 at first but it turned out to be very interesting. The hanging hill and science room bits were explained in greater detail later on which was great. A thing that annoyed me for a while though as it was never truly explained was what exactly happened on "Bloody New Years Eve". Yeah we got to hear some vague stories from Yoshitune, Maruo, Kenji, and Otcho but it wasn't enough to satisfy me. I'm most curious about the face-off between Fukubei and Kenji on the robots. The most we ever got to see of that was Kenji saying "You...but you're dead." I was hoping we'd get more details on that part later on but I guess not. The death of Fukubei was surprising to say the least. But when he appeared again and saved the Pope's life I had thought it was just another one of tricks but...

- The next time skip (2015-2018 or Friend Year 1 - Friend Year 3) wasn't to me liking. Not quite sure why I didn't like it as much as the previous arc but to me it just wasn't as good. The whole "alien invasion" bit started to get annoying after a while. Not to mention Kenji was still nowhere to be found (I knew he'd pop up sooner or later but after going 140 chapters or so without him was starting to effect the story for me). I didn't like how they introduced a new character, the DJ, and that he was an old friend of Kenji. In my mind, I don't believe at this point of the story a new character needed to be added in. To me it felt there was too many characters to look after at this point and that it would start effecting the story. For me it did. I also thought it was unrealistic for Yanbo and Mabo to come back into the story and have designed the flying saucers for "Friend". Seemed ridiculous to me. It was a bit of a shock that the "Friend" now was not Fukubei, wasn't sure if I liked that or not. But it made for an even more interesting story now. When Kenji and "Friend" finally faced off, I wasn't too sure as to how it would play out. It wasn't exactly how I had imagined it would take place. Can't say for sure if I liked it or not.

-Final scene being the reunion of Kanna and Kenji wasn't a bad place to end. I was somewhat disappointed that the final scene wasn't with Kiriko as well. Overall I give it about a 9.6/10. One of the best manga's I've read. Would give a perfect 10 but I just didn't like how the story kept getting more and more jam packed with characters and having their character's being built upon and not having a real conclusion for them.


Pretty much exactly as VitaX stated. I enjoyed the evolution of Kanna, Otcho, and some of the others. But, Kenji's return just didn't sit well with me. I did like the "don't cry Kanna," scene at the end. But, it's funny, I find the lack of answers in this story unsettling. While, I thought it actually benefited Monster. Weird...

I can't decide between a 9 or a 8. Because, I loved the first 150 or so chapters and just liked the past few chapters.
"Yes, I have been deprived of emotion. But not completely. Whoever did it, botched the job."

- Geralt of Rivia
Jul 10, 2011 11:03 AM
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Feb 2011
64
sir_mihael said:
I think the important thing is not to consider 21st Century Boys as a sequel so much as the TRUE final chapters of 20th Century Boys. I have no idea why Urasawa renamed the series for these last books, because it does kinda make the last chapters of 20CB seem a bit vague.

But yeah, so long as you move straight onto 21CB it's fine.

Saying that though, even after reading the end of 21CB, there's still a few things that didn't get completely cleared up that I would've liked, but nevermind, this is still one of the best Manga I've read in my life. XD


My thinking is that Urasawa renamed the series 21st Century Boys in order to reflect what has happened in the story. 20th Century Boys, ended with their own Woodstock, which sort of marked the end of an era. In other words, it's time to move on than stay stuck in the past, thus the transition to the next century.

It's also important to remember that most of the events in the story took place in the 21st century and not the 20th. Friend's rise to power put an end to modern history and as we saw, a stop to progress. Thus, everyone was stuck in the past, the 20th century, and could not see the future that they had dreamed of in the 21st century. Friend's downfall, allows mankind to transition into the future, and thus the 21st century.

All in all, I felt it was a clever way to incorporate the title of the story into the overall theme of the manga.
Mar 6, 2012 10:20 AM

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Mar 2010
55880
Soo Friend died or something and kenji sang in the concert.. Well for the manga as a whole it had to many time jumps even though it explained the story it just seems chaotic..Well anyways time for the sequel..

Behold of my awesomeness~
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But my feels.
Jan 16, 2013 1:12 PM

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Sep 2011
3935
The most amazing thing, and the biggest flaw, of this series is that it managed so many stories from different perspectives and tied them up to the same plot. Even though not all of them are complete, this manga is absolutely stunning. The art is amazing, the characters aren't super pretty, but realistic.

One of the best manga series that I read O_O The last chapter was not so good, I guess time for 21st century boys
"Justice Never Dies!" - Kenji Endou, 20th century Boys
Jan 16, 2013 1:13 PM

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Sep 2011
3935
I cannot believe that I finished this series in merely 4 days
"Justice Never Dies!" - Kenji Endou, 20th century Boys
Jun 26, 2013 5:02 AM

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Sep 2011
2001
Well, that was not what I expected for the end. Although I liked, I think the ending was a bit rushed. I hope they explain the end better in the sequel.
Aug 3, 2013 5:11 PM

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Nov 2009
14588
Yeah I can't say that I absolutely hated the ending, but it felt rushed as heck and definitely wasn't a "good" ending.

Anyways enjoyed the series, was definitely a good read, although I would say that I preferred Monster over this.
Aug 4, 2013 7:40 PM
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Apr 2011
270
VitaX said:
After finishing this manga, the ending wasn't quite what I had pictured. Though it was satisfying to some degree. I'll post my thoughts below:

My thoughts on 20th Century Boys:

- The introduction of Friend (1997) and how he relates to Kenji in the beginning was amazing and thrilling. One of the best introductions of a manga if not the best out there.

- Events up to "Bloody New Years Eve" (1997-2000) was done brilliantly. The 3 year time skip that showed how much the world had evolved and what happened to Kenji in that time period was awesome. And then going to face off against the robot on New Year's Eve was epic as well. I was a bit surprised this was done roughly 200 chapters before the end of the manga though because I had thought this was going to be the climax of the story.

- The time skip (2000-2014) at first had me concerned with where the story was going. But when Friend was revealed to have won the bout with Kenji and his scheme made him the savior of the world things were bound to get interesting. 1997-2000 was the getting ready to fight arc if I have to give an explanation of it. The time skip was more psychological as it dealt with "Friends" past and what happened exactly in the past. Skeptical for a while until Otcho and Yoshitune turned up badass as ever. I liked how both character's evolved into something much greater. I wasn't sure how I was going to adjust to 50 year olds saving the world now but it was more epic then the previous arc "Bloody New Years Eve". The introductions of Sadakiyo and Yamane were done brilliantly. I wasn't sure about this virtual world of 1970 at first but it turned out to be very interesting. The hanging hill and science room bits were explained in greater detail later on which was great. A thing that annoyed me for a while though as it was never truly explained was what exactly happened on "Bloody New Years Eve". Yeah we got to hear some vague stories from Yoshitune, Maruo, Kenji, and Otcho but it wasn't enough to satisfy me. I'm most curious about the face-off between Fukubei and Kenji on the robots. The most we ever got to see of that was Kenji saying "You...but you're dead." I was hoping we'd get more details on that part later on but I guess not. The death of Fukubei was surprising to say the least. But when he appeared again and saved the Pope's life I had thought it was just another one of tricks but...

- The next time skip (2015-2018 or Friend Year 1 - Friend Year 3) wasn't to me liking. Not quite sure why I didn't like it as much as the previous arc but to me it just wasn't as good. The whole "alien invasion" bit started to get annoying after a while. Not to mention Kenji was still nowhere to be found (I knew he'd pop up sooner or later but after going 140 chapters or so without him was starting to effect the story for me). I didn't like how they introduced a new character, the DJ, and that he was an old friend of Kenji. In my mind, I don't believe at this point of the story a new character needed to be added in. To me it felt there was too many characters to look after at this point and that it would start effecting the story. For me it did. I also thought it was unrealistic for Yanbo and Mabo to come back into the story and have designed the flying saucers for "Friend". Seemed ridiculous to me. It was a bit of a shock that the "Friend" now was not Fukubei, wasn't sure if I liked that or not. But it made for an even more interesting story now. When Kenji and "Friend" finally faced off, I wasn't too sure as to how it would play out. It wasn't exactly how I had imagined it would take place. Can't say for sure if I liked it or not.

-Final scene being the reunion of Kanna and Kenji wasn't a bad place to end. I was somewhat disappointed that the final scene wasn't with Kiriko as well. Overall I give it about a 9.6/10. One of the best manga's I've read. Would give a perfect 10 but I just didn't like how the story kept getting more and more jam packed with characters and having their character's being built upon and not having a real conclusion for them.

oh hey, this is pretty much how i feel.

i think the reason the final timeskip wasn't as good as the one to 2014 is because in THAT timeskip it was shocking to see that friend had actually won. we were misled earlier in the manga thinking the "heroes" being honored at that ceremony would be kenji and co. to see the villains honored instead was a surprise and was interesting to see. the second time we got a timeskip it felt unnecessary as it just showed things getting worse in an entirely expected way. i don't think the story ever quite recovered from that (albeit, i haven't read 21st century boys yet, but i doubt that will make up for it). hell, most of the manga after the timeskip was just building up kenji and his song and how cool he is. i guess it's fitting because it's the logical conclusion of his unfulfilled musical ambitions earlier in the series, but i don't think it was really necessary or all that interesting. certainly not worth being the major focus. idk what to think.
Sep 21, 2013 8:50 PM

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Aug 2010
3861
Great manga overall. I would've definitely given it a 10/10 during the most part. But I wasn't too satisified with the series after the whole second friend came. We didn't even get to find out his identity. Well atleast there is a sequel. I'm hoping all my unanswered questions will be answered in it.

As of now I'm giving this series a 9/10. Might raise it depending how the sequel is done.
Oct 13, 2013 7:08 PM

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Dec 2010
243
the ending felt a bit rushed and i didnt quite get who friend really is. Fukubei is/was friend no doubt but who the current one, still blank for me... even though it is implied that he's also one of them but well... great manga overall...

now reading 21st century. hope it explains it ^-^
"Either Die as a Hero... or live long enough to see yourself becoming the villain..."

Dec 4, 2013 9:45 PM

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Jul 2010
3028
I'd give this a 9/10, but if I count 21st Century/20th Century Boys as a whole (Like it should be), this gets all my entire 10/10.

VitaX said:
After finishing this manga, the ending wasn't quite what I had pictured. Though it was satisfying to some degree. I'll post my thoughts below:

My thoughts on 20th Century Boys:

- The introduction of Friend (1997) and how he relates to Kenji in the beginning was amazing and thrilling. One of the best introductions of a manga if not the best out there.

- Events up to "Bloody New Years Eve" (1997-2000) was done brilliantly. The 3 year time skip that showed how much the world had evolved and what happened to Kenji in that time period was awesome. And then going to face off against the robot on New Year's Eve was epic as well. I was a bit surprised this was done roughly 200 chapters before the end of the manga though because I had thought this was going to be the climax of the story.

- The time skip (2000-2014) at first had me concerned with where the story was going. But when Friend was revealed to have won the bout with Kenji and his scheme made him the savior of the world things were bound to get interesting. 1997-2000 was the getting ready to fight arc if I have to give an explanation of it. The time skip was more psychological as it dealt with "Friends" past and what happened exactly in the past. Skeptical for a while until Otcho and Yoshitune turned up badass as ever. I liked how both character's evolved into something much greater. I wasn't sure how I was going to adjust to 50 year olds saving the world now but it was more epic then the previous arc "Bloody New Years Eve". The introductions of Sadakiyo and Yamane were done brilliantly. I wasn't sure about this virtual world of 1970 at first but it turned out to be very interesting. The hanging hill and science room bits were explained in greater detail later on which was great. A thing that annoyed me for a while though as it was never truly explained was what exactly happened on "Bloody New Years Eve". Yeah we got to hear some vague stories from Yoshitune, Maruo, Kenji, and Otcho but it wasn't enough to satisfy me. I'm most curious about the face-off between Fukubei and Kenji on the robots. The most we ever got to see of that was Kenji saying "You...but you're dead." I was hoping we'd get more details on that part later on but I guess not. The death of Fukubei was surprising to say the least. But when he appeared again and saved the Pope's life I had thought it was just another one of tricks but...

- The next time skip (2015-2018 or Friend Year 1 - Friend Year 3) wasn't to me liking. Not quite sure why I didn't like it as much as the previous arc but to me it just wasn't as good. The whole "alien invasion" bit started to get annoying after a while. Not to mention Kenji was still nowhere to be found (I knew he'd pop up sooner or later but after going 140 chapters or so without him was starting to effect the story for me). I didn't like how they introduced a new character, the DJ, and that he was an old friend of Kenji. In my mind, I don't believe at this point of the story a new character needed to be added in. To me it felt there was too many characters to look after at this point and that it would start effecting the story. For me it did. I also thought it was unrealistic for Yanbo and Mabo to come back into the story and have designed the flying saucers for "Friend". Seemed ridiculous to me. It was a bit of a shock that the "Friend" now was not Fukubei, wasn't sure if I liked that or not. But it made for an even more interesting story now. When Kenji and "Friend" finally faced off, I wasn't too sure as to how it would play out. It wasn't exactly how I had imagined it would take place. Can't say for sure if I liked it or not.

-Final scene being the reunion of Kanna and Kenji wasn't a bad place to end. I was somewhat disappointed that the final scene wasn't with Kiriko as well. Overall I give it about a 9.6/10. One of the best manga's I've read. Would give a perfect 10 but I just didn't like how the story kept getting more and more jam packed with characters and having their character's being built upon and not having a real conclusion for them.

You said everything man, couldn't agree more. I still find it inferior to Monster, but heck, for me this is a masterpiece which I won't ever forget.
I will really miss the characters.
Jan 22, 2014 10:25 PM

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Apr 2009
657
Well, onto 21st century then! And I agree, this last arc wasn't as good.
Apr 10, 2014 5:36 AM
The Shrike

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Nov 2009
11609
insan3Spectre said:
VitaX said:
After finishing this manga, the ending wasn't quite what I had pictured. Though it was satisfying to some degree. I'll post my thoughts below:

My thoughts on 20th Century Boys:

- The introduction of Friend (1997) and how he relates to Kenji in the beginning was amazing and thrilling. One of the best introductions of a manga if not the best out there.

- Events up to "Bloody New Years Eve" (1997-2000) was done brilliantly. The 3 year time skip that showed how much the world had evolved and what happened to Kenji in that time period was awesome. And then going to face off against the robot on New Year's Eve was epic as well. I was a bit surprised this was done roughly 200 chapters before the end of the manga though because I had thought this was going to be the climax of the story.

- The time skip (2000-2014) at first had me concerned with where the story was going. But when Friend was revealed to have won the bout with Kenji and his scheme made him the savior of the world things were bound to get interesting. 1997-2000 was the getting ready to fight arc if I have to give an explanation of it. The time skip was more psychological as it dealt with "Friends" past and what happened exactly in the past. Skeptical for a while until Otcho and Yoshitune turned up badass as ever. I liked how both character's evolved into something much greater. I wasn't sure how I was going to adjust to 50 year olds saving the world now but it was more epic then the previous arc "Bloody New Years Eve". The introductions of Sadakiyo and Yamane were done brilliantly. I wasn't sure about this virtual world of 1970 at first but it turned out to be very interesting. The hanging hill and science room bits were explained in greater detail later on which was great. A thing that annoyed me for a while though as it was never truly explained was what exactly happened on "Bloody New Years Eve". Yeah we got to hear some vague stories from Yoshitune, Maruo, Kenji, and Otcho but it wasn't enough to satisfy me. I'm most curious about the face-off between Fukubei and Kenji on the robots. The most we ever got to see of that was Kenji saying "You...but you're dead." I was hoping we'd get more details on that part later on but I guess not. The death of Fukubei was surprising to say the least. But when he appeared again and saved the Pope's life I had thought it was just another one of tricks but...

- The next time skip (2015-2018 or Friend Year 1 - Friend Year 3) wasn't to me liking. Not quite sure why I didn't like it as much as the previous arc but to me it just wasn't as good. The whole "alien invasion" bit started to get annoying after a while. Not to mention Kenji was still nowhere to be found (I knew he'd pop up sooner or later but after going 140 chapters or so without him was starting to effect the story for me). I didn't like how they introduced a new character, the DJ, and that he was an old friend of Kenji. In my mind, I don't believe at this point of the story a new character needed to be added in. To me it felt there was too many characters to look after at this point and that it would start effecting the story. For me it did. I also thought it was unrealistic for Yanbo and Mabo to come back into the story and have designed the flying saucers for "Friend". Seemed ridiculous to me. It was a bit of a shock that the "Friend" now was not Fukubei, wasn't sure if I liked that or not. But it made for an even more interesting story now. When Kenji and "Friend" finally faced off, I wasn't too sure as to how it would play out. It wasn't exactly how I had imagined it would take place. Can't say for sure if I liked it or not.

-Final scene being the reunion of Kanna and Kenji wasn't a bad place to end. I was somewhat disappointed that the final scene wasn't with Kiriko as well. Overall I give it about a 9.6/10. One of the best manga's I've read. Would give a perfect 10 but I just didn't like how the story kept getting more and more jam packed with characters and having their character's being built upon and not having a real conclusion for them.


Pretty much exactly as VitaX stated. I enjoyed the evolution of Kanna, Otcho, and some of the others. But, Kenji's return just didn't sit well with me. I did like the "don't cry Kanna," scene at the end. But, it's funny, I find the lack of answers in this story unsettling. While, I thought it actually benefited Monster. Weird...

I can't decide between a 9 or a 8. Because, I loved the first 150 or so chapters and just liked the past few chapters.


I was gonna type something along those lines, but then you guys said exactly what I wanted. Up until around the bit with the Pope this was going to be my top manga ever, but it just lost its shone afterwards.
"Perhaps there is a universal, absolute truth. Perhaps it justifies every question. But that's beyond the reach of these small hands." Mamoru Oshii

There is a cult of ignorance (...) nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that “my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge.” Isaac Asimov

Apr 16, 2014 11:35 AM

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Jan 2013
11680
Well, its been a great ride. And I agree with some of the users, the manga went a bit wayward in the last few volumes. The annoying recurrence of everyone miraculously coming back from death didn't get to my liking. Also the alien invasion thing was pretty dumb.
A magnificent first 120+ chapters, then at around vol 14 the level of the manga slightly dipped. Still one of the best storytellings I've experienced for some time.
I'm going to give this one a 8/10 for now. Depending upon how 21st CB wraps up the details, the score for this could rise to 9.
Kagami_Hiiragi said:
Idc if you think its weird, I have a life and friends and an income of money.

May 5, 2014 9:50 PM

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Oct 2013
5174
It was a nice trek, in the end went down a bit, no permanent deaths.

A 9/10
May 24, 2014 1:55 AM

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Dec 2012
24355
Man, what an amazing manga. I don't even remember the last time I was engaged and immersed in a story like this. I just loved the intricate plot, and everything else. I found myself reading 6 volumes at one setting. I surprisingly found myself tearing up or getting emotional in certain scenes, which was a good sign for how believable some characters were. It's differently better than Monster. Monster doesn't hold a candle to it, in depth, level of details, plot twists and execution. Actually in literally everything (I don't think I ever even liked a character in Monster) and I certainly think Friend is a better antagonist than Johan. It was just more focused and handled the sub plots way better. I think the author is a great writer, he just have bad habits that I have noticed in both of his works. But that's just my opinion.

Now the things I didn't like, was without a doubt the third part of the manga/the second time skip. Like many others in this thread, I really didn't like it. I thought it wasn't necessary how it dragged out stuff, and brought many new plot points and events, I personally couldn't care less about the sci fi aspect of the series and it just dimnised my interest because I was looking for a conclusion but things kept dragging, with new characters, that I simply can't like or be bothered with. I found myself skimming through certain chapters due to me being annoyed. I didn't like the handling of Kenji's character at all, he barely feels like the old Kenji, which might have been the point but I still didn't like it, and all that song crap. And Kana definitely have gotten worse in the second time skip imo. I mean I already didn't like her teenage self, but the second time skip, made me just flat out dislike her and find her annoying, I'm not saying she is a bad character, but I just couldn't sympathize with her. Kid Kana is best Kana, she was so adorable <3.

Anyway, I can't bring myself to give this lower than 9. I feel like I can say it became one of my favorite manga, despite the latest portion of the story. The first 100+ chapters were just too good.


9/10
Jun 27, 2014 3:16 PM

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Jul 2012
48256
It was amazing, but it went downhill after the original Friend died. Up to that point, the timeline flowed well and I kept track of all the characters but afterwards when "Yabuki Joe" showed up, everything was everywhere and I got lost in the storytelling. Anyway, it was a great series and I'm gonna finish it by reading the sequel!

Also, I still think Monster was better

8/10 as well.

skyzblue said:
Well, its been a great ride. And I agree with some of the users, the manga went a bit wayward in the last few volumes. The annoying recurrence of everyone miraculously coming back from death didn't get to my liking. Also the alien invasion thing was pretty dumb.
A magnificent first 120+ chapters, then at around vol 14 the level of the manga slightly dipped. Still one of the best storytellings I've experienced for some time.
I'm going to give this one a 8/10 for now. Depending upon how 21st CB wraps up the details, the score for this could rise to 9.

Exactly my thoughts.
Aug 1, 2014 3:39 AM

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Jun 2012
2593
VitaX said:
- The next time skip (2015-2018 or Friend Year 1 - Friend Year 3) wasn't to me liking. Not quite sure why I didn't like it as much as the previous arc but to me it just wasn't as good. The whole "alien invasion" bit started to get annoying after a while. Not to mention Kenji was still nowhere to be found (I knew he'd pop up sooner or later but after going 140 chapters or so without him was starting to effect the story for me). I didn't like how they introduced a new character, the DJ, and that he was an old friend of Kenji. In my mind, I don't believe at this point of the story a new character needed to be added in. To me it felt there was too many characters to look after at this point and that it would start effecting the story. For me it did. I also thought it was unrealistic for Yanbo and Mabo to come back into the story and have designed the flying saucers for "Friend". Seemed ridiculous to me. It was a bit of a shock that the "Friend" now was not Fukubei, wasn't sure if I liked that or not. But it made for an even more interesting story now. When Kenji and "Friend" finally faced off, I wasn't too sure as to how it would play out. It wasn't exactly how I had imagined it would take place. Can't say for sure if I liked it or not.
I agree with most of your post except for this part. Im pretty sure Konchi was already mentioned, or at the very least if not directly mentioned he was present, in past flashbacks so it wasnt like he suddenly popped out of thin air. It also gave a nice connection between himself and Kana. And Urasawa couldnt have ended the manga without having yanbo and mabo reappear. Sure I'll agree that having those two design the saucers was ridiculous, theyre business men not engineers, but it was good to know what happened to them. Also maybe it was obvious that Kenji was still alive, but I honestly thought Kenji was dead. I didnt think he was coming back, so when I saw him I had this "wtf?" face.
Oct 23, 2014 10:00 PM

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Nov 2011
129185
Wow, this was definitely worth it. Finished it in 3 days and no regrets. Phenomenal writing with interesting characters and a compelling story and appealing themes. 8/10. Time to read the sequel~
Jan 1, 2015 2:37 AM
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Aug 2011
1165
Where I've read this, they've messed up the order of last 20 chapters so it fucked up things for me a little. I don't understand why they did not show who this former "friend" was and what was the deal with the space exploration team badge.

I think the ending was bad. It felt rushed and there is this one thing I hated the most. They are shooting the ufos that have the virus in them, so as they shot each of them, they've let the virus out. Even at the end, where 13 crushed into the last saucer, it should have infected Kenji and others in there because a huge goddamn tank filled with the ultimate virus exploded next to them.

Maybe I should've given this an 8 instead of a 9.
Feb 4, 2015 4:12 PM

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Mar 2013
1174
Need to read the sequel now
May 8, 2015 9:52 PM

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Nov 2013
122
This was a really cool series. I also appreciated all the nods to 1960s and 1970s culture
May 28, 2015 7:40 AM

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Jun 2014
4707
Pretty good manga even though the virtual game thingy was kinda odd. It looked more like a time machine cuz it was so realistic.

21st century boys


8.5/10
Definitely on my top 10

there is a live action Fish Story for those who want a similar story
Aug 6, 2015 3:25 AM
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Nov 2009
1503
Hmm it felt like it ended abruptly. Thought he´d atleast end it with the Sudalala Gutalala song. Hopefully the sequel can give it a better and satisfying end. I´d be surprised if all of Friend´s(Fukubei) conspiracies happened without the use of some magic powers because some of them were really unrealistic to happen.

Begining to middle were 10/10 for me but the end made it go down to 9/10. Also love how Kanna was the girl in chapter 1 and was featured at chapter 248. Awesome foreshadowings from the author.
Jun 1, 2016 3:04 AM

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4596
Fucking fantastic! The amount of effort & thought Urasawa put into this is praiseworthy. Unfortunately, there are some unanswered questions for me which prevent me from giving it a perfect score and calling it Urasawa's masterpiece.

Otcho was my fave, and the close runner-up being Kanna.

9/10
Nov 11, 2016 12:29 PM
🥊 CHAMPION 🥊

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Apr 2016
23913
Beautigul manga, full of mistery and with a plot that catch you.
The ends is a little mild, and if i´m sincered, i wait more, but i read that continues in 21st Century boys, and this has made my happy.

Recommended.
955/1000.
Jul 4, 2017 1:58 PM
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Jul 2018
564055
Alright finally completed it, actually thought that this one will take me a month but surprisingly it took me only a week for its rollercoaster pace.

20th CB started off excitingly, a gripping pace with titbits from past to keep the readers engaged. Imo, the concept though may sound silly(it's childish anyway) was brilliantly executed so that the readers are constantly drawn in to search for the answers and clues. This continued till the death of the first "Friend" and the manga's quality was 9/9.5 until therethere, but Urasawa drove himself to a corner by the introduction of a second "Friend" and never quite brought the same quality back again. The only thing that kept on ticking is the mystery of the second "Friend" whom many people believed to be Fukubei and some questions unanswered, but the problem is that the readers are blueballed ultimately. And yes I know very well 21st CB explains that, but there are clearly not enough foreshadowings in the main series and one of the hints just feel shoehorned for the sake of it.

Another problem with the last half is that Kenji got bailed out quite hilariously by the power of his musical charisma(he would have been dead 3-4 times tbh), characters quite magically popping up out of grave which was quite expected(poor Mon chan tho), and introduction of new characters which clearly no one had interest in, like that of DJ. Also yeah, flying saucers and what not lol.

Now talking about the characters, perhaps I actually found them the strongest point of the series, with the exception of Kenji's character in the last half as I said. No doubt it matches his aspirations as a youth but was too convenient. I really liked Kanna's character, perhaps my favorite of the series along with Otcho, and most of the main cast was pretty great too.

I liked how the ending played out with Kanna even though it was underwhelming. Also Idk if it was only me, but some of the plotlines were quite predictable to Monster and Pluto, but more importantly, I called the identity of the First friend a long ago in the "Fukubei" chapter. I mean come on, that cheesy overdramatic confrontation, the golden rule of "not dead if body is not checked" and a number of clues gave it away for me.

I am sure Urasawa himself knows he could have done the ending better, maybe that's why he made a new ending a few months ago with its new release(still waiting for anyone to translate it).

Overall I am conflicted between 8/9, I will give it a 8 now since I gave 9 to Monster which is overall a more polished work imo, and maybe change it to 9 afterwards if I feel like it.
removed-userJul 4, 2017 2:36 PM
Jul 24, 2017 10:58 PM
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Jul 2018
564055
Gaaah. The hell mate. Urusawas works always leaves me brain fucked and bitter. The ending did feel a bit too rushed, like what happened to (fake) friend? Did he die, did I miss that happen,. Ugh hmm
I was sorta rooting for kanna and her mother's reunion too :<
But yeah... Despite alot of stuff being left unanswered it was quite a ride. I enjoyed the series throughoutly.
10/10
Now on to 21th century Boys.
Oct 15, 2017 11:34 PM

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Jan 2017
1408
Not quite satisfied with the ending, feels a bit rushed but I guess I'll just read the sequel. Anw, it's a great manga, I'll give it a 9/10.
Feb 10, 2018 6:01 AM

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Nov 2016
32007
Captivating like almost no other story and a great read overall,but it could've been even better if it weren't for the pacing issues and anticlimatic final.

Despite these flaws I can't see myself giving this anything less than an 8/10.

One Piece episode 914 & 915 & 1027 were a mistake and 957 brought the salvation - FMmatron


Sep 2, 2018 5:59 AM
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Nov 2014
677
Great manga but sadly i can't give it more than 7/10. Just because of the amount of unanswered question it left. And the characters that were left behing (mainly chouno). All i can hope is for the sequel to give me clear answer ES.
Dec 8, 2018 1:47 AM

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May 2010
8126
Way too many timeskips. I imagine this could've been amazing if they just stuck with the 1st timeline.
Even when I was in crowd, I was always alone
May 26, 2019 2:27 PM

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1645
The End? Kanna doesn't even get to meet her mother?
Sep 11, 2019 10:38 PM

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Oct 2017
27456
Ah an awesome end to a great manga. Im so happy Kanna and Kenji finally met again.
Jan 19, 2020 10:53 PM
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Mar 2019
137
Ending has me conflicted but I think the journey was strong enough at least.
Jan 28, 2020 7:55 AM

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Saurian_X said:
Ending has me conflicted but I think the journey was strong enough at least.


I hope you realize that there a two more volumes after this and this isn't the ending.
Jan 29, 2020 6:42 PM
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137
grandy_UiD said:
Saurian_X said:
Ending has me conflicted but I think the journey was strong enough at least.


I hope you realize that there a two more volumes after this and this isn't the ending.

I take it that's 21st Century Boys?
Jan 29, 2020 11:00 PM

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Saurian_X said:

I take it that's 21st Century Boys?

Exactly. It's not so much a "sequel" as it's the final two volumes, just with a different name.
Mar 5, 2020 4:08 PM
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I didn't know where else to ask this so I'll post it here. Is fukube's lack of a face in chapters 173,174 just a way to foreshadow katsumata or is there another meaning behind it I missed? Also what was it that otcho and kenji saw that scared them in chapter 175? Was it just their reflection? Thanks in advance
Jan 17, 2021 4:08 PM
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55
VitaX said:
After finishing this manga, the ending wasn't quite what I had pictured. Though it was satisfying to some degree. I'll post my thoughts below:

My thoughts on 20th Century Boys:

- The introduction of Friend (1997) and how he relates to Kenji in the beginning was amazing and thrilling. One of the best introductions of a manga if not the best out there.

- Events up to "Bloody New Years Eve" (1997-2000) was done brilliantly. The 3 year time skip that showed how much the world had evolved and what happened to Kenji in that time period was awesome. And then going to face off against the robot on New Year's Eve was epic as well. I was a bit surprised this was done roughly 200 chapters before the end of the manga though because I had thought this was going to be the climax of the story.

- The time skip (2000-2014) at first had me concerned with where the story was going. But when Friend was revealed to have won the bout with Kenji and his scheme made him the savior of the world things were bound to get interesting. 1997-2000 was the getting ready to fight arc if I have to give an explanation of it. The time skip was more psychological as it dealt with "Friends" past and what happened exactly in the past. Skeptical for a while until Otcho and Yoshitune turned up badass as ever. I liked how both character's evolved into something much greater. I wasn't sure how I was going to adjust to 50 year olds saving the world now but it was more epic then the previous arc "Bloody New Years Eve". The introductions of Sadakiyo and Yamane were done brilliantly. I wasn't sure about this virtual world of 1970 at first but it turned out to be very interesting. The hanging hill and science room bits were explained in greater detail later on which was great. A thing that annoyed me for a while though as it was never truly explained was what exactly happened on "Bloody New Years Eve". Yeah we got to hear some vague stories from Yoshitune, Maruo, Kenji, and Otcho but it wasn't enough to satisfy me. I'm most curious about the face-off between Fukubei and Kenji on the robots. The most we ever got to see of that was Kenji saying "You...but you're dead." I was hoping we'd get more details on that part later on but I guess not. The death of Fukubei was surprising to say the least. But when he appeared again and saved the Pope's life I had thought it was just another one of tricks but...

- The next time skip (2015-2018 or Friend Year 1 - Friend Year 3) wasn't to me liking. Not quite sure why I didn't like it as much as the previous arc but to me it just wasn't as good. The whole "alien invasion" bit started to get annoying after a while. Not to mention Kenji was still nowhere to be found (I knew he'd pop up sooner or later but after going 140 chapters or so without him was starting to effect the story for me). I didn't like how they introduced a new character, the DJ, and that he was an old friend of Kenji. In my mind, I don't believe at this point of the story a new character needed to be added in. To me it felt there was too many characters to look after at this point and that it would start effecting the story. For me it did. I also thought it was unrealistic for Yanbo and Mabo to come back into the story and have designed the flying saucers for "Friend". Seemed ridiculous to me. It was a bit of a shock that the "Friend" now was not Fukubei, wasn't sure if I liked that or not. But it made for an even more interesting story now. When Kenji and "Friend" finally faced off, I wasn't too sure as to how it would play out. It wasn't exactly how I had imagined it would take place. Can't say for sure if I liked it or not.

-Final scene being the reunion of Kanna and Kenji wasn't a bad place to end. I was somewhat disappointed that the final scene wasn't with Kiriko as well. Overall I give it about a 9.6/10. One of the best manga's I've read. Would give a perfect 10 but I just didn't like how the story kept getting more and more jam packed with characters and having their character's being built upon and not having a real conclusion for them.


Exactly the same opinion herz
Jan 17, 2021 4:13 PM
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May 2020
55
It was good manga but people saying it was amazing ? I don't understand. The last 50 chapters seemed like a rushed mess.and Urasawa introduced that secret new friend who was pissed at Kenji for a stupid reason.

It was really unneccessary and kinda ruined the manga as a whole

7/10. Before the second timeskip, it was the best intrigue and thriller manga. Sadakiyo's story and the mystery behind Fukubei was amazing but it went downhill
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