81 Diver

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Alternative Titles

Synonyms: Hachi Wan Diver

Japanese: ハチワンダイバー

Information

Type: Manga

Volumes: 35

Chapters: 375

Status: Finished

Published: Sep 7, 2006 to Jul 17, 2014

Genres: Comedy, Drama, Romance, Ecchi

Theme: Strategy Game

Demographic: Seinen

Serialization: Young Jump

Authors: Shibata, Yokusaru (Story & Art)

Statistics

Score: 6.90¹ (scored by 727 users)

¹ indicates a weighted score.

Ranked: #10542²

² based on the top manga page. Please note that 'R18+' titles are excluded.

Popularity: #8032

Members: 2,547

Favorites: 18

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6.90

Ranked #10542Popularity #8032Members 2,547

MangaYoung JumpShibata, Yokusaru (Story & Art)

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Volumes: /35

Chapters: /375

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Synopsis

Kentaro's former shogi teacher taught him to (metaphorically) dive into the 81 squares of the shogi board. Thus, his nickname is "81diver." He has failed to enter the professional league of shogi competition. However, he continues to play the game for a living by gambling at amateur shogi clubs.

(Source: MU)

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Background

81 Diver ranked first in the 2008 Kono Manga ga Sugoi! for the Male Readers division.

The manga was adapted into a Japanese live-action drama series that aired from May 3, 2008, to July 19, 2008. It was also adapted into video games for the Nintendo Wii, Nintendo DS, and PlayStation 2.

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Reviews

Sep 25, 2024

Ruisumaru

Recommended

Stop hesitating about whether or not to read 81diver—just dive in, but make sure your mind and heart are fully open.

You do not know anything about shogi? Cool! No problem! NEITHER DO I, and I have read (and kinda cried) this twice, without mentioning the countless times I have reread some passages of it (specially the ending) just for the amazing feeling that Yokusaru Shibata managed to convey in a lot of scenes.

This ain't no manga about just shogi, but rather about growing, maturing and the never-ending chase for our dreams.

*WHAT IS IT REALLY ABOUT?
Have you ever felt that a single moment, within mere seconds, ... completely changed your life, never to be the same again? That happened to Kentaro Sugata, our main character, whose path to become a pro shogi player was completely cut off when he lost a game during an exam. Now, disappointed and alone, he survives each month through illegal shogi gambling... and he's not half bad. But one day, a serious-looking woman known as The Champion of Akiba (or 'Milk' in her day job as a cleaning maid) crushes him in a few moves. Now, with his pride utterly shattered, what does he have left?

*WHY YOU SHOULD READ THIS WITH AN OPEN MIND:
With that base, 81diver starts off in a very down-to-earth scale, introducing a bunch of charismatic (and kinda weird) characters that take part in Kentaro's road to defeat The Champion of Akiba. But, as the story goes on, Yokusaru Shibata's style emerges more and more in each page; if you are familiar with Air Master, the most popular work of him, you may know what I am talking about: creativity with (almost) no limits.

To take a broader well-known example of this without giving in any spoiler, I'd say it's like read Jojo for the first time: "What, this was supposed to be a family tragedy involving two young men over the wealth of the Joestar Family, where did vampires come from?", "wait, what? a cyborg nazi soldier?", "yeah, I get the idea of the stands, but why is that baby a user?" kinda reactions. Of course 81diver never reaches that point in such absurd scale, but it does something similar within its own rules. The way the concept of stands as "a psychic entity or avatar generated and used by its owner" gives an immense world of possibilities, Shibata does the same with the premise "it's a story about people playing shogi"... why do they play? what kind of people play it? what else is happening in the city?

*WHY AM I WRITING THIS?
I consider myself someone with a difficult to satisfy taste in fiction, to the point that 20th Century Boys was my favorite manga of all time for like 5 years straight, then I stumbled upon The World is Mine by Hideki Arai and it became my favorite... but then I realized that only 81diver has made me reread it so many times, always feeling the same emotion as if it was the first time. It might not be as complex or philosophical as the other two, but it feels alive in every aspect; even with all the craziness that a lot of people complain about it, the passion of the situation feels totally real. To me, this is what a manga should be from its very roots: an interesting story, with compelling characters, that give you something useful for your life after the read.

Yokusaru Shibata is a genius of his own kind. I REALLY admire him and all his works.

*BONUS FOR AIR MASTER (OR YOKUSARU SHIBATA'S) FANS:
If you have watched Air Master or read (literally) ANY of his works, then you MUST give this a chance. 81diver is a magnificent piece in a interconected and cohesive universe that nobody is talking about: the "Shibataverse" (term by me, btw). No matter what have you read or watched from this author, you'll find a lot of references (and characters!!!) from previous works, making the read of 81diver a very interesting one. To put an example without saying any name, there is a character that was introduced in "Tani Kamen" as a student, then as a street fighter in "Air Master", and plays an important role in 81diver, completing the circle of the complex developement that Shibata gave it after 3 different titles.

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Mar 1, 2022

deadpool6969

Recommended

Story:
This is a classic zero to hero story that revolves mostly around shogi. It has comedy, romance, and drama and pretty much uses the whole premise of shogi as Beyblade or Pokemon card game. Even those who don't know shogi can read the manga and understand 90 percent of what is happening

Art:
People at first will not find the art that appealing as it is much different from the fan service art that we are used to. But if you give it some time the art will grow on you. Female characters in this manga are drawn with a better sense of realism that gives them ...

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Aug 10, 2019

AsianG

Recommended

Story: 6 Let's start with that this mange is no way for everyone, the story is nonsensical and uses the Shogi the same way Yugioh uses card games. Also its sorta all over the place, just know that when you read this your in it for the ride.
Art: 9 The art is definitely jarring at first but if you can get into it then by the end of the manga you will love the author's insane artstyle. I would say give the manga a few chapters and after maybe 50-100 chapters your still not into the artstyle you probably won't like it, but for those ...

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Poll: 81 Diver Chapter 76 Discussion ToG25thBaam - Nov 1, 2024	0 replies	by ToG25thBaam »» Nov 1, 2024 9:43 PM
Poll: 81 Diver Chapter 56 Discussion Stark700 - Jul 6, 2016	1 replies	by ToG25thBaam »» Oct 30, 2024 10:16 PM
Poll: 81 Diver Chapter 33 Discussion Stark700 - Sep 20, 2015	1 replies	by ToG25thBaam »» Oct 29, 2024 3:47 AM
Poll: 81 Diver Chapter 29 Discussion Stark700 - Apr 14, 2015	1 replies	by ToG25thBaam »» Oct 29, 2024 3:29 AM
81 Diver animated on Pachinko Machines! ReSeinen - Jun 15, 2023	4 replies	by ReSeinen »» Sep 23, 2023 10:08 PM

81 Diver
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