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May 24, 2014
This is one of my favorite series. Doesn't matter whether it's the manga, television show, or the anime, I adore this series because it's about a teacher who knows how to handle herself. She doesn't need a man to help her since she was raised by a man who taught her to be self-reliant; something quite a few people in anime and manga seem to be lacking.
The main characters in this series play off one another extremely well. Yankumi seems to meld into any role she's presented with. As an educator myself, I admire her attitude toward her students. All any of them needed
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was someone to bat for them, which is a common issue in many countries. Sadly, not all of those in real life are given a teacher like Yankumi to help them succeed.
The series may (or may not) give a romanticized version of the yakuza. As someone who has not been involved with organized crime, I can't say for sure, but I'd keep from using this show as a reliable source for the mafia; one can dream though. Yakuza stories seem to be rather popular in pop culture. They are entertaining, to say the least, but one can hope to never run into what it's like on the inside.
One thing that did stick out was Fujiyama's addiction to teenage boys (not to mention this is the same woman who voices Satoshi in hundreds of Pokemon episodes). This kind of made me laugh, save for the part where it's illegal in my home country to hook up with someone under 18. I had to think in a different mind not to find it a little odd. Luckily I can view something without going all sorts of ballistic. One of my friends gave me a lecture about enjoying this show for this very reason. So, for anyone not able to deal with the fact that Japan does have a different culture, I'd not recommend this show. However, if the mind is open, this show is fun on all levels.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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May 23, 2014
I tend to get a lot of growls when I review this series because I do not see this story as yaoi whereas quite a few people do. As one of my favorite light novel series, I still can't see what others see when they tell me this is a boy's love story since I've lived in countries where two boys or two girls might act just as the two characters in this story act, yet do not have a yaoi/yuri relationship.
Ok, now that that's off my chest, I can review.
When I first started watching this series I was captivated. No, the story
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wasn't all that original, there wasn't anything spectacular with the music, and the characters seemed rather mainstream. But that didn't seem to matter since I watched the entire series in one sitting, then went to find the light novels and read them. To this day I probably couldn't give a good reason as to why I like this series so much, but I can tell you what I liked/didn't like.
The Good
Nezumi's singing: If anything, the singing voice of the seiyuu was a perfect choice for the character. I was thrilled to see that the same person sang as spoke since in many places the speaking voice actor and singing voice actor are two different people. (This is just for the Japanese version since I was rather disgusted that the English voice actor didn't sing, they just kept the Japanese seiyuu's singing on the audio track instead.)
The bro-mance relationship between Nezumi and Shion: These two remind me a little of House and Wilson or Sherlock and Dr. Watson. It's definitely true that they are soulmates (just not sexual ones). I do like seeing two people of the same gender not worried about what others might think and just being themselves.
The Bad
Safu: Granted, she's not a terrible character, but she had very little in the form of likable qualities. She was drab, which I am sure was intentional, but I didn't see her as a quality character until I heard her singing. From that moment it actually seemed as if she had some heart.
The Ugly
Number of Episodes: The book series has so much more to offer, as does the manga series. The amount of episodes cut down on some important parts that would have made certain things easier to understand. There wasn't any honor in deleting parts of this series since there are other series that have run for hundreds of episodes. By adding three or four more to the 11 aired the anime could have done more justice to the book series.
In short, I'd read the books or the manga in addition to watching. There's something about hearing the voices of anime characters that brings to light a whole new feeling when watching rather than just the inner voices of oneself. Since I saw the anime first and read the books second, I can say that the inner voices were that of the voice actors themselves rather than my own.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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May 23, 2014
I went into this story not knowing a thing about Go, it's origins, or how popular it was in Asia, even though I'd spent three years in South Korea and China. I am now kicking myself in the rump for not learning a little about this game or the series in general until a year after leaving that side of the globe. Never in my life did I think I'd get such enjoyment out of a coming-of-age story, about a game I knew nothing of beforehand. I am glad I was wrong.
Hikaru no Go V1 happened to be misplaced while I went into the
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library and I picked it up and started reading while taking it to the front desk. By the time I got to the front desk I was asking where the other volumes were. After two weeks I'd read the entire series and wished that it hadn't ended while at the same time was glad I could see the conclusion.
I won't go into details, but I have to say, had I not read the last two chapters I'd have been left wanting. While I'd still like to see what happened between Hiakru and Akira, as well as their companions, the series ended on a positive note while maintaining a realistic view. Hikaru and Akira are both phenoms, but they don't go out and smash the competition all the time. They have realistic games that grow. In other words, they are far from perfect, and have a ways to go to achieve their dreams.
The story, most likely, isn't original in the fact that there are countless stories about individuals who work toward success in whatever their field. What caught my eye is the relationship between Hikaru and Akira. It's a friendly rivalry that keeps them focused on their dreams.
Sai just made me smile. Who doesn't want a ghost from the past to befriend them and help them with their homework? The fact that he was able to teach Hikaru Go was a bonus. I think he'd be a fun cosplay character.
The supporting characters in the series are just as entertaining and at times I felt that they didn't get enough page time. It'd have been nice to see more of them as they grew, which could have made the series last another ten volumes or so. Even though the story revolved around Hikaru, his supporting characters were necessary to help him get to the end. In my opinion they didn't get the showing they deserved.
Closer to the end of the series the focus seemed to change quite a bit. While Hikaru, Akira, and a few others were still the main characters, there were quite a few side stories that popped up, cutting down the time the reader could see the main characters. In a sense this made me think it was a completely different manga since the whole idea started off with Hikaru's journey. I do believe the side stories were necessary in a way, it just made the manga feel a little different.
As I am confused as to whether this will show up for the anime or manga since I chose manga, yet it's asking me to rate the anime, I did want to point out one thing I've found deters from the anime. My friends have all told me that they dislike when a woman plays a male character. In many cases it doesn't bother me all that much, provided the voice actor can keep up with a changing character. The seiyuu for Hikaru didn't quite do that. She was perfect for him when he was twelve, but by lowering her register a notch as he aged would have made the character seem real. His appearance changes as he ages, so should his voice.
All in all, I'd recommend this manga to just about anyone. It's a simple read, parents could easily read it to their children for fun, and a good way to learn about an extremely difficult game through the eyes of a beginner who grows throughout the story.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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