- Last OnlineNov 30, 2011 7:41 PM
- GenderFemale
- JoinedMay 27, 2011
RSS Feeds
|
![]()
Sep 30, 2011
This manga has a very high rating and a lot of reccomendations, but still no review. I shall attempt to explain why I like this manga and recommend it anyone to read it.
This is in my top 5 manga (of any genre), I can reread it many times because it's so entertaining. There must be a new trend among shoujo mangakas to have smart, level headed female leads who always don't just have love on their mind. As most people may know that this is a sequel to Warau Kanoko-sama, but one doesn't have to read it (though I'd recommend to anyways). The manga is
...
about a 16 year old Kanoko who joins the newspaper club and starts to participate in school politics, because she wants to disturb the balance of power.
Story (8)- It's wonderful blend of (little) suspense, subtle romance, and comedy. The situations that arise in the story are handeled wonderfully, though you'd never have thought that club rivaliries could turn out to be so interesting. It's a good look at school politics existing at smaller level in a humrous way. But the story also examines school life, different sterotypes and cliques are satirized. The only thing I don't like about the story is that I wish it would concentrate on Kanoko being more active in her club than creating disturbances in others. She could get scoops for the newspaper club and make it more popular (one of her goals).
Art (9)- At first one feels there're too many panels on the screen with smaller representation of insignificant characters. But it's very well drawn, as it could be expected from a shoujo manga though I am glad the characters don't have the typical saucer eyes, too many close ups and flowery backgrounds.
Character(9)- Of course the main character is my most favorite and the top 3 reasons I read the manga. Other characters are caricratures, not having much depth but the guy who has a crush on Kanoko seems to be developing a bit. Although I think he had a better character development in the Warau Kanoko-sama. I know it's a high rating just because I like only one character and could care less for the rest.
Enjoyment (9)- Again I enjoy it mostly because of the female lead. Though the subtle romance does add to the enjoyment, since it's one sided and for once it's from the guy's side (yay!), cus usually it's the girls who are made out to have no pride in shoujo mangas when they are in the one sided love.*cough*Strobe edge*cough*
Overall (9)- I recommend it especially to teens, because it can help them to learn and examine themselves. Because Kanoko really doesn't have any special abilities, she doesn't stand out, yet she is behind the scenes puppeter (sp?), all she uses is simple psychology and her brains. I look forward to its official release by one of the American licenced companies because I'd defintly want to enjoy it anytime, anywhere.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
What did you think of this review?
Nice
 0
Love it
 0
Funny
 0
Confusing
 0
Well-written
 0
Creative
 0Show all
![]()
Jul 22, 2011
I usually don't read sports manga or anything sports related for that matter. But this manga is much more than about a sport as much as it is about building relationships thru it.The story is predicable, and as I kept on reading it, I found it to be about accomplishing one's dreams (no matter how trivial they may seem to others), about being passionate about something in life and about lasting friendship. Chihaya is a girl who discovers the game of karuta, in elementary school, thru another student named Arata, as well as her innate ability for itl. Along with another classmate, Taichi, the three
...
form a team and continue to improve until they graduate from elementary school and go their own separate ways. Chihaya still hopes that one day three will be reunited to play karuta like old days and continues to pursue her passion for it. This forms the basis of the story, her trying to bring her friends together to play karuta again while striving to become the best in the game in face of all the teasing, mocking and disapproval she receives for it.
Story 7- The story has been predictable for the 9 chps that I've read so far. It's not the most original story. It uses karuta to illustrate all sorts of relationships within a family, school, friends, etc... not just within a team or a romance. Though romance is another subplot, i hope it stays that way and become the central point further down.
Art 8- I don't know much about art, but I enjoyed looking at the bishie characters, shoujo backgrounds in some panels and the details. A lot of attention has been paid to drawing the detailed panels of the game karuta, which I really enjoyed.
Characters 7- The characters are the prototypes of the most you've read in other shoujo/shounen manga. But one of the characters that stands out is the main character Chihaya. She made me keep on reading the manga and as the manga progresses she's the one whose character develops the fastest and best. I like how she's not been shown to be a typical shoujo girl, but as an indepedent girl with a kind and helping heart. The other characters (main or secondary) don't stand out much for me, cus you have the archetype of the stoic character with a sad past, the perfect childhood friend who's most likely in love with the girl. I would say that, for me at least, the story is character driven rather than plot.
Enjoyment 7- The reread value is not very high, very low medium for me. But so far I'm enjoying reading it. I hope it doesn't deviate from the main plot much and go into a different territory. It should rest as a sports manga without involving a lot of romance.
Overall 7- Not the most original manga you've probably read, but won't feel like you've wasted your time reading it. I would recommend it as a light read and for teens.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
What did you think of this review?
Nice
0
Love it
0
Funny
0
Confusing
0
Well-written
0
Creative
0Show all
![]()
Jul 1, 2011
When I read the summary, I predicted that there would be romance with sci-fi being the subplot and the mangeka would exploit the relationship as the one being between two siblings to get more reactions out of readers. I've been proven mostly right, but the romance is weaved into the story seamlessly (and not vulgur), that you forget they're supposed to be siblings, it just seems so natural. It's not forced into the story and connects to the climax of the story, so without it there would be no story. Also, I was expecting aliens (because of the sci-fi tag), but was pleasntly surprised with
...
a time travel theme.
About half of the manga is building upto a great climax where the protogonist has to choose between his family and his lover at the expense of the destruction of the world. While reading it, I thought it was just a regular sci-fi action filled manga, but it actually has a direction and makes one question their beliefs and values. You feel sympathic towards the protogonist because of the difficult choice he has make.
Story 6- It is fast paced, the manga is only 27 chps and contains good amount of action (especially martial arts). The first of the manga just seems to move in a predictable direction, while reading I was thinking that the author just seems to want to cover everything like romance, action, sci-fi and drama. But after 11 some chps, it becomes more interesting and more put-together.
Art 6- It's well drawn, not a lot of toning used, but very plain that turned me off in the beginning. The action scenes are actually very well drawn and are pretty long. The close up drawings of the characters in their most emotional states are also very detailed.
Character 7- I really like the main character Luca, her personality and perseverance. She is one of my most fav and has a great development in such a short manga. There aren't many side characterss, so less drama without them. The good and the bad guy is not clearly defined, it presents both their sides and let the reader decide.
Enjoyment 7- I'm solely basing my rating on second half of the manga and I enjoyed it a lot.
Overall 7- Because of its predicability and only little surprises here/there, but nothing that you hadn't expected. The manga could've been more dramatic and realistic, but I guess its length posed a problem for it to be such.
You can read it if you're looking for a short sci-fi, drama and romance containing manga. But it's really a presentation of what if situation and is intresting only because of that.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
What did you think of this review?
Nice
0
Love it
0
Funny
0
Confusing
0
Well-written
0
Creative
0Show all
![]()
Jun 26, 2011
I was bored so picked up this manga because a lot of ppl were praising it. TBH, I don't see it as an out of ordinary shounen, if anything it gives me a feeling of shounen written for girls. The story reminds of Dragon ball, where the mage named Shion and his wife Emma have to obtain some objects, spells and rituals to surpress a power in her. They leave for a journey to search for these obejects et al, they encounter friends, enemies and some ppl who become travelling companions. The journey and the events related to obtaining of certain thing are very short,
...
usually 3 chps. Thus some of secondary charcters don't have big character developlments, though I would have liked to see them again. Another thing that sort of made me irritated was, that there wasn't enough conflict shown between the characters. The fights were short and nothing spectcular, the mage keeps defeating and obtaining objects without mcuh hinderanece. If there is a problem, it is solved quickly and easily, like his magic running out because he used it too much.
Story 5- The story is fast paced that it makes me question what really the big picture is. The main characters' goal is to surpress Emma's ekidona (rare dark magic capable of destryoing the world), but the speed and facility they achieve their 'subgoals', it makes me think that there is something bigger to be revealed. Also the appearances/encounters with the secondary characters are very short, so it makes me think that they will also return with a bigger role. Or at least I hope so, because that would be the only reason for the story to be interesting.The story feels episodic, with the objective being the acquisition of a new thing and the supression of ekidona tying them together. Also bc of other characters they help along the way, giving them their own happy endings.
Art 7- It's average and detailed enough in important scenes. There are very few close up shots of characters, fights or anything else that could be considered important.
Character 6- I liked the characters in the beginning because they were funny, especially the cat, Anise. But as the series progresses, they r not as funny or spontaneous. I think that the one of the saving grace of the manga was the characters and their quirky characteristics. But they're just becoming bland now for me.
Enjoyment 6- I enjoyed it somewhat in the beginning and thought it would continue to get better, thus I will be able to enjoy it more. But it was the opposite, so I'm giving it a 6 based on the earlier chps (up until 8).
Overall 6- I really don't understand the reason for its popularity, it's average for at best. It's certainly not set apart from other shounens with its sotry or concept. But to each their own.
I will continue to read this manga, though will not look forward to new chp releases, with each mini 'episodic arch' the ending for them is predictable.
Reviewer’s Rating: 6
What did you think of this review?
Nice
0
Love it
0
Funny
0
Confusing
0
Well-written
0
Creative
0Show all
![]()
Jun 13, 2011
I like josei more than shoujo, but there doesn't exist a lot of (good) josei, so when I find it I like to share :). This is a story of two characters, written from their pov and share one thing in common- wrong timing for confessing their love. It is good balance that the stories r presented from the pov of a girl and a boy. Thus giving readers an insight into both gender's psyche, the insecurities they feel, their unrequited love, their cowardice and finally how they r moving on (or trying to) instead of staying in one place.
Story 8- First story is from
...
the girl's prespective, Chizuru, who's been in an unrequited love for her childhood friend (Kazuom Tomojii). We see Chizuru and Kazuomi spending/passing together bc he's waiting for his gf. Chizuru knows that he doesn't love her and if she confesses to him she'd just destory their freindship, but she can't stop herself from confessing at the end of the day. Her story (love) ends with her looking from the tokyo tower (which is significant at the end) thinking surely somewhere her someone special exists and she wants to meets him.
The second story is from Yuudai's pov, who is best friends with Tsujii and Hiro (with whom both r in love with). Because Yuudai is scared to confess to Hiro, confesses to her later but Tsujii had confessed to her earlier, so she goes out with him. Yuudai hasn't been able to get over his cowardice ever since and have a steady relationship. Hiro says that if Yuudai had confessed earlier then she would've gone out with him instead and at a class reuniion, after talking to Hiro and Tsujii he's able to get over his cowardice/love.
One other thing that the both stories have in common is that the persons the main characters loved, thank them and say they were happy to be confessed by them. Confirming that if they'd confessed at the right time then maybe they'd have had a happier ending.
The stories r not much for plot, as much as being more of a slice of life and look at unrequited love. Their stories move forward, the characters develop, mature and try to find their special someone somewhere again. But this time they know to be more honest and have moe confidence.
Art 8- I don't know much about manga art terminology or art in general, so I'll say it in simple words. Art is plain, fine lines used and typical josei art used in romance genres. It grows on you after a couple of pages, I liked it very much and found it better than bishie drawn (i.e. Hapi Mari).
Character 9- In just two chapters (one for each ), surprisingly both characters develop very nicely and at a realistic pace. I liked that Chizuru and Yuudai still carried the heartache from their first love, but their heartaches have been given a proper ending so they know they can still be happy and have someone special for them somewhere. I love these types of characters, who're realistic and learn to move one, instead of wallowing in self pity of unrequited love. In some josei romance, I hate it the most when the girl still has the same sort of mentality as a shoujo girl. It's josei for a reason, with older females aimed at older women. This manga, for me, illustrates the perfect type of character portrayal of older women.
Enjoyment 8- I enjoyed it very much that I have read it two times in two days. After finishing it, I found myself still thinking about the characters and the story. It stays in your head (at least in mine) for a while, which isn't a bad thing.
Overall 8- I wish it were longer, maybe one more chapter. But other than that it's a perfect manga with a great story and characters.
I would like to recommend it anyone who's looking for a good romance and drama manga. It'll probably take you 20mins to finish the two chps and they wouldn't be 20 mins wasted. I wish there would exist more works like this one.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
What did you think of this review?
Nice
0
Love it
0
Funny
0
Confusing
0
Well-written
0
Creative
0Show all
![]()
Jun 13, 2011
In shoujo genre, there r limited premises related to a character's situation that form the basis for the story , i.e. acting as a slave because one of the characters knows his/her secret, being a maid to pay off a debt or to earn money,wanting to live alone in an apartment,but then end up living with a guy instead (or in a co-ed dorm), forced to become a fiancee to off a debt, etc... Overused as these situations are, one still continues to read them because of the way these situations are presented.
This manga uses one of such premise, but it's different type of
...
shoujo, dare I say parody shoujo or tries to be. One of its unusual features is that it's not a narrative, meaning we don't read/see the story from anyone's perspective. Instead we see thought bubbles for the characters, and learn the situation from their pov. Another way this manga is unusual (for a shoujo) is that the girl is anti-shoujo. She doesn't blush at all or go doki doki, she pursues the guy with vigor (but it's questionable if it's romantically or lustfully). The guys here is a bit of a tsundre and usually he says out loud w/e he's thinking (not one of those types that secretly like the girl but acts indifferently towards her). Another rare thing I noticed was that the girl may lack common sense but she's acadamically smart, something you don't see a lot of in shoujo.
These are the plus points for the manga. And they all had the potential to built into a great rom com or just shoujo comedy manga. But it was predicatable and jokes/situations weren't that funny.
Story (5)- The main lead is a girl name Homrae, who's been sold off by her parents to a friend (with three sons) to off a debt. One would expect there at least to be a love triangle. But the girl is happy go lucky, obilivous and sexually harasses one of the boys (the tsundre one). She's not good at housework, causes more problems than one can count and actually keeps increasing the debt cus of the damage she causes. After this first chapter, the story was predictable, the guy slowly warming upto the girl and a very small/short love triangle. Other than that there is not really a plot or much of a story development.
ART (6)- It's average, like other shoujos, bishie brothers and the girl is somewhat average. There are not a lot of blooming flower panels, but when they are used, it's usually for comic relief. Ditto for sparkly big eyes. That's one of the reasons the art is good, b/c it uses the cliche panels in a different way.
Character (5)- Homrae is the only insane character, thus comedic situations ensue because of her. It wouldn't be wrong to say that the story is character driven than having an acutal plot. Other characters are also fit into a category so i found them very unoriginal. Except for the main guy lead, he was a mix of a shoujo heroine and tsundere type, so it was fun to see his reactions.
Enjoyment (5)- honestly, it could've been higher, if only cliche situations and jokes would've been funnier. And it would've been rated lower, if the streotypically heroine weren't present. So in the end I enjoyed it somewhat because of Homrae.
Overall (6)- I would like to give it a 5.5, but a 6 also suffices, I think if it would have been cut short (to one volume), it would've made the same impact. After reading 6 chps, I skimmed/skipped three chaps, b/c nothing interesting was happening.
In conclusion, this didn't contain much romance, but tried to have comedy. I only read it because it was a different type of shoujo, though it wasn't that great, it did achieve its purpose to be not so streotypical. I commend the mangeka for trying it and wish more would experiment like her.
Sorry for the long review, but it's sometimes hard for me to express my views in fewer words.
Reviewer’s Rating: 6
What did you think of this review?
Nice
0
Love it
0
Funny
0
Confusing
0
Well-written
0
Creative
0Show all
![]()
May 29, 2011
Meet the main character Fujimura, who is probably the only sane person in this manga. He is a deliquent and uninterested student who has not been showing up to school.Hilarity ensues when Eri Usumi, who has a crush on Fujimura, comes to convince him to come to school as well as confessing her love for him. That really scares him off, but he hasn't even seen the beginning yet, until he enters school the second day. Classmates consisting of a guy who dresses like a roman gladiator, a girl who can't speak proper japenese (thus giving way to many opportunities for jokes),absent minded and delusional
...
student council president, the school idol (the moe character) and finally the vice president who is the second close sane character. Hilarity ensues with Fujimura's encounters with each of the (crazy) characters, mostly because he's always trying to clear up/explain/resolve misunderstanding of his words and actions. Look for many references to classic shounen works in some of the gags as well as parodies of shoujo cliches that make the story even funnier.
Story 8- Like most gag mangas, it's mostly situational comedy, there's no real plot.The story is about Fujimura trying to adjust to the crazies around him while trying to stay sane and the girls trying to get Fujimura to go out with them (even if it means forming a harem on their own).Still it flows well and moves at a reasonble pace (though not for the poor Fujimura).
Art 8- Art is pretty and I can actually tell the characters apart pretty well. The girls not only have different hair styles and colors, their chest sizes and accessories also help distinguish them.
Characters 9- Each and every character is equally important to the story. They all add their own zaniness to it, also because some of them are parodies of character types (like tsundre, yandere, moe,stoic, etc..). In terms of their personalities and absurdities, I have my personal favs. I liked the first girl introduced, Eri Usumi (stalker girl) and the vice president Harumi, the stoic who is really uninterested in most matters and in Fujimura.
Enjoyment 10- This is the second manga to make me laugh out loud (after WA!) and needless to say that is enough for enjoyment. In between waiting for chapters, I re read the manga from beginning, because it's just as funny no matter how many times you read it. Even the chapter titles are funny, as well as the side notes. Don't skip a word, no matter where it is placed in the panel, because I assure you you'll miss some funiness.
Overall 9- Because of two characters that were introduced in the beginning, r not focused on as much (and they r very funny). I am referring the gladiator wearing classmate and the girl who can't speak proper japanese. So anyways, I am deducting one point from the overall rating because of it.
When I picked this title, I didn't expect it to be such a funny gag/parody manga. Mostly because they're really hard to pull. There are very few mangas, except for some 4koma ones, that r this funny. I highly recommend anyone who's new to parody/gag genre manga to read this. Or even if you are having a bad day and want to laugh, I gurantee that this will make you laugh out loud.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
What did you think of this review?
Nice
0
Love it
0
Funny
0
Confusing
0
Well-written
0
Creative
0Show all
![]()
May 27, 2011
I grabbed this manga because the summary attracted me and it sounded like a good psychological manga, well it sort of is and not. To be clearer I really enjoyed the first two chapters, because they built up to great suspense. But that was it, for me those chapters were the best and made me expect even more or at least the same level of suspense further. It didn't happen, the manga levelled off from there on. There really isn't one main character, but most of the manga revolves around the two hitmen. The events in the manga happened too fast without much insight
...
into the characters' psyche. The manga would've been better if it focused on the feelings of the hitmen, especially Shiki, how he felt after each job or Kuzumi's past. A psychological element, instead of a supernatural one (yes there is one, it really did shock me) would improve this manga. I guess because of the inclusion of 'murder', this manga is designated seinen, but it hardly even passes for shounen.
Story 6- it is interesting, but could've been made more suspenseful. More mysteries are introduced but hardly addressed again, like the 'corrdinator' or the organisation that hires the hitmen. The targets (for the hitmen) r supposed to be evil, so that they won't stain on their consicous after killing them. But hardly two or three lines r said about targets' evilness, I wished more focus should've been shown on their crimes/activities. Some gore should've been added, so at least the 'evil doers' would've seemed evil.
Art 9- I rated it high because it's almost bishoujo, really pretty characters. But there are not enough details in the background.
Characters 6-As a reader I would like to feel somewhat empathetic to the characters. Since there wasn't much focus on their background, except for Shiki's and his reason to kill (very unoriginal btw- sister in hosipital with cancer). I felt there wasn't any depth to the character, the manga barely scraps their surface. There were also too many characters interoduced too fast, that they were hard to remember .
Enjoyment 6- I did enjoy reading it, but it didn't really make me think while reading it. I didn't really need to use my brain much (like a shoujo manga). I'd probably keep reading it to see how it ends or gets any better, but I definitly won't be re reading it.
Overall 6- The premise is promising, but the manga doesn't build on it enough. If it were to become more gory or darker I'd raise its rating.
Well that's all I can say about it, it's my first review and I tried to follow others' review template, so I hope it's helpful to future readers.
Reviewer’s Rating: 6
What did you think of this review?
Nice
0
Love it
0
Funny
0
Confusing
0
Well-written
0
Creative
0Show all
|
