“Harem Comedy Strikes Back”: Manga Review – Love Hina, v1 – v5

Well, by doing a review of this seminal shonen comedy I’m reneging on my vow to cease and desist from Harem Comedy, but I was killing time in a bookstore, and decided to take a look at the manga version of one of my favorite anime series…and of course, I got hooked. HC haters, avert your eyes…..

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Clumsy and dorky Keitaro has had one dream his whole life – to fulfill a promise to his one childhood sweetheart and get into the prestigious Tokyo University. In order to get the peace and quiet he needs for studying, he moves in with his onsen-owning grandmother – only to find out that the once-quiet Hinata House is now an all-girls dormitory that he owns the deed to!

The 5 young women living at the dormitory – crafty boozehound Kitsune, samurai girl Mokoto, wild Su, shy Shinobu, and temperamental brainiac Naru – are hardly found of having a man live at their dorm, much less as their landlord. Even though his clumsiness gets him into constant trouble with the young women, eternal optimist Keitaro vows to stay on and get in to Tokyo U no matter what torment the girls might put him through.

As this is a whopping 14 volume series (how many beatings can one guy take?), so even the first 5 volumes is just skimming the surface. A little white lie by Keitaro leads the women believe that he’s actually a Tokyo U student (and not just a penniless ronin), but his lie is soon revealed, much to their disgust. Fortunately, Naru tells Keitaro that she too is studying to get into Tokyo U, and is at the top of her class to boot. Despite her disgust with Keitaro, she begrudgingly begins to tutor him. When Keitaro mentions his motivation to get into Tokyo U, Naru explains she made a similar promise when she was younger – which gets Keitaro to wondering if Naru is actually his unnamed childhood crush. Unfortunately, Keitaro’s clumsiness continuity embarrasses the hot-tempered Naru, who doesn’t go easy in her beat-downs of luckless Keitaro.

After he flunks the entrance tests to Tokyo U, Keitaro leaves town to clear his head in Kyoto – only to find out that Naru has flunked herself and has also gone on an impromptu vacation to Kyoto as well. They continue to butt heads in Kyoto until they meet fellow Tokyo U reject Mutsumi, a frail young woman who’s almost as klutzy and unlucky as Keitaro. Obviously attracted to Keitaro, Mutsumi joins on as their traveling companion, much to increasingly jealous Naru’s disgust. Meanwhile, Naru and Keitaro’s sudden departures alarm the other women at the house, who set off in search of the two: Su and Shinobu get their directions completely wrong, and end up in frigid Hokkaido, while Kitsune soon drinks away all of her and Mokoto’s money, forcing them to perform sword-tricks on the streets of Kyoto.

Once all the characters are reunited, Mutsumi send Keitaro off with a passionate kiss that infuriates Naru. But when Keitaro is forced to find a part-time job with Seta - an eccentric but handsome Tokyo U professor - he soon finds out that Seta is none other than Naru’s old tutor…and her childhood crush. Seta’s sudden appearance throws Naru into confusion about her feelings towards Keitaro, who has his hands full babysitting Seta’s mischievous daughter Sarah. Meanwhile, shy and awkward Shinobu starts to get a crush on Keitaro, so in order to teach Shinobu correct kissing techniques, child genius Su creates a special “Kissing Robot” – which soon goes out of control. Sly Kitsune continues to come up with plans to get Naru and Keitaro together…and when they don’t work, she drunkenly attempts to seduce a clearly uncomfortable and unwilling Keitaro. And just when Naru and Keitaro have worked up the courage to confess their attraction to one other, Keitaro-loving Mutsumi shows up and announces that she’s now their next-door neighbor!

Whew! That’s the first 5 volumes (and ok, part of the vol 6) in a nutshell.

As much as I enjoy Love Hina, I do have to say that it’s is not going to appeal to some people; although there’s no graphic sex or straight-up raunchy humor, there is a hell of a lot of panty-flashes, cleavage shots, and butts galore. Likewise, Keitaro’s clumsiness results in most of the Hinata House women – Naru in particular – getting exposed, accidentally felt up, or laying in suggestive positions. I’m aware that all of this is played for comedy and that Keitaro inevitable gets a beat-down when these incidents occur, but it does get awfully needless at times – and that has to be my biggest complaint about the series.

Still, aside from the fanservice, I always get a huge kick of Love Hina. Ken Akamatsu’s artwork is clean, crisp, and contemporary (you can tell that Wataru Wantanabe from Densha Otoko: The Story of the Train Man Who Fell in Love With A Girl was clearly influenced by Akamatsu’s style), and he obviously has a knack for depicting the female form (see above), as well as a gift for depicting physical humor; you can tell he had a good time drawing the art.

Although a typical “harem comedy” in many respects, Love Hina is unique in both the quality of its humor and Akamatsu’s genuine love for his characters. The women of Hinata House obviously hold the upper hand in the household and in their relationship with Keitaro, forcing the hapless Keitaro to labor hard in order to win even their grudging respect, although they come to like (and even love) him over time. This is not the usual plot of most harem comedies, in which the female characters are attracted to the male protagonist straight off the bat (see DearS, Girls Bravo, Shuffle!, etc), and it’s this singular quality of Love Hina that makes it such a special and likeable series. Notwithstanding the fact that their personalities are a little one-dimensional at times, the supporting cast of Su, Kitsune, Shinobu, Mokoto, and Mutsumi all get their “time in the sun” and become progressively multi-faceted and realistic. Likewise, Naru is hardly the stereotypical harem comedy “crush-object”, and is a strong and smart character who’s more that a match for her male suitors*.

I could get a little far-out and say that Love Hina is less about the comedy and the relationships, and more in the vein of a classic coming of age-story - and that Keitaro is a classic example of the Japanese hero whose “stick-to-it-tiveness” saves the day….but I won’t. When all is said and done, Love Hina is just a sweet and funny series filled with likeable characters that deals with the most basic of stories – boy meets girl.

* Does all of this counter the liberal fanservice? That’s up to you, the reader….

Anime/Manga Term #457: Tsundere

This is a basic definition of the ever-popular tsundere character type that I created as a handout for my Anime and Manga Clubs. Hardcore readers are probably more than familiar with tsunderes and very well might have their own (Naru from Love Hina and Eri from School Rumble are my two current faves, but I'll always have a soft spot in my heart for Lisa Hayes from the classic Robotech/Macross series...), but for those of you not familiar with this classic (or just hackneyed) character type, I hope you can benefit from my definition:

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A combination of the Japanese words tsuntsun (aloof/standoffish) and deredere (in love/lovestruck), tsundere refers to a character that is initially unfriendly to the main character, but becomes romantically attracted to them over time. It also can mean a character that is outwardly mean to the main character while harboring a secret crush on them. So, tsundere can be both a process (from disliking someone to being in love with them) and a personality type (being mean to - yet still liking - someone). Tsunderes are almost always female, although there are male tsunderes that appear in shojo (manga/anime for girls).

One of the most classic tsunderes is Naru Narusegawa* from Love Hina. Naru can’t help but lose her temper at main character Keitaro’s klutziness and stupidity, but as Keitaro gets more responsible and mature, she begins to fall in love with him - even though she has a hard time admitting it to herself. Sakura from Naruto is also sort of a tsundere; she thinks Naruto is a total loser, but as Naruto gets more skillful, she starts to respect him. Two more tsunderes you may have seen are Nagi from Hayate the Combat Butler (she crushes hard on Hayate, yet puts him through rigourous tasks when he makes her angry), and Miss Chidore from Full Metal Panic (who clearly likes the clueless tough guy Sousuke, but can’t help getting angry at his tendency to solve simple problems through firepower).

The tsundere is a popular character type in Japan, so keep an eye open for her in the shows you watch, mangas you read, and video games you play!


* In Japanese, Naru means “to become” and Narusegawa means “raging river”, so her name is a joke about her bad temper…..

OEL Review: Megatokyo by Fred Gallagher

Today I’d like to step away from strictly Japanese material and take at look at Megatokyo, an OEL (Original English Language, i.e. written by a westerner in English) Manga and webcomic by Fred Gallagher.

Nebbishy Piro (an anime and manga fanatic) and wisecracking Largo (an obsessive video gamer) are two Americans stranded in Tokyo without resources to get home. Being fluent in Japanese, Piro is able to convince his Japanese friend Tsubasa into letting the two of them stay at his place; unfortunately, Tsubasa’s patience soon wears thin, and he abandons the two Americans in order to find his long-lost first love. Piro is able to use his language skills and knowledge to find employment at an anime and manga store, and Largo is somehow able to bluster his way into a job as an English teacher at a local high school. An interaction at a train station puts Piro into contact with Kimiko, an aspiring voice actress - and roommate of Erika, Piro’s cynical coworker. Piro struggles to establish a romantic relationship with Kimiko, while Largo’s decidedly non-English language instruction at the high school (he spends most of his time giving video game tips and teaching his students to construct computers) puts him in the path of ninjas, zombies, the Tokyo Police Department, and a teenage girl who just might be the Queen of the Undead.

Gallagher has been able to take what was originally a one-joke strip and parlay it into a rich and complex - both emotionally and plot-wise – story, with a richly constructed world involving dozens of characters and a highly elaborate plot; in particular, he succeeds in making Kimiko and Erika into very real and complex characters that act as foils for Piro and Largo, rather than simple “girl next door” and tsundere (respectively) stereotypes one finds too often in anime and manga.

Likewise, this strip is a goldmine of anime, manga, and video game references for a western otaku – witness Largo’s self-applied title of “Great Teacher Largo” (a reference to the 90’s anime/manga Great Teacher Onizuka), the numerous instances of Mechs, several giant-lizard attacks, elements of harem comedy, and the inclusion of a loligoth (the enigmatic Miyo), robot girl (Ping, a human-like PS2 accessory) and magical girl (the awkward Yuki, one of Largo’s students). Gallagher is able to take these Japanese-specific references and mix them with American elements (ala zombies, video game slang, gunplay, and self-deprecation) to create a unique East-West blend of culture and humor; his depiction of Tokyo is a clever combination of real Tokyo and Tokyo as imagined by an American fanboy, a dense and sprawling Blade Runner-like metropolis full of huge billboard advertisements, robots, schoolgirls, otaku, and Power-Ranger-like superheroes keeping the peace.

Although I was originally exposed to Megatokyo through one of its print compilations, this webcomic can actually be viewed for free at megatokyo.com. Because it’s high quality and amazing ease of access (do be aware that the print version has a number of extra strips and sketches that the web version does not), I definitely recommend clicking on the link above to start reading. As I mentioned, the plot is pretty complex – so newbies probably want to start at the first strip; the FAQ and Story links are presently down.

Series Review: School Rumble - Jin Kobeyashi

Is it possible to have a crush on a manga series? An intense, manic-depressive (and probably short-lived) obsession that keeps you up at night?

If you can, than I’m definitely crushing - and crushing hard - on School Rumble, a multiple-season anime and on-going manga series (almost 6 years and still going strong). In a way, it’s ironic that I’m so infatuated with School Rumble, as the whole series is a comedy of crushes and the crazy situations and emotions they engender. Tsukamoto Tenma, a plain-jane but scatterbrained high school junior, has fallen head over-heals in love with a boy in her class – the unemotional and eccentric Kurasama Oji. Likewise, class delinquent (and wannabe manga artist) Harima Kenji is secretly in love with Tenma – and he has the same difficulty confessing to her as she does to Kurasuma. This weird love triangle is the heart of the plot, as Tenma and Harima get caught in increasingly odd schemes and entanglements in the desire to confess their love to their respective crushes. This situation is complicated by fact that Tenma’s friend Eri and Tenma’s younger sister Yakumo both find themselves increasingly attracted to Harima, while Kurasama’s and Tenma’s romantic connection grows stronger.

Despite the melodramatic set-up, the series plays the romantic attractions, entanglements and misunderstandings as straight farce and not as a soap opera – laughs are plenty and tears are so rare as to be non-existent (except in Harima’s slapstick bawling over Tenma). The over-the-top personalities of the characters and their comedic misunderstandings are a funny and tongue-in-cheek portrayal of the overwrought emotions typical of the teenage years. One-way love interests abound and there are times that readers may need a graph to help clear up the relationships between the characters – fortunately, the manga provides helpful charts; although the anime doesn’t go into as much detail as the series, viewers will be able to figure it all out without much help. The anime is surprisingly close to manga, although it omits some minor storylines and some of the jokes are lost without the help of the manga translators. Fortunately, the episodic and “sit-com-esque” nature of the both the anime and manga allow readers/viewers to pick up in the middle of the series without much difficulty.

If I have a complaint with the series, it’s the length – in order to extend the series, the creator has added a number of extra characters and sub-plots that draw the reader’s attention away from the main Tenma/Harima plot; at times, it resembles a western superhero comic (i.e. a sprawling cast of characters and no attempt to resolve the plot in sight).

Kobeyashi’s great sense of humor is definitely on display, but the hidden genius of the series is the way he’s been able to twist a standard comedy plot into something new with the eccentric personalities of Tenma and Harima. Tenma is depicted as being somewhat immature and less emotionally aware than the other characters, yet her general good nature gets her through many instances of complete obliviousness. Despite his “tough guy” exterior, Harima is an overly-sensitive and indecisive klutz, and his frequent mishaps put him at odds with a number of the female characters. The supporting cast is full of engaging and offbeat characters as well - the prissy rich-girl Eri, breast-obsessed horndog Imadori, and soft-spoken psychic Yakumo in particular.

The first season of the anime series (26 episodes) can be purchased from FUNamation. Del Ray publishes the English-language adaption of the manga, and currently has the first 8 volume of the series for sale – Vol. 9 will be released in April 2008.

Wannbefansubs.com has a vast and well-written wiki about the School Rumble series which can be accessed here.

Another reason to never leave my apartment

www.onemanga.com

I just happened upon this website and am totally floored. A website that has 1000's of scanned mangas? Even esoteric and hard to find titles like Bowling King, Eyeshield 21, and Addicted to Curry?

I don't know how strictly legal this all is...but I know what I'm doing for the next few weeks straight!

Changes Coming; Burnt out on Harem Comedy; Gary Gygax RIP

Otaku Public Library has been up and running (for lack of a better word) about 4 months now. I started it on a lark but now I’m feeling that it could use some improvement – basically, the writing is amateurish at times and the layout is pretty dull, and I feel I’m overdue to try and make some enhancements.

So, over the next couple of weeks I’m hoping to:

1) Make the layout and design of the site a little more interesting – what I have right now is a basic out-of-the box Blogger layout. Maybe add some actual color? Who knows...

2) Edit, rewrite, or delete some reviews. I have to admit there’s a lot of half-assed writing on this blog and I really ought to tighten up some grammar and rewrite awkward phrasing; in fact, one or two the reviews are real stinkers and perhaps ought to be deleted. Lastly, some reviews have misleading tags or no tags at all, so by improving those, the reviews will be easier to browse (I hope).

3) I’ve been pretty blasé about grabbing images from the internet to catch the reader’s eye, and I’m sure that most, if not all, of those images are copyright protected. I don’t see that as being that big a deal right now, because I highly doubt that the creators are on this website on a regular basis (or anybody, really….hahaha). Still, I may be changing some images here and there, and probably changing the out-and-out references to P2P downloading to something a little less blatant. Just covering my ass, y’all.

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In any event, I’m “burnt out on Harem Comedy”, as the title of this post suggests. In a short period of time I watched (or read) Shuffle!, DearS, Love Hina, Suzuka, and part of Girl Bravo; and at this point I can’t stand to watch another crowd of pretty girls throw themselves at a lovable loser (unless that lovable loser is me, haha). I must admit that I have been digging on the very awesome School Rumble, but that’s more of a slap-stick high-school comedy with romantic elements. I’m working through the OVA as we speak, so expect a (very positive) review sometime soon.

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Lastly, Gary Gygax, the creator of Dungeons and Dragons died earlier this week. So much geek culture – anime and manga as much as any other element – has been influenced by his seminal fantasy Role Playing Game that I felt I would be remiss in not mentioning his passing; Legend of Zelda, Final Fantasy, and countless other Japanese RPGs bear his imprint.