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Suzuka (manga)

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Suzuka
File:Sazuka Volume 1 (English).jpg
English cover of Sakuka vol. 1 featuring title character, Suzuka Asahina
涼風
GenreDrama, Romance, Sports, Comedy
Manga
Written byKouji Seo
Published byJapan Kodansha
English publisherUnited States Del Rey Manga
MagazineWeekly Shōnen Magazine
DemographicShōnen
Original run3 March 2004 – 21 September 2007[1]
VolumesJapan 18[2]
United States 11[3]
Anime
Directed byHiroshi Fukutomi
StudioStudio Comet
Released 6 July 2005 – 28 December 2005
Manga
Written byAyuna Fujisaki
Illustrated byKouji Seo
Published byJapan KC Novels
Published17 May 2007

Suzuka (涼風) is a Japanese manga written and illustrated by Kouji Seo. The series is a character-driven romance story that uses the athletics of track and field as a subplot. The story primarily follows the life of the teenager Yamato Akitsuki, who moved to Tokyo to change himself, and his main love interest Suzuka Asahina, a talented and highly scouted high jumper who lives in Yamato's aunt's dormitory and attends his new high school.

Suzuka was serialized in the Japanese magazine Weekly Shōnen Magazine published by Kodansha. It was adapted into a twenty-six episode anime series and aired on TV Tokyo in Japan between 6 July 2005 and 28 December 2005. Both versions of the series have been licensed for release in North America by two different companies. The manga has been licensed for publication by Del Rey Manga under their mature line. The anime series has been licensed and is being released by FUNimation Entertainment.

Plot

The plot is based on a young man, Yamato Akitsuki, who moves from his rural home in Hiroshima Prefecture to live at his aunt's apartment building and indoor bath complex in Tokyo and attend the local athletics-oriented high school. Before arriving at his new home, he walks past his new school and sees a young girl practicing high jump at the track field.

He falls in love with her at first sight but does not expect to see her again. He soon discovers that the girl, Suzuka Asahina, is one of the occupants of his aunt's apartment and that they happen to live next door to each other. To pursue Suzuka, Yamato joins the track and field team in hopes of impressing her. After joining the team, he discovers that he has the potential to become a top hundred-meter sprinter. The story intertwines his pursuit of love and athletics.

Suzuka's character-driven plot predominantly makes use of dramatic structure to facilitate character development. Characterization is further achieved through the use of character back-story. The story in general employs a realistic tone, but will occasionally use surreal humour. Some events covered in the story are: track competitions, vacations, culture festivals, and outings to a Karaoke Box and a theme park. The manga and anime follow the same storyline, though there are minor differences. One of these changes is that the nude scenes are less graphic in the anime than the manga. Another disparity is the hair color of some of the characters such as the character Miki, who is depicted as having bright red hair on the covers of the manga, but is portrayed with brown hair in the anime.

Characters

Main article: List of Suzuka characters
Left to right: Yasunobu, Miki, Yamato, Suzuka and Honoka
Yamato Akitsuki (秋月 大和, Akitsuki Yamato)

Voiced by: Daisuke Nakamura (Japanese); Todd Haberkorn (English)

The protagonist of the series. He moved from his rural home in Hiroshima Prefecture to his aunt's dormitory in the city of Tokyo to change himself. While checking out his new school, he sees a beautiful high jumper practicing and falls in love at first sight. He later learns that the same person happens to be his next door neighbor, Suzuka Asahina. Yamato has a carefree attitude and his impulsiveness leads him into compromising situations. When motivated, he can become very determined and focused. The character was named after the World War II Japanese battleship Yamato.[4]
Suzuka Asahina (朝比奈 涼風, Asahina Suzuka)

Voiced by: Kanako Mitsuhashi (Japanese); Leah Clark (English)

The female lead of the series and the love interest of Yamato. She moved from her home in Yokohama to Tokyo to take up an offer of one of the various high schools that were scouting for her talent in the high jump. She takes her athletics very seriously and puts pressure on herself because she does not want to disappoint others. Early in the series, her feelings are guarded because of a tragic event from her past. This character was named after the World War II Japanese destroyer Suzukaze.[4]
Honoka Sakurai (桜井 萌果, Sakurai Honoka)

Voiced by: Yumiko Hosono (Japanese); Brina Palencia (English)

She first met Yamato when they were younger at her family's shrine that he liked to visit when he was at his aunt's home. During their first meeting, Yamoto helped her out by doing a makeshift repair to the shrine bell that had fallen down. After this incident, she had developed a crush on him, but was too shy to talk to him. Much to her shock, Yamato enrolled to her high school and was placed in her class. Seeing her opportunity, she overcomes her shyness and begins to talk with him.
Yasunobu Hattori (服部 安信, Hattori Yasunobu)

Voiced by: Takanori Ohyama (Japanese); Robert McCollum (English)

He first met Yamato when Yamato was lost in Tokyo as a child and could not find his way back to his aunt's dormitory. After Yasunobu guided him back, they became friends, even though some of Yasunobu's antics got Yamato into trouble. He has grown up to be a ladies' man and often goes on dates with different girls. He dreams of polygyny being legalized in Japan. Yamato often comes to him for relationship advice, which he gives, but somehow Yamato blunders his ideas.
Miki Hashiba (羽柴 美紀, Hashiba Miki)

Voiced by: Seika Hosokawa (Japanese); Jamie Marchi (English)

She is a sprinter for the track team and is Suzuka's best friend. When she first met Suzuka at the middle school track competitions, Miki did not like her because she felt that she was conceited. It was not until Miki comprehended the pressure Suzuka put on herself did they become friends. Miki later on also becomes friends with Yamato. Since she is a mutual friend to both, she is in the unique position to help them understand each other or to call them out when she thinks one of them has treated the other unjustly. She seems to dislike Yasunobu's playboy personality; because of this, she often gets into disagreements with him.

Media

Manga

Main article: List of Suzuka chapters

The Suzuka manga first appeared as an initial one shot in the Japanese manga magazine Weekly Shōnen Magazine, published by Kodansha, during December 2003.[5] It was first serialized in Weekly Shōnen Magazine on 3 March 2004 and was completed on 21 September 2007, with one hundred sixty-six chapters in total. The chapters were compiled into five-to-ten chapter bound volumes by Kodansha four times a year, with each volume being released roughly quarterly. These volumes often include character profiles or extra stories. Suzuka has been licensed for North American publication by Del Rey, becoming the publisher's first sports manga and second title to be added under its mature line, the first being the manga Basilisk. The first English language volume was released on 29 August 2006.[5][6] According to Diamond Comic Distributors, the first volume was their twenty-fourth best selling manga during September 2006.[7]

Anime

Main article: List of Suzuka episodes

In April 2005, Weekly Shōnen Magazine announced through their website that Suzuka was being adapted into an anime.[8] The animated TV series was directed by Hiroshi Fukutomi and was co-produced by Studio Comet and Marvelous Entertainment. The twenty-six half-hour episode series originally aired weekly on TV Tokyo in Japan on Wednesdays running from 6 July 2005 to 28 December 2005. The anime follows relatively close to the first seventy-two chapters of the manga, but some scenes were removed or subdued because of the nudity, such as scenes in the bath house. The anime was dubbed in the Tagalog language and broadcast by the Philippine station Hero starting on 3 December 2006.[9] The anime series has been licensed for North America by FUNimation,[10] and released with the tagline "Love is not a Spectator Sport". Their first DVD was released on 12 June 2007.

Music

Main article: List of Suzuka music

The anime's music, including the background music and theme songs, was composed by Takumi Masanori and POM. The vocals for the opening and ending songs were provided by COACH☆. Except for one member of the group COACH☆, all worked as a voice actor for one of the series' characters. For the North American release, FUNimation had the opening and ending songs re-written and performed in English by Kristine Sa. In 2005, three Suzuka soundtrack albums were released in Japan through King Records.

Light novel

On 17 May 2007, a Suzuka light novel was published by Kodansha under its "KC Novel" label. It contained three short stories written by Ayuna Fujisaki with illustrations done by the series creator, Kouji Seo.

Reception

Manga

Suzuka has been compared to other manga such as Love Hina,[6] Maison Ikkoku,[11] and Kimagure Orange Road[12] since, early on, it used similar plot structure and plot devices. These comparisons became less frequent as the story developed. According to Kouji Seo, Suzuka was to be a romance story from the beginning, and he had no intention of creating a harem manga.[13] Since Suzuka primarily focuses on character development through the use of many different plot devices, it becomes hard to classify.[14] Like other manga, Suzuka contains fan service which is less frequent than other series, but more graphic.[15] Since the North American version is uncensored, this caused the manga to be rated "Mature" and sold in shrink wrap.[16] Kouji Seo's artwork is considered to be above average, but rather generic. He does make use of a variety of perspectives that are comparable to the different types of shots in film as well as his characters are often shown wearing different changes of clothing throughout the manga.[14] Kouji Seo also pays attention to detail which can be seen in the clothing that gives off the sensation they are made out of different material along with the reflections in the windows during the nighttime.[17] This detail can also be seen in his characters as they all have complex personalities that make them interesting and have substance.[18] Overall the reception of the manga has been positive.

Anime

The anime has been described as having "all the trappings of a standard high school romantic comedy",[19] but lacks the spirit and craftsmanship of the manga.[20] Since the anime is a close adaptation from the manga, the criticisms of the plot are the same of it being described as generic. The anime sells "...themselves solely on the merits of character development".[12] One effect of this character development is that some viewers will find the title character and the male lead unlikable, with complaints of lack of sympathy for both characters.[21][22] The animation is considered to be ordinary with some scenes that have timing problems, look awkward, or have objects that seem oversized.[20][23] The voice actors performances are considered to be mundane and sound rather flat, in both Japanese and English languages.[20] Viewers with sensitive hearing might also pick up on the switches between mono and stereo audio in the different episodes.[19] The sports scenes are poorly animated, and the best animated scenes include night-time scenes.[22] Overall the reception of the anime so far has been mixed.

Music

The response to the soundtrack for the anime is somewhat mixed. Most find the music respectable, but some may detest it when it tries to be funny.[20] The opening and ending songs that were re-written and performed in English made the songs fairly close approximations of the originals and worked out better than one might imagine,[20] but others still prefer the Japanese versions.[21]

References

  1. ^ "Suzuka to End in Weekly Shōnen Magazine Issue 42". ComiPress. 2007-08-26. Retrieved 2007-09-03. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  2. ^ "[[Weekly Shōnen Magazine]] official Suzuka website" (in Japanese). Retrieved 2007-10-15. {{cite web}}: URL–wikilink conflict (help)
  3. ^ "Del Rey Online". Retrieved 2009-02-01.
  4. ^ a b Seo, Kouji (2005-09-16). Weekly Shōnen Magazine Suzuka Official Guide Book Yu Kemuri Renai Hakushu (in Japanese). Kodansha. p. 210. ISBN 4-06-372073-X. Cite error: The named reference "databook1" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  5. ^ a b Suzuka ({{{type}}}) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia. Retrieved on 2007-06-23.
  6. ^ a b Tramountanas, George (2006-07-20). "CCI, DAY 1: DEL REY MANGA AIN'T YOUR MOMMA'S MANGA". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved 2007-06-22. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  7. ^ Weiland, Jonah (2006-10-14). "TOP SALES CHARTS FOR ACTUAL SALES IN SEPTEMBER, 2006". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved 2007-07-19. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  8. ^ "Suzuka Anime". Anime News Network. 2005-04-18. Retrieved 2007-06-03. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  9. ^ Suzuka ({{{type}}}) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia. Retrieved on 2007-02-01.
  10. ^ "FUNimation Acquires 'Suzuka' Anime". ICv2. 2007-01-08. Retrieved 2007-06-24. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  11. ^ Garcia, Michael (2006-12-23). "Episode 307: Beware of Suzuka". Unwound. Retrieved 2007-07-03. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  12. ^ a b The Smug Dude (2007-06-14). "New Anime, Suzuka". Film.com. Retrieved 2007-07-17. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  13. ^ Seo, Kouji (2005-09-16). Weekly Shōnen Magazine Suzuka Official Guide Book Yu Kemuri Renai Hakushu (in Japanese). Kodansha. p. 171. ISBN 4-06-372073-X.
  14. ^ a b Blind, Matt (2007-01-23). "Review: Suzuka, Vols. 1 & 2". Comicsnob.com. Retrieved 2007-07-18. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  15. ^ Hayate (2006-09-27). "Suzuka Manga Impressions". Tokidoki Journal. Retrieved 2007-07-19. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  16. ^ Cha, Kai-Ming (2006-02-21). "Del Rey Manga Grows Up". Publishers Weekly. Retrieved 2007-07-19. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  17. ^ Alexander, Matthew (2006-08-30). "Suzuka Vol. #01 of 15*". Anime on DVD. Retrieved 2007-07-24. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  18. ^ Gray, Julie (2006-11-28). "Suzuka Volume One". the comic book bin. Retrieved 2007-07-23. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  19. ^ a b Beveridge, Chris (2007-06-14). "Suzuka Vol. #1 Review". Anime on DVD. Retrieved 2007-06-24. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  20. ^ a b c d e Santos, Carlo (2007-06-22). "Suzuka DVD 1 Review". Anime News Network. Retrieved 2007-06-24. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  21. ^ a b Sinnott, John (2007-06-18). "Suzuka v.1". DVD talk. Retrieved 2007-07-25. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  22. ^ a b Kimlinger, Carl (2007-12-05). "Suzuka DVD 5 Review". Anime News Network. Retrieved 2007-12-06. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  23. ^ Godek, Jake L (2005). "Suzuka Review". T.H.E.M Anime Reviews. Retrieved 2007-06-24.
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