Title: Tokyo Boys & GirlsMangaka: Miki Aihara
Age Group: Older Teens
Series is: Completed with 5 volumes
Volume(s) Reviewing: 1
My Rating: 2/5
Mimori Kosaka's is thrilled to get into Meidai Attached High School and is eager to start the new year in their pretty uniform! She befriends Nana, a lovely girl that all the boys in their class like.
One day, Mimori bumps into the tall and scary Atsushi, who is rumoured to be in a bike gang. Apparently, he knows her from when they were in elementary school, but she can not remember him at all! It is all in the matter of time before Mimori runs into some trouble!
I was most disappointed with this series. As this was one of her older works, the mangaka's style was much different from now. It took less than a second to know that this manga series was done in the 90s. Most of the manga art at the time were pretty eye-blinding and unfortunately, Tokyo Boys & Girls was one of them.
But I should overlook that and focus on the plot, right? I have read Aihara's other series, like Hot Gimmick and Honey Hunt, which I both love. Except Tokyo Boys & Girls seemed to be a bit all over the place. I couldn't focus on reading it because it didn't build up right to keep the reader interested. It appeared like Aihara was still new to making manga, comparing it to her more recent and popular series. Her characters were underdeveloped and did not form properly. Miki Aihara is known for giving her manga a lot of drama, but Tokyo Boys & Girls had nada. It was a shame.
The best thing about this series are the covers. You get to see what the characters look like many years after Aihara's art has changed. But that's pretty much it for this manga. I doubt I will pick up the second volume. Though I am dying to read more of Honey Hunt...
Bookmooched copy from CZ.
4 comments:
I love both Hot Gimmick and Honey Hunt, but I have to agree, Tokyo Boys & Girls wasn't nearly as good. Thanks for the review!
- Alex
Hm, I've been meaning to pick up Hot Gimmick, I think I'll read that then Tokyo Boys & Girls.
I've found that what you've experienced is common when looking at mangaka's older works. It is interesting to see how they grow as an artist, but the first series can be tough to get through because it's not as polished. I recently picked up The Devil Does Exist by Takanashi Mitsuba, author of Crimson Hero and found the same issues.
@flight: You're welcome!
@wdebo: I suggest Honey Hunt over Hot Gimmick! I wasn't satisfied with the ending for Hot Gimmick.
@Laura: Yeah, sometimes it's just better to stick with the mangaka's new works.
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