Bakuman by Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata

Title: Bakuman

Mangaka: Tsugumi Ohba (Story) & Takeshi Obata (Art)

Age Group: Teens

Series is: Ongoing with 13 volumes

Volume(s) Reviewing: 1-3

My Rating: 3.5/5

Mashiro is a regular junior high student with a knack for drawing. He plans to grow up and get an office job. However, his classmate, Takagi, sees that he can do so much more than that. Takagi begs Mashiro to collaborate with him to make a manga. Mashiro agrees after much thought. Will they be able to make their dreams come true before they turn 18??

For many anime/manga fans out there, you may know that the creators of this series also created Death Note. There is definitely one distinct similarity with Death Note and Bakuman: the word content. If anyone had ever read Death Note's manga, one might've realized how much talking there was, especially after a couple of volumes when L was trying to figure out Kira's actions and motives. There was so much excessive writing, one that I did not care to read for. Thus far, Bakuman is not as bad as Death Note but it is somewhat getting there. The whole point of manga is for readers to enjoy the story in picture format. If I wanted to read, I could pick up a regular novel instead. So this is definitely my pet peeve here.

There are times where the manga will be somewhat interesting. I love how it is about pursuing one's dreams and not let anything get in the way of it. If one is curious about how manga publishing works, Bakuman gives you great detail throughout each volume, from deciding what manga series to keep publishing to what an editor does. However, considering this is more of a realistic manga, the plot doesn't get too exciting and can definitely lose you.

Would I continue reading Bakuman? I may, I may not. Recommend it? I guess to those who really love Death Note or a story about pursuing a manga career.