The first Yawara published by Planeta Comic! Volume will not leave anyone indifferent.
To say Naoki Urasawa is a good mangaka is an understatement. We are talking about one of the most respected and valuable people in manga history. At La Casa de El we are big fans of his work such as Asadora, 20th Century Boys, Monster and Billy Bat. That’s why Planeta Comic published one of its first manga, Yawara! We were delighted when he announced the publication of his so-called magnum opus.
The way of judo
The story puts us in the shoes of a young girl who is given the job. Yawara was trained in judo from a young age by her grandfather, master and sixth dan (or seventh depending on which day you ask) Jigoro Inokuma. Although she is amazing at judo, the main character doesn’t like to practice it, but she wants to be a normal girl, she wants to go shopping to be a high school student and fall in love with a handsome boy. And although she told her grandfather more than once, he turned a deaf ear, because he wanted to prepare her to become an Olympic champion and receive a medal for civilian honor.
From here, we see how slowly the world gets to know the main character and her amazing talent for judo. Urasawa uses a lot of humor, creating funny situations such as a robbery that forces the young woman to use her talents even when she doesn’t want to, or an accident at a male judo tournament. Compulsion to participate. Yawara’s carefree and unassuming attitude is amazing, because no one would think that this weakly stunted girl is a real beast when she wears judogi.
Many situations occur because of her grandfather, a character that is impossible not to laugh at, but a sports journalist who tries to show that she is the future of national judo is also involved. Later, our daughter’s rival, Sayaka Honami, or her trainer, Shinnosuke Kazamatsuri, appears as a handsome young character that Yawara has a crush on. This manga may be far from the author’s other known works in tone, but Yawara! At all times it accentuates the quality of Urasawan’s art.
All these characters and a few hundred more generate the most funny situations, which will make the reader smile more than once while reading. Although many funny situations are caused by resources such as women’s underwear. The reading has a very light-hearted tone and although the first few numbers seem disjointed, in the second half of the volume the plot begins to progress at a faster pace, but without losing the wonderful sense of humour. A funny manga that will keep you reading.
At the center of everything revolves around the wishes of Yawara’s grandmother (and many people around her) to see her shine in judo, but she doesn’t want to. Although this is billed as a comedy, there is something very surprising hidden in the background, which is related to family and sacrifices her childhood to tirelessly train the main character. The potential drama is yet to be revealed, but it looks like we’ll see more drama in the second episode, although we hope the cliffhanger ending leaves us with a sense of humor.
The picture of the work is amazing, very beautiful and beautiful and has a quality that gives a lot of flexibility. A simple, but very beautiful picture that is pleasing to the eye. The character design is very beautiful and their expressions are very good.
Yawara Edition! Planeta Comic No. 01/20
Yawara Edition! Planeta Brings Us is worthy of Naoki Urasawa’s work. This first one, like the rest of the Kanzenban format in the collection, measures 14.8 x 21 cm, which is the perfect size for comfortable reading. The quality of the pages is also very decent and it should be noted that some pages are in color. The 312-page volume contains the first 16 chapters of the series.
Planeta has already confirmed that this set will contain 20 volumes, so seeing how this volume turns out, we can already know what the rest will be. You can get the audio for €16.95.
Wow! No. 01 shows a more ordinary Naoki Urasawa, but as always talented, although it is one of his first works, the quality of the work is not in question. A funny and entertaining work, with a lot of humor, but that also hides just the right amount of drama, plus the picture is beautiful. Anyone who approaches this manga will not be disappointed. As is often the case with this author’s works, this manga is required reading for manga lovers.
Wow!
Autores: Naoki Urasawa
Publisher: Planeta Comic
Format: Softcover with dust jacket
Dimensions: 14.8 x 21 cm
Pages: 312
ISBN: 978-84-1140-910-0
Price: 16.95 euros
Synopsis: Yawara Inokuma is a talented judoka who has been trained since childhood by her grandfather Jigoro, a world judo champion. Her grandfather fully believes in her abilities and plans to make her a gold medalist at the Seoul Olympic Games in 1988. However, all Yawara wants is to live a normal, ordinary life like her friends, away from training and competition… Everything changes. When a journalist named Matsuda meets her and presents her to the world as the new promise of judo in Japan.