Customer Reviews

Azumanga Daioh Volume 1

5 star:		(20)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Oh, Azumanga Daiou. Where to begin? How about the plot? Plot? I didn't notice. Azumanga is a story about absolutely nothing that manages to be about absolutely everything under the sun. Get it? How do I describe the humor? Can't. Too hard. Words probably can't describe this series. Maybe they can. So what have we learned? Azumanga Daiou is about nothing and everything and you can't describe the series with adjectives very well. And it's about seven girls and their three teachers. A story about nothing and everything, can't describe with adjectives, and about students and teachers. Particularly odd students and teachers. First up, Osaka: An odd transfer student from Osaka, real name Ayumu Kasuga, but got the nickname Osaka due to her origins. She's extremely odd, crazy, isn't the best student, and deserves an award for her delicate and elegant breaking of chopsticks. Then there's Sakaki: A beautiful high school girl who's body seems to have matured quite a bit faster then everybody else. She plays it cool and never lets her inner emotions show. Well, sometimes. So what are her inner emotions? She's extremely shy about her body, and has an extreme passion for cute things, especially cats. It's too bad every cat she meets (except one) bites her every time she tries to pet them. Then, there's Tomoko Takino: Tomo, Tomo, Tomo...Ugh, Tomo, Tomo, Tomo...the most psychotic and nutty person you can ever hope to meet, but I highly doubt you want to meet her. She has a habit of hitting Chiyo-chan, and competes with Chiyo at tests and with Sakaki at sports (of course, trying isn't winning). The only test she ever beat Chiyo at was a health test that she spent all night studying for, and of course, didn't study at all for the harder, more important test that day. Speaking of Chiyo...Chiyo Mihama: A child genius, started going to high school at age ten, and is still smarter than all of her classmates. She's rich, cute, and has pigtails that scare the hell out of Osaka. Then there's Koyomi Mizuhara: Possibly the sanest of the group, though she does worry a bit too much about her body (which looks fine to me). She and Tomo have been friends since they were kids, and there's nobody better to keep Tomo from going completely insane. There's also Kagura: Self-proclaimed rival to Sakaki, if anyone can beat Sakaki at sports, it's her (though she can't). At times almost equally as crazy and competitive as Tomo, Kagura finishes off the main band of girls with a sharp edge. And finishing off the students, the less-important, appears-every-now-and-then, Kaorin: Kaorin, the cute girl with a mad crush on Sakaki, easily gets jealous, which can cause her to be driven to the point of acting like a rabid dog. And, starting off the teachers, it's Yukari Tanazaki: The least liked teacher at the school, our girls homeroom and English teacher, she gets drunk on a daily basis, has been tardy more than her students, is lazier than a sloth, and she's cheap to boot. Then there's Minamo Kurosawa (Nyamo): The physical education teacher, Ms. Kurosawa seems like the perfect teacher; kids like her, teachers like her, and so on, but through personal visits we can see she might have a rather embarrassing past. Rounding off our cast, it's Mr. Kimura: The perverted classics teacher, he always tries to involve himself in things that are none of his business in order to see some of his pretty students in a way that could give him a bloody nose. So, clearly Azumanga Daiou is one of the funniest mangas you'll ever read, and there's no reason not to love every second of it. My only problem is that ADV has catagorized it as comedy/action. Action? No. I wouldn't consider Tomo punching people action. So anyway, this manga is for anyone with a sence of humor and whose taste is not for action or a deep plot, but rather for anything that's good, since I highly doubt you have a taste for sstuff like Azumanga Daiou, because there's nothing else like it. Also, some reviewer said it was like Love Hina...please, ignore that review. It's nothing like Love Hina. I mean, Azumanga Daiou's a comedy, and the two mangas have a completely different sence of humor! Personally i don't think you can compare Azumanga Daiou to any other series, manga or not. Just because a manga's funny doesn't make it an Azumanga (and I personally don't find Love Hina that funny).

I randomly picked this book off the shelf at my library, not really expecting much, but much I did get. I ordered the other three as quickly as possible, and am currently re-reading volume 1. Anyways....

This series follows the life of 7 high school girls (well, 5. The other two don't really appear very much), each one having special (and some not so special) characteristics.

First off, their's Chiyo-Chan, the child prodigy. She entered high school at the age of 10 and astounds the rest of the class with her knowlede. She's not any good at sports, however.

Then their's Tomo-Chan, the psycho crazy girl who's best skill is annoying everyone with her pointless remarks and actions. It's only ever so often that we see her act somewhat normal (I don't even know if we see that in this volume).

And then there's Osaka, the transfer student from...Osaka. (Her real name is Ayumu something...can't remember). She falls asleep in class alot, get's lousy grades, and is always forgetting books, but overall she's quiet, shy, and my favourite character.

And Sakaki...what can be said about Sakaki? Well, she's the athlete of the bunch, who is admired for her big boobs (by tomo, at least). Although she's the most active of the group, she loves cats, (but wouldn't dare tell anyone), who don't seem to like her. She's one of the sanest of the group.

Yomi is the most "normal" of the group. She has a sarcastic, dry sense of humour, and is always worrying about her weight.

And then Kaorin, who we don't see too often. She has a major crush on Sakaki.

And finally, Kagura, who doen't really show up until volume 2, but she's worth mentioning here. She's kind of like a mix between Sakaki and Tomo-Chan. She's athletic, but can also be somewhat psychotic at times.

And now a word about the teachers.

I don't know how Miss Yukari got her job. She's immature, a drunkard, is late more than her students, and is overall a bad teacher.

Miss Kurosawa, the P.E. teacher, is more normal, however, and the students like her.

And finaly, there's Mr. Kimura, who's mouth you only see closed once. He's a perv who admits the only reason why he's a teacher is because he likes the girls.

Anyways, it's the best, not to mention funniest manga I've ever read before. If you're looking for a manga that has no plot whatsoever, and contains butt-loads of humour, then this is the one for you. Read it, you won't be dissapointed.

This is a great series of books I have to say, this series has influenced me more artisticly that any other manga. As an aspiring Manga-ka, I immediatly adopted some of Azuma's techniques, his Super Deformations are amazing. (laymans terms: Super Deformations = techniques Manga-kas use to exaggerate emotion, like a hanging jaw or angry glare)

But asides from the artistic perspective, Azumanga is a fantastic read as well. It's a high school comedy covering the events surrounding a group of friends as they make their way through their four years (each covered in each of the four books). Everyone can find a character they relate to in this diverse group, for me it was Ms. Sakaki, but regardless of who you associate with it becomes a rewarding experience watching that character grow.

Also, be forewarned, Azumanga does not follow the typical Manga style. It's written in numerous four panel strips reading top to bottom, akin more to american comics like Garfield than manga, albeit much more developed.

So I wholeheartedly reccomend the whole series of Azumanga books for ages 12+ (a wee bit of innuendo, nothing serious), especially since it's only four volumes it's quite a value.

I remember the first time I read Azumanga Daioh; I was, literally, in stitches.

One of the first things I wondered was what the title meant; It really means 'The Great King Azumanga", Azumanga just a play on words with the artists last name "Azuma", and the comic it was originally published in called "Denki Daioh".
The next thing I wondered, What in the heck was the manga even about?

Simply, the manga follows the daily lives of 6 highschool girls and their 2 teachers, each character having a familiar bit of ourselves in them, making the characters even more likeable.
There's Yukari Tanazaki, a rowdy, immature and thrill-seeking English teacher; Minamo Kurosawa (Also known as Nyamo) a calm headed, well liked P.E. Teacher. Theres also Tomo, the loud-mouth hyperactive girl, Yomi, a smart and serious student, Sakaki, a quiet shy girl that has a soft spot for kittens (Allthough, she ends up getting bitten everytime she tries to pet one!), Chiyo-Chan, the 10 year old child prodigy who transfered to highschool because of her extreme intelligence, Kagura, an athletic girl who views herself as Sakaki's rival, and "Osaka", a spacy transfer student from the mean streets of Osaka, simply given her nickname because of where she was from.

The manga is a real joyride to read; those looking for a deep, meaningfull plot in Azumanga Daioh will not find one; however, those looking for original humor and artwork, look no further.
Azumanga Daioh is the best example of good comedy, great original (yet simple!) art, and heartwarming characters out there. A definite read for those looking for a great manga to cuddle up with.

Unlike most manga series, "Azumanga Daioh" doesn't have a real plot. Or chapters. Or anything much happening.

But despite those odd facts, this delightful little series is one of the few schoolcentric manga that I've read and enjoyed -- a comic exploration of the oddball lives of a gang of young high school girls and a few equally eccentric young teachers. "Azumanga Daioh Volume 1 " doesn't delve too deeply into characters' lives or anything non-fluffy -- Kiyohiko Azuma's stories charm just by being adorable and a little strange.

High school has begun, and there's a crop of new students -- among them is the quiet, tall cat-lover Sakaki, ten-year-old genius Chiyo-chan, the impulsive and freakishly energetic Tomo, the sensible Yomi, and a spacey transfer student from Osaka named Ayumu (but who is always called Osaka instead). The assorted teens are taught (I use the term loosely) by their immature and mildly bipolar teacher Yukari, and her exasperated gym-teacher buddy "Nyamo."

Throughout their first year of high school, the students and teachers must deal with assorted ball games, biting cats, stray kittens, contemplations of teen life, pool sharks, working at a thinly-disguised McDonald's, visits to Chiyo-chan's summer house and the beach, running for class president (Tomo nominated herself! Aiee!), weird photographic images, nasty thunderstorms, Sakaki's secret vice, talking to foreigners, pandas, Chiyo's massive dog, Mr. Kimura publcly snapping and proclaiming his love for teen girls, a sports festival and a stuffed animal exhibit festival, and Chiyo's mysterious pigtails.

"Azumanga Daioh" isn't really like any other manga I've seen -- while it has a couple of "normal" chapters, most of the time it's rendered in vertical four-panel strips, like daily comic strips. It also has no overarcing storylines of any kind, although it does have some fun running gags -- and though there are a spattering of male characters on the sidelines (including the ghoulish Mr Kimura and a horde of nameless boys), it's almost completely focused on young women.

But despite having pretty much no plot, "Azumanga Daioh" is adorable and charming fluff. Azuma takes the ordinary stuff of everyday life (like chatting at school) and gives it a delightfully offbeat twist (poor Chiyo having graphic flashbacks to Yukari's driving -- "I'm sorry. I'm sorry. It's all over!"). She has a knack for finding the goofy stuff in fairly ordinary life (giant cat costumes) and amplifying it just a little -- while inserting some sly jokes as well ("You just said that what we learn is meaningless after we graduate." "Shaddup. That's what we call 'education!'").

And the cast of characters is pretty fun -- Sakaki is especially endearing, since she seems imposing and distant, but is actually shy and sentimental (especially about cute stuff); Chiyo is endearing thanks to her short size and conscientious worrywartiness. And the insanely energetic Tomo and surreal-minded space cadet "Osaka" make nice accompaniments, as do Nyami and Yukari ("that's why it's my responsibility as an educator to uh... to... well, you know... anyway... will someone PLEASE take this thing home?!"), who are sort of a Japanese educational Odd Couple. Except with bike stealing.

"Azumanga Daioh Volume 1" is simple, fluffy, and all the more charming for being so -- it's not so much a slice of life as a hundred delicious little crumbs.

This is a nice, short series but the impact is has ont he reader is on par with series that have up to 20 volumes and even then some. I bought this on a whim since I heard the series was funny and I became a instant, die-hard fan.

Memorable characters, hilarious gags, outrageous puns, and a intresting gag-manga type format makes this series extremely worth it.

Just make sure you have your will ready cause you will die from laughter (hahaha that was a horrible pun).

This is a manga composed mainly of vertical comic strips that follow the Japanese right-to-left format. For a first-timer with this kind of format, this manga may be difficult to handle, since the publishers didn't put any kind of explanation of the format anywhere in the book. Basically, this manga follows the school life of a few teachers and their students. Just about everyone is a little strange, it seems. There's Miss Yukari, who is somehow a teacher in spite of the fact that she's more immature than some of her students, Chiyo-chan, the ten year old genius, and Sakaki, the girl who secretly loves animals and other cute things, just to name a few. I kept getting some of the characters confused, but I really enjoyed reading this.

Very funny and cute! I loved Osaka's dreams about the false ponytails!

This is the traditional sort of lighthearted manga, involving a group of high school girls: Tomo, the abrasive loudmouth; Sakaki, tall and athletic and obsessed with kitty-cats; Kaorin, who has the hots for Sakaki; "Osaka," because that's where she's from (think Brooklyn accent); Yomi, smart but can't sing worth a damn; Chiyo-Chan, the ten-year-old prodigy; and, of course, the slightly pathological Miss Yukari, the first-year teacher, who often is less mature than her students. The humor is often sly, frequently ditzy (so what *does* the "ho" mean in "Heave-ho"?), but sometimes a little oblique (which means I didn't always get the joke). Azuma does it as a series of four-panel strips, like a daily comic, so you can dip in almost anywhere.

This is a pretty funny book, full of great characters. First is the super smart ten year old, Chiyo-Chan. Then there is Osaka a slightly weird girl from Osaka. Then there is Tomo-Chan, the very loud girl who wants to beat Chiyo at, well, anything, and Sakaki, the cool, well developed, girl who happens to like animals. There's also Yomi, the smart girl with glasses, and Kaorin, who has dreams about Chiyo's ponytails and seems to have a crush on Sakaki. Then there are the teachers, none of which are normal. With over 160 pages you get A LOT of stuff. There are two four-panel scenes on EACH page and, whether they are part of a story or a stand alone scene, they are funny without getting heavy or too emotional. They're cute. The cats seem to have issues, but most of the book is VERY cute.
The book's cover says it's for 13 and up, which is true. At one point the girls are talking about their bodies, so it is really for young adults. The cover also says it is an "Action/Comedy" manga but as there is very little in the way of car chases and gun battles I would ignore the "Action" and just take it as a "Comedy".