Gravitation, Vol. 1 [Paperback]

Maki Murakami (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 5, 2003 | Series: Gravitation Ex (Book 1)

Shuichi Shindou is determined to be a rock star, and he's not about to let the fact that he's a high school student with no experience and no band stop him. He's found his charismatic guitarist, he's got them a gig - and now he's ready to show the world what a genius he is with his powerful lyrics. When novelist Eiri Yuki overhears his amateurish verse and puts the young musician in his place, Shuichi is crushed. He just can't get the mysterious writer's criticism out of his mind. As Shuichi inserts himself into Yuki's life, desperate to prove his potential, the two find their futures inexorably intertwined, as if by fate. But Yuki doesn't believe in fate. The force that brings them together is much more primal - it's gravity. And nothing they do can stop it.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

A romantic comedy/drama about making it in the music industry. Spawned a ton of collectibles in Japan; Soundtracks, pencil boards, calendars, phone cards, postcards, artbooks. Gravitation anime also available. 100% Authentic Manga Format.

From the Inside Flap

Gravitation is a happy combination of honest and raw emotion, plus comedy, and it's also the first title translated into English that's a purely boys' love story. No carefully concealed subtext here! -- ANIMERICA

Product Details

• Paperback: 200 pages
• Publisher: TokyoPop (August 5, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1591823331
• ISBN-13: 978-1591823339
• Product Dimensions: 7.4 x 6.4 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (48 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #233,105 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #93 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Comics & Graphic Novels > Manga > By Publisher > TokyoPop

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars laws of gravity, November 22, 2004

By 

Pithetaphish "pithetaphish" (Sydney, Australia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Gravitation, Vol. 1 (Paperback)

Like a good many people, I was introduced to 'Gravitation' via the anime. Opening the first volume of the manga, you realise all previous expectations need to be put aside; Gravi the Manga and Gravi the Anime are quite different from one another. The best way to view the two series' are as different takes on the same theme.

There seems to be no middle ground with Murakami's art style - either people love it, or they hate it. The sketchy, harried looking illustrations match the frenetic pace of the characters, especially Shuichi-kun. It does have a slightly amateurish feel in the earlier books, but by volume 4 it smooths out. Unlike so many manga, the character designs don't remain fixed - clothes, hair, even facial appearance (compare Shuichi in track 1 to Shuichi in track 12) change with slightly alarming frequency, if you take the time to think about it. However the action moves so quickly, most of the time you don't notice. It only becomes annoying when one has to stop reading to work out just who these characters are meant to be.

The characters are pretty archetypal, but they're taken to almost neurotic extremes. Hardly a bad thing, Shuichi's massive face vaults and emotional overreactions provide a great deal of the comedy in this series. Yuki plays the jaded and cynical partner, while Hiro fulfils the role of the straight guy sidekick, and Tohma and Taki are the manipulative businessman and the insanely jealous rival respectively. Everyone else is pretty much there for their comic potential. Bad Luck's manager K is a standout as the happy go lucky, bazooka-toting American.

So if 'Gravitation' is so damned funny, why am I only giving it 3 stars?

Because, reading further and further into the series, I'm left with a feeling that Murakami is willing to sacrifice anything for a gag. And the major element that has suffered in 'Gravitation' is plot. No matter how hard Murakami tries to insert some depth into the story (done almost entirely through Yuki, the only character developed far enough to carry a weightier storyline), it's always trampled by an hilariously funny but otherwise completely arbitrary gag situation.

It's obvious as you read on that Murakami drew this manga on the fly. there's just no structure to it, the events aren't leading anywhere other than to again show just how stupid Shuichi can be and how cold Yuki can be towards him; by volume 8 it feels like the manga has slipped from parody to caricature - it's like reading something that has been based on an episode of 'Tom and Jerry'. It's a bit of a shame actually, as the anime demonstrated that there is a plot (and quite a good one) buried in the mish-mash of random comic scenes. Murakami just hasn't been able to grasp hold of it.

(And if you're a yaoi freak like me, you'll notice there's an awful lot of 'shounen' in this series, but not much 'ai'...)

If you're looking for a light read, or are in need of cheering up, look no further than 'Gravitation' - it will have you laughing yourself sick in no time. If you're looking for shounen ai with those wonderful things, plot and character development, I'd recommend bypassing the manga and going straight to the anime; it's far superior in terms of both quality and craft.

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Life and love and the challenges that go with them, July 19, 2003

By 

Shayla Hidaka (Seattle, WA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Gravitation, Vol. 1 (Paperback)

Murakami-san has created one of the most amazing manga stories in recent years. Aside from it having excellent artwork throughout, she puts alot into the characters which allows the reader to easily associate with one or more of them.

The story itself follows Shuichi Shindou and his best friend Hiroshi Nakano as they attempt to get their band, Bad Luck, into the mainstream. Along the way, Shuichi falls in love with a narcisistic novel writer, who eventually returns that love. It's not an easy, happy life though, there's always a new problem in their personal lives or those of their friends to complicate things.

It's nice to see the North American audience realizing that same sex love is not the repulsive thing that many think it to be, and it can be very sweet and romantic. That is what Maki Murakami accomplishes with this series. If you are open-minded enough to appreciate love in all it's forms, then this is for you.

I have spent the past three years working on translating the Japanese manga for the series, so I can safely say that you will not be diappointed with this series!! From beginning to end, you will fall in love with at least one of the characters.

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Be warned : ~This is not the Anime~, October 22, 2003

By 

Clay Wendt "Bard Song" (DFW, Texas USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Gravitation, Vol. 1 (Paperback)

I first fell in love with the gravitation series through the fansubbed anime. The characters were great, and the story was awesome (not to mention the music). When I found out that the manga was being translated, I was thrilled. However, the manga is very much NOT the anime.

When you read this manga, you have to keep a few things in mind. First of all, the characters in the Anime and the characters in the manga vary greatly. Sure, Shuichi is still spastic and cute, but his personality is very much different. Plus, the Anime left out a few characters the managa has, including Shuichi's sister. The characters use a very american vocabulary, though outdated, so you'll kinda have to pretend that the story takes place a few years back. One of my favorite things about the manga is the fact that sex isn't so taboo (as it was in the Anime). The characters interact in a very real enviroment, and are always throwing jokes around (the kind that actually make you laugh out loud). I think the manga is much more real than the anime ever was. If you're a huge fan of the Anime, you may not be too thrilled with the manga. If you want to enjoy this, you'll have to read it as a SEPERATE story, and not the anime in a book.

As a stand alone (no anime involved), this series is amazing. The characters are well developed, the humor is great, the story is believeable (and not your typical shounen-ai), but.. the art is a bit lacking. You'll really have to focus on the story and look past some of Maki's artistic errors (such as characters viewed from the side). I would definately reccomend this manga to anyone looking for a funny, romantic, real story. Of course, you've got to be cool with the boy x boy theme.