Ichigeki Sacchu!! HoiHoi-san [Paperback]

Kunihiko Tanaka (Author, Artist)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 16, 2008

With the invention of the automatic vacuum robot and the time-set video recording devices, what is the next breakthrough in home appliances? Why that would be cute female mini-robots that kill bugs of course! In Ichigeki Sacchu!! HoiHoi-san, a corporation in this alternate universe has created such a pest control agent and it's the hottest selling item ever. Journey along with one enthusiast of these robots called HoiHoi-san's and experience the joys & suffering of being a dutiful owner of these new adorable, bug killing, wallet busting machines.

Product Details

• Paperback: 176 pages
• Publisher: Infinity Studios (January 16, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1596970146
• ISBN-13: 978-1596970144
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,163,268 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A light-hearted, single-volume comic, October 1, 2008

By 

Renzu "music producer" (Oak Park, IL USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Ichigeki Sacchu!! HoiHoi-san (Paperback)

In the near future, insects are immune to pesticides, resulting in the need for household bug-killing robots. A popular robot model series called "Hoihoi-san" is taking Japan by storm. It's a cute, doll-like combat robot with swappable costumes, weapons and accessories.

The comic chronicles the Hoihoi-san phenomenon through the eyes of a hopeless fan, a retailer, the fandom itself during a fan convention as well as the inner turmoil of the company that designs and produces the household appliance.

It's a distinctly Japanese comic that lightly parodies their culture of rabid consumerism. The comic highlights how the fanboy protagonist often blows his living wages on the latest Hoihoi-san doo-dad, or pays for costly repairs and replacements as he damages his toy and bricks its firmware.

The comic also parodies consumerism from an industry perspective as Hoihoi-san execs pitch concepts for accessories and competes with their competitor, "Combat-san"-- in one scene, the fanboy buys a Combat-san dreaming of a bug-killing tag team, only to later discover that his Hoihoi-san trashed it overnight.

The comic also follows the characters as they attend a Hoihoi-san convention, where they buy and sell unofficial home-made accessories and costumes. Anyway it's a cute and rather odd comic series that simultaneously parodies and celebrates "otaku" consumer culture. The artwork is high quality and full of personality, and the English-translated book itself includes several full-color illustrations.

The Hoihoi-san series continues in Japan as a PS2 game, a very short anime OAV, and a new spin-off comic, "Hoihoi-san Legacy".

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The World's Cutest Bug Killer, September 18, 2010

By 

Tsuyoshi (Kyoto, Japan) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Ichigeki Sacchu!! HoiHoi-san (Paperback)

"Ichigeki Sacchu!! HoiHoi-san" is a Japanese comic serialized in "Dengeki Daioh" (monthly comic magazine known for "Azumanga Daioh" "Yotsuba&!" and "Strawberry Marshmallow") since 2004. Its ongoing sequel "Ichigeki Sacchu!! HoiHoi-san: Legacy" has been serialized in "Dengeki Black Maoh" since 2007.

Kunihiko Tanaka's manga starts as a series of comical short sketches depicting the mishaps involving Hoihoi-san, a 10-cm-tall insect-killing doll, and its owner, a young man Aburatsubo (first name unknown). As Hoihoi-san looks cute and adorable, so like anime figures, there are collectors of the products. Aburatsubo-kun is one of them.

Like computer software, Mars company's Hoihoi-san has many features, some useful (variety of weaponry and equipment), others not so useful (Santa Claus costume). A rival company Kinryu also has created their own line of automated pesticide robots, Combat-san. Overjoyed Abuartsubo-kun is ready to collect one, which results in a very "tragic" event.

As you read on, each sketch or episode of the book becomes longer. The artwork of Hoihoi-san is great (with design works, color illustration and photo gallery, all wonderful), but the comic is a bit too episodic. Suggested romance between Aburatsubo and Kimiko, a girl at the pharmacy frequented by him, is not very original. Episodes about Furuyashiki and Yazaki, two workers at the pharmaceutical company, are boring.

Also, Hoihoi-san and other robots look very cute, but I don't find them interesting as "characters" because they are not given any personality. They neither speak nor think voluntarily. They are small, cute high-tech robots, and remain so throughout. Those who expected something like Sumono and Kotoko from Clamp's "Chobits" may be disappointed.

The comic's strange name (literal translation "One-Strike Killing-Bugs!! HoiHoi-san") is actually a parody of a sticky paper cockroach trap sold by Earth Chemical Company, Limited (hence, the comic's "Mars Pharmaceuticals"). Not many Japanese culture references are included in the book, so you can enjoy the comic without knowing Japanese culture. One exception is "Doll-ke Convention," which is based on the real-life comic market known as Comiket (for more details, please read "Genshiken").

Finally, about the publisher. Infinity Studio did an excellent job. The book looks great. The color pages and photos are beautifully printed. Black and white print is crisp and clear. Plus, the book comes with a dust jacket, which is a very rare thing among translated Japanese comics. Very impressive.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The best manga I ever bought, but that isn't saying much, August 29, 2009

By 

Darkonezero - See all my reviews

This review is from: Ichigeki Sacchu!! HoiHoi-san (Paperback)

Overall, this is the best manga I've ever bought in that the quality of the book itself is amazing. Unlike mangas that I've bought in the past, the pages are glossy and smooth, not like traditional books with ink printed pages. Other than that, the story itself is hilarious, but it left me wanting for more because of its relative shortness. As an added bonus, the final pages of the book are scans of illustrations from HoiHoi-san's other media. I recommend a buy if you're into comedies about robots, without any of the lewd humor.