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Samurai Girl: Real Bout High School Vol. 2
Distributed by: TOKYOPOP
Story By: Reiji Saiga
Art By: Sora Inoue
Translated By: Luncan Duncan
Genre: Fighting/Action/Comedy
Cost: $9.99
Reviewed by: Jon Minners
Real Bout High School is quickly becoming one of my favorite imports from Japan. Not since Dragon Ball Z, have I become so enthralled in a storyline that I have made an effort to follow so religiously. I have become enticed by the nonstop action, plot and likable characters. Of course the extraordinary powers and situations clearly mark this series as fantasy, but one cannot deny the underlying realism that cannot be ignored despite the extraordinary situations the characters find themselves into.
While I love the anime version of Real Bout High School, the manga has quickly become my favorite of the two. This is a tale about a high school where K-Fights have been established by the principal to settle differences between warring parties. Ryoko Mitsurugi is the K-Fight champion and the most popular person in school, but that is all threatened when Shizuma Kusanagi transfers to the school and starts making waves. That is where the manga starts to break off from what we see in the anime. The anime doesn’t focus as much on Shizuma, instead it focuses heavily on Ryoko as she gets sucked into a mystical world where abstruse creatures await. While in this world Ryoko discovers more about her quest to become a true samurai. The manga, presents an incomparable plot that focuses on the school and the relationships between the characters, and their quests to become true Samurai.
More is learned of Shizuma, at the end of the first volume picks a fight with one of his teachers Mr. Saotome, embarrasses him in front of the class and then challenges the teacher to a K-Fight. The second volume begins with this K-Fight between Shizuma and Mr. Saotome, who seeks to regain his title as one of the most feared teachers. Even though Saotome hates the K-Fights, he must fight in order to regain his coveted reputation. This fight makes Shizuma almost as popular as Ryoko, must now deal with the students who feel they can challenge also challenge teachers to K-Fights, thus tarnishing the renown of the K-Fight system.
From supernatural martial arts to simplicity of love, the later part of the tankoubon focuses on Ryoko and her unrequited love she has for Tatsuya, her kendo sempai. This is where the manga starts to mirror the second volume of the anime as Ryoko and Tatsuya share a closeness while training and performing in a school fight that calls for the two to put on a realistic fight scene for the audience. However, much to Ryoko’s dismay, she realizes that Tatsuya shares a closeness with another student and may not share Ryoko’s feelings for him. The manga succeeds in examining this relationship closer than the anime does, allowing the reader to truly understand Ryoko’s emotional state.
In the end one cannot close the cover without feeling some pity for Ryoko, who is such a strong character that unfortunately lets her emotions get the better of her at times. In the end despite all of the magnificent artwork vivid storytelling, this manga is essentially about high school with fighting thrown in the middle. The popularity, the friendships and the hurt feelings of love lost are all here combined with art that brings the entire story to life. I enjoy the Real Bout High School anime, but the manga is the way the tale should be told.
Send your comments and or questions about this article to JMinners@ybfree.com.
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