Genshiken - Volume 1
The Society For The Study Of Modern Visual Culture
Chapters 1-6
Basically, this manga is about nerds/otakus. Not sure why I got it, it sounded really different from any other series. A lot of jokes and other stuff actually use real world references so, real otaku knowledge is need to fully enjoy this lol still, you can get 95% of what’s happening with no problem (I think..).
The main character is Kanji, a freshman. He has a dream of joining an otaku club (yep lol). Then, there’s another guy, Makoto, who also belongs to the group Kanji joins, and Saki, who’s in love for Makoto, for no specific shown reason, besides Makoto being handsome.
I didn’t know what to expect. This manga doesn’t really have some major plot line, it’s mainly slice of life style, centered around otaku life. What I enjoyed more was the humor, often related to adult stuff. The characters are also somewhat interesting and, even though they all represent a little bit of the otaku stereotype, they are actually quite different from each other.
It was light and entertaining but, I’m not sure I would recommend this unless you got nothing else to read.
Anyway, past the introductions and resolutions to Makoto and Saki’s relationship, comes an important Otaku event and some other stuff.
Then a girl that returns from living abroad joins the club.
Overall, nothing much happens, just the progress of their otaku-oriented lives. Mainly, it shows Kanji fitting in with the group and Saki as she stars to experience the otaku world because of her boyfriend. Even though it’s really light, and has nothing much to pull you right now, I’m still planning on reading it lol.
About the art, not really my favorite style, and not that much detail but, it’s ok.
- Personal Enjoyment: 3/5
Genshiken is one of my favorite manga titles. It is all about the characters and their journey through college into adulthood (well, Kanji’s and Saki’s since they are the main characters). Naturally, everyone has their own tastes, but for me, the manga got better as time went on and I was sad when it came to an end.
Comment by AstroNerdBoy — July 29, 2009 @ 3:40 am
I saw this manga at the time in a “weekly featured” in mangatraders. i’m still thinking of continuing, and I imagine i’ll probably like it more later. For now, its just volume 1 and I liked it, but its almost my first contact with slice of life style. I’ll post them when I read the other volumes.
thks for the comment
Comment by Darknives — July 29, 2009 @ 9:56 am