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Reviewed by Kelvin Green Now, I’m not a huge manga freak or anything, but I’ve read my fair share, and I’m reading more and more as manga becomes more readily available, and DC and Marvel do their best to bury the US comics industry. I have to say that of all the manga I’ve read, Worst is the strangest. It’s not particularly surreal or strange like FLCL, but the setting is just so far removed from anything I’ve experienced that I had a hard time engaging with the book. It’s a new school year at Suzuran High, and the annual Freshman’s Battle is set to occur, in which the new students fight each other in order to see who’ll be the toughest kid in school. Yes, it’s Fight Club meets Grange Hill. Now this is the worst school in the city (hence the title), so gangs and violence are, I’m sure, more common than they could ever be at the quiet English country schools I attended, but I still found it difficult to accept that part of the book. Given that it’s the central concept of the book, that could be a problem, but I’m pleased to say that there’s a lot more to enjoy here. The characters are well-rounded and engaging, especially Hana Tsukishima, the closest thing we have to a protagonist. Described as a “country bumpkin” in the promotional material, this gentle and cheerful fellow with a bald head comes across as a likable Buddha-like figure. He, of course, turns out to a skilled fighter, but his personality and attitude, so far removed from a gruff tough-guy persona, helps to make the rest of the book more palatable. Elsewhere, the book presents a boarding house run by a gangster and his transvestite brother/sister, and Hana’s housemates, all adding humour and personality to the goings on. It might be said that the characters are a bit too broad, coming across more as caricatures than real people, but if so, it doesn’t harm the book at all. The adaptation is also very well done, and there were no moments where I felt lost as a translation went awry. The art is generally very good; there’s a fairly realistic look to the figure work, with a hint of exaggeration in the proportions, so that everyone has a bulky, almost tubby, look to them, which looks better than it sounds. Facial expressions are especially well handled, and a lot of the characters’ personalities come through in the art. This is a very well-produced book that excels in both art and writing, but the setting and premise left me a bit cold. If the idea of a schoolyard fighting tournament doesn’t make you go “huh?” then give Worst a go. Weird premise aside, it’s a good read. Comment on this review of Worst v1 on the Manga Life Forums. |
6 October 2009
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