Azumanga Daioh

Back in 1999, mangaka Kiyohiko Azuma would create a four-panel comic strip (yonkoma) known as “Azumanga Daioh”. A series that would earn its place as one of the fan favorites worldwide for its slice of life and delightful storyline may it be through the manga or anime series, Yen Press will be re-releasing the collected manga as a 672-page omnibus featuring newer translations (different from the ADV Manga release) and translation notes.The yonkama was featured in MediaWorks’ Dengeki Daioh shonen manga magazine from 1999 to 2002 and the storyline focuses on the lives of several female high school students during their three years in high school before graduating. The story tends to feature a school year, may it be the school sports competition, the field trip amongst friends, friends sleeping over each other’s home, friends talking in class or their thoughts about the teachers or how the teachers feel about them.But also panels featuring on each member as Tomo irritates everyone, Sakaki wanting to get close to a neighborhood cat that continually bites her, Chiyo wanting to fit in with her fellow students who are older, Osaka having the wildest imagination and more!JUDGMENT CALL:Prior to reading “Azumanga Daioh”, I watched the anime series which I absolutely loved!Years later, I ended up reading the omnibus and for the money, nearly 700 pages for the price is magnificent. It probably took me about a month and half, off-and-on to read as it is one of those stories that you can read quickly but you want to savor the enjoyment of the series by reading several of the four-panels per day.While there are some chapters that are in manga-like format, the majority of all pages feature a four panel storyline and I can’t help but laugh and just enjoy this magnificent series for its quirky characters.Each have their own charm in their own type of way. Chiyo Mihama is a child prodigy that looks like she has two pigtails attached to her and because she is younger and smart but not as athletic, she is often teased by the older students and put into situations where she is made to look cute but is unaware if she’s being taken for a ride or not. Her naivety and her kind nature makes her a fun character.Sakaki is the tall, athletic student with a hidden soft side. Her love for cats is quite huge and it’s something she doesn’t discuss with others. But as she tries to get close to cats, the keep biting her for some reason.And while I enjoyed every character for their certain personalities, the person that bewilders me and that is why I consider her my favorite is Osaka. She is so unusual, naive and your absolute airhead. Whenever she speaks, you know that only hilarious things come from her mouth.In one strip, she believes that she will pass her college entrance exam if she can break off a chopstick evenly. Each time she does it, she fails and thus, she thinks she will fail her test. Until Chiyo teaches her how.She and also Sakaki have unusual dreams of Chiyo’s father, which looks like an alien cat creature. It’s not really mentioned why the two have these unusual dreams but they are hilarious when they do have them and Chiyo’s father in alien cat form shows up.And then you have the Kimura the pervert who says the most perverted things to his class at the wrong moments or the teachers Yukari and Nyamo often engaged in arguments or some competition, with Yukari nearly as bad as Tomo.But there are so many wonderful but quick four-panel strips in this omnibus. At nearly 700 pages, its thicker than my telephone books and for an omnibus, it’s the largest size that I have ever seen.It’s important to note that while the manga is the same as the ADV Manga release in terms of storyline, the primary difference is the translations and added translation notes and color pages plus an index. So, in many ways, this version is much better for those who want to know more about the Japanese wording featured in the manga series. For example, when the group goes to Okinawa to eat Saataa andagii, at the end of the chapter, one can look it up and find out what it is.The older ADV omnibus is a little taller by half an inch and there is translation notes but not as in detail as the one featured in the Yen Press version.There is a good amount of translation notes that will make those who want to learn about Japanese culture, worth their while.With that being said, in terms of translations, I think it will be subjective. This will be the case with the character of Osaka. In this manga series, it seems that the goal was to make Osaka seem she came from the country by using “ah’m” instead of “I’m”, instead of “I”, it’s typed as “ah” and instead of “them”, she says “‘em”. For me, I don’t think it was necessary to go that far. I do understand the translator trying to show the difference between Kanto and Kansai speakers but while different dialects, it’s almost like comparing someone from California and someone else from Alabama. The Southern twang in my opinion was not necessary. But I can see why it was done, so it’s subjective.And for the most part, not everyone is going to buy both omnibus, so if you were going to purchase the “Azumanga Daioh: Omnibus”, it’s a great value for something this big at $25. And the added translation notes and index make it worth owning even more. But with that being said, the ADV Manga was still good sans the translation notes and because it was released several years ago, that version can be found used for a cheaper price.Otherwise, the Yen Press release of “Azumanga Daioh” is fantastic!An enjoyable series cool and hilarious characters, “Azumanga Daioh” is a manga series that is worth reading. And for its price and its delightful, fun storyline, “Azumanga Daioh: The Omnibus” deserves a 5-star ranking! Highly recommended!

Azumanga Daioh follows the day-to-day adventures of a group of Japanese high school girls. There is the brash and excitable Tomo Takino, the tall, soft-spoken cat lover Sakaki, the ten-year-old prodigy Chiyo Mihama, the Osakan transfer student Ayumu "Osaka" Kasuga, and the straight man Yomi Mizuhara. Starting in the second year, this group is joined by the athletic Kagura. They are joined by their inattentive English teacher Yukari. The overall story, told in four volumes that are all collected in this omnibus, follows them through their three years of high school and everyday life.Unlike many others who probably read this after seeing the anime adaptation, I had only seen a few clips of the show on YouTube prior to giving this a read. Having gone into this mostly blind, I was pleasantly surprised by this manga and its humor.Azumanga Daioh originally ran in Japan from 1999 to 2002. At its core, it is a yonkoma-style manga which refers to a style of storytelling in which each strip is told in four panels.I found that the artwork in this book was quite good and worked well for the story it is telling. Certainly, the premise of the manga focusing on high school life means that the settings, characters, and backgrounds take on a rather pedestrian look, but it still comes off as good. I especially liked the artwork on the various characters. Befitting the comedy genre, many characters have over-the-top expressions that add to the humor. The great artwork really helps to add to the characterizations from the quiet and reserved nature of Sakaki to the loud-mouthed Tomo.The story and the characters in Azumanga Daioh are great. There is no particular overall story other than the overarching march of time as the girls go through high school over three years. Rather the format is more as a series of vignettes with the longest story arcs taking place over several strips. As stated above, most of this is just the stories of the ordinary with a healthy amount of goofiness. Some examples of the stories found in this include stressing over tests, Sakaki trying (and failing) to get along with the cats that she loves so much, school trips and vacations, and so on.The characters are another strong point with this manga as well. All of the characters are very likable and entertaining. While each of them has their own personality and quirks, they each have their own level of cluelessness to them which really adds to the humor of the story as they sometimes stumble through life.If it is not already obvious, the greatest strength of this manga is its sense of humor. It is a comedy series after all and I found this to be absolutely hilarious. The four-panel format is used very effectively throughout the series to tell rapid-fire jokes. I cannot even begin to count how many times I laughed out loud while reading through this. I was surprised at how many jokes are made while also not veering into, say, blatant fanservice at all. It really is the type of comedy that can be enjoyed by teens and adults for its general hilarity.Also included with this edition is a series of footnotes explaining some of the more cultural aspects that may not always be apparent to a non-Japanese reader. These work well to help the reader understand some Japanese cultural aspects that are inherent in the story.Overall, I found this manga to be an incredibly enjoyable read. It is certainly to be considered one of the defining works of the genre consisting of the everyday lives of schoolgirls and would go on to form one of the staples of anime. Even if you have never watched the anime, this is a great read for anyone that likes manga in particular and comics in general especially for those that like comedy works.

a simple, fun, funny story about silly high school girls being silly, good price for what you're getting

This excellently written manga creates a story involving characters you will grow to love and laugh with (and at). Definitely a must buy for anyone looking to have fun with a good, clean, slice of life comedy about girls growing up together through high school. I bought this on a recommendation, not knowing much about it, and I definitely do not regret it!As for the book itself, it's thick and heavy because it contains the entire series. The print is clear and clean and the paper is good quality. There are a couple of sections with translator's notes to help explain references and words that Western readers may not understand.

One of the best mangas I read. Funny stories, likeable character, and surreal humor are just some of the reason why Azumanga Daioh is a must buy.