NoaIzumiManga Review: Azumanga Daioh
March 2nd 2009 03:27
Get an extra allotment of cuteness with the girls of Azumanga Daioh, the Manga! Chiyo-chan, Sakaki, Osaka, Tomo, Yomi, and all the others are living the high school life, in print.
You’ve seen the anime, now read the manga! The book version is pretty much the same as the anime, with the same emphasis on character-driven humor and cuteness. The two versions are a little different, with the manga having a few jokes and subplots absent in the anime, and vice-versa. But all the important elements, the culture festivals, the sports festivals, the trip to Okinawa, Maya and Sakaki, and of course studying for college entrance exams and graduation, are present in both.
The Teachers: Yukari and Nyamo
Azumanga Daioh is set up differently from most manga. Instead of a comic book format, AD is predominantly in a four-panel comic strip style. It gives the story a more rigid organization, which can be a good thing and a bad thing. The punchline has to come by the fourth panel, so it’s not always delivered effectively. On the other hand, it is perfect for a story like this, as it's basically a series of vignettes with no real over-arching plot. There are also a few places in the books when the style switches to a more traditional format.
The AD manga consists of four volumes. The omnibus edition, collecting all the cartoons in one mega-book, came out last year.
Great moments: One part that’s not in the anime is Chiyo-chan’s part-time job at the local fast-food place. Not only is it cute (and the customers’ reactions are priceless), but it also shows how badly she wants to grow up and take on adult responsibilities.
Summary: Cute, character-driven fun, just like the anime. Grade: A
Age rating: 13 and up. Same as the anime, for the same reasons.
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