Last week I read Rumiko Takahashi’s Maison Ikkoku Vol. 1. When I was in middle school my two best friends were addicted to anime and manga. I tried to read their manga books and follow along with their favorite anime shows, but I just couldn’t get into it like they were. For me, Harry Potter was more my style at the time. The anime shows my friends watched annoyed me. Dragon Ball Z was the show I thought of when someone mentioned anime. I tried many times to watch Dragon Ball but the slowness of its plot bored me. It took whole episodes to show one fight. Most of the mangas my friends suggested were pretty cute to me. I liked them, but like I said, Harry Potter was more my style.
Maison Ikkoku is the first manga I’ve read in years and I have to say that I enjoyed it a lot. It’s a very simple, light read. There is no symbolism or hidden meanings in this book. It’s kind of refreshing to be able to read a cute, romantic story without looking deeper into underlying themes.
Maison Ikkoku is a story about a new manager who comes to live at a run-down apartment building. The tenants there are a very interesting group. They all know each other and love to annoy the main character, Godai. Godai is a student who usually takes his studying for granted. The tenants always call him “flunk-out.” Immediately upon seeing her, Godai falls in love with the new manager, Kyoko Otonashi. Kyoko helps Godai get the quiet time he needs for his studying. Godai wants to try really hard to pass his entrance exams to not let Kyoko down.
The first volume is separated into six chapters. Each one consists of Godai trying to tell Kyoko how he feels about her. He fails every time. In one chapter Godai is informed that Kyoko has a boyfriend by his flaky neighbor, Akema. Of course Kyoko doesn’t have a boyfriend but until Godai figures this out he traipse around, wallowing in his own self-pity. As we read farther into the book we discover that Kyoko may have feelings for Godai. Overall, the book is a very easy and light read. I’m really interested to see what happens next with Godai and Kyoko.
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