Kare Kano

    (Tokyopop, 2003-2006)
™ and ©2003 Tokyopop
Printed in Japanese format; b&w

So far, the romances that TokyoPop have brought to America have been frothy, leavened with elements from either soap operas (Peach Girl) or sitcoms (Marmalade Boy), but Kare Kano is free of scheming witches or wacky antics. In the modern world, it’s hard finding a believable obstacle big enough to keep sweethearts apart, but Tsuda understands that, when it comes to romance, sometimes the biggest hurdles to happiness for lovers are the lovers themselves.

Kare Kano is refreshing on a lot of levels. The art, while attractive, is a lot less cute than in much manga—appropriate, given the more serious subject matter. For once, a Japanese high school is shown to be a pressure cooker where students have to find the courage to be themselves in a world that obsesses on appearance. There’s a genuine emotional honesty at work here that makes the reader connect to the characters, and there’s a risk involved in their relationship that makes the reader see it as more than just a juvenile school flirtation.

— S.A. Bennett
Jump to issue:
  NotesWriterArtist
#11

September, 2004
Cover Price: $9.99
2 copies available from $8.00 		Masami TsudaMasami Tsuda