A Special Thanks To Viz Media and NetGalley for the ARC.
Finally! It’s a title I have been wanting to review but have been backlogged due to other priorities. Haruichi Furudate’s Haikyu!! Is one of the most recommended Shonen manga for new readers, and one of the most popular sports titles on the market, inspiring many to take up Volleyball, tributes to the teams in real-life matches, an anime consisting of four seasons, four films, five OVAs, video games, etc. It has also won the 61st annual Shogakukan Manga Award in the Shonen category. Aside from all of this, be sure to sit back and enjoy my first dive into the world of Haikyu!!
You don’t need to be tall to fly! Something Shoyo Hinata aims to show the world as he chases after the dream of becoming the best Volleyball player in the world, after witnessing the legendary player known as “the Little Giant” compete at the national volleyball finals. After playing his first and last match against the King of the Court, Tobio Kageyama, Hinata swears to become Kageyama’s rival after graduating from middle school. But the guy he wants to defeat ends up becoming his teammate at Karasuno High School! The two will have to prove themselves capable of playing together if they want to have a future playing volleyball.
The dream of our protagonist is something very relatable, especially those who are in sports. Hinata’s loss against Kageyama fueled his resolve to defeat and avenge his loss against his newfound rival, the story gained depth as it started to get deeper into the first volume, discovering that he’ll be Kageyama’s teammate at Karasuno High School. It added an extra twist to the story, as the two former rivals have to learn how to cooperate and harness their combined skills.
The first three volumes do a great job of establishing the main characters, showing what motivates them, and what makes them stand out from each other. Hinata’s energetic personality and Kageyama’s precision and rigid attitude offer a different dynamic. It does, however, rely on some familiar sports tropes, but it offers unique moments and heartfelt moments to the story.
Aside from the story, the artwork is one of the manga’s strongest parts in portraying how intense sports can be (especially Volleyball, a team sport in two teams of six using not only their physical abilities but also their intellect and devise a strategy that helps them score points by grounding the ball on the other team’s court.) Furudate captures the intensity and how fast-paced Volleyball can be in his layouts and panels. A great eye for detail was put into each character’s designs mixes well with how expressive and distinctive they are. Finally, the Volleyball scenes are illustrated well, especially when depicting the sport.
Haikyu!! 3-In-1 Edition Vol. 1 is available now in stores and e-retailers, if you want to read more of my reviews, click here to head over to the Reviews Category.
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Final Grade:
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