First Impressions: Hikaru No Go (Manga)
Manga: Hikaru no Go First Released: 1998 Genre: Sports, Shounen, Supernatural(ish)
I'll write “First Impressions” pieces when I haven't finished reading something, but I'm still excited to share it. Let me know what you think if you read it!
I'm always up for being Nerd Sniped into a new hobby. It can be quite dangerous – after I watched the whole of Haikyuu!, I attended a weekly volleyball meetup for 6 months and endured bruises, volleyballs to the face, and the shame from a complete inability to overarm serve. But I learned the basics, met people, and ultimately I had a blast. Unfortunately, the timing of the sessions wasn't ideal, and after a while, the next hobby came along. Due to a simple lack of time in the day, I stopped playing and did something else.
Anime and manga, on top of being mediums for great storytelling, excel at introducing me to new hobbies: sports, games, and skills.
So now I'm learning to play Go.
I credit this discovery to this toot by @Dio9sys:
I'm currently about 30 chapters in to Hikaru No Go, and so far, I'm thoroughly enjoying where the story is taking me.
Hikaru is a middle school kid, who, upon discovering an old Go board in his grandfather's shed, becomes possessed by a spirit named Sai. Sai was the Go tutor to an emperor 1000 years prior. Wanting nothing more than to play Go again after 1000 years, Sai coerces Hikaru to a local club, and proceeds to destroy all the competition there. Hikaru, at first wanting nothing to do with Go or the spirit, eventually becomes interested in the game and, more critically, becomes determined to win on his own merit.
The set up to a team tournament! Sports shounen enjoyers may recognise these facial expressions.
Thus begins Hikaru's real journey into the world of Go. So far, Hikaru no Go has all the elements that I enjoy in a sports manga. The struggle of learning; the wild and varied teammates, rivals, and enemies; and the insurmountable-seeming opponents along the way.
Despite being an older manga, the art style is clean and easy to follow, the characters and pacing seem good too. The translations I'm reading are questionable at best, but they're fine to follow.
I'm looking forward to continuing this read – since I'm quite early into what I think will be a long journey for Hikaru and Sai! I hear there's an anime too, but this is one where I'm enjoying the manga and want to see it through.