Hikaru no Go 17

Yumi Hotta / Takeshi Obata – Viz – 2009 – 23 volumes

Every time I read a new, non-Isumi volume of Hikaru no Go, it always reminds me of everything I love about manga.  Quirky subject matter that I get interested in because of characters I care about.  Literally, I love these characters so much that I can sit and watch them play Go.  And love every second of it.  This volume was exciting, sad, uplifting, reflective… everything great about Hikaru no Go.  This series will always stand as one of the absolute best Shounen Jump has to offer, in my opinion, and this volume is a pretty good representation of why.

It starts in the middle of the game between Isumi and Hikaru, and Hikaru has a rather heartbreaking revelation that gives him his second wind.  Randomly, he rushes off to the Go Association and lets Akira Toya know, right then, that he is back in the game.  While this is going on, Kuwabara explains that it takes two to play Go, and that Hikaru and Akira will always need each other to play Go against.  It is one of the most touching moments in the series, and comes on the heels of Hikaru’s revelation, which is also quite touching.

The meat of the story in the volume is the buildup and eventual game between Akira and Hikaru as the first stage in one of the tournaments.  It’s put off because of Akira’s schedule, which gives Hikaru time to play several other pro matches and get people talking about him again.

The game itself is another one of those things that the entire series builds up to.  Akira mentions it himself, but the two have not played each other at Go in years, a fact which comes as something of a surprise since their rivalry is such a major plot point.

The game itself is something of a surprise.  I loved the storytelling technique employed at the end, where the outcome was not known.  The outcome didn’t matter.  With all the buildup that happened throughout the volume, the game was highly anticipated, and it was exciting to watch.  It’s also fun to watch the two boys banter back and forth, mostly because Hikaru is so rowdy and Akira so polite that he doesn’t know how to react.  Their friendship/rivalry is one of the most interesting I’ve come across in any series, simply because they aren’t quite friends and don’t even speak to one another frequently, but still mean so much to each other.

After the game, the last chapter in the book was a dream Hikaru had that was so sad that it actually got a couple tears out of me.  It was pretty blatantly trying to milk sympathy, but all the same, it was extremely effective.

And there you go.  There are all the reasons why Hikaru no Go will always be one of the best Shounen Jump series ever.  The next volume is a volume of short stories starring side characters, and then after that, we get a rather long and, from what I recall, disappointing plot dealing with a Korea/Japan/China youth Go tournament.  I almost wish the series ended with this volume (the proper resolution that I’ve been mentioning for the past several reviews), but all the same, I can’t help but be sort of excited by this last story arc, which might be better if I read it all the way through.

This was a review copy provided by Viz.