The first volume of an iconic 2000's romantic comedy manga!
Kouji Seo's "Suzuka" is an entertaining rom-com manga with all the right Japanese tropes fitting for the era it was released in. From the hilarious bickering between the main male and female character to the stylish Japanese cultural references, "Suzuka" is a refreshing blast from the past suited for those wanting to take a trip back to 2000's Japanese manga entertainment.
The story in this first volume follows a teenager named Yamato who moves in with his aunt in order to attend a new school located in Tokyo, which is very different from his original home in the mountain areas of Japan. He takes up an offer to work part-time as a cleaner/maintenance guy at her females-only spa business (hilarity ensues!), and eventually he ends up meeting a sporty girl student that he fancies named Suzuka. Both constantly argue with each other and Yamato finds himself constantly involved in awkward situations that make Suzuka misunderstand him. And yet, he feels that she somehow still likes when he is around her. Could this be the beginning of a sprouting love between the two?
In addition to Yamato and Suzuka, the manga contains wonderful side characters such as Yamato's girl cousin Miho, who is the daughter of his aunt and tries to keep Yamato company when she can, and two college girls that seem to get themselves in trouble with Yamato via reckless antics in his apartment and the spa. Later characters include another teenage boy who claims to be his friend, as well as a mysterious girl who is familiar with Yamato from the past. All characters connect with each other well and add to the comedy elements in the story.
The artwork is very well done, with attractive characters and very stylish backgrounds. Readers will appreciate the anime-esque character art style and feel that the characters are brought to life almost as if they were moving pictures. The background is detailed fairly realistically, so much so that the locales resemble real life parts of Japan.
The first volume of "Suzuka" is a great start for readers craving rom-com manga specifically from the 2000's. Fair warning though: This manga contains some nudity and adult situations, making it for mature readers only.