Megatokyo, Volume 1: "relax, we understand j00"

MegaTokyo #1

by Fred Gallagher, Rodney Caston

This re-issue of this highly successful Megatokyo Volume 1 brings fans a new and revised version of the book with improved print quality and a larger trim size. This book will contain all the comics from Chapter 0 as well as the running editorial comments featured in the original release. Exclusive to the Dark Horse reissue will be additional drawings, historical notes, and selected rants from this first developmental year of the Megatokyo webcomic.

Genres: Manga, Comics, Graphic Novels, Fiction, Webcomic, Humor, Fantasy

144 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2003

Reviews

[Kinsey Breland .: avid_midnight_reader :. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really liked the main plot of this manga, but all the author notes got to be a bit much. Some of it was interesting about the process the co-creators went through. It just tended to take you out of the story a lot of time.

Same with the weird stick-figure, side story. This manga had started out as a website story and apparently, at some point, the main artist for the works got sick and/or busy with other daily activities, and had to sit out for a couple weeks. During that time, his co-creator stepped in to make this strange stick-figure, random filler story that had absolutely nothing to do with the actually storyline.

Other than that, I really liked this first volume.

[Selena Pigoni · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ah... Megatokyo... The story of two morons who went to Japan. Largo, with his loose grip on reality, and Piro, the levelheaded guy who can speak Japanese but doesn't quite understand what's going on. It's kind of like Big Bang Theory, but with more otaku, and it came first.

Good for laughs, but sometimes it gets serious. I didn't care as much for the serious stuff. I always looked forward to Largo and his strange thing (yes, I'm shallow :P). Forget Piro and his romantic troubles with three different girls. Give me Largo and his cardboard PH33R B07S any day.

It also has such wonderful characters as the angel and devil on your shoulder, Junpei the L337 N1NJ4, and Ping, the robot used for Real Life Dating Sims. The characters are fun, and so even through it all, you look forward to their next misadventure.

EDIT 9-7-13
Rereading it so many years later was really interesting for me. The first time I read Megatokyo I was in middle school. Now, as a college student with more knowledge of Japan (having been there once) and with more anime knowledge, some of the jokes are funnier. I still will admit (and Fred Gallagher would probably roll his eyes if he saw this review) that I preferred the funny stuff to the drama known as Piro, though the drama has its place in the comic, too.

I also appreciated the comments from Piro a lot more than I did in middle school.

[Beth · Rating 3 out of 5]

My partner's been into this web series for 20 years now, and I've read the first bits of it once or twice, but it never really captured my heart.

This was one of the first U.S. web comics that got a lot of attention, and it's admirable that Gallagher has chugged away at it for this long, powering through "artist's block," several life changes, and the dizzyingly fast evolution of online life between these early strips and our current social-media algorithmic internet.

The initial story was obviously the product of two people who had very different ideas about what it should be, and it takes more or less until the end of this volume to find a firmer footing. (I really do not care for Largo's part of the story, which is predictable and feels forced.) The art, as meticulously long as Gallagher took on it, looks sketchy and fannish--in addition, he seems much more interested in drawing women than he is men. :P

I'm curious to see if this story will stay firmly in the early 'aughts with its big blocky monitors, PS2s, and hat tips to anime like Excel Saga and games like Neverwinter Nights, or if it will move forward as the decades go along. Surely our nerdboy protagonists will continue to be early 20-somethings who inexplicably draw in gaggles of cute Japanese women, and won't shlub along into middle age as undocumented immigrants in Tokyo...

So did MegaTokyo manage to capture me this time? Nah, not really, though I'm willing to keep on with it for a bit longer. It's a fun time capsule of some of the major strains of fandom, tech, and the internet of its time period.

[Mario · Rating 4 out of 5]

Megatokyo is an online web comic, and this is the first collection of those comics. Since this is the first group of panels, you will get a good introduction to each of the characters. And while the story may not be nail-biting suspenseful, the characters will keep you reading.

Also, the art is fantastic! To me it is better then the Sailor Moon style anime most people are used to. The characters look as detailed the stories they are involved in. And if you end up liking the art more then the story you can always head over to Fred Art where he showcases more of his sketches.

In addition to the comic, there is a running commentary under many of the pages, that describe the genesis of that particular panel. For that additional commentary, plus being more portable then the online version, is a inexpensive way to get into the world of Megatokyo.

PS - This copy is actually out of print. You probably will want to purchase the new version, Megatokyo, Vol. 1, that has even more commentary, and additional sketches.

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

(rating/review for the entire series to date)

ah, good old Megatokyo.

Megatokyo is supposedly one of the most successful webcomics to exist though I read it in book format. the series is essentially about otaku and gamer nerds--tons of gamer jokes as well as anime puns. l337 anyone?

Megatokyo, though looking like manga, isn't really. it's American made thus not truly a Japanese product. so if you have a disdain towards anime/manga but are still curious, Megatokyo might be a nice place to start though again note that the gamer/otaku jokes are thick throughout the series.

I look back on Megatokyo with fondness--to me, the series is very reminiscent of my high school life. most of my core friends were hard core WOW/D&D/gamers and we would all act exactly like the characters in this series. though I was never any of those three things at that time, I knew all the lingo and other idiosyncrasies surrounding RPG life thus I get the humor of Megatokyo.

Megatokyo is a really fun and down-to-earth yet goofy series. the contrast between Largo and Piro is great and the art simple yet easy to follow. happily recommended for anime/manga/gamer nerds of the present.

[Adam · Rating 5 out of 5]

Obviously the books are only for die-hard fans, as the material is all available for free online, but Megatokyo holds a special place in my heart.

I hesitate to call this manga because of the art style, but I guess that's what it is. It's American manga.
Most manga that I come across is frustratingly sappy, or too juvenile, or too violent, or devoid of plot.

but Megatokyo is always funny, always intriguing and makes me beg for more after each read.

And then I discover only one comic is released every 3 days, and I put it aside, wait a year, and continue from where I left off. Only to become frustrated again.

Escapism at it's finest.

[Lindsey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Piro and Largo attempt to go to a gaming convention and in an attempt to make Largo see things his way Piro takes him to Japan. Except when they get there they have no money to get home. So they are then stuck in Japan with no definable way to get home since they keep spending their money on video games. They are socially awkward and have no skills with women which makes this an enjoyable and entertaining read.

[Taylor · Rating 4 out of 5]

So, I just found out that Fred Gallagher lives in Ann Arbor...woo hoo!
Anyway, I picked this up randomly at the library and I was hooked. I didn't realize it was a webcomic at first. I have read a bit of the series online but I actually enjoy reading it in print form more. The print volume, especially the first volume, gives you a lot of extra info [and rants] and is perfect for a megatokyo newbie.
The story is basically the randomly wonderful zombie, manga and video game filled adventures of Piro and Largo. They're two Americans stuck in Tokyo trying to save up enough money to buy a plane ticket back home. There are a ton of supporting characters like Seraphim, Piro's conscience and Ping a life-size female PS2 accessory. It's a really funny series - especially if you like manga and video games.

[melydia · Rating 3 out of 5]

The only reason I've heard of this long-running webcomic is because my husband has been friends with Fred Gallagher for umpteen years. This is the story of two Americans, Piro and Largo, who accidentally get themselves stranded in Tokyo. It's a fantasy - all the characters have real-life analogs - and in a lot of the early comics I felt like I was missing some inside jokes. I appreciated the commentary at the bottom of the earliest strips, even if there were some times when it was assumed the person reading was already familiar with all the characters and future storylines. The art is gorgeous and I'll probably read the later installments at some point, but I confess I was not sucked in by this first volume.

[Sean · Rating 5 out of 5]

Where the Saga begins. It follows are two nerds (Largo and Ping) through their misadventures in a Tokyo Japan that on those that a true "otaku" could understand. Was fist a web-comic now in paperback.

[Teeny · Rating 4 out of 5]

What happens when you put a moron and an otaku together

[Liz (Quirky Cat) · Rating 4 out of 5]

3 1/2 Stars.

I used to read Megatokyo ages ago, and I remember loving the series at the time. That’s why I decided to do a read through of the printed version (I had read it as it released in webcomic form) for my next round of Throwback Thursday reviews.
For those that haven’t heard of Megatokyo, it’s predominantly about two guys (aka idiots) whom are basically otaku and how they got themselves trapped in Japan. Their odd and hilarious nature has a way of constantly getting them wrapped up in new problems.
Megatokyo volume one has all of the material from chapter zero included. Since the first few hundred pages of the comic were done in square format, and thus don’t fit a book’s pages very well, the creator designed to include commentary on the bottom portion. Sometimes it is true commentary, talking about the image or idea involved, and sometimes it’s just witty banter or a joke. The inconsistency keeps it from getting old, and the additional commentary allows for extra insights I had missed with my read-through years ago (though it’s just as likely that I had forgotten a lot of that).



As mentioned above, Megatokyo focuses heavily on two guys (though there’s a ton of additional characters you’ll have to learn the names of); Piro is the main perspective for the story, he’s the more competent one of the two, can speak Japanese, but is horribly awkward and impulsive. Largo is…well he’s an idiot. He’s impulsive like Piro, brash, and tends to get himself in the sillier situations of the two of them. His messes tend to be on the more destructive side, where Piro’s usually result with him hiding from a girl or two.
Obviously being the first volume most of the time is spent establishing the two main characters as well as the supporting cast. It’s also where they get themselves trapped in Japan. You’re probably wondering how that happened. Well as it turns out Piro convinced a drunk Largo to fly to Japan with him (sans passport), where after a shopping spree they both learned they didn’t have enough money for a flight home. Between the fact that Japan is an expensive place to be in, and their impulsive (aka shopaholic) nature, they’re obviously struggling to come up with the cash that would get them home.
Most of the comic has aged well, with a few exceptions. When I first read the series I found all of the Leet speak talking funny, but on my second read through it’s just old and no longer as amusing. Oh how the times change. It’s funny now seeing them gush over older games, but really that’s bound to happen to any culturally relevant series as it gets older.
Megatokyo is a pretty light and amusing story, focusing more on character development and humor more than anything else. It’s great for a casual and funny read. I’m remembering more as I re-read it, so I’m finding myself looking forward to continuing onward.


For more reviews, check out Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks

[寿理 宮本 · Rating 4 out of 5]

I tag "zombie" since it's a theme in the book, even though I have doubts about the "zombies" actually being ones.

I also grabbed this version despite also finding a "standard" edition (this one has a dust jacket and is slimmer, though I didn't go page by page to tell the differences otherwise), since I hadn't actually read the web comic before, and if someone else wanted the (more) complete set, it's probably nicer to have all the books match than not.

That said, I both see why it became popular enough to be a staple in most lists of favourite web comics, especially in the early days of web comics becoming a thing, and I don't really get it.

Yes, it's about two friends (who don't appear to like so much as tolerate each other) who have misadventures and end up crashing with a third friend in Tokyo for what reason* but don't really do anything with their lives due to the overwhelming power of retail therapy.

It feels very standard for web comic fare, I guess. The most heavily cited inspiration for the web comic (to the point of including VERY well-rendered Gabe and Tycho as cameos) is Penny Arcade, which is similar but without the ongoing plot that Megatokyo has, and probably some other web comics I could name have a similar style, but I haven't read them to call them out specifically.

I do like the backgrounds, what times there are any; they're more impressive than the characters since Gallagher states he is an architect first, not as such an "artist" as most people would think of artists. That makes the web comic even more impressive, like how Dresden Codak is by a math major who just stubbornly kept drawing to get better at it.

I just barely follow web comics these days to keep up with one more. Heck, I keep DROPPING them when I find the effort of checking for updates to be more trouble than it feels worth.

Recommended for readers like me who would rather just get all the updates in one binge!

*The reason is co-creator Caston already owned the domain name and wanted to use it... yup.

[John Snell · Rating 4 out of 5]

I give this book a 4/5 stars.

Megatokyo Volume 1 is a collection of online web comics written by Fred Gallagher and Rodney Caston which features the duo of Largo and Piro, who get into adventures and mishaps on their unplanned trip to Tokyo. After Largo and Piro get kicked out of a video game convention in America, they drunkenly decide to take a trip to a Japanese video game convention. When they wake up the next morning in Japan, they quickly come to the realization that they do not have enough money to fly back to their homes. In response to this, they try to figure out ways to get back to the United States for the duration of the book.

I gave this book a 4 out of 5 stars because I don't feel like the book delivers any changing or interesting insight or ideas. I do not feel like this book changed me or my perspective as a person. However, this book is not intended to be read for reflection, deep thought, and analysis, but rather for entertainment and leisure.
To me, this book was humorous and kept my attention at the same level an interesting YouTube video would. The added commentary at the bottom of some of the book’s pages provides the reader insight into the author’s creative process. One who knows more about the author's other works and early internet culture would be able to derive enjoyment from re-reading the book. This book is more for someone who enjoys internet-style commentary on anime and manga culture and who also enjoys light-hearted storytelling. The book features funny segments and inside jokes suited for a group of people called "otakus", and even poking fun at them. Ultimately, my biggest criticism of this book is that it is amateurish in nature and lacks a well-developed storyline and plot. This reflects the limited planning of the series by the author.

[Gigi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Não sei mais de onde exatamente eu fiquei sabendo da existência de megatokyo, mas desde a minha primeira leitura em 2015 eu já fiquei fascinada por esse quadrinho. É relevante notar que muitos dos elementos que me atraíram (em especial a natureza caótica e abstrata do enredo) são precisamente os mesmos que desagradam àqueles que não gostam dele. Pra parte desse público, isso também é justificado pelo contexto externo à obra, da vida real dos autores, o qual é quase tão intrigante quanto o quadrinho em si e um fator importante pra infâmia que megatokyo recebeu ao longo dos últimos vinte e tantos anos.
Existe um tipo de estrutura de enredo que eu gosto de pensar como um ~ sobrenatural mundano ~, em que coisas fora da realidade acontecem simplesmente porque sim, sem explicações, pois no fim das contas elas não são necessárias (exemplos que eu tomo pra isso são scott pilgrim e o sonic da archie comics). Megatokyo é uma das minhas aplicações favoritas desse princípio, em parte por conta da grande escala em que as coisas acontecem, e em parte justamente por isso funcionar em função da subjetividade das ideias da história, as quais dependem das diferentes formas que cada personagem vê o mundo (é muito preocupante eu dizer que me identifico muito com o largo? Aliás, vida longa ao estilo l33t de ser).
Foram feitas decisões esquisitas pra certos pontos do enredo e há alguns trechos que repercutem umas tendências toscas de mangá e anime, mas eu relevo porque todo o resto é muito bom, e porque o autor parece ser um cara legal. E dito isso... Eu tenho sérias dúvidas que veremos o final da história, o que é compreensível, considerando o contexto pessoal desastroso do autor. Mas se ele conseguir, certamente vai ser uma conclusão a um pequeno trecho da história da internet, apesar de ela já não ser mais aquela terra mística e insólita de meados da virada do milênio.

[Claire Binkley · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am reading the print versions of everything the MegaTokyo people produced to catch all the after-the-fact messages. Why I didn't read these when I was 10 like it seems everyone else in my peer group did is beyond me. (The series came out at the millennium change.)

The art style, in my opinion, needed a bit of refining, at this point in the artists' careers. However, I laughed out loud several times. I am appreciative that the editors haven't just copy-pasted the site into the book then left it there, but that they have put a significant amount of effort into making it sensical in a printed format. This is a bit more refined.

It is just the same as you'd expect: comic book fans flying over to Japan, then... um... I don't remember if Largo spent all their money to get back on beer or whether Piro spent it all on art supplies, but somehow no money was left by the time their Japanese trip was coming to its conclusion and they wanted to go home to America.

If you want, you could go to the website to check how that resolved eighteen years ago, but I didn't. I read it here. I am learning about the whole thing post-factum through the books. Should they pursue plot or comedy? I think they effectively got both through this medium. I am getting the next volume when I go back to the library this weekend.

[Dominic · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is basically many webcomics put together to make one great story, with many jokes and references, which I did like about this series. The basic story is that 2 friends visit Tokyo and accidently spend all their money, which means they can't get back to America. This situation spawns many other funny situations. Now with the story out of the way let me talk about the characters, note; I'll be very basic about the two main characters. Piro is one of the two main characters, He is fairly shy and mainly try to get away from people, He knows how to speak fluently in Japanese from watching and reading large amounts of anime and manga. While the other main character is almost the complete opposite of Piro. Largo is...interesting, to say the least. He is very different, He's a gamer like Piro, He also drinks beer...a lot, even when they have no money, he still asks if Piro can run to the store to grab more beer. unlike Piro, He doesn't know Japanese, but he does know a sorta-language, called l33t, is where you replace certain letters with numbers, which is very funny sometimes. all-in-all I would say this is a "good read", I would read more or the series when I can find more of the books.

[Britt Halliburton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Based on a webcomic, a lot of the original integrity is preserved in this physical edition. This is great for fans of the original format, but I knew it would probably be a negative point for new readers unfamiliar with the original site.

I was there, Gandalf, all those years ago. Probably one of the earliest generation of MT fans, I remember avidly looking forward to a new installment... and being disappointed to see Shirt Guy Dom strips instead. They are often funny, but certainly not what most readers are here for. This is even joked about to the extent that this book has markings for you to cut out Dom's pages from the book entirely!

The square format pf the panels creates this blank space that Piro filled up with notes about the strips. Definitely interesting for the fans, but probably a distraction for manga-only readers.

You can see Piro's art improve across the span of this very book, more so compared with book 2. It is fascinating and an incredible success story. For me, there is a lot of warmth in me for this series, book 1 especially. I hope the unusual webcomic remnants doesn't put people off continuing with the series.

[Ανδρέας Μιχαηλίδης · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very weird, geek-centric and quite fun series, especially in the beginning. It was intensely based on the American fandom's concept of Japan from 20 years ago (hard to believe it's been that long...), but along the way its characters proved surprisingly complex, even the blunt and often unsympathetic Largo.

The webcomic continues to this day, although I find I cannot convince myself to read 8 years of installments (after the apparently final, 6th volume to be published in hardcopy).

Besides, as I have grown older I have fallen out of love with most otaku related things. I can appreciate how fun they once were, but the ones that can now hold my attention are pretty rare.

[Ren · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wow, these early comics were... Woof. It's kind of difficult to go back to the first chapter, because nothing makes sense compared to how things have been recently (within the last few years), but it's important for the context. It's interesting to me how this built from being something that was largely inspired by other webcomics of the day, and moved into a more manga style even during the first chapters. I will say, though, these are ones you can mainly skip out on owning, just read them online and start at book 2 unless you're a collector.

[Tiffany LaShay · Rating 2 out of 5]

This manga/comic wasn't what I thought it was going to be for some reason. In the beginning, the author(s) took way too much time to explain the why it was created. I also didn't like all the explaining at the bottom. By the time it started to be included in the story, I didn't care to go back and read it. Maybe I will try this book again in the future, but I didn't even want to finish it.

[Mandi Lynn · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a great intro book to the world of Megatoko. I originally started reading it online, and then discovered they were compiling the webcomics into graphic novels. This gives you a good intro to the two main characters, Piro and Largo, and the assortment of misfits that enter their orbit in Tokyo.

[Graham Barrett · Rating 4 out of 5]

(Read in 2005, review from 2023)

One of the first webcomics I read in middle school. There were better ones perhaps but I could identify with the main characters as I had recently returned from living in Japan for some time. The main character's name did inspire my high school gamertag.

[G∞p · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wanted to like this more than I did, really. It seems right up my alley, especially with the art. However it just seemed a bit *too* amateurish for me and the author a bit too egotistical, especially via the author notes. Had potential to be a cute 00’s piece but really didn’t hit it off for me

[.·:*¨ × Shannon♥Stelena&Bamon&Sydrian × ¨*: · Rating 4 out of 5]

I originally read this online years ago but it was nice to reread in book form. I like the extras, Fred's art has always been one of my favorites.

[Adrienne Organa · Rating 2 out of 5]

A little too weird for my personal taste, but it was chuckle worthy in a couple places.

[Sparky · Rating 5 out of 5]

Had me laughing. Hard.

[Cara Patel]

This just isn’t my sense of humour.

[Andrea · Rating 4 out of 5]

I absolutely love American artist Fred Gallagher’s MegaTokyo manga series. A graphic novel that’s easier on the eyes to read for newbies. I’m eagerly waiting for vols. 2-6 from the library. :)

[Cherney · Rating 3 out of 5]

If it wasn't for the reading challenge at the library I would never had read this book. Oh my heavens it was a lot of stupid.