Grand Blue Dreaming, Vol. 1

ぐらんぶる [Grand Blue] #1

by Kenji Inoue, Kimitake Yoshioka (Artist)

After moving out on his own to a seaside town, Iori Kitahara makes a college debut he never anticipated. A new chapter of his life unfolds, full of diving with beautiful girls and shenanigans with a gaggle of lovable bastards! Idiot expert Kenji Inoue and au-naturel authority Kimitake Yoshioka bring you a glorious college tale filled with booze-fueled antics!

Genres: Manga, Comics, Slice Of Life, Fiction, Comedy, Seinen, Graphic Novels

198 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 7, 2014

Reviews

[daph pink ♡ · Rating 3 out of 5]

a hilarious and outrageous jaunt full of naked muscular men with beer🍺 and their hilarious facial expressions.

If you want a good laugh just read it as for the story I really can't imply anything it's upto personal choice like you may like it or you may get offended by it depends on you.

For me it was definitely laugh out loud comedy with no particular plot or any liking towards any characters.

Not sure will read the next volume anytime soon coz I have so much to read. But will definitely read it in future.👍🏻

[Jokoloyo · Rating 3 out of 5]

I just wish the story can get more diving content, but from my friends told me and other reviews, the content still more focus on ecchi/romantic comedy themes, and have more drinking scenes than diving scenes.

For plus side, the art for underwater views are gorgeous. Maybe drawing the sea takes more effort so the creators saves their energy by focusing stories on college students slice-of-life rom-com theme.

[Elizabeth (Elzburg) · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was indirectly recommended this by the folks over at /r/manga, with promises of funny comedy and faces. I was further intrigued by the fact that it’s labeled as a “sport” manga, and because I am extremely obsessed with the ocean. So I was hoping for lots of diving action and lots of sea imagery. Guess what? There was none. Almost.

Grand Blue is about Iori, a first year university student who chooses to go to a university in a beach town far from his home. He’s going to be staying with his two cousins and his uncle who owns a diving shop. Not knowing how to swim, he is out of his element but is excited by the new adventures that await him in this new town.

As so eloquently said by one of the members of /r/manga, this is more of a drinking manga with diving, rather than a diving manga with drinking. Drinking is literally all they do. The second paragraph would more accurately read:

This series is about Iori, a first year university student who chooses to go to a university in a beach town far from his home. He proceeds to get drop dead wasted everyday for three days straight. Diving? Who mentioned anything about diving? No diving here folks, move along. Oh, unless you count that little bit of diving practice they do in a pool in the last chapter.

As of the writing of this review I have started reading the second volume so I know that they eventually DO go diving in the ocean, but still. The Drinking:Diving ratio is way off.


(They at least had the sense to show us some aquarium shots, which was very nice. I love the whale shark.)

This volume definitely did give me some chuckles, and there was an extreme abundance of weird faces… So much so that it actually became somewhat off putting. Like, the characters make weird faces more than they just have their normal faces. That’s just… Weird… And I’m someone who loves a good funny face, okay? But I guess this is like one of the reasons ecchi series are so annoying. Too much of a good thing ruins the magic and causes it to lose its lustre. I actually ended up using this series as a how to do funny faces the wrong way over on my review of the Juliet of Boarding School One-shot. Here's an excerpt of that:

What Grand Blue did wrong in my opinion was that their funny faces were basically just the characters contorting their faces and looking extremely ugly all the time, which was fun at first, but got old really quick.

It looked like the artist just googled "ugly faces" and drew those, because he completely rearranged the characters' faces and made them unrecognizable, further contributing to their offputtingness. If you want to know more about funny faces done right, click on the link above to read my other review.


(All that being said, this was my favourite face //shot)

Speaking of ecchi, it’s kind of funny (in a not funny way) that this is like a reverse ecchi. I saw this described as ecchi, and was not impressed, but tried it anyway. But, instead of naked women everywhere, there are naked men everywhere (onset by the previously mentioned drinking that happens 24/7)! Kinda weird, honestly, but whatever. (Censored, by the way.)

The people who enjoy this series enjoy it because they like the comedy, and the bromances between the characters resonate with them. In this way I feel like I may have been out of the target demographic. This is such a “bro” series. I think you’ll probably enjoy it more than me if you’re a man. (Don’t get scared by the naked men, it’s all in good bro fun.) This series just ended up being totally not for me, but that doesn't mean it won't be for you. I've heard that if you enjoyed Prison School you'll enjoy this, and from what I've seen of Prison School I agree with that. I also did not enjoy Prison School, so there's that.

I left this volume still feeling inclined to keep reading and see where all this drinking will lead to, so join me in my review of the next volume to see how well that went: Click here.

Please give this review a "Like" if you've made it this far, and follow me if you want more!

[James DeSantis · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is dirty, disgusting, somewhat juvenile, gross, and one of the FUNNIEST Manga's I've ever read.

Actually, in comparison to most Ecchie (Might be spelling that wrong) manga, it is tame. Where things like Prison School focuses on nearly naked girls and messy sexual encounters, this focuses on a guy joining a dive team (mostly against his will) while running into insane situations with his teammates making him drink and do outrageous shit.

Lori is the main character and he is too funny. He just wants to live a normal life and try to get college and maybe even meet a girl. However, his crazy-ass teammates force him into the craziest shit. On his first day of college, he wakes up on campus with just underwear on and goes to school like this. Obviously, funny shit keeps happening throughout including an over-the-top room makeover but it gets worse every time it is made over.

Listen. I can't even really describe everything that happens in this manga because it is bonkers but I was laughing so much I think my wife wanted to kill me. So there you go. Go read it.

5 out of 5.

[Shubhankar Sharma · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some jokes landed. Some didn't. Good start.
Waiting for it to take off.

[Nicholas Driscoll · Rating 2 out of 5]

Probably more of a two and a half, but not very good. I like he idea of a manga about diving. The facial expressions are pretty amusing. The romantic interest is cute. Some of the humor is kind of funny.

But the story is not very interesting. The main character is an idiotic kid going to college, and so he moves in with his cousins near the sea and gets dragged into becoming part of the local diving club. And his cousins are two hot girls. He falls in lust with both of them, but the sexier one already is in love...with the other hot cousin. (I don’t get it, either.) most of the humor revolves around the antics of the local diving club members, who constantly drink and party and get naked for no reason. Seriously, they are constantly getting naked, with night countless images of their muscular naked bodies and censorship balls covering their real balls. It’s really stupid, but combined with their often devilish and twisted facial expressions, I wonder if the artist was influenced by Attack on Titan.

So anyway... I read this because a student recommended it. One volume was enough. Though I did like some of the diving stuff and a few of the lines.

“You won’t get anywhere if you only try things you can already do.”

[Lynn · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is really soft core porn for older teen/early 20s boys/men. Full of near nudity, gross people who binge drink and act offensively. Really distasteful.

[Executionereniak · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm not saying that the world would be a better place if flashing your mighty member would be more socially acceptable, but...yeah, I'm saying exactly that. The world would be a better place if flashing your mighty member would be more socially acceptable.

[Alice4170 🌙 · Rating 4 out of 5]

4/5 ⭐
Omg the facial expressions had me dead 😂😂😂

[Facundo Torres · Rating 5 out of 5]

Muy pocas veces reconozco un manga que lo haya disfrutado, este es uno de esos. 11/10

[Facundo Mosquera · Rating 5 out of 5]

universitarios borrachos y en bolas = peak comedy

[LaPommequirougit · Rating 3 out of 5]

https://lapommequirougit.com/2021/03/...

Je remercie les Éditions Meian pour l’envoi de cette lecture. Hummm, comment vous expliquer mon ressenti ? Je n’ai pas détesté, mais ce n’était pas non plus un coup de cœur, cette lecture était sympa, mais je reste encore sur mes gardes.

Iori emménage chez son oncle pour sa rentrée universitaire. Ce dernier est propriétaire d’une boutique de plongée en bord de mer. Il est heureux, car sa nouvelle vie de jeune adulte commence enfin. Sauf qu’il va faire une rencontre étrange.

En effet, les jeunes qui font partie du club de plonger de sa fac veulent absolument qu’il fasse partie du leur. Problème, Iori ne sait pas nager. Autre souci, ces gars enchaînent les beuveries sans aucune retenue et finissent régulièrement à poil !

Alors, comment vous expliquer l’humour de ce manga ? Il est particulier ! Je pense que cela ne plaira pas à tout le monde. De mon côté, j’ai bien aimé, même si je dois avouer qu’à certains moments j’étais en mode « euuuuuh, on m’explique ? ». Pour autant, le titre a du potentiel et je suis curieuse de voir comment cela va évoluer sur les prochains tomes.

En bref, c’est un manga atypique, mais qui se lit sans problème. L’humour ne sera pas fait pour tout le monde, mais s’il vous plaît je pense que vous passerez un excellent moment en compagnie de ce titre !

[Andrea · Rating 3 out of 5]

Si soy sincera este primer tomo no me ha gustado mucho. El manga nos cuenta la historia de Iori, un chico que tras graduarse de un instituto de chicos se muda junto a su tío a un pueblo costero para estudiar en la universidad. Allí sueña con pasárselo genial y disfrutar de la vida universitaria pero pronto se da cuenta de que la vida que el ansiaba no es como el quería al tener que convivir con un club lleno de hombres y tener que soportar todas sus novatadas. Mi mayor problema ha estado en que el manga creo que carece de trama, la historia se centra casi por exclusiva en las ganas de fiesta de Iori y en la preferencia por el nudismo y el exhibicionismo de los chicos que hacen submarismo. Es que básicamente en casi todas las viñetas no se habla más que de alcohól, chicas y fiestas. Otra cosa que no me ha convencido es el estilo del dibujo no es muy de mi estilo ya que creo que es un estilo más dirigido a un público masculino. En cuanto a los personajes decir que tampoco me convencieron, todos ellos me parecieron inmaduros y algo peculiares y excéntricos. En definitiva un manga que se lee rápido y que os recomiendo leer si os gustan las historias ligeras.

[Ash⭐ · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think It was really funny but It was kind of slow for me in the beginning, maybe because I didn't immediately click with the main character "Iori Kitahara". But a little closer to the end I started to get a feel for all of the main characters and I actually ended up enjoying it way more than I thought I would at the beginning. So I definitely want to pick up the second volume! It's a very funny manga, if you want a good laugh and you have the sense of human for this kind of series I definitely recommend checking it out!

[Jenny Clark · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was alright. It's honestly mostly stupid humor that had me eye rolling more than anything. I am interested in seeing more about the diving, and I did actually find the boys hijinks in the pool funny. I'm not in a hurry to read more, but I'll continue with what I have.

[Marcus · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wasn’t sure how to feel about it after chapter 1 but I quickly got wrapped up in the batshit antics and crazy misunderstandings of Iori and his newfound friends. It’s crass, it’s over the top, but also delightfully hilarious. Can’t wait to see what they get into for vol 2.

[Joanne Griffiths · Rating 2 out of 5]

Pierwsze zetknięcie ze wschodnim komiksem uważam za żenujące... Mam w planie przeczytać resztę części z tej serii, ale czuję, że to będzie czas trochę spisany na straty...

[Nina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun start to the new-to-me manga. plus I love diving and being at the dive shop when on vacation - so perfect fit.

[Casey · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not at all what I was looking or hoping for.

I don't find drinking until you pass out funny. I don't think playing pranks on people who do drink until they pass out funny. I don't think playing strip rock-paper-scissors funny.

The few pages of actual story telling could not save this one. If I had ANY hope of future volumes not being filled with the garbage of volume 1 I might consider continuing, but based on how many times I said to myself in vol. 1 that is just can't continue to turn the page into more of it... I have no hope of that. So Grand Blue I say good-bye to you.

Pity, as a diver I was really hoping for something more out of this.

[David Fournier · Rating 1 out of 5]

I can best summarize this book with the following words: dull, humorless, boring, and in-inspired.

[sar!!! · Rating 4 out of 5]

Finally getting around to actually reading this series, so i had to reread the first one! The characters are funny and I’ve heard good things!

[Enairolf · Rating 4 out of 5]

Depuis sa sortie au mois de Février, ce manga me fait de l’oeil. J’avais vraiment trop envie de découvrir cette histoire. Je sentais rien qu’à regarder les couvertures que ce manga serait placé sous le signe de l’humour. Et puis le thème de la plongée, je dois avouer que ça m’intrigue énormément. Ce n’est pas un thème que l’on croise souvent dans les mangas et je trouve ça hyper sympa justement! Après avoir fini le premier tome, je n’ai qu’une envie me jeter sur toute la série. Je suis hyper fan de ce manga et pourtant je n’ai lu que le premier. Mais je suis entièrement conquise!

Dans ce premier tome, on va suivre le personnage de Iori qui emménage chez son oncle puisqu’il va faire son entrée à l’université. Son oncle tient une boutique de plongée au bord de l’océan. Iori est plein de bonne volonté et a hâte de commencer sa vie d’étudiant, il se voit déjà draguer une tonne de meufs, faire énormément de soirées. Mais il ne s’attendait pas le moins du monde à se faire recruter de force dans le club de plongée totalement désinhibé de sa fac qui enchaîne les beuveries chaque soir! Et le pire dans tout ça? Iori ne sait pas nager et a peur de l’eau. Peut on vraiment apprendre à aimer la plongée si on ne sait pas nager?

La première chose que je retiens de ce premier tome c’est tout cet humour qui se dégage. Alors c’est sur que c’est le genre d’humour qui passe ou qui casse. Je peux comprendre que certains n’aiment pas ce genre d’humour, il peut parfois paraître lourd ou je ne sais quoi. Moi personnellement je suis hyper bonne cliente pour ce genre d’humour, vous pouvez être sûr que ça fonctionne avec moi sans aucun problème. MAis qu’est que j’ai ri tout au long de ma lecture! Sincèrement ça faisait longtemps qu’un manga ne m’avait pas autant fait rire! Mais vraiment. Les faces des personnages à certains moments, les situations dans lesquelles les personnages se retrouvent parfois. Enfin vraiment tout me fait rire.

Même si le thème principale est la plongée pour l’instant on ne fait qu’en parler. Mais à la fin du premier tome on voit que ça commence à rentrer dans le vif du sujet. Et j’ai très hâte d’en découvrir encore plus. Pou l’instant on parle surtout d’alcool et de beuverie. Et c’est hilarant parce qu’ils finissent systématiquement à poil! Mais j’avoue avoir hâte qu’on explore à fond le côté plongée. Les personnages sont hyper intéressants à suivre. Iori est très drôle et arrive toujours à se retrouver dans des situations carrément loufoques. J’ai beaucoup aimé également celui de Kôhei, avec Iori ils forment un duo pour le moins explosif! Tous les autres personnages sont très plaisants. Et le moins que l’on puisse dire c’est qu’on a une palette de personnages haut en couleurs! Impossible de s’ennuyer avec eux. Bien qu’ils se comportent très souvent de façon complètement immatures, quand il faut être sérieux ils savent l’être. Je me suis beaucoup attaché à cette bande d’ailleurs.

J’ai vraiment très très hâte de découvrir la suite de ce manga. J’ai vraiment passé un excellent moment durant ma lecture et je suis impatiente de remettre ça. Je sens que je ne vais pas m’ennuyer et que je ne vais pas arrêter de rire avec les tomes suivants. Il me tarde de me plonger dedans. J’ai hâte de voir si Iori va réussir à apprécier la plongée malgré sa peur ou tout simplement continuer à suivre ses péripéties. Une merveilleuse découverte que je ne regrette pas!

[Eva Blázquez · Rating 4 out of 5]

Me ha gustado, es una lectura entretenida a la par que divertida que se lee en un suspiro.

Si tuviera que resumir este manga sería: "una historia llena de fiesta, buen rollo y con un protagonista que salta de lío en lío sin quererlo".

Según empieza la historia, nos presentan a Iori, un chico responsable y sensato que tiene grandes planes para su estancia y época universitaria, pero en cosa de un capítulo esa imagen se empieza a difuminar, porque tanto sus actos como su forma de adaptarse al lugar distan mucho del Iori inocente del principio.

Hay dos cosas que llaman la atención en este manga, la primera te la encuentras en el dibujo de los personajes y su forma de vestir, y la segunda es que, aunque el protagonista se niega a hacer todo lo que le proponen los chicos del club, se deja engañar y convencer con una velocidad sorprendente.

Esto choca mucho con su prima, Chisa, que es quien pone la seriedad en esta lectura. En otras situaciones, Chisa no llamaría la atención del lector, pero aquí sí, es la más diferente de todos los personajes.

Por otro lado, tenemos las fiestas del club de submarinismo, que a mi gusto, son las escenas más divertidas de este manga. Mi preferida es la escena té/agua, la cual no tiene desperdicio.

En cuanto al final, te deja con ganas de ver qué le espera a Iori y si logrará ganarse la confianza de su prima Chisa en el siguiente tomo.

Reseña en el Blog Los Libros y Eva

[O. U. · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've read most of this series online, so I'm at a good place to review the story over all, rather than just the first volume. This series is some of the funniest shit I've ever read in my life.

First off, this series plays itself off to be a manga centered about diving, which is true, in a way, like how Always Sunny plays itself off to be a show about a bar. Those who come to this series expecting it to be solely focused on diving will leave incredibly disappointed. This, for the most part, is a college manga. The main character Iori is staying at his uncles diving shop while attending his first year of college, and gets annexed into the diving club by proxy. The diving club in their day to day is more about drinking than diving, but when the manga decided to focus on diving every now and then, it really takes a hard focus on it.

The characters are super memorable, and watching them interact with each other is exceptional. The comedy comes from the character interaction, and it's comedy is fucking LEGENDARY. There's no way this isn't a 5/5 for me. Check it out, I feel like it's going to blow up soon.

P.S. Chisa best girl.

[Marcella · Rating 2 out of 5]

Esse é um mangá anunciado como sobre mergulho, mas até agora se mostrou mais como um mangá de bebedeira e sexualização feminina. A arte, no entanto, é muito muito bem feita, o que me fez começar o volume dois logo e já terminar.
A história é sobre esse garoto Iori que vai para uma faculdade numa cidade litorânea. O tio dele é dono de uma loja de mergulho e é lá que o garoto passará a morar, logo quando chega ele é questionado sobre saber e querer mergulhar, ele afirma que tem interesse mas que não sabe nadar. Os primeiros dois volumes são sobre ele e os seus colegas que fazem parte do "clube de mergulho" ensinando o Iori a se acostumar com a água, com o equipamento e a ficar maravilhado com o mundo embaixo d'água. Entre mergulhos eles enchem a cara e jogam uma espécie de pedra papel e tesoura com Strip, onde cada vez que se perde se arranca uma peça de roupa.
Minha prima me viciou em mangás/webtoons de esporte depois de windbreaker e peguei esse na esperança de que me faria ficar animada com mergulho também.

[Alexis U · Rating 2 out of 5]

Finally finished this when it went up on Bookwalker. Probably more of a 2.5 stars. This is a weird one. The parts that are funny are REALLY ACTUALLY FUNNY. The facial expressions, the crazy antics, the wild characters, it's all great comedy. I actually laughed out loud at several points and had to put it down because I couldn't breathe. The otaku character is the only one that fell flat for me-- I just don't find lolicons or perverts funny. Similarly a lot of the more ecchi comedy could be tiresome (though the room decorating sequence was pretty good, I'll give it that.)

The parts of the manga that try to be a serious diving story are just really boring. It was so hard to get through the last few pages because I simply didn't care about the diving. This is a great drinking manga, but not a very good diving manga.

[Elijah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Note: This is my rating and review for the entire series

One of my favorite comedies ever. The jokes always land for me, and I was crying laughing multiple times. The main cast works so incredibly well with each other.

On the other hand, the slice-of-life aspects are also really well executed. Some of the actions performed by the protagonist had me yelling in cheers as I watched him defend his friends and their goals/dreams. I also really like the theme of exploring things you aren't used to in life, as you never know what you'll end up falling in love with.

There are romance aspects in this manga as well. It really kicks off in the later chapters, but still fails to interest me usually.

[Shayna Ross · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is such a mixed bag. For starters, despite being advertised as a sports manga, it really just isn't at all. The diving aspect is extremely minimal and seems to only be relevant during the times Iori is trying to get along with his cousin. Additionally, the romance factor here between family members can get really ICK at some points - this is, unfortunately, a somewhat common Japanese trope, but for American readers, it is more uncomfortable/unsettling. You can consider this manga to be more of a bro-friendship/welcome to college type deal, so if you love drinking, guys getting naked, and a lot of silly humor, this is definitely for you.

[Craig Schorling · Rating 5 out of 5]

I knew what I was getting into when I started reading this. I can absolutely see being disappointed in this if you are expecting a diving enthusiast manga. It is NOT that. It is a comedy about living life in college and everything is dialed up to such ridiculous lengths that I could not help but laugh non stop through this volume. The facial expressions from the artist is pure gold and some of the lines are classic. I know that comedy is all subjective but for me this was one of the funniest reads I have had in a long time.

[Annie · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was funny that the theme was about surfing, but the surfing house that the protagonist is living in did not feel matched. The book Grand Blue Dreaming has many funny and awkward jokes and scenes that make you feel as if you are the protagonist. I tend to think of myself as a part of the story, so as the protagonist faced extreme awkward and embarrassing situations, I will somewhat feel the same...