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Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken! / 映像研には手を出すな! #1
Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken!, Volume 1
Midori loves to design worlds. Tsubame loves to animate. Sayaka loves to make money! And at Shibahama High, they call them Eizouken--a three-girl club determined to produce their own spectacular science fiction anime!
But with no budget from their school and a leaky warehouse for a studio, Eizouken is going to have to work hard and use their imagination...the one thing they've got plenty of! Now an anime series from Masaaki Yuasa, director of the Netflix fan favorite Devilman Crybaby, Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken! was nominated for the Manga Taisho Award as one of the 10 best new manga of 2018!
But with no budget from their school and a leaky warehouse for a studio, Eizouken is going to have to work hard and use their imagination...the one thing they've got plenty of! Now an anime series from Masaaki Yuasa, director of the Netflix fan favorite Devilman Crybaby, Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken! was nominated for the Manga Taisho Award as one of the 10 best new manga of 2018!
168 pages, Paperback
First published January 12, 2017
15 people are currently reading
254 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 52 reviews
November 4, 2020
3.5 rounded up because it captures the idea of imagination and its role in the creative process so well. Also it's dedicated to my late editor and friend, and that made me happy in a sad way.
March 6, 2021
I need the second volume asap!!!
November 13, 2021
Three students--two ardent anime fans, and one natural manager--form a school club dedicated to the creation of anime. Their trials in creating a three-minute demo reel to justify their club's budget are almost certainly callbacks to Gainax's early days, when the men who became the primary producers of that company were teens.
This manga is absolutely brimming with visual imagination and a vivid sense of place. The creator's love for the anime that these students also love bursts off the page. Someone who's inclined could take hours ferreting out little details in the backgrounds and the designs created by Asakusa.
The Eizouken characters are all girls, and this is completely insignificant. I can say at least, that there isn't a mawkish paternal gaze on them (as I tend to feel from healing type stories with an all-girl cast), nor a sexualized one, either, so that's good. At the same time, they could just as easily be boys, or anthropomorphic animals. They aren't so much characters as vehicles for showing us the processes behind garage-band-like anime.
It reminds me a lot of the Nausicaa manga in the level of lavish detail and the sense of a whole, visually created world, and also in being rather dry as a story. Sense of wonder and world building prevails over character, which diminished my enthusiasm as a reader significantly. I will never be interested in the micro level of detail that goes into mechanical designs, for example. But for those who are fascinated with such things, and/or the technical aspects of adventure anime from the '70s and '80s, this has a good chance of being a winner.
Four pages of detailed footnotes add context, and this volume could be a good jumping-off point for new fans, although unfortunately one of Eizouken's major inspirations is not readily available in English. Three and a half stars, rounded up.
This manga is absolutely brimming with visual imagination and a vivid sense of place. The creator's love for the anime that these students also love bursts off the page. Someone who's inclined could take hours ferreting out little details in the backgrounds and the designs created by Asakusa.
The Eizouken characters are all girls, and this is completely insignificant. I can say at least, that there isn't a mawkish paternal gaze on them (as I tend to feel from healing type stories with an all-girl cast), nor a sexualized one, either, so that's good. At the same time, they could just as easily be boys, or anthropomorphic animals. They aren't so much characters as vehicles for showing us the processes behind garage-band-like anime.
It reminds me a lot of the Nausicaa manga in the level of lavish detail and the sense of a whole, visually created world, and also in being rather dry as a story. Sense of wonder and world building prevails over character, which diminished my enthusiasm as a reader significantly. I will never be interested in the micro level of detail that goes into mechanical designs, for example. But for those who are fascinated with such things, and/or the technical aspects of adventure anime from the '70s and '80s, this has a good chance of being a winner.
Four pages of detailed footnotes add context, and this volume could be a good jumping-off point for new fans, although unfortunately one of Eizouken's major inspirations is not readily available in English. Three and a half stars, rounded up.
November 27, 2022
Asakusa is a pretty overwhelming character, between her chaotic energy and all her ideas throughout the book. She overwhelms the effect of the other two characters on the story, but their involvement in making the eizouken club function is very important.
The transitions between reality and Asakusa's imagination were very cool and would translate well into an anime. If I continue with this story, it will likely be in that form.
The transitions between reality and Asakusa's imagination were very cool and would translate well into an anime. If I continue with this story, it will likely be in that form.
August 27, 2025
spectacular if you want to read hijinks with the most realistic teenage characters in manga/anime you’ll ever see AND an infodump about the anime-making process on the same page
(I still think the anime is slightly better, but only because it works more in the form the story is centered around, y’know?)
(I still think the anime is slightly better, but only because it works more in the form the story is centered around, y’know?)
December 7, 2023
This was cute and the creative aspects of it were really interesting. I probably wouldn’t continue with this series if I didn’t have to, but I don’t dislike it in any way.
September 6, 2021
Eizouken is one of my favorite anime series, and now it’s become one of my favorite mangas too! The main trio have such good chemistry together, this was such a fun read!! Not to mention the “imagination” sequences were drawn so well!! I could go on and on about how much I loved this book ♡
November 26, 2020
Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken! is one of those clever mangas that you either get or not. For me it's somewhere in between. I do like anime, but I'm not a hard core fan (I'm more of a manga monster) and thus keeping up with this took time and effort. Midori, Tsubame and Sayaka have their own club that wants to produce anime and they try to get their club funding and this is what the first part is mostly about. The manga is full of jokes and snippets of info and I'm glad there's the info pages at the back of the volume, since I missed most of stuff. Oowara is amazing at combining reality with imagination and the flow from one to another is beautiful. It's fast and not logical, but somehow perfect and right where it's supposed to be. The structure could've worked better though, as in the rhythm is slightly off at times and the lack of coherence makes this messy. Slowing down the pace when it comes to the visual skyrocketing would've helped.
The manga isn't for casual readers I'd say. It looks wonky and fun, but it's heavy and meaningful at the same time, which makes it hard to grasp if the topic isn't your favorite cup of tea. I think this would've looked awesome in colors and somehow I think the anime probably works better, although I haven't seen it. Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken! isn't just about the images and story, but much more and I'm glad that the topic is the actual making of animation in a realistic manner, but not from the industry's point of view.
The manga isn't for casual readers I'd say. It looks wonky and fun, but it's heavy and meaningful at the same time, which makes it hard to grasp if the topic isn't your favorite cup of tea. I think this would've looked awesome in colors and somehow I think the anime probably works better, although I haven't seen it. Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken! isn't just about the images and story, but much more and I'm glad that the topic is the actual making of animation in a realistic manner, but not from the industry's point of view.
January 1, 2022
As soon as I saw this had been translated into English, I knew I had to have it. I watched and properly fell in love with the anime so I'm really glad to be reading the source material (especially since we'll have to wait until at least 2023 for more of the anime, if we get more at all!).
The characters in this are so loveable and I love the style of the art. This is a slice of life manga, so not always really exciting but just seeing them get excited and fall into the worlds they're imagining is exciting in itself. The dialogue is so funny and the little diagrams and maps of the ideas the girls have is so interesting to read. I didn't really get a chance to have a proper look at these in the anime so it was nice to be able to read them all properly and study them a bit more to understand what they were making better!
This manga is so full of passion for animation and creativity. It's funny and wholesome but also just captures what it's like to be a teenager full of big dreams and bursting with ideas. I highly recommend this one.
It was also my first time reading a manga and I was able to follow the right to left really easily, so if you're new to manga, don't be scared!
The characters in this are so loveable and I love the style of the art. This is a slice of life manga, so not always really exciting but just seeing them get excited and fall into the worlds they're imagining is exciting in itself. The dialogue is so funny and the little diagrams and maps of the ideas the girls have is so interesting to read. I didn't really get a chance to have a proper look at these in the anime so it was nice to be able to read them all properly and study them a bit more to understand what they were making better!
This manga is so full of passion for animation and creativity. It's funny and wholesome but also just captures what it's like to be a teenager full of big dreams and bursting with ideas. I highly recommend this one.
It was also my first time reading a manga and I was able to follow the right to left really easily, so if you're new to manga, don't be scared!
February 6, 2021
Having seen the anime, I’d wondered whether the passion for animation could be captured in still form - turns out, it can. Watching these girls reminds me of my high school days, carrying around a tablet of graph paper to class so that I could write in it whenever I wanted to, notes, fragments of stories, ramblings, sketches. The bursts of creativity, the way everything around you inspires the most random thoughts.
In addition to the creative part, having the characters talk and obsess over animation is so endearing and relatable, too.
The editor dedicating this volume to Zac Bertschy was a gut-punch; I still can’t believe he’s gone.
In addition to the creative part, having the characters talk and obsess over animation is so endearing and relatable, too.
The editor dedicating this volume to Zac Bertschy was a gut-punch; I still can’t believe he’s gone.
August 25, 2022
20220825 紙本送給弟弟作退伍紀念
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20220602購入KOBO版
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漫畫是靜態的，要表現動畫的感覺還是有些吃力
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20220602購入KOBO版
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漫畫是靜態的，要表現動畫的感覺還是有些吃力
October 24, 2021
Probably one of my new favorites, just judging by the first volume. It's dripping with creativity and really takes advantage of it's comic medium.
Art: The character art itself is pretty simple yet still expressive. The character designs are all pretty good, I love Asakusa's hat and backpack, and Kanamori's constant grin. The backgrounds are very beautiful. In a way it kinda feels like Eizuouken themselves drew the comic. I like the skewed speech bubbles as well. The best part is the imagination scenes. I feel like alot of manga can learn from this. You can add so much life into what character activities through this. It's not just them animating, they're imagining a whole world around it. The visual comedy's pretty good as well.
Character: I love our main three. They all have distinct personalities and play really well of eachother. They're a fun team to read.
Story: The story is held up by it's oozing creativity. It revolves around the team's wild imaginations, making the more mundane stuff interesting. It's mostly about just getting the club together and their shenagins. With some stuff about passions for animating thrown it. The story is so simple but the comic is so well done, it saves itself from just being a turn your brain off read. I think the story can only get better.
Not much I can say since this is just a very good read.
Art: The character art itself is pretty simple yet still expressive. The character designs are all pretty good, I love Asakusa's hat and backpack, and Kanamori's constant grin. The backgrounds are very beautiful. In a way it kinda feels like Eizuouken themselves drew the comic. I like the skewed speech bubbles as well. The best part is the imagination scenes. I feel like alot of manga can learn from this. You can add so much life into what character activities through this. It's not just them animating, they're imagining a whole world around it. The visual comedy's pretty good as well.
Character: I love our main three. They all have distinct personalities and play really well of eachother. They're a fun team to read.
Story: The story is held up by it's oozing creativity. It revolves around the team's wild imaginations, making the more mundane stuff interesting. It's mostly about just getting the club together and their shenagins. With some stuff about passions for animating thrown it. The story is so simple but the comic is so well done, it saves itself from just being a turn your brain off read. I think the story can only get better.
Not much I can say since this is just a very good read.
November 17, 2020
As great as the anime it spawned. If you're at all creative, or considering pursuing an artistic career, boy is Eizouken ever for you. It's down-to-earth in its portrayal of the exigencies of artistic endeavours, while whimsical and even breathtaking in the flights of fancy Asakusa so vividly pulls Kanamori and Asakusa into. The art is deceptively absorbing, the comedy great, and Oowara captures some key moments I think anyone who's ever wanted to craft a story has gone through before.
Features an ace translation by I Am a Hero translator Kumar Sivasubramanian. Also includes in-depth notes by the editor and translator at the back of the volume detailing easter eggs, and some history behind Dark Horse publishing the book. For better or worse, the anime is over. I'm quite pleased I'll nonetheless be able to follow Asakusa and Co into their shared future. Thanks Dark Horse!
Features an ace translation by I Am a Hero translator Kumar Sivasubramanian. Also includes in-depth notes by the editor and translator at the back of the volume detailing easter eggs, and some history behind Dark Horse publishing the book. For better or worse, the anime is over. I'm quite pleased I'll nonetheless be able to follow Asakusa and Co into their shared future. Thanks Dark Horse!
June 22, 2025
This was a fun series about three girls that want to make anime. There's a lot of "highschool girls with a hobby" or the "cute girls doing cute things (cgdc)" genre, this is much more on the the informational and hobby focused side of things with the characters having eccentricities, but not focused on moé. They frequently have tangents about the realism and mechanics of the things they're imagining. While it frequently involves female characters interacting with eachother, it technically meets the broadest definition of the schoolgirl yuri genre (the platonic kind), but I wouldn't really consider it in the category as they're focused more on the hobby they have rather than bonding.
The anime adaptation covers a lot of the same content, and helps since a lot of the topics are about capturing motion in drawings... and the musical intro and dance is fun.
The anime adaptation covers a lot of the same content, and helps since a lot of the topics are about capturing motion in drawings... and the musical intro and dance is fun.
June 9, 2021
3.5 stars
Kanamori what is it like to carry the entire series on your shoulders?
Okay, to be fair, the manga is good and the three main girls are all well-written. They complement each other’s personalities and it is interesting to follow their interactions. Also I like the way we as readers are inserted in the wild imagination of the girls. Visually it’s well done!
But Kanamori is an icon, a legend.
I’ve loaned the volume from my library. If they happen to acquire the next volume I will for sure pick it up but I won’t go out of my way to seek out vol.2.
Kanamori what is it like to carry the entire series on your shoulders?
Okay, to be fair, the manga is good and the three main girls are all well-written. They complement each other’s personalities and it is interesting to follow their interactions. Also I like the way we as readers are inserted in the wild imagination of the girls. Visually it’s well done!
But Kanamori is an icon, a legend.
I’ve loaned the volume from my library. If they happen to acquire the next volume I will for sure pick it up but I won’t go out of my way to seek out vol.2.
August 27, 2021
a super fun easy read. I loved the characters (especially the crazy little one) and their funny witty dialogue. I was never bored reading this and i really felt like i was in their world (mostly because some panels LITERALLY took us into their world of ideas). Definitely something i would reread! Hey! I just realized this was my first ever manga! what a great start, i can now see why people are obsessed. Cant wait to read the next volume.
February 8, 2022
This one started a bit awkwardly, but really settled in by the end, especially as it starts to go more in depth with how anime is made. I also appreciated that this tankobon contains a whole story with a conclusion while still setting up future volumes. The art was terrific and the characters started to come into their own in later chapters. Most of the humor was a miss for me, though, relying heavily on that scattershot goofy chaos style manga defaults to so frequently.
July 21, 2022
Not gonna lie I only picked this up for the Black character that I saw in the later chapters. Black representation in manga is super rare but even so it was not enough to keep me reading this boring story. It gets too technical about anime production and stays there which for me, as anime lover I appreciated the effort but it killed the plot progression fast. If your more focused on art imitating real life you may love this one.
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December 10, 2022i wish i liked this manga more than i did :'( maybe because the central focus of the story felt too... administrative (?) to feel like i could enjoy the fullness of Oowara's world (which is so intricately crafted and subtly imaginative), i found myself reading to just get it over and done with. the anime panels are crazy beautiful though. the editor's notes at the end re-piqued my interest: maybe i should do some more research before reading the second one.
July 18, 2025
I read this with my YA kid a year or two after we watched the anime, and we agreed the story works best as an anime.
Although we don't plan to buy the other volumes, we did enjoy a reunion with the characters and story (this volume covers only part of the anime series). We laughed out loud over grumpy Kanamori in Chapter 6, and really "creativity for the win" parts of the plot in chapter 4 and 7.
Although we don't plan to buy the other volumes, we did enjoy a reunion with the characters and story (this volume covers only part of the anime series). We laughed out loud over grumpy Kanamori in Chapter 6, and really "creativity for the win" parts of the plot in chapter 4 and 7.
September 28, 2025
I'm grateful this got a single anime season, so that I could picture those characters as I read the rest of the manga.
Eizouken is either a contender or outright winner for:
* Best manga high school
* Best near-future manga society
* Best ruthless capitalist in manga (in literature?)
* Best portrayal of the creative process in manga (in literature?)
And a bunch of other categories besides. And the author makes it all look easy.
Eizouken is either a contender or outright winner for:
* Best manga high school
* Best near-future manga society
* Best ruthless capitalist in manga (in literature?)
* Best portrayal of the creative process in manga (in literature?)
And a bunch of other categories besides. And the author makes it all look easy.
June 22, 2021
Definitely intriguing despite not having seen the anime. Loved the idea of the team collaborating and all the detail involved in the process. I have a feeling the wide, expansive trips through their imaginations would be more awe-inspiring animated, but it's pretty amazing here as well. Characters seemed fun and hope we'll learn more about them as things move on!
July 12, 2021
I think the anime is a more effective medium (because it's *about* animation and it just makes sense to see it, you know, animated), but I still love these characters. The benefit of reading the manga is being able to see all of the comments on the designs and the translation notes. I'm looking forward to the ongoing story!
December 12, 2021
Great manga about three high school girls who form an anime club. The girls are free of the usual shoujo-manga neuroses and just enjoy being together, and they really come alive when they start creating manga together. Funny and engaging, this series was one of my picks for best manga of the year and I'd highly recommend it to any manga lover.
April 18, 2023
Love the trio of personalities created here. Some great details that evoke movement and depth. I feel like it took me longer to read than a volume of manga usually does - there's not a ton of dialogue, but it's visually very dense! I'd be super interested to see the anime version (which does exist!).
August 9, 2025
Loved the humour in this. Reminded me a lot of Giant Days. The art is gorgeous. Threw me back to 80s/90s/early 2000s styles that I don't see so much anymore. It's also a neat look behind the door at the thought process that goes into animation. It makes me curious to Che k out the anime too, to see if it's as lovingly rendered.
October 28, 2021
It's a manga about aspiring high school animators. At style is a bit rough in their real world but when they go into imagination or animated worlds its really good. Mangaka is better at drawing things than characters. Story is decent but sometimes the manga is alphabet soup.
April 21, 2023
It was fine. It’s just not my thing. I’m not fond of the art style, but that’s my personal preference. I did really enjoy how it seamlessly moved in and out of the characters imaginations though. That was pretty cool.
August 17, 2024
Great at visualizing imagination and creativity, and more or less realistic about the process of making amateur animation. A little dry otherwise, and none of the three main characters felt like fully realized peopled.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 52 reviews