アタックNo.1 1

アタックNo.1 [Attack No.1] #1

by Chikako Urano, 浦野千賀子

ATTACK NO.1 #01 ATTACK NO.1

Genres: Manga

280 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 1994

About the author

Chikako Urano (浦野千賀子) is a Japanese mangaka. She is best known for the series Attack No.1.

Reviews

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

Coming a few years before Aim for the Ace!, Attack No. 1 is somehow less well-known among English-language manga fans. That's a shame, because it in many ways is a more engaging, less frustrating story. Heroine Kozue is smart, strong, and untrampled; when mean girls (of which there are many) come for her, she capably turns things around and often befriends them. Her devotion to volleyball never overlooks the fact that it's a team sport, and she's unwilling to let anyone's ego get in the way. She's also something of a champion for the underdogs - after she transferred from Tokyo to her new middle school in the countryside, she was academically ahead of everyone, and people thought that she was just slacking off. The only students willing to befriend her were the "bad girls," and by a third of the way through the book, Kozue's taught them all volleyball, helped them bring their grades up, and shown everyone not to judge a book by its cover.

The plot moves at a good clip, and it's interesting to see so many of the issues with modern sports manga be so neatly raised and circumvented - cliques are dissolved, the jerk coach is being a jerk because he's trying to stop the infighting, parents are actively involved and concerned...it's a shame these didn't become staples of the genre, because for a series dating to the mid-1960s, this feels almost shockingly modern in its attitudes. There's some good old-fashioned early shoujo melodrama, but unlike many of the classics of the 1970s, the story doesn't linger over it. Add in some very cute mod outfits, and even the art is fun, even if Urano can't really draw action well.

It's probably apples-to-oranges to compare the manga to the only available way to (legally) experience Aim for the Ace in English, via its anime adaptation, but on the whole, this really holds up a bit better. Hopefully the official release of that anime can pave the way for at least the anime adaptation of this series, though what I'd really love is for publishers to take a chance on mid-century shoujo manga. This title should be at the top of the list.

[Alex · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's vexing that such a ground-breaking and defining masterpiece hasn't ever been translated into English. Oh well, poor Kozue goes through the wars here, starting out an arrogant little bugger but getting humbled and humbled again her spirit, a brutal coach, a brutal training camp and an impressive left hand really help show what her volleyball mettle is made of. This isn't just about volleyball though, it's also about the bearpit of high school rivalry where differences are slogged out and resolved on court. There's a long way to go (and the system I have for reading it in Japanese is slow going - but so worth it) but I'm here for her and being the first ever fully independent female manga and anime superstar. Thrilling stuff.

[Soobie has fog in her brain · Rating 2 out of 5]

2018.08.29
E adesso ci riprovo a leggere tutta la serie. Per la terza volta. Speriamo che sia il numero magico.

Sembra che l'autrice dedichi molto più tempo a disegnare gli occhi dei protagonisti piuttosto che a dare le proporzioni giuste ai loro corpi. Ogni tanto ci son delle pose che non stanno né in cielo né in terra.

Per il resto, confermo ciò che ho scritto sotto.

Lo raccomanderei? No. Se proprio uno vuole fare studi storici sui manga, allora si accomodi. Leggerlo per divertimento mi sembra difficile.

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2014.04.21
E adesso ci riprovo a leggere tutta la serie. Ci avevo provato appena uscita ma mi ero nauseata da sola. Il che forse non dice nulla di positivo a proposito della storia.

Allora. Sì, sono cresciuta con Mimì e Mila e non potevo fare a meno di leggere i manga da cui sono tratti. Quello di Mila, pubblicato da Star Comics, era decisamente mediocre e questo, beh, questo è vecchio. Si vede dal tratto, dagli occhi stellati, dai fiorellini che ogni tanto compaiono senza alcuna ragione di essere lì...

Ho sempre pensato che gli allenamenti cui si sottopongono gli atleti dei manga fossero passabili di un accusa di tortura. E anche qua gli allenatori non scherzano affatto. Roba che quando poi, andavo agli allenamenti di pallavolo, perché sì ho anche giocato a pallavolo, ci si sorprendeva perché gli allenatori fossero così buoni.

Il moralismo imperante del manga un po' disturba, anche se non so se disturbi solo me o anche altri occidentali. Il fatto che un banda di teppistelle sia tale solo perché prende brutti voti a scuola a causa dell'insicurezza proprio non mi sconfinfera. E soprattutto, la loro redenzione attraverso la pallavolo non è molto credibile.

Intanto ha fatto la sua comparsa anche il triangolo amoroso tra Kozue, Midori e Tsutomu. Vedremo, vedremo...

[Laura C.]

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