Real es la obra más personal y experimental de Takehiko Inoue, el autor de Vagabond y Slam Dunk. Ganadora del premio artístico Media Arts Festival del año 2001, cuenta una historia basada en el baloncesto, pero desde un punto de vista completamente diferente. La trama se centra en tres personajes, cada uno ligado profundamente al deporte y cada uno inmerso en un mundo completamente diferente que se conecta en alguna forma con el de los otros dos. Por un lado tenemos a Tomomi Nomiya, un macarra que ha perdido la oportunidad de jugar al baloncesto tras ser expulsado de su instituto. Por otro esta Kiyoharu Togawa, un atleta que queda confinado en una silla de ruedas al padecer una rara enfermedad en los huesos. Y finalmente tenemos a Hisanobu Takasahi, arrogante estudiante que ahora tiene el puesto de capitán del equipo del instituto de que Tomomi fuera expulsado. El estilo de dibujo de Inoue es absolutamente realista, del mismo nivel que el de Vagabond, pero con el plus de estar ambientado en el Japón moderno. Real es editado en España en tomos de más de 200 páginas en el mismo formato que el tankoubon japonés (igual al de Vagabond), cuenta con todas las páginas a color que incluye el original y trae aclaraciones de la traducción.
Strong characters with their distinctive personality. The faces that Takehiko Inoue draws .... so much thought so much emotion, you will rarely see this kind of style. One of a kind. Very special this one.
Real, Vol. 2 continues where the previous tankōbon left off and collects the next six chapters (7–12) of the ongoing manga series.
Tomomi Nomiya in quick fashion loses his job at the Karaoke place. With ample spare time, he secretly returns to watch his former high school basketball team as they made it to playoffs. He reminisces about his time on the courts and the promise of what may have been.
Kiyoharu Togawa rejoins the Tigers – the wheelchair basketball team that he quit after finding that they weren’t taking the sport as seriously as he would have liked. They played two games one with Kamikaze, which they lost by the score of 43–50 and they are in the middle of their second game with the Dreams – apparently one of the four best teams and are winning by a score of 28–26. Togawa's past has also been explored – he was a track star before his bone cancer amputated him.
Hisanobu Takahashi is still in the hospital paralyzed. He has been finally told that he would never walk again, but he is still in denial stage. He also wonders why no one has visited him, under the delusion that he was popular because he was captain of the basketball team. He is eventually visited by his girlfriend, but dismissed her quickly, because she reminds him of his accident and one of his teammates who told him that they decided on a new captain.
This tankōbon is written and illustrated by Takehiko Inoue. It continues the story of three souls that is hurting and lost and trying to find some solace in life. Tomomi Nomiya who loves basketball with every fiber of his body, but can't play, while Kiyoharu Togawa wants to take wheelchair basketball to the next level, and Hisanobu Takahashi who can never play basketball again, but is unable to do so. This tankōbon also reveals their back stories as well.
All in all, Real, Vol. 2 is a wonderful continuation to a series that seems intriguing and I cannot wait to read more.
This volume is split between Takahashi in hospital and Kiyohiko trying to get along with the Tigers again.
Also see his childhood struggles with track vs piano and finally the cancer that puts him in the wheelchair. The way the sprints are drawn really convey the competition and the pain. One determined guy.
Another book in the series that focuses on male teens who have experienced a disability leaving them paralyzed. The character portrayals, movement, and dialogue is engaging and sparse in a way that readers feel all the tumult and emotion.
Este tomo, bastante más dramático que el anterior, continúa la historia de Nomiya y Kiyohiko, uno viendo a su antiguo equipo de basquet y el otro intentando volver a los Tigers, mientras Azumi (la manager del equipo y su amiga desde la primaria) recuerda su infancia como corredor y el destino trágico que le tocó.
Por otro lado, Takahashi está en el hospital luego de haber sufrido un accidente en el tomo anterior intenta lidiar con una muy mala noticia.
Conoceremos cómo Kiyoharu perdió su pierna, y también Hisanobu se entera de que no podrá volver a caminar. Además, habrá partidos de baloncesto normal y en silla de ruedas.
I’m at a loss for words. Togawa’s story is so so so sad. Imagine having your father project his dreams and aspirations onto you, so after much struggle with yourself you break free and find a path that you actually like and enjoy, just to have the rug pull out from under your feet when you find out that that thing that keeps bothering you and causing you so much pain is an aggressive form of bone cancer. Man, that was a lot. Especially since we as the readers see first hand how much Togawa enjoys being a sprint runner. Poor Togawa never got a chance and I’m heartbroken. So every character here on better chill the fuck out and put some respect on my homeboy’s name, okay?
Damn, Takahashi really thought that all his yes men actually liked him. Like he really went about treating his teammates like literal shit and truly thought that everyone was hanging out with him because he was a lovable asshole and not because he was the team’s captain. The DELUSION!!! And the fact that after all that he’s gone through he keeps bullying Seiki doesn’t sit well with my spirit. So I need Takahashi to go through some soul searching arc and marinate there for a while. We need to make sure that a true change in character seeps through his thick skulls and settled there in his brain.
Like always Takehiko sensei is a master of his craft, with great storytelling, lovable and believable characters, and breathtaking artwork that ties it all together perfectly. So I’m giving this volume 5/5 stars. Again, I’m still SHOCKED at the fact that I’m actually enjoying this manga about basketball so much. Truly Takehiko sensei is a magician.
What a devastating volume. We follow Kiyoharu Togawa in a parallel narrative as he returns to his newfound appreciation for wheelchair basketball in the present while also recounting his past national success as a track runner attempting to beat his 11-second 100-meter record while unknowingly beginning to show signs of serious osteosarcoma. As a track and cross country runner myself, I really enjoyed following his backstory in this volume as it was incredibly relatable for me. Ironically I also put piano on the back-burner to put more energy toward other passions, so I feel a certain kinship toward Togawa as a character and I adore his consistent positivity. Man needs to learn how to work as part of a team, though, coming from two very singular activities, and it seems like that will be a hurdle for him in the coming volumes.
The other two stories we briefly get glimpses of were similarly heartbreaking—they did feel a bit disjointed from the volume’s main narrative concerning Togawa and I found the flips between perspectives to be a bit jarring/confusing, but it was nice catching up with the other two protagonists no matter how devastating their current stories are.
I really appreciate Inoue’s work here with presenting brave yet traumatized men who express their emotions in ugly and vulnerable ways — I don’t see that too often in manga so it’s incredibly refreshing. This series certainly lives up to its title and I’m incredibly interested in following these three as they come to accept and embrace their new realities and hopefully find happiness within them.
Vol. 2 of Real portrays the desolating effects of failure and regret on two teenage boys Nomiya and Tanka. Both boys suffer from their inability to play on the high-school basketball team. For Nomiya, the trauma of his motorbike crash left an innocent girl paralyzed which inhibits his ability to cope with everyday life ie attending school, and playing basketball. While Tanka the captain of the team is left paralyzed days before the school's final basketball game. As the final basketball game of their high school careers slips into memories they reflect upon what this means for each of them.
Nomyia's monologue revolves around the sacrifices made to excel at the sport of basketball. Everything he had given up for the game is subsequently lost with the final blow of the whistle. The aching realization spills out in tears onto the 6 or so panels as he "couldn't have even imagined that this is how our last game would play out...that is my team...I am supposed to be out there with you." Leaving Nomyia wailing in the crowd alone as it all ends.
In the reverse, we have Tanka narcissistically wishing for his team to lose the final game. Without him, as captain, they might as well be strangers. And in all reality, they are strangers to Tanka. None of his teammates visited him in the hospital. Rather they moved on as if he never played. One player did show up to give Tanka support, but it was Seki the player Tanka continuously abused and marginalized during practice.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Volume 2 of Inoue's "Real" series was as gratifying as the first volume, with a motivating backstory for several of our main characters (protagonist and questionable antagonist) that would or could be relatable to any person who faced a hurdle while racing after their dreams.
While I did not enjoy it in the same way I enjoyed the first novel, the gratification appeared in the way author chose to indulge the reader in the pasts of these characters early enough in the series that it will allow more time for 'court time' as it continues. Sometimes it can be hard to time sharing the backstory of a person, because it can come across as wanky or too soon and/or too late. Inoue was not that kind of author, and readers of his series will appreciate it.
What I continue to appreciate is how Inoue challenges the societal views and biases that can be placed on those with a handicap or disability. When the orderly at the hospital states,"Of course you understand that just because Hisanobu can't walk, he hasn't lost any value as a person." (38), I smiled and internally cheered because of his bluntness and how he was correct; your value does not decrease if certain parts of you are in one shape or another. I hope this challenge against the stigmas on those with disabilities and handicaps continues into more of the series.
I’m only two volumes into this manga series but I love that there’s absolutely no BS when it comes to disabled struggles & issues. I can’t wait to read more but it's out of stock everyone. Let me cry for a sec.
This was such a beautiful volume. I actually sobbed? I'm so happy that I found this series; reading about the reality of physical disabilities can be too much to bear. Kudos to Takehiko Inoue. Hopefully, I can continue reading this soon. It's such an underrated gem.
WOW! And I thought the first volume was good. What I liked the most about this volume was the great backstory given to Kiyohiko Togawa. The way Inoue provided so much detail for this character without making the story feel slow is amazing. I once took a workshop on how secondary characters all deserve their space on stage. That is just one of the skills Takehiko Inoue has that I admire!
On to #3...and then what? I need to order more for the school library, obviously! And then go and get some marshmallows to tide me over;)
Voy a añadir también el volumen 2 porque es el que realmente me ha gustado, sobre todo los caps 10 y 12
Ahora sí viene spoiler
kiyo togawa un niño que luce un poco niña con problemas paternofiliales que le dejan con secuelas de pasión frustración y competitividad y una enfermedad no diagnosticada que cambiará sus expectativas en cuanto a metas literalmente mi tipo
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
The storyline really began to pick up in this second collected volume, and with it my interest. I’m enjoying the story, the growing depth of the characters, and the excellent interaction of the text with the visuals. I had no idea there was a story out in the world about wheelchair basketball, but I’m really glad my college kid recommended this to me, because it’s excellent.
ঘন্টা দুয়েক আগেই লিখে গেলাম রিয়েল রিয়েলি কিরকম হবে নিশ্চিত না। যার লেখা দুইটা মাঙ্গা অলটাইম ফেভারিট লিস্টে তার আরেকটা সিরিজ নিয়ে অবিবেচনাপ্রসূত মন্তব্যই ছিল সেটা। দিস ভলিউম ইজ গোল্ড। বিউটিফুল অভারল। কোনো সমালোচনার জায়গাই নেই।
Most slept on manga series?!? For real though, this series is pure emotion. Nomiya is barely the protagonist I guess, when you look at Kiyoharu as the main character, it gets way better.
There's so much emotion in this volume from the last game for third years, knowing that an accident has changed your life, and finding your own path and then losing it all in the span of a season.
read online because the library only has volumes 1 and 6, 7, 8, 9. actually wasn’t a horrible experience! so sad what happened to togawa im really enjoying this series so far.