Shounen Manga Book Club discussion

Hikaru no Go is one of the series we are reading for April. We are discussing the first four volumes as a group.

Hikaru Shindo is like any sixth-grader in Japan: a pretty normal school boy with a two-tone head of hair and a penchant for antics. One day, he finds an old bloodstained Ho board in his grandfather's attic - and that's when thing get really interesting. Trapped inside the Go board is Fujiwara-no-Sai, the ghost of an ancient Go master who taught the strategically complex bpard game to the Emperor of Japan many centuries ago. In one fateful moment, Sai becomes a part of Hikaru's consciousness and together, through thick and thin, they make an unstoppable Go-playing team. Will they be able to defeat Go players who have dedicated their lives to the game? Will Sai achieve the "Divine Move" so he'll finally be able to rest in peace?

Discuss Hikaru no Go here!

Like Prince of Tennis, I found Hikaru no Go to be in the "ok" category. It's not bad, it's just not that interesting. I will however admit that it is more interesting and the characters are more likable in this manga than the other sports manga I've read. (I also realize that part of this is my fault considering that I'm not much of a fan of sports manga.)

The plot is really simple and easy to follow. The characters aren't more likable than the ones in Prince of Tennis, but they at least have more character to them.

Hikaru starts off as short-tempered and doesn't really care about Go. He acts childish and can overreact at times.

Sai is a little more interesting considering his past. He’s very emotional and can act very childish at times. He serves as a Go teacher for Hikaru so that makes him more interesting.

There are other characters like Akira who is Hikaru’s rival. He’s a little bit more interesting than Hikaru and Sai. He’s kind, polite, and obsessed with Hikaru’s supposed talent for Go and it drives him to be more fierce, serious, and very competitive. He’s more interesting and I like him better as a character than I do Sai and Hikaru.

As a whole, this series is okay. I don’t think I’ll finish it but I was happy to give it a go.

I was just checking and found this discussion about one of my favorite mangas :D how can it be compared with The Prince of Tennis, the only thing in common is that both are categorized as sport manga, but The Prince of Tennis is just match after match with imposible techniques! Every match in Hikaru No Go was given an ok for professional Go player. The story is fantasy, but the facts around are real and what about the development of characters. You see Hikaru and Akira at the beginning and they are growing up and getting maturity. This manga is awesome, but I accept that if you don't get to love it, probably you will hate it :P