TAB: Tom's Anime Blog

Well, I've decided to branch out into reviewing manga, as well as anime. I read alot of manga, and a volume of a manga (which may contain between 3 and 12 stories) is long enough to warrant a decent review, while it's sometime hard to write about filler anime episodes. I also don't want to get into reviewing every episode as they come out.

Anyway, Living Game is a manga about 25 year old random loser guy Fuwa, who moves into a larger apartment in the first chapter. Unfortunately, an earthquake destroys the building where the small business he works for was located. They decided to move the company into his apartment.

This starts a parade of people moving through his apartment and his life. Foremost among these is 15 year old Izumi, his boss's niece who dropped out of high school and went to work for their company. After her first apartment is demolished, she moves in with Fuwa. Despite the age gap, she's the obvious love interest, and the series follows the ups and downs of their relationship. Many of these involve either them moving to a new apartment, or someone (like Fuwa's married ex) moving in with them.

There are also some really nice supporting characters, like crotchety old man Tanokura or masked architect Sugita-sensei. (I don't think that either of them moves in with Fuwa, but Tanokura moves around alot.)

So what is Living Game about? I'd say it's about finding a place for oneself, both literally and figuratively. Literally in the various apartments and houses that are rented or built over the course of the series, with the unreliable guy's various relationships complicating the figurative side of things.

One scene that really appealed to me is vol 9 ch 5-6, in which Fuwa points out to an artistic architect how livability should trump art when designing a house. I think that this should be forcably shown to anyone who lets HGTV go to their heads.

Living Game starts in 1990 and goes from there. It's right about when Japan's Economic Miracle collapsed, so we get to see that occur on the pages of the Manga. (Along with the huge cell phones of that era.)

Stylistically, this is manga is drawn in a very cartoony style. I don't mean that in a perjorative sense, but rather to indicate that it's simple, with an emphasis on clear thick lines and solid areas. This manga is very clearly drawn, I never had any problem telling characters apart or what was going on.

I'll call Living Game a good manga. I read it right before moving for the summer to Virgina, which was exactly the right time to read it.