Bamboo Blade Review

[Mama]

This series was originally published in 2005 and adapted into an anime in 2008. It's a humorous story about maturity (or lack thereof) and the trials and tribulations of high school life. Broke teacher and Kendo club advisor, Kojiro, makes a bet with an old friend and fellow kendo instructor on a practice meet between their two girls' teams, and if Kojiro wins, he'll get to eat free sushi for a year. The bet stems from an old grudge, and the price to Kojiro if he loses is almost petty to him, but at the same time circumstances cause Kojiro to work, and scheme, hard so that he won't lose. Pride may be on the line for his friend, but food is what is important to Kojiro.

The bet is just the backdrop, however. The story is filled with various characters that highlight different aspects of high school. There are aggressive bullies, average joes, two-faced girls, strong leaders, and weak followers. In just the first two volumes we are introduced to characters that fill these roles; and thanks to a splendid writer, the characters are absolutely believable. In fact, I was reminded of a few people I went to school with! All the characters undergo the same story line: learning about persistence and life.

The story revolves around the sport of Kendo, in which a bamboo sword, shinai, is used to score points in a match. In addition to the story line, the manga reveals a few tidbits about how Kendo is practiced. As a former Kendo enthusiast, I found this to be the highlight of the story so far. The main character, Tamaki, begins the story as the epitome of Kendo - focused, steady, and perfect form. It seems this is not what she wants to be, however. Tamaki starts her slow transformation from a traditional ideal to a heroine, then to just a plain old teenager. I'm starting to feel another theme of "enjoy your youth" here.

The first volume does contain a few cases of bad language and behavior (unfortunately its not anything you wouldn't see or hear in high school these days). The second volume lays off the language a bit, but not so much the behavior, although there is the intent to improve from a couple of characters. Yen Press uses a slightly different rating system in that there is no age given. Instead it gives a range, in this case "OT" for older teen. I would say this translates to 16+, but because I feel the storylines aren't far from fiction, I think it would be appropriate for 14+.

[KAITO]

I own the first two books, and thought they were pretty good. I enjoy Tamaki's solemn personalitly, but have to say that Kirino is definatly my favorite

[Mama]

The third volume is on its way! It should be in the shop by Monday, 1/11.