Hana Kimi After Stories: Kayashima and Nakatsu

I must say, Kayashima looks rather nice all grown up and Nakatsu is as adorable as ever.  Here is the continuation of the Hana Kimi After Stories.

"Hana Kimi After Stories" -- Nanba

 

Like "Ouran", to commemorate their television drama, Hana Kimi is also releasing special chapters.  This set of special chapters is call "Hana Kimi After Stories" and it's currently running in Hana to Yume magazine.  Each chapter will focus of the after graduation stories of the popular characters from Hana Kimi.   I don't know how many chapters there will be, but I imagine the stories will be very short like this one.

This first story covers Nanba and I liken who he ends up with to the surprise of Mei and Kasanoda ending up together.  It's surprising, but ultimately makes sense :).  On to the link!

New Ouran High School Host Club Special Chapters are Coming!! Kuro Lala!! and More!!

I just got Lala 9 today and there's an Ouran special chapter in it!  There I will postpone the last two releases scheduled this month to get that out ASAP.

Hana-Kimi May 2010 Extra Story

Here's the latest Hana-Kimi Extra story from one of the May 2010 issues of Hana to Yume.

Link to the Hana-Kimi May 2010 Extra story (Retired)

Hana-Kimi September 2008 Omake

Here's the second Hana-Kimi omake published after 2007.

Link to September 2008 Hana-Kimi omake (Retired)

It hasn't been proofread yet, so if you wanna proofread it, please go ahead and do so and send me back some feedback and I'll give you some credit.  Anyhow, this omake is very short and doesn't really add anything to the Hana-Kimi story, but it is cute.  The last of the omakes will come after Orange Chocolate chapter 7 and Ouran Chapter 79.  Here's the updated release schedule:

Orange Chocolate Chp 7 -- ETA:  3/22
Ouran Chp 79 -- ETA:  end of March (depends on when I get the raw)
Orange Chocolate Chp 8: Early April
Zettai Heiwa Diasakusen Chp 16: Mid April
Orange Chocolate Chp 9: Mid April
Hana-Kimi Aug 2009 Omake -- ETA: Late April
Kaicho-san no Neko Chp 1 -- ETA:  Late April

Hana-Kimi July 2008 Omake

 

Here is the first of the three Hana-Kimi extra stories that were published after 2007.  This is a really good one and I wish it had been published while the series was still running so it could have been included in the Viz release.

Link to the Hana-Kimi July 2008 Omake (Retired)

Next up is "Orange Chocolate" chapter 6 followed by the Hana-Kimi omake from September 2008 (it's very short at only 8-pages).

Coming Soon in March

Here's what's coming up in March:

• Ouran High School Host Club chp 78 Omake (Currently editing, ETA  3/3) Done!
• Hana Kimi Omakes
• July 2008 --Done!
• Sept 2008 -- Done!
• May 2009 -- scanned
• Orange Chocolate
• chp 6 -- Done!
• chp 7 -- Sent to proofreaders
• Ouran High School Host Club Chp 79 -- waiting for Lala 05/2010 release for raw (raw on 3/24, release ETA 4/1)
• "Kaichou-san no Neko" Chp 1 -- "The Class President's Cat" (looking into it) -- it's a very cute and short series with 3 chapters and a one-shot ("Gakuran Ouji").  I don't particularly like cats, but the cat in this short series is ADORABLE!!! -- Moved into April

Hana-Kimi: Volume 21 (FINALLY!!!)

Volume 21 of "Hana-Kimi" ("Hanazakaria no Kimitachi he") has finally come out in the US. This is the pivotal volume in the Hana-Kimi series. So far, "Hana-Kimi" is my favorite manga series and this volume is the best in the series. Gosh, it took so long to get there, which makes this volume all the more sweeter. (I have to admit that I have already read Hana-Kimi. I read it before it got the US at least a couple of years ago. If you can't wait to finish the last two volumes, they are out there in the ether. Also, if you really like this series, buy the manga to encourage publishers put out more great series. I bought this series in English and I'm considering getting it in Japanese, too. Oh, and some extra one-off stories came out too, so look out for those. Hopefully they will be included in the 23rd volume.)

Why is "Hana-Kimi" my favorite manga series? ... well, I haven't quite put my finger on it yet. I adore Sano, Mizuki, and Nakatsu and my heart really felt what each of them was going through. The most intriguing thing about this series is the way Nakatsu is dealt with. As the reader we adore Nakatsu, because the author does too. We believe Nakatsu and Mizuki would be good together, but know it must be Sano. Yet, when Mizuki makes her feelings clear, we feel deeply for Nakatsu and we understand the guilt his best friend, Sano, feels. And we understand that Sano, seriously, has no intention of letting someone else, even his best friend, have Mizuki -- not that he feels she's his to give. Love is that way. There's always somebody who is hurt in the wake of a happy couple -- whether the happy couple is aware of it or not.

The other thing that resonates with me about this series is the fear that both Mizuki and Sano feel in their love. There is a lie between them -- She is pretending to be a he, he is pretending he does know she's a girl, they are both pretending not to be in love, even though one another is about the only thing on their minds. They are so scared to lose one another that they live in this carefully crafted house of cards so they can be together. I have felt this fear -- and it's scary to give yourself over, because if that person you care so much for rejects you, you fear it will tear your chest out. And when it does happen, it does hurt like nothing else (it does get better over time, though, and eventually goes away if you don't see that person anymore).

Well, I guess I just answered my own question: This is my favorite manga series, because I feel this manga and I relate deeply to the story and the characters.

Series Review: Hanazakarino Kimitachi e -- Taiwanese Live Action Version

I finally finished this series last night and it was good until the last two episode. This series follows the manga pretty closely and concluded with the photo shoot. It seemed, though, as if the screen writers didn't know how to end the series, so there was a lot of filler and Rei Xi (Mizuki) and Shu Yi (Nakatsu) became louder, shriller, and more over dramatic as things wore on. I got so irritated with the actors that I fast-forwarded through a lot of the hystronics. I, also, still was bugged by the appearance of the actress who played Rei Xi. No matter how I looked at her, she was not cute. Her way of moving and her expressions were not that of someone who is a girl or of someone 16/17 year old. In the outdoor photoshoot scene I finally figured it out. She looks like a chubby cheeked ten year old, very much like the curly headed Coke-girl from about 10-years back. She also acted like a very loud and very hyper 10-year boy, which made it hard for me to believe that her character could feel romantic love -- which may have actually been a reflection of the heart of the actress, because she had absolutely no chemistry with Jian (Sano) so the sexual tension the two experience while living together doesn't get expressed (or rather it's expressed one-sidedly by the actor that plays Jian, but comes off all wrong because of the Rei Xi's actress). The actor that played Jian is very good and definitely looks the part. I felt so bad, though, that he had to act like he was romantically in love with a chubby-cheeked androgenous child. It felt more like a big-brother looking after little brother more than anything. I did like that they added the extra element of Shu Yi falling in love with Julia. I had hoped that that would happen in the manga and I was disappointed when it didn't. It seemed that the way that they argued indicated an underlying attraction, or so I had hoped.

Anyhow, I think this version of the story really understood the craziness of the situation of both Mizuki and Sano holding on tightly to an illusion so they can be together, but at the same time using the illusion to protect themselves from hurt. I think it also dealt well with Sano's internal struggle against himself with regards to high-jump, keeping Mizuki's secret and how he uses her secret to toy with her. I think though, I would have like to have seen this actor go through the emotions of finally breaking down and his efforts to finally get he and Mizuki to move toward to confess their feelings. Instead, they left them in the illusion. I also like the way they handle the doctor and his gayness in such matter-of-fact and straightforward way.

I give this 5/5 for Jian and doctor and an overall 3/5 because Rei Xi wasn't convincing and the last two episodes were really annoying. They really missed the point that Mizuki in no way looks like a boy or acts like one, but rather she cuts her hair, puts on boys clothing, goes to a boy's school and convinces herself into believing that everyone takes her as a boy. And most everyone believes she's a boy because they assume that a girl wouldn't choose to go to an all boys school. It's a circle arguement.

Hanazakarino Kimitachi e -- Taiwanese Live Action Version

I have watched the first 5 episodes of this 15 episode long version of Hana-Kimi and I find it quite good. At first I didn't like that the actress that plays the Mizuki character (Mizuki is called Rei Xi in the version) because she actually looks like a chubby unattactractive boy -- well more like a "Pat" type from SNL -- but I think I've gotten used to her (and her overacting). The other characters are well played and well cast, especially the Sano character (Jian or Quan depending on the fansubber group) and the Nakatsu character (Shu Yi). This version, so far, follows the manga very closely, so it's very satisfying to watch. There are some deviations that had to be made to account for the casting of the Rei Xi. Instead of Jian inspiring her when she was being teased at home for being Asian, Rei Xi was teased instead for being fat. It's a change that doesn't affect the story at all. Anyhow, I'm really enjoying it and I'm wondering at what point in the story it will end it since at the end of episode 5, the story is at the beginning of the 3rd volume of the manga. Hmm ... we'll see ...

Hanazakari no Kimitachi e -- Japanese Live Action Version Continued

I found a fansubbed version of the new Hana-Kimi series on Crunchy Roll. Basically, this live action version is, indeed, very loosely based on the manga. The basic scenario is the same -- girl disguises herself to enter an all boy's school to be with the boy she admires. The characters are present, but they are not like the manga. There are elements of the scenarios in the manga, but they had been chopped into small bits and rearranged. Mizuki's reason being at Ousaka is changed too. In this version, she comes there knowing that Sano no longer does the high jump and she has the goal in mind of making him jump again. It also seems that Sano does not realize right away that Mizuki is a girl (or maybe he could know who she is since in this version he gets the injury that ends his high jumping while saving her from street thugs a year before she enters the school). There are lots of other things changed too, which is frustrating if you compare it the manga, so I've decided not to associate this with the manga and take the show for what it is. Once I did that, I have decided that the show is watchable. The scenes between Ashiya and Sano, Ashiya and Dr. Umeda, and Ashiya and Nakatsu are charming but the scenes with the accessory characters are mostly pathetically silly fan service. I imagine as I continue to watch this series, I will be fast forwarding through the fan service. I also find the St. Blossoms girls to be very annoying. Sigh ...

Hanazakari no Kimitachi e -- Japanese Live Action Version

There's a live action version of "Hanazakari no kimitachi e" (For you in Full Blossom) this season. I watched the raw of the first episode and it is VERY loosely based on the manga. There is no coherence in the activities and the show appears, so far, to be a bunch of fan service for teenage girls (male and female -- 'nuff said). I'll give the second episode a chance to see if they attempt to do something more than fan service. If the second episode is equally as crappy or crappier than the first, then I will not following this show. The first episode, though, was truly disappointing.

I did some digging around and there's also a live action version that came out of Taiwan. I'm going to see if this version is any better. Fortunately, this version is subtitled in English.

I'd love to see an anime version or a live action version of this come out that is closer to the manga. I realize that would difficult, though, considering that the manga is 23 volumes. I think, though, if there is a savvy screenwriter involved, they story could be satisfactorily told in ~13 - 24-episodes. There's lots of stuff to cut or abbreviate like the story around doctor and his lover, the scavenger hunt (or whatever that was), the appearance of Hajima's little twin bothers, the lake story where Nakatsu is possessed, ... to point out a few. Sigh ... oh, well, ... I love the manga, so I guess it's alright that it's not been made into anime.