Ranked #677

Arakure (Manga)

I'm writing a review for Wild Ones because it had become one of my all time favourite manga.

The story starts of like any other series, Sachie became an orphan because her mother died that's why her grandfather whom she'd never met decided to take care of her. Her grandpa is a Yakuza leader, being a Yakuza's grandaughter she was assigned a bodyguard named Rakuto. Then eventually as all shoujo series they developed a feeling for each other. There is nothing new about this series but the romance between the main characters is great. The circumstances of their romance is bittersweet. Rakuto being a bodyguard is expected not to fall in love with Sachie, this keeps him from telling the true feelings he have for her. While Sachie in the other hand is true to her feelings but she hesitate she doesn't fully known Rakuto yet. Their love is somewhat unclear but they show compassion to each other. Rakuto treats Sachie with all his care and he protects her as his greatest treasure. With every volume we slowly get to know Rakuto and his childhood story. Flashbacks of Sachie and Rakuto's past encounter as a child. We Witness how both the main character care for each other as the story progresses.

The art is pretty good, well it's not typical of me to like weird art, but there is something about Miss Fujiwara's designs that catches my attention. The eyes of her characters looks alieny and I find it as her signature art. I like how she draws a pretty bizarre smile as well. She draws really great kimono and cherry blossoms. Her panel is smooth moving most of the time.

I really enjoy this series and hopefully it will have a strong ending. This one rates top on my manga list. One thing I really like about this series is that Sachie's past and Rakuto's state of position and his unknown childhood story. This adds to the greatness/intrigues of the story.

I Love this series a lot. At first I wasn't expecting anything from this, I thought ok standard art, mediocre opening etc... But as the series continue it gains so much potential and it picks up momentum.

Only one thing I would love to limit is the Yakuza jokes and the few fillers, either way, Well I'll stop now Geez I'm really drawn to this series.

If your looking for a stellar love story this one is for you..... Sometimes it might be confusing but it's really great. Trust me, lol most of the time all the series I liked are somewhat mediocre for most of people. read more

The beginning of this series is very.....unoriginal, so to speak. Girl's mom dies, girl goes somewhere cool, girl meets a stoic guy, stoic guy falls for girl. Can you name a few that start off like that?..No? Well, I can name tons!

BUT, the thing that makes this manga great is how its executed and I think the author does that very well.

Story: 8/10
I docked 1 point off for being unoriginal and another for all the fillers. However, I love the story very much so. All the other 8 points go to how much I love this story. I think the major twist in the plot is that the "somewhere cool" that girl goes to is her grandfather's home, which just so happens to be a yakuza (Japanese equivalant to the mafia) household. I like how Sachie trys really hard to adapt with the boys, along with her handsome caretaker.

I like how the two love interests have not admitted their feelings towards each other to each other, have not had a mutual kiss, nor have ever gotten together--as in bf/gf--in any point during the story thus far (I'm on volume 8 out of 10 volumes at the time of this review) because of their master/servant circumstances. This kind of extenstion makes the climax of the story truly epic and heartwarming. It makes you feel like "I want them to be together so much!" and when they finally do, you have this relief in your heart cuz you followed them through God knows how many problems and issues, and it feels great that they finally resolved it.

Art: 9/10
Kiyo Fujiwara is a very good artist. Sachie is drawn as a big, round-eyed girl and I feel you can see her entire sweet character just by looking at her. Rakuto and the other hot teen boys are drawn very handsomely, albeit a bit different to what I am used to. They're gorgeous! Also, she draws old people beautifully as well. You can see that Sachie's grandpa was probably quite the looker in his younger years. However, I dislike how she draws chibis and in fact, I wish she'd be able to draw them less often.

Character: 8/10
Allthough, Sachie seems like a strong female lead (which she is at some points) she has to be saved many times throughout the story. I dislike that very much--always being saved, that is. Sometimes, it seems like only in shounen manga will the female lead be strong and independant...but anyway, she has good sense of justice which ironically leaves her in all sorts of trouble.

Rakuto, the main love interest, has a very complex character yet I've seen him before in many different shoujo anime and manga. He's very devilish on the outside but soft and kind on the inside. I do like how he has a fear of the future, which is a very relatable characteristic if you as me, and an undying love for Sachie. Every girl wants to be loved :D However, I wish he would not have as much girls following around him everywhere he goes.

Azuma, the other love interest (in this case, the guy who's gonna get dumped like last thursday's trash) is there for mostly comical purposes and to tick Rakuto off--also he's quite the eye candy. He, unlike Rakuto, can have a normal relationship with Sachie. He's not in the "family business," he can call her by just her name instead of using the very formal "-sama" like Rakuto does, and he also has a career path in mind unlike some very handsome bishounen we know...

Enjoyment: 9/10
As I've said before, I really love this series. Its a real page turner and you always want to see if Sachie and Rakuto took a step closer in their relationship. I admit that I did start tearing up and some parts.

Overall: 9/10
I bet if the ending goes well, this just might receive a 10/10! :D I would recommend this series to anybody looking for a good shoujo romance read more