Arakure
Wild Ones

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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

Arakure aka the wild ones is a good series that shows that reusing ideas can be done well.

Story:9/10
Well for story its already done before as we see the main lead looses a family member and is taking in by a other relative. But I think that the part when she realize he is the leader of the Yakuza is just awesome. The way how she needs to adapt that she is part of it really stands outs as original. It also has some really funny and clever moments which I like. So story while its overuse, it did well.

Art:10/10
The art is well ... done. The looks on the characters are really beautiful especially on the old looking people. Not a lot to say other than it looks good.

Characters:8/10
For the main female lead, Sachie did almost of a good job as she is a very strong character. But at times she needs to be rescue which really isn't necessary. Why is it that shojo manga have to make women the damsel in distress. I'm a guy and I'm tired of seeing that but with her strong since of justice it balance it out even when it get her in trouble. Rukuto while not original in some way, he is very complex. He is afraid of the what the future lies ahead which works for his character. The rest is pretty typical but are there for support and some laughs every once in a while.

Enjoyment:8/10
The unoriginal plot kinda knock my enjoyment down. But as I get farther into it, I see that its very enjoyable.

Overall:9/10 Almost being perfect

I dunno how helpful this review will be but I just had to write one since I enjoyed the manga so much (as you can see I gave it the perfect 10 score) :) I think that the proof of a really good manga is when the reader becomes emotionally invested in what they're reading. I really liked this manga because of the range of feelings I felt when reading it..one moment I was crying and the next I was laughing, then feeling frustrated (read it and you'd know why). It's the kind of story that makes you happy and scream kyahhh!! I think ... the story was well executed too. The pacing was perfect, the fillers/side stories didn't make it dull and dragging and the characters were so lovable (especially the yakuza gang! hahaha!). The art was beautiful as well. I mean, Rakuto's so hot what else can a girl ask for? :)