Apr 2, 2021
Before writing this review i just want to say that the original GTO is my favourite manga of all time, and that this sequel is a disgrace to it's name. SPOILERS
The storyline in paradise lost is abysmal. While it follows the same blueprints from the original GTO, it executes them in a very poor manner. The arcs themselves mostly feel like stand-alone stories which contribute next to nothing to the overall plot, especially the arcs involving the students. The long running storyline is all about the mysterious Mr. Araragi and how he's the don of showbiz, except half the arcs have nothing to do with
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him at all. Leaving them feeling like unimportant filler to the overall storyline. Even the arcs which mention Mr. Araragi usually have nothing to do with school or being a teacher at all, and take place outside of school which takes away the greatest aspect of this story: Onizuka's unique teaching style. The prison aspect is interesting, however it feels like the author is making up plot-lines as he goes straying from what this manga was originally going to be. The whole plot is a clusterfuck of meaningless story arcs mixed with few plot points that actually progress the story.
Art: While the art isn't terrible I found the characters lacked the original designs present in the original GTO. The students in particular had no defining features and looked very similar. Another thing (this is personal preference) but I found that the bodies were extremely wide with very broad shoulders and I didn't think it matched the vibe of highschool kids. Overall though the art does look nicer as an aesthetic which is an improvement from the original.
Now the most appalling part of the story: The characters themselves. In the original series the characters were what defined the story as a masterpiece. The interactions between Onizuka and his students such as Kanzaki and Miyabi were brilliant and you could see the growth throughout the 200 chapters. In paradise lost characters come and go through a revolving door. After their specific story arc most of the characters disappear and never return. Remember the girl who's apart of women's wrestling, or the guy with daddy issues? Because I sure as hell don't. They were thrown away after their arc and never played any role in the story again. Compare this to someone like Kanzaki from the original series. After her personal story arc she plays a role in nearly every other portion of the story and is kept around as either part of the plot or for interactions between the characters. I could talk all day about how the students themselves are unimportant in this series but I'll move on to the travesty that is Onizuka in this series. Volume 11 (Kirishima arc). This volume completely ruined Onizuka's entire character through the one action of attempting to have sex with a highschool girl. Why include this? Throughout the whole series Onizuka controlled himself (sort of) because he wanted to be a respectable teacher, but in this one panel he's essentially become the very thing he punished for the whole series up to that point. On top of this he gets one-upped by Kirishima in nearly everything this arc ruining the whole unique aspect of his teaching and showing that somebody else can walk in and do everything he does but better. The only saving grace in terms of characters is the vice-principle Uchiyamada (sorry for spelling). He actually gets decent development and his personal arc was my favourite one of the series. In paradise lost he's seen as a respectable educator and human rather than the stingy human failure seen in GTO.
My enjoyment of this series is still a 5 simply because I loved the original so much and this one still provided some enjoyable and comedic moments. However I cannot give it higher than 1 simply because it trashes on the foundations of my favourite manga.
Overall this is a stain on the greatest manga ever written and i urge GTO fans not to put yourself through this hell.
Reviewer’s Rating: 1
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