Namaikizakari took most of what would be considered a sports manga and somehow made it into a shoujo-sports manga. But I`d have to say that I loved it! It had all the concepts needed to please the readers (without being so cliché); the romance (It was sweet, the way how Yuki found herself falling in love with Shou), the sports, , and the comedy (I found myself laughing at one part, looking at the screen and laughing again).
The story of Namaikizakari starts off with pretty rocky between the two main characters. But as the story and the characters developed, I found myself wanting the next chapter already. The real point that made the story so beautiful was that it took most clichés that happen in shoujo manga, and twisted it so it was unique in its own way.
But Namaikizakari is a sports manga, that`s for sure. This is probably one of the biggest elements that many other shoujo-sports manga fail at capturing. But as I read Namaikizakari, I knew that this was one that would not fail at capturing those moments. It showed me what it means to lose, but not to give up as well, which to me, is the true meaning of a sports manga.
Character Development. Something that not a lot of mangas succeed at, some pass barely at, and some just majorly fail at. Reading 15 chapters lead me thinking about their development, which was pretty big, thinking about how they started. Naruse Shou started off as just a perverted first year (later second year) that was good at playing basketball (but Yuki describes him as a cocky, self-indulgent, obnoxious, brazen, and younger kouhai). But after falling for Yuki, he changed. He has a sweet side, like when he attempted to cheer her up when she found out that her love interest (former love interest now) got a girlfriend.
Yuki is the manager of the basketball team. She is a person that rarely expresses her feeling and is really strong female character that's hardworking and strong willed when it comes to the basketball team. At first she was in love with the former captain of the basketball team, but Shou somewhat forced his way into her heart. The romance between her and Shou is really sweet, as Shou forcefully tries to play moves on her and her strong resistance against his actions. In the end, of course Shou gets his way. I really love how the author shaped this character to not be like the generic shoujo heroine.
The art of Namaikizakari is beautiful on all aspects- such as the romance scenes and the sports scenes. I also really loved the author's previous works, so the art really got me here.
I really enjoyed reading Namaikizakari. It had all the aspects a shoujo-sports manga should have- maybe even more! This manga really deserved the overall score I gave (which is a 9). I hope to read more of this manga in the future.
(I might edit this review as it goes along)
