Tokyo Crazy Paradise is built upon clichés that we’ve read/watched about a thousand times with manga and anime: yakuza, gender bending, poor girl, rich guy, poor girl becoming the “servant” of rich guy…But these clichés are done well in which you forget they’re clichés in the first place. Warning: this manga is grittier than typical shoujos. There’re drugs, human trafficking, violence, prostitution—yeah, it’s all there. This is a Yakuza story after all. And sure, these things might not faze some readers (the seinen demographic), but need I remind you again that TCP is shoujo? You know, the same thing Kimi ni Todoke (shoujo in its purest form) is labeled?
But Tokyo Crazy Paradise has all the right things I look for in a manga. There’s action (don’t underestimate the action scenes just because this is a “girl’s” manga), there’s romance, there’s comedy, there’s drama, and yes, there’s angst. And of course, the badass characters are a plus.
Art: 7
The art is old-school. The hair (bangs) are cut off in awkward waves—you know what I’m talking about. And the eyes are sparkly, as shoujos typically have them. This was made in 1996-2002 after all. But it grew on me, like old-school usually does. And of course, you see the journey of how Nakamura’s skills improve by the chapter.
Character: 10
Gender benders usually annoy me in which they’re not done well. I mean, c’mon! No matter how much I love Hana Kimi, you can obviously tell Ishiya is a G-U-R-L! But when I first started reading Tokyo Crazy Paradise, I seriously believed Tsukasa was a boy. Her (His?) tough actions and rough boy-ish looks just screamed MALE! She lives life by her own pace and fights for justice. Tsukasa also has a specialty weapon she fights with: a whip made of chains. How she grew accustomed to it, I don’t know, but she’s essentially a badass.
I’m also really sick and tired of useless and weak female protagonists in manga, but Tsukasa is probably my favorite heroine ever in manga/anime history. She’s funny, she’s strong, and she has morals (she DOESN’T go around, “obliviously” flirting with guys or “accidentally” tempting men to want her or blush at every hot guy who glances at her).
The other protagonist of this story is Ryuji, the young yakuza boss who has an interesting relationship with Tsukasa. Is he her childhood friend? Her childhood rival? Or are they childhood classmates who rarely ever talked to each other? All three. The answer is all three.
At the beginning, Ryuji is depicted as cold, harsh, and someone who deserves the title of head of a yakuza clan. But he’s still essentially, 14 years old (one throwback of TCP. They’re friggin 14 and in junior high as the story progresses!). And who’s the one who makes him feel that way? None other than our badass and goofy heroine, Tsukasa. Believe me, I could go on forever about these two, so to shorten it up, these two bring out the best and the worst in each other—and they wouldn’t prefer it any other way.
The rest of the TCP cast consists of some of the most likeable (and badass, you can never have enough badass) characters in manga. Tsukasa’s goofy brothers and Ryuji’s yakuza clan members just create this huge (entertaining) and loving family. You don’t know whether you want to watch them from afar in fear of their short tempers or join in with their chaos.
(In replacement of Enjoyment…) Romance: 10
Tokyo Crazy Paradise is a slow romance. I love slow romances, so it’s perfect for me. Some people don’t like slow romances, but c’mon, at least it’s faster than Skip Beat! (I still love you though Skip Beat!). There’s this Romeo and Juliet thing going on between Ryuji and Tsukasa since Ryuji is the head of his yakuza clan and Tsukasa grew up with cops as her parents who engraved into her head that yakuza are horrible people who Tsukasa should never involve herself with.
But these two form a friendship with each other over the years they’ve been together (refer to paragraph 2 under Character) and of course, once Ryuji discovers Tsukasa’s real gender, he can’t keep his eyes (and hands) off of her. There’s chemistry and a hint of something more, but there’s the Romeo and Juliet thing going on that stops any feelings from arising. Then, their relationship takes another turn when obstacles arise, both in their love lives and their life together as individuals involved in the underground world.
The romance between these two aren’t light and fluffy either. You can say their love is mature, but you can also say it’s restrained, and in the end, it’s uncontrollable. Sorry, that sounded really cheesy, but that’s exactly how their love progresses. Like I said, the romance is really slow at the beginning, but when it gets going, IT GETS GOING! So yes, your romance needs will definitely be fulfilled in Tokyo Crazy Paradise. And that’s the way I like it!
All in all, you have no idea how much I wanted these two to be together and get a happily ever after even though they weren’t meant to be.
Overall rating: 10
I’ve said all I need to say about Tokyo Crazy Paradise (I’m lying. There’s so much more I can say, but as you can tell, this review is long enough as it is). Not once was I bored when I read this manga, and yes, I did read TCP in one sitting. Admittedly, the ending was not as satisfying as I wanted it to be, but when I reread the series a second, then third, then fourth time, I realized the ending wasn’t as unsatisfactory as I initially thought.
I won’t lie and say you’d definitely enjoy Tokyo Crazy Paradise if you gave it a chance since everybody has different tastes. But I can assure you that the label of “shoujo” shouldn’t make you lower your standards. There's the perfect balance between romance and action and I've never seen any other manga/anime that has done a better or even level job as Tokyo Crazy Paradise. Both guys and girls can enjoy this manga and I sincerely hope you do give this series a chance. Who knows, it might just become one of your all-time favorites as it became one of mine.
Too bad there isn’t an anime for this or an English license. I’d throw away all my savings to buy all 19 volumes/box sets in a heartbeat.
