Holyland is a 182 chapter martial arts psychological manga that is written by the mangaka Mori Kouji. This manga was published for 8 years. The running time was 2000-2008. The actual manga was serialized in Young Animal.
At first glance the story of Holyland isn't really that special. So we have the kid with really low self esteem and he gets bullied a lot. He proceeds to learn martial arts so he can get stronger and to protect himself. Don't be fooled though, the execution of this story is the closest thing I've seen when it comes to perfection. One thing that sets the story apart is how the manga ka implements his own experiences into the heart of the manga.
Street fighting and martial arts are such a massive part of this story. The mangaka really helps with providing explanations and diagrams to try to make sense of the action that is actually happening in the story. The action is also quality with a great amount of realism and martial arts with street fight grit being implemented.
The story is also very relatable, Yuu's dilemmas are something we can probably all relate to in one way or another. And many of the situations in this story are real life issues such as bullying and drugs. The raw emotions that are projected are extremely well done. Another notable point is how this anime portrayed the streets. This is done in a raw and realistic fashion that I thoroughly enjoyed.
The characters in this are fantastic. All of them have their own flaws and strengths and they play off each other perfectly. The main hero is Kamishiro Yuu who isn't really a hero after all. He got bullied and kind of shut himself away from the world. He finds his home on the streets and meets many new people. Yuu's whole mind set of fitting in and finding a place to belong is something many people can resonate with including myself. He has a very steady rate of change throughout the story.
Shin is yuu's first friend and ends up becoming his best friend in high school. He isn't really a strong fighter but he is always there to remind yuu that he isn't alone through all of the hell he faces. Shougo is also a friend of kamishiro but he has a major psychological complex that damages his relationship with Yuu in the story.
Possibly the most interesting character is Masaki. He is the overseer of the streets and faced hell like yuu did. He managed to rise from the ashes to become a new person. There are also many interesting side characters in this story
All of the psychological attributes of this story are smartly implemented and something the reader can thoroughly understand. Many of the themes present are also great and something everyone can relate to. There was also a old dash of romance but I wish it could have been developed more.
The art in holyland is pretty well done. The grit really bulges through and is very noticeable and I appreciated the gritty realistic style.
So overall this manga was amazing. I lived nearly everything about it and this manga is something that everyone should experience especially if you love manga in the seinen demographic. So overall this manga is great and you should read it.
