Bakuman as an anime, is unique, because it's a manga adaptation, with the manga about manga artists. Doesn't make sense? Well, I assure you it's actually quite an interesting idea. And as with all J.C. Staff series I've seen, I whole-heartedly believe Bakuman will make it to into my all-time favourite anime list
This first episode begins with an alternate/fake OP (Super Hero Legends!), it was a little confusing at first, because I didn't think this would actually be the OP for Bakuman. I must admit however, it's quite the OP, bringing back memories of old-school anime. Right after the amazing pseudo-OP ended, the real OP began, and as with the Super Hero Legends! awesome-sauce, this one also managed to get my attention. The carefree easygoing beat with male vocals is a pleasant departure from your usual high-bpm high-pitched orgasmic music.
The episode begins with the main protagonist being introduced, Moritaka Mashiro, and having himself describe his current outlook to life using an internal monologue style. He gives the impression of a generic guy through his story. He seems unsure of what he wants, saying he needs an office job to support a family, but there's no point in trying hard. All he says to do is just keep his grades up. Then he's seen sketching Azuki Miho, his crush, and describing how meaningless it is to be in love with her, and how those dreams will never come true. Forgive me if I'm making the entire series sound generic, but this is how the episode begins, a main character, a generic storyline, however, it works well and I instantly got hooked.
There's not much more I can say without spoiling anything, which is the last thing I want to do for such a promising series. Long story short, Mashiro realizes he forgot his math notebook at school while he gets home, and makes his way back to class, only to find Akito Takagi, fellow student, pardon me, top student of the class, with his math notebook in his hand. Akito explains how, due to his seating position in the class (at the very back), he can see everything everyone is doing, and he is aware of Mashiro's crush for Miho. Suddenly, Akito asks Mashiro to draw manga with him, to create a manga. At first, Mashiro rejects him on the spot, but tells him he'll consider it when he gets home. He gets a phone call from Akito while he's at home, telling him he's going to confess to Miho, and that's where the story gets interesting...
Even though Bakuman is by J.C. Staff, there's no need to compare it with the others in terms of animation. It's main strength is not going to be it's animation, rather the little details are what will make it shine. It's the character interactions, speech, expressions and the overall quality of the storyline that will bring out this series.
As with almost all of the series I will be covering this fall, I have high hopes for Bakuman. The series has a great start, if not a little generic, but it paved the way for a really great story. Bakuman definitely has potential, and this will definitely be a series I will be covering.
That's all for now, happy watching, mina!
