(top rightt: Akito, Bottom leftt: Moritaka, Middle: Azuki)

I am extremely overjoyed to review this next manga. After Death Note was finished I will admit I was sad. Takeshi Obata and Tsugumi Ohba do incredible work together and the end of such an eventful series was downtroddening (for all intensive puposes, that is a word). Finally I was dilligent enough to search around and I found that they have another manga series out in Japan.

Bakuman, as it's called, follows two high school students named Moritaka Mashiro and Akito Takagi. Moritaka is a very skilled artist who sees very little desire to advance in life. To quote his views: "I don't want people to call me a freeloader when I grow up, so i'll probably get an office job even though I don't want to" (bakuman vol. 1 page.005). Akito is the exact opposite. Head of their class and a superb writer, Akito wishes to become a famous mangaka (Manga writer). After Moritaka leaves his notebook full of sketches of the girl he is head over heels in love with, Akito finds it and tries to convince him to draw for his manga. At first Moritaka is skeptical, mainly because his beloved uncle worked himself to death (literally) as a mangaka. But after Akito tells him that Azuki (the girl he loves) wants to be a voice actress, he becomes a little more willing. Things become even more heated when the same girl promises to marry him if they both make it big. Suddenly, Moritaka has something to work for and Akito couldn't be happier.

After reading the first volume, I was in a daze. All I could think was "another work of literary greatness by Obata and Ohba". In truth it is good. With the same art style as Death Note, it feels warm and familiar. Their are a few things that are new about it though. The focus on quite a bit of comedy and light-hearted moments are strange compared to the heavy and serious story of Death Note. Not to say that it doesn't work, it's just odd and I kinda like it. Ohba also found ways of incorperating Death Note into this as well, as it is frequently referred to. Overall, it's good.The only reservatuions I have are that some of the story aspects are far fetched .I'm still on a wait and see basis as far as recommendation. But if your up for it, get it.