Maken-Ki [manga]

[ZODDGUTS]

It's gotten slightly better but still feels average except for the art which is great.

BTW The art keeps reminding me of a h-manga but can't seem to remember the title or the name of the artist wouldn't be surprise if it's by the same guy that is doing this series but is working under with a different name.

[Bonta Kun]

I like this series, its not bad but then I'm so easy going and open about almost everything. The little don't bother me so much.

I think its mostly down to that fact I love Haruko-nee, shes just so damn cute!

its also probably down to the inner ecchi, that pesking little bugger is pretty damn strong

[Newprimus]

Originally Posted by ZODDGUTS

BTW The art keeps reminding me of a h-manga but can't seem to remember the title or the name of the artist wouldn't be surprise if it's by the same guy that is doing this series but is working under with a different name.

The author of this manga has done a butt-ton of H works in the past. With the same name.

Same with the author of Sekirei. And the author of Omamori Himari. Are we seeing a pattern here?

EDIT: The author of Sekirei actually did her yaoi stuff with her real name. The name on Sekirei is a pen-name.

[technomo12]

well now wonder about those hehehe still yaoi i think i can still handle that hehehehe

[ZODDGUTS]

Originally Posted by Shinova

The author of this manga has done a butt-ton of H works in the past. With the same name.

Same with the author of Sekirei. And the author of Omamori Himari. Are we seeing a pattern here?

EDIT: The author of Sekirei actually did her yaoi stuff with her real name. The name on Sekirei is a pen-name.

Yup your right wow so it was the same guy of those scanlation of those h-manga that I um... read heh. Anyways I still see he's doing h-manga he recently did a chapter for Comic Megastore 2008 08.

Spoiler for From Comic Megastore:

That's the only safe images I can upload.

[MooMooFarm]

Originally Posted by frubam

First let me say this: recently I've been REALLY annoyed by the weak male archetype, particularly after trying to read Girl Saurus. I don't mind a char being weak or a coward, as long as he has SOME characteristic that makes him strong(strong mind, sophisticatied, physically gifted, martial arts skills, whatever). That said, I hope Takeru(the main male char) becomes worthy enough for the affection he's getting, because right now, he just sucks :\ . I've only read the first 2 chapters, so its still to early, but that's just my initial impression of him.

Anyway, I was reminded of Mx0 as well, as it felt like the same formula of a magic school was being used. Art and story are good. The anger/hatred that Kodama has for Takeru keeps me interested enough to wait for the next chap. Also, is Inaho(the girl with the Sharingan symbol)

Spoiler:

the physical manifestation of Takeru's weapon? She just seemed to pop outta nowhere at the end of chap 1.

I agree so much on hating weak male archetype, simply because it's treated completely differently than weak female archetypes. You don't see ugly weak females be the main lead, or ones that look like complete losers. Even Kiri from Beauty Pop has that Daria look that goes -.- and makes you accept her along with her amazing scissor skills.

But, if I have to say, Girls Saurus/DX is way better than Maken-Ki for male leads. GS/DX is like people said, a parody/comedy driven, which is much more acceptable. Second, Shingo does have like-able qualities and isn't weak, but rather, cannot compare to the majority of the super females that are a match for the justice league. He is continually shown as a complete superior to most other males, and unlike the Maken-Ki lead, he isn't drawn in a way that makes you go EWWWW LOSER aka chubby round face with glasses with bad hair. Shingo is old school stupid, but that just fits the drawing style of his hilarious freak outs.

Now Mx0 comparison is just unfair. There is no way Maken-Ki can touch it. Right off from the start Maken-Ki goes Fanservice mode and tries to entice shonens from the hentai-suitable drawing style. Mx0's drawing style was amazingly efficient. You can have sexy characters, you can have ugly but not too ugly characters, you can have normal looking characters that you don't wanna beat the crap out of and vice versa, you can have serious looking characters, etc etc. An example is the girl factor. Doesn't matter if Maken-ki's blondey is almost flat chested, she's still drawn to give off the sex vibe. Mx0's Hiragi is more like a cuddle girl :] that makes you want to pet her, though if you are loli and what not then it gets kinda scary and there's no difference. Another factor is how the story panned out. Maken-Ki = girls throw themselves at Haruto. Mx0 = Taiga slowly gets girls into his group. And Taiga vs Haruto isn't even a match when Taiga is a character that'd stomp Naruto and Ichigo and maybe compete with Luffy in terms of being a man, let alone characters that are only meant to be drawn for their respective manga. About the only male lead that is similarly in league with Taiga is Min-ho from UxU.

Of course, I could be completely wrong as Maken-Ki progresses, but this is how these opening chapters look for me. Moment I saw the nurse, I was like damn that's 4chan fap material, but otherwise I just went T_T at the story. The introduction of magic in Maken-Ki is as bland as it was in Negima, and Negima WAS ALREADY MAGICAL. There's just no battle system, no use of "game rules" if you will that is incorporated in a NON LAME way. It's like, OoOoO why the HELL did this happen? Mx0 did it in a "OH CRAP I GOT IN HERE BY ACCIDENT and people are KIND enough to explain each and every detail" while Maken-Ki's first scene at the auditorium was like....EH? .

Mx0's greatest asset was the fact that the author knew he/she wouldn't do well with a genuine battle system, and tried to mesh it with competitions/events that were easier to understand/explain/create stories with. The class battles and exams and what not were probably the most innovating system that was smoothly plugged in the plot for the manga's generation, even better than the Chunin Exam from Naruto.

=/ Only way to make this series a A from a C-B from my limited creativity is to cliche Haruto as multi face guy who can somehow transform into someone COOL that we'd like. As it is now, with the way he's drawn (and he's not drawn without detail or anything, it's just that he's purposely MADE A LOSER) it doesn't matter if you suddenly made him appear on Axe commercials, he still wouldn't be cool. Asthetics matter in a media format that relies on pictures more than words, and it's not liek Orihime VS where you have some god like guy like Im Dal making the story that you know will at least be PASSABLE.

But hey, if I must say, Maken-Ki totally owns Mx0 and Girls Saurus at making the chicks look good, though completely indecent. Maybe it's just me, but Maken-Ki girls remind me of having the "over-glamor/makeup" treatment of a mangaka. Girls Saurus is really old school and isn't really sexy at all, just kinda funny.

=D Maybe I'll continue reading this, well, no I definitely will once chapters pile up but it's not addictive enough to be must read once a chapter comes out.

[frubam]

Originally Posted by MooMooFarm

But, if I have to say, Girls Saurus/DX is way better than Maken-Ki for male leads. GS/DX is like people said, a parody/comedy driven, which is much more acceptable. Second, Shingo does have like-able qualities and isn't weak, but rather, cannot compare to the majority of the super females that are a match for the justice league. He is continually shown as a complete superior to most other males, and unlike the Maken-Ki lead, he isn't drawn in a way that makes you go EWWWW LOSER aka chubby round face with glasses with bad hair. Shingo is old school stupid, but that just fits the drawing style of his hilarious freak outs.

I disagree with Shingo being "way" better than Takeru(main lead - Maken-ki), though Shingo's normal personality is truly much better and less generic than Takeru's. While Shingo may have likable qualities, as you say, since most of the time, he's around one of the central girls in the story, you really don't get to see that aspect of his character when it counts most, which is, of course, when he is around those girls. What you see most is him being afraid of girls, and the personality he shows then cuts into his char as a whole. Perhaps if I had known it was a parody of the harem type of manga, I could have loved it all the way til the end, but unfortunately, I didn't know.

In the first GS, it seemed more balanced. To me, that's one of the most important aspects in a harem manga/anime. Even if Shingo was afraid of girls, since he shown himself to be afraid of all the central girls, I liked it. Heck, he even alleviated his fear a bit. When it came to DX though, I saw the focus started to shift more towards Haruka. It REALLY irritated me to see him push off every other girl, but occasionally become immune to Haruka. If Shingo and Haruka had a similiar relationship to, say, Daisuke and Aikawa(Bitter Virgin), it'd be a bit more understandable, but since [I guess] it's a parody, that shouldn't happen. Now I do understand that the romance or whatever between those two had to escalate, but even with that rational thought, it couldnt' stave off my irritation for his char. I could have accepted it if Shingo's fear of women in general decrease a bit, so that everyone could get some time in. Now I don't think Takeru is that much better, but at least after reading up to chap 7, I can understand his convictions a little. I can't understand how Shingo can be around the same women almost all the time nearly equally, and only be immune to Haruka.

Maybe I'll give it another go from the very beginning with the idea that its a parody in mind.

Now Mx0 comparison is just unfair. There is no way Maken-Ki can touch it. Right off from the start Maken-Ki goes Fanservice mode and tries to entice shonens from the hentai-suitable drawing style. Mx0's drawing style was amazingly efficient. You can have sexy characters, you can have ugly but not too ugly characters, you can have normal looking characters that you don't wanna beat the crap out of and vice versa, you can have serious looking characters, etc etc. An example is the girl factor. Doesn't matter if Maken-ki's blondey is almost flat chested, she's still drawn to give off the sex vibe. Mx0's Hiragi is more like a cuddle girl :] that makes you want to pet her, though if you are loli and what not then it gets kinda scary and there's no difference. Another factor is how the story panned out. Maken-Ki = girls throw themselves at Haruto. Mx0 = Taiga slowly gets girls into his group. And Taiga vs Haruto isn't even a match when Taiga is a character that'd stomp Naruto and Ichigo and maybe compete with Luffy in terms of being a man, let alone characters that are only meant to be drawn for their respective manga. About the only male lead that is similarly in league with Taiga is Min-ho from UxU.

I don't think the Mx0 comparision is unfair at all. Actually, I said Maken-ki reminded me of Mx0, simply because they both deal with going to a high school where you can obtain special abilities and, in some ways, use it on campus against other students. Now, I never said it was better than Mx0. It's not, nor do I think it will ever be.

And I'll agree with the rest of what you said, except that Hiraigi was probably one of the most mundane, ordinary chars in the story. She had her moments, but I preferred Mizuki and Lucy, as they were far more enjoyable for me.

[MooMooFarm]

You are correct on Shingo. But the main flaw I have with Takeru is his character drawing design, not what he does. What he does, his personality, is well, generic. I might be considered bias, but as a manga, I have to consider how well your personality fits your drawing look. Takeru fits his meek weak character, but that only puts it on generic.

Shingo's superiority does sadly lie in the fact that it is a parody lol, if we take him to another manga, I'd say he's pretty much as crappy as Takeru. But his stupid look, old school drawing concept, and just how cliche he is and his flaws that you pointed out "fit" the old school drawing of Girls Saurus. Correct me if I'm wrong, but the drawings in GS are definitely from the 1990s, and that lets me go "hey, it's bound to have the flaws of the 1990s material". Maken-Ki is a newer generation, so I'd expect more. Shingo does actually get a little better dealing with the other girls, just that the mangaka doesn't actually hint it outright, which is of course bad.

Hiiragi is truly plain, and that's why I pointed her out as a teddy bear ^______^ or something, because teddies don't talk or do nothing. I'm talking about how she's drawn. You get the sense that "Hey, this supports Taiga's character". Mizuki is probably the most fleshed out of the characters, but she's the one that is presented to be a mix of Cute and trying to be Sexy. Lucy is the most intimate one, and probably one of the only characters that'd make people actually appreciate a floating plant LOL. All 3 females are incredibly important in their own way, so I probably should've stated their places instead of just Hiiragi. I agree with you though that the other two added more to the plot, but I believe those two were more effective in their roles than if say they were the girl Taiga wanted, specially Lucy. The fact that you stated how wrong it was how Haruka got special treatment is somewhat of an example of that. Being a more fleshed out character and yet still being treated as the main female lead is very hard to not have mistakes made.

Spoiler for CODE GEASS:

Some series don't do this at all, or try to spread it out. Currently Code Geass is the best example. CC/Kallen/Shirley/Nunnally are near equally spread out in importance over the extent of the series, and while Nunnally is the "Hiiragi/Haruka" of the story, it proves me right that at the moment, writers do not know how to create a story that makes that position interesting. Sure Nunnally is a decent character, but would you like her over any of the others? The mysterious/moe/fandomed CC? The action packed gets into hot situation passionate Kallen? The genuine lover Shirley? No, not really. That and the drawing design pretty much says so. This forum alone can show you how much attention Shirley's death got over Nunnally's.

=] And I'm a firm believer that CG is a polished product of today's anime, that while has no specialized strength, does almost everything it offers up to a very high standard. For a product like that to say no to the damsel position and just generic treatment it, is to say, a very big statement.

Or if you want another example, there's no way in hell Harry Potter would've worked as well if Harmonie x Harry happened. You want incest or something for the Weasleys? Jk.

Edit: Last thing though I've been ranting. I think the fact that you read GS as a non parody in the first place indicates two things. Either perhaps you aren't as phail/otaku/nerdy/whatever as I am at recognizing stuff, or GS just failed to strongly portray it's genre and intended viewing.

Oops, I totally forgot. Thanks for reminding me! =] and uh, LOL I don't know what to say.

[Irenicus]

MooMooFarm: Please be careful about spoilers in your post above. I haven't catched up to Code Geass since episode 16 (you know what happened around then, or before it, anyway), and if I read it right you just spoilered another huge wtf event for us who haven't had the energy to follow it week for week since then.

I mean...did that really happen!

[Julao]

Comments about chapter 8:

* One more girl falls for takeru, her name is Shiria Ootsuka, and she's in love with him that he proudly calls him her perfect knight, much to the dismay of the girls.

* An organization called "Venus" led by Akaya Kodai (a former member of the maken-ki) arrives at tenbi, and now is working together with the current maken-ki members in tracking down an evil organization which is trying to revive the "Yamata no Orochi".

* Takeru finally acquires his own maken thanks to makensmith gen.

[MooMooFarm]

Originally Posted by Julao

Comments about chapter 8:

* One more girl falls for takeru, her name is Shiria Ootsuka, and she's in love with him that he proudly calls him her perfect knight, much to the dismay of the girls.

* An organization called "Venus" led by Akaya Kodai (a former member of the maken-ki) arrives at tenbi, and now is working together with the current maken-ki members in tracking down an evil organization which is trying to revive the "Yamata no Orochi".

* Takeru finally acquires his own maken thanks to makensmith gen.

T_T sooooo fail. Anyone get that feeling that even though it was already "way too unschool x magic - like" this chapter really killed it? Like, if Harry Potter introduced some SOCOM unit or something in Book 2 to the school or something, and had them fighting the stupid giant snake, any of you think that series would gone to shit for the rest? Like, wow man, introducing too many elements and too many characters = FAIL. Do people not understand this? Even something as rushed as Code Geass episode 20 took it's TIME to get set up by one whole season and 19 other episodes before it went Speedy Gonzalles.

And I don't get the Maken system at all. It's not clear-cut and just kind of gives an excuse for the mangaka to draw semi-cool looking weapons or objects. =[ if it weren't for the excellent drawing, I would've forsaken this already.

[technomo12]

ok this seems to be starting to become another harem manga

[Ultenth]

Starting to become? I thought it was pretty obvious from the cover of the manga, and even then it's pretty obvious from the first 1/2 a chapter or so that's where they are heading. Even still, even for a harem manga it's pretty cliche ridden, but at least the art is nice.

[technomo12]

ya the art is nice even though using another cliche genre but still the point of being here is the fights soo i really would like him to take on a fight hehehehe

[ZODDGUTS]

You guys should just check out he's h-manga/doujins instead then, it has a more satisfying feeling afterwords if you know what I mean heh.

BTW Most of he's works are translated.

http://www.mangaupdates.com/authors.html?id=4540

[Dark Mage]

what do u guys think about who will Takeru end up with? I am hoping he ends up with Kodama

[MooMooFarm]

Originally Posted by ZODDGUTS

You guys should just check out he's h-manga/doujins instead then, it has a more satisfying feeling afterwords if you know what I mean heh.

BTW Most of he's works are translated.

http://www.mangaupdates.com/authors.html?id=4540

I KNEW IT, HE WAS H-MATERIAL. No frigging way you draw it that scandalous and you DON'T have a job as a H-artist.

Oh and umm yeah technomo lol this was definitely Harem off the bat. I've rarely seen a loser weak male lead in a non-harem series, besides maybe Eureka 7 or something.

[Newprimus]

Being an H-artist turned mainstream is not a bad thing. For one, it's pretty much almost always guaranteed that 1: their girls are ultra-hot 2: their art skills are really top-notch.

[MooMooFarm]

Originally Posted by Shinova

Being an H-artist is not a bad thing. For one, it's pretty much guaranteed that 1: their girls are ultra-hot 2: their art skills are really top-notch.

I never said it was a bad thing lol. I was just happy I was right =] it means my nerdy manga experience is showing.

But umm, as for design, I still think using a H-style isn't the perfect way to go. I'm probably biased, but for an OVERALL viewership, drawing styles like Mx0 or Eyeshield 21 or even POT to a point is the best.

I'll give this to Maken-Ki though, at least it's better than High School of the Dead. Wait, no not really. Maybe tied. Maken-ki has more suitable drawings for it's environment, while High School has a more reasonable environment.

[Ultenth]

Yeah, I've read most of his H stuff, but I didn't really care for it cus all his women are ENORMOUS. Like the males are usually slightly below average size, but the women are usually double or triple their overall mass it seems.