SRZ (School Rumble Z) Manga discussion

[Solafighter]

It may be true, that Tenma is the main char but for many people and me as well, is Harima the leader of SR.

[lonewolf777]

Well, there's a couple things I'd like to add to this stirring discussion:

1. Even if Tenma was the main character, as Sola said, she certainly was not the leader. And just because the series has a main character, doesn't mean it revolves around that character. As such, series like School Rumble need to have endings which accomodate all the characters in the game, not just the main. Every great anime ending is that way, if it has a multidimensional cast. Again, it's not that we need pairings and shippings to come to be. Rather, the ending was incomplete, because there were way too many loose ends left untied (that English pretty boy, Yakumo/Eri's feelings for Kenji, every other character, both minor and non), and that brings me to my next point.

2. I'm not convinced KJ is pleased with this ending, considering. It seems like he was rushed into it, and he did it because he had to think of a quick way to give some amount of closure (as much as he could without going further). It seems like there was more he wanted to cover and address, but he wasn't able to (and the company DID suddenly stop publishing, so this is probably true). This is indicated by the abrupt season 3 anime release/ending and the randomness of the last few chapters, as well as the introduction of SRZ, despite his being busy with other things.

3. Yes, Kenji's character IS so much based on the fact that he has undying love for Tenma. But in reality, and I've said this before, even love that deep, when rejected, people get over. People don't forget pain, no matter how much love, if it's unrequited. I would have liked to see Kenji get over Tenma altogether after the whole getting beat up by Eri thing.... that would have been more realistic, imho. That doesn't necessarily mean getting with Eri or Yakumo per se, but it would certainly make more sense than having him pathetically dwell on someone who left him, despite all he did for her.

[yakumo-chan]

RIght...
but lets just move on...
nothing gonna change even how hard we try to have more SR.....
KJ is the one who will decide if he finish it or not...
he is the creator after all....

[lonewolf777]

So do you think SRZ is not a continuation/hope for redemption?

[Solafighter]

Originally Posted by yakumo-chan

RIght...
but lets just move on...
nothing gonna change even how hard we try to have more SR.....
KJ is the one who will decide if he finish it or not...
he is the creator after all....

Well i think, not he alone decides. Or he draws manga for fun, and not for the money.

If SRZ will sell well, it will continue.

[yakumo-chan]

hmmm... maybe... who knows.. it maybe a continuation..... i hope....
we cant do anything about it though.... as i said earlier ONLY KJ can decide if he will finish it or not.....
let's just pray that he will finish it with a happy ending that will satisfy us ^_^

[manari]

Hey, anybody can tell where can I read more chapters than 1-3 or it was not translated yet.
I dont wanna believe that I will never again see Harima in action

[Gambino009]

Originally Posted by Solafighter

Well i think, not he alone decides. Or he draws manga for fun, and not for the money.

If SRZ will sell well, it will continue.

Apparently he does it for fun.. other wise this place would be more crowded with would be fans.

Now what was that saying in Futurama.. with the aliens. If you give the people what they want.. it'll be a success, but if you give em something different and unexpected.. you'll only scare and confuse them.

well that's how media works this days anyways.. but what ever

like some one a few pages ago mentioned.. it might be that he's trying to get over school rumble and focus more on his next work.

[Solafighter]

Originally Posted by Gambino009

Apparently he does it for fun.. other wise this place would be more crowded with would be fans.

Oh ok i realy didnt know.


But well, i started reading the new work by KJ. Its not bad. At least, KJ doesnt stop drawing mangas with high quality in plot and developments.

Im very looking forward, what KJ will bring us in the future.

[Mughi]

Originally Posted by lonewolf777

...Again, it's not that we need pairings and shippings to come to be. Rather, the ending was incomplete, because there were way too many loose ends left untied (that English pretty boy, Yakumo/Eri's feelings for Kenji, every other character, both minor and non), and that brings me to my next point....

...I'm not convinced KJ is pleased with this ending, considering. It seems like he was rushed into it, and he did it because he had to think of a quick way to give some amount of closure (as much as he could without going further). It seems like there was more he wanted to cover and address, but he wasn't able to (and the company DID suddenly stop publishing, so this is probably true)....

OK, I'm with you here and agree that lots of loose ends were left and it felt rushed and seems like a really weak way to end what had shaped up to be a pretty epic series, especially for a comedy. But:

1. Stories don't always wrap up nice an neat for everyone, especially since all of the backstory on all of the other characters was brought out in order to set up new levels of jokes about Harima and Tenma misunderstanding each other. Given that, they are all just foils for the main story, which is Harima is a loser and always will be, and Tenma is dimwitted and always will be.

2. All of the Harima x Eri x Yakumo pairing basically served to set up the ultimate joke... In which is being handed girls who love him on a silver platter, and finding himself in a setup which would typically be the OPENING scene for a situation comedy. Kobayashi-Sensei instead used it as a closer to jump straight to the conclusion where Harima has learned nothing at all and goes right back to his Tenma loving ways as soon as she appears in front of him. Why draw all of the years of ensuing art and story if the result is a foregone conclusion.

Its funnier to set Harima up in an utter "no lose" situation and then show him lose all over right away.

...But in reality, and I've said this before, even love that deep, when rejected, people get over. People don't forget pain, no matter how much love, if it's unrequited. I would have liked to see Kenji get over Tenma altogether after the whole getting beat up by Eri thing.... that would have been more realistic, imho.... it would certainly make more sense than having him pathetically dwell on someone who left him, despite all he did for her.

And this brings me to 3. (and this is not pointed directly at YOU Lonewolf, because where I read you, you're a smart and reasoned person. Please don't take this as an attack, I'm just jumping off of your statements, because they are useful and common to others. ) This is NOT reality! It's a comedy series which is based in UNreality. It is a PARODY, a SATIRE. And as such the laws of reality don't function according to the rules you see in daily life. So, none of the characters will necessarily behave in a manner that you'd probably predict as "how it ought to turn out". For that you go to romance novels or character studies or something. This is not to be taken seriously no matter how much you like the characters. So expecting a normal, sweet, tied up with a bow on your favorite pairings kind of ending just wouldn't work, as that's not the point of the series. So The author made the end as "You know, we could keep doing this forever, but the truth is this is how it turns out because I think its funny, so here you go." as he could.

Its a common mistake a lot of fans fall for, where they get so close to the subject and project so many of their personal longings onto it that if it doesn't tie up at the end they way they wish, it tears them apart... It's only for entertainment folks.

Because these are the dymamics set up to make the jokes work, they will never settle out:

Harima --> Tenma
Tenma --> Karasuma - (She really doesn't "get him" in the end, because he's locked in and doesn't remember her or anyone. He even confesses to her in his head, but not in reality, so she'll still never know.)
Eri --> Harima
Yakumo --> Harima
Hanai --> Yakumo
Hanai <--> Souo - (This one is the only one where they would end up together, because they both say they don't want it so much, so the joke is that they are fated to end up together and the punchline is they do get married in the end...)
Imadori --> Suou
Ichijo --> Imadori

and so on...

All that said, I like the characters too and would love some more resolution for Eri, Harima and Yakumo as well, simply because I genuinely like reading the series, but I can also accept it if that's all there is... SRZ may give us more filler to play with, which is fine by me. (Especially since I'm in both the Flag and Riceball camps) It may also give us some eventual growth and acceptance that Harima will never get Tenma, so he should take who he can get, but that would spoil the joke the series is based on, so I'd actually be shocked if it went there... If Kobayashi-Sensei DOES, then you will all know for a fact that he's doing it for money and not for fun.

[GATX207_Blitz]

Well if nothing ever develops I'm sure some of the fans in the future will go into the world of animation and make filler series or bonus series like they did for the gundam line (0080, 0083) Maybe even someone from here O:

[kenjiharima]

If MAD was to give SRZ a shot of randomness and finale that would be great. Though our hint in the time skip Harima is missing. Eri is looking for him while Yakumo due to Harima's influence became a assistant mangaka herself and her still have the hots for him.

[lswift84]

how much longer till the next chapter jebus! lol

Lets pass the time till the next chapter. What got you guys hooked on SR/SRZ?

For me, just look at my avatar. I saw the anime before I read the manga and I am a HUGE Initial D fan, so once I saw the I-D parody I was hooked, and I have followed this series from hell and back ever since

[Gambino009]

For me.. it was Eri

just like Mai Kujaku got me hooked into Yugioh some where back in 1999. This would be the second blondie

I guess I started liking her more after the beach episode and her first Jealous fight with Suou.

Much to my liking.. I was like Whoa, the underdog girl has emerged, since I didn't like Tenma and always went against the flow.

[Mughi]

Originally Posted by lswift84

how much longer till the next chapter jebus! lol

Lets pass the time till the next chapter. What got you guys hooked on SR/SRZ?

For me, just look at my avatar. I saw the anime before I read the manga and I am a HUGE Initial D fan, so once I saw the I-D parody I was hooked, and I have followed this series from hell and back ever since

The Initial-D reference was all win and I LOL'd mightily when I first saw the scene.

I got hooked when I saw Tenma on the cover of the 1st manga tankouban at Kinokuniya in LA. The graphic was interesting... I paged through the thing a bit and seeing Harima and all the guys cowering at him made me laugh, plus all the girls were WAI cute, but I didn't buy it... About a year later the DelRey English release came out and I picked it up just because I recognized the cover. That was all it took...

[Gambino009]

I imagine, we all knew it existed but just never got into it right away

It took me some months before I started reading manga and watching every single ep on Youtube.

During that time.. I spent three days watching the two seasons.

[Solafighter]

Originally Posted by Gambino009

It took me some months before I started reading manga and watching every single ep on Youtube.

During that time.. I spent three days watching the two seasons.

Watching it on youtube? No wonder, it took 3 days. Go buy the DVD´s.

Well we have wedensday the 11. Wont be a long time, since the spoilers of the 7th chapter.

[yakumo-chan]

uhm... does anyone here knows when the new chapters of SRZ will be translated??
thanks....

[Solafighter]

Originally Posted by yakumo-chan

uhm... does anyone here knows when the new chapters of SRZ will be translated??
thanks....

Only god knows...

Since no team is translating it right now, never. But if the chapter 7 is "good" by continueing SR, the chances could increase to find a team/group, that could undertake the job.

[yakumo-chan]

im hoping for a yakumo vs. Eri for the next chapter.... heheh... ^_^
i wish they will translate the 4,5,6, chapters so i can know what's happening in chapter 4....