Aoi House Vol. #1
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August 20, 2006
by: Michael Bartholow
Crazy from page one.
Manga Description
Alex and Sandy were two normal guys just trying to get through college. That is, until their troublemaking hamster, Echiboo, gets them thrown out of their dorm rooms. With nowhere else to turn, the boys move into an anime clubhouse with five crazed yaoi fangirls calling all the shots!
Manga Review:
Content: (This section may include spoilers)
The description above gives you a great capsule synopsis of this fun series. Aoi House is a "harem-style" comedy in the tradtion of the fan-fav - Love Hina. It's also an American produced manga! How's that for a twist from the norm? First serialized online at www.gomanga.com, Aoi House is coming home to shelves courtesy of Seven Seas manga.
Alex and Sandy need a new place to stay. They see an ad for an Anime Club on one of the university bulletin boards, so naturally, they are in. Little do they know that the house is populated with rabid yaoi fangirls (yaoi being that certain type of anime to feature steamy boy-on-boy love). Since the "Y" has fallen off of the apartment building, the boys are none the wiser as they enter for their application interview. They are immediately assumed to be gay and welcomed into the club. The wackiness begins as they find themselves in an extremely uncomfortable situation surrounded by extremely attractive girls.
Aoi House is set in the present day and the characters often reference to popular anime. When the portly-galoot Sandy sees the house's shy hottie - Maria confronted by bikers, he asks himself "What would Onizuka do?" while imagining himself in a suit and tie. GTO is the first of many fan references to be served for the palette of the learned otaku. This continued conflict between the girls and boys is settled via a championship round or DDR.
The worth of Aoi House is less as a stand-alone entry on book shelves and more of a love letter to anime-fans themselves. Filled with fan-service for guys and gals alike (often thanks to Sandy's pet hamster Echiboo, a panty collector), the title will be best enjoyed by seasoned fans of "harem" titles. All of the familiar cliches of that genre are played with and given new twists. I can't wait to continue reading the series as the house will surely battle over cosplay materials and J-Snacks.
Much of the success can be attributed to Adam Arnold's writing. Without the translation process, all of the dialogue is clean and crisp. The jokes are meant for the end reader (you, for once!) and not filtered through cultural differences. The manga is filled with creator notes, sketches, and extras to keep you entertained after the chapters are finished.
The series still runs online, so you can get acclimated with the concept before plunking your $10 down at the bookstore. You'll buy it after you fall in love with the premise. Most will get a jiggle of two out of this series, but for Love Hina fans, a new obsession will be born.
Art:
Shiei's art-style does what it needs to do to keep the comedy front and center by striking a balance between panel-heavy pages and cleaner, simpler art-driven ones. The characters are familiar, yet new. Backgrounds always sufficiently fit the story and setting and do little to distract. The emphasis is definitely on the zaniness and occasional chibi-humor and not on genre-defining art.
Aoi House's cover art is appealing and pleasent. All of the main characters are featured on the front cover, and the nurse's costume and hamster invite the reader into a madcap world of fandom. The rear cover has Echiboo cuddling a little pair of panties as he contemplates the book's description blurb. The book clocks in at 200 pages and makes for a nice package.
Translation:
Ha! None to speak of. I'd really get a kick if they translated this series for the Japanese market (It may go over well there). No score given here for this original English production.
Overall:
Aoi House possesses all of the ingredients to titilate male and female fans of the "harem" style. At the same time, the story is also a comedic look at domestic anime fans themselves and reveals much in-between references and jokes. Strong writing revisits old tropes with ease and the characters sure are loveable. Who would have thought that the next great genre comedy would be an Ameri-Manga?
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Content |
A solid first effort here. Looking forward to future issues. |
8.1 |
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Art |
Not great, not bad. Art services the fun story and characters. |
5.5 |
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Verdict
Anyone will derive a few giggles from this title, but the "Harem" fans will eat it up!
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7.2
[not an average]
+ Hamster induced hilarity
+ A scathing look into US otaku culture
+ DDR battles
- Art won't make you write home from dorm
- Haven't seen Maria naked yet (Hint, hint)
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