The appeal and evaluation of "Bakuman. (2)": The success and evolution of the sequel

Bakuman. (2) - A youth drama set between dreams and reality

"Bakuman. (2)" is a TV anime series that aired on NHK Educational TV from October 1, 2011 to March 24, 2012. It is based on the manga of the same name by Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata. A total of 25 episodes were broadcast in a 30-minute slot every Saturday from 5:30 to 6:00 p.m. Animation was handled by JCSTAFF, and the series was produced and written by NHK, Shogakukan Shueisha Productions, and NHK Enterprises.

story

Bakuman (2) is the story of Saikou Mashiro and Akito Takagi after they win a manga serialization under the name Ashirogi Muto. Saikou and Miho Azuki's dream of getting married if Saikou's manga is made into an anime and Azuki becomes the heroine seems to be one step closer to reality, but a new challenge awaits.

As the series begins to move into a weekly serialization, the editor in charge will change from Hattori Tetsu to Minatoura Goro. It will be interesting to see whether Minatoura is a good editor and how his appearance will affect Ashirogi Muto's serialization. In addition to the genius Nizuma Eiji, newcomer Hiramaru Kazuya, who is said to be "better than Eiji," Fukuda Shinta of the "Fukuda Group," Aoki Kurenai, Nakai Takumi, and others will also join the fray, and a person with a close relationship with Saikou Akito will also appear, starting a fierce manga battle.

Meanwhile, troubles arise for Azuki, who is single-mindedly pursuing her path as a voice actress. What decision will she make to fulfill her promise to Saikou, caught between her dreams and reality? The second season of this youth drama, which progresses at an overwhelming pace with manga, love, and friendship, has begun.

cast

The cast of this film is as follows:

• Mashiro Takashi: Abe Atsushi
• Akito Takagi: Satoshi Hino
• Miho Azuki: Saori Hayami
• Kaya Miyoshi: Sayuri Yahagi
• Eiji Nizuma: Nobuhiko Okamoto
• Shinta Fukuda: Junichi Suwabe
• Takumi Nakai: Tomoyuki Shimura
• Aoki Ko: Ayako Kawasumi
• Aiko Iwase: Ayumi Fujimura
• Satoshi Hattori: Kentaro Tone
• Yujiro Hattori: Hirofumi Nojima
• Bottle Deputy Editor-in-Chief: Shinji Kawada
• Editor-in-Chief: Kenyu Horiuchi
• Taro Kawaguchi (Nobuhiro Mashiro): Kenji Hamada
• Kazuya Hiramaru: Masakazu Morita
• Goro Minatoura: Daisuke Kirii
• Koji Yoshida: Takehito Koyasu
• Soichi Aida: Yuto Kazama

Main Staff

The main staff of this work are as follows:

• Series Composition: Reiko Yoshida
• Character design: Tomoyuki Shimotani
• Art director: Chika Shibata
• Color design: Mayumi Tanahashi
• Director of photography: Kazuya Iwai
• Music: Audio Highs
• Sound Director: Jun Watanabe
• Animation producer: Yuji Matsukura
• Production Supervisors: Kenji Saito, Masahiro Nojima, Masahiro Saito

Main Characters

Let's take a closer look at the main characters of this work.

Mashiro is the best

His nickname is "Saikou". He loves drawing manga and dreamed of becoming a professional manga artist like his uncle, Kawaguchi Taro, but after his uncle passed away three years ago, he gave up on his dream. After meeting Akito and proposing to Azuki Miho, who was in the same class, he rekindled his passion for manga and won a serialization in Weekly Shonen Jack as a professional manga artist, Ashirogi Muto, while still a high school student. His family consists of four people: his parents and his grandfather.

Akito Takagi

He is a classmate of Saikou, and Saikou calls him "Shuujin". He was always the top of his class, but he had always wanted to be a manga artist, and when he saw Saikou's talent early on, he invited him to "aim to be a manga artist together". He even lowered the rank of his university to devote himself to manga, and finally made his dream come true. In his pair with Saikou, he is in charge of the original story, and not only does he have a talent for writing, he is also a dedicated researcher who reads all the best-selling novels and manga he can get his hands on. He comes from a family of three, his mother and older brother.

Azuki Miho

She was a former classmate of Saikou, and is a beautiful girl whom Saikou secretly had feelings for. Saikou dreams of becoming a voice actor, and when he visits her house, she asks him to marry her if his dream comes true. Saikou immediately accepts, but she adds a slightly strange condition that they should only encourage each other by email until then. She is currently working as a new voice actor, and her family consists of her parents and a younger sister.

Kaya Miyoshi

Azuki's best friend, she is an active girl who excels at all kinds of sports. Akito, who she had a crush on for a long time, asked her about Azuki, which led to her dating him and supporting the two of them in their lives as manga artists. More than anyone else, she hopes that Azuki and her dream will come true.

Newlywed Eiji

He is said to be a genius manga artist and hails from Aomori Prefecture. From an early age, his only joy has been drawing manga. All of the works he submitted were evaluated as outstandingly excellent, and he moved to Tokyo as a high school student to make his professional debut. His works have always maintained high popularity, and although he is Saikou and Akito's biggest rival, Eiji himself respects and pays attention to Ashirogi Muto, who debuted around the same time.

Satoshi Hattori

He is an editor at the manga magazine "Weekly Shonen Jack", and after receiving a call from Saikou and Akito with a manuscript, he became their editor. He highly values ​​Saikou and Akito's talents, saying that they will one day "become manga artists who surpass Nizuma Eiji". He has a habit of laughing "hahaha".

Editor-in-Chief Sasaki

He is the editor-in-chief of Weekly Shonen Jack, and when he was deputy editor-in-chief he had informed Kawaguchi Taro that he was no longer needed, and he told Saikou and Akito that Kawaguchi Taro had once said, "As long as manga is interesting, that's fine. If it's interesting, it will be serialized."

Yujiro Hattori

He is an editor at Weekly Shonen Jack in charge of Niizuma Eiji and Fukuda Shinta, and is surprisingly ambitious, aiming to get promoted through the huge success of the genius Niizuma Eiji's works.

Fukuda Shinta

Although he appears light-hearted at first glance, he is actually a passionate man with a strong sense of duty and humanity who came to Tokyo alone with the aim of becoming a manga artist. Due to his love for shounen manga and as the leader of the Fukuda Group, a group of fellow manga artists, he sometimes clashes with the editorial department and exchanges heated opinions. He is a talented artist who has won the Tezuka Award twice and has had one-shot stories published in special editions.

Takuro Nakai

He is a "newbie" manga artist who has been working as an assistant for many years and dreamed of serializing his manga. His technique of quickly and surely completing even complex backgrounds is so impressive that even the genius Eiji Nizuma takes notice. Although he is confused by the youth of the group, he is greatly inspired by them, and together with Aoki Beni, he aims to serialize "Shonen Jack."

Aoki Ko

He is a manga artist and currently a university student, and has had a one-shot published in a girls' manga magazine. After winning the runner-up prize in the Story King and Name category for "Weekly Shonen Jack," he decided to enter the Golden Future Cup in collaboration with illustrator Nakai. While he is confident in his own work, he is critical of the works of Saikou, Akito, and Fukuda, saying that they are "not suitable for a boys' magazine."

Soichi Aida

He is the team leader (cap) of the "Weekly Shonen Jack" editorial department, who has a strict eye for manga and often gives harsh evaluations. He gives high praise to Ashirogi Muto's work and strongly supports it at serialization meetings. He is in charge of the combination of Aoki and Nakai, and his team members include Hattori Satoshi, Minatoura, and Kim.

Koji Yoshida

He is a team leader (cap) who is highly respected in the manga editorial department for his always calm behavior and sharp observations. He has a keen eye for manga, and was the person who recognized Hiramaru Kazuya's talent and pulled him into the world of manga.

Goro Minatoura

This is his second year at the Jack editorial department, and he took over from Hattori in charge of Ashirogi Muto. He loves gag manga and was an avid reader of "Super Hero Legend," so he enthusiastically supports Saikou and the others, but he often takes detours due to his lack of experience.

Aiko Iwase

A brilliant girl in the same class as Saikou and the others, she was in love with Akito, but she couldn't understand why Akito would lower his academic ranking to become a manga artist, so she broke up with him. While studying for her university entrance exams, she wrote a work that won a new writer's award, and made her debut as a novelist. After meeting Akito again, she set out on the path to becoming a manga author.

subtitle

The subtitles for each episode are as follows:

• Episode 1: Silence and Feast
• Episode 2: Essay and photo collections
• Episode 3: Windows and Snow
• Episode 4: Leverage and Perseverance
• Episode 5: Bokeh and the News
• Episode 6: Illness and motivation
• Episode 7: Life, Death and Restraint
• Episode 8: Recall and Call
• Episode 9: Restart and Lower Ranks
• Episode 10: Gag and Seriousness
• Episode 11: Manga and Youth
• Episode 12: Experience and Data
• Episode 13: Alliance and classmates
• Episode 14: Distrust and Trust
• Episode 15: Marrying a Monkey
• Episode 16: The Prince and the Savior
• Episode 17: A special bond and the countryside
• Episode 18: Complaints and shouting
• Episode 19: Fate and Stars
• Episode 20: Love and denial
• Episode 21: Selfishness and Advice
• Episode 22: Tips and Best
• Episode 23: Winning and Losing
• Episode 24: Expression and imagination
• Episode 25: Votes and Tables

Related Titles

Bakuman (2) is related to the following works:

• Bakuman.
• Bakuman. (3)

Theme songs and music

The theme songs and insert songs for this work are as follows.

Opening Theme

• Period: Episodes 1-25
• Song Name: Dream of Life
• Lyrics: Shohei Ito, Yuki Kawamura
• Composer: Shohei Ito
• Arrangement: Aki Hishikawa
• Vocals: Shohei Ito

Ending Theme

• Period: Episodes 1-12
• Song title: monochrome rainbow
• Lyricist: Tommy heavenly6
• Composer: Mark and John
• Arranged by: Mark and John
• Sung by: Tommy heavenly6

• Period: 13~25 episodes
• Song name: Parallel =
• Lyrics: Ikuya Sashida, jam
• Composer: Ikuya Sashida, Toshiyuki Mori
• Arrangement: Toshiyuki Mori
• Vocals: Ikuya Sashida

Ratings and Recommendations

"Bakuman. (2)" has been highly praised as a youth drama depicting the dreams and realities of young people aspiring to become manga artists. It brings out the charm of the original work to the fullest, while adding depth to the expressiveness that only anime can offer. In particular, the growth of the characters, changes in human relationships, and the realistic portrayal of the manga industry are beautifully depicted, drawing viewers in.

It is also interesting that the subtitles for each episode are made up of contrasting words, and many of them symbolize the development of the story or the feelings of the characters. This allows viewers to enjoy the story while gaining a deeper understanding of the theme of each episode.

In terms of music, the opening theme "Dream of Life" and the ending themes "monochrome rainbow" and "Parallel =" liven up the atmosphere of the work, and the melodies and lyrics that resonate with the hearts of viewers are impressive. In particular, Shohei Ito's singing voice and Tommy heavenly6's unique worldview further enhance the charm of the work.

This work is recommended not only for those who like manga and anime, but also for everyone who chases their dreams. It realistically depicts the brilliance and failures of youth, friendship and romance, and the challenge of dreams, and will surely inspire and move many viewers. Please enjoy it along with the original work.