Manga Review: School Judgment: Gakkyu Hotei, Volume 2, by Nobuaki Enoki and Takeshi Obata

Rating (Out of 5): ~3

Publisher: Shonen Jump (VIZ Media)

Release Date: April 5, 2016

Volumes: 3.

Spoilers?: No.

Buy it here: Amazon. Barnes and Noble. Book Depository. Powells. RightStuf.

Volume: 1. 3.

Goodreads Synopsis:

In order to curb the crime running rampant in the elementary school system, a new solution has been enacted in the form of the School Judgment System. Now the young students themselves will be responsible for solving the issues that befall them. But are they up for the task?

A Masked Dude has been distributing a magical powder to the children of class 6-3 to put on their boring food. The powder makes regular food so addictive that the children who are hooked get sick if they don’t eat it. Pine finds Reiko Shiratori, the school’s Madonna, at the Masked Dude’s hideout and accuses her of distributing the powder. Can Abaku argue Reiko out of this not-so-sweet situation?

Review:

Given that this series only has one more volume, I thought this volume would have more development. We only got a tiny bit here, sadly.

Instead, we got three individual cases in the classroom, with Abaku defending and winning mostly. At one point, Pine struggles with her father’s decision to transfer her to another school again, when she’s finally settled and made friends at this one.

There was a tiny development for the classroom case that Abaku was involved in. We get an explanation of what happened after, who survived and what happened to the three kids. We meet the other boy, who rivals Abaku in the court-classroom, a crazy ninja kid. And we find out about a mysterious female student, who will surely be showing up next.

I’m not a big fan of this series, but this volume was okay. It was still exaggerated, and I’m annoyed with how easily Abaku seems to win, even against an undefeated opponent (who they spin the outcome for, to seem like it was a tie—bleh). Also, the overuse of the word “ronpa” drives me crazy.

I mostly just don’t think it’s for me, but I might read the next one to see how it concludes.

A review copy was provided by the publisher, VIZ Media, for an honest review. Thank you so, so much!

Manga Review: School Judgment: Gakkyu Hotei, Volume 1, by Nobuaki Enoki and Takeshi Obata

Rating (Out of 5): ~3

Publisher: Shonen Jump (VIZ Media)

Release Date: February 2, 2016

Volumes: 3.

Spoilers?: No.

Buy it here: Amazon. Barnes and Noble. Book Depository. Powells. RightStuf.

Volume: 2.

Goodreads Synopsis:

In order to curb the crime running rampant in the elementary school system, a new solution has been enacted in the form of the School Judgment System. Now the young students themselves will be responsible for solving the issues that befall them. But are they up for the task?

At Tenbin Elementary, there is only one way to settle a dispute—in a court of law! All disputes bypass the teachers and are settled by some of the best lawyers in the country…who also happen to be elementary school students. The accused this time is a boy named Tento. His crime? Murder of the beloved class fish Suzuki! Luckily for him, the state has sent him a defense attorney, Abaku Inugami. But is this wild young lawyer skilled enough to argue his client off the hook?

Review:

I thought this sounded cute, and with Obata’s name on it, I was at least intrigued. Plus, I like me some mysteries.

I have to admit, though, that I had a hard time distending my belief enough for middle-school lawyers. Not to mention baby judges. And given that they have real training, and their judgments have real consequences? I just had a hard time believing in all this.

The main character is Abaku, the defense attorney. He’s rather closed off and rude to his classmates, but it’s hinted that he’s witnessed a real murder. A massacre, even, and he has plans to avenge it maybe. There’s the average school boy who befriends him, Tento, who’s just a nice kid in the end. There are a few side characters, friends to the main ones, and a crazy teacher. Abaku’s real enemy is the prosecutor, a girl who puts on a cute face to win people over, and her minion who likes her rough side.

It’s an interesting cast of characters, and I like the hints to what happened to Abaku. The trials are interesting to see, and the mysteries are okay, though not very surprising in the end. Mostly, I have a hard time believing in the whole set up.

I’m not sure how I feel about it, but I probably won’t be picking up more.

A review copy was provided by the publisher, VIZ Media, for an honest review. Thank you so, so much!