Manga Rec #7 - Kimi ni Todoke: From Me to You, Vol. 1 by Karuho Shiina

Kimi ni Todoke: From Me to You, Vol. 1 

by Karuho Shiina


Sawako Kuronuma is the perfect heroine...for a horror movie. With her jet-black hair, sinister smile and silent demeanor, she's often mistaken for Sadako, the haunting character from Ringu. Unbeknownst to but a few, behind her scary façade is a very misunderstood teenager.

Shy and pure of heart, she just wants to make friends. But when Kazehaya, the most popular boy in class, befriends her, she's sure to make more than just that--she's about to make some enemies too!

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This is another one of my dear favorites. Never has a manga touched me as deep as this one.

Sawako makes me think of a younger, sweeter and more naive version of Sunako. They do have many things in common. They're both kind of dark (even without trying to. LOL), long-haired (Sadako/Samara, anyone?) and shy. Oh, and they both have 'chibi' versions. (in order of the images: Sawako and Sunako):

 

Sawako is just SO good it should make your teeth hurt, but incredibly, they don't. Because she's very believable. You end up pitying her, then cheering fervently for her to start developing into the wonderful, social girl she we all know she can be.

Kazehaya is very cute, or should I say kawaii? He's a boy, sure, but also very kind and shy, and he ends up falling hard for Sawako, scary stories about her and all. He's the one who influences people to start getting closer to her and see how great a person she is.

There are many highly amusing characters in this manga, but some deserve special mentions, such as the closest friends the heroine ends up making, Chizuro and Ayane, the quiet and distant Ryu (Kazehaya's best friend) and the crazy teacher "Pin".

There is an anime version and live-action. I've watched the anime, but, as usual, I still like the manga better (even though Sawako is gets cuter in color).

I haven't had a chance of checking just checked out the live-action version, and it was cute. The adaptation was very good, but live-actions are too short. A lot of good parts of the story were lost.

If you have free time, you really should check this manga out. Volume 12 should come out on Jan 3, 2012. The series ends on volume 15, so we're almost there. :) I'm very glad VIZ Media is keeping up with it. If you try it out, you won't regret it.