Title: Horimiya Volume 1
Story: HERO
Art: Daisuke Hagiwara
Art: Daisuke Hagiwara
Release Date: October 27, 2015
Publisher: Yen Press (Hachette Book Group imprint)
At school, Kyouko Hori is known for being smart, attractive, and popular. On the other hand, her classmate, the boring, gloomy Izumi Miyamura tends to get painted as a "loser fanboy." But when a liberally pierced and tattooed (not to mention downright gorgeous) Miyamura appears unexpectedly on the doorstep of secretly plain-Jane homebody Hori, these two similarly dissimilar teenagers discover that there are multiple sides to every story... and person!
Horimiya Volume 1 is the start of something honest and fresh. It's all about perception and honesty, about friendship and loneliness, about the good things unexpected friends can bring.
Hori-san is popular and stylish, but that's only when she's at school. At home, she's a homebody who takes care for her younger brother and does all the housework and grocery shopping. Miyamura looks boring in class, his hair falling over glasses that make him look far more intelligent that everyone else. But when he takes off his uniform jacket and styles his hair, he looks far more carefree, cool, and pierced than most would expect. Both have parts of themselves that they've hidden, through one reason or another, and they've been happy enough. Until they each see the secrets the other hides during school hours. Until they start talking, start hanging out. Start realizing that maybe it's okay to let other people see those secret things.
I love how the friendship between Hori-san and Miyamura develops. It's a bit sudden, spurred on by the demands of Hori-san's brother Souta, but it works. And it doesn't take long for them to be comfortable with each other. For some time now, they've both had to hide the honest parts of themselves, revealing them only when they're alone. Now, having someone there to see those parts, having Miyamura there when Hori-san makes dinner for her and Souta, having Hori-san see his piercings and see that he's actually not the best student, they're not alone anymore. Sure, maybe at the beginning they didn't want anyone to know, but neither of them seemed happy. Just going through the motions, day after day. They needed each other.
The art style fits so well with the story and the characters. At school, Hori-san looks so stylish, and at home she's right down to business in plain clothes and her hair pinned up. At school, Miyamura looks so gloomy and depressed, surrounded by black, and away all his piercings are on display. There are also the little touches, they way they look at people around them, at each other. The blushes on their faces, the worried looks.
Horimiya is definitely something I'd recommend. To new manga readers looking for something contemporary and modern to ease them in. To regular manga readers looking for something funny and quirky, with unique characters and, because of Miyamura's tattoos, some complicated situations. This story is smart and fun, a great beginning to the series.
Hori-san is popular and stylish, but that's only when she's at school. At home, she's a homebody who takes care for her younger brother and does all the housework and grocery shopping. Miyamura looks boring in class, his hair falling over glasses that make him look far more intelligent that everyone else. But when he takes off his uniform jacket and styles his hair, he looks far more carefree, cool, and pierced than most would expect. Both have parts of themselves that they've hidden, through one reason or another, and they've been happy enough. Until they each see the secrets the other hides during school hours. Until they start talking, start hanging out. Start realizing that maybe it's okay to let other people see those secret things.
I love how the friendship between Hori-san and Miyamura develops. It's a bit sudden, spurred on by the demands of Hori-san's brother Souta, but it works. And it doesn't take long for them to be comfortable with each other. For some time now, they've both had to hide the honest parts of themselves, revealing them only when they're alone. Now, having someone there to see those parts, having Miyamura there when Hori-san makes dinner for her and Souta, having Hori-san see his piercings and see that he's actually not the best student, they're not alone anymore. Sure, maybe at the beginning they didn't want anyone to know, but neither of them seemed happy. Just going through the motions, day after day. They needed each other.
The art style fits so well with the story and the characters. At school, Hori-san looks so stylish, and at home she's right down to business in plain clothes and her hair pinned up. At school, Miyamura looks so gloomy and depressed, surrounded by black, and away all his piercings are on display. There are also the little touches, they way they look at people around them, at each other. The blushes on their faces, the worried looks.
Horimiya is definitely something I'd recommend. To new manga readers looking for something contemporary and modern to ease them in. To regular manga readers looking for something funny and quirky, with unique characters and, because of Miyamura's tattoos, some complicated situations. This story is smart and fun, a great beginning to the series.
(I purchased a copy of this manga.)
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