Crimson Hero Highly recommended

Publisher
Viz
Writer
Mitsuba Takanashi
Artist
Mitsuba Takanashi
Country of origin
Japan
Year
2002

Crimson Hero V. 2

By David Rasmussen
18th Jun 06

When it comes to sports titles, volleyball is not exactly what I call a major video game franchise sport. EASports, 2KSports, 989Sports, and Midway are not exactly having it out over who’ll make the next great volleyball game. Yeah, there is a few games, but most of them involve women in little bikinis playing on the beach (a concept of the sport that would make Nobara Sumiyoshi want to hit somebody in disgust).
At least, if nothing else, manga has a volleyball title for the volleyball fan(atic).

So here we are, with the latest fix for slammers and setters, with Crimson Hero V. 2 (part of VIZs Shojo Beat shojo line of titles). Originally printed in Shojo Beat V. 1, Issue #5 to Shojo Beat V. 2, Issue #2, the journey of Nobara Sumiyoshi to raise the Crimson Field girls’ volleyball team from it’s premature grave is about to take a dramatic (and positive) turn. She has found a pair of players, now she needs a chance to bring her dream to fruitation. This chance comes as she is given an “ultimatum” by the boys’ volleyball team to put up (she and her two players has to score a point off the boys team) or shut up (quit their dream if they are unable to score on the boys). The boys’ team coach is hot on the idea, seeing this as the opportunity to destroy the upstart girls’ team before it has a chance to rise again… yes, a fool (the boys’ coach) and his sexist dreams are soon parted (at the hip), because is it me or do I smell a setup here?

The boys will not throw the game on purpose, mind you, but when a mysterious someone gets the school’s broadcast club into the event (so that news of it spreads all over the school), and that same somebody plays the “villain” of this little drama to get the school behind the girls’ team, it’s only a matter of time before the girls score and the dominos are set into motion to bring the phoenix of the girls’ volleyball team back from it’s own ashes. (Bite me, evil loser boys’ volleyball coach jerk.)

But just getting a chance to be reborn is not enough. Six players must be found, and as the book ends Nobara is plying her wit against the last chance to get the team back on it’s feet (a star setter who has been “retired” for awhile since she was injured and forced out of the sport she once loved).
As the volume ends, and we look towards Volume 3, the rebirth of the Crimson Field girls’ volleyball team is at hand… but then what? Only time, and Volume 3, will say for certain. But for now…

Crimson Hero Breakdown the 2nd
What’s Hot?
I am not, as I often said, a sports fanatic by any stretch of the term. Heck, I can’t even muster the enthusiasm to review a sports game on any of the consoles I’m presently reviewing for! But if there are a few titles I do have a soft spot for in terms of sports, this is one of those titles. Sure, I probably got hooked on this because of it’s strong female cast, but that was a good start which was just the groundwork of a solidly arraigned and done title with good artwork, nice plotting, solid characters, and a great overall package of sports manga and relationship drama. So, in that sense, I guess it doesn’t really matter how I came about to becoming hooked on the read as long as I did become hooked on Mitsuba Takanashi’s Crimson Hero.

What’s Not?
I don’t see any downside to this, do you?
Once you get hooked up on this title it’ll be a solid hookup, and you should be a full time reader. So what is not good about that? I don’t see a downside to this.

Moments to Remember?
I won’t go into the obvious part when the hopelessly airy new girl (new to volleyball) joins the team, and seems to have mistaken the title… is this Crimson Hero or Brokeback Volleyball (she wishes she knew how to quit Nobara)?!? Too close, girl! This isn’t a hentai… less hugging and clinging and… stop acting like that! (sigh)… maybe I should have listed this in the Ignore section.

What to Ignore?
Weird new girl wishes she knew how to quit… uh, sorry.
Ignore the fact I keep drilling the “I wish I knew how to quit you” joke into the ground every few weeks.
Really, just ignore me. I’m being childish.

Overall?
There are a batch of good solid sports titles out there, this is one of them.
Highly Recommended, Mitsuba Takanashi’s Crimson Hero should be one of the Shojo Beat line of shojo mangas from VIZ that you should be stacking into your collection ASAP. Solidly written, solidly drawn, nicely done. A fine slammer of a volleyball manga that should easily find a place in your collection once you give it a shot.

-- David Rasmussen 18th Jun 06