This book review was written by Camryn Yi of Richard Montgomery High School
This manga review does contain some spoilers to the first to third volumes.
What comes to mind when you hear a book or manga is centered around the sports genre? You might think its primary focus is on the sport. However, Haikyu!!, written by Haruichi Furudate, does not just focus on the sport itself, but also the characters, plot and theme. His use of storytelling makes you want to cheer for the characters as they work hard to achieve their dreams and goals, as you can feel the determination and passion each character has towards volleyball. He creates a story that everyone would enjoy, as you don’t have to be interested in sports or volleyball, or even manga itself to read. Haikyu!! will bring tears of joy to your eyes as you laugh at the funny dialogue, while it also makes you push for these characters to work hard and win. This is one of my favorite manga series and is a comfort for me to read whenever I feel down or just want to laugh. Haikyu!! is a manga that everyone can enjoy.
“The view from the top. It’s something I could never see on my own. But maybe… Just maybe … If I wasn't alone… I might be able to see it…” —Shoyo Hinata, Haikyu!! Volume 1 (Haruichi Furudate)
When passing by the electronic store, young Shoyo Hinata is starstruck after seeing Karasuno’s star player “the Little Giant'' play during the spring tournament, and sparks Hinita’s passion to become the next “Little Giant.” Although he is not the tallest player and others tower over him, Hinata is determined to achieve his dream, and with the power of jumping higher than any other player, he continues to make this dream possible. His passion to achieve this dream continues when he enters his very first and last volleyball match during his junior high. With the team he was able to compose in his final junior high year, he meets and loses to “the King of the Court,” Tobio Kageyama, and vows to defeat him, declaring Kageyama as his rival.
After graduating junior high, Hinata is ecstatic to attend his dream school Karasuno. However, his excitement soon vanishes when he discovers his rival, Kageyama is attending the same school. When an accident occurs that causes both of them to be banned from joining the volleyball team, Hinata and Kageyama must learn to work together as teammates and win a 3-on-3 match against their upper classmates and first years Kei Tsukishima and Tadashi Yamaguchi.
Successfully winning the 3-on-3 match, Hinata and Kageyama are now allowed to join the volleyball team. The match was able to create Hinata and Kageyama’s fast attack, and later give Hinata the title of “the Greatest Decoy.” With upcoming matches with one of the top four volleyball teams in the Miyagi prefecture, Aoba Johsai and a later training camp with long-time rival Tokyo’s Nekoma, these games will put the Karasuno team to the test, as Hinata will later meet new teammates and rivals.
“Run as fast as you can … Jump as high as you can … And fly. Don't worry about the ball. I'll bring it to you.” —Tobio Kageyama, Haikyu!! Volume 2 (Haruichi Furudate)
One main reason I absolutely adore this manga series is the care Furudate gives to each character, as no character is seen as unimportant or just a mere background character. He goes into more detail about the characters through a page breaking the ending of one chapter and the beginning of another. He describes who the character is, what they like, their worries, volleyball positions and their volleyball stats. Furthermore, he gives each Karasuno volleyball member their own distinct personality and volleyball skills. I particularly love the contrasting personalities between Hinata and Kageyama. Even though Hinata is the main protagonist, Kageyama is the deuteragonist, the second most important character in the story. Hinata’s bright, cheerful, and outgoing personality contrasts with Kageyama’s calmer and reserved nature. However, even though they seem to be polar opposites, they both share the love of volleyball and the dream of becoming the greatest volleyball player.
In addition, Furudate emphasizes Hinata and Kageyama’s teamwork even more through the backstory he gives to Kageyama. Kageyama is seen as a volleyball prodigy and it seems that his career path has been written for him since the day he learned to play. However, the nickname he was given, “the King of the Court,” was to show that Kageyama’s perfectionism and passion to work hard ended up making him seem like an arrogant king instead, drifting and breaking any trust he had with his teammates in junior high. Furudate shows and emphasizes this even more through drawing a rift separating Kageyama’s teammates and himself, showing that he has lost the trust in the people he was working with. This event stuck with Kageyama and as he entered high school, and it's seen even more through both his actions and even his language. Furudate shows Kageyama’s gradual character growth with the use of Hinata. Hinata's trusting nature helps Kageyama learn to trust his teammates.
“I don’t know any other way than to totally trust you!!” —Shoyo Hinata, Haikyu!! Volume 2 (Haruichi Furudate)
Furthermore, you do not have to have any knowledge of volleyball or how to play it. When I first read Haikyu!!, I had very little knowledge of volleyball, the rules, or the different positions. However, Furudate gives a short yet thorough explanation of the different volleyball positions and how to play the game without breaking up the story. He uses the characters in the story to help further explain the different positions, utilizing the various matches that take place to describe the rules during a volleyball game. He furthers this through the character Ittetsu Takeda, who is a teacher and the volleyball team’s advisor. Despite being the club’s advisor, Takeda has no experience with the sport itself and has to learn about the positions, rules, and gameplay. He also clarifies the information he is learning about the game, which gives the readers an explanation about the sport, positions, and rules itself. Furudate uses this character to help the readers understand volleyball better, and expands Haikyu!! beyond being a manga that only people with prior knowledge of volleyball can enjoy.
However, Takeda’s main purpose in the story isn’t to help readers understand the sport better and be there to help further explain the sport. Instead, his character is there to help strengthen and grow the Karasuno volleyball team. Throughout the second and third volumes, he helps the team connect with other schools they had once lost contact with; without him the team would not be able to further grow and strengthen their skills. Additionally, he gives guidance to the team as everyone works hard to uplift the team from their nicknames, “the Fallen Champions” and “the Clipped-Wing Crows.”
“Somewhere out there … At this moment, there are people meeting each other who will change the world together. That place could be a faraway county. It could even be on the other side of the planet. Or… It could be in a little eastern island country… Up in a sleepy northern town… On a perfectly normal high school’s… Perfectly normal volleyball team. I think that kind of meeting… that kind if coming together happened just the other day… at Karasuno.” —Ittetsu Takeda, Haikyu!! Volume 2 (Haruichi Furudate)
Furudate’s art style for Haikyu!! really brings the whole manga to life. He uses strong shading and sharp lines to show the movement through each action and makes it feel like the players are truly moving on each page, from Kageyama and Tohru Oikawa’s powerful serves to the swift movement of the ball as it is sent to the spiker. He also draws out the actions carried out by the characters or the volleyball, and shows the movement through several images. For example, he draws multiple different angles and movements to show Kageyama bouncing a volleyball before he sets, or Hinata running across the court.
“Everybody on this side of the net … is your ally no matter what!” —Ryunosuke Tanaka, Haikyu!! Volume 2 (Haruichi Furudate)
Haikyu!! is a manga series that anyone and everyone can read. The sharp action-packed art style helps bring life to the manga panels. The various unique characters help the reader connect with the story, as each struggles and works hard to achieve their goals. Overall, what could look like a manga focused primarily on volleyball is actually a much more diverse storyline that touches on the meaning of teamwork, trust and friendship.
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