Nana Manga review

WARNING :Recommended Readers: Best for 18 and over. Sexual situations, high school dropouts, drugs, infidelity, pregnancy...the list goes on.

English: Nana

Type: Manga

Volumes: Unknown

Chapters: Unknown

Status: Publishing

Published: May 15, 2000 to ?

Genres: Drama, Music, Romance, Shoujo, Slice of Life, Josei

Authors: Yazawa, Ai (Story & Art)

Serialization: Cookie

Check out the Anime review HERE

Oosaki Nana (aka Nana) is a strong headed girl. The hard life she had been living mold her into one stubborn girl who is full of ambition. One year after her boyfriend left her to head to Tokyo to be a guitarist with some big shot band, Nana decided to try her luck in Tokyo in realising her dream to be a punk rock band singer.

Komatsu Nana (aka Hachi, Hachiko, Hachikou) on the other hand, is such a spoilt childish girl. All her life seems to be revolving around herself, her crushes and her heart breaks. Assuming to herself that she finally found that one true love, her boyfriend suddenly decided to move to Tokyo, telling her to follow him when he got into university later.

One with her guitar and a pack of cigarretes, the other with her one luggage full of clothes, one trying to be a singer without the help of the boyfriend while the other is just following the boyfriend out of her spoilt personality, the two Nanas met each other in the train, make friends, and through a series of fortunate events, ended up sharing a flat together.

This manga by Ai Yazawa would then develop into a friendship story between the two Nanas, each with a different background, pasts, lifestyles and attitudes, and how they walk the path in pursuing their dreams of love, career and happiness. Definitely not a manga to miss to all those shoujo manga fans :)

Not a typical shoujo manga art, the art of NANA is really very unique. More than anything it looks like a vector art. It may looks inproportionate in some parts (very long legs and hands), but I think that is just Yazawa sensei style of drawing.

You would find in every corner of the manga the love of Ai Yazawa for Vivienne Westwood, that gives the manga the gothic feel. I think this really enhance the mood of the manga since Nana is a member of punk rock band, all her clothes (and also the other band members') are really well matched to their jobs. Yazawa sensei did a good job in designing the clothes for the two Nanas, that reflect their contrasting personality. While Nana seems to always wear dark gothic clothes with seemingly dangerous accesories, Hachi always wear cute doll-like clothes with cute accesories as well. I think this had helped in defining the two main characters well.

Not only that, most of the time it seems Ai Yazawa sensei used some kind of filtered stock photos for the background, which makes the manga truly unique.

I think NANA has a good plot, which is very relevant in our everyday's lives. There is no so called 'magic' in the way the both Nanas tried to reach their dreams. They went through so much troubles that is highly realistic in our today's lives. The concept of friendship between the two Nana here and how much they value each other is truly shown in a series of twisted events.

Not only that, each characters had developed well in terms of their personality, and we could see it being reflected in their actions, attitudes, even down to the way they dressed up. Yazawa sensei had done a good job in elaborating each character's personalities and in showing how they grow up to be more mature after each incidents.

Other than the cleverly planned plot and also the well define development of the story, NANA also has a good humor in it. From the way Oosaki Nana called Komatsu Nana 'Hachi' so as not to mix things up between their friends ('nana' could mean '7' in japanese, while 'hachi' means '8'), Yazawa sensei also make references on how the number '7' seems to affect both Nanas, referring it back to their names. The way Hachi always refer to the 'evil demon king' is totally hilarious, and also the way her wild imagination about 'Sachiko' came true is also very funny yet sad at the same time.

Truly a joy to read, I think NANA is suitable for 15 years old and above (due to some sexual references)

Nana Anime review

WARNING :Recommended Audience: Best for 18 and over. Sexual situations, high school dropouts, drugs, infidelity, pregnancy...the list goes on.

English: Nana

Type: TV

Episodes: 47

Status: Finished Airing

Aired: Apr 5, 2006 to Mar 27, 2007

Producers: Madhouse Studios, VAP, Viz Media

Genres: Comedy, Drama, Music, Romance, Shoujo, Slice of Life, Josei

Duration: 23 min. per episode

Rating: R+ - Mild Nudity

Check out the Manga review HERE

Nana is an Anime about love, fate, Music world and much more!!!!!!!!!!

In a word, yes. NANA has to be one of the finest manga-to-anime adaptations I have seen in years. The pace is slow, the style is there, the seiyuu are great, and the music takes a welcome center stage.

Two girls. The same age. The same name. Yet they couldn't be more different. One is a naive serial dater who always hooks up with the worst guys, the other a bitter rockette with a violent temper and a lonely past. They both move from their small-town homes to Tokyo, chasing their dreams of love, music, and self-discovery. Their fateful encounter changes their lives in ways they never imagined possible ... to the point where life becomes unlivable without the other one there.

"Hey, Nana. Do you remember when...?"

Ai Yazawa’s work is so distinctive that no one could mistake Nana as being written by anyone else. While the series isn’t perfect, it can be considered to be one of the frontrunners of modern shoujo romance.

I emphasize modern because of how backward and traditional other romance anime seems when compared to Yazawa’s work. While other shoujo series are still mucking about with idealistic conceptions of the One True Love, the feelings of Nana’s characters are much more complex, layered, and believable. Nana is amazing not only for convincing us that its characters love each other, but for convincing us that we know why they love each other.

Yazawa’s writing also reflects a fascinating social awareness that speaks of Japan’s changing society. In the radically different protagonists of Komatsu Nana and Osaki Nana, there is an undercurrent of conflict between the Japanese woman’s traditional dependence and burgeoning independence. While Komatsu seems determined, even destined, to become a housewife, Osaki struggles to forge her own path, even at the expense of love and friendship. Surprisingly, the series does not take sides, but is content to show the inherent limitations of both approaches.

Unfortunately, as great as Nana’s story is, two factors prevent me from recommending this to everyone.

For one, the storyline tends to lean heavily on melodrama, which will no doubt annoy a large portion of potential fans. While a healthy dose of (excellent) comedy prevents the show from ever becoming unbearably angsty, some may have trouble digesting the particularly manipulative plot twists.

More damaging is the fact that Nana is currently missing a true ending. Since the Yazawa’s manga is not yet finished, the final episode essentially stops midway through the story. While the producers seem open to a second season (see the “Nana’s House” at the end of episode 47), there is a distinct possibility that there will never be an ending to Nana in anime form. Moreover, even if this series is eventually concluded, fans may have to wait several years for this to actually happen.

Still, even with these potential problems, I can’t deny what Nana has managed to achieve: an intelligent, socially aware, and consistently entertaining shoujo romance.

The visuals here are much less experimental than they were in Paradise Kiss, but the result is still excellent. Yazawa’s character designs are as great as always, the coloring is nice, and character movement feels natural and smooth. There’s also a fair amount of visual humor, which tends to be hilarious.

Say what you will about the Engrish, but Nana’s numerous JRock songs have a certain kick to them that makes them surprisingly listenable, in spite of the pop sensibilities and asinine lyrics. A lot of the time, the show uses a guitar riff of an OP/ED to underscore the more dramatic moments, which works amazingly well at setting a dramatic and somber mood. The rest of the soundtrack is more traditional (it’s mainly simple BGM synth music), but works almost as well. An apt comparison can be drawn to Full Moon wo Sagashite’s music, which managed to use a limited vocal soundtrack to a surprisingly powerful effect.

The characters of Nana had to be nearly perfect for the show to work, and for the most part, they are. As mentioned earlier, Aizawa writes her characters wonderfully and insightfully, and manages to inject more depth into them than perhaps any other show released this year. Most series are considered good if they can develop one or two characters well; Nana successfully juggles more than seven, and the results are suitably fantastic.

That said, there are many that will take issue with Komatsu Nana’s ditzy, impulsive personality. The script essentially requires her to make all the wrong choices at exactly the worst times possible, which will most likely frustrate those that expect anime characters to act rationally. However, Komatsu is nonetheless consistently written throughout the show, and is for the most immensely likeable, in spite of her numerous flaws.

Anime opening titles:

As a whole, Nana is a great work. The only thing that prevents me from scoring this as a “must-see” is the aforementioned lack of a real ending. As hopeful as I am that Nana eventually ends well, experience tells me that a certain amount of pessimism is healthy in these situations.

Whatever the case, Nana is a great choice for shoujo fans, even if episode 47 turns out to be the final episode. The soundtrack is great, the storyline is intelligent and riveting, and the character development is easily the best of the year.