Real 9

Takehiko Inoue – Viz – 2010 – 10+ volumes

I really can’t recommend this series enough. It’s got some of the widest appeal of anything I cover on here, and is just so touching in every way. Strong characters overcoming difficulties on their own and making themselves better – there’s no way to not make that sound really cheesy, but it’s honestly one of the best series I’m reading right now.

This volume focuses on Takahashi and Nomiya again. I think the two of them go together quite well, story-wise. While Nomiya does have his lows, and when he hits a wall it can be depressing, he’s one of the most positive characters in the series, so I like switching between his outlook and Takahashi, who is still having a lot of trouble coping with the fact he will be wheelchair-bound the rest of his life.

Except… Takahashi is also starting to come out of his horrible, black depression. His story is one of the most depressing I’ve ever read, simply because Inoue does such a good job of showing us just how much Takashi lost, how much it means to him to be “normal,” and why it is that there is nothing on Earth that can cheer him up. In this volume, Takahashi is distracted from himself by a new roommate, a pro wrestler who swears up and down that he’ll be able to walk and wrestle again in about three months, in time for an upcoming tournament. The wrestler looks up to Takahashi, who can do floor exercises with difficulty now, and the two of them form a fast friendship with an otaku-ish man who is also being rehabilitated. Takahashi is far from being happy with his life, but I think the two friends he’s made here are definitely lifting his spirits. There are a lot of light, funny stories between these three at the clinic.

Elsewhere, Nomiya has decided to try out for a professional basketball team. He’s going to be the only high school dropout at tryouts whose team never made it to any sort of tournament, but he doesn’t let this crush his good mood. He simply tells himself he has to be better, good enough for the team, and he makes a goal. He’s got ups and downs too, but he’s been very upbeat since meeting Kiyoharu, and with… “encouragement” from Kiyoharu, lots of practice, and lots of observation, he’s slowly going for it.

A summary is the most justice I can do for it, unfortunately, because the appeal lies in how the story is told, how the characters interact with each other, and how it is they go about getting what they want and succeeding where many would not, in terms of Kiyoharu recovering from the loss of his leg and Takahashi coping with losing the ability to walk. It’s charming, horribly sad, sometimes funny, and always an excellent read. I’m not praising it nearly enough, but take my word for it. Pick it up yourself and you probably won’t be disappointed. It really is that good.