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A Spotlight Preview by AJtheFourth

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"Well, everyone was born into different situations, whether it's your house, your family, or your looks. That's why there are so many idiots that simply remain dreamers. But I'm smart, so I'm not going to lose to my dream."

-Akito "Shujin" Takagi

A boy looks on as his uncle draws manga...

...and years later a dream is born.

So you want to be a manga artist, eh? First you must complete these tremendous challenges! Coerce, ahem, inspire a classmate to partner with you! You already know that you can write a dynamic story, so all you need is a fantastic artist to bring that to life. Second, overcome family objections! If you do this, your power level will go up 50 points and you will be rewarded with the key to your uncle's abandoned art studio! But you're not finished yet, not even close! Next, you must complete a manuscript, and then find an editor! Oh, and on top of all of this, did you know that you also have a rival who is already leagues ahead of you?

Welcome to Bakuman, the shounen anime series about making a manga based on a very successful Shounen Jump manga, by Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata, the writer and artist respectively behind Death Note. What they bring to the table is a surprisingly realistic, although still romanticized, portrayal of just exactly what goes in to creating a successful manga series.

Moritaka "Saiko" Mashiro

Akito "Shujin" Takagi

Moritaka Mashiro is an average middle school student. His grades are average, and despite dreaming of being a mangaka when he was younger, he has since abandoned that dream in favor of drifting slowing into mediocrity and taking the seemingly inevitable low-level office worker career path. He has a crush on one of the prettiest girls in his class, Miho Azuki, but is too shy to do anything about it.

Enter Akito Takagi, whose grades are anything but average (he's ranked number one in their entire grade) and whose personality is anything but shy. With a bit of coercing on Takagi's part involving a not-so-chance encounter between Mashiro and Azuki, the two boys embark on a journey to become serialized mangaka and get their manga turned into an anime by the time they turn eighteen.

"Fuuuuuu-"

"-SION!"

Bakuman truly shines when it focuses on the goofball antics of its male leads, Mashiro and Takagi. Despite the fact that they have lofty goals and dreams to achieve, the series never forgets that they're middle school boys, not miniature adults, and their characterization is far better for it. In one scene, unable to sleep due to their excitement, the boys reenact scenes from Dragon Ball. In another, they run off into the sunset, exclaiming their eagerness to make their dream of being mangaka come true.

Stealing glances while passing by each other...

...and fervently hoping that they don't fart
in the middle of class.

Unfortunately, the romantic situations, which serve as a driving force behind Mashiro's effort, are handled awkwardly and forcefully until the fifth and sixth episodes. In addition to this, the series has come under fire for vague sexist undertones, which are a product of the original manga by Ohba and Obata, who previously were criticized for their simpering portrayal of Misa Amane in Death Note. However, these undertones are just that, and shouldn't affect the viewer's enjoyment of this series too much, especially when considering Bakuman's core target audience: middle school and high school-aged boys.

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