Hikaru no Go

[prillalar]

I cannot hide it any longer. I have been watching Hikaru no Go. And enjoying it. I'm up to episode 60 and I fear spoilers, so please be wary in comments. :) I have the first few volumes of the manga from Viz. (Yeah, good old Viz.) And scanlations of the whole thing. I had planned to sort of watch and read in tandem, but I got sucked into the Plot Arc That Would Not End and so now I'll just do the reading later.

What a fun show! It's very absorbing, even though I don't know anything about Go and even though the sound of them drawing the stones from the containers (which I'm sure have some fancy name) drives me crazy. At least they don't have the LSD-induced special game effects of tenipuri.


Hikaru is too adorable. I enjoy his naivete, ignorance, and cheekiness. And his hair is great.

Akira is going to give himself an ulcer by age 15. I love his cowlick and his intensity but it's hard to take him seriously when he's in short pants.

Hikaru and Akira - best rivalry ever. But not at all slashy to me. I guess that could change, though. I'm almost ready to start shipping Sasuke and Naruto and it only took 130+ episodes.

Sai - très amusant, but his existential angst gets on my nerves.

Kaga was way underused. They only teased us with him. But he was very, very cool.

Mitani seems like a tragic figure somehow. But he has very cool socks.

Waya rocks the house. Great hair, great Go, great fun.

Isumi is my baby. Oh, with his sweet worried face, he breaks my heart just by existing.

Touya Kouyou is the hottest thing ever. Oh god.

Ogata. Ogata, Ogata, Ogata. Clearly, the man has unnatural desires. Unnatural desires that involve Akira and/or Hikaru. I'm sure I'm not making this up.

I'm not really feeling fic-ish about this yet, except for secretly wanting to read something really, really fucked up about Ogata. Or maybe not so secretly. God, whenever he's on the screen! Right now, he's drunk and he's coming on to Hikaru. You can't tell me he's not. Run, Hikaru, run! ETA: Now they're in Ogata's hotel room! And loungy music is playing!

Randomly:

I have never seen another show with so much sweatdropping! It's like the sweat is permanently pasted to the characters's faces.

I thought it was weird that Akira's mother calls him Akira-san. That seems awfully formal.

I do kind of ship Isumi/Waya. They always seemed to be going off home together.

And spoilery: Until I actually see Isumi, I'm going to assume that he threw himself off a bridge on the way home from the final match of the pro trials. Words cannot express how badly I feel for him.

And that's me reporting in.

Comments

[branchandroot]

it's hard to take him seriously when he's in short pants

There is that, yes. *snerking*

On the other hand, I do have to be in the right mood to watch HikaGo, because I find the games so damn intense. Sometimes I'm actually shaking by the end of them.

And, yeah, Ogata is kind of... um. I'm never quite sure what to do with him.

[prillalar]

The games are very intense, yes. Even when I have no idea what's going on. I felt the same way about some of the basketball games in Dear Boys. (It's likely I felt the same way about some of the Prince of Tennis matches the first time I saw them, but I've rewatched so much I can't recall.)

Ogata isn't just kind of...um. He's very...um.

[thehoyden.livejournal.com]

I have so much I want to say, but it's all massively spoilery, so I'm just going to have to wait for you to finish the last fifteen episodes.

Ogata is such a giant perv. lynnmonster and I have speculated that he watches porn and plays net Go at the same time. And after watching episode 60, we were forced - forced, I tell you, to write Ogata smut (not Ogata/Hikaru, in case you were wondering - although, yes, I do think there's some definite perv waves heading towards Hikaru and Akira). Because, dude - that lounge music!

About the "Akira-san" thing - yes, formal, but apparently kosher.

I think you may ship Hikaru/Akira by the end, but who knows? And Isumi/Waya is the cuteness, and it just gets better.

[prillalar]

I shall post again when I'm done. I have the OVAs as well, so I'll watch those right after. I'm on 63 right now.

And you can't just say you wrote Ogata smut and not link me up! Unless it's spoilery for something.

Re the porn and net Go, that's entirely possible. You only need one hand for the mouse, after all.

And clearly, I need to make myself some icons.

[thehoyden.livejournal.com]

http://www.livejournal.com/users/thehoyden/135242.html

and you've already seen episode 60, so you're good!

[zortified.livejournal.com]

I love Hikaruo no Go! I haven't seen the anime, only read the manga (and only through vol 3 - english, no scanlations). I love it - and yes, ther is no slash between Hikaru and Akira. It's just.. I have no idea why I love it so much. Whee, kids playing go. ??

But yes. :-) Love it.

[prillalar]

Do you want to get hooked up with the anime? I have it all downloaded and I could send it to you if your computer can read a DVD-R.

[zortified.livejournal.com]

I tend to prefer manga over anime - but if I decide I wanna see, I shall definitely poke you. :-)

[ladysorka]

Hikaru no Go is the best anime/manga ever. I've seen the whole anime and read the whole manga (scanlated, it goes on a little bit after the anime concludes), and I just... I am deeply in love with. So, so much. It makes me happy. I get depressed, I dig out the Hikaru no Go. *pets it*

Best ever!

...I may be biased. Though, I do admit that I slash Akira/Hikaru. And yet, not Isumi/Waya. Go figure.

(And Ogata is completely the world's biggest perv.)

[prillalar]

Hee! It will have to end pretty spectacularly for me to rate it above FMA, but it's pretty darn good regardless. I'll get to the manga once I'm done the anime.

We'll see about the Akira/Hikaru -- once they play, that may change for me. And it helps that they are older now than when the series started. I like how Hikaru *looks* older too, taller, less baby-fat around the face.

And Ogata is completely the world's biggest perv.

This everyone agrees on. I am pleased. :)

[svz-insanity.livejournal.com]

Mitani seems like a tragic figure somehow. But he has very cool socks. Dude, how the hell did he get that red shirt and snazzy red socks by the dress code? XD I mean, seriously... Ah well, they allowed Hikaru's bleached bangs.

I tried to write a snarky!Ogata fic. I have the link somewhere... oh, here, linky (http://www.livejournal.com/users/svz_insanity/150668.html#cutid1). I sorta... killed Ogata's character. *cough* But it was fun to write (and it distracted me from you know, studying). Ogata is such a pedo. And I'm convinced he and Ashiwara have something going on... Ooh, and harukami's HnG Picture Post (http://www.livejournal.com/users/harukami/327926.html)! That amused for me a while. (May contain spoilers, sorry. ;_;)

Since you're also a DN fan, flonnebonne posted something a while back that amused me to no end. Name that manga! (http://www.livejournal.com/users/flonnebonne/2374.html).

AkiHika= Slash to me. Dude. Metaphors, chasing,"you need two to reach The Hand of God" hints, etc. XD I need to read Naruto. So badly.

[svz-insanity.livejournal.com]

O.o Eep. Sorry for getting link-happy. I just realized how much I just threw in front of you... but I'm happy to say that all of them are spoiler-free? ^^'

I'm going to shut up and finish my English essay now.

[prillalar]

Whee, links! Thanks muchly.

And somehow, the rules just don't seem to apply to Mitani. Maybe they're just glad he hasn't poisoned anybody.

[svz-insanity.livejournal.com]

No problem. ^^' My Memories is pretty much jam-packed with stuff and I'm a linkwhore. XD

[starlighter.livejournal.com]

[prillalar]

I am not opposed to Kaga/Tsutsui. :) It could happen.

This entire show is really based on how none of these boys can dress themselves. At all. Except for Isumi, who we are convinced moonlights as a Hugo Boss model to pay the bills.

You know, I think this applies to most of the anime I watch. And, yes, Isumi. Mmm.

[zenkatsuo.livejournal.com]

Yes! Kaga/Tsutsui's way more obvious than Hikaru/Akira. Although in my head HnG's just a big slash-fest with some Go.
Possibly has something to do with the almost all-male cast and of course the fact that HnG has Ogata in it.

[xsmoonshine.livejournal.com]

Very adorable show and manga. random spoilery babble~!

[prillalar]

Hee!

[i-smile.livejournal.com]

:D, Akira's short pants. It really is! I think his mum shops from mail-order catalogs from early 20th-c. boy's schools.

I wish this fandom had creepy, dark fic about Ogata and his obvious obsessions with Akira, Hikaru, and Akira/Hikaru. But it's one of those things, like Inui/Fuji or Tezuka/Ryuuzaki: it's not hard to see in canon, but people just don't write it.


Isumi's pro exam game against Hikaru--best game ever. The tension, with both of them struggling to decide whether to do the right thing or the thing that gets them closer to a win! <3 Isumi is one of the greatest characters in the show.

[prillalar]

I wish this fandom had creepy, dark fic about Ogata and his obvious obsessions with Akira, Hikaru, and Akira/Hikaru. But it's one of those things, like Inui/Fuji or Tezuka/Ryuuzaki: it's not hard to see in canon, but people just don't write it.

Hmm, well I've been so good not writing the Nanjiroh/Momo, so maybe I'm owed some fucked-up fic credit. *g* And I must say, the Inui/Fuji is working on my mind. Maybe someday.

Isumi's pro exam game against Hikaru--best game ever.

Oh, yes. I was so tense for Isumi especially. The poor boy.

[insaneneko.livejournal.com]

Ah, Hikago is such a great show...I totally agree with you on Akira getting an ulcer. That boy needs to relax or not only will he have an ulcer in his teens, he will die from a heart attack in his thirties or something.

As for Ogata...I have two views of him. The first is, of course, the world's biggest perv one. But the other is that he's simply passionate about go, and it happens that these little boys have the whiff of go greatness about them that makes Ogata go after them like a shark. He wants mind blowing sex games that will get him closer to the Hand of God (or whatever it's being called in English). But then, he could just be a go-obssessed perv, as well. ^_^;

AkiHika is one of the major pairings I read...I don't remember when it became cemented in my psyche, but I kind of remember it taking a while to take hold. I've actually read serious and well-done Ogata/Hikaru that made me rethink Ogata's character quite a lot.

[prillalar]

I shall have to think about Ogata more. If I can. I kind of short-circuit every time I see him.

I've actually read serious and well-done Ogata/Hikaru that made me rethink Ogata's character quite a lot.

If you find any in English, do let me know.

[insaneneko.livejournal.com]

*laughs* Are the Ogata porn impulses growing stronger? ^_^

Unfortunately, I haven't seen any in English. I know there are some English Ogata x Akira fics out there, but I can't vouch for their quality as I haven't read them. :P

[lifeinwords.livejournal.com]

Yay! *twirls around happily*

Does this mean the disks were changed and now work?

[prillalar]

I never did get the disks to work, but BoxTorrents is my friend. And I watched HnG before my 101 episodes of Slam Dunk even. All for you. :)

[chinawolf.livejournal.com]

YES! YES, YES, YES! You watched!! I am so, so happy.

Also, Isumi? After playing him for 6 months, the boy has permanent residence in my head and I am so in love with Waya that I roll my eyes at myself. :)) (I also bought about 12 kilos of WayaSumi doujinshi when I was in Japan recently. They are LOOOOVE.)

Also, never fear, you will probably start liking the HikaAki once you have time to let it settle.

Also agree about everything else you said, and am looking forward to you finishing and commenting on what'll happen in 60-75 and the Hokuto Cup Special. ^____^

Squee!

[prillalar]

Yay for Isumi/Waya love! They are the sweetest things. I shall make another post when I'm ready for end-of-series discussion and links and things.

[biggersandwich.livejournal.com]

It's such a great show! I actually saw/read it the other way round: I was watching the anime but started to read the scanlations because I didn't have so much time and then got caught up in those and kept reading.

It's hard to take Akira seriously no matter what he's wearing. It's all so terribly pink and purple and hideous.

And Ogata is such a pedo. It's scary.

[prillalar]

It's hard to take Akira seriously no matter what he's wearing. It's all so terribly pink and purple and hideous.

So very, very true. Who buys him these things? Who says, "You look nice, dear."

Maybe Ogata needs to take him out shopping...

[biggersandwich.livejournal.com]

I think the problem is more that he hangs around old men who have a tendency to ignore the clothes in favour of the fact that he's not bad looking anyway and they're kind of creepy who aren't any sort of fashion conscious whatsoever.

And that made my brain explode.

[i-smile.livejournal.com]

If Ogata took him shopping, he'd end up looking like a yakuza pimp. Is that really much better? I think the look only really works for Ogata, and maybe Mitani, anyway. :D

[(Anonymous)]

>>I'm almost ready to start shipping Sasuke and Naruto and it only took 130+ episodes.

YES, someone else who feels the same way. I never felt the slash between those two--enjoyed their close friendship/rivalry though--before the very recent episodes. Now it's like they keep breaking down my walls of resistance to it, mercilessly.

That said, I felt the exact same way about Hikaru and Akira, until the second the series ended. Then it hit me full force. *g*

Hello, btw. Just passing by and your post caught my attention. :)

[prillalar]

Yes, can't slash them until they fight. Any of them.

The Sasuke/Naruto is really heating up now! I can't wait to see how it turns out.

[miko-no-da.livejournal.com]

Heeee! I love Hikago. It shouldn't be so damn captivating. It's a game about GO, damn it.

(and if nobody else has mentioned it, since I didn't read the comments, the stone containers are goke or go-ke)

I love the Hikaru/Akira relationship for many of the same reasons I adore Momo/Kai... it's all about the intense rivalry turning into something more as they get older. Those two are ENTIRELY focused on each other; they are the center of each other's worlds. I cannot imagine anybody ever coming between them the way an outside relationship would.

And you're not imagining the Ogata inappropriateness, no. *snickers* That would probably be the second most common pairing in the fandom.

*waits happily to see if you end up writing for the series*

[prillalar]

I love the Hikaru/Akira relationship for many of the same reasons I adore Momo/Kai... it's all about the intense rivalry turning into something more as they get older. Those two are ENTIRELY focused on each other; they are the center of each other's worlds. I cannot imagine anybody ever coming between them the way an outside relationship would.

Interesting! I don't see MomoKai quite that way, though. I think because the focus is more on them annoying each other and scrapping rather than trying to surpass each other. I guess if one of them were the main character it might be different, though.

And you're not imagining the Ogata inappropriateness, no. *snickers* That would probably be the second most common pairing in the fandom.

Ogata and who? Oh, he's such a slimeball. A delicious one.

[miko-no-da.livejournal.com]

*snickers* Oops, that's not quite what I meant to imply. I don't think Kaidou and Momo are that focused on each other... that's how I feel about Akira and Hikaru. But they DO share a lot of relationship similarities which cause me to like both pairings for many of the same reasons.

Ogata/Akira would be the pairing I was referring to. I won't read it, personally... Ogata creeps me out. *shudders* I'd much rather read AkiHika. ^_^

[kylandra.livejournal.com]

Yes! Yes, more people seduced by the pretty obsessive go boys who can't dress themselves! *cackles madly*

No, you are not imagining anything in regards to Ogata. The man is a perv and a manwhore. Mmmmm.

God, Isumi is adorable, and I worried madly about him too. *sigh* Also, Waya/Isumi = LOVE. Actually, I love a hell of a lot of pairings in this show.