School Rumble

School Rumble is mainly about Harima Kenji, Sawachika Eri, Tsukamoto Yakumo, and Tsukamoto Tenma. The story revolves mainly around these 4 characters and switches between these 4 characters and their point of view, giving a really random like manga.

Story: There is not really plot at all, it is more like a day to day, slice of life manga. So if you are looking for a somewhat decent plot, I would have to say that you shouldn't read this manga, BUT if you are looking for something random and somewhat funny, School Rumble would probably be one of your best bet. The story switches point of view between the 4 characters: Harima Kenji, a high school delinquent who is madly in love with Tenma and write manga. Sawachika Eri, a rich snobby girl who is always getting in with misunderstanding with Kenji. Tsukamoto Yakumo, the freshmen perfect girl but extremely quiet, and her older sister Tsukamoto Tenma who is a naturally born klutz, that make you wonder if a brain even exist in her head sometime. However in all of this chaotic randomness and comedy, there are times where things get more serious. Now in my opinion School Rumble is like those 500 piece puzzles that a piece by itself doesn't make anything, but once put together you get a pretty good satisfying story.

Art: The artwork is decent. The characters aren't too complex and are nice and simple, but are definitely funny. Also the scenes are really varied but mainly takes place at school, but again it is pretty good, not great.

Character: At first you see that gosh this series is just random, and that there can possibly no character development. But surprise surprise there is, every now and then in this carefree and comedic manga, there are times where things take a serious turn. At those time you can see the character development between each character. The characters can evoke so many emotions from happiness to sadness, which is quite great for a pretty random like manga. Now the supporting cast is just HUGE in my opinion I had a really hard time trying to remember who was who, but luckily, they're only supporting characters :P

Enjoyment: This was a manga serious that was quite entertaining. Gave me plenty of laughs, and there were many times where it was touching, but overall it was great manga. One great thing about it is that each chapter could almost practically be stand alone, so even if you take a somewhat long break from School Rumble, it was really easy to pickup where you left off and kept the momentum going. But overall it was really random manga filled with laughter, but sometimes it was just touching and those parts just added to the quality of this great manga. Hope this review was helpful. If you thought that this review was helpful or not please comment and say why please, so I can improve :D Well hope you enjoy this manga!

This manga is so long, but it barely holds any progress, which is bad for a romantic comedy drama!

Story (8.4): It feels like it drags the point of Harima is in love Tenma, and that she is in love with someone else. The ending isn't even that great and has to be continued on in School Rumble Z, which I'm glad it did because it would've been the worst ending towards any manga, and even that it was barely a good ending. There's only two kisses (three kisses if you count the one where it was supposedly a kiss on the cheek... you'll just be disappointed) and they're by the same girl who you're going to hate later, honestly! I know I'm pointing out a lot of negatives for a score of 8.8, but it's usually the comedy relief and drama that gets this score, if it weren't for the constant misunderstanding (some of them I liked), bad shippings (there was a good couple in the middle of manga, but they broke up because of a video game score....yeah I know), and prolonging the story to the point where it got boring at and seems like nothing ever going to happen. If it weren't for those negatives, then the score would've been a 10, no doubt, but for the moment it's not even close to that.

Art (8.3): There's nothing to talk about when it comes to the art, it's really good for it's age, and it stills holds up today. There's some occasionally bad drawings, but it never gets worse than that, and the facial expressions can be the best. I don't have much to say though, if this was 2003-2008, it would've gotten a higher score.

Character (8.0): There's some of the best characters here in this manga, but some of them are just flat out dumb or terrible. I know a lot of people are going to hate Eri, but I rather see her than some of the others honestly. I think a few of them are just embarrassing to look at, some of them are unique, and some feels like they should have more screen time. Oh well, the main cast are some of the best I've read in any manga honestly, but if the shipping was just right towards the end, then the score would've been higher.

Enjoyment (7.8): Don't know whether I should be mad, happy, laughing, crying, or anything in that fact. I did all of those while reading this manga, and I got mad most of the time, due to constant prolonging of the story. There's some of the times were I was extremely happy that something is finally happen, just to have all of my hopes and dreams crushed in the next chapter. You know that's bad for a manga that has 315 chapters (Don't know where they get the other 30 chapters at since MAL has it at 345). Even though they're 5 pages each, I expected more out of it.

Overall (8.1): I give this a skip if you're looking for a romance manga, because you're not going to get anything and you won't feel like you're missing something in your life. However, give this manga a read if you're looking for something funny and to waste your time on. Other than that, hope you have a nice day and thanks for reading my review. ~Shaney (69thStreet)

To start off, this is one of those manga that's mainly concentrated on comedy. Trust me, if you read this manga it'll make you laugh. Of course if you're one of those looking for romances this isn't a bad choice either. Don't be fooled. Even though there probably won't be a lot of romantic situations or development till chapter 50 or so, each chapter is 5-7 pages long not even half the length of a regular chapter of 18-20 pages.

Story : 7
There really isn't a set plot. It's mainly girl likes guy that shows no response to her feelings while another guy has feelings for the same pure and honest girl, and the chapters revolve around both of them trying to confess and win the other person's heart. To be honest, drama isn't one of this manga's main points since there is rarely any chapters where the setting is connected (except like when someone's confessing or something) and usually you'll see a problem confronted a few chapters later rather than right away. Since this is a gag manga, the story won't always involve the main characters. There will be chapters involving their classmates instead but you won't be disappointed.

Art:8
Original. That's the best way I think to put it. Each character and setting is drawn in such a way that each person feels unique and the setting and situation really connects. You gotta love the artist's ability to draw their funny expressions and some characters' lack of expression.

Character:7
The main characters are what you expect them to be like. All of the personalities are there. Shy, timid, outgoing, smart, delinquent, beauty, pervert, and the misunderstood. However, I love the involvement of the other classmates in the story and it isn't like the other series where there's only the love triangle and the best friend involved.

Enjoyment:10
If I say I didn't enjoy this series, shoot me. Sure there is a lot of repetitive scenes where the guy is misunderstood but I think the situation makes up for it. It'll get you to say "BaHAHA!" rather than "CHEEEESY!".

Overall:8
I would prefer to rank it as a 9 simply because I think 1-10 doesn't fully acknowledges how much I enjoy this series, but I think it gets confusing at times when the chapter after a serious scene is completely random and totally unrelated. BUT I HAVE NO REGRETS AFTER READING SCHOOL RUMBLE.

Warning: vague spoilers for the ending ahead.

School Rumble is a rom-com great dragged down by a bad ending.

The story is simple but executed well. The two leads trying to get closer to their crushes is held up by great comedy, absurd situations, and a lovable cast of side characters. It’s filled to the brim with parody of Japanese rom-coms, which is very entertaining if you get it. I’d recommend not reading School Rumble until you have a few romance manga/anime under your belt, since you’ll miss out on a lot of the humor otherwise.

The characters are the highlight of the manga. None of them are super complex, but they don’t need to be. They’re fun, distinct, and form an absurd yet enjoyable web of crushes. Harima especially is one of the most uniquely amusing rom-com protagonists of all time, with his tough delinquent exterior coupled with his surprisingly pure romantic ideals.

Toward the end of the manga, things get a bit more serious, which I believe it actually handles well. However, the ending itself leaves numerous loose ends, and almost seems to contradict itself between the chronologically last chapters.

If you have a basic understanding of the rom-com tropes and are ok with the fact that a lot of plot lines don’t end up going anywhere, you’ll love School Rumble. Everything there is great. The only problem is what’s missing.

What makes School Rumble original isn’t the romance melodrama, which is so obvious that it almost makes fun of itself, but the comedy. Most of the chapters are self-contained stories where the characters have a normal encounter that gets more and more ridiculous
leading to a punchline.

The biggest strength in it’s style of comedy is taking advantage of the rich cast of characters that keeps growing through out the manga. Separate chapters can show different interactions that all take place in the same environment and in the end they combine them together to an even more satisfying pay-off. This tactic doesn’t really get used much in it’s continuing story arcs because surprisingly they focus more on trying to be serious.

School Rumble isn’t all comedy despite that being it’s overlying strength. Many comedic scenes can change to serious ones or vice-versa. It kind of varies how well done the transition is. Most times it’s the romance thing which gets really repetitive after a while. There’s misunderstandings after misunderstandings to carry the plot forward and even to bring in harem elements. Most conflicts get solved so easily it’s hard to take them seriously after a while. However when the manga actually takes effort to bring in some realistic emotions through surface-level comedic moments, it really brings it home.

The art-style is mainly simplistic fitting the comedic timing of the manga panels. They’re not too detailed so they can be read at right pace to catch the punchline which is pretty basic knowledge for all gag comics. Sometimes the art even breaks the mold of it’s usual style and offers some amazingly detailed fight scenes. These scenes really bring in some emotion to the middle of the jokes.

Only real minus with the art is the continuous usage of similar character designs that make it hard to keep up with who was who. It becomes a problem especially when there were so many named characters that could just act as the main focus any chapter without other cast members around them.

The biggest missed opportunity I see in School Rumble is it’s vast cast of characters. Most of them don’t have significant roles on the story. Some of their stories are even left without conclusion which makes you wonder why their problems were explored in the first place.

This manga is all about high-school life and despite it’s over-the-top shenanigans it also works as a fairly solid parody of the genre. So much of the comedy comes from character interactions going beyond what you’d think and not stopping before the absolute maximum of ridiculousness.

And without spoiling, the ending does conclude the main conflicts and some relationships even lead to happy endings. Just be warned, because despite it’s appearance, it does get to some heavy stuff at the late parts of the story that completely caught me off-guard. Even if it didn’t really gratify my personal ideal image of a successful comedy/drama ratio in the end, I have to recommend it as one of the best manga of it’s specific type.

tl;dr: A humorous manga centered around a large cast of characters and the complicated relationship web amongst them, but one that doesn't move forward much and, in the end, feels like it just sort of ended without dealing with anything. 

School Rumble is a manga that is about an incredibly large cast of characters and their really complicated relationship web, though mostly in a lighthearted manner focusing on comedy. The cast has a lot of variety and has a lot of interesting individuals. The large and elaborate web of relationships between the cast of characters features two main intertwined love triangles which certainly does result in a lot of interesting stories. The comedy in general is also pretty solid, and the writing also manages to throw in a decent amount of powerful serious moments that deal with the more serious aspects of the relationships between characters.

However, the biggest issue with the manga is that there is very little change over the course of the manga. The manga does a good job developing an interesting web of crushes, but until the end none of them bear fruit, or even fail to bear fruit as they're never dealt with and remain just crushes. You would think that with so many characters and relationships, you could throw one solid couple into the mix, but that just doesn't happen. There's also very little character development with most characters staying pretty much the same from beginning to end, and this results in characters that were amusing and likable at first becoming quite frustrating, by which I mainly mean Harima.

Thus, even though the stories are pretty good in general, eventually they start giving the feeling that they're not building up to anything and they also start feeling pretty similar, which makes it feels like the story is really dragging on. Similarly, the comedy too mostly stems from the same things, primarily misunderstandings involving relationships, so that too begins to drag and not feel as funny even though the quality probably remains the same. Part of this is because the manga feels quite long and slow paced, wherein even though it's only a 23 volume manga, it's the type that uses a lot of small panels and lots of text as well. Furthermore, it has a lot of completely unrelated side stories distinct from the main plot threads, so it feels much longer and slower.

All of this leads to an ending that doesn't resolve much at all. It resolves one of the main relationship triangles, but doesn't properly deal with the other at all. There's an extra epilogue in the series of short stories called School Rumble Z that seems to try to do that a bit, but it's so rushed that it isn't clear that it actually does and at the minimum even if the content is fine how rushed it is makes it not satisfying. Z also does a bit with another side relationship, but for the most part most of the relationship web does not receive any satisfying endings. Thus, the overwhelming feeling I got from the ending was that it was far too abrupt and did far too little which makes it feel like most of the manga had no point and didn't go anywhere. The art wasn't all that good. 

in all honesty, i have felt different emotions i never knew i had, thanks to this manga.
thus i am rightfully giving it a perfect score of 10/10. it is not biased in any manner. i just honestly think that this manga was masterfully made. it is genius and all aspects possible.

story 10/10
for a romantic comedy, school rumble presents a great deal of approach on love triangles, and not just one triangle, there are many. yet it does not derail from the main trio's life.

art 10/10 and character 10/10
the character art was very original. the character make-up are also complete, there are a lot of different type of people present in the manga that the author makes side notes just for the readers to keep track on the characters. and to think that there are many characters may be exhausting to know them all, but not. i tend to have loved them all that i could almost name them all, and their distinction all together.

enjoyment 10/10
it was funny that i was laughing out loud. and sometimes i just don't realize how much time has passed reading this manga.

overall 10/10
RESPECT FOR THIS MANGA

Story is 8 because:
At first the're not much about School Rumble except for the stereotypical thug falling in love with a normal girl I've read manga with the same concept but what made this stood on top of them all is how it was executed but as I read pass every chapter It gradually builds up making every chapter exciting I know some may not appreciate the misunderstanding during every confessions though that really helped build the whole thing

Art is 9
Art is good for it's time of course

Character is 10
This is the best thing about School Rumble they don't force you to like characters they are relatable depending on one's situation bringing the Nostalgic vibe of High School
So likeable that some people I can't decide between Eri and Yakumo seriously someone make it stop It's hurting my head

Enjoyment is 10
It's all fun and games until you get hit right in the balls with feels from nowhere
I mean it was really unexpected I was going for joyride feeling the air brush to my face then *BAMMM* the next thing you know your face in inside a dumpster of feels

Overall I'll give it a 9 for making me cry
I'd give it a 10 if they made the story more linear rather than the spontaneous type

First review here, I felt compelled to write a review after finishing this very long manga because the anime is close to my heart.

I decided to read the manga after rediscovering the anime and falling in love with it once again. I wanted to read the manga to continue the story from where the second season of the anime left off and I had read online it was better to read the manga rather than watch the 2 episode OVA for the third season. And so I did.

Story - 6
It was frustrating for me to read this manga honestly. It's length had me wishing it was over and done with already. The manga also often was repetitive at times as well which just added insult to injury. Make no mistake, the manga does have an ending for the story and its one that quite a number of people were unhappy with. Personally, I thought it was a fitting ending so I can't complain however I do wish that the story didn't take 300 chapters to reach it. I can understand why some people were upset by this.

Art - 7
I don't have much to say about this.

Character - 9
I absolutely love the characters of school rumble (Miko-chan I love you) and they were a primary factor to why I wanted to continue the story by reading the manga. The problem is they have very little space to grow because all they serve is the set-up of punchlines. I probably am nitpicking here but I do love these characters and I did want them to be more than what they turned out to be.

Enjoyment - 6
The repetitiveness and length truly did bring out what I found was bad or lazy writing in the story. I believe this manga would be truly more enjoyable had the story been tighter and better planned. Alternatively, I do wish we lived in a world where we had a main manga with only the shorter compressed story of school rumble and a separate side manga where we can explore the lives of the characters I care so much about. Of course, I understand that a lot of factors in the real world resulted in the manga that we got but it can't hurt to dream right?

Overall - 6
I do still love School Rumble. But the manga did, ultimately, take its toll on me. It worked as an anime but in such a lengthy manga it falls flat. There are still a lot of good stories that did not make it into the anime that I'm glad to have experienced here in the manga but I would probably suggest that you skip the manga and let the story of School Rumble end after the second season of the anime, without a conclusion because it is better to end strong rather than to go on for much longer, so unnecessarily.

I started out watching the School Rumble anime (English sub, I unfortunately don’t understand the Japanese language) and really just expected it to be what it appeared to be – a funny comedy anime. I was partially right about that, but also VERY wrong. School Rumble, on the surface, doesn’t seem very serious. But so many things underneath the surface of it are very serious and insightful and even deeply moving. Soon after starting the anime I was hooked, and almost immediately related to Harima Kenji and began cheering him on to accomplish his goal. Throughout the beginning and middle of the series we see Harima failing over and over at his attempts to confess his feelings to Tenma. At first it’s laughable how silly and avoidable the misunderstandings are. Then as the series continues and you begin to see the toll it takes on Harima and the amount of pain it starts to cause him it begins to get less and less bearable to watch. Of course with all the other great characters and stories in School Rumble you are still thoroughly hooked on the series, and besides, you feel that you have to see the series through to the end to see if Harima wins the heart of the girl he loves. You also feel you have to see what happens with Hanai, Eri, Yakumo, Ichijou, Mikoto, and all the other very well written and interesting characters. The ending of the first season makes you think Harima finally confesses his love to Tenma, but it ends up being imaginary. At this point I was physically fatigued and drained from the roller coaster of emotions and disappointments throughout the first season. But at the same time I couldn’t wait to watch the second season. The second season was great of course, although in the Harima and Tenma storyline it just got more and more painful to watch. More misunderstandings, more missed opportunities, more outside interference and assumptions of who Harima did or didn’t like from his classmates. More oblivousness from Tenma as she chases after the completely blank Karasuma. The second season wraps up with no resolution. So, disappointed and borderline depressed I watch the 3rd season, which is actually just two OVAs.

Result: Complete and utter heart wrenching emptiness. Harima has been emotionally tortured and left to die basically. Tenma is gone to America to be with Karasuma and become a nurse to take care of him because he is in the hospital there with a condition that has wiped out his memory. He doesn’t even know who she is but she still wants to be with him. Harima does not get the girl. In fact no one gets anyone. Almost every story line is left unfinished.

I was fully depressed and left with an empty feeling inside. That’s the best way I can describe it. I had to have answers. I found the manga and began reading immediately.

After reading through the ENTIRE manga and then the follow up manga “School Rumble Z” I had to face harsh reality…….there was NO conclusion. No happy couples, no loose ends tied up, no happily ever after or riding off into the sunset. Just more emptiness and depression. It was as if the characters had been killed in the prime of their lives and their futures were cut short. There is no way you can understand the way it feels unless you’ve been on this journey that is School Rumble. It’s incomparable.

I couldn’t believe it. I searched all over the internet for any and all information about School Rumble and it’s creator Jin Kobayashi. I began reaching out to fans and hearing their stories that were the same as mine. The way they felt at the end of it all was like my story. The wave of emotions: shock and disbelief, confusion, emptiness, depression, and bitterness.

There is much much more to this story. But that’s basically how I got started on this mission to reach Mr. Kobayashi. There have been moments of slight progress, and a few disappointments. Ups and downs, feeling like I’m all alone in this, and then feeling the love and support of School Rumble fans from many different countries around the world. One thing is certain, I have no plans of EVER giving up.

In closing, here’s the motto: Justice for Harima, closure for the fans, may the hero get his girl, may his spring finally come.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC05xAG4hMwmeu4XdFei9Ywg