Detective Trap makes its serial debut!
Creative Staff
Story: Tsugumi Ohba
Art: Takeshi Obata
Translation/Adaptation: Tetsuichiro Miyaki
What They Say
Big changes are in store now that Moritaka and Akito have their very own series in Shonen Jump. Hanging out with their favorite manga creators, hiring assistants, keeping track of the weekly reader surveys – life as a professional manga artist is tough! Can these two survive the pressure?
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
Bakuman’s creators have done an amazing job of keeping fans entertained, and Volume 5 keeps the excitement going from the very first page with an editor switch! Hattori, who’s championed Ashirogi Muto from the start, is out, and 23-year-old Miura is in. Unlike Hattori, who’s been a steady, wise uncle figure to the boys, Miura’s a rookie himself and has more of a youthful we-are-going-to-take-over-the-world!!! aura to him. His introduction does the trick of unsettling the boys as they first must decide if they trust him and then if they trust his judgment in regards to the Detective Trap series. In addition, Miura adds another dimension to the Jump editorial office, and not just as a new personality. He, like the boys, is a novice at the business, and though we’ve gotten a sense of what it’s like for those at the bottom of the hierarchy with the editors Hattori, Miura really gives the perspective of the newbie trying to figure how to scrape his way up.
Several other new characters are also introduced in this volume, including Hiramaru, whose manga debuts at the same time as Ashirogi Muto’s. Apparently, a slightly deranged mental state is necessary for manga geniuses in this series (I wonder this is a commentary on the creators’ part), but unlike Eiji, who’s a cheerful idiot, Hiramaru’s the unmotivated and disgruntled type. They’re setting him up to be another major Ashirogi rival, but for now he comes off as being very one-dimensional.
As for old rivals Fukuda and Aoki/Nakai, they’re still in the picture. It’s a little too convenient how they get their series so quickly on the heels of Ashirogi Muto, but that allows their three-way (four-way, if you include Eiji) rivalry to continue. Regarding their fight for top ranking, that’s probably the weakest part of the storyline. There’s nothing physical or showy about their “battles,” which are all talk about rankings and surveys, and it feels a bit like a repeat of the Gold Future Cup – just with more assistants. Between the different release dates and early and final survey reports, it can be a chore to remember who’s gaining on whom even though you are invested in the characters and interested in their performances.
In the midst of all this manga-making, the creators have not forgotten to put in some romantic angst, including an unexpected episode between Aoki and Nakai. Overall, that arc felt unnecessary and, as Fukuda observed, stalker-ish. (Not to mention, drawing manga in a snowstorm has to be impossible.) But Chapter 40 more than makes up for it with a significant jump in the Moritaka and Miho’s relationship. It starts off strangely, especially when Miho jokes about being naked in her text messages, but it serves as a compelling impetus for Moritaka’s actions. For anyone who has been feeling frustrated with Moritaka’s overly pure romance with Miho, you’ll get to see his love and concern for Miho in deed and not just text, a nice reminder of who his true motivation for manga is.
As an aside, my review volume contained several pages with ink smudges, which was disappointing coming from Viz.
In Summary
Team Ashirogi’s finally gotten its first series in Jump! But as they hit this critical point in their career, several new people come into their lives, including another genius rival and a rookie editor for Trap. And as the boys struggle with being newcomers in a rough business, Miho runs into her own career difficulties. Ohba and Obata livens the Bakuman cast with new colorful characters even as they keep the trials of our aspiring artists real and compelling.
Content Grade: A
Art Grade: A+
Packaging Grade: B
Text/Translation Grade: B+
Age Rating: 13+
Released By: Viz Media
Release Date: June 7th, 2011
MSRP: $9.99
