Manga 160 School Rumble

Preface:
This review will contain - small and harmless - spoilers. I feel pathetic introducing a text with this kind of unnecessary warning, but the damned capitalism has created in the minds (of some weak people) that the malignant "spoiler" ruins the experience of a work. I couldn't disagree more. The surprise, the twist, for many (IGNORANT) readers matters more than the whole process. It's clear that anyone who consumes a story caring more about the surprise than the content should go to a magic show or watch a Manchester United game, rather than consuming art. A view that is tremendously molded by consumerism, which increasingly ... demands incessant and immediate insertion into media discussions in order to keep up with the content that is thrown up in our heads on a daily basis. As I am an empathetic and charitable person, I feel obliged to welcome those who disagree with my vision, even if it is clearly the right one. That said, who cares about spoilers for a forgotten story like School Rumble? Be a serious person, please. Don't let the enemy rule upon you.

The superiority of comedy

Discussing comedy and humor is quite interesting, defining what is funny or not is always limited to the relative. But every artistic manifestation is relative, there is no such thing as objectivity in art, and anyone who believes in this kind of idiocy is a poor soul who is only fooling themselves. Now, comedy lives in a relativity within relativity. More relative than anything else. What's romantic, what's horror, what's action, all this is relativized without a shadow of a doubt, but there's a firmer consensus among these genres about which is which and which isn't. The same can't be said about comedy. It's the most normal thing in the world to hear "this kind of comedy isn't for me, it's not my kind of humor", but you don't find anyone saying "this kind of action isn't for me, I prefer another kind of action". The complaint is usually directed at the development, the script, the characters, the art, but not the genre the story is set in. Nobody goes to a romance story and complains that it's not the type of romance, they complain about the development of that romance. Comedy is subtly different. It allows for the short and blunt ''it's not for me, THAT comedy, it's not my kind of humor'' and no one will care or be bothered, they'll think it's perfectly normal, now try finding someone saying in front of me ''I don't like Dragon Ball fights, they're not good fights'', that offends me tremendously, I won't accept it. How can you be that insane? I understand that you don't like some of the plot decisions, you don't like the way the conflicts are resolved, but I'm talking purely about the action, the fighting, the choreography, that alone, how can you criticize it? We can't accept that as a society. Do you watch John Wick and leave the theater saying "I didn't like the action in the film"? If you do that, you're a freak. If you think carefully, you can extend the discussion to how horror also differs from person to person, in fact, everything differs, any genre, not just comedy, but that would completely nullify my entire point, what I've said so far doesn't even make sense, it's just a stretch, it's not exclusive to comedy, but we need to believe in its superiority and the particularity of humor to conclude that more than ever, there is no objectivity in this discussion and because of the impossible definitive conclusion on the subject, deciding whether School Rumble is funny or not will naturally depend exclusively on your judgment.

The schoolrumble-like comedy

School Rumble doesn't use absurd, nonsensical jokes like Ai Mai mi, D-Frag, Poputepipikku, Sakamoto Desu ga? (RIP Nami Sano), Odoru!Kremlin Kyuuden, Asobi Asobase; it also doesn't use meta-comedy and inventiveness like the works of Kouji Kumeta or Dowman Sayman; it's not super cute and silly like Yotsubato, Takagi-San or Mitsuboshi Colors. It's not scandalous like Grand Blue, Danshi Koukousei, Chio-Chan, Jashin Chan, Hinamatsuri, either. But School Rumble isn't what others aren't, School Rumble is what it is, and defining something by a negation tells us so little, and for School Rumble, this actually isn't complex at all, defining the humor of SR is pretty simple actually, not only because the comedy of the story is nothing unique or original, nor is it the first or the best to apply the kind of humor it applies. I consider it to be an efficient and entertaining comedy in what it intends to do, from start to finish, delivering what it promised to deliver, just like that, and I think that's enough. It's a fun read. For some, it may be frustrating to read a story with more than 300 chapters where the structure of the joke always remains the same, that being the "misunderstanding". School Rumble lives in the Meta of the misunderstanding, it's the only formula that varies and alternates according to the characters in its cast, we rarely see a break from this, it's just daily jokes within a romantic development that clearly isn't going anywhere, the only constant progress are the misunderstandings that escalate and transform embarrassing situations into humor.


If you order a pepperoni pizza and the delivery man delivers a pepperoni pizza, are you going to get angry because an extra chocolate pizza didn't arrive? I hope not, because if so, you'd be making life difficult for yourself and for the delivery man. If you read School Rumble and get frustrated with the lack of romantic development that the story pretends to develop, you'll be making life difficult for yourself and for School Rumble. Why should we expect a story to deliver more than it sets out to? If that delivery man give me for free something extra, a coca-cola perhaps, I'd be extremely happy and my experience would be even better, but in any case, it's not what I asked for, and it's not what needs to be done. Gratitude is always welcome in these moments, we just can't fall prey to greed and turn it into frustration if it doesn't come true.

The schoolrumble-like comedy pt 2

Reading a slice of life, whether it's short or not, where a single joke is repeated in different ways with little direct development, is a complex task for many small-minded people. For those who can only appreciate stories where they can clearly see a direct and continuous progression of the story, School Rumble is like torture. For these poor people, what isn't direct development is seen as pointless or dispensable things, and I worry about this type of person. A weekend where you don't progress, you don't work, you just sleep and eat, enjoying time with your family and friends, is that a useless day because you haven't produced directly? The usefulness of time is just one of the many lies imposed on us by capitalism, it's worth pointing out.

To enrich your enjoyment, I'm going to give you one small tip on how to improve your experience and consume a story like School Rumble in a more "appropriate" way, based on my expertise. Just read it slowly, a few chapters a day, between other readings if possible, spaced out, just read and enjoy your moment of fun (if you find it fun). It took me about 3 months to finish a short story that could have been finished in 1-3 days, and it was much more fun this way. That done, maybe you'll discover that this moment too has meaning and importance, because I hate the expression "turn off your brain", our brain never turns off, it simply knows how to appreciate different experiences, it knows what engages us actively and what engages us passively, what requires or doesn't require my attention the most, and there's no demerit in being more or less complex, it's simply a different objective for each deed. Scorsese directed Goodfellas and he also directed The King of Comedy, the Coen brothers directed No Country for Old Men and they also directed Ladykillers, Jackie Chan has acted in comedies, actions, dramas, and even pornographic movies, each of which has its own merit and its own particular objective, and there's nothing to argue with that. A doctor has the same value as a baker, an ant has the same importance as a human being. Buddhist talk, but that's it.


is this racism?
It brings tears to my eyes to find people who are guided by ratings and, even worse, who can only give high ratings to dramas where there is a lot of sadness, a lot of suffering, where they feel emotionally involved, that emotionally is only taken into account if the story is considered "deep", and because of this they can't give the same rating to a comedy that entertained them from start to finish. If the proposed objective, to make you laugh, was met with excellence, why not give it top marks? Don't be a jerk, don't be unfair and don't impose a hierarchy on what doesn't exist; we are all children of God and deserve to be loved. The best defender in the world has the same value as the best striker in the world, an excellent comedy deserves the same respect as a psychological drama, it's for this idea that I get out of bed and fight every day.

Discussing my self-insert in the Final Arc of School Rumble

What I'm going to discuss here is more of a confession than anything else, and I'll be judged for it - by the two people who will eventually come across this review - but every review is, in a way, the confession of a lonely person with too much free time to write what nobody asked for, satisfying his penury by writing. If you notice, it's not too difficult to see that very little, if anything, has been said about School Rumble itself in this text, not least because, as I already said, there are several stories that do what it does and do even better. Angel Densetsu and Ochi no Gosu are closer comparisons and do many things better. Choosing to review School Rumble just happened because it happened, it was what I decided to read at the moment I decided to write, the stars aligned, there's no deep reason, it could have been another story, but I liked it and cared enough to write about specifically it, that's enough. In another reality I would write about another story, it doesn't matter, it would be practically the same review, but that's not what happened, and what happened, has happened and will continue to happen, there's nothing deep about it.

What I'd like to talk about in particular would be the last part of SR, its romantic conclusion itself (which is not an important factor for the story, but it was important for me personally to think about it). An active reader of various media, and it doesn't have to be just oriental, on the contrary, it's a global interpretation, can notice that a consensus has been created about what's really important in love, which is to prioritize the happiness of your partner above all. I agree, obviously. It's a well-established idea for everyone, there's nothing absurd about agreeing that to love someone is to want their good. However, there are circumstances that make me perhaps, or rather, most probably, a bad and selfish person.


You see, altruism followed by heartbreak is a very recurring theme in various stories (again, it's not a Japanese exclusivity, it's a very popular theme). Actions like the protagonist Harima helping his crush withe their crush is something I personally can't relate to and is very far from my emotional reality. With all due respect, if I love someone, I want that person to love me back, love is selfish in that way, I'm incapable of rooting for a loved one's love for someone else, I'm not good enough, I want that person to be tremendously unhappy (romantically) and come back in tears knowing that I'm the only one in their life, not that someone else can make them happy, reason and logical thinking is dismissed here. But reality is calling me, and I know that this is far from the truth, just as I chose School Rumble to talk about it, I could very well choose another story, there is no such thing as a single person and there are no soul mates, it is what it is, i wish you happiness. Now, my support for someone else's relationship, someone I like and care about? Never, I want it to go extremely wrong (romantically), nothing personal. Please, this mere confession allows me to be considered a bad person, but don't confuse my selfish and simple-minded incel-like desire to see my crush's romance fail with an active action to see the real failure taking place. I do nothing but distance myself, close my eyes, cry, and uselessly wish for nothing to work out (romantically) in her life. In this, I identify with Harima, who wishes Karasuma all the worst. And know that the world moves through actions, not thoughts, so I plead not guilty. Characters like those in School Rumble and their conclusions are, in my opinion, selfless angels who recognize true love. A mother's love, unconditional and unlimited love without expecting anything in return, I'm far from reaching that level. School Rumble doesn't set out to discuss or explore these ideas, but the value a story receives is always ascribed by a third party, reading it allows you to explore what the story didn't explore. Fiction is never just fiction, it is a living thing that relates directly to your experience, and your experience actively responds to it. Grades don't matter, don't jump over the wall of text to conclude my opinion. The green 100 is beautiful and does not completely reflect or sum up my experience with School Rumble, it only serves as a guide and incentive for you to get to know this fun classic that does not intend to fool you with anything less than what it promises, that helped pave the way for stories you probably hate or love like Nagataro, Komi-san, Takagi-san. Not the first, not the best, but one of a kind. With the traditional manzai structure, but also with its small and simple peculiarities, delivering the beauty of simplicity, of its humour, its ''romance'', in its ultra-charismatic, funny and entertaining cast, and poor those who can't find the time to appreciate and have fun with it.

School Rumble has that innovative idea of introducing 2 gender opposite protagonists. Those 2 MCs have equally the same plot time but in this particular book they are not equally interesting as a character for good or worse.

First of all this show works as a good comedy, that from time to time might give you a decent chuckle. The thing is, it doesn't come out with strong hand as a good romance.

The show follows the idea of "infinite romance" where characters try really hard to get attention of their crushes, but ultimately it comes down to nothing. Said measure goes on and on ... for pretty much most of the book and while it does the job as a funny thing, it gets really repetitive and boring in romantic terms.

Back to the 2 protagonists. Shortly, one of them is way more interesting than the other, in a way that you are really tempted to read story of one, but not really care about the other, hence you lose commitement and begin to feel more boredom when that character shows more constantly.

While there are 2 main protagonists, the story is narrated from lots of perspectives. They have their own problems and give a different outlook on the flow of time and their portayal of other chatacters, giving the story a little more life, therefore it is a decent zest

Summarizing. School Rumble is a solid comedy but moderate romance. There is a clear gap between 2 MCs in terms of enjoying the story about them and it is possible for a reader to find the story repetitive, or make him unpleased with the ending that is really hurried and leaves much to desire.

No spoilers for the first part. There will be marked spoilers after the first part, for a bit of a longer read.

This is a romcom that does not have a satisfying conclusion.
For me, this is an absolute deal breaker. There is nothing I hate more than to read/watch an entire series, only to find out there is no resolution to anything that was set up throughout the series. There is no real payoff to any of the romance building. In a romcom.
So if you are anything like me, then don't bother with School Rumble. It isn't worth your time.

It's quite clear the author was just ... making it up as he went, and had no long term plans. He likes to write climactic scenes (to hook the reader), but doesn't like to follow through (that would require an actual plan), so everything is just misunderstanding on top of misunderstanding that never goes anywhere.

But it extends even further than that. The author can't seem to decide what genre he wants to write. It will change from being a standard romcom, to just a surreal gag based comedy series, over and over. Even the protagonist seems to be undecided. While the protagonist is supposed to be Tenma, her actual role in the story isn't that large, and at times it ends up feeling like Harima is the protagonist instead.

You'll have your climactic scene (imagine a love triangle, where one girl sees her love interest kiss another girl) only to be followed by several chapters of unrelated characters doing other stuff. Then, when it finally comes back to the continuation we were all waiting for of that scene, it is just played off as some misunderstanding and there is no real pay off. This is basically the entire series.

The comedy and characters are genuinely good at times, so it's really unfortunate that the series ended up like this.









[spoilers ahead]



The first problem, is Tenma and Karasuma. Tenma's affection is originally supposed to be some kind of gag. It isn't really that "serious", if that makes sense. Harima likes Tenma, but Tenma likes Karasuma. Karasuma though, is a completely plain, generic look character who doesn't talk or do much. He only exists to create the unrequited love of Harima for Tenma. Consider when early on in the story, when it is raining, and Tenma wants to walk home with Karasuma sharing an umbrella. Karasuma says he has a kappa (rain coat) and so turns her down. But then he is dressed like an actual kappa (the youkai), with a shell and everything.
Or consider when Tenma asks Karasuma which he likes more, her or curry, and he says curry.
Or consider when Tenma tries to ride to school on a bike, because she wants to go to school with Karasuma, but he is ridiculously fast so she is basically just chasing after him. Harima has the same idea, and is chasing after Tenma with his own bike. So you have Karasuma, completely oblivious, Tenma who wants to ride with Karasuma, and Harima who wants to ride with Tenma.
This is Karasuma's character and his relationship with Tenma.

Now, compare that with the other relationships in the series. Sawachika and Yakumo towards Harima, for example. These are taken more seriously, because they aren't gags. There is actual build up, and it is somewhat understandable why they might love Harima. Compared to the other relationships presented, Tenma's just feels like she is a kid who has a crush, and that's it.

The second problem is the overall lack of attention towards romance, even though this is a romcom. While there is some drama and relationship building in the series, it generally just comes off as clickbait (for lack of a better term), and never really goes any where. There are too many side characters introduced, just to act as filler, when really a lot of that time should've been spent on Sawachika, Tenma, Yakumo, and Harima. There is too much attention focused on misunderstandings instead of actual romance.
Consider when Harima accidentally confesses his love to Sawachika, thinking it is Tenma. Or how Sawachika sees Harima and her name written on the piece of paper. These misunderstandings are never actually addressed or resolved, so throughout most of the series, she thinks Harima is in love with her. In reality they should've been resolved very quickly, to create romantic drama between Tenma and Sawachika (there is a tiny bit of this, but only near the end). Even better, they should've never happened in the first place, and Sawachika could just fall in love with Harima through his actions. Throughout these encounters, Harima himself could open up more to Sawachika, and realise she is actually a good girl and fun to be with (he doesn't necessarily need to fall in love with her here).

The final problem, is the ending, which is a culmination of these problems.
First, Karasuma. You can't just suddenly decide to make Karasuma and Karasuma x Tenma a serious thing. He was a gag character and plot device throughout most of the series. He even disappears for large parts of the series because he is ultimately a boring character and there isn't much to do with him. The sudden revelation that he is actually in love with Tenma but has a serious illness so he can't respond to her feelings and has to leave the country, is absolutely terrible writing. You can't suddenly make me care about this relationship, when you haven't worked for it the entire series.
It doesn't even make any sense. If Karasuma has some incurable illness where he will lose all his memories, then why does he have to go to a hospital in the US? If there is no cure it doesn't matter whether he is in hospital in Japan or anywhere else. There is literally no reason for him to go to America.
What's worse is Tenma follows him and stays with him in America to look after him. Why? How? She is a minor. Did she drop out of school or what? What visa could she even possibly be on? She says she is going to become a doctor to cure his illness. How? She is an idiot. It is established throughout the series. She is just going to leave Yakumo and everybody else behind, drop out of school, and stay in a foreign country she can't speak the language of or anything? Yeah, I'm sure that is exactly what Karasuma would've wanted.
It should've ended as unrequited love for Tenma, and that's it. None of this nonsense. She could realise that she was just a kid and maybe her feelings for Karasuma weren't what she thought they were. Even better, this could've been built up throughout the series. Maybe she could've slowly gotten closer to Harima, but because of her obsession with Karasuma, not have been able to see that.

Second, Harima and Sawachika.
As I said earlier, Harima could've slowly grown closer to Sawachika throughout the series, but this never happens. Almost everything in the series is Harima to Sawachika, be it misunderstandings or otherwise. Lots is done to make Sawachika fall for Harima, but nothing the other way around. Because of this, in the ending, Harima still does not understand Sawachika at all and is very cold to her. This is resolved in an emotional exchange between the two. But... why now? Why not earlier in the series so we could've had a more interesting romcom? Then it immediately jumps to some nonsense about Harima being her fake fiancé so she can stay in Japan. Please note, this doesn't actually go anywhere. This is literally amongst the last few chapters of the manga. Also, there is still no confession from her.

Third, the ending itself.
After Harima decides to be Sawachika's fake fiancé, he realises he has no place to stay. So he ends up moving in with Yakumo. But what is the purpose of all this? Literally nothing happens. There is no confession or anything from Yakumo. There is no romcom with Harima, Sawachika, and Yakumo. There is nothing.
I kid you not, in the next chapter, there is a time skip of some undefined amount of time into the future (probably a year or two). The characters are no longer in school, and Harima is no longer around. What happened to Harima's engagement with Sawachika and their relationship? What happened with Harima living with Yakumo? If you aren't going to do anything with it, then why did you set it up in the first place?
The entire ending arc of the series, feels like the author just went, "Screw it, I don't want to write this any more" and just defecated out the crappiest, laziest, non-committal ending he could think of.