Bakuman

[Capt Haggis]

It still seems weird to me. I mean why are they booting a high seller in volumes based on the mag polls. That just seems backwards.

[mugiwara]

Fantastic chapter all around, but the main thing I'm left with is an intense desire to see the Otters-11 anime...

[Darklord]

"wanwanwan! Aoki is a bitch for not being spineless and placating whatever the fans said or would make her popular!" c'mon guys, really?? she has pride as an artist. she doesn't want to ruin her work. MORE MANGAKA should have the same attitude...kishimoto!!>_>
but c'mon...when the boys stand up against detrimental changes, they're BADASSes standing for what they believe in! when aoki does it, she's a bitch? i understand the loser guy(Nakai, is it?)/her artist not wanting to get canceled no matter what after waiting soooo long. but the editor was pathetic.

I think you are missing the point here - I'm saying it for the third time - it's not about being the fans' bitch and catering to their every desire. It's just that she didn't do ANYTHING to save Hideout Door. You'll never survive in real life with that kind of attitude - doing what you feel like and just hoping that everyone likes it. When the story isn't doing well, you have to make some changes - if you don't want to cater to the fans, then do your own changes. This way it is still your story and yet you are looking at things more realistically and hoping to improve the manga. That's what our boys are doing and that's why they are BADASSes (I would never use that word to describe them, but since you think it's appropriate...). I hope I made my point clear and don't have to repeat it again.

I think everyone agrees that their editor is a wimp.

[Dark Lord Zenigame]

Basically, this chapter was about how there's a difference between sticking to your guns and being a stubborn moron.

[Warfare]

Actually it's implied that Aoki has done several changes to her work, the point is that if she change her work that much in order to obtain popularity it wouldnt be really her work anymore, trying to make your manga better is complety different than just sold it (Kishimoto)

[taboo]

I like Aoki a little bit

she's has guts

[LosKnoggos]

Finally caught up, so I can concentrade on other things now:D

Just a question, why is this called Bakuman? Did I miss sth.?

[kewl0210]

They explain the title in Volume 2's cover flap:
""Baku" in bakuman means, we were talking about before.
I was right in that it has multiple meanings.
It's the baku from "Bakuhatsu" (爆発) meaning explosion, the baku from "Bakuchi" (博打) meaning gambling, and "Baku" (貘) meaning tapir, an animal said to eat dreams.
Course, they translate those into various languages so I can just quote the english directly, the Japanese is about the same but some stuff is said in a different order.
"It means 'explosion,' 'gamble,' and 'tapir,' an animal believed to eat dreams... It's an interesting title with various meanings.""
And the "man" is short for manga, obviously.

It's a more ambiguous title, like how D.Gray-man means "Men are Gray Dolls".

[Darklord]

Chapter is out!

Spoiler:

Trap got canceled!!!

I was already expecting it so I can't say I'm surprised, but I have to congratulate the authors of Bakuman for that gutsy move. This is yet another good challenge for our heroes and presents a new problem for them - what to do next.

As I said after last chapter I think this is actually better for them, since it's obviously hard to get popular in JUMP with a mystery. I think they should concentrate on a real battle manga which will probably be their first big hit!

It was interesting to see the options for the last four chapters and give us some insight in the ways stories are ended. I don't know about that, but I am curious to find out whether after a manga has been scheduled for cancellation and the last chapters do REALLY well, has there ever been a case in which a manga has been reinstated? The answer is probably no, but still...it will be interesting to know.

To wrap up, I agree with the following statements:

"We are awesome. Eiji's even awesomer!"

[Crossword]

Well, that was a bummer. So, what will our manga-making group go to from here? I'm sure that the genre-experimenting will come in handy, help them decide where they want to go in terms of manga.

As always, Hirumaru's cameo was hilarious, and I chuckled at the ''before I'm 40'' joke.

["Fire Fist" Ace]

Good chapter. Shame Trap got cancelled, but it'll be interesting to see what new Manga they come up with. I can imagine them using their experiences in College to write a more "Slice-of-life" type manga. Hmmm... a slice-of-life manga in a slice-of-life manga... I see what they did, there.


Also, anyone notice the L tribute? That made my day.

[Hiroy]

Their next project "Bakuman!" Lol.. I'm kidding. The end made me smile a little.

[Airflow]

So Ashirogi were rushing there way through this for absolutely nothing? Funny.

EIJI

HIRAMARU

[Nobodyman]

Well that was pretty depressing. Still, it was a very bold move of the author's to do this and it'll definitely keep the story going longer anyway. Well, I can't wait to see what our dynamic duo will come up with next.

EDIT: Oh, also I think it's good that Aoki is going back to shojo. I think that's definitely where she belongs. I feel bad for Nakai though.

[Capt Haggis]

Still plus for Nakai that the editors want him to try a solo product.

Kinda of depressing that trap is ending on my birthday though.

[Dark Lord Zenigame]

Wow, that really sucks. :<

[kewl0210]

The story couldn't really continue with them succeeding there or else it would've been kinda dead-end. Once you're serialized you just keep making chapters. That would've been the end of the series otherwise, really. That or a tedious cycle of them trying to figure out how to get higher results.

But now something else's gonna happen. And I'm excited to see...

[Gekko135]

i agree, the chapter was kinda depressing. I actually felt all my energy go away. I was really disappointed that trap got canceled.

nothing else really eventful for this chapter. Umm lets see, oh! Fat editor is really starting to get on my nerves. His lack of competence and enthusiasum for his job really pisses me off.

On the other hand, Miura is getting better by the chapter! He was crushed by them getting canceled, but still stayed firm and didn't baby them.

I didn't really care for the editors talking about Aoki the way they did. Not that she's a liked character by me, but she has made her decision and is prepared to deal with it, which I can respect. But the editors are now talking about her as if she's a new house for sale. Maybe it's just that a sleezebag is now being put into the story.. i dunno. Or maybe it has nothing to do with Aoki, and I just don't like them...

But in the end, it's good to shake things up. Now both boys are pumped up and ready to go back to the drawing board.

can't wait

[maxterdexter]

I want to know how will the "free ending" of hideout door be..

[Ao Kiji]

Still plus for Nakai that the editors want him to try a solo product.

Kinda of depressing that trap is ending on my birthday though.

happy birthday, good sir!

i gotta say, i really LOVED this chapter! mostly, because i'm not reading trap so it doesn't matter as much to me whether it's canceled or not. also, because it allows for a total series reboot with the next arc if the writer wants to take things in a completely new direction. it could focus on their college life for a while and get away from manga until they have a moment of inspiration or focus on the other mangaka, or go right back to what they were doing by entering more contest! this chapter really got me pumped to see what avenue the series might explore next. it could be wasted potential and they could just fall back on the previous types of storylines, but at least the option is there now!

i really hope aoki isn't gone for good! she's recently nudged miyoshi out as my favorite female character in the series despite the constant harping on her in this thread..right now she's showing the most potential to be an interesting female and not a boxing glove or a doormat akin to miyoshi or azuki. i wondered if the assistant's comments about the romantic comedy in the final chapters being well-written was foreshadowing and they boys might end up trying a romantic comedy or even a shojo series with her in the future? i've been wondering why she was getting so much screentime lately and it could've been a setup for that sort of story arc..