The trials of high school life continue to vex poor Handa-kun. This time he's drawn the attention of the school's wannabe manga creators and a passive aggressive library rep, but the true horror high school has in store for him waits just around the corner...
Suka bagian Handa gang menghidupkan kembali perpustakaan sekolah.... tapi, ituuuu kenapa si gadis penghapus malah ikut2an jd stalker pelindung Handa, wakakaka.....
Handa is making everybody's life better by making individual lives increasingly unbearable. Or at least, that seems to be the pattern best-suited to a world inhabited by miscreants whose yawning adoration for one young calligrapher whose hellish anxiety always bleeds into the lives of others.
Volume Four returns the narrative to its initial outsider-looking-in perspective, but somehow infuses these musings with snap-quick wit and comedic timing that ensures readers never get bored with "just another" fangirl or classmate freaking out about their latest Handa experience.
Chapter 17 features the idiot otaku boys of the school's Beautie-Girls Arts Club -- a group dedicated to drawing audacious teen girls in compromising situations. This otherwise mundane club adventure to create a Handa-focused comic (to raise club funds) takes a weird and hilarious turn when one of the club members attempts to psyche Handa into revealing his perverted side by propping up a half-naked plastic figurine, and with the aid of ventriloquism, acting as if Magical Maid Melina was brought to life to fulfill Handa's darkest desires.
The fact that Handa is too dense to realize the ruse for what it is ("This must be one of those cases of mistaken identity."), and speaks to the doll with caution and respect ("Why are you so skimpily dressed?"), unleashes an avalanche of hysterical inner dialogue and commentary, from both Handa as well as the otaku behind it all, regarding the danger of lost adolescence, the embarrassment of one's arrogance snared in its own trap, and the gross commercialization of human eccentricity.
Seishuu Handa is not to be trifled: "Even if you're a doll . . . I don't think a girl should say things like ['Hurry up and undress me!']."
Volume Four also does something rather inspiring: all of the secondary characters feel lived-in. There are stories in which all of the prominent secondary characters are involved, and for the first time, this feels rather welcome. From figuring out whether regular-guy Yukio has a secret admirer, to the team's errant detective work in hunting down Handa-kun's so-called stalker, the Handa Army is out in full force, and the balance of dialogue and story engagement among these bit players is surprisingly fulfilling.
Kei Hanada doesn't make an appearance in Volume Four, and it's definitely for the better . . . Kei is an insufferably annoying and thematically useless character.
Miyoko Kinjou, the hyper-obsessive and very-much-so suicidal girl from a couple volumes ago, does make an appearance, and it's a welcome game-changer to the typical rhythm of guys-doing-guy-stuff that has threatened to dog this comic. Truth be told, Kinjou's obsessiveness is an ancient manga trope, but the author's application is fantastic: the girl adopts the moniker "Eraser" (a nod to Handa lending her a pencil eraser. . .) and pledges to "consign to oblivion" any classmate who dares quest to make Handa-kun her own ("When there's one girl like you who doesn't know her place, it lowers the quality of the entire fandom.").
Amusing and enjoyable even though I can't remember what happened in previous volumes. The art kind of had a sketchy, unfinished feel to it sometimes, maybe just lack of background detail or something about the eyes.
Rasanya capek sendiri ngeliat pasukan Handa, repoooot banget, padahal Handa-nya sendiri biasa aja. Hadeeeh, semoga suatu saat Handa sadar punya temen-temen yang perhatian, rasanya ngenes liatnya klo gak diakui :P
I already know I'm biased as hell with how much I loved the original series - especially with it being my comfort manga - and I'm still getting used to this series. Here's hoping Handa actually becomes friends with the others, because I wanna see that dynamic unfold.
I think my favorite part of these is the inside cover artwork that shows what the characters from Barakmon are doing while Handa is in school. The kids are so cute! :)
A little Handa goes a long way. Although his actions are minimal in the first three chapters, they’re still enough to save a club and revitalize the school’s neglected library. We do experience a bit of Handa’s thoughts when fanatics descend en masse after school, but even then, the focus in more on the victims of HND syndrome than the angsty teen himself.
The Review
Of the Handa Army, Yukio is the only one who isn’t delusional. He’s also the one member who doesn’t actually want to be part of the group. But the others won’t let him go, and it’s only a matter of time before Yukio’s reputation is affected. Thus, we have Chapter 16: Handa-kun and the Mundane, in which Yukio experiences a classic high school manga scenario, the letter in the shoe locker. But instead of romance, it turns into a parody, thanks to his association with the Handa Army. While the Handa Army’s commentary on the subject is predictably off the wall, Yoshino-sensei does a good job of setting up Yukio’s expectations and then pulling the rug out from under him.
Then the story moves on to introduce new characters. In Chapter 17, we meet the Beautie-Girls Art Club, an otaku mangaka club. Although they make Handa the subject of their next bulletin in hopes of boosting sales, this chapter mainly pokes fun at extreme geek culture and mannerisms, which, for some reason, include an inordinate amount of puking. To add to the club members’ already unstylish appearances, Yoshino-sensei doesn’t seem to put much effort into drawing them. And despite devoting a 38-page chapter to the club’s creative efforts, we don’t actually see any of the Handa-centric manga they make.
Chapter 18 follows with yet another new character. Kasumi Hirayama is a more typical personality in that she is a Handa fan who admires him from afar. And as library representative, she does most of her admiring amid the bookshelves. However, just as Chapter 16 was more about Yukio’s interaction with the Handa Army than Handa himself, Chapter 18 winds up more about the Handa Army’s impact on the introverted student librarian than her interactions with Handa.
Then as if to showcase all those who’ve fallen under Handa’s spell, Chapter 19 offers a massive convergence of HND-sufferers stalking–I mean, lovingly watching over him as he walks home. The funniest is the most recent evolution of Miyoko Kinjou, whose nickname Eraser is surprisingly fitting. For the most part, Handa avoids direct interaction with his classmates but under such an onslaught, the chapter culminates in a rare moment where he directly addresses the fanatics (but gets completely misunderstood as usual).
Extras include bonus manga, translation notes, and an installment of “Handa-Kun News.”
Handa and his "army", are back at it again. If you want more laughs, tears, and misunderstandings like you've never seen before look no further. Besides the usual crew we see a variety of new characters. The author does an excellent job of creating a mini world in the story with many different characters with extremely different personalities. On a personal note we finally get introduced to the "shy", stalker character which is the one I have been waiting for. Looking forward Volume 5.
i have not read a manga in a while. And I am glad this is the manga that I chose to read first.
Handa-kun is just a peculiar guy whose view of his fellow schoolmates have been twisted due to his best friend.
A funny manga to read and laugh with from the beginning to the end.
Especially with the the Handa-kun army which makes handakun think it is a group of people who want to severely hurt him.
His way of running away makes all his schoolmates believe he is a coll untouchable guy when in reality all he wants is a friend but in return he thinks everyone despises him
Hillarious, Cannot wait to finish the series in order to watch the anime!