Kaze Hikaru, Vol. 1

by Taeko Watanabe

In an era of violent social upheaval, a young girl named Tominaga Sei, hoping to avenge her wrongfully murdered father and brother, disguises herself as a man, takes the name Kamiya Seizaburo, and... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1421501899
• ISBN13: 9781421501895
• Release Date: January 2006
• Publisher: Viz Media
• Length: 189 Pages
• Weight: 0.45 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 5.0" x 7.6"

Customer Reviews

This series is one of the best I've ever read.

'Kaze Hikaru' really surprised me. I generally dislike shoujo due to the amount of fluff and melodrama that tends to be present in such stories, but 'Kaze Hikaru' is nothing like that. This mangaka does her historical homework, and also does an admirable job of fleshing out the characters and retaining the reader's interest. Plotting, pacing, and conflicts are all very well-rendered and believable. I just finished the 13th volume and can't wait for the next one. Pick this series up. You won't be sorry.

Cross-dressing and samurai - What else do you need?

Sei is a young woman in Japan in the mid-nineteenth century. Her family is killed in this tumultuous time and Sei is frustrated that she can do nothing to avenge her family's death. She does the only thing she can do - she cuts her hair, disguises herself as a boy, and signs up with a group of samurai to search for her family's killer. I know very little about this time period in Japanese history - called the bakumatstu - and in some ways that's good and in some ways it is not. I do learn some about the history from the series but more often I get confused by the very specific information that is referenced. The notes in the back clear things up a little, but I for one could use about two times the notes than they provide. You can enjoy the series if you can just get over the specifics, which I do, or you could be very frustrated. Or you can pick up some non-fiction about the samurai of the bakumatsu and it wouldn't be an issue either way. The romance trumps the violence in this series, making it more appropriate for teen or older readers and girls more than boys.

Kaze Hikaru truly stands out among shojo manga

I've thought for the most part that shojo is about pretty girls meeting pretty boys and in between it all there's drama, backstabbing, love triangles, and such. Generically, it's true, however, (and it could be because I have a weird affinity for swords)I really wanted to buy the manga after I read an excerpt of it in the Shojo Beat magazine. Kaze Hikaru is no doubt a shojo manga, but it strays from the typical cliche by mixing Japanese history and samurai swordplay and dirty jokes with what's considered the 'norm' for Shojo. I wouldn't recommend 'Kaze Hikaru' for younger readers, mainly because of the heavy use of Japanese references to swords, important historical figures, the language, and even word play, and sometimes some sexual references -both straight and otherwise-. But if you don't mind reading phrases over again and repeatedly looking at side notes for clarification, mild shounen-ai, fight scenes, and "Protection" speeches, this is a really good manga to read. Right now I've just finished volume 6. But a basic summary goes as: Seizaburo Kamiya's brother and father are killed by Choshu clansmen. Seeking revenge, he joins up with the Shinsengumi and is taken up as a student by the legendary genius swordsman, Soji Okita. Through a complicated event, Soji finds out that Seizaburo Kamiya is actually Tominaga Sei-- a girl! Soji, in an attempt to help Sei avenge her family, as it turns out he was there when it happened, turns a blind eye to her as a woman and helps her to become a true samurai. However, when Sei finally gets her revenge, what further reason would she have to stay in the Shinsengumi and if she does stay, could she become a demon? I love Kaze Hikaru's story and the characters that come along with it. With one of the love triangles, you find yourself unsure of which characters you want to see fall in love and that makes it kind of hard to root for one character. The artstyle is somewhat cutesy, but Taeko Watanabe manages to pull off fierceness with a passion that fits her drawing style and doesn't make the characters seem awkward. As some other reviewers have stated, Taeko Watanabe has her own little section towards the end of each volume, where she goes over some of the research she obtained before/during the making of the manga. It's very interesting with little known facts and some humorous fangirl gushing on her part, but nonetheless fun to read. I'm not sure if the whole plotline is going to be based solely upon the history of the Shinsengumi -so far that's what it feels like- along with Sei's adjustment to the path of becoming a warrior, but I love the action and the simplicity and/or depth of the characters, and I really want to see this manga to the end. It's a very interesting read, and I think I can say it's original in what it presents to readers.

highly recommend

Kaze Hikaru does have a lot in common with Rurouni Kenshin, which it's usually compared to. They are set in the same time period and the characters are samurai. But Kaze Hikaru stands on its own. I like the art style better. The girl-dressed-as-a-boy plot is such a cliche, but Watanabe makes it interesting again with characterization and humor. The series is young but its a good one. I highly recommend.

Awesome Book

When I first looked at this series, I was not sure what to think. I had finished Rurouni Kenshin a while before, and was now reading Trigun. Then I decided to read a few pages from Kaze Hikaru. It is awesome! This book holds more information than Rurouni Kenshin, and has as much charm as our beloved rurouni. If you loved Kenshin, you will love Kaze Hikaru.