High School Girls
Encyclopedia
is a comedy manga
series, created by Towa Oshima
, which was originally serialized in Futabasha
's Weekly Manga Action
magazine from 2001, and then subsequently Comic High!
from 2004.
It was adapted in 2006 into a television anime
series, entitled , which premiered in Japan on April 3, 2006 and completed its 12-episode run on June 19, 2006. It was produced by Genco, animated by ARMS
, and directed by Yoshitaka Fujimoto (director of the anime Cyber Team in Akihabara
and Nuku Nuku TV
).
A Girl's High PlayStation 2
video game, was made and released in late September, 2006.
The manga series was published in North America
by DrMaster
(formerly ComicsOne
), whereas the anime was distributed across the region by Media Blasters
. Media Blasters released the series under the name Girl's High, removing "High School Girls" from the title.
and
and
, and
and
and
and
Ending theme: incl. performed by meg rock
English translations published by Dr. Master Productions Inc.
Manga
Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...
series, created by Towa Oshima
Towa Oshima
is a Japanese manga artist, currently residing in Tokyo, Japan. She is best known for the manga, High School Girls and its anime adaptation, Girl's High...
, which was originally serialized in Futabasha
Futabasha
is a Japanese publishing company headquartered in Higashigokenchō, Shinjuku, Tokyo, Japan.-List of magazines published by Futabasha:*Bravo Ski*Comic Seed!*Futabasha Web Magazine*Manga Action ZERO*Tōji Rō*Getter Robot Saga...
's Weekly Manga Action
Weekly Manga Action
is a Japanese seinen manga magazine pushlished on a weekly basis by Futabasha since 7 July 1967.-Currently serialized:Listed alphabetically.*Bar Lemon Heart...
magazine from 2001, and then subsequently Comic High!
Comic High!
is a Japanese seinen manga magazine pushlished on a monthly basis by Futabasha. It was launched as a special issue of Weekly Manga Action but has since become its own independent monthly anthology...
from 2004.
It was adapted in 2006 into a television anime
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
series, entitled , which premiered in Japan on April 3, 2006 and completed its 12-episode run on June 19, 2006. It was produced by Genco, animated by ARMS
ARMS Corporation
is a Japanese anime studio which has been involved in the production, animation, or Japanese distribution of a substantial number of releases.The famous animator and character designer Rin Shin is the chief animation director for several productions by ARMS which have an above average amount of...
, and directed by Yoshitaka Fujimoto (director of the anime Cyber Team in Akihabara
Cyber Team in Akihabara
is an anime series created by Tsukasa Kotobuki and Satoru Akahori. Its genre can be best described as being a fusion of the magical girl, mecha and moe anime genres. The television series aired from April 4, 1998 to September 26, 1998 on TBS and ran for 26 episodes. It was released in the United...
and Nuku Nuku TV
All Purpose Cultural Cat Girl Nuku Nuku
is a Japanese single-volume manga series written and illustrated by Yuzo Takada and serialized in Weekly Manga Action. The manga was released as a single volume in December 1997...
).
A Girl's High PlayStation 2
PlayStation 2
The PlayStation 2 is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Sony as part of the PlayStation series. Its development was announced in March 1999 and it was first released on March 4, 2000, in Japan...
video game, was made and released in late September, 2006.
The manga series was published in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
by DrMaster
DrMaster
DrMaster Publications Inc. is an American distributor of manga and manhua with offices in the United States, Republic of China and Japan. It was headquartered in Fremont, California....
(formerly ComicsOne
ComicsOne
Comics One was an American distributor of Asian Comics , established in 1999. ComicsOne was based in Fremont, California...
), whereas the anime was distributed across the region by Media Blasters
Media Blasters
Media Blasters is an entertainment corporation founded by John Sirabella and Sam Liebowitz, based in New York City. They are in the business of licensing, translating, and releasing to the North American market manga compilations and anime and live-action movies and television series to home-video...
. Media Blasters released the series under the name Girl's High, removing "High School Girls" from the title.
Main characters
- The happy-go-lucky main character of the story, Eriko gets good grades but is nevertheless quite clumsy and not at all athletically coordinated (unless it is to escape the many perverts who often cross her path). She tends to be the main victim of the perverted actions (accidental or not) of Odagiri, though she occasionally uses this to blackmail him. Described a few times as "A nosy busybody", Eriko tends to go out of her way to find out people's problems. She's also quite fickle. Eriko is frightened of injections.
- Eriko's friend since middle-school. The two got off to a bad start, but found they had interests in common. Yuma has dyed blonde hair. Yuma has made a career of being the school's best cheater, although she still gets bad grades. She has a younger sister, Momoka. Yuma often pairs up with Eriko, such as in Episode 2 and Episode 7. She is the most short-tempered of the group. Her bunches are something of a trademark, as Odagiri didn't recognize her from behind when she wore it in a bun. She tends to lack in prudence, and ever willing to have fun.
- Yuma's life-long friend. They are very close. Ayano is the ingenueIngenue (stock character)See also Disingenuous, which is not quite the antonym that it may seem!The ingénue is a stock character in literature, film, and a role type in the theatre; generally a girl or a young woman who is endearingly innocent and wholesome. Ingenue may also refer to a new young actress or one typecast in...
of the group. She wears glasses and her hair in plaits, implying an innocent personality, though she has a vivid imagination which often leads to perverted fantasies (as hinted in her eyecatchEyecatchAn or internal eyecatch is a scene or illustration used to begin and end a commercial break in a Japanese TV program, especially in anime and tokusatsu shows, similar to how "bumpers" into/out of commercial breaks are used in the United States...
) and bears a resemblance to Toujo Aya from Ichigo 100 specially when the latter wears glasses (ironically both Toujo and Ayano shares the same voice actress). By far the most dim-witted of the group, but out of all the main characters, she is the only one with a steady boyfriend (Takanori Shimotakatani). She often is victim to getting hit by the others for PDA'sPublic display of affectionPublic displays of affection are acts of physical intimacy in the view of others. What are acceptable displays of affection vary between cultures as well as to time and context. Which acts are acceptable have also varied over time...
.
- A very rich girl (as seen in her designer accessories from GucciGucciThe House of Gucci, better known simply as Gucci , is an Italian fashion and leather goods label, part of the Gucci Group, which is owned by French company PPR...
, CartierCartier SACartier S.A., commonly known as Cartier , is a French luxury jeweler and watch manufacturer. The corporation carries the name of the Cartier family of jewellers whose control ended in 1964 and who were known for numerous pieces including the "Bestiary" , the diamond necklace created for Bhupinder...
and PradaPradaPrada S.p.A. is an Italian fashion label specializing in luxury goods for men and women , founded by Mario Prada.-Foundations:...
) Akari is at first a rival to Eriko's group, but she quickly becomes friends with them after they brag about going to school with boys. An "insider" (a girl who transfers from the junior high branch of the private school rather than passing an entrance exam, like Eriko and friends did, to get in) who uses her knowledge of the school ways to show the others the ropes. Kouda aspires to become a famous actress, using all of her energy to be as outrageous as possible, so as to leave a lasting impression. She has the habit of dressing in completely bizarre outfits to gain attention, only to change into more normal clothes a split second later.
- A friend of Akari's who is the first person that the girls know in their age group who loses her virginity. She is assumed part of Eriko's "Moron Group" much to her chagrin. Himeji is often flippant in her sex life, letting guys get the better of her, since she is easily tempted. She used to be overweight, but her crush on Odagiri gave her the incentive to lose weight. She is the most protective of Ogawa (implying a romantic relationship, including sleeping in each others arms on two separate occasions), and has the largest breasts, much to Kouda's chagrin.
- A close friend of Kyoko's, which makes her a member of the group by default. She is the cute, petite girl of the group who acts as young as she looks. ikue usually comes up with the stupidest, almost Mr. BeanMr. BeanMr. Bean is a British comedy television programme series of 14 half-hour episodes written by and starring Rowan Atkinson as the title character. Different episodes were also written by Robin Driscoll, Richard Curtis and one by Ben Elton. The pilot episode was broadcast on ITV on 1 January 1990,...
-ish solutions (giving Eriko a "mini sleeping pillSedativeA sedative or tranquilizer is a substance that induces sedation by reducing irritability or excitement....
" to help her relax because she had been up all night watching DoraemonDoraemonis a Japanese manga series created by Fujiko F. Fujio which later became an anime series and an Asian franchise...
videos) and games (spilling floor wax and using the cloth to slide on). She loves candy and is very fond of sleeping. She calls Kyoko 'Hime-chan' and appears fond of her (implying a romantic relationship, including sleeping in each others arms on two separate occasions). Ikue is the daughter of a drugstore's owner.
Other characters
- The deluded science teacher who believes that he is attractive simply because he is the youngest male teacher at Saki girls. Often the butt of many pranks by Eriko and her group, Himeji used to have a crush on him before she discovered how vain he is. Chapter 69 is told from his point of view, showing him to be far less vain and perverted than the girls believe him to be.
- The desperate male math teacher of Saki girls. Constantly seen wearing an out-dated 1970s style leisure suitLeisure suitA leisure suit is a casual suit consisting of a shirt-like jacket and matching trousers, often associated with American-influenced fashion and fads of the 1970s.-History:...
(which is later burned at a school bonfire), decidedly elected as "The teacher who most likely needs Viagra".
- Female Health Ed. teacher at Saki Girls. A bitter older woman who always seems to have a scowl on her face. She dyes her hair black to cover her grays (even though hair dyeing is against the Saki Girls' rules).
- The hairy, muscular, infallible P.E. teacher at Saki girls who has taken a liking to Eriko.
- Curiously named Head & classics teacher.
- Ayano's boyfriend who she met at the "Meet the Boys" festival. Eriko and pals, as well as Ayano's mother and sister, are usually trying to get Ayano to lose her virginity to him, mostly without the couple's consent. He is a fan of Takeshi Kouda(Kouda's older brother) He has a glasses fetish.
- Yuma's delinquent, tsundereTsundereis a Japanese character development process that describes a person who is initially cold and even hostile towards another person before gradually showing their warm side over time. The word is derived from the terms , meaning to turn away in disgust, and meaning to become 'lovey dovey'...
and near-evil younger sister, who harbors a hatred for Yuma and her friends, but later befriends Yuma's friends. She is often mistaken as a celebrity, and she uses to manipulate people and flirt with boys. The cause of his poor relationship is because Yuma always protect Momoka and she felt useless, so he refused to go to the same school that his sister, causing their bad relationship. It is later shown that although she claims to dislike her sister, Momoka truly loves her sister and misses her when Yuma is away on a trip, and vice versa. Later, her sibling relation with Yuma gets better in the series, and finally she goes to her sister's high school, making their relationship good again.
- Ayano's attractive, unlucky in love older sister. It is somewhat hinted that she and Ayano had different fathers.
- Ayano's unattractive mother, owner of Bar Choko. Also unlucky in love.
- Akari's elder brother, trying to make it big as a rock star. Unemployed and a womanizer, although he has been seen to occasionally date Ayano's sister Fumino.
Minor character
- Eriko's annoying little brother.
- A blonde girl with whom Kouda shares a (now mostly forgotten) rivalry, which was put to an end during Sports Day. Bears a resemblance to Eri Sawachika from School Rumble
- The biology professor who looks a lot like Nintendo's mascot MarioMariois a fictional character in his video game series, created by Japanese video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto. Serving as Nintendo's mascot and the main protagonist of the series, Mario has appeared in over 200 video games since his creation...
.
- Older sister to Yuma and Momoka, who is married. The Kinashi family visit the Suzukis in the 31st period (A Day With The Suzuki Family), published in the fourth volume of the manga. While very sweet to her husband Yuuya and their daughters, she often acts like a tyrant when it comes to Yuma and Momoka, trying to enforce her experiences as a full-time homemaker to them so they can be prepared for life after high school. It's something the younger Suzuki sisters are often quite intimidated by. Yurika went to all-girls' schools as she was growing up. The Kinashis have two daughters, one preschooler and a newborn.
- Yurika's husband and Yuma's and Momoka's brother-in-law.
and
- Popularly known as the TakarazukaTakarazuka RevueThe Takarazuka Revue is a Japanese all-female musical theater troupe based in Takarazuka, Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan. Women play all roles in lavish, Broadway-style productions of Western-style musicals, and sometimes stories adapted from shōjo manga and Japanese folktales. The troupe takes its name...
Pair, these two are classmates of the lead characters. Background characters in the manga (they first appeared in the 41st period [High School Girls' Categorization Seminar]), they are often compared to the famed all-female musical troupe due to their very stunning good looks. Nao is often depicted as akin to a perfect Takarazuka boy's actress (otokoyaku) and she was seen in the 52nd period (The Heroine Reaches To The Top Late) and in the class trip to Okinawa (from the 63rd period [The Moron Group Travels The Sky] onward) as doting over Sayaka. They also starred in several four-panel comics published in the sixth manga volume. Sayaka is a person who prefers natural treatments to wounds and health care. In volume 9, Sayaka was shown to have missed a year of school due to being hospitalized for an extreme case of excema (which is why she prefers to use only all natural products). Because of her missing a year, Sayaka is actually one year older than everyone else in the class, a secret that Nao keeps for her.
- Introduced in the 41st period, she was classified by Akari as being an "E" (or Plain Jane) type girl. During the trip in Okinawa, however, it is shown that Miyoko is actually quite pretty but is overlooked due to her association with the Freak group.
and
- Introduced in the 41st period, they were classified by Akari as being "D" (or Freak) type girls. Along with Honda, Takagi and Toyoizumi share great passion in subjects such as animeAnimeis the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
, mangaMangaManga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...
and gameGameA game is structured playing, usually undertaken for enjoyment and sometimes used as an educational tool. Games are distinct from work, which is usually carried out for remuneration, and from art, which is more often an expression of aesthetic or ideological elements...
s.
- Introduced in the 42nd period (Building Relationships With Other Groups), she is a "D" type girl who is said to have a great love of video games.
- First seen in the 52nd period (The Heroine Reaches To The Top Late) and named in the 59th period (Eriko Turns Dumb?), she is a "D" type girl who has a pinched, almost blank look on her face. Matsuyama tried to help Eriko study by comparing math equations to role playing games. Naturally, poor Eriko didn't understand a thing.
, and
- Introduced in the 41st period, they were classified by Akari as being "C" (or Funky-girl) type girls. Their main passion centres on things such as following the trends worn by those who frequent TokyoTokyo, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
's HarajukuHarajukuHarajuku is the common name for the area around Harajuku Station on the Yamanote Line in the Shibuya ward of Tokyo, Japan....
district, plus expressing love of things such as indie bands, punk rockPunk rockPunk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
music, and usedSecond-HandSecond-Hand was a 2005 Romanian film directed by Dan Piţa.-Plot summary:The film's plot surrounds the romantic involvement of two contrasting characters: Petre , a Mafioso, and Andreea , a young violin player. The pair meet and fall in love...
clothing. Akari believes that these girls would eventually become hairstylistsHairdresserHairdresser is a term referring to anyone whose occupation is to cut or style hair in order to change or maintain a person's image. This is achieved using a combination of hair coloring, haircutting, and hair texturing techniques...
or fashion designers.
- Introduced in the 41st period (her given name was first mentioned in the 55th period [Club Campaigning Tsunami {Reversed Flow}]), she is the captain of the school's volleyball team. Akari described her as a "B" type girl (specifically, a Club Enthusiast Girl); in other words, a sportSportA Sport is all forms of physical activity which, through casual or organised participation, aim to use, maintain or improve physical fitness and provide entertainment to participants. Sport may be competitive, where a winner or winners can be identified by objective means, and may require a degree...
s fanatic.
and
- Also introduced with Mitsuru in the 41st period, Wakana and Honoka were also described by Akari as "B" type girls. Like Mitsuru, these ladies are also sports fanatics.
and
- Introduced in the 41st period, they were classified by Akari as "A" (or Cool Girl) types. Both girls always project a trendy look, wear brand-name fashion items, most likely have part-time jobs, and attend gōkon (group blind date) parties. Akari believes both girls began to bloom after entering high school, which differentiates Haruna and Runa from the "S" type girls.
and
- Introduced in th 41st period, they were classified by Akari as "S" (the Outer or Charismatic Girl) types. Seen as extremely beautiful and charismatic since their junior high school days, Nene and Nana are seen as the trend-setters in the class. Nene also claims to have a DJDisc jockeyA disc jockey, also known as DJ, is a person who selects and plays recorded music for an audience. Originally, "disc" referred to phonograph records, not the later Compact Discs. Today, the term includes all forms of music playback, no matter the medium.There are several types of disc jockeys...
as a boyfriend. Akari believes their interests lie in things like boyfriends, working, outside-school clubs, friends, sex, and family. These two girls are also seen as being quite friendly to the "lower" ranked girls in class.
- The author herself. She has appeared in a story of Eriko's (and the omakeOmakemeans extra in Japanese. Its primary meaning is general and widespread. It is used as an anime and manga fandom term to mean "extra or bonus". In USA, the term is most often used in a narrow sense by anime fans to describe special features on DVD releases: deleted scenes, interviews with the...
manga at the end of the volume 1 manga), where she got acute inflammation of the intestine after drinking bad raw teaRaw TeaRaw Tea is a line of alcoholic malt beverages offered by Smirnoff company since 2006, sold mostly on US market. Being an alcoholic product, it contains natural tea in three different flavors: Lemon, Peach and Raspberry. Green Tea was also recently added, in concert with a new promotion of an "East vs...
. She appears mainly as a parody of her real self: old sweatpants, stained shirts, and far too many panty peeksPanchirais an expression used by Japanese women to warn each other that their underwear is visible; the term carries risqué connotations similar to the phrase "your slip is showing" in English usage. The word is a portmanteau of and chira, the Japanese sound symbolism representing a glance or glimpse...
.
Episodes
| Episode | Japanese title | Translation | Original airdate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | 女子高生はバカである。 | High School Girls Are Idiots | April 3, 2006 |
| 02 | 身体検査は乙女の恥じらいの薫り。 | Physical Exams... The Scent of a Woman's Shyness | April 10, 2006 |
| 03 | 恋して、ダマして、ラブホテル? | Love, Deception, and a Love Hotel? | April 17, 2006 |
| 04 | 祝!咲女はいまだにブルマーです。 | Hooray! We Still Wear Bloomers At Sakijo! | April 24, 2006 |
| 05 | 水着と美少女とマッチョな先生。 | Swimsuits, A Hot Girl, And A Macho Teacher | May 1, 2006 |
| 06 | 亀裂。 | Rift | May 8, 2006 |
| 07 | 間違って教え子をナンパすると大変なことになるという実例。 | A Terrible Example of the Consequences... | May 15, 2006 |
| 08 | ウチらも昔は若かった。～バック・トゥ・ザ・数年前～ | Long Ago, We Were Young Too | May 22, 2006 |
| 09 | さらば!香田あかり。 | Farewell! Akari Kouda | May 29, 2006 |
| 10 | メガネ!メガネ!メガネ! | Glasses! Glasses! Glasses! | June 5, 2006 |
| 11 | 咲女悲恋譚。～想い、歳月を超えて～ | Tales of Tragic Love At Sakijo | June 12, 2006 |
| 12 | バカ、果てしなくバカ。 | Stupidity, Never Ending Stupidity | June 19, 2006 |
Music
Opening theme: Kirameku performed by yozuca*Ending theme: incl. performed by meg rock
Megumi Hinata
is a Japanese singer, lyricist and musician. She is currently signed to Mellow Head.-Biography:Megumi Hinata began learning to play the piano at the age of four, and said she first became interested in music in the latter half of elementary school, which she spent in the United States...
ISBN
English translations published by ComicsOne- Volume 1: ISBN 1-58899-200-4
- Volume 2: ISBN 1-58899-201-2
English translations published by Dr. Master Productions Inc.
- Volume 3: ISBN 1-58899-202-0
- Volume 4: ISBN 1-59796-084-5
- Volume 5: ISBN 1-59796-058-6
- Volume 6: ISBN 1-59796-059-4
- Volume 7: ISBN 1-59796-051-9
- Volume 8: ISBN 1-59796-052-7
- Volume 9: ISBN 1-59796-005-5 (28 March 2008)