High School Girls

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High School Girls
Image:hsg1.jpg
Eriko Takahashi on the cover of High School Girls, vol. 1
女子高生
(Joshi Kōsei)
Genre Comedy, Slice of life
Manga
Author Towa Oshima
Publisher Flag of Japan Futabasha, Flag of the United States DrMaster
Demographic Seinen
Serialized in Weekly Manga Action (2001-2004)
Comic High! (2004-current)
Original run March 2001 – 2006
Volumes 8 (Japan), 9 (US release)
TV anime: High School Girls: Girl's High
Director Yoshitaka Fujimoto
Studio ARMS, GENCO, Geneon, Toshiba Entertainment, Mellow Head
Network Flag of Japan AT-X, Chiba TV, Nagoya Broadcasting Network, Sun TV, TV Saitama, TVK
Original run April 3, 2006 – June 19, 2006
Episodes 12

High School Girls (女子高生 Joshi Kōsei?) is an ecchi 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 Joshikōsei Girl's High (女子高生 GIRL'S-HIGH Joshikōsei Gāruzu Hai?), 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, Joshikōsei Game's High (女子高生 GAME'S-HIGH!! joshikōsei gēmuzu hai?) was made and released in late September, 2006.[1]

The manga series was published in North America by DrMaster (formerly ComicsOne), whereas the anime was distributed across the region by Media Blasters.

Contents

[edit] Characters

[edit] Main characters

Eriko Takahashi (高橋絵里子 Takahashi Eriko?)
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).
Yuma Suzuki (鈴木 由真 Suzuki Yuma?)
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.
Ayano Sato (佐藤 綾乃 Satō Ayano?)
Yuma's life-long friend. They are very close. Ayano is the ingenue 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 eyecatch). 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).
Akari Kouda (香田 あかり Kōda Akari?)
A very rich girl (as seen in her designer accessories from Gucci, Cartier and Prada) Kouda 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.
Kyoko Himeji (姫路 京子 Himeji Kyōko?)
A friend of Kouda'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. She used to be overweight, but her crush on Odagiri gave her the incentive to lose weight.
Ikue Ogawa (小川 育恵 Ogawa Ikue?)
A close friend of Himeji'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. Ogawa usually comes up with the stupidest, almost Mr. Bean-ish solutions (giving Eriko a "mini sleeping pill" to help her relax because she had been up all night watching Doraemon videos) and games (spilling floor wax and using the cloth to slide on).

[edit] Other characters

Professor Odagiri (アイドル小田桐?)
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.
Professor Root Hara (ルート原?)
The desperate male math teacher of Saki girls. Constantly seen wearing an out-dated 1970s style leisure suit (which is later burned at a school bonfire), decidedly elected as "The teacher who most likely needs Viagra".
Professor Kamei (ミス亀井?)
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).
Professor Macho Matsuo (マッチョ松尾?)
The hairy, muscular, infallible P.E. teacher at Saki girls who has taken a liking to Eriko.
Professor Hitler Iwato (ヒトラー岩戸?)
Curiously named Head & classics teacher.
Takanori Shimotakatani (下高谷孝則 Shimotakatani Takanori?)
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 couples' consent. He has a glasses fetish.
Momoka Suzuki (鈴木桃香 Suzuki Momoka ?)
Yuma's delinquent, near-evil younger sister, who harbors a hatred for Yuma and her friends. She is often mistaken as a celebrity, and approached by entertainment agents because of her face. 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.
Fumino Sato (佐藤史乃 Satō Fumino?)
  • Voiced by: Eri Saito
Ayano's attractive, unlucky in love older sister.
Taeko "Choko" Sato (佐藤蝶子 Satō Taeko?)
Ayano's mother, owner of Bar Choko. Also unlucky in love.
Takeshi Kouda (香田たけし Kōda Takeshi?)
Kouda'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.

[edit] Minor characters

Daichi Takahashi (高橋大地 Takahashi Daichi?)
  • Voiced by: Hana Takeda
Eriko's annoying little brother.
Mari Saionji (西園寺マリ Saionji Mari?)
A blonde girl with whom Kouda shares a (now mostly forgotten) rivalry, which was put to an end during Sports Day.
Professor Mario (マリオ中川?)
The biology professor who looks a lot like Nintendo's mascot Mario.
Yurika Kinashi (nee Suzuki) (木梨由利香 Kinashi Yurika?)
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.
Yuuya Kinashi (?)
Yurika's husband and Yuma's and Momoka's brother-in-law.
Nao Koshiba (小柴菜緒 Koshiba Nao?) and Sayaka Mouri (毛利さやか Mōri Sayaka?)
Popularly known as the Takarazuka 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.
Miss Honda (本田さん Honda-san?)
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 Honda is actually quite pretty but is overlooked due to her association with the Freak group.
Miss Takagi (高木さん Takagi-san?) and Miss Toyoizumi (豊泉さん Toyoizumi-san?)
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 anime, manga and games.
Miss Ohnishiki (大錦さん Ōnishiki-san?)
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.
Miss Matsuyama (松山さん Matsuyama-san?)
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.
Riku Sotoike (外池梨紅 Sotoike Riku?), Miss Akasaka (赤坂さん Akasaka-san?) and Rin Inukai (犬飼りん Inukai Rin?)
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 Tokyo's Harajuku district, plus expressing love of things such as indie bands, punk rock music, and used clothing. Akari believes that these girls would eventually become hairstylists or fashion designers.
Mitsuru Yamato (大和みつる Yamato Mitsuru?)
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 sports fanatic.
Miss Satomi (里見さん Satomi-san?) and Miss Inaba (稲葉さん Inaba-san?)
Also introduced with Mitsuru in the 41st period, Satomi and Inaba were also described by Akari as "B" type girls. Like Mitsuru, these ladies are also sports fanatics.
Miss Nagakubo (長久保さん Nagakubo-san?) and Miss Hirota (広田さん Hirota-san?)
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 Nagakubo and Hirota from the "S" type girls.
Miss Shiina (椎名さん Shiina-san?) and Miss Sakurada (桜田さん Sakurada-san?)
Introduced in the 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, Shiina and Sakurada are seen as the trend-setters in the class. Shiina also claims to have a DJ 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.
Towa Oshima (大島永遠 Oshima Towa?)
The author herself. She has appeared in a story of Eriko's (and the omake manga at the end of the volume 1 manga), where she got acute inflammation of the intestine after drinking bad raw tea. She appears mainly as a parody of her real self: old sweatpants, stained shirts, and far too many panty peeks.

[edit] Episodes

Episode Japanese title Translation Original airdate
01 女子高生はバカである。 High School Girls Have Their Stupid Side. April 3, 2006
02 身体検査は乙女の恥じらいの薫り。 Physical Examinations are the Scent of a Maiden's Shyness. April 10, 2006
03 恋して、ダマして、ラブホテル？ Fall in Love, Deceived, and then a Love Hotel? April 17, 2006
04 祝！咲女はいまだにブルマーです。 Celebrate! Even now, Our school uses Bloomers. April 24, 2006
05 水着と美少女とマッチョな先生。 The Swimsuit, the Beauty, and the Macho Teacher. May 1, 2006
06 亀裂。 Cracks. 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。 An example of a difficult situation where teachers mistakenly flirt with students. May 15, 2006
08 ウチらも昔は若かった。～バック・トゥ・ザ・数年前～ In the past, we were young, too. ~Back to a few years ago~ May 22, 2006
09 さらば！香田あかり。 Fairwell, 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～ Blooming Girls' Tales of Failed Love ~Feelings, Crossing Over the Years~ June 12, 2006
12 バカ、果てしなくバカ。 Stupidity, Never Ending Stupidity June 19, 2006

[edit] Music

Opening theme
Kirameku performed by yozuca*
Ending theme
incl. performed by meg rock

[edit] ISBN

English translations published by ComicsOne

English translations published by Dr. Master Productions Inc.

[edit] References

  1. ^ 女子高生 GAME'S-HIGH !!

[edit] External links