| Gothic Sports | |
|---|---|
Front cover of the first volume of Gothic Sports. |
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| Publication information | |
| Publisher | Tokyopop |
| Format | Ongoing series |
| Genre | Humor/comedy |
| Publication date | 1 July 2007 - Present |
| Number of issues | 5 |
| Creative team | |
| Creator(s) | Anike Hage |
Gothic Sports is a German manga-styled book created by Anike Hage. It focuses on a young girl named Anya, who is adjusting to her new school. When she tries to join various sports teams, she's rejected. After, she forms her own soccer team, thus creating the first Gothic Lolita soccer team. It has been licensed by Tokyopop for English distribution with the first volume being released 1 July 2007. Volume 2 was released on October first and volume 3 was released on January 8, 2008. Volume 4 was released in January 2010. Volume 5 was released in German in April 2010. It will be released in Spain by Dreamers.[1]
Contents |
Anya arrives at Lucrece High School on her first day hoping to play for one of the sports teams. She first tries to play basketball, but is rejected by the coaches and other students because of her lack of height. Anya then decides to join the soccer team. There, she discovers Julia, who is already a member of the team, but she never gets to play any games. This is because the school team is one of the best, and the coach is worried that having girls in the team would make the team worse.
This discrimination inspires her to go to the Principal of the school, who agrees to let her form her own team on the condition that her team has to have a test match against the school's official team. Anya, with help from her friends forms a team consisting of the "Misfits" of the school. She starts with Luise (known as Loo), whom she has known since elementary school, and Felicitas (commonly called Filiz) who is known for her Gothic Lolita style of dress. Filiz's style gets the team noticed, especially when she designs the team uniforms which have a clear Gothic Lolita style - mostly black with a dark maroon stripe down one side, with a smaller stripe crossing it along the top. The boys in the team have similar red stripes on their shorts, while the girls wear skirts with the red stripes, as well as striped stockings with lace. The girls also wear lace collars.
The team eventually attracts the 11 members needed to form a team. The side consists of Delia, who acts as the coach of the team, and has a close personal relationship with the coach of the official school team (in the third book he is revealed to be her ex-boyfriend); Leon, who Anya has hated since elementary ever since he accidentally killed her hamster; Kevin, a musician known for his temper; Non-identical twins Alexia and Hannes, who joined out of support after Anya was denied the chance to join the basketball team; Ellis, who is not as strong as the other players and Olga, who likes Renaissance fashion.
In the graphic novels there appears to be a small group (chiefly three of them) of students, presumably from another school who are interested in facing Anya's team in a match. These characters have been seen watching, taking pictures of, and discussing the fledgling team. Their identities have not yet been revealed as of this date.
The books follow the side, named "Gothic Sports" as they train up and try to battle out against other school football teams, including Lucrece High School's official team. No further volumes have been released since this date.
The series is also licensed in French by Soleil Manga,[2] and in Finland by Pauna Media Group.[3] and in Denmark by Carlsen.
| No. | German | North American | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Release date | ISBN | Release date | ISBN | |
| 01 | February 2006[4] | ISBN 978-3-86580-194-4 | May 8, 2007[5] | ISBN 978-1-59816-992-8 |
| 02 | January 2007[6] | ISBN 978-3-86580-194-4 | September 11, 2007[5] | ISBN 978-1-59816-993-5 |
| 03 | September 2007[7] | ISBN 978-3-86719-128-9 | January 8, 2008[5] | ISBN 978-1-59816-994-2 |
| 04 | January 2009[8] | ISBN 978-3-86719-129-6 | — | — |
| 05 | April 2010[9] | ISBN 978-3-86719-130-2 | — | — |
On November 2007, Tokyopop released a 2008 Gothic Sports calendar (ISBN 978-3-86719-213-2).[10]