Special A
Encyclopedia
, also known as Special A or S.A, is a shōjo
manga
by Maki Minami
. The series started serialization in the bimonthly magazine The Hana to Yume
in 2003, and moved to the biweekly magazine Hana to Yume
in 2004, after running for four chapters. The series ended after 99 chapters on March 19, 2009.
Special A has been licensed for English-language release in North America by Viz Media
and in Australia and New Zealand by Madman Entertainment
. The series has also been licensed in Germany, Italy, Indonesia, and Singapore.
In 2007, Hana to Yume announced an anime
adaptation of Special A, animated by Gonzo and AIC; the animated series ran for 24 episodes from April 6, 2008 to September 14, 2008 in Japan.
.
Voice cast:
A second drama CD was released on June 18, 2008. It focuses around the boys of the S.A class. The CD also includes background music tracks from the anime. A third drama CD was released in August 2008, focusing on the girls of the S.A class and includes more tracks of the background music from the anime. Both drama CDs use the anime cast.
The anime has been picked up for release in North America by Sentai Filmworks; it is distributed by Section23 Films
. The first part of season 1 came out on November 10, 2009, and the second collection was released on January 19, 2010.
1st ending theme: "Hidamari no Gate" (episodes 1 - 12, 24)
2nd opening theme: "Gorgeous 4U" (episodes 13 - 24)
2nd ending theme: "Special Gyutto Good Luck!" (episodes 13 - 23)
Jason Thompson
disliked the "action slapstick" of the first two volumes, but felt that even after the two leads became more fleshed out as characters through their romance that the series was "founded on cliches" and felt the rest of the cast was underdeveloped.
Shojo
The term refers to manga marketed to a female audience roughly between the ages of 10-18. The name romanizes the Japanese 少女 , literally: "little female". Shōjo manga covers many subjects in a variety of narrative and graphic styles, from historical drama to science fiction — often with a strong...
manga
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...
by Maki Minami
Maki Minami
is a Japanese manga author. She is best known as the author of manga series Special A.-History:Maki Minami was born in Saitama Prefecture in Japan.In 2001, her short story received an Honourable Mention for Hakusensha's 25th Athena awards...
. The series started serialization in the bimonthly magazine The Hana to Yume
The Hana to Yume
is a Japanese shōjo manga magazine that has been published on the 26th of each odd-month by Hakusensha.The magazine serves as a supplementary issue to the larger magazine Hana to Yume, featuring one-shots or side stories of series running in Hana to Yume...
in 2003, and moved to the biweekly magazine Hana to Yume
Hana to Yume
is a semi-monthly Japanese shōjo manga magazine published by Hakusensha.The magazine is published on the 4th and 22nd of every month. It is often nicknamed as among the readers...
in 2004, after running for four chapters. The series ended after 99 chapters on March 19, 2009.
Special A has been licensed for English-language release in North America by Viz Media
VIZ Media
VIZ Media, LLC, headquartered in San Francisco, is an anime, manga, and Japanese entertainment company. It was founded in 1986 as VIZ LLC. In 2005, VIZ LLC and ShoPro Entertainment merged to form the current VIZ Media LLC, which is jointly owned by Japanese publishers Shogakukan and Shueisha, and...
and in Australia and New Zealand by Madman Entertainment
Madman Entertainment
Madman Entertainment is an Australian company that distributes international films as well as Japanese anime and manga in Australia and New Zealand. The company is owned by Funtastic Limited and is one of the major entertainment companies in Australia. It employs 130 people and has an annual...
. The series has also been licensed in Germany, Italy, Indonesia, and Singapore.
In 2007, Hana to Yume announced an 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....
adaptation of Special A, animated by Gonzo and AIC; the animated series ran for 24 episodes from April 6, 2008 to September 14, 2008 in Japan.
Plot
Hikari Hanazono has always been second to Kei Takishima. When they were six years old, their pro-wrestling loving fathers introduced them to each other. Assuming that she was the best in wrestling, young Hikari challenged Kei to a wrestling match only to be thoroughly defeated by him. Ever since that fateful incident, Hikari swore to beat Kei in school grades, sporting events or any competition. To do this, she has enrolled in the same school as Kei since elementary. Now she attends Hakusenkan, an ultra elite school, that costs her carpenter father a lot of money. Hikari and Kei are the top two students in the school, with Kei holding firmly to that number one position. While Hikari considers Kei to be a rival and important friend, she is completely unaware that Kei is in love with her. The story primarily focuses on Hikari and her constant attempts to defeat her one and only rival, Kei, and how she finds love in their rivalry.Setting
Hakusenkan (or Private Hakusen Academy) is the best school in the prefecture. The classes are separated into A-F based on grades. The A class is only open for the top students in each grade. The top seven within the A class, from first year to third year, are known as the Special A or SA class (hence the title). The members of SA are highly respected. The SA class has its own building, a 19th-century styled greenhouse dubbed "The School's Paradise". They also have a kitchen, where Akira makes her afternoon tea. Class attendance is optional and Hikari is the only one who chooses to attend classes. Their uniform is also different from the standard uniform. The members of the SA have been close friends since elementary school.Characters
- Hikari is the accomplished protagonist of the story and is ranked 2nd in the school. She is energetic and kindhearted, but rather dense to more subtle matters, in particular love. Unlike her peers, she comes from an ordinary family and her father is a carpenter. When she was six years old she experienced her first defeat and humiliation when she lost to Kei Takishima in a pro-wrestling match. In order to beat Kei, Hikari convinced her father to allow her to attend Kei's prestigious elite school and strives to defeat Kei at anything, from academics to athletics.
- Kei is Hikari's rival and holds the 1st position in the entire school; he is good at everything he does and is always a smooth winner. Kei has been in love with Hikari since they were children, but Hikari has been too dense to realize his feelings for her. While he maintains a stoic and cool facade most of the time, he loses his composure whenever Hikari is in trouble. He is the son of the CEO of Takishima Corporation.
- Jun is ranked 3rd in school and is the son of a music producer and a talented vocalist. Like Megumi, he is very possessive of Ryuu and seems to worry Ryuu as much as he worries about the two of them. Jun is rather shy around girls, which resulted in a split personality that enables him to charm almost all women effortlessly. Unlike the rest of his friends, he tends to be quiet and rarely gets involved with any disputes. He also becomes the object of Sakura Ushikubo's love, who is introduced halfway through the anime series.
- Megumi holds the 4th position in school and is the older twin sister of Jun. She and her brother are very close to Ryuu, whom they have known since they were children. Megumi refuses to speak so as to preserve her singing voice and writes what she wishes for people to know on a sketchpad. However, she is shown to speak to Yahiro Saiga, who she turns out to be in love with. When she sings, her voice is so devastatingly powerful that everyone who stands near ends up dazed and disoriented afterward.
- Tadashi ranks 5th in school and is the son of the school's director. He suffers from a bit of wanderlustWanderlustWanderlust is a strong desire for or impulse to wander or travel and explore the world.-Etymology:The loanword from German language became an English term in 1902 as a reflection of what was then seen as a characteristically German predilection for wandering that may be traced back to German...
, likes to travel alone and do whatever he wants or sees fit. Tadashi seems to end up as the character most comically attacked (frequently by Akira) because of his careless comments or reckless behavior. He enjoys eating sweets, especially food made by Akira. Tadashi is in love with Akira but doesn't know how to tell her so he just keeps quiet.
- Akira holds the 6th position in school and is very fond of Hikari; as a result, she is very protective of her--especially when it comes to Kei and Hikari being together. She loves afternoon tea and is very fond of cute girls. Akira doesn't realize she is actually in love with Tadashi, and constantly is beating him up (which he takes humorously). She is the daughter of the owner of an airline company. She and Kei were a childhood friends of Yahiro, however her friendship with Yahiro was broken apart due to Yahiro's constant bossiness.
- Ryuu ranks 7th in the school and is the son of the CEO of a sports car company. He is an animal lover and is very good at handling children. The twins are unusually close to him because they have been together since childhood. It is hinted that perhaps he is smarter than 7th place (he is shown in an episode to finish 1000 questions in 10 minutes and get them all correct), but spends the majority of the time during exams worrying about Jun and Megumi, who tend to become bored or sleep during tests.
Drama CDs
On February 23, 2007, a Special A drama CD was released in Japan. It focuses on Valentine's DayValentine's Day
Saint Valentine's Day, commonly shortened to Valentine's Day, is an annual commemoration held on February 14 celebrating love and affection between intimate companions. The day is named after one or more early Christian martyrs named Saint Valentine, and was established by Pope Gelasius I in 496...
.
Voice cast:
- Hikari Hanazono: Masumi AsanoMasumi Asanois a Japanese voice actress from Noshiro, Akita who works for Aoni Production. She is also known by her nickname, Masumin.- Notable voice roles :Anime* Saga in A Little Snow Fairy Sugar...
- Kei Takishima: Kenichi SuzumuraKenichi Suzumurais a Japanese voice actor who was born in Niigata Prefecture, but raised in Osaka Prefecture. He is currently affiliated with Arts Vision. He made his television animation debut on Macross 7 in 1994...
- Tadashi Karino: Masakazu MoritaMasakazu Moritais a seiyū and actor born in Tokyo, Japan. He currently works for Aoni Production. He is also the host of the radio show, Bleach B-Station. Morita is perhaps best known for his roles as Ichigo Kurosaki , Tidus , Auel Neider , Pegasus Seiya , Troy Bolton is a seiyū and actor born in Tokyo, Japan....
- Akira Toudou: Yuu Asakawa
- Jun Yamamoto: Souichiro Hoshi
- Megumi Yamamoto: Tamaki NakanishiTamaki Nakanishiis a Japanese voice actor affiliated with 81 Produce.-Anime and game voice roles:*.hack//Legend Of The Twilight *Fafner *Gad Guard *Glass Mask...
- Ryuu Tsuji: Hirofumi NojimaHirofumi Nojimais a Japanese voice actor. He is represented by Sigma Seven. He is the son of voice actor Akio Nojima and elder brother of voice actor Kenji Nojima.-TV anime:*Agatha Christie no Meitantei Poirot to Marple *ARIA The ANIMATION...
- Yahiro Saiga: Daisuke NamikawaDaisuke Namikawais a Japanese voice actor who is affiliated with Across Entertainment.He started acting in 1984. He is sometimes mistaken for fellow voice actor Daisuke Hirakawa, as their names only differ by one character when written in kanji. Despite his wide range of voice casting, he is usually cast as young,...
- Sakura Ushikubo: Yumi KakazuYumi Kakazuis a female seiyū from Kamifukuoka, Saitama . She is currently affiliated with Genki Project...
- Aoi Ogata: Daisuke OnoDaisuke Onois a Japanese voice actor who works for Mausu Promotion. He was born in Kōchi Prefecture. He won the 4th Seiyū Awards for best voice actor for his role as Sebastian Michaelis in Kuroshitsuji.-Anime:2002*Full Metal Panic!...
A second drama CD was released on June 18, 2008. It focuses around the boys of the S.A class. The CD also includes background music tracks from the anime. A third drama CD was released in August 2008, focusing on the girls of the S.A class and includes more tracks of the background music from the anime. Both drama CDs use the anime cast.
- Hikari Hanazono: Yuko GotoYuko Gotois a Japanese voice actress who works for Production Baobab. In direct contrast to her cute-and-vulnerable moé typecasting, Yūko in real life is a devotee of biker culture who dresses and acts as such when not working, right down to her motorcycle...
- Kei Takishima: Jun FukuyamaJun Fukuyamais a voice actor. He was previously represented by Aoni Production and Production Baobab, and is now represented by . In 2007, he won the first Seiyu Awards for the best actor in leading role as Lelouch Lamperouge in Code Geass...
- Tadashi Karino: Hiro ShimonoHiro Shimonois a Japanese voice actor employed by I'm Enterprise.-TV anime:*30-sai no Hoken Taiiku *Asura Cryin *Baka to Test to Shōkanjū *Baka to Test to Shōkanjū: Ni!...
- Akira Toudou: Hitomi NabatameHitomi Nabatameis a Japanese voice actress. She is affiliated with Ken Production. When voicing adult games, she is known as , , , or . She also sings opening themes for Nogizaka Haruka no Himitsu under the name Miran Himemiya and Chocolate Rockers.-Anime:...
- Jun Yamamoto: Tsubasa YonagaTsubasa Yonagais a Japanese voice actor who works for Ken Production. He was born in Kanagawa Prefecture. He won for best Male Rookie Actor in the 2nh Seiyū Awards for his role as Ren Mihashi in Ookiku Furikabutte.-Anime:2007*Big Windup! 2008...
- Megumi Yamamoto: Ayahi TakagakiAyahi Takagakiis a Japanese voice actress and singer. She had her first major voice acting roles in 2007, voicing Jasmine in Deltora Quest and Lucia Nahashi in Venus Versus Virus....
- Ryuu Tsuji: Kazuma HorieKazuma Horieis a Japanese voice actor, best known for his roles in the anime series Durarara!! and Special A .-Anime:2003*Shutsugeki! Machine Robo Rescue 2004*Elfen Lied...
- Sakura Ushikubo: Natsuko KuwataniNatsuko Kuwataniis a Japanese voice actress who currently works for I'm Enterprise as of March 1, 2008.- 2001 :* Rabbit in Kokoro Library* Karen in Sister Princess* Kirala Mitsuboshi in Najica Blitz Tactics- 2002 :* Tweedledee in Kiddy Grade...
Anime
In 2007's 21st issue of Hana to Yume, it was announced that S.A would have a 24 episode anime adaptation. The anime began airing in Japan on April 6, 2008.The anime has been picked up for release in North America by Sentai Filmworks; it is distributed by Section23 Films
Section23 Films
Section23 Films is an American home video distribution company specializing in anime and Japanese films. The company is one of five successors to ADV Films, as well as the distributor of titles from Sentai Filmworks and Switchblade Films. ADV had announced that it had sold its assets to a group of...
. The first part of season 1 came out on November 10, 2009, and the second collection was released on January 19, 2010.
Music
1st opening theme: "Special Days" (episodes 1 - 12)- Performed by Yuko Goto, Hitomi Nabatame and Ayahi Takagaki
1st ending theme: "Hidamari no Gate" (episodes 1 - 12, 24)
- Performed by Jun Fukuyama, Hiro Shimono, Tsubasa Yonaga, Kazuma Horie
2nd opening theme: "Gorgeous 4U" (episodes 13 - 24)
- Performed by Jun Fukuyama, Hiro Shimono, Tsubasa Yonaga, Kazuma Horie
2nd ending theme: "Special Gyutto Good Luck!" (episodes 13 - 23)
- Performed by Yuko Goto, Hitomi Nabatame, and Ayahi Takagaki
Reception
Katherine Dacey compared the central two characters as "a gender reversed Frank Butler and Annie Oakley", and noted that Kei comes off as "rather sexist". Erin Finnegan disliked the manga, because the secondary characters were poorly developed and she felt the story was misogynistic. Jennifer Dunbar enjoyed the wish-fulfilment of seeing rich kids "getting to do whatever they want" without being conceited about this, but felt the complications in the last volume were boring.Jason Thompson
Jason Thompson (writer)
Jason Thompson is a manga critic, journalist, writer and comics artist.-Life and career:...
disliked the "action slapstick" of the first two volumes, but felt that even after the two leads became more fleshed out as characters through their romance that the series was "founded on cliches" and felt the rest of the cast was underdeveloped.