Gakuen Alice

Friendship is a powerful thing between children, never question it. Promising each others loyalty for the rest of their lives, and doing naive things to protect yet prove the undying love between friends. To be blessed with strong bonds between someone to last a life time is so rare and scarce, it's the truly wonderful element about this manga. I first encountered Gakuen Alice as an anime. The anime itself was cute, refreshing and sweet which had me yearning for more. I didn't end up reading the manga until a few years later, which I'm pretty glad I did. The manga was a huge contrast tothe anime, it was more dark and had a lot of mature themes within that you couldn't be sure you were reading the same story. The story divulged more into each main character's story, revealing secrets and hidden back story about the school and the people that run it. The mature elements for a supposedly children's manga really made the series such an original one itself, implementing multiple elements and to create a masterpiece of a manga, one that anyone could enjoy really amazes me. The art itself was plausible, nothing was out of the ordinary. The way it was drawn really helped with the flow of the story rather than stuttering and hindering the story. Character development within the story is a huge factor as well and well executed as well, you witness characters changing good to bad, apathetic to empathetic and children growing up faster than they really should. I thoroughly enjoyed this manga which had me wanting for more, I genuinely expected the longer version of the sweet shoujo anime I saw a few years ago, only to be introduced to more of a intricate written story which surpassed my original expectations, the only criticism I have is the rushed and loose ending it had. Overall, it was a fantastic read which had the perfect balance of love, family, hope, power and most importantly, friendship.

[Review] Gakuen Alice "I haven't love so much a girl until I met you" - Luca/Ruka Nōgi "I don't like that ugly face, so smile" - Hotaru Imai This manga was the reason I started with anime & related stuff. I stopped reading it because in Spain they only released until the volume 20 :( And now, being nostalgic, I finished the anime and right after, reading it. I'll try not to make spoilers ~Story: 9/10 It starts really simple, Mikan (the main character) only wants to follow her best friend (Hotaru) that leaves from her town to go to an elite academy and discovers that if she wants to assist the same school as Hotaru she needs to have an "alice" (special power) like her. However, there's much more behind this. The teachers, the students and even the academy itself has a big secret and darkness inside. Between the arcs they are very much plot points that'll make you surprise, sad or any other emotion. And Mikan's past/ future story (well, all character in general) has an emotive development until the end. I'm sure that if you aren't a non-sensitive person, you will feel one with the story. What I kind of dislike a bit is that it's an open plot, the end makes you feel that there is more, but it isn't. Art: 8.5/10 The art is simple, too. I've seen very bad drawings in other anime/manga, but this one is quite nice. I must admit that the facial expressions and actions in general are perfectly drawn, you really get to know how the characters are feeling. And like they said before, every detail in the background is well drawn (for examples in the Christmas event or sport festival), too. ... Sorry but the character design are not my taste in general --- okay, when I discovered it for the first time I found it awesome~ how obvious was that I never saw other drawings :D Character and development: 10/10 And this one is very obvious. The four main characters (Mikan, Hotaru, Natsume and Luca-pyon), each of them has their own story. Not only these four, every single character that appears has a function there. They're people who at first you will hate but, at the final arc, you will love them. I don't wanna say so much about this because spoilers, I can only say that Tachibana did a great job with the development of every character. Enjoyment: 9/10 I laughed, cried, was angry when things doesn't go well. This anime starts with a lot of comedy, although when the story goes on, comedy is less, but it's still there. The more I continued reading, the most I wanted to read more, I've finished it in three days I think, lol. Still, I enjoyed it so much, every arc was interesting and a clue to the final arc. General: 9/10 If it wouldn't be because of the art and the final, I'm sure it'd be a masterpiece. I really recommend to read this, the anime is too short compared how much deeper it is. Note: This is my first review, I hope I've done it clear and well ;-;

Well, i know a lot of people already read this manga. But i just cant help to make a review of this manga because it just so great. So i read Gakuen Alice several days ago. At first, i though its just a childish manga because the character is still 10 years old. But when i read it i know that this manga is just so greatttttt. The plot is amazing, it taught us about friendship and love from its deepest meening. My heart shaked several times when i read this manga because it just so touching. The character for me not really the best part. thereare so many cute character and i love them, but its not to the point i amazed them so much and can feel their heart. But overall i think its still good and i love the development of each character. I also really enjoy when i read this manga. Especially when i read the flash back episode... its just so sad and great at the same time. Overall i think this manga is just so amazing and for someone who havent read it... YOU MUST READ THIS!!! I still dont understand why a lot of people against the ending. But for me the ending is good and i really appreciate the mangaka of this manga. Love it

I initially found out about Gakuen Alice by catching a few episodes here and there on Animax when I was in elementary school. Since the characters are all around the age of 10 to 11 for one, AND they have special superpowers, I couldn't help but look forward to catching (hopefully) the next episode (and not a repeat of the previous ones). Although its anime was alright, (and thankfully I finally had internet at home at that time) I was intrigued whether or not it had a manga since from my knowledge at the time, if not all, a large percentage of animes are adaptedfrom mangas. I believe it was one of the best decisions I have ever made anime/film/book-wise, and didn't even expect this good of work from something that was aimed for children. I very clearly remember when I read the ending of the manga. I couldn't stop crying for at least an hour and got puffy eyes from just thinking about the ending over and over again. lol It makes you feel VERY empty after you finish reading the whole thing.