It may sound like I’ve been reading too many sports manga to you. But I wished that Haikyu!! manga existed when I was still in high school. If it does, then I may give volleyball a try since my school did have the girl’s team for volleyball.

Not sure if they made it to the national level, though. But I know that it exists in some shapes and forms since my friend used to join the volleyball team before.

I can’t say for sure about how fun volleyball is in real life. But thanks to Haikyu!! manga, it looks fun, at least for me.

Well, talk about the manga influence here.

Just so you know that I love basketball. Sure, one of the reasons has a lot to do with my love for Slam Dunk manga and anime.

But even if I don’t read the manga, I still love basketball despite not being tall enough and not knowing any rules at all. The only reason why I didn’t get to play basketball when I was in high school was that there wasn’t any girl’s team in my school back then.

The only time I got to play basketball was during the P.E class.

Sure, I could go all the way to establish the girl’s team in my school just like what we always see in anime.

It was unfortunate that I wasn’t gutsy enough to do something like that. And it sounds like it’s too much work too.

Yes, I know that I sound like Shikamaru from Naruto here. As much as I want to see it comes to reality, I’m not sure how worth is the time and effort for something like that.

Besides, we don’t have anything fancy like Inter-High here. Even if I did establish a team, we still ended up playing for fun unless we took part in the unofficial tournament.

Heck, does that kind of tournament even exist?

What Haikyu!! manga is all about

Here’s the book description that I got from MANGA Plus.

After losing his first and last volleyball match against Tobio Kageyama, “the King of the Court,” Shoyo Hinata swears to become his rival after graduating middle school. But what happens when the guy he wants to defeat ends up being his teammate?!

What got me to read the manga

Well, it’s no secret here that I do enjoy reading sports manga even if I know nothing about sports. So, it shouldn’t come as a surprise here that I will pick up a sports manga like Haikyu!! in a heartbeat.

And the fact that MANGA Plus just released the revival edition of the manga over there also got me thrilled to read the manga.

What makes Haikyu!! manga worth reading

For those of you who are new to sports manga, you probably think that the story in sports manga to be flat and boring.

If that’s what you think about the sports manga, then you’re in for a little surprise.

The manga is indeed hilarious, even during intense moments such as during the game.

Of course, you’re not going to see blunders during the game all the time. But that wacky moment during the game does happen from time to time.

What’s more, the actions during the match are realistic too. So, you’re not going to see God-like moves like the one you see in Kuroko no Basket and Eyeshield 21.

Okay, not sure about Kageyama’s and Hinata’s quick attack combo. Maybe you can pull something like that in real life if you’re fast and jump high enough like Hinata.

Perhaps some of you who played volleyball already tried to imitate their movements in real life? Let me know if you did.

Don’t get me wrong. I enjoy reading Kuroko no Basket and Eyeshield 21 manga just as much as reading Haikyu!! manga. But I’m not too fond of something that seems like a mash-up between the sports manga and Dragon Ball-style battle scenes.

I prefer something more on the realistic side of things.

It’s because of this reason I prefer Slam Dunk over Kuroko no Basket. I just don’t like something that is over the top.

Just like any manga that revolves around sports that aren’t mainstream in Japan, Haikyu!! manga does provide explanations on the basic rules and terms being used in volleyball.

That is a good thing since not many of us know about volleyball that much. It can be hard to relate to the story if we don’t fully grasp the rules and terminology used in volleyball.

What I didn’t expect when I read the manga

It may seem strange for me to say this. But I didn’t find anything that I deem unexpected in this manga.

I already expect that a manga like will explain the basic rules since that tends to be the case for most sports manga that I read.

Same goes for the tons of wacky scenes even during the game. It’s also something that I expect in a manga like this too.

Flashbacks during the intense moment of the game?

That is something that I expect too.

In a nutshell, Haikyu!! isn’t that much different from any other sports manga I’ve ever read.

The manga ticks every single thing that I expect in a sports manga.

Maybe that’s the thing that I don’t expect, I guess?

Who should read this manga

If you’re like me who enjoys reading sports manga, then there’s no doubt that you will also find Haikyu!! an interesting read. And it doesn’t matter whether you know about volleyball or not.

Just like any other sports manga, Haikyu!! does give you a chuckle here and there. But for the most part, the story tends to be more intense, especially during the game.

If you expect to get a good laugh on every turn of the page, then you’re in for a disappointment since Haikyu!! is mainly a sports manga, not comedy manga.

Where to buy Haikyu!! manga

The good news is you can read the manga for free at MANGA Plus. But you can only read the first three and the recent few chapters, though. The chapters in between aren’t viewable on the website or the app.

If you’re interested in reading the manga, you can read the manga for free right here:

Read Haikyu!! manga on MANGA Plus

You can also buy the manga in print or in digital on Amazon as well. Here’s the link to the page:

Buy Haikyu!! manga on Amazon

Want to buy the manga in print but can’t buy the manga on Amazon? If that’s you, consider buying the manga on Wordery. I highly recommend Wordery because they offer free shipping worldwide.

You can buy the manga right here:

Buy Haikyu!! manga on Wordery

Want to read the manga in Japanese? Well, you’re in luck since you can now buy the complete volume of the manga at CDJapan.

The complete set of the manga is available for pre-order as I write this. If you’re interested in buying the manga, you can get it right here at CDJapan:

Buy Haikyu!! manga complete set on CDJapan

Over to you

What do you think about Haikyu!!? Are you interested in giving this manga a try after you read about it on my blog? Let me know in the comment below.

P.S While most of my books are in the thriller and suspense genre, I also write a sports light novel too called Twisted Destiny.

If you love basketball and you enjoy reading manga like Slam Dunk, then you may enjoy reading Twisted Destiny too.

Twisted Destiny is up for grabs at 50% off on Smashwords. If you’d like to give my book a try, you can buy the light novel right here:

Buy Twisted Destiny on Smashwords

Just to let you know that the offer will only be available until March 31st, 2021. So, be sure to get the book right now before the offer ends.