Manga Harlem Beat

[Zen]

[color=green][size=1]

I recently was strolling threw the public library of my small southern town and was suprised to find that their Young Adults section was filled with manga and comic books alike. At first I was only drawn to reading Ranma 1/2 and Hellboy, but then something caught my eye. Harlem Beat it was. I was very optomisitic about picking up this title and I'm glad I did because it is one of the best manga I've ever read (and the only sports one I have). It is excelent. Published by Mixx Manga and Tokyopop, and a very americanized manga, Harlem Beat is about a teen (15) named Nate Torres (again with the American) who is a compulsive quitter and under acheiver. Convinced he is good at nothing, he gets fed up and decides that he will make Basketball his game.

One day he is taken to a dusty half-court in the red light area of Tokyo (it does take place in Japan) where he finds the huge entirety of the Street Basketball Sub-Culture. After scoring on one of the best ballers in the area and the owner of the court, Nate quickly gains popularity despite his still lacking skills. He makes freinds with the only other two players who scored on him. Kyle "Oz" Ozman, a warm heart with a cold, gangster exterior (and a little bit of a pervert) and Masawaru (Masa) Taku, a money loving, pretty boy street hussler. Nate also makes freinds with the basketball queen and the girl who introduced him to Streetball, Mizuki (Mizzy). Together, they form a rag-tag streetball three on three team called "Scratch" and meet several different street ballers from all different backgrounds and races while also Nate seeks a standing on his own high school team.

Published in 2000, Harlem Beat is very modern and has alot of influence from movie's like "White Men Can't Jump" and has alot of NBA stuff (like one guy was modeled after Trace McGrady). Basically, if "White Men Can't Jump" were a manga, this would be close too it.

Harlem Beat is packed with humor, drama, and cool b-ball action. I love it and suggest all who like sports, coming of age stories, cool art, modern drama, or just a good laugh check this book out. I am currently on volume 7. I'll post more when I read the rest. But please, discuss, and tell me that I'm not the only one here who has even heard of this hidden treasure.[/color][/size]