In Shonen manga, there's one formula that can get repetitive: training, fighting, some more training, more fighting afterwards, then even more training and intense fights afterwards--it all goes on and on. There are some people who are turned off by Dragonball Z for this very reason. But there's one genre where that formula makes perfect sense: sports. Just look at our athletes: just before the start of their season, they train and practice, and then during the tournament season, they compete with various teams. Even in-between games, the athletes continue to practice to either improve themselves or their teamwork. And this goes on year after year after year, repeating that endless cycle of practice and competition. Yet people are nonetheless hooked, watching the NBA Finals or the Super Bowl year after year (alas, the Fifa World Cup doesn't happen as often). Sports manga is no different and in this case, the "train and fight" formula is very much justified.

Going back to sports manga, I have two reasons why this genre has a place in my heart. The first is practicality. Honestly, manga is a mixed back. For example, Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service, one of the underrated mangas out there, is quite episodic. In one volume, you have several stand-alone stories and it's not so important that you read them in a particular order (although it is helpful). On the other hand, we might have something like Monster where one volume isn't enough to satiate your appetites and it takes eighteen volumes to tell one whole epic. Sports manga falls somewhere in between as the genre tends to have several small story arcs--usually each story arc revolving around a particular match against a particular person or team (although there is definitely the larger story arc in the background, especially when the team you're rooting for is participating in a tournament--easily something an entire series can be based on). Currently, I'm following Eyeshield 21 and a story arc tends to be anywhere from one volume to three volumes long. The pacing is set so that it leaves me with a certain sense of closure while at the same time leaving me eager for the succeeding volumes.

The second reason is that manga is one of the mediums that can enhance the drama of sports. Let me put it this way: it's been done in film and in TV with shows like Friday Night Lights, Rudy, or even the comedy Tin Cup. Techniques like slow-motion, close-up camera angles, and character flashbacks--they can enhance the drama of a competition. Unfortunately, there's honestly not enough sports shows or movies out there. That's not the case with manga as there's a variety of titles out there (although admittedly, not a lot has been translated into English) whether it's soccer (Captain Tsubasa), basketball (Slam Dunk), American football (Eyeshield 21), baseball (Major, Ace of Diamond), boxing (Hajime no Ippo, Ashita no Joe), Tennis (Prince of Tennis), or even fictional games (Air Gear). And unlike real life, we aren't fully acquainted with the athletes we see on TV or read about. In fiction, the author can inject all the character background and build-up that's needed, making rivalries and competitions even more intense. Even more interesting is when manga breaks from the mode of reality and we can have a mix of superhuman feats, comedy, and action in our stories. I mean most of us remember Speed Racer. Speed Racer is easily the proto-sports title that infuses an actual sport (racing) with off-the-top action and science fiction. And you can admit it, Speed Racer was fun.

Another hidden gem of sports manga, especially those based on actual sports, is that they tend to teach you the rules of the game in a manner that's easily comprehensible. One doesn't need to be a football fan to read Eyeshield 21. The story starts off from the lens of a beginner and as the protagonist learns the rules of the game, so does the reader. Not all sports manga follows this formula but a lot of the more successful ones do and there's a simple explanation for that: the more readers a particular title can acquire, the better the likelihood that it'll becoming popular. So many sports manga out there doesn't require readers to be familiar with the sport and instead uses the manga to slowly teach the reader the necessary details (and that perhaps differentiates manga from a sports rule book--they only give you a lesson only when it's needed and don't overwhelm you with rules).

At the end of the day, sports manga works for me because it's compelling. Right now, I'm a big sports manga fan but I was never a sports fan until I started getting immersed in manga. I'm the kid that's usually the bookworm and gets picked last for gym class. While reading sports manga hasn't turned me into someone more athletic (if there's anything sports manga has taught me, you need to train, train, train!), it has made me appreciate the various sports. Go on, try picking up a sports manga. You don't need to be interested in the sport in the first place, just interested in plain old action and drama. And for parents interested in getting their kids to go out more, there's probably no better propaganda than sports manga (a topic that I can probably cover in a future column).

Charles Tan