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Reading the last two chapters of Katekyo Hitman Reborn! together, “ambivalent” is probably the best way to describe my feelings after the experience.
While the second last chapter was possesses the standard characteristics of a rushed and abrupt ending, the closing chapter does wrap things up thematically, and the shots of the various cast members reinforce Tsuna’s journey quite nicely (not to mention they’re nice to look at!). It’s always a troublesome challenge thinking of a suitable ending for long-running shounen series, and for Katekyo Hitman Reborn!, at least it ended; not quite the ideal finale I imagined, but the series has its closure, which is more than I can say for many of its counterparts (e.g. Bleach).
Final Impressions:
It was a whimsical decision to start reading KHR!, and despite its flaws, it has been an endearing and enjoyable series. I’ll always remember it for the zany characters – the cast was large, but they somehow managed to stay differentiable and shone in the spotlight when given the chance. This was undoubtedly the series’ greatest strength, and looking at her work over the course of the series’ run, it would seem she excels at creating memorable characters and giving them life. There were a select few that I personally couldn’t be bothered to care for, but none of them became so offensive that I questioned the necessity of their existence. Amano, intentionally or not, knew how to distribute the spotlight properly so that bland characters stayed out of the center stage just enough for their weaknesses to remain hidden, while dynamic characters were allowed to breathe. This lends an interesting duality to Amano’s writing though – many characters such as Dino, Yamamoto, Hibari, Squalo, and Gokudera even, can come across entirely flat and one-dimensional when in actuality all of them have very subtle nuances to their characters. It all depends on how much the readers are willing to read into their characters, interpret their actions, and extrapolate the possible trajectories their personas can take based on their personality. Amano provides ample ingredients to do this, which is probably why I found the series so enjoyable.
Unfortunately though, the execution of the plot is the series’ biggest pitfall, and it’s somewhat saddening since the basis for some of the events and the ideas behind the arcs are solid and even grand – the potential was certainly there, and there were moments in Katekyo Hitman Reborn! where it was evident Amano was capable of something greater. But for some reason she seemed to almost chicken out at the most crucial of moments (e.g. the endings of every arc), building the events of an arc to great heights only to deliver lackluster conclusions/explanations. I’m not sure if it’s just an inherent weakness or just a matter of polishing her skills, but the proper execution of some of its plot points really kept KHR! from reaching its full potential.
Although I would have preferred to see more of Tsuna as the Vongola Decimo at the end, perhaps it’s best that these blanks are left to be filled in by the readers. There are a myriad of possible paths the story can take from this point on, and the readers are free to choose any one of them – it’s the greatest freedom an author can offer their audience. The story has come to an end, but only thematically. The characters are unbound by a specific outcome and their potential from here on is unprecedented, their stories free to be written however one wishes. In this aspect Katekyo Hitman Reborn! is excellent, proving it was more of a gift to fans rather than a ploy to make money.
Note: Extremely sorry for the delay on this post – I was sick and had to do some shuffling around, which made this post fall to the back burner unfortunately.
Yup
Guess it’s time for me to start reading this. Always meant to start but never got the chance.
The start is slow and repetitive but after it’s it become a good fighting shonen.
I also can’t help but think the ending was rushed. I would love to say he got canceled but since he is supposed to get a new manga (Shinmai Fukei Kiruko-san) I can’t be sure.
Do you mean Akira? She*
Don’t bother reading it the ending was a pile of shit.
so thast what YOU think, let us have an opinion (insert insult here)
It’s kinda sad how it ended… I mean, I seriously was waiting for him to become the Vongola Tenth. D:
He eventually becomes the tenth anyway, remember the future arc?
Another Shonen manga bites the dust.
Am I the only one disappointed by this ending? I mean seriously isn’t the main character suppose to evolve, mature in somewhat of an epic way before a series ends?
Tsuna still is a loser in the regular world
Tsuna still has no mafia wife
Tsuna still doesn’t want to be a mafia boss
Tsuna still can’t properlly order an entire group of mafioso allies
Sure Tsuna can kick ass but he doesn’t have the kick-ass attitude.
Amano pretty much just pimp slapped the hell out of us, nice story tho, too bad the end was utter b.s
I hate to say this but even Ichigo improved in the regular world after losing his powers (In the way he was kicking more butt than usual and was amazingly athletic and getting paid for it.)
I agree. It’s amazing Tsuna still doesn’t want to become the boss despite everything he’s done and learned. And I would of liked an arc that ended with the Vongola guardians and Tsuna. Gokudera and Yamamoto got pretty shafted in that last arc.
The biggest disappointment is that pretty much nothing has changed. Tsuna is still everyone’s bitch, Reborn’s still a child, no couples were formed, none of the female characters ever got the slightest bit of development, any previous developments that occurred during the series were scrapped to set it back to the beginning. It’s like reading about someone going on a meaningless journey to return home learning nothing and gaining nothing.
if Amano foolow Godfather formula, Tsuna suppose to be Micheal and end it with Tsuna become the boss.
The ending very disappointing, no conclusion to his maturity.
Negima, Air Gear and now Hitman, 3 long series ended this year, despite each having their own flaws, I still miss them.
Negima was a little letdown as in my opinion it fallout pretty suddenly around the end. such a waste… As for air gear, tbh i have no idea what is going on around middle of story…
Negima ended due to the author trying to make a point about a certain copyrights laws that they were trying to pass in Japan. Apparently, companies want to take away power from authors, and Ken Akamatsu wasn’t going to have that. I think he ended the manga to make a point the the companies trying to screw over mangakas.
My prediction for Shinmai Fukei Kireko-san: Big-breasted, quirky female protagonist with Tsuna-like male sidekick who is the butt of all the jokes and suffers tons of comedic abuse. Yes, another one of those.
Prove me wrong, Amano-sensei. I’d love to see something more original, especially given the rarity of female protagonists in JUMP.
FYI, Shinmai Fukei Kiruko-san is not related with Amano. I havent read it so I’m not sure either but judging from the title I too will believe that the main heroine has similar character setting like Tsuna though.
I have read the manga Double Bullet from the same author and it is pretty nice as a one-shot. But it seems like the setting was changed drastically even though they share a similar “newbie policewoman” story, judging from the cover in mangaupdates
Execution is really the mangaka’s biggest flaw – she doesn’t seem to have the courage to change the status quo and provide real character development. I like the manga, I really do – but a good manga requires a good story and the mangaka fail to deliver it. I honestly felt disappointed – she’s capable of so much more!
TQ
Could anyone mind tell me what source/new material she is working on?
I though her new work is, “Psycho-Pass”, so far chapter 1 (in manga) is out.
Thank you. 🙂
Her character designs are used in Psycho-Pass but aside from that Urobochi is not letting her anywhere near the story.
Oh thank goodness! Can’t wait to see more Gen’s lovely gore-writting. 🙂
So, no one knows what her new works are?
RANDOM AFTER THOUGHT *but*
Anyone think that “frame story” for a ending (similar to the original Frankenstein)could of at least pull this ending off a little better?
like for example Tsuna(grown up) would be sitting at his desk finishing a journal entry which was conveniently the “story” of KHR when reborn(also grown) knocks on the door and tells him that his wife(either girl) is waiting on him or somethin… after he replies and reborn is getting ready to leave the room Tsuna could look down at the journal entry smile and then Say The final line of the rael ending while the adult reborn tips his hat. :O
My To Love Ru is still thriving due to the nice “service” it gives. Though I don’t know if Reborn would get a second season in my opinion. To be honest, I am more surprised in how the manga Naruto, Bleach, and One Piece are still thriving. Then there is History’s strongest Disciple which still goes on with the nice service, I won’t be shocked if the author is receiving donations from hundreds of perverted Otakus. There is Toriko but I have my doubts that manga would be as going as the really long ones.
I forgot what other weekly shonen manga are there but does anyone have any thoughts if any of these manga were to end?
wow so many KHR haters! a couple years ago i went on an anime hiatus and didn’t watch anything for awhile. but i still missed it and wanted to pick up a few long running series and KHR was the one i picked. man, it got me back into anime in full swing. and from there on i didn’t really have a break until recently when i decided to lighten the load of what i’m watching this season.
well my point is that, KHR did have really great moments in the beginning and awesome fight scenes so let’s try to judge it as a whole? i especially love series that have some sort of background which they hint at over the course of its run. (kuroko no basuke does that too, i really do feed off that kind of story lol) i think KHR had a great premise, and i really thought it had strong moments like tsuna’s fight with xanxus, giotto appearing from the rings and i really loved the entire enma/shimon famiglia arc.
yeah, i’m disappointed with the ending still. it seemed really rushed and like amano just gave up and decided to cancel the series herself. like we all could have agreed that it COULD have kept going. a few fights and a couple arcs were dragged on for too long and i guess she just wanted to move on. i’m looking forward to her next work! thank you for this series! i truly loved it at the height it really becoming my central fandom. it’s always a sad moment when a long series in WSJ ends, i think we can all agree on that.
What the? I actually thought that he would take up the role and show how much he has changed because of Reborn. I thought he would think back to all his times and continue his adventures as Vongola Decimo. What is this weak ending? Barely any conclusion to any of the other characters as well.
I really enjoyed watching and reading Reborn and its various arcs. I thought all of them were entertaining in their own ways. It all starts off with Tsuna’s fight against Xanxus and honestly, that part is what got me into it. At first, I thought it was just a bunch of gags and that’s what it was made for. However, as time went along, it adapted and became even more interesting to read and watch.
Of course, the future arc is excellent as well. I did not expect them to randomly jump ahead 10 years. At first, I was almost overwhelmed but I grew into it. Byakuran is especially interesting to watch and the parallel worlds are nice additions to the story.
The other arcs weren’t bad either but those two arcs are the ones that I enjoy the most. It’s really a shame to end it like this. If this is the end of a journey and the beginning of the new one then where is the development? Friends? Really? What actually happens? The whole point since the beginning is the notion that Tsuna will become Vongola Decimo. Sure, he may not want to become that because he learns something from this long journey or something but… nothing like that is stated. Instead, we get an ending stating: “Oh look I have friends supporting me… All thanks to Reborn!”…..
I’m disappointed to see it go like this but it may just be me. Still, I enjoyed reading this manga and I’ll be sad to see this go.
Total disappointment.
I mean yeah, an open ending is like a gift to fans, but I think most of us would want Amano to conclude the story basing on what she wants.
Tsuna’s wife? Leave it to the fans to fantasize.
Tsuna’s future? Leave it to the fans to fantasize.
Reading fanfiction is fun, but it’s not canon. Even if she were to conclude the story, the fanfiction writers won’t stop anyway. Yeah, there will be pissed off fans who wants Tsuna to end up with blah-blah-blah, but it happens to every manga.
It’s stupid to be afraid of fans hating on her. Just give it a powerful ending instead of one which shows nothing happening.
Besides, what about Kaoru’s flame? Remember that Earth Flame that was never mentioned the whole damn time? We don’t even know its name!!
Some speculated that Amano might come back with KHR2, that’s why she leave an open ending. However, if she isn’t going to, then I’m really disappointed in her. Character development fail, power level jumping everywhere.
The ending just didn’t leave me any impression. I love Reborn, I love it a lot, but that ending…meh.
I was like “DaFuq I just read? What’s this bullsh*t chapter? Color pages…and the title is “ciaossu”…wait so it ends? This is it? Nothing more? Wow”
Just like the conclusion of the Rainbow Representative Arc, it was so bad I can’t bear to look at the manga again. We didn’t get to know more about that Ramen dude. The ultimate antagonist just happily going along with your solution. Oh man, that was lackluster.
OH YEAH, I 4got I’ve been contemplating Kaoru’s flame since the Earth Ring arc ended, just more fail to the ending, not the story, the ending
Well, I think Tsuna’s future wife is Kyoko. None other. Because in the Future Arc, future Kyoko calls him “Tsu-kun” which is a lot closer call than the usual “Tsuna-kun”. Its not Haru either way probably because she still calls him by “Tsuna-san” even in future. That concludes no more relationship than friends. Haru will end up with either Yamamoto or Gokudera. (Hibari? No way lol XD When did she interact with him lol but they are cute). I prefer her with Gokudera though, they seem fitting in a lot of ways. Not to mention there are a couple of hints thorough the series (mainly secret bullet novel 5 if im not wrong) between them. But even im not a Gokuharu fans. Just a Reborn fans.
Yeah, what an ending.. *sigh* I hope Amano-san really make a .. what, Epilogue? Season? U name it. Just I hope she doesn’t disappoint fans a lot sh**ty than this. She needs to wrap everything up back to place .for vongola’s sake lol
I dont mind even if she skips timeline, just make it a more memorable series that we can all treasure. Reborn is the best anime i can tell. BUT the Simon arc and what one other.
P.S. I wanna see their future selves more really. I love them all.
Sad how it ended. Even though I stopped reading this during the Future Arc I still liked the series and all the unique wonderful characters Amano created. I will miss the characters but I probably won’t miss the series or the story though XD sorry lol.
I do wish she would have wrapped it up a little better though. This is such an open ending which I don’t mind, but at the same time I don’t like it either. Tsuna is still a “loser”, he is not a Mafia Boss, and I do think the series would have had a better conclusion if Amano changed those factors a little.
But nerveless, Katekyo Hitman Reborn was very fun to read and overall it was an amazing series. Thank you for blogging this.
I hate open ending bullshits.It felt rushed.It’s a shame too, for a manga with so many good characters to just end out of the blue.
I can understand that there are no battles left, but KHR started off as a gag manga in the first place, there could’ve been at least one last arc that didn’t have anything to do with battles.
It would be like Naruto just ending immediately after beating Madara and Obito.Everybody just head back to their village and that’s it.Peaceful times and blah blah The End.
Now that I think about it, the ending reminds me of Chrono Trigger
but the future refused to change…
rushed ending is rushed…… i don’t know why but i blame kubo for this.
disappointed by its end. I expected greater things from you, Reborn!
I’ve gotta say, I have mixed feelings on this one. I loved KHR, especially the characters (it’s fair to say that Tsuna is probably one of the main characters I’ve liked most in my time reading manga) and I feel that this ending was a nice one, had it been to just the arc. However, because we had the two chapters between the arc’s end and this, and nothing was achieved within them other than some nice comedy, I don’t feel it served the series justice.
I suppose if there had been a few more chapters, or if we had seen how they turned out after a few years or so (final pages time skip idea) then it would have been nicer, however I feel by putting in the two chapters it made me feel like we would get another arc before the end…the letdown being the thing that drags it down.
Overall though, KHR is a really great manga and the ending might not have been perfect, it was nice and it did leave the rest up to our imaginations. I will miss reading this every week and hope that her next work is as enjoyable as this one.
That’s it? Seriously? ⊙﹏⊙
At least this is the happiest ending for Tsuna since Reborn is staying with him.
But I’m going to miss waiting for KHR manga to come out every week from now on; it was something I look forward to and it was satisfying to enjoy reading each chapter. I hope they will make the anime for it again in the future.
P.S. Why wasn’t Hibari/Mukuro/the rest of the Arcobaleno in the pictures for this post?
?? They are there – if you click on the images you’ll see the full version.
Ah good to know that. I’ll miss KHR manga postings at RC too, just to throw that out there.
My reaction was more like, “The series ended?!”
Why did it end like this???? TTTTTTT_TTTTTTT Now my absolute
Favourite manga has ended!!!!!!!! FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU~~~~
My life is ruined!!!!!!!
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