Gakuen Alice

At first I had no interest in reading this before but then after remembering how much I loved the anime I figured to give it a chance because you know "The books are better than the movies" am I right? Well, starting off on the first chapter I was already laughing at the childishness of it. But in an absolutely good way! Next thing I knew, I could not stop reading it. Approximately, I finished the whole thing in 5 days. 5 straight hours of reading it per day because it was that great! Now I'm going to start going in detail.

Story: 10
The story is really unlike no other! It has it's plot twists that make total sense in the end and are a great factor in making the story as good as it is. It starts off really innocently but also quite challenging due to the fact that most of the characters treat her unwell, but each chapter she becomes one of their most important people in their life which is really heartwarming. All of a sudden, before you know it Mikan and all the characters just.. grow on you and what they feel, you feel! Their sadness is your sadness, their happiness your happiness! (But that's what I think.. unless I'm just a super sensitive butt) I like the fact that in the story, their build up to action and intensity (which in fact, is really strong) is quick and makes you wonder what will happen next. > /)(

So...my first review. This manga is about a girl callled Mikan,whith a best friend, called Hotaru. But this best friend has to transfer to a school far away, for somekind of "Alice" people. Mikan follows Hotaru to the school, and discovers she is an "Alice" too. Sorry for the short and boring story plot, I want to get moving on to the review.

SPOILER ALERT

First, the story. Well... from about the chapters Mikan and friends go to the warphole, the whole story doesn't follow the plot anymore. From after chapter 50-54 (I don't know the exact chapters) the story gets VERY dark. At first, it made me mad, but now I'm much more used to the tragic happenings. You can't survive this manga whithout tissues.

Art is beautiful. Sometimes I can't move onto the next page, because the art disables me for a nice five minutes. At first, I wasn't used to this art, but now I miss it from other manga. Every changes a little throughout the story, that's why you can easily see the difference between the 8, 10, 12 and 15 year old version of Natsume.

Every charachter or has a sad past, or a tragic end. I don't really want to go further, then I'd Wright HUGE spoilers.

Overall, I really enjoyed it. I hope you find this good fitmr nothing review good for something.

One of the most underrated mangas ever. The anime was of poor quality and had a low budget, which lowered the expectations of viewers. The storyline in the manga is very complex and dark, yet the mangaka skillfully adds humour and romance at the right times. The story is full of action, tragedy and drama, especially after chapter 90. It is like the Harry Potter of the manga world (the story at times is darker than HP). The art is also very attractive, especially of the characters. Definitely not your typical shoujo manga.

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 adapted from 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.

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. there are 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 finished reading Gakuen Alice when it was still ongoing, but recently reread it all again. This reread without monthly breaks in between was really enjoyable, and allowed me to truly see how the characters have progressed in this story.

The character progression and relationships were one of the things I loved most about the manga. The way the characters love and care for each other is amazing to watch, and very heartwarming indeed. This isn't only about the romance, but about the friendships between characters. In particular, Mikan and her best friend Hotaru's relationship was my favourite. Each character expresses their love differently, some quietly. But it's still plain as day it's there, and brings a smile to my face each time. As the series progresses you can see how much they've all become a part of each other's lives, and how fiercely these kids will come to care for each other. Even the many side characters are memorable and have relevance to the plot, and their antics are always fun to watch as well.

Mikan at a glance seems to be a pretty normal girl. Yknow, the always smiling girl that brightens up everyone's lives, who everyone gradually gets influenced by (is it a manga thing for the smiley silly girl to always be loved?). Mikan appears to be quite a dependent girl, with many people around her that love and take very good care of her. But never does it feel that the love Mikan receives is undeserved. The manga does a pretty good job at showing how Mikan affects the lives of people around her, truly giving them a sense of joy in an otherwise bleak life. She's the girl that smiles at you and runs to you for a hug all the time, and you can't help but shake your head and hug her back (at least that's what I think I'd feel). It takes a while to get used to her, but she's a lovable character whose smile you wouldn't want to see disappear.

I think the setting and plot was the other thing that made this manga work for me. The only reason the characters were able to grow up so fast and also form these strong, precious bonds, was because of the specific environment they belonged to. Yes this manga is about school life and has a lot of the elements of the typical excitable kid things, but there's also the sense that no one here is a normal child. These children, unlike normal children without alices, end up facing many trials in their school lives. It's a little sad to see, that these young kids have to go through such things, but how they go about overcoming these crises and growing as character is really great to watch.

In stories with magical elements, it's common to see people being treated differently due to their magical abilities. But in Gakuen Alice it feels even more so. Being an alice - it becomes an unmistakable part of one's identity. Not just a cool power or a weapon one happens to have, but something that can probably be considered part of their personality. Indeed, it is impossible to imagine many of the characters without their powers, because surely they must have ended up this way because of their alices. This makes things very interesting, which becomes evident especially later in the series.

tldr;
Overall, Gakuen Alice is a great manga. believable character development, interesting concept of alices and overall plot. The setting and bonds between the characters are definitely the main draw of the manga for me. The story might seem childish at first, but it really does become interesting as the characters develop as we go deeper into the plot. The ending feels too rushed for me - a pity - but nonetheless it is a great read from start to end. If you simply want dokidoki romance with little plot then this is not the story for you, but if want to smile and suffer alongside these characters in their journey, watching them grow closer along the way, I'd recommend this manga without hesitation.

This manga really blew my mind. At first I thought it would be your typical shoujo manga for small girls, basically like Card Captor Sakura. But boy, how wrong I was. I never imagined the story to be so deep and so heart-wrenching. How the mangaka played around with each character's history and tied them all together was simply incredible. I never could have imagined it to be that way. Also, the romance factor was so kawaii! But, personally, I thought making the characters older (to high school, for example) would have been more appropriate. All the ordeals and all the romance still couldn't be handled by children, I believe. Also, the artwork was quite good, but I didn't particularly like how Natsume looked at the last chapters. Also, a lot of characters look alike. It was quite confusing. The ending is a cliffhanger and it just broke my heart that not everything was resolved, especially since it concerned a very important protagonist. But still, I loved the story all-in-all, though I would love it even more if there's one last chapter dedicated to the missing protagonist at the end. Greatly-recommended!

*Spoiler Alert*
I'll just make a pros and cons list and explain it briefly, but before that I would like to say I love Gakuen alice so much. It has been part of my childhood and always will be, but what prompted me to write this review is not satisfaction rather dissatisfaction.

Pros:
1. Very good comedy
2. Good chemistry between characters
3. Nice slice of life moments
4. Good world building
5. Good intentions

Cons:
1. Not enough explanations for why the antagonist is doing what he's doing
2. Too one sided and plot machine (a. "Oh I have to save Natsume because he and Mikan are meant to be." Hello? Did you ever think about your parents? b. It's ok as long as Natsume is saved Mikan won't get sad that there's no assurance that I get to meet them cause you know romance>everything else. c. Noda new that Hotaru would want to save Natsume and wanted to stop her, but he still took them back. Well that's because the Author wanted that to happen even if it doesn't make sense.)
3. Not enough things explained even though the author had enough time, it being 180 chapters and all.
4. Too childish. (Natsume doesn't die; instead of Mikan overcoming Natsume's death he's saved and thus spared her feelings. However, her parents life doesn't seem to be meaningful enough to save.)

Even if this Manga wanted me to feel about forgiveness, moving on, and being strong it didn't. It in itself denied the very thing it was aiming to do.
Overall I am torn, because it is part of my childhood, but it's quality was going downhill.

I highly recommend Gakuen Alice and here is why:

Story 9/10: You start Gakuen Alice, expecting your average school life shoujo manga, right? That's when you're wrong. Gakuen Alice consists of various arcs that flow smoothly AND keep you entertained. Moreover, despite the fact that Gakuen Alice is a fantasy manga, it's still very realistic. The author wrote Gakuen Alice in a way that it's realistic enough for the readers to relate and connect with the character.

Art 10/10: Whenever I recommend Gakuen Alice to my friends, they complain about the art. But honestly, there is NOTHING wrong with the art of Gakuen Alice. Sure, the art style is a bit "old", but the art is really good for a manga. You'd be lying if you don't think any of the characters are cute. Trust me, you'll end up finding most of the characters attractive as you read on. With the good art AND personality, you'll love the characters in no time.

Character 9/10: Speaking of personality, the characters of Gakuen Alice were amazing. The author makes the characters act in a certain way that it's quite obvious what type of character they are; what personality they have. But that doesn't mean there wasn't any character development because there was! The characters have changed quite a bit over time, but not for the worse. They have matured a lot. Reading Gakuen Alice throughout the chapters makes it feel like you're WATCHING them grow up. It makes you feel so good and proud to be a reader of Gakuen Alice.

Overall, I really enjoyed Gakuen Alice. I'm so glad that I found this manga in the manga section in my public library. I fell in love with it at first sight and continued reading their volumes. Unfortunately, I didn't even know manga websites existed so I never managed to finish the manga since my public library only had a few volumes. Now that I finished Gakuen Alice, I have a sudden wave of nostalgia. Gakuen Alice was so good. I can't believe it's over already. 10/10!

This is such a cute and funny manga!
Some say, the first impression is a bit childish but I think the story itself's becomes very serious. I really would recommend it to people who likes to read an interesting manga with an intresting story.

Gakuen Alice... My first ever manga... and boy how am I proud to have read this! It's a masterpiece. Full stop. Hands down. And let me tell you, that for me to say this is a big deal, because I'm a very harsh critic.


Story:

Just as I said for the anime. This story line is unique. This manga appears to be plain when you read the summary, but suddenly, at some point, the plot starts twisting and you find that it has become very deep and strange. In a good way. Very nice. A ten.


Art:

The manga's art was much better that the anime. I hated how the eyes were drawn in the anime, but here... oh how I love. They have this cute twinkle in the eyes. The art was very good in general as well and it deserves a nine.


Character:

The characters' development is one of the best things in this manga. How the characters interact, how they think, how they feel... it's all perfect. It doesn't hit you in the face as well. So it's not like one minute they're lifelong enemies then a second later they're best buddies for life. Nope, it's the natural kind of development. The one in which the characters' relationship grows without you realizing it, because it's so natural and realistic! The characters each have a unique personality as well, and you grow to love each character, even the evil ones. A -drum roll- ten!


Enjoyment:

You would definitely enjoy this anime, if you like action and stories that make you at the edge of your seat. Though I am warning you, it's very dark, and I personally didn't like the ending much. It was a good ending, but there was something that I wanted to know which I still don't know up until now. So if you are a sucker for happy ending -like me- you'll still like this manga. Niiiiiine.




All in all, this is definitely a must-watch and a priority. It has it's funny moments and it's serious moments. Just perfect. A story that will make you cry and laugh. And when it ends, you'll do both. Cry, sad that it has ended, and laugh, happy that you've read it and always remembering it in your heart.

If you understand love, family, or true friendship this manga will hit home HARD.

This is a series set around a school for special children found to have an ability called an alice and this school called Alice Academy helps them learn to harness and progress their alice while still learning normal school standards. So essentially its Hogwarts with a twist, since people with alices are considered "national treasures" you can not leave the school until you graduate and you will absolutely no outside contact with your family ( until you graduate).

The story follows and optimistic girl named Mikan Sakura who is best friends with Hotaru Imai. When Mikan finds out Hotaru has an alice and will be attending the school, Mikan follows her to the school Alice Academy. Outside the school while she tries to get in she runs into a teacher there and he finds out she has a special and rare alice and admits her to the school, unbeknownst to the heartache to come.

*WARNING POSSIBLE SPOILER* ( and just in case you don't listen to my warning and read anyway I won't use any names) Some like me will scream at the page YOU'RE ONLY 11!! But love is love right? An I feel even though they are so young they truly understand love and they fit each other perfectly. One shines like the moon and stars and the other is mysterious like the dark night sky. I also really love it when characters get jealous it just really makes me laugh. But I always feel bad when there is any sort of love triangle... Because someones gonna get hurt. Especially when the two are best friends.

* SPOILER FREE FROM HERE ON* Any way one of the many themes is friendship which usually is pretty cheesy but when presented like this it feels.. right. Like Hotaru and Mikan... just make sense and there are times when they tease each other but when it gets down to it the two would do anything for each other, which is something not a lot of people can say honestly about anyone anymore.

There is also has a hidden theme of family, and sacrifice. Honestly this was one of the saddest parts because of how much had been given up to reach the main goal.

Another great thing which I love in a story is how almost every character has some connection to a bunch of other characters through the past, which gives the whole set of characters a kind of huge family connected to one another by something bigger, like the red string of fate is entangling them all in a huge web. And in the end this really for me pulled it together as a series

The story was great but it kinda had two climaxes it felt like cause they almost achieved what they wanted but didn't reach their goal till the second attempt, and the end kinda left me feeling empty like it wasn't really DONE and needed a sequel to resolve everything (this is my opinion though). I also didn't understand the villains motives or what they were really doing that was so bad(though is might just be my stupidity).

The art was okay but felt a little dated and took some getting used to. It felt like Inuyasha miked with Kuroshitsujii

But overall I thought it was a good series with a LOT of sad surprises at the end, and an overall feeling of love, family, sacrifice, friendships, and bonds.

Personally I absolutely love it, the story line at first seems quite simple yet secretive then suddenly one event leads to another and bit after bit the plot becomes more and more intense it's an amazing manga and the anime is cheerful and gives quite a few laughs all the characters are unique in their own way and the amount if detail and thought on them is lovely, and of course not to mention the love in this manga it's sweet,funny and just plain squee worthy... So yeah... If you haven't guessed by now it's a good reads.

The first half was fun and I did have happy time when reading it, in contrast, the second half was dark and full of sorrow.
The story was about hardship, love and friendship of the young ones.
I usually dont buy the plot that express deep love bound between the youngsters, but the author made me believe it exists. Nowadays, true love is rare in modern society, to read this story warms my heart and made me cried (the last 50 eps)
I love the Anime so much and I'm glad I read the manga.
So many deep words that jerks my tears.

At first glance Gakuen Alice may seem like a manga that deals with cutesy and very childish problems since the protagonist Mikan is no more than 10-11 years old. That was my initial judgement which prevented me from reading on. However, I kept on stumbling upon praises for GA to the point that I had to see what the fuss was all about; and from that point onwards I've read GA 3 times (from start to the latest chapter) without once feeling bored.

Don't be fooled by the synopsis as it only covers a fraction of the whole story (i.e. like 2-3 chapters out of the whole hundred). Sure, Mikan makes friends along the way - your typical lone girl trying to adapt in a new and harsh environment, but it's not like your typical shoujo manga where the girl makes one friend and suddenly the whole school is her friend. Mikan does things herself without relying heavily on others, and that's one of the reasons why I love GA so much.

I have this hate for girls in mangas who cry, hesitate and are awfully uselss, but Mikan is none of those; She may seem to cry a lot at first but she grows and matures quickly to the point where I forget that she's only 10.

I'm in love with mangas that deal with dark issues and Gakuen Alice has not failed my expectations. I wouldn't say it's overly dark, but it's enough to keep the suspense.

GA gets a double thumbs up from me since it continually surprises me with new twists that goes from comedy to tragedy.

I'd recommend it to those who like strong heroines, dark plot, romance, comedy and special abilities.

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 to the 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.

This story felt like it had potential early on but at some point got lazy and didn't trust its audience to any really deep and meaningful character development. When I say this, I really mean just for the main characters. Suprisingly, some side characters get some decent development but for the most part things feel forced. Granted, this is geared for a younger audience so perhaps I'm just too old for this. But my age most definetly is no excuse for that horrifiying excuse for an ending. The end dropped the series by at least a star. I always save at least 2 stars to be based on the ending and this manga lost both for that lazy ending. Ugh, this manga had some very cute art, premise and characters going for it. But it had to break every law in their world last minute for that out of left field ending.

Gakuen Alice has a plot that takes elements from your typical elementary school children's rom/com and adds superpowers and a mysterious school to give the plot body.

Story: 4
I feel that the story falls flat soon after you delve into the mysteries of the school. They fall into the typical manga pitfalls of dragging an arc out until the dead horse has been beaten to death....and then some. And if that doesn't piss you off enough, they do it....again. The pacing and characterization that took over the first few arcs just dies when the story delves into the School's mysteries. Personally, I could not bring myself to finish the manga after about chapter 147.

Art: 8
For all the pitfalls of the story, the art is pretty. The backgrounds are well developed and the characters themselves fit their personalities well. I like all the art and you can clearly tell the ages of the characters from the art style. I personally like the special shoujo squee moments in the manga because the art lights up the page and the screentones lend themselves to help the manga tremendously.

Character: 5
There are so many characters thrown into this manga that it is ridiculous. You get to know a few key characters from mikan's class and you also get to know at least 3 or 4 people from each branch of the school and even some more characters. Now this usually wouldn't be a problem normally, except every single character is developed very well, complete with their own back-story and complete personality profile. And most of this is thrown in with overly complicated "solve this mystery" type plot. Again. This wouldn't be a problem if the story and the characterization weren't jumbled together awkwardly.

Getting that out of the way, the characters themselves, which are a good portion of the meat and bones of this manga are relatively likable.
I however am NOT a fan of our main heroine, Mikan. She is whiny, not strong at all and so optimistic she could have a special on PBS. They overplay her martyrdom to the point of annoyance and it just gets worse as time goes on. And you will find yourself latching onto one of the side characters, who are well rounded to a point, quickly.

Overall: 6
Gakuen Alice is something that can be mildly enjoyed until it gets annoying. If you're looking for a children's story, hit Kodomo no Omocha. The main heroine is so much better. But if you're in it for the art, take a look, it's very pretty.

This is the first and finished manga I've ever read and I fell in love with this and got addicted to it, that I read it everywhere I go and I read 20 chapters a day. That's why I finished fast. I don't want it to end but, I feel like there's a Season 2 because SPOILER ALERT!!! they will continue their journey to find the Imai Siblings hehe :D

I started reading this, probably back in middle school, right after I finished watching the anime. There was something intriguing about this. At first I thought it was weird, to be following a story about elementary school kids, but it just pulled me in. I am glad to finally finish reading this (sophomore in college woot!) after all these years.

Story: 10
The story starts off with Mikan following her best friend to a new school and then becoming a student there as well. At first it just seems like a cute little story about this girl meeting new people and learning to live life with her abilities. There were some romances that sparked. But the main story, that kept me up at night wondering what would happen next, was totally unexpected. Mikan has so many adventures that occur after many things are revealed. I did not expect that to happen. And that's what made this manga so great. The end of their story, however, leaves readers to wonder, what is Mikan's next adventure going to be like? And I truly hope that we get at least a 5-10 chapter sequel to see what happens. But the story is so much more than a girl following her friend and making new friendships. It's about the trails and revelations that she goes through and to touch all the lives around her.

Characters: 10
I loved all the characters. At first glance Hotaru is just the stoic girl, Mikan is just silly and energetic, Ruka seems all cold, Natsume has the leave me alone attitude, and most of the characters have first impressions that make you wonder how or if they'll change. Honestly my favorites were Bear and how he changed and Tsubasa just because he was that older sibling to the younger kids.
But the main characters went through drastic changes and their friendships grew. I loved them all and how they developed and how they soon came to form such close friendships.

Overall:
I finally can close a chapter of my middle school life since I finished this xD
But in all honesty, this manga was amazing. I loved it so much. I will reread it when I can. I'm sure that anyone who reads this will think it seems silly, but then it becomes a page turner.
I hope that anyone who gives this manga a try will enjoy it. I sure did. I'm glad I picked it up again to read.

Happy readings everyone!