Real (manga)

is a Japanese wheelchair basketball-themed manga series written and illustrated by Takehiko Inoue. It has been serialized in Shueisha's manga magazine ''Weekly Young Jump'' since October 1999, with the chapters collected into 16 volumes as of August 2024. The series has been irregularly published in the magazine. In North America, the series is licensed for English release by Viz Media.

By November 2020, the manga had over 16 million copies in circulation. In 2001, ''Real'' won an Excellence Award at the fifth Japan Media Arts Festival.

Plot

The story revolves around three teenagers: Nomiya Tomomi, a high school dropout, Togawa Kiyoharu, an ex-sprinter who now plays wheelchair basketball and Takahashi Hisanobu, a popular leader of the high school's basketball team who now finds himself a paraplegic after an accident.

''Real'' features a cast of characters who find themselves being marginalized by society, but are all united by one common feature: a desire to play basketball, with no place to play it in. Nomiya, being a high school dropout, has no future in his life. Togawa, being a difficult personality, finds himself constantly feuding with his own teammates. Takahashi, once a popular team leader, now finds himself being unable to move from the chest down. ''Real'' also deals with the reality of physical disabilities, and the psychological inferiority that the characters struggle against. The characters break through their own psychological barriers bit by bit.

Characters

Main characters

;
: Kiyoharu Togawa, a junior high student forced into piano practice, nearly defeats his school's fastest runner in a race, sparking his dream of becoming Japan's top sprinter. After losing his right leg to osteosarcoma, he withdraws until meeting Tora, a mentor with the same disability, who introduces him to wheelchair basketball through the Tigers. His relentless competitiveness strains team dynamics, leading to a brief departure and later a mutiny. When recruited by Japan’s national team and the rival Dream, tensions escalate. Tomomi Nomiya, impressed by his skill, dubs him "Vince" after NBA star Vince Carter.
;
: Tomomi Nomiya, a high school dropout with delinquent tendencies, carries guilt over causing a traffic accident that paralyzed Yamashita Yasumi. Once passionate about basketball but excluded from his school team, he finds new purpose after encountering Kiyoharu playing wheelchair basketball. Becoming the Tigers' enthusiastic supporter, he bonds with Kiyoharu though rarely playing himself. After failing to join a professional team despite a strong tryout, he grows disillusioned and gains weight. Seeking redemption, he shaves his head and adopts a monk-like determination that gradually inspires those around him.
;
: Hisanobu Takahashi, a high school basketball captain and top student, becomes paralyzed after a bicycle accident. His rigid worldview, which classifies people from A (best) to E (worst), collapses as he now considers himself inferior. Though briefly motivated by Tomomi's visit, he gives up upon realizing his paralysis is permanent, lashing out at his mother. A tense reunion with his estranged father forces him to confront long-held resentment. Later inspired by Shiratori, he attempts to join the Dreams wheelchair basketball team.

Supporting characters

;
: Fumika Honjo visits Hisanobu in the hospital following his accident. Though Hisanobu rates her as merely a "C" in his personal ranking system, she remains committed to their relationship despite his paralysis. She shares how her dog Angelina will also require wheelchair assistance, using this example to argue that disability doesn't render life meaningless.
;
: Kumi Azumi, a childhood friend of Kiyoharu, serves as manager for the Tigers. While attending driving school with Tomomi, she explains she's obtaining her license to transport Kiyoharu to team activities. Yama's comments about their compatibility as a couple create tension between Kumi and Kiyoharu, who remains silent about his feelings. Tomomi develops romantic interest in Kumi during their time together.
;
: Hitoshi Yamauchi, known as , is a former Tigers player with a progressive muscular condition (possibly Duchenne dystrophy) and a life expectancy not exceeding age 20. When Kiyoharu meets him two years after his amputation, Yama's philosophy proves inspirational. As Yama's condition worsens and his attitude darkens, Kiyoharu reaffirms his value by calling him a "hero".
;
: Mitsuru Nagano, a tall Japanese wheelchair basketball player studying at New South Wales University, defeats Kiyoharu and Tomomi in a street basketball game—Kiyoharu's first loss to another wheelchair player. His Australian-influenced speech patterns (frequently using "mate") and competitive ability motivate Kiyoharu to rejoin the Tigers. Impressed by Kiyoharu's skills, Mitsuru eventually joins the post-mutiny team.
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: Hisanobu's father, a former salaryman who worked long hours, first introduced his son to basketball by building a backboard and teaching him fundamentals. Their shared games became central to young Hisanobu's life before his father abruptly left the family eight years prior, abandoning corporate life to become a rural potter. Following Hisanobu's paralysis, his father returns to assume caretaker responsibilities, persistently countering his son's bitterness with steadfast support.
;Kiyoharu's father
: Following his wife's death, Kiyoharu's father—an unathletic former pianist—devotes himself to training his son as a piano prodigy. Though initially disappointed when Kiyoharu abandons piano for track, he eventually supports this decision. After Kiyoharu's amputation, his father's actions unintentionally contribute to his son's isolation during recovery.

Publication

Written and illustrated by Takehiko Inoue, ''Real'' started in Shueisha's manga magazine ''Weekly Young Jump'' on October 28, 1999. Its chapters have been collected by Shueisha into individual volumes, with the first one published on March 19, 2001. As of August 19, 2024, 16 volumes have been published. After an indefinite hiatus started in 2014, the series resumed on May 23, 2019; since then, the series have been published sporadically, with the latest chapter released on August 8, 2024.

In North America, the series is licensed for English language release by Viz Media, who announced the acquisition in November 2007. The first volume was released on July 15, 2008.

Volumes

Chapters not yet in ''tankōbon'' format

* Chapters 97–100

Reception

By November 2013, ''Real'' had 14 million copies in circulation. By November 2020, the manga had over 16 million copies in circulation. The sixteenth volume had an initial print run of 250,000 copies, making it Shueisha's 15th-highest first-print manga volume of 2024–2025 (period from April 2024 to March 2025).

''Real'' won an Excellence Award in the Manga Division at the fifth Japan Media Arts Festival in 2001. Citing the reason for the award: "Takehiko Inoue is well-known for ''Slam Dunk'' a serial comic on the subject of basketball. ''Real'' is another sports comic, but one whose story revolves around the novel theme of tough guys and wheelchair basketball. All of the Adjudication Committee members could hardly wait to read the next installments and had to content themselves with awarding ''Real'' the Excellence Prize. It would have been no surprise if Inoue had followed his success with ''Vagabond'' by winning the Grand Prize for the second year in a row with this terrific manga".

A review at The Comics Reporter noted that "all of the skills that Inoue displayed in ''Slam Dunk'' have evolved for the better in ''Real''", going on to conclude that "the emotional content is presented with a poise and certainty that's really nothing short of breathtaking." The series has been praised for its "realism", and how it "breaks away from conventional portrayals of the disabled as innocent people who are weak in every way." Kazuyuki Kyoya, a wheelchair basketball player, has also expressed his approval of the series: "The manga calls for understanding of people not only in wheelchair basketball but also with various other disabilities. I’m impressed that the scenes in which Takahashi undergoes rehab are elaborately expressed." About.com's Deb Aoki lists ''Real'' as the best new manga of 2008.

Notes

References

External links

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{{Weekly Young Jump - 1979–1999

Basketball in anime and manga
Drama anime and manga
Seinen manga
Shueisha manga
Takehiko Inoue
Viz Media manga
Wheelchair basketball