Peps' Reading List: Katekyo Hitman Reborn!

image from Wikipedia
A few months ago, the Katekyo Hitman Reborn! manga series began a new arc, and the moment that it became clear that they were going to tackle the mystery of the Arcobaleno curse, I knew that the end was near.  While the series chronicled the adventures of a potential future Mafia boss, the curse of the Arcobaleno babies was the ultimate mystery of Katekyo Hitman Reborn!.

Katekyo Hitman Reborn! is another discovery that I would credit to my brother.  It was his copy of the first few seasons of the anime adaptation that introduced me to the world of Sawada Tsunayoshi and his strange baby home tutor Reborn.  I found the anime series to be highly enjoyable to watch, with its great humor, ridiculous yet engaging concept, colorful cast of characters, exciting action, and well-paced storytelling. 

When it became difficult to find the additional episodes or seasons of the series, I eventually decided to read the original manga version by creator Amano Akira.  I decided to begin reading from the 1st chapter, which was the same practice I employed for Naruto, Bleach, One Piece, History's Strongest Disciple Kenichi, The World God Only Knows, Sekirei, Highschool of the Dead and Air Gear.  I was kinda crazy obsessive compulsive at the time and had more free time than I knew what to do with (can I have that back, please?).

Katekyo Hitman Reborn! chronicles the story of middle school student Sawada Tsunayoshi or "No Good Tsuna" as his classmates call him.  Considered below average and boring, Tsuna struggles to make good grades in school, which prompts his mom Nana to answer an ad she found in their mailbox and hires a home tutor for Tsuna.  Much to Tsuna's surprise, his new home tutor is a suit wearing and gun toting baby named Reborn, who is accompanied by a chameleon named Leon.  Reborn tells Tsuna that his main purpose is to train Tsuna to become the 10th Vongola Family Boss, since he is the descendant of the 1st Vongola boss and the other candidates for the position have died.  Depending on the situation Tsuna is in and if he inwardly expresses any regrets, Reborn shoots him in the head with a Dying Will Bullet, which causes Tsuna's dying will flames to be activated and make him act out on his regrets, such as confessing to his crush Sasagawa Kyoko or compete in a volleyball match when he doesn't know how to play the sport.

Katekyo Hitman Reborn! or simply Reborn! started out as a gag manga, which was very evident in the beginning of the series.  It was hilarious every time Tsuna's dying will flames were activated, because it caused him to act as if he is possessed, shout his intentions and his plans to overcome his regrets, exhibit great strength, and lose all his clothes except for his boxer shorts.

image from deviantart
It is when the series shifted to the shounen/action genre that Reborn! turned into something more compelling and exciting to read.  While depicted as a source of laughter in the beginning, the dying will flame would become an essential part of Tsuna's ability to fight when various enemies arrive to test his strength or to contest his right to become the 10th Vongola boss.  The series would soon chronicle the different battles that Tsuna and his eventual companions would face.  These companions and new friends would eventually become Vongola guardians, including explosives expert Gokudera Hayato, baseball player Yamamoto Takeshi, enthusiastic boxer and Kyoko's brother Sasagawa Ryohei, five year old Bovino family member Lambo (and with the use of his 10 year bazooka, turns into 15 year old Lambo), violent and sadistic prefect Hibari Kyoya, and criminal illusionist Mukuro Rokudo, through his vassal Chrome Dokuro.

The Vongola guardians would be the start of a long list of characters, both allies and villains, that would populate the world of Reborn!.  While I can't spare three pages worth of blog posts to discuss each one, it's important to note that Reborn is one of seven people struck with the curse of the Arcobaleno, a group of strong individuals who are cursed to live out the rest of their days in the form of a baby and carrying different colored pacifiers.  The Reborn! sereis does well in terms of character diversity, with each character featuring distinctive physical characteristics and personalities that range from the quirky, crazy to the downright scary.  Even if you can't exactly remember every single one, you will at least have no difficulty remembering the important power players in the series.

After the initial comedic run and character introduction part of Reborn!, the shift to the shounen category would eventually unfold into five major story arcs, including the Kokuyo arc (against Rokudo and the Kokuyo gang), Varia arc (against Xanxus and Vongola assasin squad Varia), Future arc (against Byakuran and the Millefiore family), Inheritance Ceremony arc (against the Shimon family) and Curse of the Rainbow arc.  The Kokuyo and Varia arcs were exciting in their own right and a decent start for a series that just made a shift to a more action-oriented form of storytelling, but it was the Future arc that made a difference for me.  The complex multi-layered storytelling of the arc featured Tsuna and his guardians transported to a future where the Vongola family is hunted down and a villain is on the quest to rule all the possible worlds with the power of the Trinisette, which is the combination of the seven Vongola rings (possessed by Tsuna and his guardians), seven Mare rings and seven Arcobaleno pacifiers.  The Future arc featured stakes that went beyond Tsuna's right to become the 10th Vongola boss or the Vongola family status, with all the different worlds created by various possibilities at a risk of being under the control of a single disillusioned character.  And the isolation the characters felt after their travel through time gave the series a more emotional weight, as they struggle to comprehend a future where their losses are too huge to accept.

And while the Future arc had the most storytelling potential out of the arcs, the Curse of the Rainbow arc is the most ambitious.  It brings together the different characters that Tsuna encountered in every major arc, both villains and allies alike, as the Arcobaleno form their respective groups to participate in the Representative Battle of the Rainbow.  And at the center of the battle is the all important prize, where the winning team will see its Arcobaleno released from his or her cursed state.  It was a great way to conclude the pervading and all important mystery that has hounded every fan of the series.  It also promised many epic battles between the powerful characters that make up the world of Reborn!, which by the way, turned out to be plentiful and delivered in varying degrees of epic-ness. 

In any shounen manga title, it's important for the characters to experience growth, both in terms of physical and emotional strength.  Reborn! does this well, particularly for its main character Tsuna, who turned out to be better than the title his middle school classmates labeled him with.  By the time the series led to the Curse of the Rainbow arc, Tsuna had become a decisive leader, despite the disparate group that he needs to work with, because the cost of being unsure would mean that they would lose Reborn and the other Arcobaleno.  His growth is mirrored by the Vongola guardians, who strive to become stronger so they can help Tsuna.  And even those they counted as enemies previously would be a source of strength and support that Tsuna can rely on. 

In the end, the readers are given one hell of an adventure that spanned years of manga chapter reading.  It was a great story that would lead to an even greater payoff for both Tsuna and Reborn, and more importantly, to the readers of the series.

Now, there are those who claimed that Reborn! became way too serious compared to its comedic roots, and all I can say to that is... growth is essential, people. 

And so is a little bit of "Chaos!", as Reborn would say.

Or I really should say "Ciassu!".... because it really is much cuter that way.  At least as cute as a baby assassin who could kick your ass can make it, that is.

Happy reading!!

**P.S. I have to admit it was exhausting trying to sum up an 8 year long manga run.  I didn't want to recap the entire series by going through every plot point and character, lest I bore even myself, nor did I want to keep it too short and miss out on the important parts that make Reborn! great.  I shudder at the idea of writing a reading list post for Naruto, Bleach and One Piece when they (eventually) finish their runs. 

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