Hikaru no Go, Vol. 14 (14) Paperback – February 3, 2009

This is a great manga. It is a great story with excellent artwork and great character development throughout the series. It is also suitable for all ages.If you don't know anything about the game of Go and how it relates to Japanese, Chinese and Korean culture, this series provides a nice introduction to that world wrapped in great story-crafting and artwork.

Yep, that's right, the main storyline of this volume is the battle between Sai and Toya Meijin. You might ask how Toya is able to play with a ghost, and the question is a good one. Shindo persuaded Toya to play online against his friend, Sai, and Toya finally agreed after some misgivings. He just thought that there was something shady about Sai not wanting to reveal his identity. But what is Shindo going to do, tell him the truth? There's no way he would be taken seriously. Actually, Toya and his son, Akira, are both beginning to wonder about Sai's identity, with both of them initially believing Sai is the online identity of Shindo. While they both come to realize that this is not the case, they are beginning to connect the dots ever so slowly. I'm kinda curious to see if Shindo is ever going to tell anyone about Sai. There is a catch to the match. If Toya wins, Sai will have to reveal his true identity. If Toya loses, he has sworn to retire from the world of professional Go. Shindo doesn't know whether to take him seriously or not. But we know Sai is not going to hold back after waiting to play with a Go opponent of Toya's caliber for 14 volumes (He did play him before through Shindo, but he had handicap himself in order to keep from arousing Toya's suspicions).I love this series, even though I've never played a game of Go in my life. I look forward to the matches between the characters as if they were actual matches. It was really exciting to see Toya and Sai going toe to toe with no reservations like their previous match. I thought for a while last volume there was a chance of the game never actually being played. Another plot element that comes up in this installment is that Shindo is becoming so good he doesn't need Sai's advice as much when he plays his own games. In fact, he is even starting to give Sai some pointers on how to improve HIS playing! This is a far remove from when Shindo first started playing so clumsily in volume 1. What is going to happen to Sai after he makes the "divine move"? And who will be left standing after Shindo and Akira's inevitable showdown that is bound to happen sooner or later? It was postponed because of Toya's heart attack, which seemed like a cheap trick designed to tantalize fans. I mean, to come to the day of the match and then Akira doesn't show up? The art by Takeshi Obata of Death Note fame is up to the same impressive quality that he exhibits in all his work. Check this series out!

Yumi Hotta, <strong>Hikaru no Go, vol. 14: Sai vs. Toya Koyo</strong> (ViZ, 1998)Hotta once again makes the playing of a go match into a nail-biting experience as Sai and Toya finally face off. (Come on, admit it, THIS is the match you've been waiting to see the whole series.) While the outcome isn't exactly a surprise, it opens up some interesting new avenues for Hotta to take this series. Also, Hikau challenges himself to a game with Kurata (nice to see him becoming a more important character), who introduces him to a new variation: one-color Go. Which, if you think about it, is kind of terrifying. Some really good stuff here, can't wait to see where Hotta takes it. ****

Great book