Azumanga Daioh Now Azumanga&!
- Categories: Manga, News
- Date: Jun 16, 2009 23:10 JST
- Tags: Azumanga Daioh, Comparison, Kiyohiko Azuma, Mizugi, Oppai, Remakes
The recent remake of the fan-favorite 4-koma series Azumanga Daioh’s first volume has attracted much attention, due to the vastly redrawn artwork by the original mangaka Kiyohiko Azuma.
As his style has changed substantially from 1999′s Azumanga to today’s currently running Yotsuba&!, the differences in some panels is truly striking, influencing one fan to create a comprehensive side-by-side comparison of the new and old versions, as can be seen below…
To begin with, a recent entry on Azuma’s personal site provides some of the artist’s thoughts on redrawing his most popular work.
Here is an excerpt of the most relevant portions:
And so, I drew Azumanga for the first time in a long while.
I’m sure it might cause uncomfortable feelings for some fans, but it is the Azumanga of Today.
I struggled with exactly how much of my old style to bring back, but for the most part I went with my most current style.
Looking at it from my own perspective, trying to bring back some of my older style makes me feel like I’m purposefully making the art look worse, so it was a little painful for me to do.
Even with my style of 4-koma, looking back at it now makes me think about how simplistic it was.
As for the drawing method I used, I adopted the thought of making changes to the exterior surface, but still make it so that it would easily fit into the “core” of Azumanga.
Intrigued by the profound differences found in the new version, Sangencyaya collected these comparison images:
Eyes
Old
New
The new style does indeed resemble Azuma’s more recent art in Yotsubato:
Youtsubato Example Art
Here is another eye comparison, this time of Chiyo – it is worth mentioning that the early chapters of Azumanga were done in 1999, quite early in Azuma’s career, and Azumanga’s art did improve over its 3 year run:
Old
New
The resemblance to Yotsubato’s style is particularly obvious here.
Tone
This is substantially harder to spot, but changes in the toning, or shading used was also noticed:
Old
New
In the original, toning was used to color the inside of an open mouth, and to accentuate the character’s shadows, but the new version lacks it, creating a more minimalistic look.
Character Lines
The script is mostly unchanged, but there are some exceptions, some due to repositioning portions of the text elsewhere on the page, among other reasons…
Old
“I think I might’ve just seen some really cute pantsu…”
New
“Ah!?”
Another change was to the personal pronouns for “I” used by the hapless male student whose bike was stolen by Yukari in Chapter 1 from the masucline “Ore” to the gender-neutral “Watashi”, since he has somehow turned into a girl in the past decade (He fell into a Jusenkyo spring perhaps?)
Old
“Aaah! My Bicycle!!”
New
Aaah! My Bicycle!!
Joke Punchlines
This example that Sangencyaca selected is difficult to understand for someone who doesn’t remember the context (or never read the original), but it does give a good look at the bespectacled Koyomi’s different character styles.
Old
“Everything’s OK!!
That kid will be fine being by himself!”
“That’s not what you said in the beginning!!”
New
“Alright then…
Just shut the window properly and go back home quickly.”
Oppai
One of the most important (and noticeable) changes made clearly must be to the various oppai of the large schoolgirl cast.
This proved to be a rather confusing comparison for many, as many readers apparently mistook the old version for the new in our earlier post.
Old (Left) vs. New (Right)
The lack of toning lines, along with a change in Sakaki’s service mizugi from a less revealing, but more form-fitting one makes for a vastly different image, and it isn’t hard to see how some could easily mistake the two at a quick glance…
Fellow readers of moonrunes can find the fascinating full analysis of the changes at Sangencyaca here and here.
The new reprint of Volume 1 is also available.
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the old school Sakaki more better then the new one
The new art fits the genre better.
Azuma's art has improved a LOT over the past 10 years. The new stuff is definitely better.
Aw, he changed a punchline that I really liked.
Poor kitten.
I like the new art. The faces were kind of deformed in the old one (plus I prefer smaller eyes). The new one may seem more minimalistic and "easier to dish out" but the anatomy and proportions are much better.
I like the new version of Sakaki's swimsuit more. It looks more realistic in the breast area. I like oppai to a point, but the original looked less like breasts and more like balloons. I do prefer her face in the original art... It's an interesting trade off.
Old art is much more traditional manga/anime derivative. The new art has more originality and is more skillful, both in the linework and the expression of the characters. I can't blame people for preferring the old art, simply because of nostalgia; but the new art objectively achieves a better clarity of vision.
They're both good for what they are. So it's good that we have both. :)
A lot of people here seem to think "more complex" = better, and that's entirely up to your tastes, but the fact is most mangaka start very detailed because their lines aren't that clean and steady and use too many. Gradually they get firmer, cleaner lines and get rid of useless details and start focusing in the characters and the panels.
A good example of this is the Rurouni Kenshin manga. I rather like how the style ended up than how it was in the first volumes, which can be considered more detailed at the beginning and more simple at the end.
Maybe he said his art was simplistic before because he didn't acquire his own style then.
At the same time, lack of detail is still cheap and lazy.
The new version of his character lack any sort of visual depth and just look too simplistic. It comes across as lazy, not better.
It's not cheap and lazy, considering the pace mangakas usually undertake in making pages. It depends on what you like. I rather like the new clean look, it looks more professional and original than the old 90s style he had before.
As I said, complex =/= better.
hey, the guy linked you back, Artefact.
I didn't notice - where?
I vastly prefer the new art.
Well you can't blame the guy for rushing things since he's still got Yotsuba&'s next chapter to do and also other Azumanga volumes to remake.
Honestly, the old style looks like his ero doujins.
The newer version is closer to anime "style".
Nothing wrong with either.
o i wish i had the chance to read azumanga in manga ^^. i enjoyed the anime version very much
I don't know, a hybrid of the two would be nice. One of my biggest gripes are the eyes, they took a serious downgrade from the new art.
But to begin with, Azumanga was already incredibly successful, there is no point to this, let it die peacefully and keep pumping out quality Yotsuba.
Old style is waaay better. More details, more shading, better hair, better eyes, better bikini, better oppai.
Azuma-san got really lazy. I love his early works (Tenchi Muyo), but during and after creating Azumanga his art went downhill.
well i like sakaki's old swimsuit drawing better. so much hotter.
the first ones are weird but more detailed at the same time, the new ones look too simple
New looks like XYNTA
This is almost like the art quality between Yoshiro Togashi's Hunter X Hunter and his classic Yuyu Hakusho..
Yeah... Azuma-san's really... simplified his art style over the years, hasn't he...?
I think I prefer the older stuff.
After reading all these comments, I can't help but be reminded of the scene in Lucky Star with Hiyorin complaining that when an artist feels they've gotten better, some asshole comes by and says their earlier stuff is better.
All of you are [insert offensive wording here].
Sakaki's hot old version or new version. Gotta love the art!
Is this the twilight zone? How is the new art better?! It's so plain and simplistic, almost retarded. Where are the reflections on the hair for example?
Old art is gorgeous and sexy.
If you can't tell those lines are more confident and skillful, the anatomy is more accurate, and expressions via posture are better, then you're blind. Check out the "cute pantsu" comparison up top. There was another comparison article that showed the career survey interaction between Chiyo and Sakaki. The way Sakaki's hair drapes back over her shoulder is a lot more subtle and detailed and realistic.
Do you really think those hair shines are all that skillful or impart that much detail? They're just a remnant from the guy copying generic manga styles.
Simple art is the most difficult to pull off well. And simplicity is mostly just an aesthetic choice that doesn't impact the quality of the art. If you prefer one style or another, that's one thing - no one can argue taste. But there is more skill, confidence, consistency, originality, and subtlety in the new work. That can be ascertained objectively.
Agree with this totally.
Also, even if the characters seem "simplified," the backgrounds and compositions are undeniable better. Especially in the "joke punchlines" comparison, the new one gives a better illusion of depth, and a more complex background by actually drawing in the classroom.
THIS.
I like old and new art pretty much the same.
Except that I like sakaki's old face than the new, her eyes are sharper.
I think Ayumu's ''more feminine look'' in the old version makes her look prettier. Or...it might be just me though(I also like Chiyo-chan's old pigtails).
Gained - Anatomy / Smoother rendering
Lost - Detail / Character
Chiyo looks too much like Yotsuba now.
And as much as I adore Yotsuba, I think that both characters should look different.
old is better
Both the old and new style have their respective merits. Regardless, a remake is absolutely unnecessary.
old oppal is bigger :D
The old style is much better than the new one.
The old one is a lot better.
There is more detail, which I like :D
I'm kind of biased towards the old art, seeing how Azumanga was both my first manga and anime.
Lol and the conclusion is...
The new are is crap.
"Looking at it from my own perspective, trying to bring back some of my older style makes me feel like I’m purposefully making the art look worse, so it was a little painful for me to do.
Even with my style of 4-koma, looking back at it now makes me think about how simplistic it was."
Whatever drugs he is taking I want some.
Working on a manga like Yotsuba& is all the crack you'll ever need.
I like the old art better too.
Though I appreciate simple artwork as well!
Nothing's hotter than a skin-tight spandex bikini.
even if it isn't revealing...
I like the old version better, as if it hasn't been said enough. Especially since I've already read it... that's Azumanga's distinctive style.
Why would he go and change the whole damn thing? Ah well.
Although bikini Sakaki is superior imo.
I liked the old art better...
Details, line-work, whatever. None of it matters cause the old style has so much more character and spirit than the new one, at least from the pictures shown above.
i kinda like the old work better. despite some of it's flaws in art in some of the early chapters, it's interesting to see how he got better in drawing over time.
just going back and updating it for today seems as if he was ashamed of his old work, like how star wars has been "upgraded" several times because George lucas felt like it.
although main reason i prefer the older style probably because Sakaki has a better form...
The new one seems like the mangaka been lazy with his art. I mean look at the eyes, and Yomi's face became longer. Moe level down for the new one.
It`s mostly a downgrade.
I'm not into boobs, but the ones on the left look better.
That's another vote for old Oppai here.
We need a poll !
We did put in a poll, but as the polling system is temporarily down it's inactive.
Hopefully it'll be fixed soon.
WTF.. the new version is sh*t.
New art looks simpler and fits the easy-going slice-of-life better.
Some of the old art also seem distorted. As for the toning portion, the old one was better imo, lighter tones suit the series more.
All I see are generational differences here.
The old art has face shapes/eyes/etc that are immediately identifiable as classic 90's style (especially the puffed-out cheeks, the way the eyes angle a little). That style didn't seem to die out until '03 or so, so I guess it fits the timestamp of '99.
The new art seems all over the place. Minimalism certainly does feature in both the revised punchlines as well as the revised art. Less is more? I wonder...
So modernized humor needs to be more abrupt? Is that what this is teaching us?
I can't decide which is better... it's just too subjective.
I guess collectors will have to buy both versions (if they can even still get ahold of the old print?).
The old Sakaki smoulders with sexuality, the new one just looks bored. Yes, I know she's only a child.
It may just be paranoia, but part of me thinks this was intentional due to the recent crackdown on schoolgirl-ero. Same with some of the dialog and punchlines.
Sameanon here. I am unreliably informed that Azuma disliked the sexualisation of his AzuDai characters and deliberately made them more Yotsuba&!-style. And in case anyone is confused by that, Pretty Neighbor wasn't actually his.
Seems entirely possible in the current climate.
Then why creating that much potential for sexualization in the first place? The old geezer (yeah I know he's only 41) can't tell me that was unintentional, especially when considering his earlier works... shouldn't Japanese men become more perverted as they get older?
>_>
Wisdom.
I assume by "abrupt" you meant it doesn't utilize explanatory lines or straight-man jabs? If so, then there's nothing "modernized" about it. It has been around forever. Even Doraemon utilize this often.
Those less round faces were pretty hit-or-miss. I don't think I'd miss 'em after a volume or so of the redrawn stuff.
Haha! Jusenkyo! I can't believe people still joke about that...
...
orz I'm so old...
i think every manga artist style will become minimalist in some times, after reading manga for years and comparing Any manga Vol 1 with Vol 30++ you will see the big change!
Old style Sakaki looks much more ero. Plus that expression is win.
I think he got some ideas from anime shows being remade and he opted to 'remake' his manga too, spouting some nonsense to cover the fact that he just need some more money.
The new style is clearly lacking basic details, even the hair shine is removed. The drawing style is also a lot more simple leaving characters with a more void expression.
What was he thinking, now that he's got a settled career that he'll get away with half-assed work?
You now, it's not important that most of you guys think this new version is "worse", it's more important to Azuma Kiyohiko what real pros think of his art style and while where at it, you can see on Manga Yawa an artist/manga critic praising Azuma for his improved art style in Yostubato which he think is better than the distorted "moe" style of Azumanga Daiou:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=odXmPZXtIJA&feature=related [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=odXmPZXtIJA&feature=related]
I never gave a shit about art critics, and I won't start to do it now. I for one won't buy the new version, and we'll see whose opinion is more important (fans vs. pro-artists) when some sales figures are made public.
I agree with not giving a crap about critics, it's the readers that'll have to buy it in the end.
You can't possibly expect people to buy a style ripped out of context and glued onto something else. Suppose Beserk started to look like this just because a critic person likes it.
If there would've been a better compromise of both styles there would'nt be much of a discussion and most likely better than the original, but now it's just too obvious that faces and tones are flattened out and even basic details removed.
If you guys don't like Azuma's more realistic (and simplistic) art style of today, don't buy the new volumes. Nobody forces you to do it. It's as simple as that.
Whatever stylistic changes these new volumes will include, some japanese fans will buy the revamped version out of sheer curiosity or for collector's sake. There's no need to moan about it (or worse, blaming the creator as a hack and turning this into a "pro - contra" pissing contest) because we aren't the target audience anyway.
Juseknyo.
Oops - my mistake.
Is She trying to do the Anime Verson?
Azuma is a 'he", the -hiko part of his name is not the feminine 子 / ko character.
Really? I never checked, but always assumed female, personally. Huh. I wonder if the changes he consciously made have anything to do with his schoolgirl related preferences changing over time.
Gender-swapping previously male bystanders into schoolgirls, turning a school skirt into just pantsu here and there, changing the sensei's skirt into slacks... all unconscious signs that he's venturing deeper into the catacombs of hebephilia? >:D
Hmmmm......... I have to hurry and create schoolgirl shaped androids to solve all the practical concerns that stem from this. Japan seems insistent in carrying on these archetypes, and anime/manga is too good a hobby to drop, so we must find ways to adapt.
Never assume, especially in the internet.
The swimsuit one looks like he just pasted Sakaki's head on the older sister from Yostuba's body.
I still favoured the original ver..
Yeah, the older version is better :(
You cannot put old wine in new wineskin.. meaning. Leave the original the same.. the new version isn't that sparkly.
I like the old art better.
screw you guys, the new art style is way better (no offence)
yep
I think that the new art style works for some characters like Chiyo and Osaka. I think they look better now than before.
But for Yomi and especially Sakaki, I absolutely HATE their new faces!! They're too round and it doesn't mesh well with their personality!
The new mizugi on Sakaki is nice though!
It's difficult to decide which is better.
Eyes have been improved, but tones and shading was better back then.
Me too.
me seven
Same here
Me three. Already grab ALL 4 volumes, licensed in here Indonesia ^_^
Old style Oppai Sakaki = FTW!! XD
Yeah, it looks like he's going with a style that's faster to put out. More of a line-drawing style that seems a little "flatter" at first glance.
On the other hand, his shapes are more accurate and "human", so the characters' emotions come through more clearly. For example in the "Ah! My bike!" sample, the original drawing expresses anger, while the new one expresses shock. The shock goes better with the dialog.
So it looks like his core technique has improved over the years, but he's electing to use a style that allows him to work faster, and presumably get paid more.
aint nobody gonna say....
c-c-c-combo breaker??!!
so i'm one in a hundred then... i prefer the new art... simpler and cleaner... imho btw...
The new isn't the original, so it's maybe good, but not the REAL Azumanga Daioh.
yeah, oldes better
Old is more Shadow Details, New is Shape Details...
Simple and Clean eh..
Me four.
I just love the original Azumanga Daioh's art style.
Me six
Me fap now.
Me five.
I agree, the old art style is better. Im glad I have all 4 volumes in german.
I like the old art more, but some of the newer looked better. Though, most of the time it was worse.
It almost looks like the new art needs less effort to draw it.And he did a good job on drawing details in the old one.
Yeah, I think that's exactly the point. The new is basically all line drawing without tints, so he can churn the stuff out more quickly.
He must need money.
Why not just have the old volumes reprinted?
bigger revenue
Old art > new art, new bikini > old bikini.
But Old face > New face
>> old bikini>old art>new art, new bikini
fix'd
I also agree that the old style is better.