Tohru Fujisawa
GTO

I am aware that many of you will turn up your noses at this review or, more likely, will not even consider it. In Italy, as in other European countries, manga have always been viewed with suspicion, considered goods for youngsters or for grown-up kids unable to have a life of their own and perpetually clingy. But it's not so! A comic and its consequent animated adaptation are nothing more than forms of expression and as such should be considered works of art. Sure, a book can certainly stimulate much more imagination compared to a comic, but this does not diminish the value of the latter and the exhausting work that surrounds it. But let's get to the work.

GTO, acronym for Great Teacher Onizuka, is a manga by Tohru Fujisawa published in the second half of the nineties in Shonen magazine. The plot revolves around the histrionic figure of Eikichi Onizuka, "22 years old, single," as he often introduces himself to anyone he meets. A recent graduate of the low-tier Eurasia university, black belt in karate, a former biker delinquent of notable fame; Eikichi, a virgin and not very familiar with the opposite sex, one day decides to become a teacher, attracted by the prospect of having relationships with high school girls. Miraculously obtaining a position at the renowned private Seirin Institute, he is assigned the fourth section of the third year of middle school, known for being the most problematic in the entire school. From this point, through repeated gags, the story shows us how young Eikichi will manage to win over not only his section but also the entire school.

Upon superficial analysis, one can already see how GTO deviates heavily from almost all shonen stereotypes: there are no heroes with superhuman powers, no clear division between good and evil, nor the rhetoric of a warrior ready to sacrifice himself for the salvation of his people. The hero in this context is a "crazy maniac," a "society outcast," as often defined by Vice Principal Hiroshi Uchiyamada, bearer of traditional values of industrial-era Japan; everyone is scandalized by the idea that a guy like him is a teacher and continuously, yet in vain, attempts to have him removed from his position.

Despite its ironic, burlesque, and seemingly foolish character, GTO is nothing but a work of criticism against the suffocating and competitive Japanese society, as well as an attack on a school system that heavily undermines the physical and psychological well-being of students, subjected to abnormal workloads and forced to jostle among themselves just to outline a ray of light for their future. Onizuka, at first glance the least suitable person to educate teenagers, is the voice of the looming need for a revolution in thinking. Sure, he doesn't possess great cultural means, but through his vast street life experience, he will teach the kids not to have a superficial view of things, of others; because each of us carries their truth and if society considers you a madman, an outcast, it is society itself that is in the wrong.

From the manga, an animated series was later derived, which gained great success even abroad. This work is a bit like a Plautus comedy, recommended for those who want to combine a smile with reflection.