BREAD
 

So, who's seen Yakitate Japan? Those of you who haven't, GO GET IT. I guarantee you won't regret it.

Just when I was starting to think I'd never find another anime worth watching I discover this one. It's about bread. Take every action-cartoon/anime you've ever seen and replace it's theme with baking bread, and you sort of have Yakitate Japan. However, that description doesn't really touch on some of the wierdness and absurdity that goes on in this series, such as the reactions people have when eating the bread. I'm sure this series will never be licensed in America, but I would just love to see some American publisher try to market this.

Yakitate Japan is awesomeness!

I kind of got sick of the Monacco Cup story, cause Pierrot's reactions just weren't as good as Kuroyanagi's - they tended to drag on for a while, with a really bad realisation that the bread itself was a pun.
But the latest ep was great!

The manga apparently has a lot more ecchi in it, and it's a lot more obvious that Tsukino likes Azuma.
I havent read it though =/

Tritoch told me about thie series sooo long ago I'm kind of tempted to give it a try now that I've sort of settled into my normal schedule of watching anime. Back when he recommended it, I was busy playing a never-ending game of catchup, but now it seems more feasible. :D

Not only is the series highly entertaining (in either manga or anime form), I find it very enjoyable to learn about baking techniques and ingredients. Finally, I have discovered the power of the afro.

Exactly what co said. The whole series is like Iron Chef meets The Food Network Challenge except that it's a whole hell of a lot more exciting and incredibly funny. The characters are extremely likeable and even the music is top notch.

The downside is that everytime I watch it I get hungry or I want to start making bread... which is why I have vowed to keep active yeast out of my reach until the series ends.

The manga is one of the most hilarious ones I've read (although I don't understand how people can even think of comparing it to the awesomeness of Hikaru no Go). I haven't been keeping up with it lately, but I just hope that they don't start to drag it on for too long.

The comparison comes from taking a normally boring concept (like Go, or in this case, bread) and making it really awesome and addicting. Like many viewers, I've had the urge to try out some of the techniques just for the hell of it and see if I can get the kind of results they do. Probably not likely, but it's a testament as to how cool this series goes when it comes to making bread.

Does anyone know if the writers do some sort of research on breadmaking by consulting with real chefs or if they just come up with this kind of stuff on the fly?

I believe it's like most anime that base themselves on real concepts. There really were Samurai, but they didn't shoot fire from their swords or jump around like ninjas. Meanwhile, you can really make bread but I don't think anyone (except the Japanese) go apeshit when they knead dough or put it in the oven.

I use to watch this series earlier last year. Felt like I lost some brain cells in the process; not that the series is bad, but it's a bit too zany and exaggerated for my tastes.

Great series. The recent "super-Kuroyan" episode made me laugh so hard I almost died. But I don't think Tsukino gets enough screen time.

I'm thinking about giving the manga a try. Is it being scanlated, or has it been licensed?

I find interesting how Pan has the same meaning in Japanese and Spanish, it was quite a discovery for me.

I watched the first 6 episodes quite a while ago, and sure got me hooked. By bigger forces, I haven't been able to keep up with it, but will be sure to try now.

Pan isn't a "real" japanese word. They borrowed it, like they do with alot of words. Thats why it's written in Katakana (パン) instead of hiragana...

It is being scanlated by Snoopy Cool. Unfortunately, their releases have not been as frequent as in the past. The latest Yakitate release, v.17 ch. 148, was back in January. That gives you plenty of time to catch up. As far as raws go, volume 19 is out.

This is not something new, for every language "borrows" existent words and make them their own at a certain point. As for the Katakan and Hiragana thing, I have no idea, don't know japanese here. ._.

This might be going a bit off topic, sorry:

Actual Japanese words are written in either Kanji (the really complicated looking characters) or Hiragana (the curved looking characters). Borrowed words are normally written with Katakana (the boxy looking characters).

coeccias, thank you for the info. I'm not too impressed with SnoopyCool (I was reading the HNI manga and they took FOREVER between releases). But I really like Yakitate, so I might, just this once, ignore my disappointment with snoopycool...

I saw the first episode before a friend recommended watching the entire series. I've been following it since then. It's a very entertaining anime though, and I'd also urge others to watch it.

Make that Volume 21. They are really slow and the anime subs is no different story. I still like it, though.

The end of the anime is now in sight, as the raw for ep. 69 was released a few days ago labeled as the end. Granted that means we still have about 13 episodes left to go before it's all translated, but it's still sad to know that it's finally over. The recent episodes with Takitate Gohan and Super Kuroyan are my favorite reactions yet, so at least they're ending the show before it grows stale.

I seem to remember reading an interview with either the director or the artist in Newtype a long time ago, and they said that actual bakers were consulted at times to find different techniques. A friend of mine tried baking a variation of the melon bread Azuma used in the Pantasia tournament, and aside from being a bit sticky it turned out really good.

I will be bumping this thread now due to the fact that the series has ended with the AE release of Episode 69. I agree that it's better to end it before it got really stale, but I have to say that I absolutely loved this series from beginning to end. There are rarely any series that can go 26 episodes, much less SIXTY NINE episodes without EVER becoming stale or seeming like there's filler. This series is absolute gold, and if I could feasibly have one of Kuroyanagi's reactions to demonstrate the greatness of this series I would.

Props to whoever came up with this idea originally, because to take an anime that's about BREAD MAKING of all things and make it seem so alive and exciting is without a doubt a true testament to the skill of a creator.

WATCH. THIS. ANIME.

makes me want to eat bread. :D~~~

kinda sad how it ended... its one of those "aww.. its ended :(... " kinda of feel
same with prince of tennis.
So used to watching it every week.. and the.. bread.. :O~~~

but yeh the last few eps was.. hahah hilarious. i wtf'ed all the way. :)

Another person who agrees HnG rocks. :) As far as I know, SC translated up to ch. 150 on the manga (boo for slowness) and it's still funny as ever. But as zzeroparticle said, it's basically the "take mundane and turn to fun" concept.

Props for the pun.

But I'm disappointed on the slow translating!! Why? WHY? I simply can't get enough of Kuroyanagi.

Glad someone caught that, I didn't think anyone would be clever enough.

I do have a new respect for freshly baked bread now though, and I really want to learn how to make some of the more realistic stuff on the show. I have no Solar Hands though, but I might have Solar Gauntlets. =P

I liked the anime series and all but I don't get the pun... ._.

Stale like bread. Kostaki was glad the anime ended before it got boring. So stale = boring. Bad bread = stale.

Also kind of funny since Yakitate is full of puns.

I've watched Yakitate Japan! It's excellent! :)