Hikaru no Go, Vol. 16
By Yumi Hotta & Takeshi Obata
Published by Viz Media

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After volume fifteen‘s intense drama, this volume begins with relative lightness as Isumi heads to China with a group of pros to play a few friendship games at the Chinese Go Association. After a couple of devastating losses, Isumi decides to stay a few extra days in order to get a rematch with the young pro who first defeated him, but at the urging of a friendly Chinese pro, a few days becomes two months. Meanwhile, the Japanese pro world is stunned by Hikaru’s growing string of forfeits as he remains determined not to play in hopes that Sai might one day return. Though Hikaru refuses anyone who asks him to play, the one request he is unable to turn down is from Isumi who, having returned to Japan, feels that he must play a clean game with Hikaru before he will be able to face the upcoming pro test.

It is a bit of a shock to be pulled away from Hikaru’s story just when things were becoming so intense, but Isumi’s story is much more than a simple distraction. Watching him gain confidence while playing in China is honestly inspirational and a wonderful means for building up to the final pages of this volume which are so moving. Some other wonderful moments include an early confrontation between Waya and Hikaru in which Waya shouts out an opening move for a game (catching Hikaru planning what his own move should be), and a glimpse back into the world of the Haze Junior High Go Club where Akari and the others are preparing for the same tournament that first drew Hikaru into the world of Go. Hikaru’s mom also makes one of her rare, wonderful appearances as she discusses her son’s future in the face of his sudden abandonment of his pro career.

Though this volume lacks the strong emotional impact of the previous volume it is, like the rest of this series, 191 pages of pure joy, carefully plotted to pack exactly the right punch at the end. This series remains fresh and oddly elegant–truly one of a kind in its genre.

Volume sixteen of Hikaru no Go will be available on August 4th, 2009. Review copy provided by the publisher.

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