Here Is Greenwood (ここはグリーン・ウッド,Koko wa Gurīn Uddo) is a nine-volume Japanesemanga written and illustrated byYukie Nasu, revolving around the activities of four boys in Greenwood Dormitory at a fictional prestigious Japanese all-boys private school named Ryokuto Academy. The manga was serialized inHana to Yume from 1986 to 1991 and published in English byViz Media. It has been adapted into a six-episodeanimeOVA and a live-action television series.
Kazuya Hasekawa is the younger brother to Kazuhiro, who has raised the both of them since they were orphaned. The elder brother is both teasing and doting, and he has attended the prestigious boys-only Ryokuto Academy and then college, all while caring for Kazuya.
Having finished middle school and passed the entrance exam, Kazuya has finally entered Ryokuto Academy himself. He chooses to reside there in order to flee life at home, since his brother has just married the young woman on whom Kazuya has had a crush. Unfortunately, Kazuya has a medical crisis which delays his high school entry by a few weeks. Life is made harder for him by Kazuhiro returning to take the position of the academy’s school nurse.
When Kazuya finally does start the semester, he is assigned to live in the remote dormitory on campus known as Greenwood. He feels out of place because of his late entry, which has meant that everyone else has a better grasp of the situations there. Worse, the serious and strait-laced Kazuya also is agonized because, in Greenwood, eccentricities abound.
Among its single and double occupancy rooms are oddities such as gamblers, computer freaks, evangelists, and even a powerfully built upperclassman who rooms with his motorcycle, which he easily carries up and down the stairs. Kazuya’s own assigned roommate is a fellow freshman: the long-haired, delicately featured, and startlingly pretty Shun Kisaragi, who is told to be a girl hiding out at Ryokuto by pretending to be a boy who looks like a girl.
Next-door to them are the upperclass roommates Mitsuru Ikeda and Shinobu Tezuka, best friends. The perfect scion of an illustrious family, Shinobu is the pleasant yet ruthless class president, a peerless achiever who is capable of absolutely anything and who enjoys toying with their new awkward neighbor. Resident Adviser Mitsuru is the cheerful official authority of Greenwood who also can’t resist abusing his power in order to make life crazy for Kazuya with teasing and pranks. Mitsuru lives life on another level, and his traits and turns of fortune often surpass credibility.
The manga follows the everyday events and antics of the characters of Greenwood, most particularly the adventures of Kazuya with Shun, Mitsuru, and Shinobu.
Kazuya was raised by his older brother, Kazuhiro, after the death of their parents when they were younger. Kazuya had applied to enter Ryokuto Academy so he could be just like Kazuhiro. Kazuya had fallen in love with Sumire, his tutor and was heartbroken when she fell in love with Kazuhiro and subsequently married him. Kazuya had lost respect for his brother since then and moved into the dorm to get away from them. Unfortunately, Kazuya suffered injuries due to a car accident, an ulcer and other mishaps that had delayed him from entering the academy. Much to his dismay, he has to deal with the craziness in the Greenwood dorm and the fact that Kazuhiro is the school nurse. Eventually, he gets used to living in the dorm and is voted president of the dorm by Mitsuru. He later falls in love with a delinquent girl, Miya Igarashi, and dates her in the end of the manga and anime.
Portrayed by Yuki Izawa in the live-action series.
Shun is Kazuya's easygoing roommate. Although Kisaragi resembles a cute, tomboyish girl, he's actually a guy. Shun is the oldest son of the Kisaragi family, who run a chain of traditional Japanese inns. The females in the Kisaragi family inherit the company, but it has no connection with Shun's girlish figure. Surprisingly, Shun is heterosexual and dated a girl in junior high. Shun is very self-confident and proud of his beautiful long hair, and he knows he is so cute. Because he thinks it is the best way to be cool, he does not hesitate to dress like a girl. He can makes sound decisions and is a man of action, and no character believes that Shun is actually feminine. Shun has a younger brother named Reina and an infant sister named Yui.
Portrayed byHiroki Suzuki in the live-action series.
Mitsuru Ikeda (池田 光流)
Voiced by:Mitsuo Iwata (Japanese); Dan Olk (TAJ dub), Jim Taggert (Bang Zoom! dub) (English)
The President of Greenwood dormitory, and best friend of Shinobu Tezuka. The adopted son of the caretaker of the Ikeda temple in Tokyo, Mitsuru looks like Kazuya's brother in his younger days, and Mitsuru also seems to enjoy giving Kazuya a hard time. Mitsuru is roommates with Shinobu and lives next door to Kazuya and Shun, creating an interesting foursome. He also has an unusual ability: His face is able to heal any cut or bruise in under a minute. All that rough treatment on Kazuya, however, is merely his way of toughening up Kazuya so he can take Mitsuru's place as Residence Hall President. Also, he tries his best to stay away from his adopted family. Since he was a child, he knew he was adopted, and he knew he didn't really belong, so he tries to distance himself from his adopted family.
The smartest student living in Greenwood dormitory, and best friend of Mitsuru Ikeda. Unlike Mitsuru, Shinobu is calm and quiet and is unaffected by anything. His near perfect attitude and talent is what drives his cousin Nagisa full of jealousy.
Portrayed by Yuuichi Sato in the live-action series.
A delinquent high school girl, she is the object of affection for Kazuya. She defies her mother's wishes to be with her childhood friend Tenma Koizumi in order to be with Kazuya. She is also friends with Mitsuru.
Shinobu's older cousin, she is insanely jealous of Shinobu since childhood and wants to ruin his life. She once kidnapped Mitsuru and stripped him of his clothes in an attempt to get Shinobu to submit to her, but he managed to foil her plans. She tries again, but accidentally abducts Shun's younger brother, Reina. She has a group of henchman - simply called "A", "B", "C" and "D" - to help her with her plans.
Shun's younger brother, who is cute and also looks like a girl. He is accidentally kidnapped by Nagisa's men while on his way to visit Shun in the dorm.
The manga had run in Hakuensha'sHana to Yumeshōjo magazine from 1986 to 1991. The manga was collected in eleven volumes. In North America, the manga was released in English byViz Media in nine volumes.[2]
A six-episode OVA series, produced byPierrot was released between 1991 and 1993. The OVAs were initially licensed bySoftware Sculptors, who released the series on VHS andLaserdisc in 1996, with an English dub produced by TAJ Productions. The anime was then licensed toMedia Blasters in 2004, who released the series on DVD featuring a new English dub byBang Zoom! Entertainment.
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