is a shōnen

Shonen

The term refers to manga marketed to a male audience aged roughly 10 and up. The Kanji characters literally mean "few" and "year", respectively, where the characters generally mean "comic"...

 manga

Manga

Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...

 by Kōji Kumeta

Kōji Kumeta

, is a Japanese gag manga artist. His most famous works are Go!! Southern Ice Hockey Club, Katte ni Kaizō and Sayonara Zetsubō Sensei. His other major works include √P Root Paradise, Sodatte Darling!! and...

. The manga ran for 23 volumes in Shōnen Sunday

Shonen Sunday

, first published on March 17, 1959, is a weekly shōnen manga magazine published in Japan by Shogakukan. Contrary to its title, Weekly Shōnen Sunday issues are released on Wednesdays.- History :...

 from 1991 to 1996. The art style changed drastically over the course of the series, evolving towards Kumeta's distinct style of his later series such as Katte ni Kaizo

Katte ni Kaizo

is a shōnen manga by Kōji Kumeta. The manga ran for 26 volumes in Shōnen Sunday from 1998 to 2004. The art style went through a huge change as the story went on, by the end of the story the art style was the same as the type used in Kumeta's next series, Sayonara Zetsubō Sensei...

 or Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei.

Plot

The series follows Getto Rando, who has been living in Canada and playing hockey

Ice hockey

Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...

 there since he was ten. However, he also earned himself a very long suspension due to cheating and thus was more or less forced to return to Japan where he was recruited by Hamatsu High School in Kyushu

Kyushu

is the third largest island of Japan and most southwesterly of its four main islands. Its alternate ancient names include , , and . The historical regional name is referred to Kyushu and its surrounding islands....

, even though ice hockey is not popular in southern Japan and the school only has a roller hockey

Roller hockey

Roller Hockey is a form of hockey played on a dry surface using skates with wheels. The term "Roller Hockey" is often used interchangeably to refer to two variant forms chiefly differentiated by the type of skate used. There is traditional "Roller Hockey," played with quad roller skates, and...

rink.

Characters

The protagonist of the story. He is a very skilled hockey player and has won multiple scoring titles in Canadian leagues of his age group. However, he is not afraid to go outside the rulebook to achieve victory.

Soara is the manager of the hockey team. She is a bit uptight and constantly has to keep Getto and the rest of the hockey club in check.

The coach of the hockey team, Kentaro was the former captain until his need for glasses sidelined him.

Maiko is one of the most voluptuous girls in school and holds the title of Miss Hamatsu High. She is close friends with Soara.

A former teammate of Getto from Canada. Rob becomes an exchange student and finds himself at Hamatsu High School. Like Getto he was suspended from the leagues in Canada. He was banned for his violent outbreaks.

The gentle giant of the hockey club. He is a timid guy and is often taken advantage of or made fun of by the other members of the hockey club, despite the strength he possesses.