Hetalia: World Series 48 Hetalia: World Series Episode 48

Plot Summary: Italy, once home of the strongest empire in the world, has changed. This is the story of Italy, now a cowardly pasta-loving fool, and his friends (other personified countries of the world) as they live through strange moments in world history.
Genres: comedy
Themes: historical, parody, World War I, World War II




Viz Media publishes this title under its Shonen Jump Manga label, which provides a decent full-color cover and all of Kubo's front, end, and side notes. It translates all the sound effects in a manner doubtless intended to reflect the style and shape of the originals, but its lettering gives the effect that the characters are always shouting. Because the main volume only covers 148 pages of regular story and four pages of comical “day in the life” character focuses, a lengthy Rune Master Urara short story, which features even rougher artwork but better writing and storytelling, caps out the volume to a more typical length.

The juvenile level of the storytelling shows little of the depth and refinement (relatively speaking) that can be seen in Kubo's later, more famous work Bleach, and the action scenes work only moderately well, so this is primarily a title for Kubo completists. Otherwise you can find much better manga elsewhere which shows the same kind of fare and looks better doing it.