A fun staple yakuza teacher comedy

I am not entirely sure when yakuza comedies were popularized or what was the catalyst; all I know is that I'm grateful to the series of events that have led to the conception of Gokusen, flaws and all.
I have not read nor watched GTO, though I can assume it was a major source of inspiration for the wacky adventures of Yankumi and co. I first discovered (and devoured in its entirety) Gokusen as a drama. A charming comedy, overdramatic and repetitive at times, with low stakes. Despite those shortcomings, it still maanged to capture my attention and so both my watching of the drama and my reading of the manga ended up as binges.
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Yamaguchi 'Yankumi' Kumiko is an all star protagonist. You can't help but root for her, no matter what happens, even if you know the low stakes won't allow anything truly bad could happen to her. It's a gag manga first and foremost, so her superhuman-superwoman strength is, at first glance, her most admirable quality. It's refreshing that the narrative allows her to embrace her yakuza side besides strength and see how it affects her when she tries to conform to the school and 'normal' society's etiquette. 'Gokusen' sidelines its romance for better or for worse, so her worst moments come up when the romantic undertones become overtones but even then, it makes for an amusing train-wreckage. The low stakes and repetitive nature of the story also eventually devalue the 'badass compilation of her taking care of business' but I guess such is the fate of gag manga.

Sawada Shin is… well, whatever he is, he's doing a good job at it. As Yankumi's foil, he works as his nonchalant demeanour perfectly bounces off Yankumi's caring and noisy nature. Of course, lest he comes off as a heartless asshole, we see that he has a soft spot for people close to him, his friends and his teacher. As for the rest of the cast, it's your typical comedy ensemble cast the punching bags, the perverts, the wackos, the gentle giants. Nobody really sticks out, not when Sawada exists, both from the school and the Yakuza. Even the man Kumiko crushes on 90% of the series, Shinohara, doesn't hold a candle to him. He felt like a real threat in the drama, though.

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The art of Gokusen is one of my favorite parts. Expressive and not afraid to look ugly. Sometimes, it's too ugly, on purpose, although distractingly so. I like the simple lineart and the somewhat "empty" panels. It works with Gokusen's deadpan humour and services its comedic timing. The fights are often impressively drawn but others they're drawn more like more like transition scenes rather than well-thoughout moments. Yankumi is my favorite character design, her iconic pigtails and red (I could still see it in the B&W manga, I swear) tracksuit are simply iconic.

Its age shows in the casual misogyny and homophobia spread throughout, though eventually does show a strong opposition to them, even if it's in the most bare minimum of ways. I am not reading the Haha Yakuza manga for morality, but the gay pedophile teacher did catch my off guard. Yankumi is a double edged sword, while she's admired for her strength and avoids making herself smaller to fit feminine standards, there is a lot of implications that lean towards that conformity. Not the biggest fan of that.

The manga could've been a bit shorter. A lot of chapters felt like filler that the manga could smoothly do without. Doesn't help that some of them miss the comedy mark. Or drag out a joke that wasn't all that funny in the first place. Or deathly slowly teasing an obvious twist. I wouldn't say it sullies the experience that much, though.

But still, should you read Gokusen? Well, I think yes. Yankumi is one-of-a-kind MC so even if the story does not pique your interest, she will make you stay, maybe just for a volume. Drama is a must, too.