Air+Gear+WikiPage

Jonathan Garcia media type="youtube" key="rPNBZwCGFUI" height="458" width="559" align="center"

Hey wus up I'm Jonathan Garcia and I'm going to be talking about my favorite manga and anime Air Gear.
=== The Air Gear manga was licensed for release in the United States by Del Rey Manga and the first volume was released on July 25, 2006. Subsequent volumes will be released every three months. Kodansha Comics USA will keep publishing the series in 2011. === === Air Gear is a shonen manga (the term "shonen" refers to "a person from the time they enter elementary school until the time they are 15 years of age") written and illustrated by Ito "Oh Great" Ogure. Air Gear revolves around the life of Itsuki Minami "Ikki", also known as "Baby Face", "Lil (and Little) Crow", and his friends. The story follows their use of Air Trecks, an in-universe invention derived from inline skates. Initial sections of the plot carries out the introduction of characters that eventually join Ikki. As the story progresses, it focuses on their roles as Storm Riders and their quest to be on the top of the Trophaeum Tower (Trophaeum Tower is a tower in Air Gear that is used to symbolize the storm riders' struggle to reach the top) ===

The Plot of Air Gear
A new fad by the name of 'Air Trek' (a futuristic evolution of inline-skating) has swept the nation's youth and all over gangs are being formed that compete in various events using their A-T. Ikki is a middle-school boy who is the toughest street-fighting punk on the east side of town, on top of that he lives with 4 gorgeous sisters that took him in when he was a kid. But what Ikki doesn't know is that the girls are part of one of the most infamous A-T gangs, 'Sleeping Forest'. Not long does it take before Ikki finds out about the world of Air Trek and is propelled into a fate he had not foreseen.

What are Air Trecks?
Air Trecks or ATs can be generalized as "high-end, customizable, motorized inline skates". They are composed of three major components: Wheel Motor, Hydraulic Cushion System, and Power Injection System. A Braking System is incorporated with most, equipped with a power-lock switch built on the outer sole of the skates. This overrides the acceleration system and enable Air Trecks to operate as normal inline skates as well. However most Riders (Air Treck users) use a Spin-Turn Stop technique, instead of a regular deceleration system to come to rest. However, the speed of Air Trecks are generated proportional to the power of the user's leg; the assist motor accelerates based on the force of a kick. Air Trecks are simply 'self-propelled shoes equipped with powerful suspension, air cushion systems, and ultra small motors in the wheels'. Generally, Air Trecks are very expensive (running normally 100,000 yen a pair), requiring regular maintenance and tuning. Each pair is installed with a special data support network via a program called READ, which allows Riders to access performance data on another Rider from the data stored on the memory cardinserted inside the AT. The biggest "thrill" of Air Trecks is the precisely calibrated air cushion system, which gives these self-propelled trick skates their juice, allowing the Riders to "fly". This aspect is the major theme of the Air Gear story. Air Trecks are fully customizable in every aspect, from the skate's design, to the wheels, and even down to the screws. By combining various parts, one can truly make their own unique Air Treck. Most standard-issue parts are available at sporting good stores, but the rare parts must be purchased at speciality shops (such as Glam Slum, which comes to Tokyo every once in a while), which tend to be hidden or always on the road. Rider team members often have identically customized ATs. The standard Air Treck has two wheels, but it is also possible for 4 wheels on each Air Treck, and even using spheres instead of wheels. A notable specific customization is of The Eight Kings of the Road, they all have specialized Trecks known as 'Regalia' which are the mark of each King. Being customizable, many skaters have customized their own Air Trecks to suit their own style; changing with various combinations of parts, even screws and/or readjusting the balance, altering the speed and performance of their Air Trecks tremendously but now Air Treck companies have speed limiters which slow down the speed of the ATs considerably, however people can to go to illegal AT shops such as the Glam Slum to break the limiter.

More behind AT's? Kings? Roads? Regalia?
In Air Gear, every Storm Rider places an emphasis on a certain aspect of their "Run", which determines their "Type". Over time, the Rider's Run develops into a characteristic style and repertoire of tricks, which is termed as their "Road". Riders who master a Road to a high degree are called "King-level" riders, and King-level riders who possess their Road's "Regalia" are called "Kings". Regalia are special Air Treck parts specifically engineered to use the air to work in conjunction with the King's Road; this is referred to as an "Infinity Atmosphere". There are 8 Regalia in total, each of which represents one of the 8 major Roads. Regalia are a double-edged sword: Deploying one gives a huge power boost, but puts a huge strain on the user; a King can only use a Regalia a limited number of times before both their bodies and the Regalia give out. If the King doesn't have a "Tuner" to optimize the Regalia, it will become uncontrollable and the King will sustain terrible injury. There is a separate class of Regalia called "Su bregalia", which are degraded copies of the 8 originals. The Storm Regalia which is still being created could be counted as a 9th Regalia. ===  ===

What is a Parts War?
Parts War is a battle between Storm Riders to gain AT parts, emblems, territories or Regalia. They also compete in these battles to advance their team to a higher rank. A team has to bet something in order to battle. Teams will usually bet parts, thus the name Parts War, or a team can bet their emblem. If a team bets their emblem and loses, that team must disband. Parts War actually began as a website were riders simply traded parts with other riders. Someone later developed the website into a tournament. Also Teams must whom lose 5 consecutive Parts War races/events will also rank down in class if they're higher than F-Class. All battles must be reported to the Parts War Forums, for them to count as a victory for the Team/Rider to Rank up. Also Video Recording or taking pictures of your Parts War is highly recommended so that new Members and Teams can see how the Parts War works.

Classes
There are six classes in the Parts War, ranging from F to A, with a different competition for each rank. These competitions are Dash, Hurdle, Cube, Air, Disk and Balloon. A team can advance in rank by winning three times in a row against opponents of their own class, or winning once against an opponent of higher class. Some teams are noted to specialize in certain classes or on certain battlefields. These classes teach new riders basic movements for them to learn AT's. Although these classes are considered basic, even high-level Storm Riders participate in them frequently. === ===

The Main Character-Ikki "crow"[[image:Ikki.png width="420" height="280"]]
The main character of the story is Itsuki "Ikki" Minami also known as Crow. He is a free spirited AT rider that has a natural affiliation for being in the sky. He is introduced to ATs by the Noyamano family, whom he lives with due to his parents deaths. He eventually forms Kogarasumaru, and takes on the Trophaeum. Ikki is often characterized as a crow due to a small crow, Kuu, using his hair as a nest.  Ikki is able to see the Wing Road, and his peers often consider him to be the best candidate to become the next Sky King. He possesses two passive traits known as Hawk Eye and Trick Pass, which allow him to easily survey an area and utilize any part of it. Both are considered attributes necessary for a candidate to be Sky King. He trains under Sora to better utilize the wind, and he eventually obtains the incomplete Wind Regalia. He is able to use it to move quickly and fly, though he is unable to properly use its destructive power. The regalia is stolen by Sora and Nike, who are revealed to be enemies harboring a grudge against Sleeping Forest. This leaves Ikki despondent and depressed, until Kazu reveals a message left behind by Spitfire after his death. Spitfire questions if Ikki has really "lost his wings," which leads to Ikki to be proclaimed the "Storm King of the Hurricane Road." His tuner, Kururu Sumeragi, promises that she will complete a new regalia for him. Recently, the Gram Scale Tournament has begun, but it was revealed that Ikki failed to submit the final registration. It is later revealed that Kazu has found a way to gain them entry into the Grand Scale Tournament by challenging Falco, the former Fang King and a member of the original Sleeping Forest. After defeating Falco's team, which was in fact a computerized version of the first Sleeping Forest, Kogarasumaru was awarded Falco's "eternal seed" and entered the Gram Scale Tournament. Ikki is a very upbeat, zany person, who seemingly is as eccentric as just about everyone else in the universe of Air Gear. He delights in eating meat, a privilege he is often deprived of in the Noyamano household. He is rash, impulsive, and determined to do everything his way, whether for good or bad. In battle, he either comes off as his ordinary crazy and unpredictable personality, or his more serious, cold and steely side, which other characters have described as a rare occurrence, and as an intimidating scene. Ikki is totally hooked onto Air Trekking. He treats his AT ’s with care to such a standard that even his sisters feel jealous of, and his mind is constantly on Air Trekking; for example, during the Kyoto trip he fails to notice Ringo's affection initially, deadset on figuring out a 'Windmill Theory' that another Storm Rider has revealed to him as the secret behind the Rumble King. Ikki is a self-proclaimed genius and is very proud of himself, in particular his fighting abilities. In truth, he works very hard behind the others' backs, as is revealed when Kuu brings his friends to his secret training area, where the scars left over by his training could be seen. Though his attitude can be described as a lowlife, suitable for his gangster-like persona, and though he likes to go around doing insanely foolish things all the time, Ikki has a tendency to think beyond others' perceivable concept and at several intervals can spout deep philosophy that more often than not will impact others. One such incident was the Pomtemkin brothers' battle, where Ikki's plan caused an initial falling out among the Kogarasumaru, where in fact he had his own solution around that matter. Ikki, though easy to miss the obvious, can be very adept when it comes to spotting small details. In their first Parts War, he alone had noticed that Kazu's ATs were the most worn out among them, a mark of how much he practiced. 

Team Kogarasumaru
Kogarasumaru is a team formed by Itsuki Minami and his friends to further their favorite hobby of Air Treck skating. Their team ranking in the world of AT increases at a very rapid pace, giving Kogarasumaru worldwide fame. Eventually, the elite team known as Genesis is placed under the command of Kogarasumaru, though the Takeuchi brothers eventually take it over. Kogarasumaru is now determined to win the Gram Scale Tournament and dominate all other teams with their strength alone. The team currently has 3 riders that are kings: Itsuki Minami, Kazuma Mikura, and Agito Wanijima. Of these three, only Agito currently possesses his Regalia, Aeon Clock having stolen the Flame Regalia from Kazuma and Itsuki being the Storm King of the newly formed Hurricane Road, though they now also possess the Rumble Regalia.  

The man who started it-Rinta "Uncle" Minami
Rinat "Uncle" Minami is a man that made the Gravity Children, genetically modified children created to utilize ATs to their full potential, talk about. The Gravity Children are distinguished by cross-shaped marks on their pupils, and they are well adapted to the Zero Gravity inside the Trophaeum. After some of the originals, Falco, Black Burn, Spitfire, Dontores, Kilik, Simca, Sora, Nike, Rune, Om and Gabishi, escape from the laboratory where they were essentially created, another generation made out of Ringo, Ume, Mikan, Orca, and Nue appear. Ringo, Ume, and Mikan are given to Rika by Minami. He also leads the Brain Charger project, a less expensive alternative to the Gravity Children. It is a possibility that Ikki is a gravity child or a brain charger, as he was also given to Rika, when she was about 8, by Uncle Minami. He is also speculated to be related to Ikki as they share the same last name. Rinta is a mysterious man and is a very smart scientist, shown by his robot and airplane and his ability to save Gazelle's son. He is referred to "the man who fights the god" since he thinks that the human race had a flaw in its design, that is, not able to fly. He thinks that the human race should be able to fly since small creatures like butterfly can, he also thinks that the god is "always gets in our way when we are trying to fly", and thus he stamps god as "incompetent", showing his arrogance. It is also unknown as to which side he is on, as while he had created Gazelle/Lind and tried saving them, he had also provided Nike with a robotic counterpart of himself, aiding Genesis. Rinta has short-cropped, dark hair with stubble on his chin. He wears a scarf and a hat, along with a dark jacket over a plain T-shirt, light colored slacks and sandals. he has letters imprinted onto his fingernails. With Left Hand showing the letters L I V E D, from the pinky to thumb. Either stating Devil or Lived. The Right Hand, however, only has the letters D E A R shown, running from his thumb to his ring finger, with a creature, with bat-like wings on his pinky.  

===I would explain more about Air Gear, but I want to save the rest to you whether you decide to watch or read it or not. I would prefer reading it because they explain more and it is continuing, if you decide to watch the anime you will want to know whats gonna happen. There are 26 episodes and 2 OVA's in the anime and in the manga there are 31 vol. 315 chapters and still counting. Well I hope you decide to read or watch Air Gear it really is great, its funny, educational on some level, action pact, and sporty. Well Imm a stop here, night everyone.===