Gokusen tells the story of Kumiko Yamaguchi, a teacher who on the outside, with her red track suit, pigtails and round glasses, looks as plain as can be. But behind this simple facade lies the hier to one of the most powerful yakuza groups in the area. No matter how much they try to intimidate or scare her, it will mean nothing to Yamaguchi. With a wild temper and a passion to teach and enlighten her students, she is a teacher that won’t give up on these group of students that everyone else see as nothing more than hoodlums.
GTO on the other hands tells of the former biker gang member named Eikichi Onizuka, who after seeing a teacher influence a student is inspired to become a teacher himself. After barely passing exams he soon discovers a sense of conscience and morality that leads him to developing a philosophy that has him teach life lessons rather than school lessons to the troubled youths of his class in enjoying life.
Protagonists
Yamaguchi Kumiko
Enthusiastic about teaching, a terrible liar, and generally happy-go-lucky person, she is the last person you would expect to be a yakuza heir. That is until you see her temper go off that is, and then you see how she could be able to lead a fearsome group such as the one she is in. She is like a tigress when she fights and is willing to do anything to protect her precious students. With her great strenght and will she has taught her students on what it means to be proud of one’s self, to be brave, to be a good friend, and to not let other’s judegement define them.
Eikichi Onizuka
Lacklustre in his educational teachings and a general pervert, Onizuka is the last person you would expect to be a teacher. But with a sense of morality and his own philosophy, he is willing to go far for his students. Whether it be dangling them from the roof to snap them out from their suicide or invading their home to literally break a wall so they can open up to their classroom, he will do it. While he may not be the greatest in educational teaching, he has no problem knocking into each of his student’s heads the importance of life.
Students
Gokusen
For this series we have an all-male class filled with delinquents that teachers are either indimated by or have given up. They are the typical male delinquents that you would think of, troublemakers that get into fights and have no respect for adults. But beneath these rough demeanor are good people who have morals and principles even if others are not willing to see it.
GTO
Each one of these students have their own problems and each one wants to be left alone. For those not familiar to the Japanese culture, the things that these kids get into would be of great shock on how borderline criminal they are. Still, that doesn’t mean that there isn’t any hope for them, as proven by Onizuka himself
Overall both series may seem similar to one another but they have their own stories, characters and backgrounds that distinguish one from the other. It all depends on which one a viewer is willing to focus on.