This is cotton candy reading, sweet and fluffy and insubstantial, and starts to feel more than a bit cloying after I've consumed too much (i.e. three This is cotton candy reading, sweet and fluffy and insubstantial, and starts to feel more than a bit cloying after I've consumed too much (i.e. three volumes at a go in this omnibus). So many soulful looks!
The girls remain boy-crazy to an absurd degree, disinclined to do anything that doesn't have to do with furthering their relationships or snagging their crushes. The boys are maybe a wee bit too thoughtful to be believed, and--lucky them--have actual interests and ambitions, and a couple are even in their early careers. The only masculine exception in the main cast is Oushi, who has nothing going on but nursing his crush on Yuki. I appreciated his mature turn when he saw Emma and Istuomi together, and didn't immediately report it to Yuki in its worst possible light. The umbrella scene was a bit much, though. She's dating, man, you need to relax.
Despite my minor grumps, this manga is skillfully done, and doesn't ever trip me up with the usual melodramatic nonsense that accompanies so much shoujo manga*. No horrible misunderstandings, no love triangles that can be taken even halfway seriously. The brief part towards the end where Emma treasures her grandmother's handmade items brought tears to my eyes, so its rating gets a little upward nudge.
* this is josei, but it's so tame it might as well be a shoujo. At least so far....more
Sometimes I literally can't understand individual lines in this manga, and it's hard to tell if the translation's off or whether the author's humor isSometimes I literally can't understand individual lines in this manga, and it's hard to tell if the translation's off or whether the author's humor is missing me. Despite these occasional mismatches, I chuckled quite a few times while reading this volume, especially as it becomes more and more evident that Nozaki, as a mangaka, could be described as a hack. His manga stories are inspired by his real life surroundings to an embarrassing extent, and he draws his background characters literally identically until given some guidance from Mikoshiba. In the meantime, Hori and Kashima's relationship maybe doesn't progress all that much, but they do come just a tiny smidgen closer to understanding each other thanks to a play script written by Nozaki....more
A couple of the Edo connections were rather thin, this time around. I hope Higuchi hasn't run out of topics!A couple of the Edo connections were rather thin, this time around. I hope Higuchi hasn't run out of topics!...more
There's some mild male gaze on Koma's chest in this volume, something which I hadn't noticed before and which I hope doesn't get more egregious as we There's some mild male gaze on Koma's chest in this volume, something which I hadn't noticed before and which I hope doesn't get more egregious as we go along. Other than that, the infotainment factor has just the right amount of detail to not bog down the gentle comedy of these short stories.
Next volume looks like it will start with a "baby" episode, which I'm not all that excited about. Maybe they'll talk about baby-rearing in the Edo period and make it easier to tolerate....more
It's been two years since I read the previous volume of this series. Time flies! I didn't remember either of the other two elves besides Elda, or theiIt's been two years since I read the previous volume of this series. Time flies! I didn't remember either of the other two elves besides Elda, or their miko, but it doesn't matter all that much. This is a good vibes manga leavened with some very gentle comedy and the occasional tidbit about Edo history....more
A nice final send-off for the series, and nearly perfectly timed to end on a high note and without a lot of repetitive filler in the meantime.
It was cA nice final send-off for the series, and nearly perfectly timed to end on a high note and without a lot of repetitive filler in the meantime.
It was cool how the writing changed after Kaguya and Miyuki came together. Romances so often call things to a close once that happens, or rely on love triangle-like interference to keep things chugging along. Kaguya-sama didn't hew close to those conventions, and also wasn't so experimental as to make things too strange. There was a nice balance between silly stuff, and more serious takes on love, friendship, and romance, and how some of those can lead to conflicts that can't be resolved neatly and without emotional pain.
Although the end scenarios for the main and side characters in this and v. 27 were on the predictable side, I appreciated that that each major and secondary character got some time in the spotlight before the curtain closed. (view spoiler)[I'd hope that Kobachi would become the main character in her own story at some point, but that doesn't happen here. (hide spoiler)]
The art for this series wasn't ever entirely on point, even though Akasaka had plenty of time to get better at it. His male characters always came across as rather stiff, and never quite managed to overcome my impression from the first volume or two of being drawn using a posable reference doll. The character designs were a bit too similar in places. In this last volume, for example, Miko's brother and Miyuki look nearly identical to each other, except with different hair color. Depending on the context, I couldn't tell Ai and Kei apart, either.
So I can understand why Akasaka's publisher decided to farm out the art for their new series, Oshi no Ko, to a different artist. I appreciate their branching out and creating a very different story, but I'm going to watch a few episodes of the anime before committing to reading it. We may be parting ways for a little while....more
Denouement. It's nice that a combination of wealth and modern technology enables Kaguya and Miyuki to stay in easy contact with each other.Denouement. It's nice that a combination of wealth and modern technology enables Kaguya and Miyuki to stay in easy contact with each other....more
It turns out I just can't give up on you. So I've made my decision. Common sense... morals... for you, I'd go against it all!
Yeah, this one goes o
It turns out I just can't give up on you. So I've made my decision. Common sense... morals... for you, I'd go against it all!
Yeah, this one goes over the top at times. I appreciate how Yuu and Miki stayed devoted to each other through a rather long breakup, especially since that devotion stands in contrast with their parents, who don't seem able to keep a long-term relationship going. It's nice of them to own up to that, but it really hurt their kids and they needed to be confronted for Yuu to know the truth about his parentage. I liked how the manga treated the very last chapter better than the anime.
The twist of (view spoiler)[Chiyako's cousin (hide spoiler)] potentially being Yuu's dad felt unnecessary, and it made for a rather weak start to this volume, along with the slightly overlong breakup arc, and sorting out of various couples (sorry, Tsutomu and Miwa!). I liked seeing the kids as they made their way into college, and how some of them mellowed out a bit.
I think the character art in this story is really good. As Nakajo did with Hana-Kimi (which I just finished yesterday), sometimes Yoshizumi relies a little too heavily on screentone to compensate for a lack of art on any given page, but it's easy to overlook when the overall work is so much more pleasant to look at.
It's fun seeing the fashion in these older manga. The big bows are kind of strange, and the layering of t-shirt-like material, i.e. on this edition's front cover, feels very 90s. With some minor modernization, the cottagecore outfits wouldn't be too out of place on a 2020s instagram page, I think. Putting this next to something like Neighborhood Story or Gals, which came out in a similar time frame, I don't see too many similiarities. MB's cute fashion is on the conservative side in comparison.
Wandering off on a tangent like that means that I don't have a lot more to say about this series, so we'll leave things off here. :) It was nice to come back to this story that, in anime form, was one of the first shoujo stories I encountered. I'm still fond of it, though there are a good number of series that have come out in English in the meantime that I'd put higher on the all-time favorites list....more
Someone who was familiar with any of the mangaka featured here would probably enjoy it more than I did. None of these stories was more than a few pageSomeone who was familiar with any of the mangaka featured here would probably enjoy it more than I did. None of these stories was more than a few pages long, so irritations like authorial self-insert monsters, and a grotesquely pneumatic Hana, didn't last long enough to cause a DNF. A decent side trip, but not something I'd have bothered trying to track down if my partner hadn't bought it....more
This series' combination of humor and horror is getting better as it goes along. Mitsue starts to mentor Miko, and it seems like Miko will be a strongThis series' combination of humor and horror is getting better as it goes along. Mitsue starts to mentor Miko, and it seems like Miko will be a stronger spiritualist than Mitsue is in the long term. New character Rom adds hints of how spiritualism and tech could be used together, while also being kind of a weird and shady guy taking advantage of people who can't perceive the unknown like he can.
There are ways that this is a prototypical shonen manga, between the (thankfully) mild fan service, and the gathering together of a group of allies, each member with their own quirky personality and unique strength to add. Miko and the reader are indoctrinated into a scary world together, and that down-to-earth element adds to its appeal for me....more
Our leads blush a lot and agonize for hours about whether they should hold hands. They might both perish on the spot if they end up thinking about actOur leads blush a lot and agonize for hours about whether they should hold hands. They might both perish on the spot if they end up thinking about actually kissing!
A whole lot of nothing, come down to it, but it's cute.
This is another manga where the mangaka's style has changed quite a bit over the course of its run, though of course it's still very recognizable as the same person's art, down to 95% of the color work being shades of pink and red. :)
I read the Denpa edition translated into English....more
These were short stories or episodes featuring English maids, that Kaoru Mori wrote before her much longer and more popular work, Emma, also featuringThese were short stories or episodes featuring English maids, that Kaoru Mori wrote before her much longer and more popular work, Emma, also featuring a maid as a central character. It's always interesting to see how an author's work changes, and doesn't change, over time. The art and storytelling is nowhere near as refined as with her later work, but even though the art's far less detailed, the stories have the same comfortable, lived-in feeling.
It looks like CMX folded in the US before releasing the second one of these, so this single volume of Shirley is all we're getting, since it also never got a license rescue....more
None of this, including the big reveal about Kyou, breaks the mold, but it's told well enough to keep me interested for seven volumes so far, and I'm None of this, including the big reveal about Kyou, breaks the mold, but it's told well enough to keep me interested for seven volumes so far, and I'm looking forward to the next one.
A minor quibble is that Shiho's band's name was changed from Lorelei to... Laureley? What's going on here? The first name makes a lot more sense.
Takeshima expresses excitement about Whisper Me a Love Song being made into an anime. As of now, it's been delayed until April. I hope they have the opportunity to see their story brought to life....more
Very cute story about a pair of witches, Madge and Ririka, living day-to-day doing odd jobs for the witch agency, and harboring dreams of increasing tVery cute story about a pair of witches, Madge and Ririka, living day-to-day doing odd jobs for the witch agency, and harboring dreams of increasing their rank so they can move up from the tiny single-room apartment they're living in.
Some very minor fanservice at the beginning made me roll my eyes. That settles down near right away, and the rest of this book is endearing, easy reading. As the episodes go along, you see the different kinds of witches and what kinds of abilities they have, and how they fit in with everyday society. There's a smidgen of social commentary in our leads' being one assignment away from going hungry on any given day, or losing their rather pitiful lodging, but the reader can be confident that things will go their way just enough that their living arrangement will live up to the manga's title. :)
I encouraged my partner to buy this one because he likes stories like this. I'm not sure if he's interested in buying more of these, but if he is I'll read it. It isn't in line with my tastes or striking enough for me to take it on myself....more
It was for your own good! I was thinking of your happiness! So why must you make it impossible to contain myself?!!
For a good long time, I thought
It was for your own good! I was thinking of your happiness! So why must you make it impossible to contain myself?!!
For a good long time, I thought Marmalade Boy had held up pretty well, but enough instances like this, and whoo, maybe not. I used to be into Ginta, but now he's kind of scary. He just comes up to a guy on the street and punches him in the face! He thought he was jumping in to Arimi's defense, but it's good to make some attempt to talk it out before the fists start flying, maybe?
Arina Tanemura's characters are even more emotion-crazed than the ones here, so there are more ridiculous shoujo out there, for sure.
We're definitely heading toward the endgame here. Miwa, Kei, and Suzu are minor speed bumps along the way to this or that couple's HEA, but there's no reason to take any of it seriously.
I realized a day or two ago that I can make a little reading list of Ribbon manga from the '90s with my own collection.
Marmalade Boy Gals! Neighborhood Story Full Moon
Something like Hime-chan's Ribbon would be fun, but I wouldn't hold out much hope for that one, since there are only a couple of magical girl stories from that period that anyone remembers now....more
Once again, after a year or two away from a story, I can't remember half of what's going on. It's okay, it isn't like this is full of political compleOnce again, after a year or two away from a story, I can't remember half of what's going on. It's okay, it isn't like this is full of political complexities or anything, and it was easy to catch back up.
Yori and Himari are mostly enjoying the initial stages of their dating relationship, and minor misunderstandings are cleared up by talking with each other. It's really sweet. From what we've seen so far, I don't think things are going to get super spicy in this manga, but I can see a thorny road ahead whenever things might go beyond dates in town, hand-holding, and innocent kisses.
I'm enjoying the little dramas between the band members and am interested in seeing how the tryout results and culture festival play out. Shiina seems like a character whose competitive drive alienates a lot of people around her. The destiny of a Type A... even though I'm a type B, myself, the storytelling makes it easy to sympathize with her....more
This is a great time capsule for anybody who was a manga or anime fan in the 1990s, well before FIOS and instant push-a-button access to everything evThis is a great time capsule for anybody who was a manga or anime fan in the 1990s, well before FIOS and instant push-a-button access to everything ever made. Our MC was 16 in 1995, living through her first crush with the class president (her hormones are aiming high, gotta say. how can she help it though, since he reminds her of Rukawa??) and not-entirely-successfully trying to cover up the fact that she's a huge otaku from classmates who could well be more grossed out about than accepting of her hobby.
She has a pen friend relationship with another otaku who she met through an ad in a print magazine (!), and forms a very reluctant understanding with a classmate whose presentation is unapologetically otaku, down to the needlessly formal diction and anime references in everything she says.
I can get behind this one in a lot of ways, but the art and humor didn't quite work for me. Certainly willing to give the next volume a try....more
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