Creative Staff
Story/Art: Kanae Hazuki
Translation: Alethea and Athena Nibley
What They Say
Mei Tachibana was once filled with anxiety over her blossoming relationship with popular boy Yamato Kurosawa. Would she know what to do in a romantic relationship? How would she deal with rivals like Aiko and Megumi, while handling her own insecurities? Mei’s managed to get over her fears with Kai’s help, but now Kai has an unexpected confession to make that might throw everything back into doubt…
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
The volume starts off a little slow this time around, with the characters making some small talk. However, the conversation between Mei and Kai quickly hits a point where the boy actually confesses his feelings. Kai at least prevents an overflow of unnecessary drama by following this up with telling Yamato as well. Furthermore, Megumi tries to stir the pot by telling Yamato about this, but he simply brushes her off. Asami and Aiko also tell off Megumi a bit more when she tries to push to do something without Mei. However, this does trigger a look into Megumi’s past, which actually adds a lot to her character.
Continuing on, Yamato invites Mei to go on an overnight trip with him to Land during the summer. Megumi also continues to make more and more of a mess of her relationships. Asami then informs her friends that she and Takeshi were having a bit of a rough patch, as he was hanging out with another girl without telling her. Mei and Aiko then lay into the boy, probably more than a little too intensely. Fortunately, Mei at least gets called out on being hypocritical considering she’s doing the exact same thing with Kai. This then allows for a really good moment between the two old friends.
Finally, as the volume winds down, Mei and Yamato head out to Land together. But when Yamato’s sister forces her way along, will it mean an early end to their romantic getaway?
In Summary
Things are back on track once more with this volume, with plenty of great moments. In particular, Kai and Yamato have a great scene together that’s really nice for both of their characters. Megumi also actually gets some good flashbacks that do a ton to help develop her. There is a slightly awkward moment where Mei calls out another character hypocritically, but the volume is at least smart enough to realize that and use it. Even the ending is quite charming and a nice setup for the next entry. It may not necessarily be a volume to blow people away, but it’s certainly good enough to be worth a read.
Content Grade: B+
Art Grade: B-
Packaging Grade: B+
Text/Translation Grade: B+
Age Rating: 16+
Released By: Kodansha Comics
Release Date: February 10th, 2015
MSRP: $10.99