The (conductor) prince and the (pianist) pauper
Creative Staff:
Story & Art: Tomoko Ninomiya
Translation & Adaptor: Derek & Eriko Walsh
Lettering: Michaelis/Carpelis Design
What They Say:
The son of a famous pianist, music student Shinichi Chiaki dreams of studying abroad and becoming a conductor like his mentor. Unfortunately, his fear of flying grounds his lofty plans! As he watches other classmates achieve what he has always wanted, Shinichi wonders if he should quit music altogether. Then one day he meets fellow student Megumi Noda, also known as Nodame. This oddball girl cannot cook, clean, or even read a music score, but she can play the piano in incomparable Cantabile style. And she teaches Chiaki something that he has forgotten: to enjoy his music, no matter where he is.
The Review:
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
Odd couples are always fun to watch, and Nodame Cantabile is no exception. We’re first introduced to Shinichi Chiaki—an egotistical violinist/pianist that aims to become a conductor. Having been raised abroad as a musician, Shinichi is as arrogant as they come. In contrast, Megumi Noda (“Nodame”) is an incredibly laid back, messy slob of a pianist, playing among literal piles of trash simply because she’s too lazy to clean her apartment. The two can’t be any more different and that’s what makes the setup so endearing.
As the two’s worlds collide, Shinichi ends up playing alongside Nodame, the former conducting the latter’s musical performances. As expected, Nodame ends up revealing she has a talent not just for piano-playing, but picking up on music after simply listening to it. The two go through the typical “odd couple” scenarios of learning from the other’s quirks, as opposite in nature as they may be. But what really defines this first volume is how author Tomoko Ninomiya handles the sexual tension between them.
Rather than making the series a straight shojo or straight seinen, Ninomiya does her best to blend the two genres. The story so far is less of a story and more of a series of quirky interactions between two characters, occasionally aided by a third less important character (maybe you’ll get more characterization next volume, Mine!). As Shinichi slowly begins to accept the less rigid playing styles of the musicians he conducts, Nodame develops a more rigid sense to her piano-playing. The two complement each other, but whether or not such can transition well romantically is still up for debate. Instead of the typical shojo route of staying as far away from verbal love confessions as possible, Nodame ends up admitting her love for Shinichi nearly from the get-go, her jovial nature serving as that level of uncertainty—we don’t know just how serious she is about Shinichi, and Shinichi has yet to bring it up himself, but it’s that dynamic that serves as the driving factor thus far.
In addition to the series’ atypical approach to romance, we also get something of a reversal when it comes to character archetypes. As unlikeable as Shinichi is initially made out to be, characters Nodame and Mine are far more needy. Nodame and Mine are dreamers by nature, but because of such, their day-to-day is incredibly irresponsible, resulting in Shinichi serving as the den-mother that bails them out of any fixes they get into. It’s this added layer of expectation-reversal that makes the odd-couple shenanigans all the more compelling.
In Summary:
The first volume of Nodame Cantabile introduces an interesting enough premise without much of a story or even overall theme to go off of. Shinichi and Nodame are the perfect opposites of each other and from there, the interactions form the majority of the manga. It’s not much to go off of, but it is enough for me to give a chance on later volumes.
Content Grade: B
Art Grade: B
Packaging Grade: A
Text/Translation Grade: A
Age Rating: Teen
Released By: Kodansha Comics via ComiXology
Release Date: July 26, 2016
MSRP: $10.99
