”I want him to notice me. I want him to look my way and see that I’m here.”
Creative Staff:
Story and Art: Naoshi Arakawa
Translation: Alethea and Athena Nibley
Lettering: Scott Brown
Editing: Haruko Hashimoto
What They Say:
INTERRUPTED TIME
After successfully performing a piece imbued with his mother’s memories, Kosei overcomes his trauma and seems stronger than ever. But for Kaori, the gala concert was spent bedridden at the hospital. Her second hospitalization, nearly back-to-back with her previous one, exacerbates Kosei’s fears. Even then, he continues to practice piano. But one day, on the way to his music lessons, a strange girl falls into Kosei’s life—what will he do?!
The Review:
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
Your Lie in April acts similarly to a sports manga, with each performance acting as a game, and character motivations ranging from “the comeback kid” to “the angsty rival.” That said, the series also faces the same challenges as a sports manga, primarily in figuring out exactly what to do during the down-time between major performances.
The volume starts off strongly, continuing Tsubaki’s character growth as she further comes to grips with her emotions and general place in life. While she’s an athlete like Watari, she struggles to balance that identity with her own femininity, exploring such through dating Sawabe-senpai. And while that relationship itself eventually crumbles, it serves the greater purpose of allowing Tsubaki to prioritize what she finds important—in this case, her relationship with Kosei.
Knowing that Kosei is considering schools out of the country to pursue a career in music, Tsubaki is only now realizing that she holds the relationship she has with him dearly, never once considering that he would ever leave her. So once the possibility is finally verbalized, not only does she consider how she feels about Kosei, but she also begins to consider her own place in life. Seeing someone as broken as Kosei rise up and move forward from his own tragedies, it suddenly feels strange for Tsubaki, as she notes that she’s the only one of her friends that hasn’t had any signs of progression in her own life. For a single chapter, it’s deeply personal and introspective.
Sadly, it also makes the rest of the volume feel tame in comparison.
With no musical competition in the near future to prepare for, the majority of the volume focuses on Kosei taking on a pupil by the name of Nagi Aizato. Like Ken before her, Nagi acts as a younger equivalent to Kosei, still keeping to the idea that a performer must be slave to the notes that lay in front of them. She as a new character is fine enough, but it just never comes off as endearing or personal in comparison to previously introduced characters. And while the twist about who she’s related to serves as a nice final note to end the volume on, it’s clear that that alone was her character’s main role.
Meanwhile, we’re also given some insight as to how Kaori’s been while at the hospital. From what we see, her mood has been clearly having some peaks and valleys, all in relation to how Kosei has been in his own life lately; the chemistry between the two is as solid as it’s ever been. And while the looming parallels between Kaori’s condition and Kosei’s mother’s condition are beginning to make themselves known, the sense of urgency never feels as immediate as it should be. Scenes where Kaori suddenly falls due to her legs no longer working don’t hold as much drama as they intend to, as the scenes are immediately played alongside Kosei serving as sensei to Nagi. It doesn’t help that the cast as a whole has been spending more time apart than together as of late, making each character’s arc feel a lot more disjointed since there is no current overarching story to bring everything together.
In Summary:
Volume 8 of Your Lie in April starts strong, continuing Tsubaki’s journey as she muddles through her own personal drama and character growth, only to immediately shift tones. Now with Kosei taking on Nagi as a pupil, and the rest of the characters on their own separate journeys, the story feels unfocused, transitioning toward whatever the next upcoming performance is without much in regard to things like dramatic revelations. Nonetheless, the change in tone is appreciated, if only for the sake of pacing.
Content Grade: B-
Art Grade: A
Packaging Grade: A
Text/Translation Grade: A
Age Rating: 13+
Released By: Kodansha Comics
Release Date: July 5, 2016
MSRP: $10.99