Summer Break Means Swimsuits
Creative Staff
Story: Mitsuki Mihara
Art: MonRin
Translation: Jill Morita
What they say
After the conclusion of the Nine School Competition, summer arrives in force, bringing with it that most precious salvation for students—vacation! Shizuku invites Tatsuya, Miyuki, and their friends to her family’s villa for a bit of fun in the sun, but all of this is just a pretext to set the perfect tropical stage for Honoka’s romance. Meanwhile, the ace of Third High, Masaki, entertains Kichijou at his home, unaware of his partner’s struggle with self-doubt. Shun finds himself playing bodyguard to a beautiful foreigner, and Eimi is cornered for a secret she can’t reveal at any cost. The one who’s got it toughest, though, is Mayumi, who’s desperate to find the next student council president before time runs out!
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
The Nine Schools Competition has ended, life has returned to normal—as normal as it gets for a pair of magical siblings who act more like lovers—and volume 5 is an odd combination of interesting and bland.
While I didn’t dislike this latest volume, I did find some of the chapters to be tedious. The biggest reason for this is because aside from the first and last chapters, each chapter involves a minor character who plays no significant role in the series. Morisaki Shun only appeared at the beginning of volume 1. You may—or may not—remember him as one of the people who confronted Tatsuya over hogging his sister’s attention. Another involves Eimi, who we’ve only really heard about a few times. Neither chapter is bad in and of themselves, but I can’t say I was really interested in their stories either. My only hope is that these chapters will expand into future plot threads later on in the series.
The first chapter is probably the strongest of the bunch. Shizuku invites Miyuki, Tatsuya, and the rest of their friends to her family’s vacation island—yes, island—for bit of fun in the sun. However, the real reason for this vacation is not simple fun and games. She’s planning to help her friend Honoka steal Tatsuya’s heart! The only thing potentially standing in their way is Tatsuya’s sister complex and his sister, Miyuki.
I’m really conflicted about the relationship between Tatsuya and Miyuki, which I think stems from the fact that they actually make a good couple. This wouldn’t be a problem if they weren’t siblings. However, since they are related by blood, it makes the incest moments incredibly awkward. On the other hand, if done right, it could create a lot of future conflicts, and there are plenty of anime, manga, light novels that have done this before.
Chapter 1 does an excellent job of expanding on the history between Tatsuya and Miyuki. We learn some new information that explains why Miyuki is so dedicated to her brother. He saved her. I’m not sure when, but at some point before the beginning of this series, he saved her when she was dying, and because of this, Miyuki believes that her very existence belongs to Tatsuya. I think this is a bit extreme. However, I’m also aware that I’m not Miyuki, and I don’t know the full story. Perhaps a more clear understanding of Miyuki’s dedication toward her brother will reveal itself later in the series.
I have to hand it to Tsutomu Sato for actually having Honoka confess during this chapter; it’s rare to have characters confess so early in a light novel series—a medium where characters can romantically walk around each other for over a dozen volumes without a single confession. The situation was handled delicately enough that I feel like both Tatsuya and Honoka were properly represented. Honoka also learned that Tatsuya can’t feel emotions like love, which is why he turned her down.
There is an issue with the pacing in this volume. It’s very long for a volume in which nothing really happens. Tatsuya and Miyuki go to the beach, Morisaki Shun protects some girl, Eimi is attacked by people from the branch family of her relatives in Britain, Kichijou and Masaki spend time with the Ichijou family, and the last chapter involves Tatsuya helping Mayumi convince Azusa Nakajou to become the student council president. A whole lot of very little happens for a volume that’s 254 pages long.
In Summary
This volume was interesting because it deals with events that didn’t happen in the anime, which I watched back when it was simulcasting on Crunchyroll. Some new events happen that shed light on our characters, and we get to see what other characters who aren’t part of the main cast are doing. That said, some of this volume is tedious to read for that very reason. While I enjoyed it, I feel like spending three chapters on side characters might make some people displeased or at least grow bored.
Content Grade: C+
Art Grade: B+
Packaging Grade: B
Text/Translation Grade: A+
Age Rating: 13 & UP
Released By: Yen On
Release Date: August 22nd, 2017
MSRP: $14.00
