Jul 21, 2020
Story- (9/10)
On the surface, it appears to be a seemingly simple, and rather cliched story about an ordinary girl falling in love with the popular guy. However, it quickly unfolds into a tale about love, death, what moves us and what doesn't.
It deals with a lot of themes, and it explores them wonderfully over the course of the main characters' journey from mere teenagers to adults. This is done through, a beautiful narrative, analogies, parallels and metaphors.
The author ditches the linear progress of the story in favour of showcasing the same themes or events throughout multiple perspectives. It deals a lot in flashbacks,
...
and heart-wrenching monologues.
It has its fair share of drama, and it required conviction to sit through, so be warned. It has a tendency to get dark, and it doesn't shy away from delving into some truly tragic things.
Despite this, it sticks true to its core themes and sees them through to the end. It may get truly heart-breaking or simply infuriating at times, but in comparison to the overall execution, they may easily be ignored.
It may have a shoujo tag, but it handles details and concepts akin to a Josei. And if you stick with the story till the end, you will truly find yourself basking in its beauty. (However, I recommend you avoid this if you don't enjoy long dramas, especially since this is 70 chapters long, and there is a lot of heart break in between)
Art- (5/10)
The art is fairly simple, and rather distracting in the beginning. The proportions of hands and eyes truly set me of in the beginning. But, in its defence the art improves troughout the story, and compared to the beginning the final chapters are drawn quite well.
There isn't much in way of background and such, but a great amount of detail went into character expressions, which I appreciate.
Overall, not the best art-styble, but its no hinderance to the story and it does get better.
Character- (8/10)
Initially you are introduced to a seemingly cliched cast of characters, however, they quickly break out of their moulds, and develop stories of their own.
Most of the main cast starts out flawed, but each is awarded their own personal development arc, which is intervoven into the main narrative. I think this is especially true for the male lead, Yano who has the most significant character arc among the main characters.
I do feel like the side characters are dealt a bad hand in terms of character development. I feel like Takeuchi is by far the biggest victims to this. This is remedied somewhat by giving us a glimpse of his perspective and his experiences.
All characters are supplied with complex and humane motifs. Even if, their reasons are never explicitly stated, the story compensates for it, by giving us some perspective into their experiences and human behaviour (and its general unpredictability).
Enjoyment- (9/10)
I didn't quite know how to rate this. Would you consider crying through the majority of the story as enjoyment?
At times the story, can truly frustrate you, and it can just as easily sadden you. But, if you look at the bigger picture, you truly come to care for the characters. Even as ii begins to stetch too much in the middle, you are constantly invested in the lives kf these people.
It also has come light-hearted moments here and there but for the majority its tapers towars seriousness, especially in the second part.
Overall- (9/10)
Overall, the drama gets too heavy at timeas, and translation errors may dilute the true impact of the dialogue. At times, you will feel like certain arcs can be avoided altogether and the art-style is distracting initially. Not to mention minir characters are generally not given roo much importance.
However, as far as shoujo mangas so, the drama here feels purposeful (and not just for the sake of drama). As the story progresses, you are given more insight into characters behaviours and how the themes tie in with the plot of the manga.
It also doesn't spoon feed you the story, ans rather, lets experiences and parallels do the job for you.
As you reach the conclusion, you tend to let go of the major issues and just immerse yourself in the story thats being told.
It deals with its theme beautifully, and the repetition and Narrative devices make the story feel whole.
This is, however, not for everyone. It brutal in the way it plays with your emotions and lays the realities bear. Its also somewhat dark in the way it plays out, so be warned. However, if you have the stomach for it, completing the series ir worth it.
Note- Part 1 reference to the story taking place in high school, uptil chapter 23 whereas part 2 references to all subsequent chapters till the end.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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