It really was a head-turner in many ways: a colorful, female-heavy cast, unconventional topic, plenty of quality character drama, unusual art, no forced romance or any sort of physical fights as a means to move the plot forward—and at the same time it dutifully adhered to the basic shonen sensibilities, such as rivalry and continuous progress on the path towards fulfilling a grand ambition. It was, to use a term coined in Bakuman, an excellent example of a non-battle battle manga; a rare case of a purely character-driven shonen work that was neither a romcom nor a slice-of-life.
Alas, with the author arrested for the dubious hobby of groping middle-schoolers while passing them on a bike, the manga was promptly axed. The illustrator who worked with him allegedly decided against continuing it on her own, unlike what would normally be expected when one drops out of a writer/illustrator collaboration. A rational, respectable decision on her part, though sad nonetheless, since the story was essentially terminated midways, with no advance notice or even a semblance of a closure. It deserved so much more.
Oh well. If the prospect of reading a promising story that will never be completed does not turn you off, do read it. What we've had up to this day was wonderful. But perhaps we can get Oshi no Ko to fill some of that void?
