Manga I've been reading recently

I’ve been on a bit of a kick catching up on some manga I used to read, but for whatever reason — life, work, or just other distractions — I never fully finished.

Recently, I went back to finish Seitokai Yakuindomo, which is a hilarious four-panel comedy about the student council of a previously all-girls school that has now been converted into a co-ed institution. The manga plays off the humorous situations arising from the female characters’ often naïve or very honest views on romance, relationships, and all sorts of topics. It’s surprising to me that Seitokai Yakuindomo never got an official English release, especially considering that more mature or risky manga (like Berserk) have been published in the West for years. Still, maybe some of the humor in Seitokai Yakuindomo would be difficult to localize.

The series ran for many years, and I finally caught up with the last chapters. For the most part, it maintained the same comedic tone that the author established in his previous works - like Idol no Akahon (whose characters make appearences in Seitokai Yakuindomo) or Imouto wa Shishunki.

The ending felt a bit anticlimactic. The final few chapters focus on the student council trying to preserve a cherry blossom tree that holds sentimental value for the council members. It feels like a rush to an end, almost as if the manga was being wrapped up too quickly. Some of the “will-they-won’t-they” dynamics between characters — especially between the main character, Takatoshi, and the student council president, Shino — never fully came to fruition, which left me a little disappointed. At least there is a scene in one of the several OVAs¹ where Shino admits her feelings and came close to confessing to Takatoshi

I also recently checked out Suki x Suki, which I found through a manga review by BrokenDaydream94 on YouTube. It’s a shorter series, probably about 30-40 chapters. The story revolves around a girl who, after a childhood friendship with the main character, harbors feelings for him but acts distant because of past misunderstandings. In middle school, they were harassed by other boys asking if they were dating, and the girl rejected the idea, and then she began to treat him coldly. However, deep down, she was in love with him. In the first chapter, she regrets her current behavior and wishes she could be honest with her feelings. Eventually, she gains the ability to turn invisible, which allows her to secretly follow him. The manga is interesting because it shows two sides of her — when she’s visible, she’s rude and mean, but when invisible, she’s completely in love with him, even showing obsessive tendencies. Despite its brevity, I really enjoyed the story, especially the ending where the main character realizes he loves her too, and they end up together in a sweet, lovey-dovey conclusion.

Another manga I caught up with recently is Blend S. I originally watched the anime on Crunchyroll, which is a comedic series about a high school girl named Maika who struggles to find a part-time job because of her intimidating smile. She’s recruited by an Italian man named Dino, who manages a café where the waitresses take on specific personas, like “tsundere”, “older sister”, or “idol.” Maika is a perfect fit for the “sadistic” persona, which leads to a lot of funny and awkward situations. I went back and read the manga from the start, it was just as enjoyable as the anime. The story wraps up nicely with Dino and Maika becoming a couple and living in Italy.

Finally, I’ve also gotten into MF Ghost, a manga that serves as a quasi-sequel to Initial D. I’ll probably go into more detail about it in a separate article, since there is a lot to discuss. I’ve been enjoying it in both the manga and the anime which started last year.

The story revolves around the concept of a professional racing series that takes place on the mountain pass, which feels like an evolution of the story of its predecessor. I’ve purchased a few volumes on Amazon, which I’m grateful for, as they offered the first few volumes for free through their Prime subscription, up until the October 2023 I hadn’t read any of MF Ghost before.

It’s an entertaining series, though I’m not sure it’s going to inspire many people to get into cars the way Initial D did. That said, it’s a fun read for anyone who likes racing and a good action-packed plot.

Lastly, I’ve also been reading Gekkan Shoujo Nozaki-kun, another manga I first discovered as an anime and have purchased the volumes ever since the conclusion of the anime. It’s a slice-of-life comedy that focuses on the antics of high school girl Chiyo, who confesses her feelings to her classmate Nozaki, only to discover that he’s actually a popular shoujo manga artist, and she ends up becoming his assistance. The manga is full of humorous misunderstandings and absurd situations, it’s one of those feel-good, endlessly funny series that I can’t help but enjoy.