Blue Box, Vol. 14 | By Kouji Miura | Viz Media – At last, this sports manga has returned to being a sports manga. Not that romance is not still part of this, but the bulk of the book is devoted to either new first-years in the clubs or the sports festival. The new first-years include a younger brother who deliberately went to a different school to get out from his brother’s shadow, and a young girl who is clumsy but earnest, and who seems to really like Taiki a lot right away. Or, well, so it appears. And let’s not even get into Ayame dealing with the horrors of having to actually pursue a guy she likes rather than be pursued. As for the sports, Taiki gives off the appearance of a newbie, and there are jokes about people mistaking him for a first year, but when it comes to badminton skills he wipes the floor with the new kids. Good stuff. – Sean Gaffney
Bocchi the Rock!, Vol. 6 | By Aki Hamazi | Yen Press – As with the previous volume, this is also a manga of two halves, though thankfully both halves are on the funny side. In the first half, Nijika decides to have a party/concert for her sister’s birthday, but struggles to come up with enough bands to fill out the bill. In the second half, Kita has “run away from home,” as her mother is objecting to her listing musician as a career, for sensible reasons, and also feels that this Gotou boy is a very bad influence on her daughter, which is wrong but also hilarious, especially when Bocchi actually shows up, and proceeds to be… herself. The other big thing in this book is we see Hiroi sober for the first time, and, well, she’s Bocchi. She’s Bocchi, and has found that alcohol is the cure for that. Sure feels like a lead-up to a spinoff. Good fun. – Sean Gaffney
I’m Here, Beside You, Vol. 1 | By TEA natsuno | Yen Press – Ibuki Doi learns that Mikami Baba, the boy he was in love with in high school and whom he had assumed was straight, is marrying a man. This news spurs him to get massively drunk, after which he wakes up in the past with a chance to do things over again. I normally like these kinds of stories, so I’m Here, Beside You was an instant purchase for me. Unfortunately, it was merely okay. One factor is that Ibuki quickly becomes frustrating as a protagonist, but the bigger issue is that halfway through there is an out-of-nowhere revelation that Mikami’s sister is going to be murdered soon. Given the utter lack of foreshadowing, it feels like an editorial course correction. Does the story get more interesting after this? Admittedly, yes. Enough so that I will read the second and concluding volume, at least, but I remain disappointed. – Michelle Smith
Rainbows After Storms, Vol. 2 | By Luka Kobachi | Viz Media – I’m not sure how long the “we need to reintroduce the series for new readers every chapter” thing is going to go on, but I hope it’s not for the entire series, because trust me, I know that the two of them are dating but they’re keeping it a secret from everyone else, and I also know that if you cut out the panels telling us that, this volume would be much shorter. It’s good otherwise, though, with Chidori being the one worried about their relationship this time around, as she fears that Nanoha had a past male crush, and is too afraid of what the answer is to ask about it. That doesn’t really get resolved, but we do have a lot of cute G-rated yuri situations, and I’d happily recommend it to those who like their wlw romance on the mild side. – Sean Gaffney
You Talk Too Much, So Just Shut It Already!, Vol. 1 | By Shunpei Morita and Aldehyde | One Peace Books – Tsukino Hiiragi has just transferred to a new middle school, which would be challenging enough, but she’s also deaf. Resigned to being lonely, she’s taken by surprise when her classmate Taiyo Enomoto instantly befriends her. While Tsukino can read lips, she communicates through writing and sign language. Taiyo communicates by constantly talking. Misunderstandings abound, in part because Taiyo believes language barriers can be overcome by sheer willpower and enthusiasm. This… is definitely not the case. But thanks to Tsukino’s charming nature and Taiyo’s incredible kindheartedness, things do generally work out in the end, even if both of them are completely confused. Some of the scenarios that play out in the series are rather silly—the creators don’t hesitate to favor comedy over realism—but the characters are earnest and the heart of the story is authentic. The first volume is funny and endearing; I look forward to reading more. -Ash Brown
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