It is funny we have here a yuri manga about doing a play of a girl who lost her memory trying figure out how to live her life. While at the same time we have Happy amnesia a yuri manga about a girl with amnesia trying figure out how to live her life also running.

It is funny we have here a yuri manga about doing a play of a girl who lost her memory trying figure out how to live her life. While at the same time we have Happy amnesia a yuri manga about a girl with amnesia trying figure out how to live her life also running.

Oh god I love that series. Still waiting for more.

Anyways, it just warms my heart to see this much quality put in to both storytelling and character development. The cast of characters are set pretty early in the series, and every important character has been given the time to grow, and also gives us the time to get invested into these characters. You know majority of their motives, their principles, and it really feels natural. Melodrama is nice, but sometimes I just want down-to-earth drama.

I appreciate Nakatani's work as someone who still loves Citrus but is sick of the constant throwing of new characters to derail the inevitable relationship on top of building up/reinforcing said relationship of the two main characters.

Leave melodrama alone ;_;!!

I'd be surprise they go towards the suicide route, but I believe there'll be a lot of inner turmoil for Touko, on how she will live her life afterwards. I'm loving it

I'm afraid the story will stop after the play. I'd like to see them interact a bit more after that, as new couple, somehow. Well, whatever the author could throw at us!

last edited at Sep 29, 2017 4:00PM

I have a pretty high tolerance for melodrama--that's why I'm a k-drama addict. Coincidence, plot twists, over-the-top emotions--done well, they're great.

But this latest chapter has a good illustration of how this story isn't melodrama. When Yuu and Sayaka's first conversation gets randomly interrupted, a melodrama would ramp up the emotional intensity of the scene by using it as the occasion for a misunderstanding, either between the two of them or by someone (maybe Touko) overhearing them by coincidence, leading to further plot complications.

But the chapter uses it to shift to Sayaka's POV, so that we understand her answer to Yuu's question ("Saeki-senpai, why did you agree to use the new script?") as well as her attitude toward Yuu. Then later the two of them pick up the conversation again, and Sayaka asks but doesn't demand an answer to her own question ("Do you love Touko?").

So two questions asked and zero direct answers given, but the audience now has a much sharper sense of where the characters stand and how they're likely to interact going forward.

last edited at Sep 29, 2017 4:33PM

Saeki fo the win, hell yes! Saeki has some great potential for character development. I hope, she can gather up her courage and confess her love. Yuri triangles are the best kind of triangles.

I am repeating this every time a new chapter appears but... I am so glad I didn't drop this manga in its beginings!
I didn't like it first, but its development of the argument has been incredibly good. The characters are greatly built. I can't wait to see the play!
As someone mentioned before: I think that this is one of the best mangas we have had in the last years.

But this latest chapter has a good illustration of how this story isn't melodrama.

Ah yeah, never said it was. During a discussion with Gudetamago, I noted that the drama tag was absent of this story - this shows how the two are confused for each other, as they pointed to me.

I have a pretty high tolerance for melodrama [...]

I'm glad, I'm not on this website since long ago, but hating on a story each time melodrama appears looks like a trope. Ironically, I can relate to those who do in this particular situation.

Otherwise, I completely agree with what you wrote. I like this story, it has both dramatic and feel good moments, perhaps with less intensity and a bit less obvious than in other stories.

I'd be surprise they go towards the suicide route, but I believe there'll be a lot of inner turmoil for Touko, on how she will live her life afterwards. I'm loving it

There have been quite a few suicide imageries popping up here and there, in ch 23 especially & that last scene with Touko looking down the building this chapter. I'm not exactly sure if it'll be explicitly addressed (as in we will see Touko actually attempting suicide) or will it be kept implicit and subtle as it has been. Like Scarlet said, suicide is a delicate subject so it has to be handled with care. I prefer the implicit approach, but if it turns out to be explicit, I'll trust Nakatani to deliver as well as she has been building up this internal conflict in Touko.

a discussion with Gudetamago

Welp, I left you hanging, didn't I. Sorry, school started again, so I can't find the time to write blogpost responses lol

I'm glad, I'm not on this website since long ago, but hating on a story each time melodrama appears looks like a trope.

Melodrama is often shunned almost everywhere on the internet, not just here on Dynasty.

last edited at Sep 29, 2017 5:43PM

Thank goodness there was no drama. (Not that it would make sense for Nakatani to add any in.)

I am massively frustrated at how modern internet has perverted the classic literary terms. "Drama" is what this manga is all about -- the best kind of drama in fact, the believable, human, character-driven one. Please don't say that this manga has "no drama" when you, in fact, mean "melodrama" and "poorly written and unnecessary complications".

Haha I'll keep that in mind.

Well, there's one thing that's been on my mind: the possibility of Touko's suicide. I kinda doubt this is the route the story is taking, but damn, her emotional & mental state right now is so unstable, if you just consider her character alone without the whole picture of the story, she honestly is someone who is at the brink of doing it.

I was thinking about this and had the horrifying realization that if Touko died, it would mirror her sister's life perfectly. For a variety of reasons, meta and in-story, I don't believe Touko will actually die, but since suicide has been brought up, one route I could see the story going is Touko attempting suicide and failing. Looking at that possibility positively, it could mean she has completed attempting to be her sister and broken out of that cycle in the most decisive way possible, staying alive when her sister is dead, her life fully her own.

Even so, while there has been death and 'future less train' imagery, I don't see Touko as having that much of a desire to die or a lack of will to live. What Yuu and Koito discuss here, is clearly applicable to not just the play but also this story. If Touko does not "make her decision based on what happens to her throughout the course of this play", if "her life during the timeframe of the play meant nothing", I think that would be a wholly unsatisfying ending.

I am worried about her possibly feeling trapped, because no one supports her twisted ideal now and trapped animals/people tend to be the most desperate. But she is contemplating this turn of events seriously. That could mean she will imagine what it is like to play this new role and maybe she'll find it's not as impossible or undesirable as she feels it is. A trial run potentially.

For Sayaka, I'm very happy I was wrong about her keeping the status quo and going along with what Touko wants. The manner in which she acts is very noble too, admitting she was afraid, she didn't act when she could have, and "who am I to interfere?" I don't see any love rivalry going on with her confession; it's the answer to why she agreed to use the new script and an acknowledgement that Yuu is motivated by the same reason.

Yuu is the best. No more needs be said.

Seriously though, if Bloom into You turns into a tragedy, I am going to cry.

Even so, while there has been death and 'future less train' imagery, I don't see Touko as having that much of a desire to die or a lack of will to live.

I am worried about her possibly feeling trapped, because no one supports her twisted ideal now and trapped animals/people tend to be the most desperate. But she is contemplating this turn of events seriously. That could mean she will imagine what it is like to play this new role and maybe she'll find it's not as impossible or undesirable as she feels it is. A trial run potentially.

Back in ch 23, I was thinking the same, that the suicide imageries are more just narrative reminder of the weight of Touko's problem and are more symbolic in nature than actually depicting her starting to harbor suicidal thoughts. But my opinion is kinda shifting with this chapter due to the event that happened in it as well as that ominous last page with yet another suicide imagery. Recall her current situation: the perfect image she has of her sister turns out to be her own projection and not a reality (from her POV), her life goal of living as her sister is losing meaning, her future is unsure, & she doesn't even know who she is as a person. & remember that all these things hit her almost all at once. For someone who has been living and believing in her way of life for so long & who is also drowned in self-hatred, change is a scary thing, leaving her comfort zone is a scary thing. Even when her little "utopia" is falling apart, she still can't really see the possibilities beyond it (& this is why she opposes the changed script so much). I think she is indeed trapped--trapped in her own unhealthy worldview. & now that the two supports she had left in her ideal are turning against her (again, from her POV), I think Touko is at the point of "what's left?" The final page with her just looking down from the building then leaving with a grim face is very evocative of a suicide consideration, IMO. In ch 23, she was able to at least turn to Yuu to help comfort her and clear her from dark thoughts, but here, she's turning to no one.

With how unstable she currently is, I don't think Touko can come to a more optimistic conclusion on her own & even worse, she's too stubborn to really listen to anyone. Logic is not gonna penetrate her head, either. There has to be a big catalyst of some sort that will knock some senses into her so that she can at least come to be more open about slowly leaving behind the life of her sister & applying the play's ending to start her own life again. What it is, I'm not sure. I was speculating about the possibility of some confrontation between her and Yuu that will lead to Yuu breaking down for real for the first time and that will shake her somehow (since part of her development is that she is slowly becoming more considerate of Yuu), but I dunno, just gonna sit back & see how things will turn out.

For Sayaka, I'm very happy I was wrong about her keeping the status quo and going along with what Touko wants. The manner in which she acts is very noble too, admitting she was afraid, she didn't act when she could have, and "who am I to interfere?" I don't see any love rivalry going on with her confession; it's the answer to why she agreed to use the new script and an acknowledgement that Yuu is motivated by the same reason.

Yeh, I think for Sayaka and Yuu, "love allies" is probably a more appropriate term to describe their relationships right now. A friend and I were talking about how the irony in this chapter is that the supposed "love rival" becomes the ally while the one who actually poses a real threat to the relationship is the love interest herself lol

Yuu is the best. No more needs be said.

Simply an angel.

Seriously though, if Bloom into You turns into a tragedy, I am going to cry.

If this series doesn't get a good anime adaptation, I am going to cry.

Even so, while there has been death and 'future less train' imagery, I don't see Touko as having that much of a desire to die or a lack of will to live.

I am worried about her possibly feeling trapped, because no one supports her twisted ideal now and trapped animals/people tend to be the most desperate. But she is contemplating this turn of events seriously. That could mean she will imagine what it is like to play this new role and maybe she'll find it's not as impossible or undesirable as she feels it is. A trial run potentially.

Back in ch 23, I was thinking the same, that the suicide imageries are more just narrative reminder of the weight of Touko's problem and are more symbolic in nature than actually depicting her starting to harbor suicidal thoughts. But my opinion is kinda shifting with this chapter due to the event that happened in it as well as that ominous last page with yet another suicide imagery. Recall her current situation: the perfect image she has of her sister turns out to be her own projection and not a reality (from her POV), her life goal of living as her sister is losing meaning, her future is unsure, & she doesn't even know who she is as a person. & remember that all these things hit her almost all at once. For someone who has been living and believing in her way of life for so long & who is also drowned in self-hatred, change is a scary thing, leaving her comfort zone is a scary thing. Even when her little "utopia" is falling apart, she still can't really see the possibilities beyond it (& this is why she opposes the changed script so much). I think she is indeed trapped--trapped in her own unhealthy worldview. & now that the two supports she had left in her ideal are turning against her (again, from her POV), I think Touko is at the point of "what's left?" The final page with her just looking down from the building then leaving with a grim face is very evocative of a suicide consideration, IMO. In ch 23, she was able to at least turn to Yuu to help comfort her and clear her from dark thoughts, but here, she's turning to no one.

With how unstable she currently is, I don't think Touko can come to a more optimistic conclusion on her own & even worse, she's too stubborn to really listen to anyone. Logic is not gonna penetrate her head, either. There has to be a big catalyst of some sort that will knock some senses into her so that she can at least come to be more open about slowly leaving behind the life of her sister & applying the play's ending to start her own life again. What it is, I'm not sure. I was speculating about the possibility of some confrontation between her and Yuu that will lead to Yuu breaking down for real for the first time and that will shake her somehow (since part of her development is that she is slowly becoming more considerate of Yuu), but I dunno, just gonna sit back & see how things will turn out.

All I know is that chapter 28 will be a rollercoaster. And I can't wait ;w;

Yuu is the best. No more needs be said.

Simply an angel.

I think the fact that Yuu is the best girl has been scientifically established and proven by experiment around here long ago.

last edited at Sep 30, 2017 2:50AM

There have been quite a few suicide imageries popping up here and there, in ch 23 especially & that last scene with Touko looking down the building this chapter.

Speaking of which, there is this line about Touko imagining smelling incense that goes over my head. Is there a particular cultural/symbolic imagery that I'm missing? There's something about burning incense for the dead that comes to mind, but not sure about this.

Welp, I left you hanging, didn't I. Sorry, school started again, so I can't find the time to write blogpost responses lol

No worries, I don't think I added much anyway, mostly rambling.

Melodrama is often shunned almost everywhere on the internet, not just here on Dynasty.

It enhances the trope similarity even more, heh! I'll just have to apply my own advice and ignore the complaints about it being cheap/bad/unnecessary or whatever.

^
As long as we’re mentioning imagery that may or may not be significant, with this latest chapter I keep thinking of the Yuu-to-Sayaka baton relay in Chap. 14. But this feels like it goes the other way—Sayaka in some way passing something (I can’t quite say what, exactly) on to Yuu.

Maybe it’s just that the race prep is where Yuu and Sayaka make their first real connection (the chapter ends with the two of them agreeing that Touko can be a pain), and here they deepen their mutual understanding of one another.

It's so interesting to see the parallels between Sayaka and Yuu's relationship with Touko, and after reading this chapter, I really do think that Yuu is the better love interest for Touko.

Sayaka herself said that she has the same feelings as Yuu--she wants Touko to change because, in the long run, it would be a lot healthier for Touko. But Sayaka also admits that she was afraid of being rejected and was fine just being Touko's best friend because it meant she had a unique relationship with Touko. She was fine with things staying as they are and was willing to let change just happen by itself because she was afraid to lose what she had with Touko. And this showcases just how selfish she actually is. In fact, I would even say she's more selfish than Yuu.

Her last statement when her monologue was over probably clinches my opinion of Sayaka being more selfish, "And who am I to interfere? I wouldn't stoop that low." She views as stepping in to force Touko to change as "low." Like forcing someone to change is terrible because you're forcing what you want on another person. And yes, if the situation was different, I'd be agreeing with Sayaka. But that's not what's happening here, is it?

Touko HAS to change because she's stuck in such an unhealthy cycle of self-abuse and self-loathing. And both Sayaka and Yuu are aware of this, but their ways of approaching it are total opposites. Sayaka simply hoped that things would get better for Touko because it meant less risk of being rejected by Touko, but it also meant allowing the person she loved to continue hurting herself. Yuu took a more proactive route and indirectly made Touko face her inner demons. Was it selfish and even overly self-righteous of Yuu to just change the script without letting Touko know? Oh yeah, definitely. But Yuu realized that she HAD to do that if she wanted Touko to change and become better. It's kind of like forcing someone to enroll in a rehab program/facility. The patient isn't there willingly and is likely in denial that they have a problem, but ultimately, they're getting help that they desperately need. And that's basically what the situation is like for Yuu, Touko, and Sayaka.

I feel like Sayaka said the previously mentioned statement out of disappointment in herself that she wasn't the one who was brave enough to risk it all to help Touko, unlike Yuu. Which brings me to the last couple of pages of this chapter. Sayaka tells Yuu that she loves Touko. I interpret this in two ways--either Sayaka is making some sort of challenge that she will ensure Touko falls for her or Sayaka is subtly admitting to Yuu, herself, and to the audience that Yuu is in the right for forcing Touko to go through with this. If it's the latter, perhaps Sayaka is finally gathering up the courage to make the person she loves confront her problems so she can improve herself? I guess we'll just have to wait and see...

She views as stepping in to force Touko to change as "low."

I'm not saying you're wrong, but I read that whole sequence completely differently. Sayaka acknowledges that both she and Yuu see the need for Touko to change, but Yuu was the one who had the courage to do something about it, so she's not interfering with Yuu's plan to spark a change in Touko. It would be "low" of her to side with Touko's wish to keep the old ending of the play, because she knows that the new one may well turn out to be better for Touko.

So Sayaka's annoucement of her love for Touko is the answer to Yuu's original question: "Saeki-senpai, why did you agree to use the new script?" (That's how I read it, anyway.)

Again, the new version of the play doesn't really force Touko to do anything (so it's not quite the same as enrolling someone in rehab against their will). It's just providing an opportunity to rethink the emotional/psychological box she's put herself in.

last edited at Sep 30, 2017 1:44PM

Speaking of which, there is this line about Touko imagining smelling incense that goes over my head. Is there a particular cultural/symbolic imagery that I'm missing? There's something about burning incense for the dead that comes to mind, but not sure about this.

Yeah, basically. Incense burning is something we do for the dead in some Asian countries, so it is associated with death. The incense is used call back to Mio's death as well as the symbolic death of Touko's own identity when she was a kid as shown in ch 10, while also evoke the imminent danger of her current life heading down the same road.

It enhances the trope similarity even more, heh! I'll just have to apply my own advice and ignore the complaints about it being cheap/bad/unnecessary or whatever.

Just like what you like, really. It's hard to give 0 shits about others' opinions, but it's better to try not getting triggered by them.

As long as we’re mentioning imagery that may or may not be significant, with this latest chapter I keep thinking of the Yuu-to-Sayaka baton relay in Chap. 14. But this feels like it goes the other way—Sayaka in some way passing something (I can’t quite say what, exactly) on to Yuu.

Well, Yuu kinda passes her conviction to help Touko onto Sayaka. & as for Sayaka to Yuu, her confidence in her love for Touko might help Yuu come closer to openly admitting her own feelings.

last edited at Sep 30, 2017 5:08PM

I hope the author replies back to her letter and they start talking and NEW YURI ROMANCE HAPPENS BC WHY NOT

Her last statement when her monologue was over probably clinches my opinion of Sayaka being more selfish, "And who am I to interfere? I wouldn't stoop that low." She views as stepping in to force Touko to change as "low." Like forcing someone to change is terrible because you're forcing what you want on another person. And yes, if the situation was different, I'd be agreeing with Sayaka. But that's not what's happening here, is it?

That's not what she means. The Japanese phrasing is clear: she thinks she'd be pathetic if she were to obstruct Yuu. She thinks what Yuu is doing is good, she wasn't brave enough herself to risk doing something similar, she had a chance to stop Yuu by siding with Touko, but she thinks it would wrong to stop Yuu doing it.

She views as stepping in to force Touko to change as "low."

I'm not saying you're wrong, but I read that whole sequence completely differently. Sayaka acknowledges that both she and Yuu see the need for Touko to change, but Yuu was the one who had the courage to do something about it, so she's not interfering with Yuu's plan to spark a change in Touko. It would be "low" of her to side with Touko's wish to keep the old ending of the play, because she knows that the new one may well turn out to be better for Touko.

So Sayaka's annoucement of her love for Touko is the answer to Yuu's original question: "Saeki-senpai, why did you agree to use the new script?" (That's how I read it, anyway.)

I could see where you're coming from. It would certainly give more clarity to why Sayaka just suddenly admitted to Yuu that she loves Touko. Perhaps by saying it's "low," she's finally admitting that Yuu is right and that if the both of them want Touko to get better, they have to step in and do something about it, whether or not Touko wants them to. It would be "low" to just let things continue as they are simply because it's the status quo at this point.

Again, the new version of the play doesn't really force Touko to do anything (so it's not quite the same as enrolling someone in rehab against their will). It's just providing an opportunity to rethink the emotional/psychological box she's put herself in.

I think you're right, but I DO have to still somewhat use the rehab patient example, but just in a different context. Someone mentioned somewhere on this thread (I would dig it up, but...nah, it's WAY too deep in at this point) that--for a self-loathing person like Touko--she has a unique ability to self-reflect. She's able to look at her behavior and thought processes and at least try to understand why it's wrong. But she always comes to the same conclusion--she HAS to be like Mio, no matter what. So it would kind of be like a rehab patient who KNOWS they have a problem, but they don't want to do anything about it (for whatever reason).

...Actually, why IS Touko putting herself through all this if she knows it's not good for her? Family peer pressure? Probably not, right? Because her parents have even told her she doesn't have to be like Mio.

Her last statement when her monologue was over probably clinches my opinion of Sayaka being more selfish, "And who am I to interfere? I wouldn't stoop that low." She views as stepping in to force Touko to change as "low." Like forcing someone to change is terrible because you're forcing what you want on another person. And yes, if the situation was different, I'd be agreeing with Sayaka. But that's not what's happening here, is it?

That's not what she means. The Japanese phrasing is clear: she thinks she'd be pathetic if she were to obstruct Yuu. She thinks what Yuu is doing is good, she wasn't brave enough herself to risk doing something similar, she had a chance to stop Yuu by siding with Touko, but she thinks it would wrong to stop Yuu doing it.

See above. Yeah, it does make a lot more sense, especially if you take her confession to Yuu at the end of the chapter. I thought it was kind of unusual for her to just blurt that out of nowhere. So it was a mistranslation, then?

...Actually, why IS Touko putting herself through all this if she knows it's not good for her?

Because she hates herself. Self-hatred means that she doesn't care for her own emotional & mental well-being. She also sees herself as inadequate, so only living as someone else can make her feel a bit more worthy as a person, which is why she can't see herself stopping being Mio.

So it was a mistranslation, then?

No, not really. The Japanese phrasing might be a bit clearer, but there's nothing wrong with the TL. I think most understood that Sayaka meant her interfering with Yuu's plan would be a low move. The context of the entire chapter should be enough to help readers come to that reading.

I thought it meant she wouldn't interfere with Touko and Yuu's close relationship because it would be low, I guess she only meant Yuu's new script(?)

Because she hates herself.

But why exactly does she hate herself, and which "self" is it that she hates?

There's what Yuu calls in Chapter 10 "your weak side and your perfect side," which together are what Touko says Yuu accepts: "all of me."

But we actually have:
1) "original Touko": shy, hiding behind her sister.
2) "perfect Touko," which she thought was an imitation of Mio Mk.2, but now has learned is not, at least not entirely.
3) "real Touko": the both sides that Yuu accepts

So does she hate herself for:
"Really" being original Touko all along but faking being Mio Mk.2
Failing to live up to being Mio Mk. 2 (and she thinks putting on the play will fix that)
"Really" being empty inside, like the girl in the play and not actually having an identity at all.
None, all, or some of the above?

She's clearly got some combo of survivor's guilt (if the rock-paper-scissors game had come out differently, she would have been the one killed) and imposter syndrome (where she feels like a fake no matter what she achieves). But it's not so clear what exactly it would take to redress that.

I'd prescribe a regular regimen of GBSs, but that's just me.

That's not what she means. The Japanese phrasing is clear: she thinks she'd be pathetic if she were to obstruct Yuu. She thinks what Yuu is doing is good, she wasn't brave enough herself to risk doing something similar, she had a chance to stop Yuu by siding with Touko, but she thinks it would wrong to stop Yuu doing it.

See above. Yeah, it does make a lot more sense, especially if you take her confession to Yuu at the end of the chapter. I thought it was kind of unusual for her to just blurt that out of nowhere. So it was a mistranslation, then?

Mistranslation, her saying "...And who am I to interfere? I wouldn't stoop that low."? Nah, I think it makes the point pretty clear, since right before she's talking about how she was afraid and Yuu stepped in when she didn't. So she's saying she wouldn't be "low" enough, ie. keep supporting Touko's ideal out of her own self-interest in not being rejected, to interfere with Yuu's attempt to change Touko. So yes she was selfish, but she knows it, and she chooses to side with Yuu despite it.

Back in ch 23, I was thinking the same, that the suicide imageries are more just narrative reminder of the weight of Touko's problem and are more symbolic in nature than actually depicting her starting to harbor suicidal thoughts. But my opinion is kinda shifting with this chapter due to the event that happened in it as well as that ominous last page with yet another suicide imagery.

Assuming the translation is accurate, I'm grasping onto the blurb on the last page, since it only says Touko's mind is clouded with "doubt" and not despair. Touko rejecting the changed play was expected from the very beginning, suicidal thoughts or not, since it is true she doesn't see another way out from her self-imposed cage. However, Yuu has already tried two times to tell her not being like her sister is fine and the second time went marginally better than the first. Although now I'm going to provide evidence against my own opinion. I just remembered in chapter 10, Touko says she would rather die than be told people might like her better as herself. As foreshadowing, that would be way too relevant.

I think Yuu currently is the only person who could be a catalyst for Touko. She and anything related to Mio are the only people who have been shown to have any effect on her. But I worry about what something like Yuu breaking down would show. Touko's commandment to not fall in love with her still stands, not to mention it was made explicit Yuu came up with the revised play.

There is symbolism behind Touko's feelings towards Yuu, as stated in the aquarium chapter. They're a reflection of her acceptance of and willingness to hold onto herself, separate from Mio, and her development of her own personality. There is so much tension or drama currently because those feelings and her clinging to her reality have both been increasing. But you know, another theme which has been consistent in this work is that the trajectories our lives have been following don't have be the end all be all and our feelings and actions can always change. Yuu and Touko start that off; Touko doing a 180 to pursue Yuu instead of being pursued, and Yuu never having fallen in love to now being genuinely in love. Then there's Sayaka never rocking the boat to now firmly stand against Touko's wishes. Riko-sensei preferring men, yet dating Miyako. Koyomi being shaken by the revelation her favorite author wasn't who she expected them to be like, but using that to further drive her passion for writing.

In my experience, people look to death when the path they see ahead of them seems unbearable and, more importantly, unchanging, even though that's often not true. If Touko blooming into Mio was her starting trajectory, then I believe enough has changed, enough has happened to her through the course of the "play" for her to make a new decision. Like I already said before, I cannot see a satisfying ending where Touko does not change, for the exact same reason Yuu gave for why Koyomi's original script didn't feel right. It could also be said stories don't have to be satisfying, but well, that's going to be a hard sell to turn out brilliant work for years just so it can crash at the very end.

It's so hard to say, because other people can do everything they want, but in the end it's up to Touko to choose. People can do surprising things, and Nakatani writes people well.

Well, speculation is fun but guess we'll have to wait and see.

If this series doesn't get a good anime adaptation, I am going to cry.

I know right, they've already made a PV and the voice actors were pretty good. Citrus got an anime adaptation for goodness sake, and that has so much less complexity and so much more melodrama compared to Yagate Kimi ni Naru. Well on the other hand maybe that's what other people like. XD To each their own.

last edited at Oct 1, 2017 1:49PM

So it was a mistranslation, then?

No, not really. The Japanese phrasing might be a bit clearer, but there's nothing wrong with the TL. I think most understood that Sayaka meant her interfering with Yuu's plan would be a low move. The context of the entire chapter should be enough to help readers come to that reading.

I guess I'm just one of the few readers who didn't catch that because it flew WAY over my head when I read it the first time.

Because she hates herself.

But why exactly does she hate herself, and which "self" is it that she hates?

There's what Yuu calls in Chapter 10 "your weak side and your perfect side," which together are what Touko says Yuu accepts: "all of me."

But we actually have:
1) "original Touko": shy, hiding behind her sister.
2) "perfect Touko," which she thought was an imitation of Mio Mk.2, but now has learned is not, at least not entirely.
3) "real Touko": the both sides that Yuu accepts

So does she hate herself for:
"Really" being original Touko all along but faking being Mio Mk.2
Failing to live up to being Mio Mk. 2 (and she thinks putting on the play will fix that)
"Really" being empty inside, like the girl in the play and not actually having an identity at all.
None, all, or some of the above?

She's clearly got some combo of survivor's guilt (if the rock-paper-scissors game had come out differently, she would have been the one killed) and imposter syndrome (where she feels like a fake no matter what she achieves). But it's not so clear what exactly it would take to redress that.

Yeah, that's what I meant in my last question. Why does Touko hate herself so much? But I think you're right. It seems to be a mishmash of various factors: the image of perfection she has of her sister, the sense of inadequacy, the survivor's guilt, the indirect peer pressure from extended family to be "good" like Mio, etc.

And what makes this all the more tragic is that Touko doesn't have to be like this anymore, but she knows she's in too deep to stop and hates how useless (she thinks) she was as a child. She'd rather continue living a lie that just hurts herself (and her family, if her parents are even telling her she doesn't have to be like Mio).

If this series doesn't get a good anime adaptation, I am going to cry.

I know right, they've already made a PV and the voice actors were pretty good. Citrus got an anime adaptation for goodness sake, and that has so much less complexity and so much more melodrama compared to Yagate Kimi ni Naru. Well on the other hand maybe that's what other people like. XD To each their own.

Citrus is good for what it is, but it doesn't have as much depth as Bloom Into You has. Furthermore, BIY's drama is always internal that affects the people around them as opposed to Citrus' "rival, one-off love interest of the week" and "Mei's acting distant again." If this series gets an anime adaption, I hope that it will be made with actual care because listen, if BIY is sparking these kinds of analyses and debates in the comments, it at least deserves that much.