It's a fuck up because, again, Mei is not an emotionally stable person. Her whole deal is trying to live up to people's expectations and such. She has trouble even recognizing what she wants and yet, he let this fucked up person take over his responsibilities because he needed to chase butterflies. As adults, we sometimes have to do things we don't really want, because that's what being responsible means. Letting your unstable daughter in charge of your fucking responsibility is not responsible and I won't fucking let it slide. All this fucking drama is in great part his to blame

What does that even mean? How is Mei more emotionally unstable than any other character in this story? She isnt emotionally unstable, at least not to the point that she is incapable of making her own decisions. She chose her path, Shou didnt do it for her. He has absolutely no blame in what she is doing now, its entirely on her.

There is a bit of irony in this too. Shou is the adult and therefore must be the one to give up on his dreams and settle down to take over tbe school? Then what about Mei? When she becomes an adult is that when she should break up with Yuzu, find a husband, have a family and then inherit the school from her father? Why should either of them be forced to do any of these? Why can't they both follow their true dreams instead of having to settle living under gandpas shadow?

Oh wow waited like crazy for nothing i Think I'll quit this shitshow now

Congratulations, you're the #1337 leaver! Please take your cookie but remember... We'll be waiting for you to come back to tell us how horrible this story is and how much you hate and will never read it again!

LANCB

So after reading the translated version, now I am starting to think Harumin does like Yuzu. Her behaviour as a supposed best friend is starting to seem way too suspicious, it's been months of Yuzu being sad and she is not talking to Yuzu about her problems "because they are best friends"? Right.

Well, from my point of view, the main problem with the execution of the storytelling in this manga is that it’s often not clear if certain scenes or events are supposed to be about characterization or if they’re simply done for the convenience of the plot.

So Harumin’s hanging back could be about her feelings for Yuzu, or it could be a device to set up a later big emotional confrontation scene, or it could just be keeping the two friends apart so that Yuzu suffers alone.

Depending on how you view such scenes, Citrus can come off as subtle, or just haphazard.
(Sometimes it seems to me like one, and sometimes the other, which puts me in the “it’s often goofy and flawed, but interesting enough to keep reading” camp.)

last edited at Apr 19, 2018 9:30AM

Why should either of them be forced to do any of these? Why can't they both follow their true dreams instead of having to settle living under gandpas shadow?

No one is being forced to do anything really. The issue is more that they can't deal with the consequences of their choices for now. Namely being probably ostracized by their own family and losing financial security as a consequence. Even Yuzu cannot. The ideal tactic here is to simply prevent any arranged marriage on Mei's end and for them to not come out to their family until they are adults. But Mei is dumb af so...

it's been months of Yuzu being sad

Where is this? I saw someone mention a time skip in the forums but saw no evidence of one in the story.

Where is this? I saw someone mention a time skip in the forums but saw no evidence of one in the story.

I think the fact that Matsuri joined the school and also several other pointers about it being the start of a new school year have been pointed out as proof there was a 6-7 months timeskip.

I just realized that EVERY single chapter has 'Love' in its title

Oh wow waited like crazy for nothing i Think I'll quit this shitshow now

Congratulations, you're the #1337 leaver! Please take your cookie but remember... We'll be waiting for you to come back to tell us how horrible this story is and how much you hate and will never read it again!

This with Nezchan's link XD

But seriously, if people hate the story so much, why bother reading it? Why come here and waste your time venting your frustrations? Go buy a punching bag or something lol

Although, I have to admit 16 pages is a bit disappointing, I still believe this isn't a story to read chapter by chapter. But I can't wait the full volume to be published to read everything, argh. Even BiY had transition chapter :3

Yes, I was dissapointed tbh. But agree with you, this ain't a chapter by chapter story.

last edited at Apr 19, 2018 10:36AM

So Harumin’s hanging back could be about her feelings for Yuzu, or it could be a device to set up a later big emotional confrontation scene, or it could just be keeping the two friends apart so that Yuzu suffers alone.

Low-key calling what's gonna happen next: Sara/Nina come over for the weekend, Yuzu spills the beans, Sara believes it's on her to re-unite them (with all her belief in destiny) so she nudges Yuzu into action and meets up with Mei to talk to her. Mei accepts because she is very warm towards Sara and believes she "owes" her for breaking up with her a year before. Sara convinces Mei to act.

BUT here is a very likely plot twist: we will see a version of what happened for them to get together but reversed. Mei will struggle to get her feelings across to Yuzu, and by the time she says "ok I cancelled everything, let's get back together" Yuzu will be like "I'm sorry but I just accepted dating someone else". That someone else is Harumin of course, who got pushed by Matsuri to finally act. Last arc begins with the final boss fight for Yuzu's heart between Mei and Harumin.

last edited at Apr 19, 2018 11:19AM

Low-key calling what's gonna happen next: Sara/Nina come over for the weekend, Yuzu spills the beans, Sara believes it's on her to re-unite them (with all her belief in destiny) so she nudges Yuzu into action and meets up with Mei to talk to her. Mei accepts because she is very warm towards Sara and believes she "owes" her for breaking up with her a year before. Sara convinces Mei to act.

BUT here is a very likely plot twist: we will see a version of what happened for them to get together but reversed. Mei will struggle to get her feelings across to Yuzu, and by the time she says "ok I cancelled everything, let's get back together" Yuzu will be like "I'm sorry but I just accepted dating someone else". That someone else is Harumin of course, who got pushed by Matsuri to finally act. Last arc begins with the final boss fight for Yuzu's heart between Mei and Harumin.

I had the same thought about the very first part—what is Sara’s role if not as an emotional “fixer”?—although at this point the second part would require too many pieces to fall in just the right way for me to put any money on it.

It’s not totally implausible, though, because of that character/plot thing I was talking about—we don’t have a definitive read on Harumin’s sexual/romantic inclinations one way or the other, so it might go the way you say or, for all we know, she could end up with Cafe-Owner-kun.

As I’ve been saying all along, somebody’s going to step up to break the logjam, but when speculating about who, how, and how many it might be, we have an embarrassment of riches.

Harumin saying she isnt going to do anything is not progress. Its the opposite. And the twins arent back, it was a phone call saying they will be back evetually, no actual progress took place in these 16 pages, we are exactly where we started.

I think you are misunderstanding Harumin's character is you truly believe that. Harumins has always been one to try and blend into the background, to avoid direct confrontations always she can, this gives her an insight that the other characters lack. Her deciding to wait until Yuzu decides to talk is the logical course of action for her character, she knows something is up but she also knows that unless Yuzu chooses to trust on them and tell what is going on, their involvement would only make things worse. This also shows how she and Matsuri compliment each other since Matsuri is the type to rush head first into the situation but she doesn't know what to do afterwards. I can't tell you what will happen next but the entire scene is there to set up Harumin and Matsuri roles in future chapters.

The mere fact the twins are coming is just enough to show the story is progressing but here's the thing, secondary plot hooks are the ones developing, not the Yuzu one. You might not be happy with it but is progress nonetheless.

you guys prediction not gonna happen.since Su is mystery like Mei.she never cease to surprise us in every chapter,like who have predicted Mei will leave Yuzu through a letter & almost a year time skip plus this chapter showing Sara is coming back.

It’s not totally implausible, though, because of that character/plot thing I was talking about—we don’t have a definitive read on Harumin’s sexual/romantic inclinations one way or the other, so it might go the way you say or, for all we know, she could end up with Cafe-Owner-kun.

So my reason for thinking she is the final boss is based on what Sabu has done so far, there is method to her madness lol

I think Harumin is the wildcard of the story and that's not a coincidence. Sabu is inconsistent in characterization because she makes every character ultimately exist only to move the YuzuMei plot forward. Harumin is the only character that has so far not contributed to the YuzuMei plot directly (as helper or rival). I thought before she would be used to be the "relationship fixer", since Matsuri went from rival to helper but is unskilled in helping. But Sara is clearly going to be the "relationship fixer". In that case, what is Harumin in the story for?

Also if the plot is being developed on the fly, and is meant to sell the manga, I can't see a plot twist that would sell more than Harumin being final boss. She was made to be a super loved character among the fans, it's like the ultimate drama unless they truly want to end things with a wedding crash.

last edited at Apr 19, 2018 3:22PM

I think you are misunderstanding Harumin's character is you truly believe that. Harumins has always been one to try and blend into the background, to avoid direct confrontations always she can, this gives her an insight that the other characters lack. Her deciding to wait until Yuzu decides to talk is the logical course of action for her character, she knows something is up but she also knows that unless Yuzu chooses to trust on them and tell what is going on, their involvement would only make things worse. This also shows how she and Matsuri compliment each other since Matsuri is the type to rush head first into the situation but she doesn't know what to do afterwards. I can't tell you what will happen next but the entire scene is there to set up Harumin and Matsuri roles in future chapters.

How is it a misunderstanding of the character just for pointing out the fact that she isnt going to do anything? You just agreed that Harumin has never done anything and never will unless directly asked, so where is this supposed progression? Nothing changes, if there is no change then there is no progression. Even when together with Matsuri they still are not even planning of doing anything.

The mere fact the twins are coming is just enough to show the story is progressing but here's the thing, secondary plot hooks are the ones developing, not the Yuzu one. You might not be happy with it but is progress nonetheless.

No, its not. Im not happy not because its not what I would have wanted, but because it doesn't progress any part of the story. The bit about the twins showing up might as well be as much progress as learning that Yuzu will hang out with Harumin and Matsuri the next day. Fun little factoid, but still not actual progress in any story line.

Do we have any idea how many chapters are likely to be left? That might give a sense of how much “progress” could be expected out of any given half-chapter.

TIL of mukoyoshi.

Mei's issues seems clearer with this in mind.

TIL of mukoyoshi.

Mei's issues seems clearer with this in mind.

This has already been talked about and doesnt really fit. If they were going with this then Mei wouldnt be the one inheriting the school, her husband would be. He would become headmaster and she would just be his wife.

The article linked says that this is usually done because the businesses need male leadership in order to thrive but the school seemed to do fine while it was being ran by a high school girl while Grandpa was hospitalized.

I didnt know this but its a thing for a family to adopt a whole couple instead of marrying off their actual children.

In the end, if this is what Grandpa is going for then Mei's dream to inherit the school was a lost cause from the beginning.

last edited at Apr 20, 2018 1:58AM

So why all these 192 pages of comments ?

Let’s just say that this manga tends to be a clownfiesta which upsets a lot of readers :^)

This has already been talked about and doesnt really fit. If they were going with this then Mei wouldnt be the one inheriting the school, her husband would be. He would become headmaster and she would just be his wife.

Evidence for this? The school would stay in the Aihara family, and hypothetically the couple could share in the administration of the school, for example, the husband doing the finances and the wife doing the day-to-day running of the school.

I don’t think the issue has ever been Mei’s personal inheritance of the school, just that if no one in the Aihara family is able to take over the school, it would have to close or be sold off, and a single woman running it would signal instability to the Aihara clientele of rich families.

EDIT: I do think that a significant flaw in the storytelling in Citrus has been the underdevelopment of the immediate storyworld beyond the main characters and their emotional lives. It's been either stated or strongly implied that the school needs a male Aihara nominally in charge in order for the school to stay in the family/survive, and that it doesn't matter that Gramps isn't actually running things as long as his name is at the top of the organizational chart. So when he goes, there's a problem.

But we don't know much of anything about the rest of the Aihara family or the specifics of the school's situation. Do they need an alliance with a rich family for financial reasons as well as status? Has Wandering Dad been written out of the inheritance line already? As with the arranged-marriage plot itself, it would have helped to have had a few scenes fleshing out these issues as the story went along rather than having things suddenly come to a crisis (almost) out of nowhere.

last edited at Apr 20, 2018 8:13AM

I think the explanation for that, other than author laziness of course, is just that the entire story is within Yuzu's narrow perspective and she doesn't know much about anything so we don't either.

About how long the manga will go, I heard it would be 12 volumes? If it's 12 volumes then I guess this wedding thing is the last arc unless it magically resolves in the next couple of chapters. If it goes beyond the wedding arc then it's more likely Harumin is final boss. That would truly make for a bittersweet ending.

I think the explanation for that, other than author laziness of course, is just that the entire story is within Yuzu's narrow perspective and she doesn't know much about anything so we don't either.

It would have been interesting to see what this story would have been like if it had been entirely restricted to Yuzu's POV. But the narrative freely shows Mei's scenes without Yuzu (and other characters without either of them) whenever it's convenient to do so, so it's obvious that certain information has been withheld, either, as you say, because the mangaka didn't feel like bothering to include it, or else to allow for jack-in-the-box plot surprises whenever necessary.

Blastaar posted:

or else to allow for jack-in-the-box plot surprises whenever necessary.

I think it is highly likely except for the general premise of the manga, author just didn't plan anything and write most of that stuff as it goes, hence the lack of any build up or foreshadowing.

ROVU ISU OFERU..?!!!?!?!
THIS CANT BEH NUUUUUUUU

last edited at Apr 20, 2018 5:55PM

So why all these 192 pages of comments ?

Let’s just say that this manga tends to be a clownfiesta which upsets a lot of readers :^)

Well that's the understatement of the year. Honestly I've grown to dislike seeing another update of Citrus cause I know the comment section is going to be a mess. I try to fish my way through it and sometimes find some good comments but honestly it's a lost cause.
I know I should just not read the comments at all then, but the comment section is part what I love about dynasty scans....

Evidence for this? The school would stay in the Aihara family, and hypothetically the couple could share in the administration of the school, for example, the husband doing the finances and the wife doing the day-to-day running of the school.

The entire point of a Mukoyoshi is to get a male heir because female leadership is undesirable. Business wise, ideally, after getting married Mei wouldnt have any position in the school other than being the headmaster's wife.

I don’t think the issue has ever been Mei’s personal inheritance of the school, just that if no one in the Aihara family is able to take over the school, it would have to close or be sold off, and a single woman running it would signal instability to the Aihara clientele of rich families.

When CEOs retire they dont close the company or sell it off, they promote other people within it. And again, a mukoyoshi doesnt require the families to marry off their children. Gramps can just adopt someone who wants to take it over if keeping it in the family was the important part.

Also, I think the whole idea that the school for rich kids when Matsuri was able to get in falls apart. Doesnt seem the standards are that high.

last edited at Apr 20, 2018 7:28PM