Surprisingly, despite all the revelations and arrows, I still don't feel the overarching direction has changed from my initial assumptions. The arc will just be a lot farther.

Nene is, at least in my opinion, trying her hardest to move on. The way she acts with Taru feels rather forced. She is treating her as a replacement for Amane. There are several hints for that. For one the whole thing about being cute and smiling... Amane has been calling her cute every single chapter. She has been telling her that she loves her smile as well. Yet Nene acts like this is the first time she heard someone say that (or believes they mean it?). I am more than convinced that she liked that about Amane as well, but since their break up either tries to ignore all memories of that time or genuinly thinks she is just flattering her to get her back.

We might have gotten a major hint about why they broke up here. "Am I cuter than Amane?" Of course we could take that question at face value. Amane would be the more obviously cute one. So asking someone she might be developing feelings for and who told her she is cute to compare them makes sense in a way.
But to me it appears more like this was a major issue to her. Now that we know Amane was the Sunset Girl, I feel all the more that she might have been jealous/angry that Amane so effortlessly outdid her in something that she considers her dream. There might be some sort of inferiority complex at play here. That, or the fact that she really felt betrayed because Amane was photographed by senpai in that odd position. All we know is that Nene broke up, so this is very suspicious indeed.

Now the biggest point why I still stay on the "exes rekindle the flame" route. Narratively speaking, Taru basically confirmed it.
https://dynasty-scans.com/chapters/luminousblue_ch04#14
The best picture in Taru's opinion is still the one where Amane and Nene were happy together. This is a major theme. See the way Nene reacted? She felt that. She probably already knew that. Right afterwards she doubles down on getting closer to Taru. Does this not look like a strong attempt to deny the truth, to avert her eyes from how she feels? We can get Nene x Taru shiptease as much as the author wants, but I feel deep down everyone is aware how things should truly be.

Whether senpai will do anything to support Taru's blooming "romance" with Nene or just use the picture as leverage to make Amane hate them, I don't know yet.

Hey, was that a kiss in page 28???

I think it was... even tho it's not shown distinctly... I mean, in panel 2 Nene and Taru seem to be face to face and close enough to touch lips... and in panel 3 we see that Taru is standing on tiptoes, which is a classic movie shtick meaning that you're trying to reach the lips of a taller partner...

I think they kissed. I'm guessing that's why sempai is smiling so smugly: she caught them on camera. I foresee lots of angst when Amane sees the pics.

It certainly was framed like a kiss in every way and there was liquid falling between their lips. Those might have been Nene's tears though (actually I am certain it was, considering the drop arc).
Even if it was not a kiss, we pretty much saw that scene from senpai's camera perspective, meaning that it indeed looked like a kiss on the photo. That will be a great way to get Amane devastated.

last edited at May 24, 2019 1:00PM

Mixed feelings about this, I can see a whole lot of fuckery ahead.

^I would say Nene’s reaction to Taru telling her that she is cute was legitimate. She was crying. I think she was seeking validation/something different all this time (since she is pressured to keep being a stereotypical cold “doll” model and everything), and was overjoyed that she finally found someone who saw her for what she was and showed her that by taking photographs of her genuine expressions and reactions and stuff.

I think she and Amane were in a good relationship, but maybe she could have felt in her mind that Amane was not a genuine or honest person. As in, Amane does say she is cute and all that, but she (Amane) accomplished more than Nene did in the “cute” department. Plus there is the shady relationship between Amane and the senpai she could have found out about and saw it as cheating? But we have yet to find out since it’s still vague as to what exactly happened.

This story keeps me at the edge of my seat, it’s quite well written.

I don't care who ends up with who. As long as it's a good story. Which this still is so far.

Hmm... “am I cuter than Amane?” seems like she was envious of Amane somehow?... Is she one who seeks validation?

That question “am I cuter than Amane?” confused me as well, at first.

After thinking, I have a modest theory. Remember that pic with Amane that won an award, Sunset Girl? With Amane looking so cute and sexy? I suspect that this made Nene really jealous. Nene is the one who's a semi-pro model aiming to go pro, and she's in photoshoots all the time; she must have thought "it should have been me in the award-winning pic!" and then grew resentful of Amane.

If I'm right, this is a big part of why Nene broke up with Amane.

last edited at May 25, 2019 1:41AM

This is making me nervous. My heart keeps beating in a painful way.
I'm really afraid of what's to come.

I found Nene's dress very bothersome
Why wear a transparent dress over casual clothes?

So many things are yet to unfold in thus story and it's keeping me hooked. I don't really care (yet) as to who ends with who but rn, i'm starting to ship Nene and Kou

FiddlePop posted:

I found Nene's dress very bothersome
Why wear a transparent dress over casual clothes?

Because it's a little bit more appropriate than wearing it without anything on underneath it?

FiddlePop posted:

I found Nene's dress very bothersome
Why wear a transparent dress over casual clothes?

Because it's a little bit more appropriate than wearing it without anything on underneath it?

Well there is no accountng for fashion taste... Clearly this author's a bit too artsy for their own good sometimes.

Seriously, have you folks looked at actual Japanese street fashion? This stuff's pretty tame.

https://www.vogue.com/slideshow/tokyo-fashion-week-street-style-spring-2019

Huh, what's wrong with Nene and Amane? Why are they both insisted that they are NOT cute ... Was it supposed to cue for major plot point later on regarding their break up / misunderstanding / insecurities? Also, I really really hope the ship doesn't sink. If senpai and Kou are joining the contest together, it would extra cool that each of them photograph Nene and Amane individually and then end with them as a couple again ... Please author, don't break my heart T.T

Seriously, have you folks looked at actual Japanese street fashion? This stuff's pretty tame.

https://www.vogue.com/slideshow/tokyo-fashion-week-street-style-spring-2019

I'd overall agree that she wouldn't stand out in Tokyo much (they love layers...), but comparing what people really wear to a Fashion Week has never been a good glimpse at "realism" ^^;

Why people so focus on Nene and Amane getting together again.
Poor Kou, people sure like to drop her like hot potatoes just see exes getting back together, they may look good but things change no matter how well they interact with each other.

last edited at May 28, 2019 11:12PM

Seriously, have you folks looked at actual Japanese street fashion? This stuff's pretty tame.

https://www.vogue.com/slideshow/tokyo-fashion-week-street-style-spring-2019

I'd overall agree that she wouldn't stand out in Tokyo much (they love layers...), but comparing what people really wear to a Fashion Week has never been a good glimpse at "realism" ^^;

I for one I'm happy we get to see these girls wearing lots of differents outfits, drawn in extreme detail, and in all sorts of styles.

There are too many manga where the characters wear nothing but one set of generic clothes and never seem to change.

(Or they switch between a sailor fuku at school and their one & only set of casual clothes everywhere else.)

There are too many manga where the characters wear nothing but one set of generic clothes and never seem to change.

(Or they switch between a sailor fuku at school and their one & only set of casual clothes everywhere else.)

Waste not, want not.

Why people so focus on Nene and Amane getting together again.
Poor Kou, people sure like to drop her like hot potatoes just see exes getting back together, sure they look good but things change no matter how well they interact with each other.

What do you expect when she got so obviously wedged in there. Kou deserves her own happiness and not to be crushed between this triangle.

There are too many manga where the characters wear nothing but one set of generic clothes and never seem to change.

(Or they switch between a sailor fuku at school and their one & only set of casual clothes everywhere else.)

Waste not, want not.

Hehe.
Yeah, we wouldn't want the authors to waste their precious stocks of brainpower and ink in creating too many outfits for their characters... would we?

Chapter 5 is out.

Hehe.
Yeah, we wouldn't want the authors to waste their precious stocks of brainpower and ink in creating too many outfits for their characters... would we?

Was thinking more in terms of "junk bought and shortly thrown away in-universe" but sure.

Chapter 5 is out.

YAY!

runs to download it

reads

returns

Okay, I'm back. Now could someone explain to me what kind of human being on earth dumps a cute, sexy and adorable Amane-chan who is crazy in love with them!!??

... actually, I'm thinking that my theory about how it was all jealousy because of the Sunset Girl photo (and the award) looks more and more likely.

last edited at May 28, 2019 5:46PM

Lol Nakajou’s cameo...

Hmm... I wonder what happened, Nene seems very much in love with Amane before...

This series is gonna end with a lot of murder, maybe a suicide.

School Days bad end x10

After Kou x Nene built up now the author throw this chapter? I don't know which ship to support anymore. And yeah Amane no doubt is the cutest, I mean look at her cute little fang, it's so adorable.

I find it really surprising that so many people like Amane. I think she's incredibly annoying. She's short-sighted, narrow-minded, and embodies an anime archetype I despise. The short, pig-tailed, cutesy girl with lots of energy and an inferiority complex. I've seen her a thousand times and I never like her any more than I did the last time. She's stuck in the past and I don't want her getting back with Nene. She needs to learn to face reality and respect the feelings of others. But she's so loud and selfish that she only sees what she wants to. I can't stand her. Chapter 5 is easily the worst so far.