That was quite a chapter... Hopefully this whole business will be solved after this and we can get back to the bigger problems.

Mini Michi is the MVP

HOLY MOLY 5TH GIRL REVEAL
ALSO FUCK WE MISSED OUT ON MASAKI AND HONDA CIVIC TYPE R MAKING OUT

Apologies in advance for the wall of text but my stream of consciousness had a lot of consciousness to stream.
Definitely need to work on an updated recap for vol5. However Aizawa-san should be going on another 2-3 month break.

You put a name to the monster and suddenly she's sympathetic.

It goes without saying this is a tragedy. Aizawa's dead, and every line like "Honami-chan died," hits heavy. All ghosts are presumably people who suffered sad fates. But with Nagi's formal introduction I strongly get the feeling those sad undertones previously drowned out by the silliness are about to get loud.

Michi can't hide Aizawa anymore and doesn't want to, the alternative becoming more painful. Nagi seriously cared about Aizawa despite now being manic about killing her. And there's some family-ish connection? Whatever the hell Nagi meant by that. Which means the mourning's about to get much more personal when we dig deeper. With volume 6 it feels like we'll be crossing the line into the mystery's 2nd act: from fallout of the incident to actively putting pieces together.

MIZUSHIRO NAGI

Did you notice Nagi's fuzzy pupils? While Masaki's star-seeing eyes were strange, there's no mistaking Nagi could see ghosts in life. It's consistent and shown twice, hammered in with the final panel of the volume. I've pushed the theory Nagi and Aizawa were killed by some greater ghost, and if Nagi could see ghosts it credits the idea her death wasn't just an accident.

Given our understanding of the timeline, Nagi died ~a year ago (just before DeLphi was official) and Aizawa around 6 months ago. We know Michi got involved somewhere in there. The question isn't if Nagi knows her but whether Michi met Nagi while alive or dead. It seems very likely Michi met Aizawa either to protect her from Nagi or from whatever killed them both. Even at the festival Nagi has never directly interacted with either of them. But unlike Aizawa, Nagi can talk. Ange can hear her. And she can start dropping us hints.

While family is a distant theme, don't forget Michi's mom is definitely playing some part here.

The slow clarification of Nagi across volumes — from distorted wraith to human ghost — is similar to Kasumi becoming able to see Aizawa. This likely mirrored Ange's perspective, who reacted as if first seeing Nagi at the concert. No guesses as to why Nagi is possessing Ange, but if it's anything like Kasumi it doesn't necessarily indicate a strong personal reason. Both are taking what's available.

KASUMI

On that segue, I doubt anyone predicted this but the buildup was fantastic. And Kasumi perfect for Michi to confide in: level-headed, considerate, perceptive. She already suspected Michi and Sayaka saw a "fairy." Not to mention it immediately jumpstarts Kasumi back to relevance after falling by the wayside post-vol2, easily dragging Sayaka into usefulness as well. And we can start addressing Michi's memory loss, given Kasumi remembers conversations with Michi they never had. Kasumi can also stop experiencing horrors beyond comprehension every time Aizawa gets jealous; only somewhat comprehensible horrors now.

My sole gripe is losing an aspect I loved to Kasumi — her faithful support of Sayaka despite being unable to understand her. It was really sweet. But I'll take that sacrifice for this new direction pulling all the elements together.

It also opens a new door if ghost exposure leads to ghost vision. Is Kasumi's power limited to Aizawa, or can she see them all? Will her eyes get fuzzy too? Did anyone we know get their powers this way? Sayaka seemed to have some bloodline thing going, but Michi's alluded to a bad encounter as a kid.

But back to NAGIZAWA

There's a tone of artificiality to Aizawa. We know her true(?) nature of course and it's always been called into consideration why ghost Aizawa acts differently from idol Aizawa. Michi thought it was her dorky real self she'd buried, and that's not a bad guess. Idol Aizawa is described as "perfecting a formula, down to a science, textbook, made to be an idol." There's another reference to her being an angel. And it's all summed up as a curse.

A curse on her fans, but maybe on Aizawa herself too? Pushed into losing her human nature, metaphorically then literally. Again Dorothy commits to Aizawa staying voiceless in flashbacks, but Nagi effectively speaks for her. Nagi's seemingly the one who pushed Aizawa to be an idol, Nagi's the one covering for her. I'm not blaming Nagi but was it really what Aizawa wanted? Aizawa relates to Masaki at times. Did Aizawa only want to be an idol because of Nagi too? I don't doubt for a second Aizawa loves the rest of DeLphi and her fans, but there's always been the subtext of questioning whether Aizawa really wanted that life, ever since Michi guessed Aizawa was haunting school because she wished she could have been there more.

HONDA VS MASAKI
(can't believe I wrote all this without touching on the focal duo yet send help)

Dorothy said she normally plans arcs in sets of 3 chapters, but that, in deliberately slowing the pace of the manga, Honda vs Masaki became 11 long. In a microcosm I think this arc reflects the entire manga: confusing and chaotic at first, but in hindsight it all comes together (hopefully). Masaki's not inherently a bad person, just warped by trauma that never healed right. Even while hating Honda's attachment to Aizawa she never has anything but sympathy for Aizawa herself. And Honda's so fractured by guilt she's allowed it to damage every part of her life. Her "penance" was so self-serving it only hurt her friends further. Maybe in the future we can look back and draw stronger parallels to Aizawa and Michi there.

Both took advantage of Michi. Neither are completely forgiven for what they've done (Masaki much more so). Honda's broken confidence and Masaki's toxicity might be permanent parts of them now. But all they needed was communication to pull each other through.

MICHI

Speaking of which I'm so proud of Michi's growth. There was a time I worried she was the manga's weak link; a passive amnesiac protagonist can be tough to write. But watching her learn from failures and get proactive to the point of giving guidance to the girl with the max charisma stat has me gaijin 4koma-ing. It's sadly rare for MCs to learn to cut through the bullshit and force out misunderstandings, but Michi's taking that lesson to heart. And it's happened so naturally in response to what she's faced.

I'm not only hyped for where the story's about to go but for who Michi's going to become by the end. This is a girl who can protect her ghost.

• Love this page. The implications and themes, how it touches on the yin-yang that idolization can be a curse. And how easily that reflects on the slow torture Michi's putting herself through being unable to let go of Aizawa.
• Dorothy's expressions are super underrated. She's great at hinting subtle emotions, all those pained looks between Honda and Masaki. Of course, you'd have to be for a manga with a mute love interest.
• Wonder if there's foreshadowing on Masaki wanting to see Nagi again. Honda and Masaki's subplot clearly has room to continue, and it's pretty conspicuous how DeLphi's agency is suddenly recruiting a new group as DeLphi implodes. Does Masaki's star vision let her see idol ghosts? It hasn't worked on Aizawa. But after Kasumi I get the feeling everyone will be in on the ghosts by the end. You can't not have Honda reunite with Aizawa in this goofy manga.
• No I have no idea what Nagi meant by her being kinda-not-really sisters with Aizawa either.
• I feel like I should have more to say on Honda vs Masaki, but I just think it was very satisfying and rounded off. It's not as conspiracy-theory-crazy as the ghost stuff, though it served as a light distraction that helped Michi explore herself the same as Kasumi & Sayaka's arc way back when. I really liked this arc even if it might have run a little long. My one complaint is I am fiending for the yuri to get more explicit and was hoping it would resolve with Michi having more of a "well fuck my attempt at making friends just made me more convinced things are super gay here." Thankfully Kasumi should very quickly understand Aizawa and Michi's chemistry.
• Nice to have background gremlin Aizawa back at least.

last edited at Oct 30, 2025 4:49PM

omg what a chapter!!

this might honestly be a good time to reread the series. its so much more full of intrigue than i expected at first and while i greatly enjoy it i can barely hold on to whats going on right now.

oodoro dorothy i was unfamiliar with your game.

Finally those two have solved their problems.

Looks like Kasumi is starting to See.

And the missing star has finally been introduced...

No but like why does almost every silly lesbian in this story have a superpower of some sort?

Every single chapter in this manga makes me want to theorycraft, this author is really impressive.

we know the big ghost's name now holy shit. i didn't think i'd ever see this day, quite frankly

Man, I should use that break to reread the series and refresh my memory. It's getting hard to keep track of everything that's happening. I'm glad that Masaki and Reona made up, though.

last edited at Oct 31, 2025 2:40AM

this might honestly be a good time to reread the series. its so much more full of intrigue than i expected at first and while i greatly enjoy it i can barely hold on to whats going on right now.

oodoro dorothy i was unfamiliar with your game.

Once the manga is finished, it's going to be such a trip rereading the whole thing and notice all the details and foreshadowings that where there all along. I'm sure.