Huh? Do we live in a world where it is okay to grab someone else by the collar and yell at them for expressing their opinion? No, that's not okay in any way. Shiho was emotionally and physically abusive to Aki, and never apologizes for it.

Of course it's not okay. I was just describing what triggered that reaction: Aki (unintentionally and unknowingly) rubbed salt to the wound in the worst way possible.

And Shiho is a controversial enough character as it is for you to make things up: She never "demanded Aki to renounce her own band and friends", and the only "insult" she said was stating that she was a better singer than Yori (this is canonically true), which was you original comment. What did happen was Aki slapping Shiho in the face when she left the band.

i just gave it a reread, and from what is shown that isnt her giving up on yori, as much as its her doing the best she can to act as a good friend in the moment, considering that the next time we see her in chapter 20 she is swooning over yori again, which i would say indicates that she is trying to give up but cant due to lingering affection.

I worded it poorly. Of course love isn't something you just give up and magically disappears, what I meant was that Chapter 17 was when she began to try to give up on her. My point is that by the time of the handshake she had stopped having any romantic feelings for Yori for quite some time, even if she wasn't even aware of it.. And I found her realization to be quite natural and realistic.

For the multiple people that wrote that this story is not even about blame and responsibility as concepts... we know, that is what we are critizing. We are saying the story SHOULD be about that, or at least incorporate this concept.

Not even the two or three pages where Kyou "appeared" in this chapter made you realize the weight of guilt Shiho has been carrying with her all this time?

last edited at Jul 22, 2023 9:50AM

Exactly. Also, Shiho is human and it didn't seem like her quitting was very premeditated. I doubt she really thought about what would happen afterward. Subconsciously though, there had to be the hope that Aki would ask her to come back. But, it is interesting as well that Aki just seemed to accept her quitting, and then replaces her like what would admittedly be normal, but then when they run into each other again she questions why she really quit. It supports the theory that Aki was just too fixated on Yori in the past to really give a thought to Shiho before.

I agree. Although I'd say it's likely that she had unconsciously started looking for an excuse to leave the group and distance herself from Aki, the truth is that she continued practicing with the band after finding out that her love was unrequited, and it was only after Aki criticized her singing (needless to say, Yori is also a singer) that she quit. Can someone really blame her?

nice fanfic and all, but where in the story is the evidence that support these claims, cause from where i stand this seems a lot like the head cannon from an overtly sympathetic super fan, dont ya think?

Check out Chapter 17. She gave up after Himari reciprocated Yori's feelings.

Gee, when you stomp off and quit a band it must be incredibly emotionally shattering when you get replaced. Oh, the humanity!

When the person in question is the girl that your crush is in love with? I'd say so, yeah.

And it's not like they're just having fun together. They're doing it while playing music, so it's doubly hard for Shiho, as we all know how complex her relationship with it has been so far.

Go back and read Chapter 20 again, before the battle of the bands proposal was even made. Shiho approaches Aki and makes demands that Aki renounce her own band and friends. Chapter 21, again before the bet is made, Shiho is insulting Aki and her friends. Aki tries to be polite, and Shiho literally grabs her by the collar and yells in her face.

What are you talking about? In Chapter 20 all that Shiho wanted was for Aki to admit that she was a better singer/performer than Yori. And in Chapter 21 she grabs Aki by the collar after hearing her say that she "loves Yori's singing and that that opinion will never change".

Shiho has actually always been very nice while she's hanging out with Momoka and Hajime, or when interacting with Himari alone, except for that chapter at the studio when she got angry for a moment with her because of how happy she looked chatting with Yori, something for which she apologized a second later.

Is distancing yourself from a friend over an unrequited love really that crazy to some of you? I'm not saying that she couldn't have acted differently, but the more I think about it, the less reasons I find to blame her for her behavior.

Shiho suffered as much, if not more, than Aki.

The first couple was fine, but I couldn't describe it as more than a nice yuri romance, although that's still praise. The way the second couple was written, developed, and the source of their conflicts felt far more real, unique and significant, and elevates this far beyond just "one more romance story".

I agree, and a couple of months ago I wrote something along those lines: While I used to like the series before, since her appearance it has become something more special and unique. I guess at first was mainly because she was a disruptive character in a otherwise much more predictable and formulaic story. But then little by little that changed, to the point that I began to be more interested in Shiho and her (and Aki's) story than any other aspect of the series. By this point, when I think of the manga, the first thing that comes to mind is her.

Until the next time Shiho wants something Aki cannot give or does not know about. Since Shiho did not change, I see no reason to assume it is gonna go differently the next time.

Being willing to start over with Aki is definitely a change on her part. And a pretty big one.

Chapter 43 is out, but it hasn't been posted here yet, so I'll write my first impressions as a spoiler:

Overall, I'm satisfied with this kind of resolution for the Arc. Although I wasn't a fan of the idea of Aki "falling in love" (in a "Hey, let's start over and let's see how it goes" kinda way, at least for now) with Shiho so quickly and sharing her feelings in front of everyone, now that it happened I can't say that I hate it (well, I won't deny that the author's exceptional drawing skills makes everything much easier to digest). But more importantly, this makes the whole band competition's premise relevant again in retrospective, so it feels appropriate from a narrative perspective at least.

The extras of Volume 8 seem to indicate that the next Arc will focus primarily on... Miki (Aki's sister) and her Senpai from the swimming club. I'd personally be interested in that, but I can understand if many here would be disappointed by it.

last edited at Jul 20, 2023 7:40PM

When new chapter?:/

In 10 days, and it's going to be a long one.

Volume 8 will also be out on the same date (and Shiho and Aki are on the cover, as expected).

Do anyone know the song in ep 9, when Hime and Kanoko on the rooftop, I couldn't find it anywhere, even in the original Soundtrack

Did you try asking on the Discord or in the subreddit?

Well, I have finally been able to read all the most recent chapters.

Chapter 58: I thought the ending of Chapter 57 was bait on Youko's part, but she really started to assault Kanoko, both physically and mentally. And damn, what a beautiful and satisfying last page that one was. Because it wasn't a simple slap, but a punch with a clenched fist. I love you, Sumika.

Chapter 59: What an absolute and complete psychopath Youko is. I don't like Kanoko, but I was sad to see her like that, with such a worrysome body language.

Chapter 60: Just like with the kiss between Yano and Hime back in Volume 6, this kiss caught me off guard. I have to say that I didn't like a bit how Kanoko tried to force Sumika afterwards to take off her clothes, but I understand that her state of mind was a complete mess due to many factors. I was afraid that they were actually going to have sex, something that in my opinion would have been a bad decision on the author's part, but luckily it ended in a wholesome tone. Thank God Sumika is always so mature.

Chapter 61: I really like how an event that happened six volumes ago (the kiss Yano gave to Hime) turned out to be so important to the whole current plot (which the former isn't even part of). The way things unfolded feel completely natural and believable to me: Kanoko starting to avoid Yano (more than usual) because she was angry that Hime continued to be her friend after the confession, Hime wrongly guessing that the reason was because Yano liked women, Kanoko denying it and saying that Yano was probably just doing it because it was a trend and that her love wasn't serious, Hime telling her about the kiss to convince her, Kanoko trying to tell Sumika about it, Sumika rejecting her, Kanoko contacting Youko, etc.

last edited at Jun 19, 2023 11:46PM

i think that this (and the next chapter or 2) will probably end this whole arc. and hopefully we’lll be able to see more of the other characters again. don’t get me wrong, i LOVE shiho, but she has admittedly taken up about 3 years of this manga, and we do need a break. i’m hoping we’ll be able to see her and aki developing more in the background. even if they don’t end up together, i’m hoping for them to at least cut ties and become friendly again.

My brain: No more Shiho for a while after this Arc. Other characters need to be in the spotlight to refresh the manga.

My heart: More Shiho please.

"How Do We Relationship," is a favorite of mine.

I have been interested in reading this one for a long time.

Yeah I've long suspected that it might end after this.

Perhaps we would already know it if that was the case? I think the magazine would have announced that the series, and not the "school festival" as they stated, was entering its climax on the color page of the previous chapter. But who knows, it's already quite a long manga by this genre's standards.

By the way, Chapter 42 is the second one of Volume 9, so this Arc is expected to finish in two more chapters. At the very least we should be getting one more volume after that. And yeah, I guess it wouldn't be crazy for the series to tie up all the loose ends in six more chapters or so.

last edited at May 29, 2023 11:42PM

I'm genuinely more interested in the resolution and what comes next.

Me too. I'm a bit anxious to get a confirmation whether the manga is close to its ending or not.

She could just as easily breakdown and accept what Aki says. A lot of how she acts is empty bravado. She's a chihuahua and everyone knows it.

Yeah, she might accept whatever is that Aki says on the spur of the moment (and with the pressure of all the people watching), but I don't think she'll be comfortable with it afterwards.

One way or another, Shiho should have a relevant role in the next Arc. And I would like more chapters from Aki's perspective.

The plot for the next couple of volumes: Shiho rejects Aki because she doesn't want her "love" out of pity, then Aki tries to convince her that's not the case, while genuinely falling in love more and more with Shiho in the process.
How does it sound? I'm half-kidding, but honestly I would find out of character for Shiho to accept whatever Aki is going to say to her in the next chapter, although everything seems to indicate that it will be the case.

And you believe that calling concepts like the narrative role of protagonist and antagonist “rigid thinking” isn’t condescending?

It definitely wasn't my intention to sound condescending. And I never mentioned those two roles...

I think some of you have too rigid a conception of what the narrative structure of a story should be,

LOL. I guess that’s one way of phrasing it.

I thought you didn't like condescending remarks? Maybe you should be looking somewhere else to satisfy your literary tastes. A manga targeted at teenagers probably won't do.

Shiho has not been the cause of a conflict that serves to develop the story of the original protagonists.

Yeah, that's not true at all in my opinon. I can write about it in more detail later, but at least I wanted to express my view on the matter now.

I think some of you have too rigid a conception of what the narrative structure of a story should be, almost like checking a textbook to make sure it follows a certain pattern, instead of seeing it as the way an author has to convey something.

But I do agree that the band competition has taken too long to resolve. You can't have an Arc longer than the rest of the series combined in a (relatively) short manga like this one.

Just because it's interesting: I'd imagine that volume 8 would have Shiho and Aki. If that's the case it would be 5-3 cover appearances.

Shiho has only appeared once on a cover (Volume 5), which is crazy given her predominance from Volume 4 onwards. Also, the vibes you get from the covers of Volumes 6 and 7 (Himari and Yori being lovey-dovey) are completely different from what's actually going on in the chapters within them. They are marketing the series as a "fluffy romance" as much as they can.

But once Shiho did enter at around chapter (14-18?) it's been fine for what it's trying to do.

Chapter 15 was the first "proper" appearance, but her first introduction was in Volume 2 actually, which speaks for itself regarding the author's intention for her.

last edited at May 28, 2023 2:29PM

And to be clear, it’s not a professional mistake for an author to choose a narrative strategy that proves popular with readers, just an artistic one.

Wouldn't it have been a much safer strategy to continue with the day-to-day lives of Himari and Yori, as their relationship develops (similar to what the author I Can't Defy the Lonely Girl did)? Let's not pretend that the author took the easy path with the series, because I would say that it's rather the opposite.

The fact that those two are on the cover of Volumes 6 and 7 instead of Shiho clearly shows what the main selling point is.

yori lives in shiho s head so rent free to the point that she even speaks Ill of her in front of himari, that's just how much she despises yori

It's literally the exact opposite. For example, when Yori and Himari were about to kiss for the first time in the karaoke, she decided not to out of her jealousy for Shiho. When they were hanging out together during the summer festival, Shiho's sole presence ruined Yori's mood for the rest of the date (she even ended up crying in front of Himari). There's even a chapter where Yori said "I definitely don't want to lose to Izumi-san", so she does care about winning the competition.

You won't find Shiho thinking or talking about her unless someone asked her opinion. To be fair, it's not Yori's fault. Shiho lives rent free in everyone's head, even the readers'.

last edited at May 27, 2023 2:34PM

besides is not like yori has something to prove to shiho as far as I'm concerned the only reason yori wanted to win was to help aki, the only time yori and shiho had something that barely resembles a rivalry was went shiho got a bit touchy Feely with hima to make yori jealous

Yori has an inferiority complex towards Shiho. It's kind of ironic considering what happened in the past, but we've never seen Shiho have any kind of thoughts regarding Yori, yet the opposite has happened several times. She has caused Yori to have insecurities both regarding her skills as a singer/performer and in her personal life with Himari.

What puzzles me is why the people around her keep putting up with her shit, like sure she's a "realistic teen", but other "realisticas teens" would already be done with her, even if her character makes sense it's weird how everyone just shrugs their shoulders and go "good ol shiho am I rite" whenever she acts annoying.

Shiho has actually always been very nice while she's hanging out with Momoka and Hajime, or when interacting with Himari alone.

Lol that panel of yori and shiho facing each other was hilarious, as if yori actually gave a flying fuck about shiho or whatever she's up to. It's also hilarious how no one but hima could muster the strength to chase after shiho cuz she's such a pain to deal with, so even her bandmates avoid her like the plague when she's mad

I mean, winning the competition is also important to Yori. SS lost during the audition and Shiho told her that "she has a long way to go" (I think it was the only time they spoke, lol). Not to mention, she even wrote a new song for the occasion. Whatever the case, Yori is lucky to have the plot armor on her side.

Happy endings are fine, but does Shiho deserve to be happy after everything she’s done? She’s evil, she’s cruel, she’s a monster! She is the worst person in the story by a mile and her having a happy ending with Aki, ESPECIALLY after how she has treated Aki and the people Aki cares about, she really does not deserve to be happy

Honestly, I thought you were being sarcastic at first. Shiho is the person who has suffered the most throughout the story, as she's someone who has always been burdened by expectations, pride, jealousy and guilt. I'm not denying the bad things she's done (I do believe that Shiho will eventually come to terms with why some of her actions were wrong and show accountability for them), but readers are overreacting in their criticism of her and this long Arc. The person she's hurt the most is herself, after all.

My heart wants Aki and Shiho to make up and fall in love because I love happy endings, but my brain says it wouldn't make sense to move this fast because just recently, Shiho was still big mad about her first love not noticing her feelings because she was too busy pawing after another girl.

It would be unrealistic for Aki to fall in love with her so suddenly and it would be unrealistic for Shiho to reciprocate those feelings right away.
The ideal would be for them to reconcile, become friends again and for the relationship to develop little by little, but I don't know if that will be the author's intention. Sales are great and there's an anime coming soon, so it's all up to them really.

Sorry, I can't stand Aki.

Why? I honestly can't say even a single bad thing about her. She even helped Himari and Yori to become a couple despite her own feelings.

It seems that SS is going to win the competition after all. Don't worry Shiho, you can't do anything against such a massive plot armor.

I'm still not sure what kind of message will Aki try to convey to Shiho. It's not like she can fall in love with her in just one day... Right?

Both Volume 12 (beautiful cover, as always) and an anthology of the series will be out this month. The manga went from 600000 copies in circulation for Volumes 1-11 to 1 million copies in circulation for Volumes 1-12. Great news.

I think this Arc had some of the best written chapters in the entire series, but to each their own. The manga shifted its tone lone ago by now, so no one should be surprised by all the drama.

Chapter 57: It was always pretty clear from her first appearance back in Volume 4 that Youko was/is a psychopath.These types of people like to play with people and their feelings. There isn't really much more to it. I just hope she stays well away from Yano and Hime.