[DeepL Translation - needs review] Volume 1 Introduction: I’ve got a girlfriend. Miwa is a very popular girl, but she has never had a chance to be with the person she likes. When she enters university, she joins a light music club and finds that she is the type of person who would never become friends with anyone! She suddenly gets close to Saeko, a good-natured girl whom she thought she would never be friends with. It’s like a new door is opening for her…? But then, I thought, "Why don’t we go out with each other? The girls’ love story of a college girl with her true feelings, interwoven with her friends in the light music circle!
Schedule
Week - Start Date
Chapters
Pages
1 ー7月6日
1
3
2 ー7月13日
2
37
3 ー7月20日
3
57
4 ー7月27日
4
75
5 ー8月3日
5
95
6 ー8月10日
6
117
7 ー8月17日
7
135
8 ー8月24日
8
155
9 ー8月31日
9 + Omake
179
Discussion ground rules
Any spoilers, for the current chapters must be behind spoilers or detail curtains. When we get further in you don’t need to hide details that were revealed in previous chapters.
Always mention where you are in the book when discussing, ideally by chapter so people reading different versions have a clear point of reference.
Feel free to read ahead if it’s exciting! But please refrain from spoiling ahead of the appropriate week
If you have a question about grammar, vocab, cultural things, etc - ask! That can be part of the discussion too and I’m sure some folks would be happy to help.
Even if you don’t read the chapter(s) in time, you are still encouraged to post in the thread for that reading once you have finished it. I advise not reading ahead in the threads as you may see spoilers.
From tea & snacks (K-ON) to college 軽音… That’s one way to start a club… Are they even old enough yet?! No actual K-ON connection of course, it just made me think of it
I got tired of commenting piece by piece… But I love the portrayal of Miwa’s awkwardness around all the 恋バナ stuff. Considering how Saeko was going on about Miwa’s breasts, it’s not exactly surprising that she likes women
I really like the art style, very expressive and stylish. I initially thought the page layouts were too busy for my tastes just glancing at it but actually reading it I didn’t mind. This chapter was mostly setup up so I don’t have much to say. So far, I really like Saeko.
Honestly there are parts I felt confused even after reading a couple of times, but it might just be that I can’t focus right now due to being busy with a move I will try to reread the chapter later.
I love the art, too! It reminds me of early 2000s anime.
The beginning threw me through a bit of a loop as well.
I was surprised Miwa was blantantly drinking alcohol despite being a minor. Manga usually goes out of its way to emphasis characters under the age of 20 are not drinking, either with arrows pointing to the drink or with jilted dialogue.
I personally saw this as the equavalent as “Haha! Just kidding. Unless… ” Before coming out, Saeko was very open about how beautiful she thinks Miwa is, and she pays a great deal of attention to how popular with men she is. So, I think Saeko already had feelings and is just trying to play the statistics game as a convenient/less vulernable way of asking her out, rather than your usual plot contrivance.
Spending a week away from a manga is a really effective way to forget everybody’s names
Week 2 thoughts
General thought: so far I can really relate to Miwa, and Saeko makes me kinda uncomfortable/just kinda rubs me the wrong way… not saying she’s awful, just その人、ちょっと苦手 sorta thing…
Band stuff was silly… poor Miwa lol. The general messiness of this all is definitely very reminiscent of early college - so well done on the realism level
I had already read this chapter but forgot somehow that I did (more testament to how scattered I am) until I saw the screenshots.
I like both characters, but I’d def be uncomfortable in Miwa’s shoes. I think Saeko’s pushiness might be an issue eventually, or rather I think they view relationships differently. Saeko seems to think of it as something you jump into and if it doesn’t work out you’ll think about it then while Miwa has more romantic notions. So stuff like them not being in love yet is a non issue for one and really confusing to the other. In general Saeko is do first think later type of girl, even evidenced with insisting Miwa sing (as an aside: the whole music club thing gives me second hand anxiety, Miwa neither can sing nor played an instrument and she’s gonna play in a band??)
Well we don’t see that much of Saeko’s pov, so that’s just my interpretation so far.
I still loooove the art. Honestly one of my favorite art styles I encountered in manga.
I haven’t read the series before. But I’ve read somewhere that heir relationship doesn’t last in the end. I thought that’s not a problem. It can still be a good story with a happy end.
But right now I think knowing this affects how I see the story. It’s hard to get invested in their relationship when they themselves aren’t all that invested and I know they won’t end up together. A whole lot of suspension on where their relationship is going is missing for me.
It’s a long series. I’m sure interesting stuff will happen with their relationship. But right now…
Week 2
I have a hard time reading Saekos face here. She seems kind of desperate. Like, either the thought of Miwa being serious about her or the thought of Miwa breaking up seem to scare her and she doesn’t want to show it.
I don’t know. I don’t quite trust Saeko to be truthful.
If you mean invested rn: I don’t have the impression that they’re not invested… at the very least, Miwa seems to be already. It’s like what, a few days to a week in?
If you mean down the line: I can’t imagine the series would be so successful, if they weren’t quite invested in the relationship. I haven’t read it tho.
Personally if they don’t end up together that make me more interested. I can’t think of many series that do that
re: Week 2
I hadn’t really thought of it that way. She’s kinda hard to read in general so far tho, imo
here is my take: She seems to be sweating, like she is nervous. Her eyebrows look distressed. Her big"smile" is put on to hide her distress and pretend to Miwa that she is keeping her cool.
Maybe the face is supposed to look doubtful or slightly mocking. Like “are you catching real feeling or what, lol, just kidding”.
In all honesty, I think the mangaka might just have been bad at creating a fitting facial expression here.
Or maybe I’m looking at it wrong. The longer I look at that face the less confident I am. I think that might be what’s called Gestaltzerfall.
I will try to reread the chapter later.
” Before coming out, Saeko was very open about how beautiful she thinks Miwa is, and she pays a great deal of attention to how popular with men she is. So, I think Saeko already had feelings and is just trying to play the statistics game as a convenient/less vulernable way of asking her out, rather than your usual plot contrivance.
