slice of life

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Lenni Reveiws: “Hirayasumi” Vol. 7, by Keigo Shinzō

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

The Asagaya Festival is on the horizon, but Natsumi isn’t feeling as close to her friends as before. Hiroto has a fight with Hideki about their movie and what they want to do with it, finally showing it to the public.

It’s clear that as life goes on, Natsumi and Hiroto have to grapple with the inevitable changes, which they do with a comforting amount of grace. I say ‘comforting’ because there’s still no long, drawn-out, angst-filled conflict. If you’ve ever screamed at a manga or anime (or any entertainment medium, honestly) that the characters just need to fucking talk to each other, this is a series where not only does the talking happen, it’s cozy and heartwarming. 4.5 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Tsumiki Ogami’s Not-So-Ordinary Life” Vol. 3, by Miyu Morishita

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

After the Sports Festival, it’s time for midterms, and Tsumiki needs to buckle down and study. Yutaka offers to help her, but after the exams are over, he sees less of her and the rest of his friends. He fears they will forget him if they can’t hang out.

Most of this is the kids enjoying their summer, and it’s a genuinely fun slice of life read. The background details of the other students and their unique traits – the invisible boy has some great scenes – are used to create some fun visual gags and touching moments. I’m glad it didn’t linger too long on Yutaka’s dilemma because it fits Tsumiki’s character to intervene, so he can’t brood about this. She solves shit like that ASAP. Similar to Kubo Won’t Let Me Be Invisible or Komi Can’t Communicate, it’s nice to see the male lead come out of his shell. 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “On and Off: Work-Life Imbalance” Vol. 1, by Shinnosuke Kanazawa

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

Sotaro Amata is popular in the office where he works, but in his off hours, he dresses up in Lolita fashion in beautiful lace and ruffles. Akira Hanku is less popular in the office, but in her off hours, she’s a punk girl in leather and spikes. They may butt heads at work, but when they run into each other off hours without recognizing each other, their relationship is entirely different.

This first volume is just setting up the vast differences between our main leads and getting them to meet up. They seem like two people who have been lonely, keeping up this mask at work, but can enjoy each other’s company once those masks are gone. In fact, Akira outright dislikes Sotaro at work but is smitten with him when he’s in the Lolita clothes. I made it a point to link to what I mean here since Lolita has an entirely different context in this case. I do wonder if this will get super dramatic and angsty once Akira finds out who she’s hanging out with, but I really hope it stays light and fun. 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “A Man and His Cat” Vol. 13, by Umi Sakurai

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Marin comes to visit and she’s put on weight from too many treats. Moriyama is on the hunt for new bandmates.

Spoiler, but it was a SHOCK to have the word “scumbag” come out of Kanda’s mouth. He’s such a precious bean that it felt wrong. He’s been stern but still has this positive energy that even a relatively mild insult like scumbag is jarring. Might as well be Mr. Rogers cursing someone out. Other than that, we’re still in the full-on funny slice of life mode with the slow build of Kanda getting up his motivation and strength to perform again. I wonder if his mother will come back into play since he has so much trauma about performing because of her. 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “A Man and His Cat” Vol. 12, by Umi Sakurai

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Kanda takes his father-in-law’s advice to make sure to take good care of himself and be proud of the progress he’s made. Fukumaru has also made progress, so Kanda looks into a cat tree as a present.

There’s also a lost dog and Makoto, who’s stopped going to school due to bullying, but is put in charge of a kitten with health issues. This volume goes back to the episodic format and is even out of chronological order. The last volume was one complete storyline line but this is more bit of slice of life and adds a couple of new characters. Everything is as sweet as always and despite how cruel the bullying was to Makoto, it leaves you with a positive feeling. 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “A Man and His Cat” Vol. 11, by Umi Sakurai

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Mr. Kanda pays a visit to his father-in-law and also sees his mother while Hoshinari deals with Teruki and his deception.

The flashback to where we meet Kanda’s wife, Suzune and the whole volume (except for the evil mom) is so damn emotional and adorable! Given how horrid his mother was, it’s so gratifying to see how much light was and is in Kanda’s life. When this series does get dark, it instantly balances it with so much love. Even the cats are learning lessons. I will admit, I teared up a bit. It’s a shame we don’t get more about Kanda’s mother other than she’s one of those Tiger Moms who puts too much pressure on her child. I wonder if the series will take time to redeem her or let a character stay shitty for once. 4.9 out of 5.Th

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Lenni Reviews: “Insomniacs After School” Vol. 11, by Makoto Ojiro

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

As winter passes and spring arrives, Magari fills the photo album Nakami gave her with pictures of her own. As Nakami’s birthday comes and the second year of high school begins, their relationship changes in unexpected ways.

As they’re making college plans, Magari has to take her heart condition into account when considering what or where she wants to study. Bit of a spoiler, but it looks like this probably won’t lean into her dying young since the comic makes a point to say that with treatment and surgery, she could live to 50. That’s something of a relief, but it’s entirely possible the plot will take a nose-dive off the tragedy cliff. Nakami gets some development as well, and it’s nice to see him opening up to the new club members and within the friend group. This series is so good at conveying so much without words, unease as much as joy. 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Insomniacs After School” Vol. 10, by Makoto Ojiro

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

Magari is well enough to come back to school and as the new semester starts, they hope to get more members in the astronomy club.

I am legit shocked at how fast I read through the volumes in this series, excited to see what happens, even though it’s very slice of life so I don’t expect anything super dramatic or action-packed. It flows smoothly and is compelling enough that I am totally fine with pages of these two taking photos or watching other characters cook and eat crab for New Year’s. Even though, again, there is that looming shadow of Magari’s illness, on the whole, this is so cozy. 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Insomniacs After School” Vol. 9, by Makoto Ojiro

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

Nakami and Magari cram for finals before they can prepare for the meteor shower party. Nakami also visits Magari while she’s home sick.

I swear, if this series pulls a ‘Your Lie In April‘ on me, I will flip a table. Because it’s clear Magai isn’t well and it’s just this shadow lurking over the success of the party and them having a good time taking pictures. They are so cute together, whether they date or not, and I really hope this series doesn’t get that dark. I like the simple joy of them managing their insomnia and enjoying photography. 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Tsumiki Ogami’s Not-So-Ordinary Life” Vol. 2, by Miyu Morishita

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

In this volume, Tsumiki tried baking, helps a Medusa find her glasses, spend a rainy day with Tsumiki and Mirei, have an interview, and showcases different abilities from more creatures.

Most of the volume is the sports festival, where we also get the most development for Yutaka. We learn why he came to this new school and who he was in his old school. It’s still light-hearted, poignant but not dark, so if you need something with good characters and a bit of fun, this series has it so far. It’s a nice mix of fantasy and slice of life and putting the unique ways the mythical creatures adapt to more modern living is fun to watch. 4 out of 5.

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