Manga Review: Your Lie in April, Volume 2, by Naoshi Arakawa

Rating (Out of 5): ~3

Publisher: Kodansha Comics

Release Date: June 2015

Volumes: 11

Spoilers?: No.

Buy it here: Amazon. Barnes and Noble. Book Depository. Powells. RightStuf.

Volume: 1. 3.

Goodreads Synopsis:

RONDO CAPRICCIOSO

After the death of his mother, child prodigy Arima Kosei gave up the piano forever — or so he thought. That vow turned out to be no match for the persistence of sprightly violinist Kaori Miyazono, who’s roped Arima back into the world of competitive classical music. But after so many years, will Arima be able to sit down at the ivories again like nothing happened? Or will history repeat itself, with Arima crumbling under the pressure?

Review:

I really want to like this series. And I’m honestly surprised that I don’t like it more.

Where is all this hype coming from?

I will admit that this volume was better than the first, at least.

Arima and Kaori have their first performance together, and it’s terrible. Arima goes in with high hopes, but quickly his memory of his mother is getting in the way and he can’t play. Kaori pushes him, though. And even if their performance is bad, the audience is pulled into the drama of it.

We get hints that Kaori is maybe sick after the performance, but she’s quickly back to surprising and urging Arima to do more with himself. To live life instead of dragging through it.

Mostly, I’m having a hard time really feeling anything for the characters. Something about the art, and their noses, bothers me. The humor is off. Most of the powerful moments, reveals and statements and memories, just aren’t hitting me right. All of it together just isn’t pulling me in enough.

I think it’s getting better along the way, but it’s not at the top of my list to continue. I want to love it, but I’m not.

Manga Review: Your Lie in April, Volume 1, by Naoshi Arakawa

Rating (Out of 5): ~3

Publisher: Kodansha Comics

Release Date: April 21, 2015

Volumes: 11.

Spoilers?: No.

Buy it here: Amazon. Barnes and Noble. Book Depository. Powells. RightStuf.

Volume: 2.
Wishlist Thursday.

Goodreads Synopsis:

Kosei Arima was a piano prodigy until his cruel taskmaster of a mother died suddenly, changing his life forever. Driven by his pain to abandon piano, Kosei now lives in a monotonous, colorless world. Having resigned himself to a bland life, he is surprised when he meets Kaori Miyazono, a violinist with an unorthodox style. Can she bring Kosei back to music, and back to life?

Review:

I have heard a lot of hype for this series, so of course I was going to pick it up. But I was kind of expecting more.
It's about Kosei, who was pushed as a piano prodigy, only something went wrong and now he's terrified to play. He's depressed, doesn't do much of anything. And then he meets Kaori, who surprises him with her way with music. And then pushes him to start living again.

Firstly, the art is not great. The faces are kind of weird; it is not as pretty as the cover all the time.

None of it really hit me like I thought it should. When the two characters meet at the beginning, it didn’t seem as big as a moment as it should have. I didn’t feel his emotions as strongly as I thought I would. When the two decide to pair up, it didn’t hit me as much as I thought it would have. I thought he was going to see things and start living, that she would be a burst of color in his eyes. But it just fell flat.

I see what the author is trying to do, what moments are supposed to stand out, what statements are supposed to matter, but it’s just not working for me like it could be. The humor doesn’t work that well, either, at least for some of it. The exaggeration doesn’t work with the serious moments for me.

This volume just seemed off and not as polished as I expected. I’m going to give it a couple more volumes at least, though. I’ve heard so much praise; I have a hard time believing that it won’t get better. I mean, it must, right? At least I hope so.

Wishlist Thursday[103]: Let's Dance a Waltz by Natsumi Ando & Your Lie in April by Naoshi Arakawa

I’ve got two new Kodansha Comics titles for this month:

Let’s Dance a Waltz 1 by Natsumi Ando

Publisher: Kodansha Comics

Release Date: April 7, 2015

Volumes: 3

Buy it here: Amazon. Barnes and Noble. Book Depository. Powells.

RightStuf Synopsis:

Homely and shy, Hime is burdened by the name her mother gave her, "Princess." Wanting nothing more than to be unnoticed and live a modest life, Hime gets a jolt of inspiration when she tries a dance class where she meets Tango. Her teacher/dance partner, Tango happens to also be her classmate at school. Unfortunately, Tango is desperate to keep his ballroom dancing a secret, believing it will ruin his cool image if anyone at school finds out. Will Tango quit teaching Hime in order to keep his secret, or will he be the partner Hime believes he's destined to be?
Story and art by Natsumi Ando.

Why?:

This is by the same author as Arisa and Kitchen Princess, so of course I will be picking it up. Her artwork is pretty, and I truly enjoyed Kitchen Princess. This looks like it will be more in the realm of that one, so sounds promising. Plus, a closer look at the cover makes the characters look even better. I’m looking forward to picking it up.

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Your Lie in April 1 by Naoshi Arakawa

Publisher: Kodansha Comics

Release Date: April 21, 2015

Volumes: 10+

Buy it here: Amazon. Barnes and Noble. Book Depository. Powells.

RightStuf Synopsis:

Kosei Arima was a piano prodigy until his cruel taskmaster of a mother died suddenly, changing his life forever. Driven by his pain to abandon piano, Kosei now lives in a monotonous, colorless world. Having resigned himself to a bland life, he is surprised when he meets Kaori Miyazono, a violinist with an unorthodox style. Can she bring Kosei back to music, and back to life?
Story and art by Naoshi Arakawa.

Why?:

The artwork looks very pretty, and the synopsis sounds good. I’m not too sure what the genre for it is, if it’s shojo or shonen, and I kind of forgot about it. But recently I’ve heard good things, and it keeps popping up online. I will be picking it up, and I am intrigued.

What about you? What are you looking forward to?