Rating (Out of 5): ~4.5
Publisher: VIZ Media (Shojo Beat)
Volumes: 13
Spoilers?: Yes, major ones with warning.
A
moving coming-of-age story that showcases a fierce, dynamic heroine who
speaks her mind. Meet Maria Kawai—she’s gorgeous and whip-smart, a girl
who seems to have it all. But when she unleashes her sharp tongue, it’s
no wonder some consider her to be the very devil! Maria’s difficult
ways even get her kicked out of an elite school, but this particular
fall may actually turn out to be her saving grace...
Unable to
tell Maria his feelings for her, Shin decides to channel all his energy
into playing the piano. His hard work pays off when he lands a role in a
big concert, but will Maria even be there on the day of the show?
Reads R to L (Japanese Style) for teen audiences.
Review:
So, a couple of
volumes ago, this series was just good. It was heading into the, like it but
not obsessed with it, territory, and then volume 8 was very good and exciting
again. And then this volume happened. And tore
me apart. And now I’m obsessed again.
It starts where the
last one left off, with Kurosu leaning in to kiss Maria, but what happens after
that is not what I was expecting. Maria pushes him away, and then Shin punches
him. Not what I thought was going to happen. And then Kurosu leaves, feeling
unwanted by everyone. Maria feels bad for him, though, because she understands
why he did it, and she understands that he wants to be accepted by them and now
feels rejected and alone.
The group try to
lure him back, and it succeeds, and he’s deemed with the nickname “Eros”, which
Maria accidentally called him, combining Kurosu and Erotic. Then they all head
back to school, and there’s talk of wishes, and Maria talks to Kurosu about why
she likes Shin, and Shin talks with his father about getting a spot at this
concert, since it’s a wish of Maria’s to see him at one.
Then we get a
chapter in Shin’s head, and we see him second-guessing his decision to stay
away from Maria, as he watches her get closer to Kurosu and more used to
touching. Then he gets a spot in the concert, his confidence goes up, and he
invites Maria, and only Maria, to it.
And this is where
everything inside me just tore apart. There are not enough words to explain my
feelings towards what happens next.
Okay, so Maria is
nervous and excited about seeing Shin, she’s told that it’s a date and wonders
about his feelings towards her and gets all dressed up. She runs into Yusuke
and Kurosu while all dressed up and they coax her to sing in public.
(SPOILERS!) And then—and then!—, as she’s heading to the concert hall, she’s
attacked.
It turns out that
it’s that guy, a couple volumes ago, who was singing in public before, who
Maria was going to sing for and then decided not to. He heard her sing earlier
and got all jealous and angry and is trying to strangle her. She’s getting
flashbacks of what happened with her mother, but she pulls her phone out and
dials Yusuke (because he’s the person who showed up on her recent calls list,
because of his late night calls to make sure she sleeps nightmare free), which
makes the guy stop choking her to take the phone. This makes him also stop
trying to choke her, and she yells at him a little, telling him why he’s
feeling this way, and that he’s a coward (yes!), and things seem to have calmed
down and he’s feeling regretful. And then he goes to apologize or something and
reaches out to her, and she totally tells him off, saying that, duh, he just
tried to kill her and she doesn’t even want to look at him (!), and to leave
(!!), and so he does.
At this point she’s
alone in the bushes, a mess, and crying, and she hears Shin’s music from the
music hall because she’s so close, and that comforts her, and then Yusuke shows
up (!). He’s concerned, worried, asks her what’s wrong, touches her and then
recoils because of how she’s previously reacted. But she hugs him, and she
tells him that she cares a lot about him, and even though she understands his
feelings for her, he’s not getting rid of her. And it’s so goddamn sweet and I
love it and ohmygooooood!
Throughout this very intense and important and sweet and
ohmygod moment between Yusuke and Maria, Shin is performing at the concert.
When he gets through, he hurries out, knowing that Maria didn’t show up and
worried about why (especially since he’d previously told her that he really
wanted her to listen, and had decided that if she understood the music [which
had been called erotic] that he was going to tell her about his feelings). He
shows up and sees Maria and Yusuke embracing and is worried. Later, he calls
her and asks, and she apologizes for not showing up, but says she heard him
playing, and that it comforted her, as she was alone and hurt at the time she
heard it. She doesn’t tell him about getting attacked, because she knows he’ll
worry. He doesn’t believe her, seeing as he saw her with Yusuke.
Now, this is surely
to cause trouble, and I know that I’ve previously been full on Shin’s team, but
I think I’ve changed my mind. Because during all that time with Shin, and how
important it was supposed to be about his seeing her and Yusuke, I couldn’t
form an ounce of care, because my mind was full of Yusuke. I’m pretty sure I
love him at this point, and I don’t even know how that happened. But I do. He’s
so sweet and nice and loyal; he’s there for Maria anytime she needs him, he
calls her every night so she can sleep, he’s there to comfort her, showed up
because she called him and didn’t answer when he called back, and he’s okay
that she doesn’t feel the same way about him. I honestly want her to feel the
same way about him now, but don’t doubt that she’s going to end up with Shin.
Still, I love him, and will fangirl over him incessantly from now on.
So, Shin has lost
some of my feelings for him. He just needs to buck up already; hopefully he’ll
do that soon. And I’m rather fond of Kurosu now, too. I’m not sure in what way,
but I like him. He’s sweet and funny and good for Maria. And there were several
comic strips at the end of the book featuring him and his feelings for Maria,
and they were just adorable, and had me laughing the whole time.
So, I’m loving this
series completely again. I’m kind of obsessed, particularly with Yusuke, but
also with Maria. She’s just so strong—she’s having problems with her past and
with the boys in her life, yes, but she never backs down, she’s so
straightforward, and she’s helpful and honest even while being hurt and angry.
She’s awesome, and there need to be more people like her in this world.
I’m obsessed and in love, and now that the volume has come out, I am very eager to get my hand on it.
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