Manga Review: Yamada-kun and the Seven Witches, Volume 11, by Miki Yoshikawa

Rating (Out of 5): ~4

Publisher: Kodansha Comics

Release Date: November 2016

Volumes: 28

Spoilers?: Light.

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

Volume: 1. 10. 12.

Goodreads Synopsis:

MASTER OF CEREMONIES With the secrets of the past relationship between President Yamazaki, Leona Miyamura, and Rika Saionji brought to light, Yamada finally has everything in place to begin the ceremony that will restore his friends’ memories. After all the struggles he’s faced, Yamada makes a shocking wish…to erase all witch powers?! Now the Supernatural Studies Club members have to adjust to a new role—normal high school students! Yamada and Shiraishi focus on getting a fresh start in their relationship, but things don’t stay calm for long. Miyamura ropes the gang into his plans for a new Student Council regime, and it seems like former Student Council Secretary Asuka is hatching a plan…

Review:

The main plot line is finally coming to a close—the witch's perform the ceremony and Yamada gets his wish. Yamada and Shiraishi even decide to start dating, though while it's adorable, not a lot happens in that direction aside from attempts to be alone together. They seem pretty lax about it, though.

Because this could be a very fitting ending to the series, of course, we have to start up a new arc and meet new characters. Miyamura is now student council president, and he makes Yamada his secretary, and is keeping him very busy all the time. There are a few suspicious activities happening in the background, but mostly the focus so far is on the new first-years.

On a side note, it's so weird to see a student council so busy and productive and important. My experience in high school was not like that. (Though I wasn't on the student council, a friend of mine was--maybe it was more productive than I thought?)

This series is just fun. I love how it doesn't even try to stall by staying with one plot; it moves into new territory so easily. It's fantastic.

Manga Review: Yamada-kun and the Seven Witches, Volume 10, by Miki Yoshikawa

Rating (Out of 5): ~4

Publisher: Kodansha Comics

Release Date: September 2016

Volumes: 26+

Spoilers?: No.

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

Volume: 1. 9. 11.

Goodreads Synopsis:

A SISTER'S SECRETS Yamada has finally made progress in his relationship with Shiraishi, and the Supernatural Studies Club is on its way back to normal thanks to the efforts of Odagiri. But the mysteries surrounding the seventh witch, Rika Saionji, are far from over! Finding a soft side to the enigmatic witch may be the key to fully restoring the memories of Yamada’s friends, but to learn about what’s really going on with her and Student Council, Yamada will ahve to seek out the shocking truth behind why Leona Miyamura left school. What painful secretss could Leona be hiding about herself, Student Council President Yamazaki, and Saionji?

Review:

This could very easily be a series that stays in a state of harem antics, with no real progress of plot or character, and it could stay that way for a long time. It's both surprising and pleasing that, instead, there seems to be a new plot point or reveal happening every few volumes.

Yamada is pretty much competing with the student council president at this point, in his attempt to get the witches memories back and get his friends again, while the student council is working against him and particularly thwarting his attempts at Shiraishi.

The biggest reveal in this volume is when we find out what Leona's real part in this was, what she did before leaving school. Saionji apparently has a bigger part in that, that was previously alluded to. And so does the student council president, though even he doesn't know it.

I love where this series is going, and I'm excited to pick up the next one, and see what happens next.

Manga Review: Yamada-kun and the Seven Witches, Volume 9, by Miki Yoshikawa

Rating (Out of 5): ~4

Publisher: Kodansha Comics

Release Date: July 2016

Volumes: 26+

Spoilers?: Yes.

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

Volume: 1. 8. 10.

Goodreads Synopsis:

Kiss and Wake up Yamada has managed to find the seventh witch and protect Shiraishi, but the final witch’s memoryerasing powers have a troubling effect on the Supernatural Studies Club. Facing a world where his friends don’t remember him, Yamada and Tamaki discover that to solve their problems, they need to go back to basics: kissing! Using his dupication powers and the help of a few unlikely allies, he may be able to restore what he’s lost…but his plans to outwit the seventh witch’s power don’t go unnoticed by the crafty Student Council.

Review:

After that confession, it's not surprising that Yamada gets rejected. Though it only leads to more confusion, as he tries figuring out who Urara is in love with, and what in her memory has changed with him gone from it. All the possible opportunities he had.

Nene shows up, and we find out a flaw in the seventh witches power. An intriguing solution, and a new change for Nene, as well. It should be interesting to see what happens next. I like that this series is introducing new things in every volume, and that it's not just staying stale with one plot point.

I'm a rather big fan of this series at this point. I'm looking forward to catching up.

Manga Review: Yamada-kun and the Seven Witches, Volume 8, by Miki Yoshikawa

Rating (Out of 5): ~4

Publisher: Kodansha Comics

Release Date: May 2016

Volumes: 25+

Spoilers?: No.

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

Volume: 1. 7. 9.

Goodreads Synopsis:

"A RACE TO REMEMBER The race to find the seventh witch—and decide the next student council president—is coming to a close, and everyone has something to lose. Yamada and the Supernatural Studies Club must use body-switching trickery to outwit Tamaki’s invisibility power if they want to win. Finding the last witch means protecting Shiraishi, but Leona Miyamura reveals a secret about this ""special"" witch that makes the game even riskier! Can Yamada save Shiraishi even if it means losing the friendships he holds most dear?"

Review:

In the first half, Yamada and the group have to take their information and hunt for more clues to find out who the seventh witch is. And then he finds out. And it comes with a surprising twist.

This isn’t a plot that I expected to come up, and it’s an interesting development. I don’t mind these kinds of plots, and I think it’s done particularly neat in this series. I like how Yamada reacts, in particular, how he just goes along with it and tries to accept it without fighting. The way it leads to that cliffhanger is especially nice, in my opinion.

Very vague, but I’m liking where this is going. I’m interested to see how he fixes things, and how they’re going to go around it next time. I can’t wait to start the next one.

Manga Review: Yamada-kun and the Seven Witches, Volume 7, by Miki Yoshikawa

Rating (Out of 5): ~4

Publisher: Kodansha Comics

Release Date: March 2016

Volumes: 24+

Spoilers?: Light.

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

Volume: 1. 6. 8.

Goodreads Synopsis:

Yamada’s Confession: The Suzaku Festival is in full swing, but the revelry comes to an end when Yamada must find a way to help a friend in need. In the process of doing so, he discovers more about the witches—including the fact that Yamada is not the only boy with powers at Suzaku High. This new power-user may be the key to resolving everything, but he may also lead to the loss of someone dear to Yamada. And faced with such a dilemma, Yamada is forced to admit something that he’s been hiding from all his friends…

Review:

We meet a new type of off-witch in this volume (like what Yamada is), a witch killer, i.e. someone who takes a witches power. This leads to Yamada having a meeting with the student council president, and he has a very sneaky bodyguard in an assistant.

Yamads ends up doing one favor that extends into something else, and then there’s a competition between the three competitors for student council president. During this, we meet Miyamura’s sister, and find out what Miyamura is really after. And the group is all off to find who the final witch is.

I’m intrigued by the discoveries in this volume—Miyamura’s sister is an interesting, violent character, and it should be good to find out who the final witch is and what she can do. I’m looking forward to getting the next volume.

Manga Review: Yamada-kun and the Seven Witches, Volume 6, by Miki Yoshikawa

Rating (Out of 5): ~3.5-4

Publisher: Kodansha Comics

Release Date: January 2016

Volumes: 22+

Spoilers?: No.

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

Volume: 1. 5. 7.

Goodreads Synopsis:

Class troublemaker Ryu Yamada is already having a bad day when he stumbles down a staircase along with star student Urara Shiraishi. When he wakes up, he realises they have switched bodies - and that Ryu has the power to trade places with anyone with only a kiss! Plus, it turns out he's not the only kid at school with a few magic tricks up his sleeve. Also receiving a simul-pub on Crunchyroll, Yamada-Kun is sure to be one of the biggest manga hits of the year.

Review:

We finally find out what Noa is really up to. What her power is and why she’s causing all this trouble. It gets messy there in the middle, but it’s a surprisingly sweet story by the end, a true friendship coming to light. Her witch power is also hard to deal with, I imagine; I know Yamada has a hard time with it.

In this, of course, we also see how close the main group is, how they’ll fight for each other, and how determined they are to find out all they can about the witches. There’s a little more hinting at a romance between Yamada and Urara, of which I am in favor.

This series is just so much fun. The comedy is well-done, exaggerated and sexual and funny. I’m also enjoying the group of friends and how it’s expanding, and even though I can’t remember anyone’s names, I do remember each character.

I’m looking forward to the next one.

Manga Review: Yamada-kun and the Seven Witches, Volume 5, by Miki Yoshikawa

Rating (Out of 5): ~4

Publisher: Kodansha Comics

Release Date: November 2015

Volumes: 21+

Spoilers?: No.

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

Volume: 1. 4. 6.

Goodreads Synopsis:

There’s going to be a fire in the old school building and it’s up to Yamada to stop it! Guided by Sarushima’s precognition ability, Yamada and the gang set out to alter the future. They suspect that Sarushima’s friend, Tsubaki, is responsible for the incident, and to keep Tsubaki from the scene of the fire, Shiraishi invites him on a date! Yamada switches bodies with Shiraishi and his mission is simple: don’t let Tsubaki confess his love to Shiraishi, and keep him distracted until the time when the fire occurs! Can Yamada pull off playing the perfect woman? Perhaps his friends should just kick back and ready the s’mores …

Review:

This series is just so much fun, so much more than I thought it would be.

The gang has to figure out how to stop the fire in this volume. As they’re figuring out how the visions work and how to change them, they have to find out who starts the fire and how to stop them. This turns into a lot of body changing and kissing and a love confession to Shiraishi. I do find it nice that, to make it well-rounded, now girls are kissing girls along with guys kissing guys, when few of them appear to like each other in that way. I find all the sexual antics rather hilarious at this point.

After that debacle, we move on to meeting some new characters, including a possible witch. Should be fun.