What do you think?
Rate this book
Marmalade Boy #3
Marmalade Boy: Collector's Edition 3
FIERCE COMPETITION
Miki loves Yuu, but she’s got plenty of competition! The newest person vying for Yuu’s affections is no less than the school president, Miwa Satoshi. Just how close are the two boys? And what’s the meaning behind that serious look Yuu gets on his face from time to time?
Miki loves Yuu, but she’s got plenty of competition! The newest person vying for Yuu’s affections is no less than the school president, Miwa Satoshi. Just how close are the two boys? And what’s the meaning behind that serious look Yuu gets on his face from time to time?
298 pages, Paperback
Published August 15, 2023
3 people are currently reading
31 people want to read
About the author
Wataru Yoshizumi
192 books312 followersWataru Yoshizumi (吉住渉) is a Japanese mangaka. She was born as Mari Nakai (中井 真里, Nakai Mari) on June 18, 1963 in Tokyo, Japan. She graduated with a degree in economics from Hitotsubashi University.
Yoshizumi started her career as a mangaka while working as an office lady. Her debut manga was a yomikiri (short story) called "Radical Romance" that was published in 1984, in the summer issue of Ribon Original. She is known as a social mangaka, and is a good friend of fellow mangakas Naoko Takeuchi, Ai Yazawa, Miho Obana, and Megumi Mizusawa.
Yoshizumi currently (as of 2007) has her works published in both Ribon and Chorus.
Yoshizumi started her career as a mangaka while working as an office lady. Her debut manga was a yomikiri (short story) called "Radical Romance" that was published in 1984, in the summer issue of Ribon Original. She is known as a social mangaka, and is a good friend of fellow mangakas Naoko Takeuchi, Ai Yazawa, Miho Obana, and Megumi Mizusawa.
Yoshizumi currently (as of 2007) has her works published in both Ribon and Chorus.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
September 30, 2024
Onward we go, introducing more characters and more zany situations. I'm getting to really like the depth of this series, and it's really nice to see Miki admit to her feelings for Yuu. Competition is getting tough though so I need to keep going to figure out what happens next!!!
September 20, 2024
One of the best teen soap mangas continues with plenty of low key drama. Really can't wait to dig into vol. 4.
September 18, 2023
This manga is over 30 years old, and I think it's held up pretty well. It isn't like girls in shoujo manga have stopped being weirdly obsessive over their crushes--and unlike some others, these actually have things to do or think about besides that: tennis, literary criticism, track. It isn't like age-gap romances between teachers and their teenaged students have stopped existing in shoujo manga (unfortunately). Maybe the attitude towards Yuu and/or Miwa possibly being bisexual is a little off. But I think that the basic theme that parents being irresponsible to the point that their kids can't be confident they're even related to them, causing lasting emotional scars, is just as valid today as it was then.
There are maybe a few too many pages with screen tone instead of backgrounds, but that's something that carries through to today, too.
There are maybe a few too many pages with screen tone instead of backgrounds, but that's something that carries through to today, too.
December 20, 2023
It’s funny how I love this series more than I did the first time around (check my reviews for the Tokyopop singles lol). I think reading this, keep in mind that it’s not meant to be taken so seriously… I mean, Miki and Yuu’s parents SWITCHED spouses and decided to LIVE TOGETHER AS A BLENDED FAMILY IN ONE HOUSE… Yeah definitely not meant to be taken seriously LOL
February 16, 2024
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
August 31, 2025
I really do like this series a lot. It's so charming and the art style makes me happy. I can't wait to read more soon 🩷
July 30, 2025
Of all the things I expected to discover when revisiting this manga series, I am most surprised at how Marmalade Boy is making me confront my own stubbornness! The first time I ever read this manga series, I was all in for Miki to end up with Ginta, and I remember arguing passionately with friends about this point. Ugh…how I HATE to say this…I was WRONG!
Not only are Miki and Yuu the obvious endgame couple in this series, but I also must admit that I prefer the Miki and Yuu pairing over a potential Miki and Ginta romantic relationship. Ginta is a pretty decent guy too—it is weird that a lot of this just comes down to interpersonal chemistry and the fact that Ginta simply isn’t Yuu. This is made most explicit when Miki chooses not to attend Ginta’s big tennis match in the tournament finals, despite Ginta telling her how much her support means to him: “Miki, please come! This match is so important! I want you to see it!!” Instead, Miki is compelled to go along with Yuu when he and Satoshi confront Satoshi’s father, Yoshimitsu, as both boys erroneously believe that they are secretly half-brothers.
Yoshimitsu is able to explain himself to the boys, but not without coming off as a total sleazeball first! When Satoshi asks why his mother believed her husband was having an affair with Yuu’s mother, Yoshimitsu awkwardly explains he never dissuaded his wife, “Because…it was a smokescreen for my real affair.” I love Miki and Satoshi’s horrified faces and the accompanying text, “AGHAST…” after this revelation!
Satoshi is featured quite often in this volume, from his close friendship with Yuu that initially irks Miki, to his somewhat silly but earnest attempts at trying to date Meiko that keep getting rejected (I loved an exasperated Meiko thinking, “What a piece of work.”). Satoshi also has some great insights into Yuu that he shares with Miki: “He acts all apathetic about his ludicrous parents and does whatever he wants…but that might all be an act. I think he’s actually pretty naive.” There is certainly some naivety in Yuu’s explanation to Yoshimitsu about why he cannot ask his own parents for the truth: “I don’t want to make things awkward.” Yuu, your parents traded spouses with another couple, and you all live together along with the girl you obviously love. I don’t think you are CAPABLE of MAKING THINGS MORE AWKWARD THAN THAT! Despite their closeness, it is almost inexplicable how Yuu pushes Satoshi away after the truth is revealed; despite Satoshi remarking it would have been fun to have Yuu as a brother, Yuu smiles and says, “I never wanted a brother like you, though, Satoshi-san. See ya!” Satoshi is hardly done with his role in this manga series, as this volume ends with the reveal that his model cousin will soon be in a commercial with a somewhat reluctant Yuu.
It’s impossible not to talk about this volume without discussing that wonderful scene on the beach where Miki and Yuu finally confess their love and kiss each other. There’s a lot of humor in this manga series, silly mix-ups, and some zany plot twists—it’s a lot of fun overall. However, the romance factor in these books is just terrifically well-written and needs a little attention too. Miki and Yuu, besides being in love with each other, are just two mixed up young people caught in a complicated situation because of their parents’ decisions. And for a character as enigmatic as Yuu can sometimes behave, it is gratifying when he tells Miki that he loves her because, among other things, she stood up against their parents when the spouse swap was initially proposed: “Pure and earnest, unlike me. Giving your all in all you do. Wearing your thoughts and emotions on your face without hiding them.” It is a treat rereading this manga series, especially because this is making me realize how fast I read through these books the first time and how many details I completely forgot. I rate this volume as five-out-of-five-stars!
Not only are Miki and Yuu the obvious endgame couple in this series, but I also must admit that I prefer the Miki and Yuu pairing over a potential Miki and Ginta romantic relationship. Ginta is a pretty decent guy too—it is weird that a lot of this just comes down to interpersonal chemistry and the fact that Ginta simply isn’t Yuu. This is made most explicit when Miki chooses not to attend Ginta’s big tennis match in the tournament finals, despite Ginta telling her how much her support means to him: “Miki, please come! This match is so important! I want you to see it!!” Instead, Miki is compelled to go along with Yuu when he and Satoshi confront Satoshi’s father, Yoshimitsu, as both boys erroneously believe that they are secretly half-brothers.
Yoshimitsu is able to explain himself to the boys, but not without coming off as a total sleazeball first! When Satoshi asks why his mother believed her husband was having an affair with Yuu’s mother, Yoshimitsu awkwardly explains he never dissuaded his wife, “Because…it was a smokescreen for my real affair.” I love Miki and Satoshi’s horrified faces and the accompanying text, “AGHAST…” after this revelation!
Satoshi is featured quite often in this volume, from his close friendship with Yuu that initially irks Miki, to his somewhat silly but earnest attempts at trying to date Meiko that keep getting rejected (I loved an exasperated Meiko thinking, “What a piece of work.”). Satoshi also has some great insights into Yuu that he shares with Miki: “He acts all apathetic about his ludicrous parents and does whatever he wants…but that might all be an act. I think he’s actually pretty naive.” There is certainly some naivety in Yuu’s explanation to Yoshimitsu about why he cannot ask his own parents for the truth: “I don’t want to make things awkward.” Yuu, your parents traded spouses with another couple, and you all live together along with the girl you obviously love. I don’t think you are CAPABLE of MAKING THINGS MORE AWKWARD THAN THAT! Despite their closeness, it is almost inexplicable how Yuu pushes Satoshi away after the truth is revealed; despite Satoshi remarking it would have been fun to have Yuu as a brother, Yuu smiles and says, “I never wanted a brother like you, though, Satoshi-san. See ya!” Satoshi is hardly done with his role in this manga series, as this volume ends with the reveal that his model cousin will soon be in a commercial with a somewhat reluctant Yuu.
It’s impossible not to talk about this volume without discussing that wonderful scene on the beach where Miki and Yuu finally confess their love and kiss each other. There’s a lot of humor in this manga series, silly mix-ups, and some zany plot twists—it’s a lot of fun overall. However, the romance factor in these books is just terrifically well-written and needs a little attention too. Miki and Yuu, besides being in love with each other, are just two mixed up young people caught in a complicated situation because of their parents’ decisions. And for a character as enigmatic as Yuu can sometimes behave, it is gratifying when he tells Miki that he loves her because, among other things, she stood up against their parents when the spouse swap was initially proposed: “Pure and earnest, unlike me. Giving your all in all you do. Wearing your thoughts and emotions on your face without hiding them.” It is a treat rereading this manga series, especially because this is making me realize how fast I read through these books the first time and how many details I completely forgot. I rate this volume as five-out-of-five-stars!
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews