Takako Shimura (native name: 志村貴子) is a manga artist primarily known for her manga works published in Japan which feature LGBT (especially about lesbian and transgender) topics. Originally from Kanagawa, she now resides in Tokyo.
I feel an obligation to write a review since the others are either negative or haven’t provided enough information to help readers decide whether the series is worth continuing.
The series does start to improve in this book. I felt that between 9-13, the books were good, but reused plots such as the school play, the school field trip, the escapist shopping trip where no one would know them, etc. too much, and didn’t add much in the way of fresh material.
In this book, life starts happening quickly, the characters are growing up and expressing themselves rather than vacillating for several books on whether they should say how they feel. It’s nice to see greater agency — even if the directions they’re moving aren’t the ways you expected in the beginning.
I won’t give any spoilers, but say that I empathize with the trans characters. Whether you’re confident or questioning, you’re valid.
I can hardly keep track now. New characters who never got developed that I'm supposed to care about, an art style that looks like Shimura had a case of shaky-hand throughout the volume, and all the characters who I DID care about suddenly aging a few years and changing dramatically. oh and too little maho. time to push through to the end.