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Mono #1
mono, Vol. 1
After three girls merge their school clubs to keep them alive, their travels around Japan become the perfect subject for a new work by the town’s resident manga artist. Time to take in the sights, try out all the gadgets, and snack on local delicacies!
- GenresMangaGraphic Novels
136 pages, Paperback
First published October 25, 2018
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37 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
March 4, 2025
How sadly disappointing. The plot and art - even the humor! - seems phoned in as a pale imitation of Laid Back Camp. The characters here even visit the places in LBC, but all they say is the name of the place and move on. The art is blocky and unfocused, and some panels in conversations aren't even of characters, but for some reason show the building they're in with speech bubbles around it. The characters themselves have very little to define them, and very little of their conversation is funny. It doesn't even hit that nice comfy place that most slice-of-life manga is able to achieve. Alas!
November 16, 2024
This was cute, but lacked focus. There’s a high school photography club doing random photo things, and there’s a manga artist trying to figure out her new manga. A chance meeting leads to the school girls helping the artist in her search for inspiration. And then there’s the manga artist and her friend travelling around on the latter’s bike.
Apart from the school bits where the girls face the closure of their club, I think this was supposed to be about visiting interesting locations and sampling the food. And they get around a lot. But each place is visited for a frame or two and then it’s on to the next, with reader having no idea where they are and why. A couple of longer stays, like in a winery, didn’t really change the pace. I had absolutely no connection with the school girls, but the manga artist was sort of funny with her shut-in personality. The alter ego of the artist of this manga perhaps.
I think the problem here is the four-frame format. I’ve never been a fan, as it seems to lead to filler frames and no proper stories. There are a couple of bonus pages at the end with larger frames and the characters come to life immediately, so it’s clearly the artist’s preferred format. This is the first volume, but I don’t see why anyone would want to read more of this.
I received a free copy from Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.
Apart from the school bits where the girls face the closure of their club, I think this was supposed to be about visiting interesting locations and sampling the food. And they get around a lot. But each place is visited for a frame or two and then it’s on to the next, with reader having no idea where they are and why. A couple of longer stays, like in a winery, didn’t really change the pace. I had absolutely no connection with the school girls, but the manga artist was sort of funny with her shut-in personality. The alter ego of the artist of this manga perhaps.
I think the problem here is the four-frame format. I’ve never been a fan, as it seems to lead to filler frames and no proper stories. There are a couple of bonus pages at the end with larger frames and the characters come to life immediately, so it’s clearly the artist’s preferred format. This is the first volume, but I don’t see why anyone would want to read more of this.
I received a free copy from Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.
January 8, 2025
Mono is a very humorous slice-of-life manga where the description "cute girls doing cute things" fits perfectly. The only relevant plot points revolve around how the cast meets, while the rest of the story consists only of sightseeing. At least they have a reason for their sightseeing. The mangaka Haruno creates a new manga about schoolgirls on sightseeing tour and she wants to have the cast as the protagonists. She makes a deal with the photography club who use this as an opportunity for their own club activities. However the way the different chapters begann doesn't always feel natural.
Story-wise, I think there's potential to do more and maybe the upcoming anime will do it better.
But right now Mono is essentially an advertisement for sightseeing and even more than Yuru Camp (which at least has some story). Still I don't mind this too much because the humor is good and makes for an enjoyable time. As a Yuru Camp fan I also liked all the references. In one chapter, the cast even visits some the locations featured in Yuru Camp, which I'm sure many fans have also done in real life, lol.
Unfortunately the photography aspect was somewhat lost as the chapters progressed. In the beginning different cameras and foto techniques were introduced, which I found pretty interesting, but later on it didn't play a big role anymore.
In the end the first volume of Mono is a nice way to pass time, but it misses its potential to truly compete with Yuru Camp. If you're looking for a deep story or complex characters, you should probably read something entirely different. I still give it 75/100 points.
Story-wise, I think there's potential to do more and maybe the upcoming anime will do it better.
But right now Mono is essentially an advertisement for sightseeing and even more than Yuru Camp (which at least has some story). Still I don't mind this too much because the humor is good and makes for an enjoyable time. As a Yuru Camp fan I also liked all the references. In one chapter, the cast even visits some the locations featured in Yuru Camp, which I'm sure many fans have also done in real life, lol.
Unfortunately the photography aspect was somewhat lost as the chapters progressed. In the beginning different cameras and foto techniques were introduced, which I found pretty interesting, but later on it didn't play a big role anymore.
In the end the first volume of Mono is a nice way to pass time, but it misses its potential to truly compete with Yuru Camp. If you're looking for a deep story or complex characters, you should probably read something entirely different. I still give it 75/100 points.
February 20, 2025
I'm not sure this manga ever figured out what it wants to be about. Is it about teens learning photography? About school club politics? A mangaka who needs an idea? About 2/3 in, it starts to feel like a travelogue manga, but we don't spend enough time at any individual location to get more than one or two panels of it, certainly not enough to appreciate the location. This is probably at least partly because the four panel format is a really awkward fit for a travelogue. Sure, the art is really good, but I need more.
June 19, 2025
Mono is a four-panel manga. If I remember correctly, it's the second one I've read, the other being K-ON. While reading Mono, I realized many parallels between these two series. Both begin with a high school club which is about to be disbanded. Both focus on the girls in the club. Both are part of the "slice-of-life" genre, focusing not on intense drama, but instead the cute and enjoyable moments of everyday life. And both are published by Yen Press.
However, while K-ON revolves around a light music club, Mono (is it meant to be written in lowercase?) revolves around a photography club which merges with a film club. Satsuki and An purchase small cameras, and they begin sightseeing with them.
I'm not sure if there's meant to be a main character in particular, although Satsuki and An definitely seem the most important. (On the cover, Satsuki is the one holding her camera up high.) Despite this, the majority of the travel which takes place in the volume is the result of Haruno's job as a manga artist. She seeks inspiration, and she realizes she can use her new friends' photography as a basis for her four-panel manga. The friends embark on a sightseeing journey (visiting many locations from a separate manga series they like), and Haruno essentially uses her friends as models for her manga. It's implied that the manga she's drawing is this very manga.
Since she wants to reach all these destinations in, like, two days, the sightseeing feels quite rushed. And considering Mono's focus on photography, it's a shame more time isn't spent setting up shots and appreciating scenery. It feels like the plot is restricted by Haruno's job, forcing things to happen quickly, when a slower pace would be more effective. Even if there isn't meant to be a main character, it doesn't make sense for Haruno to drive the plot so heavily. (That was not an intentional reference to Haruno's driving.)
Nonetheless, Mono is effective at capturing the adventurous vibe of a vacation. It feels big, if that makes sense. The art is cute, and it perfectly complements the story. Also, I found myself laughing on multiple occasions during this volume. Humor is a great quality for this kind of manga. My favorite moment is definitely "Ayep."
In my opinion, not every character is especially deep or complex, but I imagine we'll get to see more of them in future volumes (although there's currently only one other volume). My favorite character is probably Haruno.
There's one more thing I'd like to mention: yes, Mono is a four-panel manga, but it also breaks the four-panel structure on various occasions throughout the volume. This is a great choice in my opinion, especially considering the emphasis on photography. It would be hard to show the shots they take if you're restricted to such small panels.
I'll read the second volume soon - like, probably tomorrow. Despite my various criticisms, I'm definitely excited to continue Mono. But why the heck is it called that? Did I miss something? Is it a Japanese term? Is it a photography term? Perhaps we'll never know.
However, while K-ON revolves around a light music club, Mono (is it meant to be written in lowercase?) revolves around a photography club which merges with a film club. Satsuki and An purchase small cameras, and they begin sightseeing with them.
I'm not sure if there's meant to be a main character in particular, although Satsuki and An definitely seem the most important. (On the cover, Satsuki is the one holding her camera up high.) Despite this, the majority of the travel which takes place in the volume is the result of Haruno's job as a manga artist. She seeks inspiration, and she realizes she can use her new friends' photography as a basis for her four-panel manga. The friends embark on a sightseeing journey (visiting many locations from a separate manga series they like), and Haruno essentially uses her friends as models for her manga. It's implied that the manga she's drawing is this very manga.
Since she wants to reach all these destinations in, like, two days, the sightseeing feels quite rushed. And considering Mono's focus on photography, it's a shame more time isn't spent setting up shots and appreciating scenery. It feels like the plot is restricted by Haruno's job, forcing things to happen quickly, when a slower pace would be more effective. Even if there isn't meant to be a main character, it doesn't make sense for Haruno to drive the plot so heavily. (That was not an intentional reference to Haruno's driving.)
Nonetheless, Mono is effective at capturing the adventurous vibe of a vacation. It feels big, if that makes sense. The art is cute, and it perfectly complements the story. Also, I found myself laughing on multiple occasions during this volume. Humor is a great quality for this kind of manga. My favorite moment is definitely "Ayep."
In my opinion, not every character is especially deep or complex, but I imagine we'll get to see more of them in future volumes (although there's currently only one other volume). My favorite character is probably Haruno.
There's one more thing I'd like to mention: yes, Mono is a four-panel manga, but it also breaks the four-panel structure on various occasions throughout the volume. This is a great choice in my opinion, especially considering the emphasis on photography. It would be hard to show the shots they take if you're restricted to such small panels.
I'll read the second volume soon - like, probably tomorrow. Despite my various criticisms, I'm definitely excited to continue Mono. But why the heck is it called that? Did I miss something? Is it a Japanese term? Is it a photography term? Perhaps we'll never know.
May 10, 2025
Okay, I could be wrong here, but I think I’m seeing a misunderstanding that is leading to a bunch of bad reviews of this manga, saying that the main characters have little focus, character development, or definition.
But here’s the thing: this is NOT a manga about the high schoolers in the Cine-Photo club (even though the publisher presents it that way). This is a manga about a manga author. Everyone else is a supporting character. Once you realize that, this manga makes a lot more sense.
Honestly, this manga is fascinatingly weird: it’s a 4-panel manga … about a manga author who has to draw a 4-panel manga because her publisher demands it. Hmmmm. And she has trouble getting ideas, so she just writes about what her friends in the Cine-Photo club are doing … which is, of course, what we’re reading. AND one of the things they do, for a publisher promotion, is visit the real-life locations from “a popular manga they publish” which is quite clearly Laid-Back Camp. HMMMM.
Is this a surreal metafiction exercise? A thinly disguised autobiographical manga? I have no idea, but it makes my head spin.
Having said that, I’m not saying this book is perfect!
I’m going to have to agree that the 4-panel format just doesn’t work as well for the kind of stories this author tells. Some manga use the 4-panel format really well, letting it set a rhythm that carries the story along - not so here, where it feels like the author is fighting against the format all the way (especially when you can pick up a volume of Laid-Back Camp and immediately see the difference in narrative flow).
Making matters worse, this has one huge, egregious editing / quality control error: they straight up forgot to put in the chapter headings! The panels start on page 1 and just keep going continuously until the last page! It’s not a deliberate choice, because Volume 2 is broken up into chapters (and starts with “Episode 15”, no less)! Come on, Yen Press, you’re one of my favorite manga publishers, but this is just embarrassing.
But here’s the thing: this is NOT a manga about the high schoolers in the Cine-Photo club (even though the publisher presents it that way). This is a manga about a manga author. Everyone else is a supporting character. Once you realize that, this manga makes a lot more sense.
Honestly, this manga is fascinatingly weird: it’s a 4-panel manga … about a manga author who has to draw a 4-panel manga because her publisher demands it. Hmmmm. And she has trouble getting ideas, so she just writes about what her friends in the Cine-Photo club are doing … which is, of course, what we’re reading. AND one of the things they do, for a publisher promotion, is visit the real-life locations from “a popular manga they publish” which is quite clearly Laid-Back Camp. HMMMM.
Is this a surreal metafiction exercise? A thinly disguised autobiographical manga? I have no idea, but it makes my head spin.
Having said that, I’m not saying this book is perfect!
I’m going to have to agree that the 4-panel format just doesn’t work as well for the kind of stories this author tells. Some manga use the 4-panel format really well, letting it set a rhythm that carries the story along - not so here, where it feels like the author is fighting against the format all the way (especially when you can pick up a volume of Laid-Back Camp and immediately see the difference in narrative flow).
Making matters worse, this has one huge, egregious editing / quality control error: they straight up forgot to put in the chapter headings! The panels start on page 1 and just keep going continuously until the last page! It’s not a deliberate choice, because Volume 2 is broken up into chapters (and starts with “Episode 15”, no less)! Come on, Yen Press, you’re one of my favorite manga publishers, but this is just embarrassing.
April 5, 2025
Pretty similar to Afro's Laid Back Camp which I ADORE, this one features a group of kids that have a (loosely interpreted) photography club that they use their tools and tricks to snap photos of food and travel. So they need to reinvent themselves and it might incorporate moving pictures as well to create cinematography and photography.
Either way, it's the other series but with cameras.
I won't complain because the girls are adorable, they enjoy their baths and food, and seeing beautiful things around Japan.
Either way, it's the other series but with cameras.
I won't complain because the girls are adorable, they enjoy their baths and food, and seeing beautiful things around Japan.
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May 19, 2025Similar vibes to Laid Back Camp (my fave) except this one feels much more like meta-manga given the story about a manga author needing to come up with a new idea and then essentially writing the manga we’re reading, with nods to LBC thrown in. So far this series seems less developed but I’m not complaining too much because it’s still pretty darn cute (especially the cat mascot) and I had a nice time.
June 16, 2025
Similar to Laid-Back Camp, this series features high school girls traveling around to see local sites and take photos and videos!
March 23, 2026
I've never read a manga entirely in 4-panel style. It has an interesting vibe to it because of that. Also, the bonus is in regular comic format lol
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews