It’s a slice-of-life story. They keep smoking.
Well, there’s not exactly a plot here, so it’s not much of anything to describe. Sasaki and Tayama continue to meet up and smoke and just discuss nothing terribly important. Once in a while there’s a dog and occasionally they get that much closer together.
If you liked the first volume, this is that. If you did not like the first volume, this is also that. The chapters pull from the same sort of ideas each time, just sort of assemble them in a variety of ways, and keep on going.
Which is perfectly okay for the genre. Sasaki can’t figure out that Tayama is actually the kindly Yamada of his supermarket fantasies, but the two of them keep forging their bond in little tiny increments. Sasaki manages to survive work a little better, Tayama has trouble holding onto her tougher side when Sasaki is nice, etc.
Little tweaks manifest themselves - torrential rain and missing ashtrays and stifling heat - just to give things another angle of attack. Sometimes there are little jokes, although the only one I really feel is worth a mention is the shojo parody page Tayama’s boss is reading. You have to zoom in to make it out, but it’s a very brisk swipe at I Wanna Eat Your Pancreas.
Anyway, ‘two people who have a lot in common slowly become close via talking’ is a vibe I often enjoy and so it goes here. The art is very solid and it conveys the chemistry brewing between them. I really appreciate Tayama’s design, as well, which is attractive without going full ‘manga babe’ design. It’s quieter, as befits the story, much like those little moments between them that land really nicely.
There just isn’t a whole lot to say without talking about what they’re talking about and that’s not much fun to write or read about. The ways they subtly influence one another and how the story shows the difference in their ages is very well done. It’s a light read, but certainly a rewarding one as well.
3.5 stars - it’s not as wonderful as the first volume since the story was so delightfully novel then. Even without that aspect, this doesn’t drop the quality and rather maintains it at a level that I’m quite satisfied with.