With two volumes to go, Komi and company do their usual business this volume: meander all over creation in search of a joke or two to squeeze out of this scenario before we wrap it all up.
I’ll admit that I’ve been punishingly miserable to this series lately, but it also hasn’t been especially good or funny. I wouldn’t say that this is particularly hysterical or anything, but it’s definitely a step up (guess what? No Yamai either!).
I think lacking the wordplay of the original Japanese and getting no notes related to same does hurt this story. Even with that, however, it’s more of a chuckle than anything hilarious. You’ve seen all these characters do all this stuff before and better.
Now, if you still love this? Don’t fret - it’s good enough. There are even a couple of dramatic or more serious moments that come across pretty solidly. It’s not a bad volume, I just haven’t especially been interested for a while.
The volume leads off with a karaoke bit that works because of increasingly integrated antics of the person who’s on duty. This is followed by a couples contest that has some amusing turns, plus Naruse shows just how much he cares for and considers Ase, which I’ve always appreciated.
Manbagi’s relationship gets more development than Komi and Tadano, which is reasonable since the main couple are not overly exciting (Tadano does get a good moment at the end, points for that). I won’t lie - the weird bit with the breath mints is actually very amusing, along with an appropriate dig at cliffhangers.
Elsewhere, finding out the secret of Komi’s brother, or not, makes for an interesting little twist. Shosuke as a kid is markedly different from how he is now and Tadano’s sister probably has him dead to rights, or not. Their bizarre non-relationship has its moments and this is one of them.
So, yeah, I wouldn’t call this great by any stretch, but it’s certainly one of the most readable volumes I’ve gone through in a bit and it didn’t make me feel like I’d wasted my time. That’s good enough.
3 stars - two volumes left and that’ll be that. I don’t have any issue with finishing this out, but I don’t think I’ll be reading this ever again. Okay fare that doesn’t land with me much.