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高校デビュー [Kōkō Debut] #4

High School Debut, Vol. 4

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ヨウと恋人同士になれて、初めてのクリスマスを迎えようとしている晴菜。ヨウに「彼女がいるってスバラシイ」と思ってもらえるよう最高のクリスマスを演出しようとはりきるけれど!?

174 pages, Paperback

First published May 25, 2005

37 people are currently reading
824 people want to read

About the author

Kazune Kawahara

164 books289 followers
Birth Date: March 11th, 1972
Blood Type: A
Zodiac: Pisces

Kazune Kawahara (河原和音) made her manga debut at age 18 with Kare no Ichiban Sukina Hito (His Most Favorite Person). Also, while thinking of her manga, she often spaces out and brings grocery baskets home. Adores her nieces.

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5 stars
2,011 (51%)
4 stars
1,100 (28%)
3 stars
670 (17%)
2 stars
98 (2%)
1 star
31 (<1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 117 reviews
Profile Image for Lyyeesshh.
86 reviews48 followers
June 8, 2022
Okay.....I am loving this story....but it needs to pick up the pace or have something happen...
Profile Image for Shannon.
1,109 reviews51 followers
November 30, 2011
Gahhh, I can't stop reading these!! It's like crack. Someone's going to have to put me in manga rehab soon. While there are other manga's whose art I love more, I just love reading about Haruna and Yoh. I swear, this manga made me laugh so much! I probably looked like some psycho laughing so much out loud to myself.

Poor Haruna! She was trying so hard for christmas and she needed to chill for a second. I loved when Yoh and her had their first kiss. Soo cute!! Then Haruna started ignoring Yoh because she was freaked out. I was a bit annoyed that she was being mean to Yoh, but she was so funny about it that I didn't care. She was acting like such a creep, especially when Yoh called her and she couldn't form any words. She just kept laughing like some kind of crazy maniac. Then when she thought Mami and Yoh were hooking up, I wanted to smack her. Just talk to Yoh already!! I think I really like Asa now, or at least until she goes back to being bitchy. It was funny when Asa pretended to be Yoh on 'dates' to help Haruna be able to go back to being normal.
Profile Image for Leila ✨.
1,781 reviews483 followers
February 26, 2022
Siempre que leo/ veo un shoujo, me es físicamente imposible no compararlo con mi shoujo favorito ever: Lovely * Complex. Habiendo dicho eso, si bien High School Debut no tiene nada que ver con Love Com, esta escena GRITA Otani y Risa :'))

description


4 de 5 estrellas.
Profile Image for Theresa ♫.
250 reviews60 followers
December 3, 2012
Okay, first thing's first.

I must mention to you all from personal experience . . . that Haruna . . .

IS YOUR AVERAGE TEENAGE GIRL.

Well, your average BEGINNER AT DATING teenage girl.



Warning, my dear goodreaders. THERE ARE SPOILERS IN THIS REVIEW.

SPOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOIIIIIIIIIIILEEEEEEEEEEEEEERS
So please. Beware. ^_^


This book was BEYOND ADORABLE. ADORABLE times 100000000000000! It was just so cute.
On Haruna's date with Yoh, she keeps questioning what he'd like. What she should wear, where they should go, what she should look like, what they should do--girls tend to freak out about the guy's impression during the date. That's a dating lesson!

You might think, "Oh, if he really likes me, he'll love me no matter what I look like!"
But then when the date comes, if you're as klutzy as Haruna, you're going to go CRAZY trying to figure out what to wear and what to look like and such.
AND your gift to the guy. That's pretty important too.


And in this volume . . . there is .
And it happens MORE THAN ONCE.


That's yet ANOTHER dating lesson.


I guess what happens to Haruna a lot is how she gets Yoh angry a lot. Not violently, scarily, freakishly angry, but . . . she does tend to annoy him.
And he tends to be the kind of dude that's like, "Fine . . . be that way . . ." and he'll dramatically turn away, flipping that flippy hair-do of his over his forehead and waltzing away . . .
And Haruna's just standing there with this dumbfounded look on her face thinking, "Crap."

In MY CASE, if I was Haruna, and the boyfriend was angry, I wouldn't just stand there. I'd RUN AFTER THE GUY, saying, "GET BACK HERE, YOU FOOOOOOOOOOOL!"
Either to punch him across the face or to hug him and say, "DON'T BE MAD! I love you!"
No fight is worth it when it comes to love, okay? You love somebody, and you get into a fight--SO WHAT?! It doesn't mean it's over, unless you're foolish or the love isn't strong and lovey-dovey enough.


As for guys, GUYS TURNING THEIR BACKS ON GIRLS SHOWS SOMETHING THAT NO GIRL WANTS TO SEE OR HEAR FROM A BOY.

"I can't stand to even face you anymore, so I'm going to turn and walk away!"

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!
We will freak out about that. If you truly love the girl, DON'T YOU DARE TURN YOUR BACK ON HER!
That's dangerous anyway. She might throw a ninja-like attack from behind. (I'd totally do that to a back-turning jerk.)




And one reason why I rated this book five stars is . . . when Yoh walked away from Haruna after eating her cake, she . . . she RAN AFTER HIM.


To those of you who read my reviews and have read my reviews before with characters who have run after each other, you guys would know . . . THAT I OBSESS OVER THAT IDEA.
I love the idea of someone running after another, going out of their way to stop someone from leaving or to see someone.
BECAUSE IT TAKES EFFORT TO RUN!


You guys should see my PE class before we run a mile.
"Ugh. Girlfriend, I do not wanna do this."
"OH-EM-GEEZAAAAAAAAAAY! My nails are going to get all squished up!"
"My hair . . . I did my hair today, NOOOOOOOOO!"
"My make-up is going to run!"
"I'm going to cry!"

Jeez. I wanna just smack them all upside the head and say, "DUDE. It's the mile, not human sacrifice."

Then again, the mile is such a torturing thing . . .

Anyway girls DO NOT WANT TO RUN. Even if they have to to get a 100 point grade.


Guys, however, are another story. If they're running, and there are girls nearby, they will not only run. THEY WILL STRIDE. Pose while they're running. Flip their flippy hair-dos and smile smiles that they think look sexy but really they look like crocodiles.

But otherwise, they'd rather just sit on a couch and just relax. Play video games or sleep. They don't want to run if a girl walks out on them! Usually . . .


And old people. They don't want to run, purely because their bones might shatter or they might fall and NEVER GET UP.

Everyone's lazy somehow when it comes to running after someone else. They might think

1. "Hmm. I'll just see them tomorrow. I'll let them go for now."
or
2. "Hmm. They're walking away. They don't want to see me, so what's the point?"

NO!!! You've got to think.

1. "I've got to see them right away. I CAN'T LET A FIGHT GO UNRESOLVED!!!!"
or
2. "I CAN'T LET IT END LIKE THIS!!!!!"


I know. I'm thinking of overly dramatic situations. BUT STILL.
If you love somebody, you've got to chase after them. You've gotta put in effort.
And someone who'd put in that much effort for someone else must really love them.
IT'S ADORABLE!!!! TO THE MAXIMUMMUMUMUM!!!



So yeah.
That's my review. It's getting late and I've got school tomorrow........
Profile Image for Carissa (Regency Woman).
283 reviews60 followers
February 4, 2022
In Vol 4, Haruna and Yoh celebrate their first Christmas as a couple, and while things don't go exactly as planned, she and Yoh also share their first kiss(es). The only problem is that when she sees him in school the day after Christmas, her brain shuts down, panic-mode sets in, and holding on a coherent conversation with Yoh becomes impossible. Running away is how Haruna deals with her newfound panic at seeing her boyfriend up close and personal, every moment reminding her of their kisses, and she risks putting their new relationship in jeopardy.

I love Haruna in Vol 4. She was completely normal after their kisses on Christmas and then everything literally fell apart the next time she saw Yoh. She could not have anticipated her reaction would be so strong or that looking him in the eyes would be so difficult. Not even going to Yoh's sister Asa for help actually works, although it does horrify Asa when she experiences firsthand just how weird Haruna's acting around Yoh. Haruna just feels so incredibly genuine. She can't hide whatever she's feeling or experiencing, even if what she's feeling is a bit crazy. She's authentic, and she's also brave. In her words, "it's better to swing and miss than watch the balls go by." A little softball wisdom for you.

As for Yoh, poor guy. He spends so much of this volume in utter confusion and frustration. But in the end, he goes to Haruna first. He opens that door to start-up communication between them again and ends up giving Haruna the courage to walk through that door. The end of this volume is so supremely cute. Yoh has a bit of an adorable side to him, and it comes out in the last couple of pages. He can be a bit of a flirt if he wants to be.

Loved the Christmas date that they went on, especially because even though it didn't all go according to Haruna's plan, it ended up being a lot of fun for them both. Yoh can be a bit impenetrable, but he smiled and laughed a lot on that date, which shows how his fondness for Haruna is growing. She's different from other girls he's met, and he likes that.

Oh, and I just realized that this series must be set in Hokkaido. With all the snow, it really couldn't be set anywhere else. Especially since the mangaka is from Hokkaido!

Our couple is making great relational strides and despite Haruna's anxieties in Vol 4, we're heading into Vol 5 with positivity!
Profile Image for Laura (ローラ).
237 reviews110 followers
October 1, 2021
This is my favourite volume in this series. Throughout the series, Kawahara uses repeated panels for comedic emphasis; but the Christmas episode where Haruna is planning her "big date" is her most effective use of it! Perfection!
Profile Image for Rach.
611 reviews25 followers
September 22, 2022
Love watching these two navigate some initial hiccups around miscommunication and nervousness in their new relationship. It’s all so sweet and makes me happy to read it! Asami is also toning down just a little which is nice.

Obviously, I’m unable to stop reading and it’s so much fun to be stuck in a media I really enjoy. Haruna and Yoh have long been characters I hold near and dear and seeing their love story play out is rewarding every time.
Profile Image for D E N Z.
365 reviews16 followers
November 10, 2020
Another wholesome volume! ❤️

Man, I loved the whole pre-Christmas/Christmas chapters. Both chapters were so wholesome.

There were times after that wherein I felt Haruna was overreacting a little bit, but nonetheless the whole volume itself was really wholesome and cute.

I cannot wait to see more of Haruna and Yoh's relationship! :)
Profile Image for Laura A. Grace.
1,968 reviews308 followers
July 16, 2021
VIDEO REVIEW HERE: https://youtu.be/DjMEvKUZ0iM

Best. Volume. Yet!

So one thing I super appreciate about these volumes is that even if we have a lot of drama, tears, and misunderstandings, we STILL get a good solid ending with happy closure. I feel this is a rare thing in manga to have with all that takes place and then still feel happy by the end. I know this volume really fulfilled all the happy feels and absolutely loved it!

It made me realize that the "Christmas date" is my absolute favorite! And this one was no exception! Granted, poor Haruna! My heart went out to her even though I was laughing. LOL! She is so sweet and just SO relatable!

Also, Yoh is a VERY patient man! I can't help but start to admire him too! <3 It was really nice to see him smile more in this volume too. Haruna did awesome and loved how Yoh actually DOES have a funny streak because the ending made me laugh!

Onto the next volume!
Profile Image for -moonprismpower-.
2,970 reviews15 followers
April 19, 2023
4 stars because Haruna annoyed the crap outta me during the 2nd half of this volume!!!! Kissing really sent her into insecurity overdrive!!! Wtf!!! I was feeling sad for Yoh when she hit him with that shopping bag!!! But anyway, I’m glad they were able to talk it over at the end.
Profile Image for Dani ❤️ Perspective of a Writer.
1,512 reviews5 followers
October 28, 2016
Haruna desperately wants a boyfriend and gets cool upperclassman, Yoh to be her coach! He agrees to walk her through every step of the way on the condition she doesn't fall for him!

At first I was going to rate this a 4 because I was pretty weirded out by the plot. But by the end I really loved how she used to situations that came up to develop the relationships more (which is of course the point of such situations but this was done in a very real and specific to Haruna and Yoh sort of way!) I enjoyed how the kiss thing turned into a misunderstanding that got feelings hot and a quick mean reaction made things worse!

Anyway this isn't a new premise, its just more high school love story but it's specific to the characters and that makes it feel fresh.

BOTTOM LINE: A worthy volume to this classic high school love story.
Profile Image for Amy.
1,407 reviews47 followers
January 12, 2015
I like this volume and I know how Haruna feels because I stress and create drama in my head all the time.
Profile Image for Em Mirra.
417 reviews
May 18, 2017
This series follows the main character, Haruna Nagashima, and her quest to find a boyfriend in high school. In junior high, Haruna was the star pitcher of her school's softball team and spent her time outside of practice reading romantic comics. Now that she's in high school, she devotes her time to finding herself a boyfriend ("her high school debut" as she calls it). However, she is completely clueless when it comes to fashion, dating, and boys, so she asks upperclassmen Yoh Komiyama to become her "coach" in these areas. He agrees on one condition: she must not by any circumstances fall for him.

The books consist of Haruna's comical adventures at high school and outside of school with Yoh, his sister, and they're group of friends, along with various other characters who appear throughout the series.

Age: Young Adult Reader (Ages 15-18)
Rating 4 out of 5 stars for:

Art:
The artist has a very defined, unique style that sets her drawing apart from others (you can easily pick out her drawings out of a selection of artists). Not my favorite type of art, as sometimes proportions and anatomy are lacking. However, the artist has an incredibly talent for drawing clothing/accessories and this makes up for it!

Writing:
The story's pacing is straight-forward and plot development is consistent throughout series. Each chapter consists of a smaller stories that seam together to create Haruna's high school experience. The characters Kawahara writes are interesting - they are distinct from one another and personalities interact with one another in a realistic way. Haruna is portrayed as a juxtaposition - loud, hyper, pure, gullible and easily fooled at times, yet also resilient, wise, thoughtful, caring and steadfast loyal. (Most of the characters have these ups and downs to their personalities making them more dimensional). Great, laugh out loud comedy throughout the book, too!

Recommended to mostly older teens who enjoy reading teen romantic-comedy manga.
Profile Image for Arunima.
233 reviews3 followers
Read
January 21, 2024
reread: okay yoh saying 'it's nice to have a girlfriend' after everyone told haruna they can not imagine Yoh saying anything of the sort- I DIED. He was surprised too- tsundere child I get it. Another thing: on first read I didn't realise that one of the reasons Haruna was so sad about the past kiss thing was because the entire time she was planning for christmas she was thinking about how Yoh doesn't have any good dating memories and then realising that he kissed his old girlfriend, that they were happy and liked each other at some point- I can totally imagine how stupid it would make her feel.
I think I have said this before but other than the main couple other characters are not that interesting to me: they have potential yes- mami is pretty cool, asaoka story could have been done better i guess idk i didn't feel the usual pangs of heartbreak that i do for second guy who is never going to end up with the girl, asami is just too much i get that she is a kid and there are def issues in her family whose reasons are never explored but it's not very fun or interesting to me, fumi was amazing till the zoo date or even afterwards i guess the asami making him wait on their date and his hands completely freezing over and asami feeling guilty or even before that asami feelings guilty and not knowing what to do about it so she's just hurting everyone around her even more like all that was okay but afterwards eehhh and beyond this, I don't think there's any good new characters.
Profile Image for Holly Letson.
3,846 reviews527 followers
February 5, 2017
I couldn't get this volume from the library, since it was checked-out. So, I read it as scanslations via the Zingbox Manga app. Much thanks to Boku-Tachi for scanslating this volume!

-------------------

While I did enjoy the Christmas plotline between Haruna and Yoh, I still hate Asami. In this volume, Asami tricks Haruna into buying clothing at a shop too rich for her own blood, so that she can have the novelty gift for herself, and also tricks her into going to an expensive salon, so that she can have the discount tickets given, in order to buy some expensive hair treatments she's been wanting. She also talks Haruna into a "practice date", saying it will help ease her worry if she pretends Asami is Yoh, when - in reality - she just wants Yoh to catch them. I really wish that Haruna would wise up to Asami's manipulative ways and get better female friends, who would actually be her friend, instead of just using her.

-----------------

That aside, I was happy to see Haruna and Yoh spend Christmas together - and, even kiss. I wish Haruna had not worried so much. It's great that they worked it out, though, and became closer in the process.
1 review
January 23, 2019
High School Debut is a very intriguing book to say the least. High School debut is a Manga (Japanese Comic) Series that sets in Tokyo with the leading characters Haruna and Yoh. In the first 3 volumes of the series, Haruna is being coached by Yoh to become more appealing to guys. This led to Haruna and Yoh falling for each other and starting a relationship. I found the first 3 volumes to be amazing and definitely filled to the brim with so much story development along with a good a character development as well.
Now in the new volumes I have read continues the journey between Haruna and Yoh. This time it is filled with nothing but more golden memories made together. From awkward dates in town and a corrupted sister trying to “non-intentionally” break them apart. Now as that all seems fun, Haruna has a problem when Yoh’s ex-girlfriend moves4r into town to try and win the heart of Yoh back. Creating large amounts of tension between a three of them, cause a lot of intense decisions to take place. In my opinion there is far more of a story driven plot with a lot more character development. I like these particular volumes a lot more than the first 3. I would definitely rate this book the highest it could possibly be!
2 reviews
December 4, 2020
this book showed how they both as a couple, solved their previous conflicts. Their previous conflict was about Haruna and Yoh not having a comfortable relationship because they couldn't even really talk to each other as if they were really in a relationship. It seemed more of a friendship than a relationship. In his book though, Haruna goes out of her way to try and make this christmas the best christmas that Yoh has ever had. She took on a heavy part time job so she could spoil him and went out of her way to make sure everything came out perfect. I think Haruna really did this because since Yoh is one of the most popular kids in the school, Haruna worries that he won't find her interesting and eventually get bored of the relationship leaving him to end it. I would definitely recommend to read for anyone who enjoys a comedy romance. I personally really enjoyed it because it had some funny parts to it but overall talked about a serious relationship. There was one point in the book that shows agreement to my summary of the book and that is when Haruna used all of her money she worked so hard to earn, on Yohs perfect christmas.
Profile Image for Kayla.
1,078 reviews
July 3, 2022
3.5 stars.

Seeing Haruna work so hard to make sure Yoh has a great Christmas was really sweet. I felt that the date would not go as planned but I really liked that they still had an enjoyable date, despite that. I understand why she was upset when she realized Yoh and his ex kissed, but I also think that it was kinda unfair to run away/feel betrayed by it. I'm glad that even as she was upset, she acknowledged that Yoh didn't know her at that point. Their first kiss was very cute.

However, it was deeply frustrating to see Haruna ghost and avoid Yoh, just because they kissed. It says a lot about how she still needs to mature. I also didn't like that she just to conclusions about Yoh and Mami hanging out. I'm glad that she apologized though and that they are going to work through it. (Also, we're four volumes in and she already said "I love you"... holy shit)
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Andrea.
110 reviews1 follower
July 20, 2022
Haruna was really something this volume lol. I will say this has to be the weakest volume so far just because of how Haruna was acting. I get that she was freaking out. She’s experiencing love, something that is so new to her. Instead of her communicating what she felt and what was going on in her mind to Yoh, all she did was panic to the point of almost combusting. This made Yoh actually feel upset even if he knew what was going on.

Anyways I still enjoyed this. At least Haruna came to her senses and made things right!
Profile Image for myblackbookish_life.
273 reviews9 followers
May 5, 2023
I feel like each review for this series is just gonna be the same thing, so I apologize in advance. But.

- Haurna is literally my favorite!?!? I just love big hearted girls + golden retriever energy. And even her slow moments are relatable lol
- Asa….y’all I’m so sick of her. So. Sick. OH MY—
- Yoh’s friends are so sweet, love them too. And Haurna’s bff is a sweetheart (so much patience and understanding beneath the exasperation/confusion LOL)
Profile Image for d★.
331 reviews14 followers
May 3, 2022
[ me había olvidado que estaba leyendo este manga lol ] me gusta mucho el concepto inicial de high school debut, sin embargo me molestan mucho las inseguridades de haruna con respecto a su relación con yoh (quien a veces no ayuda mucho que digamos);;; y creo que dejare este manga hasta aquí, a ver si después lo retomo 😔✊🏻
Profile Image for Flan .
205 reviews5 followers
August 17, 2017
This volume was so cuteee >.<

The events that followed afterwards were a little frustrating to watch but it was expected considering Haruna is a total noob when it comes to dealing with her new found feelings of love.

Can you tell I'm obsessed yet?
Profile Image for CG.
8 reviews
July 29, 2020
This story is so entertaining. Haruna's enthusiastic nature is charming, even if it does land her in a lot of scrapes. And Yoh is such a kind and understanding boyfriend. I love the fact that they're learning and growing together as a couple.
Profile Image for Zian B..
2,288 reviews34 followers
April 29, 2021
More of a 3.5 star rating;
I got worried for a moment but I’m glad that Haruna and Yoh managed to work through the misunderstanding. I really like how much those around the couple, specifically Yoh’s sister & friends, support their relationship.
Profile Image for Chelsea.
1,685 reviews47 followers
June 1, 2024
Haruna.
Girl.
It's just a kiss.
Chill.

(But love the energy you're bringing to Christmas! It's so sweet that you want to do something super special for each other, especially when you don't let the mishaps get you down! Keep up that iconic optimism!)
Profile Image for Chanda.
272 reviews28 followers
July 21, 2024
3/5.. the FL Haruna really annoyed me for half of this volume. Like girl, in the words of Taylor Swift, you need to calm down. I get that’s also some of your allure but it really dropped the rating of this volume for me.
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