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たとえとどかぬ糸だとしても / If I Could Reach You #7
If I Could Reach You, Vol. 7
MAYBE
An urgent SOS flashes on Uta's phone screen. It's from Kaoru. Despite some time and distance away, she's the one Kaoru called... She runs to meet Kaoru. At last, Uta hears what Kaoru has been keeping bottled up, and Kaoru resolves to take the next step.
FINAL VOLUME
An urgent SOS flashes on Uta's phone screen. It's from Kaoru. Despite some time and distance away, she's the one Kaoru called... She runs to meet Kaoru. At last, Uta hears what Kaoru has been keeping bottled up, and Kaoru resolves to take the next step.
FINAL VOLUME
192 pages, Paperback
First published January 18, 2021
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76 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
September 8, 2025
I think this was a strong ending of the series right up to the epilogue, the conclusion felt a little unearned. Its not a bad ending but considering the tone of the series up to that point It felt unexpected and out of the blue. I wanted more for both Uta and Karou.
June 21, 2022
Uta left her home to move back in with her parents. Kaoru stayed behind with a husband who loves somebody else. Out of the blue, Kaoru phoned Uta. This is the end of Uta’s story. And Kaoru’s story. But what about their story?
In a way, the title of this story is a misnomer; Uta reached Kaoru a while ago, she just didn’t get the response she was looking for. Then again, it’s also a title that reflects a dream more than a reality, that IF that happened maybe something more would happen.
Except Uta left that dream behind and went back to a world where she might as well not exist. When Kaoru reaches out unexpectedly, they are brought back together for an evening that is as much about communicating as it is anywhere else.
And that’s the truth of things - this is not a yuri series in the strictest sense. It is a story about two people in love, but different types of love. One in a very romantic sense and the other less so. Whatever Kaoru’s issues, there’s not a big revelation here and it’s kind of nice that way.
The ending floats enough ambiguity that you can take it any number of ways, but there’s no question that Uta and Kaoru run on parallel lines - Uta literally says it during this volume. Whether that changes or not, well, everybody will have theories and you can make a case for most of them.
In case it wasn’t clear, this is a chatty book, but a good one. We finally see the reason Reiichi and Kaoru got together and if there was ever a wrong-headed reason for two people to hook up, that’s probably it. This story has been about people not communicating honestly as much as anything else.
Which feeds back into Reiichi seeing Risako, except that situation isn’t exactly what you’re thinking it is. Risako may have come across as duplicitous and cruelly cheerful, but she knows parts of the story that Kaoru doesn’t.
Risako only comes across as cold because she’s incredibly practical and her conversation with Kaoru leads to some truths that Kaoru doesn’t want to hear, but needs to. And that kind of shows that the two are actually pretty good friends at the end of the day. It’s wildly different from how stories like this normally go.
It all builds up to one last moment in time for Uta and Kaoru, which annoyingly is lead off by a ridiculous implied suicide that turns out to be nothing of the sort. It’s one of the points where the story steps wrong because Kaoru is very clearly saying what’s going on, but the story proper is trying to frame the context differently for drama.
For something that’s been good at actual character dramatics, throwing this in would be a stretch for any good mangaka and this is not where the author’s strengths lie. Then again, part of the problem is the very rushed nature of this last volume - it feels like all this could have used another volume of breathing room, especially with how slow some of the earlier chapters were.
Fortunately, the rest of the story is quite good. We get a little wrap-up for our side characters, Kuro is as fun as ever, plus another near fake-out that seems like it’s about to pull the irritating ‘my lesbianism was just a phase’ card and then certainly does not.
Do things end perfectly? No. There might be a better ending to this, I just don’t know precisely what it is. That’s not a feeling I usually have with a story. Then again, I don’t dislike what we get or how this wraps up. It tackles a lot of issues in some very unique ways and while the journey may have exceeded the destination, especially with the last couple releases, it’s not a bad place to leave our characters.
4 stars - there are a couple of story beats that really don’t work like they should and the ending doesn’t have a big ‘oomph’ to it. Then again, this manga remained true to its melancholy roots all the way to the ending and was definitely worth a read, minor quibbles aside.
In a way, the title of this story is a misnomer; Uta reached Kaoru a while ago, she just didn’t get the response she was looking for. Then again, it’s also a title that reflects a dream more than a reality, that IF that happened maybe something more would happen.
Except Uta left that dream behind and went back to a world where she might as well not exist. When Kaoru reaches out unexpectedly, they are brought back together for an evening that is as much about communicating as it is anywhere else.
And that’s the truth of things - this is not a yuri series in the strictest sense. It is a story about two people in love, but different types of love. One in a very romantic sense and the other less so. Whatever Kaoru’s issues, there’s not a big revelation here and it’s kind of nice that way.
The ending floats enough ambiguity that you can take it any number of ways, but there’s no question that Uta and Kaoru run on parallel lines - Uta literally says it during this volume. Whether that changes or not, well, everybody will have theories and you can make a case for most of them.
In case it wasn’t clear, this is a chatty book, but a good one. We finally see the reason Reiichi and Kaoru got together and if there was ever a wrong-headed reason for two people to hook up, that’s probably it. This story has been about people not communicating honestly as much as anything else.
Which feeds back into Reiichi seeing Risako, except that situation isn’t exactly what you’re thinking it is. Risako may have come across as duplicitous and cruelly cheerful, but she knows parts of the story that Kaoru doesn’t.
Risako only comes across as cold because she’s incredibly practical and her conversation with Kaoru leads to some truths that Kaoru doesn’t want to hear, but needs to. And that kind of shows that the two are actually pretty good friends at the end of the day. It’s wildly different from how stories like this normally go.
It all builds up to one last moment in time for Uta and Kaoru, which annoyingly is lead off by a ridiculous implied suicide that turns out to be nothing of the sort. It’s one of the points where the story steps wrong because Kaoru is very clearly saying what’s going on, but the story proper is trying to frame the context differently for drama.
For something that’s been good at actual character dramatics, throwing this in would be a stretch for any good mangaka and this is not where the author’s strengths lie. Then again, part of the problem is the very rushed nature of this last volume - it feels like all this could have used another volume of breathing room, especially with how slow some of the earlier chapters were.
Fortunately, the rest of the story is quite good. We get a little wrap-up for our side characters, Kuro is as fun as ever, plus another near fake-out that seems like it’s about to pull the irritating ‘my lesbianism was just a phase’ card and then certainly does not.
Do things end perfectly? No. There might be a better ending to this, I just don’t know precisely what it is. That’s not a feeling I usually have with a story. Then again, I don’t dislike what we get or how this wraps up. It tackles a lot of issues in some very unique ways and while the journey may have exceeded the destination, especially with the last couple releases, it’s not a bad place to leave our characters.
4 stars - there are a couple of story beats that really don’t work like they should and the ending doesn’t have a big ‘oomph’ to it. Then again, this manga remained true to its melancholy roots all the way to the ending and was definitely worth a read, minor quibbles aside.
October 3, 2024
Honestly, this story wrapped up better than I had anticipated! It was great to see Kaoru confront all of her issues and be able to move forward on her own terms. This is a 5 ⭐️ volume for me.
Overall I'd give this series a 3.5 - 4 ⭐️ the beginning is pretty slow and there was too much focus on the relationship of side characters that I didn't really care to invest as much time in. Volumes 5 - 7 were especially great and mainly focus on the main characters and conflict.
Overall I'd give this series a 3.5 - 4 ⭐️ the beginning is pretty slow and there was too much focus on the relationship of side characters that I didn't really care to invest as much time in. Volumes 5 - 7 were especially great and mainly focus on the main characters and conflict.
September 19, 2025
I love queer ambiguous relationships
June 24, 2022
I really loved this series and would still recommend it to fans of the genre. I'm happy we got to see where Uta's friends ended up and resolved things with Risako. At the end it wasn't a full on tragedy, and it certainly wasn't the surprise ending I'd hoped for. It was a very average conclusion to what had been an excellent build. Things were sort of muted, the conflict didn't really explode off the page, the cliffhangers were more cheap than impactful. No laughs this time around, just a gentle wind down to a typical conclusion, more lullaby than opera. Curious what the author does next.
April 19, 2023
Got the final volume in from the library and read it all in one setting. I forgot how much more fun the side characters are than the main cast, so it was nice to see them again.
Wait, so Risako was gay for Kaoru this whole time? I mean okay, so be it. That would've been a far more interesting story to develop, too. So many missed opportunities in this series, I swear.
Also, can sort of relate to Rei-Kun insofar as I stayed together with a partner where I was really unhappy and on the verge of breaking up with, but her father was dying and I didn't want to abandon her in the midst of that crisis, so I stayed by her side and in the relationship longer than I otherwise would have done.
But at the end of the day, he married her more out of pity than love and that's just not a strong enough foundation. Plus even if he didn't sleep with Risako the emotional betrayal hurts just as much.
The ending is ambivalent....did grown up Uta finally get to be with Kaoru? I guess the mangaka had to time-skip them so they're both consenting adults and the age gap no longer matters. Or else Uta's just has a thing for blondes and her partner resembling Kaoru is just a happy fluke that warms Uta's heart. I'm thinking it's supposed to be Kaoru, but this ending is kind of cheating.
"I'm going to be with mommy" was an interesting translation choice....and it did convey the ambivalent notion of possible suicide, which thankfully turned out not to be the case.
I think I would've liked a final line from Uta or Kaoru (if that is her), like "you were worth the wait."
We also know Uta got hit on by at least one girl in college and that she was apart from Kaoru for over a year. I guess the ambivalent ending works but it feels more like the mangaka didn't quite know how to end the story definitively and settled on the ambiguous ending instead. I lean toward it being Kaoru because of her final lines speaking on videoconference with her girlfriends, obliquely referencing Uta's undying love for her.
I'm glad I finished the series. Not sure I can recommend it fully but Uta is a likable protagonist and the manga did succeed in making me care about her.
Wait, so Risako was gay for Kaoru this whole time? I mean okay, so be it. That would've been a far more interesting story to develop, too. So many missed opportunities in this series, I swear.
Also, can sort of relate to Rei-Kun insofar as I stayed together with a partner where I was really unhappy and on the verge of breaking up with, but her father was dying and I didn't want to abandon her in the midst of that crisis, so I stayed by her side and in the relationship longer than I otherwise would have done.
But at the end of the day, he married her more out of pity than love and that's just not a strong enough foundation. Plus even if he didn't sleep with Risako the emotional betrayal hurts just as much.
The ending is ambivalent....did grown up Uta finally get to be with Kaoru? I guess the mangaka had to time-skip them so they're both consenting adults and the age gap no longer matters. Or else Uta's just has a thing for blondes and her partner resembling Kaoru is just a happy fluke that warms Uta's heart. I'm thinking it's supposed to be Kaoru, but this ending is kind of cheating.
"I'm going to be with mommy" was an interesting translation choice....and it did convey the ambivalent notion of possible suicide, which thankfully turned out not to be the case.
I think I would've liked a final line from Uta or Kaoru (if that is her), like "you were worth the wait."
We also know Uta got hit on by at least one girl in college and that she was apart from Kaoru for over a year. I guess the ambivalent ending works but it feels more like the mangaka didn't quite know how to end the story definitively and settled on the ambiguous ending instead. I lean toward it being Kaoru because of her final lines speaking on videoconference with her girlfriends, obliquely referencing Uta's undying love for her.
I'm glad I finished the series. Not sure I can recommend it fully but Uta is a likable protagonist and the manga did succeed in making me care about her.
December 28, 2022
So Risako really thought, that by dating her friend’s crush, the friend would fall for her instead? Who in their right mind thinks that way?? The audacity she even has, to ask for forgiveness! What a b*tch...
Well, at least i got my happy ending!! Divorce 😍😍😍
Honestly, as much as I hated the hetero parts, this series might be one of my favorites. It proved once again, that there isn’t any true love between heteros. Queer doesn’t have to be the answer either, just that there is no real love for them. 🤙
I’m also happy that Uta & Kaoru could resolve their issues, again, although that ending was a bit unexpected. Well, not quite unexpected; I did have a hunch it would end like this, although that version doesn’t feel entirely right. More like fan-service. I’m somewhat happy, I mean, that’s what I came here for, right? But still. Hm.
Overall... I hated lots of parts; especially, as said, the hetero ones, and that one character (*cough* Risako), and also that one backstory, which was so unrealistic. Yet still, I’d consider it to be one of my fav Mangas. 💝
Well, at least i got my happy ending!! Divorce 😍😍😍
Honestly, as much as I hated the hetero parts, this series might be one of my favorites. It proved once again, that there isn’t any true love between heteros. Queer doesn’t have to be the answer either, just that there is no real love for them. 🤙
I’m also happy that Uta & Kaoru could resolve their issues, again, although that ending was a bit unexpected. Well, not quite unexpected; I did have a hunch it would end like this, although that version doesn’t feel entirely right. More like fan-service. I’m somewhat happy, I mean, that’s what I came here for, right? But still. Hm.
Overall... I hated lots of parts; especially, as said, the hetero ones, and that one character (*cough* Risako), and also that one backstory, which was so unrealistic. Yet still, I’d consider it to be one of my fav Mangas. 💝
July 21, 2021
what the hell was that ending? it made me wonder if some pages weren’t loading but no, everything was there.
i found that the climax wasn’t there at all. if considering the timeskips that all occurred in chapter 37 with uta going from university to being an office worker, and then to find out that she’s living with kaoru now, the opportunity where they could discuss their feelings/come to the arrangement of living together could have happened at any point. but it didn’t, which i somewhat understand in a story-telling perspective, if they want to keep the narrative tight. but the part where the epilogue is supposedly the first time uta and kaoru address their feelings (and even then, rather incoherently) felt like it was such a scam. the reason i kept reading for as long as i did because, well, i wanted to see if uta’s love would reach kaoru, but they weren’t even going to give me a cathartic scene?
sucks. kaoru was a flake to the end, too.
i found that the climax wasn’t there at all. if considering the timeskips that all occurred in chapter 37 with uta going from university to being an office worker, and then to find out that she’s living with kaoru now, the opportunity where they could discuss their feelings/come to the arrangement of living together could have happened at any point. but it didn’t, which i somewhat understand in a story-telling perspective, if they want to keep the narrative tight. but the part where the epilogue is supposedly the first time uta and kaoru address their feelings (and even then, rather incoherently) felt like it was such a scam. the reason i kept reading for as long as i did because, well, i wanted to see if uta’s love would reach kaoru, but they weren’t even going to give me a cathartic scene?
sucks. kaoru was a flake to the end, too.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 1, 2021
I’m glad Kaoru finally stood up for herself. Reiichi isn’t a bad person but marrying someone out of pity/guilt??? He was just trying to do right by Kaoru’s dying mother.
It seemed everyone in this series was just doing what they thought was right for someone else when they should’ve done what’s right for themselves!!!
And I didn’t expect the very end… Feelings do change. Sometimes they don’t. It’s truly amazing.
Overall thoughts: I’d give this series a 3/5 stars. It was good but honestly, it stresses me out watching these characters not communicating….
It seemed everyone in this series was just doing what they thought was right for someone else when they should’ve done what’s right for themselves!!!
And I didn’t expect the very end… Feelings do change. Sometimes they don’t. It’s truly amazing.
Overall thoughts: I’d give this series a 3/5 stars. It was good but honestly, it stresses me out watching these characters not communicating….
Read
October 19, 2022i was so excited when i saw that the final volume was being released. my excitement has been flattened. the pacing was all janky, with several time skips in the final chapters. the only way this volume could be fixed is if they had just taken the time to commit to the slow burn, and maybe given an extra volume or chapter. very disappointed, especially after how i felt about the previous 6 volumes.
August 1, 2022
I’m not a fan of the ambiguous ending, I don’t want it to be left to interpretation. I want clear cut answers haha. I still love this series regardless though, it has heartwarming and breaking moments I find everyone can relate to in some way.
September 8, 2022
I really wish I felt something for this series. The art is fine. The storytelling is fine. The characters are fine. There was just never anything that really deepened my connection to the whole thing.
November 7, 2023
這集完結後看了討論，才發現實際上後面還接有約20頁的劇情，在本書的限定版的附錄小冊子《紡いだ糸のその先で》
中文版早在第3集就斷了，英文版沒有附
看了之後，覺得這是會大幅影響本系列的評價的劇情
中文版早在第3集就斷了，英文版沒有附
看了之後，覺得這是會大幅影響本系列的評價的劇情
March 24, 2022
Al final se puso peor.
November 1, 2022
2.5/5 because I'm kind of annoyed by this series overall
January 4, 2023
Had some good thoughts about love but overall too much drama for my liking.
January 8, 2023
eh i didn't like the ending, it was really rushed sadly
April 12, 2024
The ending and the "true ending" go against every lesson it felt that the manga was showing. Kinda disappointing. It felt random and like fan fiction.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 20, 2024
I loved it, it was warmly gentle.
November 11, 2024
2.5
I find this so average it’s not funny
I find this so average it’s not funny
December 29, 2024
Oh love....
January 5, 2025
A PSA for anyone reading the physical manga:
Please do yourself a favour and go read Chapter 37.5 on mangadex. You will feel slightly more fulfilled, I promise 🙏🥲
Please do yourself a favour and go read Chapter 37.5 on mangadex. You will feel slightly more fulfilled, I promise 🙏🥲
April 15, 2025
3,75
It seems this physical release didn't include the 38th chapter and left things more up to interpretation. How bothersome.
Fortunately scanlation sites exist.
It seems this physical release didn't include the 38th chapter and left things more up to interpretation. How bothersome.
Fortunately scanlation sites exist.
June 30, 2022
It worked out... right??
I have no idea.. I think it's kinda open to interpretation and that kills me. I just wanted to know what happened between them. Still, it was a very well written and illustrated manga. The story was unique, bittersweet and heart warming. Completely different from other yuri manga. I did enjoy it.
I have no idea.. I think it's kinda open to interpretation and that kills me. I just wanted to know what happened between them. Still, it was a very well written and illustrated manga. The story was unique, bittersweet and heart warming. Completely different from other yuri manga. I did enjoy it.
July 13, 2022
Damn. All this heartbreak for no reason and you still left us with an ambiguous ending. Bruv what! Still a better finale than Killing Eve.
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews