It has been said that we need just three things in life: Something to do, something to look forward to, and someone to love. ~ Anonymous
Genre: Romance/Drama/Fantasy
Review Status: Complete (5 Volumes/5 Volumes)
Licensed: Yes, this manga is licensed in the US. However, it is licensed by Tokyopop, and it is unknown if it will be picked up by another publisher.
Art: Light, almost dreamy, with soft character designs/expressions. It depends on a lot of shading for its sense of realism.
Summary: In this world, Nami has the power of using magic, but with her clumsy nature she has no mean of controlling it, although it's secondary to the way of controlling her feelings. When she meets Ryotaro Tominaga by crashing his bike, she becomes more and more anxious to understand her first love, while Ryotaro is despising her. Nami has a kind heart and soul, but she lacks courage and spirit to make crucial decisions especially in the last year of high-school. Here Nami and her friends reside in the world of magic, mixed feelings, misunderstanding, unrequited love, hate and passion to realize where they all belong. (ANN)
Review: What draws people together? Shared hurts? Shared joys? The ability to share one’s hurt and joy with those other people? Nami and Ryo are both people who have guilt weighing on their hearts and minds- one of a death, the other of a family gift that brought about a rift in her family. Both are plagued by feelings of inadequacy and the inability to move past these things.
For half the series, this plays out like a high-school drama. While you know that the two mains are certain to end up with each other, and they do end up dating in the third volume, love triangles about around them. Someone Nami simply considers a friend confesses to her, another friend is in love with him, someone is in love with her…. It’s all very typical drama for this genre.
It’s the second half that makes this series shine. From there, they move onto dealing with their issues. With the official couple made official, the friends fall in line with their own love interests (though not all of them end up with the person they wanted. Some don’t end up with anyone at all). The characters then start moving forward with their lives. One of the best things in this is seeing how Nami finds the courage within herself to help the man she loves. It’s not sudden. It’s a gradual build to realizing how much she loves him and his sister, and through helping them, she finds her own path.
It does take a little help from the star of the original series- Yume gets a cameo, as a wise girl who helps Nami know for sure what she’s going to do. And with that, you see everyone moving into the future, no matter what it may hold. While the first half of this may have been fairly unimpressive, the second half made the series very worthwhile.
Overall, this was a pretty dramatic story with a solid, sweet plot.
Recommended: 13+. There are six swears swears (the worst of which is the word a—hole, used once). One instance of Barbie-doll nudity when Nami is in the bath. There are two very short fights, and the worst that happens is a punch to the face in the first. What will probably turn most people off is that one of Nami’s friends (a female one) has a crush on Nami, even going so far as to kiss her once while Nami is sick and doesn’t realize it. The crush goes unrequited.
Other titles you might enjoy:
Someday’s Dreamers (anime or manga)
Kobato (anime or manga)
ARIA (anime or manga)
Kamichu! (anime or manga)
Natsume’s Book of Friends (anime or manga)
The Girl Who Leapt Through Time (anime)
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