This isn’t the place to discuss my slowness with the scanlation, I’ll do that over at le blog laterish. I just want to say that I’m not offended by the early scanlations from the Chinese scans, that would be ridiculous and please don’t assume that of me ever. I’m supremely immature, but I’m not childish. ...Anymore. My mental age is like 12 now, I’m practically a grown-up. But yeah, basically I’ve been grossly neglecting my Japanese the last few weeks, so reading this chapter I was all ...what language is this. I can’t read this. And wait. Are they NOT speaking Tokyo Japanese? Somehow they just sound different from before. But I thought... What. Where do you live then, Futababy? How have I never thought of this before. Oh no. I’m rambling about something insignificant. I’m sorry. I don’t MEAN to waste your time. It’s entirely accidental.
I’m actually here to do that thing where I retell the events of the chapter and then proceed to have opinions about everything and make stupid jokes. Though I’m writing this in the early morning and I haven’t slept, okay. I have insomnia because of stress. I can’t form coherent thoughts. Read at own risk. And this is not really a summary at all, it’s just my (long-winded) thoughts on the chapter, kind of like last time. Except worse.
So, my women and men, the chapter starts off cutely, as you know, because you’ve read it already, but after the promising opening it dips into a not-very-promising ending. Time to shake fist in mangaka’s general direction? I think so.
Firstly, though, the cover. Ooo, dark forces looming on either side? What up with the scary bushes, Sakisaka-sensei? Are you trying to tell us something? The pink glowing text says something confusing. Man, I don’t know Japanese anymore. “Just a bit more, and we’ll draw near without passing each other by.” ...Eh. Man, I don’t know English either. What am I doing here. Someone fire me.
Kou doesn’t actually say, “Let’s go together this time.” as it says in the already done scanlations (I read them, of course, and they’re well-done, but they’re also translated from Chinese so of course there will be discrepancies. Nothing that’s very important, though, so yay for early scans with good translations! Long may they continue. I’m sorry I can’t contribute to earliness in any way anymore haha sadface). I think I’ll translate it as, “Let’s actually go this time?” The “together” part is clearly implied.
So Kou asks Futaba on a date and they blush and bicker and nearly consummate their love on the street. Cough okay no. But hello, how can you stand right up in each others personal space and NOT realize you’re mutually in love huh. HUH.
Okay, so I want to just translate the convo they have after Kou says he wants to see Futaba in a yukata and then tries to say goodbye. Because it’s fun. It goes like this:
Kou: ‘Kay... I’m this way, so... yeah.
Kou: I mean. I guess you already knew that.
Futaba: ...Yeah.
~AWKWARDNESS~
Kou: So. See you later then.
Futaba: Wait!
Futaba: Stay a bit longer.
Kou: ...Why?
Futaba: ...I don’t feel like going home yet.
(Futaba: Woah, what am I saying?)
Futaba: I mean, ‘cause... we were having fun? (loose interpretation)
Kou pulls her closer and talks to the top of her head like a... tall person.
Kou: I did tell you, right? // You don’t know what might happen if you keep letting your guard down around guys.
Futaba: But you...
Futaba: ...won’t do anything, will you?
Kou: You can’t be sure of that?
Kou: Even if it’s me.
Futaba: ...Well,
Futaba: maybe I’m not really scared...
Futaba: ...if it’s you.
...They look at each other...
Interlude!
Sha la la la la la
Don't be scared
You got the mood prepared
Go on and kiss the girl
Sha la la la la la
Don't stop now
Don't try to hide it how
You want to kiss the girl
Sha la la la la la
Float along
And listen to the song
The song (Bikkuri) say kiss the girl--
Kou: Okay, woah.
Kou: Not good.
Kou: Shit.
Kou: I’ll take you home.
Kou: Let’s go.
I guess that song never works.
Kou calls and cancels the date later because he didn’t kiss the girl and has thus turned back into a merman and must now return to his sea of depression. Futaba is disappointed, and then Kou is absent the rest of the summer without telling anyone what’s going on, that BRICK. Seriously, Sakisaka. WHAT NOW. Enough Kou mysteries. Enough! I thought we were past this. You let us believe we were past this. You TROLL. Make a Kominato mystery, if you MUST be mysterious. Geez.
I guess maybe she’s trying to give GG-kun more of a “chance”? Because as things were going, he was losing his ability to affect the plot at all. But... Ahh, must resist the blushing boy! The NICE, considerate, non-secretive boy! He is predestined to fail. Don’t board a sinking ship. Resisssst.
Okay, so Kou is all smiley and stuff when they meet again after summer, but Futaba thinks his smile is a bit off. He says he’s been back in Nagasaki, but he doesn’t say why (he was not helping out at a store btw, he doesn’t say that. 100% sure). He says he had to work extra at his part-time job when he came back, so he’s been back for a while, but he’s been working.
And aw, he’s taking care of the stray cat now! Slightly redeeming. Kominato offers to name it for him hahah, but Kou’s like, “No way. I’d remember you every time I say its name. That’d be gross.”
Y’know, Kou treats Kominato and Futaba kinda similarly... He’s got that rather typical shoujo male’s instinct to insult all that he likes. Must be so tiring to be tsundere.
I’m sure Kou has a good reason to act like he is, but dang if it isn’t hard to remember that, when he’s been off to Nagasaki and acquired MORE SECRETS ajsdnøkjsofc.
Anyway, Futaba runs into GG-kun a bit later... Or Kikuchi Touma. Like. Chrysanthemum-patch Winter-horse. Haha. Sorry, just drawing stupid meaning from the kanji. Actually, I wonder if the winter thing is slightly symbolic? Like, Futaba’s name means bud/sprout, which is all spring and new beginnings and it fits her, right? And Kou’s name means sparkling water. Yunno, like rain in sunlight or something? XD (What no that’s a rainbow.)
Bud + rain + light = flower.
Bud + winter = DEATH.
Yeah bro. You SO don’t stand a chance. I have (over-)ANALYZED your chances away. I’m sorry. I like you very, very much. But don’t. Don’t do that. Don’t witness that Futaba clearly likes Kou and THEN start to maybe like her, you IDIOT.
I do appreciate the adorableness, though. So I guess I forgive you. I mean, 1. ADORABLE that he tries to make her feel better by babbling at her, 2. ADORABLE that he blushes when she sees through him and then it turns out he blushes really easily and is self-conscious about it which is awhaw so much fun. I ship him with a girl/boy who’ll make it her/his mission to make him blush all the time. That is what I would do. 3. SUPER BLUSH ON LAST PAGE. BAM.
He seems quick enough, since he picks up on the something between Futaba and Kou, but then he’s all, HM SHE’S SPESHULERER THAN I THOUGHT, and meh. I don’t feel like watching him hopelessly vie for her attention, because he deserves her attention, being this genuinely nice guy (so rare in shoujo), but he won’t get it because, well, Kou. (And Kou deserves to be happy, so GG-kun... don’t interfere. Too much. I suppose you must interfere a little, or you wouldn’t exist, but don’t get annoying.)
I hope Kou talks to Futaba about what’s going on without her having to tackle him to the ground again. That’d be refreshing. Futaba has run after him a lot. Time to change things up a bit. And it would be a big step forward for him. Character growth over character regression, please.
Oh, I almost forgot to say yay Futaba-Yuuri-Murao friendship! Yay honesty! Yay head-patting!
Now waiting for next chapter(s) to rectify the Kou situation. Knowing Sakisaka, it will most likely make sense and restore love to all the right places and the Kou-frustration shall fade. Probably.
I’m actually here to do that thing where I retell the events of the chapter and then proceed to have opinions about everything and make stupid jokes. Though I’m writing this in the early morning and I haven’t slept, okay. I have insomnia because of stress. I can’t form coherent thoughts. Read at own risk. And this is not really a summary at all, it’s just my (long-winded) thoughts on the chapter, kind of like last time. Except worse.
So, my women and men, the chapter starts off cutely, as you know, because you’ve read it already, but after the promising opening it dips into a not-very-promising ending. Time to shake fist in mangaka’s general direction? I think so.
Firstly, though, the cover. Ooo, dark forces looming on either side? What up with the scary bushes, Sakisaka-sensei? Are you trying to tell us something? The pink glowing text says something confusing. Man, I don’t know Japanese anymore. “Just a bit more, and we’ll draw near without passing each other by.” ...Eh. Man, I don’t know English either. What am I doing here. Someone fire me.
Kou doesn’t actually say, “Let’s go together this time.” as it says in the already done scanlations (I read them, of course, and they’re well-done, but they’re also translated from Chinese so of course there will be discrepancies. Nothing that’s very important, though, so yay for early scans with good translations! Long may they continue. I’m sorry I can’t contribute to earliness in any way anymore haha sadface). I think I’ll translate it as, “Let’s actually go this time?” The “together” part is clearly implied.
So Kou asks Futaba on a date and they blush and bicker and nearly consummate their love on the street. Cough okay no. But hello, how can you stand right up in each others personal space and NOT realize you’re mutually in love huh. HUH.
Okay, so I want to just translate the convo they have after Kou says he wants to see Futaba in a yukata and then tries to say goodbye. Because it’s fun. It goes like this:
Kou: ‘Kay... I’m this way, so... yeah.
Kou: I mean. I guess you already knew that.
Futaba: ...Yeah.
~AWKWARDNESS~
Kou: So. See you later then.
Futaba: Wait!
Futaba: Stay a bit longer.
Kou: ...Why?
Futaba: ...I don’t feel like going home yet.
(Futaba: Woah, what am I saying?)
Futaba: I mean, ‘cause... we were having fun? (loose interpretation)
Kou pulls her closer and talks to the top of her head like a... tall person.
Kou: I did tell you, right? // You don’t know what might happen if you keep letting your guard down around guys.
Futaba: But you...
Futaba: ...won’t do anything, will you?
Kou: You can’t be sure of that?
Kou: Even if it’s me.
Futaba: ...Well,
Futaba: maybe I’m not really scared...
Futaba: ...if it’s you.
...They look at each other...
Interlude!
Sha la la la la la
Don't be scared
You got the mood prepared
Go on and kiss the girl
Sha la la la la la
Don't stop now
Don't try to hide it how
You want to kiss the girl
Sha la la la la la
Float along
And listen to the song
The song (Bikkuri) say kiss the girl--
Kou: Okay, woah.
Kou: Not good.
Kou: Shit.
Kou: I’ll take you home.
Kou: Let’s go.
I guess that song never works.
Kou calls and cancels the date later because he didn’t kiss the girl and has thus turned back into a merman and must now return to his sea of depression. Futaba is disappointed, and then Kou is absent the rest of the summer without telling anyone what’s going on, that BRICK. Seriously, Sakisaka. WHAT NOW. Enough Kou mysteries. Enough! I thought we were past this. You let us believe we were past this. You TROLL. Make a Kominato mystery, if you MUST be mysterious. Geez.
I guess maybe she’s trying to give GG-kun more of a “chance”? Because as things were going, he was losing his ability to affect the plot at all. But... Ahh, must resist the blushing boy! The NICE, considerate, non-secretive boy! He is predestined to fail. Don’t board a sinking ship. Resisssst.
Okay, so Kou is all smiley and stuff when they meet again after summer, but Futaba thinks his smile is a bit off. He says he’s been back in Nagasaki, but he doesn’t say why (he was not helping out at a store btw, he doesn’t say that. 100% sure). He says he had to work extra at his part-time job when he came back, so he’s been back for a while, but he’s been working.
And aw, he’s taking care of the stray cat now! Slightly redeeming. Kominato offers to name it for him hahah, but Kou’s like, “No way. I’d remember you every time I say its name. That’d be gross.”
Y’know, Kou treats Kominato and Futaba kinda similarly... He’s got that rather typical shoujo male’s instinct to insult all that he likes. Must be so tiring to be tsundere.
I’m sure Kou has a good reason to act like he is, but dang if it isn’t hard to remember that, when he’s been off to Nagasaki and acquired MORE SECRETS ajsdnøkjsofc.
Anyway, Futaba runs into GG-kun a bit later... Or Kikuchi Touma. Like. Chrysanthemum-patch Winter-horse. Haha. Sorry, just drawing stupid meaning from the kanji. Actually, I wonder if the winter thing is slightly symbolic? Like, Futaba’s name means bud/sprout, which is all spring and new beginnings and it fits her, right? And Kou’s name means sparkling water. Yunno, like rain in sunlight or something? XD (What no that’s a rainbow.)
Bud + rain + light = flower.
Bud + winter = DEATH.
Yeah bro. You SO don’t stand a chance. I have (over-)ANALYZED your chances away. I’m sorry. I like you very, very much. But don’t. Don’t do that. Don’t witness that Futaba clearly likes Kou and THEN start to maybe like her, you IDIOT.
I do appreciate the adorableness, though. So I guess I forgive you. I mean, 1. ADORABLE that he tries to make her feel better by babbling at her, 2. ADORABLE that he blushes when she sees through him and then it turns out he blushes really easily and is self-conscious about it which is awhaw so much fun. I ship him with a girl/boy who’ll make it her/his mission to make him blush all the time. That is what I would do. 3. SUPER BLUSH ON LAST PAGE. BAM.
He seems quick enough, since he picks up on the something between Futaba and Kou, but then he’s all, HM SHE’S SPESHULERER THAN I THOUGHT, and meh. I don’t feel like watching him hopelessly vie for her attention, because he deserves her attention, being this genuinely nice guy (so rare in shoujo), but he won’t get it because, well, Kou. (And Kou deserves to be happy, so GG-kun... don’t interfere. Too much. I suppose you must interfere a little, or you wouldn’t exist, but don’t get annoying.)
I hope Kou talks to Futaba about what’s going on without her having to tackle him to the ground again. That’d be refreshing. Futaba has run after him a lot. Time to change things up a bit. And it would be a big step forward for him. Character growth over character regression, please.
Oh, I almost forgot to say yay Futaba-Yuuri-Murao friendship! Yay honesty! Yay head-patting!
Now waiting for next chapter(s) to rectify the Kou situation. Knowing Sakisaka, it will most likely make sense and restore love to all the right places and the Kou-frustration shall fade. Probably.
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