By Banri Hidaka. Released in Japan as “Sekai De Ichiban Daikirai!” by Hakusensha, serialized in the magazine Hana to Yume. Released in North America by CMX.
This is the volume where I really began to get addicted to this manga. It’s also the one where Hidaka-san relaxes and starts to stretch out. At 3 volumes, it’s clear now that this is going to be much longer than all her previous stories featuring the Akiyoshi Family. So she can begin to introduce subplots and pace herself.
One note about the glaring weakness of this volume: the cover. Hakusensha’s covers for Hana to Yume books can be… well, dull. But you can do a lot with them if you try – look at V.B. Rose from Tokyopop, or even the later Tears of a Lamb from CMX. This one, however, reeks of clip ‘n paste. They get better.
Most of the drama in this volume comes from two plots: Kazuha’s angst about Maki, and his ‘giving her space’; and her family issues. Maki, in fact, is not really in this volume much at all, which might be frustrating for those who like to see a romantic shoujo manga actually feature the romantic couple. We do get some time with him, though, and it’s becoming clear that he’s getting over his initial ‘glomp’ affection and really falling deeper in love.
Kazuha, meanwhile, is a mess. I’ve talked before about her being an emotional roller coaster, but you really see it come into play here. She’s mopey, she’s happy, she’s angry, she’s stressed, she’s terrified… it can be exhausting. We do see her dealing with most of it, though, especially the family issues, which take priority over her love life. Chizuru’s ‘mid-life crisis’ (even if he’s only 14 years old) upsets her, but also widens her narrow viewpoint.
I love the fact that the Akiyoshi family features prominently in this, especially as it’s such a big family that we get multiple viewpoints. Kazuha realizing that the reason her mom and dad are never home is that there’s 6 of them and finances must be horrible; Momoka being almost a mini-Kazuha and getting upset at Chizuru for rebelling; and the three youngest just missing their dad, who was far more ‘parent-like’ when it was just her and Chizuru.
This leads to her deciding to get a job right out of high school (even though her teachers are telling her she has grades good enough for college). The manga actually presents this as a positive thing, showing her trying to think ahead, and realizing after watching Maki work and discussing the finer points with Arata that hairdresser might actually be a career for her.
And of course there’s the love permutations. Arata tries to be forceful, seeing that Maki is not doing anything at the moment, but Kazuha really doesn’t see him as anything but a friend, so that’s not going anywhere. Meanwhile, Senko is still wrestling with herself, trying to take delight in Kazuha and Maki’s angst but in reality just ending up worried about her friend.
This leads to Honjo, Arata’s older brother, who gets his role greatly expanded here. The author notes indicate he was pretty much immediately popular, and we can see why here. He’s the sensible one, the advice giver. He’s able to watch all the madness around him and not be sucked in by it. He genuinely seems to be trying to do right by Kazuha and Maki. He has a wicked sense of humor. And he’s just cool in general. He knows how to give enough advice so that people will understands what needs to be done without lecturing them. “You need to have some self-confidence, Akiyoshi. As long as you’re like that, he’s gonna be like that.”
Hidaka-san is starting to learn her craft, as well. There’s some lovely juxtaposition here. Page 66 featuring a happy beaming Kazuha with her two friends staring grumpily at her, contrasted with page 96, with miserable Kazuha drawn in almost the exact same style, with the grumpy friends having merely adjusted slightly. In addition, towards the end (after the fight about Chizuru getting his ear pierced), we see Kazuha running off to yell at Maki, while Senko confronts Honjo. We cut from Akiyoshi slapping Maki across the face… to Honjo, who has caught Senko’s hand before she could slap him. It’s a nice sign of growth.
I really feel this is where the series starts to get good. Yes, it’s still a bit scattered compared to her later works, but there’s a lot to love here. Recommended.
