By Banri Hidaka. Released in Japan by Hakusensha, serialized in the magazine Hana to Yume. Released in North America by Tokyopop.

Having spent the last few volumes getting Yukari and Ageha together, this volume takes a much needed breather from romantic subplots. We do see moments of the two of them being an adorable couple, and they kiss and such. But it’s not actually the focus of the plot, as this volume manages to be one of the most fashion-focused yet, and also shows that the staff of V.B. Rose, as well as their ancillary friends, are more of a ‘nakama’ n a One Piece way than anything else.

Things start off when Sakura brings over a plot point… pardon me, a cute little cat. Despite being scolded by his mother, and being told that the cat can’t be inside a dress shop. You can see where this is going. Yup, in the following chapter, the cat claws the dress, ruining weeks’ worth of work. The expressions on everyone’s faces when they see this is priceless. Much as I love seeing her cheery happy faces as well, no one draws people looking grey with shock and horror quite like Hidaka-san.

So it’s time to go into emergency mode, and redesign the dress to disguise the claw marks. Ichihashi gets to show off her serious side when sewing beads together lightning fast (and I loved the interplay between her and Kuromine, as he tries to stop himself from… well, being himself), to the point where they falls over exhausted. Maki is brought over from I Hate You More Than Anyone! land once more, to redesign her hairstyle to fit the new design. Kana is there as well, showing more emotion than we’ve seen from her the entire manga when she threatens Yukari with death if this happens again.

And Ageha gets to sit there and not do a lot. Clearly her accessories didn’t need to be redone for the new design, and that means she’s the only one left standing around, a fact she laments. But that’s OK, as she gets tons of spotlight once the actual Bridal Fair occurs, and we get shot after shot of her and Yukari (who shows up, in a surprise that really isn’t one, in a handsome suit. Best of all, the dress gets to show off its disguise abilities, and we see its transformation! Ageha has fantastic legs. :)

I will admit that not everything worked for me this volume. While Sekiguchi’s backstory is meant to be of the ‘I am watching over him the best way I can’ school of shoujo, his character is so one-note, even surrounding his flashbacks, that it didn’t really do much for me. And I miss Rei, but that’s just my spoiled Akiyoshi-lovin’ side talking.

And then we get the cliffhanger, as the person who’s been calling the shop and then hanging up over and over again becomes clear. Yes, we’re 5 volumes from the end, and the main couple are together, so it’s time to start wrapping up loose ends. And since I think we’re a volume or two from delving into the twisted relationship of Ichihashi and Kuromine, so instead we get Yukari’s mother, showing up in a fancy car and no doubt ready to cause havoc. What sort of havoc we’ll have to wait till Vol. 10 to see.

By Banri Hidaka. Released in Japan by Hakusensha, serialized in the magazine Hana to Yume. Released in North America by Tokyopop.

So much of shoujo romance manga is about how to read a person’s feelings. I can’t possibly confess to him, I’ve no idea how he feels about me! Look at the way that he jerked away when I touched him – he hates me! That sort of thing. And it’s all over V.B. Rose 8 as well, even with the fact that we actually get the most plot development yet.

The Sakashita siblings are a good case in point in terms of how to play with an audience’s expectations. With Yukari and Ageha, they can’t read each other’s feelings for each other, but we can. It’s incredibly obvious to us how they feel. Mamoru and Nagare, though, are another story. I wouldn’t say they’re villainous – this is not the sort of shoujo to have nasty villains – but their smiles make us uneasy. It doesn’t help that Hidaka-san parodies this by having them both join in a round of crazed maniacal laughter midway through.

In fact, much of this volume seems to be Hidaka riffing on her previous works. Ageha and Tsuyu go over to Kana’s apartment for a heart-to-heart, and Ageha asks point black about Kana’s past with Yukari. We then get an extended flashback to their fragile history together, done fairly straight. It’s at the exact same point we got a flashback in I Hate You More Than Anyone – mid Volume 8. Then we cut back to Kana, staring off into space, and we realize that this was all in her head, and she never actually said anything to Ageha! Nice take-off on shoujo convention of “let me tell you about my past”.

(I have to wonder if Hidaka-san had been reading One Piece while she was writing this. Not only does the extended tragic flashback that we’re never sure is actually stated out loud remind me of Robin’s flashback in Enies Lobby, but when asked about when she told them about her past, Kana replied, “In my heart.” Kana is a person who definitely knows where Sniper Island is.)

There’s another cameo from the two leads of I Hate You More Than Anyone! here, and again you don’t really have to read the previous series to get it, but it’s fun. There’s a coincidental bit of timing here in North America, too, as this volume of V.B. rose namechecks one of Maki’s friends who’s a designer, and we see a little SD-picture of her. It’s Fujisawa Eiko, who we are currently seeing doing a fashion show 12 years earlier, in the 9th volume of I Hate You More Than Anyone, just out last month! It’s enough to make one an obsessive geek, I tell you.

However, the big story here is that Ageha and Yukari get together at last (again, her series parallel – Volume 8 was where Maki and Kazuha got together). It’s sweetly done, showing Yukari’s awkwardness and Ageha’s uncertainty, but ends up being very sweet. Of course, there are 14 volumes in this series, not 8, so I’m sure there will be complications. From Nagare, if no one else.

The art here, by the way, is utterly gorgeous – and that is something that’s different from the competent but not outstanding art in IHYMTA. Hidaka-san has really polished her skills, and of course a manga about a wedding dress shop is going to want to show off the fashion. Chapter 45 is almost purely gratuitous – between the pages of nothing but fashion AND the Maki and Kazuha cameos – but you never mind, because it just looks great.

We’re now into the second half of this terrific series, and I love that we can see the way that Hidaka-san improves her craft with every volume, as well as the subtle ways she manages to not only poke fun at manga conventions but also her own past. Highly recommended.

By Banri Hidaka. Released in Japan by Hakusensha, serialized in the magazine Hana to Yume. Released in North America by Tokyopop.

This review contains spoilers.

Those who’ve read my Twitter account or my Livejournal know that I’ve become an uber-fan of Banri Hidaka, author not only of this title but also CMX’s I Hate You More Than Anyone! and Tears of a Lamb, which also ran in Hana to Yume. However, as I am trying to be a real life blogger now, I will avoid using the word SQUEE! in this review. Mostly.

Volume 7 opens where Volume 6 left off, at Arisaka’s birthday party. Sadly, we find out he’s a lightweight when it comes to drinking, which puts the kibosh on any romance that might happen. But then, you knew that going in. Certain types of shoujo manga have to be read in a certain way. You can’t expect a fast pace. V.B. Rose ended up being 14 volumes total in Japan, and this is only the halfway point.

What this means is there’s a lot of wheel spinning in this volume. Ageha has no real experience at being in love, as her classmates point out. She’s having difficulty realizing whether this is love or admiration, as well as separating work from love (she is in love with her boss, after all). And Arisaka isn’t helping either, waffling as he’s still upset over his last breakup. It really doesn’t help that the ex-girlfriend is working with both of them, of course. Or is a deadpan whose emotions are impossible to read.

Actually, compared to Kazuha and Senko in IHYMTA!, Ageha is fairly sedate. At least most of her angst is internalized. By the way, for those who are unaware, much of Hidaka’s work is crossed over with each other, and there are multiple cameos. One of Ageha’s classmates, for example, was seen before in a short series she wrote in 1996. Luckily, she has gotten much better at making the cameos non-dependent. If you recognise Minatsu, then you get a bonus. If you don’t, it’s not a big deal.

Luckily, there is Nagare, who is determined to be the one thing driving the plot. And thank God, as he’s forcing Arisaka to stop being such a wuss. Nagare is clearly meant to be the closest thing this title has to a ‘villain’ character, but I can’t help but sympathize with him. He knows he’s already fallen into the ‘I see you like a little brother’ category, and that Ageha is falling for Arisaka fast. So he has to be blunter. And at least this time he’s actually confessing, as opposed to trying to undermine her relationship with Arisaka like last time. (OK, he still does that a bit.)

Hidaka’s art has also greatly improved from her earlier series, and her facial expressions are particularly a joy. Be it Ageha’s light blushes, Arisaka’s frustrated rage, or everyone else’s super-deformed grins, they’re just fun to look at. And, of course, we have the fashion. There’s less of that in this volume, but we do get a nice scene of them planning their next dress, and seeing how it’s coming along. As well as Ageha’s cute outfits. And as always, I love the eyes on Mamoru and Nagare. Hidaka seems to like ‘bedroom eye’ characters (The Honjo family in IHYMTA! are another example), and it appeals to me personally. I think it makes Mamoru sexier.

Overall, an excellent volume. Not much develops plot-wise, beyond explaining Kana and Nagare’s confession, but I expect that the latter will be what drives Volume 8.