I know I'm late to this review train because Namaikizakari ended in December 2021. I stopped reading the series around chapter 80 because it got annoying and repetitive, but I recently saw that the author had some new stuff and felt the urge to finish it.
This series ran from 2013-2021! I remember following it and reading it in high school. I thought Naruse was so cute. Then, I found his moodiness annoying. Yuki is one-dimensional, frustrating, and quite boring. They're both childish. A great reflection of who I was and still am...
I don't typically read or watch things sports-related—if you can even consider this a sports manga—so it was enjoyable reading the basketball panels. It's, first and foremost, a romance. It's always about their one-year "age gap," feeling insecure about who they are (mainly Yuki) and other misunderstandings that can be solved with better communication.
They acknowledge the source of their issues and promise to communicate better, but it's all empty promises because they always end up arguing about the same thing. It's frustrating because of this, the lack of plot, and the forced drama. The series could be A LOT shorter.
As usual, the desire to finish something awful to prove something useless to myself was why I kept going. Ironically, the chance to study for my Japanese exam the next day was a motivating factor. Typically it's the other way around, right? Reward yourself AFTER studying, not before.
Because I didn't start from the beginning, I forgot about what happened in high school, previous college drama, and the faces/names of many characters. I will admit Usami and Suwa are my favorite couple. Sadly, Usami often breaks down about her relationships and is insecure. But, when she's very happy and confident, it's hilarious. Her overactive imagination is a plus!
Shizuka's unrequited love was aggravating. He kept rearing his metaphorically ugly head. I want less of that. I don't think I have second male lead syndrome because I'm not that big of a fan of his, nor do I want him to end up with Yuki.
Plot 4/10, art 5/10 (it's all the same faces! I don't care how good-looking some are), drama 2/10, sports 8/10. A run-of-the-mill, uninspiring Shoujo manga.
Anonymous Noise
I've previously read Monokuro Shounen Shoujo by the same author Ryoko Fukuyama and thought it was meh. I've also previously watched the Anonymous Noise anime (a year or more ago); I watched it before I read it. I remember it being pretty good, despite being a little cringe because the FL would randomly break out into song like a theater kid.
That being said, I think this is an enjoyable manga series. The same issues as other unrequited love triangle mangas, but I enjoyed it thoroughly. I loved the singing panels and when they talked about music. There's a lot of friendship, heart, love for music, and angst. It reminded me of all my favorite aspects of Nana. The love for music and a bond that transcends friendship/love.
I felt exhilaration while reading this series. I forgot about the stupid love triangles because I was so hyped with other aspects, specifically the music performance aspect.
Maybe it's my forced glass-half-full mentality to justify authors' decisions, but I'm glad about who people end up with. I caught second male lead syndrome and rooted for him, but, returning to what reminded me of Nana, not everything needs to be romance!
The first volumes are not the best, but the story gains footing towards the middle. You will start to enjoy it more as the story progresses.
The art is nice and reminds me of Monokuro.
Plot 7/10: not just romance-centric, there are also family and music-related plot points.
Art 6.5/10: each design is pretty unique, but there is some overlap/repetition.
Drama 6.5/10: I liked the drama.
Music 10/10.
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