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rereader33's review against another edition
5.0
Now that I've finished this series' seventh volume, it occurred to me that the reason why I love this series so much is that it's a romantic comedy that has a great balance of romance, drama, and comedy.
Small rant, but hear me out: one of the things that drives me nuts when reading romance manga, especially romantic comedies, is when there isn't a balance of romance, drama, and comedy. Either there's a). so much romance that it becomes unbearable (especially if you aren't into the main couple, I'm looking at you My Love Story), b). there's a ton of comedy that either becomes repetitive or the humor wanes over time and the romance suffers because of it (hello Takane and Hana) or c). THERE'S SO MUCH DAMN DRAMA and not enough humor to cut through it (FUCK YOU, CITRUS). Going off of option c, the other problem I have with this is that the drama generally stems from introducing new love interests to get in the way of the main couple, and I hate to say it but that's lazy writing. If you can't come up with other obstacles for our couple to overcome other than new potential love interests that you KNOW aren't going to sway the couple BUT PUT THEM IN ANYWAY, that's the EPITOME of lazy writing.
Kaguya-sama: Love is War is great because not only is it balanced in all aspects, but it doesn't fall victim to the "add more love interests to spice things up" trap, instead relishing in the insignificant (competing over who send the first text) and major (helping Kaguya see the fireworks) obstacles our potential couple faces. THANK YOU, AKASAKA, YOU WILL FOREVER HAVE MY LOVE FOR THIS!!
On a completely different note, I want to address Ino's involvement in the story, specifically her pledges while running for student council president. While I understand she is meant to represent the extreme end of morality and authority, some of her pledges straight up WOULDN'T WORK. One of her pledges is that members of the opposite gender can't be within twenty inches of each other. Okay, I have NO CLUE have big hallways are in Japanese high schools or how big classrooms are, but HOW THE HELL ARE STUDENTS SUPPOSE TO ACCOMPLISH MOST TASKS IF THEY AREN'T ALLOWED WITHIN TWENTY INCHES OF THE OPPOSITE GENDER?! Seriously, how the hell would that work?! Does it only apply after school? On trips? During club activities? HOW?! And yes, I'm making a big deal out of this because while I don't personally like Ino, I do admire her determination and passion and would love to cheer her on if some of her pledges weren't BAT SHIT CRAZY! It doesn't help that some of her pledges are completely reasonable, like no cellphone usage and confiscating games or other items while on school grounds. All that being said, I LOVED her debate with Miyuki and thought that their debate was where her character truly shined.
This was a great volume and a compulsive read. I was at how quickly I blew through it despite not being very invested in Ino's character or her ideologies. A great read for sure, still loving this series.
P.S. The final chapter regarding panties was FUCKING HILARIOUS and I loved it.
Small rant, but hear me out: one of the things that drives me nuts when reading romance manga, especially romantic comedies, is when there isn't a balance of romance, drama, and comedy. Either there's a). so much romance that it becomes unbearable (especially if you aren't into the main couple, I'm looking at you My Love Story), b). there's a ton of comedy that either becomes repetitive or the humor wanes over time and the romance suffers because of it (hello Takane and Hana) or c). THERE'S SO MUCH DAMN DRAMA and not enough humor to cut through it (FUCK YOU, CITRUS). Going off of option c, the other problem I have with this is that the drama generally stems from introducing new love interests to get in the way of the main couple, and I hate to say it but that's lazy writing. If you can't come up with other obstacles for our couple to overcome other than new potential love interests that you KNOW aren't going to sway the couple BUT PUT THEM IN ANYWAY, that's the EPITOME of lazy writing.
Kaguya-sama: Love is War is great because not only is it balanced in all aspects, but it doesn't fall victim to the "add more love interests to spice things up" trap, instead relishing in the insignificant (competing over who send the first text) and major (helping Kaguya see the fireworks) obstacles our potential couple faces. THANK YOU, AKASAKA, YOU WILL FOREVER HAVE MY LOVE FOR THIS!!
On a completely different note, I want to address Ino's involvement in the story, specifically her pledges while running for student council president. While I understand she is meant to represent the extreme end of morality and authority, some of her pledges straight up WOULDN'T WORK. One of her pledges is that members of the opposite gender can't be within twenty inches of each other. Okay, I have NO CLUE have big hallways are in Japanese high schools or how big classrooms are, but HOW THE HELL ARE STUDENTS SUPPOSE TO ACCOMPLISH MOST TASKS IF THEY AREN'T ALLOWED WITHIN TWENTY INCHES OF THE OPPOSITE GENDER?! Seriously, how the hell would that work?! Does it only apply after school? On trips? During club activities? HOW?! And yes, I'm making a big deal out of this because while I don't personally like Ino, I do admire her determination and passion and would love to cheer her on if some of her pledges weren't BAT SHIT CRAZY! It doesn't help that some of her pledges are completely reasonable, like no cellphone usage and confiscating games or other items while on school grounds. All that being said, I LOVED her debate with Miyuki and thought that their debate was where her character truly shined.
This was a great volume and a compulsive read. I was at how quickly I blew through it despite not being very invested in Ino's character or her ideologies. A great read for sure, still loving this series.
P.S. The final chapter regarding panties was FUCKING HILARIOUS and I loved it.
mthedm's review
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
eji's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
m560's review against another edition
5.0
+ Kaguya wanting to be selfish for once
- blatant underwear fan service, the story doesn't need it
- blatant underwear fan service, the story doesn't need it
heyjudy's review against another edition
4.0
~4 Stars
(Contains light spoilers.)
This volume contains the student council campaign arc. The student council is open for re-election, and Kaguya has persuaded Shirogane to run for president again. All of this is mainly because Kaguya doesn't want their time together to end, and she doesn't know what excuse they would have for spending time together outside of the council. Shirogane already has a pretty good reputation and background as president, so it would take some good competition for him to lose. It's up for debate whether Miko Ino is that good of competition.
I rather liked how this plot developed and concluded. The conclusion had little doubt, really, but Miko made some good conflict. Despite her very strict views, she does have good intentions, and it's actually pretty easy to like her.
By the end of the volume, things have mostly gone back to normal, it seems. I'm excited to see what this expansion of characters adds to the series.
A review copy was provided by the publisher, VIZ Media, for an honest review. Thank you so, so much!
(Contains light spoilers.)
This volume contains the student council campaign arc. The student council is open for re-election, and Kaguya has persuaded Shirogane to run for president again. All of this is mainly because Kaguya doesn't want their time together to end, and she doesn't know what excuse they would have for spending time together outside of the council. Shirogane already has a pretty good reputation and background as president, so it would take some good competition for him to lose. It's up for debate whether Miko Ino is that good of competition.
I rather liked how this plot developed and concluded. The conclusion had little doubt, really, but Miko made some good conflict. Despite her very strict views, she does have good intentions, and it's actually pretty easy to like her.
By the end of the volume, things have mostly gone back to normal, it seems. I'm excited to see what this expansion of characters adds to the series.
A review copy was provided by the publisher, VIZ Media, for an honest review. Thank you so, so much!
bookish_lisa's review
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
dkmons's review against another edition
4.0
Miko’s introduction to the cast is not my favorite - she’s definitely the most annoying of the bunch. Least favorite volume so far BUT I do love all of them.
drtx_bwt's review
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse
Minor: Sexual harassment