Reviews

Blue Flag, Vol. 8 by Kaito

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madam_librarian's review against another edition

3.0

Welp… That did not stick the ending for me. I was already a bit iffy on all the very long, drawn out conversations back and forth about differing perspectives. They were overly wordy and did not contain as much depth of nuance and emotional punch as I believe they were intended to, in my opinion. But I would’ve been fine with them had the author really nailed the ending… but they didn’t.

All they really had to do was show just one single panel of Toma and Taichi together. In queer literature of all kinds, showing queerness - especially queer relationships - directly on the page is so important for other queer people to be able to see themselves represented, in normalizing depiction of queerness. Maybe someday this won’t be necessary, but in the world in which we live now, it is. So to not have that, to just leave it implied, was so disappointing. And seriously, like I said, all it would’ve taken was a single panel.

mssmartian's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful lighthearted reflective 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? It's complicated

4.25

I really appreciate how sincere and sweetly the characters are portrayed. These are tough topics for kids, so I liked how

Taichi couldn’t parse out all of his feelings for Toma, but he knew he was too important in his life to let go.

While I really love the time skip and seeing everyone living their lives, it felt bittersweet in regards to development. It’s why my rating for the final novel is not a perfect 5.

The time skip was fun in that the readers are assuming it’s all through Taichi’s POV, but you quickly pick up that it’s Toma. The whole 8 novels take such care in addressing the characters thoughts, feelings, and working through them, so while I was so happy to see Taichi and Toma are together, I guess… I was sad we couldn’t see Taichi and Toma developing as young adults.
But I completely understand that story would probably need a whole lil series on its own. So including it felt a bit rushed.
I’m happy- but left wanting.
……… and we didn’t even get to see adult Toma 🥹

kanedaley's review against another edition

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emotional medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

chmedy's review against another edition

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3.0

even though a part of me is happy this series ended the way it did, i'm disappointed due to how it was handled. it felt rushed and i wish they had taken the time to explain how it all happened instead of giving us a time skip. idk it felt sloppy and that bothers me because i adore this manga and its characters.

instalovewithbooks's review against another edition

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5.0

This entire series tho!!! I'm so glad I picked it up and binged it on a whim. Oh my god it is SO GOOD. I plan to purchase the whole series for my own shelves.

bilingual_introvert's review against another edition

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funny hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

Everything was going so well but that last chapter was a mess imo. I thought maybe i was the odd person out but based on feedback online it seemed a lot of people felt that way. Just a lot of major actions took place that felt out of character.