A review by ellythehuman
Kaguya-Sama: Love Is War, Vol. 16 by Aka Akasaka

5.0

I honestly loved this volume so much. Aka really knows how to juggle multiple characters’ development and storylines without it feeling overwhelming or underdeveloped. It really is incredible.

If you do not know: This series follows the members of the student council at an elite school. President Shirogane and Vice-President Kaguya like one another, but neither want to be the one to confess their love first. So, the battle of the brains begins as they try to make the other person confess. Very funny, cute, and at times, moving.

NOW! This volume goes over everyone’s winter break. We have character development and foreshadowing all over the place which is so great. However, I think the best part of the volume is the character relationships. It is really interesting specially to see dynamics change or to see new dynamics between different characters. One dynamic in particular is Ishigami and Iino’s relationship. We begin to see more of Iino’s desires when it comes to how she wants Ishigami to treat her, and her sadistic side starts to begin which is really fun to see lol. In addition, there is a chapter in here that kind of is a callback to the beginning of the series which was so cute and nostalgic to see. It really demonstrates how far Shirogane and Kaguya have come in their relationship which almost brings tears to my eyes. Almost. The penultimate chapter felt a little heavy handed with its message of love and confessions, but I can see why it was included. It was a sweet message on how true love may be hard to fine or maybe it is convoluted, but it is worth it.

Finally, my favorite chapters go to Fujiwara’s ramen adventure and of course Maki’s search for spiritual enlightenment. These two are my favorite characters, so I may be a little bias lol.

Overall, I gave this a 4.5 stars, but I am rounding up to 5 stars!