They let Kodama cook, but unlike her previous Hagoromo Mishin (I can still taste the bittersweet feeling of finishing that one after a couple days) or her succeeding Ao no Hana, she wasn't quite ready.
I like the dynamic between the main three, but when they split off into various combinations it kinda goes off the rails.
I really wasn't a fan of the last 1/3 to 1/4 of the manga. The story threads just got too silly for my taste, and this was after having Nishimi and Mukae in particular go in one direction and then zoom in the exact opposite, giving the reader intense whiplash. There were a couple moments where Nishimi looked to be cutting ties with the two of them, only to get back together, at least until he left for Tokyo to become a doctor.
Junichi and Yurika were a constant source of agitation. I didn't like their story in the slightest.
Kawabuchi leaves and doesn't come back for a few chapters; I thought this part of the story was particularly mishandled, as there was really no reason for him to do so, there was no explanation given, and then when he finally reappears he just acts like everything is normal.
Then there's Mukae, with her constant vacillation between liking Kawabuchi and Nishimi, but rejecting both for reasons I can't fathom. Her story was mishandled the most, I wager, especially when she sends Nishimi a postcard with her phone number, only for nothing to come of it because of some other idiot she may or may not have been sleeping with. I didn't like Mukae much previously given her rampant indecisiveness and the way she rejected Nishimi (twice!) and her final appearance did little to assuage whatever feelings the reader had about her previously. Kawabuchi's claim that she and Nishimi could end up together sounds laughable at best.
Recommended, though with the huge caveat that if you're expecting something like Ao no Hana, you'll be as disappointed as I was.
(-3)
