Well...I had quite a high expectation as I was reading this. I got the impression from the summary that this was a plot I'm going to love. The prologue was great. Very sweet and it was kind of like a dream, and I'm sure that's how it felt to them, even if only a little. It was sad that they were separated, but I knew they were going to meet again, so I read on.
I found that from then on the series didn't quite meet my expectations.
First of all...I hate it when mangas about showbiz do things that aren't realistic. I suppose the series handled it quite alright. I love music just as much as the next guy, but I'll admit that I don't know much about the world of music production. So I can't fairly judge the manga's take on forming a bad and surviving in the industry, but some things just felt off to me as I was reading it in the music aspect, especially those remarks about making one's own sound, and how friend's sound has changed...I somehow don't think the public even notice these things. IMHO it's either they're good, or they're bad. But that's just me, I guess.
Next, the characters don't feel like they have much depth in them, really.
Mayu...doesn't appeal to me. She's the typical shoujo lead: friendly, has a two guys who love her very much, cheerful but can also get quite dejected (especially concerning main love interest)...you know the deal. Nothing much is revealed about her beyond that. Hopefully more of her character background & growth will be shown in the chapters I have yet to read.
Yuuya is alright. He's a professional, and one can see that as well as looking out after Mayu, he gives his all in career. Oh, and his hair -totally- looks better in the prologue. Wish they'd change his hairstyle back. Uh, anyways...I can see why he'll find it difficult to approach Mayu, so I can forgive the lack of advancement in the love department...for now.
Tougo. Now, I love Tougo, but I really think his character could've been explored a bit more. At this point (chapter 1 of vol.3) I'm feeling like he's somewhat of a social inept, who knows what he's doing in the music industry...but someone mentioned he's a music idiot(?!) Anyway...I actually prefer him over Yuuya at the moment. Not sure if that'll change. Yuuya hasn't done much more than being professional in what he does anyway (so far).
It's hard to truly enjoy the singing bits when all you have is pictures, the lyrics scattered around the page, and the audiences' comments. Nothing can be done about that...but I was slightly bothered nonetheless.
I really want to get into this series...and I'm hoping the series will get better. Will probably edit once I've finished (read: once it's all scanlated)
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