Another manga that tries to be very realistic, but kind of fails at being so. It definitely has some good moments but there's lots of weird mixed up in it. Lots of loose ends remain when the manga ends, too. All in all not too much of a satisfying expierence.

The story was really good, to see how the prota. change from the beginning to towards the end. However, around volume 3 and 4, the chapters don't !@$%ing connect, make sense, or contribute to character development. Some are really irrelevant.

I kinda enjoyed this manga, right up until the last chapter, which completely ruined the entire experience. Bad aftertaste indeed.

Very peaceful manga, but...

I wish Ogino grew more of a backbone. This manga is a pretty good read and for the most part pretty realistic, but Ogino does nothing the entire time. He's just had everything fortunate and unfortunate just land on him. He doesn't really take a step in any particular direction. I think he's pretty lucky that anything interesting happens to him. The only thing about Ogino I can admire is his passion for motorbikes. He's easier to relate to when motorbikes come up -- more full of life.

Otherwise, he's just your average Japanese high school perverted chump who gets bullied on and gets the 'hot' girl. And he's kind of lacking in the friend department.

Are there no other protagonist archetypes to choose from?

... Last updated on April 27th, 2011, 6:26pm

alright manga but at times the chapters seem irrelevant and some chapters left me wondering what the point was in drawing certain scenes. anyways theres some interesting themes about the realities of life

Although this series was interesting, it has a major flaw through and that is the main female character really feels like a stump of wood... really does not convince me as a real person. The male character on the other hand is very lively and believable.

I'm sure tons of people are concerned with the ending, as I am. I felt that this type of ending is not something I look for in a manga, meaning that although it makes sense from a story sense, I can find this type of endings in books very often. I'm sure the mangaka just thought the obvious ending would be somehow unrealistic or typical, so he chose the opposite. Well if stories didn't give hope, what else is there to look forward to? I feel that by choosing this ending, the mangaka is the type of person that gave up the hopes of a teenager and regretted it.



... Last updated on November 15th, 2010, 8:15pm

68 chapters you can read just fine. Good, enjoyable, full of quirky personality, and very funny situations.

Bam! Chapter 69 slap you in the face with a dose of reality. Awkward as hell in term of storyline and character development. In my opinion anyway.

We actually know to the bone what reality is. We dont need to be reminded about that.

Tsk! talk about bad aftertaste.

EDIT: some may say I just read too much into the story, that mangaka want to end it quick. Well okay, but still. I do wish can unread chapter 69.

... Last updated on July 12th, 2010, 6:25am

I can see why so many people say it was stretched XD
It was very real, real but not too harsh on it, if you know what i mean.
Its good at making akward type moments. Its good at what it does XD

There is plenty of characterization and it has a very wide, dynamic cast who often serve more as "contrasts" for one another(especially Ogi) and in illustrating the point that "life is mundane, things happen, people come and go, humans evolve" than in having any other role. That said, the pacing is very slow because it focuses more on character growth in a highly introspective and careful manner.

Ciguatera will likely not appeal towards those looking for fast-paced storylines nor to those who want some excitement with the writing as there is almost none. It can also be somewhat fustrating because the plot never really evolves much and simply sticks along to the simple premise of "depicting character growth and the life of Ogi, with the interaction of various people". And it's really "slice of life" to the core, like some of those BL, GL, shoujo, shounen, etc., etc. "slice of life" stories that tend to bore the heck out of many because they're just very very realistic and "down to earth", it's like "nothing ever happened".

There's also a barely noticeable maturity growth for much of the main cast: things happen, they grow and turn into adults. Their paths may or may not have been predictable but many of the events or if not, the factors triggering them, were not always so evident.

About the girlfriend: she does have some personality but the problem is that the people around her are more "outgoing", to the extent they overshadow her qualities. Thus, she turns from "potentially interesting" into appearing "somewhat dull and flat on the surface" at times. And it doesn't help that the plot focuses on the mundane, so it doesn't really create many situations for her to shine on the surface. I can't help but think that if this had been a different type of plot, she'd come across as more attractive. Yet, she does have some good points: a nice, sweet, strong and steady person whose underlying qualities are being "tough" and being able to deal with life as it is without freaking out. And she is definitely someone who has a lot of confidence. These points allow her to see Ogi for what he really is, to support Ogi and to push him into growing. And perhaps, the writer was just trying to illustrate the point that those who're understated and overlooked are often the ones who're "hidden gems" and that life isn't always about those bursts of excitement but also about the peace and tranquility that come with it.

About Ogino: Like his girlfriend, he appears dull on the surface but in reality, he's the person who undergoes the most character growth. He's strong, dependable(in a way but not so much at first), has a bit of charisma and so on. He doesn't just learn to think for himself, he becomes far more thoughtful and eventually learns to accept himself as he is. And there's actually a remarkable but subtle softening of his negative qualities over time as he evolves.

Also, I suspect his qualities of "indecisiveness and lack of confidence, tendency to blame everyone but himself" probably caused certain others(Takigawa, Takai, etc.) to see him in a really different light and not as the person he really was. On one hand, he attracts people due to his strengths but on the other hand, his flaws often repel them, causing them to treat him badly. And if not, his flaws set off some unfortunate chain of events that just only make things worse for almost everyone involved. If he hadn't been so half-assed and more pushy or even more matured in many of his actions, the outcome of various events would've been considerably different.

Also, the usage of Ogi's outbursts/thoughtful moments was a clever device that was used in depicting the tension between Ogi and Nagano, the atmosphere between Ogi and Takai/Takigawa. It was even superb in serving as a form of narration and served in connecting a series of random events that happened over the years. Frankly, it was surprising since he seemed so submissive and weak-willed at first yet who knew that he could be strong and interesting in his own way?

On the other hand, the frequency of those outbursts was so often in the earlier volumes, that the writing started to detach a little, with the pacing even meandering off, causing the plot to be stuck in some "infinite loop of Ogi's freak-out moments". Thankfully, the writing and pacing sort of improved after a while and those outbursts became more integrated into the writing again.

That said, it's really worth a read if you're willing to stick all the way to the ride. It's nothing thrilling, nothing surprising but still quite good.

A manga that is rather misunderstood by many, after having read the ending. On the surface seemingly about boy meets girl, and their ups and downs. But underneath lies a story about maturing, growing into an adult; letting go of the trivial things that drive you crazy during your adolescent life.

... Last updated on April 8th, 2010, 6:43am