Ao Haru Ride © Sakisaka Io/Shueisha
[First serialized in Betsuma]
Okay, this one only had 5 chapters out so far, so I'm making another first impression post. Before I start, let's say YAY!! for another work from Sakisaka Io (previous work: Strobe Edge). I really adore her artwork so I'm ready to follow this series religiously ^^
Summary
Yoshioka Futaba has a few reasons why she wants to "reset" her image and life as a new high-school student. Because she's cute, she was ostracized by her female friends in junior high, and because of a misunderstanding, she couldn't get her feeling across to the one boy she has always liked, Tanaka-kun.Now in high school, she is determined to be as unladylike as possible so that her friends won't be jealous of her. While living her life this way contentedly, she meets Tanaka-kun again, but he now goes under the name of Mabuchi Kou. He tells her that he felt the same way as she did when they were younger, but now things can never be the same again. Will Futaba be able to continue her love that never even started from three years ago?
-Excerpted from Baka-Updates Manga
Impressions
Childhood friend become lover, that's something that was rather typical in shoujo manga. Well, even if its theme was pretty typical, I still find this series very interesting, mostly it's because the main male character (Mabuchi Kou). Kou wasn't that interesting when he first appear in chapter 0. He's just another plain guy. I never expect him to be such a hottie when he grown up (me almost faint every time he puts his deadly smile lol). Even his character become a lot more interesting compared to when he was in middle school.
Main female character (Yoshioka Futaba) on the other hand, was a little pathetic at the beginning (though she did change as the chapter goes on). She's sticking with her annoying friends just because she doesn't want to be alone. Blegh, that sounds so lame! I'm just glad she starts being herself in chapter 2.
Because I also read Sakisaka-sensei previous work (Strobe Edge), I'm going to compare it with Ao Haru Ride. In my opinion, Ao Haru Ride starts off with better story than Strobe Edge. Strobe Edge didn't had my attention until volume two. Well, the first volume really make it appear as another typical shoujo manga after all (though it gets better, those who've read it must also know). I'm just wondering though, am I the only want who thinks Ao Haru Ride had better start?
As for the character, there isn't any similarity between the characters in Strobe Edge and Ao Haru Ride. Kou and Ren might have same black hair and deadly smile, but their personality was like heaven and earth! Maybe it's also their personality that makes their smile looks different. Kudos to Sakisaka-sensei for her great artwork that makes it possible! Oh, and Futaba isn't the second Ninako. If you find Ninako annoying, maybe you will like Futaba since she didn't gives Ninako vibes lol
To summarize it, Ao Haru Ride is a nice shoujo manga and it has a lot potential to be great. It is fun to read even though it's theme was typical. Its strong point laid on the character and the adorable artwork. As for the story, I bet it will get better once we learn about Kou's past after he left Futaba in middle school :)
disclaimer
Ao Haru Ride images used here for reference are © Sakisaka Io/Shueisha. No infringement intended.
invaluable resources
Betsuma.jp (image) · Anime-tion Scanlation · Chibi Manga · Bikkuri! · Baka-Updates Manga