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I read the preview for 恋の仕方がわからない. This one actually doesn’t seem like it’ll be that difficult to read? I mean the preview gave me a headache since the print’s kinda small and I can’t zoom, but the writing itself wasn’t particularly difficult. Be easier than the other manga I’ve been reading lately (舞台に咲け!, GREEN). So I may be getting that one next time I order off of Amazon.
Also, a couple books I ordered off Manga Republic last week (星だけが知ってる and 春園ショウ’s art book Candy) arrived in the States today and should be getting here on Saturday! Maybe I’ll finish GREEN by then and will read 星だけが知ってる before starting クールドジ男子, as it’s just the one volume.
I read Seed 17 of GREEN. This one had way more katakana than usual as Wako-chan was helping out at Kayoko’s restaurant during the xmas season and many of the dishes were mostly or fully katakana, so it was a bit more challenging than usual.
I read 6 pages of 2.43, putting me at pg 72. I also rewatched ep 6 (with ENG subtitles though), which covers this chapter. It’s my second-favorite episode, after ep 8, which I’m not sure which chapter that is.
Obligatory rambling
We get explicit acknowledgement/confirmation that a good portion of Subaru’s outward personality is a mask! (Specifically: Though he’s a hundred times more naturally cheerful than Ochi, about half of Mimura’s affability is an act.) I wasn’t not expecting it, but it’s still nice, especially since, as this is from Ochi’s POV, it’s also confirmation that Ochi does know him well enough to tell (which I also already knew, but). Subaru’s good (although not perfect at it, though I’ve no doubt that he’ll get even better as he gets older) and people who don’t know him that well likely wouldn’t be able to tell he’s masking. There’s an upcoming scene where a reporter from Fukurou TV visits one of their practices, and in the anime you can see his mask start slipping near the end, although the crew of course doesn’t notice.
Oh my god, Subaru’s super tall (189 cm) and the reporter Mizuno is short even for a woman, so their height difference is “as much as two heads’ worth” and she’s gotta look up at him “with all her might” while he stoops down to accommodate her. In the anime, she comes up to a little past his chin. That would put her at about Ochi’s height, then, which is closer to being on the taller side for a woman (168 cm). Geez, just how short is she actually, then? 130 cm? She’s friggin’ tiny. (It looks like they got an actual Fukui TV announcer to voice her in the anime? That’s cool.)
The cameraman who hangs behind a bit just to talk about Seiin and how they might steal the crown from Fukuhou kinda pisses me off. “Fukuhou better stay on their toes, or someone might just take their spot. It gets boring if Fukuhou’s always a shoo-in.” I’m with Ochi, why even bother interviewing them then if it’s more interesting if they lose? I also don’t like how familiar he is. He calls Subaru “Subaru-kun” and he calls Mizuno “Mizuno-chan.”
lol Ochi wanted to sprinkle salt after the guy left.
Another thing that changed in the anime is that Ｋ校 became 小津高. When I end up doing my translation for practice, I wonder if I should update the name or leave it…
Ah god, Aoki’s such a scheming asshole, I love him. I can’t wait 'til I get to this last scene in the novel. (Also, actual Aoki-Ochi interaction?? Maybe?? A guy can dream. I bet they’d get on fantastically, and by fantastically I mean not at all but it’ll be highly entertaining from a reader’s perspective.)
I read 壁の穴 ch 35-39. Kumiko gets pushed and made to spill her soup at lunch, and that’s not bullying? “Oh, it’s just 意地悪する (being mean), not 苛める (bullying), it’s not that big a deal.” Uh, that’s friggin’ bullying, my dude. No one stops going to school and can only work up the courage to go back again with their new friend Chuuya the house mouse hiding in their pocket because some kids are a little mean to them sometimes, but they do because they’re being bullied. I’ve never been particularly liked by anybody, I was always an outsider, and other kids would treat me rudely/snidely at times which only caused me to keep to myself even more, but I was never bullied. Ostracized, sure, but not bullied. Kumiko is getting bullied. I hope the story will actually recognize that and not stick to that ‘oh it’s just 意地悪’ because, what, it could be worse??
Some vocab of note:
条件を吞む (じょうけんをのむ) [expression, マ五] to accept the conditions
翌日 (よくじつ) [adverbial noun] the next day. I can finally remember the meaning, although I still don’t remember the reading, which is why I’m adding it today.
すっかり [adverb] all; completely; totally; entirely; thoroughly
根明 (ねあか) [な-adjective] innate cheerfulness
おそらく [adverb] perhaps; likely; probably; dare I say. I like how it sounds close to “most likely” and has a pretty similar meaning (in fact, whenever I heard it in anime before, I’d always thought they were saying a contracted form of that lol).
so that might explain the cover 
The illustrations are very cute 
I think someone recommended or mentioned this manga in a previous thread but I can’t remember who 
Reading this made me realize that I’m kind of in the mood for something with more of a cohesive story, though. Might or might not read again tomorrow, kind of depends on how busy I am - these kind of manga are nice for those busy days ^^
