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冷たくて 柔らか [Tsumetakute Yawaraka] #4
Pink Candy Kiss, Vol. 4
「甘い あまい いい匂い 齧りつきたい」
もうすぐ、一生に一度きりの今年のエマの誕生日。宝はエマへの気持ちを胸に、自分なりに祝おうと思案中。だけどある日突然、エマの仕事場に招かれざる客が…!? 母親からの心無い言葉によって傷つき、弱るエマ。エマの幸せを祈り、真剣に親友として心配する宝だが、想いは溢れ──。
もうすぐ、一生に一度きりの今年のエマの誕生日。宝はエマへの気持ちを胸に、自分なりに祝おうと思案中。だけどある日突然、エマの仕事場に招かれざる客が…!? 母親からの心無い言葉によって傷つき、弱るエマ。エマの幸せを祈り、真剣に親友として心配する宝だが、想いは溢れ──。
176 pages, Paperback
First published December 24, 2024
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
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January 20, 2026her mother sucks(￢_￢)
December 25, 2025
[Thanks to Viz and Edelweiss for a copy of this manga in exchange for an unbiased review.]
This is probably the weakest volume yet, but I would say that it’s still pretty good. The not-so-shocking revelation that Em’s not as put together as we may have surmised gives a lot of food for thought and one of those thoughts has to be, ‘is this a good idea?’
The introduction of Em’s incredibly awful, if not outright unhinged, mother is a big swing that does explain a lot of Em in general and she makes for a suitable villain this instalment. She’s extra and beyond any cultural allowance that might account for her.
No, this woman is married multiple times (not inherently bad, but you do get the impression mom might be the issue here) and resents Em for having the temerity to wreck her body via, of all things, her pregnancy. And she single-handedly raises passive aggression to an art form.
These parts walk a fine line with being a bit too much, as everybody tries to wrangle this she-beast, but it’s interesting to see Hario step up for Em and how much that means to her. Just because Taka is in the frame doesn’t mean Em hates Hario or anything and we get hints that this is about to be explored in-depth next volume.
What threw me a little was the way this pivots from being a story of an love to instead looking like an incredibly bad idea. The way Em has been beaten down by her mother lets the latter shatter her confidence, even as she is launching her new restaurant.
Hario rescued Em earlier and then Taka takes that a step even further still (very satisfying, if I do say so). Taka even absconds with Em for some much needed rest after the latter collapses from a medical condition.
If you think there’s a little too much going on at this point, you’re not wrong. This kind of over-does the piling on of problems; I think every action here could still happen just from unfriendly mom encounters.
Worse, this shifts the non-relationship from being on somewhat equal footing to looking incredibly codependent. Em’s not in the right space to work through her feelings, Taka is a total pushover for everything Em does, so Em leans hard on Taka.
Yes, Taka wants to make Em into the version of Em she sees, but that version doesn’t necessarily exist. It’s interesting on its own, but I do think this was doing just fine doing what it was doing without all the new wrinkles.
The parts that are cathartic are well done, at least, and the emotion is believable. Their little holiday is quite charming and runs on some amusing romantic tension. It’s certainly not dull, even if it continues to tease things a lot more than deliver on them.
Still, I always want to like this more than I do. It has always had some rough edges and this just adds a couple more. Not enough to make me dislike it, the core is strong enough to withstand these minor dings, but enough to stop me flat-out loving it.
3.5 stars - best intentions, but a bit overstuffed with things when it could really stand to zero in on its leads and go somewhere with that. It’s no Even Though We’re Adults, but I still like it.
This is probably the weakest volume yet, but I would say that it’s still pretty good. The not-so-shocking revelation that Em’s not as put together as we may have surmised gives a lot of food for thought and one of those thoughts has to be, ‘is this a good idea?’
The introduction of Em’s incredibly awful, if not outright unhinged, mother is a big swing that does explain a lot of Em in general and she makes for a suitable villain this instalment. She’s extra and beyond any cultural allowance that might account for her.
No, this woman is married multiple times (not inherently bad, but you do get the impression mom might be the issue here) and resents Em for having the temerity to wreck her body via, of all things, her pregnancy. And she single-handedly raises passive aggression to an art form.
These parts walk a fine line with being a bit too much, as everybody tries to wrangle this she-beast, but it’s interesting to see Hario step up for Em and how much that means to her. Just because Taka is in the frame doesn’t mean Em hates Hario or anything and we get hints that this is about to be explored in-depth next volume.
What threw me a little was the way this pivots from being a story of an love to instead looking like an incredibly bad idea. The way Em has been beaten down by her mother lets the latter shatter her confidence, even as she is launching her new restaurant.
Hario rescued Em earlier and then Taka takes that a step even further still (very satisfying, if I do say so). Taka even absconds with Em for some much needed rest after the latter collapses from a medical condition.
If you think there’s a little too much going on at this point, you’re not wrong. This kind of over-does the piling on of problems; I think every action here could still happen just from unfriendly mom encounters.
Worse, this shifts the non-relationship from being on somewhat equal footing to looking incredibly codependent. Em’s not in the right space to work through her feelings, Taka is a total pushover for everything Em does, so Em leans hard on Taka.
Yes, Taka wants to make Em into the version of Em she sees, but that version doesn’t necessarily exist. It’s interesting on its own, but I do think this was doing just fine doing what it was doing without all the new wrinkles.
The parts that are cathartic are well done, at least, and the emotion is believable. Their little holiday is quite charming and runs on some amusing romantic tension. It’s certainly not dull, even if it continues to tease things a lot more than deliver on them.
Still, I always want to like this more than I do. It has always had some rough edges and this just adds a couple more. Not enough to make me dislike it, the core is strong enough to withstand these minor dings, but enough to stop me flat-out loving it.
3.5 stars - best intentions, but a bit overstuffed with things when it could really stand to zero in on its leads and go somewhere with that. It’s no Even Though We’re Adults, but I still like it.
January 27, 2026
“you’re like my personal goddess, taka,” U ARE TAKA’S PERSONAL GODDESS, EMA.
one bed trope!!!! emataka are serving!!! who else is hungry? also, em’s line: “i wouldn’t mind. i’d go to hell, as long as i’m with you, taka. to me, that would be heaven.” SOOO TEA im crying lesbian tears rn.
hario is unreal… he’s too good to be true. i don’t want to see him hurt t___t i really have no idea how this will end. i think taka is just nitpicking and finding faults on hario but (i can’t believe im saying this) but he is a great guy. i think it was just a normal thing to do. he defended ema and didn’t want her to seem unprofessional during their event, too.
on the other hand, EMA IS SOOO CUTE!!!! she’s breathtaking (gets kita, taka)!!! her in that cafe uniform >__< im so so proud of her! my poor bebi ema deserves the world and her evil mother deserves her own special place in hell. also, i wish that ema was the one who defended herself against her mother. the last two volumes were about her being more comfortable in her own skin and being independent, and that was a missed chance for another character breakthrough.
ema repeating “my god” and transitioning to “my goddess, taka” I CANT TAKE THIS ANYMORE.
also, that volume ending hurts. im so scared now.
one bed trope!!!! emataka are serving!!! who else is hungry? also, em’s line: “i wouldn’t mind. i’d go to hell, as long as i’m with you, taka. to me, that would be heaven.” SOOO TEA im crying lesbian tears rn.
hario is unreal… he’s too good to be true. i don’t want to see him hurt t___t i really have no idea how this will end. i think taka is just nitpicking and finding faults on hario but (i can’t believe im saying this) but he is a great guy. i think it was just a normal thing to do. he defended ema and didn’t want her to seem unprofessional during their event, too.
on the other hand, EMA IS SOOO CUTE!!!! she’s breathtaking (gets kita, taka)!!! her in that cafe uniform >__< im so so proud of her! my poor bebi ema deserves the world and her evil mother deserves her own special place in hell. also, i wish that ema was the one who defended herself against her mother. the last two volumes were about her being more comfortable in her own skin and being independent, and that was a missed chance for another character breakthrough.
ema repeating “my god” and transitioning to “my goddess, taka” I CANT TAKE THIS ANYMORE.
also, that volume ending hurts. im so scared now.
January 9, 2026
"It's fine if it's one sided. I just want her to know I'm here. To know I care about her, no matter what. To know someone's out there, thinking about her."
January 7, 2026
Oh, this series gives me a toothache. I never thought I'd be wishing two people said "to hell with it" and just did what they wanted (although it would be morally wrong).
In this volume, we get more scenes of Em's mom and she's horrible and beyond demeaning to a daughter who didn't ask to be born. I was appalled at her comments but the art style did very well in showcasing Em closing in on herself after just a few words of exchange. She went from 100 to 0 in seconds.
These two friends are seriously treading a thin line. The angst is beautiful but it also hurts because nothing sounds like the best decision for everyone involved. I need the husbands perspective of their relationship with each other and his own relationship with his wife. He always seems to come and pick up pieces before rushing off to somewhere else. What's their dynamic?
In terms of moving the plot forward, I think this volume kind of went two steps forward and one step back. We're getting to the climax but boy are they going to jerk some tears out of us along the way.
Thanks so much to Viz and Edelweiss for the DRC. I love getting to gush about titles before they're released (and so I can calm my nerves by the time everyone else posts their comments).
In this volume, we get more scenes of Em's mom and she's horrible and beyond demeaning to a daughter who didn't ask to be born. I was appalled at her comments but the art style did very well in showcasing Em closing in on herself after just a few words of exchange. She went from 100 to 0 in seconds.
These two friends are seriously treading a thin line. The angst is beautiful but it also hurts because nothing sounds like the best decision for everyone involved. I need the husbands perspective of their relationship with each other and his own relationship with his wife. He always seems to come and pick up pieces before rushing off to somewhere else. What's their dynamic?
In terms of moving the plot forward, I think this volume kind of went two steps forward and one step back. We're getting to the climax but boy are they going to jerk some tears out of us along the way.
Thanks so much to Viz and Edelweiss for the DRC. I love getting to gush about titles before they're released (and so I can calm my nerves by the time everyone else posts their comments).
January 29, 2026
Relationship manga about adults are so refreshing. The emotions are more nuanced, even as they can be soft and innocent, as here. Taka and Em are so kind to one another and so cautious themselves, not because they just are those kinds of people, but because they've lived long enough and with pain long enough to feel the weight of being human. You don't get that with teen drama. Upzymi is particularly good at expressing those emotions and that weight in dialogue and picture.
January 7, 2026
After the last volume which I found to be horribly boring I really enjoyed this one. The introduction of Em’s awful mother I feel made so much sense and you can see the damage she has done to Em. It actually made me quite sad. And I have to say as always the artwork is absolutely gorgeous. I can’t wait to see what is to come in the next volume.
August 3, 2025
A bit of progress in a way, and a deepening of the character's background in this volume. I am still not finding the slow pace frustrating, but rather well done and appropriate.
January 8, 2026
將暗戀壓抑的心情描寫得很仔細，但不會讓人覺得太一廂情願
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January 16, 2026I think I'm going to drop this series, or at least stop collecting it. This volume just kind of killed it for me, and I've lost all interest in the story.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews