My Magic Fridays 10

猫と私の金曜日 [Neko to Watashi no Kinyoubi] #10

by Arina Tanemura, Rosa Vollmer (Translator)

Zurück aus dem Malediven-Urlaub hat sich die Situation zwischen Ai und Nekota sichtlich entspannt. Doch zu Hause erwartet Ai die nächste große Überraschung: Mosko ist schwanger!! Um ihre Freundin finanziell zu unterstützen, beginnt Ai, in einer Bäckerei zu jobben. Doch die Arbeit nimmt sie ganz schön in Anspruch, und dann gesteht ihr Nekota auch noch, dass er und seine Familie für drei Jahre in die USA gehen werden …!

Genres: Manga, Romance

168 pages, Paperback

First published September 25, 2015

About the author

Arina Tanemura (種村有菜) was born on March 12, 1978. She's the author of Full Moon O Sagashite, Time Stranger Kyoko, Kamikaze Kaito Jeanne, The Gentlemen's Alliance Cross, Sakura Hime Kaden, and more.

Her favorite hobby is Karaoke. One song that she sings is Smile, originally by Myco. She has two cats, named Riku and Kai. She has one elder and one younger sister and one brother. She's the type who hates to lose in anything. She also likes Ribon.

Reviews

[Melanie Schneider · Rating 1 out of 5]

Dieser eine Handlungsstrang hätte nach dem ersten WTF-Moment so gut werden können. Aber nein, es wird wieder typisch Japanisch einfach lustig aufgelöst. Der Urlaub auf den Malediven war auch so ... unnötig und das Ende mit diesem Drama! Das einzig positive war der Job in der Bäckerei, wo endlich mal was interessantes passiert ist :'D

[Bibliothecat · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review for complete series



Ai is your regular high school girl who spends time with her best friend and pines for her crush. Now, every Friday, she is to give private lessons to her cute younger cousin. Little does she know that cousin Nekota isn't as cute as he likes to let on and is set on making her his girlfriend.

Neko to Watashi no Kinyoubi is a super cute romance - terms and conditions apply! I think age gaps in romantic relationships are fine depending on the situation. When talking about fiction, it can provide for a very sweet and comedic story. However, this manga is the first I've read that really left my comfort zone in that regard. Their age gap is four to five years which in itself isn't a big deal if it weren't for the fact that Nekota is only almost-twelve. In fact, unless the characters' ages are very close together, I am generally not comfortable with romances involving characters younger than thirteen-fourteen.

If Nekota were fourteen years old, he would still be three years younger than Ai and it wouldn't have any impact on the story. As it is, Nekota neither looks nor acts like an eleven-year-old which makes it very easy for me to simply imagine that he is fourteen as opposed to eleven. And if I am being honest, I do that with many manga I read as the majority of ten to fourteen-year-old characters never look or behave their age. So if you are able to think of Nekota as a few years older than mentioned in the book, this is indeed a cute and enjoyable romance.

Ai is definitely the weakest main character by this author. Not to say I don't like her - honestly, some people are like that and I think it allows Ai to stand out from this author's previous main characters. She can be pretty indecisive and cries very easily, but on the whole, I find her likeable enough. She's definitely a kind person who often sacrifices her own happiness for the sake of others.

Nekota is a great character - he's got his moments where he appears more mature but also often falls back into being the young boy he is. I think he has just the right balance of that. He'll try and get what he wants and he can be pretty immature and stubborn about it. But when things get serious, he can definitely pull himself together.

What I really liked about this story was how the relationship was handled. Although Ai becomes awfully clingy at times (which was a little annoying), the two of them are adorable together. The issue with the age difference is handled nicely - despite her clinginess, Ai stands out as the older of the two by having rational thoughts about the issues that come along with dating someone younger. The reaction of those around them is also represented in a very believable way and I loved how Ai and Nekota tried to observe how their surroundings reacted toward them and how they shared in happiness when they found recognition as a couple.

This manga also scores with having some of the most beautiful cover art - with the exception of volume one and two (which are pretty bland). Volume three to eleven shine with beautiful colours, great details and stunning backgrounds. It's also nice how Ai's best friend and former crush are included to the story - they're fun characters to have around. Ai and Nekota's families are also quite well rounded for side characters. The only character I took issues with was their older cousin Mike. I don't care what his reasons were, he was a big jerk.

Another downer of the story was that the ending felt a bit abrupt and lacking. It's a pretty open ending - but not one of the good kind. I feel like there should have been an epilogue to make it feel like there was some kind of clossure. The way it stands now, you can pretty much guess the ending, but it would have been nice to see it.

If you're good enough with mentally upping Nekota's age, this can be a really nice read that should not be missed if you enjoy reading Tanemura's works.

[Marianna Rainolter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sono triste: questa serie bellissima e piena di emozioni sta per finire, il prossimo è l'ultimo volume. Già qui si intravede che ci stiamo avvicinando al finale, perché infatti la prima parte è serena e carina con la conclusione della vacanza alle Maldive; una parte centrale a metà tra il tragico e il comico con l'amica di Ai, Mosuko, che le rivela d essere incinta; e infine la rivelazione di Nekota che dovrà partire per gli Stati Uniti con la sua famiglia. Sono sicura che ci sarà il lieto fine (come in tutte le altre storie di Arina Tanemura) ma sono sicura che soffriremo ancora prima di questo. Aspettiamo luglio e il finale

[Soobie has fog in her brain · Rating 1 out of 5]

Perché a sedici anni le ragazze ancora credono che si possa restare incinte con un bacio... La storia ormai fa acqua da tutte le parti...

L'unica cosa buona che la "gravidanza" di Mosuko ha portato è la panetteria. Ai, infatti, per aiutare l'amica, decide di cominciare a lavorare in una panetteria e il lavoro le piace da matti. Anche se anche in questo caso lei non agisce per sua volontà, ma solo per aiutare gli altri. Lei non pensa: lei aiuta gli altri e ha pietà di tutti.

Scena finale: Nekota dice ad Ai che deve partire per gli Stati Uniti con i genitori e lei, dal dolore, perde la voce...

Cosa devo dire io?

[Buchstabenschloss · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nekota soll mit seiner Familie nach Amerika ziehen. Der Schock sitzt tief. Und als wenn das nicht reicht, denkt Mosko, dass sie schwanger ist. Ai möchte ihr helfen und tritt einen Aushilfsjob in einer Bäckerei an.

Das Cover erinnert mich ein kleines bisschen an Kamikaze Kaito Jeanne. Es gefällt mir richtig gut, denn es zeigt, dass die Beiden um ihre Liebe kämpfen wollen. Der Zeichenstil ist top. Es ist gefühlvoll gezeichnet und auch witzig.

Ich habe ja schon fast mit Allem gerechnet, aber nicht damit. Vor allem weil es im Grunde die gleiche Geschichte ist wie mit Mike. Ich bin schon sehr gespannt, ob Nekota wirklich fliegt oder ob seine Familie oder vielleicht nur er bleibt.

[Linda123 · Rating 3 out of 5]

3,5⭐️