Io Sakisaka (咲坂伊緒) is a Japanese manga artist. She also designed the characters for the anime movie HAL. Her works are:
-Call My Name (2001) -Watashi no Koibito (2002) -Bye-Bye, Little (2002) -Blue (2006) -Mascara Blues (2007) -Strobe Edge (2007) -Ao Haru Ride (2011) -Sono Omokage o Shitteru (2013) (oneshot) -Omoi, Omoware, Furi, Furare (2015) -Otome no Itari (2020) (oneshot) -Sakura, Saku (2021)
Al principio de estos cuatro capítulos, quede un poco decepcionada. El final del tomo anterior fue una BOMBA y este seguia dandole vueltas a los mismo. Pero debo sacar de este paquete al capítulo 16. En serio, cuando Rio sueña con Yuna me emocione, es que los ando shipeando desde las primeras páginas.
Turns out that kissing your stepsister might cause problems and have repercussions, who would have thought?
I will give Io Sakisaka this much - she can write good characters even if the story is what I would politely put as below her usual standards.
And part of that is certainly my own bias against that ridiculous sibling pseudo-incest trope (you can find a variant of this rant smeared across any review of mine for any book that features it), but Strobe Edge this is not.
Oh, you noticed that four star rating, huh?
So this is really, truly, a three star book, honest. Inui is keeping his distance from Akari, which translates (I believe intentionally) to him being sidelined for most of this volume, and the Akari/Rio situation is front and centre (the added layers to their first ‘family’ meeting are a smidgen overwrought and unnecessary, but very Sakisaka). So angst rules the day.
Still, things are slowly changing. Yuna is finding her voice and even if ‘changing to be somebody the boy I’m crushing on likes’ is possibly not the healthiest goal, she is very clearly the stabilizing presence that Rio needs in his life. Akari and Yuna are forging such a strong bond too - their friendship honestly elevates this series more than anything else.
Then the last chapter happens. And... it’s a thing. I am not going to do a re-read to find out, but it might be the best thing of Sakisaka’s that I’ve read to date. It is certainly cute and charming, but then it turns out to be so, so much more and it sends the story flying in a welcome new direction while being incredibly clever, narratively speaking. It legitimately shocked me and that is no mean feat for any book.
On a bit more of a downer note, this is one time where I thought the manga’s art was too subtle for its own good. Normally Sakisaka is firing on all cylinders, but at one point Yuna gets a bit of a makeover and the difference is clearly meant to be impactful but is far too similar to her usual style.
So... uneven, sure, but I can’t fault how good that last chapter was. It was above and beyond what I’ve come to expect and I would be remiss if my rating did not reflect how much I enjoyed such a pleasant surprise.
4 stars because final chapter and Yuna. The whole Rio and Akari thing finally has come to an end but most of this volume is definitely about the cliffhanger in volume 3 which I don't like very much, that whole plot around them. BUT Yuna is so nice and good in this volume - I did enjoy it, don't get me wrong! But yeah, it's mainly because of Yuna just being brave and cute and there for her friends.
And that final chapter? OH BABY THINGS ARE ABOUT TO GET HEATED. Rio doesn't know what's coming in volume 5 hehe. ˚ ༘♡ ⋆。˚ ❀
This is slowly becoming one of the best manga I've read (shoujo of course). The story is refreshing and packed with cute moments, drama and slow romance. The characters are great as well.
Che dire?... Io provo a cercare dei difetti nella storia, ma arrivata a fine volume, tutto quello che non mi piaceva all'inizio, finisce sempre per convincermi! ;)
This is my least favorite volume so far. I’m a bit over the Akari & Rio drama. It’s really dragging. Besides that, my precious Yuna is growing so much and I’m super proud.
Algo mejor, pero me sigue costando el "buenrollismo". Tampoco digo que esté mal, quizás en su momento me habría venido bien leer esta especie de manual de cómo enfrentarte a las cosas. Pero es que me parece tan poco creíble! Me flipa que unos chavales de instituto tengan esa capacidad de auto-análisis y rectificación... parecen sacados de un manual de psicología. Eso y los diálogos que parecen sacados de un meme, no me dejan disfrutar de la historia como debería.
Un bel volume che mi ha molto soddisfatto: Rio decide di farsi avanti con Akari ben sapendo le conseguenze del suo gesto, ma ci pensano la ragazza stessa e Yuna a farlo desistere e a far capire i sentimenti della ragazza e come lei abbia sofferto tanto quanto lui. Un bel volume perché mostra i complessi ma umanissimi sentimenti dei suoi protagonisti, in particolare quelli di Rio e Akari, ma mi piace come anche la timida Yuna si faccia avanti e prenda il coraggio di agire. Mi è piaciuto molto questo volume, mi ha dato una nuova spinta a voler continuare la lettura di questa serie perché forse le coppie che abbiamo desiderato fin dall'inizio iniziano ad avvicinarsi sempre di più...
Ok I'm really enjoying this so far, but I'll be honest in saying I'm not loving Rio's actions in the last few volumes... But that little twist at the end saves it for me and I'm enjoying the new turn this story is hopefully taking!
Finalmente la autora se empieza a soltar el cabello con este manga. Le da oportunidad a Akari de que exprese sus verdaderos sentimientos y, apoyada por Yuna, cumpla su objetivo sin la actitud que antes asumía. Rio, por otra parte, está tratando de superar lo que siente y ser distinto. Las historias comienzan a enlazarse y es divertido leerlo. Tardó en despegar un poco pero ya ha tomado ritmo.
"Why did I think I was the only one in a difficult situation?"
I am SO proud of Yuna!! Her lecturing Rio and how strong she is of a character is everything!! I love her so much!!
Definitely seeing everything Akari has done right from the beginning was extremely touching. My heart totally broke for her when she shared about why she didn't want things to be "ruined." I'm truly glad that Rio "manned up" so to speak because I would have been so upset with him otherwise!
4 stars...that last chapter is brilliant, one of the best done and placed I've read in a manga. Surpising, fresh, and making me want to both reread it (I did, twice), as well as yearn for the next volume.
Io Sakisaka non delude nemmeno in questa opera. Se all'inizio non mi convinceva più di tanto, soprattutto se messa a confronto con Ao haru ride, perché mi sembrava troppo infantile e immatura, capitolo dopo capitolo mi sto sempre più ricredendo. La mia preferita in tutta questa solfa è Yuna, carattere docile e molto remissiva, ma già in 4 volumetti ha già tirato fuori il suo coraggio e la sua intraprendenza, forse anche grazie alla vicinanza di Akari, e grazie al suo amore per Rio. E il finale? Beh, ne vedremo delle belle.
Kalau baca komik, entah kenapa waktunya cepat banget. Character development nya bagus, terutama si Yuna. Dan sepertinya si Rio mulai sadar . Lebih suka Inui dari awal cerita tapi kenapa dia munculnya sedikit banget disini :(
So cute. I'm way more invested in Rio and Yuna than Akari and Inui, but glad we're kind of moving past this step-sibling romance. I'm excited for Yuna's growth most of all. My favorite thing is when she stands up for Akari.
In realtà, una cosa che non mi è piaciuta è che Rio così dal nulla riesce a capire proprio perfettamente che Akari ha rotto il telefono di proposito. Cioè non credo che quella fosse l'unica cosa plausibile, quindi... IL SOGNO ERA IL SUOOOOOO.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Quien hubiera imaginado que Akari también tenía un secreto, entiendo el porque actuó así pero podríamos decir que por culpa de sus padres ellos tuvieron que sufrir.
Yuna regaña a Rio con lo que lo hace comprender que el está actuando precipitadamente. Inui está un poco apagado... Qué pasará con el?