Nana 18

Ai Yazawa – Viz – 2009 – 21+ volumes

I felt bad, because I wasn’t really in the mood for Nana and read it anyway.  Nana is certainly one of the best series I’m reading right now, but reading it when I’m not feeling it is a total waste.  It might also be telling that I reached for We Were There before Nana, but We Were There is new and shiny, and I’ve had a few years to grow into Nana, now.  After starting the volume, it only took a few pages to get me completely sucked back in the story, and only the best series can do that after 18 volumes.

There were a few twists here.  The present-day story continues, and the gang seems in favor of going after Nana.  The relationship dynamics are interesting, because… well, it seems like everyone is present and accounted for, even people who we have yet to see.  I’m a bit sad that it seems like Takumi and Hachi are separated and that Nobu is still some sort of rebound guy, because in the end, Takumi isn’t so bad and Nobu deserves better.  I’m still half expecting the other shoe to drop, but Takumi’s only flaw is probably that he’s slightly less considerate than he should be, and even then, jealousy reflected through Hachi’s side of the story probably distorts that a bit.

But then again, I suddenly remembered that Takumi sleeps with the star of that soap opera, the one that Nana and Hachi like.  So, yeah, there’s that.  I don’t know.  I like that the soap opera was referenced in this volume without alluding to the affair.  I also like that the affair is a really minor plot point that’s likely never to come up again, when everything else that Takumi does is examined in such microscopic detail.

I’m still trying to figure out the general thrust of things in the present.  Mosly it seems that Nana went off to be by herself and nobody knows where.  In the past, the “main” storyline, well… there are lots of things going on.  Nana and company are about to perform in a huge arena and are super-psyched.  Life is good for everyone.  Takumi and Hachi are doing well together.  Ren and Nana are getting along.  This is the happiest the series has been in a long time.

But Shin.  Poor Shin.  Life really hits him hard here.  For no real reason.  If he hadn’t been so lonely, nothing bad would have happened.  And that pretty much derails everything for everyone.

On the bright side, there’s a bonus story in the back, this time about Takumi’s childhood.  He was an adorable kid, and I’m happy that this story came when it did, because it helps shed some light on the relationship he has with Reira (which really is one-sided, though he does love her dearly like a brother).  He also doesn’t think nearly as much of himself as I thought he did, which also makes him a lot more likeable.  Takumi’s not a bad guy, and I hope that the story never proves that he is.

I loved how the volume began and ended with the same Trapnest song, too.

This was a review copy provided by Viz.