By Gwyn

After the dramatic ending to Volume 2, Volume 3 starts right where it left off. It’s a more emotional volume than the previous two, and as the series progresses, the emotions are all across the board. Which is great, because you need that to keep the series in any manga from getting boring. Emotions are what brings the character and their personalities alive. And Mika Yamamori does this perfectly in not just Tsubaki-Chou Lonely Planet, but also Daytime Shooting Star.

The story quickly goes to a restaurant after Akatsuki’s book signing. It’s clear Fumi had had enough before hand, but Katsura makes it even worse for her. Katsura even shows off that she knows so much about Akatsuki. Leaving poor Fumi feeling even more worse.

This time it is very noticeable because even Akatsuki and Gorou notice something is wrong with Fumi. Fumi had already began to build feelings for Akatsuki. She denies that something is wrong- meanwhile the boss of Akatsuki and Gorou had created a “Command” game. Akatsuki is called out , and he refuses to play. The cards say that Akatsuki has to kiss the cheek of the person on the left, which is Fumi. This causes Katsura to panic, and Akatsuki refuses at first. They try to get Gorou to do it- he’s extremely apologetic, and then Akatsuki tells him to move it, and he kisses Fumi on the forehead. Later, Akatsuki reveals it didn’t mean anything, even with somebody else. This upsets Fumi more, and she ends up going home alone.

It’s revealed that Fumi is a sweet, but very lonely girl. We find this out when Katsura had called Akatsuki to meet her out somewhere. Fumi explains how when her father was away, she would play a game by herself, and that was to make a “secret base”. I really like how the character explains her past to the readers. The way it’s told is really well written, and of course, drawn.

There is a lot going on in the volume, so I won’t be able to describe everything in detail, and some things have been left out. But it is a good thing when a manga has a lot going on. But what is the best to see though: When Akatsuki finds Fumi in the closet, in her “secret base”, and she pours her heart out to him, telling him about the death of her mom, and how she always felt lonely.

Akatsuki, being the awkward guy that he is, doesn’t know how to handle the situation, tells her to put a damp washcloth over her eyes and go to bed. While she does so, Akatsuki spends a lot of time going over what she told him. The next morning, he asks her what can he do, and that he doesn’t know how to handle things like that. I love how the “just the housekeeper” mindset is almost completely gone at this point, and a friendship has definitely developed between Fumi and Akatsuki.

Fumi asks for confidence, but not until after she told him that she’s ok, and not to worry about it. Suddenly Akatsuki gives her a hug and tells her that he was giving her confidence. But after the hug, Fumi runs off to school, and Akatsuki questions himself if he had ever initiated a hug with anyone before- leaving him confused about what kind of feelings he might be having. We’ll learn more about Akatsuki and his past in Volume 5- but for now, I’ll be reviewing Volume 4!