Yagate Kimi ni Naru

Bloom Into You is, without a doubt, one of the best coming of age love stories that I’ve ever read. Yuu is a young girl that dreams of experiencing the dazzling love that she sees through books and film. Despite this, she doesn’t find herself feeling at all excited when faced with romantic prospects. There is also some wonderful aromantic and demiromantic representation that I didn’t expect to find in this manga, and the subtle differences between each are written well.

The story is paced well, while many romances fall back on overblown drama to keep the narrative going with many ups and downs, Bloom Into You was consistent from start to finish, like a gentle heartbeat humming with life. The title of the manga is apt, as the characters bloom into love but also into themselves as they discover who they are.

I found myself relating a lot to Yuu, who wants to experience the excitement of love but doesn’t know what it is. It can be easy to fall into the comforts of verbal and physical acts of love to mask a lack of love for oneself, as in the case of Touko; or the admiration of another that you place the other person on a pedestal, like Sayaka. Each of the characters were multilayered and written with such care and understanding of the nuances of romantic attraction.

This manga talks a lot about love, how we fall in love, and what it means to be in love. The fluttery feeling that happens when we find the right person is something that many strive for, but love is more complex than that. People fall in love in different ways, and for different reasons, love is defined by the lover and each person’s experience can be wildly different. Bloom Into You stands out from other romance stories for the way that it presents the concept of love, and the sometimes steady journey toward realizing what it really means. It’s heartfelt and written with so much warmth that it made me feel happy from start to finish.

Yagate Kimi ni Naru or Bloom Into You is a Shoujo-Ai manga which in my opinion really has the potential to get more people interested in the quite sparse fanbase of Shoujo-Ai. It's also quite a short read, so the time investment is not that high. In the following paragraphs I will explain why I think of this manga so highly.

Story 9/10: I think that the story is the weakest part of this manga although that is of course compared to the other great aspects of this manga. Our protagonist is Yuu Koito, who is a freshmen in highschool. She likes to read Shoujo novels and wants to experience a bright and sparkly love like it is written in the novels too. Unfortunately she has never fallen love and also thinks that she just can't fall in love with anyone. Because of various circumstances she joins the student council in highschool, in which she meets her second-year senpai, Touko Nanami. Yuu learns that Touko can't fall in love with anyone either and contradictory Touko falls in love with you at the exact same moment. That's the beginning of the story summed up. Will Yuu fall in love with Touko aswell? What kind of relationship will they have? What problems are on their way there? These and more questions are all the story is about. And while this is indeed a good narrative for a Shoujo-Ai manga, it is only the "engine" to get the "stars" of the show running, the characters:

Character 10/10: The TSY of Yagakimi is what makes it great: Touko, Side Characters and Yuu. Touko Nanami is one of our main leads and is introduced as the shallow person, who is perfect, can do everything yare yare yare. But as the manga goes on, we get to see much more sides of her. I will cover the rest of her character in the spoiler section below. The side characters amaze me the most. We have a strong cast of important side characters and most of them evolve as the story progresses. Of course there are exceptions to this statement (yes, I am looking at you Doujima and Maki). Each and every one of them is believable as they take their parts in the story. Yuu is our main lead and most of the story is written in her personal perspective. The whole concept of love, living and the meaning of her life changes throughout the manga as she leaves her past behind and starts to change.

SPOILER SECTION:
Touko's character development is impressive and amazes me. Touko thinks that she's empty, a hollow shell and hence copies her sister, who everyone looked up to and depended on. So she became the pinnacle of girls, Nanami-senpai. Throughout the manga however, she starts to learn more about her sister from various people and learns, that her sister wasn't like she thought at all and that Touko is very different from her. In the climax of the novel, the student council play, which is covering a similar situation, she realizes, after being told by Yuu and Sayaka, her best friend, that trying to be like their sister is wrong, that she is not empty at all. This change isn't as sudden as I make it out to be, don't worry. It's her character development in a nutshell. Yuu on the other hand has two phases. In her first phase, she is loved by Touko and doesn't think that she loves her back and still thrives for that sparkly feeling that Touko feels. One third in in the manga, Yuu is granted her wish and she falls in love with Touko in one memorable scene.
After that, she searches for a opportunity to tell Touko her feelings, but Touko, realizing that, blocks her off by saying: "Don't fall in love with me. How could I love someone, who loves something that I hate?".
The characters, their interactions and their relationships with each other take up most of the plot of the manga. And because these characters are so well crafted, it is profoundly beautiful to read this manga.

SPOILER END
I could go on and spoiler some more, but I want to leave something to read for you guys, so I'll end this section here:

Art 10/10: The art of this manga is simply amazing. I don't know that much about drawing techniques, as I'm a terrible artist myself, but in my opinion, the art of this manga is top-notch. Every character is very detailed, and by using different perspectives, the story really feels alive, somehow. It's very clean looking which gives a realistic feel and suits the story perfectly. I can't say much more about the art, other than that I love it.

Enjoyment 10/10: I won't rate this seriously, because as you can guess, I love this manga. I started to read it because I wanted to see how the anime plays out and I wasn't disappointed to say the least. But in the end, you need to at least have no problems with Shoujo-Ai and Shoujo in general. This manga is a Shoujo manga after all.

So yeah, as you can guess this review is all my opinion, and I hope that reading this at least made you a little interested in reading this manga. See ya later!

Warning: No real Spoilers ahead but you could conclude a few things character/story-wise out of the things I wrote if you read the manga to a certain point
(Sorry for bad English, prob. a few mistakes ahead)


Story 9/10


In the story of YagaKimi, there is no real Villain/ Antagonist apart from their feelings. It makes the story very wholesome without losing the Drama feeling
(perfect Shojo Ai/Yuri recipe imo c: ). This leads to an end where everyone, yes also Sayaka, is happy (Was very happy for her when I read "it" in ch. 45). Im a bit worried about Maki-kun tho but im sure he has no problem with how his Situation is rn (assuming he still thinks about it the same as he thought about it before the Timeskip). The ending is very fitting and all but the one thing that keeps me from giving it a 10/10 is the fact that its too short :c. With the end of ch. 45 theres just too much Slice of Life potential left.


Art 9/10

Not a masterpiece but still a solid 9. Many details, clean drawings, not too much black or white.

Note to the online readers(Am one myself from volume 4 on cuz there are only 4 volumes available in Germany atm): physical manga has WAY cleaner drawings than the scanlations.


Characters 10/10

Overall great and likable personalities. Everyone in this manga is just wholesome af. The side characters could have gotten a bit more character development but considering that the manga "only" has 45 chapters, it was the right decision to focus on the protagonist's ofc.


Enjoyment 10/10

As said in the Story section, the lack of the villain/antagonist makes it very easy and fun to read without losing the Drama. Everyone is just nice. And it's just incredibly satisfying watching everything unfold and despite the hurdles, seeing everything coming to a good and wholesome end (as Maki-kun would probably say).


Overall:
Well, what should I say, YagaKimi is imo just the perfect Shojo Ai/Yuri Manga (Yes I know it isn't considered as "Yuri" by the Author but I think you can't deny that anymore after reading chapters 44 and 45). I cried after I read chapter 45. And not because the ending was sad, it wasn't, but because everything was just so perfect and the story could have gone so much further, even after the time skip. Yes, as said, everything is perfect now, but I want to see the everyday life of a Touko and a Yuu, not just a beautiful ending :C. Well it's the authors choice and I will respect that.

Reading Yagate Kimi ni Naru was a surprising experience for me.

I am not the biggest yuri manga fan and only started it because of the recommendation from a fellow friend. But did I was pleasantly surprised when I read the first 3 chapters of the manga. Just after finishing the last chapter I would say it is the best yuri manga for beginning yuri fans but also a great example to show to people that feel disgusted for the genre.

The story is following the tales of Yuu, a high school student that lives a decent life but looks for the meaning of love through music, manga, etc.
Then she meets with Touko-senpai, a
A member of the student council who later becomes the student council president.
She later admits her feelings for Yuu and thus the story begins.
While the story might seem simple and basic for the standards of the genre, hence why it is compared to Citrus I do not think you can compare too. Yagate Kimi ni Naru does not deal with sexual violence nor the abuse in a relationship.
It focuses more on the interactions between the characters, the bonds they make and how they impact each other. The characters have their own identity, problems that they face. I could easily relate to Yuu from my similar experiences.
The dialogue is well thought out, feels like normal human conversations.
You can find some humor from time to time, although the drama is the basis of the series. The way it handles these topics makes me uncomfortable (in a good way)
It feels more realistic than most yuri manga or even shoujo manga I read.
The quality of the manga throughout improves and never degrades. The last few chapters are some of my favorite ending ones in all of the romance manga (especially chapter 44 with its long build-up to the climax and then slows down)

It is important to mention the art - it is amazing. I love the way the mangaka makes the characters detailed and the environments look simple but seem lively.
Expressions of the characters are top-notch.
It might not the best ever made but it is pretty and most readers will remember it.

Yagate Kimi ni Naru is a great manga series that every Yuri fan MUST read and I would recommend it to most manga fans, even those that hate the yuri genre.
Everything is well thought out, could not find any bigger flaws to it.
I enjoyed every chapter of it and I cannot wait for the LN and full manga release in my country.
I give it a 9/10.

This is my absolute favorite of the genre. I believe it's been critically acclaimed and a great breakthrough for its still fairly young mangaka, along with a successful one-season anime adaptation.

The title, "Bloom Into You" in English, is already revealing of the story's ambition. It isn't just a teenage love story but also a coming-of-age tale that also richly explores several psychological issues: integrity in relationships, family relations, grief, artistic creation and endeavors, the ups and downs of friendship.

The story follows the complicated evolution of the relationship between two high school girls, Koito Yuu and Nanami Touko, who at first thought themselves aromantic. Here is an honest, non-judgmental analysis of feelings, attraction, growing up and sexuality. The protagonists are surrounded by a fine cast of friends, family and a few other adults including a few boys which don't usually feature that much in Yuri. All are portrayed sympathetically and there is also a fair deal of comedy in what is otherwise a serious treatment.

This series is truly one of a kind.

One of the most brilliant things in this manga is definitely that every character has got something special about themselves. Even for those apart from Yuu and Touko, they're clearly not bystander but an important part that forms the whole story. The author did not just use them once and ignore or forget them in the rest of the narrative. You can literally see the change and development in each of them. It simply makes everyone so adorable.

Arguably the best romantic story I've ever seen. Arguably the best romantic story I've ever seen. Arguably the best romantic story I've ever seen. Arguably the best romantic story I've ever seen. Arguably the best romantic story I've ever seen. Arguably the best romantic story I've ever seen.......

Having finished publishing recently, I decided to binge Bloom into You manga, and I was pleasantly surprised. It's an excellent manga, but lacks quite a few things.

I've watched the anime before reading anime (and TROYCA indeed did it justice), but the anime barely compares to the manga in terms of content.

The story isn't very complicated, it's quite obvious from the get-go who are the two main girls, and the story was mostly straightforward.

While it didn't have too much drama it, I disliked how the manga handled Saaya, but at the same time I have to applaud the mangaka for making most (if not all) the characters in it very likable, relatable, or just fun to see. Some had more development than the others, and the others just had things coming their way.

The manga talks about the topic of "change". How does a person change? And how do their relationships with other people change if the people themselves change and evolve? I think it was wonderful topic to discuss.

Though, The manga suffered from three major points:

1. The length. While it indeed ended on a good note and had a wonderful ending, many edges were left open.

2. The "events" the manga centered around. There's only one remarkable "event" which changed everything and did everything, the school play. I feel like every other scene (except the ending) was forgettable, and I feel it would've been a lot better to have at least one more major event in the story.

3. The pacing is absolutely awkward. Which is a result of the two above, some things just changed suddenly, without proper buildup or explanation.

All in all, I think Bloom into You is a fantastic and sweet Yuri manga. 8/10

Bloom Into You is not like other works in the world of shoujo-ai. It is the closest to perfection when you compare it with other works in the same genre. Shoujo-ai/yuri tends to be under a shadow, known for mediocre works that are filled with lots of unnecessary fanservice, melodrama, and a lot of other negative traits. These kinds of stories can be enjoyed, but usually, they depict same-sex relationships in a very unhealthy way that turns a lot of people away.

This manga is by far, the one that comes closest to depicting a relationship between two girls in such a real way. It is not built upon sudden sexual advances or sexual harassment. It is built upon the tricky way both of Yagakimi's main characters' minds work and how they connect the dots and figure out what love is to them. The question of what love exactly is and what it means to fall in love is something that Yuu tries to figure out throughout the manga. Love has always seemed like something distant for both Touko and Yuu, both with their own reasons as to why that is, and even as the story unfolds and both are growing a stronger bond, that insecurity of what love exactly remains. Both have different views on love and how it should feel. The concept of love is quickly shown to be the complete opposite of a fairytale filled with absolute happiness and mutual feelings, and that's what I think makes Bloom Into You such an interesting read. It lightly makes fun of those cliche tropes found in so many other romance series outside of shoujo-ai from the very start. It is clear that the message is that love is far more messy and complicated than what a person sees in a typical romance manga.

Yagakimi does an excellent job at developing such an interesting cast of characters. I'd say that this story is not mainly about the romance present in the story, but it's about the character development and seeing not just the main characters, but seeing the side characters grow as well. The story makes use of the side characters instead of casting them off to the side or to fill a gap. They contribute to the story and help the main characters progress forward into their distant future. Every character isn't perfect, they all have their insecurities and issues, and that's what makes them so great in the first place. I love how they handle situations with such maturity and how they act in different scenarios. Some of the settings that they are put in, looking back, was such a brilliant way to develop the characters in a way that feels so natural and in place. Nothing, if not barely anything, feels out of place.

The art was one of the main things that drew me into this series in the first place. I really loved the manga's aesthetic. Though there were sometimes when the art would seem off, though this is a pretty rare sight to see. The drawing improvement is noticeable if you compare the first chapter with the last one. It's nice to see development in not just the story, but in Nakatani's art style. If there is something that the art has always done an excellent job at doing, it is at conveying the emotions of each character. None of the expressions were stiff, though there were sometimes that body poses would look a bit off.

When it comes to enjoyment, Bloom Into You definitely provided a whole lot of it. Usually, I take my time reading a new manga, especially when it has quite a few chapters out. This manga got me hooked right on the first chapter. There were points in the story that wasn't all that entertaining, though it did serve a purpose in developing the story even further. No chapter was pointless to the storyline. Everything fit in nicely. It was interesting seeing the behind the scenes battle of the characters versus their own minds. This story was refreshing in so many ways. It was new and exciting to see a manga tackle on same-sex relationships with this kind of special treatment.

This manga is definitely not a masterpiece. It does have flaws just like any other manga. But the positive certainly outweighs the negative by a lot. This is the best shoujo-ai manga I've ever come across so far, and the impact that it has left on me will remain for a really long time. All stories come to an end, but they will surely never be forgotten.

Fair warning, I am not experienced with reading a lot of yuri type manga, so please take my review with a grain of salt.

Simply put, I genuinely loved this series, it portrayed an excellent and well-written story of two people discovering themselves and learning about 'love' in an organic and relatively natural way.

Nakatani Nio manages to find the beauty in a simple story. Through Yagate Kimi no Naru, with generally no extremely drastic and overtly complicated storylines, Nakatani is still able to present a story that perpetuates itself and keeps itself interesting. Even though it is merely a slice of life essentially depicting the average life of Yuu and Touko.

Yagate Kimi no Naru has an incredibly well-written story, which feels natural and organic, and despite a teeny little bit of fan service, it generally does not seem all too forced. The story presented in Yagate Kimi no Naru is a story with many underlying themes, ranging from loss, grief, and gender roles in society, not to mention the obvious being of love. All in all, Nakatani is able to use this wide palette of themes to create an emotionally captivating and truly beautiful masterpiece of a work.

The artwork is also great, although admittedly not the absolute pinnacle of manga artworks. The specific angles and pacing were done in a really captivating way, really being to wring out and exploit all the emotion from a particular scene. The artwork presented in Yagate Kimi no Naru also has a sense of symbolism in it, certain scenes with invoke a great deal of emotion or which present an incredible idea and theme can oftentimes be accompanied by artwork which aids in that depiction.

The character is also really well written, the two main protagonists, Koito Yuu and Nanami Touko have a great deal of depth to them, and throughout the series are truly developed, which is something Nakatani explicitly puts in the manga itself. The main theme of this manga is very obviously 'love', however, Nakatani is able to give the main protagonists more humanising traits, instead of making them embody this singular theme.

Nakatani is truly able to flesh out and give each of the characters in the manga a personality; a reason for them to be unique to themselves and to others, and Nakatani does not skimp on the side characters either, all the characters in this manga have defining characteristics only to themselves, which demonstrates a great deal of understanding and thought went through the development of this series.

In conclusion, despite this manga being a yuri and a shoujo-ai, it is and should not be defined as simply that. It is a beautiful and captivating story with well thought-out characters and an organic development of love, and the main protagonists just happened to be female.

Almost exactly 1 year ago, I watched the anime. Here I am, reviewing the manga, after reading it over the span of a week. I'm not some guy who only reads yuri btw, I only read this because it is ranked 48th best manga according to MAL, so I'm reading it to see just how good it is.

Story: For this story, I gave it an 8. It's very good. Since it's a love story, I look at the emotional maturity of the characters very carefully. The emotions are on point for a span of students in high school. One of my only criticisms is the scene the stepping stone scene at the canal. I feel like the scene wasn't executed easily, and missed the mark on how emotional the subject matter was. I feel like there would have been more of an explosion of emotion or frustration but instead we get some strange "resolution" to their problems. Also, there's a point in the first half where as an adult, I'm watching what is going on and I'm sort of laughing to myself and saying "what the hell kind of sexual assault/abusive shit am i reading" lol, but if you say the same thing, then please just keep reading. Trust me. The author writes very well, trust them.

Art: Some of the most concise, clean and consistent art I've ever seen. It's beautiful drawn, and has such detail throughout the entire series I give it a 10. I usually don't give out high scores, but this series deserves it.

Character: The characters are written very well, despite what you may read in the first half of the series. There's a character that is quite secretive with their emotion (won't say cause I don't want to spoil it) and you sort of don't like it because you think they're just dumb and not brave... But teen love can absolutely make someone fear an emotional attempt with someone they love, to the point they will idle with that person until it's too late. And the back story for this character is really well written. It gets the reader really feeling for the character. All the characters are written so well, right up until the final chapter.

In the end, I'm happy I finished this series. Since I've seen the anime already, I was going to quit before the play, but after reading the play it was just so good that I continued, and the characters age and mature so well throughout this book, I have to give it a big 9 overall. Everything was written with very specific intent for the reader to feel something, whether its frustration or sympathy... But that's very skilled, and I love it. One of the best well thought out series I've ever read. Recommend for sure.

I'm not a yuri adept.
Indeed, it's the first time I've read a yuri.
I had watched one yuri named Sakura Trick, which I found cute but limited. After that first experience with yuri, I was hoping to find one which would be something more than just cute. And I've found it with Yagate Kimi ni Naru.


STORY : 8


The basis of the story is quite basic and might not be the main asset of Yagate Kimi ni Naru.
The main character, Yuu Koito, seems unable to fall in love. She meets a senpai, Nanami Touko, who is very popular but rejects systematically everyone who confesses to her. In spite of this, Nanami gets a crush on Yuu...

Unrealistic as it may appear at first, the relationship between Nanami and Yuu slowly evolves into a complex but also a more and more realistic relationship.

The story really outstands when it comes to existential questionings like what does it mean to love ; or to identity questions like what difference (or even gap) there can be between how we appear to others and what we are deep in us.
The answers to these questions are often doubtful here, but some of them are interesting. What's more, it shows the points of view of the characters, which really makes it realistic.


ART : 8


At first sight, the art can seem quite average. There's nothing really original about it.
Nevertheless, the kiss scenes are really outstanding with sometimes improbable angles.

Moreover, the cutting is excellent. By small gestures, the author manages to vehicle strong emotions. It made me read it in a state where I was in a mood for love.


CHARACTER : 8


As I said before, the premises of the story are quite basic, which makes the characters appear to be artificial at first.
However, as the story evolves, the characters are doubting their previous convictions and progressively change their way of thinking and of seeing things.

Nanami Touko is not the main character but is the center of the story. She's beginning to doubt her actions and even ends up not knowing who she is at some point of the story.


ENJOYMENT : 9


This manga is really entertaining for its cuteness and its sweetness. But that's not all. You'll also want to know what will become of Nanami Touko who is losing herself and what will become of her relationship with her kouhai Yuu Koito.


OVERALL : 9


What stands out in Yagate Kimi ni Naru is the way love appears really sweet, which contrasts with the existential questions that are pregnant here.


As a conclusion, that you are familiar with yuri or not really doesn't matter here. This manga can be read by anyone and can be enjoyable for various reasons regarding your sensibilities.

So one of the best, if not the best shoujo ai series ended.I started reading it after the anime finished, I craved more content. I already loved it but as the story progressed I loved it even more.

Spoilers ahead

Story

It starts pretty normal, just a high school romance, but one of the characters already confessed their love. It's a one sided "relationship" but that changes as time goes on.The story tackles questions like What does it mean to be in love?, How do I know I'm in love and answers them beautifully.The first part is more about Yuu, which struggles to understand love, and the later part focuses more on Touko and her personal problems.There's also Sayaka, she loves Touko,but she's insecure about confessing, and this forms a love triangle.
The ending was very fulfilling, exciting, cute and beautiful, even if we won't be able to see their next adventures, we know it still continues because "Life never stops".

Characters

Every character is fascinating in their own way,they have different goals, dreams, problems, each one of them could be a main character. Some of them struggle with love just as the two girls.
I love Yuu's tomboyish personality and her down to earth attitude.She feels alienated from discussions like love and boyfriends, so she struggles to understand the meaning of it, seeing her slowly unveil the mystery behind love and coming to understand it, is beautiful.
I grew to like Touko, the more I learned about her.She is the seemingly perfect girl,good grades, popular, without any personal problems. But this, perfect girl , can't love people that have feelings for her. Yuu was someone who viewed her as a normal flawed person, she didn't consider her as someone special.
I got attached to their chemistry very easily. Their interactions are downright cute, seeing them get in fights is heartbreaking and when they finally are true to their feelings I can't help but be happy.

Art

Is very good but not amazing, sometimes the backgrounds are stunning but most of the time their are plain, but because of this simplicity the coloured pages are just beautiful. The character designs are simple yet cute, and they go perfectly with the facial expressions which I love. The expressions work a treat with their personalities and they are very charming.

Overall is a 10. I'm a big fan of shoujo ai/yuri so I might be biased, but i feel anyone could enjoy it as long as they are fans of romance. Seeing their adventures was lovely, and I'm so glad I read YagaKimi.

Hi, this was my first Yuri series and I'm glad I read it.

This manga was so sweet, it takes place in high school and our main characters are exploring their sexualities. The book covers individuals who are lesbian, asexual, or demisexual-- by the way, happy ACE week! :o)

In the beginning of the manga, I was taken back with the fast progression with some actions but I eventually got accustomed to it. I loved the characters a whole lot, which is why I wished the author played around with fleshing them out more ;( Since Yagate Kimi ni Naru is a short manga (40/50 chapters?), the drama that happens ends fairly quickly. The characters-- including love rival(s)-- were all interesting and very likable.

My favorite characters were Saeki Sayaka and Seiji Maki. There is a light novel that follows Sayaka's plot and I am excited to get my hands on the story... if I can find it owo!! I will probably end up buying it online xd.

I don't want to gush too much, but I do generally believe this series is a must-read, and will full-heartedly recommend it to anyone. Interestingly enough, as much as I absolutely adore this series right now, it did not leave a great impression after my first read, but every re-read afterwards I enjoy it even more and more. Oh yeah and be careful of translation errors if you read it online.

Story: Very solid structure and plot. The story can be broken down into a very simple paragraph, but the execution and writing is way more than enough to make up for it. The dialogues are crafted in a way that doesn't feel manufactured, but perfectly expresses the characters.

Art: Beautiful art. Consistently good and almost nothing to pick on. The character's expressions and body language are handled in such a delicate manner that you can tell their exact thoughts without words: something I have never seen any other series do quite as well. It also has very interesting paneling and perspective shots that fit the situations perfectly. There are subtle details rich of meaning that can easily be missed if someone were to simply skim through the pages.

Character: Lovable characters through and through. I'm thoroughly invested in the main characters, and all the side characters are likable in their own rights. These characters feel like real people reacting to real situations. There is no one in the cast that I dislike at all.

Enjoyment: I swear every time I re-read the series I fall in love with it more. Never has a manga really evoke this much emotion from me, let alone a romance. I have no idea how this did not strike an impression on me on my first read, because now I'm surprised there isn't a cult around this.

Overall: I wouldn't hesitate on calling this a masterpiece, please go read it, then re-read it two hundred times afterwards. Oh yeah and be careful of translation errors if you read it online.

Compared to many other yuri series out there -- you know the ones, full of fan service or extremely high on the melodrama or the will-they-won't-they -- Yagate Kimi ni Naru's most outstanding characteristic is definitely its well-developed characters. Apart from the first two chapters, which feel a little bit rushed, because they just want to set up the story, it's also incredibly well paced.

Both main character bring their own interpretation of love to the table, fundamentally and diametrically opposed -- Touka, who's fallen hard for Yuu, and knew immediately and now wants everything out of their relationship that normally goes along with such. Yuu, on the other hand, who is a girl who loves romantic storylines about as much as I do, and expected love to be just like Touko experiences it, but simply doesn't and has resigned herself to this. There are occasional hints that Yuu might be developing feelings for Touko as well, but even this isn't overt and still open to interpretation. And then there's the added difficulty of Sayaka and the whole spiel about the two connected components in their relationship graph (but at least it's not a full love triangle).

I'm definitely ready for whatever the future might bring for this story.

Trying for some comparables: It's heavier than Kase-san, for sure, but by far not as heavy-handed as Kuzu no Honkai. Kobayashi-san Chi no Maid Dragon comes close in relationship dynamics, but the focus is different -- not only what it means to fall in love, but become a family there, what love itself means for different people here. More mature characters than in Tsuki ga Kirei.

Girls Love em geral é um gênero extremamente complicado. Raramente vemos conteúdos sem incesto, abuso ou uma relação puramente para fanservice.
Esse é, de longe, um dos melhores que já li.
Além de focar na relação das duas meninas, temos em vista como a relação delas se desenvolve. Retrata tudo com suavidade e inocência; refrescante para a representação atual que vimos tendo.
Esse mangá me marcou. Recomendaria para qualquer um que se interesse pelo gênero.

A história é magnífica. Sumarizá-la é inútil, já que se pode conferir isso em uma sinopse qualquer, contudo a jornada de autodescoberta e definição de seu próprio valor é incrivelmente construída.
Os personagens são realistas e dão dimensão à estória. As moças crescem ao desenrolar da narrativa. Tanto juntas quanto por si. Impressiona-me como alguém consegue escrever algo tão bonito.
Mesmo tocando diversos tópicos, eu aproveitei todo o desenrolar do enredo. Deixou-me intrigada e animada para ler o resto.
A arte não se destaca muito. Os personagens são similares em corpo e face, como se várias pessoas tivessem trabalhado nessa arte para torná-la mais comercial. Continua bonito, para meus parâmetros.

Eu posso soar como uma baba ovo extremamente parcial, mas é, eu sou uma.
Por favor, leia esse mangá. Vale à pena.

Bloom Into You is a “Shoujo Ai” manga series written and illustrated by Nio Nakatani. It is later adapted into an anime series by studio TROYCA. It is a series about two high school girl students determining their own desires, the meaning of self-appreciation, the worth of self-discovery and learning what love truly is. Now to give you some context, I didn’t really expected to love this series the way I do now because of its premise. At first, I was lukewarm about starting the series. I was afraid of wasting my time on some girl on girl romance lovey-dovey anime. But, I was determined to watch it and experience something out of the ordinary and so I did and here’s my review for both the manga and the anime.

Story: Anime – 7/10, Manga- 10/10
To start things off, the way the story is written is like your typical romance anime. They met, their feelings develops throughout the series, they hold hands. Like I said, typical but here’s the catch. There is that boundary when a romance is about a boy and a girl. But when’s its shoujo ai the heroines can freely cross that boundary without any consequences. But what is that “boundary” I’m talking about here? It’s their ability to go to each other’s places without raising any suspicions, their ability to hold hands, their ability to be playful around other people. It’s those simple yet charming and cute things that boosts the story to be entertaining and add a bit of spice to the overall experience. But when you set aside these cute things the story is honestly a melodramatic and a serious one. It’s an emotional rollercoaster between the cute scenarios and when the serious tone starts to kick in. Throughout the series, the story dives deeper and raises questions regarding self-discovery, the building up of one’s façade, how love shackles people and how a single action can hurt another. The story is not that complex from the surface, but when you unravel the mysteries behind certain characters it adds emotional depth and overall impact. The pacing of the story is something that may bother other people because it can feel slow sometimes. Personally, it didn’t bother me at all. I like the pacing, I like how they take their time on certain shots and how they don’t rush each scenes. It’s a slow burner and it was just right up on my alley and the so-called slow pacing is needed to elevate the viewer’s experience. On the other hand, on the manga the pacing issues is non-existent because you can read the story at your own pace. Additionally, the anime only adapted the first half of the manga and kinda made its own ending. In this aspect, I can rightfully say that the manga is better than the anime, well story wise. The ending that the anime chose felt empty and forced. It didn’t reached a climax, it ended as soon as it was about to hit the climax making the anime feel incomplete.

Characters: Anime 10/10, Manga 10/10
The characters are what drives the series, they are the powerhouse and what gives life to it. Without its well written characters the story can’t stand on its own. The main duo Koito Yuu and Nanami Touko are the cutest couple I’ve ever laid my eyes upon on. Their interactions are what made this series for me a thousand times better. Their motivations and interactions with the other characters made them feel real and further drew me in on its world. For the side characters, what side characters?! They don’t even feel like side characters! They are the most flesh out side characters in recent memory. They have motivations, they have their own reasons for reacting on certain ways. What I’m trying to say is they all felt like real life people.

Animation/Art: Anime - 10/10, Manga – 9/10
The animation was superb, those panning shots, slow-motion shots and ambient lightings were amazing. The animation the panning shots and lighting of certain scenes were one of the best ones I’ve seen in an anime. They really used a ton of budget perfecting it. The character designs stayed on par with the manga and the facial animations of characters were great as well, it was very “animey”.
Now, for the manga’s art. Can you tell, it was the writer’s first work? No, I couldn’t. Her character design has a certain charm to it, the panels were arranged neatly and each frame was drawn beautifully and the colored and cover pages were amazing as well. I really can’t say much about it other than it was beautiful both the animation and the manga art.

Music and Original Soundtrack: 10/10
The OST’s and insert songs were elegant. The sweet, soothing, eerie and calm sound design elevated certain scenes to perfection. The slow-motion shots combined with the amazing OST really took my breath away. It was truly something to remember. The two insert songs were both amazing on how it was used on the show and how you can repeat the songs and relive the scene it was in. The OP was also great visually and sound wise. Now, the ED. WAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! I have that shit on repeat for two whole months! It was a banger, it was like I was born just to hear that masterpiece.

Overall: Anime - 9.25/10, Manga – 9.6/10
In conclusion, the story was great combined with amazing characters and an amazing art and animation with an amazing musical score. It is the defining anime for what “Shoujo Ai” could be if given the budget and attention it needs.

To say it simply, I loved this anime and unlike many animes, there was a satisfying and great ending. Maybe it's just the fangirl in me, but the way they made the sexual tension had me on the edge of my seat in almost every scene. I know some people may not like how long it took them to finally end up together, but I honestly loved it. There are so many yuri animes out there that have no plot whatsoever so I watched/read many animes to find this series and manga. It's honestly the only yuri anime/manga I like. The plot was fantastic and the writing was good as well. The art was standard in the manga for me, but in the anime, it is way above average. Characters are a *mwah* chef's kiss and I definitely enjoyed it throughout the entire series. I rated this a 10 because all of it in my mind was astounding.

TLDR Review at the bottom. Hopefully, that helped, thank you for reading it in advance.

To put it simply, Bloom Into You is heavily overrated. I really don't understand what makes this manga have so much praise. I am not hating on Shoujo Ai, in fact, I quite like Shoujo Ai relationships, but this, simply put, is just a manga trying to look like a great story on a superficial level, only when you look into it, does it become obvious that this very conflicting is just what you could call a sorry excuse for a story. I feel like this story was simply made solely for some more Shoujo Ai relationships to exist within the anime/manga medium, there is no real meaning to anything that takes place in this story.


Story - 3:
So I am going to work my way from start to end of how this manga just leaves what is a mess behind itself. In the beginning, we have two protagonists who more or less can't feel love, sounds like a promising start, but then it gets better, school council president Touko Nanami falls in love with Yuu Koito after hearing about her issues of being unable to get the feeling of falling in love with someone. So, the story at that point is probably at it's most interesting in the manga, but what makes it worse you say? Well, it just falls into being generic.

The manga is supposed to come across as a relationship of manipulation and how selfish people can be, but this isn't anything new from what I have seen. Summing up the manga and you get, "oh I can't do this since it will make her sad" and lying to yourself over and over again.

And then you get the most useless part of the story which is the student council play. Now, the play in itself is ironical, it being better than the main story at hand. It really was. It had an interesting story, and the entire play was nicely executed, if I had to rate it, I would give it a 7.5/10. It was basic, but the characters where strong and believable, it was so strong that it is supposed to have a say in Bloom Into You characters, in a way that I believe that the characters, namely, that of Nanami is supposed to relate too, since she has an identity crisis herself. But here is the problem with the student council play.

Now the story has to play with two sub-stories at once simultaneously one being Nanami's love for Yuu and her identity crisis, you could argue that as someone who is in an awkward position with Nanami, this ties in perfectly as a story, there is someone there to look out for her and give her the push she needs so that she can understand what to do with her life. But then why use a student council play? I don't see how they logically entwine together for it to make sense that a student council play has to play a part in fixing a character, even generic manga based on the same idea use some kind of group of people to help said person in their life issues, not some overblown play, it seriously looks like an excuse to stretch out the story for an unnecessary perplexing idea. There was honestly no point in the student council play. What sucks, even more, is that it is almost as if it has been forgotten up to about Vol 7.

Now the story leaves the epitome of "oh I can't do this since it will make her sad" and lying to yourself so much so. At this point, we have seen gradual change happen with the characters, especially that of Yuu, which was a nice change to witness, but it only leads down to the monotonous path of not staying true to yourself you usually see in most romance anime/manga. Now I don't have a problem with generic storytelling, if something is the norm, it doesn't mean that it is bad because other stories follow the same structure. It just means that it is the norm. Not good. Not bad. So from Vol 7 onwards, that is exactly what you get, misunderstandings creating a regular situation. Honestly speaking, this is the best part of the entire manga. But there isn't much to say from it other than, you have seen this before if you are familiar with the genre, and that what you expect to happen, will likely happen.

The ending was quite wholesome though, nothing much to go on about that other than it was wholesome. I think that it ended off on a sweet positive note with very few questions being answered in that ending.


Art - 6:
Well, the art is pretty normal. There wasn't anything particularly special about it, but I did like the art that was given in the aquarium. The story had random bursts of good art every time some important event would come along, the art was detailed on those particular pages, but everything even feels into the average category, nothing bad, but nothing good either. It was pretty to be fair even along the average side of things.


Characters - 4:
Nanami.

Just Nanami.

One of the most confusing characters I've come across watching anime or reading manga. One moment she is loving Yuu, the next she is acting for someone who she didn't have to act for. Seriously, I really don't understand why she had to act for someone who is no more. It just kinda happened. And the story takes no real time to explain why she had to be that way. I honestly don't understand how this is a natural response for anyone or if anyone would say, "yeah this is the best thing to do in this situation." Maybe I am going mad like some Victorian Professor who refuses to believe in anything they don't understand. But I am quite interested as to why in the hell Nanami thought that her way of life was to act like someone who didn't even need her to act in such way anyway.

Her intentions are quite difficult to understand at all, she even says herself at some point in that story "what next", "what do I do after this". Yes. Exactly. What next? She is truly contradicting in that when she becomes a much smarter person. She does not once take into account:

1. She is being selfish, yes, that is her entire character base but for someone smart as her, what is the point, if she wanted to become the same as the person she desired, who mind you, I don't believe was selfish anyway, already failing her task. What was the point of being so selfish?

2. Why? Why do this to yourself, no one said she had to be this way but she did anyway. Just a simple question that in her 7 years of doing her change to a false identity she did not once think to ask herself. How does anyone expect to buy that kind of character?

I would really like to see how she would have played out if she had never met Yuu, a character of her kind would just be completely contradictory that I can't see how she would go on other than she realises that what she was doing was stupid. Which would have summed up the entire manga anyways if Yuu were to not exist. Making Nanami an idiot from the get-go. Quite a shame since she could have been such a better character than she was made out to be.

Yuu is an interesting one. She is a self conflicted person but that is quite normal in romance manga so I don't see any reason to dislike how is presented as a character. The same is for Sayaka, she too is a self conflicted person, but she plays on the sidelines and well, with a bit of knowledge, you can tell how that will play out.

Other minor characters like Maki, Koyomi, Doujima and Akari I find better than the main cast, to be honest, they are more original than the MCs and their attitudes towards everything is based on what kind of character they are, they don't do anything they wouldn't normally do and they do have some feelings to go out of their way to act based on what they think is the best option, again, in their manner. When you look into these characters, they are normal people, with the wills to do as they please, but it is because they are normal and have reasoning, that I feel as if they are better than the main cast. It's a shame they are not developed.

Another thing I found quite funny is the author's need for yuri relationships, it isn't bad but damn there are quite a few, you could get 5 different ships from this story all around girls alone. Again nothing bad but I just thought it was strange, as I did point out that beforehand.


Enjoyment - 7:
I enjoy most things I come across, Bloom Into You is no exception, I quite like romance anime/manga and so seeing things like dates, sharing an umbrella and holding hands, that is quite enjoyable, not to mention wholesome, to come across. Even if stories and characters are bad, I do like trying to find things to like about a particular manga. Although this wasn't the most understanding of the things I've read. It did have its fair share of wholesomeness and just generally good willed actions.


Overall - 4.83 (5)


TLDR Review:
Story - 3: Useless plot device that takes up half of the story, as well as the entire story not bring anything new for the romance mix.
Art - 6: Fairly decent and pretty art, has it's random bursts of good art now and then.
Characters - 4: Nanami is extremely indecipherable, almost coming across as dumb due to various contradictions. Though other characters make up for her, by no means in a special way, however. Also has quite a few yuri relationships
Enjoyment - 7: Has its wholesome moments, and it is sweet when the right times appear.
Overall - 4.83 (5)


So for my first Shoujo Ai manga, this doesn't leave a good first impression but that doesn't matter for me, I will still read Shoujo Ai. I just think that Bloom Into you is way too ambitious for it's kind and try to reach heights it ultimately cannot. You just keep asking "Why?" every time something confusing happens. It is annoying but that is what the author wanted I guess. It is quite a shame, but it is what it is.

Anyways, I believe I did point out stories that are similar to this, so here are a few I can think of, all I think are in some shape or form better than Bloom Into You:

Somewhat manipulating relationships:
- Say "I Love You".
- Maid-sama!

One-sided relationships:
- Toradora!
- Monthly Girls' Nozaki-kun
- Kimi ni Todoke
- Orange

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Edited 20/3/2021
Recalculated score: 4.83
Original score: 5.0

As many have said, Yagate Kimi ni Naru stands head and shoulders above its peers in nearly every respect. At the time of writing, the final chapter has just been published - what a journey it's been.

It's no secret that manga as a medium is saturated with tired tropes and problematic depictions. Lesbian romance, including yuri, are perhaps the worst of the bunch. It's rare to find a work that escapes from the voyeuristic and heteronormative strokes that dominate the genre, yet YagaKimi delivers and more.

To put it briefly, many romance stories focus disproportionately on the time before either person has acknowledged their feelings, and treat the dynamics of the actual relationship once it starts as an afterthought. YagaKimi starts straight off with a confession in the first chapter, focusing instead on the protagonists journey to understanding and reconciling her and her (eventual) partner's feelings.

Excepting some of the early chapters, which somewhat clumsily (by the rest of the series's standards) set the stage, YagaKimi is a well paced, thoughtful, nuanced, and touching exploration of queer relationships that truly has no equal in manga. To try to fully enumerate its strong points would be to do it a disservice - you should just read it.