17-sai

This collection of four stories is like a mixed bag. You won't find the quality or enjoyment derived out of each story uniform. The art while beautiful and refreshingly clean and happy in the first story consistently declines throughout each story and the 4th story was just a plain torture to get through. I personally found the first story the best, based around a school setting it's bittersweet and a wee bit angsty. Character development, while a bit convenient for the sake of the story, does occur and you realise your own anxiety is somewhat alleviated when the heroine or hero do or say something vulnerableand how their ensuing relationship blossoms. It's got heart, this first story. Second story while not groundbreaking in its premise, is still cute. Humorous character development to some extent and you feel sad for the protagonist when she weeps or screams in frustration, so it's definitely engrossing. Art is clever enough in this one that you continue reading even when the plot starts to drag or become mediocre. But the third and fourth story are completely skippable. The way the third one progresses alone is so annoying to me! There's an almost non consensual incident, after which the perp has the cheek to suggest they "just stay friends" and then gets annoyed at the heroine's interactions with her ex! What Nerve! The Gall! The Gumption!!! It's just a ridiculously annoying and misogynistic tale in my opinion, maybe I'm a little sensitive about it seeing as how he behaves crudely to hide his own feelings and vulnerabilities, but it's not easily digestible, his character or the way the story progresses. Fourth story's art is very dated and stunted looking and the scanlation or dialogue itself must have been clumsy to begin with. Add to that a poorly thought out storyline and you have the hot mess that it turns out starting page 2. Skip. Overall, I would highly recommend the first story and the second one to kill time but not the third or the fourth.