Orange

After a year of hiatus and a release every 2 months, the manga is officially done. Story So your future self sends you a letter and everything that is written happens. It gives you advice that you have to save this guy because he isn't in the future anymore. I've only read a few mangas but I think this kind of plot is unique. I first started this review 3 years ago and now that it's done, I'm editing it to reflect my view on it. Since 3 years ago I've read a lot more shoujo than I did before and still, even though yes, thereare still cliche moments that would make you want to smack the protagonist, the other gut-wrenching, heartstring-pulling scenes are still enough for you to overlook it. (I mean really, tell me one shoujo manga that doesn't have a single cliche scene in it.) The story also tackles with time travel and those things but even though she didn't focus on those things, the author got her point across in the end. Art Wow. The art. I seriously love the art in this manga. Maybe that's one of the reasons why I enjoy it so much. The characters are drawn beautifully. I have no words for the art except that I'm giving it a 10. And three years later, the art is still truly exceptional. Takano Ichigo is amazing when it comes to drawing her characters. It's like their personality comes through with what she draws them with. Character The characters are really enjoyable and fun. Since it switches from the 16 year old time to the 27 year old time, we could see how they all grew up and how Kakeru changed them. There's only a few chapters out now and already we can see that the characters, especially Naho and Suwa, have the potential to really develop. Also, Kakeru since he has to struggle with a lot of things especially during his teenage years. My favorite character is Suwa okay. You'll understand once you read it. I love how they all care for each other and how they all work together for their friend. Like what I said before, there would be a time you'd want to smack either of the protagonists, but eh, don't we all have imperfections? Anyway, their group is pretty fun and seeing them interact is pretty fun. 9 for character! Enjoyment Don't be fooled by the pretty art and the shoujo tag. There's also the Tragedy tag there. By the end of the second chapter, you feel these strings of emotions and come the fourth chapter, you'll be filled with giddiness. 8th chapter, your heart will hurt and at the same time you'll be surprised with the turn of events. The 19th chapter will give you the feels and the 22nd, well. The end's the end. Feel what you want to feel because there won't be anymore chapters. I'm giving it a 9 for enjoyment. Overall I'm giving it somewhere between a 9 and a 10 overall. Too high? I think it can be justified with the art, characters, and unique story line that it has. This manga is really a refreshing feel even though it's tragedy, maybe it's the art. So if you're looking to read something new that's not your usual shoujo manga (lol cliche line), then pick this up. Just don't blame me when it will hurt so much since there's only a few chapters out and you are smothered with feels. Maybe I should read the manga from the start again and edit this. Hmm.

*possible spoilers* Pros: 1. Good art 2. Good comedy 3. Good intentions Cons: 1. Childish (wants to have the best of both worlds) One world where Naho sa Suwa are together and one where Kakeru lives. 2. One-sided. Every single chapter they are all about, "save Kakeru this and that." They basically live their lives for the guy. 3. Kakeru not fleshed out until the end. I am not sympathetic about his situation primarily because I don't have an idea about anything. 4. Characters can't get over a death even though it's been 10 years. Kakeru was with them for less than a year and they still miss him like he was their bestfriend or something. 5. Poor dialogue. The author just says stuff to make the characters feel good, "It's only natural. You didn't do anything wrong." When in fact he did. *All in all it could have been better if the author was more mature in dealing with this. Personally I would have killed him off and instead made the characters move on and learn from their mistakes. We live with many regrets, but unfortunately we cannot change them. We have to live by them and move on. That's what we are. We can never be perfect. We can never undo.

Everyone has something in life they wish they could do differently. For Takamiya Naho it wasn’t one thing, but rather a series of events: poor choices, lack of communication and the inability to understand, that caused the loss of the most important person in her life. Her future self decides to send a letter, ten years into the past when she was in high school—warning herself not to make the same mistakes. Orange is an unusual shoujo in that it tackles the heavy topic of suicide without glossing it over; it paints the ugly truth by pulling the reader through the dark cloud of depression.It allows us to see how one person, isolated in the confines of their own mind, could fall victim to self-loathing and guilt to the point of being desperate enough to bring it all to an end. Yet it also colors a vibrant picture of how people survive in the wake of loss when someone precious to them makes that heavy a decision—it is filled with grief, blame, and an ache that will never dissipate no matter the passage of time. The plot is masterful in presenting an intriguing premise that leaves as many questions as it does answers, and the anticipation only builds through the climax of the story. It doesn’t falter on explaining the mechanics of “time-traveling letters” and how this operates with multiple universes and time paradoxes. Although the explanations are rather brief in that respect, Takano doesn’t leave the reader hanging and gives just enough to be informative and conclusive without being excessively boring. She rewards us with a conclusive ending that gives us an additional tidbit of wisdom, saving someone in the throes of depression who is suicidal isn’t just about keeping them from ending it. It’s about healing them, helping them, and simply being there. In the characters we find the biggest strength of the series, because Takano puts so much effort in making the main cast relatable and multi-faceted. Naho is shy, reserved, but ultimately sweet, driven initially by the letters forewarning her of the regrets day-by-day, however she quickly becomes emotionally attached to Kakeru because of the present. She isn’t simply motivated to eradicate whatever her future self is lamenting, she wants to save her future because she loves the present Kakeru. Yet Naho is deeply flawed as evidenced by how narrow-sighted she is at times, because she focuses more on the letters and saving Kakeru at times rather than how he feels in the present. She grows greatly from the start where her only aim is saving him, to actually trying to understand (read: empathize) and support him. Kakeru is initially a little distant to us, more of an enigma than someone we can sympathize with. This is actually a positive, because Takano builds our attachment to him through the supporting cast and Naho, which means there is more of an emotional punch when she finally introduces Kakeru’s point of view and illuminates his inner struggle. This ultimately means a bigger payoff at the conclusion of the series, but additionally gives him greater character development from beginning to end. The change in his friends around him, however radical, does not alter the fact that Kakeru is ultimately very depressed. He has every reason to be, and while having friends around him certainly helps, it isn’t a miracle cure. Takano doesn’t make depression simplistic or boil it down – the fact is that just being there won’t magically change a person. It does, however, have an effect and in that way her message is successful. It would be enough to talk about the main two, but not mentioning the supporting cast would be a disservice. Much of the development between Naho and Kakeru would be impossible without their support, and they are not without their struggles and flaws, trying to save Kakeru while feeling the conflict of changing the future that she is supposed to have. It only serves to make them more human and more endearing, and it makes the reader more invested in their journey as a group. Takano is known for her clean art and gorgeous character designs, but even more here she paints in the smallest details in each panel. Rather than narrating emotions as some mangaka do, Takano focuses more on displaying them through the characters’ expressions and actual dialogue exchanges. This ultimately means she conveys her message more convincingly and immerses us more than other shoujo authors that preoccupy themselves with trying to submerge us in the main character’s point-of-view. Takano is more interested in her reader being invested in everyone rather than in any one single part of her story. To anyone who enjoys suspense, romance, and a heartfelt story, this is the first title I would recommend. Takano has out done herself and surpassed her past works to leave us with something that is ultimately memorable—because any manga that a reader can walk away from, feeling as though they have learned something that will stick with them forever, is phenomenal. Any manga that can touch you in a way no other has is a classic. A manga that can do both? Now that’s a masterpiece.

Well, to be honest, this is my first time writing a review. The main reason why im doing so for this manga is because I find that most of the reviews here range from extremely good (10) to extremely bad (3) and it shouldn't be. Pardon my frustration, I read this series in a day because I saw the good reviews and wanted to get to the core of what was so good about this manga. Sadly, I can't say it is even remotely close to being perfect. Firstly, I have to say there is potential in the story. Because it has a slight mixture oftime trips, but that doesn't put it apart from the usual romance manga. I really have no objection to cliches, but the fact this story tries to get out of the cliche zone is its main flaw. The execution is lacking and emotions built up are shallow. Therefore , Story: 6/10 Secondly, the art is by far one of the more aesthetically pleasing ones. It's really beautiful to look at and the characters are designed well (in terms of art) Not to mention the 'movement' of the characters isn't quite that stiff, so it's a great read in the light of art^^ Hence, Art: 8/10 Let's come to the real dread and most ungainly part of this story. The character development is a near nil. Naho (main) has literally no other emotions other than guilt and regret, she has two close friends and they are hardly utilized to built that type of emotional togetherness. It was as if they were pasted into the manga to look pretty. I honestly liked the idea of takako and azusa, but nothing was done, they were very flat characters. How is it possibe Orange is above Kimi ni Todoke, if anyone recalls kimi ni todoke, Yano , Yoshida , Sanada and Kurumi were given their own roles in the story, they had lots of lines as well, because of the feelings they had and their contrast with the main character,brings out the good emotions. Whereas there are very little shits given about the side characters in Orange. Kakeru (main) confuses me, I get he is playing the role of changing factor of the tragedy, but I can't feel his pain, his expressions vary from anger to sadness to happy. No bittersweet, sour looks, frustration or relief.The fact that his interaction with Naho does not move their relationship further at all, neither do we get to know more about them, shows how bad it is. There is a relentless amount of the common scenes thrown across the book, if they were real and in a relationship, it looks as though they had no opinion of each other, no build up to their romance, no anger towards each other (even when they do, its one sided and never develops into anything big). No quarrels= No further understanding No friendship breaks or built = No personality, no backstory Tears, tears and more tears over the same topic across all 5 volumes= A reader that's losing hope Naho is meant to be a sweet and docile girl, that's a good thing. But the story makes her robotic. The fact that she has *small spoiler* a child and is married in the future but still treats her husband and friends as a secondary to her past decisions... Makes her more indecisive and seemingly a person that never learns from her mistakes, never lets go and has only a narrow way of thinking. Suwa clearly likes Naho, hence he gets more lines than Takako and Azusa but only for a small period of time before the story drops back to Naho and Kakeru's repetitive talk. If this was a novel, it would be a mere thesaurus of synonyms. This is why I felt Character should be given a 2. As much as I hate how high up this manga is, I'm not going to give it a horrid score so that I can pull it down, because logically that's not even possible. And besides, I can see the effort put in the manga, all the characters have strong potentional, their expressions and mainly their forsaken backstories were well thought of, but we readers get nothing but a glance. I'd say enjoyment is fairly fine if you take into consideration the fluency of the pages and its initial 'beauty'. But srsly its a 6 , it's not gross because it has good art and reading for the fun of it is not that bad