When I discovered Nishio Yuhta’s After Hours (アフターアワーズ) back in 2015, I really enjoyed the quirky adult life relationship. Not set in an office, it delved into less regulated lives, lives that were built up on the fly. I was very excited that it was licensed by Viz Media. And, once it was done, I was very much looking forward to Nishio-sensei’s next work. Mizuno to Chayama (水野と茶山) is that next series. Volume 1 and Volume 2 came out simultaneously in Japan.

Mizuno and Chayama are schoolmates. Their families are rivals; competing for political power and social standing, as well as natural resources in the form of their companies. But Mizuno’s family is clearly on top of the hierarchy, while Chayama’s struggles to hold their position. The kids in the school respond to this with violence and bullying, locking Chayama in the trashed bathroom, beating her after school and generally making her life a misery.

What their schoolmates don’t know is that Mizuno and Chayama are lovers. Yes, it is a modern Romeo and Juliet. Thankfully, without the dire ending.

Although a particularly mean bully keeps torturing Chayama, long after everyone else has stopped, it’s Mizuno that finally fights back. Mizuno does what she can to help Chayama get out of their shitty town and away from their shitty parents.

This series was a little heavy on lowest denominator service and was not at all respectful of the characters’ bodies, something I had found very appealing in After Hours. The ending a was little less ridiculous than After Hours‘, but I’m not entirely sure you could call it happy, though.

I don’t really know what to say about this series. The art was pretty good – it fit the tone of the story, but I didn’t honestly enjoy reading it all that much. I wanted Chayama out of there, but really out of there, far away, safe, taken care of and never going back to that shitty town. Your mileage may vary, of course. ^_^;

Ratings:

Art – 6
Story – 5
Characters – 6
Service – 8
Yuri – 8

Overall  – 6