Akari is ready to move on. She’s ready to reclaim her old career in the salon and stop running away from her life. She’s putting Ayano and her old ex behind her. She’s moving into a new place and ready to face a new day. Volume  1 and Volume 2 are old news.

So, in Otona ni Nattemo, Volume 3 (おとなになっても) when she walks outside for her first new morning and finds Ayano walking out of her own home at the same time, one can easily imagine some of the words that flit through Akari’s head. And when she gets off the train and finds she’s walking home with Ayano’s husband, she’s sure that a brand new level of hell has opened up just for her. Only, Ayano’s husband is, actually, kinda nice? And not in a creepy way, he just seems to be a decent sort. Even knowing this is the woman his wife is interested in, Wataru invites Akari to dinner. The story gets more complicated as Wataru’s NEET sister Eri now thinks something is up with Akari, but it appears she thinks it’s her brother having an affair.

Akari ends up being roped into a mini-marathon for the local town art festival. In doing so, she rediscovers her love of running. In fact, everything might be looking just great, if it weren’t for the fact that she just can’t seem to get away from Ayano, who she loves and Wataru who she’s come to like.

This was the first volume of this series that really focused our attention on Akari, as opposed to Ayano and like magic, I found myself way more engaged with the narrative. ^_^ I’m torn though, because I don’t want to care too much, either, because I don’t see this series having an ending I can live with. I just hope when the wreckage clears, Akari’s still standing.

Shimura-sensei’s artwork is confident and clean in this volume and to be very honest, this might be the best story I’ve read by her, narratively speaking. I don’t know what will happen and I am content to let it happen, which is exactly what I want from a drama about adults.

Ratings:

Art – 8
Story – 8
Characters – 8
Service – 0
Yuri – Hrm….Ayano and Akari are still interested in each other.

Overall – 8

I’m putting my money down on this being a candidate for a live-action series.

Volume 4 is already out in Japanese and Volume 1 is available in English as Even Thought We’re Adults, (I reviewed that here on Okazu earlier this month) so share your thoughts in the comments if you’ve read it!

In Volume 1 of Shimura Takako’s adult life drama, we met Ayano, a grade school teacher, and sever Akari, who meet and sleep together. It’s only later Akari finds out that Ayano is married to a man. Despite this, neither of them can stop thinking about the other.

It is on this precarious footing that Otona ni Nattemo, Volume 2 (おとなになっても) begins I spent the entire volume angry for Akari, as everyone in Ayano’s life seems to make a point of going to her restaurant in order to size her up. While Akari is trying to figure out what she wants from her own life, Ayano and her husband are unable to process their own problems in private, as family issues pop up and take their time and attention. At the beginning, Ayano’s husband announces suddenly that they’ll be divorcing, but by the end of this volume it’s harder to know what they will actually be doing.

The fact that I felt so vexed is probably a good sign, as it meant that I was engaging with the drama, something that Shimura’s work rarely does for me. I had to laugh, because my reaction to this volume is exactly the same as my reaction to the ending of Sweet Blue Flowers; that is to say, I want desperately to pluck the lesbian out of this story and find her a decent girlfriend! Yes, yes, maybe Ayano will become a decent girlfriend. I remain skeptical. ^_^

We get a long look at an episode from Ayano’s youth, in which she was a tall, boyish girl whose friend clearly wanted more than friendship from her.

As I wrote this review, I considered the art. It took me awhile to figure out what I wanted to say. Shimura-sensei has been at this a long time and I was thinking her art has changed a lot. Her fine art, the water color-style paintings that usually grace her covers and fill her art books are really quite excellent. Even rendered in black and white, her “watercolor” work has improved. I don’t think her drafting has gotten worse, but it hasn’t really made the same strides as her “fine” art. I’m too lazy to scan in the images I’m looking at here, but two chapter pages; one in ink and one painted, really make my point. (Fine, I’ll scan them in. Pardon my shitty, quickly done scans. The pages are the same size, but the first one has a white border, fyi.)

There’s nothing wrong with the first image. Nothing at all. It just lacks some quality that the second picture has, a depth of emotion, even in black and white. All of this is of course, in my opinion.

Ratings:

Art – When it’s good, it is so very good, I just wish that were more often.
Story – ARGH
Characters – In a holding pattern
Service – Nope
Yuri – Yes

Overall – 7

So once again, I find myself in a holding pattern with a Shimura series, waiting to see what is in store for our characters, and hoping, despite myself, that she will write them a good story and not just handwave the end, as she has in the past.

Shimura Takako’s work with gender and sexual minorities has been very influential and popular among western manga readers, and series like Sweet Blue Flowers and Wandering Son end up on LGBTQ manga reading lists with reasonable regularity. So it comes as no surprise that her newest lesbian manga Otono ni Nattemo has been picked up for license by Seven Seas as Even Though We Are Adults, just as I picked it up off my to-read pile. ^_^

In Otona ni Nattemo, Volume 1 (おとなになっても) teacher Ayano meets Akari after work one night and they end up sleeping together. It’s not a relationship…but it’s not a one-night stand, Akari hopes, when Ayano says that she’ll stay in touch. Only, the next time she sees Ayano, she’s with her husband. Unsurprisingly Akari does not feel great about this major fact having been left out of their communication.

Nonetheless, they do see each other again, this time kind of starting from the beginning. The problem is that Ayano appears to be happily married. And Akari isn’t sure what she wants, generally, with her life, but she’s starting to think that she wants Ayano, specifically. I’m not at all sure what I think about either woman. It’s tempting to be angry at Ayano…but I’m not and neither is Akari. It’s tempting to be distrustful of Akari, but I’m not, and neither is Ayano.

The art is good, shockingly detailed for Shimura, in fact. It looks exactly like the Jousei manga it is.

This is an uncomfortable story about two adult women flailing a little bit while trying to figure out this adulting thing. I have absolutely no idea whatsoever what to expect from this story – I’m not even sure I liked it – but I think I’ll end up reading volume 2 anyway. ^_^ I don’t see a happily-ever-after-ending…to be honest, I’d be disappointed if this ended that way. I wouldn’t mind it staying kind of uncomfortable for the course. Let’s get stories about things that aren’t sappily ever after for once.

Ratings:

Art – 8
Character – A not-sure-yet 7
Story – Same 7
Yuri – 8
Service – 1 Hardly any, in fact. The 1 is mostly on principle

Overall – 7

I’m still unsure of so much yet, but I guess I’ll keep reading. Shimura’s work is, in my honest opinion, very flawed, but if she’s going to lean into the flaws, we might get an interesting story.

Volume 2 is available in print in Japan, but not in print shipped to the US at the moment. Both volumes are available digitally on Global Bookwalker. I’ll be getting Volume 2 digitally. Even Though We’re Adults has a January 2021 release date.

Speaking of Global Bookwalker – they are holding a huge “Stay Home and Read” deal with up to 50% back in coins, that can then be used to buy more books. Seven Seas and J-Novel titles are included in the sale. ^_^