Archive for the Kase-san Series Category


Yamada to Kase-san, Volume 4 (ε±±η”°γ¨εŠ η€¬γ•γ‚“γ€‚)

September 5th, 2024

As you age, one of the absolutely weirdest things is watching the people you knew as children growing up, maturing, starting their own lives. You never know what they’ll turn out like but it is an interesting process and a reminder of our mortality. (When you get to some point, practically everything is a reminder of our mortality, really.)

We, as a collective, have been watching Yamada and Kase-san grow up now for more than a decade. My first mention of them here on Okazu was in 2012. It always makes me happy to see the Hirari Comics imprint on the spine, in fact. The magazine isn’t completely gone as long as we have that. In those years, they have a long road, but they graduated high school, and have moved to the big city to pursue their college degrees. There has been a lot of relationship stuff they needed to work through – Yamada’s low self-esteem, Kase-san’s jealousy. Some volumes felt like there was no progress at all. But here we are at Yamada to Kase-san, Volume 4 (ε±±η”°γ¨εŠ η€¬γ•γ‚“γ€‚) and they are all grown up. The kids are okay. ^_^

Yamada has really grown into herself. She’s good at her chosen career, and has a lot of options in her future. She likes her job and is making friends in school and at work. Kase-san, the star of her high school track team is the more fragile of the two and has to work much harder, but is up to the challenge. The two of them plan to move out together when the next school year begins.

At which Fukami, Kase-san’s roommate, snaps. We’ve seen this coming for a long while, but it was good to get it out into the open. Fukami, having fallen for Kase-san in the most toxic and possessive way, demands Kase-san race her to see if she’ll be “allowed” to leave the dorm. Of course this is ridiculous. But Kase-san is at heart a kind person and not very confrontational outside competitive running.

Yamada ends up getting a smaller, less ideal apartment than she had hoped, but finds a place in Mikawacchi’s building, which means our three school friends are reunited. Kase-san races Fukami, says she hopes they can stay friends and is generally the big-hearted and kind person she always is…and, at last, comes home to her girlfriend in their new home together. Squee.

They’ve come so far. Yuri has come so far. We’ve come far together.

Kase-san and Yamada are going to be okay.

Ratings:

Art – 8
Story – 9
Characters – 9
Service – 2
LGBTQ+ – 4 Kase-san has to come out for real for the first time
Yuri – 10

Overall  – 9

This was the volume that I was waiting for from this series.  I look forward to more of their adventures “playing house” together.





Kase-san and Yamada. Volume 3

April 29th, 2024

Two young women, a tall one  one with short brown hair and a shorter one with collar length pale hair, dressed in white berets and red coats, surrounded by images of pastel christmas tree balls College life has become a little more normalized for both Kase-san and Yamada. Yamada’s got a job, and loves her classes. Kase-san is still struggling with her unregulated emotions about Yamada, and with her so focused on Yamada, she’s not really noticing what’s going on in her her own dorm room, where Kase-san’s roommate, Fukami, is going through some stuff on her own.

When the school festivals collide, Kase-san finds herself making bad choices – again – but this time it’s Yamada who stands up and talks Kase-san down. And it’s Yamada who asks Kase-san to move in together. It’s pretty clear that Kase-san’s imagination is still a problem, but Yamada…she’s grown. And in doing so, she’s going to help Kase-san do so as well.

It’s so interesting that we still have this manga, more than a decade after it began. As a result, we’re still watching Kase-san and Yamada mature in slower-than-real time. As a result, this manga retains the sweet, slow style we became familiar with originally and we’re just that much happier when these two find a moment of special joy.

Now we just need Kase-san to get over that issue with jealousy. She’s about to feel what it’s like on the other side of that equation.

Ratings:

Art – 8
Story – 7
Characters – 8, Yamada is a 9
Service – 0
Yuri – 8

Overall – 8

As always, the team at Seven Seas has done a bang-up join in bringing over a manga that I am still amazed continues! I kind of want to see them both graduate and move into the adult world together…and still keep growing together.





Yamada to Kase-san, Volume 3 ( ε±±η”°γ¨εŠ η€¬γ•γ‚“γ€‚)

September 1st, 2022

Kase-san and Yamada moved to Tokyo last spring. Now winter is ahead of them and they are settling in, mostly.

As Yamada to Kase-san, Volume 3 ( ε±±η”°γ¨εŠ η€¬γ•γ‚“γ€‚) begins, Yamada has taken massive strides towards building a new life. It’s true that, as a first-year, she lacks some confidence, but her bouts of low self-esteem are much rarer than before. She’s learning a lot, working hard at her job and making friends. And this year, as the school festival approaches, she’s honored to take part in a special edition of one of her favorite gardening shows. The gardening club is working with their favorite teacher to do a live performance, with a special guest – a famous voice actor.

Kase-san’s school festival is on the same exact day. How they balance the schedule, Kase-san dealing with one last (and for once, rather amusing,) round of jealousy and what becomes of them when the voice actor turns out to be a good gardener, a decent person and an adult who provides good advice, is the bulk of this volume.

The other half of the story is the inevitability of a coming crisis with Kase-san’s roommate. Kase-san’s old rival from high school confides that she knows Kase-san has a lover. Fukami is trying very hard to not care, but…she cares. It is becoming harder to ignore that her feelings for Kase-san are not roommate-y. What will happen with them? We don’t know and it may be moot – because Yamada and Kase-san start talking about the next year and maybe living together.

I like that this manga is moving at a pace that is slow, but somehow feels real-ish.  That is to say, we’re not hitting multiple festivals per volume, which means that we have time to look at both Yamada and Kase-san and see how far they’ve come. Even the art invites us to see both of them as more adult. Yamada, especially. They have distinct personalities, and styles. It’s been half a year, Kase-san is finally dealing with the jealousy thing, Yamada’s low-self-esteem has really changed from her days in high school. Our little girls are growing up and it’s…nice. ^_^

Ratings:

Art – 9
Story – 8
Characters – 9
Service – Not really, this volume.
Yuri – 10

Overall – 9

There’s no date yet for Volume 3 in English, but I bet it’ll be out in 2023!





Kase-san and Yamada, Volume 2

March 11th, 2022

Kase-san and Yamada have been dating for a few years now, and while they are both working on building lives for themselves that include each other, their schedules make it very difficult. And maybe that would be okay, but it means that they haven’t really had the time they need to discuss themselves with each other.

A surprise summer vacation for both Kase-san and Yamada makes them very aware of those gaps where their lives don’t mesh. In Kase-san and Yamada, Volume 2, that gap seems impossibly wide to Yamada. Unsure, made to feel unconfident, she still sees Kase-san as someone too cool and popular for her, someone she’s not worthy of. This causes a number of problems for them –  and for us, as readers. We’d become used to seeing Kase-san be unreasonably jealous, and thought we had left that behind. Now it’s Yamada’s turn to be unreasonable and we’re likely to be less tolerant as a result. But…is Yamada being unreasonable?

I think it’s worth remembering that Kase-san’s sempai teased her rather mercilessly only a year so so ago, and now she’s dealing with Kase-san’s roommate Fukami being a grade-A jerk. (It’s super obvious that she has a crush on Kase-san and all I can hope is that rather than dealing with that noise, Fukami will realize how shitty she’s being and feel badly about it.) As an adult reading this book, I kind of want to have a stern talk with Fukami-san. The more I think about this story, the more I think that Yamada’s done amazingly well, given how much crap she’s had to take from other people. So, I’m cutting her some slack her as she wallows a bit here. It is very easy to find other people’s relationship drama annoying, but since we’re reading How Do We Relationship…maybe we can cut Yamada a little break? ^_^

When it comes down to dealing with the problems, Kase-san shows she *has* matured. She accepts Yamada’s concerns, is supportive and understanding AND addresses the underlying issue – what does their future look like? Neither they nor we know what shape their future will take, but Kase-san is trying to create a future that will include Yamada and that’s good enough right now.  It would be nice if the two of them get to just be together and talk without everyone wanting to get in their way, but oh well, it’s a rom-com. ^_^;

The fantastic translation by Jocelyne Allen means I’m hearing different characters sounding like different people and outstanding lettering by CK Russell. It feels so much like it’s part of the original, I hardly notice it. Thanks again to the entire Seven Seas team for their great work.

If you’re looking for a comedy college life Yuri series that feels awfully like real life, with bumps in the roads and fully-fleshed out characters, Kase-san and Yamada fits the bill.

Ratings:

Art – 9
Story – 8
Characters – 9
Service – 5 a bit of skin
Yuri – 10

Overall – 9

In the middle of all the running around, Hana being a rube and tanning jokes, let’s give a round of applause to Mikawacchi for finally figuring out a path forward for herself!





Yamada to Kase-san, Volume 2 (ε±±η”°γ¨εŠ η€¬γ•γ‚“)

December 16th, 2020

Happy anniversary to Takashima Hiromi-sensei for 10 years of Kase-san and Yamada.  Who could have imagined that, when the series debuted in 2010 in Pure Yuri Anthology Hirari, we’d be still  be following Yamada and Kase-san a decade later? It’s an absolute triumph of will that here we are at Yamada to Kase-san, Volume 2 (ε±±η”°γ¨εŠ η€¬γ•γ‚“).

College life has presented a number of challenges to Yui and Tomoka, both personally and relationship-wise. They are no longer able to see each other every day. Yui still has an unfortunate tendency to default to low self-esteem thinking, but a trip to the seashore with Mikawacchi and Hana seems just the thing to kick her out of her funk. Once there, she discovers that Tomoka is staying at the same inn! Only, of course, nothing is that simple. Tomoka and Yui eek out a few moments of time, and work on their own jealousy issues.

In the background a couple of interesting things are going on. Aikawa, Tomoka’s high school rival is hanging out with Fukami, Tomoka’s roommmate. And what on earth is going on with Fukami? Because something…definitely…is. 

We have watched over a decade as Takashima-sensei’s art has grown stronger and the characters become more who they are. And here we are, able to continue to enjoy that very thing Yamada and Kase-san in love. What a fantastic way to close out a brilliant (if slightly surreal) year for Yuri. ^_^

Ratings:

Art – 9
Story – 8
Characters – 9
Service – 5 a bit of skin
Yuri – 10

Overall – 9

Happy 10th anniversary to Yui and Tomoka, and to Takashima-sensei…and to us! We’ve all come a long way. ^_^

I couldn’t wait for this to arrive in print, so I picked it up on Global Bookwalker.  ^_^