MANGA REVIEW | "Kubo Won’t Let Me Be Invisible" - Volume Ten
When it comes to manga rom-coms, the culture festival arc is one of the big staples. It’s here where our two lovebirds can spend some real quality time together as they walk through a school at its liveliest. But in the case of Kubo Won’t Let Me Be Invisible, it’s a case of whether or not our two leads will ever get a chance to meet up for their fateful culture day date. And after seeing how much work Shiraishi has to do for the festival, that fear of not meeting is fairly understandable.
But even before this all happens, Kubo and Shiraishi get a little touchy at the start of Volume Ten. First, it’s some muscle comparisons, with Kubo allowing Shiraishi to touch underneath her arms. It’s innocent at first, until Kubo discovers what an underarm’s texture actually mimics! There’s a lotion fiasco that gives Kubo the chance to interlock fingers with Shiraishi, but it doesn’t compare at all to the act of pocket hand-warming. The act of Kubo and Shiraishi putting a hand in each other’s pockets shows the level of trust these two put into one another.
These back-to-back chapters show just how much Kubo Won’t Let Me Be Invisible has let its two leads grow. They both first started out as chummy students who just so happen to sit next to one another. But as the series has progressed, we’ve seen Shiraishi come more out of his shell and have a bigger presence in the school. A flashback shows how much Kubo has been a strong factor in bettering the boy’s life, with him knowing full well the feelings that his heart is telling him, no matter how much he may deny it.
This leads to the Culture Festival, with the homeroom choosing Kubo’s least-favorite thing: a haunted house. But with Shiraishi’s unique “skill”, she knows the perfect role he could play. Him as a ghost is pretty funny, with the opportunity to spook students intentionally being a nice punchline. However, with him being the star attraction of the haunted house, that does mean less time to chat with Kubo.
It’s a situation that doesn’t exactly cause a rift between Shiraishi and Kubo. But considering that Kubo’s so used to having her neighbor student all to herself, seeing him be the center of attention for once is very different. She feels sad, but at the same time, she’s happy that this invisible guy is finally getting the chance to shine. Thankfully, the rest of the students get a good feel of what may be going on in her head, resulting in them sending Shiraishi out for “an errand”.
And after that, the best chapter in the volume occurs. After watching students practice Romeo & Juliet, Kubo gets the urge to perform one of the play’s famous scenes with Shiraishi. Although he’s nervously quoting Shakespeare, how he says it shoots an arrow directly into Kubo’s heart. Like the school play arc in Teasing Master Takagi-san, this moment cements the feelings both Kubo and Shiraishi have for one another. It’s sweet, cute, and delivers all the heartwarming emotion readers have been waiting to see.
Alas, the tenth volume ends before we get to that (hopeful) Culture Day date between our two leads. Thankfully, we get plenty of scenes of Shiraishi spooking students and classmates praising his skills. But awaiting Shiraishi is Kubo, who has a surprising chat with another classmate. It’s here where we finally get that confirmation of what Shiraishi is to Kubo, and — let’s be honest — the feeling is absolutely mutual. We’ll just have to wait until the next volume of Kubo Won’t Let Me Be Invisible to see if this finally leads to a romantic relationship…
FINAL GRADE:
Promotional consideration provided by Chantelle Sturt of VIZ Media.
