MANGA REVIEW | "Rainbows After Storms" - Volume Five
Recently, I’ve noticed that manga that have our main leads already dating tend to be a mixed bag. Sometimes it leads to some great storytelling, like in How Do We Relationship? and Fly Me to the Moon. But sometimes, having our main pair in love at the get-go could cause the author to be backed into a corner, such as with You and I Are Polar Opposites. So where does Rainbows After Storms find itself? After reading the fifth volume, I’m starting to think it could lead to something very intriguing.
For starters, let’s deal with where the last volume left its readers: with Nanoha and Chidori sharing their first kiss. Chidori is all flustered after it happened, with the scene playing in her head over and over again. While Nanoha seems to play it cool, her rock-solid exterior starts cracking as the summer break days keep counting down. Even when they share a booth together with their friends, there’s something that’s keeping them from addressing the emotions that are flowing through their hearts.
But it takes a conversation with their friend Kumako about her crush to finally address the situation. After she gives some solid advice to Kumako, Nanoha has a nice nonchalant talk with Chidori to calm their nerves. Of course, thinking back to those fireworks brings their shyness levels back to full force, to the point where they can’t even talk on the train ride home! Thankfully, with the fall semester about to begin, it’ll give the two a chance to fully talk more, right?
Alas, Rainbows After Storms has to give us a big old scare when Chidori starts ignoring Nanoha at school. And her reason for doing so is so, so dumb, landing probably in the Top Five Most Clichéd Reasons to Avoid Your Lover. Thankfully, they’ve got a lot more time to chat when they;re paired up at the school haunted house, where they reform their bond, clear the air, and even have themselves a second (and maybe third) kiss.
It’s after this where we meet another person who could derail Nanoha and Chidori’s happy relationship: the former basketball player, Mai. She and Nanoha were on the same team years ago, but Nanoha stepped away when she lost interest. As such, Chidori found herself wanting to leave, but her natural skills kept her playing on the team. When a knee injury sidelines Mai, it gives her the push to quit and hopefully rekindle her friendship with Mai.
Not only does that friendship get rekindled, but Nanoha brings Mai into the Literature Club fold. Her presence doesn’t shake anything up just yet, but her chats with Nanoha about lacking a best friend and similar topics hint that Mai wants something far more. The question is, will she find a way to push Chidori away via any means necessary? I can’t quite say for sure, but there’s something definitely running through Mai’s brain that isn’t quite kosher.
Things go a bit slow in the fifth volume of Rainbows After Storms. However, I do like that we’re seeing a good progression in Chidori and Nanoha’s relationship. On top of that, the addition of Mai to the storyline could lead to some good conflicts that this series needs in order to stay interesting. While it doesn’t reach the same level of goodness as the fourth volume, Rainbows After Storms still finds a way to be one very interesting read.
FINAL GRADE:
Promotional consideration provided by Chantelle Sturt of VIZ Media.
