The ending was meh, all I feel is a profound sense of anti-climax, like having an argument fizzle out before you could even get heated about it. Still, the symbolism is nice if you're the type that reads manga for that...
Some good points. Some not so good points. Like how that cowardly man-child didn't even bloody confess. Come friggin on! Also those two completed each other!! Why did I bother anticipating the ending would be more satisfying?
NO BIG SPOILERS HERE. Small ones that may warp how you view the manga chapter by chapter if you're not done reading it yet though.
Just caught up to reading this since I noticed it finished. It felt like it got axed not gonna lie. The ending was a bit too out of no where and lacked proper build up, hinting, anticipation, foreshadowing, ETC!
That said, you could also tell the author had been planning the ending for a while at least. The build up of the chapters felt like the author got to maybe half way or 2/3rds of the way into the story they wanted to tell, but then had to rush to the ending because it got axed. If you take some creative liberty with imagining what the last 1/3rd could look like, the result of the ending makes sense even if how we got there is definitely forced and rushed as it currently is.
Honestly this manga could've been 8/10 or even a strong 9/10 if the author had the time to fully flesh out the narrative & characters to the max. Would've been 6/10 if the ending didn't make ANY sense or was WAY too rushed, but as it currently stands I just see it as the author got a bit unlucky in getting axed
and not appealing to the cheap romance that most audiences seem to want based on what I've briefly read in these comments.
The result of the ending makes sense and the build up towards it was on the right track, there just wasn't enough time to do everything since it got axed, so all things considered it's a 7/10 for me.
And now for some slight rants towards other commenters
The way the author wrote this story, I was guessing they never intended to let the MCs be together. And that's OK! In fact it's brilliant even. The message I was taking away while I was reading most of the time was that Akira was simply escaping from reality and running away from her problems. Her boss and working at GARDEN was just her escape zone from life. And that's ok, but eventually people need to stand up and run forward instead of running away. The story was never about romance from the beginning. It was always about not running away from your problems. Sometimes you do, even have to, but in the end we all need to face life head on at some point. And as someone who watched the anime before reading the manga, even the open ending in the anime had the same message.
The message was never about love conquering the age gap. Even though the Japanese name is "Falling in Love After the Rain", it's about love for their passions (running, writing, beautician, etc.) in this case. The actual message is that even when you take shelter and have to weather the storm (bad things happening in life), you should still get back up and run forward instead of running away from your problems and reality forever. Even the Manager stopped running from what needed to be done. He faced Akira and sent her off on the path she needed to go on, and he went forward with his own life passions.
@mexican1991
I actually think the Manager had a fine ending as well.
Of course he's still divorced and his child is with the mother, but he's happier after his experience with Akira than before by a marginal amount. He's working towards his dream and felt she was a positive impact on his child too. If anything there would only be hardships and confused emotions going forward if he and Akira fully embraced each other. It's the easy way out, so it's actually the good ending that they both took on the hardships of their lives and started running forward again.
And thank you to the scanlators for your hard work.
They were obviously never going to end up together, it's made clear from the start. Them not ending together isn't a problem for me, but would have liked to see more success from Kondo.
Also I think just watching the anime is perfectly alright for this series. It leaves the future as uncertain but hopeful and ends on a pretty good note. I liked the anime end better than the manga end. It leaves stuff to your own imagination but clearly tells you what will probably happen in the future.
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Mod Note: Please use spoiler tags when talking about chapter-specific or future events.
What a bittersweet finale. Didn't expect to be like that, to be honest. I had saw the anime before reading the manga and they were so different in the progression that I thought it would end like... you know. But wow, just wow.
Thanks a lot to the translator for doing such an excellent work!
I really loved the symbolisms in this manga, I think it was beautiful, really. Although the ending seems a bit rushed, it won't change the fact that the overall story was good. Also nowadays I'm quite addicted to age gap mangas, can someone give me some recommendations? Lol, thanks a bunch💖👌~
To anyone who is put off by the age gap concept but decided to check the comments section: give it a chance. You'll be more content with the story and conclusion than you suspect. If you absolutely won't be convinced without a confirmation or denial:
they don't end up together. The romance is a vehicle for the themes of the story. It doesn't get gross. The story is worth reading.
Bittersweet. A perfect kind of bittersweet. Like both preferred coffee, it's either a full black coffee or a black coffee with sugar, depends from which perspective. The fucking symbolism is top notch. Still, can't help but feel that the ending was petty rushed lmao
bullshit manga. the man doesn't act like a man and the girl doesn't act like a girl. and if you think 17 is too young for a man of any age then you don't understand men or women.
Came here from Kowloon Generic Romance after people kept mentioning this series in every KGR-related threads I see on the net. The age gap is a big turnoff but I'll trust y'alls words on this and try it myself.