I'm not too versed in manga but i would like to drop a couple of cents.
I really liked it specially because
no one is clearly in the wrong or clearly in the right.
It felt like real people being an emotional mess with their hopes, doubts and insecurities. The situations seem very realistic although i feel the mangaka, even allowing for Japan's cultural differences, exaggerated reactions (or lack thereof) from the characters in order to take the story where he wanted.
At the end I really liked the way Jun
resolved the emotional affair with Mayama by understanding the nature of her feelings for him. It shows that Jun understood that the main appeal of Mayama was that with him she escaped the routine, the day to day, the hardships of a life together. Just passion and discovery, as if she was back in her early twenties. Even with all that happened in her marriage, she understood that the bond she built with Take (and I'm not talking sunken cost fallacy here) is precious and should not be taken for granted, specially after he started to rely and communicate with her. I still think that she should've come clean but I also think that if Take asked her if anything was going on with Mayama she would've been truthful.
I also liked the way Take
figured out that something was up with Mayama and, upon seeing the hickey he did not press Jun on it. If he had asked, I think Jun would've confessed and that would bring them both pain. Also later when he hears the high-school girls he finally settled his feelings concerning the affair as he understood that Jun had made her choice. Finally when seeing Mayama at the funeral it's almost as if he thanked him because the affair allow Jun to figure out where she really wanted to be. He showed a lot of growth and self-reflection by setting Jun free of any possessiveness.
As for Mayama he really was a
kid living with his parents that fell in love for the first time and was infatuated by the way Jun reacted to him. It really was the definition of puppy love without any clue of what a life together means other than BuT I LoVe Her! Not even the way she acted at the end, giving him hope with those passionate kisses just for her to feel desired for the last time was enough for him to understand his role in her heart. Only when he saw Take and Jun at the funeral he understood that their bond was stronger than the passion he shared with her. When he faced Take it felt like a 'please take care of her' more than anything. While some people consider Mayama a main character, I think he was merely a device for Jun to evaluate her life with Take and it was a perfect at that.
So all in all I think this was a relatively good drama with realistic thoughts, actions and reactions from real people.
