Yamada and Kase-san. - Ch. 31 - Hickey and Kase-san (part 2)

[Purplelibraryguy]

All these commenters who apparently have been locked in a basement and told they're not allowed to leave until they read and comment on the Kase-san manga. At least, that's my internal explanation for why most of them aren't just . . . not reading it.

 

[Justus44]

I'm not a literature critic or anything, but I think that people calling out author for "terrible writing" just cause they don't like some actions of some chararters are a bit narrow-minded. I at least find it belivable, cause I saw real people acting way more weird/stupid, especially when it comes to relationships.
Glad to see Yamada speaking her heart, hope she'll push her case at least once more and receive a proper apology, not just self-satisfied grin of her lover next time.

 

[LadyTyche]

The moment that was definetily bizarre to any normal person reading was agreeing to a bet that would decide if you could move in with the person you supposedly love or not.

It sounds like a lot of criticism people have stems from the fact that the author writes Kase and Yamada as if they are twelve year olds dating, not women in college. I can understand it if a story is about stupid people, autistic people, dramatic people etc. causing trouble for themselves, but the fundamental weirdness of the storytelling here is that the author is writing about two twenty-ish year old women with a romantic, emotional, and sexual intelligence below middle schoolers. The story pushes the goofy pure trope a little too far.

If you are starting to not enjoy the series it could be that you can no longer suspend disbelief that two people could be that pure and stupid. I.e. dating for that long at that age and being at first base.

 

[Dzimitory92]

That's the prime example of forced drama here. When you just have no idea how to continue the story without finishing it too soon, so you're dragging the hell out of it. And cause of the light-hearted mood of the manga, you can't just put some serious stuff in the plot, so you're stuck with 'oh, I'm so jeaslous in n-th time' or 'oh, I can't leave the dorm cause of some hilariously stupid reason' and so on. What can I say? I don't envy the author.
P.S. what other mangakas do in such cases, they introduce a side couple. May be it's time for that.

 

[Sir_Grate]

I think part of what we're seeing here is the inevitable clashing of the need for escalating tension to keep the plot moving forward and the author's own unwillingness to truly make one of the main characters out to be a bad guy for once. Now we're in this awkward situation where Kase is clearly in the wrong here and clearly needs to stop what she's doing and readjust, but the author won't let her because that would make her seem in the wrong, and that can't happen.

The one saving grace this arc could've had is for Yamada to actually get mad at Kase and not have it resolved in 5 seconds, but I'm worried that this quick "hug it out" scene is meant to be the entire resolution to the issue. At this point, I see essentially two paths forward to salvage this: 1) Kase immediately rejects her AND calls off the race. That second part is essential, because if after the real circumstances come to light she STILL goes through with possibly staying with someone she KNOWS has a crush on her to not be with her girlfriend is just UNEXCUSABLE to the point that any kind of reconciliation would basically shatter all suspension of disbelief.
Option 2) is that Kase gives her a non-hard rejection/ignores the problem/acts like there was no confession and continues with the race. In this case, Yamada MUST find out and HAS to blow up, I mean get actually seriously mad at Kase for once, really tear into her. Genuinely think they'd have to break up at this point for it to work, at least until they work out their stuff for a few arcs (which pains me to say bc I love them both so much together, but this is the position the author forced us into, I wouldn't have done it but here we are). Anything less than that and honestly the storyline will just feel like not only a huge waste of time for the smallest level of development but also like the story has literally no stakes anymore, which means any drama at all in the future will have no weight.

 

[danianiii]

Kase needs to open her damn eyes and realise she can't keep going with the flow at the cost of Yui's love and mental health. I find it ridiculous how she simply agreed to racing against her dumb selfish roommate knowing how much moving in together means to Yui. It doesn't matter that you know if you'll win or not. Why would you jeopardize your own relationship, that means so much to you, just to cater to a selfish girl's desires? Why would you hurt your own partner like this? Kase needs to grow up and step outside her bubble. Other people are affected by her actions. Racing makes it seem like her moving in with Yui isn't that serious. If it was serious, why would she risk not moving in?? Because of someone who has nothing to do with her relationship? It's just so self-centred. Kase is selfish. She seriously needs to grow up if she doesn't want to lose Yui for good. I'm proud of Yui for standing up for herself and for being honest and vulnerable about her feelings and insecurities. It takes a lot courage. We'll see what happens on the next chapter but my expectations are literally on the floor.

 

[NoobGuyRuby]

Oh noes, unnecessary gay drama. Give me back the fluffiness.

I wish
This chapter is pretty problematic though in terms of writing and that's where the drama stems from...
Still it's better for people to unanimously agree on a thing rather than a metric fuck ton of toxic infighting over characters and ships.

 

[NoobGuyRuby]

I think part of what we're seeing here is the inevitable clashing of the need for escalating tension to keep the plot moving forward and the author's own unwillingness to truly make one of the main characters out to be a bad guy for once. Now we're in this awkward situation where Kase is clearly in the wrong here and clearly needs to stop what she's doing and readjust, but the author won't let her because that would make her seem in the wrong, and that can't happen.

The one saving grace this arc could've had is for Yamada to actually get mad at Kase and not have it resolved in 5 seconds, but I'm worried that this quick "hug it out" scene is meant to be the entire resolution to the issue. At this point, I see essentially two paths forward to salvage this: 1) Kase immediately rejects her AND calls off the race. That second part is essential, because if after the real circumstances come to light she STILL goes through with possibly staying with someone she KNOWS has a crush on her to not be with her girlfriend is just INEXCUSABLE to the point that any kind of reconciliation would basically shatter all suspension of disbelief.
Option 2) is that Kase gives her a non-hard rejection/ignores the problem/acts like there was no confession and continues with the race. In this case, Yamada MUST find out and HAS to blow up, I mean get actually seriously mad at Kase for once, really tear into her. Genuinely think they'd have to break up at this point for it to work, at least until they work out their stuff for a few arcs (which pains me to say bc I love them both so much together, but this is the position the author forced us into, I wouldn't have done it but here we are). Anything less than that and honestly the story-line will just feel like not only a huge waste of time for the smallest level of development but also like the story has literally no stakes anymore, which means any drama at all in the future will have no weight.

100% agree
But unfortunately seeing how the story has been written up until now path 1 most likely (like 90% sure) won't happen.
Path 2 is more likely but Yamada seriously blowing up and/or breaking up with Kase won't happen.
And let's say Yamada does blow up on her the author will most likely brush the problem off with another hug/make out scene instead of actually writing a proper solution, which is really unfortunate since I really do love this manga and I wish the author though about this more. Even if you don't have any experience with romance (like me) you can still use common sense and think...

 

[NoobGuyRuby]

Also I think what makes this situation so much more rage inducing is that (even though it's the magazines fault) it takes so much time for a chapter to come out only to get this hot mess of a writing.
I honestly love this manga with all my heart but it's kinda sad seeing the author make Kase seem like such a non-caring partner who is also kinda possessive (saying this is general not specifically to this chapter) and Yamada is kinda too quite about this whole ordeal. I think most people in that situation would either complain more to the problematic partner (Kase) or just out-right go to Fukami and chew her out.
But the funny thing is that this whole situation could have been avoided if Kase wasn't such a dumbass and just refused Fukami's challenge. There was no risk to that option! It's Kase's life, she can make her own decisions, she isn't tied to Fukami in any way shape or form and she has a lover that should take priority in her life ffs.

 

[NoobGuyRuby]

I'm not a literature critic or anything, but I think that people calling out author for "terrible writing" just cause they don't like some actions of some characters are a bit narrow-minded. I at least find it believable, cause I saw real people acting way more weird/stupid, especially when it comes to relationships.
Glad to see Yamada speaking her heart, hope she'll push her case at least once more and receive a proper apology, not just self-satisfied grin of her lover next time.

Of course you are free to have your own opinions (though that's rare on the internet), But as I see it the terrible writing here is not because of certain actions but because this whole situation feels like forced drama that was handled badly.

In terms of acting weird, we're talking about 2 grown-up, college age women. who you would guess have some emotional and logical thinking that surpasses a middle schooler's.. okay that's harsh but accepting a challenge race from your roommate when the stakes are so high (from a romantic relationship's side) is more than weird or stupid.
Not only Yamada's lease on her apartment runs out soon, but also the apartment they were searching long and hard for that seemed really good for them got sold to other people.
Not only that but in the unlikely event that Kase loses (cause y'know she's an MC), not only she will "have" to stay in the dorms with a person that has a crush on her but also what will happen to Yui? will she have to just look for a new place while living somewhere or just continue her lease and further delaying her and Kase's plan to live together?

This whole ordeal is a huge mess that was just unnecessary for the story and that's why people are upset.
Of course you don't have to accept this reasoning, believe what you will, I'm just offering what I believe is the unanimously agreed upon problem that lies with this chapter in hopes to broaden your views..

 

[NoobGuyRuby]

Honestly I think if the author makes Kase lose the race in the next chapter or makes and her lose and somehow provides a solution that makes the whole situation irreverent (for example Fukami giving up on the challenge after seeing Yamada and Kase together or something like that) will make a lot of people waaaaay more upset

 

[SrNevik]

It sounds like a lot of criticism people have stems from the fact that the author writes Kase and Yamada as if they are twelve year olds dating, not women in college. I can understand it if a story is about stupid people, autistic people, dramatic people etc. causing trouble for themselves, but the fundamental weirdness of the storytelling here is that the author is writing about two twenty-ish year old women with a romantic, emotional, and sexual intelligence below middle schoolers...

Yes, this is the actual issue. It comes up a lot in other series as well. The writer has a lane and a type of character they know how to write (and likely read). The problem is they've aged these characters out of that range and set them into new settings but the writing has not been able to withstand it. The writer is showing their limitations. Much of this stuff can get a pass with high school teens (even then it's a stretch) but once you age up your characters (and have them in such a long-term relationship) the audience rightly begins to expect more from you and accepts less. Suspension of disbelief becomes even more tenuous. It works if you just continue to pretend these are still high school girls with no romantic experience, though. At this point, that's what I've been doing. The writer just wanted a new setting and scenery but everything is operating as it did in high school. This could be a Middle-School/High School setting and very little would be different.

There's also that many of these situations are nearly 1-to-1 with earlier events in their relationship. So even ignoring their new adult setting, you'd expect some these moments to play out differently. Yet they mostly go as expected. The most difference you get is Yamada "standing up for herself," which actually means she meekly says a sentence, then regrets it immediately.

 

[Doit]

Alright I had hopes for this chapter but now I'm disappointed. It's good Yamada voiced her concerns to Kase but I was expecting her concerns to be "you're taking this race too seriously/Fukami doesn't really have any authority over you/you're jeopardizing our relationship over a stupid bet" not "I'm jealous of your roommate" (although by this point it's a valid concern).
I'm really hoping Kase calls on Fukami's bullshit because I'm growing tired of this.

I'll elaborate on why I don't like this arc:
The premise of this arc is something I was actually excited about, the author didn't sugarcoat how difficult it can be to get a good apartment in a metropolitan area, I liked that the whole process felt realistic with Yamada busting her ass to get a decent place to live, it also shows a great deal of growth from her, from being not very convinced to study outside her hometown to taking care of all the bureaucracy that changing living arrangements entails, go Yamada! The problem is, in this realistic and honestly highly relatable premise, the characters are acting waaaay too immature for young adults! Specially Kase! Like what the hell! I think any of us who has ever been in Yamada's situation would have gone absolutely ballistic at Kase, that's why it's so frustrating to see her react this way.

Anyways, let's hope next chapter puts us closer to the end of this arc because Jesus Christ we deserve it.

 

[SeekingSolace]

HUGE bruh moment right there

 

[Xenpachii]

I feel like a bit of an outlier here haha 🥲 I recognize that Yamada and Kase are in college now but they're not even old enough to drink yet, they're still young and very inexperienced imo. As a person who has coworkers around that age this kind of "drama" is so... Common. A lot of young people will agree to things based on pressure but they are super susceptible to peer pressure specifically. I 100% agree that Kase is in the wrong here and she should have called off the race immediately upon learning it was causing Yamada distress; however I also remember that she ultimately agreed in the first place because both her senpai and other members of the track team talked her in to it. And "team" is the key word here. Track is, like most sports not a solo affair, so being a loner or being ostracized from the "team" can and will effect her college career regardless of how good a runner she is. Social isolation is hell to endure in college and having gf who loves you is in no way a good replacement for having peaceful social life. I think the author could have portrayed this better if they then focused more on the dynamic and ultimate balance one must learn to strike between peer pressure and the expectations of others vs one's individual desires and personal goals.

She needs to reject her roommate ASAP though. There is no excuse not to especially after Yamada told her she was worried about it.

 

[nightshine]

I don't know how you people think this is bad writing. I have felt Yamada insecurities before in a relationship, that is just legit how some people are. The important thing is that the story never drags it on and we get some nice make up moments, and it's never a 1:1 misunderstanding or jealousy moment. Hell, if anything I'd say the writing has gotten better since the original manga. They actually feel like they have goals for each other, and it's not simply crushing on each other. Kase is a great character because she is always checking on Yamada and communicating with her as much as she can.

Fukami being slandered like this is also really perplexing because I'd argue she is the only real dimensional character outside the main couple. Like ya hate her for being a dick about loving Kase the way she does, but she is written well enough. This manga is legit just a slow burn, it always has been.

 

[NoobGuyRuby]

I don't know how you people think this is bad writing. I have felt Yamada insecurities before in a relationship, that is just legit how some people are. The important thing is that the story never drags it on and we get some nice make up moments, and it's never a 1:1 misunderstanding or jealousy moment. Hell, if anything I'd say the writing has gotten better since the original manga. They actually feel like they have goals for each other, and it's not simply crushing on each other. Kase is a great character because she is always checking on Yamada and communicating with her as much as she can.

Fukami being slandered like this is also really perplexing because I'd argue she is the only real dimensional character outside the main couple. Like ya hate her for being a dick about loving Kase the way she does, but she is written well enough. This manga is legit just a slow burn, it always has been.

Don't get me wrong, I love this manga series it's one of my favourite Yuri manga but, me and other people expressed many reasons for why we believe the writing was sub-par the last few chapters (feel free to read the older comments they're very interesting tbh) and it basically boils down to forced drama handled badly / characters acting really stupid for the age they are.

One thing I have to mention is that I kinda disagree with Kase checking on Yamada and communicating with her part.
There have been (at least in my opinion) waaaay to many instances of them not voicing their problems and complaints and that leading to misunderstanding and anxieties (for example: the many, many times Kase though Yamada would break up with her for some small reason or another and being anxious instead of talking like a normal partner and then lo and behold it was all just a misunderstanding).

Back on topic; Fukami challenging Kase to a race, it's childish and dumb (cause like girl who are you to decide where Kase goes it's her life not yours) but you can sorta understand her. What I (and many people) don't understand is why Kase accepted the challenge?!
Girl, your lover's apartment lease is running out soon, she worked her ass off and found a really nice apartment for you in a place where it's nearly fucking impossible to do that, and you both are excited and can't wait to live together... so why ruin that?? Kase had no obligation to accept the challenge nor downside to refuse it...
A roommate's petty challenge (that has very risky stakes might I add) should not take priority above your lover for god's sake!
And in all honesty, good job to Yamada for finally complaining. But why are you complaining only about being jealous when you can.. I don't know... complain about this whole ass ordeal?

This whole thing would've been acceptable if they were still in High-school when they didn't have a lot of dating experience or heck, maybe even middle school. But this manga is set in the adult world! so dear author, please write them to act like adults!

The writer has a lane and a type of character they know how to write (and likely read). The problem is they've aged these characters out of that range and set them into new settings but the writing has not been able to withstand it. The writer is showing their limitations. Much of this stuff can get a pass with high school teens (even then it's a stretch) but once you age up your characters (and have them in such a long-term relationship) the audience rightly begins to expect more from you and accepts less. Suspension of disbelief becomes even more tenuous. It works if you just continue to pretend these are still high school girls with no romantic experience. The writer just wanted a new setting and scenery but everything is operating as it did in high school. This could be a Middle-School/High School setting and very little would be different.

There's also that many of these situations are nearly 1-to-1 with earlier events in their relationship. So even ignoring their and new adult setting, you'd expect some alterations to how these moments play out. Yet they mostly go as expected. The most you get is Yamada "standing up for herself," which actually means she meekly said a sentence, then regretted it immediately.

This comment describes perfectly my last point (I've chopped it up a bit to get the main points across).
I'm sorry this is such a long comment but I wanted to let you see why people who love this manga are upset, but that doesn't mean I'm trying to get you to change your opinion or tell you you're wrong. I love this manga too! it's just very upsetting to see a really nice, cute, and good story being brought down by dumb writing decisions... it feels like the author is trying to make up drama where it's not needed and that leaves an even worse taste in the mouth

 

[NoobGuyRuby]

I feel like a bit of an outlier here haha 🥲 I recognize that Yamada and Kase are in college now but they're not even old enough to drink yet, they're still young and very inexperienced imo. As a person who has coworkers around that age this kind of "drama" is so... Common. A lot of young people will agree to things based on pressure but they are super susceptible to peer pressure specifically. I 100% agree that Kase is in the wrong here and she should have called off the race immediately upon learning it was causing Yamada distress; however I also remember that she ultimately agreed in the first place because both her senpai and other members of the track team talked her in to it. And "team" is the key word here. Track is, like most sports not a solo affair, so being a loner or being ostracised from the "team" can and will effect her college career regardless of how good a runner she is. Social isolation is hell to endure in college and having gf who loves you is in no way a good replacement for having peaceful social life. I think the author could have portrayed this better if they then focused more on the dynamic and ultimate balance one must learn to strike between peer pressure and the expectations of others vs one's individual desires and personal goals.

She needs to reject her roommate ASAP though. There is no excuse not to especially after Yamada told her she was worried about it.

Ah very good point tbh, I haven't thought about the whole social aspect of this (what a blunder oof).
I feel like the author wouldn't make the track team hate/isolate Kase in the event she refused the challenge. She is clearly portrayed as being beloved by everyone and I feel like realistically speaking, people who love you wouldn't suddenly give you the cold shoulder(s) for moving out of the dorms.
After thinking about this a bit, I think Kase accepting the race would've been fine if she at least discussed it with Yamada a bit..
It's not like Fukami asked Kase for a race the next day, there was plenty of time to sit down with Yamada to discuss what to do and how to move forward. Though of course it's too late for that... unfortunate, but what can we lowly readers do but hope for a redemption chapter with more thought out writing.

 

[toberfam]

back at it again cuz the author just doesn't want any other type of drama ig. it's been jealousy the manga basically. disappointed

 

[KamoDoge]

Im kinda hoping this arc leads into Kase coming out, at least to Fukami, if not the other track team members. I mean Fukami confessing to her was pretty much a coming out moment as well. So lets have an actual discussion where Kase lays out how in love her and Yui are, how they plan to move in together, and that she doesnt have any feelings towards Fukami and she wants to stay friends, etc.

Honestly Fukami's confession feels like its a situation along the lines of, "I know my confession is doomed to be turned down, but Im doing it so I can hurry and get over my feeling and move on." Thats my current read on it anyway. Because after all Kase is super straight and already definitely has a boyfriend so there no way she'd date a girl right?