Kaguya-sama: Love is War (2017)

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Volume 7

Kaguya-sama: Love is War - Volume 7 (2017)

Author/Artist: Aka Akasaka
Publisher: Young Jump Comics

Synopsis:
Shirogane thinks of a way to ask Shinomiya to act as his campaign manager as he seeks reelection.

Story/Characters:
In series tradition, what should be a simple thing in asking Shinomiya for help ends up being a big production (with a little help from a vindictive Hayasaka). We then get the payoff of our leads getting into the same elective with a session in their art class. From there, we get a two-parter about Shirogane's eyes (observe his use of the Sparkly Eyes Technique), which bundles a lot of things together to great effect. Next is the introduction of Shirogane's challenger, the pint-sized Miko Iino. She's an interesting character, first coming off as an intrusive stick-in-the-mud (the very sort you'd expect to volunteer for the Disciplinary Committee), but she quickly presents other sides to herself, an admirable iron will but also a cute, awkward side. Her connection with Ishigami is going to play heavily into his plotline as it develops further and they make good foils for each other. I do like how Shirogane handles the debate with her. We bring things down on a silly note with the underwear chapter, which sets up a running gag of Iino walking in at just the right time to get a horrible misunderstanding of the situation.

Art:
The art maintains the standard you've come to expect. As always, the reaction shots are what make the series' visual delivery. There's some nice dynamism to the debate and you really feel the emotional punch of Iino's backstory.

Conclusion:
The election arc proves to be a fine way to introduce us to the fifth member of the main cast. We get laughs, drama and heart all in one nice package. Things are set up nicely for a new term of fun and misadventures, so look forward to that, and in the meantime, add this one to your collection.

Rating:
Own It