Shonen Beam

[scanlation by SleepyFans]

The focus of the Jump cover is mostly to promote the anime, but the artwork is still nice.

This bold declaration from Mashiro is still worrying. Regardless of how realistic this scenario could possibly be, I read this series in hopes of seeing Ashirogi Muto succeed, not Mashiro and Takagi each.

Unusual yet interesting decision to have the two arguing / heatedly discussing while on bicycles. It’s different, but it works; the speed lines accentuate the passion of the conversation, but they aren’t out of place, because the characters actually are moving.

Some action to complement the mounds of text

Watching Mashiro race against the clock in an attempt to improve his drawing speed is surprisingly exciting. This is about as close to a training arc as Bakuman can get, and it’s being pulled off well.

Takagi needs to open up to Kaya more. Clearly, she is the predominant voice of reason.

Moriya is exactly the type to sneak around behind everyone’s back and visit with a different publisher. I hope the focus on this storyline remains somewhat limited, because I don’t want him turning into another Shiratori, but this definitely has potential.

Excellent running gag

Speaking of Shiratori, we’re being “treated” to more pages of his family life. As with other recent Shiratori development, it’s not that the content of these pages is poor when viewed individually, but it’s how this is meant to matter so much after introducing Shiratori so recently. He’s too new of a character to carry serious drama like this.

Moriya not only spilled the beans about Ashirogi being the penname of a duo rather than a single mangaka, but he also divulged how each of them are seeking new projects. The fact that Ashirogi is a duo never seemed to be a fiercely-guarded secret, but Manaka’s reaction and Moriya’s resulting worry makes it seem as though some important plot will unfold as a result of this knowledge being made available to the competition.

Shiratori is sleeping outside, in the cold, with a dog. This is a surprising yet critical dip in writing quality from Ohba. Continuously throwing sad scenes at the readers isn’t going to help legitimize Shiratori whatsoever. If the plot involving him is really this vital, he should have been developed over dozens of chapters; now that we’re in this scenario, though, with an underdeveloped character already receiving such strong attention, the best thing to do is to relax a little and let Shiratori settle in to the ensemble cast. Instead, Ohba is continuing to force him into prominent scenes where he just doesn’t feel right, and as a result, this entire arc is continuing to disappoint.

Blizzard, pneumonia, next arc

Final Flash: “Too much Shiratori” is an overused complaint, but it still applies. Aside from that, watching Mashiro improve was fun.