Ok, just a bit of warning, I will put up some spoilers in here. But I'll start off with a spoiler free review then move on to a spoiler review. I'll put up "SPOILERS" right before I start the 2nd review to warn you guys. Also, another warning, I like to babble a lot so this may be a pretty lengthy review.

Ok, here we go. In case you don't know, this manga is a sequel to one of Seo's first works and quite possibly the very manga that made Seo as famous as he is today: Suzuka. The fact that we got a sequel to this 10+ year old manga is insane. The main protagonists of Suzuka's daughter is the main character of this manga, and the title is basically all about this character: Fuuka. Let me tell you that Fuuka, as a character, starts off being quite similar to Suzuka in the sense that Fuuka inherited the tsudere trait of Suzuka which is shown in like the 2nd panel of the manga. Then we have Yuu Haruna, a quiet, shy kid who is obsessed with his phone and afraid of facing the real world. Of course our two protagonists, Yuu and Fuuka, meet up and start being friends. In my opinion, the development of Fuuka and Yuu throughout this manga was amazing. I can say with sincerity that this manga was going to be my favorite manga with how it was going, the story was easily a 10 for me, art is great, nice and smooth and easy to see what's going on. I mean, this is a romance manga so it's not like we'll get some crazy action-packed panels. And the characters, although Yuu is quite on the shy side, his development with Fuuka and how he progresses throughout the story is such a beautiful sight to see. Not to mention that Yuu helped Fuuka as well find her dreams. I apologize but I can't really explain WHY I really love this manga without spoiling it, but I'll tell you that if you liked Suzuka and Kimi no iru machi, Fuuka is an amazing manga for you. Fuuka is just such a joyful girl, it would be impossible to not like her. Now that I've gone through this, you're probably wondering, why is my story, enjoyment and overall scores so low compared to what I'm saying here? Well, it's actually because the story takes a massive turn at around chapter 30. I mean, an INSANE twist happens. While many might consider this twist to be genius, I can't help but say that it ruined the plot almost completely. The pacing for the first 30 or so chapters was at a slightly faster pace than usual Seo works, but that's what set Fuuka apart from Kimi no iru machi and Suzuka. However, once this unexpected twist happens, the story goes on a halt, and basically goes at an EXTREMELY slow pace. I really have so much sympathy for the people who had to wait a week to read the chapters after the twist, cuz I'll tell you that I marathoned the 71 chapters of this manga thus far and even I got depressed reading the digustingly paced chapters. There were a few new surprises after the incident around chapter 30, but the story and enjoyment simply went completely downhill all the way to where I am now. Now for the recommendation. If you have read Suzuka before, I'll warn you. Fuuka might ruin your experience with Suzuka. Reading Suzuka before Fuuka will simply make the feels worse than they already were, but I'd still recommend reading suzuka first anyways since it's the prequel and a lot of things in the Fuuka manga will make more sense that way. If you're not someone who enjoys unexpected twists, you have been warned. Alright, that's all I gotta say for the spoiler-free section.


"SPOILERS"




What the FUUK. What the FUUK. Seo. Really? REALLY? You guys know what I'm talking about. Fuuka's...mother...FUUKING...death. I found it so hard to believe when I whitnessed it, and I have to say I feel so sorry for you guys who had to endure it when it first was revealed way back in october. Luckily, I marathoned this manga so I'm not as hurt. But still, Fuuka was such an AMAZING character. She is the very reason that makes me rate this manga a 10 for characters. My lord. She's cheerful, she's mature, she's a tsudere but not nearly as much as suzuka, AND she was the one to kiss Yuu FIRST!!! She's not the average scared, girly MC. AGH! And then after she died, the plot moves into some generic, tragic musical where one band member takes over the dream of the band member that died... the romance is gone, the pacing disappeared, AND, we didn't even get to see Yamato and Suzuka's reaction TO THEIR OWN DAUGHTER'S DEATH. WHY??? This manga had so much potential. If Seo was trying to be different, THIS BAND CONCEPT SIMPLY ISN'T WORKING. I mean, I know a school romance is generic too but that's what Seo IS KNOWN FOR BEING AMAZING AT. And with such a delicate character like Fuuka too...WHY? I can't imagine how the Suzuka fans from like 2005 feel after knowing that the baby that stopped Suzuka and Yamato from pursing their dreams DIED AT THE AGE OF 15. COME ON SEO. Fuuka has been built up so much, from the suzuka specials to the kimi no iru machi cameos. And guess what? We got a Fuuka clone? Fuuka Aoi? What the actual FUUK IS GOING ON? Well, at least Fuuka Aoi seems to be a pretty nice character thus far. Nothing really to hate about her honestly, but mostly because she hasn't really done anything drastic yet to progress the plot. If Fuuka Aoi eventually becomes the main heroine for this series, I'm not sure how I'll feel. The only thing I want right now is a supernatural tag to be added in, where Fuuka's soul will somehow be connected with Fuuka Aoi's soul, and they're memories can connect or something like that. Well, sorry that this turned out being more of a personal rant, but this is the spoiler section after all, not like this part can help newcomers or anything. Hopefully the series picks up the pace soon.