Hello
안녕하세요
(Annyeonghaseyo)
こんにちは
(Konnichiwa)
你好
(Ni Hao)
Given is a Japanese BL manga series written and illustrated by Natsuki Kizu.
It has been serialized in the bimonthly manga magazine Cheri+ since 2013 and has been collected into 9 tankobon volumes by Shinshokan.
Volume 2 was published January 30, 2016 in Japan and May 12, 2020 in English.
The series has been adapted multiple times, with an audio drama in 2016, an 11-episode anime series in 2019, an anime film in 2020, and a live-action drama in 2021.
The series follows a group of four students in an amateur rock band and the dual romantic relationships that form among them: between electric guitarist Ritsuka Uenoyama and vocalist Mafuyu Sato, and between bassist Haruki Nakayama and drummer Akihiko Kaji.
Love of music unites the four members of the band Given: hot-headed guitarist Uenoyama, playboy drummer Akihiko, gentle bassist Haruki, and Mafuyu, a singer gifted with great talent and burdened by past tragedy. Their struggles and conflicts may drive them apart, but their bond to the music - and to one another - always brings them back together again.
As the band races toward their first live concert, Mafuyu struggles to write lyrics for their new song but can't find the words to express the emotions burning within him. Meanwhile, Uenoyama hears rumours about Mafutu's past and is bewildered by his won feelings. The tension builds until the night of the show, when the band explodes into a raging, life-changing performance.
Volume 2 is the perfect continuation of the story, we get to see a lot more of Mafuyu's past and his relationship with his childhood friends Hiragi Kashima and Yuki Yoshida. We see how Mafayu and Yuki's relationship developed in more and how they needed one another. But even though Mafuyu was in love with Yuki, he still felt lonely. We learn why he feels so much guilt about having Yuki's guitar as well as how Yuki's death came about and why.
We get to see how Ueunoyama's feelings start developing more and how he begins to come to terms with how he feels for Mafuyu, even asking advice from fellow bandmate Akihiko.
We get to meet Ugetsu Murata, who is Akihiko's roommate, but when we meet him it's indicated that there is more between them than just normal roommates.
There's nothing in the way of things developing with Hikaru and Akihiko, only that they try to push both Mafuyu and Uenoyama in the right direction for their first ever show. Akihiko seems to take Mafuyu under his wing, which to me shows that he's had the same struggles as Mafuyu in that he's sometimes found it hard to put words to his emotions and has overcome them to some extent.
I love how Natsuki Kizu drew their performance, even while reading you can feel Mafuyu's emotion's, his guilt, his heartache and his loneliness as well as everyone finally beginning to understand and accept him. The addition of flashback throughout this section helps the reader to feel those emotions too. We also get to see Mafuyu accept that he's able to move on without forgetting his first love.
I love that we get a little bonus story after the main plot of volume 2 that follows Mafuyu and Yuki to the beach, and it connects perfectly to the main story.
To repeat what I said when I posted a bout Volume 1. I will always recommend this series as I love the characters and the story, it touches on a lot of topics that people often try to push to one side, like mental health, suicide and sexuality, especially when it comes to school age.
It's one of my favourite series' in the BL genre as well as overall, it's definitely one of my favourites to read all over again.
See you soon!
안녕
(Annyeong)
さようなら
(Sayonara)
再见
(ZaiJian)
Bye
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