Tenshi no Uta Review

Tenshi no Uta is a manga by Makimura Kumi. It has 38 chapters with a couple of side stories. The series was published in 1997 so the art was really different from today's (but I love old series and their art). I started reading it last night and finished it this morning. This series reminded me of Kaikan Phrase because they have the same theme, music industry. I don't usually like plots that revolve around the entertainment industry because it's really complicated and all, dramatic if I may add BUT there are really good series that are definitely worth the shot to read. I won't mention them but there's just one series that I didn't finish and just jumped to the ending though I might read it again someday, it's One (not The One, okay? They're different. I like The One more).

Anyway, I was just browsing some series that would make me feel good but this one seemed interesting so I thought, why not. The story is about a talented girl named Mayu who was a big fan of Kurashiki Yuya, a popular singer and during one of his concert where she attended, she got into a fight with his boyfriend then in unbelievable (not really) struck of fate, the two of them met in a karaoke place where Mayu was singing Yuya's songs and spent time together. Of course, they met again but this time Mayu was already an upcoming singer. 

My summary maybe a bit misleading and really not complete but I don't want to spoil anyone because that's for another paragraph. It's just an overview. She met a lot of people along the way. I wouldn't say that I really super duper adored this series as much as Kaikan Phrase and I really don't like comparing but this series left lingering impression on me enough to write a review about. (I didn't write one for Kaikan Phrase but it was really good, give it a try if you haven't read it).

Do I recommend it? Well, if you like old style of drawing and doesn't mind characters like Mayu then you might enjoy this series. No, I don't hate Mayu. She's not annoying, weak (in my opinion) plus she's kind. I just think she's a character that is in my neutral zone. The plot is good, there were things I didn't expect and it really showed Mayu's growth as a singer. It was also realistic to the point that I saw the things in another light like the opening acts and (spoiler) disbanding Dessert. As for the art, Yuya's appearance changed throughout the entire series but in the end, he looked the same as they first met. Many may have been disappointed in some part of the series or felt that it lost its potential but I think the whole series was beautiful though there were still aspects that seemed lacking to me.

Also, if you're looking for heavy romance then don't pick this series. It's not the super romantic kind of thing but I don't think it was necessary anyway. For the ending, it was a happy one but this series was tagged as tragedy. So yes, I recommend this especially if you're into music/entertainment industry types of manga.

Full blown spoilers ahead:

I'm going to start with the ending, I really liked the last scene where there were cherry blossoms and Yuya and Mayu hugged. I wasn't that touched but looking back at it, it was somewhat really beautiful and no, I didn't really ship them. I like Tougo more to be honest but then I don't really ship him with Mayu. The ending was a bit vague but it was mostly likely that Yuya and Mayu ended up together. The extra chapter confirmed it. Yuya and Mayu married and they had a daughter. Both of them were still famous. That extra chapter kinda reminded me of Kare Kano extra chapter too because it had the same concept, the daughter fell in love with one of the parent's friend.

Moving on, I think this line perfectly summed up my feelings for this series. Hearts are such fickle things. I don't mean it in a bad sense and to me, it was somewhat a reality. I like Yuya more than ON. I even thought maybe this is the feeling of the people who didn't got what they wanted and I meant by wanted as the two people they wanted to end up with did not end up together but then those thoughts were quickly washed away. No, it wasn't because ON died. It's just the thought that feelings can change was stronger.

I'm just going to leave that at that. Anyway, about On's death, I think the author planned him to die and Mayu was really going to end up with Yuya. I didn't really felt his death was too heartbreaking and not because I liked Yuya more. It was a twist I didn't expect but there was some sort of feeling because apart from that one time, they were not shown as lovers. Well, Mayu loved On. I didn't doubt it. Let's just say it was an inkling feeling.

For me, the scene that I liked the most was the disbandment of Dessert. It was realistic and I felt really sad because maybe I'm more into a band than to a solo and the feelings they had were delivered right through my heart.

If you like bands, music, or anything along those kind of plots, this is one of them.

I wanted more background of Mayu and the others as they weren't clearly shown but all in all, it was a good story