Basically, the story introduced a conflict unnecessarily, then resolved it in the stupidest way possible.
![]()
![]()
I'm just saying, I don't think either Matsuri wants see the other's O-face or fight over limited real estate. If Suzu has a second body, she can divide things equally while still feeling it all.
![]()
Once Lippy got rid of Suzu's inhibitions, I figured the only way to hold out was lust directed elsewhere.
Edited by thatother1dude on Jun 18th 2023 at 7:03:46 AM
Besides the lack of two color pages, there's a break one week earlier than normal. Yabuki posted on Twitter
that it's to compensate for working on "something else".
This is the first chapter of Volume 16, so even if that's the last volume, there will be either seven or eight chapters left (depending on if chapter 88.5 is included). Regardless of how Matsuri's gender is resolved, my biggest fear is there's no room to elaborate on the outcome because too much was spent on fighting.
Hmm, is there a reason to think this is the last volume? I mean, sure, it could be if this finally resolves things, but I was wondering if there was some reason to expect it.
I mean, the weakness coming out of nowhere is a bit silly, but the thing that caused it to come up would've scuttled the plan anyway—if Suzu works out that that's not Matsuri, then the sex plan would never get anywhere. So, it doesn't really change anything.
The real sign to me is the setup for Matsuri's gender to be a finalized issue in either direction. If boy Matsuri dies or stays separate from girl Matsuri, then we get a permanently-female Matsuri. If boy Matsuri survives to merge with girl Matsuri, we'll get a single, male Matsuri as soon as Shadow Mei decides to work with Kanade and Suzu—which this chapter showed she's almost ready to do.
I would like the series to continue well past then (with or without boy Matsuri alongside), to explore the consequences of (a) Matsuri being a girl for life, but story's been extremely averse to that specific idea. Conversely, I cannot imagine the manga continuing long without girl Matsuri, who's basically the face of the series in that specific form.
So, at first it was 'Get Shirogane to under the Gender Swap Awakened thing', but when it looked like that was going to be possible, Shirogane lost the power. Now we're at the point where Suzu + Co. could conceivably agree to undo it... but killing M. Matsuri would, if Matsuri's intuition is correct, stop that from ever happening. So, there's nothing to preclude chasing after a plan C.
Even if Kanade is likely to be the only one pushing super hard for it.
"Boy Matsuri dies as a means for the story to make Matsuri permanently female" is already weird, because an innocent person's life seems like the way more important issue.
"Boy Matsuri dies, but girl Matsuri can become male again anyway." would be infuriating. Even besides being a copout, it would make his death completely pointless.
I would think it depends on two key things: how it's done (if it's ever done), and if there were any more direct repercussions. Because I could certainly envisage a scenario where it's not really a matter of returning to being male, since that's not possible, and more trying to do the entire process in reverse... only, it's just the shrimp that wants it when it gets that far.
I could already tell that's what happened last chapter. Suzu's "swirly" eyes went away when she saw girl Matsuri texted her "I love you".
Even if it did, that would be another "infuriating" thing about it. This manga has killed almost no sympathetic characters whatsoever in the present timeframe, and hasn't even shown unnamed humans dying. Conversely, it's been heavily implied that Matsuri could still be happy without the transformation being undone. What is the takeaway of allowing that one but not the other?

No color page for chapter 133 after 45 in a row. How strange.
Despite last chapter's cliffhanger, Shadow Mei accomplished nothing at all.
Are we seriously supposed to believe Suzu loves both Matsuris equally? If so, this arc has done a terrible job showing it: Suzu has been uncomfortable in boy Matsuri's presence whenever he wasn't mind-controlled.
"Suzu demands a threesome or nothing" is funny in isolation, but every followup I can imagine is insanely dark. The best-case scenario is girl Matsuri pretends to consent to exorcise boy Matsuri or otherwise protect Suzu. Otherwise, the Gogyosen basically have to either have Lippy make them join in or force boy Matsuri onto Suzu.
The anime restarts next month, and even though we won't get to new episode until late August, the trailers include some new scenes. (Including ones adapted from chapters 26 and 27, after the Jinyo arc.)
Edited by thatother1dude on Jun 18th 2023 at 11:58:28 AM