Anonymous Noise Vol. 16 (Manga Review)
By: I.Am.No.Man
Review
In No Hurry is crushing their run at Rock Horizon Music Festival. Nino has found her new voice and is singing for herself for the first time. Yuzu even has a newfound courage as he spots his mother in the crowd. After years of facing her anger and cold disillusionment, it seems that Yuzu and his mother are reaching out to each other.
I will say, Yuzu's family life arc has been one of the stranger and more confusing story lines in Anonymous Noise. I never quite understood the drama going on behind the scenes but it seems that this will be Yuzu's redemption arc. He is trying to shake his mother out of her grief and denial while also stepping out from his father's shadow as well. Hopefully this arc can culminate in a happy ending for Yuzu and his mother.
After an all time high performance for In NO Hurry, the band ride the high for as long as possible. But it seems Yuzu has a surprise hidden up his sleeve. He asks the band to go on an indefinite hiatus. The band is left stunned, but trying to be supportive of Yuzu's needs, they ask for a night to think about it.
Yuzu's request to go on hiatus while he sorts out his home life hits each band member in different ways. Surprisingly, the usually fragile Nino is immediately on board and supportive of Yuzu's decision. Haru, who has been hiding from his feelings by giving his all to the band is the most conflicted by the decision. He knows that without the band he will have to face his feelings for An, and maybe his still lingering feelings for his sister in law. Ultimately, Haru agrees that the break will be good for everyone and gives his blessing to Yuzu.
After In No Hurry's public announcement and the shockwaves finally settle down, we find the group and their manager reflecting on the good times and hard nights that everyone has put in for each other. We see a flashback to the first time Yuzu approached their manager and the impressions his intensity and passion left with Yanai. Yanai recalls the firs time he heard In No Hurry's music and how he knew Yuzu would take the band to soaring heights.
The story ends on a hopeful and emotionally charged note as the band mates and friends move towards a new life that will hopefully bring them back together better than ever. The author and artist have definitely begun to set up the final arc story lines for each of the main characters. Nino is more determined than ever to find her new, independent voice. Yuzu has his redemption arc teed up nicely. Momo is even having second thoughts about letting Nino go and must now face the consequences. Even Haru has a happily ever after coming his was now that he has finally admitted his new feelings for school mate An. It seems he's almost completely forgotten about his old crush. Miou is once again barely present in this volume and I have the feeling that she will not have a major story line before the end.
Overall the manga did a fine job setting up the story for the next few volumes. The story in volume 16 moves at a rather breakneck speed. Unlike the previous rock horizon arc, we only get a brief burst of their ultimate performance. Which is fine with me! In the past I've made comments about how the story seemed to drag on unnecessarily, so the quick pace is almost a break from the norm. While I'm glad that many of the main characters are finally getting some character development and new story lines, I am a bit sad that some of the characters are only getting a quick gloss over. We barely got to know Kuro at all, Haru hasn't addressed his family problems since An came along, and Miou has all but disappeared. It will be interesting to see where all of our favorite characters end up in the next volume as they each deal with the hiatus in their own ways.
