Gravitation: Track 16

Hey everyone! Welcome back to Yaoi Zowee! Today we'll be looking at Gravitation Track 16. The chapter starts out with Shuichi reacting to the news that Ayaka and Yuki are going to get married. Naturally, he's shocked. Ayaka is a bit haughty in her response that Yuki won't be returning to his home address anymore. I'm assuming they're going to either be moving to Kyoto or into the temple where Yuki's parents live. I think she genuinely is disappointed in losing Shuichi as a romantic rival. I have to  half wonder if she was pulling for Yuki and Shuichi to be in a relationship...Well, that doesn't make a lot of sense but who knows? I'll have to see as I read on. Hiro says that he knew Shuichi was still into Yuki and warns Ayaka that her words have only spiked his determination. She says that she knows. Oh, so I was right! She did plan on that. We also get her reason: Everyone else is looking out for Yuki. Awww, so she's looking out for Shuichi even though they're rivals. She's such a sweet girl.

The scene shifts to Shuichi running to Yuki's house (okay, so they ran into Ayaka not at Yuki's house like I thought but somewhere else. Not a big deal, my mistake) and hurries to find the key to open the door, expecting to see Yuki there as he always is.

                                                       He's....not.

That is probably the most depressing panel in this manga so far. There's so much white space and Shuichi looks so small up in the corner there. You can tell that he half expected to see this but didn't want to even think the possibility out loud. The next panel is just as bad! This is so depressing! Shuichi freaks out and kicks over a box, screaming curses as Yuki for leaving him like this. He yells at him (or rather shouts to himself since he's alone in the house) about Yuki just used him for his body and how Shuichi protected him even when being GANG RAPED. Shuichi has a right to be pissed especially if Yuki really is just leaving without a word. Shuichi dissolves into tears and hugs someone who just appeared and Shuichi says he doesn't want to give up. Of course, we're led to believe that Yuki is the one he's crying into.

                                               It's...not.

Shuichi tells Tatsuha that he needs to see Yuki again whether Ayaka likes it or not. Tatsuha tosses Shuichi a motorcycle helmet and says that Ayaka told him to go find Shuichi. Shuich wants to know just what the heck is going on and what her reasoning is and Tatsuha tells him to just get on unless he wants Ayaka to marry Yuki. The scene shifts again to the temple where Yuki is talking with his father. He's telling Yuki that the marriage is very important to Ayaka's parents since she is their only daughter. Yuki is as airy and dismissive as ever, to his father's dismay, but Mika tries to keep the peace between the two. Tatsuha shows up at this time saying he brought Ayaka. Of course he actually brought Shuichi who...is in drag again pretending to be Ayaka. I'm starting to think Shuichi is looking for excuses to be put in drag now. Everyone just stares blankly at him except for Mika who is shocked as can be. Since Yuki's father hasn't seen Ayaka since she was a little girl he actually believes it's her and Shuichi says that he wants to call off the engagement while Yuki and Mika look on in total horror. Yuki's father tries to convince "Ayaka" to reconsider but Shuichi keeps to his guns. When Yuki's father insinuates that Shuichi is the cause of all the problems Shuichi loses it and announces that he's Yuki's lover. By showing off his privates to Yuki's father. Yuki has the best reaction of everyone.

                                              I'd probably try to leave at this point too.

This whole scene is pure silly craziness and after the angst of the last few chapters (and the earlier scenes of the empty apartment and the crying) it's completely welcome. Yuki's father blows up and yells but the scene shifts to Shuichi (dressed normally) sitting outside the temple with Yuki. He still has things he wants to say. He tells Yuki that it doesn't matter what kind of person he was in the past. He also asks Yuki to tell him everything. Yuki did, in fact, kill someone when he was 16 and living in a different town. Now I had already had an idea that Yuki probably did kill someone since multiple people had heard the story and something like that would be easy enough to find out with a little research. However, I was surprised to hear that Yuki had killed multiple people. He doesn't give specifics but he says that he killed "them". After saying this, Yuki says that Shuichi now knows everything that he didn't know before. Well...you know except who they were and why you did it. You're not very good at telling stories Mr. Award Winning Writer. Anyway, Shuichi says that it doesn't matter what Yuki did and it doesn't matter what Yuki says. Nothing will keep him away. Yuki then tells him that he didn't need to say anything about the marriage and we have a Gravitation first! Yuki calls Shuichi by his first name (no brat or kid or anything like that) to his face. Shuichi is as happy as you'd expect him to be!

The scene shifts over to Mika talking to Ayaka. Mika asks her if she's really alright with cancelling the engagement and she says she is. Ayaka says that Yuki wouldn't have been happy with her anyway since she believes he truly likes Shuichi. She says that she only ever saw him smile once (if I remember correctly it was during the live show when Shuichi shouted Yuki was his but I may be wrong). The scene shifts one last time to the airport (people sure do seem to fly in a lot in this series) where Seguchi is waiting for Ryuichi to arrive. Ryuichi excitedly greets Seguchi who says that its been three years since they've seen each other. Wow, really? Three years? Has it been THAT long since the live show? Or did Seguchi just not see him that time? If there's one major problem this manga has it's the time frame. It's almost never clear exactly how much time is passing.

That brings Track 16 and volume 4 to a close! This also brings the Ayaka Marriage Arc (as I call it) to an end. It was altogether satisfying and we learned a bit more about Yuki's past! Still, there are a lot of blank spots but we've got 8 volumes left to go through so there's got to me SOME mystery left. I'm eager to see where the series goes from here!

Tune in tomorrow for Gravitation Track 17! See you then.

Gravitation: Track 15

Hello everyone! Welcome back to Yaoi Zowee! Today we'll be looking at Gravitation Track 15. I hope everyone had a good weekend and is ready to jump right back into things! Things start off heavy with Yuki telling Shuichi that he's leaving him with a very heart breaking look on his face. Shuichi, just as sadly, doesn't freak out or demand to know why or anything like that. He just kneels there on Yuki's bed and says that he understands. I would like to point out that it's a bit difficult to take this super dramatic turn of events very seriously since Shuichi is STILL dressed like a school girl and it's a bit distracting since I keep giggling. Shuichi ruins the drama of the moment anyway by yelling like he normally does (but that's part of Shuichi's character and it makes more sense all things considered) and we find out that it was Maiko who told Shuichi to dress like this (please, please, PLEASE let one of them explain just what the mindset was behind this because my theory last post makes no sense now that we know Maiko dressed him. Maybe it was just plain fanservice on the part of the author).

                                                     Little by little we learn more about Yuki

Of course after saying this Yuki and Shuichi begin to make out...Okay, Yuki? If you really want to leave you're going to have to stop making out with Shuichi. The way that Yuki constantly says he needs to leave and doesn't deserve Shuichi and all that yet never actually does leave shows that he really doesn't want to leave. He feels like he SHOULD but he doesn't WANT to. What needs to happen is Shuichi smacking some sense into the man. Or Yuki needs to let Shuichi know exactly what he's all about. It's not fair or right to break off a relationship without giving some kind of reason for ending it beyond some nebulous "I don't deserve anyone" baloney.

The scene shifts to the recording studio again where Shuichi and Hiro are celebrating the completion of their CD. Noriko breaks up the self congratulation to say that it took them way longer than it should have thanks to Shuichi's issues and how he's saying that he was going to quit Bad Luck twice. Shuichi promises that he's fine now and that won't happen again.

                                               Suuuuure you did. Let's see how long this lasts.

Everyone is understandably shocked and Shuichi explains that because he won't be fighting with Yuki anymore he won't be unable to sing and therefore won't cause any trouble. Shuichi, however, feels bad because of how sad Yuki looked. He doesn't feel comfortable ending things without knowing more. We flashback to when he was in the bar talking with Mika about how he wants to hear about Yuki from Yuki and Mika tells him one thing: the Yuki Eiri he knows is a fake. Now that is interesting. Yuki, it seems, remade himself. Different name, different personality perhaps, and who knows what else? This knocks Shuichi off kilter a bit but he reminds himself that, despite knowing nothing about Yuki, he still fell in love with him. Not the best defense of your relationship Shuichi. Most people would call that infatuation and not love. You'd best be learning more about him before you make any long term decisions. I'm thinking way too hard about this now. Moving on!

Yuki has, once again, returned to his parent's home. His father knows that Yuki can only find peace here and Yuki, while not denying or confirming this fact, acts as nonchalant as he usually does (which I'm not thinking is probably just an act. Who can say anymore? Mika threw the whole thing into question). His father wants him to properly join the temple, shaving his head, stopping smoking, drinking, and dating and of course Yuki refuses to do any of these things. And apparently he dies his hair blond. So he lied about that too. You are a very suspicious person Yuki. He says that he didn't return to succeed his father and that the temple does not bring  him peace but rather gives him the chills. Oh, and he also mentions that he hates Japan. Just what the heck happened to him?

The scene shifts to a hospital where Douche 1 is being visited by Taki. I swear to God author you will NOT make me like these people no matter how many times you show them and try to make them comedy relief. You can not have a character set up the GANG RAPE of another character purely because he's a jealous jackass and then think you can redeem him. I won't stand for it!

                                        You're apologizing to HIM?! You miserable piece of SHIT!

Oh, you're sorry Taki? Sorry that because you orchestrated a GANG RAPE of an innocent teenager, potentially scarring him for LIFE, your douchebag best friend got his ass kicked? Go to Hell Taki Aizawa. I hate you, I always will hate you, and nothing you do will change it. Okay, I've got to move on or else I'm going to just keep ranting and raving all day. Douche 1 tells him to leave Shuichi alone (THIS IS GOOD ADVICE TAKE IT YOU JACKASS) and Taki still wants to go after Yuki in revenge. See? Irredeemable asshole. The woman who gave Taki dirt on Yuki in the first place also told him that Yuki has a hatred of everything associated with Japan. They say he's a murderer and that they remember some kind of story relating to how Yuki killed someone and Douche 1 insists that Taki should stay away from Yuki. As Taki leave, Douche 1 gets a call (from I'm assuming Douche 2) saying that he thinks everything is going to be alright. Then we get this page.

                                                FNASDLKFJDSLKAFJLKDSJFSDLAKFJSDKLF!!!

I hate Taki more than most other villains in media. He's just so completely loathsome! He's petty, he's vindictive, he's just plain evil in the things he does, and probably worst of all, he thinks he's justified in doing these things to these people. If he was a real person I would not hesitate to slam my fist into his face.

Then suddenly there is justice! SWEET, SWEET JUSTICE! It turns out Douche 1 is talking to Seguchi and Seguchi pretty much says that he's dropping their douchey asses because Taki's disgusting and unnecessary need for vengeance is going to cause too much trouble for him. Seguchi point blank says that if Taki goes anywhere near Yuki he...oh, let's just let the picture do the talking.

                                                   So badass! And such pretty eyes!

I'm giving you all the love Seguchi. Destroy Taki's life like he's trying to destroy Yuki and Shuichi's. After that delicious bit of wonderful the scene shifts to Shuichi and Hiro as they celebrate the completion of their CD by drinking. Well, Shuichi had three drinks (three barely alcoholic drinks I might add) and is already smashed. The humor of the situation is smashed unfortunately by Shuichi asking Hiro if he should really give up on Yuki. Hiro says he should and Shuichi flips out at him. Hiro says that he should stop asking him that question since he doesn't act or look like the kind of person who is over Yuki. This discussion is interrupted by none other than Ayaka! I'm a bit surprised to see her to be honest. Hiro tells her that she's lucky since Shuichi is giving up on Yuki. She looks surprised and asks if it's true and Shuichi says he guesses it is. She keeps pressing him and he finally yells at her and says that he doesn't care about Yuki. Ayaka smacks him right across the face. She's disgusted that he would give up so easily after she had been so understanding about his feelings. She says that he won't have to worry about seeing Yuki ever again if that's what he really wants since she accepted Yuki's proposal.

That brings Track 15 to a close! Wow...a lot of stuff happened here! Seguchi was very clear about what will happen to Taki if he interferes but if he's the villain I think he is he won't give up so easily. Shuichi...well he's going to have to talk Yuki out of the marriage. The question is, how? I really have no idea where this is going to end up. And what exactly happened in Yuki's past?! I need to know!

Tune in tomorrow for Gravitation Track 16! See you then.

Gravitation: Track 10

Hey everyone! Welcome back to Yaoi Zowee! I trust you all had a fantastic weekend and are ready to jump back into Gravitation! Track 10 starts off with Shuichi freaking out about being inches away from his idol Ryuichi Sakuma. Shuichi has idolized Ryuichci since he was in elementary school when he borrowed a Nittle Grasper CD from Hiroshi. Now that he's finally meeting him, Shuichi asks for his autograph right there on stage. In the middle of his concert. Ryuichi, being similar to Shuichi as we all know, happily signs one for him. Luckily Noriko is able to keep her head and draws their attention back to the task at hand. The audience is excited to see Ryuichi but are confused about what Shuichi said. Ryuichi thinks fast and explains that this is all part of a dare that Shuichi had to participate in. He explains that Yuki is a little rabbit puppet and audience buys it, thinking the whole thing is adorable. Yuki himself...is not amused. But really, it all too hilarious to feel sorry for him. This is the first time Yuki's been in a position like this and I can't stop laughing. And yet, even though Yuki seems angry about what happened, he gives himself away in a single panel.

                                             A genuine smile from Yuki. It's a rare thing.

Ryuichi gets Noriko to play a new song and everyone wings it, making up an impromptu song on the spot. Shuichi can't quite believe his luck, getting to perform with Ryuichi. It's a dream come true for him. Not everyone is happy however as Sakano's carefully planned concert, the live show meant to debut Bad Luck, has been shattered beyond repair. Sakano is worried about being fired and, even worse for him, Seguchi has come back from vacation to see the concert. Sakano apologizes for his shortcomings and Seguchi is quick to comfort him, telling him that this turn of events wasn't his fault. Ryuichi, who was meant to only take the stage during the encore, has always done things his own way and Shuichi and Hiro have gained valuable experience in how to handle unexpected events. Sakano thanks Seguchi for his kindness and I find that I really like Seguchi. He always seems to have a nice thing to say and is always encouraging everyone. He's a really amazing guy!
 
Ryuichi gets some applause and decides to leave the rest of the concert up to Bad Luck, where they will be singing their new single. However, before he leaves he decides to sing a song for them as a token of good luck. What comes next is two pages of Ryuichi singing but since we can't actually hear him singing all we see is him in various poses while everyone looks on in awe.

                                                   He's...awesome? I guess?
Yeah, I'm sure this would be a heck of a lot more effective in the anime. Either way, Shuichi is made painfully aware of the gap between Ryuichi and himself. With the concert over, Noriko rails Shuichi and Ryuichi for their idiocy while they both desperately try to apologize. Shuichi feels especially bad about it. A stage hand comes back stage to tell Shuichi that a girl is here to see him and, of course, it's Ayaka. Shuichi asks what she wants and she apologizes for being so rude to him last time. I knew it! I knew Ayaka wasn't a bad person! Hooray validation! She says that she doesn't want Shuichi to hold a grudge against her because they are the same. No matter if Yuki is a boy or a girl or if Ayaka is his fiance or Shuichi is his lover. They both love Yuki as a person and that's what matters. Of course, that being said, Ayaka is not going to just take the back seat and let Shuichi take Yuki away from her! And just like that, this situation was turned into awkward and uncomfortable to romantic comedy hilarity. I am completely on board with this. If nothing else, it's going to keep Shuichi actively pursuing Yuki.

The next day Shuichi goes to see Yuki, with all his luggage strangely enough, and almost immediately clings to him and says he doesn't want to go home. He desperately begs Yuki to allow him to stay at his house. Yuki is, obviously, resistant to this sudden and violent request demanding to know why Shuichi wants to stay with him and Shuichi tells him he doesn't want anyone else to be near him besides Shuichi. Yuki finally tells Shuichi what makes him so special to him, namely that he's not looking for sex, money, or fame. This makes Shuichi happy and Yuki comes to a decision.

                                            What have you gotten yourself into Yuki?

 
Shuichi runs off, saying he'll be back later that night and goes to meet with Hiro. He's in a super good mood and Hiro asks if something happened with Yuki and Shuichi isn't telling. Sakano then comes in with some good news. Their single is doing well AND they have a TV appearance coming up. Shuichi and Hiro are extremely excited about this news but there's a catch. They're not going on TV to sing, they're going on a game show. Apparently the producer of the show saw their live show and thought they were interesting and invited them to be on the show. Shuichi and Hiro are still up for it, since, even if it is just for a game show, it will still be Bad Luck's first TV appearance.

And that brings Track 10 to a close! Three important things happened in this chapter after the culmination of the concert. One, Ayaka officially acknowledges Shuichi as her rival in love and is looking forward to seeing how hard he fights for Yuki. Two, Shuichi is moving in with Yuki for a trial period of a week. Three, Bad Luck is going to appear on a TV game show. We also got the hint of something that I think will come up again later, namely Shuichi realizing how big of a gap there is between him and Ryuichi. At least I hope that becomes a point. It'll probably show up after we deal some more with Shuichi's personal life. It seems to alternate between Shuichi's personal life issues and his professional issues.

That's it for Yaoi Zowee this weeks! Tune in tomorrow for Gravitation: Track 11! See you then.

Gravitation: Track 9

Hey everyone! Welcome back to Yaoi Zowee! Today we'll be looking at Gravitation: Track 9. The chapter opens with Tatsuha calling Ayaka's mother in Kyoto to let her know that her daughter is okay. Maiko appears with Ayaka who is wearing one of Maiko's shirts, since Ayaka came down from Kyoto with only the clothes on her back. Shuichi had to tell Maiko that Ayaka was looking for her long lost brother since if he had mentioned Yuki's name both her and their mother would have wanted to tag along to meet him. In payment for giving Ayaka one of her shirts, Shuichi gives Maiko a clipping of Yuki's hair and one of his cigarette butts. That...is creepy and gross but Maiko's happy reaction is pretty hilarious so I'm not all that bothered by it. Shuichi mentions that there are a lot of girls like Maiko out there who dream of Yuki, including himself but Ayaka is the only one who is in a position to have everything he has to offer.

Shuichi goes to confront Yuki about it but, like most things, he's completely dismissive of her and the situation in general. This annoys Shuichi who tells him it's rude to not see her after she came all this way to see him. Yuki asks a very obvious question: Why is Shuichi, Yuki's lover, helping out Ayaka, Yuki's fiance? Shuichi deflects the question by demanding to know where he ranks in Yuki's affection since his beeper is going off constantly and he always smells like perfume. Yuki says that Shuichi ranks number one which, as expected, makes him practically melt with happiness. They argue some more about the amount of lovers Yuki may or may not have (I believe that Yuki has no other relationships but it is possible he has a lot of one night stands. It's hard to say and Yuki is usually frustratingly coy about these things) until Tatsuha ushers Ayaka in to reunite with Yuki. Ayaka is incredibly nervous and embarrassed meeting with Yuki and I can't say I blame her. He is rather intimidating. Ayaka, however, already has an idea of what Yuki is going to be like and has her rose tinted glasses firmly in place.

                                                           You poor, sweet fool

Yuki acts like a perfect gentleman, greeting her with a smile before putting his arm around her shoulder and leading her away deeper into the house as Shuichi watches on. He admits to himself that he had hoped Yuki would have acted a bit more cold with her. This is Shuichi's downfall. He's a really nice guy and he wants to do what's right. It's just unfortunate that, in this instance, doing what was right is in direct contrast to what he himself wants for himself. Shuichi is going to have to learn that, in regards to Yuki, he has to act in the best interest of the relationship in order to make it work. Tatsuha tells him to stop being so depressed. He knows Yuki and it was clear to him that he was just trying to torment Shuichi. Tatsuha asks Shuichi why he thinks Yuki would do that. Shuichi knows that Yuki likes to act this way and that he knows even as a number one lover he can't really compete with a fiance. Tatsuha is quick to let Shuichi know that he's not the only one who loves Yuki for Yuki and not because of his fame, money, or plain sex. Ayaka is the same way. That makes her even MORE of an interesting obstacle to the relationship! We're going to find out exactly where Yuki's love interests truly lie.

The next day Noriko is one more pressing hard for Shuichi and Hiro to practice. They are going to make their live debut in a week (which means their CD has already been released...and we haven't heard a single word about how successful or not it was) and she wants to make sure they're ready. Shuichi and Hiro are kind of slow to get going but all Noriko has to say is that Ryuichi might be there to kick Shuichi's ass into high gear. She already knows exactly how to motivate Shuichi. It's a wonderful thing. Before they can get back to practicing, Ayaka shows up again to see Shuichi. Yuki told her everything about Shuichi. She says that two men doing what they're doing is "low classed" and she told Shuichi not to see Yuki ever again. I'm inclined to let loose an emotional tirade and defame her but lets look at this from her point of view. How would you feel if your fiance was seeing some random person behind your back? You'd want to make sure he was scarce too. This is also exactly the kind of catalyst that Shuichi needs. If he truly does love Yuki he won't let this stand in his way.

Immediately after Shuichi gets done talking with Ayaka, he races to talk to Yuki. He demands to know if tormenting him is really this fun and Yuki responds that, yes, of course it is. Oh Yuki. It's amazing how you have the same attitude and yet I love you so much more than I did when this thing started out. Yuki, ever the voice of reason, tells Shuichi that the only reason Ayaka is here is because he brought her here. Shuichi tries to resist Yuki's charms but is ultimately unable to. And then BAM! Sex. Poor Shuichi just can't stay mad at Yuki. It's too cute for words. Shuichi asks Yuki if he really likes Ayaka and he responds that he's not sure. In this situation, it doesn't matter if Yuki likes her or not. He's annoyed that the marriage was arranged by his father for the sake of the temple without consulting Yuki's opinion on the matter. He is expected to just do it because it's his duty. Yuki wants to know why he has to answer this questions which annoys Shuichi.

                                     Now if you could actually SAY that to him, you'd be golden

The scene shifts to the day of the live show and Shuichi addresses the gathered crowd, telling them about their new CD which is going to be released including their debut song "No Style". As Bad Luck performs, Shuichi notices Ayaka in the crowd with Yuki and gets nervous, forgetting the lyrics. He manages to get a hold of himself deciding that it doesn't matter if Ayaka is Yuki's fiance. They're both the same in that they love him. Halfway through the song, as Ryuichi is approaching the stage to help Shuichi out since Sakano thinks he looks nervous, Shuichi suddenly stops and asks the audience if he can say something. The single greatest thing to happen yet in this manga then happens.

                                                                Hell. Yeah.

There is so much to like about this scene. Yuki's expression is priceless. You just know that he never in his wildest dreams expected something like this. I love that Shuichi is actually standing up for himself and what he loves and he's willing to fight for Yuki even if he gets annoyed with him and fights a lot. Lastly, and this is a more subtle detail, I like Ayaka's expression. It's not outrage or anger or mortification at what Shuichi's saying. It's more bemused, like she's realizing that Yuki will never be hers and she should step down. This is probably not the optimal situation for her either.  She's in the same position as Yuki after all, part of an arranged marriage that she has no control over with a man she hardly knows. I have this feeling that people are quick to demonize her character simply because she's the "woman in the way" and that makes me sad because Ayaka seems like such a kind and gentle person. It's disheartening to know that there are probably "fans" out there who label her as a bitch and a whore (which is especially ironic considering that Yuki himself is a bit of a manwhore but that's okay apparently because he's a cute guy. Ugly, ugly double standards). Rant/. Anyway Ryuichi gets up onstage in order to help salvage the show so Sakano doesn't go ballistic over what Shuichi did and the chapter ends there.

Track 9 wasn't as exciting as Track 8 but it still nicely progressed Shuichi and Yuki's relationship. I feel that Shuichi, as he gets used to Yuki, is more willing to call him out for his cold and rough behavior while Yuki is helping Shuichi to grow a pair. No matter what happens between Yuki and Ayaka there is going to be some major fallout. Shuichi better watch himself.

This brings the second week of Yaoi Zowee to a close! I hope everyone is enjoying reading the blog and has a nice weekend. Monday we'll be picking up again with Gravitation: Track 10! See you then. 

Gravitation: Track 8

Hey everyone! Welcome back to Yaoi Zowee! Today we'll be looking at Track 8, which is also the last chapter in the second volume! Let's keep the ball rolling shall we? The chapter opens with Noriko reminiscing about the she was in Nittle Grasper (nope, never going to like that name but I will stop mentioning it). Ryuichi Sakuma was on vocals, Tohma Seguchi and Noriko Ukai were on keyboards. Ryuichi is currently pursuing a solo career, Seguchi is a record executive, and Noriko is now joining up with Bad Luck. When Noriko mentioned that Shuichi's vocals were similar to Ryuichi's, it made what was already quite clear even more obvious. For awhile now Seguchi and Noriko have noted how similar Ryuichi and Shuichi are (and their names are even similar now that I look at them side by side like that). Bad Luck is pretty much a second generation Nittle Grasper. I'm a little worried that they might follow in the same footsteps, breaking apart after awhile. Hopefully that won't happen.

                                                         They even look the same!

 Noriko is...less than enthused about Shuichi's vocals. She outright tells him that he's ruining her song while Hiro and Sakano look on. Noriko seems to be a perfectionist and she's not letting Shuichi go until he gets it right. Shuichi tries to sing it again but his voice gives out and they decide to take a break. Shuichi complains about being worked so hard but Sakano says that the reason Noriko is pushing him so hard is because he reminds her of Ryuichi. This excites Shuichi and causes Noriko to whip a can of soda at Sakano. She clarifies that the only way Shuichi reminds her of Ryuichi is how foolish they both are. True to Shuichi's personality, this still excites him. He's just happy that any part of him is like Ryuichi. Hiro says that he's exhausted and decides to go home and Shuichi asks to go home with him. Through this conversation we discover that Shuichi is living on his own and wants to go home with Hiro tonight. Hiro asks how things are going with Yuki and Shuichi and we discover that Shuichi hasn't really talked much to Hiro about his relationship. Hiro wants to meet Yuki and Shuichi warns him to keep his hands off Yuki. Hiro says he has no interest in him and they walk home together.

Back in the recording studio, Noriko and Sakano discuss Shuichi. She likes his singing voice but thinks his personality could use some work. They discuss Shuichi's and Hiro's first single and say that it's going to be released on the 10th of next month. Their live debut would be soon after that. Noriko doesn't think their live debut will be any good as it is, saying that ASK will not be outdone by them. So she has a plan to hire an arranger and because it's coming as an order from the producer, the people organizing it will have no choice but to obey. The scene shifts back to Shuichi and Hiro traveling to Yuki's place so that Hiro can meet Yuki. We also learn that Shuichi moved into an apartment closer to Yuki's place so that they would be closer together though he doesn't admit this to Hiro even though he already figured it out. While they're searching, they see a woman getting accosted by two men. She's just looking for directions but the two insist on taking her out somewhere.

                                                                 A new face

Shuichi and Hiro drive away the two in their own special way (namely, acting completely ridiculous, Shuichi forcibly signing his name on one of their faces, and then beating the crap out of them which is completely awesome. I love you Shuichi!) which causes the girl to faint. They take her to get something to eat in a place less crowded and she thanks them. We discover that her name is Ayaka, she's a high school student, and that she was wandering around that place so late at night because she was looking for someone.
Worried for her, Hiro suggests that she go home but she says she can't because she lives in Kyoto and it's too late to take the train. Hiro then offers her a place to stay at his home for a few days. Ayaka refuses to go home until she meets the person she's looking for. Shuichi decides to leave on his own to visit Yuki and is happy to see that the lights are on in Yuki's house. He rings the bell and Yuki is taking too long for him so he gets annoyed and hammers on the door until Yuki comes to answer it. Just hearing his voice is enough to make his anger go away and he's determined to take the initiative tonight. However, someone unexpected answers the door.

                                           Okay, so I was off by one chapter, give me a break!

Yes, Tatsuha Uesugi has finally made his appearance. Why the different last name I hear you ask (and no, I don't care if you didn't actually ask)? Lest we forget, Yuki Eiri is a pen name. This is the first time Shuichi learns of this. Shuichi suddenly remembers that he still has the Nittle Grasper tape that belongs to Tatsuha and hands it back over to him. Tatsuha is ecstatic to have it back and even kisses the cover. He REALLY likes Ryuichi. Shuichi is super excited about finding another big Ryuichi fan. Tatsuha notices what about three other characters have already discovered: Shuichi is a lot like Ryuichi. This...takes a bit of a darker turn as Tatsuha gets a bit touchy feely with Shuichi. Saying he smells like Ryuichi (which is true since Shuichi is imitating him, using the same shampoo and emulating his hairstyle) and that Ryuichi probably feels like Shuichi does too. Tatsuha suggest they have sex and they can pretend they're other people (Shuichi is to Ryuichi as Tatsuha is to Yuki) but Shuichi adamantly refuses.

Luckily Yuki arrives in time to save the day. Yuki and Tatsuha talk for awhile about various things while Shuichi comments that Yuki and Tatsuha are incredibly alike. Seriously, look at Tatsuha's picture up there. He's pretty much just a black haired Yuki. They have a pretty good relationship despite the fact that, when they were kids, Yuki would always be mistaken for a foreigner thanks to his pale eyes and hair while Tatsuha never had to worry about that. Shuichi asks Tatsuha how old he is and Tatsuha responds that he's a sixteen year old monk. So he's two years younger than Shuichi despite looking like Yuki. Yuki finally gets fed up with Tatsuha and asks why he came there. He admits that he's looking for someone, a young girl with long hair from Kyoto. Ayaka Usami. This, of course, shocks Shuichi.

The next day at the recording studio, Shuichi brings Tatsuha along with him so that he can see Ayaka and yells at Hiro who didn't answer any of his calls the previous night. Luckily, Hiro brought Ayaka along too since she wanted to see them record. Tatsuha tells her it's time for her to go home since she's causing an uproar there by her absence and she continues to refuse to return until she meets with the person she's looking for. Turns out that she's not looking for Tatsuha but instead Yuki. And then the bomb is dropped on Shuichi.

                                                                     Oh crap

 And so ends Track 8. All I can say is thank God this isn't Friday. Because I could not stand waiting a whole weekend to see what happens next. This was a fantastic chapter. I love what Noriko brings to the group even if she wasn't featured as much in the chapter. She's a professional who has experience working in a band which is going to be incredibly helpful to Hiro and Shuichi who have absolutely no experience whatsoever in the professional world. Ayaka brings the first major obstacle in Yuki and Shuichi's relationship. We've known that Yuki had a fiance for awhile now, thanks to conversations other characters have had with and about Yuki. Shuichi, on the other hand, had no idea. This is a major blow to his confidence since he doesn't know that Yuki wants nothing to do with her. I'm not passing any kind of judgment on Ayaka just yet since we have no idea what her stakes in this situation are. I've got to say though, this was a fantastic chapter.

Tune in tomorrow for Gravitation: Track 9 which starts off volume 3! See you then.