5 out of 5 Hoagies
Published 2025-11-30
tag(s): #reviews #books
Earlier this week I finished watching the anime Kamisama Hajimemashita (Kamisama Kiss), on
recommendation from one of my nieces.[1]
I enjoyed it a lot, and will probably read the comic at some point.
While messaging with her about some story beats and the ending, she recommended again that I
give "After the rain" (AKA "Koi wa Ameagari no You ni") a go.
And I just finished it, 10 minutes ago.
Akira Tachibana is a high schooler that works part time in a restaurant. When the story
starts, she is in love with her manager, a 45 year old guy, divorced, with a son.
The manga is mostly about their relationship, but there's a very solid cast of supporting
characters that have their own challenges. And also their interactions with the main cast
help flesh out the backstory for all of them.
I am 42, very close in age to the manager. There's a lot of things he is thinking/going
through that I found relatable, which was nice, and unexpected. And a few interactions between
Akira and her mother gave me some deja vu, too :)
At the same time, there were a lot of things that Akira thinks and feels,
that took me back to my youth[2] and my own struggles. In particular, her
intensity about everything felt..."real", I guess? Her line of thinking and reactions were
completely in line with how I recall my teen years.
In short, I found the writing very good.
On the visual side, the comic is pretty traditional, although it does make very good use of
the medium in a few scenes here and there. And the drawings themselves are clean, and I would
describe them "moody".
By that I mean, there's an airy feet to some scenes, and others are more oppressive. Which
works just perfect. The "energy" in the scenes impacted how I read them, too.
5 out of 5 Hoagies
Is it something that I think "everyone should read"? I am not sure. But if you like romance stories, or slice of life comics dealing with youth (or midlife) crisis, you can't miss this one.
So close your browser tab now :D
So...I guess it is a bit spoiler-y to say that the story is very wholesome.
And it is a spoiler because...we can all agree there's only one outcome that is wholesome, and
not super creepy :)
But just like a rom-com can follow certain story beats and end up being surprising in small
ways, or fulfilling (or both), so does this comic.
I really enjoyed the way the ending came around. And how honest all of the characters were in
their inner speech through the story. The author took some risks with those, and managed them
very well so by the end you accept their flaws and limitations, and also eventually understand
their reasons.
That also makes it all most satisfying when they overcome some specific challenges.
Only thing I can say maybe could be improved, is seeing a bit more to the endings of
the rest of the kitchen staff.
Maybe.
But the manga has the perfect length just as it is, so.