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Nodame Cantabile Vol. 4 – Manga Review

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I just noticed that each cover of Nodame Cantabile has Nodame playing a different instrument. Volume 4 has her playing a flute. I don’t think it suits her, though. She should stick to weird instruments like the vibraslap and the cowbell. Once Nodame starts getting up there in the volume numbers, she’ll pretty much have to…

nodame-cantabile-4-cover.jpg

I just noticed that each cover of Nodame Cantabile has Nodame playing a different instrument. Volume 4 has her playing a flute. I don’t think it suits her, though. She should stick to weird instruments like the vibraslap and the theremin. She’ll probably start pulling out the obscure instruments once the manga hits volume 40 or so…

nodame-cantabile-4-1.gif

Story:
In this volume, Stresemann is taken back to Germany. Apparently the reason he was in Japan was to meet the director of the school, and he went AWOL to do so. He quickly comes back though, and hatches a scheme to bring Nodame and Chiaki closer together. Or something.

The crew ends up going to a musical conference where they attend master classes and play in an orchestra conducted by Stresemann. Except that he gets super drunk and Chiaki once again has to pick up the slack. He does well enough, though, catching the eye of a news reporter. By the end of the trip, it seems like Chiaki and Nodame have actually grown further apart. GYABONN~!

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Analysis:
Once again, the manga has a chapter that the anime version left out. In this case, it’s the beach episode. C’mon, every anime needs a beach episode, even Jousei! Basically, Chiaki has to pretend that he’s not deathly scared of drowning, and in doing so, almost drowns. And Mine gets an interesting sun tan. Plus we get to see Nodame in a swimsuit! It’s the awesomest chapter in the manga!

Like the ones before it, this volume doesn’t disappoint. There’s still weird jokes (like when they decide to bet in Euros over Stresemann’s true love) all around. And any manga that features random Kogals who can swim well gets extra points in my book! I’m kind of worried about Chiaki and Nodame though. Nodame needs to form some kind of “Love Love Daisakusen” right now!

One cool thing about this volume is that it has a random side story at the end. The story is about a piano teacher who is struggling to get and keep students. She has to figure out how to get the kids interested in music without being a strict bitch. And one of her students is loli Nodame! And loli Nodame farts! It’s awesome!

Conclusion:
I’m really enjoying the Nodame Cantabile manga, in addition to watching the anime. The manga has random stuff that’s not in the anime, which is kind of nice. I really can’t believe that they cut that beach episode out of the anime version… I also have a feeling that the anime won’t cover the entire story of Nodame Cantabile (since it’s not even done yet), so yeah, manga’s the way to go.

Many thanks to Del Rey Manga for sending me a review copy of Nodame Cantabile Volume 4!

4 replies on “Nodame Cantabile Vol. 4 – Manga Review”

Finally got Del Rey’s vol. 9 (though I had to pay for MY copy). Even better than vol. 8 (and that was the previous high point). The most romantic volume to date (and yet never sappy).

A series well worth buying.

You should really try watching the live-action… Nodame’s actress, Ueno Juri, does an amazing job of portraying her (:

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