Himawari-san (Miss Sunflower)
Creator : Sugano Mananmi
Publisher: Media Factory (Kadokawa Future Publishing)
The end of Himawari-San, the end of an era
Himawari-san was one of my favourite manga of the last 10 years, I discovered it in 2012/2013 and I’ve been reading it ever since one chapter at a time. It is the product of Sugano Manami and it is in all honesty an enjoyable read.
I have loved every moment, a pleasure enjoyed slowly over a decade of reading. It did make me sad to learn that the series had been completed, but such is life and in that life I have finished many wonderful series, in books, on film, and I will finish many more wonderful series in the future.
This story is quite a slow moving shoujo-ai love story, e.g girls love, lesbians, just without the ostentatious hard core Yuri elements, there isn’t even that much snugly stuff. There is however a lot of character development where romance is implied. The characters are a 24 year old bookshop owner and a 16 year old school girl (In Japan they’re in school until 18), this fact may put off some readers.
This story doesn’t have that kind of vibe, the romance in this story is mostly confined to Himawari-san making the extra effort for Matsuri, and Matsuri pining after Himawari-san, something she doesn’t discourage, it is implied she likes it. Some may not like the slow pace of the story, but I liked it I felt that it was one of its good qualities. At 13 volumes it doesn’t outstay its welcome either. It’s just an easy breezy story with a few cute moments thrown in.
I couldn’t help but root for Matsuri and Himawari-San, and I wish Sugano Manami the best of luck with any future projects.
Review by ukmangaxl.com