Title: Anonymous Noise Vol. 10
Author: Ryoko Fukuyama
Publisher: Viz Media
Language: English
Format: Paperback
Pages: 192
Genre: Shojo, Romance
Publication Date: September 4, 2018
The Story
The tenth volume of Anonymous Noise began with the moment we’ve all been waiting for! Even though Yuzu lost his voice, he suddenly found it during their concert and sang the final song with Nino. As soon as the song was done, Yuzu grabbed Nino by the hand and rushed her off stage where he finally confessed his love to her…. To no answer from Nino. Of course, it wouldn’t be that easy, now would it?
The confession had Nino all stirred up and Yuzu asked her to meet him at Yuigahama Beach the following night. The two of them end up meeting up and while it was a very awkward meetup, in the end, Yuzu was rejected… sort of. There wasn’t any real clear-cut answer from Nino but Yuzu could definitely tell that he was rejected because Momo was still in Nino’s heart. The concert tour continued until they ended up playing their final show alongside Silent Black Kitty.
This is where the story branched off a bit. Even though they did focus on Nino, Momo, and Yuzu, they took some time to focus on Miou and Haruyoshi as well. The theme of the story took the form of who was singing for who. Miou ended up singing for Yuzu on the promise that it would be the final time that she would. Haruyoshi took notice of this and decided to make a bold move to further their relationship. Meanwhile, In No Hurry to Shout were waiting for their turn up on stage and Alice began to wonder if her songs would ever reach Momo. She began to contemplate just what Yuzu meant to her over Momo which provided us with a really interesting scenario.
In the end, some major drama started as a rumor on Twitter, backed up by a photo, could have revealed Cheshire to be Yuzu! This rumor was also fueled by the fact that the live crowd was more energetic than normal for In No Hurry’s concert. Despite taking this in a negative way, the band decides to use this opportunity to drive a home run with their performance. That is until a shocking proposition is presented to them to close out the volume.
WOW! The story was very short and simple this volume as it focused on the love aspect between Yuzu and Nino but this turned out to be one of the best volumes of Anonymous Noise because of it. We FINALLY got the confession we’ve been waiting for out of Yuzu and the whole journey of processing that confession and waiting for Nino’s answer seemed a bit frustrating but I think that was intentional. It mirrors how it feels in real life to confess to someone you like and then wait forever for their reply. Even though the reader got to see Nino’s innermost feelings, Yuzu as a character hasn’t (however, it is implied otherwise without full confirmation).
The ending surprised me a bit and it could be taken several different ways. The logical interpretation would have to be a mutual bond of respect had been formed. Another could be that it’s a respectful declaration of rivalry. There are many other ways it could it perceived but I don’t want to spoil everything for those who haven’t read it. Still, this really got me amped up for Volume 11!
Characters
Character development… character development everywhere! #BuzzLightyear
The obvious big focus was on Nino and Yuzu. With Yuzu finally confessing and overcoming his temporary mute status, it felt like the weight of the world had been lifted off of his shoulders and you could tell that just from the artwork and the way he was portrayed. Nino’s reaction to it all was something I completely expected. I never expected her to say yes or even acknowledge Yuzu’s love immediately. That would have been a rather cheap ending but it would have been a decent (albeit overused) method to create drama within the love triangle. I think Nino not giving a concrete answer and exploring her feelings was the best possible outcome because it allows our next development to flourish a bit.
Momo and Nino end up seeing each other before their final, respective concerts. It is here where Nino is finally introduced to Momo’s mother and it’s also where she starts to fit the pieces together of what happened with Momo six years ago. With Momo’s mother referring to him as her personal money tree, Nino fires back at her in a rather harsh way. Momo has to end up dragging her away as a result but this also made Nino think about whether her songs will actually reach Momo. Meanwhile, in the days leading up to the concert, Momo begins to have dreams of Nino where he says that he could just hold her hand one more time, he would never let go. Momo isn’t done in this fight… not by a longshot but the scales seem to be tipping towards Yuzu… for now.
Miou decided that their concert would be the final one she would sing for Yuzu, implying that she was ready to move on with Haruyoshi. Haruyoshi, on the other hand, notices that her singing was for someone else and confronts her about it after the show. He, of course, takes a few bold steps to show just how much he loves her. We don’t exactly know the full results of those bold steps but it doesn’t seem like it’s going to crash and burn for him!
Final Thoughts
By far, this was the best volume of Anonymous Noise I’ve read. Even though the story was very much a single track from beginning to end, it was one of the most enjoyable parts of the story thus far. I felt that everything was handled perfectly and the love triangle between Momo, Yuzu, and Nino was deepened and furthered in a way where things look to be balancing in one direction but the scale is still rather shaky and could go the other way at a moment’s notice. Giving the reader some hints at a conclusion all while making them second guess every step of the way is the right way to produce compelling content and I feel that Ryoko Fukuyama is doing a great job in that regard.
The humor was back a bit in this volume but it was used in areas where it made sense. The past couple of volumes found that great balance between drama and humor and Fukuyama is continuing to use that balance nicely! You can truly feel the series maturing with each and every volume because of it!
Looking forward to Volume 11 with baited breath! There is just so much we need to see happen!
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This item was provided for review by Viz Media
