Title: My Special One Vol. 4
Author: Momoko Koda
Publisher: Viz Media
Language: English
Format: Paperback
Pages: 185
Genre: Shojo, Romance
Publication Date: November 7, 2023 Tasks
The Story
The next chapter in the dating life of Kouta and Sahoko is here… or at least we thought it was. Kouta has been away for an entire month filming a television show. They communicate through text messages every day; however, it’s just not the same. Even with them being apart, their relationship is still going pretty well. Sahoko tells him about a class trip that she’s going to be taking to Kyoto. When she goes, Kouta surprises her because he’s filming close by. They go on a date and it’s rather cute.
When they get back, Sahoko coaxes him to put in a delivery order so that she can visit him on the set. When she arrives, she finds out that Kouta has granted her special permission to watch the filming. There, she witnesses the director, Ogura, talking down to Kouta. She feels bad for him but despite that, Kouta doesn’t seem to care because he wants to work hard to prove Ogura wrong. In the meantime, Sahoko meets Hajime, Kouta’s junior on the set who doesn’t know much about acting. Kouta is constantly having to lecture him which he admits is becoming quite an arduous task.
One day, they attempt to make out in Kouta’s dressing room but get interrupted. He asks her to use the spare key and wait for him at home and they’ll continue where they left off. When she hears someone at the front door, she assumes it’s Kota but, instead, it’s Hajime! Their cover gets blown and Hajime brings up that having a girlfriend as an idol could be damaging to Kouta’s career. Sahoko and Kouta must pair up to overcome Hajime’s doubts!
We end the volume on Kouta saying he has a surprise for Sahoko. He shows up at her school as a guest substitute teacher for the next two weeks! Things seem all well and good until their teacher says that they need two volunteers to act as attendants for Kouta. Sahoko gets chosen along with a new character named Akutagawa. With one of the school’s biggest two-faced narcissists so close, could her cover get blown?
Characters
On the Sahoko/Kouta front… there really wasn’t much in their development except for the fact that they made it crystal clear that they were completely devoted to one another. Not even being lectured by Hajime about the dangers of having a girlfriend as an idol was enough to sway either of their opinions. It’s nice to see them so devoted to each other!
The first new character that we got was Hajime. I’m not quite sure how to think of him at the moment. At first, he seemed like a comedic relief character who was just bad at acting… or at least, bad at understanding the English (or is it technically Japanese?) language. Clearly, he’s a novice at acting or understanding stage direction; however, he later transitions into a character that understands the perils of having a relationship as an idol… so it’s not like he’s completely dense to show business but part of that boils down to why he got into acting. He did so because he was a fan of Kouta’s so it makes sense that he would try to warn him about dating Sahoko. He seems okay right now, though so he gets a pass but, to be honest, he didn’t really do much of anything in this book aside from being a bit annoying.
The next character is Ogura, the director. He was a child actor who grew up and, obviously, got into directing. He has a vile opinion of idols and that’s why he’s so critically harsh when it comes to Kouta’s acting. He feels that all Kouta is ever good at is making people smile and nothing else. He says some pretty hurtful things but it only inspires Kouta to do better. That doesn’t mean he’s not a crap-tier human being, though. If the point was for the reader to feel a sense of hate for this character, then I say mission accomplished. Well done. Ogura is a great antagonist in that regard… it’s just a shame he’ll probably stick around for a cup of coffee and that’s about it.
Lastly, we have Akutagawa. When he sees Kouta, he unleashes the full power of his Rashomon and…
Sorry, wrong series.
Akutagawa is a pretty boy who often skips class to go make out with his flavor-of-the-week girlfriend. He’s self-centered, and cocky, and gives Sahoko a sly grin when she notices him coming back to class after another one of his make-out sessions. He doesn’t say anything at first; however, when he’s paired up with her to attend to Kouta, he lays it in hard with his not-so-friendly opinions on idols. Even when Sahoko tries to defend Kouta, he still says that idols are all the same and he aims to prove it to her. Because of this little situation, things between Sahoko and Kouta could be jeopardized. If anyone is set up to become the new and true antagonist… it’s Akutagawa. And if that doesn’t work, he can go back to his side gig of trying to destroy the Armed Detective Agency.
Final Thoughts
I felt that they had pulled the trigger too early on the relationship between Sahoko and Kouta but now that it’s had some time to sit and stew, perhaps it wasn’t a bad idea, after all. However, the series did take a bit of a predictable turn by focusing on what would happen should the general public find out about their relationship. That seems to be the direction we’re headed in; however, it kind of lost all impact because of the whole situation with Hajime.
When Hajime condemned their relationship, Kouta already stated what he would do if his career got ruined because of their relationship. Because of that, there’s really no sense of peril if it were to cause a shockwave like that. The only thing I can see happening is that Kouta makes good on his word; however, he can’t leave the idol world behind as his fans become so rabid that his life and Sahoko’s could be in danger. That would take this manga down a dark path but I don’t see that happening with how cute and lighthearted this series has been.
So, I think what has been set up will probably get resolved and everything will be fine. I think everyone will come out of it with the attitude that it was nothing more than a close call and a lesson well learned. We’ll see if I’m right as we press on but, who knows? Other lighthearted series (like Fly Me to the Moon) also took some dark turns so anything is possible!
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This item was provided for review by VIZ Media.
