The second volume of Otaku x Gal allowed us to enjoy some downtime with the cast away from their everyday lives at school. But while it has been an enjoyable read, it still hasn’t quite managed to set itself apart from the crowd. Will this third installment change things? Let’s find out!
We find the cast back at school, having enjoyed the Golden Week holidays, and preparing to embark on a field trip! They’re headed to a local castle site, which no one is terribly enthusiastic about, but they do have some free time to spend doing whatever they like. Otakura has ended up in a group with Narumi, who wants to go shopping with him and her twin friends Shion and Kanon Murata.
Otakura having shown his eye for fashion during the holidays, Narumi has determined that no shopping trip is complete without him. But she finds herself feeling jealous when Otakura’s attention is focused solely on the twins. In fact, Otakura has become quite popular at school, and while Narumi is happy for him, she can’t help but begin to feel uncomfortable now she doesn’t have him all to herself. And now she must try and figure out exactly why she feels that way…
This volume includes celebrating Otakura’s birthday and the summer break, where the students are also preparing for the upcoming school festival. There’s quite a lot happening, but the main focus of the volume is Narumi beginning to realise she has feelings for Otakura, which I think was necessary for the series to stop feeling like it’s spinning its wheels. Especially when the rest of the cast were very aware of Narumi’s feelings, and her story could only move forward once she started to come to terms with it herself.
What was also interesting this time around is that there’s very little time given to Riko (Narumi’s friend), whom I thought was ending up in a love-triangle situation. The girls Narumi’s so jealous of are largely newly introduced in this volume. And as someone who wasn’t that enthusiastic about this becoming a triangle with Riko, I was happy to see the focus shift away from that element. Although I’m sure it’s not the end of it by any means, but now that Narumi recognises she likes Otakura, I hope the author can at least approach it in an interesting way.
One concern I do have is how fast the pacing has become. In the space of a volume, we’ve gone from the Golden Week holidays all the way through into mid-summer, which feels like quite a lot of time to just flash past! At this rate we’ll be staring down Christmas in a couple of volumes, and while I’m not opposed to that kind of pacing, it does feel like a race to fit in as many of the common school life events (festivals, trips, birthdays) as fast as possible. It’s not like we don’t get to spend some ordinary time with the cast, but I wouldn’t mind slowing down just a bit more so it didn’t always feel like jumping from event to event.
Otaku x Gal is a series that is at least trying to address some of its shortcomings as it goes, and I am willing to give it the time necessary to do that because it is still an enjoyable read, despite the criticisms I level at it. The cast remains quite charming, as does the artwork, and that goes a long way when it comes to holding onto readers’ attention.
Otaku x Gal Volume 3 comes to the West thanks to Square Enix Manga and continues to be translated by Caleb D. Cook, while lettering is handled by Finn K. The release reads well with no issues and comes with a colour page at the beginning.
In Japan, Volume 7 is set for a release in November, while the English releases will see Volume 4 also in November! And then #5 is set for Feb 2027, so we won’t be going long without seeing more of this series.
Overall, Otaku x Gal Volume 3 proves a turning point for Narumi as she finally realises she might be into Otakura. The series generally still feels a bit wobbly, but it is at least trying, and I always have time for a manga that’s willing to address its issues.
A free preview can be read on the Square Enix website.
Our review copy from Square Enix Manga was supplied by Turnaround Comics (Turnaround Publisher Services).
Demelza
When she’s not watching anime, reading manga or reviewing, Demelza can generally be found exploring some kind of fantasy world and chasing her dreams of being a hero.
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