Creator: Yuki Obata
Translation: Tetsuichiro Miyaki
Adaptation: Nancy Thistlethwaite
Publisher: Viz
Age Rating: Older Teen
Genres: Drama, Romance
RRP: $8.99
We Were There v2
Reviewed by Ysabet Reinhardt MacFarlane

In its second volume, We Were There continues to build a romance between two teenagers who have more than the usual high school worries to deal with. Nanami, the female lead, is a very normal girl trying to make sense of her feelings for Yano, a classmate whose last girlfriend died in an accident the year before. As for Yano, his attitude makes it difficult to know what he's thinking--about Nanami or anything else--but a fear of betrayal has already become a recurring theme in their conversations.

After confessing her love to Yano in volume 1, Nanami still isn't entirely sure what to make of him. Despite having no way to know whether he'll react harshly or thoughtfully to what's going on around him, she's determined to be supportive, and does her best to keep him on track during the play their class puts on for the school festival--no easy task when he simply doesn't show up for rehearsals. While their classmates are resigned to Yano's behavior and distance, Nanami defends him and continues trying to reach out to him, with mixed success.

We start to see more from Yano's perspective in this volume, particularly when he dreams about his dead girlfriend and their relationship. At this point we know more details about his past than Nanami does, but Yano's thoughts and feelings still aren't on display in the way hers are, so he remains something of a mystery.

The characters' relationship is tentative but believable in the way it grows, and it's easy to see why Yano both intrigues and frustrates Nanami. I really like the way this series is unfolding, and I'm very interested in seeing how it develops from here.

Review copy provided by VIZ Media.

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6 October 2009
Naruto v46
We Were There v6



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