Apologies for the lack of updates in the last couple of weeks everyone. I haven't vanished but I am in the middle of moving to a new place *excited* there is a lot of packing, cleaning, painting which is keeping me away from the blog and awake from daydreaming. Nah, the second is simply not true. In fact I have been day dreaming all the time about the new chapters of BGI. The recent interviews with Obata sensei made me even more curious about it and I constantly find myself speculating on the possible developments after chapter 51. Come to think of it I never made a post about this chapter so here it is.

Among a pile of letters there is an envelope addressed to Yano Motoharu. we can see Yano's hands reaching for it and unsealing the envelope before the content is revealed: A wedding picture of Takeuchi and Nanami laughing happily announcing their marriage. Yano jumps awake in shock with his eyes wide open. He finds himself on a couch with a cover over his legs and a cushion behind his back. " it was a dream" ( or a nightmare, ha.) Yano realises.There are lipstick marks all over his face and neck and one of his workmate is lying on the floor completely passed out. but he struggles to recall how he ended up sleeping there . He then thinks that he didn't want to go home so he must have hang out all night drinking with his workmates. A colleague of his, who is in the kitchen making some coffee, asks him about the birthday cake he got last night . Yano replies he hasn't go a clue of what he's talking about. He g get off the couch but his foot steps over a box squashing it. His colleagues then tell him how, after a few drinks , he started rumbling nonsense as" the cake.. I need to buy the cake" so in spite being so late at night he went to the shop and bought himself a cake made by slices of different cakes ( since all the whole ones were already sold out) Yano opens the box and finds what his colleagues just told him was true.
That evening the group goes out eating ramen. One of the colleagues asks Yano if he is going to give the cake to that someone he mentioned last night. Yano, a bit shaken, asks if did he actually say who the cake was for and the guy replies it was someone called Lala or Nana, a name definitely similar to his dog's name, Yano laughs at first saying it must have been his dog but is not able to say a word when his colleague points out he was definitely referring to a girl. His workmate then asks if he does buy a cake for her every year and then goes out drinking alone. Yano tries to dismiss the conversation telling him not to worry too much about last night. Whatever he did was definitely something silly due to having a drink too many.
His friend doesn't look really convinced. To him, Yano is the kind of guy who can say what really is in heart only when drunk. Yano denies and says that whatever he says when he drinks is just nonsense.

Meanwhile, Nanami is in her office searching the internet to get Yano's work address and telephone number. She can't stop thinking about last night at the restaurant with Takeuchi. She feels terrible for what she has done to him all along. She will never forget Takeuchi's hopeful eyes and the way she deliberately destroyed his smile by refusing his ring. He never deserved to be treated like she did. " I can't accept this" she remembers, Those were horrible words.
Seconds later, Aki comes to talk to Nanami. She asks her to reconsider the whole situation with Takeuchi, Although she was the one pushing her to go see Yano initially. In fact, she has found out the answer to why Yano never came back to her. Now he is living with someone else. he has started a new life.
Nanami, however, is determined to see him anyway. She thought that being with Takeuchi was enough to forget about him and be happy. But it seems that she can't give up on Yano yet. She needs to hear the answer directly from him, even for Takeuchi.Until he proposed she never realised how unfair she was being to him.
She needs to know if Yano is happy now and why, back then, he didn't come back to her. she admits that needs to find the answers that she has been asking herself for the past 6 years.

Nanami is on the train on her way to Yano's office. She looks at her mobile and feels very insecure. Normally, whenever she checked it she would find an email from Takeuchi. He will not want see her ever again. She realises that after what happened it will be impossible becoming friends once again.

Meanwhile Take is sitting in a cafe all alone . He has a cup in front of him but he staring into nowhere lost in his own thoughts. then grabs the phone. He calls Aki and asks her if she can tell him something.

Nanami stands outside Yano's office. She stares at the building trying to gather courage and thinks about that same situation back in high school when a very amused Yano was watching her from the window of his room. She rings the door bell. A guy answers the door and tells her that Yano is heading to the airport for a two day holiday in Sapporo. Nanami thinks that this might be the only chance she has before loosing contact again, so rushes to the airport.

Once she gets there Nanami starts looking for Yano among the crowd of passengers. She feels like re-living the night at the school festival. Finally she spots a familiar silhouette walking ahead of her. Nanami stares at the figure and although she can't see nothing but the back of his head face she recognises him. It's Yano. In tears, Nanami calls out his name .

Takeuchi goes to Yano apartment and finds Yuri answering at the door. Take *not surprised to see her*, asks where Yano is . Yuri replies that since they haven't seen each other for so many years she was expecting at least a greeting but then again she is aware Takeuchi never liked her from the beginning. Then she tells him that Yano is away on a trip.....

So ladies and gentlemen, this is the story of Bokura Ga Ita so far. Ah, good thing we don't have to wait much longer for chapter 52. It's a relief although I am sure that the meeting between Nana and Yano won't be an easy ride. A part of me is afraid that Yano will try to be as elusive as possible leaving Nanami with more doubts than before, even towards Takeuchi. Obata sensei anticipated that there will be a big event between Takeuchi and Nanami. I wonder if the meeting with Yano has anything to do with it. This is mere speculation but I don't find hard to believe that Yano might come up with an excuse like a change of feelings just to push her back into Takeuchi's arms ( in perfect Yano's style, I would say). Plus, this would avoid any explanation about his relationship with Yuri and give Nanami a reason for breaking any contact ( or would it?). I was quite surprised to learn that Takeuch went to Yano and Yuri's place. What for? He asked if Yano was in but he never said he came to talk to him.. Gosh is the 12th of June yet?

Wow. After the interview posted on Manganimation here's another one published by Journal Du Japon. I am thrilled!
So , the link to the original page (in french) is here . Below, you can find the Q&As in english.

Can you describe the story of "Bokura ga ita"?

. Yuuki Obata: Two students meet and face together the trials of life. Nanami Takahashi is a bit naive, Yano Motoharu is rather mysterious. At first, she feels idle facing him, then discovers he has lost his girlfriend and she wants to help him to overcome his pain .

How the series "Bokura ga ita" was born?

YO: I had already created three series on the theme of high school life ... The staff of Betsucomi "asked me to draw another one, but with a different approach.
When I started working on this series, I found difficult to capture the personality of students and I was afraid that the story, about a young boy whose girlfriend is dead, could come across as banal. I still wanted to continue and eventually it has been well received, so I'm happy.

After 13 volumes, have the characters matured?

YO: I do not want to make them grow up too quickly, I want it to be a progression. Of course, they are becoming adults, but they may take a step back, and then move forward again. I often feel that they do nothing but taking steps back, I wonder if they really progress at all (laughs) . The protagonists are still very young, the tests are therefore more difficult for them. Ultimately I wonder if it isn't a little too much and if it remains credible ...

In France, the release of the 13th volume has just been announced , what is its characteristic?

YO: Readers are expecting the meeting between the two protagonists , finally it has arrived ... (laughs)

What have you retained from your previous professional experiences (Rain Drops ...)?

YO: My first memorable experience is the first story I wrote but this was never released in France. During this period, I could draw anything I wanted to express. I had to stop when I changed magazine.

What difficulties have you encountered in working on this series?

YO: The pace of publication was hard for me to keep up with. It was difficult picturing the series as a whole, imagining what would happen next.. At first I had to publish a chapter a week, and for each chapter, I had to find a twist to keep the story interesting.

What made you become a mangaka?

YO: When I was young, I read lots of manga, a habit I lost when I started high school. After high school, I restarted and felt emotions that reminded me of my childhood. I wanted to translate those feelings by drawing. More generally after my studies, I had to think about what I wanted to do as a profession, becoming mangaka grew on me.

What is a normal working day like?

. YO: It starts with the "proto", a synopsis of the chapter. Even if the team I work with writes me a script, I can't find inspiration easily, I do not have a lot of ideas. Then we proceed to the stage of "nem", which consists of an initial drawing. Since I struggle on the "proto", I take much more time on the "nem", I discuss it with members of staff, and carry on like this until the publication.

Is this the first time that you're in France to publicise one of your series ?

YO: I visited Aix-en-Provence and Nice three years ago and I have already been in Paris twice, but it was for personal reasons.

What is your relationship with your french readers?

YO: I had no idea there were so many readers! What a discovery! (Laughs)

Can you tell us about your plans and projects for the future

YO: First I want to finish "Bokura ga Ita", then I hope to work on a more personal project , where I can really put a bit of myself, without depending on the public opinion. I am recording personal experiences, movies, music etc..

**Yes** it's a double treat this time around.
Available on Mangafox a bonus chapter entirely dedicated to the new character of Etou plus chapter 58. In this chapter our Seiso Academy heroes are getting ready for the upcoming culture festival. In the gen-ed department the students are gathering up ideas for the event. Aoi suggests the class could stage a play, Romeo and Juliet, where he and Kahoko will play as the main protagonists ( Kahoko is somewhat shocked by this idea...). On top of that, Kanazawa sensei calls all the participants to the last musical concourse and announces his plan to stage a live performance. This time the students will have the opportunity to play all together( Kahoko is immediately thrilled by the idea but then holds back a little because she's afraid to pull everyone down due to her lack of talent). As winner of the concourse, Len is also granted to choose a piece and perform solo. This will also be Len's last performance before his departure for Europe. Kahoko is upset by the fact that Len will be leaving soon she hasn't had the courage to say anything to him. In fact, she is trying her best to hide her feelings. Yunoki, however doesn't fall for that ( probably because he knows a thing or two about hiding feelings himself) and when he finds Kahoko practicing on the school rooftop alone he tells to stop whining already and be so self centred.
He also says that if the person most important to him was going to study abroad, he would definitely cast any selfish thought aside, like the fear of loneliness, and think about the person's sake. This must be already a difficult moment for Len so she should try as supportive as possible. Kahoko hears a violin playing and recognises it's Len. Before Yunoki starts teasing her even more Kahoko decides to leave on the spot, however, she thanks him for the advice.
On her way out, she stops by the door of the music room where Len is practicing. Kahoko is a bit hesitant and thinks about Yunoki's words. Len notices Kahoko standing at the door and asks her if she needed help with something. Kahoko says she just wanted him to know she will never give up on practicing violin and wants him to give his best too when he'll be studying abroad because she will be cheering on him. Len thanks her but you can tell is ecstatic. His smile never looked so beautiful.....

This is totally unrelated to the chapter but i had to post a link to this cosplay costumes which i completely fell in love with. They even have matching coats and accessories!!! *wants the scarf*.

*** very important edit: chapter 47 of BGI is up and available to download on Jshojo***


Now, you might already have heard about Yuki Obata participation to the Mang'azur 2009 convention in Toulosue last month. Yeah, I 'm sure the subject also came up a couple of times in the comments to previous posts but if for some reasons you skipped those, I'll mention it here as well.
Then, I'd like to take the opportunity to properly thank 天災流川 for interviewing the mangaka and also for posting a comment here on the blog with the direct link to the Q&As.
Eversince the convention took place I have been looking for some articles about Obata sensei's conference but trust me, until today the search proved itself harder than I thought. So to make sure that nobody misses out I decided to write a post about it including the direct link to the full interview here . Once again, many thanks to 天災流川 for this.

Personally, I was really excited to read about this interview and to get to know more about the author beside her own works. Obata sensei talks about her passion for drawing, the mangaka who inspire and influence her art ( namely Fusako KURAMOCHI and Ryou IKUEMI) .
We also get to know that normally she doesn't like doing autographs gigs because she doesn't want people have an image of her in her mind when they read her stories.
She also shares her option about her own works ( apparently one of her favourites is an early story called Maru, Sankaku, Shikaku a lighthearted manga far form the angsty reality present in her main two works).
Obvioulsy most of the interview involved questions about her main two titles Sumire wa Blue and Bokura ga Ita.
Like I said before i just recently broke my *taboo* of reading other Yuki Obata works beside BGI, which means I haven't still finished Sumire Wa Blue. At any rate, the plot is not explored in depth nor the interview gives any spoilers even because in France the manga has been published in full. That's good news after all, should the english scanlations get to a halt like BGI I know I can always buy the french versions ( my french is a bit rusty but, hey, what an opportunity to practice a bit more).
Anyway there are some interesting facts about the genesis of the characters ( and she also why Daichi plays hockey) and title itself, Sumire Wa blue. Although lame, I kinda wasn't suprised that the answer was a nod to the lines of "Roses are red, violets are blue. Sugar is sweet, and so are you ". ( because when I read the title I also thought oh it reminds me of that poem..)

Well now...about Bokura Ga Ita.

Obata sensei says she liked the anime version overall but she'd probably had chosen a different voice for Nanami , as wanted her to sound more bubbly, a bit more like Mizu-chan.

We also learn that some ideas for the story were based on the real life experience of one of her manager's friends ( who apparently was in a situation like Yano *dear me*...) and initially the manga was meant to have only 5-6 volumes. Eventually the volumes got extended ( with extra angst added) due to its popularity.
Obata sensei says that the story will include 14 volumes in total ( well, we hope to see the 13th out soon!!).
When she was asked if she could reveal anything about the upcoming chapters the author said

In the 3 newest chapters, Nanami and Yano meet. There’s also a big event between Nanami and Takeuchi, but it’s a secret !

( GOSH this is this is worse than not knowing !!!... The fact that Yano and Nana were going to cross paths again is a kind of understatement but what on earth is going to happen then??? What's the big event between Nana and Takeuchi?... ..oh GOSH. is the 12th of June yet? I want to know more, more!!! I am a sucker for spoilers when it comes to BGI)

Anyway, whilst we wait let me announce that WE WERE THERE volume 4 has just been released by Viz Media. I was quite thrilled to read this because it contains chapters never scanlated in English. Plus, I now adore the lines at the end of the volume ( well probably dedicate to Nana-san by Yano himself?)..

I want to meet you over and over again and I want you to make a fool of me over and over again. I'll keep repairing what you break until it wears me out. I'll stay with you until it breaks me. I'll be the clown, the idiot, the dog. I am willing to throw away my pride and composure. I don't need anything.... Only tell me that you love me

That's right. And in case you're wondering why I added part 2 to the title you need to read this first ad then check this gallery ( now with English descriptions, thank you so much Nicky!!!!!)
At any rate I recently opened an account on deviant art, more because I could keep track of all my favourite fan art than anything else. I don't think I will ever up anything drawn or painted by myself because it will be a total waste of Internet space. You already have to put up with my ramblings here on this blog so I'll spare you *that* ( you know, I have a heart too).
Anyway, the point of this post is just to introduce the pictures below. Yeah, I always thought how cool it would be to see a live version of Yano and Nana?


present bokura ga ita by ~LauULau on deviantART

Well here's the answer, really really cool. A big Bravo to LauULau, for making these pictures and showing us a live version Yano and Nana. The reason why I love it so much is also because she managed to remain so faithful to the manga characters without looking too fake. Brilliant work, really well done.


Opening Bokura Ga Ita 1 by ~LauULau on deviantART

To check the rest of the gallery, follow the link below the pictures. Enjoy.

***EDIT*** Call it coincidence or something ..while I was posting about how cool would be seeing a real life version of Nana and Yano, Oricon published this. The table in blue shows the results of a survey about what anime people would like to see in live drama version . BGI ranked at no 4 among the favourites..wow!!