Koutarou and Asako continue their cute relationship but when Asako goes on vacation, something major happens.

At first the vacation back home for Asako is nice. She visits a old friend and they get to talking. It's a great scene, some funny bits with Asako's childhood friend kid there who is adorable. They talk about life, separation from their partners, really good mature themes. Then in comes a old school mate of Asako who insults her, maybe not fully on purpose, but the nickname she uses floods Asako's mind with the past and her hatred towards her own body.

And that's the thing. The bullying is bad enough but it's the self hate that hits hard. I won't get too personal but growing up overweight (and still am) my body image is all kinds of screwed up. I hate my own body. Even when I dropped 100+ pounds in my early 20s, or 45 pounds two years ago, I always seem to gain it back eventually. And the images of my past, of being called fat or any other insult always come back to me at the worst times. And so with Asako always sweating and smelling, when someone mentions a old nickname, all those horrible memories flood back into her.

And the way she deals with it is very personal. I felt extremely bad for her but I'm glad this series didn't just brush it off. We need more of this.

A 5 out of 5.