The artwork was very cute and stylish, but the story and characters were flat. I think Nala had the best development of all though her personality was her obsession with kawaii/cutesy fashion and her tendency to run away. The dialogue was also stilted. 

Things were moving so quickly that many plot points didn’t get developed. One of the biggest problems is the mean girl Emma. She never truly grew or apologized.

maybe middle school kids are that fickle. But Emma saw Lilico play basketball one day, then she was bestie #1 forever.

First half of the story dragged on and on, but, once Lilico got used to the school, things picked up. Overall, Bounce Back is more plot-driven than character-driven.

There are a lot of references to (mainstream) Japanese items/media: kimono, yukata, pocky, Dragon Ball Z, Sailor Moon, katanas, samurai, etc. But it’s done very surface level. Maybe the author thought this is what the young audience would be most familiar with and would appeal to them.

I fully acknowledge I’m not the intended audience though I’m no stranger to reading children’s fiction but I almost dnf’ed this. I didn’t enjoy the reading experience. But I think kids will be super enamored with the art style, the cute animal sidekick, and the kindhearted, harmless Japan-loving friends (“weeaboos” if you want to be mean XD). 

 A very unsatisfactory ending though everything comes full circle. The Shiva-Soul stuff confused me to no end. 

so a piece of his soul was in a vessel. was he imagining what his child would've grown up as and it manifested as Shiva???

 

 Teacher's backstory and Shiva's true nature is utterly confusing. 

I have no words for that cliffhanger.

Here we have tyrannical zealots and the ever-present cycle of taking more from women than you give. <spoiler. God/light in this story steals from the Mother/darkness, but she steals back. And it creates these lifeless outsiders.

The king is all right.

Enjoyed the uniqueness of this and the cast of characters. Fayard is always a bit sappy in all his versions (<3) and Tamar is the more no-nonsense, cynical one.

This takes “star-crossed lovers and past lives,” and amps it up to 10. I loved seeing the different Fay’s and Tamar’s fall in love. It’s buffet style; we get sci-fi, historical, thriller, and YA contemporary romance here with a scoop of each on a well-written plate. Stellar reading experience and the ending was pretty much perfect.

 This series has a way of sucking you in. The animal morphing is pretty gross to look at, but it works. Marco is for sure the most annoying character. 

 This was gold! Besties: Work It Out impressed me with its themes and thoughtful characters. I love seeing a kid acknowledge how hard her mom is working and wanting to take care of her. 

The story showed perfectly the deeper awareness you get as a kid when you realize the weight of adult responsibilities and MONEY. Some of us discover it earlier depending on our circumstances, but the conclusion is usually the same. 

Chanda and Beth were so much fun together. They were chaotic and quirky but loved each other. The artwork was better than ever. The lines were sleeker (I see you Clip Studio Paint), and the color direction was phenomenal. 

Something I loved was the spin on “lying, and I hope they don’t find out.” Ending spoiler:

The girls legit work hard to undo their mistake and even get help from an older sibling. They honestly get away with it all until one little mistake. It’s a refreshing turn on the trope, but still manages to admonish honesty. Loved it!

 

I’m always game to read more from the Click series and now Besties! 

 BIG WEBTOON ENERGY! I’m always happy to see webcomics/webtoons get physical prints. 

Tropes aren’t bad, but it’s how you use them. The characterization and plot elements felt very bare bones. There’s a really dark part that happens toward the end that held no emotional weight. It should’ve had my heart clenched, but I didn’t feel much nor did the characters. I was surprised at the dark turn, but I like that it humanized one of the antagonists. 

I absolutely love the “surly, rough around the edges person, usually, a dude, has to take care of cheerful kid” trope. But I found Kita and Toran dull. And Toran looks so ashy. His hair should’ve been a darker color. 

I don’t usually critique art style because I know how much painstaking work goes into creating any illustration, but the “same face syndrome” is very jarring here. 

CW: sexual harassment, fat jokes, dieting

I don’t know too much about horses or equestrian riding, save for Sonic and Mario at the Olympic Games, so I enjoyed learning about it in an engaging way. 

I thought Kate’s narrative read very believable. Now, she isn’t perfect or polished – Kate’s not like other girls, she’s only concerned with her weight because others are and it leads her to Body Balancers (Weight Watchers); she notices thin girls have a vastly different experience than her, she’s bullied by the mean girls at school, and feels slightly jealous of her bestfriend Becky. 

Some may be put off by it, but I think this is relatable and realistic to many middle-schoolers, who may not be mature or aware. A lot of the youth today are more conscious and knowledgeable, but they may/will be ignorant at some points.

My heart… when Kate finally broke down from her brother and his friends picking at her weight and being overall gross.  ;__; Those remarks hurt, and I felt Kate’s frustration. I also want to say

I was surprised that Kate and Becky never had a falling out. usually, in these MG stories it's inevitable.

Overall, not bad!