REVIEW: ‘Sasaki and Miyano’ Volume 4

Sasaki and Miyano is getting an anime adaptation this anime season. So with that, it’s a perfect time to jump into the wholesome BL series that uses, well, BL as a guidebook for our titular characters. Last volume, Sasaki made his confession, and now, it’s all a waiting game as Miyano contemplates how to respond to Sasaki’s confession. Sasaki and Miyano Volume 4 is written and illustrated by mangaka Shou Harusono, published and localized in English by Yen Press, with Leighann Harvey serving as translator and DK providing lettering. The series follows the titular characters as they bond over BL and learn how to channel their emotions for each other beyond friendship.

Now a love confession should be easy to take; I mean, Miyano reads volume after volume of BL, so he’s aware of, well, same-gender romances. But he can’t help but question what if his senpai does see him as a romantic partner and not a friend. This is mainly due to the fact that Miyano has to figure out what Sasaki means to him. After all, up until this point, Miyano has only liked girls and not guys. However, with surprise reunions with old crushes and Miyano’s first drag beauty pageant that pushes Sasaki’s self-restraint to the limit, the two’s relationship is pushed as far as it can go.

First things first, Sasaki and Miyano Volume 4 is all about investigating your own emotions. On the one hand, Miyano is struggling to realize his feelings while also coping with the bullying he used to receive when in middle school for looking more “feminine.” On the other hand, even when it wasn’t meant to be a bullying tactic, it made Miyano feel less-than, making the semes in his BL, men he wanted to be, not be with.

As Miyano explores his insecurities and explores who he’s attracted to, Sasaki has a different struggle. Unlike Miyano, Sasaki is clear in his confession and his choice to change from platonic to romantic with his kouhai. But the waiting begins to strain his interactions with Miyano as the yearning builds, until, in the last chapter, he acts on it, embracing Miyano and affirming that he likes him because he is him, not because he is feminine, but because he loves who Miyano is a person.

My only issue with this volume is that it’s taking quite a while to reach an upfront conversation about their future. While I appreciate Harusono’s commitment to exploring how their characters deal with the emotional weight of romance, I want the two to progress forward. Or, at the very least, I want Miyano to verbalize his hesitation with Sasaki. The two have become close friends, and while they bond over romance manga, I want to see the level of trust that comes with completely opening up to one another and choosing what next step to take…together.

With Volume 5 fast approaching, I’m looking forward to what’s to come in Sasaki and Miyano’s story. The way that Volume 4 ends for Sasaki and Miyano is both hopeful and anxious. It’s a moment of connection, an advance made on Sasaki’s part that can either open the door to romance or shut it. All of that future, though lays in Miyano’s reaction, and that’s what I can’t wait to read.

Sasaki and Miyano Volume 4 is available now wherever books are sold.