Sensual Phrase

THe final volume of sensual phrase is headlined by the band's return to Japan. Sakuya is still devastating and I still wish Aine would grow more independent, everything she is all about is still stronly tied to Sakuya's personality. The next SP filler is more erotically graphic, but introduces readers to Sakuya and Aine's son Shion, who is adorable. Aine is better in this story because she's shown as a stronger parent. The other part of the second filler is just a glimse how the other Aucifer band members are spending their time. I love the glimpse of Yuki and his family(Maria and Yuki-hiko). Atsuro and Yuuka get married at the end of the 2nd filler and a small statement is written about how Santa, Towa, Yuki and Atsuro's lives are progressing. The First Short story(it has Shotgun in the title) is the best in the book, it has a strong male and female lead and involves cars which is one of Mayu Shinjo's current loves. The male lead hides his wild side and the female lead discovers this when she tries to become closer to him, since she gets attracted to him because of his kindness. The story is cute and smart. I really liked it. The 2nd short story was ok, romantic, but to much cliche that it was just OK.

There are a lot of things I can say about Sensual Phrase: Final Volume. First off, I have been a fan of the series since I picked up the first volume on a whim last year. So I was eagerly awaiting this promised final volume, which was supposed to be a 'wrap-up' for the series. In a way, this last novel is both a high point for the series but it's a let down as well. There are four (or five, I can't remember if the one is split into two chapters) stories in this book. Three of them are Sensual Phrase, the last two are just random episodes the author included. The Sensual Phrase ones are, to be honest, filler. The first one takes place a year after the end of Vol. 17. Sakuya and Aine have been married for a year, and Aucifer is returning to Japan for a tour. Aine's parents want her to stay with them while Sakuya is doing his tour, but when he discovers this he tells her he wants to stay with her at her parents'. Aside from some amusing moments where her parents ALMOST catch them having sex, it's mostly just another way of showing how Sakuya is adjusting to his in-laws. The second and third stories revolve around Sakuya and Aine having a son. There was a sex scene in the second one that to me felt more graphic than some of the other scenes in the manga, but this one felt like it had little point beyond that. The third story actually did fill us in on some of the rest of the band. Atsuro and his stepsister Yuka are getting married! (She's apparently pregnant..) Yuki has temporarily left the music business to oversee his family's business. His wife and son are shown with him. Everyone catches up, and that's how the series wraps up. I'll be honest, the other story is okay. It was kind of jarring to go to a completely different series from SP, especially since the one guy looks a LOT like Sakuya. And the girl acts a lot like Aine at the beginning of SP (translation: whiny and indecisive). I give the volume 4 stars because it wasn't bad by any means, I just really wish the author had gone into more detail about their lives. If this were a movie, I'd say this was simply a highlight reel and not part of the movie itself.