I think two things can be true at once, and people not being able to separate the quality of writing from liking the characters has effected the dating of this manga (and the other stories surrounding it, quite a lot. I don’t like the Rio and Kuzumi, It’s as if Rio is always one foot out the door. He’s terrified of being left, and thus doesn’t seem to put effort into the relationship, or would rather avoid taking the initiative and being with Kuzumi altogether unless Kuzumi initiates it. We don’t see Rio being jealous, we don’t see him recognizing Kizumi’s sacrifices for their relationship, we don’t really see any behavior that would make the reader believe that Rio genuinely loves Kuzumi. I mean, Rio even admitted himself that he feels like Kido was the only person who would never truly leave him. And we see in Kido and Rio’s story that Kido still has feelings for Rio despite being with Kuzumi, and he states he probably always will. Despite all this, and despite me honestly not loving the pairing, that doesn’t mean that the manga is bad. In fact, the manga is very well written. Rio is a well written character, his motivations and personality are consistent. However, that doesn’t make him likable, and him not being likable doesn’t make it an inherently bad manga. Anyway, point is, I’ll be eating this highly even despite not loving the pairing, because it was an enjoyable read, and was genuinely well done.
I think two things can be true at once, and people not being able to separate the quality of writing from liking the characters has effected the dating of this manga (and the other stories surrounding it, quite a lot. I don’t like the Rio and Kuzumi, It’s as if Rio is always one foot out the door. He’s terrified of being left, and thus doesn’t seem to put effort into the relationship, or would rather avoid taking the initiative and being with Kuzumi altogether unless Kuzumi initiates it. We don’t see Rio being jealous, we don’t see him recognizing Kizumi’s sacrifices for their relationship, we don’t really see any behavior that would make the reader believe that Rio genuinely loves Kuzumi. I mean, Rio even admitted himself that he feels like Kido was the only person who would never truly leave him. And we see in Kido and Rio’s story that Kido still has feelings for Rio despite being with Kuzumi, and he states he probably always will. Despite all this, and despite me honestly not loving the pairing, that doesn’t mean that the manga is bad. In fact, the manga is very well written. Rio is a well written character, his motivations and personality are consistent. However, that doesn’t make him likable, and him not being likable doesn’t make it an inherently bad manga. Anyway, point is, I’ll be eating this highly even despite not loving the pairing, because it was an enjoyable read, and was genuinely well done.