Krystallina: Bacon, breakouts, and bewilderment reign in this latest volume of Silver Spoon!
Hachiken and his friends prepare to enter the second semester, and this brings changes. The lines of communication between Hachiken and his parents are slowly opening, and he is later promoted to vice president of the equestrian club, a role he struggles to accept.
Well, that may be because any hope of being a reliable friend (or knight in shining armor) to his crush Aki is stomped on when she bluntly tells him it’s none of his business why she was crying in front of Komaba.
Instant KO.
What’s interesting about Silver Spoon is that it shows Hachiken adapting to life at Ezo Ag, but it’s because he’s an outsider that he finds acceptance there. The other students know that naming the animals makes it harder to slaughter them, a lesson Hachiken learned with Pork Bowl. Yet instead of never getting too close to a pig again, he promptly names all the new piglets. His reasoning makes all his classmates think he is smart and yet stupid. Or as he is told when he’s promoted to club VP, “You’re an ass in an honest way too.”
There’s an interlude between the Pork Bowl storyline and the preparations for the school’s festival with a couple of chapters about the guys trying to see “it” in Area 51. You know the punchline is coming, but the way it plays out like some epic life-or-death rescue plan is brilliant. Plus, Arakawa delivers a second punchline to make the whole side story even funnier.
For me, the downside is the final arc centering around Hachiken trying to find out why Aki was in tears. It’s obvious that she’s more partial to horses than cows, and I’m hoping that her internal struggle between being a rider or a farmer isn’t going to drag on. If the author is going for an ending where she achieves her dream while Hachiken marries into her family to take over the farm, then I hope to see them actually click as a couple. They’re no Ed and Winry.
But as the school starts festival preparations, I’m hopeful that all the misunderstandings will clear up. With many of the characters already starting to nail down their plans for their second year of high school, Hachiken can’t wander around in a love-shocked daze for too long.
Krystallina’s rating: 3 out of 5
Justin: What exactly would be the fallout from Hachiken shipping pork bowl off to be butchered, then only returned back to him?
Well, let’s just say this move still somewhat vexes him, though it has made him popular with the ladies…and gentleman.
Silver Spoon volume 4 feels like it’s settled into a general pace, complete with some character drama to keep in mind for future volumes. For now, Hachiken’s devoted to figuring out some way to deal with all the meat he has to eat, which includes students bartering him for some of it, and a suggestion from his brother to maybe send some to his parents to continue to smooth their relationship. That also means sending this to his dad, who isn’t seeing eye-to-eye with any of his sons.
But some things change for Hachiken. For starters, he’s been chosen to be the VP of the equestrian club. With that added responsibility comes more things to do and apparently also means being mindful of what’s going on with Mikage and Komaba? The two of them are holding something back from everyone, and Hachiken’s determined to figure out what that is. Though as he learns as he pursues this issue, he may be over his head.
Outside of this issue, this volume is mainly about exploring exactly what different types of people obsess over. You wouldn’t think seeing a particular type of machine would get mostly everyone (the boys) to risk getting in trouble, but in some cases, the trouble is worth it. However, most of us are probably Hachiken, since going out past the designated time for that is…not worth it whatsoever. But that’s been something this series has continued to do over the first couple volumes, so it’s little surprise it continues here.
Once again, the food and the comedy stand out, and the only reason why is because of the faces. How Arakawa continues to draw these characters, and their reactions, aids what could just be an average volume of a fun series. That’s always helpful because as we get into the school life aspect of Hachiken and everyone else’s life, something concrete will have to happen — like what will Hachiken do with his life after school? Deal with his relationship with his family? What will Mikage choose to do, even though she’s been tabbed to take over the farm? Lots of questions, but the path there is a long one.
So that means for now, gonna have to strap in and maybe wonder what kind of food will get Komaba to go five innings next time. Or how the life and times of Hachiken naming animals he shouldn’t will go over with his fellow students…
Justin’s Rating: 4 out of 5