Apologies in advance for the upcoming bunch of manga I'm about to add to my Goodreads

This was a really cute start to what is sure to be a wholesome series. I played a lot of badminton so it's fun to see badminton in manga form haha, and I haven't read a sports manga with such a large focus on romance before which I'm really liking

Un très bon début de série qui donne envie de découvrir la suite rapidement !

Pour les personnes qui me suivent depuis un moment, vous connaissez mon amour pour Haikyu, les shônen autour du sport et les p'tites romances sympathiques : "Blue Box" résume parfaitement ce melting pot que j'adore.

On suit deux personnages attachants et motivés dans leurs propres disciplines sportives. Ils sacrifient énormément de leur quotidien pour faire du mieux qu'ils peuvent et se surpasser. Personnellement, je trouve ça très beau à lire et à voir. Ça me donne aussi envie de me motiver à tenir une discipline.

Pour info, la romance est plutôt bien amenée dans l'histoire (actuellement dans ce premier tome, on comprends juste que la relation est en "one side").

Donc vous allez me dire ? Mais pourquoi tu n'as pas mis 5/5 si c'est tout ce que tu aimes.
J'ai envie de vous répondre que je veux voir si cela va redescendre ou si la suite va continuer sur la lancée que j'imagine. J'avoue avoir très peur de retomber dans le cliché et de ne plus avoir le focus premier donc... à voir :).

En tout cas, je vous recommande d'y jeter un coup d'oeil et de vous faire votre propre avis sur le sujet.

I don’t know what I like more, the sports or the budding romance in this first volume of Blue Box. Probably the sports, but I’m generally on board with a slow-burn romance that’s born out of mutual respect and admiration. That’s usually my favorite kind of romantic story. I like seeing more romance-themed stories about characters who encourage one another and seek to become the best versions of themselves. Blue Box is sweet and earnest, although at times is a bit cliché. It makes up for its more standard shojo plot lines, by having a genuinely likable and thoughtful ensemble cast.

Our main character, Taiki is a dedicated badminton player, who is young and not quite on the level of his more advanced teammates. This means that he has to practice really hard to get good. Every morning he practices in the gym before classes. His only companion is the equally dedicated basketball player Chinatsu. She is one year his senior and is an absolute superstar when it comes to her sport. Taiki is completely enamored with her. Inspired by her grit, Taiki seeks to bring his game to the next level and thus be worthy of her affection. Although Chinatsu may already admire him, more than Taiki realizes.

The strength of this series lies in its characters. Chinatsu and Taiki are interesting in their own right, independent of one another. Beyond the main characters, however, is an equally interesting supporting cast. I took a particular liking to the character Hina, who is a spirited and talented gymnast. She’s somewhat of a frenemy to Taiki, and although it's clear that they are friends there is a teasing, antagonistic nature between them. She provides a nice change of pace from the otherwise sweet storyline. Chinatsu's friend / Taiki’s rival is also a welcomed addition. He seems like a kind person, and hopefully, Taiki doesn’t let his jealousy get in the way of making a new friend or at least an excellent sparing partner when it comes to badminton.

I think this is a sweet story, one that made me feel nostalgic. It offers characters with a lot of heart and depth, and I think that this could shape up to be a deeply meaningful story if it wants and doesn’t rely too heavily on clichés of the genre. I just ordered volume 2 and pre-ordered volume 3, so I am definitely reading more!

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Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to read a digital copy of this book in exchange for a review. All opinions are my own.

"Blue Box" is a really cute manga about a high school crush between a first year boy on the badminton team and a second year girl on the basketball team. I really like Taiki, the boy's, character as he wants to push himself to go to nationals not only for the girl, Chinatsu, but just because he really loves badminton. His hard work and dedication is invigorating and I like the story mostly because of his character.

this was cute until they started glorifying distorted eating