Most of volume 7 is the same insanity readers have become quite familiar with: love woes, quick-to-violence responses, and things people wish they could unsee or unhear. Whether it’s Rec panicking as others mistake him for Hoshi when he secretly tries on a mask or Stella not wanting to get rid of her “doll”, life at the river is as interesting as ever.
But not everything is the same as usual. For one, Rec is nominated as Mayor! It’s a position he doesn’t want, and others (like P-ko and Hoshi) want to see him as Mayor even less. But ultimately, due to Sister’s and Maria’s support (read: threats), Rec starts taking over mayoral duties like Zweeting and trying to liven up parties. But he also realizes he has certain perks like naming or renaming citizens of the bridge. Will he use his new ability for good or evil — namely torturing Hoshi?!
Rec’s biggest challenge, however, is one that connects his Arakawa life with his CEO life: Kameari. Yes, the Kameari that causes him, Hoshi, and Last Samurai to turn into girls. But while Rec mostly retains his senses around the idol, he’s got a bigger problem: his company wants to make Kameari a spokesman, but Kameari hates clothes. I mean, hates clothes. As in he wants to move to the river so he can be a one-man nudist colony. Dealing with a guy like that would be bad enough, but Kameari’s risqué behavior could jeopardize Rec’s company, as Kameari tries to get away with as little clothes as possible. Nothing like doing an interview with a man who just inches from showing all of Japan the full monty.
But perhaps the most surprising thing is that he may be connected to Nino…? That was one of the few clues regarding her past, and I expected a little more considering how close we are to the ending. Still, seeing Nino shaken up a bit was a surprise considering not much fazes her, so we know that must be a big hint as to the truth.
As for the comedy, a lot of the gags are about how the characters want their romantic feelings to be reciprocated instead of their everyday (and crazy) days. I could understand if this meant that characters were starting to pair up, but the only one seeming to affirm their feelings to themselves is one of the Metal Brothers. It feels like Nakamura holds back a bit; I wanted to see more of Sister’s fealty to Mayor Rec rather than yet another P-ko-loves-Mayor joke. A couple of other good set-ups, like Rec’s birthday party, didn’t work for me. While the beginning of the omnibus made it seem like we’d be seeing everyone regularly since the manga is almost over, characters like Shiro just seem to disappear.
I think this is one of those volumes where being an omnibus works as a disadvantage to Arakawa Under the Bridge, as since it is a long read, the non-humorous sections seem to make the book even longer. When I laughed, I laughed, but when I wasn’t, I felt like every grumpy teacher in a sitcom glaring at the class. I can understand reserving some of the mysteries regarding Nino for the end, but it felt like some of the comedy might have been stored away too.