When I saw the cover of Peach Girl NEXT volume 8, I said to myself, “What?! It’s the last volume?!” Because the previous volume sure didn’t feel like it was building to a climax. Instead, with Sae discovering that Momo is thinking about a future with Toji, it seemed the perfect time for some of her vile scheming to come forth. Plus, Kairi’s off at Misao’s, helping out that family but not having much involvement with the core four storyline.
What Ueda delivers, however, is perhaps one of the best examples of firm romantic (and platonic) conclusions but still gives an ending that will not delight anyone.
Sae freaks out upon hearing the news that Toji and Momo are both moving (separately) and considering eventually building a life together. Eventually, her rage is replaced with shame upon little Miyu imitating her, and so Momo must track a fleeing Sae down. A dumb coincidence leads her to finding Sae’s location, and what follows is a series of events that forces all four main characters to reassess their lives.
This is a very Sae-centric volume. Not in terms of the manga following her around, but her own issues as well as others thinking about her drive the plot. Seriously, even the baby. The Sae’s Story sequel dove more into her complicated personality stemming from her sickly childhood, and here we finally get a flashback to these days (and even get Paper Sae from the original!). Still, a lot of her issues were already discussed in Sae’s Story, and if we were going to go back to rehabilitating Sae, NEXT should have either been a continuation of that manga or a Peach Girl sequel not set so long after the original — and after Momo had been ghosting Sae for years. Sae acts like she’s so unloved, but what happened to the guy who loved her? Never mentioned here despite Sora the dog being featured.
The book also has other story issues including yet another dire situation at the beach and hands from the sky (wut), but most importantly, the romance is glossed over. We have a man and woman who were together for 10 years break up, the pair reunite with first loves who offer a chance to be with them, and the woman who interfered with both couples. And, in the end, it’s like no big deal; everything’s cool. I mean, yes, it’s good the “losers” accept not everything always works out perfectly, but at the same time, it doesn’t address the fact there were enough problems or miscommunications that caused all this in the first place. Plus, for a romance, the deeper discussions in this volume were between Momo and Sae, not Momo and the man she gets married to. Also, there’s a random pairing at the end…?
For me, though, I did enjoy the art. I already mentioned the return of Sae’s paper powers, but there were some other highlights like Kairi’s expressions when Sae turns up at his shop and announces Toji and Momo are getting married. The ladies’ (including little Miyu’s) outfits at the very end are lovely, and I did like seeing all the smiling faces. Not to mention the adorable dog and the trolling turtle (haha).
In the end, though, I’m glad the series is over. I think most fans could have come up with a better Peach Girl story set after Sae’s Story, one that doesn’t involve wavering hearts, rehashed plots, and contrived crises.