If it weren’t for the 1 on the cover, I would have thought this manga adaptation of Weathering With You was going to keep charging full steam and cover all of the film.
In the midst of a heavy, seemingly endless rainy season, country boy Hodaka runs away to the big city of Tokyo. After a rocky boat ride there (and having to buy his adult savior a meal), his luck still doesn’t improve much. On the brink of hunger, a fast food worker gives him a free burger, and Hodaka goes back to the man he met on the boat for a job. Suga is involved with articles on the paranormal, but Hodaka gets an up-close view of the supernatural when he meets that fast food worker, Hina, again: she can pray and make the sun appear even in the middle of all the rain.
Weathering With You volume 1 scrambles to get through the setup, and this results in a lot of too-perfectly aligned events and a lack of understanding of the world and its characters. For instance, when Hina first demonstrates her powers, Hodaka declares her a Sunshine Girl as if the title/position is obvious. In the manga, I had no idea how he knew of them until I went back: when he’s hired, there’s a panel showing a rough draft of a report on Sunshine Girls. In the movie, Hodaka hears about Sunshine Girls directly, providing a way for viewers to be introduced to the concept. That’s probably the biggest example of the manga not allowing readers to slowly be drawn in. But even things like fast forwarding through Hodaka’s first days in Tokyo gives off the impression that he had no plan or money. I mean, it was still a foolish idea, but the manga feels more like a toddler’s plan to run away versus having some money that quickly dwindles.
Anyway, after Hodaka’s first attempt to pay back Hina nearly ends with a murder, he helps her set up a business regarding her abilities. This is where the title comes into play, although most of their jobs are shown in a batch. This first volume ends with his boss learning about legendary Weather Girls while the police investigate Hodaka firing off the gun he found.
It’s clear from the ending that Hodaka and Hina are on borrowed time, and this is a strong enough cliffhanger to get people to come back for the second volume. The visuals will play a large part in the second half, and judging from this volume, that’s where the artist’s strength lies. Kubota includes quite a few large panels, and they can be attention-grabbers: Hina’s first use of her powers, Hodaka feeling like he’s drowning, and the rain-soaked city full of umbrellas. The volume opens with some color pages, and the whole book has a very anime-like feel to it.
Full- and two-page spreads are nice, but some of these probably should have been reduced for more characterization and exposition. Part of the beauty of Weathering With You is the way the story slowly unfolds, and volume 1 doesn’t quite capture Shinkai’s magic.