Title: Fly Me to the Moon Vol. 10
Author: Kenjiro Hata
Publisher: Viz Media
Language: English
Format: Paperback
Pages: 200
Genre: Slice of Life, Romance, Comedy
Publication Date: March 8, 2022
The Story
Fly Me to the Moon Vol. 10’s central theme is all about camping and while the volume sets it up early on, we don’t get to the actual camping until much later. The rest of this volume is simply catching up with a ton of the characters that had been introduced so far but while we do get a couple of side stories, the main purpose for revisiting so many of them is because the bulk of them tag along on the camping trip!
Before we get to that, our first side story is catching up with Yanagi-sensei as she announces that she’s getting married to Taniguchi-sensei! However, despite her aspiring love life, she has questions about how people change after they become married and she’s basing that question on red pickled ginger on a beef bowl.
Next, we catch up with Nakiri as she’s eating at a café with a boy named Kurogane. Being the dull scientific girl that she is, she asks him about love and even goes as far as to pull off a few “experiments” with him. Obviously, Kurogane has a thing for Nakiri but judging by her reactions (or lack thereof), he’s forced to keep those feelings to himself… for now. This was probably one of the cutest, yet, awkward moments in the series!
Next, we catch up with Kaname and, if I recall, this is the very first time we see her at school AND in her art club. She was told that she has skills but she still needs to get the basics down so she decides to as a boy in her class named Kazumiya who is on the judo club. Without much thought or care, she flat out asks him to model nude for her! When he refuses, she says that she could ask someone on the soccer team who is a complete and total airhead. This gets Kazumiya to agree to do it!
Now we get to the camping part of the manga. The idea came from Tokiko who just let herself into their home and started eating cold noodles with them. After Nasa and Tsukasa agree, the word spreads. Suddenly, Chitose, Charlotte, Aurora, Kyuma, Aya, Kaname, and Ginga all get dragged into the trip. They are given the option to hike or drive and Nasa said to hike it (this ties into him getting back into shape after the opening chapter!)
From here it’s… not your typical camping side episode… which surprised me but we are left on that to continue in Volume 11.
Characters
10 volumes… it took 10 volumes but we FINALLY got a small glimpse of Tsukasa’s backstory! Tsukasa, apparently suffered her home burning down, or at least was in some village that burnt. That’s where she met Tokiko who gave her an ohagi to eat. Outside of this, later on in the manga, they revisit the opening chapter as Nasa asks why Tsukasa asked to marry him. She gives Nasa an explanation but it wasn’t really too deep. It does explain things a bit which I thought was cute but, then again, this whole series is cute so it fits with everything else!
I still can’t believe Kyuma could be as old as she is and still be this dumb. That’s what gives her a certain charm but she does make you question whether or not Darwin was wrong in this theory of evolution. Either that or we have technology to blame because it’s circumventing the natural order of things. Despite that, Kyuma is still a handful… especially when she gets lost at a wide-open campsite. Only her…
When Chitose heard about the camping trip, she vowed to teach Nasa a lesson… and never did. Maybe next volume?
Ginga and the maids were just “there” and only added dialogue to remind us that they were there. Don’t really know why they tagged along for the ride outside of making some scenes look fuller.
All I learned from Yanagi’s chapter are two things: first, she’s getting married (yay Yanagi), and second, don’t pile red pickled ginger on your beef bowl. You’ll hate it so much that you’ll want more of it. When they explored this concept, I had to laugh because all I could imagine was the Tomacco episode of The Simpsons… although I’m sure red pickled ginger doesn’t taste like grandma.
Lastly, Nakiri and Kurogane. This chapter was just amazing. I loved the whole thing and want to see more of these two together. Poor Kurogane, though. He was hoping to drop some hints (and to his credit, he did) but Nakiri was so far removed from human emotions that she would never pick up on it if she lived to be 100. Hopefully, Kurogane can teach her what love is and then confess to her because these two would make an amazing couple!
Final Thoughts
I enjoyed this volume mainly because it wasn’t as episodic as the previous ones. Camping is one of those anime tropes that is, shockingly, not overused like a hot spring or the beach is. What was even better was that the arc (so far) took all of the side characters and shoved them into a corner somewhere and just focused on Nasa and Tsukasa! Because as such, we got some advancement on the romance side of their relationship! Plus (much like their trip when their apartment burned down), this arc is lasting several chapters which allows this story to breathe.
Of course, with the romance stuff out of the way, I fully expect this to continue in the next volume and bring some of those characters back into the fold. If Kenjiro Hata doesn’t and just sends them home, my mind will be blown because it will be one of the rarest moments in anime and manga… a side story/filler arc-style story where all of the extras are just left to their own devices “off-camera!” Will he pull the trigger!? Only time will tell!
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This item was provided for review by VIZ Media.
