Maihime Terepsikola

STORY

Yuki Shinohara, 5th grade at elementary school, and Chika, one year older sister, learn ballet at their mother’s ballet school.
Yuki goes at her pace.
One day, she can’t open her legs wide enough, 180 degree, and she doubts it might be because of lack of practice, but she and her mother find that that is because of abnormal hip joint at the hospital.
Then she decides to quit learning ballet.
At that time, Yuki’s classmate, Sorami, faces the realty that she can no longer to continue the ballet for the debts of his father.
Sorami asks Yuki to borrow the lesson room free, and Yuki answers “OK” when it is free trail day.
Sorami’s dance is quite attractive and that is even her sister regards Sorami rival, so that gradually lets Yuki get the passion back for ballet again.
Then Yuki begins to dance again, and Chika greatly debuts.
Despite well coming Shinohara family, Chika gets serious injury in an accident on stage.
Will they be first-class professional dancers?
It is written the growth and distress of the girls who go the way for professional ballet dancers.

(Ryoko Yamagishi/2000-2006/15 books/Media Factory)

COMMENT by Shun

This is a typical old fashioned girl’s cartoon, so it might be a little bit higher thresholds for guys who have been reading only boy’s cartoons, but please read some once without judging it by the drawing.
Story is that Yuka and her sister are seeking the way to be a professional dancer.
Starting with spoilers suddenly, Chika commits suicide in the story.
And the development that stirs up readers moves me a lot.
She has various distresses that come from the fact of winning a big tournament and expectation from surroundings, jealousy and bullying from the same age because she is too good, and the injury of knees.
She repeatedly receives surgery and rehabilitation, and regardless that biological ligament transplant surgery succeeded, her knees can’t bend as used to doing.
That brings her anguish and despair, and finally leads her to suicide.
The stalking fear when turning each page tightens my heart and manipulates me and it made my eyes spill tears when I open the page that Chika dies.
Although I want to recommend the comics, it makes me sad by only leaving them at the bookshelf.

Shun's Score 6