After reading the updates, one thing I really enjoyed from this author is that she doesn't just "add" something to the plot, and it's never followed up. Shiro's mother joining a cult, the author actually depicts how this negatively impacted the whole family, her sister cutting contact, no longer being allowed to be buried in the family plot, Shiro thinking he would never speak to his mother again etc.
I also really liked how the author has gradually shown Shiro to be more relaxed and comfortable with his relationship. Guess the next hurdle for the plot would be for Shiro to "come out" at his workplace, maybe a bit unlikely, but the author is sort of setting the plans what with the new employer understanding that Shiro is gay, and all the visibility in regards to adult adoption and partnership certificates.
Guess the one low point is Shiro's mother no longer wanting Kenji to visit them, and Shiro doing family trips... without Kenji. It was nice to see Shiro set some boundaries and state that he would no longer be going home for New Years if Kenji wasn't invited too, I'm not sure if he would have been bold enough to do that earlier on in the series.
All in all it's nice to see all the characters "grow", given it's what been 10 -13 years in the total timeline. The author is covering some pretty down to earth topics, such as illness, money, planning for death and the expectation's of women, the feckless young hairdresser who thinks his girlfriend should be his cook and cleaner or the neighbour who is so rude when it comes to her daughter in terms of her marriage status and pregnancy. For someone so thrifty, Shiro seems to have a lot of money to spare when it comes to his parents, and he still supports them despite his mother and father thinking he's transgender and not wanting Kenji to visit them..... the mother has now agreed that Kenji can share the same burial plot, but it would have been nice to see her be more tolerant whilst they are all still alive.... guess that's realistic though, things are complicated and small steps!
After reading the updates, one thing I really enjoyed from this author is that she doesn't just "add" something to the plot, and it's never followed up. Shiro's mother joining a cult, the author actually depicts how this negatively impacted the whole family, her sister cutting contact, no longer being allowed to be buried in the family plot, Shiro thinking he would never speak to his mother again etc.
I also really liked how the author has gradually shown Shiro to be more relaxed and comfortable with his relationship. Guess the next hurdle for the plot would be for Shiro to "come out" at his workplace, maybe a bit unlikely, but the author is sort of setting the plans what with the new employer understanding that Shiro is gay, and all the visibility in regards to adult adoption and partnership certificates.
Guess the one low point is Shiro's mother no longer wanting Kenji to visit them, and Shiro doing family trips... without Kenji. It was nice to see Shiro set some boundaries and state that he would no longer be going home for New Years if Kenji wasn't invited too, I'm not sure if he would have been bold enough to do that earlier on in the series.
All in all it's nice to see all the characters "grow", given it's what been 10 -13 years in the total timeline. The author is covering some pretty down to earth topics, such as illness, money, planning for death and the expectation's of women, the feckless young hairdresser who thinks his girlfriend should be his cook and cleaner or the neighbour who is so rude when it comes to her daughter in terms of her marriage status and pregnancy. For someone so thrifty, Shiro seems to have a lot of money to spare when it comes to his parents, and he still supports them despite his mother and father thinking he's transgender and not wanting Kenji to visit them..... the mother has now agreed that Kenji can share the same burial plot, but it would have been nice to see her be more tolerant whilst they are all still alive.... guess that's realistic though, things are complicated and small steps!