Blue Period is about a high-schooler called Yatora Yaguchi, someone seen as a delinquent who drinks and smokes but also somehow is one of the smartest students in his year. In this first volume, we are introduced to his situation at home (pressure of his parents to do well and choose a good career), his friends, and follow Yatora as he finds a real love for art, and grows into it.

Once Yatora finds himself interested in painting, he slowly learns new information (really basic things, about universities in Japan, about painting tools and other things, but it’s really interesting to learn as he learns too), practices and improves, going from the mentality that it’s all talent to it’s mostly just a lot of hard work to be good at something you love.

The manga (or at least this first volume?) deals with a lot of very real topics that probably would’ve wrecked me if I read it some years ago; going after a passion x getting a safe job, studying x enjoying hobbies, pleasing others x following your desires... And also comparing yourself and your work to others.

The art is super pretty, and there’s a lot of images of real life art (with credits!) in between, and I love how all of Yatora’s friends are so supportive of his new passion, instead of mocking him for it. It’s overall a very relatable first volume and I’m already attached to the characters. Can’t wait to read more of it!

I received this manga from Netgalley in exchange of an honest review.
I am just not feeling a lot of words pop up while and after I read this manga, so I will keep this one short. This was.. OK.. ish. At times. The MC was always doing things a certain way that worked out best for him, and now he is discovering art. He is wondering if he should pursue it or not. It was quite interesting to see him get more real, more human, less thinking about doing it for x, instead thinking to do something for himself.
There is A LOT of dialogue about art, college, and other things. On the one hand interesting... on the other hand boring.
The art was great at moments... but then weird at other moments. Especially in facial expressions and body movements.
I did love the art teacher and how she helped out our MC.
I did get tired from the whole OMG he is delinquent just because he doesn't look like your normal average guy. I guess years of reading manga/watching anime turned me off from that stuff. I remember first I found it funny (like in Toradora), but by now I just groan and roll my eyes. Come on people.
I found it hilarious that he says his dad can get fined for offering him a drink, but wasn't our MC drinking with his "friends"? So confusing.

Yatora Yaguchi is a typical high school student with good grades and parents who want him to choose a good college and stable career. He works hard and does whatever to fit in with friends, but it all just feels a little empty. One day he takes a piece of art seriously and that’s where his adventure begins...

This was a very interesting story. The first half had me counting pages, but by the three-quarter mark, I’d forgotten that time was even passing.

My biggest issues were info dumps and Yaguchi’s friends:
- The information overload in art techniques lasted throughout, but it was particularly wearisome in combination with the slow-paced start.
- Yaguchi’s disrespectful friends were also heavily present in the earlier pages, causing my eyes to somewhat frequently roll in their sockets.

What I loved:
- Despite his flaws, Yaguchi really developed and surprised me as a character. When he starts to question things rather than just go with the flow, he becomes way more interesting. I’d love to say more, but I’d end up spoiling things.
- Yamaguchi’s art style was beautiful! The colour on the first few pages had particularly interesting textures- not what you typically expect in a manga.
- The effort with all the individual paintings/ drawings from Yaguchi- it was really cool to see him improve over time.
- As the story progressed, I couldn’t help but feel like I wanted to have a go at this art thing too. Seeing the characters so passionate about what they do rubbed off on me. The mark of good storytelling is when you feel so immersed that the characters' desires become your own.

I’d give this manga 3.5 stars, but it’s pretty close to 4, and I’m definitely interested to see what the rest of the series has in store.

Thanks to NetGalley and Kodansha Comics for a free e-copy in exchange for an honest review.

Blue Period is about a young man named Yataro Yaguchi who discovers a passion for art that he's never known before. He wants to get into a good art school and he begins his journey with his high schools art club with the help of the teacher.

This is a cute manga thats a tuly slice of life school drama. Yaguchi is a good main character who is passionate, humble, and eager to learn.

The topic of art is interesting and I've ever learned a bit. Blue Period is to Art like Initial D is to cars, a good story to get me interested in the topic.

I look forward to reading more once it comes out and I thank Kodansha Comics and Net Galley for allowing me to read this in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange of my honest review.

I have to say that this seinen was pretty good. It's about self discovery and art. I loved the plot and the characters that I'm sure we will learn more about them through the next volumes. It's just starting and the story will certainly gets much more interesting.
This manga is about art and if you don't like to know how a beginner learns how to draw and do art so this manga is not for you but at the same time it could be if you have doubts and you are scared to do/study what you really want to do in life and follow your dream.
"Blue Period" is about a popular boy YATORA YAGUCHI who works hard in order to please everyone either his parents or his friends then he discovers art and painting that will become a passion that will help him to be free and to find what he really wants to do in life. At the same time, finding what you want to do is just the first step because if you really want it you have to work for it and YAGUCHI starts to see that he has to do so.
This was so intersting with all the art tips and infos, we kind of learn with the protagonist about painting and everything. I really enjoyed it so much and learnt a lot and not only about art. I wish to read the next volume and to follow the progress of YAGUCHI.

This was a really great start to a new series. I absolutely loved the artwork and the story line. The main character Yaguchi Yatora, I feel is someone who anyone, who has had to chase their dreams, can relate too. He knows he’s not naturally talented in art, but he fights to find his place in the art world, and doesn’t give up no matter how much doubt he has. It’s true, we can all be our worst enemy sometimes. I also love that as you read the manga you get an art history lesson too. Overall I’m impressed with the series so far and can’t wait to read more.

Yatora is just going through the motions of life. He has no idea what he wants to do with his future until an art class unlocks something inside of him. He decides he wants to go to school for art, but he is afraid to tell his parents for fear of what they will say. The book shows Yatora's improvement over time in different mediums and is at times almost like a how to of how to make different types of art.

This manga was perfect.

It was a story of a boy who discovers the passion of art and intends to fulfill his dream of going to art school even though he knows he's not talented and has to make up for that by working extremely hard.

The manga touched upon all the things artists must face — self-doubt, jealousy, arrogance, fastidious work, worrying about your future. What resonated with me the most was that perpetual self-doubt coming back again and again to haunt the main character. He knows he's never going to be a genius, and he accepts it.

All characters were lovable, the only villain is the creeping doubt. The main character, Yaguchi Yatora, is hard-working and open-minded, ready to devote himself to art. There is also Mori, a girl Yaguchi admires (and possibly adores), a hard-working and talented older student who becomes an inspiration for everybody else. Yaguchi accidentally befriends Ayukawa Ryuji (Yuka-chan), who runs unnecessary fast and supports Yaguchi on his journey even though they are not very close. It seems like she's also a transgender girl, and honestly, I did not expect this tasteful of a depiction of a trans person in a manga. Her friends respect and love her for who she is (to quote Mori, 'I don't care about your clothes, just stop running!'). The characters' interactions were beautiful, there was no competition, there was only room for supporting others on the same journey and sharing your experience. It's not the image of the brutally competitive Japanese schools we hear so much about.

If you're an artist, visual or otherwise, you should definitely read it.

"Art is a language without words."

Everything about this manga was so beautiful. It's really important to find something you love to do and fight for it

If you are looking for something worth reading then this one is for you.

Blue Period is a very nice manga about coming of age and personal growth.
I really like the drawing style, as it really fleshes out the characters and the atmosphere of the story.
The characters are relatable and act as normal people (as much that's possible in a slice of life manga), and the overall story is quite believable and interesting.
As this is only the first volume, I can say that's I'm really looking forward to the coming volumes, but can't comment on the story progression for now.
I definitely recommend the manga if you're a fan of the genre, I also think it's a good gateway manga if you've had little to no exposure before.

*Thanks to NetGalley and Kodansha Comics for providing me with an ARC of this title in exchange for an honest review.*

ARC Copy...I did the find art school aspirations premise interesting for a high school drama setting plus it was nice to see the mechanics and knowledge of making art involved along side.

This is a basic art curriculum wrapped into a standard coming of age manga story. Lots of information about how artists learn to paint and draw and I liked how the artist changed up their style (and got other artists to contribute drawings) to make it possible to see the differences between the different levels of the artists as they were progressing. And I loved the focus on passion and how the creative process makes you feel. Unlink other mangas, this one also got a lot of its character color from unexplained Japanese cultural signifiers (the main character is easily identified as a "delinquent" because he has bleached hair and cartilage piercings? Why?). Overall, sneakily educational fun.

<i>arc provided by the publisher via netgalley in exchange for an honest review</i>

I liked this one but the info dumps about art were a bit tedious to get through. I love art and painting but the explanations about colour and shapes were long and felt like I was reading from a textbook so that took quite a bit of my enjoyment out of this experience.

I did really like the main character and how hard working he is. You can really feel his passion for art once he got started!

If you like art, you’ll probably love this one! But unfortunately for me, this was just pretty average.

2.5/5 🌟

A perfect blend of comedy and slice of life, whilst showcasing the lengths people will go to for their dreams! Yatora is an interesting protagonist—social, diligent, and intelligent. Whilst most of the story focuses on him, and he does have many moments that showcases his strength, I did feel that sometimes I found myself a bit bored with his character. I'm sure we will see more of his personality and development in later volumes, as this is only the first one—however I did find him a bit flat—although that was just only a handful of times.
Who stood out to me however is Yuka-chan! I loved his personality, the way that he was, was just delightful, and I found myself looking forward to seeing him as soon as I turned the page. There was just something nice about him—whether it was the design or the character!

None of the other characters stood out to me much, but I believe that'll change in the upcoming volumes!

Overall, the story was brilliant and perfectly captures the all-consuming passion that comes with art, and the uncertainty that comes with what comes next after high school.

Thank you Netgalley for letting me read this book in return for an honest review.

This manga shows the struggles of a very smart guy try and venture into art. It is very slice of life and just, in general, a very nice Manga to read. The art is nice, the characters are interesting and I love how art and the different mediums, practices and skills are explained throughout the manga. This manga is going to be bought straight away so because I loved the story and the art (especially the few colour pages at the front) were stunning.

Rating: 4⭐
Would I Read It Again? Yes and I want to read the future volumes ASAP
Would I Recommend it? Yes