Another great volume! I’m a huge fan of this manga and that continues with each new volume that’s put out! Can’t wait to staff pick this and recommend it!

4/5

Heyy! We’re getting somewhere!! This volume a lot of sport action, timeline moving forward, and romantic feeling.

Taiki’s character is a nice break from the usual female perspectives I read from. His depth of character isn’t something I personally see often. Also loving the sneak peaks into Chinatsu and Hina.

I’m glad I stick with this because I’m not thoroughly enjoying it. Especially with that ending? I’m very excited for more and can’t wait for volume 4.

Blue Box continues along a satisfying arc of the characters putting their athletic ambitions front and center, while their emotional connections (now forming a bit of a background love triangle) simmer in the background. I continue to enjoy this title, and would recommend it to teen fans of sports and romance.

This series just keeps getting better and better. I LOVE the characters, they are a heck of a lot more dedicated than I was when I was their age. I love their focus and their drive and Taiki's sincerely positive outlook and never giving up is practically the stuff of legends. He REALLY is that sincere and I am eating it up.

The love story arc is muted, but Hina has finally realized her feelings and isn't going to throw in the towel just yet. It did shake her with her gymnastics a bit, but she isn't the best at gymnastics for nothing, so after a few rocky days, she picked it right back up again.

It shows one that yes, your love life can be a mess and your feelings can be running riot, but that doesn't mean the rest of your life has to suffer. I really want Hina to succeed, and she is good enough that she most likely will.

Taiki, with all of his positivity and hard work, well...I don't think it looks good for him. Which is sad, BUT it is realistic, which this series seems to be embracing and I LOVE it. My pendulum might be swinging from magic, fantasy, OTT oblivious lovable characters to more quiet, staid, slices-of-realistic-life, This is a good series for that pendulum to swing to. Highly recommended!

5, sigh when is the next volume coming out again, stars.

My thanks to NetGalley and VIZ Media LLC for an eARC copy of this book to read and review.

I am a huge shoujo fan - but I love that it really isn’t the main focus of this series. It really makes it a series you could enjoy if you don’t like reading romance. It would be a good series to read if you are just getting into reading romance manga or want to broaden your horizons a bit. Overall, all 3 books in this series have been solid reads.

Thanks to #NetGalley and #vizmedia for an eARC of this book to read and review. #BlueBoxVol3

This was such a good volume! We finally got to the prefectural qualifiers for nationals in this and we got to see Chinatsu and Taiki really going all out in their respective sports. I really enjoyed this volume and I can't wait for the next one!

The slow smoldering romance continues in volume three, with Taiki and Chinatsu both fighting to reach nationals in their respective sports. While still keeping up with the intense sports action, we've taken a slight detour into the life of side character Hina Chono, who is desperately trying to hide her crush on Taiki. Before long, it starts to impact her rhythmic gymnastics routine. Enough so that others begin to take notice. Will Hina continue to keep her feeling a secret to support Taiki's own romantic endeavors? Or will she become Chinatsu's rival for his affection?
Plenty of intense action sequences, but we got to delve a little deeper into the struggles of our main characters. You'll find yourself cheering for Taiki and Chinatsu, but your heart just breaks for Hina. A far more emotional volume than the first two.

Blue Box Volume Three has a strong focus on the main characters’ sports qualifiers.

Blue Box Volume Three
Written by: Kouji Miura
Publisher: Shueisha Inc.
English Publisher: VIZ Media
Release Date: March 7, 2023

Before the focus is placed on Taiki and Chinatsu’s upcoming sports qualifiers, the first two chapters focus on Taiki’s friend, Hina. She’s rattled after seeing Taiki and Chinatsu spending time out together, and it’s affecting her gymnastics performance. It seems she doesn’t want to admit to herself that she has feelings for Taiki, and is trying to keep her distance from him because of Chinatsu. But after Chinatsu hurts her ankle, it’s Taiki who’s at her side, and she starts sharing some of what’s bothering her. While she won’t directly mention that he’s a part of her issue, she tries to talk about the love triangle that now seems to exist in a roundabout way. Taiki doesn’t pick up on it, of course, since he has no idea that Hina has those kinds of feelings for him. But thanks to his misunderstanding, Taiki gives her words of encouragement to keep going and do her best at her upcoming qualifier.

Meanwhile, Chinatsu has noticed Taiki and Hina together, and she thinks they’d make a great couple. While she feels awkward about living in the same house as Taiki because of this, she intends to stay in order to keep pursuing her dream. But seeing Chinatsu thinking these thoughts about Taiki and Hinata adds a whole new dimension to the love triangle. It’ll be interesting to see how Miura handles this aspect going forward.

After this, we see Chinatsu starting into her qualifiers. After the first qualifier, Chinatsu overhears a rival team dissing her behind her back, and Chinatsu’s teammates worry about how this will affect her. It turns out that Chinatsu has decided that she’s going to prove her naysayers wrong, and decides to use their words to find her determination to succeed.

Meanwhile, Taiki is working himself hard and practicing with Kengo. Right before the qualifiers, Taiki actually beats Kengo in a practice tournament. It turns out that through the practice tournaments with Kengo, Taiki is improving his speed and is starting to improve. While this victory against Kengo gives Taiki a boost of confidence, it also increases his belief that he can actually do well at the qualifiers and go on to nationals.

We find out how Chinatsu and Taiki did at their respective qualifiers by the end of Volume Three, and I have to give credit for how Miura realistically portrays what happens to the two characters. No miracle happens that allows both of them to achieve their dream of going on to nationals in their respective sports. One succeeds at the qualifiers, while the other doesn’t, and we see near the end of the volume that this is starting to create a source of tension between the two lead characters. This is going to add another layer of drama that should help to keep the series moving forward.

By the end of Blue Box Volume Three, the foundation has been laid for a love triangle, as well as for our two lead characters to now be in different positions when it comes to sports. How do they handle this, especially since they’re living under the same roof? If Taiki were to figure out the love triangle, that would have quite an affect on two of his friendships, in addition to the distance that seems to be starting to grow between him and Chinatsu due to their respective sports. There are a lot of directions that the series can go in from here, and it’ll be interesting to see how Miura will evolve both the characters and their story.

This volume of Blue Box was a quick and easy read, and it helps that the character dynamics that form during it help to keep the reader interested in what’s happening. If you’ve read and enjoyed the first two volumes of the series, then I think you’ll appreciate how the characters and the story progress in Volume Three.

The more I read of Blue Box, the more I admire it. I'm not usually in to sports stories, but I know likeable characters can make up for a lack of the reader's sports knowledge. I find myself drawn into to both the dynamic sports story and more realistic relationship dynamics, and that's a feat. I also appreciated the outcomes of this volume's sports matches. I like watching these characters grow into better players and better people. They're good kids who are good at what they do, but they aren't always the best.

Blue Box vol. 3 continues the straightforward earnest Reiwa energy in its high school sports romance story. In this volume we learn more about Hina Chono's background and motivation. It's always wonderful when you get a second female character who isn't just there to be a dramatic plot device. Exams happen, new players are introduced, and I cannot wait for the fourth volume. (I received a free ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion.)

Blue Box is a great school romance manga series that fans of The Wallflower, Kimi Ni Todoke, Fruits Basket and Boys Over Flowers will adore. The story of a boy who plays badminton, who has a crush on a girl who plays basketball just got more complicated. His friend a rhythmic gymnasts realizes she has a crush on him. Now we have a love triangle and someone is sure to be heartbroken or will they grow out of their crushes? I don't know and I don't care because this is such a sweet story with inspiring characters facing their school and sports challenges. Highly recommend this one to fans of school romance series.

Thanks so much NetGalley and Viz Media for access to this arc!!

I once again devoured this manga. It just keeps getting better as the series progresses! I love the evolution of Taiki and Chinatsu's friendship (and maybe relationship one day!!!), and seeing the vulnerable side of Hina was very touching. I can't wait for the next one!

The third volume continues to hold the charm & heartache of high school in this sports manga.

I adore how we see the emotion of these kids and how much they want to prioritize their sports careers and progress. The romance & their careers aren't 50/50; the priority switches with circumstance.