Kaguya-sama: Love is War vol. 14

It only took fourteen (thirteen and half if you want to be specific), but it’s official now:  Kaguya Shinomiya and Miyuki Shirogane are now officially a couple.  That this has happened should not strike regular readers, or really anyone who has even heard of this series, as a spoiler.  It was always going to happen.  The real question was how well was mangaka Aka Akasaka going to be able to sell it?  After reading this volume, I’m glad to say that the answer is, “EXTREMELY WELL!”  He perfectly captures the awkwardness of his two leads as they finally have to show some flexibility and *gasp* vulnerability in their stubborn mindsets, while at the same time showing off Shirogane’s grand romantic gesture to the woman he loves.  It’s glorious to witness and if you don’t feel your heart melt a little while reading this, then (to paraphrase a great romantic) you may already be dead.

As great as the moment and the buildup to it are, the very best part is that Akasaka does it all without sacrificing comedy.  This may be the climax of the series, but he’s still got time for some quality goofiness.  Kaguya getting schooled by Hayasaca in how to actually confess is great, as are her issues with getting a vending machine to take her money at a crucial point.  Ishigami also gets some amusingly dense moments as his lack of knowledge about Shuchiin’s heart-giving-custom brings further complications to his life that he’s blissfully unaware of so far.

While Ishigami’s troubles are just winding up, it doesn’t mean that Kaguya and Shirogane will be spending the rest of the series in romantic bliss.  No, as we see at the end of the volume, staying together is going to present its own unique challenges and “Ice Kaguya” is going to face them head-on.  That this comes after a chibi-fied Kaguya has won over the student council and led to a trial in her head between her dumb, rational, icy, and childlike mindsets should tell you that comedy won’t be sacrificed in telling this part of their story either.  In short, vol. 14 is a masterclass in showing how a series can nail the big moment it’s been building towards while also getting you excited for what it has to offer next.