From the back cover:
There’s trouble on the Tsukigomori set, and surprisingly it’s not Kyoko’s fault. Ren is having difficulty acting the part of a love-struck suitor since he’s never really been in love before. Stressed by his sudden acting impotence, Ren goes MIA. Kyoko is determined to help her friend, and joins forces with Ren’s manager. But as Ren sees the two of them getting close, he realizes he might know more about serious emotion than he thought!

Review:
Ah, Skip Beat! Where else could one find the heroine administering love advice to the hero while garbed in a chicken suit? On top of that, she doesn’t realize that he’s talking about her (and I swear this is not the oblivious cluelessness of some shoujo heroines) and he doesn’t realize who’s in the suit. And it’s not some stupid gag scene, either, because I’d hate it if it were.

This is yet another volume where I prefer one half over the other. The first half, dealing with Ren’s difficulties portraying a man losing control in love when he’s never experienced that, is certainly good. It’s kind of nice to see someone other than Kyoko messing up for a change. There’s also some great stuff where Sho freaks out over Kyoko working with Ren. How come I suddenly enjoy Sho’s appearances so much?

But the best begins in the middle of the volume when Kyoko, wanting to help Ren but feeling unqualified to give him advice as herself, runs into him at the studio where she works on the variety show (as a chicken) and remembers having previously talked to him in costume. Another conversation ensues, and from there on out there’s many great moments between them to enjoy. I continue to be happy that Ren is restraining his feelings because Kyoko’s still in high school, which is something some other manga characters ought to consider but don’t.

Y’know, I think I am going to erupt in a geyser of squee once these two really do get together. Their building relationship has been very well-handled, and I have to commend Nakamura for her skill in pacing a story. This is a series that every shoujo fan should be reading!

From the back cover:
Kyoko’s been scouted for a role in this year’s most anticipated drama, a remake of the classic Tsukigomori. But shades of the past threaten to stifle the production as Kyoko struggles to get into the character of Mio, a young woman with a severely scarred face. Ms. Iizuka, the actress who played the original Mio, is now playing Kyoko’s mother, and has grave doubts about Kyoko’s ability to do justice to the role. She demands that Kyoko pass an acting test, and quit the production if she fails!

Review:
This volume primarily deals with Kyoko’s attempts to prepare for her role and then later to convince others that her interpretation (radically different from the original) is the right one. Tying in with this are the director’s struggles to find a vision of his own that will surpass the original. He, of course, finds the answer in Kyoko’s spin on the role.

While this isn’t bad, it gets a little tiring when most of the action is characters whispering doubtfully or experiencing extremes of emotion when watching Kyoko go through her in-character improv. Even Ren gets kind of swept up in it. It does represent genuine progress for Kyoko, however, who’s able to create a character herself and imagine their feelings as opposed to simply projecting how she’d feel in a given situation, which is what she did on a previous job.

Getting glimpses of the plot of this drama as we are, I feel like I want to see the finished product, but in reality I’d probably find that frustrating filler when we could be getting Ren and Kyoko goodness. Maybe Nakamura should put out a volume with the drama’s story, like Miho Obana did for the movie Sana did in Kodocha.

From the back cover:
Kyoko’s big chance is finally here! Her performance in Sho’s promo clip impressed some important people, and now she’s been asked to act in the year’s most anticipated drama! But Ren is the leading man and the character Kyoko is supposed to play is dangerous and scary! Can Kyoko overcome her fear of Ren and her shame about her demons, or will this chance of a lifetime slip through her fingers?

Review:
Structurally this volume is like the last, finishing up one story arc in the first half and starting up another in the second. The first half, while revealing more about Moko and her family life, is decently entertaining, but I can’t summon much interest for a petulant child star who’s upset at having been treated like a kid.

Happily, however, things pick up toward the end of the volume when Ren and Kyoko are separately approached to appear in the same drama. They are also separately prodded to consider that there may be some liking going on in their relationship. Kyoko, of course, is convinced that Ren hates her, so declares it impossible. I was happy to see Ren balk at the idea of a relationship with a high school girl, too. I also note that it’s taken until volume 9 for this possibility to be broached, and it hasn’t felt arbitrarily drawn out in the slightest.

Slowly, we’re getting to know more about the supporting characters, and I’m enjoying that. Ren and Moko both get some fleshing out here, and even Yashiro (Ren’s manager) starts to become more important. I also like the little subtle moments where Kyoko uses Ren’s tricks—in the last volume it was an acting technique and this time it was the use of a “gentlemanly smile” when about to administer a smackdown.

It does seem that the next volume will be more interesting, so while this one wasn’t really a fave, I am quite confident of great times ahead.

From the back cover:
Kyoko’s perfect chance to wreak her revenge on Sho isn’t going as well as she’d hoped. In fact, her rage is so consuming that she forgets she’s supposed to be acting and tries to throttle Sho for real. That’s not her only problem. Sho still thinks he owns Kyoko body and soul, but his manager is worried that Kyoko might be stealing his heart!

Review:
One of the things I like best about Skip Beat! is its originality in dealing with obstacles and twists in relationships. Ren can grow angry about a work-related action of Kyoko’s and it makes perfect sense in the context of the story without seeming like some artifically-induced plot point like the appearance of some random girl who used to fancy him in middle school or something like that.

Likewise, Kyoko’s friendship with Moko has interesting conflicts—this time Kyoko feels hurt that Moko won’t share her successes and woes, when Kyoko is very open in that regard. I haven’t seen the process of developing and maintaining a good friendship ever really explored in a manga before.

As much as I like those elements, my favorite part of the volume actually is the culmination of Kyoko’s job working with Sho. After her actor spirit finally wins against her hate and she completes the job, they have another run-in where she brings up more points regarding his treatment of her. Sho gains a little more depth as a character, and I find I actually kind of want to see more of him now. His reactions to her progress and criticisms are strangely gratifying.

From the back cover:
All Kyoko’s dreams are coming true! She’s got a best friend (okay, so Moko still needs to come to terms with their bosom-buddyhood, but she’s learning). She’s finally going to high school (so what if a mean girl is picking on her—Kyoko knows how to deal with bullies). And she’s landed a spot in Sho’s new video (Yes! Revenge! Bwa ha ha ha!). Life doesn’t get any better than this.

Review:
Man, this series is so good. There are some very important things that happen in this volume, and two are centered around Kyoko saying things that need saying. In the first chapter, finishing up her day working as Ren’s substitute manager, she finally explains her motivations for studying acting and he realizes he’s misunderstood her. This prompts some tenderness in his manner towards her that his manager picks up on but to which Ren is oblivious. For the first time (due to character development) I really see their potential as a romantic couple. The best thing about their slowly-evolving relationship is that it’s based on respect.

The other instance of Kyoko saying what needs to be said occurs when her cover is finally blown and she chastises Sho for all the wrongs he committed against her. I honestly thought this confrontation would occur later on in the series, but it’s good to see something like this here, so perhaps she can rise above concern for Sho and not have besting him be her ultimate goal. His flummoxed reaction to her poise and skill is great, and it’s good to see her triumph over him in some degree.

I can’t wait for the next volume to see how she totally manipulates Sho with her acting (a trick she learned from Ren) and succeeds in using him as a stepping stone on her own path to success.

From the back cover:
Risa has finally realized that she has feelings for Ôtani and can’t wait to confess her love. But dense Ôtani won’t take her hints! With the help of all their friends and a romantic beach vacation, can Rise get her affections past his thick head?

Review:
What makes this series special to me is actually its normalcy. Simply put, it’s about a girl in love with a guy friend. Her internal agonizings and doubts over the fact are realistic and understandable.

In this volume, Risa was determined to make her feelings known to Ôtani. Hints fail, so she tried telling him outright, to no avail. His continuing cluelessness was kind of unbelievable, but he finally got the message. I was kind of bothered by all the yelling and name-calling that ensued in these chapters—I get that Risa was trying to act like her old self around him, but it just seemed more pervasive than before. I’d be glad to see this aspect of their relationship go by the wayside.

With these complaints, it might seem strange to grade it so highly, but Risa’s struggle was really well done. And there were a few great moments between them, especially after Ôtani realized it was him she liked. He thought it over very seriously, and I thought his eventual response to Risa was realistic, given the circumstances. I look forward to seeing where things go from here.

From the back cover:
Ren’s manager Yashiro comes down with a nasty cold in the middle of an important shoot, and dares Kyoko to take over his job! Of course Kyoko accepts, but she’s in way over her head with a pack of new responsibilities and the scorn of everyone who thinks she’s doing a bad job. But the more time Ren spends with Kyoko the more he sees her kind and gentle side. Will all her hassles be worth his change of heart?

Review:
Though there’ll always be a fond place in my heart for volume 4 and its chicken-suited hijinks, this volume has usurped its place as my most favorite thus far.

The rich girl from the last volume made one last appearance, trying to injure Moko so she could not appear in the commercial. She was unsuccessful, however, and I was happy to see the girls actually complete filming without something happening to mess it up. Playing the part of a high school student made Kyoko wistful for what she didn’t have, and it didn’t go unnoticed by the president of her agency. To top it all off, Moko ended up writing Kyoko something really sweet in the stamp book in which she collects points for her Love Me Section jobs.

And in addition to all of that goodness, there was lots and lots of great interaction between Kyoko and Ren. I pretty much loved every scene they were in together, from talking about Sho Fuwa in the car, to Kyoko helping nurse Ren’s cold, to them rehearsing lines together at the end. Along the way, more of Ren’s memories of meeting Kyoko as a child were revealed, and they each made some realizations about the other, though each still believes the other hates them.

I can’t remember another manga that made me genuinely happy that two characters had finally become friends or another heroine whom I cheered on so whole-heartedly. Skip Beat! really is something special.