Go with the Clouds, North-by-Northwest, Vol. 4

I'm super into Aki Irie's art in this series. There's just consistently epic two-page scenery shots, great manga panel layouts, character art, and food, and I'm here for it. This series also has the unique distinction of being the only manga series I know to take place in Iceland, and I do love unique premises. I'd be misleading readers though if I didn't mention that not a whole lot is going on story-wise. It's like a magical realism slice of life series, but with short little vignette stories that flesh out the backstory of Kei, the series' protagonist, and his younger brother Michitaka. Neither of them seems like they had a good history growing up, but as readers we're kept mostly in the dark about the past and the history, and instead are just along for the scenic ride.

If I had to compare this series to something, it'd be like roadtripping Getbackers in Iceland. Aki speaks(?) to cars/vehicles(/maybe machines too?). Michitaka seems to have strong rapport with animals. There's an element of magical realism to their “powers” (and I use the term hesitantly because it's nothing flashy, nothing overtly spelled out for the readers) that makes the entire stay in Iceland something mysterious. This particular volume, though, has some low points. I'm not super into the fan service-y interactions between Kei and Lilya in this volume, and I hope things improve in the next one. I'm still all in on wherever this series goes from here, though.