Blue Flag is a wonderful coming-of-age story in which characters navigate the difficult mores of identity, relationships, love, sexuality, and the choices we make. In the second part of our retrospective on KAITO’s manga, special guests Maxy Barnard, Ace Christman, and SimplyGee! join us to discuss the broader themes of the story and the way in which it articulates them in uniquely impactful, relatable ways. First we share our history with the series and KAITO, and give a spoiler-free review of the first volume to describe what sets this story apart from other romantic dramas through its characters, themes, and art! Then we discuss the series as a whole, honing in on specific characters like Masumi and Mami and exploring their roles in the story, empathizing with the feelings of self-loathing and defeatism in our main trio of protagonists. We also answer some listener questions addressing some of the more complicated, and controversial, parts of the story - including how it handles its LGBTQ representation, the mixed messages in the conversation with Kensuke, the flash-forward ending, and more! In the time since we’ve recorded this, Blue Flag has been added to the Shonen Jump Vault! Please check it out and support the release! We have a lot of love for this series about love, and we hope you love it just as much! For the complete list of links and Shout-Outs featured in this podcast, please visit this episode's webpage at: http://all-comic.com/2020/manga-mavericks-ep-128-blue-flag/ PODCAST BREAKDOWN: Enjoy the show, and follow us on twitter at @manga_mavericks, on tumblr at mangamavericks.tumblr.com, and on Youtube! You can also follow the hosts on Twitter at @sniperking323 and @lumranmayasha. If you’d like t