O Maidens in your Savage Season Volume 7 Review

With the arrival of Volume 7 of O Maidens in your Savage Season, we’re beginning to reach the end of this beloved series. As cracks begin to form in the friendships of the Literary Club the members, it seems unlikely they’ll ever be able to return to their peaceful days, but perhaps a common enemy will bring them together once more… 

As we reunite with the cast, we find things in a state of disarray. Sonezaki’s friend Juju has been expelled from school after becoming pregnant. Sonezaki is understandably frustrated and turns to her friends to complain about the decision, but when Hongo sides with the school’s decision, Sonezaki grows angrier still. 

The group starts to splinter further when Momo warns Kazusa to be wary of Nina stealing Izumi away. Some of this warning is born from Momo’s desire to date Nina herself, but more than anything she hates that Nina is turning her back on her friendships in pursuit of love. 

While the girls struggle to come to terms with their feelings and relationships, further tragedy strikes at school when the principal announces a new no dating policy! Anyone caught breaking the rules will be expelled and with both Sonezaki and Kazusa dating, this is certainly a significant problem for our cast. 

As O Maidens in your Savage Season prepares for its climax, it begins drawing to a close the last of the girls’ stories. Having been unable to convince teacher Milo-sensei to sleep with her, Hongo’s story is over now and we don’t see a great deal of her in this volume. Likewise, Momo and Sonezaki aren’t in this instalment quite as much as previously, with the spotlight placed firmly on Kazusa and Nina’s friendship. 

Previously Nina told Kazusa that she intends to confess to Izumi. Now Kazusa tells Nina that she’s okay with it and she’s confident it won’t change anything between her and Izumi, but on the inside, our protagonist is panicking. Nina is everything she isn’t – pretty, popular and sexy, while Kazusa is just a childhood friend. Kazusa even begins to wonder if she should sleep with Izumi simply to deepen their relationship before Nina confesses, but would that really change anything? 

The last few volumes of the series have been busy splitting the girls up, but now with the no dating policy, author Mari Okada has given them a reason to join hands and fight as one once more. This way of storytelling is very like Okada, who often breaks her characters’ relationships apart before having them come together for the finale. If you’ve watched any of the anime she’s written, then you’ll certainly be familiar with this particular trope. 

Having said that, I don’t have a problem with the direction Okada is taking the story. Way back in Volume 1 of O Maidens in your Savage Season, the series was about the bonds between these girls. While we’ve come a long way since then and everyone has changed (for better or worse), I think it’s only right that we go back to the beginning. The Literary Club vs. the school policy is a very fitting final story and I’m looking forward to finding out how it all wraps up. 

I’m especially looking forward to finding out if the manga’s conclusion differs at all to the anime, which fully adapted the story but concluded before the manga had finished. I’d be surprised if there are any significant changes, but it will be interesting to find out nonetheless! 

O Maidens in your Savage Season Volume 7 comes to the UK thanks to Kodansha Comics and has been translated by Sawa Matsueda Savage. As always, the translation reads well with no issues to speak of. This volume also includes an interview with the Japanese voice cast from the anime, which proves an interesting read if you’ve seen the anime! The final volume of the series is currently scheduled for release at the end of October, so we don’t have too long to wait. 

Overall, O Maidens in your Savage Season Volume 7 contains all the character drama and masterful storytelling we’ve come to expect from the series. As we gear up for the final instalment, the cast are given the perfect reason to come together and rise up to protect the things they hold dear.