With its second series released in English, Ammitsu has officially become one of my favorite creators. In Gazing at the Star Next Door, she takes the childhood friend trope, combines it with celebrity romance and somehow manages to create a story that’s more warm and engaging than 90’s. % of series have tried that combination before. This is probably not a surprise—her previous series, Ran the Peerless Beauty, took the elegant, sheltered beauty and turned it into something greater than the sum of its parts, so there’s it’s safe to say that Ammitsu is a creator who can work with tropes rather than around them.
This series follows Chiaki and Subaru, childhood friends who are still close. This is despite what happened in middle school: Subaru was recruited as a model and has worked in that industry ever since. Now in high school, his career is starting to take off and when the story opens, he has just landed his first acting role. Even though Chiaki feels he lacks real acting ability, she is still proud of him. However, she is also aware that this means he is about to become more famous and recognizable. To achieve this goal, she tries to keep her distance emotionally and sometimes physically, although it is a bit more of a success because they live next door to each other and spend a lot of time together. She’s uncomfortable with his growing popularity, but she doesn’t know what to do about it because neither of them wants things to change.
Part of it is because she is given social nonsense about how she is not a “threat” or “good enough” for him, which is damaging. She doesn’t feel good enough for Subaru, even if part of her realizes how ridiculous this is—he’s making it clear that he wants to remain a duo. What he’s less good at showing is that he most likely has a crush on her too, and he wants to change their relationship to something a little more intimate. But they are both sixteen years old and dance around the fear of something different and the different social pressures they are both under. Chiaki and Subaru are both struggling with his fame and what it means for them emotionally, and she is deeply afraid that he will move further and further out of her reach.
One of the greatest strengths of this book is that we can easily get a feeling of closeness. Ammitsu has a talent for writing lighthearted high school banter (and translator Nicole Frasik also takes credit for keeping the tone uninhibited), which shows us how close Chiaki and Subaru are. There are notable differences between the way Chiaki speaks to Subaru and her girlfriend Ha-chan; there’s a sense that she’s holding something back, reading social cues in a way that feels unnecessary to Subaru, even as she worries about his popularity. Interestingly, this level of comfort seems to contribute to those around them not seeing them as a solid couple, which is the exact opposite of how this scenario usually plays out in shoujo romance; no one suggested that she had a right to participate or that she should act before it was too late. They also seem completely unaware of Subaru’s (to us) obvious interest in Chiaki. That’s fascinating considering the antics Ammitsu is pulling, including Chiaki waking Subaru up in the morning, climbing from his bedroom window to hers and jumping in for a night. group date to rescue her. In most other series, it’s all about big shiny pink flags signaling his feelings for her to someone else. Here, everyone seems to just take it as further proof of their friendship, although Ha-chan may not be as oblivious as she seems.
What is notable is the fact that Subaru’s mother is rarely at home. There is no mention of the father, and while she may enjoy working, it also feels like Subaru is working in the entertainment industry out of a desire to help his family. This is just speculation, but it seems worth a look as it could finally reveal the romantic plot that Chiaki is trying so hard to keep simmering beneath the surface.
Seeing the star next door isn’t anything special on paper. It’s another childhood friend-turned-celebrity romance inspired by many similar shoujo titles before it. But in Ammitsu’s hands, it brings a sense of coziness and warmth that many other series lack, and it’s easy to become invested in Chiaki and Subaru as a couple. If you like the sweetness of shoujo, this is the series to choose.