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MANGA: Hyakusou no Uraniwa
Hyakusou no Uraniwa – Aoi Aki
Once upon a time, Marcel’s sister fell in the forest while gathering herbs. Her injuries were grave and Marcel was at a loss for what to do, until a fearsome horned man appeared, offering help–in exchange for a promise. Now, ten years later, Marcel returns to the woods, steeling himself for death. Instead, he finds something quite different: a gentle soul, friendship…and perhaps something more.
Entangled With You: The Garden of 100 Grasses is a flora-themed collection, as beautifully rendered as it is poetic and poignant.
The main story is a Beauty and the Beast-inspired tale, but the beast here is only a beast in appearance. Gisel is a kind soul, lonely, with only books to keep him company.
Marcel and his sister, Bertha, are apothecaries who frequently go to the woods to gather herbs. After his sister was injured and Gisel helped them, Marcel promised to return after Bertha married.
It started with a misunderstanding, but Gisel and Marcel’s friendship grew deeper as the year passed. There’s very light conflict, if you could even call it that. The whole vibe was very cottage-core, even though they lived in a mansion.
The romance is very low-key, acknowledged only in smiles, kind gestures, and soft words. Their idyllic existence washed over me like a balm. Gentle, cozy, magical, and wholesome, the kind of story they would do if Ghibli created BL manga.
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MANGA: Bokura no Micro na Shuumatsu
Bokura no Micro na Shuumatsu – Marukido Maki
In 10 days, the world will be destroyed by a meteor. To spend his remaining time as comfortably as possible, bad-luck magnet Masumi decides to visit the library of his alma mater and read as much as he wants until the end comes. But in this hellish world, he meets a devil there: the one man from his past that he never wanted to see again, Ritsu. And if things weren’t bad enough, Ritsu has a favor to ask, a favor that Masumi could never have expected—-
Marukido Maki weaves an eccentric tale of human connection in a world on the brink of destruction in this emotional journey that will take its readers on a wild ride.
The End of the World, With You blurb grabbed me. It’s an apocalyptic second-chance romance, and we don’t see a lot of that around.
The story opens with the abysmally down-on-his-luck Masumi, deciding to spend his last remaining days until a meteor hits the earth in the library. There he bumps into his infamous ex, Ritsu.
Seriously, worst seme ever! Second only to the one in Boyfriend 17. Ritsu is a lying, cheating scum, an unrepentant fuckboy who sleeps with anything that catches his fancy. He did this while seducing the naive and insecure Masumi, who, later learned about the misdeeds the hard way. To top it off, he threatened to out poor Masumi to everyone when confronted. The bastard broke Masumi’s mind and spirit so badly that he ruined the rest of his life.
Ten years later, Masumi the dork, despite recalling the bad memories, let himself get roped into another shady activity by Ritsu. I couldn’t give any fucks about the couple at first, but the story’s hidden charm snuck up on me in the form of a quest, two lost students, and strange coincidences.
Suddenly, I understood why this was good enough to warrant a live-action movie. It’s a poignant story of reconnections and new friendships unfolding through an eventful trip across Japan. Not only do the twists come out of nowhere, but Masumi’s hurts are also so bone-deep and palpable that my chest hurts for the guy. It didn’t help Ritsu was a douche through most of the story. I was rooting hard for Masumi!
Ritsu had his redemption arc but it was almost too little too late. That it took an actual apocalypse for him to make it up to Masumi didn’t commend him to anyone. Yet, the mangaka skillfully salvaged what is salvageable about Ritsu, and I could believe he kept his promise in the end.
Don’t let my rants about Ritsu put you off this manga. It’s twisty, emotional and will make you believe in miracles.
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MANGA: Himekoi
Himekoi – Mitsuya Bond
A long time ago, a divine fox saved Mikazuki village from famine. In return, the fox took one of the villagers as his bride. To this day, the villagers hold a marital ceremony every year at the summer festival. The descendant of the fox and the descendant of the bride marry, and then they spend one night together. The villagers believe that this ceremony continues to protect them from disaster. It just so turns out that, this year, those two descendants are Kanata and Kuro, and, this summer, it is their turn to marry and have sex. There’s one problem — unlike Kanata, who believes in their village’s customs, Kuro does not seem too keen on his fate. Kuro’s apathy hurts Kanata, who always felt that he didn’t quite mind, as long as he was with Kuro…
Fox brides of the BL variety is catnip to me. Masked Love is an adorable childhood friends-to-lovers story about two boys destined to be married because of town tradition.
Villagers believe the well-being of their town was due to fox protection in exchange for a bride. Kanata is the descendant of the bride, and Kuro is the descendant of the fox. They were to be married during the festival. The ritual culminates in the consummation of their marriage. But Kuro’s lack of interest had Kanata mired in doubts, and soon they noticed a series of unfortunate events around town.
Everything was very cute and sweet. It’s all the squee-tastic things we love about friends to lovers. Then by Chapter 3, things became messy when it shifted to the dads’ POVs. These two were the chosen couple from the last generation, but they were also each engaged to women to continue the lines.
The plot did something more convoluted by throwing a third boy between Kuro and Kanata. Also something something blah blah about Kuro and Kanata not having to be engaged with women just to force a happy ending.
I didn’t know what was happening anymore. I skimmed and gave up. What a waste of fox brides!
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MANGA: Yukkuri Aruite Jyuugofun
Yukkuri Aruite Jyuugofun – Aioiuo
This is a story about two middle school boys of the same age, Tetsu and Yuki, who went to an autumn festival. On the way to the festival at a nearby shrine, Tetsu, wearing a mask for some reason, is in a sulky mood. A Hyottoko mask, a railroad crossing, an unseasonable yukata, and mini-cakes. “A Leisurely 15 Minutes on Foot” to the festival grounds, it’s an extraordinary autumn night that closes the distance between two friends.
15 Minutes If You Walk Slowly is a friends-to-lovers romance between two middle school kids set during the Autumn festival.
It is implied the two MCs are neighbors and/or their families are close enough to consider each other siblings. The one in the mask, Tetsu, is sulking because he’s not getting the attention he wants from the one in yukata, Yuki.
This is my second manga from the author, and it seems their thing is food-centric erotica (Gozen 3:00 no Ice Cream). There is no sex scene here but there is a steamy kissing scene involving candy. Prior to that, it’s super fluffy, a lot of blush-y gazes and an emotional confession.
This is a classic trope delivered very effectively, a super cute one-shot in an idyllic setting with lovely artwork to match.
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MANGA: Uso Ka Makoto Ka
Uso Ka Makoto Ka – Tobi Washio
One day, Taiyou, a popular guy because of his good looks, was asked by a senior student at his part-time job to take care of his cousin, Tsukihiko, who is attending the same university as Taiyou.
However, Tsukihiko is rude to him from the beginning to the end, Taiyou still tries to be lenient towards him, but on the inside, he’s on the verge of exploding because of him!
Suddenly, Tsukihiko confessed his feelings to Taiyou and took him to an empty classroom where he made his move…!
Lie or Truth is a senpai/kohai, childhood connection romance between two university students.
This is an older uke, younger seme romance where the seme, Tsukihiko, is cold, blunt, and dub cons his way into the uke, Taiyou’s pants. I was initially meh about Tsukihiko, but as the story progressed, he somehow won me over.
The two MCs initially got off the wrong foot. Taiyou, known to be popular and cheerful, approached Tsukihiko as a favor to his work colleague, requesting he looks after his cousin. But the younger man bluntly told him his smile was fake and gave him the cold shoulder. Then out of the blue, Tsukihiko confessed, and Taiyou rejected him as revenge. It began a little game of notice me kohai/senpai.
The key aspect here is the childhood connection that began a lifelong devotion to one’s crush. I love this trope, and the execution was perfectly balanced between hot/cold, humorous, fluffy, light angst, and steam.
And dub-conning Tsukihiko, I forgave because he acknowledged going too far and apologized for putting Taiyou in that spot. The forehead kiss was everything!
The guy on the cover is Taiyou. Tsukihiko’s character is drawn with overlong bangs covering his face. And you can bet it hides an uber-cool seme face! Check out bonus chapters.
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MANGA: Kachou, Kekkon Shimashou!!
Kachou, Kekkon Shimashou!! – Seika
Aoki, who lives with his only daughter after his wife died, has a special hobby of making sweets! One day while handing out his baked goods at work, Mizuno, an unfriendly subordinate, unexpectedly enjoyed the desserts. As a result, Aoki invited Mizuno to his house to deepen his friendship, but as soon as Aoki gave Mizuno a colorful handmade sweet, he proposed saying, “Chief, please marry me!”
Chief, Please Marry Me is an age gap, workplace romance, and a perfect example of the adage, “The way to a man’s heart is through his stomach.”
Single dad and mid-level manager Aoki loves baking sweets and bakes so many treats, he takes them to his office to share with his co-workers. Mizuno is his bitch-faced subordinate, known to be as unfriendly as his face. Secretly, he LOVES sweets. So much so that upon tasting the best dessert he had ever eaten, baked by Aoki, he was so overwhelmed he proposed right then and there!
The best parts of this wonderful story are the character and romantic developments of Aoki and Mizuno. Aoki is a mild-mannered man whose temperament is as sweet as his baked goods. He found someone who could appreciate his baking, promised to take care of him and his daughter, and held true to that promise through the years. Through Mizuno, he learns how to better handle the moment when his young daughter, Chie, finally leaves the nest.
Mizuno found someone who loves his love for sweets. As a scary-looking man, he was outright rejected by a chocolate company because no one believed someone like him could like such delicate girly things. He was even mocked for it. This is why Mizuno is fiercely protective of the little family who brought him happiness.
This is a dual bi-awakening romance which lead to hilarious couple moments. As salarymen, they researched gay sex and presented them to each other as if about to conduct a meeting. Mizuno’s formal marriage proposal was in PowerPoint and presented in the most convincing sales pitch ever. I had a good laugh!
The ending was an endearing scene of Chie’s wedding, which Mizuno, probably a CEO now, took time to attend. I loved that he and Aoki were together throughout the decades.
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MANGA: Cure Blood
Cure Blood – Togaya Arata
“You’re the only one in this life where I can’t die.” A storyteller that will touch your soul is born. This is the story of a doctor who gives blood and a vampire who doesn’t age.
The new doctor, Tadayuki, suddenly underwent a transformation. He desperately wanted blood like a vampire, and his aging process had slowed dramatically. Tadayuki attacked his senpai Juji, disappearing after telling Juji that he had died. But Juji sought out Tadayuki and offered him a helping hand, telling him, “I’ll examine you and give you blood, too.” They never could have imagined that it was the beginning of a secret they would keep for decades.
I’m going to say outright, this is a tragedy. I was very resolved not to cry, but this manga wrecked me. I was a sobbing mess.
Cure Blood is a very medically oriented look at vampirism. Young doctor Tadayuki exhibited strange symptoms and his beloved mentor, Juji took it upon himself to examine and find a cure. Namely, offer his blood every two weeks so that Tadayuki could keep his secret and live a normal life.
It’s crazy how this manga could feel so calming and peaceful yet pack a whomping emotional punch. It tackles the issue that always niggles me whenever I read romance novels about immortals falling in love with humans. The sad fact that they have to watch them grow old and die.
The plot follows the two doctors in a slice-of-life style, documenting the years they spent and how they managed to live as normally as possible while accommodating the quirks of Tadayuki’s condition. And hands-down, Juji is the most selfless seme ever created. A consummate doctor who will do anything to save a patient, even devotes his entire existence to taking care of Tadayuki without asking for anything in return.
Heck, these two weren’t even lovers! They were just together. It warms my asexual heart to see two people building a non-sexual, soul-deep connection purely based on mutual trust, unconditional love, a selfless desire to care for a person’s wellbeing, and the sheer pleasure of each other’s company.
This is a beautiful story I’ll never forget!
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MANGA: Gozen 3:00 no Ice Cream
Gozen 3:00 no Ice Cream – Aioiuo
A story about a boy with a sweet tooth and a boy with a savory tooth who sneak out of bed in the middle of the night to eat ice cream. “I want my own ice cream.” These two seem to melt into the night.
The cover is so pretty!
Ice Cream to Eat at 3AM is a cozy vignette on midnight munchies and post-coital interactions. My impression here is the couple are friends regularly enjoying benefits about to evolve into something more intimate. They know each other well enough to predict what the other likes. They’re mostly casual yet still feel anxious when waking up in the middle of the night to find their lover gone.
The majority of the pages are devoted to the coital parts so if you like ’em bite-sized and steamy, this one-shot is for you.
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MANGA: Bros.
Bros. – Tobi Washio
A cute little brother suddenly became a beast. “Little brother, don’t you have something to tell me?” “You’re one to talk!” Yusuke and Tokio are brothers living together in their parents’ house during their absence. One night they have an unexpected encounter in the city, and their secret is revealed: Yusuke is gay, and Tokio is bi. Even though it was a choking discovery, Yusuke keeps trying to play the good older brother role, while the younger brother Tokio can’t see him with the same eyes anymore. The love battle between a poker face brother and another that has a soft spot for bad men begins!
Bros. is brother complex turned brotherly love with the usual caveat to make the taboo more palatable. Rarely does this trope employ actual brothers.
Big brother Yusuke wears his heart on his sleeve, is a bit of a doofus, unlucky with men, and determines to be the bestest big brother to poker-faced Tokio, a surly guy with an aggressive streak. Things took a turn when the brothers bumped into each other one night with their male dates. It surprised the heck out of them to know they are both queers, and Tokio started seeing his brother in a different light.
Tokio is one of those semes who dub-cons his way into things. The transition from brothers to lovers was done in a brilliant cliffhanger which would have been effective if I hadn’t seen it so many times already.
The brother side of their relationship was actually more endearing because Yusuke is such a doting big brother. He’s very conflicted but it doesn’t stop him from taking care of Tokio like he always has.
The overall execution was good but lacked the oomph to make the story more memorable for me. If brotherly love is your jam, this one’s tasty enough.
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MANGA: Boku-tachi wa Mada Aoku
Boku-tachi wa Mada Aoku – Kuroi Tsumuji
“Our grade’s top scorer, an unapproachable guy, only opens up to me. That’s so friggin’ adorable!”
Saegusa is utterly bored of his high school life. Along comes Arochi Tooru, a guy with the brightest hair he’s ever seen, who transfers into his class. It’s an oddity already, for some guy with outrageous looks and a cold attitude, to transfer into a prep school. So he immediately draws the attention of everyone in his class. What’s more, he’s apparently a genius who cinches the top spot in their grade on their class exam.
One day, Saegusa uses a common point of interest to approach Arochi, and the two start to become closer. But once they become friends, Arochi is actually really oblivious and cute! Saegusa just can’t take his eyes off this cutie!We’re Still in the Spring of Life is your quintessential spring time manga that is as adorable as the cover.
The plot is something we have read about often. Sunshine-y student befriends stoic transfer student (or vice versa) and young love blooms. It follows the two boys as they navigate their evolving relationship while juggling schoolwork and preparing for their university entrance exams. The two boys inspire each other to reach for their dreams.
The vibe is pure and gentle. It has that wonderful kind of wholesomeness that cleanses the soul. I love how the artwork matches that softness.
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