manga: Idol Dreams Volume 1 by Arina Tanemura
I have no idea what to make of this. Chikage Deguchi is a 31 year old office worker who has never had a boyfriend and doesn't have a social life. She feels pathetic and depressed after a high school reunion, and attempts suicide. One of her classmates saves her, and after hearing her woes, tells her that he's working on a potion that can deage people, and the version he currently has will work for several hours, so she can take the potion and become 15 again, as long as she gives him feedback and lets him monitor her vital signs.
As if we weren't far enough into "WTF??" territory, as a teenager, Chikage, becomes an idol and ends up working with a boy who looks exactly like the guy she had a crush on in high school. He starts to develop a crush on her, which, you know, whatever, but she seems to be reciprocating instead of going "ABORT ABORT!! He is 16 years younger than you at a point in your lives where that makes him less than 1/2 your age!!" To make sure we have a triangle, her other love interest is the high school friend who gave her the deaging potion. Who has a girlfriend already, and almost kisses Chikage while she's asleep and thinks about how cute she is as a 15 year old.
In the afterword, Tanemura says she was asked to make a Magical Girl series for adults, and to hold back on her normal visual flourishes. So, I mean, I guess she succeeded? I'll probably read more if my library gets it just to see if it actually does turn into a trainwreck, but yeesh.
If anyone has read this and has read Tanemura's DYING OF THROAT CANCER series, I'd be interested in hearing how they compare. I understand that one also involves the heroine's age changing and becoming an idol.
As if we weren't far enough into "WTF??" territory, as a teenager, Chikage, becomes an idol and ends up working with a boy who looks exactly like the guy she had a crush on in high school. He starts to develop a crush on her, which, you know, whatever, but she seems to be reciprocating instead of going "ABORT ABORT!! He is 16 years younger than you at a point in your lives where that makes him less than 1/2 your age!!" To make sure we have a triangle, her other love interest is the high school friend who gave her the deaging potion. Who has a girlfriend already, and almost kisses Chikage while she's asleep and thinks about how cute she is as a 15 year old.
In the afterword, Tanemura says she was asked to make a Magical Girl series for adults, and to hold back on her normal visual flourishes. So, I mean, I guess she succeeded? I'll probably read more if my library gets it just to see if it actually does turn into a trainwreck, but yeesh.
If anyone has read this and has read Tanemura's DYING OF THROAT CANCER series, I'd be interested in hearing how they compare. I understand that one also involves the heroine's age changing and becoming an idol.