backwards reviews, forwards reviews
(Yes, I'm still doing backwards reviews. My life is Comiket. Really.)
Kaeru no Prince-sama - Panko.
[note that the paper version of this book is called Kaeru no Prince-sama and the digital version is called Kaeru no Oujisama. I'm fairly certain they're the same book, though.]
It took me a while to figure out this isn't "the frog prince," but "the frog's prince." Because one of the characters is the frog and the other one is the prince. The frog is awkward with people and has an ugly voice and everyone at work makes fun of him, while the prince is handsome and popular and nice and everyone admires him. This is just okay for me. The main character's troubles at work are very moving and all, but I just can't feel the romance between the main characters.
Comiket verdict: We're hitting this table anyway, so I will probably get the doujinshi, but I wouldn't go out of my way for it. (Even if I secretly hope it's awesome and will make me love the manga.)
Omae wa Hitsuji. - Takasaki Bosco
Yuuya's apartment is destroyed in a fire, so he goes to live with a friend...and the friend's hot older brother, who also happens to be an assistant professor at their university. Tsukasa (the brother) has trouble sleeping, but accidentally discovers he can sleep while Yuuya is around. This is sooooooo pretty, but the pacing is so weird. I kept feeling like I was missing pages or maybe even whole chapters, which makes it hard for me to get into the relationship. I want to be thinking, "Just kiss already!" not "Wait, why are they kissing?"
Comiket verdict: I...why do I feel like I want the doujinshi anyway? Did I like it more than I thought? Or is it just that it's so pretty? Anyway, the other manga she's supposed to have a doujinshi for is this, which is not out yet, so...I guess the jury is out on this one? I hope Qpa stops being weird and lets me buy this as an e-book.
Eigyou Nika! - Kanai Kei
Sakisaka Ayumu and his sempai, Toujou Seiji are top in sales in their division (or the whole company? is division 2 below division 1, or above?) and so close everyone in sales division 2 jokes about them being a married couple. These guys are so crazy in love, it's ridiculous that they aren't together by the second chapter. Or maybe before the manga even starts. (Seriously, Sakisaka, snuggling in bed is NOT platonic behavior, even if Toujou is a little strange.) Instead we get misunderstandings and lots of pining, and, agh, JUST KISS. (Hey, remember what I was just saying about wanting characters to kiss...?)
Comiket verdict: YES I can't wait to see doujinshi of these dorks being all rabu rabu.
ETA: Oh, there's also going to be a drama CD of this in September. I hope it comes with an extra comic.
And, briefly, back to regular reviews:
Bokura no Gunjou - Akihira Shiro (sweh!!!)
Kinoshita Yuuma is a gay high school student who creates a blog with semi-dirty pictures of himself in the vague hopes of landing a boyfriend. Unfortunately, one of the teachers at his school finds it and Aoki Seiya (Kinoshita's homeroom teacher) tries to convince him to delete it. Kinoshita finally agrees, under the condition that Aoki play his boyfriend until graduation. (They have all these rules: no kissing, dates only in Aoki's apartment--limited to three days a week, etc, etc.)
AHHHHHHHHH. THIS IS SO ADORABLE. No, I'm calm. Sorry. But I'm SUCH a sucker for this kind of thing. The accidental discoveries of each other, the quiet scenes of them growing closer together, the hugging...GAH, THE HUGGING. And the pining! AHHHHHHHH. Just...bury me in this story and leave me to die. I'm sad that this is a regular review and not an anticipation of something to buy at Comiket. Why don't all the BL mangaka write doujinshi??
Yamada to Shounen - Mita Ori (sweh!)
Chihiro is a high school boy in love with his friend, and gets drunk on Christmas Eve while his friend is out with his new girlfriend. Yamada, a straight, average joe kinda guy, happens to find poor Chihiro passed out in some bushes, and takes him home. Chihiro falls for Yamada pretty much right away, and Yamada is confused to find that he's also kinda attracted to this adorable high school boy.
Oh, this is super cute. Chihiro just so cute and innocent, and the way Yamada dotes on him is so sweet. Awkward, but sweet. (He needs to take doting lessons. But he tries.) Gah, I just found the author's blog and there's an extra story for this in Canna 42, so I'll have to get that, too.
Kaeru no Prince-sama - Panko.
[note that the paper version of this book is called Kaeru no Prince-sama and the digital version is called Kaeru no Oujisama. I'm fairly certain they're the same book, though.]
It took me a while to figure out this isn't "the frog prince," but "the frog's prince." Because one of the characters is the frog and the other one is the prince. The frog is awkward with people and has an ugly voice and everyone at work makes fun of him, while the prince is handsome and popular and nice and everyone admires him. This is just okay for me. The main character's troubles at work are very moving and all, but I just can't feel the romance between the main characters.
Comiket verdict: We're hitting this table anyway, so I will probably get the doujinshi, but I wouldn't go out of my way for it. (Even if I secretly hope it's awesome and will make me love the manga.)
Omae wa Hitsuji. - Takasaki Bosco
Yuuya's apartment is destroyed in a fire, so he goes to live with a friend...and the friend's hot older brother, who also happens to be an assistant professor at their university. Tsukasa (the brother) has trouble sleeping, but accidentally discovers he can sleep while Yuuya is around. This is sooooooo pretty, but the pacing is so weird. I kept feeling like I was missing pages or maybe even whole chapters, which makes it hard for me to get into the relationship. I want to be thinking, "Just kiss already!" not "Wait, why are they kissing?"
Comiket verdict: I...why do I feel like I want the doujinshi anyway? Did I like it more than I thought? Or is it just that it's so pretty? Anyway, the other manga she's supposed to have a doujinshi for is this, which is not out yet, so...I guess the jury is out on this one? I hope Qpa stops being weird and lets me buy this as an e-book.
Eigyou Nika! - Kanai Kei
Sakisaka Ayumu and his sempai, Toujou Seiji are top in sales in their division (or the whole company? is division 2 below division 1, or above?) and so close everyone in sales division 2 jokes about them being a married couple. These guys are so crazy in love, it's ridiculous that they aren't together by the second chapter. Or maybe before the manga even starts. (Seriously, Sakisaka, snuggling in bed is NOT platonic behavior, even if Toujou is a little strange.) Instead we get misunderstandings and lots of pining, and, agh, JUST KISS. (Hey, remember what I was just saying about wanting characters to kiss...?)
Comiket verdict: YES I can't wait to see doujinshi of these dorks being all rabu rabu.
ETA: Oh, there's also going to be a drama CD of this in September. I hope it comes with an extra comic.
And, briefly, back to regular reviews:
Bokura no Gunjou - Akihira Shiro (sweh!!!)
Kinoshita Yuuma is a gay high school student who creates a blog with semi-dirty pictures of himself in the vague hopes of landing a boyfriend. Unfortunately, one of the teachers at his school finds it and Aoki Seiya (Kinoshita's homeroom teacher) tries to convince him to delete it. Kinoshita finally agrees, under the condition that Aoki play his boyfriend until graduation. (They have all these rules: no kissing, dates only in Aoki's apartment--limited to three days a week, etc, etc.)
AHHHHHHHHH. THIS IS SO ADORABLE. No, I'm calm. Sorry. But I'm SUCH a sucker for this kind of thing. The accidental discoveries of each other, the quiet scenes of them growing closer together, the hugging...GAH, THE HUGGING. And the pining! AHHHHHHHH. Just...bury me in this story and leave me to die. I'm sad that this is a regular review and not an anticipation of something to buy at Comiket. Why don't all the BL mangaka write doujinshi??
Yamada to Shounen - Mita Ori (sweh!)
Chihiro is a high school boy in love with his friend, and gets drunk on Christmas Eve while his friend is out with his new girlfriend. Yamada, a straight, average joe kinda guy, happens to find poor Chihiro passed out in some bushes, and takes him home. Chihiro falls for Yamada pretty much right away, and Yamada is confused to find that he's also kinda attracted to this adorable high school boy.
Oh, this is super cute. Chihiro just so cute and innocent, and the way Yamada dotes on him is so sweet. Awkward, but sweet. (He needs to take doting lessons. But he tries.) Gah, I just found the author's blog and there's an extra story for this in Canna 42, so I'll have to get that, too.