The first chapter follows Yukiko and her mother (who are largely the linchpins for the whole series if not always the actual main characters) and theiThe first chapter follows Yukiko and her mother (who are largely the linchpins for the whole series if not always the actual main characters) and their complicated relationship which becomes more complex when you add the mothers new husband, who is younger than Yukiko! The characters are all wonderful and fun, and I'm gad I got to read more about them in the following chapters too.
I struggled a lot reading the second chapter/story. Especially the ending. (view spoiler)[The self degradation on the female character, the rape (btw it's the guy being raped, which doesn't get depicted much but it's treated rather lightly by his friends when he reveals it which is horrible and only made it harder to read. And to top it all off when he falls for her (which felt soooo wrong to me) and treats her nicely she leaves to find someone who treats her terribly again. I know this is possible, there are abused women out there who genuinely feel they don't deserve better, but it's so hard to read a story with this much hopelessness in it. (hide spoiler)]
The third story, about Sayako looking for a partner through arranged marriage was surprising and wonderful. Tatsuhiko is a such a cool character. I loved him (view spoiler)[and am super sad he didn't 'get the girl' in the end *sob*, but also I'd never want to force an aro ace person(Sayako) into marrying anyone. Still, I could have been perfectly happy to leave chapter three at the end of part one ;p (hide spoiler)].
Chapter four with it's school-hood friends losing touch/reconnecting is touching, especially watching their life goals changing as times moves on to reconnect with the present.
In the final chapter we reconnect with Yukiko and her mother and uncover more about the relationship between Mari and HER mother and how that affected how she in turn mothered Yukiko. It was a lovely way to round out the book.
Overall I enjoyed the book (ignoring that difficult second chapter) and found it an interesting look women in Japanese culture. As usual Yoshinaga-sensei's art is lovely too....more
As with 'My Lesbian Experience With Loneliness' Nagata-sensei doesn't just tell you she's feeling depressed and leave it at that. Instead she goes in As with 'My Lesbian Experience With Loneliness' Nagata-sensei doesn't just tell you she's feeling depressed and leave it at that. Instead she goes in deep and psychoanalyses it, ponders why, researches it for herself and has deep thoughts, like independence isn't doing everything yourself as she previously thought, but having a broader range of friends family and acquaintances to split all of the burdens of life with rather than just lumping it all on your parents.
Again, Nagata-sensei is extremely lucky that certain people (view spoiler)[the girlfriend she meets very near the end of this volume (hide spoiler)] are so full of kindness, but also willing to let her still publish about their encounters.
Nagata-sensei's art style is very cute and I really dig the pink accents to the work, an interesting change from the typical standard black and white of most manga. I can't help but notice that the majority of times when she draws herself she looks very young, especially when compared with other characters of a similar age to get. I can't help but wonder if she view herself this way but actually looks rather different in reality.
An insightful read and I am definitely ready to buy the next volume as soon as it releases....more
The title, the slightly melancholy seeming cover and the book description lead me to believe this was going to be a mostly serious sort of look at a mThe title, the slightly melancholy seeming cover and the book description lead me to believe this was going to be a mostly serious sort of look at a magical girl being dragged into our boring normal world and learning to cope. The inside pages tell much more of a mad-cap comedy fest. I might have enjoyed the crazy story more if i hadn't been so damn keen for the serious one I'd imagined (that'll teach me not to skip a peek inside because I'm in a hurry to get back down the three flight of stairs from the ground floor to the comic store back to my family who dared not brave the stairs ;p )
So, ignoring that disappointment (because books and manga don't deserved to be judged entirely on misconceptions/high expectations(unless they were clearly actively trying to mislead you in which case one star that shit)) it was a good fun story full of lols and crazy manga storylines.
I'm not sure where this falls in the shojo/shonen/josei categories (pretty sure it isn't seinen it's too tame compared to most of the seinen I've read). From the panty flashes and and extra sexy designs of the magical girl costumes I wasn't sure this was a shojo manga (though Sailor Moon provides all that still), but a lot of the themes seem a little older: living at home, going to uni, keeping up with bills and budgets. Ultimately I suppose that doesn't entirely matter.
The set-up is interesting, the daughter of an anime director fondly remembers her dad's most famous creation. She's a bigger otaku than the first few pages present her as, you'll discover that as you get further into the book. When booting up her dad's ancient computer (its got a CRT monitor ;p ) she misses him, sees his unaired work and wishes she had a friend like the magical girl Nirbrave who was the protagonist of his magical girl anime. As she sheds a tear on the pc tower it short circuits and results in bringing Nirbrave into our reality.
One thing that bugged me a bit was in this starting chapter it's clearly established that Nirbrave can't go 'off-script', which is a very cool idea... that was not followed through on. There are some touches of follow through, eg/ when a 'little girls anime' character drinks alcohol at a gokon she starts to look very badly drawn, which is pretty funny and quite creative, but that's about it. She was constantly saying things that would be off-script and doing things that would be too. I didn't have a problem with the actions themselves, they lead to some hilarious outcomes, it was just the breaking of the pre-established rules.
As expected in this type of manga everyone except the main character is completely nuts. Mayuri is the normal person and even her aquaintances born and raised in the real world are a little nutty. There were some cool twists I'd like to see explored a little further in later storylines like the fact that untransformed Nirbrave looks exactly like Mayuri.
A good read for fans of magical girl stories and those who like mayhem stories akin to Miss Kobayashi's Dragon Maid. ...more
I didn't know much about this book before diving into it, so was slightly surprised by how much of it was about mental health and internal struggles. I didn't know much about this book before diving into it, so was slightly surprised by how much of it was about mental health and internal struggles. Even more surprisingly how little of that was tied directly to her sexual identity. It wasn't being a lesbian that gave her trauma, it was trying to be what others wanted and expected and not fully grasping some social constructs.
This manga is an insightful look at the manga-ka's own life and struggles which culminates in her hiring an escort and the discoveries that encounter creates (and they probably aren't what you think they are). Eating disorders, depression, obsession, and dependency, are just some of the issues dealt with in this manga.
The whole story is DEEP, and I'm going to have to read it probably ten more times to really absorb and understand all of it.
Knowing that this is a true story, I can't help but think of the escort and realise what an absolute goddess that woman is. To have so calmly and warmly dealt with everything - Nagata-sensei's outcome could have been vastly different with a different partner....more
The actual book this manga spins off from is one I need to read but sort of know I'd probably never get around to, so I pounced on this manga.
The manThe actual book this manga spins off from is one I need to read but sort of know I'd probably never get around to, so I pounced on this manga.
The manga is well set out, each chapter establishing a primary point, step by step, in Kondo-sensei's tidying plan. At the end of each chapter is a couple of small paragraphs recapping what was learned by the protagonist, Chiaki.
The plan itself is well thought out, and isn't just about cleaning 'for now' but about mindset that will help you keep tidy. The ideas may seem simple at first, but when strung together and with details like 'joy' and 'touch' in there you can immediately see how extremely effective this method could be.
The story itself is more the machine to lightly convey the method. The conflict is low, but if you're reading this manga you probably aren't for the drama, so that's not too bad. It does put a clear underline along the 'life changing' element the title promises, showing you just one of the ways that such improvements could benefit you.
A fun, quick read with plenty of good info. Now to get myself to actually action it ;p...more
I've had a crappy few weeks and I wanted something light, sweet, and soul healing to read. This was satisfying for me. It's a manga of interwoven shorI've had a crappy few weeks and I wanted something light, sweet, and soul healing to read. This was satisfying for me. It's a manga of interwoven short stories about several different yuri couples meeting, confessing feelings, and going through high school together.
The girls and their romances are all different but heart-warming.
My only complaint really is that some of the characters are confusingly similar in appearance to Morinaga-sensei's 'Girl Friends' series and, since there's some crossover between these shorts and that series, it got a bit confusing to me as to whether I was seeing the main girls, or a cameo by one of the others....more
While I love the series very much, I always found this ending rather lacking. Nothing really happened, no final conflict, no dramatic deepening of theWhile I love the series very much, I always found this ending rather lacking. Nothing really happened, no final conflict, no dramatic deepening of the relationship... just another episode really. It felt flat and unfinished. I really love the little subplot with the fundanshi and his roomate, but am baffled by how much page space it got for roughly four panels of integration with the main plot (which didn't even involve meeting in person). Overall I love the series, but the end... wasn't....more
Kobato is a mysterious young cutie who has absolutely no grasp on even the most basic of common sense. She has a goal however, there is a place she waKobato is a mysterious young cutie who has absolutely no grasp on even the most basic of common sense. She has a goal however, there is a place she wants to go, and to get there she must fill a jar to the brim with fragments of broken hearts she has healed - but first she has to earn the jar by proving she can survive (and blend in!) in the human world.
Anyone who has looked at my later reviews of this series will wonder why this volume has 4 stars but the others have 5. the reason is because this first volume has a very episodic feel, there was the undercurrent linking each episode, and Kobato was cute and Ioryogi hilarious (but brutal) but I wasn't deeply connecting to the story. Of course I had complete faith that CLAMP would pull it all together by the end.
While the episodic feel did keep me a little distant from the heart of the story anyone unfamiliar with Japanese culture will be delighted to discover details of daily life in Japan, like taking out the trash, hanami, and more. What is commonsense to the Japanese is slightly skewed in some situations to what is commonsense to those of us in 'the west'.
As always with CLAMP books the art is gorgeous and detailed, you could spend days admiring some panels. Also, like a few of the more recent series you can keep an eye out for old friends from series past.
Kobato is a character has that adorable, clumsy innocence that is a bit of a trope in manga, but she is so cute (and adorable dressed) that I imagine most people will over-look it (or like a lot of manga fans perhaps love her all the more for it). Ioryogi may look like a blue stuffed animal, but his impressive fire beam breath prooves rather effectively that his is not your average toy dog (like the walking and talking wasn't some hint). Both characters clearly have hidden pasts (which readers of CLAMP will know won't be fully revealed until the final volume), and the hints are tantalising enough to draw you to the next volume.
I recommend this series for all CLAMP fans and any lovers of shojo manga or those keen to try out either (or both)....more
Hana suffers from an unusual condition where whenever she touches a boy (particularly cute ones) she breaks out in super-itchy hives. Add to this her Hana suffers from an unusual condition where whenever she touches a boy (particularly cute ones) she breaks out in super-itchy hives. Add to this her older sister forcing her to work in a massage parlour with two particularly handsome men and you can imagine Hana's going to have a tough time in Tokyo.
To be honest, we've all seen the 'girl allergic to boys' plot before. We all know where it's going. However a good friend gave me this book, so I wanted to be sure and read it. Fortunately while the core of the plot is a bit hackneyed the story itself lifts this manga up out of the doldrums with some nicer touches.
One of those 'nice touches' are the cool and insightful ideas Kazumi-san puts into her work. Most manga fans know every manga likes to drop some deep thinking in from time to time, and this is no exception (I love this about manga, taking a peek at other people views of the world and its workings). While a lot of the insights revolve around the nature of touch, there are some other sweet thoughts too.
Hana herself is cute and plucky, with a slightly unusual image compared to a lot of shojo heroines. I quite liked her, both visually and personality-wise. Haru has an intriguing back story which adds some good drama to the tail end of the story. The other primary characters are interesting, and you can't help but feel bad for poor Nakajima-san.
The art is sweet and shojo and reminds me slightly of Chica Umino's style (cute and light-hearted but with a poignant, emotional touch).
The story does however leave me asking a few questions that I shouldn't have to be, like, (view spoiler)[ how exactly does Hana suddenly end up cured of her condition in relation to every boy except Haru? I get that Haru remained an issue because she was into him, but how did she suddenly become unaffected by any other guys? Furthermore near the start there's vague reference to the fact 'something' set her off with this allergy, but then it's never explored. I'd like to know what started it all.
On the plus side I was grateful that up to the end she still suffered the hives whenever he touches her, so it wasn't just a 'oh look, the magic of love cured her' like a few other stories with the same premise have ended. I appreciate the more realistic touch to the end. (hide spoiler)]
Overall the series (omnibus in the Tokyopop release's case) is worth reading for fans of the shojo genre, despite the done-before premise, because I feel that the characters and insights save the manga from falling into a been-there-read-that pit....more
**spoiler alert** Poor shy Yaya is so retreating she can't stand up for herself. Lucky for her hiding inside her is another personality. Strong assert**spoiler alert** Poor shy Yaya is so retreating she can't stand up for herself. Lucky for her hiding inside her is another personality. Strong assertive (or perhaps more accurately aggressive) Nana fights Yaya's battles for her, but in this final volume she has a chance to be the dominant personality.
After Moriyama's ex forces Yaya into awareness of Nana Yaya retreats into herself leaving Nana as the only personality. While Nana enjoys her chance to pursue her own aspirations she also worries about Yaya. Finally Yaya emerges and she Nana share the same body and work towards a singing debut facilitated by Shohei. Slowly Nana realises Yaya is gaining the ability to stand up for herself and thus the need for Nana is disappearing.
I was glad to finally see Yaya grow as a character. She finally became able to stand up for herself in her own way. It was interesting to watch them co-exist, but I also knew it was not a sustainable solution.
The conclusion is sad, satisfying and even a little humourous.
I recommend this series to any lover of shojo manga....more
Poor demure Yaya is almost surrounded by bullies, but within her resides the strong and aggressive Nana who will fight the battles Yaya can't.
Just whePoor demure Yaya is almost surrounded by bullies, but within her resides the strong and aggressive Nana who will fight the battles Yaya can't.
Just when it seems things might be looking up for Moriyama and Yaya deepening their relationship up pops an ex-girlfriend who quickly discovers Yaya/Nana's secret and reveals the fact to the still oblivious Yaya. You'll need to read it to see how Yaya reacts when she can no longer run away.
Nana shines more and more and you can't help but pray that Yaya will find her own strength. Moriyama is such a good guy and I must say I am rooting for him more than the protagonist herself.
I recommend this book/series to any shojo manga fan....more
Poor shy Yaya is a bully magnet who can't stand up for herself. Luckily(?) hiding inside her is the boisterous Nana who will do 'justice' on her behalPoor shy Yaya is a bully magnet who can't stand up for herself. Luckily(?) hiding inside her is the boisterous Nana who will do 'justice' on her behalf.
In this volume Hano-chan kicks her evil up a gear with a sky-diving tag match and Nana faces down a serial train molester.
I recommend this book/series for fans of shojo manga....more
Yaya is a shy, sweet girl who is a bully magnet (probably because she can't even try to stand up for herself). Hiding inside Yaya is Nana, a super strYaya is a shy, sweet girl who is a bully magnet (probably because she can't even try to stand up for herself). Hiding inside Yaya is Nana, a super strong and sassy girl who does 'justice' to Yaya's bullies.
Hino-chan (Yaya's latest bully and rival for Moriyama's affections) is a piece of work. She uses awful tricks and manipulation to try and destroy Yaya (and just about any other girl who walks by too). Nana shows more growth by showing she won't just protect Yaya with her fists but by working hard for her and reveals more of her own personal preferences. Yaya seems to have less and less of a clue as to what's going on in her own head.
I recommend the series for shojo manga fans....more
Poor bullied Yaya is a shy, gentle girl who can't say a word back to any of her bullies but hiding inside her, waiting for a catalyst, is Nana. Nana iPoor bullied Yaya is a shy, gentle girl who can't say a word back to any of her bullies but hiding inside her, waiting for a catalyst, is Nana. Nana is tough as nails and does Yaya's vengence. Unfortunately Nana's 'help' often isn't.
Yaya gains a rival for Moriyama's affections and Moriyama's brother wants Nana bad. Plenty of kooky fun in this volume complete with pet alligators. Nana is becoming more than just a character who comes out to protect Yaya, becoming her own person with her own aspirations. Yaya herself isn't doing a lot of growing yet, though she is becoming increasingly aware of her blackouts.
I recommend this book/series for any shojo manga fan....more
Quiet sweet Yaya puts up with bullies for friends, surviving the school week just to make it to Sunday when she can go to Harajuku and cosplay with heQuiet sweet Yaya puts up with bullies for friends, surviving the school week just to make it to Sunday when she can go to Harajuku and cosplay with her true friends - fans of her favourite band Juliet. Yaya can't stand up for herself, but hidden inside Yaya, ready to come out when the stress is too much (and a catalyst like a bump to the head or a look at her reflection) is Nana. Nana is brave and strong and serves justice to those who prey on Yaya. Nana's 'justice' tends to make Yaya's false friends only nastier, but luckily cute classmate Moriyama seems to be there to try and help Yaya.
It seems Yaya is starting to notice the gaps in her memory from when Nana takes over, and this only adds to the poor girl's stress. Moriyama invites Yaya to an outdoor concert his band is having, read the book to find out if Nana is going to crash the party!
Moriyama is a seriously sweet guy, the one you totally wish had existed in your high school. Yaya is so sweet and gentle but you do wish she'd stick up for herself just once, not need Nana for it. Nana herself is starting to develop a bit of her own 'personality' too.
I recommend this book/series for any shojo manga fan....more
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