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Hi, my very few followers. I haven’t posted in a while, since I’ve been busy with work and trying to enjoy my small break from school. I’ll be sure to post here again soon!

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Wotakoi Review

Overview: 'Wotaku ni Koi wa Muzukashii', known in English as 'Wotakoi: Love Is Hard for Otaku' is a romance manga series written and illustrated by Fujita. The series was originally uploaded to Pixiv by Fujita, before being uploaded to a web magazine called 'Comic Pool', created by Pixiv and Ichijinsha from 2014-2021. 'Wotakoi' follows Narumi Momose, a closeted otaku and fujoshi (fujoshi translates to 'rotten girl', and is a term for women or girls who enjoy boy's love romance media). She reunites with her childhood friend Hirotaka Nifuji at work, who he himself is a hard-core gamer otaku, and the two try out dating. Meanwhile, their Co-Workers, cosplay enthusiast and also fujoshi Hanako Koyanagi and semi-otaku yet bishojo (cute girl) enthusiast Taro Kabakura, try to work out their bickering relationship troubles. Later on, we are introduced to Hirotaka's younger brother, non-otaku, non-gamer, and super cheerful yet naïve Naoya Nifuji. Naoya gets involved with socially anxious, hardcore solo-gamer Ko Sakuragi, and the two awkwardly try to blossom a relationship of their own. The overall story follows these three couples, as Hirotaka and Narumi try to work out dating one another while Narumi tries to hide the fact that she is an otaku from her peers, Hanako and Taro try to work out their problem with fighting one another on a daily basis as they prepare to take their relationship to the next stage, and Naoya and Ko awkwardly try to express their feelings for one another, despite both being inexperienced in the romantic field. An intertwining, nerdy, and adorable love story is the result of the mixture. Review: This manga hits me on a personal level. I grew up an athlete, playing sports ever since I could walk basically. However, I was very interested in video games, comics, cartoons, and anime as well. As I got more popular in highschool, I tried to hide the fact that I am an Otaku myself, and I can admit I still hide it today until I really get to know people. Because of this, the story was incredibly relatable to me, especially out of Narumi. While some readers may not understand Narumi's hesitancy to closeting her inner nerd, I understood and related right away. Because of this, I was already a fan since before really reading the story. And now, as I read the final volume as soon as it delivered to my house today, I can comfortably say this is one of my favorite series I have ever read, easily a top 10 pick for me. The story is cute, funny, angsty at times, and (again at least for me) relatable, and I'm sure any one with even minor Otaku traits could find something that reminds them of themselves in this series. I enjoyed the ending a lot, as I believe all three couples got a satisfying ending that suits them all respectably. The video game and overall nerd-culture references that filled the series from start to finish were enjoyable as well. Also, I love how this story is centered around working adults and college students, rather than your average highschool love. As much as I do enjoy a good highschool love story, it's so refreshing to see one centered around working adults and college students. I also it even easier to relate to, as I too am a working adult/college student. The art style is very shojo-esque, but isn't anything over-the-top either, unless it wants to be in a rather comedic way. I enjoyed all the characters as well, as I could find at least one trait in all of them to be something I could relate to. Despite the love story being nothing special in it's core, what really sets this story apart from others is the fact of how incredibly nerdy it is, and it uses that trait and knocks it out of the park. I can comfortably recommend this to anyone who calls themselves an otaku, a sucker for romance stories, or those who enjoy a nerdier story filled with video game and anime references. Overall, I would rate 'Wotakoi' an 8.5/10, and the only thing keeping it from getting a 9+ would be that the love story can be a little generic and predictable, but I do not mean that as a bad thing.

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The Quintessential Quintuplets Review

Overview: 'Go-Tobun no Hanayome', or known in English as 'The Quintessential Quintuplets, is a manga series written and illustrated by Negi Haruba. The series was serialized in Kodansha's 'Weekly Shonen Magazine' from 2017-2020 before being published into 14 separate volumes. The story follows studyholic Futaro Uesugi and his daily life after being hired to tutor the Nakano Quintuplets. This is a challenge for Futaro, as the girls are awful students who can't seem to pass a test to save their lives. The quintuplets are, in order of who was born first, Ichika, Nino, Miku, Yotsuba, and Itsuki. During the beginning, Nino and Itsuki give Futaro the most trouble, as they will flat-out deny having him tutor them, with Nino even scheming up ways to sabotage. Ichika, Yotsuba, and Miku may allow him to tutor them, but they struggle with paying attention. However, hate soon turns into love for the Nakano sisters, as they all start to simultaneously develop feelings for Futaro, even to the point where they engage in a 'war' over winning his love. As we know from the very beginning, Futaro ends up marrying one of the sisters, and even met one five years prior, but the events between him being hired and the wedding are filled with comedic acts of chaos, angst, love, and heartbreak for the Nakano sisters. Review: I really enjoyed this, and I just finished collecting the series physically just a day ago. I'm not usually one for harem manga, but this one really gripped my attention. While it starts off as a somewhat typical harem, with Futaro visiting the five sisters and some fan-service ensues, there's honestly so much more to this manga than a cheap, sleazy harem. The story ties in the past, present, and future really well, and sometimes even some of the smallest moments in the manga have a big impact on the story, especially in terms when Futaro choses the bride (which I will keep unnamed in case of spoilers). This story was funny at moments as it was sad in others. During the events of volumes 11-14, where the series was coming to an end, I truly felt sorry for the sisters as they realized they weren't chosen to be his bride, and the events of the Sisters' War Arc was my particular favorite in terms of comedy. In terms of the winner, I'm satisfied. She wasn't my favorite of the sisters (who I also will not name, due to spoilers), but she is still a good character, and the story makes it clear that she deserved to win. Also, how the winner handled it between Futaro choosing her and the wedding was, in my opinion, written and handled well. Quick note, I also enjoyed the art style. It wasn't anything crazy, but that suited the manga well. Overall, I can recommend this manga for almost any reader who is interested in romantic comedies and slice of life. It's my favorite harem i've read, which doesn't say too much given my disinterest in the genre, and at times it really doesn't seem like one. If I could score it, it would receive an 8/10 for me. Quick Note: I know the ending has sparked controversy amongst the fanbase, mainly due to their favorite girl not winning. If you are mad just because your favorite girl not winning, I would ask yourself if Futaro chose her instead, would the story really have made much sense?

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Review of Miss Kusakabe

Overview: 'Kusakabe-San', or 'Miss Kusakabe' in English, is a short one-shot manga by Shuzo Oshimi, author of 'Happiness', 'The Flowers of Evil', 'Blood on the Tracks', and others. This is a very short work, only about 21 pages in length. 'Miss Kusakabe' follows the story of a man who comes home one day to find a woman sitting down at his door. This woman is Kusakabe-San, and her only intentions with this man seems to be around having sex with him. There really isn't much else to the story, as Kusakabe-San and this man have sex throughout, Kusakabe-San reveals that she knows a lot about plants and hardly eats meals. Later on, Kusakabe disappears from the man's door, prompting the man to go out looking for her. He finds her, despite her change in appearance, and the story ends almost exactly how it began, with Kusakabe-San wanting to have sex with the man. Review: I love Shuzo Oshimi. His narrative styles have produced some of the most interesting psychological thrillers I have read. 'The Flowers of Evil' is one of my favorite manga, and Oshimi as a whole is probably my favorite mangaka. However, as much as I'll praise the works of Shuzo Oshimi, this one gathers none from me. Oshimi never shied away from having sexual elements in his stories, but having one entirely based on sex didn't work out in his favor. This story is boring, giving us no likeable characters whatsoever. It can even be gross, especially during one scene about halfway through involving vomit. The dynamic between the characters is just awful and toxic, as Kusakabe-San will just flat out tell our protagonist that she also sleeps with other men, sometimes right before seeing him. The guy in the story as well has faults. Kusakabe-San is obviously in a rough and vulnerable state, and rather than offer her any sort of help, he just treats her as an object. The story also suffers from being just way too short. I can see a potential to there being a commentary on the lives of people who are just broken down, acting without judgement to try and cope with whatever issues they are dealing with. If that were the objective of 'Miss Kusakabe', it can be really hard to tell. Rather than flesh out that potential story into a longer work, the 21 page manga feels incredibly rushed, leaving the characters no room to develop or reveal whatever issue in life they may be facing. It could have been much better had Oshimi opted to do that instead of a short one-shot. I can't really recommend this manga to anyone, as I just don't see how it can appeal to one's interest, unless I am just blatantly missing the deeper, insane meaning to this story (if I am, please let me know). Rather than produce anything like the interesting psychological thrillers he has in the past, Shuzo Oshimi instead writes a stupid, gross, and uninteresting work that makes me think he wrote just because he was just wildly horny. If I could score it, I would give it 3/10. Three points only because I enjoy Oshimi's art style.

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What if?? Review of 'Tokyo Tarareba Girls' Vol. 1

Overview: 'Tokyo Tarareba Musume', known in english as 'Tokyo Tarareba Girls' or 'Tokyo What If Girls', is a josei manga series by 'Princess Jellyfish' author Akiko Higashimura, and was published in Kodansha's 'Kiss' magazine from 2014-2017. The story follows single, middle-aged Rinko, a screenwriter, constantly in the shadow of regret for her actions in the past in terms of her relationship status. Rinko even made a goal to herself to get married by the time the Summer Olympics come to Tokyo in 2020. She spends most nights in the bar with her friends, drinking themselves silly while venting and complaining about their work and love lives, much to the annoyance of the other bar patrons. One patron, a young male model and actor named Key, even calls them out on this, titling Rinko and her friends the "What If" girls. The rest of the volume follows a comedic story of Rinko trying to find her power in the work-force, dealing with Key and his criticism over her behavior, and encountering a rather wild romantic experience at the end.

Review: I enjoy shoujo/josei titles a lot, it's even my favorite genre to read, and this one definitely scratched that itch. Being a fan of 'Princess Jellyfish', I was glad to see some of the artistic and narrative styles of Higashimura being present in 'Tokyo Tarareba Girls' while keeping this title it's own entity. The work touches on some cultural topics that are relevant in Japan, such as the struggle of being a woman in the workforce, and the social pressure to fit the norm of being a 'good house wife', as we see Rinko desperately trying to fit into that field. 'Tokyo Tarareba Girls' has a great art style, and you can see it throw in classic shoujo tropes from the layering whenever Rinko has a mental breakthrough or breakdown, the beautiful boys trope when it comes to the devilishly handsome Key, and a story filled with internal struggles of romance rather than action. I enjoyed the humor a lot in this as well, and found Rinko to be a very likeable, albeit naïve in a lovable way, protagonist. The pacing was also good, as Higashimura kept the story going fast in the right places, as well as slowing it down for readers to digest the more important moments. I would recommend volume one for anyone who is a fan of the shoujo/josei scene, especially if they want a story centered on working adults rather than the cliché (yet I still love) highschool romance setting, and I cant wait to read more of the story.

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Introduction

Hello! I made this blog in the aftermath of me taking two classes on Manga in college. I fell in love with writing about manga, that I decided to make a small blog to continue! I won't only talk about my reviews and opinions on the manga I read, but I'll also throw in how they can reflect on the Japanese culture and history as well! I also plan on writing about different types of manga genres, manga tropes, and other details about manga I learned in class that I feel would be fun for all manga readers to understand. Don't be afraid to follow, and I'm always open to new manga recommendations!