i-read-shitty-comics

[i-read-shitty-comics]

Requiem of the Rose King

Genres:

Drama, Historical, Romance

Content Warnings:

Emotional Abuse, Demonisation of Queerness, Physical Abuse, Sexual Abuse

Average Rating: 8.07/10

Synopsis:

The crown of England has been hotly contested throughout history, and in the Middle Ages, a series of great civil wars becomes known as the War of the Roses. Claiming a right to the throne, the Duke of York seeks to unseat King Henry VI and his heir in order to become king himself.

On a dark day filled with many ill omens, the Duke gains a son: Richard Plantagenet, third of his name. Neither male nor female, but instead possessing characteristics of both sexes, Richard III is immediately reviled by his mother. Her hatred defines his childhood, leading to a deep disgust toward his own body and an adverse reaction to being called a demon.

Richard grows up troubled by visions of England's former foe, Joan of Arc, who taunts that he will bring ruin to all who know him. He believes that he can attain salvation by helping his father achieve his destiny of becoming the king. However, cursed by the expectations of both his mother and Joan, will Richard's actions instead drag his family down into darkness?

My Rating: 9/10

My Opinion:

I absolutely love this.

Now, if my English teacher would ever come across this she would probably ask herself if someone brainwashed me because this is based on two plays by Shakespear, one of which I read in her second language English class and hated to hell and back.

However, Requiem of the Rose King fixes a lot of the problems I had in the original play.

Here Richard is not just an evil person that is evil and essentially a Disney villain that doesn’t have to keep things pg but an actual person, who is power hungry but so are most people around him.

He isn’t a morally good person, but so is almost everyone around him.

Requiem of the Rose King also changes Richard’s “demonic trait” from scurrilous to being intersex and giving it a completely new message of essentially saying that queer people had a really bad time during the 15th century for the people in the back who think that gay people got invented in the 80’s, together with poc in europe and lava lamps.

Also, despite a lot of characters sharing the same name, there are like five Edwards, Requiem makes them a lot easier to differentiate than the original play, so don’t worry about that stuff.

Recommended to:

Fans of dark fairy tales, queer fiction, historical fiction and lots and lots of intrigue and drama. Also I can see fans of Game of Thrones liking this as well if they are fine with a smaller scale intrigue and no fantasy elements.

#manga recommendation #manga review #lgbt manga #boys' love #achillean #achillian #lgbtq #shoujo #shoujo manga

[i-read-shitty-comics]

The Two Lions

Genres:

Romance

Content Warnings:

Violence

Average Rating: 7.70/10

Synopsis:

Young college student Junpei Shishido is quick to befriend others, even if they are from different departments. One day while exploring the campus, Junpei sees Leo Onizuka, an introverted student who looks oddly familiar. When he strikes up a conversation on their second encounter, Onizuka coldly claims that they have never met before and starts avoiding him at all costs.

Soon after, Junpei coincidentally finds Onizuka's ID card and remembers how he knows Onizuka as well as his infamous nickname. His secret now revealed, Onizuka is certain that his college life is doomed; but to his surprise, Junpei decides to befriend him and keep quiet about his past, marking the beginning of a friendship between polar opposites. Gradually, the once unsociable Onizuka begins to break out of his shell while still staying true to himself.

My Rating: 4/10

My Opinion:

This was fine. Nothing bad, nothing special either though. The two leads lack chemistry and there is extra dialogue in crowds to make the scenes feel more lived in but it’s just extra text that doesn’t do anything for the story.

The latter doesn’t have to be a bad thing but because the story already wasn’t the best it became a little pet peeve of mine as well.

Recommended to:

Uhm, people desperate for more romance and have already read so much they don’t know what to read anymore? I dunno.

#manga recommendation #manga review #lgbt manga #boys' love #achillean #achillian #lgbtq

[i-read-shitty-comics]

Hoppe ni Himawari

Genres:

Romance

Content Warnings:

Fat jokes

Average Rating: 7.16/10

Synopsis:

Romance between a little guy who likes gardening and a guy who simps for him.

(Synopsis by yours truly)

My Rating: none

My Opinion:

This manga really likes to empathize that one of the two main characters is fat. Mostly by saying things like “Lol, you’re so fat you have boobs.”. Pretty disrespectful and mean and I wouldn’t recommend you reading it. Not just because it is disrespectful towards fat people but also because that fat joke is the only joke it has and repeats it A LOT.

Recommended to:

No.

#manga recommendation #manga review #lgbt manga #boys' love #achillean #achillian #lgbtq

[i-read-shitty-comics]

Tokyo Ghoul

Genres:

Action, Horror, Mystery, Psychological, Supernatural

Content Warnings:

Cannibalism, Explicit Violence, Mature Themes, Physical Abuse

Average Rating: 8.52/10

Synopsis:

Lurking within the shadows of Tokyo are frightening beings known as "ghouls," who satisfy their hunger by feeding on humans once night falls. An organization known as the Commission of Counter Ghoul (CCG) has been established in response to the constant attacks on citizens and as a means of purging these creatures. However, the problem lies in identifying ghouls as they disguise themselves as humans, living amongst the masses so that hunting prey will be easier. Ken Kaneki, an unsuspecting university freshman, finds himself caught in a world between humans and ghouls when his date turns out to be a ghoul after his flesh.

Barely surviving this encounter after being taken to a hospital, he discovers that he has turned into a half-ghoul as a result of the surgery he received. Unable to satisfy his intense craving for human meat through conventional means, Kaneki is taken in by friendly ghouls who run a coffee shop in order to help him with his transition. As he begins what he thinks will be a peaceful new life, little does he know that he is about to find himself at the center of a war between his new comrades and the forces of the CCG, and that his new existence has caught the attention of ghouls all over Tokyo.

My Rating: 3/10

My Opinion:

It just takes soooooo long to get going. I dropped it shortly before it gets good, which I understand upsets a lot of fans of the series but if a story needs until the halfway point to get interesting, it's completely understandable to not be interested in continuing, in my opinion.

Until the halfway point stuff keeps happening, yet it somehow feels like none of it is important and was just there to introduce characters and the world, rather than actually develop the plot or the characters that are already there.

If you want to read Tokyo Ghoul, I'd recommend reading the first five chapters and then skip to half of the series so you can get to the good stuff. It's not like there is so much happening in the first half that you can't pick up on any of it if you decide to skip some parts.

Recommended to:

I dunno. People like slow pacing? And with slow I mean snail pace slow. Like really slow. In fact, so slow that you wonder if anything happens at all.

#manga recommendation #manga review

[i-read-shitty-comics]

Guang Xiang:

Genres: 

Romance

Content Warnings:

Domestic Abuse, Homophobia

Average Rating: 7.6/10 (AniList)

Synopsis:

Two young boys, feel very anxious to face the circumstances of reality, what kind of decision will they take?

(AniList)

My Rating: 6/10

My Opinion:

It is an ok read, with some good moments. The best ones being every time Yu Yunag is on the page and the other the special where they play rock paper scissors to find out who tops for their first time.

There are however plot threads that get dropped and never addressed again and over all you can see that this is one of the author’s first works and they are still fairly inexperienced. The most obvious example of that being the art, which evolved a lot from the beginning to the end and when you start reading the next work of his it will feel like he just studied nothing but drawing for five years straight.

It is not a bad read but you won’t be bored but there is not much else to say. Everything it did Here U Are picked up again and did better, so if you haven’t already I’d rather recommend you go read that instead.

Recommended to:

Fans of Here U Are who want to see more of Yu Yang and a bit more of Here U Are but don’t want to reread it.

#manga recommendation #manga review #lgbt manga #boys' love #achillean #achillian #lgbtq #gay #manhua

[i-read-shitty-comics]

Beautiful People

Genres:

Drama

Content Warnings:

Bullying

Average Rating: 7.19/10

Synopsis:

Beautiful People is a manga comprised of six profound and thought-provoking short stories.

My Rating: 6/10

My Opinion:

Surprisingly progressive stories for its time. The author talked about pretty privilege back in 2001.

While I’m not the biggest fan of the manga, I can definitely see others really enjoying this. It has appeal, the sad thing is just that it’s a collection of short stories, making each story not dig as deep into the themes it deals with as it could have, but you probably already know this going in if you have ever read a short story before.

Recommended to:

Fans of Gothic stories who want a quick read, fans of short stories and people who want to try out the author to see what she is about and can do in her stories.

#manga recommendation #manga review

[i-read-shitty-comics]

Run Away With Me Girl

Genres:

Drama, Romance, Slice of Life

Content Warnings:

Mature Themes, Physical Abuse, Domestic Abuse, Sexual Content

Average Rating: 8.01

Synopsis:

It's been 10 years since Momo "Maki'' Makimura's first relationship ended, but she still hasn't gotten over her feelings for Midori Oonishi, who broke up with her because they were "getting too old" to date. However, after a chance encounter, the two meet up again and Midori invites Maki to her house. There, she finds out that not only is Midori getting married, she's also pregnant. Maki wants to congratulate her, but her intuition tells her that something is off. The more she hears Midori talk about her soon-to-be-husband, the more red flags she notices. Later that night, she encourages Midori to run away with her.

My Rating: 9/10

My Opinion:

This story deals with people who have made mistakes throughout their lifetime and now try to live the happiest life they can despite that, but turning your whole life around is sadly not that easy.

It is a very vulnerable feeling drama with characters that feel real and flawed. I loved experiencing it and honestly don’t want to spoil too much and for you to go in as blind as possible.

The only thing I will say is that the artist did an amazing job making you really feel the emotions that the main character has for her childhood friend, yet every time they are happy it feels like the calm before the storm.

Recommended to:

Fans of Slice of Life dramas. Bonus points if you also love stories with flawed characters who try to make the best out of their bad situation.

#manga recommendation #manga review #lgbt manga #lgbtq #sapphic #lesbian #wlw #yuri manga #yuri

[i-read-shitty-comics]

Blue Flag

Genres: 

Drama Romance

Content Warnings:

none

Average Rating: 8.03/10

Synopsis:

In his final year of high school, Taichi Ichinose finds himself sharing a class with his popular childhood friend Touma Mita for the third year in a row. Meanwhile, Taichi is hesitant to interact with his shy and clumsy classmate, Futaba Kuze, despite seeing her as a reflection of himself.

However, after an encounter in the library brings them together, Taichi discovers that Futaba has feelings for Touma. Initially harboring doubts at the prospect, he decides to help her after she declares an emotional yet firm decision to change. As spring comes into full bloom, the three classmates find themselves in a relationship entangled by intricate emotions and personal conflicts while they navigate through an uncertain future.

My Rating: 3/10

My Opinion:

I can very much see this being something that teens and tweens love and that makes them feel seen and address problems they personally might deal with. However, I do not recommend anyone who is already outside of school and entering adult life reading this. The themes of this story and the messages it’s trying to tell come off as something you take for granted once you become an adult.

I’m not trying to make Blue Flag look back here. It’s just important to mention that this story hits the best when you are in the target age demographic.

Something important to mention is also that, personally, I have a bias against high school romances, so someone who is into them will probably like this a lot more.

The most important issue I had with the story though is one of the main characters being kind of insufferable. It was kind of evened out by another being the cutest most adorable little thing I have ever seen in my entire life but seeing the other on page made me clench my teeth every time after a while.

Another important thing to mention would be that it is a Shounen series published in a fairly popular offshoot of the most popular manga magazine of all time with queer characters and queer themes being important to the story without being treated as jokes or stereotypes. That seems like a huge step forward for the magazine, if not the entire industry. However, said queer characters definitely play a secondary role and are less important than their straight counterparts and also don’t get their happy ending the same way the straight ones do.

You can definitely call it a step forward but there is still progress to be made.

Recommended to:

Tweens and teens. Especially those who are queer, have queer friends or suffer from society telling them that men and women can’t be friends.

#manga recommendation #manga review #lgbt manga #lgbtq #gay #lesbian

[i-read-shitty-comics]

Get to know me and my taste

Welcome to my little blog.

Now, to not waste much of your time, I'll just list my likes and dislikes, so you can see if we have similar tastes or not. That way you don't have look through all my blog entries just to see if you think I'm worth following or not.

Most likes genres:

Psychological, Horror, Romance

Stuff I love:

Dark but optimistic stories, romance between adults, stories centering queer people, flawed main characters, plot <<<<<<<< characters, also cannibalism for some reason, I dunno why either.

What I don't like:

Ecchi, Highschool Romances, stories centered around school (I'm fine with the mc being a student for example, but I'm not fine with 70% of the story taking place in school), fantasy settings based on medieval europe.

#manga recommendation

[i-read-shitty-comics]

Here U Are

Genres:

Drama Romance

Content Warnings:

Homophobia, the f-slur is used a few times

Average Rating: 8.45/10

Synopsis:

Yang Yu is a second-year university student who seems reliable and pleasant. With the commencement of a new term, he is tasked with orienting every freshman he sees on campus. Eventually, his duty leads him to meet Huan Li, a new student with a fairly oppressive height. Besides his intimidating physique, he is taciturn, aloof, and often gives Yang Yu the cold shoulder.

Yang Yu, who has done nothing but assist him, immediately grows frustrated by this treatment. However, despite his initial impressions, Yang Yu believes that his chance encounter with Huan Li will transform his future outlook—perhaps even on the prospect of love.

My Rating: 9/10

My Opinion:

This was just great.

I read this together with my partner. He read it for the first time, I did for the second and both of us were having an amazing time reading it.

Whether it was because of the cute comedy that always makes you smile, the touching moments of vulnerability when a character opens themself up and feeling the main character’s pain of being open about who you are, but being treated like an alien sometimes.

This story does a really good job at making you root for the two leads to get together and tieing the outcome of the relationship to one of the two’s character development.

Despite all that, the story is not perfect. There is quite an annoying amount of blue balling in this, where the two leads make one step forwards in their relationship but then something happens and they take two steps back again. It can get really frustrating but it makes sense for the characters to take such a long time and said time is used to further develop the characters in the story, so it’s not completely unbearable.

Something I’d like to bring up is that I actually had a lot more problems with the story on my first read through of it. At some point the focus of the story shifts over from completely focused on the main two, to a few others and develop some side couples.

On my first read I absolutely hated it and even skipped a few chapters because I just wanted to see the two leads finally be together but on a re-read it really isn’t all that bad. They actually add quite a lot to the narrative and in the end I ended up loving all of them, even if it was not as much as the main couple.

I also love the portrayal of homophobia in this. A lot of the time In media, when homophobia is portrayed it's very outright and extreme, while in reality it's a lot more subtle than that. Here U Are goes for the more realistic approach and it's very refreshing, but can therefore also hit a bit too close to home for some readers, so just be aware of that before you start reading it.

Recommended to:

Everyone who is interested in or likes Romance and/or queer people who want something cute that is still very relatable.

#lgbt manga #boys' love #achillean #achillian #lgbtq #here u are #manhua #manga recommendation

[i-read-shitty-comics]

Ajin

Genres:

Action, Supernatural, Thriller

Content Warnings:

Gore, self-harm, suicide

Average Rating: 7.97

Synopsis:

Seventeen years ago, mysterious immortal soldiers known as "divine warriors" appeared on the battlefields of Africa. These life forms later became known as "Ajin," or demi-humans, and were considered to be one of the greatest discoveries of mankind. The government declared their existence to be compatible with humans; however, it is rumored that they instead offer bounties for captured Ajin to secretly perform inhumane experiments on these rare beings.

Kei Nagai, an apathetic high school student, is studying to become a doctor and only wishes to live a normal life. However, this simple dream is shattered after he suddenly gets into a deadly traffic accident. Reviving at the scene, he is immediately labeled as an Ajin by bounty-hungry witnesses. Unable to understand his immortality or prove his innocence, he starts to live his life on the run and fights for survival. He barely escapes the government's reach when a group of anarchistic Ajin contacts Kei, asking him to join their forces to retaliate against the government. But who is Kei's real enemy, and which side will he take when it comes down to humans versus Ajin?

My Rating: 7

My Opinion:

Is this a deep and thought provoking story about immortality? No.

Is it a really damn fun popcorn read with some clever uses of the immortality gimmick? Absolutely.

I’m usually not one for action stories. It is just not really my thing and I often get bored by it really quickly. Ajin however does a really good job of making you enjoy the action scenes even if you aren’t a big action fan. Reading the manga feels so fluid as if you were watching a movie, thanks to the really well done paneling and layout of the pages. 

I’d actually highly recommend that you read it physically if that is something you can afford and are interested in. That is how I read most of it and the few times I read it digitally the paneling didn’t have quite the same effect as when you read it physically.

The action also never outstayed its welcome and has a good amount of breathing moments in between that don’t last too long either.

The characters are also pretty fun and serve their role in the narrative pretty well, even if they aren’t the most interesting characters ever.

Recommended to:

People who want a fun, easily digestible, quickly paced popcorn read that keeps them engaged in the action. If you are a big fan of action in general, go for Ajin. An action hater like me liking it should be enough of a rec to those who actually do like action and gore.

#ajin demi human #ajin #manga recommendation #manga review

[i-read-shitty-comics]

Eliza

Genres:

Drama, Psychological

Content Warnings:

discussion of mental health, mostly depression

Average Rating (VNStat): 7.61

Synopsis (vndb):

After abandoning her high-powered tech career and a mysterious three-year absence, Evelyn Ishino-Aubrey resurfaces working as a proxy for a virtual counseling app called Eliza. Her job consists solely of reading a script provided to her in real-time by an AI, leaving her no autonomy over what she says. Is Eliza a technological marvel that brings therapy to those who otherwise couldn’t access it? Or is it an ineffective replacement and another vector for technology companies to gain control over our lives and humanity?

As she reconnects with people from her past and gets to know the ordinary people of Seattle who use Eliza for counseling, Evelyn finds herself caught in the middle between differing sides of the argument— and as she begins to question everything about her past life and future purpose in the world, it becomes clear she must confront the turmoil and darkness inside.

My Rating: 6

My Opinion:

While I love the concept of the story and the art, this story does drag a lot. It feels like the story got stretched out unnecessarily to make it longer at certain parts and while the side characters you interact with in therapy are very interesting, they are also the best part, by far.

The main characters and other more important characters aren’t nearly as charmingly written and it really hurts your enjoyment of the story.

It is very nice to see mental health being talked about so openly in this game though. The topic is also treated with the weight and respect it deserves, so you won’t have to worry about stereotypes about mental illness or it not being treated seriously by the narrative.

In the end, I didn't even care enough to go through all the endings. Especially since some of the characters that do have endings are very unlikeable and I didn't care to hear about how their story continued.

I still like what the story tried to do and the therapy sessions in this game are genuinely really enjoyable. It’s just sad to see that it gets dragged down so much by the rest of the story.

Recommended to:

Fans of stories that focus HEAVILY on mental health and treat the topic with the respect it deserves.

[i-read-shitty-comics]

Pirouette into my Heart

Genres:

Drama, Romance, Sports

Content Warnings: 

none

Average Rating: 81/100% (AniList)

Synopsis:

Known as "the little swan" of his ballet studio, Shen has big dreams of leaving the humble farming town he grew up in and shooting to stardom. Though soft-spoken and timid, he meets his match in the stoic, wealthy, and equally as intense Jinyi, who pursues boxing next door. An unlikely pair, they cheer each other on and raise each other up through thick and thin. Determined to achieve their separate ambitions in the midst of their personal troubles, will their deep connection be strong enough to endure the journey and take flight?

My Rating: 6/10

My Opinion:

Did you really think a fan of the old Barbie movies and a certified member of the alphabet mafia, like me, could pass up on reading a very fruity story about a ballet dancer?

Of course I couldn’t. What do you expect of me?

Unfortunately it was very mid, though.

While the beginning is pretty fun and cute it really starts to drag after a while. The sport starts to take over the romance as the centric plot, which wouldn’t be a problem if more time would have been spent getting you invested in the sport. The characters are also not very interesting, which makes the parts where the story isn’t focused on the romance or big sport events really boring to read. 

The romance is also a slow burn, that really takes its time to go somewhere, but it doesn’t really use the time to give you a good feel of why the two characters are in love with each other. Their relationship is based on mutual support, yes. 

But that is as deep as it goes

Recommended to:

Fans of Sports and Romance titles that want a cute crossover between the two where the romance is a bit more important than the sports part.

You should also not expect the most amazing read. It is cute enough but nothing that will stick with you for a long time.

#manga review #manga recommendation #lgbt manga #boys' love #achillean #achillian #mahua

[i-read-shitty-comics]

Battle Royale

Genres:

Action, Drama

Content Warnings:

Explicit Sex (including minors), Explicit Violence, Mature Themes, Physical Abuse, Sexual Abuse (including minors), Suicide, Domestic Abuse, minors getting sexualized … like a lot, no girl in this ever does anything useful or ends up as more than a sex object, lol

Average Rating: 7.9/10

Synopsis:

Every year, a class is randomly chosen to be placed in a deserted area where they are forced to kill each other in order to survive. Initially believing to be on a graduation trip, Shuuya Nanahara and the rest of Shiroiwa Junior High's Class B find that they have been chosen to participate in this game of life and death known as "The Program."

Waking up to the realization that they have been quarantined on an island, the 42 students discover they have been fitted with metal collars which will detonate if certain conditions are not met. In order to obtain freedom, they must slaughter everyone else by whatever means necessary, and the last one standing is deemed the winner. As each member of the class heads down their own path, Shuuya makes it his goal to get off the island without playing the game in order to put an end to this madness once and for all.

My Rating: 3/10

My Opinion:

It is a bit hard to really like this when you have already read Alice in Borderland, which did everything Battle Royale did but ten times better.

As expected from a series made in the 00’s, there is also some problematic stuff, like the f-slur being used, the only gay character being an offensive stereotype that also dies within two chapters, sexual assault not being treated as seriously as it deserves to be, sexualizing minors, like, a lot. 

I swear there is not a single chapter in this series without at least one panty shot somewhere. Even when a girl is about to get raped or gets brutally murdered. Actually, according to Battle Royale, the best scene for a panty shot is apparently when a girl is about to get raped her leg is almost dismembered, which is an interesting opinion to have, I guess.

Now, after all that, you may ask yourself why I still read through all of it, if I have dropped other series for less. 

The main reason is that the story is pretty good at building up suspense and making you genuinely want to know what happens next in the beginning. You don’t even pick up on how shallow the characters are in the beginning, because you get introduced to so many of them, yet get to know all of them without it feeling overwhelming. The artist is also really good at making every single character look distinct from one another and conveying the emotions they feel through the panels.

The more you read, the more obvious the flaws of the story become, however. The characters aren’t much more than an archetype you have already seen 200 times, every single girl that is relevant to the plot either ends up as a love interest, falling in love with the mc or is a sexual abuse victim that has no personality outside of that. The girls never end up doing anything significant, except for one that is a minor villain.

Also, you see urine a few times which uh … is a choice, I guess?

Recommended to:

Bro, just go read Alice in Borderland instead. Battle Royale is an important piece of evidence that the 00’s were just a fever dream that should remain forgotten for the most part.

#manga review #not a recommendation this is pretty bad #Battle Royale walked so Alice in Borderland could run I guess

[i-read-shitty-comics]

Green Blood

Genres:

Action, Drama, Western

Content Warnings:

Sexual Content, Violence

Average Rating: 7.59/10

Synopsis:

The end of the civil war signaled the start of the industrial revolution in the United States and immigrants from all over the world traveled to find their American dream. But what awaited the majority of them was poverty, discrimination and hopelessness. Manhattan, New York was full of immigrants flooding through the ports and the 6th district, Five Points, was considered at the time, the world's worst slum. The mobsters corrupted the entire area, including the police by paying them off; Five Points was the mob's territory and they were the law.

But even in Five Points, where there seemed to be nothing but robbery, prostitution and murder, showed some signs of hope. Luke Burns was a honest and righteous teenager who realized that the mob was the cause of the harsh lifestyle and that joining the mobsters would not bring him the American dream. But his older brother, Brad Burns, had become the assassin to the biggest mob group of Five Points, the Grave Diggers, a secret he kept from Luke for his own protection. Brad was known as the Grim Reaper and his reputation preceded him as a ruthless and skilled killer.

My Rating: 4/10

My Opinion:

I’m just not the target demographic of this. Westerns just aren’t really my thing, it seems. The relationship between the brothers is the emotional core of the story and by far the most important aspect everything else centers around. However, there is just not enough time taken to show how much they really care about each other to get invested in their relationship, which drags the rest of the story down with it.

This is still worth reading if you like cool guys doing cool things and looking cool doing it, though. The art does a really good job with that.

Recommended to:

People who like dark and brooding guys doing bad things, but they look really cool doing them, so you end up rooting for them.

#manga review #manga recommendation

[i-read-shitty-comics]

Tonari no Metaller-san

Genres:

Romance, Slice of Life

Content Warnings:

Explicit Sex

Average Rating: 7.71/10

Synopsis:

Due to the increase in college dorm fees, graduate student Kentou Sasaki has no choice but to move out. He quickly finds an apartment with cheap rent, but there is a catch: neither the bath nor the stove work. Confident that his body will be able to handle the cold, Kentou has no problem with moving in immediately. However, luck is not on his side because he almost freezes to death after a heavy day of snowfall.

He is unexpectedly saved by Soushi Ikematsu—a man with an aloof personality who loves listening to metal and is Kentou's neighbor. Despite his scary appearance, Soushi makes Kentou a meal to warm him up. Thus, a year goes by, with the two neighbors falling into a comfortable routine of sharing their meals together. To Kentou's disappointment, their relationship has not progressed further. However, in fear that it could put an end to their friendship, Kentou does not have the courage to confess to Soushi that he likes men. Will he be able to keep it a secret when he starts to fall in love with Soushi?

My Rating: 7/10

My Opinion:

This is cute. Not much more to say, to be honest. It is a cute fluffy romance with some slice of life elements.

As someone who likes Metal, I appreciate that the metalhead in the story is not purely scary and creepy but actually super shy and socially awkward. Like a lot of metalheads.

You can see that the author is a big fan themself of the genre and it made the story more fun to read when you can spot the passion for the music that is shown through the details in the art.

In any other month this would be 6, not gonna lie. However, this month was so full of mediocrity that this just seems really good in comparison, so take my rating with a grain of salt.

Recommended to:

Fans of cute fluffy romances. Bonus points for if you like scary looking people that are actually super shy and sweet.

#manga review #manga recommendation #lgbt manga #boys' love #achillean #achillian

[i-read-shitty-comics]

Pink Heart Jam

Genres:

Romance

Content Warnings:

Explicit Sex, Mature Themes, Prostitution

Average Rating: 8.2/10

Synopsis:

Hailing from the countryside, Yuuki Haiga, an endearing and approachable freshman, quickly adapts to university life, easily making friends and winning the favor of girls. But senior Ryou Hanae is the only person that manages to leave Haiga awestruck: with his glorious long hair, stunning features, and incredible musical talent, Hanae finds a lasting spot in Haiga's mind.

When Haiga loses a bet against his friends, he finds himself at a box spa—a secluded place that offers intimate same-sex services. Fostering lingering doubts about being bisexual, Haiga sees this as an opportunity to come to a definitive answer. However, in his nervous state, Haiga is unaware that he bought time with none other than his beautiful senior, Hanae.

All Haiga asks for is an honest conversation about sexual identity, but Hanae insists on a more hands-on approach. Unable to stay away, Haiga continues returning for more, but he must determine if his feelings are genuine love or merely admiration.

My Rating: 5/10

My Opinion:

This was alright. I don’t really see why this is so highly rated though. The romance is fine, but nothing that seems worth revisiting. The only thing that does set this apart from most romances, specifically BL romances is that the sex isn’t just putting the cockadoodledoo into the next best hole and that’s it.

There is more than just penetration, which makes those scenes a lot more interesting to read since, for some reason there is almost only anal sex in most BL, so I can see why someone would prefer this over most titles.

Again, the romance part is nothing special though and the character writing isn’t charming enough to make up for the lack of chemistry between the leads.

The art is very stylish though and the fashion of the characters looks really good as well, I do admit that.

Recommended to:

People who are sick of only seeing anal sex in BL.

#manga review #manga recommendation #lgbt manga #boys' love #achillean #achillian