tsukineko's manga / #age gap(287)

The uke are 'manly', rather than typical yaoi cutesy crybabies. The drawings are not bad. Feels like looking through a book of pencil sketches, rather than a manga.

Store owner Shuji is the mc in 'Himegoto Asobi'.

Feels like looking through a collection of pencil sketches, or watching a European film. 1. 'Koujitsuei no tobira' 2. 'Jin to neko wa yobu to konai' 3. 'Nobody knows' 4. 'Non tea room'

After this, read the sequel 'Lover's Mode'. That was quite a saga! I'm still a little ambivalent about it though. At times, (especially near the beginning), I found it kind of mediocre, (both the art and the story), however, as the story unfolded, I became really attached to [most of] the characters. Only Takamiya × Izumi left an icky feeling, (à la Usami × Misaki), until the end when I warmed to Takamiya after reading about his past, (in the Shiki story). I would say that overall the storytelling and art, which improved over time, were solid, (not brilliant). However, at times they were truly excellent! Several pages stopped me in my tracks - the expressivity of the imagery, shaking me to my core! I bookmarked some of those pages, but I'm not sure the bookmarking feature on the site works anymore. One of the pages screamed at me so loudly that I noted down the page number because I absolutely didn't want to lose track of it: Vol. 04, Ch. 02, Pg. 19. (I have been in a similar situation, and that page truly conveys the sheer despair and desperate pain and anguish one can feel, and the wretched screams that are ripped from deep within. It's also true to reality that one breaks down AFTER the ordeal rather than during.) I remember that one of the other pages that had a big impact, was of Naoya alone in the snow, at Xmas, crying from loneliness. Actually, I would say that loneliness is a constant theme in this manga, and this mangaka is very good at expressing it, (and other emotions), through imagery. OK, enough with this long ass paragragh - I'm off to read the sequel...

3.5 stars.