muse ✨'s manga / #reencounter(186)

Well-crafted, well-paced writing and interesting characters, and the art is beautiful. Both works I've read of Ogeretsu Tanaka's have been excellent. This contains two stories which are set in the same universe: 1) A man who had been unattractive growing up has reinvented himself as a stylist and is asked out by the guy who had tormented him in high school. Still hung up on past anger, he grasps his chance for revenge. 2) The second story I almost bypassed. It focuses on a man several years out from an abusive relationship where he had been the abuser. Rather than forgive his past or excuse it, the story shows that he lives with his guilt and shame. However, he has taken steps to change, and he's honest with his new lover about his past. ETA: Having now read the story where he abused his former partner Yumi, it's no wonder he continues to feel guilty. No amount of abuse is okay, but this was constant and violent - even sadistic. He needs long-term therapy.

TRIGGER WARNING: This depicts on-page physical assault on a partner. I become deeply upset every time and don't want anyone to go in un-warned. Yumi is in a long-term relationship with a vitriolic and abusive partner when he reconnects with someone he'd loved in high school. I hesitated to read this because it deals with domestic abuse, but it doesn't romanticize it. His partner is aware that his behavior is unforgivable and eventually begs Yumi to leave him. Yumi is the one who walks out the door. The partner's story continues in "Renai-rubi no Tadashii Furikata" and he experiences constant guilt over his past behavior. I read that story before this one. I'm glad, because I wouldn't have been able to enjoy it after reading this. In fact, I'm annoyed he was given a redemption arc, but I am biased; I was on the receiving end of long-term psychological abuse. Yumi's reactions to being abused were genuine to me, as far as my personal experience goes. I had to stop reading a few times to catch my breath - especially when his injuries are shown - but I'm ultimately glad I read this.

Two boys meet years after a horrible parting. To be honest, the anime is better. :-/

A chemistry teacher, Jinno, moves into the apartment next to a former student who had often talked to him after school and once said he liked him. Jinno asks him to have dinner so they can catch up, and since they both live alone and Morimoto enjoys cooking, he suggests they eat together sometimes. Their relationship grows sweetly domestic: they have dinner and sometimes lunch together, help each other with household tasks, and go clothes shopping. Jinno likens their relationship to dating and has no fear of that, slowly becoming aware of his own feelings and attraction, which he suspects are mutual. There is no relationship drama in this. Jinno works up the courage to ask Morimoto out and realizes that Morimoto had actually confessed to him in high school. They start dating and get a happy ending. A nice read on a sad day.

A man who works in a bridal boutique is reunited with his high school love, a guy he slept with once, assuming they would never meet again. When they end up coworkers, the Sparks between them are still there, and they have to reconcile the past.. By Ze’s author!

A man becomes wealthy in order to attract the guy he's liked since high school, only to find he's married. This is a frustrating story. Takao, the love interest, is and remains emotionally unavailable throughout, which results in him frequently hurting and worrying Kayano. Without money, they wouldn't be together. It formed the initial tether between them, which makes this unsatisfying as a love story. I'm not even sure I enjoyed it from a purely storytelling standpoint. Takao has suffered because of money problems since childhood, which resulted in his parents leaving him and his siblings, and has issues relating to everyone. He has a cruel streak and little respect for others' feelings. He has no problem actively trying to cheat on Kayano, for example, and laughs during his supposed apology. He does reveal a tender side in the hospital scene, where we see a glimpse of the depth of feeling he has for Kayano, but being afraid of how much you feel for someone is a poor excuse for hurtful behavior. This story may reveal more about him in the art upon re-read. There is a scene where he visits his sister after she gave birth and declares he hates kids; however, we see a photograph of him holding the baby and blushing a few panels later. Still, if you have to constantly guess your partner's emotions, the novelty will eventually wear off and you may find yourself unsatisfied. ETA: This has a sequel. Takao is much more open in that, and it ends on a lovely note. So... I guess things work out. ETA ETA: Re-read this in 2019. I didn't mind it nearly as much as I did the first time around, and maybe that's because the sequel made me like Takao a little more. Raised this from two to four stars.

After an injury dashed his hopes of being a pro athlete, Kumagaya gets a job as a mover and reconnects with a former classmate, an arrogant businessman who is seemingly affectionate only toward his pet hamster. In spite of how that sounds, this is not crack but a really nice love story.

A photographer in danger of losing his eyesight to lupus is obsessed with a man he met on an island as a child and determined to return there with him.

Introverted adult mangaka Mutsu spots his former basketball club member Akiharu on his way to a job agency and offers him a job as a live-in assistant. Akiharu manages the household and takes care of Mutsu, who rarely goes outside, running manuscripts to his editor and even going so far as to help him masturbate to spare his wrists. Their relationship becomes intense and close, but when Akiharu talks about the possibility of a girlfriend in the future, Mutsu begins to pull away. BIG KUDOS to the author for sex gone wrong the first time. Everyone has great first-time sex in mangaland, and I liked that these two had a less-than-satisfying first go with penetration. And then they worked things out together! Yay. A happy story.

Eight years earlier, Hosho dry-humped his soccer club senpai Saotome in the locker room instead of confessing or just...having a proper conversation with him. Anyway, now they're neighbors and he's still harboring guilt over his actions. Sweet overall.