pluckaduck's manga / #Romance(171)

I hope if tachibana turns back into his original self, jin still love him as much.

a cute and realistic story. id still choose financial stability over love tho, unfortunately.

cute and poignant story

the art screams shoujo/josei. which is cemented by the heartwarmingly cliche aspects, and obviously, the crossdressing male friend helping him find love (which is a relatively common trope in bl). but the solid relationships with other women, seem to be written by a male author. i am confused. is this bl or not?

they are such perfect complements to each other. asahi grounds mitsuki who in turn soothes him with his love and adoration. the kind, knowledgable, and sensitive tsundere x emotive, affectionate ball of sunshine. giving this work any less than 5 or even 4 stars is a crime bc the sheer heartwarming-ness this story emanates is so palpable it makes you optimistic about the good nature of people and envious of an adorable wholesome relationship even if you arent looking for one.

lovely. just lovely. it so cute how they started a friendship over a shared interest in something mundane like film, and then developed this relationship into something profound and special and sweet. the story focuses on their relationship and developments, with the film interest as padding and high school as a backdrop to convey the feelings of youth, and with the way the story is told via the atmospheric angles and paneling, the natural banter, all of it together really embodies the theme of "summer youth romance". it's so down-to-earth and simple but also quite romantic. the days passed and time marched on after the summer, but mc was still stuck on his relationship with ml, and couldn't move on. it should have ended, but he couldnt forget the beautiful and fun memories and the longing. truly reminiscent of "summer".

surprisingly good for a historial drama manhua. it focuses more on the political machinations and drama, than the romance aspect. the targets are pretty good as well; no forced romantic developments or cringy aspects. the main problem of the story is the shitty pacing and storytelling. the plot points and their developments are well-thought-out, but how we get from point A to point B is poorly written. the worldbuilding could also be better, but the lack thereof doesnt distract too much. overall, above average entertaining read.

above average OI. people who are disappointed bc mc isn't whom they want to project themselves to be... recalibrate your expectations. i like how ash felt so alienated and distrustful. she acknowledges something all OI authors subconsciously wanted but never admitted in their characters: the desire to experience a perfect love to the extent they can forget their homesickness. her relationships with each ml isn't ideal, most of them being deeply in love with another person before mc, but it's realistic in that sense, and a reasonable explanation why she doesnt bring herself to fall in love until she gets her epiphany.