otakulys's manga / #homophobia(20)

Sort of strange and sad so far. I imagine the main two get together, but I kind of wish it wouldn't go that way. I'd love to see a story where a straight character is such dear, loving friends with another boy who struggles with accepting his sexuality. Anyway, I'm interested and hope the manga stays intriguing.

While the way the seme treated the uke throughout the story was horrid, at least he didn't rape him, which is like 90% of the manga out there, so I can tolerate their unhealthy relationship a little more. And in the end, it really did seem like they were going to be kind to one another and treat each other well. So I really enjoyed it. Plus, I love Harada, so I'm naturally going to enjoy her work to some degree.

I'm definitely a fan of this mangaka. Her art is so pretty, and her stories always have a nice little hint of hope between the main pair. And other characters, apparently, haha. This is a cute one, though I wish she'd explored the homophobia element more. Usually I prefer a world where being gay or bi is the norm, but when it's slice of life, coming of age stuff like this, I enjoy seeing the boys come into their own. The snippet with the poor bullied boy was interesting and sad, and I was looking forward to the guys facing and overcoming bigotry thrown their way. Oh well. It was a sweet manga regardless.

This review is just for the one shot at the end: Honestly, as sweet as they both are, I kinda want them to stay platonic friends. I like that Haniwa doesn't have an agenda, that he's just protective of his friend, not protective because he wants to bang him. It sucks that it ends there, but I guess I'll just say that Hina finds someone great who's actually gay or bi, and he and Haniwa remain best friends forever. You never see gay characters with a truly awesome, close, straight male friend. I want him to have a happy ending with a guy who loves him back, but someone who actually likes guys. And I hope Itou gets his shit together and stops being a homophobic dick. I didn't really read the manga itself, just this oneshot, since people were raving about it. I'm not as interested in the manga for a number of reasons, but I might read it eventually. I wish there were more stories involving being outed and people dealing with coming out and potential homophobia. So few seem to want to tackle that at all, let alone do it properly. Most of the time it's brushed off as a random insult, or the other characters come around really quickly. This was just a sweet story about a good friendship, and I'd love to see more like it.

This isn't real, so I'm using it for tags to remember later.

Stories like this really frustrate me, because there's so much potential, and it's all thrown away for some simple rape to love. I was really hoping the second story would just end after the first part, focusing on the messed up relationship they had that would mean they could never be together. It's better than what it was, and seeing the uke drop to his knees like that really grossed me out after what that jerk did to him. Being "in love" doesn't give you a free pass to hurt someone. The first story, I found the uke interesting but the seme boring. However, the art is so pretty, and I did enjoy elements of both stories, even if the way they wrapped up annoyed me, so I gave it four stars instead of the two it would probably get based on those endings alone. Also, I love the guy painting the house, totally like, "Ah, I see you're in chains. That's nice."

Very lovely so far, and even the misunderstandings, which I freaking hate as a trope, are at least sorted out fairly quickly. I love that this story has so much to do with being out and living life in a world filled with uncertainty and homophobia. So much fear and heartbreak, it makes me cry. But there's hope, and I really appreciate the flashes of them together in the future. It hurts right now, but we know that in the end, they're happy. And LiHuan really is perfect for YuYang. He's patient and kind and understanding, and he's willing to deal with Yang's messy baggage without being pushy or frustrated. He's perceptive, and he isn't just forcing himself on Yang. You can tell that they'll have a healthy relationship, because LiHuan really listens and pays attention, and YuYang, once he gets past all of his fear and his walls of protection, loves with all his heart. I get why people are annoyed with the random couple introduced. Why did she shove another straight guy/gay guy relationship in here, especially one that has absolutely nothing to do with the rest of the story. I mean, I know that several of them are friends with Pan, but why is the uke just some weird, random straight guy with an annoying personality? At any rate, I like the story enough to tolerate it, but it would be nice to focus more on the careful, complex process of teaching YuYang to trust, and to undo all of those years of hurt.

I need to read this again carefully from the beginning, but either way, it was a pleasant read. I may have skimmed a bit near the beginning, mostly due to anxiety, but I really liked this story of friendship! You just don't get to see that as much. However, a lot of good stuff was too brief or glossed over. I wish it had better-explored those themes. Oh well, still liked it.

Hmmm... Interesting so far. I need more chapters to get a better feel, so it's a four for now, but could go either way. Only one chapter at the moment. It's got a concept I'd like to see more often in yaoi, overcoming homophobia and what not. But how it unfolds is tricky. We'll see. EDIT: Five stars for going much better than I thought it might! I need to read it again from the start, after these few chapters, but it's such a sweet, touching story. Sad, too, but in the right ways. I also like that it wasn't some random dude who wouldn't take a hint. I was worried that was the case, so I'm glad it ended up being more complicated between them. I really wish there were more stories like this. I love the whole overcoming homophobia thing, the fear and the bravery and the growth. This was a great read, and I love the twist with Matsuri. I hope he gets some love soon! Maybe in an extra chapter or something. He deserves his own manga.