otakulys's manga / #shota(12)

A very strange, disturbing story, but I found the cold determination of the uke to be refreshing. So often atrocious acts are forgiven because the victim falls in love with the abuser, and it's rare to see that smashed to pieces.

Kind of weird, very short, but admittedly cute. I'm not a huge fan of shota in the "this is totally normal and not an act of violence" sense, but I don't mind this one. Somehow the shota-food thing works for me. I'm a freak.

The first one... I don't know if it was just poorly translated or what, but it was really confusing. I get what happened, mostly, but as things were occurring, I was mostly lost. The second one was a lot better, even though it was equally fucked up. I enjoyed it in the sense that it was treated as something dark and sick. I feel like most stories like this don't truly delve into that, the whole sexual predator element. Though, of course, it's too much to ask to see a guy like that actually pay for what he did to a child. Oh well, fiction!

Strange oneshot. It was too short and random to really make me sad. I don't understand what it was about or why that guy was there. Is he just some dude who likes little boys? Or was he serious about being a slave trader?

Wait, what? I'm so confused. I've read this manga twice before, and the ending is suddenly different. I swear that before, he raped his friend and then the friend leaves without them ever seeing one another again. It was heartbreaking and dark, and I liked that it didn't brush away the awful thing he did, just left its heavy presence in the absence of the boy he loved. There's no forgiveness for that sort of thing. So why does the end have a new part with him saying that they made up and dated? That makes no sense. Am I crazy? This is going to drive me nuts. Three stars for the original ending, one star for the ending they have right now. I swear I'm not making this up, but wtf.

It bugs me how these stories are treated as cute, but it's fiction, so whatever. Pretty accurate with the predator stuff, the way a guy like that would swoop in on a kid. It's sad and disturbing, but sometimes I like sad and disturbing manga. It'd be better if the manga didn't seem to try to excuse it a little, though.

I really appreciate how Harada handles evil characters. She sets her work apart from yaoi where these things happen, but the author treats them as cute or part of romance. This is how shota, rape, abuse, etc. SHOULD be written--as the evil, fucked up things that they are. Her stories can be so subtly twisted, and if you took out the pedo aspect, that would have been the case here. It was too short, though. I'd like to see more about the characters. Either way, I love Harada for her beautiful art, dark and complex stories, and intense character emotion. But I especially love her for making messed up things happen and not pretending that they could ever be forgiven. ETA: Oh yay, it is continued! Glad that it was mistakenly labeled as finished. Just as screwed up as ever. I like the new girl. I hope something interesting happens with her. Maybe she's as fucked up as the rest of them. This is definitely the first time I've ever read a story about a young man who's in love with a pedophile. Count on Harada to make that work.

Kinda weird, but pretty art. I don't like DJs really, but that seems to be the bulk of Togainu no Chi stuff out there, so it works.

Wow. That's about the least creepy direction this kind of premise could go. It's actually really sweet, and I'm hoping we'll get a chapter of them in the future, so that they can get it on without Chris Hansen coming in.

Gaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhh!!! Loved it! So glad I finally got around to reading this one. I love Harada. So far, I'd only had a chance to read her short stuff, which is more heart-destroying than anything. This one definitely made me ugly-cry a few times, but it's all worth it in the end. Such a sweet couple. I love the little family they created with the three of them. I wish there were more adventures with them! I'm also worried, though, because if there's ever another continuance, it might result in the relationship getting all messed up. D: Anyway, loved it. Harada has quickly become one of my top favorite mangakas.