Asagi Ryuu’s Koi ha Hisokani Minorumono (恋は秘かに実らせるもの)  was, for me, a look back at a previous age of Yuri, without a sense of any particular nostalgia.

Each story in this collection is a “Plot, What Plot?” set up, accompanied by unusual proportions shoved into unrealistically and uncomfortably tight clothing, followed by unnatural body positions,that lead to bodily-fluid-y sex. When I first started collecting Yuri, this was what most of what was available looked like.

On the positive side, all of the characters have genuine affection and desire for one another. This is always and forever a plus to me. There’s something supremely unsatisfying about characters who don’t care much about one another.

On the negative side, well, there’s the unrealistically uncomfortably tight clothing, unnatural body positions, unusual proportions and bodily fluids,. And also an odd tendency for each story to read exactly like a synopsis of itself. For instance. In the first story, there is a character who works for a writer she has the hots for. One day after drinking with the staff, Momoko carries Sensei on her back (Why? No, really…why? Taxis exist, but Momoko says no, she’ll handle it,) telling an apparently unconscious Sensei that she likes her and wants to live with her. Sensei is not unconscious and admits that she like Momoko, too. They have messy sex and move in together. The end.

The thing is, the story reads *exactly like that.* Not a panel’s worth more information is given to you, just the barest outline of  plot idea, then sex, then a happy ending, the end. It’s a…unique…approach to story telling.

I should probably mention “the lesbian.” In one chapter, a girl travels by train and meets an older woman who basically invites herself along for the trip. That night in the ryoukan, the younger woman outs herself as a lesbian, by, erm, flashing the other woman. The other woman apologizes and they go to sleep without  sex. The next day, the older woman then outs herself as a cosplayer, and they both dress up and have messy sex. I have no idea at all why a lesbian might show her genitalia as she comes out. I guess it was meant as an invitation to oral sex? In any case, it was awkward and totally wtf. ^_^?

Ratings:

Art – 8, good drafting skills, but porn sexy, rather than pretty
Character – 5 They are basically non-entities for the duration
Story – 3 See above
Yuri – 9
Service – 10

Overall – 5

Koi ha Hisokani Minorumono isn’t bad, it’s not my cup of tea. The poorly fitting underwear distresses me.