Archive for the Guest Review Category


5 Seconds Before A Witch Falls in Love, Guest Review by Luce

March 9th, 2022

Welcome to another Guest Review Wednesday on Okazu. We welcome back Luce who is taking a look at a collected volume of stories by Zeniko Sumiya that ran in Comic Yuri Hime. Take it away, Luce!

5 Seconds Before a Witch Falls in Love actually has three stories in it, although you wouldn’t know from the outset. The first and third are linked  in that they follow the same characters in stories set about a month apart: The ‘Untouchable Sorceress’ Meg, and the witch hunter Lilith. They fight frequently, although Meg has always managed to one-up Lilith, so never getting caught. When Meg turns Lilith into a cat and someone makes off with her, things change. A bit. In the second story, from Lilith’s point of view, a month afterwards, she is convinced that Meg has cursed her with a love spell. Why else would she be feeling so het up!

The third story is sandwiched between them, and isn’t at all related. In this, Kamiari Kanna is an otherwise normal school girl, who can see supernatural beings, and offers to help them. After finding the demon Belphegor wounded and the angel Samael apparently collapsed and offering to help them, they both fell madly in love with her and follow her around near constantly. A transfer student seems a bit suspicious though, and a supernatural entity is on the loose…

This book is a one shot and totally contained, which I do like. I’m not so fond of tsunderes, which Meg and Lilith emulate somewhat, but they were different enough that I could kind of get behind them. Being so short helped – you don’t actually have to endure the swathes of denial prior to the depicted story. I’m pretty happy about that. Meg was pretty fun, everyone calls her an old hag which pisses her off, and while she’s implied to be extremely talented with magic, she generally uses her magic to play ridiculous pranks on the townspeople. That said, when she does get serious, she goes all in. I personally would have liked Lilith to have a bit more… pizzazz(?) about her? She is cute, though. What I liked most was the ‘warlock pharmacist/drugstore owner’ Hachi. Well equipped with an armoury of snappy comebacks, he was great, and seemed to know more than he actually stated.

I’ll single out something that pleasantly surprised me – Meg apologises for kissing Lilith without her consent (to turn her back from being a cat). Seeing as consent is rarely even mentioned or asked for in manga, I greatly appreciate this. Meg also gives Lilith the opportunity to leave, by which she means to allow her to leave the situation altogether. I like this, and these small details made it far more enjoyable.

I think I enjoyed the second story a bit more though, which is funny because the only advertisement it gets on the cover is the three main characters on the back. The blurb doesn’t even mention a third story at all! The idea of a kind-hearted girl helping all sorts of supernatural spirits isn’t new, but Samael and Belphegor being obsessed by her was made infinitely better by a.) Kanna saying things how she meant and b.) them not getting too handsy about it. They fight over her, but it’s never serious. It’s clear that she is very dear to them, but they never force their affections on her – Bel is upset because the transfer student hugs Kanna… Because she wanted to. Kanna hugs her. It’s actually really cute.

Story: Meg and Lilith 5, Kanna’s story 7
Art: 7
Yuri: 8
Service: 3?
Overall: 7

Erica here: Thank you Luce! I’ll be sure to pay attention to that third story when I have a chance to read this collection. ^_^





How Do We Relationship, Volume 5, Guest Review by Matt Marcus

March 2nd, 2022

It’s another Guest Review Wednesday and we have another great review! Matt Marcus is a cohost of various projects on the Pitch Drop Podcast Network, such as the JRPG games club podcast Lightning Strikes Thrice. Please welcome Matt back to Okazu!

How Do We Relationship is a story about two college students Miwa and Saeko who learn together how used to date. In How Do We Relationship, Volume 4, the couple broke up over a myriad of problems around communication and personal hang-ups, but despite lingering feelings they try to go back to being friends.

Just by looking at the cover of How Do We Relationship, Volume 5, you know you’re in for some shit. Gone are the big smiles, playful antics, and instruments of the past; they have been replaced by a disheveled Miwa, her hair grown out haphazardly, looking forlornly into the middle distance.

This volume has a theme: self-centeredness, selfishness, and greed. Almost every principle character displays these traits in varying degrees of severity and the effects of their actions ripple out until they become ship-wrecking waves.

Saeko, in what feels like a passive-aggressive move, casually pushes Miwa to reach out to her high school crush, Shiho, and confess her feelings. When the two former classmates reconnect, they make plans for Miwa to spend two months visiting Shiho in Okinawa. 

There is a lot I can say about Shiho because she is fascinating. When she first appears in How Do We Relationship, Volume 3, you wouldn’t be blamed for expecting her to merely be the love rival that forces Miwa to make a firm, definitive decision on to whom she will give her heart. As it turns out, she is a much more complex character. Yes, she managed to escape from the traumatic environment that was her family home, however she continues to bear scars from her upbringing. Tamifull does a wonderful job portraying her inner struggle and how it leaks out into the rest of her life: she lives in a barren apartment and wonders why it freaks out her friends; her previous romantic relationship ended due to her lack of interest; she doesn’t feel a need to fall in love, yet she is still working out her feelings towards Miwa while sending very mixed signals. What is crushingly sad is that she not only doesn’t know what she wants for herself, she doesn’t even know how to want. You will think that her ultimate decision about Miwa is cowardly–and it is–but she needs more time to heal and grow. I am hoping we get to see it. Regardless, the trip sends Miwa into a tailspin.

This puts her on a collision course with Saeko when school resumes. I mentioned in my previous review that Saeko’s behavior could be a barrier for some readers, and I think this volume offers the ultimate test of that. There is a moment towards the end of the volume that truly stunned me. I won’t spoil it, but it will send shivers down your spine. It may even disgust you. It’s a high risk move and we do not see it payoff before the volume ends, but I simply have to credit Tamifull for constructing a scene that packs such a wallop.

I haven’t mentioned her yet, but Saeko’s coworker Yuria takes on a larger supporting role and she’s still a delight. Not a lot of depth to her, but she’s a breath of fresh air given everything else that’s going on.

Out of the previous volumes so far, this one is the most consistent in tone. The focus has tightened and it benefits the storytelling because it gives more space to explore the internality of the characters. I will say though that I am still confused about what Tamifull is trying to say with Rika, beyond the fact that she is self-aware about her selfishness.

One major demerit I would give the story is how Miwa expresses a desire for self-harm through neglect that is not taken very seriously by Saeko–it’s melodramatic at best and disrespectful to the severity of the topic at worst. If the story’s direction continued down such a path I could see myself dropping the series, but I have it on good authority that this is the “lowest” point and that things get better from here. It really is about time that Miwa starts showing some serious development because the poor girl deserves it.

On the positive side, I want to give a shout-out to the localization team because I am continuously impressed with the fresh and naturalistic phrasing choices that provide a distinct voice to the characters while sounding realistically like college students.

If you have ventured this far into the series, be prepared for the choppiest waters yet. Despite finding myself emotionally wrung out by the twists and turns on my first read-through, I have found engaging with the characters in repeated readings endlessly rewarding. I’ll be waiting (im)patiently for the next volume which comes out in English this July.

Ratings:

Art – 8 Some great paneling and nonverbal expression.
Story – 7 Heavy, less funny, but still engaging. Docking it one point for overplaying its hand with Miwa’s meltdown.
Characters – 9 I love what they did with Shiho and Saeko continues to be compelling.
Service – 1 Sex is still present but it is not played for service.
Yuri – 9 / LGBTQ – 7 One door opens while another seemingly closes, so on balance it’s a wash.

Overall – 8 This continues to be a unique and engrossing yuri series.

Erica here: Thank you Matt for covering this volume so thoroughly. I can guarantee that everything will be different (for the better) now. and I’m so glad I can talk about this series again!
 




If We Leave on the Dot, Guest Review by Patricia Baxter

February 23rd, 2022

Hello and welcome to another Guest Review Wednesday on Okazu! I am super excited to welcome a new guest reviewer to our blog. Patricia has been an enthusiastic YNN Correspondent and now I am super pleased to have her as part of our Guest Review staff! Please give Patricia a warm, Okazu welcome! Kind comments are always appreciated. ^_^

My name is Patricia Baxter (she/her). I am a bisexual autistic writer who has previously written articles concerning how media represents different marginalized communities. You can find more of my work through my personal website “Autistic Observations”.

Yukawa Kayoko is a quiet thirty-one-year-old woman working in an office building, who typically hangs up her winter coat on the office coat rack rather than place it behind her chair. Through a series of coincidences, Kayoko finds that a co-worker, outgoing twenty-six-year-old Mizuki Kaori, has accidentally placed her apartment keys into Kayoko’s coat pocket. After this chance encounter, the two women begin to see each other frequently after work, keeping in touch and planning outings by leaving each other notes in their coat pockets. As these meetings progress, Kayoko finds herself surprised to discover that her feelings for Kaori extend far beyond friendship, and, in a moment of courage, confesses her feelings to Kaori. Thus begins this series focusing on the tender romance between two working women.

Inui Ayu’s If We Leave on the Dot is the yuri manga equivalent of cotton candy. Kayoko and Kaori are two extremely cute, nearly permanently blushing, women who wear consistently adorable outfits and eat consistently delicious-looking food together. Every chapter had at least one moment that made me feel at ease, thanks to the various expressions of love felt and displayed by the couple and the embodiment of that love by enjoying the pleasures of everyday life together.

Kayoko and Kaori are probably one of the sweetest pairings I’ve read in a romance manga, yuri or otherwise. Their relationship is built on mutual love and trust that is palpable with each chapter of the manga. And when the few instances of low self-esteem and jealousy creep up on the pair, instead of letting the negative feelings fester for an absurd number of chapters (as some romance manga are wont to do), they have emotionally honest discussions about their feelings, which help maintain and strengthen their partnership. It’s refreshing to read such a wonderful example of an emotionally mature relationship, with a couple able to weather through such relatable insecurities and doubts.

This is made even more intriguing by the fact that the majority of the series focuses on the relationship between two women who are very clearly adults who are established in their careers. While there are quite a few examples of yuri manga focusing on the lives of adult women, a lot of series focus on the lives of university students, or women in their early twenties. For Kayoko to experience her first major romantic relationship at thirty-one, is very reassuring for any readers in their thirties, as it can still be rather difficult to find romances focusing on women older than twenty-something.

Alongside If We Leave on the Dot’s many positive achievements, it is also noteworthy for how it addresses the topic of Kayoko and Kaori’s sexualities. When the series takes time for the couple to think about sexuality, it is typically are less about Kayoko and Kaori’s individual sexual identities and personal self-discovery, and more about how other people will react to or perceive their relationship. One example of this occurs during a company celebration, where Kayako mentions that she is in a relationship and loves her partner very much, but aside from those vague mentions, cannot go in-depth in describing her partner to her colleagues, despite sitting right next to the person she loves. Instead, Kayoko and Kaori have to share a quiet, tender moment, holding hands under the table, hiding in plain sight from their co-workers. Not long after this Kaori goes to meet up with her close friends, despite feeling happy talking about her relationship with Kayoko, she feels “Tired…from dodging their questions”, as she had to misdirect her friends by calling Kayoko her “boyfriend”.

This is a rather massive contrast in comparison to a lot of fluffy yuri romances, where the closest thing to an examination into LGBTQ+ issues is the main character(s) briefly getting confronted by the heteronormative expectations society places on women, and even then it is only there as a cursory issue. Instead of placing her characters in a bubble separated from the struggles of the real world, Inui’s If We Leave on the Dot takes time to showcase and legitimize the frustrations and exhaustion that queer women experience on a regular basis.

With its relaxing and down-to-Earth depictions of the everyday life of a same-gender couple, If We Leave on the Dot is one of my all-time favourite yuri romances that I highly recommend.

Ratings:

Art: 7.5

Story: 8

Characters: 9

Service: 0 for the first three volumes, 2 for volume 4 (due to a bathhouse trip and the couple beginning to sexually explore each other’s bodies in a manner that is sincere rather than salacious)

Yuri: 10

Overall: 9

If We Leave on the Dot is currently only available through the online manga subscription service Manga Planet, though the first chapter is free to read. There is a range of options for subscribing to the service depending on reader preference.

Erica here: Thank you so much Patricia! I agree with everything you’ve said. The mood between Kaori and Kayoko is very relaxing and warm. I loved all four volumes of the series in Japanese, Teiji ni Ageretara. That was my first taste of Inui Ayu’s work  – work that I continues to enjoy. Her autobiographical series, currently running in Comic Yuri Hime, Kyou mo Hitotsu Yane no Shita, has much the same warm, fuzzy feeling, with a bit more LGBTQ+ identity.





Young Ladies Don’t Play Fighting Games, Volume 2, Guest Review by Luce

February 9th, 2022

It’s Guest Review Wednesday on Okazu and again we welcome back Luce for continuing coverage of Eri Ejima’s school life series!

In volume one, we met Mitsuki Aya, a girl who had given up fighting games prior to joining a posh game-banning school on schloarship, and ‘Shirayuri-sama’, a girl who is highly revered for her poise and elegance… And just so happens to love fighting games! The two embark on matches together, but their previous safe haven had been locked. They can game outside at the weekends if the weather is good, but that’s not good enough!

Thus, in volume two of Young Ladies Don’t Play Fighting Games, we see them try to find a place indoors where they will be able to game. There happens to be an empty room with a broken lock, but just when they think it’s safe, there’s a knock on the door… The Dormitory Affairs Committee!

The second volume is as daft as the first, but we gain some teammates. One isn’t so good at fighting games – or rather, has become disillusioned with losing to online players, and they set her to training. The other craftily joined the committee so she could have a single room and therefore game to get hearts content. Those closest to the law, and all. With the four of them in one of the Dorm Affair senpai’s room, they are free to game. And game they do. Surely that lack of sleep has got to catch up with them?!

Amusingly, who we thought was called Shirayuri-sama… actually isn’t called that at all. It’s a nickname unwillingly given to her by the gushing school girls: she’s actually called Yorue Mio, and Aya’s agreement to use her name makes her pretty happy, but also opens up rumours around school that they might be dating. We have in-universe yuri shippers. This flies over their heads because they’re far more concerned with mentally strategising about beating each other to a pulp (in their fighting game).

There is a lot of fighting game talk in here. I’ve never played fighting games, but I have played some other games, so some concepts are more foreign to me than others. For the people not in the know, there are notes peppered around if something can be easily explained, but at the end of each chapter, there’s a more thorough debrief of the concepts included, so you don’t feel too alienated by the talk. It’s actually nice to see someone doing a manga around something they are clearly passionate about – and choosing to do it with notes helps with not having heavy exposition laden text. I applaud that decision, as conversation flows better, and means we don’t have to have the token newbie who knows nothing like usual. 

The art, as ever, cracks me up. It feels very real to have two teenagers complaining that they’re going to die if they can only game at the weekend. It’s actually really nice to see those tumultuous emotions not applied to romance. As for romance, clearly their schoolmates think they’re dating. They clearly aren’t, and I’m on the fence, but it’s so self-aware of it looking like a romance that I could probably see someone getting together at least. Maybe those senpais…?

I’m enjoying this series a lot more than I thought I would, starting out. It’s ridiculous, but in a good way.

Story – 7 (now I think about it manga about girls gaming feels kind of rare?)
Art – 8
Service – 3? Aya is in a bath, but it’s never purposely salacious.  
Yuri – 5? The in universe shippers certainly think something is going on, but some frames…
Overall – 9

I think this is actually one of my favourite new series coming out at the moment! I’m looking forwards to more. Next time: a tournament! Looking forward to seeing how these girls practice and sneak out of school for that one. 

 
 




If You Could See Love, Volume 1, Guest Review by Day

January 26th, 2022

Hello and welcome to another Guest Review Wednesday on Okazu. I’m extremely pleased to welcome back one of our long-time reviewers, Day! Please give Day your kind attention and don;’t forget to show some love in the comments. Day will be looking at If You Could See Love, Volume 1, by Yeren Mikami, which is out now in Digital format from Yen Press. Day, the floor is yours!

Ever since she can remember, teenager Mei Haruno has been afflicted with a weird ability – she can tell who is in love with whom because that affection appears as a pink arrow to her. The distracting nature of this aside, it’s gotten her into trouble in the past because it’s led to her meddling in other people’s would-be relationships, leading to her own social isolation. Hoping to get away from having to see all these arrows and get a fresh start, she enrolls in a girls’ high school… only to realize that not only are there loads of girls into girls, but that two of them are into her. And they’re both her roommates. Shenanigans and bathtimes ensue.

When I originally planned to write this review, I sat down, opened a word processor… and stared blankly at the screen, as I realized that, despite having read this within the past month, beyond the broadest outlines, I’d completely forgotten what happened in this manga. I did remember that it was a bit bland and not very good, and that there was something to do with love arrows, but that was about it. So, I cracked it open again, and this time I took notes. All of which is a lengthy way to say – this is a really forgettable opening volume. And, wow, my brain sure blurred my recollection of just how wildly stupid the premise and its execution is.
 
Mei is a fairly standard issue manga heroine, her personality lining up with what one could guess from her hair color (energetic, cheerful, not very bright). But did I say cheerful? Oh, how could I forget her dark past (pissing people off by telling their crushes they have crushes on them) that’s made her swear off romance?! Her admirers, friend Sayo and Rinna, are likewise not particularly distinct. Sayo is the childhood friend Mei hasn’t seen in years, and, yes, of course the girl has spent the intervening time pining for Mei… as well as growing very large breasts. Rinna meanwhile is tsundere-ish, and has met Mei previously, although Mei doesn’t remember this; the manga doesn’t quite come right out and say it, but there’s an implication that she’s also been yearning away for our lead for some unknown amount of time before coming across her again.
 
Despite Mei’s repeated insistence that she’ll never pursue romance because of her very sad past, its crystal clear by volume’s end that this is going to resolve itself in a three-way relationship… which is one of the few things I’d give the manga points for. I don’t care much about these girls, but this actually seems the natural direction for the relationship to move in. The other item I’ll grant credit for is that the manga uses the color pink in its otherwise black and white visual scheme to make things like those love arrows, hearts, and cherry blossoms really pop off the page.
 
I’d be hard-pressed to recommend this one, even to the most diehard fans of schoolgirl yuri (goodness knows there’s plenty better series featuring that available in English). It’s aggressively bland, with a bone-deep stupidity to the premise that is never elevated by the writing, nor are the characters engaging enough to make it worth enduring. 
 
Oh, it may go without saying, but there really is NO sense of queer identity whatsoever in this one. Also, I loathe the cover.
 
Ratings:
Art – 6 (its polished while also completely not to my tastes; I smirked over fact that adult characters are indistinguishable design-wise from the teenagers)
Story – 5
Characters – 5  
Service – 4 (surprisingly not pervasive but there is a very extended bathing scene early on)
Yuri – 7 (well, it’s definitely yuri, even if it’s very silly yuri)
 

Overall – 5

Erica here: Thank you so much, for this review, as much for taking one for the team as for giving me a critically needed evening off. ^_^  I’ll be honest, I do not favor Teren Mikami’s work, so wasn’t feeling enthusiastic about this. Blob heads. So thank you for the honest review!