Shinshi Doumei Cross
The Gentleman's Alliance Cross

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I loved this series~!

Story:
I thought the story was fairly original. It captured my attention because it was realistic. I could actually see how most of things would work in real life. The plot-line was intruiging and it wasn't really predictable. Some parts of it we're kind of cliché and predictable but most of it wasn't.

Art:
I love all of Arina Tanemura's art. Her art 's really detailed. You could see how all the folds in the clothes are realistic and I love the way she draws her eyes. The clothes are very pretty too!

Character:
The characters were interesting. Although it was kind of wierd with Maora and ... him playing as a girl... The character's personalities were all different which made it interesting. A lot of them seemed to have split personalities too..

Enjoyment:
Shinshi Doumei Cross is definitely enjoyable. It was a bit of a cliffy at the end of every chapter which made you want to read more about. Sometimes due to not so great art, you'd want to quit reading but definitely not for this manga. The art's great and the story line is a real attention grabber.

Overall:
Overal, I thought it was pretty good. The ending was a bit wierd and a bit of a "typical Arina Tanemura ending". It was slightly predictable at the end (although Haine's statement wasn't...) It left you wanting more. You wanted to find out what happened AFTER it ended.

I think this is Arina Tanemura's best work so far!

The story focuses on Haine Otomiya and Shizumasa Togu's relationship, but Tanemura also takes time to explain the other characters' stories as well. As in Full Moon, there were some pretty surprising twists and turns which make the story very interesting. The ending... was cliché Arina Tanemura, and was the only part I didn't like about the story. But when I think about it, there really isn't any other way it could have ended. All of the characters have interesting pasts, and the overall story is pretty enjoyable.

Art--As usual, Arina Tanemura's art is superb. I love the way she draws hair and clothes. Her drawings ... are always so detailed and pretty, I really wonder how she makes all her deadlines... I gave it a 9 instead of a 10 because I think Full Moon's art was better, but SDC's art is awesome as well.

Character--The main character, Haine, was a bit disappointing. Right from the beginning she's in love with Shizumasa, and I just thought "not another smitten-girl story!" (don't worry, it gets better) She's not that bright and can get pretty annoying at times. The other characters are much more tolerable than Haine, though I really didn't like Maora's identity thing. In general, I don't think the characters were developed all that well, but some do mature throughout the story.

I think the overall enjoyment of the story is great. There are flaws and problems, but when it all comes together everything becomes tolerable. And the amazing art just makes it even better! I highly recommend this manga.

EDIT - 12.29.08

After I had read the manga again, I can say clearly- I was mistaken. Don't get me wrong, I still love the manga but I was too overreacting.

The story is very unique and everything, but when I read the first volumes again I simply got bored. Only the arc in volumes 7-9, with Kazuhito, were awesome (or maybe that's because he's my favourite character in the manga?). The first ones were just school stuff and were... BORING.
The art was amazing as I remembered, but like the first reading, I couldn't stand Haine. She was so stupid, I wanted to hit ... her. Ushio, who is a minor character, developed during the manga but Haine didn't! Why does Arina Tanemura always make her female main characters so annoying? Why?

Overall, it was worth reading but not a masterpiece as I first thought.

I didn’t think this manga would be as dramatically dark. It was still light, sweet, and funny, but underneath all that, the characters had pain. Enough pain to move you...and make you laugh seconds later. Making you feel a tad bipolar.

When Haine Kamiya was in the 4th grade she was sold to the Otomiya family for 50 million yen to the. Thinking that her father must have hated her, she then turns into a delinquent because honestly if she needed to blow some steam off- how else is a confused and misunderstood kid suppose to do it? In the brink of her sadness she meets ... a person that is pure light in her dark world, Shizumasa Touguu. From that day on she was never the same, she made it her goal to follow him. Not in the stalker type of way, sort of, she just decided to change her life in order to be someone who can stand next to him. When she finally reaches him and enrolls in the same prestigious private school he is, not only does he have the title of “Emperor,” but he is cold and distant. Does he even remember the girl he helped?

At first, I figured it’d be like every other manga and have characters who do things you expect left and right but in such a way that it makes you want to bang your head against the wall. Though there is some instances of predictability it was still illustrated in a pleasant way, changed at the right times that you won’t really notice and just flow with it.
I thought the pain and loneliness in the characters was the nicest thing of this manga. How they all had different circumstances that made them bitter or unhappy in their own way but each of them showed it in their own way. How they dealt with it, sometimes in the most destructive way and how they learn from it, sometimes later, sometimes sooner, and sometimes not before its destructive nature took a few of them for a chaotic ride.
The story has a lot of mysterious things here and there, secrets. To say more on the summary will guarantee I spoil it somehow since adding cast and details will just confuse if I don’t explain more, so yeah I refuse.

It wasn’t perfection personified either. I thought it had a lot of main characters who looked a lot alike, which always infuriates me on some level that I end up ignoring. Also some parts felt rushed while others felt slow. Too much not knowing also can get on your nerves if the timing is not right on how long it takes for more hints to be dropped. In that subject if I were to further dwell in certain areas of it I’d say that the subject of someone’s sexuality is just breezed by and is not realistically demonstrated. Making everyone understanding and loving about it when in reality it isn’t always like that at all. It just depends on how you breeze through it, I prefer not to dissect manga that aren’t serious until serious moments arise. With that being said my rating is based on if the end result of said piece was worth it for me.

The characters are too many to name and looked alike at first. Some characters are there for the sole purpose of shedding some laughter in the otherwise gloomy atmosphere. Others are at both ends of that sphere being just as complex as they are quirky.

Haine was pretty average at first but she has a lot more personality to her. She is also strong willed and I didn’t expect such a cheerful girl to be so full of sadness underneath. I think what amazed me most is that for someone who was always making laugh, she was actually so dark/sad inside and never let herself be happy, not really.

The main cast in itself was solid. Haine's friends and love interest are not only interesting but surprising. Their take on things and their feelings/thoughts will take you by surprise. Because of the summaries I have read, the plot development took me by surprise, which is never a bad thing. Not so much with the main girl (Haine) but with her friends and family. Only a few manga where the parents get a shot at the spotlight. It was to say the list, interesting.

The art, what can I say? It was beautiful. From the clothes to the details in each of the characters hair and poses, Tanemura does an awesome job giving the characters a royalty feel to them. Apart from the some characters looking alike like I mentioned (multiple times) above, I think the art was very nice and clean.

Personally I’d like to see an anime adaptation of it. Just to see it in live and in color, all the time. The ending was a little disappointing in a way. I was just not happy with one of the main characters ending. Or maybe it's just left over nostalgia from it ending to begin with, since finding another manga that I would enjoy is like trying to find my other shoe when I'm in a hurry, not impossible but it takes a while... I think the world needs more anime that we can connect to emotionally, even if just a little It isn’t always like that but through some parts it is exactly like that.

“I named her “Haine.” Because my love with you has been reduced to ashes…”

I just finished reading this and I am hooked. Well, it's not often I stumble upon great shoujo manga and I am glad this is great!
The story is about Haine Otomiya, an ex yakuza who falls in love with Shizumasa Touguu, a koutei (emperor) or prez of her school's student council. She has fallen for him since she was 10 and when he came to her rescue one snowy night, the feelings are reignited!
However, Shizumasa wears a stern face and refuses to accomodate her. However, Haine is tricked by her friends and she becomes member of students council with the task of being Shizumasa's ... bodyguard. Completely in love, she takes the task, and thus starts her journey to discover Shizumasa's mask, settles her own past and completes her life with a myriad of interesting, unforgettable characters of the other members in the students council like Maora, Maguri, and Ushio.

>> I adore the story so much especially Shizumasa (koutei) My heart goes out for him but it seems like his story is yet to unfold. However I am happy Haine's past gets the treatment it deserves. Kazuhito and Maika are so beautiful together and I hope this would rub off a little to H X T.
SPOILER

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>>I can't help it, but doesn't Kazuhito reminds u of Takanari and Itsuki-sama reminds u of Shizumasa?

love it to bits!!

Shinishi doumei cross is a shojo manga that no one would ever look at but I'm here to say its a decent piece of work.

Story:7/10
The plot I wasn't expected to have a bit of a dark turn as Haine is sold off just because she couldn't meet expectation. Her father is a F#Ck head. She got adopted by the Otomiya's and is enrolled into a school for aristocats where her one love is. I think the plot is simple but after reading the first volume of it, I was excited of what is going to happen. But then I got lost when reading it ... as there are so much things happening in one time, you can get confuse on whats happening. Its like when you are in and argument of five people of seeing who is right and hearing all of them will get you lost. But the twist would really be shocking even to me which really is clever and makes you ask whats next to come. It also has bit of dark elements to it. Not much but is enough to be noticeable and adds to the plot. I feel that this has ended to fast as the ending didn't do a good job of closer. It's not bad but I feel like they are getting ready for another volume but something must of happen so they stop. While it didn't do well in some part, I think the story is decent at best.

Art:9/10
The art is incretably detail and well suffice. The backgrounds looks really well and there are no flaws to point out. The character also look very good but when I look at them, they kinda look the same from each other. The designs felt like its reuse just in a different way to a different character. That's the only complaint I have as everything else is fine.

Character:8/10
Character are really well done but it will take time to settle do to the fact of so many things that happen. Haine is really good and is not much of the damsel in distress which I much appreciated but she does have her fair shares of moment. Her relationships and interaction with the other really help out fleshing her and the others characters. There are time that has its" OMG is that possible" moments which really didn't help but they are not a huge deal.

Enjoyment:7/10
If you can handle the fact of getting lost in the story, Then this is good read but its not something I would like to re-read. But this is something that is worth checking out.

Overall:7/10 Decent enough to read

Well, honestly, at first, I became really irritated with the story. It was so complicated that I didn't know what I was reading most of the time. When I reached the 15th chapter I almost decided to just drop reading the manga and start on another. But, my curiosity would not hear of it. The manga's plot gave me a lot to ponder that it urged me to go back to reading it in less than a day after I opted to quit.

So, I finally finished all 47 chapters plus the extra chapter and I am very happy to say that I LOVED it.

[MAY contain ... SPOILERS]

STORY: 10/10
Despite what I'd said about getting confused so much that I decided to quit on the series, the complication of it all just picked at my curiosity so that's basically why i loved the story line. There were a lot of twists I really enjoyed. It was definitely a page-turner and each chapter leaves you wanting to read the next. The ending was rather amusing though somewhat predictable. Nevertheless, I think it was brilliantly done.

ART: 10/10
Not much to say about the art besides the fact that it was phenomenal! All characters were so intricately done. I just love Haine and the Togou (I can't quite spell their last name right, oh well) Twins. I also was impressed with the amazing detail the author did with it. Very lovely.

CHARACTER: 8/10
Well, as much as I loved everyone, I get easily confused. Sometimes they just look so alike. I often mistook Ushio for Haine (and vice versa) when the latter's hair was long (after she cut it I mistook her for Maora, instead). But that's just minor. Anyway, I don't know if I liked the fact that Maora was actually a boy but it was sweet that he tried looking like a girl for Maguri's sake. It was just very surprising. Another thing I didn't think I liked was the portrayal of Shizumasa as the "evil" twin. I hated him at first and at the same time pitied him for his condition. I was glad that he was good deep inside all along. He also loved his brother as he loves Haine. And must Haine be so. . . .I'm not sure if stupid or ignorant would fit her better. That may be one of her quirks but sometimes I think it's overly exaggerated? I don't know. It was all just pleasant.

ENJOYMENT: 10/10
You may think I'm very shallow and/or crazy but I actually wanted to cry at some emotional climaxes in the story. Everything asked for in a romance story can be found in this masterpiece. I love all the drama and fluff moments very much so there's not much to say! Bravo!

OVERALL: 10/10
Apparently, the thing about the characters doesn't affect my overall rating for this manga. I just really loved it. Of course, nothing (and no one's) ever perfect so that's just normal. In the end, this is a manga I highly recommend for people who are a sucker for romance who wants something. . . .slightly unique and heart-touching. Gah! But I do wish I can have Shizumasa-sama now (since Haine already has Takanari). Anyways, I think that's all I can say. :D

Oh man, this manga. If you like over-dramatized, high school, slide-of-life manga, go right ahead.

-Story-

The plot is so over-dramatic I found it impossible to connect with any of the characters or the story at all. Even the overall plot of nice girl slowly melts the icy heart of popular boy so dull.

So much goes on with this story at such an inflated, ridiculous scale.

-Art-

... It looks pretty.

-Character-

This manga tries to offer interesting characters like Ushio and Maora and attempts to include substories, but for me it really just falls flat. Takanari's family backstory is ridiculous and unrealistic. The only sadness I feel is for how badly-written it is.

I've always been a huge fan of Arina Tanemura's work, and while The Gentlemen's Alliance is a good series, I believe it to be her weakest and not a good indicator of her story telling ability. Firstly, the plot.

It's hard to discuss the plot of The Gentlemen's Alliance separately to the characters, as it is a primarily character driven plot. The basic plot summary of Haine's conflict between her two families is rather dull, and as a protagonist I found her rather weak. The strength of shojo manga's lies in their ability to create a bond between a reader and the protagonist, however, this ... was completely absent in The Gentlemen's Alliance. The problems that Haine encounters are hard to relate too, and come across as rich kid problems that are rather irrelevant in the long run, or that she blows situations out of proportion. There were a few times when I cared for her, but they were too sparse for such a long series. This main plot is the reason that I've given the series a lower score for story, and the choice of Haine as protagonist really pulls down the overall cast. While the Emperor is more likeable I found that as the series progressed, the plot became more and more convoluted and I simply stopped caring about his problems.

Like most of Arina Tanemura's work, there are a lot of darker themes underlying the series. Some of them work nicely to give the school plot a good, and well needed twist, but others end up coming across as rather fickle. Some of the serious issues in the series, such as the selling of children, are weak because they don't impress the seriousness of the issues onto the reader. Later in the series, these issues only serve to heighten the rich girl character Haine has, and make her more unlikeable. While appreciate Arina Tanemura including some of these issues, their poor treatment means I would prefer them absent.

Thankfully, the supporting cast are much stronger. They're funny, emotional, and I found myself genuinely caring for characters, especially Ushio. Unlike Haine, they act as an ensemble and each get a perfect amount of development. Unlike Haine, I never thought that their plots were becoming convoluted or over-dramatic (for the genre, that is). While some of the issues are dealt with without seriousness, such as Maora and Maguri, I think this is a fault of the genre, rather than Arina herself. Nevertheless, it would have been nice to see the issues of sexuality in the series considered more seriously, as it crops up in a few of the characters back stories.

While the story is easy to get into, and has early and good plot progressions, it becomes stale rather quickly, picking up with some of the best sub-plots closer to the end of the series. This is a double edged sword, as it's easy to get into, but a bit of a chore to read the whole series. The pacing in the middle becomes rather messy, maybe this is because I read the series as it came out, rather than all at once, but I think it would be hard to read at once. This is definitely a series for people who enjoy the shojo genre, as it doesn't offer much of an alternative to the romance plot.

As a fan of Arina Tanemura's art style, I thought that the series looked gorgeous, and featured some lovely designs and beautiful cover illustrations. While the characters themselves don't look too out of the ordinary for the genre, the designs of the characters all help to portray their personalities and eccentricities, for example Maguri's headband or Ushio's "princess" look. In terms of art and character design, I think this is Arina Tanemura's strongest work.

Despite the faults of the series, I did enjoy it, but as said, I think this is a series for fans of the shojo genre or Arina Tanemura's work, as it is primarily a romantic melodrama with a typical plot line. The supporting cast have their own eccentricities that make the series enjoyable instead of tedious, but it is far from a masterpiece in exploring human sentiment. It is a good manga, and offers some good romance in the sub-plots, but I wouldn't recommend it for the character of Haine at all. Your enjoyment of this series will depend on how well you take to Haine.

In Imperial Academy, students are classified into ranks. the ranks ranges from Gold, Silver, and Copper. Haine Otomiya, the heroine of the story, ranks as Copper in the Academy. She is inlove with the Koutei (Emperor) Shizumasa Tougu, the only Gold ranked student and heir of the Tougu family.

This 47-chapter shoujo manga was written by Arina Tanemura, same mangaka of the popular Full Moon wo Sagashite. The story revolves around Haine, her family, friends, and lovelife. Expect this manga to provide you with lots of twists every now and then. As the story progresses, same goes to the development of the characters.

The characters were drawn ... beautifully. From the looks to their clothes, it is all good. There are also times that a certain character will remind you or certainly, looks like the another character.

I guess, the only negative comment I can give to this manga is that it ended so quick. There are things that still need to be disclose or give further attention. All in all, Shinshi Doumei Cross is a must read..

I rarely found out that Tanemura Arina has a straight story, considering that most of her stories will be involved some magic, except for this one.
The story was a bit complicated, but it's complicated in a very good way. It includes some cute scenes between the main characters, but not so cheesy as well. The plot was good, as it has lots of unpredictable plots unlike other manga did. And the art... well no one can deny Tanemura's art, huh? She is one of my favorite mangaka based on arts.
So far, this was my favorite manga from her.

At first I was thinking that this will be another typical romance manga. Nothing spectacular or original. The whole girl meets boy... falls in love when they're kids... grow up and meet again... and the drama begins. I thought that in the beginning once I started reading, but then things got REAL interesting. The focus of course is the love triangle with our main heroine, Haine, X, and X (don't want to give away too much!). Haine has all the typical characteristics of a shoujo heroine... only difference is shes not all sunshine on the inside... shes pretty damaged. Which makes her that much more ... real. There are quite a bit of other characters that all get their time to shine and you delve deeper into each of the supporting characters stories... which is awesome because you come to care for ALL of the characters. The manga touched on topics of acceptance, loneliness, selfishness, freedom, self-loathing, fear, and sacrifice. The chapters leave you wanting more due to cliffhangers (and plot twists)... which may keep you up late at night! (That's a good thing!)

The romance in the manga is the sweet, pure, and innocent kind. I'm actually used to some hanky panky in the manga I usually read... but this kind of romance is good too!

The art really is beautiful... but at times... it got tough to tell characters apart... which was why I gave the art only a 9.

All in all... each of the characters are searching for a way to come into their own... with our heroine being their guiding light... and her searching for a light of her own. It really is a touching story... with THEE "ultimate happy ending".

I've just finished the series after binge reading it from chapter 1 and this is my raw unbiased review. (PS there might be some stuff I say that you might consider a spoiler so read at your own discretion. I never blatantly spoil anything but I hint at stuff so yeah)

The plot is honestly meh.. Like it was enough to keep my attention and allow me to have me finishing the story without stopping but that's only because I was expecting something. I thought there would be more but there wasnt (?) Ugh idk I kinda feel unsatisfied even though it technically had a ... "happy end." (For those of you who had read Shugo Chara the same feeling I had upon finishing that I felt after finishing this.) The plot is basic but it is unique. Theres a rich strong willed girl who had her fair share of problems and now is stuck in between a love triangle involving various people. The manga tried to make it an emotional roller coaster and it was but I never got caught up in it as a reader. All the twist and turns I kinda expected. The storyline was smooth but I feel like it happened all too quickly. Like everything felt almost rushed and I feel unsettled after finishing it. If she had taken her time and not have had so many characters shoved on to the main character I feel like it would've been better. She would finish and face one problem but then another one would hit her in the face. The mc had no time for recuperation nor did the readers.

The romance is a huge part of the plot. Very romance driven but the romance didn't really have a depth to it in my opinion. The mangaka may have tried to portray a depth but because she had multiple people with her she was never fully invested in one person and that emotionally wore me out as a reader lol. I was hoping for her to end up with person A but then person B would do something to change my mind and it was all back and forth and it became old at one point. It's a simple romance trying to be a complex one.

The characters overall were likable. But I never thought wow this chara is really great. They were kinda plain. Haine is a cute heroine but I feel like I was expecting more from her and never was satisfied. I can't say she was a typical heroine cause she did have some different aspects about her but because there was so much crap going on I never could fully appreciate her character. There were so many side characters as well. And because the spotlight would shine on one person for a little amount of time then switch to another I never appreciated any of them.

I would overall recommend this if you want to kill some time. Don't go into this expecting too much. It was a decent read but nothing that made me really love it.

Story: I first found Gentlemen's Alliance Cross while I was searching through my high school library for something new to read. I heard the series was good, so I checked it out. Never did I know I was ever going to be so indulged in this. The story is about a girl named Haine, who her family gave up to another as a baby, which you will learn the real reason than the one she explains in the beginning of the series later on. She goes to a very rich school, but she is still considered an outcast until the "emperor," Shizumasa, the son of ... the very prestige Togu family accepts her, reluctantly at that, into the student council, where she gains a few friends. The strange thing is that Shizumasa himself seems to be bipolar with Haine. He appreciates her; then, he utterly hates her. She doesn't know why, but she starts to fall in love with him (and you will also learn why he acts so weird later). I bet there's another story like this out there, but this is the first time I ever found a love story like this. I was very intrigued and I always wanted to know more about it. Of course, there are some flaws, but they never stood out like a sore thumb to me. 10/10

Art: The art is also pretty cool, but sometimes, it could be cluttered on some pages. This is drawn by the same person who made Full Moon, so you would expect the stuff to be good, right? It's good, but the clutteredness, like blood spots or flowers, get the way of what is actually happening the scenes sometimes. It's not bad, but I think the artist did too much. No offense to the creator of the series. 9/10

Character: The characters finally have substance. I don't want to reveal too much or else I'm going to spoil the series for you. Haine's life wasn't always so sweet. She always knew that her biological family gave her up, and when she was younger, she actually went through a rebellious stage and joined a gang, there was a term for this, but I forgot what it was. She stopped her gang banging when she met Shizumasa as a child, the person who supposively wrote her favorite childhood book (and you'll understand what I mean by that later). Like I said, Shizumasa is a very weird case. He seems to be two different people at different times (that's a hint). Her friends in the student council are funny. There are two cross dressers who fall in love with either other (that's always sweet), and there is a girl who actually came out as a lesbian for Haine; however, I did hate her at one point. There is always development with the characters, and they aren't stick figure types, which is always great when it comes to writing a great series. 10/10

Enjoyment: I was always flipping pages. I never wanted to put the books down. Honestly, if this series were to become an anime, I would jump on and watch all of the episodes. There isn't much else to say about it because I blabbed about it all above. 10/10

Overall: This is my favorite manga series of all time, and if you want to read it, you will understand why I gave this a rounded up 10 out of 10.

Having read a little bit of Full Moon wo Sagashite, which is by the same author, and being enticed by the preview of this series in an issue of the Shojo Beat magazine several years ago, I was excited to pick up this series.

I was not disappointed. The characters are realistic, the plot was engaging, and the ending was satisfying, which is more than I can say for a lot of shoujo series I've read. I won't give out details since I'd like for you to check them out yourself. I will say, though, that there's a cross-dressing male character, twins, and strong (as in ... well-written) female characters.

I highly recommend this series. It's actually my favourite of the shoujo genre.

Wow. This series was incredible. Amazing, breath taking, and astounding! When I first started it, I didn't know it was by the author of Kamikaze Kaitou Jeanne, which btw, I loved and Full Moon wo Sagashite. I had thought the art had looked very familiar.

Story - 10

I love stories like this. One girl, two boys, high class academy. Many books may have the same story outline but none as good as this one. I couldn't stop flipping the pages. It's very unique and addictive.! I don't want to give anything away.

Art - 9

Very adorable art. I love Arina Tanemura's artwork. She did a great ... job in Kamikaze Kaitou Jeanne and Full Moon wo Sagashite. Although there is ONE thing that caused the art to get a 9. Sometimes, I really can't tell the characters apart. When you're farther into the book, it'll be easier to tell apart.

Characters - 10

Now, I absolutely loved the characters. Now, I'm not gonna say much cause I don't want to spoil the story for those who want to read it. Tanemura makes her characters very nicely. They don't all sound the same and are all very different personality wise.

Enjoyment - 10

Did I enjoy it?? Of course I did! If I didn't enjoy it, I wouldn't have completed it. There are cliffhangers sometimes but I love cliffhangers! :) You really never know what's going to happen next in this series.

Overall - 10

Absolutely perfection! They really need to make this into an anime. The other two series Tanemura wrote got made into an anime. Why not this one? I know if they did, I would love this even more!

>Story---------------10

The first few chapters made it seem like Shinshi Doumei Cross would have a pretty predictable plot. Normal girl with a troubled past goes to elite school and falls in love with the most popular, powerful guy, then works hard to make senpai notice her. It's been done a million and a half times. However, once the story really gets going, twists--I won't say what for the sake of not spoiling--are introduced that really make it stand out. Most of the romantic pairings are still pretty predictable (once you know the characters involved), but the way in which they develop is, ... in my opinion, fresh and unique. There's also some guy/guy and girl/girl romance, which I can definitely get down with. I only wish the latter had gone on a little longer..

>Art------------------8

The art is probably the part that frustrated me most about this manga. It's undeniably stunning. Even a cursory glance will tell you that a lot of work went into every panel, which is why it's hard for me to criticize it. However, there were a lot of times when the pages felt too "busy" (sooooo much shading!!) and made it hard to follow. There's almost no empty space, so it can quickly get overwhelming. Also, the designs for some of the characters were very, very similar, especially early in the series, so I ended up spending a lot of time trying to figure out who I was looking at.

All that said, the it's still absolutely gorgeous. If you like "pretty" manga, it'll be right up your alley!

>Characters---------9

There are definitely some unique characters in the series. All of the main cast had very compelling backstories--though I wish there'd been room to delve into some a little deeper--and all had good development from beginning to end. I didn't like how they made so many jokes in the beginning about how stupid Haine was, but that was dropped pretty quickly anyway. Though she seems like your typical ultra-cheerful-to-the-point-of-being-an-annoyance heroine at first, she has other sides to her that make her a pretty compelling protagonist. I especially enjoyed the hesitant camaraderie that developed between Haine and Maguri for some reason. I also found it interesting that, by the end, there was no longer a clear "villain" to hate.

>Enjoyment--------9

Do recommend.

The artwork is extremely pretty. Arine Tanemura has outdone herself once again! The story is cute and believable. I was confused because there were so many relationships going on and different gender orientations LOL. Also, at the end I wasn't sure how the story ended. It was left a little unclear but it's definitely worth reading♥ Of course it's mostly predictable but the first quarter of the story was a complete surprise to me.

After reading the series , I'm completely in love with it. It brings great enjoyment to those who love a bit of a twist in love. I gave it an overall score of 10 out of 10 because it was so enticing and addictive.

I definately recommend this manga to those who love a bit of twist in relationships and love drama. There are many dramatic moments during the series.

Shinshi Doumei Cross is a wonderful manga! I love it! The characters are so insightful and kawaii! You wonder what will happen next and there is surprise after surprise after surprise! If you like a manga with plenty of fluff, twins, suspence, and rich smexxy guys, Shinshi Doumei Cross is perfect! XD