Bokura no Hentai

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The following review will contain some very important spoilers. For disclosure purposes I should mention I am myself a transgender woman and that many things I will critique about the series have to do with identity issues.

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When I first started reading Bokura no Hentai I found myself intrigued. A manga that deals respectfully with transgender and crossdressing characters, without mixing up the two categories? A story that doesn't focus on fanservice but on the actual, real-life problems queer youth faces? Count me in!

"Bokura no Hentai", for the most part, delivers amazingly well on its premise. The characters are very interesting and humane, each one of ... them with their own life issues. Even more importantly, the trio of protagonists (Marika, who is the trans girl of the group, Tamura, who is crossdressing for his lover, and Ryousuke who does so for his dead sister) are not the exclusive focus of the story. Secondary characters like Akane and Tomochi also get some of the spot light and the mangaka manages to handle their cases very well.

There is a great deal of diversity among the protagonists and their experiences, so the story doesn't get monotonous. Moreover, the "plot" gives plenty of room for character development. Honestly, one of the most enjoyable parts of "Bokura no Hentai" is watching the characters I've come to love grow and learn from their experiences. It made me feel as if I went to school with them, listened to their worries and shared their concerns. It made me care about them a whole lot.

The art is great, minimalistic yet not simplistic. I especially loved the colored introductions in each volume. I believe that they give a warmer feeling to the story and they work great as a way to further humanize the characters.

So far I've described 99% of what "Bokura no Hentai" is. Honestly, I wish I could stop here. I wish I could just give it a big shining 10/10 and tell you it has earned its place among the masterpieces of our time.

*SPOILERS*

But, unfortunately, there's chapter 40. The chapter where Marika is having second thoughts about her identity. The chapter where she misgenders herself so that a group of irrelevant, anonymous cosplaying male students won't feel bad for not being as cute as she is. The chapter where essentially none of her friends tries to confront her about this attitude, in a way telling the readers that they too thought of her as a cute guy who crosses or, as the series tells us, a boy with a perversion. The chapter where she enters a crossdressing contest, even though from the first chapter of "Bokura no Hentai" she clearly, unapologetically states that she is not a crossdresser but a woman. The chapter where the mangaka managed, in just a few panels, to completely ruin every good thing had been done since the beginning of the story.

There are plenty of reasonable approaches one could take to justify this chapter. One could say Marika is still a teen, one who faced plenty of bullying that forced her in the closet. Perhaps the mangaka wanted to show us another issue transgender people face in our everyday lives (and doubt is undeniably one of them). Perhaps her friends didn't want to push her out of her doubts, perhaps they felt it was not their place to do so.

You know what? None of these excuses stands to scrutiny. First of all, the doubt/misgendering part came out of nowhere and felt completely out of character. Speaking strictly on technical writing grounds, it was the dumbest thing the mangaka could do at this point of the story. It'd be like having Tom Hanks in Philadelphia say something along the lines of "hey, am I really gay after all?" just a few minutes before the movie's ending. Yeah, it is that dumb.

Secondly, we never see Marika get over her self-doubt. Instead, we just get a "who cares?" attitude from the rest of the crowd, which I find outrageous for a story that did its best to convince us that this is an accepting, loving environment for Marika. What am I to make of this? That the ultra-supporting people who surrounded her simply thought of her as delusional? That for them cosplaying and being trans belong in the perversion category? Again, this is not what "Bokura no Hentai" showed us up until chapter 40. It's like the writer forgot about her own work and decided to do a fantasy (more like nightmare) version of this story.

Last, but not least, and this a completely subjective thought, it was not a necessity for "Bokura no Hentai" to deal with the issue of doubt. I am not the sort of reader that demands social justice to be the centerpiece of a given story. I can deal with *very* triggering and disturbing material. For example, I wouldn't care that much if this was a fantasy story where a character is trans but simply decides that it's all just a perversion or that they like to be bullied, etc. I may still dislike it but it'd be more forgivable.

"Bokura no Hentai", however, presents itself as a story that cares about such things, about the pains of real life human beings. And as such, it'd be dishonest on my part to ignore how much it failed to deliver here. Transgender people face doubt on every front of our daily lives. There's plenty of room to talk about that. But Marika's life was a best case scenario situation, quite possibly the most well present of its kind I've come across in any form of storytelling. It's one of the few times we got to see an optimistic view of a transgender life, where acceptance by one's self and the world rule the day. It's exactly because "Bokura no Hentai" gave me hope and joy that I cannot forgive this slip. Perhaps I'd be more indifferent to this part if I were not transgender myself, but honestly, I find this chapter to be indefensible.

*SPOILERS END HERE*

Despite the miserable failure that chapter 40 is, Bokura no Hentai remains an amazing manga, one of the best to deal with gender issues. If one ignores that one chapter, it's almost a masterpiece. It's just sad to look at it when I know that it was just one step away from perfection. Do I recommend reading it? Yes, I do. Just try not to get overexcited until you complete it.

I'm sorry but this review won't be very long. (It's my first so it will probably be shitty writing- sorry)

Well overall this manga is very good I think.

Story: 8

The story is actually very complex when you delve deeper into it- throughout the manga you are shown the current story and backstory of the three main characters, and occasionally the side characters. The story has a perfect mix of sadness/psychological trauma and happiness- it is well paced, without rushing or taking agonizingly long.

Characters: 8

The characters are all very likable and there are no annoying characters- and the 'villains' are suitably detestable. Each and every character ... has their own individual traits and the three mains are all very different but still interact well together.

-Yuuta 'Marika'
Marika is a trans girl who likes boys. She hasn't had surgery yet and still attends school as a boy. Marika is a very cute girl and extremely likable- but she still has her moments when she shows her more adult side which is always fun and refreshing.

-Osamu 'Parou san'
Parou san is a boy who started cross dressing because the guy he liked said he would only be in a relationship with him if he looked like a girl. It is unclear as to wether he is gay or just bi as he also shows an interest in Marika. Parou san however wins the most fucked up award. To avoid spoilers I won't tell you the main reason but it is shown in the first few chapters that his relationship with his lover is extremely messed up. Parou san, despite antisocial and messed up behaviour is also likeable in the sense that you feel sad for him- like really sad.

-Ryousuke
Ryousuke is a boy who cross dresses as his dead sister, because his mother won't accept her death and is mentally unstable as a result. To make his mother feel better, Ryousuke pretends for his mother to be his sister. Ryousuke likes girls and at first pretty much hates the other two becausehe is upset that no one else is like him. Ryousuke is extremely likeable and is very protective of Marika.

Art: 7
Okay the art is good- it's really cute and well done. My only problem is they all look like middle schooler's when they are teenagers. So it's hard to tell the age, and rather weird when they act old- I still need to keep reminding myself how old they are.

Overall extremely enjoyable- I like the psychological and romance factors and the fact that it deals with all the different types of cross dressers and gets them to interact.

Story: 10
The story is complex with an impacting mixture of dark and light hearted topics and situations. It transitions smoothly between these topics which often strengthens it's individual parts. It often ventures into psychological episodes and these are done with a subtlety that allows them to be scary. The author appears to have done an extraordinary amount of research on the characters as this manga treats its transgender character honestly and accurately.
Art: 8
Many of the scenes within the manga are exquisitely done. It shows an exceptional use of lights and darks with dramatic changes at the right times to instil emotion into its story. Its ... greatest flaw is its occasional dips in artistic form when depicting less important scenes.
Characters: 10
The characters are dark and complex and depicted with a deep understanding of the real life situations and feelings which people in their situations go through. They are full of surprises and develop thoroughly thoughout the story.
Enjoyment: 10
The manga is one that mixes beautifully the darkness of its characters with their lovely personalities. Leading to good and bad people in traumatic or life changing situations which affect them realistically. Happiness comes when things go well but it is quickly offset with fear and sadness. In combination this makes these situations emotionally powerful.
Overall: 9
A powerful story about characters which do not typically get this much honesty. This story provides an honest look into gender issues without humiliating or glorifying them. Bokura no Hentai provides a beautiful story and a chance to look into and understanda difficult life others sometimes live.

Bokura no Hentai is perhaps one of the best trans-related works of fiction I've consumed. Stories about trans characters and crossdressers often feel rife with stereotype and one-dimensionality, but Bokura no Hentai has every character grippling with the trauma that led them to the places they are, with characters both giving into and moving on from their scars as the manga continues. There is no doubt that the manga is dark and not for everyone - but there is a comfort in being heard by the stories of the manga, and the arc of the trans woman character, Marika, provides a beacon of light in ... the narrative, as she stumbles towards transition and acceptance. But this is 2012, and even the most supportive circle around you will still have slipups, and some of the self is always surrendered to fit in. It's perhaps a hurtful reminder lacking in levels of optimism, but it is nevertheless interwoven with moments of happiness, and most of all is fairly realistic. I absolutely adore how the manga focuses on the changes around puberty, and how even a few centimeters of height or changes of voice can ruin everything. I would have liked to see how Marika dealt with such issues (as she is certainly paid as the 'perfect archetypal trans woman' to a psychologist) but that does not invalidate her issues, and it's good that we can at least get some taste of these really difficult challenges faced by trans and gender non-conforming people. I was also slightly confused by the timeskip as it was not telegraphed very well, but the character progression through it is nevertheless excellent and my heart once I read what I had realised was the last chapter. I would absolutely recommend this as a read and I'm baffled that it is not more popular - especially amongst LGBT+ circles.

First of all, this manga is definitively not for everyone. It handles some really dark subject matters and shows a lot of abuse and trauma. That said, I really love this manga and I know that it probably doesn't deserve a 10 if you're trying to be "objective" since it has quite a few flaws, but it's also absolutely amazing in other ways. Beware for anyone reading further, there will be some minor spoilers.

So first, the good stuff.

What I love about this manga and why I rated it so highly, is how it portrays the internal struggles of our 3 protagonists. There's just something ... about the way she presents their internal struggles that really gets to me. From Marikas childlike obsession about being a princess and desire to be "pure" enough to deserve to be a "real" girl while dealing with her dysphoria and budding sexuality and male puberty, to the darkness you can feel dripping from every scene in and around Tamuras mind, as he struggles to come to term with the fact that he was raped as a child, and having to watch him continue the cycle of abuse, to the imaginary dialogues Ryuosuke has with his dead sister and all the creepy scenes with his mother.

The manga does a really good job of getting you into the headspaces of these three, and for most of it it's not particularly pleasant. The story deals with some really heavy subjects like rape, molestation, transphobia and parental neglect. One scene in particular comes to mind, where one character molests another character. The scene is beautiful rendered and presented in an almost poetic way while also being absolutely horrifying, while simultaneously portraying the headspace of the person doing the molesting, showing just how broken they've been left by previous trauma. It's like watching a beautiful train crash in slow motion, super disturbing, you can see it coming and yet you can't look away. As I said, it's a very dark manga. I remember hearing someone describing reading it feeling "as a bad fever dream but I remember it had a happy ending" which pretty much sums it up. The three main characters start of in a very bad place and watching them grow and get out of with the help of each other and their friends is where most of the enjoyment comes from. You'll have to decide for yourself if that is something you're interested in.

Now to the less good stuff.

My biggest problem is probably that it felt to me like it lost some of it's steam somewhere after the halfway point. The first few chapters I would wholeheartedly score 10/10 but as the story goes on it starts to feel somewhat convoluted and confusing, especially after most of their troubles are over towards the ending. Don't get me wrong, there are some great scenes towards the ending but it started to feel a bit like the plot was just jumping around from scene to scene with no clear thread between them. It also did not help that the last chapter had a timeskip that was not clearly telegraphed which confused me a lot the first time I read it. It's not a super big problem, but it is something that makes me feel a bit bad about giving it a 10/10.

While I loved Marika and thinks that overall she was handled really well(Seriously if you're a trans woman and wants to read a dark manga with a happy ending, drop everything and read this now), she does feel a bit like the stereotypical perfect trans girl, super feminine, known since a young age, everyone comments on how cute and feminine she is all the time etc etc. Once again, it's not a big problem but it does feel a bit out of place as a trans woman, because I'm pretty sure none of us are that "perfectly trans" and she would probably have felt a bit more realistic if she was a bit more "flawed" in that sense.

There's also a really weird scene in chapter 40 that completely clashes with her character growth and basically puts her further back than she was in chapter 1. It felt like it was just put in as a joke and it's not that important so I just ignore it but it still felt weird and out of place. Some of her friends are also implied to have some gender stuff to deal with themselves, but it's just suddenly dropped and never mentioned again.

Now having said that, that's about it for my problems with the series. I really enjoyed it, and it has stuck with me in a way no other manga has which is why I'm giving it 10/10 despite it's flaws. There's just something about how it puts you in the heads of these deeply broken characters and lets you see all their insecurities, doubts and pain and watching them grow and get out of it and get to a better place that really stuck with me. I know it's not for everyone, but if what I've described sounds interesting to you, then it's 100% worth the read.

It somewhat pains me to begin a review with this sentence, but as a transgender person, this manga reached out to me and touched my heart in a way I never could have expected.

This story could have easily fallen into the same trap (hehe) of just being another crossdressing fluff story, mere genre-candy without real substance, but instead we were presented with a deep dive into the lives and psyches of three vividly realistic characters, each full of flaws, desires, trauma, yearnings, contradictions of heart... This trio of acquaintances reminds me so much of all the people and stories of other people like me ... on I've met my own journey. All while still managing to serve up enough cute outfits and tender moments to make your heart flutter~

This has the potential to be a very emotional read; I cried, I yearned, I gave a thought to all the battered souls I've crossed paths with whom these three vividly brought back to mind, I laid in bed devouring chapters into the early hours, staring off into the night reflecting on my own journey of expression, wondering if I'd found the happy ending I so wished these characters to find...

If you're up to facing the sadness and shadows hanging over these characters' lives, and you're okay with discussions of abuse and sexual trauma, I absolutely recommend this. It's a story that'll stick with me for years to come, and I'd love for you to make friends with these three weirdos also.

All that said, you may be wondering if this is "for you", if you'll get anything out of it, maybe even if it's even alright for you to engage with. It's very important to note that this is NOT explicitly a transgender story, although it does closely follow a central character's desire to transition, alongside the other of the main trio's journeys. This is more accurately a story for anyone with a complex relationship to gender expression, whether you feel at home as you are, or you yearn for more. If you've ever spent time in crossdressing communities as I have, you'll especially recognize much of the attitudes and "types" here; you'll possibly even see yourself reflected back. If you've never engaged in any of that—maybe you're here to simply enjoy girly boys, nothing more—there's still plenty to enjoy here if a lil despair in your fantasies doesn't turn you away, and hey, maybe you'll learn something about yourself, or about others in your life.

At the bottom of it, this manga makes no statement as to whether it's "for" a certain person, nor pushes any judgment calls on who or what you are, what's okay for you to do or enjoy, nor does it even conclusively define its own characters much of the time; in fact, it takes a rather laissez-faire approach to gender that honestly feels refreshing, coming from a world with so much pressure to nail oneself down, to hurry up and decide if you're one thing or another... Albeit a nod to nonbinary identities would have been nice, more than anything this manga says it's okay to just go with your own flow, the specifics of what or why never really matter so long as you're true to yourself.

I will mention however, be aware that this story is very focused on amab experiences with femininity; there are a few afab side characters that are hinted as being on the cusp of discovering their masculinity, but those aspects of their stories tend to be left as food for thought and not much more, and aren't further explored past a point. This was probably done as a way to give a nod towards those readers coming to this story from the other direction while not distracting from the main thread too much, but I can imagine it'd be disappointing if one were hoping for more representation.

One final point, as to the rating... If I like this so much, why only an eight? Well, there *are* certain flaws here, and unfortunately they directly impact readability. The thread of what's happening can be very hard to follow sometimes; not that the plot is unduly complex, but rather it's written in such a way that I often had no idea who was saying what far too often, and too much time was spent fruitlessly rereading pages several times over and flipping back to the start of chapters to check if I'd even understood it right... While I fully admit some of these issues may have been due to the translation I read, there were enough issues and confusion caused by the dialogue layout and formatting itself that I can't solely lay blame there.

On top of that, the artstyle, which can be VERY kawaii at its best, can also be somewhat... vague? at its worst? There are just, too many side characters who don't stand apart from each other significantly enough to always be easily told apart from other characters, and while I've found that's not exactly an uncommon complaint when it comes to manga in general, I spent too much time awkwardly following along while unsure who certain characters were, or confusing them with others, especially given the story's tendency to "disappear" side characters only to suddenly bring them back after many chapters or even timeskips without properly reintroducing them... It just gets messy to follow, ahah.

But while that keeps me from rating it higher, it only mildy takes away from the experience, so if this sounds like your bag, don't let that scare you off :3

(first i to excuse me about my english, my primary language is french)

I have never been that much emotionally involved in a manga. I think that the 3 main characters really bring simething to the table for the two main themes (wich ares crossdressing and relationships). I think that transidentity and gender dysphoria are protraided so much realistic and human way. As someone who is Transfeminine, i think Marika live trough realistic struggles and sufferance. Her relationship with Parou is one of the best representation of one sided love ive ever seen in any media. The ending for me was perfect for me, it ... brings some kind of moral lesson about love and personnal growth.