Ohayou, Ibarahime
Wake Up, Sleeping Beauty

Edit

What would you like to edit?

SynopsisBackgroundAlternative TitlesPictureChapters/VolumesPublishing DatesRelationsTypeExternal Links  

This manga is not just a story—it has become an emotion, something far beyond mere words can describe. The sheer beauty of its storytelling left me utterly speechless. The emotional connection I felt with the characters was so profound that it was as if I were engaging with real people, experiencing their struggles, joys, and heartaches alongside them. The plot was beautifully crafted, holding me captive from start to finish, making it impossible to look away.

As I read, I found myself desperately yearning for the characters to engage more with each other, to have deeper conversations about their circumstances—moments that weren’t fully explored ... in the manga but that I longed to witness. They felt so incredibly real that I was drawn to them in a way I never expected. When the story reached its conclusion, it was undeniably beautiful, yet I couldn’t stop the tears from falling. I wanted to know more—what happened to them beyond those final pages? It felt less like I had finished a story and more like I had glimpsed into someone’s life, only to be left wondering about the future they were destined for.

I cannot recommend this manga enough. It embodies the kind of romance I always seek—the kind that allows me to truly connect with the characters on a deep emotional level. I cried for them, not just because of sadness, but because of the overwhelming happiness of being able to feel what they felt. This wasn’t just fiction—it was a life I had the privilege to witness, even if only for a short time. I don’t know how to put this emotion into words, but I can say with all my heart that I have fallen in love with this manga.

To the author, I just want to say—I love you for creating this masterpiece. Thank you for crafting something so powerful, so deeply moving. Even as I cry, both from joy and sorrow, I know this story will stay with me forever.

Good Morning, Sleeping Beauty is a truly breathtaking work that goes beyond the boundaries of manga as a form of entertainment, establishing itself as a deep, unforgettable emotional experience. Ogeretsu Tanaka's mastery in creating this narrative is something that deserves to be praised without hesitation. This manga is not just a story; it’s a genuine masterpiece that touches the heart and leaves a lasting mark.

The psychological complexity of the characters is simply mind-blowing. Each one is crafted with a depth rarely seen in stories of this genre. The protagonist, dealing with a complex relationship full of trauma, is portrayed in such an authentic and multifaceted ... way that it’s impossible not to be immersed in his internal struggles. The sensitivity with which the author tackles delicate, deeply human issues like emotional pain and the search for acceptance is absolutely sublime.

The artwork, on the other hand, is stunningly beautiful. Tanaka's lines have a softness that captures the fragility of intimate moments, yet also possess a raw strength to convey the emotional tension that pulses through every page. The ability to translate feelings through art is something few mangaka can do with such finesse. The facial expressions and intricate details in the drawings are hypnotic, making every panel a work of art in itself.

The pacing of the story is expertly handled, shifting between moments of intense emotional tension and introspective pauses that allow the reader to absorb every detail of the character development. It’s a read that doesn’t just limit itself to the plot, but invites you to reflect on human nature, the scars we carry, and how love and acceptance can, often, be found in the most unexpected places.

Furthermore, the manga is fearless in addressing deep, sometimes uncomfortable themes with a raw honesty and respect. There’s no room for superficiality here – Good Morning, Sleeping Beauty is an intense emotional journey that will challenge you, move you, and, in the end, leave you speechless.

All in all, Good Morning, Sleeping Beauty is an epic of sensitivity, a testament to the narrative and artistic mastery of Ogeretsu Tanaka. It’s a must-read for any manga fan who’s looking for a work that doesn’t just entertain but also touches the soul in a unique and powerful way. This manga is straight fire, no cap.

“Genuinely disappointed,” is not the feeling I thought I would get after finishing Ohayou Ibarahime. And this disappointment doesn’t stem from sky high expectations either, I came in hesitant but cautiously optimistic. The reason I'm disappointed with Ohayou Ibarahime is that it is an excellent manga with poor execution, be that the stunted characterisation, the inconsistent pacing or the baffling narrative decisions at times. While there is some amazing stuff in here and the art is excellent, I have trouble recommending this without some caveats.

Characters: 7

The manga contains a plethora of characters, more than you might expect for a manga of this length. While ... the quality of the characterisation varies, overall the likability and development of the cast is fairly good.

The main duo in this manga, Tetsu and Shizu, are both likeable and receive great development. Tetsu is a selfless and determined high school boy who isn't your typical male lead. He's short, gets emotional and scared easily, and criticises his own actions often throughout the manga. I liked Testu because of his flaws, and his development throughout the manga makes sense and is honestly heartwarming to see. Shizu is a lot more complicated, but as to not spoil anything I'll just say she is abnormally quiet for her age and doesn't have the best social skills. Her development is fairly formulaic, but it is handled with enough care that it works as the crux of the story. The romance between them is pretty standard but it's good to see and acts as the culmination of their character arcs.

The problem is with the side cast. With a cast of this size for such a short manga, I was rightfully worried that the characterisation would be spread thin amongst the supporting characters. For most of the manga the supporting characters are no more than shallow archetypes with uninteresting backstories. The weird thing about this manga is that it chooses to flesh out multiple characters at the end. It feels tacked on and ruins the natural pacing of the ending. There is only one character I would consider to be poorly written however, that being what you might traditionally call a "villain." I won't spoil their character, but their motivations are strange and at times contrived, and their backstory feels extremely inorganic. I'm not against focusing your writing on the mains, especially for such a short manga, but when the story tries to have emotional moments with the side cast it just falls flat. However, since the main characters were so good, the side cast wasn’t nearly enough to ruin my experience with this manga.

Story: 5

The story is by far the weakest part of Ohayou Ibarahime. The premise itself - that of a high school age boy helping out a girl with a mysterious illness as their romance slowly develops - does not play out as expected, which I was intrigued by. While the romance is certainly central to the story, the narrative includes many subplots, each of varying quality. While the quality of the subplots were on average fine, they ruined the pacing. In particular there is a soccer subplot that does flesh out Tetsu's character, but is far longer than what was required and as a result takes away more than what it adds to the story. I found this subplot in particular to be hard to get through.

The story also includes many plot twists, again varying in quality (are you noticing a theme?) which range from very interesting, unsurprising, and straight up baffling. There is one plot twist in particular involving a character called Mirei which not only removes some emotional weight from the story but also introduces many questions with no answers.

Now, I probably haven't made the story this manga out to be something very good so far. But the story does starts to pick up around the middle of volume four, and really peaks at the start of volume five. At this point the manga focuses completely on Tetsu's family, and the conflict is extremely intriguing and well written. This was the point in the manga that I glimpsed something truly amazing in Ohayou Ibarahime, and I was a fan. Unfortunately, this period did not last for long. For me the brief amazing moments of this story were not enough to make me invested.

Art: 9

If there is one thing that I can wholeheartedly praise, it would be the art. The manga consistently looks great and has a high level of detail in nearly every panel, especially in the characters. Full page drawings always look great and aren’t overused for dramatic moments. I would also like to praise the character designs. For this specific manga the character designs are more important than normal, so it is good that it is easy to tell the characters apart and the designs fit the personality of the characters excellently. Overall the art was of a very high quality throughout. The only bad thing I could say about it is that there weren't any panels that blew me away, but even that's just a personal gripe rather than criticism.

Enjoyment: 6

On theme with the manga, my enjoyment was extremely inconsistent. Volumes 1 and 2 I was vaguely intrigued by, volume 3 I was quite bored, volume 4 and the start of volume 5 I was very interested, and the rest I was disappointed in apart from the final couple of chapters which were sweet. My enjoyment mainly stemmed from the conflict surrounding Tetsu's family and his relationship with Shizu towards the very end. I won't lie, I didn't cry or even tear up once during the experience, but there were heartwarming moments and when I was enjoying the manga I was pretty engaged.

Conclusion

So, would I recommend it? The truth is that it depends. I can definitely see some of my friends enjoying this more than I did, and the plethora of high scores for this manga show that people definitely are. Even though I would say to avoid this if I've described something that you wouldn't like, it's so short and the highs are good enough that if you're on the fence about whether to read it or not you should give it a go. Ohayou Ibarahime isn't likely to be a story you'll forget, for better or worse.