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Imagine a typical shoujo manga, but the male and female lead actually seem to have an equal investment and mutually enjoy each other. Radical, I know. Now imagine that, but also the female lead has actual romantic and sexual agency. Borderline revolutionary. (It's not even 'strong woman, submissive man,' it's just...two equal partners, who both want each other and both occasionally make a first move. A feminine girl who doesn't just exist solely to cry and swoon over a cute boy.)

Now make it a little erotic, a bit naïve, and you have this comic. It follows a lot of the usual narrative beats of a ... high school romcom (and some of the same silly tropes...why are they hiding their relationship?), but it feels so much better because the relationship is healthy and realistic. Both parties act like normal people...I wish more f/m romance was written this way.

This is a fairly middling manga, which will likely satisfy many BL fans who aren't very picky and mostly enjoy cute, fluffy stories.

The art is very nice, and the romantic build up + ending relationship dynamic are both entertaining and sweet. The love interest is fairly compelling, and most of my personal enjoyment came from watching him navigate his situation. The main character, however, doesn't really act like a human being—he more closely resembles the abstract concept of 'cute uwu baby boy.' I personally found him obnoxious and insulting, but I'm sure there are some readers who will be charmed by his cuteness.

I feel like this is a hard to review story, largely on account of the love interest.

The love interest is missing half of one arm. As a disabled person, I find this aspect of his character very, very cool and am pretty happy with how they handled it. He's not defined by it, it isn't at all the focus of the story, but it also does impact how he's viewed in a realistic way. Hell yea physically disabled sexy love interest.

On top of that, he's also an asshole. Personally, I like asshole characters in my fiction, and it could be argued that he's still very ... loving but enables a lot of less-than-stellar miscommunications. One could also argue he's a sexual harasser. I'm sure many readers will be too uncomfortable by him to enjoy the story, or will otherwise feel disappointed when the story attempts to redeem his character halfway through.

Otherwise: the art style is really nice (if you like more old-school manga), the erotica is well done, and there's a fairly compelling strangers-to-FwB-to-lovers narrative. This story isn't for everyone, but for those looking for something a little trashy and a little sweet might enjoy it.

This is less of a story and more a collection of scenes and moments. It's also a delight to read.

I've seen this manga labelled as 'wholecome', and I'm not sure I'd use that word per say...but the couple's interactions Can be rather heartwarming. The main draw, in my opinion, is that they act like a very realistic couple: they take digs at each other, they're buffoons when they're alone, they do and say weird shit (sometimes veering on haunting). And they're undoubtedly deeply in love with each other.

It's a little bit horny, sometimes creepy, sometimes atmospheric and deep, and almost always funny. The visuals are ... beautiful and the character designs are very nice. There's basically no drama, so it avoids some narrative annoyances you might find in other school romance stories. And it's a very light, fast read.

This is kind of trashy, but the worldbuilding is so interesting that it's still an entertaining read.

Story: I love this kind of hokey premise. The 'lie meter' as a catalyst for the main couple meeting is executed fairly well (if a bit rushed), and the further worldbuilding and exploration in the second volume is also interesting.

Art: It's not a very pretty style, a little dated, but endearing in it's own right.

Characters: The two main characters are...fine. They're alright, a bit annoying but likable enough. The third most important character starts out as an interesting secret-antagonist, but becomes such a scumbag that it's hard to ... stomach any scene he's in. The way the story tries it's damndest to redeem him later doesn't help.

Enjoyment: While I'd say this manga is average to mid (at best), it's so memorable that I end up remembering & looking it up again multiple times. In that way Count 0 stands out, and I have to give credit where credit is due.

This is a manga that is trying to be a dance manga and a shoujo-romance, and doesn't manage to execute either perfectly. But it's also not terrible either, and it's short, so there's that.

23:00 feels more like a collection of ideas than a finished story. A lot of promising premises are introduced, such as the love interest's famous brothers, conflicts within the dance team, and a female rival for the love interest, but none are ever fleshed out. Rather, you get a taste of a lot of little stories that could have been.

While the characters all lack depth, the dance sequences and the ways in ... which dance is explained are both pretty nice. If you read this because you like dance manga, it's a light snack. If you read it because you like romance or plot, you might be a bit disappointed.

This could be seen as a cute, wholesome, slightly-above-average BL romance story, unless you have a complicated relationship with the concepts of identity and two-facedness. Then this might be incredibly meaningful.

Logically, I know that if I were being impartial I might not rate this as high as I am. But even if this narrative doesn't deeply resonate with you, it's still a solid BL with interesting characters, a heartwarming romantic development, and a very sweet relationship. It even delivers on some erotica and has crossdressing thrown in (without the romance hinging on the uke being feminine or otherwise robbing him of his dignity as a ... man).

That being said, the central premise of this story was incredibly moving to me. It interrogates the idea of authenticity and social integrity, about how you can wear different faces around different people and none of them are necessarily a lie, they're all you. It talks about finding spaces to be free of societal expectation, to be anything rather than just the 'you' everyone has built you up to be and decided you are. It's a fantastic look at personal narrative, and I think especially in a time where we as online people are very focused on branding ourselves, it's a very compelling and healing narrative.

I feel like this can be one simple, forgettable BL, but it can also be a story that's affirming and accepting. Definitely worth checking out regardless.

I could wax poetic about this series forever.

I would have already bought into this with the sheer premise of "saving the [fantasy isekai] world through accounting]", because that rules. But there are Layers to this narrative, including some incredibly thoughtful and well-executed explorations of Japanese work culture and health.

This is a BL, but the romance often takes a backseat to the politics and social commentary. I'd say if you're a fan of period drama/office drama politics & court drama mystery you will get more out of this then someone just looking for a generic BL. (The romance definitely starts becoming more important ~10 chapters in, ... tho, so it's not like you can ignore it either).

If you want a story with a well crafted narrative, full of carefully woven metaphors and real-world parallels, I urge you to read this. There's a lot to find if you're looking for it.

While the initial premise feels terribly unethical no matter how long I think about it, it sets the stage for a cute and satisfying school love comedy.

Art: Very pretty, quintessential shoujo. Everything I could ask for.

Character: There are a few characters I disliked, either at the beginning or later as they developed, but the majority of the cast is decently endearing and the dynamics built through their friendships were interesting.
There are no ground-breaking characters--they almost all fall into regular shoujo tropes--but if you're already a shoujo fan, that might not be a bad thing.
I wish there was even one respectable adult, though. None of the ... chaperone characters are overtly terrible, but I could argue against any of them being responsible adults.

Story: The standard 'throw a bunch of kids into tangled romances and see where they intersect.' While not all the rival relationships felt like they enhanced the story they didn't necessarily detract, and the main two love interests kept my interest for the vast majority of the story.
Who the main character ends up with is pretty easy to predict, but part of the enjoyment also comes from the fallout. The story doesn't end at everyone pairing up, and I appreciated that.

Enjoyment: I was in the mood for a very standard shoujo romance, something that didn't go too long...and this perfectly scratched that itch.
The ending isn't amazing, but it's also not dissatisfying. The epilogue is forgettable, but like...most epilogues are. There are flaws, but don't flaws make a story more fun to think about later? This story isn't anything to write home about, but if shoujo is what you're looking for this is a solid pick.

An unremarkable but unoffending ABO romance story.

I was originally drawn in for the premise of two antagonistic men who keep coming together but refuse to admit they even like each other, much less love. That expectation was delivered in full, along with great art, decent writing for both the smut and lifestyle scenes, and decently compelling story beats.

The story does a good job slowly laying out the main character's attraction, but I think it could have benefitted from an additional chapter to really sell the love interest's feelings and flesh him out some more. But other than that the pacing is satisfactory, and it's overall ... a good story.

The ABO is present and vital how the story works, but doesn't take center stage or demand much focus. For those who aren't a huge fan of ABO, this might still be a fine read.