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Admit it: you've reached the boiling point before. Question is; what now?

With only a chapter translated so far, ‘Hal’ addresses the atrocities of human nature and the extent of negative feelings. The story starts when a young girl succumbs to her negative feelings which have prompted the arrival of a certain shinigami named Hal. The girl is promised three death wishes of whomever the existence she wants gone and in the meantime, Hal shall stick around.

There's no doubt ‘Hal’ is a manga written by Aoi Makino whose past works include ‘Rec’ and ‘Sekai no Hate’. And if there is anything to be known about Aoi's ... work, it's her trademark angst. She starts off with a wonderfully ordinary situation anyone can relate which will eventually spiral into something tragic. It's refreshing in a way that she can be so bold in her storytelling without holding back but consequently, both characters and the story suffer as her manga progresses. This is evidenced in her previous works and Hal is sadly no exception. But as a series of (sort of) one-shots, it makes it somewhat excusable since the main focus is not to be attached to the characters who unwittingly surrender to ‘Hal’ but to recognize there's a bit of darkness in us all. It's impossible to be completely freed of negative emotions such as jealousy, envy, hatred, etc and the beauty of ‘Hal’ is how it says, "So what?" Whether we abhor or adore does that make us any less human? It is how we move on and projects the best of our emotions towards each other that matters the most, a lesson today's people lose sight on but ‘Hal’ touches spot on.

As far as characters goes, with only one translated chapter, little can be said. The character of the first chapter is a high school girl with a superiority complex, excelling in school both academically and physically. Her world crashes when someone who's suitable as her equal and even superior comes along which is the reason for the visit of shinigami Hal. She is by far an exaggerated version of any students in school. After all, who can’t remember a time when they've felt resentment towards the person who scores higher than you on a test? But that is as far as her character can be said since though he makes less appearances than her, what's most interesting is Hal. Hal is a shinigami who whimsically manifests humans' hatred or negative feelings and grants three erase wishes as compensation. These erase wishes makes the targets existence completely nonexistent, enforcing the shinigami's purpose of feeding off of human emotions. Despite being nonhuman, many of Hal's insights are spot on.

Art work is clean and beautiful, having that Shoujo touch. Although this appearance works well with Aoi's other works, it does not bode well for this manga. Her drawings work well as a tragic beauty irony, the fact that everything and everyone drawn so pretty and cute has to mean everything goes well, right? But this isn't the kind of aim Aoi has for this one since right off the bat the manga tries to be philosophical with its profound messages. However, how seriously are we supposed to take them when everything looks so flowery even during the tragedy parts? It's like writing a funeral scene but having the characters all wonderfully dressed and damping elegantly with a hanky for each tear that falls.

Whatever it may be, ‘Hal’ attempts to convey a message about human nature and for the most part it succeeds. However, because we are unable to fully adjust to the character's changes in emotions, the quick paced story line, and finally the art which is inappropriate of the story it's based on, HAL remains nothing more than a poorly done mimicry of what may have been philosophical.

-a review written for 'Reviews from the unreviewed'

‘Kono Bijutsubu ni wa Mondai Ga Aru!’ is, in summary, about the daily misadventures of an idiosyncratic art club.

We have our male protagonist, Uchimaki Subaru who draws wonderfully but mainly of anime characters, most prominently moe girls. Our female protagonist, Usami Mizuki, joins the art club out of interest but with far less talent than Subaru in artistic talent. Then, completing our gang is the president of the club, whose name has not yet been said.

From the first chapter, not much of an impression can be drawn. We are merely introduced to the characters and are given sufficient information of how the club works (which ... is completely dysfunctional in a compellingly efficient way). Even for a first introduction, readers are entertained with each character’s quirky personality and the hijinks they commit.

Because only one translated chapter has been released, the characters should be relatively one-dimensional which is understandable. In this case, however, it’s not the case. Usami Mizuki makes a great protagonist and you can really feel her passion for art through her knowledge and imagination. She’s passionate without being overboard, as in not in the kind of characters which overdoes it to the extent of unbelievable. Uchimaki Subaru is a funny one, with enviable drawing skills yet ‘wastes’ them on drawing manga/anime characters all the time. He should be extremely relatable for us all anime/manga fans and should provide more interesting character development further on in the manga. Lastly, the club president, the laziest of the bunch, awards his members ‘points’ as a way of displaying his club leader activities. Not much can be deduced from him but the gag running for him is hilarious. It can, however, become tiresome if abused in the later future.

The art is clean and simple, yet does not pale in comparison to the drawings our characters produce. Nevertheless, one does have to hand props to the mangka for making the drawings the characters produce more explicit than the actual artwork/backdrop which is a great and effective way to us readers. I mean, how many of us have read mangas where they use whatever kind of club in existence simply as a plot device?

With only one chapter translated, ‘Kono Bijutsubu ni wa Mondai Ga Aru!’ has great potential to become an engaging manga about art and the kind of people who draw as well as the extra romance here and there. I just hope it doesn’t become as dull as ‘Tonari no Kashiwagi-san’ which is another manga about a web artist. It may be too soon to expect anything but ‘Kono Bijutsubu ni wa Mondai Ga Aru!’ is a delightful [one-chapter] read and anyone who does so will sure to feel bubbly and nostalgic inside.

-a review written for 'Reviews from the unreviewed'

Childhood, a time when most of your blissful memories are made. But what if the only thing you can recall most vividly is when you were bullied by classmates, treated as though you’re better off dead, and above all, were told to die?

Kimi no Sei is a unique, heartwarming tale of a bully and a bullied. Takaya, the bully, grows up from the boy who does things for the sake of fitting in with the crowd to a handsome young man who goes through various relationships. Yurina, the bullied, grows up less normally, and has developed a fear of accepting trust from men or ... being in a relationship altogether. They meet by chance at a blind date and Takaya, unable to recognize who Yurina is, falls in love and asks to date her on the spot. Yurina eventually agrees with the sole reason to get her revenge and thus, the clumsy, dysfunctional love story between the former bully and bullied begins.

The concept of the story is certainly unique. When is it the last time you have read about someone having a romantic interest in a person they once tormented in the past? It’s fresh, captivating but it is this marvel that holds the story against itself. It raises the question of whether pursuing a romantic relationship with the bully/bullied is even physiologically plausible. A relationship is built from love, attraction, and above all, trust. A bully/bullied scenario completely defies this. With this mindset, Kimi no Sei doesn’t quite throw that concept away which is refreshing but troublesome. How will character interactions run smoothly if a bully/bullied scenario isn’t exactly friendship material, let alone on romantic terms? This is where Kimi no Sei struggles to stay strong and pick itself in but does not quite hit the caliber.

The main characters are the bully, Takya, and the bullied, Yurina. As hinted/mentioned before, Takaya is the instigator of the bullying Yurina had to endure as a child, resulting a mental scar Yurina has to endure. Takaya is an interesting character, and the term, ‘happy-go-lucky,’ best describes him. Of course, he isn’t entirely happy, but doesn’t show this much when around Yurina, claiming it’s best when he’s around her. Takaya is shown to be a ‘devotional character,’ willing to sacrifice much for Yurina’s happiness. He’s also been shown as insecure, and is jealous of Yurina’s interactions with certain men. Yurina, on the otherhand, displays the opposite sentiment. Takaya is sweet as candy while Yurina can be considered bitter as coffee. She’s sharp when recognizing off the bat who Takaya is and knows she’s not to fall in love with him. She tries to be as harsh as possible but occasionally shows signs of weakness when around Takya. Don’t misunderstand this, however. She is not a typical, shojo heroine who falls weak to the other gender’s charm. She’s aware of her growing emotions for Takya and doesn’t embrace it illogically like the standard heroines. But even so, there is something troublesome with the way their relationship works which is something should be mentioned.

Again, the concept of a bully/bullied is treading towards dangerous water. Will you be able to forgive the sins your ‘lover’ did to you in the past? The sins that corrupted the very being you are today? Sure, Yurina didn’t initially agree to the relationship with Takya but the fact that she eventually did, and that she was able to somewhat converse with Takya, is mindboggling. Hello, this is the boy who ruined your self-confidence. One will surely not want anything to do with him or to just kindly reject the person. And Takya is, interesting or not, also mindboggling in his own way. He doesn’t display much consideration for Yurina’s interest yet goes about saying that he loves her. Hopefully it’s character development that will eventually transform him into a well-mannered gentleman Yurina deserves but as of now, it is highly dislikable that Yurina and Takya will get together (even though that is predictable from the start).

Art is pretty much shojo-styled. The characters are drawn clearly and fully enough to portray the emotions the mangka wants to express. The expressions on the characters are plentiful as well. What should be most observed is the clothing that the characters wear. They fit their individual personalities and are usually fashionably pleasing to look at. Backgrounds are nicely drawn as well, the scene accentuating well the mood of each page.

Kimi no Sei, though unique and heartwarming, is not a tale without its mistakes. It’s easy to overlook them with the standard shojo fashion flowering the entire manga but what is a story without mistake? Kimi no Sei is a nice read for anyone looking for a unique piece and a heroine who is a crying, helpless idiot. And, if you ever happened to have encountered a bullying incident or experienced something of the sorts yourself, surely this manga will affect you in some way.

Kimi no Sei, a story of acceptance, forgiveness and romance. A story worth reading.

(Thanks for reading and those who disagrees with what I’ve written or doesn’t particularly like my writing, feel free to express me your opinions. I love getting feedbacks on how to write better reviews.)

Have you ever thrown away a chance that may have changed the way your life had become? This is what happens to the high school social recluse, Imamura Kinichiro, and the manga, "Again!!", is the heartfelt tale of his second chance in life.

The basic premise is nothing short of relatable and heartfelt. It’s the day of graduation and Imamura reminisces how his high school life had been wasted. Upon going to the old cheering squad’s clubroom, a club he regrets his choice of never joining in, he scares Fujieda, Akira, a girl who led a relatively normal highschool life. Together, they fall down a flight ... of stairs and somehow get transported back to the opening ceremony, the moment where Imamura was first inspired to join the cheering squad but never had the backbone to actually join. The storyline is pretty simple enough, but what sets it different from most mangas like this is that it’s relatable. We’ve all had moments when we had a chance to do something life changing but something stopped us. We regret this choice for the rest of our lives, wondering what might’ve been different if we had done things different. This is just the surface of the wonderful story of "Again!!" and the different choices Imamura Kinichiro is the rest.

"Again!!" has a lovely cast of characters. Our protagonist is definitely different from most, in the sense that he tries to change his life for the best. Not only that, as the story progresses, he turns out to be resourceful, able to utilize his brain to attract more members for the cheering squad, or deviating a plan to beat the antagonist of the story, the cheerleading squad, at their own game. As well as having a strong mind, Kinichiro also has a firm heart. He doesn’t become easily swayed by false flirtations from the antagonists nor does he completely quit from trying to join the cheering squad. Besides Kinichiro, other memorable characters are the Usami Yoshiko, the sole member of the cheering squad. Her passion and spirit is unmatchable, deeming her quite a heroine. Even through the poor reputation she has gained, Usami stands strong for what she believes in. Fujieda Akira and Shibata Reo are less memorable but still fleshed out as characters. Fujieda Akira is perhaps the character I can relate to other than Kinichiro. She’s your ordinary school girl who makes plenty of friends to last through her entire high school life. When she gets a second chance along with Kinichiro, she discovers the true nature of her friends and ‘boyfriend’, dealing with the new life Kinichiro has paved for the both of them. Less should be said for Reo but she’s also a girl who’s led a normal life until Kinichiro came along.

The art is rough and coarse at times. Not the most extraordinary but that’s the beauty of it. "Again!!" is not a story to blow your mind away. It’s a story to touch your heart and get you relate to its characters. And its art successfully does this, having one of the plainest and typical hairstyles you may catch teenagers today having. With the exception of Kinichiro’s ridiculously long hair in the beginning, there’s no character you can’t picture a person having in real life. Besides hairstyle, its artwork in other fields (scenery and character design) is effectively drawn. It’s not exquisite, but it fits with the mood of the story. And sometimes, simplicity is refreshing.

"Again!!," a simple story that will surely leave a powerful taste behind. Not powerful in the sense that it will change your life forever. After all, "Again!!" is not a story of changes. It's a story of second chances, and the ability to achieve what you desire despite everday problems. That's the simple components which makes up "Again!!" And surely, if you give it a try, you'll find yourself reading it over again.

"A secret no one can say, a true nature that can't be shown, everyone has an 'underside'!" --cover page of Ookami Shoujo to Kuro Ouji

Welcome to Ookami Shoujo to Kuro Ouji, a mouthful to say and tiresome to remember but it's worth the trouble. OStKO, for convience's sake, is your standard shoujo. There's the main lead who wants a boyfriend and the male lead who wants anything but. However, what readers think they may be led to a road for disaster finds themselves spiralling on a jounery of tears and laugher, as well as the universal meaning of things being not exactly how they seem ... and the hardship people have to deal in order to find that.

"Generally a high school life is all decided in the first two months." --Erika

The start of OStKO begins with a simple premise; the male lead, Kyouya, is forced to play boyfriend for Erika after she accidently claims him to be her boyfriend in attempt to fit in with her so-called friends. People may say it's superficial of the main lead to want to find a boy for just that reason or even badmouth the friends for being friends for just that but think for a moment. It's not uncommon to find high school students tell lies just to fit in, just to avoid bullying or isolation. That's how we find Erika in a struggle to stay in her friendship circle. Hey, at least we don't have a heroine who bitches about being friendless while she's not doing anything about it. So it's the simple plotline of Erika trying to fit in that starts the beginning of the relationshipe between her and Kyouya.

"...I really love dogs. They're pure. If you say 'wait' then they'll keep waiting like an idiot, no matter how hungry they get or how bad you treat them, following their master's order witht hose bleary pitch black eyes...that's so cute it gives me the chills..." --Kyouya

Kyouya really strikes different from the standard main male role. He initially is percieved as the goody-good with princely charms and looks that kill but right after our fellow heroine gets to know the true him, readers are in for a huge surprise. This person is unafraid to voice his most cynical views. Heck, if he sees an old lady struggling to walk across the road, he may as well be that person to send her to her doom. The refreshing part of his personality is that he shows no signs of other persnalities. He's just being himself. It may get over the top at times but it's interesting but poor Erika has to put up with that. She knows this as well and tries her best to cope with it. Considering all this, we may suspect the usual master-servant plotline, the 'master' usually growing softer as the story goes on. For the most part, that is what we're seeing but we do see Erika stand her ground couple of times. It's admirable how she's not willing to take shit from Kyouya whereas your standard shoujo lead will just cry for help. This girl uses her fists and words in a way anyone with common sense can use. It's the wonderful footstep forward for females in the world of manga and makes the chemistry between Kyouya and Erika lovelier than it will be if Erika was a spineless twit.

It doesn't come as a surprise that other characters are not as unique as Kyouya or Erika. The friends of Erika feels static and one of them, even after a whole chapter dedicated to them, feels as if they haven't changed from her superficial thinking at all. But from Kyouya's side, one of them turns to be more interesting to read than how I thought he'd be. He's chirpy and friendly, a striking opposite of Kyouya, but is equally enjoyable, making me hope to read more of him.

"Did I make the right choice in relying on this guy?" --Erika

Well, I don't know about that. Kyouya's good looking but he acts jerky and he has his nice moments. What I do know is that I made the right choice in reading all of the avaliable chapters of this manga. The artwork are nicely drawn, not mind-blowing but enough to get the storyline/characters conveyed. After all, if the artwork wasn't at least decent, how will Kyouya be such a yummy eyecandy? Putting superficial preferences aside, its characters and plotline are top-notch. You've got to love Kyouya's cynicism and Erika's struggle to deal with that. But, what fun will anything be without a little dose sadism?

Imagine your parents never truly being there for you and all of sudden you have no home to go to. Where will you go? Taiyou no Ie by Taamo is a story about a girl and a man who have known each other from when they were little. The girl, Motomiya Mao, is a high school student who finds herself turning to her twenty-three year old friend, Nakamura Hiro, once again for solace in the house they’ve spent their blissful childhood days in.

I’ve read some of Taamo’s other works before and to be honest, none of them particularly struck me. They are all either way ... too fast or way too fluffy to my liking which is the main reason for my wariness for this reading this one. I can say now, however, that I did not make a mistake with Taiyou no Ie which is a lovely read with real life problems told in an interesting, captivating way. We have Motomiya Mao who is struggling with her present life, her father just remarried and Nakamura Hiro who is struggling with his past life, reminiscing the good old days when he is still frolicking carefree with Mao and his siblings. Together combined is the recipe for the story, Taiyou no Ie.

The storyline has got to be the strongest points in this story which is surprising since I think her previous works, Isshoni Ofuro and Onegai, Sensei, are all terribly rushed and just plain unbelievable. In the world of manga and anime, I know the term ‘unbelievable’ is more often present than not since sometimes the impossible is needed for effective escapism but sometimes all a person needs is relatable situations for an enjoyable time. And this one does just that. The premise is fairly simple with the two leads having their own individual but similar problems that overlaps and brings them together. But the way everything is executed is what captivates me. Taamo slows everything to a great pace, not forgetting any detail that is needed to get from one event to another. It is this ability that sets this story different from most and places it on an enjoyment scale far above than others.

And now for the characters. Taamo is unafraid to develop the main lead’s characters. She lets us enter the troubled minds of both Mao and Hiro, creating an understanding of how they have become what they are. She also creates a special bond which is lacking in the rest of her works. It is subtle but it’s natural, unlike most shoujo stories out there. Most shoujo will have some sexual tension once the heroine moves in the same house with the hero but not in Taiyou no Ie. Instead, Hiro sets a curfew and time schedule like any other responsible adult should and Mao does her best with the housework even if it ends in disaster just like any other insecure teenager her age. Romance is not rushed between them and you can truly tell that they care for one another if not in a romantic way, it is in a loveable family way.

Art is great as usual though I am not really one to judge since I enjoy any artwork as long as the storyline is superb. There are some messily drawn parts which makes it hard to decipher it but other than that, there is no big concern when it comes to art.

There are many things we take for granted such as a house and that person who is there to say ‘welcome back’ when you come back from a school day or work. Taiyou no Ie is a wonderful manga that will touch your heartstrings with such messages, a delightful difference from the rest of the mangas that seem to pop up for solely guilty pleasure. So enter the lives of a girl and a man and the journey in which they find what family and love truly is.

If the boy you have been crushing on for five years has suddenly started to date a girl seriously for the first time in his life, how will you react? Will you be supportive and try your best to move on? Well, in the world of shoujo, that is what we presume the heroine of Heroine Shikkaku by Koda Momoko, the mangka, will turn out to be.

Instead, we have a heroine who is unafraid to show her meanest. She is no wimpy girl who will cry by the sideline while watching her prince get whisked away by the ‘Wicked Witch of the West’. No. This ... girl is bratty, bitchy, spoiled, self-centered, blunt and just plain selfish. Sure, she carries the water works with her throughout more than half the story but with the pressure and pain she goes through, who won’t? And so, the main question still lies: why will anyone enjoy a story with a girl like this?

This story does not sugarcoat anything unlike most mangas I’ve read. Strobe Edge is one that pops up in my mind. It was a wonderful read but it lacks the selfishness and bitterness people have when it comes to unrequited love which is, perhaps, Heroine Shikkaku’s strongest points. Hatori, the main heroine, does not back down from what she believes in throughout the story. People may find her antics annoying and repetitive choices tiring but really, when you think about it, when you’re in love do you really have the sanity to think right? I think not and this is heavily displayed throughout the story. Other characters such as Rita, Hatori’s childhood friend and crush, are memorable as well…for their flaws that is. For example, Rita has his lack of understanding and communication that drives our heroine in confusion and circles. He is arguably the most annoying character but if you are in his shoes, you may find his decisions…agreeable.

This is also another thing to love about this manga and that is that it gives you the ability to think over a character’s actions. The story isn’t that deep for it to be hard to picture yourself in the character’s shoes. Hatori is already said but think over in Rita’s shoes. Being friends with a person for so long kind of obscures thinking romantically for that person. You know the person like the back of your hand that it’s impossible to date them which is one aspect I love about this unrequited love story. So his replies to the main heroine’s advances are understandable even if some of his actions are contradictory.

The art is subjective. It is certainly not the most displeasing to the eye but certainly not the best. Despite this, I like it a lot especially how the mangka manages to manipulate the character’s facial expressions to express certain feelings. Hatori’s expressions are the best from her crying to her being bitchy; it’s never a bore to see how she is feeling next.

I think this manga will be a breath of fresh air for most. The entire cast of the manga has near to no redeeming qualities but that doesn’t make them unlikable. It’s charming and that is what kept me reading the eight chapters that have been released. And believe me, reading manga on your phone takes a lot more time that it sounds...especially when you have finals next week. Ops. x)

(This is my first review to MAL. Any feedback on how to get better is appreciated! ^^)