If you liked
Ao no Flag
|
...then you might like
Restart wa Tadaima no Ato de
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The respective pairings of each manga, Taichi and Touma in Blue Flag, and Mitsuomi and Yamato in Restart, have similar dynamics and character designs. If you read Blue Flag and were left wanting more of Taichi and Touma as a romantic pairing, I definitely recommend both Restart and its sequel. Especially because Restart is a lot more delicate in its exploration of homophobia--the main themes are about communication, with the reality of their gay relationship as an undercurrent that contextualizes their struggles. Blue Flag, on the other hand, goes a lot deeper into homophobia (both internalized and external) but missteps in some ways and is more painful to read in that regard (especially volumes 6 and 7).
If you liked
Orange
|
...then you might like
Ao no Flag
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both manga made me cry an unreasonable number of times, starting from the first volume, owing to their success in setting up compelling cast dynamics that had me attached to the characters immediately. the characters experience different struggles (note: CW for homophobia in Ao no Flag & for suicide in Orange), but the themes both relate to how we can change our lives through active and vulnerable engagement in relationships with others, how these relationships make life worth living, and what it means to be happy. the art has the same feeling, although KAITO uses a broader range of style across scenes for different tones (e.g. chibi-esque for comedy, near full-page detailed portrait panels in emotional scenes). KAITO and Ichigo Takano's styles share many qualities, in the heartwrenching facial expressions especially—smiles with so much sadness held in the eyes that it made my chest tight. Ao no Flag is lighter overall, especially up until volume 6, but both manga touched me deeply, and i couldn't recommend them enough