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Such a sweet manga, I'm glad I read it. Just a few points about each category:

Story:
The whole "delinquent turned good" trope is at work here, but I don't think that's a bad thing! The reason Jimmy pickpockets and stuff is briefly explained in the manga, which I thought was nice. One thing that caught my eye right off the bat was the (very apparent) age gap. Usually I'm not into that sort of thing, but in this story, I feel like it wasn't weird/awkward in any way. Drama arises between the two because of Reese's dark past, a nice departure from a typical lovers' ... spat in most yaoi manga.

Art:
Amazing art! I love the Korean (manwha) style, and I think it looks even better in black and white. Both Jimmy and Reese have great facial expressions that tell a lot more than the words they are saying. Aside from the faces, backgrounds were really well done and the setting (NYC) looked great! CTK does a great job making both characters very masculine during sex, which is something I really appreciate. Also, whoever scanlated this uncensored the smut: always a welcome touch.

Character:
Both characters are very genuine and sincere. I like how Jimmy always treats Reese so well, despite the drama that arises between them. Reese's backstory is told just enough to make his character pretty in-depth for a 7 chapter manga. Jimmy, not so much, but I appreciate the amount of detail that went into their mannerisms (especially Reese) to make them seem more real.

Enjoyment:
I loved this. I wasn't expecting much going into it, but I came out being so happy for Reese and Jimmy. I know there likely won't be a followup, but one can hope, right?

Overall: 9/10
I think any yaoi lover can appreciate this manga like I have. Thanks for reading.

So this finally came out (no pun intended)! I'm happy to say that I really enjoyed this OVA. I could never get super into the manga, so when the anime came out, I wasn't expecting to like it as much as I did. As someone who loves BL, I was super pumped when this got announced. It pained me to wait for a sub, but after I found one online, I was not disappointed. Here are a few of my thoughts:

Story: 7/10
So, the concept of this is a little ridiculous, to be fair. The idea is that the main character, Toono, needs to join a ... club, and it turns out the "Photography Club" is really just a sex club. While it might sound like this is all smut and no romance, that turns out not to be the case. There are some nice romantic moments between the characters right off the bat. After watching this, I might pick up the manga again and see how all of their relationships work out!

Art: 9/10
The art is gorgeous. My favorite part about them is the eyes and hair! It's clear to me that a lot of effort went into making the characters detailed and sexy. I love the art style they use and the blushes on the guys are top notch. This review wouldn't be complete without me mentioning how they draw the smut: it is great. They draw the muscles so well, every lewd scene (of which there are like 4) looks great. I just wish it wasn't censored.

Sound: 7/10
I honestly don't have much to say here. I listened to the "theme song" in one of the PVs (I think?) and it was pretty swanky, so that's really all I have to go off of. The lyrics are really dirty too, which I thought was funny.

Character: 8/10
Each character is unique in his own way. Toono is your stereotypical yaoi protagonist who is like "I'll never be gay!!!!!" which is honestly such a meme at this point. That can be a little tiresome, but what I do like is how a lot of the other characters (like the upperclassmen) are way more open about their sexuality. Although this is yaoi, and therefore 18+, I think this is a good thing to see in gay anime. The other main character, Kashima, seems like a down to earth guy and I'm looking forward to seeing how he interacts with the other freshman (and protagonist), Toono. Yaguchi seems pretty cute too.

Overall: 7/10
I thought this was a good OVA. It said "to be continued" at the end, so I'm looking forward to future installments! General comment about the smut though - it was pretty hot, but I'd like to see it in a more romantic context. Obviously it fits with the "playboy club" title, but real romance would make it so much better. Other than that, I thought this anime was really funny. It's crazy to hear Nagisa (Free!) talking about gangbangs and sex toys, but that's part of what makes it enjoyable. The characters interact in a very entertaining way. The only BAD thing I would say about this OVA is that the moves along a little too quickly. However, this is understandable. This isn't being adapted into a full series so they have to cut out a lot of stuff in order to get hit the major plot points (and smut). Ideally, this would be more than just an OVA, but I'll take what I can get.

I hope you found this review helpful.

This manga, just wow. I haven't read something this emotional in a long time. I'm really glad I did though, because the ending was definitely worth it. The story is about someone who forgets his lover after banging his head, which seems like a good setup for a happy reunion. However, the forgotten man (Yukihiko) is hesitant to get back together for more serious reasons (I don't want to spoil anything!!!). This is my favorite kind of manga: short and sweet. The sweetness, however, is greatly improved by the hardships/feelings the main characters overcome. If I wasn't in public while reading this, I probably would ... have have teared up a bit. That being said, I highly recommend this! The art is very soft and the story is told from both characters' perspectives, making it all the more enjoyable. Enjoy!

I don't think the description of this manga does it justice at all, the story is much better than that. The story is really about someone unsure about his sexuality and the steps he takes to learn to love. What I really liked about this manga was how accepting the main characters' friends were about being gay. The main character (Noboru) just drops it in conversation and his friends are totally okay with it. Not only that, they support him in his journey of self discovery. I guess this is where the "egging" in the description comes into play, but Noboru's "confession" isn't just about ... wanting to have sex with a man. The divide in their relationship, the divide between "sex friend" and "boyfriend" is very compelling because Yagi has reservations about a committed relationship. Overall, I highly recommend this! The art is really soft and it has a nice ending. I hope my review was helpful!

Hatsukoi no Tonari follows the tried and true plot of "people who knew each other a while ago and meet again." What's more is they had a teacher/student relationship before. This sounds like an incredibly cliche manga, which, to be honest, it is. That doesn't mean, however, that it isn't enjoyable! I'm a total sucker for this kind of thing, so if you want a short, sweet love story, I definitely recommend this. I felt kind of bad for the student in this story because it felt like the sensei was stringing him along, but the conclusion and love confession makes it worth it.

I loved this manga! The art was nice (especially Yato) and the story was paced nicely. The characters are polar opposites, but they bring out the good sides of each other. The other characters in this manga, such as Eiju's coworker and statue (Jizo) made the manga much funnier! The trope of "hot headed guy and cool headed guy" is used here, but I think it positively contributes to the humor. The fact that they incorporated the supernatural aspect into the plot made it much more engaging. This made the story more than just your typical "two guys meet, start developing feelings, conflict happens, they ... make up, the end" storyline that most BL manga tends to follow (not that I have a problem with that!). If you want a cute love story with a supernatural twist, I definitely recommend this!

This manga is great. All of the spin-offs of this are great too; I guess Kotetsuko really likes writing about baseball players. The pacing of this manga is pretty good and the art is nice as well. Kotetsuko has a habit of drawing her characters in a very similar style, so if you get confused reading the other baseball spin-offs, don't worry! I did too. The buildup to their love is well done, and it is interesting to see sports brought into it as well. The sports actually plays a part in the story, but I won't say anything more than that. . Kotetsuko loves ... to put these pairs of "serious guy" and "carefree guy" together A LOT, and that is one of the reasons I love her work. This manga is no exception, the main character is a super serious baseball player who falls for the captain of his baseball team, the cute and carefree "Chun." All in all, I recommend this manga to anyone looking for a light, slightly fluffy BL romance.

Yet another stellar manga from Yamamoto Kotetsuko, and 27 chapters no less! The closest thing I can liken this to is Honto Yajuu, which is insanely popular, yet this isn't. This manga starts with the characters basically in love already, with Saku declaring his intention to marry Ryota in chapter 1. The remainder of the manga is them being head over heels for each other while running into bumps in their relationship. These bumps usually involve Saku's family, other men who like him, or their uncanny ability to be walked in on during sex. This trope is a bit overused, I know, but it's executed ... in a comedic way and makes the first time that much better. One other thing I really liked about this manga was how open the two are with their relationship to their parents, especially Saku's. Albeit unrealistic, both families are supportive of the relationship they want to have which I thought was really nice. Overall, this manga is really sweet. Although it is long, I recommend it to anyone looking for a nice, fun, BL story.

This manga is one of the more underrated ones in the BL genre, in my opinion. The romance between the two characters is really sweet, especially at the end. Their relationship in the beginning is something I haven't seen before (the fact that he's a "rental boyfriend"), but I thought it made the "chase" more unique, in that the main character (Daiki) had to stop going to classes to earn more money. If this was real life, I'd consider this to be pretty fucked up, but since it's a manga and we BOTH know they fall in love, I don't worry about it.


The art ... in this manga is really good, the best I've seen in recent memory. The characters (specifically the main ones, Daiki and Mitsui) are beautifully drawn in every scene. Subtle things like Daiki's headphones or Mitsui's differing appearances at work and school really make this manga stand out. The art was especially good in the lewd scenes, of which there are many. All of them are very enjoyable, since a lot of detail is used. They're all very erotic and it definitely increased my enjoyment of the manga.

Story - 8 (the story isn't super deep, but it does go into some of the character's pasts and makes it a little more than just "two characters fall in love and have sex a lot.")
Art - 10
Character - 9
Enjoyment - 10

Overall - 9

I hope this review was helpful.

This manga, albeit slightly cliché, is one that fits the bill of what I want a yaoi manga to be: good art, infrequent smut, and characters who genuinely like each other. The plot is rather basic, but throughout the manga's eight chapters, you get to know the characters relatively well. Why this manga is called "The Killer," I have genuinely no idea. Haibara works for a pharmaceutical company (or something) and Hojo works in a bar.

The first thing that drew me to this title was the cover art - I don't know what it is, but I really like the design of both characters, ... particularly the main character. Maybe it's his hair style, who knows. The main character, Hojo, is very endearing. He is portrayed as the typical "oblivious airhead" that tends to pervade this genre, but this manga pulls it off pretty well. His interactions with the other main character, Haibara, are very sweet and it doesn't take long for them to recognize their feelings for each other. The sex scenes aren't super drawn out and are a nice addition to the story. What this manga does differently than other ones is something minor that I think is worth pointing out - the main characters hold hands in public. Obviously, homosexuality has a much more negative stigma in Japan than in the United States, but seeing something like that in a manga made me happy. The ending, without spoiling anything, is another example of the characters being more open about their sexuality, which is something you don't often see in this genre. Usually, the characters fall in love and...well, that's it. You don't really know what their family thinks about it or what happens next. In this, you get a small snippet of that near the end.

Overall, I would recommend this manga. It was well worth the 30 minutes I spent reading it.

Story - 8, Art - 10, Character - 9, Enjoyment - 9, Overall - 9.