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I remember when Okane ga Nai was deemed as one of the most harmful anime and manga in the history of Japan. Now... it can't even compare to the psychological gore anime and manga that teenagers read and watch nowadays. Heck, the Yaoi manga these days are even more intense in their sexual display than Okane ga Nai. Not to mention that they're more stupid too with their redundant plot line and boring stock characters.

Okane ga Nai is a story about a cruel merciless man name Kanou Somuku who found love in the innocent and kind young boy name Ayase Yukiya. You would think that ... this is going to be another Beauty and the Beast story but reality isn't always so romantic. Unlike Beast, Kanou couldn't find it in his heart to let Ayase go. Thus, resorted to means like threats, blackmail, extortion, and even rape to keep Ayase by his side. Thus, the story of the demon king and his princess begins.

I don't think that Okane ga Nai is really about the sex, the characters, or the story. I think Okane ga Nai is more about the dynamic and the feelings that it creates. In other words, the delivery.

In every romance, whether if it is Shounen, Shoujo, or BL, There is always the needed feeling of want and desire. Like how in a Shounen story, the male main character is desired and wanted by all the female characters. The same goes with Shoujo story. This feeling of want and desire is what drives people to like or dislike a romantic story.

Out of all the manga that I've read, I think Okane ga Nai has the most intense desire of all. Story like Mirai Nikki where Gasai Yuno is obsess with Yuki doesn't even come close to Kanou's feeling for Ayase in Okane ga Nai. And the factor for this is the gruesome and cruel things that Kanou do to Ayase. In other words, the sex and the gruesome stuff from Okane ga Nai actually contribute to the feeling of want and desire. That's because in romance, everyone want to be love the most by a desirable figure. That's because everyone project themselves into the character. That's because... everyone is selfish.

PS: I still can't believe that Jun Fukuyama voiced Ayase even after watching Ixion Saga.

If you like story that is told in a none-linear fashion where stuff from the beginning is relevant or symbolic to the stuff that's going to happen later on, I would highly recommend Spirit Circle for you.

Spirit Circle is quite clever in that it is able to crunch in multiple stories into one coherent story. We're basically getting five to six different stories with different backgrounds and genre in just one story. And despite the cast being small and there really being only one hero and heroine, due to the nature of the story, we're in fact getting a huge casts of characters. ... What's even more amazing is that these intertwine stories makes up the character's growth and development so we don't need to get into the nitty and griddy details of every character's life to be able to sympathize and empathize with them at a personal level.

Going into a little bit of the story content, I'd say Spirit Circle goes beyond your typical Reincarnation manga in that the story is told in a fashion where time is not linear. Sometimes, the future comes first and the past comes later. And reading the story, you can gradually and significantly feel the change in each character. The way you view them at the beginning is totally different by the time you finish the story. And this happens in a way that is least expected because you know the characters not through their present self but their past selves. It really gives the idea of how people are shape by their past and alter by their future.

One thing that I am particularly negative about when it comes to Spirit Circle is that it is told from a male perspective. In that it's probably a story mainly for a male rather than a female despite the content of the story. Don't get me wrong. Although Spirit Circle is told from a predominantly male point of view, it is definitely different from the mediocre and redundant Shounen manga that you see nowadays. It may not be a manga for everyone but it is a manga that's unlike any.

I've been reading so many reality escaping manga that I can barely remember how it feels like to read a manga with meaning and purpose. It's been too long since I last read a manga that is more than just a manga. A manga that isn't just about the characters and the story but about the idea and symbolism behind the story and characters.

Personally speaking, I wouldn't say that this manga is realistic. Although it is more realistic than other manga, it still has the usual unrealistic story progression of a manga. I really wish they had base the story on real people instead of ... an idealistic view of how people go through a gender and sexuality identification and acceptance.

Overall, the story is creative. Not exactly unique but creative. The author has put in a lot of thoughts to both the story and the art to draw out the best of the characters and their emotions. It is one of the few Shounen Ai manga drawn in a Shounen demographic art style.

Unlike its predecessors, Trace 1.5 is less serious and more life like. It comes with entertaining humor and well develop characters to refine the story into perfection. A beautiful tale about finding friendship, family, and love where you least expects it. Though I say these things, there is really no words to describe what it is like, you will just have to read it for yourself.

Intro:

The first two chapters are a bit slow and somewhat boring, mainly due to the fact that it is trying to explain the contents of the plot. After that, the manga takes flight into the unbelievable and thrilling events of the story, so try to stick to it until chapter three.

Characters:

March's attitude is similar to Haruhi Fujioka from Ouran High School Host Club. She's somewhat passive and can have her cute moments in the manga. She has short hair and looks like a young boy. There is of course many secrets behind her past but you will have to read the manga to find ... out.

Rodin looks like the cool yet innocent type but he isn't at all. He tease March from time to time and shows some affection towards March. Despite his actions, he has yet to know that March is actually a girl. He can be sneaky in business and somewhat of a comedy relief in the manga.

Jake looks like the the old witch, Yubaba, in Spirited Away her intentions are always pure. She cares a lot about March and has somewhat of an affiliation in March's past. She is like a big sister to March.

The synopsis made it seem like this will be another fantasy where the main character will reattain his past life memories in the end but that is totally wrong. Anime cannot get more real than this when comparing it to reality.

The story revolves around Juuzawa Juu, a notorious delinquent at his school. Then suddenly out of the blue, a quiet girl calls Juu out and tells him that he was a king in his previous life and she was his faithful knight.

[Spoiler]
As the story progresses a scene is shown at the end of the first episode in the OVA, indicating a memory of Juu when ... he was a kid. In this memory, Juu was probably in grade school. He seems to be all beaten up like he had just got out of a fight. Juu saw a girl crying in a park. Juu approaches her and pat her on the head as a sign to comfort her. He then sat next to her and pulled out a toy that is dress as a king. This strongly indicated that Ame's memories of this "Past Life" must have been caused by Juu himself when he was a boy.

At first I thought that it was going to be like The World God Only Knows where Kucabara will be doing one contract after another. But then the story completely went off it's mark. He was no longer doing his Defense Devil but something else.

The character was typical too. The main protagonist as the "Naive" and innocent shounen, the main heroine as a Tsundere, and with both of them having experience tragedies in the pass.

Overall, a redundant manga but still a good manga.

My Thoughts:
I wasn't really into these types of manga. I thought that I would come to hate it due to the fact that a thirty one year old is trying to score a ten year old. But despite believing so, it wasn't my style to judge a book by its cover, so I decided to read the first chapter just to get the juice of it. To my surprise, the manga shoot completely above my expectations. Kore wa Koi no Hanashi, a manga for both teenagers and adult. A story based upon the sanctity of love and friendship. Truly something in which I could not ... have foreseen coming.

Plot:
At first glance, Kore wa Koi no Hanashi may seem to be a story about pedophile but it isn't. Unlike other manga, Kore wa Koi no Hanashi starts out with the goods stuff so the readers will get into the story right away. Throughout the manga, it would be rare to find a plot where the story wasn't interesting. Every little thing in that manga is valuable and builds up to the moral story line.

Characters:
Uchikai Makuzu, like most male characters in Shoujo manga, seems cold and expressionless.(Obviously due to trauma in the past) Despite being so, he is quite caring and mortify with his own decisions and believes.

Morimoto Akio, she herself is emotionless most of the time and rarely express how she feels. But she's not afraid to say what she needs to say in order to convey her true feelings at critical moments. Through out the story you will see her innocence being displayed and how her personality very much is the key to the drama of the story.

PS: The ending was a bit rush but I still like it.

This anime is beyond anything that can be conceive by the normal mind. Some people love this anime with passion while others hate it with pride. Just know that this anime is beyond sickening and corrupted. It is pure evil.