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Story:
Seishun Survival is a collection of 4 short stories about school romances. Usually short story collections (especially school romance ones), tend to not be as engaging as longer running series because the stories are rather simple, but Seishun Survival took some really interesting ideas and gave them a fun spin, making this collection really stand out. Liar Love Letters was probably my favourite out of the group because it took a shoujo trope and ran with it, producing an interesting way to watch a relationship between the girl and the guy unfold. Title story Seishun Survival was rather typical, but I liked how it made ... all the characters add something to the group's survival. The third story had a pretty funny twist (ninjas~) and had some really funny moments that make it quite enjoyable. And finally the last story was also quite typical, but the characters really stood out.

Art:
Clean, pretty art. Suffers from a bit of saminess (i.e. characters look the same), but I liked it nonetheless. It's a bit lacking in distinctness, but makes up for that by giving us nice looking art.

Characters:
The characters don't have much backstory. Some get none, like the ones from the first, second, and last story. Some get a bit, like the ones from the third story, but even then the characters aren't really multidimensional. However, the author makes up for this by giving us some really distinct personalities or cutting through stereotypes. Like for example, the pretty airhead in the first story is actually quite dependable when under pressure. The heroine of the second story, for example, acts in a rather realistic way and her emotions are depicted quite well, which makes up for her lack of characterization. And all the characters from the Beads Club, in the final story, are distinct and I wish I could have gotten to see more of them.

Conclusion:
Seishun Survival is quite the charming collection. Each story has a different strong point and charm making the collection stand out from other similar collections. The first story has a few nice twists in terms of characterization and the romance is cute. The second story develops the romance through the medium of letters, which gives it an unique feel, but also develops the main character's feelings in a realistic way. The third story is all around funny and cute. And the final story introduces us to some interesting characters. I sort of wish the last story was longer because the group of friends seems quite fun. Overall, the characters are likeable and the romances are fun to watch. In fact, I wasn't expecting this collection to be as good as it was. Recommended!

Mod Edit: This review was originally posted for Slow Down (8980) and has subsequently been merged into Hanshin (5943).


Story:
I'm going to be frank. There really isn't a story. We get a set up: a young man voluntaries for a sensory deprivation experiment and that's basically it. We see his experience during the experiment and right after. For some this might be a problem, but for others who can appreciate thematic one shots this should not pose a problem. I personally believe that this is the best way to approach a one shot since plot and character development cannot really be fleshed out in a one ... shot, while exploring a single theme is perfect for a short work.

Art:
The art is retro, which is not surprising given the date this was publish: 1985. I personally really like the retro shoujo art, so I really liked the art in this one shot.

Characters:
The main point of this one shot is exploring the human psyche. While we know very little about the main character outside the unusual circumstances he is placed in, that is ok because this is not about the character himself, but rather the character as a representation of the human mind. He is the human psyche and this story is dealing with our human reactions to the world and to ourselves. It uses this character placed in such an unusual setting to explore one of the most problematic issues in epistemology (the study of human knowledge, especially its limits). That is, the problem of knowledge of reality. And just as the problem still remains unsolved (and probably will forever), so too does the story end without solving the character's problem. When the character is understood in this way, the characterization is well done.

Conclusion:
I would say this one shot isn't for everyone. If someone is looking for something entertaining to read, Slow Down is not it. Those looking for something strange and maybe even thought provoking (depending on one's exposure to philosophy), Slow Down is for you. The enjoyment of this one shot is directly tied to the willingness of exploring one's mind along with the main character. Since everything this manga brought to the table wasn't new to me and I quite enjoy a more artistic representative of traditional problems in philosophy, I really liked this one shot. But I will stress again that whether you like this or not highly depends on what you want out of it.

Story:
Quite addicting. It starts out slow, but once it gets going, it's really hard to put down. It would have earned a perfect score of 10 if not for the weird nonsense involving Syoaran's parents and the ending (which I thought was rather uninspired). I've even thought it through about Syoaran's parents, it makes no sense. But for the sake of this review being spoiler free, I won't put my assessment in. PM/message me if you want a full explanation with spoilers.

Art:
Not really a fan of this style, it has grown on me, but I still prefer Clamp's old style. It's not bad, just not ... my cup of tea. I would say it's the worst when seeing old characters because they don't look as good as they did. Also, with some of the fights, it's hard to tell what is going on. I usually don't even bother trying to figure it out because TRC is more about the story than the fights.

Characters:
I'm a little biased here since I adore CCS. I will admit, that was the main reason I gave TRC a try and even continued reading when it didn't really catch my attention at first. Characters are definitely the strongest point in TRC. Sakura and Syoaran act just like expected (with a minor weird moment at the end in my opinion). New characters, Fai and Kurogane are also really interesting and their back stories are some of the best moments in TRC. With so many reoccurring characters, Clamp fans will be the ones who will get the most out of it. But you don't need to read anything else by Clamp to understand the story since the characters aren't the same, they are other versions in different dimensions of those characters (as is explained in volume one or two).

Conclusion:
For the most part, TRC is a great read. I loved the mysterious and some what somber tone of the story. Characters had really interesting back stories. I was even ready to give this manga a 10 and it was one of my favourites for a few years, but then I read the last few chapters and they sort of left a sour taste in my mouth. First, as I mentioned before, the thing with Syoaran's parents made no sense what-so-ever. Second, the ending was really out of character for Syoaran and Sakura (and disgustingly cliche) . Third, I never got the significance of the name, especially since that name was being stressed for about a volume or two prior to the conclusion. Again, it's not bad, I did give it a 9 after all. It's just that the conclusion was anti-climatic, which really hit the quality of the manga. It's still great, just not worth a 10 in my eyes.

Story:
It's about two boys trying to get along, one is a human that loves plants, the other is a superplant that distrusts humans. Cuteness ensures! Although there isn't any romantic relationship between the boys, it's heavily implied. Personally I thought the story was simple but adorable beyond words.

Art:
I don't have much to say about the art. It's pretty but standard manga art. There is a distinct style shining through, but at the same time it has a very standard feel to it. The color spreads are really nice as well. And the artist adds in just the right amount of detail into every panel. All ... in all good art.

Characters:
Tasuku is the most developed out of the whole cast. He's given a bit of backstory near the end of the manga. All other characters have strong personalities that shine through but very little backstory. Masahiko is the happy go lucky protagonist, who is hard not to like. His happy demeanor contrasts nicely with Tasuku, who is anti-social. Again these two characters are just adorable together.
The manga lost a point here for failing to overcome the standard evil girl cliche. In the second chapter, the only female character in the main cast is an evil conniving girl, who does things that will get her disliked by all readers. Basically she is there to threaten the relationship between the two boys and add some conflict into the mix. While she does have motives for her actions, they are a bit unrealistic and thus this manga tends to fall into the Boy Love cliche of having all female characters as evil broads, who try to wedge themselves between the boys. Granted, chapter three introduces a male villain, but it still stands that the only female in the whole cast is the evil girl.

Conclusion:
Excluding the minor character hiccup, Yasei no Bara is a well written story about two boys trying to get along. The main hook of this manga is the relationship between Tasuku and Msahiko, which is very adorable. I found myself smiling as the two try to get along and as Tasuku showed his more tender side through flowers.While this will most likely appeal to fans of Boy Love, other shoujo readers may find it enjoyable as well because there is nothing graphic and all romance is implied. Being only a single volume, I recommended at least trying it.

Story:
Very bare bones, just there to make the sex scenes make sense. I've noticed that this one really likes the older women with younger men scenarios.

Art:
I really like the art. What's interesting to note is that the women are chunkier in this manga (but I guess that is a porn thing). I actually welcome the chunkier ladies, they look more realistic (well except for breast size.lol.)

Character:
Some of the stories have a bit of character development, but 90% of the manga is doing what it's suppose to do, sex scenes. The girls are pretty similar, horny women seducing men who are usually younger. The men look ... similar but there is a bit of variety. The guy in the second last story for example, didn't want to have sex with a married women, while the guy in the third through sixth chapters had no qualm about screwing his mother. I found the mother and son story very bizarre.

Conclusion:
If you haven't noticed, this was my first hentai manga. It wasn't too bad. I found some of the dialogue funny. The sex scenes were pretty graphic, but well done. I think after half the manga I got bored because the same thing kept happening. Girl seduces boy and the exact same sex scenes would follow with maybe some variation in what order. I think if the artist saved some of the more unique positions for later, the manga would have been better. Also the girls all say the same thing and it got pretty repetitive.
I think I'm probably not the intended audience because I read this more as an informative experience. Looking at art, physical proportions, language, type of sex, etc. I did like the first two scenarios, but I just cannot understand the appeal behind screwing your mother. I found that really bizarre. I think I the manga could have benefited from more story, but again this is probably because I wasn't really reading it only for the sex.

Story:
The premise is interesting, albeit familiar: The main character has something she regrets not doing. When hit by a car, she is seemingly sent back to the past to relive her high school days and the one thing she regretted not doing. All I can say is the story is very touching! This means a lot coming from me because I don't like school romances.

Art:
The art has a very shoujo-like favour. It reminds me a bit of Takeuchi's art, except less wispy. I found the art to be quite good, but lacking some personality. Overall the art is good in my opinion.

Characters:
Surprisingly good. Tomoko is ... one of the few shy girls that is well crafted. She lacks the courage to do something, but she realizes this and regrets it. We see her slowly understanding her mistake and resolving to change it. The main male lead, Ogata, is likable as well. He usually teases Tomoko, but hides a more mature side of himself. The biggest plus about Ogata is that he isn't chauvinistic. He tells Tomoko what he thinks, but doesn't force his view upon her. Leaving it up to her to understand what she may from his words. I was impressed by the maturity with which Mashiba-san crafted her characters.

Conclusion:
Anyone who likes shoujo, even a little, should read this! It's only a single volume, so it's not very long and the story and characters are well done. If you don't like romance, or school romances, I suggest still giving 1/6000 honesty a try because I enjoyed it and I don't really like school romances either. The story has a wonderful message hidden inside and it's very touching. Again, I recommended it~

A lot of people seem to like this manga, but these are my honest opinions:

Story:
Very very bland. Nothing much happens, it's just about a group of friends trying to protect a little NPC with an uncanny resemblance to Aura. You have them going to different events and hanging around trying to solve the mystery (but if you watched SIGN or played the video games, this isn't much of a mystery). The big mystery of the NCP is a big disappointment as well (in my opinion of course). Again its just bland and unengaging. I had to force myself to finish the last volume.

Art:
It's cute, but ... not much else. Nothing really distinct about it. It has no personality at all. It's fine and it gets the job done, but it really isn't worthy of any praise in my opinion.

Characters:
Most of the characters are fun to get to know. Each one has a distinct personality and everyone will probably find someone they enjoy. I found Zefie to be extremely annoying, Shugo was kind of dull, but the rest of the characters were enjoyable. Ouka, in particular, was a lot of fun when she wasn't hitting on Shugo. I found the obsession most of the female characters had with Shugo to be annoying as well. Even his sister had the hots for him (how original)!! I was very disappointed that .hack was turn into a harem-like manga, the franchise deserves better.

Conclusion:
If you like the .hack franchise, you'll probably like this manga as well. But not always, I liked SIGN but I found this manga to be boring and dull. The story was not as griping as SIGN and the main characters (shugo, zefie, rena) were very shallow. Zefie in particular annoyed me to no end with her selfish attitude. I found this manga to be more of a harem romance then an adventure, which is disappointing given how wonderful the other .hack properties were. I can only recommend this to people who like very slow slice of life manga and/or harem romances.

Story:
Typical shoujo stuff; girl asks for boy's help and both end up falling for each other. The story is a little dull because it is so predictable, but fans of shoujo school romances will enjoy this one-shot. I'm not really big on school romances anymore, especially when they are so cliche, but I did mildly enjoy this one because it wasn't too long (being a one-shot), and the female character did have some redeeming qualities, and there were some funny moments. It's fine, but nothing exceptional.

Art:
I really like Takeuchi's art, so I really liked the art in Rain Kiss. However, I have to admit her ... art is rather plain with little to no detail. The characters do look better then the backgrounds, and overall her art has a very wispy feel to it. You will either love it or hate it. I happen to love it, so it gets an 8 from me.

Character:
It's a one-shot, so there isn't much characterization. Shigure, the main female lead gets the most characterization, but it's still rather weak. Also characters are rather shallow and stereotypical. Ujo is the good looking boy genius who is a little mean to the heroine, yet still helps her out. Shigure is dumb and in need of help to pass her school exams and graduate. Yet she isn't spineless, thankfully, and does stand up for herself. Takeuchi seems to really like dumb, but spirited girls for some reason...most of her heroines fall into this category (just an observation, neither a criticism or a compliment). Overall, characters are there to serve a purpose in the story, but are nonetheless likable.

Conclusion:
ok, so you can probably tell that I'm not too fond of stereotypical, shallow, or weak characters/stories. However, since this is a one-shot, I tried to be a little more lenient and for a very stereotypical school romance, Rain Kiss wasn't half bad, especially because Shigure turned out less stereotypical overall. Even though she was suppose to be the meek, in need of help girl, she is actually quite vocal about her concerns, and isn't a pushover or lacking common sense, for which I am very thankful. I think I would have enjoy this more if the story had some twist, but sadly it doesn't and it is painfully predictable.

Overall, it's decent. I recommend it to Takeuchi fans, as well as fans of school romances. Shoujo readers looking for a decent and quick read should also check it out. Everyone else will probably find it boring.

Story:
Byakuya Zaushi is comprised of 5 stories; the first 4 are rather short horror stories, but the final story is pretty long and revolves around a girl whose tribe and brother were killed by Tibaria, a country trying to expand its domain. The brother's dying words are those of a pure white angel of death. The girl, named Jildora, decides she will find her brother's killer.

The first four horror stories are rather good. I really liked how the endings were open ended (except for the second story); it added another layer of creepiness to the stories. The stories in themselves were not very creepy, but ... I liked the supernatural aspects of them (they deal with oni, living spirits, death, and curses in this order).

However, the last story doesn't seem to fit. It isn't a horror tale at all and the story telling is quite different from the previous stories. It isn't horrible, but it was rather strange to have a love story in a collection of horror tales having nothing to do with love. The story itself was nothing special as well, which makes me come to the conclusion that the author decided to add a earlier one-shot she wrote into the mix. I feel this is a very bad idea because the mood of the first four and this last one is drastically different, which is why I gave Byakuya a 6 instead of a 7.

Art:
Very beautiful and slender art, and I really liked the eyes for some reason (but this is a personal preference). Again there is a vast discrepancy between the art in the first four horror stories and the last story. This leads me to believe that the author really did include an older work of hers. The last story's art is closer to mainstream than the other four. I prefer the art in the four short stories because of it's very distinct eyes and overall beautiful aesthetics.

Characters:
Beings a one-shot comprised of 5 unique stories, the characters don't get much time to develop. Still you can get an overall feel for them, especially in the last story. The characters didn't much interest me, especially those from the last story, which was typical shoujo fare.

Conclusion:
As you can probably tell, I'm not very fond of the last story in this collection. Not only did it throw the manga's overall dark feel off, but it was very bland. The beginning shows a lot of promise (girl wants to get revenge for her brother's death) but it soon devolves into a stereotypical fairytale. Prince Charming saving girl and girl falling for prince charming, ect ect. (there are a few twists and turns, but they are so obvious that it's painful).

Overall, I recommend anyone, who is in the mood for some not so scary horror to check out the first 4 stories. They are quite good and will most likely keep you entertained. I recommend opting out of the last story, unless your in the mood to finish off with some dreamy shoujo. Byakuya lost a point for this last story; I really did not enjoy the change of genres and feel and it left a sour taste in my mouth.

Before I begin, I would just like to say that this is my first ever review, so please bear with me. thanks.

Story:
The short synopsis of Basara here on MAL, of one brave girl liberating Japan from tyrannical kings, is the basic gist of the story. But I want to stress that the story is also so much more then just that main conflict. There are many stories, each dealing with characters that we come across on the journey that the main character takes. And these characters' stories are interwoven with that of the main character to bring about a breath taking epic. And it ... is an epic with a total of 27 volumes. But unlike some series that seem to be going on and on for no apparent reason, Basara fills her volumes with stories that continue to build toward the dramatic finale. Even with a fair share devoted to telling the stories of side characters, the tale of Basara itself does not stray from the main tale it is written to tell. All this I believe, is the result of the genius and power of the story teller, Tamura-san. The story of Basara is really one of its strongest points, and I can't express enough how beautiful it is. Also I feel that the story has a bit of everything, so that almost everyone will be statisfied with this little jewel.

Art:
Art is the weak point of Basara, but that is not to say the art is bad per say. Rather the art is unique and a bit unpolished, but it does improves as the story goes on. I, myself, find the art average, it is not bad, but it is also not superb. Basically, it gets the job done.

Characters:
The characters of Barasa are by far the manga's strongest point. Characters are given ample room to be developed and most of the main characters undergo changes along with the manga, and in a sense they grow with the manga. The characters are also given realistic personalities, they have both strengths and weaknesses. Even the villains are given realistic personalities, and often you may find yourself sympathizing with their plight or their goals.

Conclusion:
I highly highly recommend this manga, it has a beautiful story with engaging characters. Tamura-san shows the extent of her story telling abilities here; the story will keep you yearning for the next volume as soon as you finish the last, and the characters will stir your sympathies (well maybe there is one exception) and you will actually care as to what happens to them. Basara will be one manga that you can really take pleasure in reading and I find that it has a bit of every genre to keep everyone satisfied. With all that said, Basara is not everyone's cup of tea. Although it has action and fight scenes, these take a back seat to character interaction. The primary focus of Basara is character interacts and for those who do not enjoy such manga (or shoujo in general) will probably find Basara to be a disappointment. Likewise, the art of Basara is unique and a bit unpolished, so for those who read manga primarily for its artistic value will also be disappointed. Other then these two reasons, I really do believe that anyone who tries it will enjoy it. So if you are up for a 27 volume long manga series, give Basara a shot. :)