Back to vanplayer's Profile vanplayer's Profile

There are two types of people when it comes to spicy food. Those who love it and make all the food they eat spicy and those who can't handle the heat and avoid it at all costs. This manga is like that. Here is a rundown.

Pro:
- The story is very well written. From reading Akasaka Aka's previous work, the author's character-building and interesting character interactions are fully displayed here.
- The art is visibly appealing. Yokoyari Mengo's use of dark shadows and sketch lines gives the design a haunting feeling that matches the dark emotional moments in the story. I also love the ... little chibi expression when a character is doing something silly.
- The story is very unique. Two characters are reincarnated as children of the idol they admire and want to carry on their mother's legacy while also pursuing something more sinister. Besides the surface story, the manga shows the dark side of the entertainment industry in Japan and it is a real eye-opener. It touches on things like cast members who didn't have issues with each other finding ways to resolve their fans hatting on their co-stars, the troubles of famous people having to be careful of who they hang out with so that the public doesn't ship them together and engaging topics.

Cons:
- The uniqueness of the setup for the manga is very impactful and captures you into reading it but this is where my spicy food analogy comes in. As stated earlier, Akasaka is very good at writing interesting characters and how they interact with each other. This is apparent in the two main leads of the story. The two main characters are a dying girl at a hospital and a doctor, the dying girl loves the doctor thus when both get reincarnated she still has those feelings toward the doctor. So this weird incest thing going on in the background that slowly rises to a focal point in the story. Plus the fact the main character's physical age is under 18 (Japan's age of consent is different to the West but that is something to understand when reading this manga.), makes reading the story uncomfortable to the point it made me drop the manga at times. Thus some people will be put off by this or some will dive face-first into the fire.
- As stated in the previous point about under age. Some topics involve children under 18 doing certain things that might be uncomfortable. I don't believe this occurs often in the manga but they are present in the story.

I would only recommend this to those who are ok with reading dark subjects and those who are into revenge stories. If my cons for the story put you off from the manga then I would advise you to not read Oshi No Ko.

Time for some quick points. Let's run some down.

Pros
- The premise of this love story is an amazing twist on the romance manga genre. The difference that this manga has that others don't, is that it's aware that these characters like each other but they are too prideful to confess thus they go around these funny wacky situations to get the other to confess. This dynamic leads to comically intense scenarios where each character tries to outwit the other, adding a shonen vibe where simple romantic moments turn into high-stakes, Death Note-style psychological battles to make the other person confess first.
- The cast ... is very likable, and they aren’t just left on the sidelines. Each character has an interesting backstory and a meaningful role in the story. The best part is watching the two main characters engage in their psychological fight, with the side characters either interfering or escalating the conflict in fun ways.
- The romantic conflicts are both funny and engaging, and there wasn’t a single “fight” that felt poorly done.

Cons
- I would say that art is very basic at the beginning of the story but becomes a lot more visually impressive throughout your read (this is just what I recall, I could be wrong).
- This manga like any comedy, has ruining jokes that occur (like a character is known to be lazy, they do something lazy). So if you're the type that doesn't like these then it might bother you.
- My only grip is that the story didn't have a sequel but that could also be a blessing cause the story didn't make me drop it throughout its run.

This manga is one of my favourites in the love and comedy genre and I believe that if you pick this manga up, you won't be disappointed.

Let shot fire some thoughts

High Notes
- The art is amazing. Kōhei Horikoshi is able to draw manga in a comic-like style which makes the reading experience constantly entertaining regardless of writing. Character designs are very unique and creative, shadows make scenes a lot more intense and impactful. The panelling of scenes is very creative such as using hands to act as borders between scenes, characters' facial expressions when expressing great emotions and impact frames are beautiful to see.
- The concepts of quicks are very interesting and just seeing how people in this world use them for their own everyday use or hero ... work is always a delight to see.
- The beginning of the story is very impactful and draws you in. Deku is an underdog in the story and watching rise to the occasion during fights that seem difficult to tackle is inspiring. I enjoy the Todoroki family parts of the story since I kinda remind me of some difficutls parts of my life (I recommend reading the manga for this part since it brings up topics of people growing up in difficult family)
- Kōhei Horikoshi is good at making emotional moments for characters. All might be a joy to see on the pages with his contagious smile that brings hope. With his backstory being provided, it makes you feel for the character. I also enjoy the villains of the manga where they are born with a quick which puts them in a situation where society resents them.

Low Notes
- The series had an issue similar to Naruto where it felt dragged out longer than it should have. Like halfway through the story, it feels as if the story gonna be going for 500 chapters since it introduces a lot of interesting topics and themes but then suddenly those things are wrapped up in an instant to go to a final arc. During the final arc when things are speeding up, the arc slows down which makes it odd that some themes or topics when the manga was speeding up weren't properly addressed in detail.
- This will expand a little bit on the previous point. During the halfway part of the story when it suddenly speeds up, it makes me sad that we didn't slow down to let the impact of certain moments land and cause certain plot points to be introduced just to be eliminated in a few chapters. There were a lot of weird writing choices during the later half that put me off the series at times but I think the ending (while not being perfect) rounds things out alright.
- Kōhei Horikoshi is a very creative artist but when it comes to character writing side character, it doesn't seem to be his strong suit in my opinion. Deku's classmates besides the important ones (Bakugo, Todoroki, Uraraka) don't seem to be very relevant in the story unless Kōhei Horikoshi puts them in a fight then they suddenly have a character moment. So sometimes these characters feel kinda left out or under-explored. I feel the female cast besides Toga and Uraka was kinda under-explored.
- Fight scenes aren't very deep (it doesn't have to be but something to note). JJK has a very good fight layout and understanding of battle flow (like how characters do certain actions to beat the enemy). MHA has a Bleach effect where they pull off certain moves and then there's a flashback thus character does a cool move and beats the enemy. This writing style isn't bad as stated before Kōhei Horikoshi is good at making emotional moments but once you notice a bit of this style it kinda becomes predictable.

I think this manga besides its flaws is still enjoyable to read. It is not the best manga ever but the impact of the themes of the story hits hard. It was not a dark story and it didn't need to be. Certain topics and themes weren't explored enough which is disappointing but after some time to reflect, manga still had something worth experiencing.

Here are my thoughts on the manga overall.

High Notes
- Action is very well laid out. You can tell this author loves fight choreography. Character motions and movement are very engaging in a way you can feel the impact of each blow. Certain fights are very creative like the 3-way Sendai Colony fight, the strongest vs the _______ curses and high school student vs. lawyer (there are plenty to choose from so take your pick)
- The concept of black flash was a cool power. The idea is that it is just luck that you can achieve this amount of impact is a cool concept and ... showing that any character (good or bad) can do it is a nice touch.
- The concepts of domains are interesting and how the authors tackle domain fights is a great read.
- Certain characters had fascinating themes. For example: what it means to be the strongest and how it can be isolating, Yuji's discovery and journey in understanding what makes a proper death, and the topic of the best approach for jujutsu society.
- Character teaming up/jumping against powerful opponents that can't be handled one-on-one is a nice way to make fights more unique and increase urgency in the conflict.

Low Notes
- You may have noticed in the last section I stated certain characters. That is because there is a large cast of characters that don't get this treatment.
- Gege's writing relies a lot on telling the reader something but never showing it. There are instances where things feel like a bigger issue but aren't. These affect character dept and worldbuilding. Another issue is that the story is constantly at a fast pace. It has its advantages where you don't need to read through a training arc or wait until the next big event but the downside is that you lose character interacting and character focuses moments outside of fights.
- The ending has a lot of loose ends that aren't wrapped up and a lot of the characters aren't given a proper goodbye for the series.
- Bind vows were introduced as a very interesting concept. The only issue I had with it was how annoying it was when a certain character used them during a specific fight. Binding vows felt like a loophole for Gege to allow this character to do something that the character shouldn't be able to do at that moment. Also, there aren't any consequences of binding vows. If this character can spam binding vows why can't the rest of the cast? Readers are told the dangers of breaking a binding vow but we aren't shown what could happen thus it feels like there aren't any consequences.

This series is a mixed bag. There are very good moments in the series like the Shibuya incident but aren't gonna occur often. I recommend it to those who want to read it to turn off their brains cause certain plots/characters aren't gonna be paid off or paid off poorly. This story isn't very deep but the action scenes make it worthwhile. If you want deep characters or plots then this isn't the series for it since the author has shown thought the manga not able to conclude things satisfyingly.