The manga I've read lately...

[katikat]

I've started buying manga only lately because I have enough books to keep me occupied for several months. And there have been a few manga that deserve to be mentioned here...

Incubus 1 by Yayoi Neko: The art was so-so and the story nothing that exciting either. This manga is also really short (only 128 pages) and thus rather expensive. It does seem that I didn't like it much, doesn't it? So, why I'm writing about it here?

Well, I didn't fall in love with the main pairing (Judas and Lenniel) but with the supporting couple: Kent and his young master (nope, it's not D/s, what are you thinking about! sheesh! XP). Kent is a butler in this "young master's" family. The young man (younger than Kent! woohoo!) falls in love with Kent and starts a relationship with him. But then something happens...

They are much more interesting than Judas and Lenniel. What I minded the most was Judas' obsession with his professor. That one was rather overdone. But there were some really cute scenes like: Judas to Lenniel: "More explaining, less touching, please..." XP

Still, I would give it only 3 stars and I'm not all that bouncy about the second volume. It's not on the top of my "to buy" list :(

---

Gorgeous Carat Galaxy by You Higuri: Wow, this one was worth every penny. It has a wonderful amazing art, exciting story and the volume is quite thick too (256 pages). I've been waiting for this manga for months and I wasn't disappointed. It wasn't as good as the Azura arc in the Gorgeous Carat manga but it was definitely better than the first volume of said series.

It was so good to see Ray and Florian back in action. Florian was getting himself into a lot of trouble like usually and Ray was rushing to the rescue. There were some really touching, angsty scenes between these two, although it's still not yaoi or even a full blown shounen-ai. But since I like hint-ish manga best, this one made me rather giddy! *sparkles*

There was one thing I was missing though - a climax (nope, not in the sexual way! gosh, you really have a one-tracked mind! XD). The main story sort of... dissipates for the lack of a better word. That's my only complain. But since I bought it because of the characters, you won't see me complain much.

You Higuri also promised to continue this series - although it's been 2 years now and nothing. I really hope that she will and that she'll bring Azura back. That hunk of a man was such a wonderful source of angst! XD

All in all, I would give it 4,5 stars :)

---

La Esperanca 1 by Chigusa Kawai: Another hint-ish manga I adore. The art is not so pretty as in Gorgeous Carat but then, few manga authors can draw like You Higuri, right? The art is still wonderful and the story too.

I've always liked angsty stories set in catholic schools for boys in Europe. And this one is all about angst and a catholic school. There is something about these young men praying in a church, then falling into the hands of a seducer... Okay, okay. Maybe I'm perverted XP

The characters of Georges, Robert and even Freddy are quite deep and interesting. All of them have dark spots in their pasts and each of them is handling them in a different way. The m/m relationships are almost non-existent, a kiss or two but that's it.

It's still a story to my liking and I didn't wait and ordered the next two volumes immediately. This one would deserve 4,5 stars and I hope that the next books will be just as good.

I really had to cut this one. My reviews ARE getting longer and longer XP

Comments

[katikat.livejournal.com]

I like manga, where it's not all about sex. I don't like PWPs. I love the sort of Gorgeous Carat or La Esperanca best - it's about the relationship and there is some mystery and some trauma. I think I love the trauma best. I love manga with lotsa plot and few sex scenes (sometimes, sex is good but not when its only purpose it is to shorten the space for the plot development).

Then I need to buy Hands Off! I liked Eerie Queerie, though the later two vols weren't as good as the first two.

Do you also buy manhwa? michalyn recommeded me Let Dai but I don't know...

[merith.livejournal.com]

let dai i'm collecting more because i'm too stubborn to stop. the story isn't bad, but it's a bit violent, and one of the main characters, dai, doesn't make me want to like him much. (he does something absolutely terrible, completely unforgivable).

i feel the same about eerie queerie. i was disappointed with the last two volumes. but hands off is the same sort, but different. it does drag just a tad, seeming to have the same storyline over and over with the same outcome, but each one a little closer to the truth. the characters are very engaging, though, and a lot of fun is had.

i do collect manhwa, and while i debate about let dai, i do enjoy "the boy princess" (as odd as it can be) and "not so bad".

let me go look through my collection and we'll see what i have that you don't. k? :)

[katikat.livejournal.com]

Thank you, thank you for any help. The reviews on Amazon are not really helpful.

I was thinking about Boy Princess though I'm not sure about the art. I also wanted to buy Lies and Kisses and Empty Heart by Masara Minase but they seem to be unavailable (4 to 6 weeks delivery time usually mean unavailable).

I've heard that there are some m/m hints in Let Dai. Does it look like the two guys will end together or does it head towards a tragedy of some sort? I really don't like manga with bad endings *sniff*

[sabershadowkat.livejournal.com]

I so agree that the first to EQs were good, but the second two were not. In fact, I only kept the first two volumes because of it.

I like manga in a similar way you seem to: more shonen-ai than yaoi. I'd recommend Hands Off! (for sure, though some people classify it as friendship rather than romance), Fake (best complete series), and Our Kingdom. And if you haven't read it yet, Only The Ring Finger Knows manga, which I adore.

Gravitation is a good one too, but has a LOT of comedy in it, so you have to enjoy that sort of thing. The romance part, though, is excellent, and watching Yuki fall in love with Shuichi while struggling with his past is what makes the manga a keeper, for me.

[katikat.livejournal.com]

I decided to keep EQ and Yellow too, even though only the first volumes are any good.

I've ordered Hands Off! and Let Dai (a friend of mine recommended that one to me). Fake is so good. I don't have it at home but I translated the books for a friend of mine so I know what's going on. The last volume was so cool, when they finaly got together. Oh, do you have the story that follows the manga? There is only one chapter but it offers a closure for every character there. Our Kingdom is on my wish list. Wah! I need more MONEY!!!

I don't know about Gravitation. All the comedy kind off scared me off... :(

[sabershadowkat.livejournal.com]

No, I haven't seen the story that follows the Fake manga. jdfiladkhafjldjfaj! Where can I find?

You can probably find Gravi scanlated online somewhere, thus you can test it out for free. I would say it has Ouran Host Club level of comedy to it. Gravi has an anime to it, too, but it doesn't has as much character-depth to it as the manga does.