Otomen is the story of Asuka Masamune, a manly-seeming boy who harbors a secret love for “girly” pursuits like cooking and sewing. In this volume, his tomboyish girlfriend, Ryo, is picked to represent the second-year students in the school’s Ideal Woman competition, and draws on things she’s learned from Asuka in order to meet the challenge. The third chapter focuses on Juta, … [Read more...] about Otomen 5 by Aya Kanno: B
Shoujo
Otomen 3-4 by Aya Kanno: B
These two volumes, although mostly comprised of one-shot chapters with silly plots (Kanno writes that she's trying to hit all the major shoujo clichés), still manage to introduce two new characters and elevate the status of Ryo and Asuka's relationship to “officially dating,” though that doesn't result in any changes in the way they interact. Volume three begins with Asuka … [Read more...] about Otomen 3-4 by Aya Kanno: B
Cactus’s Secret 1 by Nana Haruta: B-
Miku Yamada has a problem: the boy she likes, Kyohei Fujioka, is oblivious to her feelings. When she attempts to give him chocolates for Valentine’s Day, he cheerfully offers to help her practice confessing her love for someone else. He seems to be more affected by memories of a childhood friend than by her, but occasionally makes comments that cause her to believe she has a … [Read more...] about Cactus’s Secret 1 by Nana Haruta: B-
Love*Com 17 by Aya Nakahara: B
After the main Love*Com story finished, mangaka Aya Nakahara published a few additional bonus stories, which are collected in the series’ seventeenth and final volume. Three stories depict Ôtani and Risa during their junior high years and one revisits the gang four months after graduation. One of the major flaws of Love*Com in its later volumes was that, in a transparent effort … [Read more...] about Love*Com 17 by Aya Nakahara: B
Love*Com 15-16 by Aya Nakahara: B-
I used to like Love*Com very much, but as I read these two volumes the main thought going through my mind was, “Just end, already!” End it eventually does, as volume sixteen sees the conclusion of the main story line (the seventeenth and final volume is comprised of short stories) , but before that can happen we must endure more chapters focusing on the supporting cast. … [Read more...] about Love*Com 15-16 by Aya Nakahara: B-