Ranked #324

Bitter Virgin (Manga)

Bitter Virgin is a short, four-volume manga about a girl with a secret and the boy who learns of it.

STORY - …Bitter Virgin isn’t actually about a bitter virgin. Quite the opposite, actually? To be honest, the shock value and tragedy of Aikawa’s secret faded relatively quickly for me (probably because of one too many episodes of Law and Order: SVU). The subject matter also reminded me a lot of those in Mondaiteiki Sakuhinshu (brought overseas as Confidential Confessions). Consequently, the story premise and flow felt rather typical and predictable in that romance drama sort of way. Nevertheless, Bitter Virgin is well told, and there are enough surprising little twists and interesting literary elements to keep a reader engaged and guessing. It has all of the things that keep the romance genre going strong, despite the shared basic plot. What I found most interesting though, was the fact that, as the series progresses, the themes explored gradually shift from one type of tragedy to another, and eventually, it connected the two as interesting foils. The further into it I got, the less typical things felt.

The emotional aspect of Bitter Virgin is very strong, particularly since Kei Kusunoki admits between chapters that she drew a lot of elements and inspiration from her own life and experiences. The story, while idealistic at times, still comes across as very heartfelt and sincere. Kusunoki also admits that her usual work is of the horror and comedic sort, and that this is her first romance, making it even more impressive.

CHARACTER - Like the story, both protagonists come off fairly typical at the beginning. Aikawa is a meek and quiet girl, and Suwa is a headstrong and impulsive boy. And yet, I warmed up to both of them very quickly. Both have an endearingly earnest quality to them that makes them likable, and no matter how many times these character archetypes are used, as long as they’re well-written and well-presented, they will work. Both characters also grow a great deal in the short four volumes, and they become truly multi-faceted. For example, Aikawa is noted to be terrified of men, but shows a lot of unexpected courage and resilience when faced with female tormentors. Her feelings for Suwa develop very gradually throughout the series, and Kusunoki is careful to make her thoughts and emotions at least somewhat believable. Similarly, Suwa’s initial interest in Aikawa is fraught with pity rather than any real kind of attraction; the progression is interesting to follow, and the lengths to which he feels he needs to go to remain appropriate to Aikawa are also rather admirable.

The supporting cast is also very strong, which I didn’t have expected at all. Suwa’s elder sister, in particular, in addition to being surprisingly headstrong and impulsive like her brother, becomes a startlingly significant role that contributes a great deal to the themes in the latter half of the story. Her presence contributes a unique perspective and forces those around her to consider many things in a difference light. Yuzu and Kazuki, Suwa’s classmates and respectively, his childhood friend and sudden girlfriend, are more predictable in their personalities, feelings, and eventual maturation, but both provide good support and drama and work well to round out the cast. Honestly, I didn’t find any of the characters particular irritating, which is a huge and thankful plus.

ART - Even though the marketed genre is seinen, the series’ art is pretty standard josei. It’s clean, elegant, and pleasing to the eye, but of a more mature aesthetic than typical shoujo — proportions are more realistic and there are less tonal flourishes like sparkles and bubbles, though they aren’t completely absent. I didn’t think much of it initially, but the style really grew on me as I progressed through the story. Kei Kusunoki is fantastic at depicting the emotions of her characters, which is unsurprising for the genre, but considering that she usually works in other genres, it might be a bit more notable. The art really helps heighten the sense of drama and suspense in many scenes, though the panel layouts are occasionally haphazard and confusing, especially when the gutter space is inconsistent or cramped. Because of the emphasis on emotions, there are a lot of close-ups and headshots, and backgrounds are lacking on many of the pages. Even the backgrounds that are present are contained within tiny panels, and yet, there is never any confusion as to where the characters are located, so I guess it works out well enough in the end.

OVERALL - Bitter Virgin is a good, quick read, and I would recommend it to anyone looking for a serious and emotional story. The characters are sincere and their relationships are sweet, if a little idealized. The story’s themes become less shocking and more meaningful and powerful as the series progresses. That the author drew a lot of inspiration from her own life experiences also helps tremendously in relaying the strong emotions the characters experience, so the package is very much worth the time. Sadly, Bitter Virgin hasn’t been licensed for release in the US or elsewhere overseas, but honestly, I think it could do pretty well anywhere. It’s a pretty universal story. read more

I have to admit, I've only just started reading this manga, and this is my first review.

A manga like this, with such a taboo plot, doesn't usually hit this close to home. Not to me, but with my very dear childhood friend. This is captured perfectly, the step-father's attempts, the mother thinking the child is lying, then when the mother was backed into a corner, she had no choice but to kick him out and beg for forgiveness.

Some of us have gone through things that happened in this manga, some can relate on another level, (for me it's the fear of men I have because I knew a molester like a neighboor, and my friend's brave struggles.) or just you want to see things from a new point of view.

This stories struggles with a strong and brave heroine, who faces her fears every day no matter what, and the people who grow to care about her.
This is a truly amazing manga. read more

This Manga is a beautiful Manga with a truly unique storyline. The lead female character, Aikawa, has an extrordinarily designed personality and history, and the lead male character, Suwa, is so very sweet. This manga makes you feel a sympathy towards the main characters, particularly Aikawa.

I love this romance, of how Aikawa's story transform's the girl chasing Suwa into someone in love without her even noticing, and how Suwa changes Aikawa's view on men and love. over all i have fallen in love with this manga as it was the first ever shojo manga i heve ever read(i was not a huge fan of shojo before this).

the story is matched by the romantic well draw backgrounds and characters, using a traditional shojo theme with what i describe as a wispy and romantic way of drawing.

the only downside to this story is the unpredictable rate of scanalations coming out, they are very slow, but it's well worth the wait in my opinion. read more

Bitter Virgin is a surprisingly mature, beautiful and dark story with a strange and misleading title. When I first saw the title of Bitter Virgin, I figured it was yet another mediocre Ecchi/Comedy that would feature some girl with overly sized breast to the point their unattractive embracing random men as their heads go into the breast. Classic joke isn't it? Of course thinking that, I decided to ignore the series, and wasn't even looking for a new series at the time, focusing on the things I was already reading. I heard it's name thrown around a couple of times afterwards, and finally looked at it. I was surprised to see that ecchi and comedy weren't even on the list, and instead it was a dramatic romance story. Though I couldn't help of thinking of NANA and how it portrayed the dramatic live of sluts (okay, okay, people who jumped from boyfriend to boyfriend and dreamed of having sex with various people) and got acclaimed (never liked sluts), I once again passed it. Today I decided to give it a chance, and it started off something like how I pictured it, the main character Suwa being a womanizer, attractive women chasing after him, and things similar, despite being done in a serious way. However things take a complete turn when Suwa is relaxing in a church that he spread rumors of being haunted, and hides when someone enters, thinking it may be one of the girls he just got away from. However he is surprised when it was the classmate, Hinako, that he tried to hit on only to have her run away. He pretends to be a priest, but ends up getting a confession, and a shocking one at that. Not just Suwa, I was pretty surprised at how serious the sudden plot twist was, and it didn't take long to realize how the story was going to be, a sad romance about overcoming the past, or something like that. Bitter Virgin is a misleading masterpiece, with a mostly dark but beautiful and hopeful story, with a great message.

Normally I would leave the secret as it is, a secret and let you hear it from the book and not me. However it seems other reviews have already told you, so I guess there's no point in not saying. Hinako got a stepfather, and her mother looked happier than ever, of course Hinako wanted her to be happy. However on the first night she was late for work, the stepfather grabbed and raped Hinako. Hinako burst into tears upon seeing her mother the next day, but the stepfather quickly showed up, and Hinako stayed silent, wanting her mom to be happy, and afraid of what would happen if she told. The stepfather continued doing it, and eventually impregnated her. Of course after suffering signs of it, she was taken to the doctor, and her mother found out she was pregnant. She got angry, and when Hinako said it was her stepfather, she didn't believe and made her get an abortion, and didn't tell their stepfather, not wanting him to think badly of her. It continued and she once again got pregnant, but this time was covered in bruises, and this time there was no escaping the truth of who did it. The mother made the stepfather leave, but Hinako was already sacred for life, and terrified of men. I'm sure you'll get what the rest of the story is about from that, and it is a beautiful and well developed story, as you watch Hinako and Suwa grow closer, as Hinako slowly accepts him more and more. Brilliant story, especially if you're looking for a more serious side of romance.

The art is pretty good and makes a mix of Seinen and Shojo drawing. I can remember moments with flowers blooming behind smiling or blushing characters, though the story is mature as hell, and at times it will reach a darker moments where the drawings move away from that style as well. Nothing particularly special, everything's drawn well, and doesn't really add to or distract from the series, and all the characters also look pretty good.

The characters are all done well, and despite the dark story actually mix in some comedy with it as well. Suwa is careful about getting close to Hinako despite his feelings for her, and is always looking out to protect her from men, though also tries to help heal her from her fears, of course he doesn't tell her that he knows here secret. Hinako is actually fairly happy, especially around Suwa, for the most part. Of course mentions of babies or being around males will scare the hell out of her are make her sad, but that's only normal. These are the two main characters, and there are also other re-appearing characters of course. Like Suwa's mother who wants him to get a local underage teen pregnant, and start his life as the keeper of her shop. More get introduced as time goes on, and they are all done well, with both a little comedy and especially having great drama ties to the story as well.

Overall Bitter Virgin is an amazing read despite it's short length, it stays focused on the true story without any non related side stories, and greatly develops the characters in that short time, as we get to slowly see the Hinako overcome her past, with a lot of help of course. Overall don't even think about the title, Bitter Virgin is an amazing read for anyone who likes the dramatic and mature side of romance, and is highly recommended to anyone who likes either genre. read more

The manga starts out like one of the typical school life manga involving a guy. The big tough playboy like guy who seems to want every girl. Then when one girl says a secret to him on accident, the storyline changes so fast its like getting smacked in the face by a freakin boxer.

To me, i found this manga to be one roller coaster of horror despite that not being one of its genres. The drama of this thing is so amazing, when i first found out what this story was going to be about, all i could say was... "Holy...sh-" with my blood pumping faster than it did when i watched Higurashi no naku Koro ni for the first time, and believe me, that anime was scary!!

Anyway, although this isn't my first shojou manga, this certainly gives me a more positive view on it...although it sure drops my faith in humanity's future...i can't believe some mem...they sure don't make the rest of us look any better...I hope and root for this manga to have a happy ending and i pray to Haruhi that the Tragedy genre will not come into this manga!!

Good Luck!! read more

Bitter Virgin is a really compelling Shoujo/Seinen, Slice of Life, Romance, Drama with a story that will blow you away. This manga deals with the terrible sorrows in life, so it’s definitely not for the fainthearted.

Daisuke Suwa is just your ordinary teenage boy who has been living a simple life but doesn’t enjoy it one bit. Then he soon becomes involved with his classmate Hinako Aikawa, after unintentionally learning about her deep dark secret. The story really gets serious, right from the start, which is pretty uncommon for your average romance. Though what intrigues me the most about the story is the bittersweet relationship that eventually developed between Daisuke and Hinako and how Daisuke was always troubled by what he knows about Hinako. Sure the fact that Daisuke, constantly worries about the issue with Hinako, does get wearisome after a while; the new situations that crop up become further compelling parts of the story (like the matter with Daisuke’s sister).

The characters of this manga generally cause a great deal of concern to those who read it. The story focuses on our two main characters; Daisuke a regular guy who ends up smitten over someone he would never consider and our heroine Hinako a girl who’s suffered a traumatic past. It’s really great how this manga gave an equal amount of focus on each of them, describing their thoughts and feelings when appropriate. Then there are other girls to consider (Kazuki & Yuzu), as they each make a huge impact on the overall romance, whilst another character makes an impact on the story.

Although when it comes to the artwork, it really doesn’t have much of an impact on this manga. Sure the characters look great and so does the backgrounds but there’s really nothing special about it, as you can easily find a bunch of shoujo manga that look just as great.

Overall Bitter Virgin is one of those tragic stories that will make you well-up with tears, but will still allow you to recover, with its endearing romance. Well there were a few annoying aspects about it, like the fairly unrealistic characters and how Daisuke kept on repeating the fact that she was ****ed and got ******nt. But apart from that, this was a good romance drama that can suck most people in. This mangaka managed to accomplish in 4 volumes what most manage to do in twice the amount and it had a decent ending to top it all off.

^_^ read more

To be honest at first I was afraid reading this manga. I'm not used to read this kind of stories, but I've read the other reviews and I started to get interested in the storyline.
The manga is about a girl, Aikawa Hinako, who was raped by his stepfather, got pregnant then aborted the child. But unfortunatelly the harassment countiued and she got pregnant again and she had to give the child to adoption.
We usually see the happenings from a boy's view, Suwa Daisuke, who accitentally heard Hinako's confession about her past. But instead of telling everybody at school, he's getting interested in the girl, and his mind always on Hinako. Daisuke is impressed by Hinako's strength, bearing the fact that she has a baby boy, who is already one year old yet she haven't even see him. Because of the rape, Hinako usually avoid his male classmates and quite afraid of men, but after she gets to no Daisuke, her fear is disappearing slowly and some new feeling replace it.

Well, the story is quite well done. The way Daisuke knows Hinako's past is interesting. It is good to see how their relationship progress day by day. And the fact that this can happen in the real life makes me rate it 9.

But I had some problems with the art. Sometimes, especially when we see the characters go or run away... Seems like he/she has to go to the toilet, becouse something horrible will happen...I hope you know what I mean...
But the others, like faces, expressions and backgroud are pretty so that's why I give this an 8.

Characters are all have different personalities. It was cute to see how Daisuke concern Hinako's past and emotions and try to protect her from the bullying of a girl, who likes Daisuke and intend to be his girlfriend. But there are times when they went overboard. Sometimes it's seems like Daisuke is going crazy always thinking about Hinako and don't deal with other things. Or Daisukes's girlfriend, who is always thinking about how to make Daisuke love her and she don't want to part with him. So it is only a 7 for me.

I don't know who can enjoy this kind of story... or maybe I don't know should I enjoy myself reading it? It is sure was interesting to read and it had a great impression in me. To be honest I couldn't really put away, while I was reading it. I always wanted to know how the story continues. So because of the tragic story I only give 7 for the sake of those women, who was raped or something like this happend with. I don't want do give it 9 or 10... I wouldn't feel it right.

Well this is a somewhat kind and gentle story, how can a girl stand up after so much hardships and find the love that she haven't experienced in her life before.
Those 32 chapters was so right to read.
Well I'll give it a 9, becouse of the artwork's problems and the sometimes fanatic characters.

You shouldn't just rely on my opinion, read all the reviews and decide to read it or not. I hope I helped you...

read more

Bitter Virgin is one of the few manga titles out there that deals with the horrible problems people face in real life, such as rape and abortion, and it deals with those issues as maturely as possible. The reason for this is probably down to the author being a woman who had to deal with stillbirth, one of the many issues the story goes into, herself when she was younger.

The story is very easy to understand and follow, yet it makes for compelling reading as a result of the story delving into the difficult topic of rape and how a rape victim deals with being around males afterwards. I haven't encountered any other anime or manga that has attempted to show how a rape victim acts and the slow road to getting over the fear of the opposite gender that women understandably feel after being sexually assaulted. The story was made that bit more powerful by the age of the rape victim (she was 14 when she got pregnant for the second time, 16 at the start of the story) and how she was raped so many times by her step father.

Hinako, the tragic female lead of the story, transferred to a school far away from her mother after she gave birth to a child that was conceived when her stepfather raped her. For a lengthy period before this her stepfather had sexually abused her, which resulted in her having an abortion before she became pregnant again later and gave birth. Her mother refused to believe her when Hinako told her just before she had her abortion, even going as far as to cover up the abortion so that her partner didn't find out. And, when her mother did finally believe her after she became pregnant for a second time, it was too late - their relationship had been damaged beyond repair. Hinako gave up the baby for adoption and moved to a completely different area.

At the new school she moved to, everyone assumed she was just a shy virgin. Even the male lead, Daisuke, who had most the girls in his class chasing after him, thought she was just the shy type at first, even going as far as to say she wasn't his type. But this all changed when Hinako entered the local church to make a confession and, with Daisuke hiding in there, ended up confessing everything to him, leaving him feeling awful. His thoughts about her then started to change, and he soon started to develop feelings for her that he hadn't felt before - love.

From there the plot moves at a steady pace as the two become closer and closer. Other characters become involved quickly, providing both help and more problems. On the problem side Kazuki, a girl who is obsessed with Daisuke, is easily the most problematic - she stalks poor Daisuke everywhere and even tries to bully Hinako to stop them becoming close. Another classmate thrown into the mix is Yuzu; another girl with a crush on Daisuke, this one having a sisterly relationship with him and not being obsessive like Kazuki. The other notable characters are Daisuke's mother, who hopes he will take over the shop she runs, and Daisuke's pregnant older sister, Izumi.

The main cast is very small, as you'd expect when the series is as short as it is. However, all the characters bring a little something to the story and never distract the reader from the relationship between the main two. Kazuki is there to make life difficult, Yuzu is there to support the main two (and cause yet another problem for them towards the end), Izumi is there to help Hinako beat her demons and Daisuke's mother is there for a bit of light comedy and some of the more serious moments. Although Daisuke's mother played a relatively minor role, the others are all very good characters.

Now, onto my more general thoughts about the series. Aside from the story not avoiding what other stories avoid like the plague and the story coming across as very realistic, what I liked the most about Bitter Virgin was how it didn't go on longer than it needed to. What I hated when reading Kare Kano, another (less serious) romance manga, was how it focused on the relationship between the main two at first and then started switching the focus to the huge amount of other characters involved, which meant the story dragged on for 21 volumes when it could've ended much earlier if only what was truly important had been focused on. In comparison, Bitter Virgin was able to reach its conclusion in a mere four volumes due to the focus of the story never completely switching from the relationship of Aikawa and Suwa.

Talking of the conclusion, the end did disappoint me a little. After all Daisuke and Hinako went through, it ended a little too negatively - I was hoping for a happy ever after type of ending. It wasn't totally bleak or anything, it just ended with rather depressing thoughts and didn't give a glimpse into the future in order to show how everything turned out. As happy as I am that the story wasn't dragged out, it would've been nice to have an extra chapter showing Daisuke and Hinako married with kids or something similar.

Before leaving you, I should at least mention the art. I thought the art was good without being amazing - none of the panels caught my eye and made me think how well it had been drawn. The best thing about the art was how it managed to highlight the innocence of Hinako; a girl who came across as a virgin to those who didn't know her secret due to how shy she seemed. While I can't imagine the art wowing anyone, I doubt readers would think it looks bad or find it difficult to follow the story as a result of the art.

Overall, I got a lot out of reading Bitter Virgin. Seeing a story go into the darker side of life and not hold back has made me hopeful of reading more stories like this when I was starting to lose hope. If the series ever gets released in the UK I'll be buying it.

Rating: 9/10 read more

Introduction
This manga is romance, drama and seinen (with a bit of comedy) genre. This is my first review here, so yoroshiku kudasai^^

Story - 8
The story is about the main character guy (Suwa Daisuke) who doesn't see the main character girl (Aikawa Hinako) as his type of girl for being extremely shy and reserved. But then, Daisuke finds out a dark, sad and repulsive secret about Hinako which caused her big fear of men and this information leads to him pitying her and thinking differently about her. He totally understands why she acted the way she acted all this time, and so, decides to protect her, while falling in love for her more and more.
The plot isn't too original and a little simple, but tha manga is short anyway, and the creator did great in performing it. Daisuke is extremely cautious of not scaring the girl away, like I said, and after a while, Hinako starts falling in in for Daisuke too, but Daisuke doesn't dare to get close to the girl, knowing she has a fear of men and he's a guy too. This goes on for a while, until things start unraveling between the characters, secrets become discovered, and things have to resolve.

Art - 6
The art of this manga kind of reminds me of a mixture of shounen and shoujo. I thought it was OK. The main character girl didn't seem too pretty in the beginning, but she seemed cuter after a while to me, so I think the artist did a good job there. A con could be that it seems as if the artist reuses drawings a lot, and especially the main character girl I see in the same poses a lot.
NOTE: I'm not objective when it comes to art. Manga with extreme shoujo art such as NANA would receive a terrible rating from me at art, even if many people think it's beautiful. So you don't have to care about what I write here :P

Characters - 8
Being a short four-volume manga, there weren't too many characters, so I'll write a bit about the more important ones
There were two characters I think are really worth mentioning, because I think they have good personalities, and that's Daisuke and his sister, Suwa Izumi. I'll talk a litle about them first, and after that, the other characters:
The awesome thing about Daisuke was that when he says to himself that he loves the girl, he really means it. He is also always afraid of scaring away the girl, which is cute. Although he doesn't seem to have the balls to dump his "girlfriend" (which is bad), he's a very good guy.
Then there's his sister, Izumi, who seemed to have a tough, but loving personality, with a weird way of thinking, but still she was cool and it was a good idea to have her in the manga. She has her own subplot in the manga about being pregnant, but I won't spoil anything.
Now the other characters:
Hinako was kind of monotone and calculable, but was a good role for the plot.
The antagonist-sort of character, Ibuse Kazuki, is terrible and ridiculously evil and messes things up, but thank God the creator didn't take it too far. You'll see.
There was Daisuke's childhood friend girl too, Yamamoto Yuzu, who is cool until the middle, but does something really stupid near the end.

Enjoyment - 10
Reading this manga was rare enjoyment to me.
+ The romance was very sweet, and they showed the characters thoughts a lot
+ The drama was really good
+ Daisuke, of who's point we see the story most of, was a very good and correct guy
+ There were good twists in the plot
+ The story didn't take any obstacle too far
+ It was very exciting
+ The comedy elements didn't ruin the story

Ending - 9
Since you cannot put spoiler tags in reviews anymore, all I can say is I was really satisfied with the ending. It also contains some mature thinking.

Overall - 10 For me, Overall = [Enjoyment+Ending]/2 rounded up. The rest are just motivations to continue to read something :P
I haven't found an anime or manga that got a 10 for me in a long time. I think it was a great romance drama, where the creator didn't mess things up during the manga or the ending. It was a very big hit for me, a romance fan. I say this anime should be a must-read to romance drama fans, but for people who aren't a big fan of romance dramas, I don't recommend it, and it is also possible that someone might not enjoy this manga for thinking the girl's dark secret is repulsive themselves. read more

a manga that tackles a sensitive subject. it's quite rare for me to be attached so much to this kind of manga.

i believe that bitter virgin's story gives color to the lives of those women that had their rights violated, to women that continue to fight, and to women that would always repent for the sins they made on their past.

this also explains to the reader how such cases are viewed by other people.

hinako who had undergone hell through her step dad and by aborting her child twice suffers the pain and anguish of her past. the pain and anguish that continues to torment her present, challenging her daily whenever she sees children or men. her fear and regret that was subdued by daisuke that showed her kindness. the kindness of a man that she forcibly removed from her emotions due to the pain she experienced.

as the story progressed along, hinako's emotions slowly develop, relieving her of her fears and slowly beginning to make her face her regrets with a firm resolve and all this is because of daisuke's kindness. on the other hand, the story also shows how daisuke is careful with hinako's matter. how he is doing his best to not make her experience the bad things she had in the past all the while, experiencing her opening up to him slowly, able to face the world again with renewed strength.

the manga portrays how women are strong and fragile at the same time. how they face the world in the view of regret and fear and how good men play a role to their lives, acting as pillar of support if the need arise. read more