Watashi no Tadashii Oniichan
Searching for My Perfect Brother

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A solid 7.5/10, with me feeling a bit let down because the manga could have been so much more. The final few chapters felt a bit like a cop-out in terms of pacing and resolution. Still, this is a decent recommendation for people who like exploring the darker side of human (romantic) relationships.

I do agree with that other reviewer - don't expect too much of a 'psychological' or 'mystery' elements here. This is nowhere near the thrill/mysterious nature of manga like 'My Dearest Self With Malice Aforethought'. If anything, it shares some common points with 'Haru no Noroi' in terms of the familial setup and ... dilemma between cherishing your sibling and acting on your romantic interest.

I don't think there's something THAT deep in terms of character development here. The main leads do SOME growing, but it's very incremental. Luckily for the story, they don't need to grow through some radical change for it to work out as a decent plot device.

The biggest letdown to me were the police officers. Especially Tachibana could have been fleshed out way better, considering his background and involvement with the main duo.

Art-wise, it's slightly above average. Nothing too memorable, but nothing too jarring on the eyes either. I felt a severe lack of dynamism on the panels in some scenes where things could have been more...fluid, action-packed or emotion-packed, to be honest.

With some minor improvements in terms of story or art, this could have been an easy 8.5 or even 9. As it stands, though, it's a 'just decent' installment for those into darker romances with very slight mystery undertones.

A top thriller, the already interesting premise doesnt prepare you at all for the story youre gonna get: you never really know what's gonna happen until it happens... and even then you don't really process it til much later on. BUT.
It was very sick to me that the main couple ends up engaging in some sort of pseudo-incest that makes no sense no matter how many times I read it. Doesn't even feel like one of those over elaborated psychological movie endings you'll see for stories of similar caliber, it just feels forced and quite pointless given the way the characters were presented to us.

Mystery, Psychological ❌
Romance, Drama ✅

If you’re looking for a mind-bending mystery and psychological manga with a romance subplot, please stay far away from this. I would say this manga is perfect for those who like to fantasize about romance and stay in their dreamy land. Don’t waste time thinking too deeply because there’s really nothing deep in this manga.

Why did I cross out the mystery? Because it’s an insult to the mystery genre. While it is mysterious in the first couple of chapters, it never really develops beyond the surface level. The author is actively trying to downplay the mystery in pursuit of greater romance ... through drama.

Also, if psychological means MCs breaking down and being emo every single chapter, then it probably is.

What this manga truly focuses on is romance, like 90% of the manga. It is just a typical shojo manga if you minus the crime.

The characters left a lot to be desired. All of them are very shallow and only ML gets a tiny bit of progression. FL is the naive type while ML is the badass type like never seen before. The cops are beyond redeemable and one of them is even conflicted about whether he should follow the law. Why are you even a cop again?

The theme of the manga is righteousness and it is very problematic. It explores vigilantism but also forgiveness which is a pure contradiction. If you take things into your own hands while breaking the law in the name of righteousness, you’re not exempted from the law. Simple as that and that’s how modern society works. Wanting to be a hero but doesn’t want to take responsibility for the consequences is not a positive message for the readers and it will only promote more violence. You’ll get what I mean after reading this manga.

Overall, just don't expect too much and treat it like a pure romance manga with flawed unlikeable characters.