Jul 28, 2010
There are just some series that are truly classics in all aspects of reviewing them. The problem with the H-manga genre though is the H aspect in itself.
It's just problematic. Something like Love Hina, Tenchi Muyo, Saber Marionette, Salad Days, Ranma 1/2, Dragonball... regardless of the different genre and the different generations and the gateway anime critics... there forms a singularity in that even if you don't know the difference between shoujo and shonen...even if you are one of those that critiques the story aspect of the series...there arises a group around that series that sets it apart and appreciates it for what it is.
The
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H genre doesn't quite have that respect and so often times it takes something like a Fate/Stay Night to be praised for it's story and yet it ignores the fact that series like Co-Ed SeXXtasy are much truer analogues for hentai plot depth in the same way a Love Hina might be one of more memorable entries for a harem plot.
What holds Co-Ed SeXXtasy over most H-manga is primarily it's length combined with it's ending. 14 might be short but if the trail doesn't feel as much filler for flesh as more modern H-manga then like a Ranma 1/2 or a Dragonball like length... it deserves it's spot to be reviewed as among the greater H-manga because it is able to contain the characters in it's universe without losing itself to the genre.
"Filler for flesh" though is a very confusing line for the H genre.
It's kind of like with the whole escapism aspect of manga and anime. Another problematic example is Moe.
You kind of know that there's an exaggeration and a reduction of... storytelling depth when talking about them but it's so hard to say where it's too much escapism or where it's too much Moe because both of those originally stem as positive if not stereotypical qualities of anime and manga.
That is, Moe is what Westerners used to make fun of manga/anime's design and escapism is originally what allowed manga and anime to have depth but in today's definition and in it's evolving definition it becomes an entirely different thing to discuss within the community.
Thus H-manga is similar. Nowadays there's almost an overdose of H scenes that it's really hard to justify this as a gateway hentai of any kind but if treated as a gateway hentai, it ranks very high in that quality. At least with other genres, you can hide behind some form of original plot forming but with H manga you're always constrained by the idea of the sex scenes and as the genre evolves in it's sex scenes...sometimes what series like Co-Ed SeXXtasy brought... that type of H manga quality storytelling meets H manga romance manga...it's lost in comparison to the demands of a newer generation of H manga and yet if H-manga itself had the same prestige in it's earlier days as these other genres, Co-Ed could have been one of the more revolutionary series that sets the bar higher for what a quality H-manga should be. (Not because of it's artwork, it's "specific" plot, nor of it's overall design and pacing but simply because like with many high quality classic gateway examples for other genres, the whole package is there and even today it's rarely exceeded by many better drawn, more popular, more "sexy" H-mangas that if the H genre wasn't so sporadic in it's demand for tittilation and there is more respect for it's stories - this is again, one of the closest classic H-manga you could get to being introduced to a high quality H-manga but again...only had the H aspect not been as sporadic and under-appreciated.)
Specifically it's the elements of extremes that you might need to watch out for. This isn't an ecchi manga at all and yet that is what's often used to introduce people anti-hardcore and yet it won't necessary please hardcore seekers either so it's that middle line that's particularly going to decide whether you enjoy this manga highly or not...and then only after that will it be possible to judge the quality of the series but since you've already viewed it, it's kind of pointless (and troublesome) by then to rate it higher or lower or as sweeny's review stated in the beginning, he's already enjoyed it but looking at the details of his review you wouldn't quite associate what he said from how he rated this series. In fact, if I were to be more critical, his review turned out to be more of a synopsis than a review. This is the troublesome aspect that H-manga will always carry but I hope some of the things I said above would at least encourage you to take a peek at this wonderful H-manga especially for those people whom have only started out with H-manga or have only found crappier shallow hentai series - this is as good as a gateway it gets for setting your barometer for hentai series of all forms and for me, had I not encountered this series I probably would have dropped the search for other H-mangas because I can't emphasize how much this series impacted my barometer for every other H-manga I've encountered from here on out even if one can say this H-manga wasn't supposed to be anything special compared to some of the more reputable plots as far as H-manga is concerned.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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