Kiss yori mo Hayaku

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Forbidden relationships are always an interesting subject to read. From incest, to yaoi/yuri (if you even classify those as "forbidden"), and now to teacher/student relationships, in the end it all depends on whether or not the relationships are presented realistically, especially considering they're looked down on from common society. "Faster than a Kiss" presents a situation of forbidden love, and does an.. alright job of playing it all out.

The story itself is quite simple. Our lead heroine, Fumino, is sick of moving from place to place with her younger brother, Teppei, since her parents died. So, she decides to drop out of school to ... support her brother and find a place where the two of them can live. Her English teacher, Kazuma, is the only one who comes looking for her and eventually he ends up agreeing to "marry and support the two of them" and takes her to his apartment. The story follows the two of them and how they manage to keep Fumino & Teppei's presence there a secret, while the two of them both deal with conflicting feelings of love for one other and not to mention the conflicts of family and love from others.

The main issue with the story is the questionable realism it has. Characters don't always act how you think they would be it they were put in a certain position. However at the same time it makes you think what you would do if you were them and starts getting your mind going. The plot is a fairly average one, consisting of many arcs where Fumino (and Teppei occasionally) must be rescued by Kazuma. The arcs are fairly short and for the most part only partially contribute the main plot. The story also splits off and focuses on some side characters and their own conflicts with Fumino and Kazuma, and also in time provides us some backstory on these conflicts as well.

The story isn't anything spectacular however it does rise above average than your typical shoujo manga. It gives you time to actually get to know and become attached to the characters before throwing their backstory out at you. The chapters are a bit episodic but still are able to flow in with the basic premise of a developing student/teacher relationship. The comedy and fluff moments fit in pretty well and aren't over done, either. The manga's ending is a bit cheesy and predictable but nonetheless and good conclusion to a shoujo romance. Overall, the story is indeed above average but still lacks quite a bit in terms of realism and consistency.

The artwork is very well done. Girls aren't given the over exaggerated shoujo eyes like in a lot of manga, so that's a major plus. Characters and backgrounds are of high quality, even for a school setting manga. The fluff scenes in particular seem to stand out among the artwork which is again, another plus for all of us who love the fluff moments. However it would be nice if the mangaka could've used all of her talent more often then for just a few fluff panels. Everything else is still well done..

Characters aren't anything all too special. Fumino is a "delinquent" who gets in a lot of fights when in reality she just wants justice. Kazuma is an "average" English teacher who has his own dark past. Shouma is the competitive younger brother. Everyone basically starts with an initial trait that can be summed up in one sentence. Development is a bit lacking in Fumino's character, however she does become significantly more responsible and aware as the manga goes on. Kazuma's and Shouma's development is more noticeable by the end of the manga and is where most of it is used. The characters, even some of the supporting ones, are pretty memorable and help support the story well. The development was mainly focused on the romance and not as much the characters, which was good for the romance but bad for the characters. It would've been nice to see more changes in Fumino from start to end, but in return we get a nicely played out romance.

Anyone who enjoys a good romance would probably be able to enjoy this manga. I, personally, went into it for the fluff moments in particular and wasn't disappointed. It has an easy story to follow and the romance doesn't get too deep smut wise (however it can be an annoyance that the two don't kiss for.. a while) and is simply an enjoyable read.

Overall, "Faster than a Kiss" manages to leave behind some of the typical elements in a shoujo and become a nicely developed romance manga. While the story and characters aren't the most original or developed, it's easy to look past that and just sit back and enjoy this manga for what it has to offer. While far from a masterpiece in it's department - "Faster than a Kiss" is a memorable read that can please any shoujo fan.

I gonna try to make this review a short and a spoiler free one.

STORY:

The story goes kinda like this......The main two protagonists(Ojiro Kazuma and Kaji Fumino) share the relation of being a student-teacher at school but in reality they are married to each other and since according to the rules the teacher will lose his job if this is found out so they have to keep this relationship a secret from others.

While trying to keep this relationship a secret they go through many experience that enhances their romance and deepens their bond with each other.During all these encounters there is comedy and ... school life spices.The manga practically fails to hold up the story realistically but the concept that it tried shared was rather enjoyable.

ART:

As for its art... i would refrain from criticizing it since, I haven't read that many manga but there were some scenes where no matter how hard i tried i couldn't get it.

CHARACTER:

This manga shows an amazing development of its main characters,although in this process the supporting characters are left behind.
But as for me it didn't matter since I didn't really want to know about the other characters so i can rate its Character with an 8.

ENJOYMENT:

I really loved this manga.There was a lot of romance and that's actually all i needed.The developments were not drastic it was easy to perceive and read at most parts.After reaching a certain point this manga actually became an anime in my mind.the character and their struggle to keep up with each other was really romantic and cute.Overall i really enjoyed this anime.

OVERALL:

I didn't like to read manga but after reading this i think i gonna try out some more manga.I highly recommend this manga to you if this does not go against your ideals!!

I have no idea why I thought this would be a good read. I think someone recommended it to me. Anyway I regret having to read Faster than a kiss, not only because it was highly improbable but also because i found it disgusting.
Taking that you have read the synopsis already, let me point out the good things- there are lots of surprises and twists in the story. There were some cool cosplay ideas throughout the story. I really liked the characters individually. Aside from the consealed perviness i liked the sensei Ma-kun and found his backstory very interesting. I thought the author did ... a great job creating a world for the characters. there were some great moments in the manga were it wasnt pervy at all, but really sweet, caring, considerate touching family moments.
what i despised. like aforementioned, i dont know why i thought i would like a teacher loving a student manga- i generally find them repulsive. However, once i start a manga i have to finish it (its a problem I know). The reasons for the sensei taking the girl and her brother in were noble. the idea to have a secret marriage made no sense, he could have adopted them. having a young girl (and even more immature than her age) proved to be difficult for the sensei and troubles ensued. throughout the manga the sensei would rescue his young student at all costs and for a heroine who was supposed to be strong (wanted to take care of her brother herself) that was ridiculous, and made an initally strong heroine just another shojou character.
all in all it was mediocre at best and i could have done without the progressivley pervy sensei characteristic refering to his young student as a wife and making "future" plans for her . but without that what would the story be? maybe this read is out of my age group, but I dont recommend it to any one execept pre teens (who shouldnt read this) who are hot for their teachers (and they shouldnt be).


p.s. the ending is rushed and sucks.
p.p.s. sorry for my over use of "pervy"