Koiiji

Edit

What would you like to edit?

SynopsisBackgroundAlternative TitlesPictureChapters/VolumesPublishing DatesRelationsTypeExternal Links  

I spent many hours looking for a manga that mainly focuses on unrequited love and the sorrow it brings. If you are looking for something like that then this manga might be for you.
I like this manga because it explores the feelings of a one sided love. As you go through the story, you'll see other unrequited love stories too and not only that of the main character. It showed me the different aspects or situations of love and from that alone, I would give the manga a really great score. Imagine being in a one sided love for 20 years and on top of ... that, you get to see the love of your life go through his relationship with the love of his love and the fact that the MC can't compete with that because the wife is already dead just adds up to the blow. Love is complex and losing a loved one can take a toll on a lot of people.
The one thing that I didn't particularly love about this manga is the ending. Not because it was bad but because it was lacking. SPOILER: I feel like the ending should have shown Mame And Souta being a couple more and doing couple things because that was the point of the story, but instead it kind of ended with an honorary acknowledgement to the dead wife which is also okay but not really fitting as the end panel for the ending for a romance manga.

Overall, I would recommend this movie to anyone who is looking for an unrequited love story that can make you sad at times because of the feeling of hopelessness I guess. I absolutely loved this manga and this has become one of my faves! Good job!

I am mostly writing this review, because I for one, have enjoyed this series greatly and it pains me to see such a damning review at the top of the page currently.

For some barebones background, I have at this point in time read all 6 released volumes in Japanese.

Koiiji's unique achievement, personally, is it's ability to take what is traditionally a tragic and often frustrating series of tropes, and imbue them with a humanity and warmness. Nothing is as simple as it may initially seem, and even 6 volumes in I often don't know what to think about many of the characters.

For example, the ... daughter of the deceased mother immediately after the funeral asking the protagonist to become her new Mother might seem callous, as I've seen it described by other reviewers, but it is clear it comes from a place of worrying for her own Father and because it never occurs to her that this is disrespecting her Mother. In fact, insinuations that she is doing just that by another character later in the series leads to her changing her initial opinion, though how firmly remains to be seen.

Mame's character could easily be pathetic, as unmarried female protagonists in josei manga are often at risk of, but she is self-aware, and is striving to improve herself no matter how circumstances impede her.

In fact, the entire cast is. What truly endears me to this series is that everyone has a three-dimensionality and everyone is struggling to reach their own happiness without hurting those around them.

It still remains to be seen whether this series ends happily or as a tragedy, but I care enough about their fates to see them through.

Content Warning: There is an adulterous relationship between a high school girl and an adult man within the series. Which is unfortunately rather typical for Shimura's work. It is not a major couple, they have already ended the relationship when the series begins, and it appears around 3 to 4 volumes in.

Cut to the chase: it's an absurdly confusing story (SPOILER-FREE)

"Koiiji" has a very interesting plot when you start reading it. The narration has a very autobiographical way that I particularly like a lot and the style of drawing caught my attention.
The real problem occurs when after several chapters you start to realize how mess the story is. There are several characters with several subplots that don't develop well, and the fact that the characters are physically similar doesn't help to understand who is who from time to time. But what really kills the story is the "time travel" that the narrative decides to do. Out ... of nowhere they show a scene from the past (which most of the time you don't understand who they are) that doesn't even seem to connect with the current scene;
Plus: the ending is weird and it doesn't seem to conclude anything