Given

Aug 16, 2019

Bop_It

Recommended

Preliminary (27/58 chp)

Given is a truly amazing story that features great art, a compelling plot, and plenty of emotional moments. All of the protagonists have an amazing amount of depth and complexity that complements the mature themes present in the plot, drawing the reader in and presenting a narrative that feels real and heartfelt. This manga will play your heartstrings like a fiddle (Or perhaps a Gibson hollow body) and take you on an emotional rollercoaster as you follow the ever-shifting feelings of love, pain, desperation, and soul-searching that plague the cast. As a sub-theme to the plot of personal connection and growth, the power of music ...

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Mar 10, 2020

KillyChides

Recommended

Preliminary (30/58 chp)

As someone who excessively reads shonen-ai/yaoi manga, I didn't expect much, as I often don't. It only took this manga five chapters to completely blow me away with its brilliance. 'Given' is a totally believable story of how a successful band came to be, of how a strong bond was formed between four men at an integral part of their lives, and how hope can be found as long as you try hard enough to look for it.

Pros.

- The characterization. It's absolutely top-notch, not just for a shounen-ai manga, but for a story in general. Each one of the main characters has something to ... offer, they each have individual voices and unique personalities, and they bounce off each other well. The manga makes an effort to show them spend quality time together, but also shows them living their own lives, and this gives them a depth that lots of stories fail to pull off. Basically, the characters aren't emotionally deprived, friendless virgins waiting for rescue, they feel like real human beings.

- The uniqueness of the storytelling. The story itself isn't that groundbreaking, but there's a great balance between it being plot-driven and character-driven. The four main characters have their own lives, relationships, and affairs, which develop separately from the plot. However, it's still a story about how this band came together and began to perform as a unit.

- The brilliant portrayal of mental illness, particularly in regards to the character of Mafuyu. His depression and sadness are integral to the story, but they don't define him as a person. Through him, you're able to see that a character can be strong in different ways, and his strength was genuinely inspiring. His mental illness is depicted so well, in fact, that hearing him say "I'm no longer scared of the dawn" actually brought me to tears.

- The realistic depiction of romantic relationships. Readers don't usually like seeing a character they root for facing serious competition for their love interest, but Given is pretty gutsy when it comes to that. Mafuyu's previous boyfriend was the love of Mafuyu's life who will always be important to him, but he's a character I do not hesitate to like, even if I'm rooting for Uenoyama. On the other end of the spectrum, you have Akihiko, who's stuck in a toxic relationship that he knows he should escape. Even when he (and we as readers) know that Haruki is the best thing that could ever happen to him, he doesn't overcome the attachment he has for his first love easily, and those parts of the manga hit differently.

- Everything about the character of Akihiko. He's just so self-destructive, so self-loathing and sometimes harmful toward the people around him, yet he's still a good person. He made me feel so many things towards him, from disappointment, to hate, to admiration, that I can't help but say that he's absolutely my favorite part of this manga.

Cons.

- Since Yuki was such a likable and dynamic character, I would've loved to see more depth and backstory from Ugetsu because as a romantic rival, he was just insufferable. I didn't find any redeeming qualities about him and I never understood the reason Akihiko fell in love with him. He was by far the most bland in a story filled with multi-dimensional characters.

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Jul 23, 2023

abystoma2

Not Recommended

Well-written

Many works seem to believe that just mentioning suicide automatically makes the script better. It does not. Especially when it’s not really elaborated upon, just thrown in the mix for some free drama. Unfortunately, some readers will fall for this bait, and proclaim the story deep and dramatic and whatever.

So, what is Given actually about? The thing is, I struggle to summarize it. Not because it’s complex, but because what I consider its biggest flaw – it doesn’t have a point. With most of fiction, you can usually grasp what the author is going for. Sometimes it’s to explore deeps though. Sometimes the main point ... is just see some cool mecha action or cute girls doing cute things, and that is okay too (when it actually delivers the premise, of course). Given simply feels lacklustre. Now of course, you could make a counterpoint that the point of Given is just to be a BL. You could even paraphrase my previous point and say it’s supposed to be “cute boys doing cute things”. But as lot of yaoi, it can’t help but attempt to seem like it’s more than that.

The central theme is of course boys being gay. But there is also the storyline about them being in band, which isn’t exactly engaging, and is easily topped by works actually focusing on the band aspect, like Beck or Sakamichi no Apollon. There’s the aforementioned suicide, but as mentioned that theme is exploited rather than explored. There is, I guess, some attempt of high school romance drama. Instead of doing good at one point, it attempts many and success at none of these. At least in my experience, this makes Given a confusing read, because I feel like the “goal” is constantly changing with focus all over the place. And not in a good way like some more experimental works, but in a way of unexperienced writer. And of course, it falls in the usual BL trope of “Well wouldn’t you know, pretty much every male character is gay or bi, what are the chances, huh”. I would have liked to say the relationships are realistic and feel natural, but you know how it is. Similar to shippers, the writing of Given just needs two supposedly likeable characters to be around each other to make them into pairing.

The story goes from a start about music to some smutty relationship content – which only dons the appearance of being there for the story, but it’s really just the usual “uwu boys together”, even with the attempts at making it “deep” as mentioned above. It then circles back to the music towards the end, as if remembering that it was supposed to be about music. Some sort of idea of pitting the music and the relationships against each other was appearing, but I wouldn’t consider it well executed. I was going to say the ending was alright, or at least not bad – despite my enjoyment negatively impacted by the fact that the work couldn’t make me care about any of the characters (more about that further down), and that it felt all ultimately meaningless. But the very final page really killed the vibe, what a distasteful and tone-deaf way to end it, huh.

Going back to shipping, I’ve read that Given started as Haikyuu doujinshi. While I haven’t been able to confirm this, it would make sense – a fanfiction doesn’t need to create personalities, it takes them from the original work. But turn the fanfiction into an original work itself and now you can’t just reuse the personalities, for obvious reason. So you’re left with a bunch of characters of little personalities, personalities that readers imagination used to fill with the personalities of the original characters they are based one. It would certainly check out.

The characters are… uninteresting. I can’t actually remember a name of single cast member and I've literally just finished reading the manga. Design-wise Haruki is the only one that stands out, and even that is mostly thanks to his hairstyles. Rest is just Generic Bishounen A, Generic Bishounen B etc. Yes, I still did have to look up his name.

The art is easy the best part of Given. It shines with double page spreads and I especially loved the colored drawings at the start of each volume. Unfortunately, “best part” doesn’t necessarily mean the whole manga is great. In this case, it just means that it’s the only aspect I would call good.

Ultimately, this is definitely among the better BL manga. But as a manga in general, it’s at best slightly over average. So as usual, if you're a fujoshi you'll likely have a grand time, but readers of regular manga will likely be disappointed.

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Dec 30, 2020

kenhinaskid

Recommended

Preliminary (21/58 chp)

CONTAIN SPOILERS!!

Ok so...first things first: I really enjoyed it. It may seem like a cliché story, but trust me, it isn't. I liked it how each character has their own personality and the relationship development between Mafuyu and Uenoyama. Mafuyu has his own dark past (all the Yuki shit) and I think that the whole arc about him dealing with a new love and those sad memories was pretty good. Also Uenoyama realizing he's not straight was really relatable, the author represented most of us (LGBT people) in a smooth and delicate way. I really do like Ueno, he's not toxic at all and has ...

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May 17, 2021

sparkle_sparkle

Recommended

Preliminary (39/58 chp)

I'm genuinely confused why people love and praise this manga so much. Don't get me wrong its a good manga, but is it amazing? No, totally not. This manga is a solid seven all across the board for me. The art is nice, familiar but pleasant to the eyes. A majority of the main characters are explored semi decently thus far. The story is slow paced but not necessarily in a bad way. Its good, but amazing? Ground breaking? I just don't see it. I wouldn't say to NOT read this manga, but I also wouldn't say your missing out if you don't.

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May 21, 2021

ahnz

Recommended

Preliminary (40/58 chp)

* Minor spoilers for earlier on in the manga

Man, where do I begin with Given. I remember picking this up a few years after it was first released and I was absolutely blown away about how much detail and care could go into creating a manga like this. It wasn't as popular as it is now with the anime adaptation, but I was absolutely blown away about the fact that so many people could come together to appreciate a story. Even crazier, a shounen-ai story appriciated as art.

Story : 8/10
The thing about Given is that some people might be going into it expecting BL ... bullshit nonsense, but then hit by a massive dumptruck of emotions surrounding it. Most people don't think of the BL genre as good, just because of the fujoshi/fudanshi fetishizing men for the sake of fetishizing men. Most people aren't okay with that, and I understand. What drives people away from Given is usually the 'Yaoi' tag. But get this. Given is not yaoi.

I think what makes Given memorable is because of the fact that it's about serious soul-searching, moving on from a loved one, even emotional abuse. It takes on the story of those high schoolers as very mature, and handled with care. I can tell almost each and every chapter is written with care. It's able to maintain a mature, romantic, musical, still-kinda-dark atmosphere, while having genuinely uplifting moments. Sometimes, monumental. There were definitely little moments in the story which I'll remember easily. Like the time that Given tackled a subject like sexuality in a shounen-ai anime. It shows Ueno's distress, and Akihiko's a fucking legend for supporting him.

It faces these subjects in a positive light, which I am ever thankful for. LGBT people face so many struggles in regards to who they love. I have immense respect for Kizu to bring these struggles to life, and create a realistic shounen-ai manga that surpassed my expectations by miles. Also, the comedy is some of the best I've seen.

I also loved how she incorporated the topic and passion of music. It's not like some lighthearted stuff you see in K-ON, but it's actual passion for the medium. As a musician myself, I loved to see someone like Mafuyu also being saved by music. Exploring the characters' relationship with music was also a great addition. It's not just how the characters connect with each other in Given. It's how the connect to what they love, their passions, and connecting with themselves. And it's beautiful.

Art : 10/10
Given is my favorite manga in terms of it's art. It never falls short, especially in the later chapters. The art is carefully produced, and in the more emotional panels it got me thinking like 'Holy shit, this is top tier.' Kizu is amazing at showing and bringing out emotions, portraying them, and internalizing them. The drawings of the characters and backgrounds are so detailed, and Kizu has a significant art style that I'd recognize anywhere.

Character : 9/10
Another thing about Given that makes it so loved and special are the characters. I feel like I can feel for them, connect with them, and they're all amazingly written and built up. They all have their moments to shine, and I'm still waiting on Hiiragi/Shizusumi arc. They were written off as kinda background characters in the anime, so I hope they're able to produce a season 2 that might center around them somewhat once there's enough source material.

I hate seeing people bash Ueno's character. He's such a supportive, amazing soul. People write him off as a basic protag, but that's not the case. Even if he's moody most of the time, you can't forget that he brought Mafuyu out of that dark hole after Yuki's death. Not all the way, but he made Mafuyu's path to letting go just a little bit easier. He cares for that boy so much, helped him grow and move on, and you call him basic and replaceable?

The four main characters are all different in the best way, and they're all likeable and they all make mistakes. Given is very human as it acknowledges and presents that people and relationships are not, and never will be perfect. Just as Akihiko made a very huge mistake, he was able to be forgiven and redeemed. Mafuyu and Ueno fight sometimes. Because that's how people and relationships work.

Enjoyment : 8/10
I really enjoy the manga for many, many of the reasons listed above. My only real complaint is how long it takes for them to be consistently released. Given chapters only come out once every couple months, and it's usually only about 10-20 pages. It must take Kizu very long to produce, and I have nothing against her. It's just a bit frustrating when there's only a little bit of material that comes out every two months.

Overall : 9/10
This will continue to be my favorite shounen-ai/music series for a long time, I think. I have seen nothing like this with the label BL slapped on it, and people actually received it very well. I absolutely love the fact that you can enjoy Given regardless of gender, sexuality, and any other factor out there.

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May 7, 2021

sweetestashoney

Recommended

Preliminary (6/58 chp)

I saw the anime first, and then bought the mangas, and the only thing that I have to say is: it's perfect.

It became my favourite anime and manga, the art, the story, everything is just PERFECT. This isn't yaoi, this is a really cute story with no fetichization of gay man. It's literally a masterpiece. I can't wait to read the others volumes. Mafuyu, Uenoyama, Akihiko and Haruki are all well writen characters, the devolepment of Mafuyu is amazing, I just love all about this manga and anime.
The art is so cute that I'm considering doing a tattoo with my bestfriend, NewPop (in ...

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Jan 12, 2023

Kaoolp

Recommended

Preliminary (30/58 chp)

Given is a drama story about a boy-band, their relationship with each other and all the problems that they go through.

My first experience with Given was watching the anime, I quickly became a fan of the characters and the story, so I decided to buy some volumes of the manga because i was pretty much interested. And God what knows how it was a good choice. Given offers such a good representation of mourning, the confusion about your own feelings, the issues within a toxic relationship, the feeling that you're not enough, the feeling of loneliness. All of this and more are gathered into this ... one and only piece of work called Given presented in an amazing way with characters you start to sympathize the deeper and deeper you get into the story.

Story: 10.
As I just mentioned, the plot involves so many delicated topics with mastery, in a way that actually can make you feel, or at least barely understand what the characters are going through.

writing: 9.
I liked the choice of words in many times. Mainly the parts that include poetic ways to express a feeling, those are the best, making analogies and metaphors with music, voice, heart, turning the moment even more intense.

Characters: 10.
there are very good characters, not talking about my feelings for them, but their construction as a whole. Their background and personality is built and developed so well, and even though there might be some kind of "cliche" personality, they're still well written, deep and human. Their story share everything about them, everything they go through, all of their feelings, why they're like this, why they're like that, it's all so good and i'm so invested in all of them even if it's a character i'm not a huge fan. Mainly the main characters of course, as expected, they have much more development than the others, and even if they do are more deepened, some secondary characters have their moment, and it makes everything better because it doesn't turn into a shallow piece of work that we only get to know about the main characters, it shows us about the other ones that are part of the story, that are not there just because, and it just makes Given even more better.

Art: 10.
i love it. It's so beautiful. The artstyle of the author is simply divine. Of course this is my personal opinion. More broadly speaking, the panels know very well to express characters emotions, the scenes are well put in the dialogues, the background is also well done and it's not very confusing.

Overall: 10.
Do i even have much more to say? I was clear about how much i find Given a masterpiece and I simply love everything about it, the characters, the story, the dialogues, the sad moments, the happy moments, the funny moments, the only art moments, everything!

The manga is sensational and great for those who enjoy a drama, a romance and poetry.
Thanks for reading!

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Feb 24, 2022

Nebby524

Recommended

Preliminary (14/58 chp)

BL is known for sexualizing gay men and unrealistic relationships. This book doesn't do that. The story progression is nice, the characters are very well written, and their is no over-sexualization or over-romanticization of the characters and their relationship in fact it is quite dark and painful at times, but the cute moments are very cute and wholesome. I just want the boys to be happy. It tugs at your heart strings and doesn't let go. And it will hurt to read, there were many times I had to put down the book for the day because it got to intense for me. Another ...

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Apr 10, 2021

Idontwantto2mal

Mixed Feelings

Preliminary (39/58 chp)

I am ready to receive all the slops for this review. I like Given, but to say it is a masterpiece of realistic BL, I don't think so. These are BL standards and the level is so low and weak that compared to others, Given looks like a masterpiece. But let's start from the beginning.

The main couple is fine. Uenoyama is quite okay as a character. I like him, but his boyfriend ... he's such a dull, shallow, and boring character that he's like your typical shounen main character.
I will come back to my beloved Akihiko and Haruka after that.
In typical yaoi, the author also ... makes such love chemistry that everyone screams that they are a couple and kiss 24/7. In the case of Given, it is somewhat shallow in the sense that it is well between the main couple but they lack some of that love chemistry. But it's good.
The plot cannot be called PWP. We have some common ideas for a music group here. The initial chapters are quite boring, but then the action takes place in a more interesting way. Some chapters are a bit boring, but not bad, it's fun to read. Sometimes there is too much drama, as befits BL.

I don't like the design of the characters because they look quite the same. The only character that stands out from the rest is Akihiko. Others look the same; even the hairstyles are similar, let alone the faces. What I don't like.
For characters, I can give 5, max. 6 out of 10. They are not hysterical, with the emotional development of an elementary school student, and behaving as if they grew somewhere away from people and society in some amoral world like the characters Junjou Romantica or Sekaiichi H. But some really lack that personality and depth. Especially Mafuyu. But it is OK.
And now the problem starts because we have Haruka X Akihiko's reports here. And with this relationship, the series shoots itself in the leg, because it has done what can be called a "classic" BL relationship. And I can already see these screams about how Given is different. But criticism of authorities is also important because remember one simple thing. If something is considered good, or even the best in the eyes of the public, it does not mean that its problematic aspects cannot be questioned or criticized. Yes, we're talking about a sexual assault, a scene that looks a thousand times creepy and rapey in the manga. Hell no. No rape devices, please. And they say it is not romanticized in one of the meanings of the term, yes, but it is not, but it may be about normalization. The term romanticization refers to the fact that something is presented as, for example, normal or even romantic while being bad. The thing yaoi manga writers love even more than I do is the bad boy-good boy thread. In the case of Given, part of the talk may be about normalization. Why? Because Akihiko and Haruki end up together after that. So the series says it's okay to meet the person who attacked you. And this matter is swept under the rug, it is not moved as if nothing happened. Given had potential here, but it blew it with a bang. Akihiko was supposedly a bad guy with problems, but then he realized he was acting badly ?? and he has changed, but this is so stupid and unrealistic. Aki for me personally, as he was an asshole and he was (I invite you to check my given movie review). Haruki, so he's Akihiko's boyfriend, he's fine, I just feel sorry for him because he's too light-hearted and a little naive.

Overall Given is fine, I can recommend it, but somehow I don't consider it a BL masterpiece.

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Oct 3, 2021

SapphiRubyCrys

Recommended

Preliminary (42/58 chp)

Oh gosh Love is painful in this story and too realistic.
I love every character and want only happiness for each and every one of them but the changes in their lives as seasons roll and their past and everything really that makes us human is shown really well in this.

Just get ready for all the frustrations and sadness that come with happiness and comfort in this story. Also don't judge the characters too harshly as they are stumbling through their lives but don't expect everything to be fulffy.
All in all though this a origin story of a Band and the Bandmates lives and relationships.

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Apr 22, 2024

cosmohero700

Mixed Feelings

I remember reading a lot of yaoi when I was younger and discovering my sexuality. I read a lot of trash, like terrible trash, and was very confused as how these authors thought gay people worked. As a bi man who has dated a man before, I fell like I can see past the allure of "oh my goodness, this boy is kissing another boy!1!11!" that most BL relies on.

Foremost, I think I should give my opinion on the manga. It is very very okay! Its not bad, but I also don't think that because it doesn't really do much wrong makes it good. it ...

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Apr 29, 2024

Askorbi

Recommended

Preliminary (14/58 chp)

Before that, I watched anime and had long planned to start reading manga. And I didn’t regret it one bit.
This story combines several themes: music, love and the concept of self. Some will say that there are a lot of predictable moments in this manga, but predictability is not always synonymous with the word bad. Especially if it is written correctly.
I like how different characters are shown here and they are all different from each other, from design to story. I also want to note how the main couple (Mafuyu/Uenoyama), spending time together, understand themselves more and more. It touches me how the quiet Mafuyu, ...

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Oct 5, 2021

BlueKarou7

Mixed Feelings

Preliminary (41/58 chp)

This review contains a spoiler but it's also a trigger warning.

The first arc was cute with realistic elements. Haruki, Ugetsu and Akihiko's arc showcases sexual assault which is forgiven instantly without the other party apologizing nearly enough but also gives us the best character so far, Ugetsu. Hiiragi and Shizumi's arc so far is enjoyable.
All characters are easy to differenciate because they are all very different in regards of personality, desire and relationship with music. The art is good enough. The narrative is at times poetic which makes it nostalgic but also has funny moments. The story is driven by feelings rather than plot.
Not ...

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