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Jan 23, 2024
It's hard to say what character archetypes I dislike the most, but my most often complaint comes when a character feels too "manufactured." Like they were written specifically to be charming, likeable, with just a hint of flaw and a central quirk that usually drives the plot of the manga, or solely exists for comedic effect. I don't hate these types of characters on principle, I'm just more likely to pass over them for others that I think are more interesting.
Shiroyama and Mita-san are maybe the furthest thing from this archetype. And honestly, I don't think it even exists in this manga at all.
When I
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was introduced to these two titular characters, I thought "Oh alright this is gonna be a goof manga, I understand." And it is absolutely a goof manga, at least at the start. Shiroyama is kinda just disgusting, both in personality and behavior. He's not a bad guy, just a bit of an outcast with some strong resentment for his hometown. On the other hand, Mita-san is very proper and elegant on the surface, except for the fact that you can tell she's an odd choice for the female lead. I'd also like to mention that neither MC is conventionally attractive by both manga and in-universe standards; there are plenty of characters that look far more "normal" than either of them. Even in a gag manga like this, they stand out clear as day.
They don't just stand out looks-wise; everything they do is ridiculous. Neither can help but being the center of attention in some way or another. And even though they have to be the center of attention, otherwise it'd be impossible to call them MCs, it doesn't feel forced like I often dislike. Rather than crafting a character that "should" be popular, the mangaka here chose to write two absolute oddball characters that stand out purely because each is unabashedly living their life. And wouldn't you know it, this is a romance too, because they immediately enter into a relationship within the first 2 chapters.
Obviously these two are made for each other. They literally were written to be a couple. But never in my life have I seen a more natural growth of romance in a manga. Once the manga gets into full swing, between every comedic moment (90% of the manga, I'd say) you can really tangibly feel these two getting closer. Every little bit, like Mita-san's obsession with Golgo 13 and Shiroyama's confusing obsession with random Tokyo-adjacent prefectures, opens up a new venue for the two to understand each other more. Every joke is another opportunity for the two to form a stronger relationship, even though it started out so coldly.
They grow so much that it's hard to grasp the weight of it. If you told me after chapter 1 that Shiroyama was going to turn out to be the single greatest boyfriend in manga history I would have said "hahahehe. no." But now... I feel silly that I judged him so harshly. The absolute natural love I feel from these two characters to each other is refreshing. It's heartwarming. It's the ideal written love, if I can go that far. And the comedy! I laughed almost every chapter, this shit is just too funny. All the deadpan expressions and ridiculous reactions, never going so far as to feel like it has overdone something, always understanding that sometimes, the best joke is one stated once and left alone.
I wish it could have been longer, not because I'm unsatisfied, but because I don't want to lose these characters I've grown to love. I want to see more situations, I want to see more reactions, I want to see their love. But I adore what I did see, and I will adore it for the rest of time.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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Feb 19, 2023
Frankly, this hooked me so hard I had to give up whatever I was planning to do for the next hour and just read this in one sitting. It was probably because the first chapter was one of the most unique ones I had ever read. It's a shame that I've ended up feeling so hollow by the end.
I'm not even sure what I want to say here; there was something incredibly human about this. It felt like every character was one side of somebody, maybe the mangaka themselves. Everybody was incomprehensible to everybody else, including me. I kept expecting developments that didn't happen, changes,
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progression of any sort, but was presented with ideals in the form of characters bouncing off each other, crashing and failing, sometimes coming to what seemed like a good resolution, only for that to be proven wrong immediately. An idea of a proper structure formed, but the focus was still stilted, to the point where you start to wonder what the main idea is even supposed to be. Am I meant to be paying attention to this character? Waiting for this development? Is the mangaka even focusing on one thing or are they just drawing whatever they want?
I really liked that. I was genuinely engrossed, actually; I felt myself slipping into one of those moods where you can tell it's going to linger with you after you're done reading. The lackadaisical nature really gave this manga a feeling I haven't felt in a while.
But once you get to the end of a story like this, you realize you've been on a path that feels narrower and narrower as you go, to the point where you're effectively walking a tightrope to reach the end. Can it just end the same way it felt the whole time: pointless? Maybe it can, and maybe it can even feel satisfying. This is not one of those times.
The best way I can put it is that it felt like a very small amount of effort was put in to give a decent resolution to a major moment in the manga. Not one that came out of nowhere, but one that still felt as though something was happening without it being for the sake of a plot. The moment felt natural, and as interesting as the rest of the manga, but the resolution was lackluster. I'm really curious what the idea was here, to have such a wishy-washy ending that still tried to capture a classic feeling, when the rest of the manga tread ground I very rarely see tread.
And so, while I still feel that mood I had when I was reading, I'm also just feeling underwhelmed. If this had ended in a more open way, or with a feeling of things left unresolved, I know it would stick in my mind much longer than it will. But that's not the manga that was written, for better or worse.
Reviewer’s Rating: 5
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Feb 3, 2022
Smut can be good! Smut can be good, I say to myself, as I read smut. It can be good.
This is definitely one of those manga I didn't expect to properly enjoy. I thought I was just gonna read smut and move on, but the idea here is actually cool and well-executed in the short 11-chapter run. You get to see a lot of different situations, both sexual and not, with a surprisingly nuanced cast of characters in a bunch of different pairings. A lot of good questions are posed; some of them are answered and others are left for the reader to stew on.
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Big thinking points from the smut.
It's always nice when an axed manga like this sticks the landing so well. The last chapter was genuinely satisfying despite the short run; way more satisfying than smut tends to be. And of course, the art was superb. It has to be. Since it's smut.
Read this smut
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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Jan 20, 2022
It is a shame, a fucking CRYING shame and I say that because I am crying, that this episode was relegated to being a special instead of a part of Hitotose's 12 episode broadcast. I say that because this is by far the best episode in all of Tamayura, and I'm pretty sure like half the people that watched this series missed it.
Tamayura is all about the main character following in the footsteps of her late father, and the emotional impact that comes along with such a heavy theme, but nothing hits as hard as the gut-punch this special delivers. When I think about episodes
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of anime that make me cry, I generally think of episodes from shows on my favorites list first. Hunter x Hunter 135, Clannad After Story 22, K-On!! 20. But I also remember this one, a special from my least favorite season of a decently-long slice of life franchise I watched and moved on from 3 years ago or so. I was reminded of it again today, so I went and rewatched this episode for the first time ever. And I cried again, hence the opening line.
If you're far enough in this series to even be looking at this special, you'll recognize the basic gist of the episode. Some hijinks, some contemplation, wholesome vibes, comedic interludes, and then the gut-punch. Junichi Satou, I don't know what kind of life you've lead to direct so many wonderful and emotionally fulfilling shows, but you really know how to pull on the ol' heartstrings.
I won't spoil the premise. It's only 20 minutes long; saying anything about the finer details will give away more than I should. Go grab a tissue or two and enjoy the best Tamayura has to offer (until the final movie, that is).
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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Dec 6, 2021
This manga has a description that, while accurate, will never be able to properly portray this story's strengths. Hopefully, this review will help.
There is no better word to describe this manga than just straight-up RAW. No holds barred. When a character is happy, they're elated. When a character is angry, they're fucking furious. No beating around the bush; just about every character wears their heart on their sleeve and it really makes for a compelling story.
It seems like a classic, albeit tiresome premise: promiscuous girl meets straightedge guy and hijinks ensue. I definitely almost dropped it after the first chapter. But something made me click
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the follow button instead of just closing out of the tab and losing it to the sands of time. Maybe it was the art, or maybe it was the art, it definitely was the art. I love the art.
Anyways, the plot quickly turns much more wholesome than anyone would have expected, and it plays into the strengths of the manga beautifully. You get so many amazing emotional moments built on the back of rooting for this hyperactive girl that you start to forget why she's an outcast in the first place. Hell, you may even forget that this was probably intended to be a slow-burn romance. Either way, I had quite a few moments where I found myself tearing up at this little gem.
You may notice this manga is only 17 chapters. Long story short, it got the bad end of the axe. But if you ask me, this manga did exactly what it wanted to do in the short runtime it had. Could it have gone for 50-60 chapters? Yeah. Did it need to? Fuck no, it explored its concept and built a beautiful little story with a satisfying conclusion. I'll miss it wholeheartedly, but I'll miss it with a smile and not a frown.
I love this manga. Please read it.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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Oct 21, 2021
This might be one of the most nuanced manga I've ever read, and it's about eromanga of all things.
Everything, from the character interactions to everyone's individual flaws, from the story pacing to the resolutions; all of it feels meticulously laid out to be incredibly engaging and genuinely human. Many of the characters here feel like they could be people out there somewhere in the world, and I can only say that for a very select few manga. There's something really special here, and I don't wanna say even a bit about the story itself because I want you to go read it yourself.
It's only 30
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chapters long, but I will always treasure the time I spent with this manga. Please do yourself a favor and experience it like I did.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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Feb 8, 2021
In 2012, Flying Witch made history by becoming the first work of fiction ever to blend the magic and slice of life genres seamlessly. Majo Life is the second.
This manga just has such good energy to it. Granted, there are a lot of moments when the author will have a character poke fun at the MCs for being very plain witches. Other than that, though, everything feels so nice and light, and I always come away with a warm feeling in my heart. I'm really happy I caught this one early on so I can enjoy the growth of the MCs on a more leisurely
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pace instead of just binging it like I would have done otherwise.
As for the actual content of the story, there are some seriously good ideas here in regards to magic. Like Flying Witch, the author decided not to take the easy way and just copy other works' established magic doodads and knickknacks and systems and all that. Instead, we have magical tuna and ointment that lets you float freely in the air, and an MC that just boinks things with her funny bat. It's one of the aspects of this manga that makes me genuinely curious as to what the next chapter will be.
If you can get on this train early, I highly recommend it.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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Apr 29, 2020
I want to write a review for this that doesn't mention Girls' Last Tour, but I really can't figure out how, so bear with me.
Shimeji Simulation is the second major manga from Tsukumizu, the first being the aforementioned Girls' Last Tour. If you've read GLT or follow Tsukumizu on Twitter, you're probably familiar with their signature "touch of darkness;" everything they do seems to have a hint of sadness tucked away inside.
This was really easy to see in GLT. While much of the manga was comedic or relaxing, it was undeniably a post-apocalyptic manga filled with moments of sadness and melancholy. Because of that, what
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could have been a very surface-level adventure story with cute girl characters became something much deeper and undoubtedly more emotionally satisfying.
Shimeji Simulation almost feels like the exact opposite to GLT in terms of where that ever-present melancholy feeling comes from. Taking place in a much more normal school setting, and starring "normal" schoolgirls, that feeling ends up coming much more from the characters themselves than the world around them. Shimeji herself is a very reserved person, having a lot of thoughts about every situation but rarely offering them up in full. The recollection of her life up until the start of the manga, along with her general outlook on the world around her, provides a lot of the thoughtful and melancholic feeling in this manga. That goes double when we see her slowly start to change as she becomes closer with her new friend Majime. Despite the fact that seeing her open up more and have good experiences is an inherently uplifting thing, the way they're presented makes perfect use of that built up feeling. I want to say it makes the reader continue to view the world and Shimeji herself through the same feeling they had before. I've never gotten this feeling from anything but Tsukumizu's works before, and whether or not it's intentional, I can't get enough.
That's not even mentioning any of the oddities in this manga. Many of the characters have seemingly random things attached to their bodies (shimeji mushrooms, a sunny-side-up egg, an octopus, an eggplant, a teddy bear, etc.) that pass for being "normal enough" that they encourage conversation but don't cause major alarm. That feeling of general acceptance of the odd goes a long way in making you wonder what's actually happening in this world, especially when Shimeji's older sister starts doing weird science things that make even less sense. The entire world of this manga seems like a complete mystery, but Tsukumizu writes it in a way that lulls you into a sense of acceptance just like the rest of the characters.
There have only been 15 chapters of this manga so far, and I wanted to wait until there were more to write a review, but I'm already very attached to it. I don't know if this will be better than GLT, but it certainly carries the same feeling I loved from it, while feeling entirely new in every other aspect.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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Apr 18, 2020
There's something special about this manga and I can't really figure out what it is.
This manga's description is definitely accurate, but the way it's written gives it a sort of wacky feeling, and I went in with that expectation. Instead, I was greeted with something incredibly down to earth, with two adult characters interacting in a misunderstanding-less way to create a nice relationship together.
To say the least, this manga is incredibly comfy. The MCs are just too cute together, and every interaction between them serves to deepen their bond. It's only been 11 chapters, and I can already tell I'll be rooting them on the
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entire way.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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Sep 13, 2019
I legitimately don't understand why the score for Fulldrum is barely above a 7; this is one of the most entertaining sports series I've read/watched. The first goddamn chapter of this manga features the main character tackling a motorbike... and winning. By all accounts, this manga is ridiculous fun, even if it's about a sport you may have never watched in your life.
Our main character joins the rugby club at his school, not because he wants to play rugby, but because there's a cute girl managing the first years. Once there, he proceeds to frustrate everyone he comes into contact with, ultimately leading to
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a situation where everybody improves but everybody is also angry all the time. You don't really have to worry about understanding rugby to read this, because the main character doesn't understand it either, and it shows. All the dude knows how to do is run into other guys and make them fall, and the mangaka sure as hell knows how to draw that in stunning detail.
The character interactions are straight-up hilarious. These characters may be cliches, but man are they fun to watch fuck with each other constantly. There's even hints of romance, despite our MC being the most blunt fucker on the planet. Right now, my only major problem with this manga is that I only get to experience it for 15 more chapters.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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