Interest Stacks

A manga by Kamatani Yuhki.

CW: Mentions of suicide, self-hatred and homophobia.

I am aware calling this "BL" might not be the best choice since when we use the term "boys love" we don't really talk about stories like this. But I love this manga and would love to share it with as many people as possible. So please forgive me for putting it in this stack.

Even though it is not around 7 chapters I would still consider this a short series. To me, it feels shorter than it actually is.

The art is stunning. It's very detailed and conveys emotions amazingly well. And with the more "abstract" art used in certain scenes, it just brings everything together and somehow manages to make the story better than it already is.
And the story... Well, first of all let me say this once again, this would not be considered BL (I think, at least). But with the LGBT themes in it, I had to include it in here. We have gay, lesbian, aroace and trans characters. And this might be one of the best LGBT representations I've seen in Japanese media.

A manga by the lovely Furuya Nagisa.

Has a sequel which is right below.

This one is absolutely amazing for a short series. It literally just starts off with a confession scene and then tells us what happens after while also giving us some backstory. The way the relationship changes after the confession is just amazing. The "romantic interest but also best friends at the same time" dynamic is written well.

A manga by the lovely Furuya Nagisa.

Has a prequel which is right above.

A manga by Cocomi.

Has a sequel which is right below.

The art is really cute and has very clean lineart.
The story is well, cute. This one is quite amazing for a short manga. The characters seem well written.

A manga by Cocomi.

Has a prequel which is right above.

A manga by Mokumoku Ren.

Mini CW: Stay away from this one if horror makes you uncomfortable. It doesn't necessarily feel that scary so far, but it does have some disturbing imagery and moments, so just a little heads-up!
Oh, I also don't know if the stuff that happens in this counts as body horror, so I can't really give a warning about that. It feels like body horror mixed with cosmic horror? I'm not sure.

I dropped this one the first time I tried to read it since it wasn't really what I had expected. And as I'm back to following the story again, I can say that it's actually pretty good. This feels less like your generic BL and more like a horror story which just happens to include a gay character in it. It has an interesting concept and an interesting story.

It feels off and makes you uncomfortable. But mostly in a good way!

A manga by Ori Mita.

The story is simple, but effective. The mutual respect the main characters have for eachother and their polite actions are heartwarming.

A manga by hagi.

The story is really nice for a short series. Sure, it's not amazing, or something never done before but it is extremely wholesome. If you do enjoy stories that have gods in them I'd reccomend checking this one out.

A manga by Azuma Kaya

!!!Has some explicit scenes!!!

Has a spin-off which is right below

Although the cover image may make this one seem like your generic BL, the story in it is very new and refreshing in my opinion. The characters are well developed and their personalities make sense when you take their backgrounds into account. Although some explicit scenes are used in order to please the reader, most are given to tell the story. An enjoyable read.

A manga by Azuma Kaya

!!!Has some explicit scenes!!!

Has a parent story which is right above

A very good spin-off in my opinion, once again the characters are very well written and their motives and actions make so much sense given the context. There aren't that many explicit scenes. An enjoyable read.

A manga by Rakuta Shouko.

The story doesn't make the main characters being in love the focal point, it tells us more about their struggles and how they overcome them together.

A manga by the lovely Furuya Nagisa.

The story seems to follow a cliché childhood friends to lovers storyline but what makes it good is the backstories, the personalities of the characters and the pacing.

A manga by Hayakawa Nojiko.

Has a spin-off sequel which is right below.

This was the first manga I've read from this mangaka. It was different than what I've read usually and probably because of that I initally gave this a lower score. But upon thinking about it further, I started liking it more.

Reccomended if you are looking for a melancholic manga.

A manga by Hayakawa Nojiko.

Has a prequel which is right above.

Even though "Yozora no Sumikko de," is rated higher on MAL, I might actually have enjoyed this more. Mostly because of the way we see how the characters changed over time

The melancholic feel from the previous manga is still present in this one too.

A manhua by D Jun.
Small CW: Mentions of homophobia.

!!!Has some explicit scenes in the later chapters!!!

One of the better BL I've read but the pacing issues and some things dragging out for a long time makes it not-so-great unfortunately. 138 chapters seems a bit long for this story. Especially being someone who was reading this when it was still being published, it felt painful, really. But if you can get over that even a little bit, you can enjoy the story and the personalities of certain characters. So I still reccomend this.

The main couple has a healthy relationship, and well... I also have found certain situations and characters to be relatable in this. And it's not a surprise since the author himself is also apparently a gay man. I would say that Here U Are tells the problems gay people might experience in a more lighthearted way, but one of my friends still felt uncomfortable with those problems being told in this, so I advise you keep that in mind also.

Art by Tsukizuki Yoshi and story by Nanasaki Ryousuke.

CW: Mentions of self-hatred and homophobia.

The story is an adaptation of gay activist Ryousuke Nanasaki's autobiography. So the problem I have with the manga is that it feels like they skipped most parts just to be able to make it 7 chapters.
If you have time, I would reccomend reading the web essay by the same title instead of reading this. I haven't fully read the essay myself but I've seen some parts and it seems much more well written than the manga.

A manga by Hayakawa Nojiko.

A manga by Harusono Shou.

A cute story and some small jokes here and there...
I'm sure a lot can be improved in this series but it's just a comfort manga for me, so do I enjoy reading it.

While I do agree that it doesn't have much difference from your standard BL series, I appreciate that Sasaki isn't *too* forceful with the way he acts although you can clearly tell that he is quite impatient at times. He still has some questionable actions but he is not all that bad in my opinion.

A manga by Harusono Shou.

I'd reccomend you read "Sasaki to Miyano" first since it's the parent story of Hirano to Kagiura. But it's not a must.

The characters are wholesome and fun, they have a relationship which feels quite domestic. However, while Hirano is nice, Kagiura feels a bit forceful which I do not appreciate. But it still is a fun read.

A manga by Kousei Eguchi (PEYO). May them rest in peace...

CW: Child abuse, sexual assault, gender dysphoria

***I will try my best not to spoil the story but I felt like I needed a slight spoiler warning here, please read at your own risk!***

For 7 chapters, this manga is really good. It geniunely is interesting too. Even though the manga starts in a light tone in the beginning, halfway through it gets much, much darker. Boy Meets Maria has a lot of heavy topics in it and it explains and expresses them in a respectful way. I enjoyed reading this very much.
I GENIUNELY want to give this manga a much higher score than 6. But when I think back on the story I can't help but remember how unrealistic Hirasawa seems throughout this whole thing and how, for me, he kind of ruined some parts. Additionally, I just can't forget that one part (which I won't spoil) around the last chapters and how uncomfortable it made me feel.

A manga by Kanna Kii.

For 7 chapters, it was fine. I would have loved for this to be a bit longer since I wanted to learn more about the characters. But alas, all we get is this much.

A manga by Kanna Kii.

!!!Has some explicit scenes!!!

Has a sequel which is right below.

I've seen lots of people who like the Étranger series but I guess it's not really for me.
I do like Kanna Kii's art very much and that's why I like reading their works. I also like how they give realistic hardships to certain characters, and the way their characters interact with one another. But what I don't like about their works is that they usually tend to not delve into detail about the characters pasts, hardships and thought processes.
And same goes with Umibe no Étranger as to me, the characters falling in love seemed like it came out of nowhere. It was frustrating at times but still enjoyable.

A manga by Kanna Kii.

!!!Has some explicit scenes!!!

Has a prequel which is right above.

It basically is the continuation of the story. We get some new characters and see some older characters coming back. The tone of this is a bit more depressing than Umibe no Étranger I feel like? But it still has similar vibes going on. It's also kinda nice to see how the main characters' relationship develops.
Honestly I prefer this over Umibe no Étranger. I feel like some parts of the story are explained much better and the relationship between the main two feels very domestic.

A manga by Kizu Natsuki.

I'm sure you've all heard of it by now, so I see there is no need to talk in detail about this.
Before you come at me for ranking it as just a 6, let me explain that that rating is mostly because of the way the last few chapters are written, I'd say that they were a bit lackluster and way too dragged out in some ways.

Art by Takarai Rihito and story by Tachibana Venio.

Art by Bakdam and story by Yeong-ha.

Nice and wholesome story, but quite forgetable.

A manga by Yatsuhashi.

Short and sweet, doesn't have much going on but feels nice to read.

A manga by the lovely Furuya Nagisa.

A manga by the lovely Furuya Nagisa.

A manga by the lovely Furuya Nagisa.

Has an awkward beginning and certain points doesn't seem to make much sense but it gets a bit better later on.

Art by Kanzume Sawa and story by Tsubaki Yuzu.

The story of a high school student being in love with an adult.
The adult character doesn't take advantage of the other one, however the story still has some moments which personally made me feel a bit uncomfortable.
It's still fun to read and the art style is really cute.

A manga by Ori Mita.

This one has a nice story I think. But, it still feels off to me because it includes the romance between a high school student and an adult. It doesn't necessarily feel creepy but it's still a bit odd.
A nice read though.

A manga by Fumino Yuki.

Has several sequels, I haven't read them yet.

This one has a really good premise and is pretty good until the last chapter or so. What really pains me is that it's BL.

Throughout the story we see how the main characters get to know each other bit by bit and start enjoying each other's company. Kouhei's situation and the prejudice of others is explained well too. However, problems arise in the later chapters of the story. The fact that the mangaka, Fumino Yuki, didn't even know (or forgot) that this was supposed to be written for a BL magazine causes the slow build-up of the characters' friendship (and potentially a build-up for a nice, romantic relationship) to be suddenly rushed and ruined by cliché BL tropes.

A manga by Mika.

The story is just a basic (+ kind of bland) "childhood friends to lovers" one. It's nothing special, but it's not boring and has some enjoyable moments.

A manga by hagi.

A short and nice read to be honest. The art is really cute and fluffy too, so it's worth checking out.

A manga by hagi.

Just a short love story about a delinquent looking guy and a kind kid.
It's nothing special, but it's not bad. The art is pretty cute too, so I think it's worth checking out.

A manga by Kizu Natsuki.

The story is focused on several couples. Unfortunately, I can't comment much since this wasn't that memorable for me.

A manga by Takarai Rihito.

!!!Has some explicit scenes!!!

The story didn't make much sense to me but I still appreciate that even though this is an explicit manga, it had a proper story in there. The main characters also generally didn't have an unhealthy relationship.

A manga by Syundei.

Has a sequel (named "Motto Ganbare! Nakamura-kun!!") but I personally wouldn't reccomend reading it. I will explain why in a bit.
***The rest of this note gets in the spoiler territory, so read at your own risk.***

I personally read this one just because it was a short series, and somehow kinda enjoyed it overall. At certain points the comedy was really good, and I liked some comments from the main character. The art style is also really cute with being both modern and nostalgic at the same time.
Although I didn't really care about any of the characters, it was fine since I just wanted to read something silly and cute and have fun while doing so.

And, as I said, I enjoyed reading this until halfway through something felt off about this manga. It was hinted that Hirose, the main character's crush, was interested in having a relationship with his teacher. And well, that made me pretty uncomfortable but since it didn't take a big part of the story, I didn't think about it much.
As you can guess, why I wouldn't reccomend the sequel is because it has more moments of hinting that Hirose and the teacher have a "special" relationship or that they are interested in eachother. I'm not sure if it's just "a joke" but... Even if it is, it certainly doesn't feel like one.

A manga by the lovely Furuya Nagisa.

This had some romance tropes which I personally am not very fond of. And since what I like about Furuya Nagisa's works is that the characters feel realistic and have good backstories and such, this manga not feeling that realistic and detailed really made me sad. However, it wasn't bad.

A manga by Aki Yuukura.

!!!Has some explicit scenes!!!

This had some unnecessary and nonsensical moments, the relationship between the main characters develop very quickly with some unnatural and forced moments sprinkled in there, but the main two have a nice relationship, so it takes away from the weirdness of the other parts I believe.
During the story there aren't a lot of explicit moments and they don't feel fetishizing either.
I geniunely wished this manga was longer.

Art by Yuuki Niko and story by Yayoi Machi.

The characters had a pretty cute relationship but the story felt rushed at certain parts.

A manga by Hinota.

It's fully coloured which makes it a bit more interesting to look at.
But other than that, I couldn't care less about the characters, they kind of feel like cardboard cut-outs. Also some jokes are fine but I just don't get the others. Not a bad read still.

A manga by Zenko Sumiya.

A manga which shows us random moments of a couple. Has some funny jokes in there.

A manga by Zeniko Sumiya.

A manga by Takarai Rihito.

!!!Has some explicit scenes!!!

Even though I felt sad reading it, this felt weak storywise. I didn't hate it though. And even though I wouldn't say this seemed like it was fetishizing gay men it still felt a bit off. So take this as just a small heads-up I suppose.

A manga by Fujitobi

A short series to read when you have free time. And when you don't want to get into detailed stories..

A manga by Fujitobi

A short series to read when you have free time.
Doesn't have that much of a story.

A manga by Ruu1mm.

It's a fun little story. Nothing special.

A manga by Hayakawa Nojiko.

People seem to enjoy this one but, the story made no sense to me and to me, it was a bit boring.
It's not necessarily bad, I just got bored and didn't care much. I'm sure there are others out there who would enjoy this, so I wanted to include it in here.