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A handful of Boy's Love manga reviews
So I've been reading manga again, and as we know I'm not like to let anything pass by unreviewed. But I've been reading pretty much strictly boys love manga. I'm reviewing them anyway, in part for my own records—and yeah, I'm pretty sure that reviewing porn makes me a little weird—but keep in mind that all of these manga contain explicit homosexual content, and be warned that they may contain student/teacher relationships, dubious consent/rape, shota, or guro. So if these are of no use or interest to you, pass them by! Because I've read so many, I'll split them in half: recommended and not recommended. Due to the nature of these manga, I'll put it all under LJ cuts.
RECOMMENDED
Title: $10
Mangaka: Uida Shiuko
Chapters: 4
Rating: 3 of 5
Eiji and Ippei are longtime friends, but Ippei's fear that he may have gotten a girl pregnant bring sex into their friendship. Contains two other stories, wherein longtime friends become lovers and a man falls in love with his brother-in-law. The stories in $10 tend to be a little twisted (particularly the first and the last), which is their greatest strength—the somewhat-unhealthy relationships are unusual and intriguing, and as such a joy to read (if you're into that). But too often the mangaka backs off at the last moment, trying to smooth over the worrisome content with all-healing love. Were these stories more honestly disturbing, I would have loved them—as they are, however, the concept is intriguing but the execution falls flat, and I came away disappointed. Moderately recommended.
Title: 17 Sai no Hisoka na Yokujou (Secret Love of 17 Years Old)
Mangaka: Takaku Shouko
Chapters: 6
Rating: 4 of 5
Takamura confides his love to his student, Rin, believing that he is content with one-sided, physical relationship—but he soon discovers that he desires Rin's love as well. It begins with a simple, if sudden premise—teacher confesses his desire for student—but this evolves into a beautiful, sexy, surprisingly complex manga. There are some ever-present annoyances in characters and plot twists, so this is not without faults, but the surprising sensitivity of the developing love story makes up for it. Despite a sudden start, there's enough nuance that this story feels real—real, but still really sexy. It's one of my favorites from this reading spree, and I recommend it.
Title: Abiru Junjou (Basking in Pure Feelings)
Mangaka: Ougi Yuzuha
Chapters: 6
Rating: 4 of 5
High school student Yuka falls for his new neighbor and teacher Gotou almost at first sight, but Gotou rejects Yuka's advances because he claims to have no interest in kids. Gotou's rejection doesn't last long, of course—and surprisingly, this is one of the better BL manga that I've stumbled upon. It falls victim to a few BL clichés—especially in the plot—but what manga doesn't? Otherwise, the art is gorgeous, and the characters and romance are surprisingly nuanced. This may not be a work of art, but it tends towards depth that most of these comics lack. Readable, beautiful, and better than average, this isn't perfect but I do recommend it.
Title: Brother
Mangaka: Ougi Yuzuha
Chapters: 10
Rating: 4 of 5
Step-brothers Asuka and Yui went from best friends to complete strangers in the course of a single afternoon—but now, five years later, a family vacation gives them the chance to reconnect and it turns out that their once-brotherly relationship may actually be something more. What this mangaka does well is carry through on a concept. As with Abiru Junjou, the premise here feels real: a pair of brothers pulled into a romantic relationship, with all the awkward implications that come with it. The story runs a littlle too long, but the authenticity of characters and setting, combined with wonderful art and plenty of smut, makes it worthwhile. I recommend it.
Title: Mukizu Ja Irarenee (Can't Help Getting Hurt)
Mangaka: Sadahiro Mika
Chapters: 6
Rating: 5 of 5
Shouji is Honami's boyfriend, and Terumi is the first guy that Hanomi ever liked. When Shouji and Terumi meet, the jealousy that sparks between them has lasting consequences. This manga is amazing, and one of my favorites from this reading spree. The art is good, the sex is lovely; the story avoids most BL clichés, and its focus on jealousy and fluid sex roles make it a breath of fresh air. There's some hasty plot points, but on the whole this is an incredible volume: unusual, refreshing, complex, and incredibly sexy. I recommend it wholeheartedly, and shall run off to read more of the mangaka's work.
Title: Project Panda
Mangaka: Murakami Maki
Chapters: 1
Rating: 4 of 5
Gravitation doujinshi: Haunted by writer's block with deep, psychological roots, Yuki searches for self-punishment through sex. I wish Gravitation were fresher in my mind, because some of this was lost on me. What I got, though, I liked. Project Panda is at once straight hardcore smut and deeply, uncomfortably psychological—an unusual combination which makes it almost unpleasant to read and yet startlingly good. Murakami's graphic work tends to be explicit to the point of anatomical, but given the harshness of this volume that style almost works. Where I more familiar with Gravitation, where the art somewhat less explicit, I'd rate this a 5. As it is, it remains one of the more meaningful volumes I've read, and I recommend it. Beware shota.
Title: Sex Therapist
Mangaka: Kodaka Kazuma
Chapters: 7
Rating: 3 of 5
Men suffering troubles in love visit a bar named Kain where the owner uses his body and his ability to transform his appearance in order to resolve their anxieties and help them find love. Sex Therapist is Pet Shop of Horrors with porn instead of horror—same odd, attractive central figure, same episodic storytelling, but a whole lot more cock. The art is beautiful, the sex scenes are particularly lovely, but the characters are flat and the plots repetitive, and so this series never quite excels. It's not a bad waste of time, but it could have been better—just enough to warrant a moderate recommendation. (Mostly it made me wish for more Pet Shop of Horrors, even if the Count never gets naked.)
Title: Unapai
Mangaka: Murakami Maki
Chapters: 4+ of 5
When cornered by a priest, a vampire offers his body in the desperate attempt to save his life—but this priest has inhuman powers of his own. I discovered this manga via a 4chan thread where one anon called it "A bit guro" and another responded: "At one point, one guy has his hand in the other guy's guts. It's not a bit guro. It's also awesome." I'm of this school of thought. Marakami's hardcore work is too often exaggerated and anatomical, but with vampires and vampire hunters, it works. If guro doesn't send you running for the hills, this is an intense read, over the top and entertaining and really hot. I recommend it.
NOT RECOMMEDED
Title: Aigan Shounen (The Playmate Boy)
Mangaka: Mizukami Shin
Chapters: 6
Rating: 3 of 5
Sold into service, Seiji becomes the sex slave of the unusual, potentially inhuman Baron Kuroba—but Seiji's secret is that he has loved the Baron throughout his entire life. I'm not quite sure what I think of this manga—despite violence, rape, necrophilia, and explicit sex, it feels remarkably ... tame. Typical of BL manga, in the end it's All About Love—a theme which works well for a secondary character and his side story, but which makes the primary story simple and cliché despite the startling content. Furthermore, the art style just didn't work for me, and it's so distinctive that I couldn't see beyond it to appreciate the rest of the manga. All in all an interesting attempt, but only sometime a success, and I don't quite recommend it.
Title: Himitsu no Okusuri (Secrecy Drug)
Mangaka: Yamakami Riyu
Chapters: 6
Rating: 2 of 5
College-age Mutsuki and junior high-student Taku were once friends, but no longer talk—until Mutsuki slips Taku a few pills which loosen him up and let them reveal their true feeling for one another. Between overdone characters, repetitive storytelling, and unbelievable plot twists, this manga swiftly moves from exaggerated to outright unbelievable—and though the art's not bad and Taku's developing innocent infatuation is somewhat interesting, there's not enough here to justify the various weaknesses. Mediocre and forgettable, I simply don't recommend this manga. However, the series does contain a somewhat similar side story (chapters 5 & 6) which is a bit better.
Title: King & Prince
Mangaka: Fujisaki Kou
Chapters: 6
Rating: 3 of 5
Prince and King (nicknames both) are the two most popular boys in school, but also bitter rivals—because whenever Prince thinks he'll finally get laid for the first time, King steals his girl. By way of apology, King promises to teach Prince everything he knows about making love. The art is distinctive but pleasing, the characters aren't bad, but the romance is unbelievable and cliché—a combination which makes King & Prince mildly entertaining but ultimately forgettable. Also contains a story of best friends confessing their feelings for one another, which is a litany of BL clichés and likewise forgettable. All told this volume is a harmless diversion, but I don't recommend it.
Titles: Gravitation Remix 10 and Gravitation Megamix Kumagorou
Mangaka: Murakami Maki
Chapters: 1 each
Rating: 3 of 5 and 2 of 5
There's little plot to speak of here—characters from Gravitation have various variations of hardcore sex. As I mentioned in reviews of Project Panda and Unapai, Murakami's explicit work tends towards anatomical; it also tends to be exaggerated to the point of unbelievability. Such is the case here: these doujin are just sex, lots of sex, over the top and unbelievable explicit sex. Gravitation Remix 10 has some interesting, dark character interactions; Kumagorou has a strange shota-esque style. Both are detailed, explicit, yet entirely unconvincing, a combination which I find mind-boggling rather than enjoyable. It's rarely sexy and tends to be vaguely unpleasant, and so I don't recommend either of these one shots.
Title: Star na Koi and Star ni A
Mangaka: Ougi Yuzuha
Chapters: 8 and 7
Rating: 3 of 5
An up-and-coming actor confesses his feelings for a fellow student in the most violent way imaginable; in other stories, a baseball player is taken advantage of by a schoolmate, and a man trapped in the dark is saved by a blind individual. What Ougi does well in manga like Abiru Junjou and Brother (above) is carry through on an unusual premise such that the unique settings create original love stories. What she does poorly in (sofar as I've read) all of her other work is fall victim to the BL cliché of It's All About Love. The premises here are unusual, but rape and abuse and really odd plot twists are bulldozed by a desperate, oft-nonsensical rush towards True Love. As a result, the stories in these volumes are repetitive and unrealistic, so while I like some of the mangaka's other work, these I do not recommend.
This section could be a lot longer, but there were so many manga which were so forgettable they don't even warrant a review. Not to say that they're outright bad—often they're just meaningless. That list includes but is not limited to (because I've forgotten many of them), and consider these all not recommended:
Anata wo Mamoritakute (I Want to Protect You), Minase Masara.
17 Guyz, Nitta Youka.
Bathroom Grooming, Minami Haruka. (Outright bad, beware shota.)
Gekkou no Rankan ni Kuchinashi no Nioi, Takaku Shouko.
Hakase to Neko (The Professor and the Cat), Uyu. (Outright bad.)
Suteki na Kigawa ga Nakuttemo (Even Without Beautiful Fur), Kamo Nabako. (Yes I will read anything that could potentially contain catboys, leave me alone.)
Whip On!, Chouno Shibuki.
RECOMMENDED
Title: $10
Mangaka: Uida Shiuko
Chapters: 4
Rating: 3 of 5
Eiji and Ippei are longtime friends, but Ippei's fear that he may have gotten a girl pregnant bring sex into their friendship. Contains two other stories, wherein longtime friends become lovers and a man falls in love with his brother-in-law. The stories in $10 tend to be a little twisted (particularly the first and the last), which is their greatest strength—the somewhat-unhealthy relationships are unusual and intriguing, and as such a joy to read (if you're into that). But too often the mangaka backs off at the last moment, trying to smooth over the worrisome content with all-healing love. Were these stories more honestly disturbing, I would have loved them—as they are, however, the concept is intriguing but the execution falls flat, and I came away disappointed. Moderately recommended.
Title: 17 Sai no Hisoka na Yokujou (Secret Love of 17 Years Old)
Mangaka: Takaku Shouko
Chapters: 6
Rating: 4 of 5
Takamura confides his love to his student, Rin, believing that he is content with one-sided, physical relationship—but he soon discovers that he desires Rin's love as well. It begins with a simple, if sudden premise—teacher confesses his desire for student—but this evolves into a beautiful, sexy, surprisingly complex manga. There are some ever-present annoyances in characters and plot twists, so this is not without faults, but the surprising sensitivity of the developing love story makes up for it. Despite a sudden start, there's enough nuance that this story feels real—real, but still really sexy. It's one of my favorites from this reading spree, and I recommend it.
Title: Abiru Junjou (Basking in Pure Feelings)
Mangaka: Ougi Yuzuha
Chapters: 6
Rating: 4 of 5
High school student Yuka falls for his new neighbor and teacher Gotou almost at first sight, but Gotou rejects Yuka's advances because he claims to have no interest in kids. Gotou's rejection doesn't last long, of course—and surprisingly, this is one of the better BL manga that I've stumbled upon. It falls victim to a few BL clichés—especially in the plot—but what manga doesn't? Otherwise, the art is gorgeous, and the characters and romance are surprisingly nuanced. This may not be a work of art, but it tends towards depth that most of these comics lack. Readable, beautiful, and better than average, this isn't perfect but I do recommend it.
Title: Brother
Mangaka: Ougi Yuzuha
Chapters: 10
Rating: 4 of 5
Step-brothers Asuka and Yui went from best friends to complete strangers in the course of a single afternoon—but now, five years later, a family vacation gives them the chance to reconnect and it turns out that their once-brotherly relationship may actually be something more. What this mangaka does well is carry through on a concept. As with Abiru Junjou, the premise here feels real: a pair of brothers pulled into a romantic relationship, with all the awkward implications that come with it. The story runs a littlle too long, but the authenticity of characters and setting, combined with wonderful art and plenty of smut, makes it worthwhile. I recommend it.
Title: Mukizu Ja Irarenee (Can't Help Getting Hurt)
Mangaka: Sadahiro Mika
Chapters: 6
Rating: 5 of 5
Shouji is Honami's boyfriend, and Terumi is the first guy that Hanomi ever liked. When Shouji and Terumi meet, the jealousy that sparks between them has lasting consequences. This manga is amazing, and one of my favorites from this reading spree. The art is good, the sex is lovely; the story avoids most BL clichés, and its focus on jealousy and fluid sex roles make it a breath of fresh air. There's some hasty plot points, but on the whole this is an incredible volume: unusual, refreshing, complex, and incredibly sexy. I recommend it wholeheartedly, and shall run off to read more of the mangaka's work.
Title: Project Panda
Mangaka: Murakami Maki
Chapters: 1
Rating: 4 of 5
Gravitation doujinshi: Haunted by writer's block with deep, psychological roots, Yuki searches for self-punishment through sex. I wish Gravitation were fresher in my mind, because some of this was lost on me. What I got, though, I liked. Project Panda is at once straight hardcore smut and deeply, uncomfortably psychological—an unusual combination which makes it almost unpleasant to read and yet startlingly good. Murakami's graphic work tends to be explicit to the point of anatomical, but given the harshness of this volume that style almost works. Where I more familiar with Gravitation, where the art somewhat less explicit, I'd rate this a 5. As it is, it remains one of the more meaningful volumes I've read, and I recommend it. Beware shota.
Title: Sex Therapist
Mangaka: Kodaka Kazuma
Chapters: 7
Rating: 3 of 5
Men suffering troubles in love visit a bar named Kain where the owner uses his body and his ability to transform his appearance in order to resolve their anxieties and help them find love. Sex Therapist is Pet Shop of Horrors with porn instead of horror—same odd, attractive central figure, same episodic storytelling, but a whole lot more cock. The art is beautiful, the sex scenes are particularly lovely, but the characters are flat and the plots repetitive, and so this series never quite excels. It's not a bad waste of time, but it could have been better—just enough to warrant a moderate recommendation. (Mostly it made me wish for more Pet Shop of Horrors, even if the Count never gets naked.)
Title: Unapai
Mangaka: Murakami Maki
Chapters: 4+ of 5
When cornered by a priest, a vampire offers his body in the desperate attempt to save his life—but this priest has inhuman powers of his own. I discovered this manga via a 4chan thread where one anon called it "A bit guro" and another responded: "At one point, one guy has his hand in the other guy's guts. It's not a bit guro. It's also awesome." I'm of this school of thought. Marakami's hardcore work is too often exaggerated and anatomical, but with vampires and vampire hunters, it works. If guro doesn't send you running for the hills, this is an intense read, over the top and entertaining and really hot. I recommend it.
NOT RECOMMEDED
Title: Aigan Shounen (The Playmate Boy)
Mangaka: Mizukami Shin
Chapters: 6
Rating: 3 of 5
Sold into service, Seiji becomes the sex slave of the unusual, potentially inhuman Baron Kuroba—but Seiji's secret is that he has loved the Baron throughout his entire life. I'm not quite sure what I think of this manga—despite violence, rape, necrophilia, and explicit sex, it feels remarkably ... tame. Typical of BL manga, in the end it's All About Love—a theme which works well for a secondary character and his side story, but which makes the primary story simple and cliché despite the startling content. Furthermore, the art style just didn't work for me, and it's so distinctive that I couldn't see beyond it to appreciate the rest of the manga. All in all an interesting attempt, but only sometime a success, and I don't quite recommend it.
Title: Himitsu no Okusuri (Secrecy Drug)
Mangaka: Yamakami Riyu
Chapters: 6
Rating: 2 of 5
College-age Mutsuki and junior high-student Taku were once friends, but no longer talk—until Mutsuki slips Taku a few pills which loosen him up and let them reveal their true feeling for one another. Between overdone characters, repetitive storytelling, and unbelievable plot twists, this manga swiftly moves from exaggerated to outright unbelievable—and though the art's not bad and Taku's developing innocent infatuation is somewhat interesting, there's not enough here to justify the various weaknesses. Mediocre and forgettable, I simply don't recommend this manga. However, the series does contain a somewhat similar side story (chapters 5 & 6) which is a bit better.
Title: King & Prince
Mangaka: Fujisaki Kou
Chapters: 6
Rating: 3 of 5
Prince and King (nicknames both) are the two most popular boys in school, but also bitter rivals—because whenever Prince thinks he'll finally get laid for the first time, King steals his girl. By way of apology, King promises to teach Prince everything he knows about making love. The art is distinctive but pleasing, the characters aren't bad, but the romance is unbelievable and cliché—a combination which makes King & Prince mildly entertaining but ultimately forgettable. Also contains a story of best friends confessing their feelings for one another, which is a litany of BL clichés and likewise forgettable. All told this volume is a harmless diversion, but I don't recommend it.
Titles: Gravitation Remix 10 and Gravitation Megamix Kumagorou
Mangaka: Murakami Maki
Chapters: 1 each
Rating: 3 of 5 and 2 of 5
There's little plot to speak of here—characters from Gravitation have various variations of hardcore sex. As I mentioned in reviews of Project Panda and Unapai, Murakami's explicit work tends towards anatomical; it also tends to be exaggerated to the point of unbelievability. Such is the case here: these doujin are just sex, lots of sex, over the top and unbelievable explicit sex. Gravitation Remix 10 has some interesting, dark character interactions; Kumagorou has a strange shota-esque style. Both are detailed, explicit, yet entirely unconvincing, a combination which I find mind-boggling rather than enjoyable. It's rarely sexy and tends to be vaguely unpleasant, and so I don't recommend either of these one shots.
Title: Star na Koi and Star ni A
Mangaka: Ougi Yuzuha
Chapters: 8 and 7
Rating: 3 of 5
An up-and-coming actor confesses his feelings for a fellow student in the most violent way imaginable; in other stories, a baseball player is taken advantage of by a schoolmate, and a man trapped in the dark is saved by a blind individual. What Ougi does well in manga like Abiru Junjou and Brother (above) is carry through on an unusual premise such that the unique settings create original love stories. What she does poorly in (sofar as I've read) all of her other work is fall victim to the BL cliché of It's All About Love. The premises here are unusual, but rape and abuse and really odd plot twists are bulldozed by a desperate, oft-nonsensical rush towards True Love. As a result, the stories in these volumes are repetitive and unrealistic, so while I like some of the mangaka's other work, these I do not recommend.
This section could be a lot longer, but there were so many manga which were so forgettable they don't even warrant a review. Not to say that they're outright bad—often they're just meaningless. That list includes but is not limited to (because I've forgotten many of them), and consider these all not recommended:
Anata wo Mamoritakute (I Want to Protect You), Minase Masara.
17 Guyz, Nitta Youka.
Bathroom Grooming, Minami Haruka. (Outright bad, beware shota.)
Gekkou no Rankan ni Kuchinashi no Nioi, Takaku Shouko.
Hakase to Neko (The Professor and the Cat), Uyu. (Outright bad.)
Suteki na Kigawa ga Nakuttemo (Even Without Beautiful Fur), Kamo Nabako. (Yes I will read anything that could potentially contain catboys, leave me alone.)
Whip On!, Chouno Shibuki.