Latest Fix: Henyoku no Labyrinth

Name: Henyoku no Labyrinth
Author & Artist: KUMAGAI Kyoko
Chapters: 21 (ongoing)
Genres: Romance , School Life, Shoujo, Supernatural
Plot:
The story follows a love struck girl who is unfortunately in love with her sister's boyfriend, Hiroto. After her feelings are found out by the couple, she thinks her life is over... That is until she receives a magical key that allows her to travel back in time. Miyako is determined to use this second chance to confess to Hiroto before he develops feelings for her sister. Will this be second encounter be fruitful or will she discover that there are some things that simply can't be changed?

Overview:
Oh boy, I had to write the plot for you guys since the sypnosis on most sites is either non-existent or simply vague. Anyway, I don't make it a habit of picking up manga that is under 20 chapters since waiting for chapters is antagonizing (having the same problem with Rokka Melt by Toma Rei).

I'm currently addicted to this and though it seemed like it was going to be a short and typical story of: girl meets boy, falls in love, angst/complications, big confession scene and then happily ever after, it actually has a fairly compelling story.

Latest Fix: P to JK

Name: P to JK
Author & Artist: MIYOSHI Maki
Chapters: 15 - ongoing
Genres: Comedy,  Romance, Shoujo, School Life
Plot:

From ANN:

Female high-schooler Kako met Kouta at a party for adults. Although she gets into a good mood with him, she finds out he's actually a policeman.

Overview:
Hey readers, it's been awhile. Sorry for my disappearance yet again. I'll make a post about the happenings for the past 2 months and mangas and otome games I've been playing.

Anywho I actually haven't picked up much new manga but this is one of the few I've been following that has left some sort of impression on me.

Initially it's a fairly interesting premise with the policeman but soon it kind of devolves into some really unrealistic shoujo plot that requires you to suspend disbelief all up on another level. If you are able to get past this short coming, it's actually quite a solid series. The mangaka somehow blends in the shoujo universe logic, romance, friendships, some character development, some great side characters and a good foothold on darker themes like abuse.

Maybe the way the story is set up lowered my expectations and allowed me to enjoy the story for what it was. So give this series a go if you're looking for a light-hearted romance that isn't stalled with a fairly good plot and likable characters.

Ao Haru Ride getting a Japanese film adaptation

Kou looks pretty hot, I'll know
I'll need a bucket to catch my drool

As all of you may know, Ao Haru Ride has already got an anime (withholding comments until at least the 5th episode) and now it's getting a live action adaptation to go with it.

I hope people understand that what makes a good adaptation of any manga into a live action film or drama is that they consider their purpose of the film and try and re-image it to a more realistic interpretation. Copying the manga exactly and turning it into a movie makes it dull. If I want something exactly the same, I can just go read the manga or watch the anime.

Manga Review: Kyou, Koi o Hajimemasu

Name: Kyou, Koi o Hajimemasu
Author & Artist: MINAMI Kanan
Chapters: 99
Genres: Comedy, Drama, Romance, School Life, Shoujo, Slice Of Life, Smut
Plot:

Tsubaki is a girl who loves making her younger sister's hair pretty every morning, but she doesn't think that kind of style suits herself! The day of her High School Beginning Ceremony, after she failed in being the top student (who usually makes the ceremony speech), she finds herself sitting next to the actual top student of the first years, the worst rude guy ever, Kyouta. She ends up cutting his hair on purpose because of the bad things he says to her. Kyouta demands that Tsubaki pay him back with her body, but Tsubaki fixes his hair instead--making it even shorter! After that, Kyouta unexpectedly kisses Tsubaki and swears that he'll make her his woman.

Review:
I dropped and picked up this manga several times already and I've only finished all 99 chapters recently so I will give you my personal thoughts on it.

It's basically your typical shoujo, teen wangst romance. Not that I have a problem but it took itself way too seriously and the main character, Tsubaki, was wangsting the whole way through about her feels (whining + angsting).

Reading list for June/July

Sorry for lack of activity in the review department and otome gaming but I've mainly been busy and burnt out from life in general.
Anyway since I'm not sure what to review at the moment, I'll give a short list of relevant series that I've finished reading this past month along with a summary.

I'm excluding oneshots and other odd series because they're too boring to be mentioned or ongoing series that haven't really picked up yet. So in chronological order we have:

80s and 90s

Shiroi Mado no Mukougawa by HIKAWA Kyouko (1980)
Your typical childhood friends school life story that builds up to the confession scene and ends. It's quite charming though and has a bit of the late 70s manga art in terms of style without the galaxy eyes. Being a fan of Hikawa's works, it's nice to see her art evolving compared to Kanata Kara which is one of my favs.

Tokyo no Casanova by KURAMOCHI Fusako (1983)
It's a story of false incest where the main gal finds out her bro ain't her bro and she starts having feels for him basically. It's quite dated with hair styles and clothing but I like it for that. It has some idol/actor industry themes to it to if you like that kind of stuff.

Latest Fix: Mairunovich

Name: Mairunovich
Author & Artist: SATO Zakuri
Chapters: 32 - ongoing
Genres: Comedy, Drama, Romance, School Life, Shoujo
Plot:

Kinoshita Mairu has a cute name and she's apologetic for it, because she's ugly. In fact, she's apologetic for her very existence because she's not cute. Classmates call her "Poison Mushroom" behind her back and even her own brother treats her with disdain. However, all of that is about to change with the help of her transvestite mentor/neighbor, Fuwari-chan, and the "school king," Kumada Tenyuu!

Review:
So I mentioned this manga in a post awhile ago as I picked it up as holiday/vacation reading and I'm thoroughly enjoying it so far.

It's a dramatic, school life manga and although the author puts a lot of weight into the heroine's love life which gets really annoying at times and is almost ridiculous, whether intentional or not, it sends a strong message.

Mairu effectively gets the typical nerd to cute girl makeover, no glasses, a bit of makeup and hair styling and she turns out to be not-so-ugly after all. Her appearence has changed for the better, her socially awkwardness and her immature personality still shine through however.

Otome Plays: Nameless - Prologue, Intro [1/6]

Name: Nameless - The one thing you must recall
Developer: Cheritz
Length: 40 hours of gameplay
Genres: Drama, Psychological, Romance, School Life, Fantasy, Mystery, Shoujo, Comedy

Plot:
Eri (Hanuel, re-nameable) is a plain Jane with an interesting hobby. She collects ball jointed dolls. Finding solace in them after her granpa's death and her parent's perpetual absence from their overseas work, she suddenly wakes up to find them coming to life. What is she supposed to do now?

Notes:
So I finished playing this game a week ago and I absolutely love it. I'll do a review on it later but essentially the art and story and gorgeous and you have to pick it up. I made a game-play video on it so check it out. Enjoy.

Manga Review: Puzzle (MORIE Satoshi)

Name: Puzzle
Author & Artist: MORIE Satoshi
Chapters: 1 - completed
Genres: Mature, One Shot, Psychological, Romance, School Life, Shoujo
Plot: 
Miyabi is looking for someone to complete her.

Review:
The plot is a bit brief so the basic premise is about the downfall of the most popular couple in the school.The characters go under a metamorphosis from perfect, beautiful, straight-laced students to tragic pariahs at school and at home.

I love me a good psychological story and this really delivers. The thing about Morie's works is they have an almost foreboding atmosphere as it shows the psyche of the character's mind. Though it humanises their plight rather then highlighting anything two twisted.

The fact that it has smut in it actually adds another layer of intensity that I haven't seen in her previous mangas. The smut isn't too much in this story so it's alright for younger audiences, it as much as an American tv show.

Try this out and you'll be surprised. Quite a solid one shot full of dimension and intrigue.

Latest Fix: Ao Haru Ride

Name: Ao Haru Ride
Author & Artist: Sakisaka Io
Chapters: 34 - Ongoing
Genres: Comedy, Drama, Romance, School Life, Shoujo, Slice Of Life
Plot:

Yoshioka Futaba has a few reasons why she wants to "reset" her image and life as a new high-school student. Because she's cute and had a demure personality she was ostracized by her female friends in junior high, and because of a series of misunderstandings and mishaps, she couldn't get her feeling across to the one boy she has always liked, Tanaka Kou.

Now in high school, she is determined to be as unladylike as possible so that her friends won't be jealous of her. While living her life this way contentedly, she meets Tanaka-kun again, but he now goes under the name of Mabuchi Kou. He tells her that he felt the same way as she did when they were younger, but that they cannot go back. Will Futaba be able to continue her love that never even started from three years ago?

Overview:

You go gurrrl

I've been following this manga for a couple of years now other Sakisaka finished Strobe Edge but it wasn't until recently that the story reached a crossroads. You can't predict what will happen next and the story could go in either direction.

Manga Review: Koi Shitagari no Blue

Name: Koi Shitagari no Blue 
Author & Artist: FUJIWARA Yoshiko
Chapters: 24 - completed
Genres: Comedy, Drama, Romance, School Life, Shoujo, Slice of Life
Plot:
From Aerandria Scans:
“Won’t you become my girlfriend?”
On the day of her high school entrance ceremony, Ao got asked that by Riku, a guy that she has only just met. But by that, he meant to ask her to become his fake girlfriend, just to pretend. Ao was surprised by the sudden request, but after knowing Riku’s true feeling, she decided to agree to become his fake girlfriend...?

Review:
My initial impression of this was nice art and the whole story progressed very smoothly. All in all, I really liked it. Though as the plot unfolded, I really started to hate it.

The heroine, Ao, is likable and noble and I feel like the reason why the whole premise went downhill pretty fast was the other supporting characters.
Her main love interest is a classic example of that really cute guy who's childish/immature tendencies inadvertently hurt everyone else.

My Latest Fix: Ciel

Name: Ciel The Last Autumn Story

Author & Artist: RHIM Juyeon

Chapters: 22 Chapters approx. Ongoing

Genres: Adventure, Comedy, Drama, Fantasy, Historical, Romance, School Life, Shoujo, Supernatural

Plot:With the author's characteristic humour and creativity, the work describes one girl’s fantasy adventure. Yvien Magnolia's beauty widens the small villagers' eyes she is living but she never knew what her future would be, since it is destined too high to imagine for her at that time....

As the lord of the manor tries to kidnap her, Yvienne flees to Lowood Institution for wizardry and witchcraft she never thought to go leaving behind her family.

In the school, she meets interesting people, like, January Lightsphere who shines purple aura compared to his noble but peculiar family, and Lariatte, an orthodox fighter family's heir, who will be her closest mate.

Review:

I put this on hold 2 years ago since I was really busy and now I've come back to it and have really enjoyed re-reading it so far. It's really a breath of fresh air from the shoujo I typically read, I'm not sure whether to attribute this to the fact that it's a manhwa.

Although I usually prefer manga art, this author has pretty nice art, it really is based on personal preference.

The female lead, Yvienne, is a somewhat haughty about her looks though this is mostly for comic relief. I like how her mother and herself promote strong-independent-women-ness that most manga and manhwa lack.
It's not all about physical strength alone but also thinking smart which is exactly how Yvienne is portrayed.

Manga Review: Sailor Fuku ni Onegai!

Name: Sailor Fuku ni Onegai!
Author & Artist: Tanaka Mecca
Chapters: 21
Genres: Comedy, Romance, School Life, Shoujo, Supernatural

Plot: When Hina hits a homerun ball and goes to get it back, she realizes she has damaged a shrine with the baseball. When she touches the object inside the shrine, the object is absorbed into her, and she becomes the shrine's god. Now she is protected by the shrine's guard dogs, Shishi and Koma. On her journey she meets other spirits, guardians, and the legendary nine-tailed fox.

Review:
So I've read this manga 2 years ago and re-read it again just recently because I was bored. I basically forgot most of the story line, only having a vague idea of the ending, so it shows this isn't exactly a very memorable manga.

Nonetheless I found it pretty funny, I mean I really like Tanaka Mecca's sense of humour since it's quite befitting for shoujo. If you're looking for happy-go-lucky characters and almost idiotic comedy then you should read her other works like Faster Than a Kiss. Of course there's a few moments that tugs on those heart strings but it didn't leave me in a crying mess.

I think what's saves this manga from being completely cliched is the comedy. Otherwise it'd leave a pretty bland taste in your mouth. The guy is your basic, "If you get too close, I'll hurt you" type whereas the chick is not exactly a Mary Sue but there aren't any distinct characteristics that really make her the main heroine.  Though I like the art, simple and recognizable.

I think it ends on a good note as stories like this tend to overstay it's welcome. It was good to see it end in about 20 chapters and the author wasn't trying to milk their franchise coughVampireKnightcough.

This isn't bad but it isn't great either. It's the kind of thing you read when your bored. It's short and sweet is how I'd sum it up, more or less.

Manga Review: Mars

Name: Mars
Author & Artist: SOURYO Fuyumi
Chapters:
Genres: Drama, Mature, Psychological, Romance, School Life, Shoujo, Tragedy
Plot:
Kira believes that Rei and all other men in the world are dirty. She stays away from her classmates, hiding in her art. What happens when the delinquent motorcyclist and playboy, Rei, gets ahold of one of her drawings, and actually wants to keep it?

Review:
Now I perpetually avoid tragedy cos I'm a crybaby but seeing as I was in the mood of some psychological romance I thought, why not?

At first glance it's typical bad boy and anti-social, man-phobia girl but there seems to be such an inevitability on how it all unfolds. It's the dark side of human nature. It explores our natural instinct of violence and atrocities of man.

Manga Review: Hitsuji no Namida

Name: Hitsuji no Namida
Author & Artist: Hidaka Banri
Status: Complete
Chapters: 42
Genres: Comedy, Drama, Psychological, Romance, School Life, Shoujo

Plot: High school student Hasumi Kei has only one goal in life--that is to visit her classmate Kanzaki Kyosuke's apartment! Seeing how the two do not know each other, Kyosuke refuses to allow her to be anywhere near his apartment... But Kei is relentless, demanding to get her way...but why?

Review:
Read this on the holidays to kill time and it was fairly good. What kept me reading was the whole mystery element going on, you wanted to know more about the character's situation and whatnot.
Though after letting it simmer in my mind for a week or so, it's not very memorable. The characters are likable, the main lead isn't all that bad and the guy is cute but nothing more then that. If you're looking for romance, this really isn't the manga for you, even categorising it as romance is a stretch. So give it a go if you got time, it's a cute read.

Manga Review: Strobe Edge

Name: Strobe Edge
Author & Artist: Sakisaka Io
Status: Completed
Chapters: 39
Genres: Comedy, Drama, Romance, School Life, Shoujo, Slice Of Life
Plot:
Having no experience in romance, the vibrant Ninako curiously explores the meaning of what "love" really is, and is surprised to feel a colorful range of emotions as she grows closer to the school heartthrob, the quiet yet gentle Ren, who also happens to be involved in a longtime relationship. With every intention of keeping her head held high, Ninako prepares to face the mental pain of this one-sided love that she had allowed to take root, facing a series of trials that would either contribute to her growth as a headstrong woman, or break her as it did with other girls.

However, is this really a one-sided love? Or had something been silently sown in the most hidden area of Ren's heart?
Review:
A first glance, it looks like your average shoujo where there's a really naive girl who hasn't fallen in love in her whole life and suddenly this hot guy appears and it suddenly sparks her interest. And wow a love triangle involving a childhood friend; sound original? No not really. A lot of people at this point would probably go search to read another manga at this point...
Although there are major cliches in this story, there aren't many plot holes and the characters were portrayed very realistically in this "it only happens in shoujo manga land" kind of situation. Reading this manga made me realise that the characters are very important to a story; maybe even more so.

Manga Review: As the Shinigami Dictates

Name: As the Shinigami Dictates
Author & Artist: Mimori Ao
Status: Completed
Chapters: 8
Genres: Romance, School Life, Shoujo, Supernatural, Tragedy
Plot:
Ayumi is a 16-year-old who has a crush on her classmate, Musashi. One day, the God of Death appears before her, and announces that she has only one month to live. There's no stopping the hourglass of fate!! Life is short, girl, so love with all your might!!
Review:
I personally avoid tragedy but for some reason I gave this a go because the story seem interesting. The story is not something completely original but the author gives her own twist and spin on things. Ayumi is a bit of a whiny character who obeys, her long time crush, Musahi's every command despite arguing with him a lot. Overall she's a pretty mediocre character, there's nothing special or dumb about her; she's just your typical manga heroine. Although I could add she has a strong sense of what is right (I guess).Musahi on the other hand is pretty typical as well, the guy who bosses the girl he likes around but it's his own awkward way of showing that he likes her (-rollseyes-). The shinigami, Shiro, is a refreshing character and I would describe him as an celestial being who learns what it is like to be human from Ayumi. And eventually he learns what _______ is.
All in all, it's a sweet story and even though it appears that I have described it negatively I actually really enjoyed it.

Manga Review: Tsuki to Himawari

Name: Tsuki to Himawari
Author & Artist:  Tanaka Meca
Status:  Completed
Chapters:  1
Genres:  One Shot, Romance, School Life, Shoujo
Plot: 
Asahi-kun is a carefree junior-high student, never attaching to girls even though he enjoys going with them. But when the school's number 1 honor student Mitsuki "cyborg" Konno asked him to a 1-month date, in exchange for the front row ticket to his favorite singer's concert, he was forced to accept. He only has to show her what it feels like to date, right? He is ready for that...however, what he's not prepared for was his heart's reaction...
-- Baka-Updates
Review:
This is a sidestory from Faster than a Kiss (which I have yet to review) and it has its cliches. It's good nonetheless and I love the humor (like references to sex and such and no it's not smut :L). The main girl is really likeable; she's strong and smart whereas the main guy is idiotic but funny. They story is sweet overall so I reccomend you to read it.

Playful Kiss vs It Started With A Kiss

 WARNING: The following statements are my opinion and don't take anything I say as a personal insult to you. Please gtfo trolls.

Itazura Na Kiss, if you have never heard of this manga than you haven't been living in shoujo manga universe for long. This ever popular manga was written by the Mother of shoujo manga cliches, Tada Kaoru. Unfortunately, when moving house, she got into a terrible accident that lead to her death; leaving this manga incomplete forever~  
dun dun dun

This didn't stop it from having an anime, a J-movie, a T-drama and now a K-drama.

I personally haven't watched the Japanese movie so I can't make a judgement on that but I can make a judgment on the other two. The only reason why I'm doing this now is because I heard these girls say :

I like Playful Kiss, it's so cute. I don't like the Taiwanese version. The characters don't look too appealing. It's bad, don't watch it

Recommended Read: Koukou Debut

Name: High School Debut
Author & Artist: Kawahara Kazune
Status:  Completed
Chapters:  52
Genres: Comedy, Drama, Romance, School life
Plot: 
Haruna Nagashima gave her all to softball in middle school, and now that she's made her high school debut she's decided to give her all for a new goal. Getting a boyfriend and falling in love! However, she has one small problem. Since she never paid any attention to fashion or trend in middle school she has no idea how to go about attracting her yet-to-be-found love. But a chance encounter with with Yoh Komiyama provides her with the opportunity she needs. If he coaches her in how to become attractive, surely she can find herself a boyfriend!
Comments:
I'm a bit too lazy to write a review (cos saying I'm busy would sound like an excuse). Maybe one day I will but I really think that you should read this. Yes to the person that asked if it has cliches but it's done well so I don't mind as much. The female lead might get annoying for some people XD
And for those who finish reading this or have already read it then there a live action movie coming out!

Recommended Read: Cheese in the Trap

Name: Cheese in the Trap
Author & Artist: Soon Kki
Status:  Ongoing
Genres:  Comedy, Josei, Mystery, Romance, School Life, Slice Of Life, Webtoons
Plot:
Hong Sul is a ordinary college student. Yoo Jung is the school's most popular upperclass man. He's good looking, rich, smart, and even nice. However, Hong Sul thinks there's more to Yoo Jung than what meets the eye..
Comments:
I have to commend this author for this really good manhwa. It's not really romantic but involves a lot of psychological stuff which is really interesting. Yes, I know this is josei manhwa (korean comics) but it's really entertaining and makes you think. I generally don't read much manhwa probably because I haven't come across good ones but I'm pretty familiar with the culture. The characters are pretty three dimensional and the story doesn't have many cliches. Ohh and before you start reading here are some tips that might make it less confusing:

• Black borders= Past Events
• White Borders= Present Events
• It's a webcomic scroll down a lot
• Read it slowly, it's hard to get if you skim throught it
• Noona= How a guy addresses an older girl
• Unni= How a girl addresses an older girl
• Dongsaeng= Kohai
• Sunbae= Senpai
• Oppa= How a girl would addresses an older guy
• Hyung= How a guy would addresses an older guy
• Soju= An alcoholic drink commonly drunk in SK
• And remember to read from normally (left to right, I sometimes forget >.>)

Sorry I haven't been posting, gahhhh so many tests and assignments DX