drama

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Lenni Reviews: “Goodbye, Eri” by Tatsuki Fujimoto

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review and trigger warning for suicide and terminal illness.

Yuta’s mother is dying so he decides to record her last days to remember her by. After her death, he turns it into a movie and shows it in school; to disappointing results. He decides to jump from the roof of the hospital where his mother died only to meet strange girl, Eri, who drags him off on a mission to make a better movie.

Oof, this is not the manga to read if you are sad. I will say, I like how the panels will be fuzzy when Yuta is emotional or upset and how it plays with what is in the film and what is real life. This has Your Lie in April vibes if you are avoiding media about terminal illness. I will say it’s really well done and the ending does have a strange sense of hope. It’s surreal and maudlin. 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Boy’s Abyss” Vol. 1, by Ryō Minenami

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review and is for mature readers.

Reiji lives with his mother, older brother, and ailing grandmother in a small town. His mother is overworked, his brother doesn’t help, and his grandmother’s dementia is getting worse. He feels trapped with no where to go in life when he meets Nagi, a woman working in the local convenience store but hiding her identity as a famous popstar.

This is shaping up to be a rather bleak telling of life in a small town. The mom is exhausted and ground down, Reiji see no future he can call his own, and Nagi is not a good influence on him. Reiji’s friend, Chako, is the only likable person so far and who knows what the next volumes will be like. I mean, we start off with (trigger warning) a suicide pact so I can’t imagine where it will go. 3.5 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Drip Drip” by Paru Itagaki

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

Mako Hiragi is a clean freak. So much so that even the sight of something she considers “dirty” causes her to have massive nosebleeds; including other people’s bodies. This makes it nearly impossible for her to have any relationships, much less intimacy. Desperate for human contact, Mako tries even the most insane things to finally have her happy ending.

This is fucking bananas and skip this one if you’re squeamish about blood. I always give weird stuff a try and it can be hit or miss because weird can’t carry an entire story on its own. What makes this good is Mako. She’s a fun character and her story arc is not about just the gushing blood, it’s about idealizing relationships and issues with intimacy. It’s not perfect but worth giving a shot. And it’s interesting to see Itagaki draw human characters, even if sometimes they do look a bit like her animal characters. 3.9 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Perfect World” Vol 12, by Rie Aruga

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In this final volume, we see how Tsugumi and Itsuki are handling being the parents of a young boy names Koki; a very energetic child who doesn’t think anything is ‘wrong’ with his father. He’s just a happy child and they have mostly normal parenting stresses. Since the main couple is firmly established, we have other side characters stepping in for a few asides like how wedding planning would go for a couple in wheelchairs.

All in all, this is a great series with some important information delivered with a good story. If you like romantic drama, this is a sweet series. 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Look Back” by Tatsuki Fujimoto

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

Fujino loves to draw manga and since she makes comics for the school newspaper, she’s popular. By chance she meets another girl in town who also loves drawing named Kyomoto, who’s a shut-in who doesn’t have other friends. They team up to make a manga for a contest but as they develop as artists, their lives take different paths.

This is beautifully done; showing the way people’s lives naturally come together and grow apart. It’s compact with plenty and the emotions and the art allows the expressions tell so much more than just the words on the page. I do think the tragic event is… Abrupt. It threw me off. Such things can happen but it blindsided me, which was likely the point. 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “My Boy” Vol. 9, by Hitomi Takano

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In this final volume, Mashuu’s father makes some important realizations and Satoko comes to terms with her childhood trauma.

To end this series, Mashuu and Satoko just accept their relationship is unconventional and go on with their lives. It’s not exactly a bittersweet ending, more like what’s the most sensible for the characters at this point. Much like their relationship overall, the ending is muddled but fits them. I’m glad it didn’t go sideways and everything was handled with grace and respect. This is a great series. 5 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “My Boy” Vol. 8 by Hitomi Takano

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As Mashuu starts high school and while he still sees Satoko from time to time, he finally realizes his classmate, Nao, has feelings for him. Meanwhile, Satoko’s ex boyfriend, Shiikawa comes back into her life.

Here, Mashuu and Satoko have to face how their relationship affects others. Their connection is confusing but undeniable and getting in the way of more “normal” relationships with people of their respective ages. I like how forthright this series is but I’m still not seeing the controversy? It’s all non-sexual. There’s one more volume left so I hope this doesn’t take a sudden dark turn. 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “My Boy” Volume 7, by Hitomi Takano

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Satoko meets with a lawyer about her contact with Mashuu; ensuring she won’t face any legal ramifications when continuing to meet with him. Mashuu, however, finally starts to realize there’s more to life than Satoko.

This volume is kinda wholesome. You can see Satoko is still dealing with junk from her childhood and her relationship with her parents; who still see her like she’s a kid. Mashuu also sees Satoko sees him as a child (because he is) and realize he needs to be able to connect with someone other than her. They seem to end on good friends here and I like it. 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “I Want to Eat Your Pancreas” by Yoru Sumino & Izumi Kirihara

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Our protagonist finds his classmate’s diary and she, Sakura, admits to him that what he read is true: She is dying and has never told any of her friends in school. She would rather life out the rest of her days without getting treated differently but a friendship blossoms between them despite him usually being uninterested in other people.

This is a tearjerker. Much like Your Lie in April, Sakura is overly positive and perky (very much like a manic pixie dream girl) as a complete opposite to the boy who she befriends; so she can draw the boy out. Their relationship is touching and bittersweet, as there is nothing that will save Sakura.

But… The ending… I won’t spoil it but I’m not sure if I like it or not. I’m torn with it showing the bleak realities of life or pushing for an even sadder ending. Either way I took a star off for that. 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “My Boy” Vol. 6, Hitomi Takano

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While Satoko and Mashuu reconnect, Satoko’s sister Mayu and Mashuu’s classmate Nao are now drawn into this drama; digging into Mashuu’s past in order to learn more about him.

This volume is odd since Satoko is fishing around with people who know Mashuu so she can find out more about him and his home life but also pushing Mashuu to spend time with people who aren’t her; finally setting some sort of boundary. So… She’s setting a boundary and also crossing one? I mean, it seems to fit with her character since she was meddling when Mashuu was younger but still, strange. 4 out of 5.

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