Lenni Reviews: “I Want to Love You Till Your Dying Day” Vol 1, by Nachi Aono

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

At an orphanage, the children are trained as magical soldiers for the military. Sheena Totsuki recently lost her roommate, a casualty of the war, and one night she runs into a strange girl named Mimi, a very powerful soldier who now rooms with her.

Prepare for children getting hurt. BADLY. If you can’t handle that, this is not the comic for you. It is also weird… They have this thing where kissing transfers mana to heal, and this means adults kissing young children. Nope, not on the forehead or something. The nurse is a fucking creep. Mimi is 10 years old.

Since we’re still introducing the world and characters, we don’t know much about what’s going on. Only that these child soldiers are undergoing dangerous training to put their lives on the line fighting monsters. I sincerely hope the kissing thing is phased out or relegated to two characters of the same damn age because, what the fuck. 3 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Rainbows After Storms” Vol. 8, by Luka Kobachi

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

As our couple enjoys the school’s sports festival, Chidori is hesitant to be more physical in her relationship with Nanoha. They are also approaching graduation, after which Chidori has plans, but Nanoha does not.

Trying to balance spending time with each other, yet be there for their friends who still don’t know about them, is the main conflict in the manga. It’s all super cute and still light-hearted. Very fluffy slice of life that just makes you smile. It does still make me wonder if they will hide this secret throughout the entire series. I still can’t see this series getting all that dark, but there has to be some sort of payoff for all this sneaking around. 4 out of 5. 

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Lenni Reviews: “Pink Candy Kiss” Vol. 4, by Ami Uozumi

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

As Ema fulfills her dream of opening a cafe, Takara is still struggling to hold in her romantic feelings for her friend. When Ema’s mother shows up, taking cruel digs at her, Takara takes Ema on a trip to cheer her up.

We get the “only one bed” trope, but it doesn’t lead to anything other than a cute moment, in case you’re looking to avoid anything explicit or stories with cheating. Other than that, these two are a bit of a mess, and I’m baffled as to how this will turn out still. So far, the only clear-cut villain is Ema’s mother, who is a verbally and mentally abusive fuckwad who I wouldn’t mind never hearing from again. But since this trip they went on had all internal revelations, we’re still in the same place in Takara and Ema’s relationship, and while I would want to see a jump forward, I think slow and easy is for the best here. 3.9 out of 5.

 

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Lenni Reviews: “Rainbows After Storms” Vol. 7, by Luka Kobachi

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

With their first fight resolved, Nanoha and Chidori enjoy the last of their class trip and return home. Mai not only still has a crush on Nanoha but also knows she is dating Chidori.

This series continues to be very light-hearted and sweet, focusing on people being true to themselves with no huge dramatic blowups. Even the tiff from the last volume wasn’t that bad, and it all worked out in the end. There are no real threats here, which makes me wonder if this will stay very slice of life or take an angsty turn. Since Nanoha and Chidori are enjoyable, either one could work for me. 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Pink Candy Kiss” Vol. 3, by Ami Uozumi

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

Takara decides to love Ema in her own way, believing that as long as Ema is happy, it doesn’t matter if there is no happy ending.

This volume shows that while Takara is smitten, she doesn’t know Ema like she used to. They do need to get to know each other again, and who knows where that will lead. Maybe she’ll realize Ema is better as just a friend more maybe she’ll fall even harder. That bittersweet tone is still present, especially since Ema’s husband is still just this decent dude who’s not only supportive of his wife but of Takara being back in her life to support Ema as well. Still not sure where this will go but there are clues.

3.5 out of 5

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Lenni Reviews: “Rainbows After Storms” Vol. 6, by Luka Kobachi

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

Nanoha and Chidori’s relationship is discovered by Mai, who has a crush on Nanoha. As they go on a school trip, tension forms between them as Nanoha is jealous of how close Chidori gets to Mai, which puts pressure on the entire friend group.

Yeah, the stakes are still pretty low considering Mai has no real ill intentions towards the couple and it’s mostly the friend group just wanting to enjoy the trip without drama. Fair, considering what a breakup can do to a friend group, even if they’re not all aware of the couple. They just need to communicate properly if they want this relationship to work. It’s a nice story beat, even if their fight went on a bit long for me. I was probably just as annoyed as their friends were. 3.7 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Planeta” by Ana Oncina

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

Valentina lives in a cabin in the woods with her dog, Soup. Every night, she dreams of living on an isolated planet with a woman named Ane. Their relationship seems perfect, but the world around them is strangely barren, making Valentina wonder where reality ends and dreams begin.

This is so wistful and sad. But it is beautiful. The way the color palette reflects the two different worlds is such a simple thing, but so damn effective. The writing makes it easy to get attached to the characters, even the side characters, and the love story is so sweet. While the story leaves it up to the reader to determine what is real or not, my head canon is that the sci-fi story is all dreams, and our couple gets to live happily ever after with that adorable dog. 4 out of 5 for making me sad because I’m probably wrong.

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Lenni Reviews: “Rainbows After Storms” Vol. 5, by Luka Kobachi

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

After their kiss at the festival, Nanoha and Chidori are struggling to communicate with each other about wanting to do it again. Also, a former classmate of Nanoha’s, Mai, joins their school and literature club.

These two are so damn adorable.

Even with this potential rival showing up, I’m still thinking this relationship won’t crumble because of Mai unless she threatens to out them. If I were to guess, that’s probably what’s going to happen since keeping their secret is so important. If Mai doesn’t do it, someone/thing else might. It doesn’t seem like the type of series to get really dark, so if it did, it would be very out of character. 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Pink Candy Kiss” Vol. 2, by Ami Uozumi

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

Takara has come to terms with her feelings for Ema and is hiding them to respect Ema and Hario’s marriage. But the more time they spend together, the harder it is.

Takara goes to a lesbian club for the first time with a different friend, and it’s so cute and heartwarming. She’s realized more about her sexuality and gets a ton of support. Hario is still a great guy. There’s no sudden 180 to make him a villain. making it harder to want Takara and Em to have their happy ending at his expense. That being said, this feels more like establishing that fact than moving forward otherwise. It’s tender and insightful, but just circling around what we already know. 3 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Pink Candy Kiss” Vol. 1, by Ami Uozumi

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

In middle school, Takara was in love with her classmate, Ema. Twenty years later, they meet again after Takara is dumped by her boyfriend. Her old feelings return, but Ema is married.

This volume is very bittersweet. It touches on the cultural aspect of girl crushes as something you’re supposed to outgrow. Ema is fucking adorable, and there does seem to be some lingering feelings for both of them. But, there is a marriage to consider, and it would have been so, SO easy to make the husband a complete asshole like in Tears on a Withered Flower, but he’s a cutie patootie, too! The art is beautiful and soft, but has no trouble handling the humor in this story. 4 out of 5.

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