Customer Reviews

Othello (Yaoi)

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is a collection of 4 stories. As there is no explicit sex this collection may be classifed BL but 3 of the stories have a mature theme and not the usual sweet boy love.
My favorite is the same titled story "Othello" which is much more captivating than that depicted by the summary. Ayumu is a complicated teenager with a tragic past. Forced apart from his mother and twin brother since childhood, this abused young man may now has a second chance in life. But would he take it or continue the downward spiral in his life as he seduces men and uses his body to get what he wants. His struggles with his own identity as he tries to act like his twin in school and as those around him measure him against his dead perfect twin is very well expressed. Kirishima, his classmate and love interest, is a very interesting character and I wish the mangaka has written more on him.
"Snow White" which is the mangaka's first attempt at BL is sweet and cute.
The 3rd story on a reporter assigned to write a story on a dead painter is bitter-sweet and a trifle dark. Wish this is longer.
The 4th one is a fantasy on a sex demon sucking up men's essence and this one is soft Yaoi but too short to be effective, which is a pity.
Finally this mangaka's artwork is really pretty and this anthology is worth buying just for the story "Othello" alone.

I'll break this review up into five parts, Story, Art, Character, Enjoyment, Overall (all parts will be graded from 1-10; 10 being the highest and 1 being the lowest)

Story: 9/10
This is three stories complied together, the first story is the longest and the most complicated. I was a bit confused and it's strange the way it goes, but somehow I think it was intentionally left ambiguous. Though the way it progressed and the way it flowed I found that they were all uniquely beautiful. It had some strange surprises and left a shroud of mystery around it's characters and the plot it self. I think a certain amount of mystery is needed to leave us to wonder "what if" and it lets our minds wonder to what was happening before hand. The last story was my person favorite, and I gotta admit that I just laughed because it was so unexpected and so awesome all at once. Definitely enjoyed the sudden twist, and the rather dark nature all the stories had to them.

Art: 10/10
Art is always a major fact for me, no matter what, be it manga, manwha, or a regular book, the art has to be of interest. Not only just the unique style but it's got to flow properly, the art in this particular manga was definitely beautiful. The proportions were perfect, the background was nothing short of stunning, the sex scenes weren't really explicit which was definitely refreshing, it left something to the imagination (as I mentioned before). The way the scenes played out and the way she did the angles and perspectives it was just stunning, definitely beautiful art.

Character(s): 9/10
Through the three stories you see three sets of different characters, each of them unique in their own right. Yet all of them kept a dark and mysterious side to them, you sympathize with them on an entirely different scale each time. It's not that you can connect with them in all ways, but you definitely connect with them and honestly I think different people will see them in different ways. Which is important, you don't necessarily see any serious character development in the last two but in the first one you surely see an improvement. Some lovely characters and beautiful personalities.

Enjoyment: 10/10
I thoroughly enjoyed this manga, I kinda like mangas that are short, but have 2-3 short stories included in them. It gives it a unique variety to the genre, it also seems to be a common thing in the yaoi genre as well. Although I really would've loved to have seen more of the last story I have to say I love how it ended and it just really was a refreshing experience for me. You'll understand if you read it, I promise!

Overall: 9.5/10
I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys both dark yaoi manga. Definitely for someone looking for a rather quick read, without having to use your brain too much. I'm not saying that is a bad thing by the way, just it's dark and heavy with drama but in a way its rather light-hearted, due to being so short. They sum up all feelings at the end but keep it artistic and bold from beginning to end. Give it a shot, it was a great read for me and it might be for you too!

I'm not a fan of reviews, so I'll be bunt:
I fell in love with this after just the first chapter, so:
Art: 4/5
Plot: 5/5
Overall: 5/5 (Considering everything alltogether)

"othello" is a great "warm and fuzzy" story. the charicters are super cute and have made me spend many a day daydreaming them to be a little more real and a little less gay (sigh). alas its a good story all the same and is sweet enough that you don't need to worry if your parents or kids, best freind, whoever, rifles through your kindle.
P.S you can get the sample to give you othello all on its own, cover to cover, without the less-than-satisfying tack-ons, for free.

A very Dark Book and one that you would need to decied to read your self if you are into the dark side.