Passion Volume 1 (Yaoi) (v. 1) (Paperback)

by Shinobu Gotoh (Author), Shoko Takaku (Illustrator) "WHAT ARE YOU DOING...?!..." (more)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
Student and teacher. Man and... man. Taboo upon taboo is what Hikaru and Shima have to overcome if they want to pursue their feelings for one another. Uikaru, a second year high school student, is obsessed with Shima, a male teacher. Surprisingly, Shima is not averse to the boy's affections. He even convinces Hikaru to study hard so that when he graduates, they would openly become lovers. However, Amamiya, an ex-lover of Shima, steps into the picture and tries to win him back. Will Hikaru and Shima's passion prove great enough to hurdle all the obstacles stacked against them?

Product Details

• Paperback: 160 pages
• Publisher: Digital Manga Publishing (November 3, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1569709785
• ISBN-13: 978-1569709788
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.9 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #434,805 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars All yaoi is NOT created equal, January 13, 2006

By	Alyssa Nolan (New Hampshire, USA) - See all my reviews

I have been a fan of yaoi (gay-themed manga) since before it became popular in the U.S., so I used to just take whatever I could get. Unfortunately, this is the first manga I bought that taught me that just because it's yaoi, doesn't mean it's gonna be good. The main premise of this story is that Hikaru, a high school student, rapes Shima, one of his teachers (on the very first page!) and he must then make it up to him by "play-acting" as his lover, and also by maintaining a high GPA (don't even ask). Will Shima ever decide to become Hikaru's "real" lover? Before you're through the 1st volume, you'll already have stopped caring.

Rape is a common occurance in yaoi manga, and there is usually a lot of deep angst or emotion involved in it, from one or both people involved. There's none of that in "Passion". Hikaru just raped him because he loves him so much. Really! He even blurts out "Will you marry me?" right afterwards! Now if that's not true love, then I don't know what is. But it's okay, Shima doesn't seem overly upset. Like any good teacher, he just criticizes Hikaru for doing it wrong and tells him to "think about what you should do to make up for what you've done today." Okay, I know yaoi isn't supposed to be realistic, but "Passion" asked me to suspend my disbelief way too much. It isn't that they act out of character, it's more that they don't have "character" to begin with. We never find out why Shima or Hikaru act in the bizarre ways they do (volume 2 attempts to offer some belated explanations, but fails). There are some side plots and additional characters that add length, particularly in the 2nd final volume, but they supply nothing in entertainment value.

In addition to all that, the English translation is horrible! The language sounds dry at best, but it's often so awkward and unnatural that it made me wince. Not to mention Hikaru throws "sir" into his speech at the most irrelevent times ("I could imagine it was painful, sir"). And to top it all off, the sex scenes aren't even very impressive.

This is definitely one-star yaoi, but I give it two stars because "Passion" is still better than a lot of sappy shoujo manga out there that manage to be twice as unbelievable and melodramatic as this is. But unless you've already bought the many better-quality yaoi manga that are now available in the U.S. and you're truly desperate for more, I'd pass on this one.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars only for hardcore yaoi collectors, January 28, 2005

By	kippy - See all my reviews

the only reason i gave this book 2 stars is because gay themed manga novels are still hard to find. despite it's recent burst of popularity in the states yaoi is still pretty inaccessible. there's only a handful of titles in circulation. if there was a wider variety to choose from i still would have bought "Passion" but only because i'm a huge fan of the genre and a closet obsessive compulsive who has to collect everything of a specific genre.
the story definitely has a plot but the characters and the reasons they do what they do are never explained. also the choices they make are incomprehensible and uninteresting. at least in gravitation theres a comedic undertone to everything so the story can get by with a little fluffiness here and there. thats also the problem here, with passion your not sure what the story is supposed to be, between the odd way everyone behaves "let's pretend to be lovers till the end of term" to the ongoing flashbacks of unrequieted romance between the teachers the story tries to be too many things all at once and fails on all counts. also if your looking for good adult material this is NOT the book for you. when i gave up on the plot (by page 10) i thought "okay at least i'll see some cute manga boys gettin nakies" but the most you see is a couple of torso shots.
if you want some good adult material i highly recommend "Golden Cain" aside from a very good story it's sex scenes are pretty hardcore. and if your more interested in poignant romance that resonates, pick up "only the Ring Finger Knows". if your after light cute and funny go with gravitation. of course as i i said earlier if your a diehard yaoi fan you wouldn't want your collection to be without this title. if nothing else the art is beautiful as manga usually is.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars FireDrake's Opinion, October 31, 2004

By	I. Szikla "FireDrake" (Australia) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Hi there! I hope this helps you if you are looking for BL manga of the Shonen-Ai or YAOI variety.

Storyline: **
Artwork: **
"Steamy" scenes: 2 non-explicit, and 2 or 3 kisses.
Nudity: Bare minimum - partially dressed or top half only
Did it keep my interest: Barely

Hikaru is a student who has a crush on his teacher, Mr. Shima. This led him to do something stupid, which he then has to make up for to Mr. Shima. The feel of the story is angsty, with Hikaru pining after Mr. Shima. Mr. Shima encourages Hikaru to study dilligently, and encourages Hikaru to approach him, but he still keeps Hikaru at arm's length. Add in an old flame of Mr. Shima's who wants him back...

If you're interested in student/teacher relationships and shonen-ai and are not fussy, then I believe this might be of some interest to you. The story seems a little contrived, with only one point of difference to the usual student/teacher romance story, and was not sufficiently original enough to sustain my interest. The artwork is quite plain and has the bare minimum of detail. The content is fairly tame, despite the promising looking statement of "Parental Explicit Content Advisory" sign on the cover!

Having said that, I still want to know how it all ends, but I'm certainly not on the edge of my seat waiting for the next installment.