Customer Reviews

You And Harujion (Yaoi)

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

 

 

It indeed is a three star "OK" title. If you want to find it in a bookstore and read it there it is pretty pleasant, but as for paying the $10+ to own it, you could find a better title in the genre to spend your money on.

My problem with this title is not the artwork. It is indeed pretty sparse and the character designs are not incredibly "pretty," though the characters look less like a fantasy and more like real people, which is sometimes a plus.

My problem with this title is also not its lack of graphic scenes. This is a BL title in its purest sense. There are a couple sweet kisses and nothing too terrible happens to anyone. There are times when you don't want to be rushed into graphic situations and just read a nice story. This is one of those titles.

My problem with this title is in the seemingly thrown in afterthought of the male/male romance. There was a lot of care taken to project Haru's personality as a complex teenager, but none to project his growing feelings for Senoh. For Senoh's part he is pretty hard to read. He's at least ten years Haru's senior, but setting that aside he's a pretty stand up guy for not going after Haru sexually while he is still a minor. I get that and it is fine for the story, but the BL theme of the story just didn't seem to fit at the end.

There wasn't really any conflict building up to their romantic union at the end. It just didn't fit with the progression of their relationship, which felt much more like an estranged elder brother taking over the care of a younger brother than anything else.

In that respect the story was told very well. Haru is wary of of Senoh at first, though Senoh is very patient and protective of him as the one of the two of them that actually remembers their friendship years earlier. Haru's seeming turnaround to agreeing to live with Senoh seems a bit rushed since at this point in the story he is still pretty untrusting of the man's intentions, but Haru's conflicting desire to not be alone, coupled with his desire to not rely on others is written pretty well. This is seen in the scenes where Haru is concerned with Senoh overworking himself and getting sick, but not returning a positive response to Senoh's offer to pay for Haru's college. It is also unclear if Haru ever remembered who Senoh was to him all those years ago. Haru seems to refer back to the first time Senoh steps in at Haru's father's wake to protect him when he refers to his feelings about the older man. The only romantic inner conflict projected with any care in the story is when Senoh's coworker makes a suggestive comment about his intentions with the boy and Senoh gets very upset with the man saying that it would be better for Haru to fall in love with a girl and have a family and not with some 30something man, to which the coworker remarks that Haru is going to choose what he wants regardless of what is "best for him."

I think the story would have been less interesting without the BL romance aspect, but I don't feel it was developed properly in this title. If it had been a bit longer perhaps that aspect could have been flushed out a bit and I would be satisfied. Take a chance on it if you want, though. It wasn't a bad read at all.

This is a self-contained story in one volume. It has a nice, slow build. There are kisses and hugs in this slice-of-life love story set in modern Japan. Probably the best part of this book (other than the illustrations) are the memorable characters. The art is somewhat sparse, but it is soft and appealing.

The story line is simple and straight forward. Nothing too complicated. Basically just a sweet love story for those who are venturing for the first time into the land of yaoi and BL. The drawings are harsh but if you can get past over that, the plot will blow you away.

Not Yaoi as nothing more than hugs and kisses. Not even Shounen-ai as this is not boys' love but the growing love between a thirty something man and a seventeen year old boy. Reminds me of Love Mode Vol 2 but milder.
Some may find the story sappy. But I like it, if not for anything other than the fact that it centers on 2 lonely and unhappy people coming together and building a life together. The dialogue is simple yet effective and I do like the metaphor of the flower "Harujion".
However this mangaka's artwork needs getting use to as it seems sparse but the facial expressions are vivid.
And I do appreciate the much improved packaging by DMP under the new Yaoi label "June". Well done DMP.