3 Years

Status: Finished

At first sight, Asaki China is like any other manga heroine you've ever known: a loudmouth tomboy enrolling into high school, living the Shoujo Dream: what else but fall in love, yadda yadda. But of course, as she is more reminiscent of a monkey guy than she is of a girl, her chances of getting that love is close to nil. Until she meets her new classmates, the class clown Haruka and the intimidating giant Shindou anyway...

Bored already? Don't worry, so was I. But there is a reason this short story on four chapters made me bawl a river in my room, and it isn't because of the ugly art.

Art - 0.2 /10.0
Whatever praise you're expecting me to say about this manga, it doesn't extend to the art style. My first impression was that China looked like a pig, and the two male protagonists a bear and a weasel. And I don't know about you, but bestiality isn't really my thing. Either way, I sucked it up and kept reading. And that's when we get to the good part...

Plot/Concept - 9.7 / 10.0
I love, love, LOVE the simplicity of 3 Years. I can tell you what it isn't: it isn't a intricate plot with some innovative, imagination-rocking idea; it isn't a rollercoaster drama where you keep holding your breath all the way. It isn't even original, or unique, and maybe that's what makes it so goddamn special. This story is as real as it can get when the main characters all look like animals, and anybody can relate to it. This is a story about growth, and regardless of if we've already been there or are on our way there, we still know what the mangaka is trying to tell us. And the message, in stark contrast to the way it is drawn, is hauntingly beautiful.

Characters - 9.5 / 10.0
Okay, none of the guys had me squealing, and I didn't cheer the heroine on as if she was my best friend. But these characters are stunningly realistic, and that's what makes you like them. They're not gorgeous or even remotely close to being perfect in any way, but they're people, not just characters on paper. You either are one of them or could have been. You might even know somebody just like them. Regardless, they're not your stereotypical shoujo characters -- they're actually real.

Romance - 9.8 / 10.0
I clicked, I saw, I cried. No, really. I usually don't sit around sniffling my way through mangas, but this one had me in tears with only four chapters worth of pages, to boot. I don't want to spoil anything, so I'll tell you: just read it. You won't regret it.

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This is one of my all-time favorite manga, even despite how ugly it is. I love coming-of-age stories, but this one is definitely the cherry on top of all the coming-of-age manga I've ever read. It may not be for anyone, because it's rather serious and brutally honest: it's not your usual ditzy shoujo. But if you're ever in a mood for a story that actually speaks to you, this one is going to break your heart. That I can swear.

Overall Rating: 9.8 / 10.0

Credits for the scans: Perfect Illusions

Rockin' Heaven

Status: Finished

Three words: So. Freaking. Good.

You’re probably waiting for some epic plot to unfold here. Some legasp-double-rainbow-oh-my-god setup, or some freaky plot twists that got us all otaku swooning, maybe. Sorry to disappoint, but the plot is as common as any: girl applies for a former all-boys high school, gets bullied and teased, falls for the leader of the bullies.

Surprisingly, Sawa (the main character) is not a boy-hater, crossdresser or one of the countless shoujo heroines that seem to go to school for the sake of falling The Bishie of Her Dreams. And perhaps even more so that I don’t hate any of the characters involved, including the guy. Now we can all ask ourselves the question: what does this mean? (And no, not a double rainbow, regardless of whatever the cover may suggest.)

Art – 8.9/ 10.0
Cute and bubbly, which is the reason why I chose it. After Five, I really needed some guys that didn’t have snouts for noses, so I opted for this manga specifically for its cover. Definitely not going to disappoint: Ran (the male lead) is hawt. And thumbs-up for the brilliant depiction of facial expressions; I like how the mangaka steps out of the stereotypical frame for a cold guy and really gets across all the little things in what can easily be perceived as a poker face. Minus points for the colored chapter covers; what’s up with all the purple hair?

Plot/Concept – 6.9 / 10.0
If there’s anything that’s slightly disappointing about this manga, it’s the plot. It’s pretty predictable, and I found the final plot twist a little bit rushed. (And some minor details a bit disappointing (SPOILER!), like Tsubaki randomly going straight in the end of the story, as if his feelings for Ran meant nothing. I thought it was rather disappointing how the mangaka just disregarded his sexuality like that, as if having a gay character didn’t fit into a happy ending.) (END SPOILER) But like some reviewer said at Baka-Updates, at least the leads didn’t kiss in the first chapter. The romance develops quite naturally.

Characters – 9.6 / 10.0
You know what? I don’t give a damn if some people think Sawa is a Mary-Sue or Ran is a jerk. If you look a bit closer, you can perfectly see Sawa’s flaws, or that Ran is not half as much of an emo!tard as he seems. The mangaka shows this to us in the little dialogues or Sawa’s thoughts. This proves that there can be a strong heroine who can still be emotional; a cold, angst-ridden guy who may think of himself but isn’t hopelessly self-absorbed. The story centers a lot on character development, and that is pulled off in a splendid way. I loved every single character to bits, even the minor ones.

Romance – 9.1 / 10.0
This factor is made out of two other factors: plot and characters. You already know what I think about both. The thing is, the plot damages the romance somewhat, since you know what’s going to happen. But what really gives this romance such a high score is due to the characters. Of course, there were times when I wanted to scream at Ran—there’s only so much angsting you can take—but all in all, you could understand them. It somehow turned this story from just another fluffy high school shoujo to a more down-to-earth, realistic love story. The feelings and the actions of the characters.

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As humiliating as it is to admit it, I actually cried to this. I sat at my computer at the crack of the dawn, even going as far as to hunting down the scanlation group and downloading the chapters that hadn’t been uploaded to Mangareader.net, just to finish it. And if that doesn’t convince you, just try it. And if you didn’t like it, too bad; you just missed out on enjoying one of the best shoujo out there you can find.

Overall Rating – 9.5 / 10.0

Credits for the scans: Shoujo Manga Maniac

Suki Desu Suzuki-kun!!

Status: Ongoing

Chibi love. It’s like everything else that is sweet and sugary presented to you in real life: either you ate it or hate it.

Suki Desu Suzuki-kun!! is that kind of a story. We’re introduced to Hoshino Sayaka, the shy megane girl with supreme acting skills, and Itou Chihiro, the popular and beautiful girl-next-door. And oh, of course, our protagonists—Suzuki Hikaru (to the right) and Suzuki Shinobu (to the left). Members of the school basketball team and as different as day and night.

...Quadruple drama, here we come!

Art – 7.2 / 10.0
Okay, I’ll be honest. I like cute things, but not chibi art. It’s fine in comedy shoujo moments. It’s adorable in shounen ones. But an entire story based on it... I don’t know. There’s the reason I put down Shugo Chara four chapters in.

The one thing that keeps me reading is how it’s obvious the story will not only revolve around their middle school days. Right from the get-go, we’re told that this is a blast to the past, rather than the story itself. In a style reminiscent of Cat Street, we’re promised some major character development (guess who was squealing about that?) and there in itself an art style change due to their aging (as you can see on the cover depicted above).

Plot/Concept – 9.6 / 10.0
What I think is really unique about this series is how we’re actually shown continuous progress over the years and how time changes people rather than it being an element necessary to move the plot forward. Without the use of time skips or hints of the past, we’re being actively told about their realistic development all the while we’re promised a plot twist. I think the storytelling in itself is pretty amazing in the way that we don’t get bored of reading, despite the fact that we know it’s just part of building the foundation for the actual plot. It’s a lot of fluff, true, but even despite its chibi art, the characters’ emotions become palpable and surprisingly real.

What I do find annoying, though, is how they tell us the ending pairing right from the get-go, there-in reassuring us of a happy ending. While most stories remain obvious with their endings, the promise of an alternate or open ending is always fuel for the fans. The tiny, last detail out of that chapter that blew open that veil of mystery entirely was completely unnecessary, in my opinion. Regardless, my interest is piqued.

Characters – 8.8 / 10.0
The two Suzuki-kuns and their respective crush are all special in their own way. Their personalities are refreshing but stereotypical, so it’ll be interesting to see how they develop; so far, they’re just cute, the whole bunch of them. This leaves us hanging in whether they will become more annoying further one post-plot twist, or if they’ll mature. With such focus on the coming-of-age aspect of this story, I’m hoping it’s the latter rather than the former.

Romance – 7.5 / 10.0
If ‘aww’-ing your brains out is your kind of thing, this romance is made for you. This early into the manga, it’s still too cute for me to be able to relate to it, albeit that in itself doesn’t have to be a bad thing. But you can tell things are going to grow more intense further on as the romance develops, and that is why I keep such a high score despite its clichéness—this type of romance is quite rare in the shoujo world. Rather than throwing in a bunch of random plot twists to progress the plot forward simply to give space to doki-doki moments, we’re shown how a relationship grows throughout the process of puberty. With the pending plot twist looming over our heads, it seems to be the perfect recipe for delicious drama.

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I have high expectations of this manga, and so far, it has yet to disappoint me. There’s definitely potential, and I’m more than willing to explore that potential. In the meantime, I’ll be waiting for more development.

Overall Rating – 9.0 / 10.0

Credits for the scans: Shoujo World and Starlight Scans