For this year, I decided to add some more manga series to follow. It feels different for me to wait for manga updates and to wait for new anime episodes. I also read a bunch of completed manga works, though I don’t really mind waiting for manga updates. On the other hand, I usually prefer waiting for anime series to finish before watching them all. Though I guess it’s because anime series are completed in only one or few seasons, while manga series ran for years. Anyway, all these series are currently ongoing.
Tsubaki Chou Lonely Planet
Mangaka: Yamamori Mika
Serialization: Margaret
Synopsis:
Oono Fumi is a poor second year high school student. Because of her father’s debts, she’s kicked out of her own home and has to rely on her own connections to survive. Thus begins her life as a live-in housekeeper for a reclusive writer.
I loved Yamamori Mika-sensei’s previous work, Hirunaka no Ryuusei. I loved her art and how she’s able to re-create some shoujo clichés in a way that it may not feel so… cliché. I’ve only read till the latest scanlated chapter (ch42) so far and I’m quite enjoying it. I liked how a specific character route took the way that I was hoping he would take. One’s in danger of that dreaded road, but I’m still hoping that that character won’t. Anyhow, I hope this will end in a way that won’t break my heart as HNR did. Not that I was totally unhappy because of HNR’s ending. I was just both heartbroken and happy; it’s confusing, but yeah.
Kaguya-sama wa Kokusaretai: Tensai-tachi no Renai Zunousen
Mangaka: Akasaka Aka
Serialization: Young Jump
Synopsis:
Considered a genius due to having the highest grades in the country, Miyuki Shirogane leads the prestigious Shuchiin Academy’s student council as its president, working alongside the beautiful and wealthy vice president Kaguya Shinomiya. The two are often regarded as the perfect couple by students despite them not being in any sort of romantic relationship.
However, the truth is that after spending so much time together, the two have developed feelings for one another; unfortunately, neither is willing to confess, as doing so would be a sign of weakness. With their pride as elite students on the line, Miyuki and Kaguya embark on a quest to do whatever is necessary to get a confession out of the other. Through their daily antics, the battle of love begins!
The literal translation of the title is “Kaguya Wants to be Confessed To: The Geniuses’ War of Love and Brains“. This one is something my brother kind of forced me to read. He knows I like rom-com, so he recommended this one to me. It’s a psychological, rom-com seinen manga, and IT’S FUN! Seriously, the main characters are amusing, especially when we’re reading their inner thoughts as they try different antics to get the other confess first. At first, the art didn’t appeal to me, but it grew on me later on, especially because of the story. Still have to catch up to the latest chapter!
Baby, Kokoro no Mama ni!
Mangaka: Okuyama Puku
Serialization: Comic Polaris
19-year-old Roji Shizuru has a crush on a fellow university student, Nana, but there always seems to be complications when he tries to get closer to her. For one thing, he’s afraid his hot friend Tachibana Masaki will steal her. Beyond that, the main complication comes from the interference of children, specifically one odd child called Maida Kokoro, who keeps clinging to Shizuru and calling him ‘mama.’
Takane to Hana
Mangaka: Shiwasu Yuki
Serialization: Hana to Yume
Synopsis:
Hana is a high schooler who ends up replacing her big sister at a marriage interview. Little does she expect that the potential groom, a handsome 26-year-old businessman named Takane, immediately insults her and calls her a gold digger! Furious, Hana throws her wig in his face and leaves.
Against all odds the two end up going on dates on a regular basis. Takane is a rich kid who’s much more immature and inexperienced than his good looks and flashy manners suggest, so they find it easy to forget that their ages are ten years apart. But how will these two ever find love when they’re so busy teasing each other?
This one is a rom-com shoujo manga series which have a lot of loveable hilarious moments as certain shoujo tropes are subverted. It shines because of the leads, Takane and Hana. (True to its title.) It’s entertaining to see Takane’s attempts to make Hana fall for him when he’s such a simpleton who’s easily flustered by Hana’s witty comebacks. Hana is a strong and interesting character with a sharp tongue usually aimed at Takane’s arrogant remarks. It’s a refreshing, lighthearted read, though I’m guessing that somewhere along the way, it will get some serious tones, too, to help Takane’s backstory and current situation. I’m hoping it won’t lose its humor when that time comes.
The Promised Neverland
Mangaka: Shirai Kaiu & Demizu Posuka
Serialization: Shuukan Shounen Jump
Synopsis:
Emma and the other kids have a pretty good life at the orphanage they grew up in. Though the rules are strict, their caretaker is kind, and all the children are good friends with each other. But why are they forbidden from ever leaving?
This one is something my brother has always been urging me to read, too. Maybe I’ll try to immediately check out the titles he’s recommending because I’m actually liking/loving them. Anyway, I kept putting it off because there’s a horror and sci-fi tag on MAL and I’m not really fond of them, especially horror. But I like mysteries and shounen, so I thought I should give it a try. I don’t regret trying, but I do regret not reading it sooner! It’s a thrilling read! It’s dark and there’s a lot of twists. It’s a joy to read something different from what I usually read. I got weirded out by its art at first (kinda like that feels I had when I first read Haikyuu!! Oh, and Emma and Hinata look similar that it’s amusing), but it’s not really ugly. It’s able to give me the creeps exactly because of the art style!
I’m excited to see the developments for these stories! I hope I’ll be able to keep myself updated with the latest chapters, too, as I’ve been trying to do with other various manga series already on my reading list.
How about you? What manga series are you reading? Are any of these on your list? Do you have some recommended titles?
Treasure Box 