First of all, I low key got Barakamon (but gay) vibes from the synopsis.
Second, it was a good story and had a lot of potential, but the pacing was definitely off and the ending was rushed. It would have been way better if it was longer.
The storyline, the characters, the art—the one word that best describes everything in this manga: beautiful. It's only seven chapters but the complexity of the characters is conveyed so realistically. Each panel is filled with an abundance of emotions. The small details like Hisashi trying to walk only on the white line at the end brings these characters to life. There's no unnecessary drama. There's no exaggerated confession scene. There's only love. 10/10
(Also, this is the first manga I read with an actual pillow talk scene so I would definitely read it all again just for that
This hands down is my favorite manga of all time its so good and clear cut. It has me crying happy tears.
It had the potential to be great but didn't meet my expectations. There were mainly two things that made me uncomfortable.
1) The "uke's" sex friend is said to have a fiance yet comes over and has sex with the uke regardless. This is never properly addressed and, in the end, nothing happens. It made me uncomfortable and, most of all, make me like the "uke" less. Sleeping around is fine and I understand why you would do that. But no matter how lonely you are, sleeping with someone you know is in a relationship is crossing a line. It's disappointing, really.
2) The comparison between the grandpa and the MC. I get getting a lover that has the qualities of a parent or grandparent, but blatantly comparing your lover to your relative is a big much. The sentence that pushed me over the edge was something along the lines of, "he could never replace grandpa." Like, you probably shouldn't be trying to replace your dead grandparent with a person you sleep with. I understand that probably wasn't what the author was going for, however, poor execution skills ended up ruining that part of the story for me.
Look, sunbae does have hella issues and in real life, their relationship would be considered toxic. However, I can't stop reading lmao. I'd recommend it if you can look past what I mentioned because it's actually pretty good and hilarious.
In my opinion, I wasn't in love with this story. I did cry, but that's because I cry about literally everything. I hate how, at the end, the creator tries to make us feel bad for Adolph. Like, ew. He raped and cheated on his boyfriend. Those are not mistakes. A mistake is standing up your boyfriend or forgetting to call him. Rape is A CRIME and I hate how mangas never treat it like it is. I wish the MC found genuine love with Ivan instead of still being in love with Adolph during his death. It shows how he hasn't really grown as a person.
(Slight spoilers)
In my opinion, this story would have been better like this: Adolph gets arrested because ffs he's a piece of trash, his side piece lives but reforms himself (his death had no meaning), MC finds REAL love with Ivan and realises how stupid it is to throw your whole life away for a piece of trash and gets treatment and lives FOR HIMSELF. He grows out of his past relationship and realises Adolph is a piece of shit and stands up for himself. That would have been the ideal plot because it treats abuse seriously instead of a simple conflict, it shows how people can change for the better, it shows how you can get out of an abusive relationship and it also shows how you can find love after getting out of that relationship.
Can someone give me spoilers about the love rival? I love this story but I abhor love triangles so please tell me what's going on.
As of right now, it hasn't shown any potential love rival in the raws. If you want some summaries of the raws you can follow bdsren or lazulation bcs they make good summaries when each chapter comes out
Theres none as of the latest raw chapters but before the beginning of season 2, the author did say the love rival is director kang’s brother who is a doctor. And HOT TO BOOT ლ(´ڡ`ლ) lets just be patient until he make an appearance lol
omg that sounds DELICIOUS
Omg when did the author say that ლ(´ڡ`ლ)
https://twitter.com/a1ninekiss/status/1205107555640303616?s=21
Here you go! Take a look at this hottie ヾ(☆▽☆)
YUMMMMM :9
I wanted to love this. I really did. And with how it began, I probably could have. However, before long, the creator introduces generic, frustrating bl tropes that completely destroy what could have been a very good story.
A poorly done love triangle? Check. An annoying uke that gets a little worse and lot denser with every passing chapter? Check. A love rival raping the main character yet he's completely forgiven by the end of the story because he had an oh-so-sad backstory? Check. No character development? Check. A bad representation of BDSM? Check. Must I continue?
If there's one thing I liked, it's the art. It was atmospheric and visually aesthetic. I don't dislike the creator by any means; if the creator improves his/her storytelling while improving their art, they're sure to create a masterpiece someday. However, this was not it.
I don't really know why it's got such a high rating—it's pointlessly frustrating with a predictable plot and characters. If you're into the most basic bl plot tropes or don't mind any of the problems I listed then you may enjoy this. But for me, personally, 0.5/5 stars with the only redeeming quality being the art.
Oooooooohhh!!!! This got me going like... I should read this.. but now I'm fully armored with the awareness that I'll surely be frustrated upon doing so...
Thanks for the warning!
Now I shall plunged myself into this...
What does it mean "bad representations of BDSM"?
It's not a hate comment i'm just wondering what makes a "good bdsm moments"
Omg I totally agree! It’s so sad that it happens more and more in Yaoi/Bl that there isn’t even a deep story or deep characters. And it happens way to often that theres rape(but it’s ok bc it’s the main character and he had his reasons, blahblahblah) and fucking toxic behaviour. It’s so sad. I don’t know what to read anymore if almost every story contains rape and/or toxic behaviour. What the fuck happened to yaoi/Bl? ;-;
I read this a while ago so I don't remember the exact details; I do, however, remember BDSM being portrayed as a non-consensual type of act (the story does seem to sexualize rape which makes it even more uncomfortable but oh well) yet, in reality, BDSM—when done correctly—may be far more consensual than regular sex. This is because it used safe words.
A good representation of BDSM would not involve rape; it would include the usage of safe words and would be fully consensual. It would also involve after care as BDSM can be quite harsh on the body. Things like that show the author has done their research
The fact that rape is always justified because the rapist had a sad backstory makes me want to vomit. Like, we've all got issues. Just because I'm depressed doesn't mean I can become a serial killer. Your circumstances and experiences may explain your behaviour but it never justifies it. I hate how rapists never get jail time and are forgiven so very easily (in this case, they even become friends tf?) when, in reality, being raped can be so incredibly damaging to your mind and body.
Yeah that’s so fucked up and I’m glad I’m not the only one thinking this is sick
Wow the perfect comment that explains what I felt reading this weird story. I feel like I was losing my mind with all the crazy stuff happening LMAO
And that's on mature relationships. This story is a perfect example of how couples can avoid needless conflict by being upfront and honest about what they're feeling. It was such a nice break from the other bl stories with tensions building up solely based on the fact that the main couple DO NOT SPEAK TO EACH OTHER.
The drama isn't overwhelming and everything is resolved at the end. You end up caring and liking all the characters (except that chairman at the end ew) and begin to adore their relationships.
The two main characters do not fit under the stereotypical "uke' or "seme" categories; they feel real and human.
The only part I wasn't too keen on was the part with the chairman but it's only 4 chapters so I can overlook it.
Definitely recommend. Read it right now.
Brah I feel there was so much unnecessary conflict that was avoided by just talking to the other person, which is NOT the case for many other stories
Right? The conflict (apart from the last four chapters) feels real and it doesn't drag either.
Yes! I agree
Please tell me I'm not the only one that doesn't get the hype of Given/doesn't think it's that good of a manga. Don't get me wrong, I understand why you would absolutely love it. However, in my opinion, there are other stories that deal with heavy subject matter better. Also, almost all male characters are gay/bi/heteroflexible to some extent which is quite unrealistic. I really want to know if I'm the only one that thinks this.
Hmm. Maybe you're not the only one, but I just want to point out something about all/most of the characters being homo. You're reading shounen ai/BL, so most of the characters are basically gay. I mean, there are other BL that have straights as side chacters which is cute. But my point here is that, shounen or any other genre of romance who focuses on straights mostly don't have a homo couples. That is because it's a straight's story. If other romance with straights show little to none homo couples, most people don't mind but if a BL have mostly homo characters others have something to say. My main poiny here is that, if you're reading a BL of course the author would focus the characters as homo. The percentage of straight people that are actually friends with homos are slim (or maybe almost half now, idk) As for the story line, I'm just a bit disappointed with Mafuyu. I hope he'll sort out his feelings, and will give love more to Uenoyama. That's all. Lol. HAHAHAHA
I get that. However (and I'll point this out with any story that follows this trope) it makes no sense for people to be prejudiced about gay people if everyone is gay. That would be like people hating people for being straight in the real world, right? If being gay is the norm in this world, then the existed of homophobia itself makes no sense. I read this a while ago so I can't remember exactly, but I'm pretty sure there was a part that dealt with prejudiced attitudes. Like, with a story that deals strongly with human emotion and real topics, using homophobia as a main plot point would be even more interesting (seeing how characters deal with that) instead of making everyone gay, right?
As for your point about Mafuyu, I definitely agree. I really wish this story would focus on him moving on but the boy really isn't even trying to at this point. I understand that he's upset (obviously) but his actions are causing other people pain. If he wasn't ready for a relationship then he should break of with Ue instead of putting him through all his shit.
i mean, sato has some major trust issues, maybe that's why he isn't really moving on, then again i dont really know.
Uhh, no?
I didn't mean to say that their world is solely or dominated by gay people. I meant to say is that, the point of view of the author would focus more on gay people. Just as how tv series focus on straight characters' point of view because their target market are mostly straight.
I'm glad that you feel the same towards Mafuyu and Uenoyama, tho. Same feels, mate. I just want Mafuyu to sort out his feelings already. Ritsu's been showing affection and giving sacrifices already. He is also understanding on Mafuyu's situation, but if Mafuyu ain't ready to let go of Yuki then he shouldn't have made a relationship with Ue. Uenoyama deserves better than this. We all deserve and Uenoyama in our lives. LMAO.
Oh sorry for misunderstanding your point. I get what you're saying.
And honestly, yeah. I've read so many other mangas that show people moving on in a healthy way. There are times they still grieve, but they still wholeheartedly love their current lover and wouldn't do anything to replace them. But at this point, I've given up on Given cause Mafuyu ain't even trying at this point.
i think we all have different opinions on things, so its okay if you dont get the hype whatsoever