Say Say Say (hwang Mi Ri) Manhwa
It's a very nice story and realistic to the point where it worries me. Now I question love's limit again. Surely, Youngwon fell in love at first sight for Jihyo and his feelings grew as they got closer. He truly treasured her for 3 years . But then he came across Say's broadcast and he somehow felt more connected to her. He got interested. And when he met Say, there was an irresistible connection he felt. But he had a gf and she had a bf. They even became friends. They were both aware that the moment they kept their meetings secret, they're somehow betraying their lovers but they can't resist because they felt like they can truly be themselves around each other. But because of their relationships, it was complicated. I understand that Say wanted to end it soon with Junhui but he kept delaying it despite knowing how Say felt. But Youngwon's another case.. He's already guilty bec he knows Jihyo is a nice girl yet he's doing what he did. He did well, trying to set aside his feelings for Say first to try and mend his relationship. Unfortunately, he couldn't get the feelings he had for Jihyo before so he decided to really break up. I believe that Jihyo's suicide attempt is a reality check that not everyone can be happy, at least not immediately. Love begets sacrifices. You're bound to hurt others, but you have the choice who to protect. Them breaking up for Jihyo, despite painful, was necessary for Jihyo to give up on her own. I'm sorry that Youngwon acted cold to her despite being with her but I think he did well bec he didn't give her false hopes. Even if Say and Youngwon continued dating at that point, they'll only feel guilty and paranoid thinking Jihyo might do worse. That's why their separation was necessary. Well, anyway, I'm glad that Say at least felt remorseful bec in the beginning, she just kept going on her own pace despite knowing the consequences of her action. She seemed to be aggressively trying to win him over despite claiming that they're just friends... I saw how she was worried about being left as well bec Youngwon was able to do it to Jihyo despite dating for 3 years. I'm glad that they at least felt human. The ending felt lacking, especially because they can finally be together. I wanted to see more of them.
Cutie Boy
Ahh, sooo cute! This manhwa's adorable because the MCs are both naive and slow. I also liked how Yoomin was really faithful to Hana, and Hana was understanding about Youngsun despite putting her up with a lot of bad things. About the issue of two-timing, if we look at it clearly, she didn't really two-time, since they broke up after she was kidnapped. Of course, she just assumed that they were still together and Yoomin was only acting up since she already figured him out mostly. But it's good that Yoomin was clear to himself that she's his subordinate at the moment and not his gf. Speaking of feelings, their love was mutual, so when she agreed to go out with Miyoo out of fear, it may be seen as two-timing, but not really. Well, at least she was aware of it. I'm glad she thought of Yoomin as her bf though, and didn't intentionally break up with him after seeing how he truly was when they're together. About the forced kiss which was caused by a drug Miyoo gave Hana, I would've liked to see more details. I wish Miyoo or Youngsun made it clear to both Hana and Yoomin about that incident. Luckily, since Yoomin thought they weren't even dating at that point, he didn't even had the right to get mad like that. Anyway, a guy like him is just too precious and adorable, but he could also be a pain in the a** since he tends to ignore things he didn't want to believe in. Oh, and I would've wanted Hana to realize the real meaning of Yoomin's "bullying" about her butt. Haha. Okay, for Youngsun, she's honestly scary in a way that she let Hana experience pain not just physically but emotionally and mentally as well. I think Hana was well aware of her evil antics but still went along with her because she liked having her with her. Anyway, I'd say Seo Yoomin has just become one of my fave HMR male characters. Okay, so he slapped her once, despite being uncontrollably wild and violent. That was after he witnessed the heartbreaking scene of seeing her kiss Miyoo and had himself get beaten to feel pain. He was too miserable that he just had to slap her to hurt himself more. He's too naive though, and he definitely has a prince syndrome. Well, it's good enough that he was not a playboy or flirt. That's just a big plus. haha.
Beauty Pop
I really liked it, as the heroine is not whiny and stup*d. She's in fact, talented and adorable. There's not much romance, but the scenes are cute, and I liked how Narumi reacted to her all those times. It would've been better to see more of their married life though. I wanted to see them become more intimate, especially after seeing that they'd actually have 2 kids after 10 years, and Ochi's still around teasing Narumi. XD A note though, there were times when I was just like, "Huh! Did you really desperately need SP to solve your problems? Did you even try to go to a hair salon first?" But anyway, since I'm not very into fashion and its trends, even when they make it as if the hairstyles they present are awesome or perfect, some of them just look plain or weird to me. Hehe
Never Cry
last: vol 6 ch 2 // skimmed raws until vol 13. it was pretty good. i disliked the parts where the fake Sodam appeared and he even kissed her. >_< well, he didn't know. in situations like that, he had to do it because he wanted to hold on to "Sodam" despite feeling that he's falling for Jo Eun even more. What irked me was that he's being reminded of Sodam when he's with Jo Eun, but how come he didn't suspect her or try to like have her DNa tested too since she did it for the fake one? Anyway, it's too bad for Woo Jin/Seok Ho, but he wasn't her choice until the end... ugh.. just thinking about all the fake Sodam's sabotage for Jo Eun makes my blood boil.. and of course, Rak Ho just had to side with him 'coz "Sodam" is his first love and he refuses to believe anyone who opposes her. Btw, when the fake Sodam died, it was heartbreaking to see them blame her for it, especially the sister who scandalized her calling her a criminal, making her think that she's truly unlucky.. Ha... And even when the truth was revealed, they couldn't be together because they both didn't have the courage to face the other, especially Rak Ho, who hurt her too much with the fake Sodam's incident. It's annoying when even Seul Ha interfered, causing more misunderstandings. In the end, Jo Eun had to leave for San Francisco with Woo Jin. She refused his proposal after a year though, saying she really can't be with him because he and Ji Hong (Rak Ho) are related and she's always reminded of him when she sees Woo Jin. Btw, the ending was pretty sweet. So she gets to go to a house filled with her portraits, mostly sneaky ones, even one which was only the day before. Well, this is pretty stalker-ish, but as she said in the last line, "If it would be a stalker like this, I will never cry. Never Cry." She was really touched and it turns out that Rak Ho has been following her until that day when he finally gathered his courage to face her again. Note: Anyway, as for Seok Ho's story, he's actually an illegitimate child. He was taken when he was 9 because the official heir, Woo Jin, died in France. He underwent a plastic surgery to take over Woo Jin's identity. The grandpa promised that his mom and sister (Jo Eun) will be properly compensated and taken care of as long as he remains obedient. Btw, the issue presented in the beginning wasn't clear to me. Like, about the man with sad eyes who named her Jo Eun. So I believe it was said that the kidnapper died but the motive wasn't especially clear. He seemed to know the mother, but I don't think it was particularly mentioned how they were related. I mean, he even called her in the beginning to inform of the kidnapping. Was he a fan or a former lover? Hmm. I think this deserved more explanations since he played a big part on the story. You know, giving her the name and leaving her in the island. Also, what was that in the beginning anyway? Was it just a filler? The one with the heart of steel/heart of kindness stuff..
A Love In 100 Days Manhwa
English: ch 5 // skimmed until vol 13. sad but very memorable and promising. If only he didn't cling onto that girl who looked like Ria (his gf NaBi)... but well, who am I to judge? I want to own this though. I want more. [translations on indefinite hiatus]
Hanazakari no Kimitachi e
Wish to own the complete set of this manga! Too bad the art in the last few chapters changed (looked rush and less detailed)...
Kanata Kara
Wow. I've seen this manga cover before, and started to read the synopsis because I read somewhere that this won an award. However, simply by seeing the word "terrorist," I was put off and decided to look at others instead. And then one night, as I finished re-reading Hana Kimi (one of my favorite manga), I read a reply from a comment recommending this manga. So, I searched for it and saw that there were only 14 "chapters." I was kind of wishing this was a longer series, so I was reluctant to start, but once I clicked the first chapter and saw the number of pages and its format, I realized that the "chapters" here were actually volumes and I got more motivated to read. So yeah, that's just the history of how I stumbled upon this gem. Now, let's head on to what I thought about it. Just with first few pages, I got myself into it because they talked about an alternate world and I was excited to see how things would go. Being transported to another world and meeting Izark, Noriko's case was by far the most realistic I've seen so far. With the constant language barrier, it was nice to see her making efforts to learn their language, rather than unrealistically being able to understand (You know how in most cases, they just magically understand each other). It was cute how she blabbed on and Izark kept mumbling "I don't understand what you're saying." Oh, Izark! I have a huge crush on him, but he's exclusively for Noriko, and I approve. He's very gentle and kind. He wanted to act cold but his pure heart just can't leave Noriko alone (though he finally did, at one point, because he was concerned for her safety). I loved the romance, especially because it grew overtime and there were no annoying rivals who plotted evil deeds to keep them away from each other with misunderstandings. I loved how their love was so strong, and how Izark's feelings were made clear to us, readers as well. He's very cute and innocent with Noriko. Though his love was both his strength and his weakness, being that his fate was dependent on what happens to Noriko, I liked this aspect because it balanced out Noriko's constant need of him protecting her. In this case, they protected and depended on each other. It's not just one way. It was a give and take relationship. In just truly loved them as a couple and as individuals as well. The minor characters were also adorable and memorable. They really acted out their parts well, and the adventures were exciting and relevant. I loved how they didn't seem like just fillers. Everything had its purpose and since we're talking about huge territories, it made sense as to how many important people they had to meet and save from the clutches of evil. Btw, I also liked how their companions didn't abandon them after realizing their true identities. Sure, they parted because the couple were afraid of this, but it felt nice to see them relieved on their reunion. The friendships they made along the way helped them to become stronger. Back to the story, it was touching seeing Izark struggle to fight against this intense power within him because he wanted to protect Noriko. He fought well, and he was not evil despite being a beast. He's helped even his enemies. He's just too awesome. I liked how the main antagonists were actually from the smallest country yet they were basically the ones who controlled the evil acts. They weren't made to be too annoying, and you somehow feel with them. Anyway, overall, I'd say, this is a very underrated manga in my opinion. The female MC may seem very weak as she's actually powerless and she cries a lot, but contrary to the typical damsel in distress who just st*pidly acts on her own thinking "she only wants to help," Noriko actually fought knowing her limits and she thought before jumping into situations where she could be a nuisance. Her sense of awareness made her stronger than the others. I'd definitely re-read this in the future. I want more Izark! ps. The part where he teared up when Noriko asked him not to look at her after her hair was horribly cut, and he felt so angry with Rachef making Noriko feel that way, was very touching. It clearly showed how much he valued everything about her. Then, after her hair was cut and he saw him with her hair back to the way it was when they first met, he felt nostalgic and it was just very sweet how it made him realize how much his love for her has grown overtime. Ah really, I'm glad it wasn't limited to Noriko's POV/narration. It was very sweet reading Izark's thoughts and feelings, too.
Pinocchio Manhwa
Aww. I first read this on... I don't remember when. Probably 2014? And now, I re-read it in August 8, 2016. The story still got me. It's truly memorable and close to my heart. I still wanted more than how it ended, but I guess that's left to our imagination. I loved this story because I was feeling for the characters. I felt bad for Haram when her love for Hanbit was not reciprocated (or at least, he didn't realize it then) but I was glad when she finally accepted her feelings for Gaon. Gaon. This guy made me tear up a lot. I was so sad for him but admired him at the same time. He's bright and he tried his best to make up for what he's lost. He created happy memories after being with Haram, and even when he knew it was pointless, he still continued to love Haram. When his memories came rushing back to him and he teared up? I was so hurt for him. He's a coward, but he's also brave. Anyway, I was glad that when he finally made his decision, he ended up being happy. Hanbit. Oh, this hot guy. He's the guy you'd admire from afar. The mysterious, cold but gentleman type. I loved and hated him at the same time. Really. Especially his strange quirk? Ugh. Okay. Nobody's perfect, so even a guy like him's supposed to have a weakness. But really? His weakness was so annoying. He couldn't stand it when girls cry in front of him, so he makes it up to them. That's why when girls confessed to him, when he rejected them and they started to cry, he just went along with them. Then, of course. A weakness like that was meant to be spoiled by a desperate girl. And that's how Sujin took advantage of him. I hated his high school self for giving in to her tears despite feeling strange about it. He knew she was his friend's girlfriend but he believed that they really broke up. Really? Even if that were the case, he shouldn't have accepted her that instant. And of course, Bakha was also to blame. He didn't listen to him until the end so he obliviously asked him to take care of her instead. So Hanbit may have felt more guilty for that so he forced himself to respond to Sujin's advances more. Hah... But I also hated how even when he finally became a college student, he has not changed. He even had that horrible experience in high school, and what? He still let his weakness get to him, subconsciously leading Yeojin (the singer) on when he saw her cry... And of course, when Haram confessed and cried (despite being warned by Yeojin) because she somehow wanted to take advantage of it, he actually said he'd do anything she wanted if she just stopped crying. I think anyone sane would feel unsatisfied. There are times when we want someone desperately that we'd think we'd do whatever it takes, as long as they become ours... even when they don't love us in return... But when it actually happens, we feel unsatisfied and become greedier. Anyway, this Hanbit was so frustrating as how he could calmly deal with Sujin like that. He already knew she wasn't normal, so why'd he expect that she'd back off after being told off so nicely? He didn't learn from his past mistake at all, being drugged and dragged to her home again. This is why I think guys who are nice to everyone, or too gentleman tend to become bothersome. Because they can't say "no" firmly or reject someone who clings desperately, they "sacrifice" themselves. They say they don't want to hurt that "someone" who asks desperately so it's better if they hurt themselves instead to satisfy the other. But what does that really do? It only hurts more people. I just wish guys like him would reject others firmly when they're really not interested. They may look bad or rude, but it's because of situations like this that I tend to think it's good enough if the guy treats me well, even if he treats other people indifferently or they think he's bad. Of course, that's selfish of me, but we can't please everybody anyway. No matter how good we try to become, there will always be someone who thinks otherwise. So instead of wasting time trying to reach out to a lot of people, I think it's wiser to just spend time creating more memories with people who actually appreciate you. Okay, I got carried away, but I think Hanbit's story was just so memorable that I can't help but want more of him. Like, how would his life go on? How will he meet "The One" and deal with his weakness? The main story was of course, around Gaon. And I really liked his story, too. He even made me tear up. I liked his personality, especially because even if he's nice to everyone, he knew how to draw the line. Like, when Yeojin asked him to stay with her instead, since it wouldn't really matter who he's with as long as he gets a companion, but he firmly refused and said he wanted to stay with Haram. This is what I want. Like, even when at that time, he still wasn't aware of his feelings for her, he remained faithful to her. This is really what I'm looking for in a guy. Of course, he's not perfect as well. He's a bit childish and it may seem like he only treated Haram well because she's the person who picked her up, but he's very thoughtful as well. Of course, it hurt when he suddenly ran off with his necklace, but I think everyone needs to deal with some things by themselves. That doesn't mean that they don't need us though. It's just part of discovering more about themselves. Anyway, this situation with Yeojin really made me like him more because you see, I actually felt a pang in my heart when he started to go out of his way to see and hear her sing in the park. Even when it was actually because he wanted to make Haram listen to her, I felt jealous that he's paying attention to another woman. He even agreed when she demanded to stay with her for a day. So I was so glad and relieved when he answered that way. Okay, about Haram. Well, she's violent towards Gaon, but it was intended for comedic purposes since Gaon was childish, so I didn't mind so much. And even when she's emotionally hurting him with that thing with Hanbit, I can't exactly blame her because it was easier for her to accept that she has feelings for Hanbit. And it's probably because she's aware that Gaon's a ghost so she didn't think of the possibility of falling for him since the beginning. Well, she's selfish too, but like Jiwon (Purple hyung) said, selfishness is part of human nature, so it can't be helped. I'm glad that she somehow controlled her selfishness though, and it's relatable how she demanded him not to even crush on someone while she hasn't moved on. I think every girl would wish that of their unrequited love, but she actually voice it out. Anyway, I just really love this webtoon. I wanted to learn more about Gaon's life before he became a ghost and after he and Haram finally got together. I wanted to see more of Hanbit and how he becomes more sensitive to other people's feelings. I wanted to see more of Eden who's had a brother complex for Gaon meet his match as well. I wanted to know more about Garam and Hansol's blooming relationship, Bakha and Yeojin's on-and-off relationship, and I wanted some shounen ai for Mokyong (?) and Ran. XD I also wanted to see more of Purple hyung... I even wanted to see how Sujin was after the whole mess. Most importantly, I wanted to know more about how the supernatural phenomenon happened. Like, was it always like that? Or was it only the two of them who experienced their memories being sealed in one of their belongings? Anyway, I wanted to know more of this phenomenon and I wished to see more "ghosts" meet the ones who can see them and read about their stories too. Ahh, too much wishful thinking, eh? I wish I could at least make a fanfiction or something. This is very inspiring.
Mou Ichido, Nando Demo
It was painful but sweet. Ahh.. What should I do if it were me? Will I really be able to calmly do what Tarou did? It hurt a lot reading this, what more experiencing it. I'm glad Takahiro remained faithful though he was confused. I mean I'm glad he didn't act against his instincts just because it's unusual for him. Like, he thoight he was in love with Tae and only confused his attraction with Tarou bec they looked alike. After all, in his memory, he was straight, so it made more sense that it was Tae he was in love with. I'm glad he followed his heart. But ugh.. Really what if this happened to me and my lover? If he tells me not to spoil anything about thr period he's forgotten, including his lover? It made sense though. Like, even if he's told someone is his lover, it's not like he'd remember all those feelings miraculously..
Oh, My Romantic Kumiho