What do you think?
Rate this book
足りない時間 Universe
Not Enough Time
Yousuke suddenly shows up on the doorstep of his old classmate, Tanigawa, after losing touch from high school. While the two had a budding relationship back then, things fell apart and they decided to part ways and search for their true love. However, it might be that their relationship in the golden days of high school was what they have been looking for all along. Can they both figure out the meaning of true love that they never knew back then?
184 pages, Paperback
First published October 28, 2005
About the author
Shoko Hidaka
42 books117 followersShoko Hidaka (native name: 日高ショーコ) is a Japanese mangaka unit.
The drawings are by Shoko Hidaka, and the stories are by Takie (タキエ) but the author name is always "Shoko Hidaka".
Dōjinshi Circle: speaker
The drawings are by Shoko Hidaka, and the stories are by Takie (タキエ) but the author name is always "Shoko Hidaka".
Dōjinshi Circle: speaker
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
February 26, 2019
This is a collection of short stories, some very brief and more like sketches of stories. I would have preferred them more fleshed out, but I did enjoy them.
The art is generally solid, although in the first two linked stories the teachers and students appear the same age, which was confusing since in context it isn't obvious that the person who interrupts the tete a tete in the beginning is a teacher. Also the two couple looked much too similar, I got mixed up.
The art is generally solid, although in the first two linked stories the teachers and students appear the same age, which was confusing since in context it isn't obvious that the person who interrupts the tete a tete in the beginning is a teacher. Also the two couple looked much too similar, I got mixed up.
April 18, 2023
3.5 stars. This is Shoko Hikada's debut and it's a sweet collection of yaoi m/m manga stories. They are cute, but don't go very deep. They all seem to have the same indecisiveness in a character, as well as oen that's bad at communicating, which made it repetative. I did enjoy it though and therefor give it 3.5 stars, but can't up it to 4.
January 21, 2022
This made me so happy.
After I read and absolutely loved the Blue Morning, Vol. 1 series, I've been on a fruitless quest to find some of Hidaka's other works that've been published in English. I finally stumbled across this and one other, which I'll be reading next - but I hadn't actually realized that this one was Hidaka's first manga. You'd think some of that clumsiness would show in the storytelling, particularly since the author's note is all about how Hidaka's editor helped a ton with the writing itself, but this collection of early stories really just demonstrates how impressive Hidaka's imagination is.
We start off with Hidaka's very first story, "Signs of Emotions," which I felt was indeed the weakest in the batch. That's not so much a flaw in the storytelling itself; I just couldn't get attached to Shibuya, who seemed like an absolute jerk who didn't deserve Mikami.
I was also a little confused by Tanigawa, although that's my fault for somehow not noticing the initial "sensei" in the dialogue - I was thinking he was an upperclassman, which also gave me a different response to Shibuya hitting on him while actively engaging in hooking up with Mikami. Realizing that Tanigawa was their teacher doesn't make Shibuya less of a jerk, but does make it more clear that he wasn't actually serious.
Shibuya also tells Mikami later on that he knows Tanigawa won't report them, because he's seen Tanigawa hooking up with a guy at school, too. Again, I initially read this as something Tanigawa was doing as a student, so it's harder for me to place this event in the context of the two stories that center around him: "Not Enough Time" and "Stay." The way his relationship with Yousuke unfolds, I can't really see them doing anything at Tanigawa's workplace...so I guess I can just leave that as something that wasn't part of Hidaka's initial plan while writing that first story.
The Tanigawa/Yousuke stories are excellent; I like how we get little glimpses of their high school relationship, and their different perspectives on that time. And while there's some lack of communication that leads to issues in their relationship, it's the reasonable kind of not-talking that actually happens in real life. Yousuke assumed Tanigawa was never serious about him, and Tanigawa's just...a disorganized, casual sort of person who didn't know how to go about chasing someone down if they decided to stop showing up one day.
I liked the resolution in their relationship once they did start talking things out (and once Tanigawa had matured enough to not let Yousuke go so easily), and I laughed out loud at Yousuke's irritation with Tanigawa's messiness. What a fun dynamic and a good balance between the two of them.
"Complicated and Easy" is an interesting glimpse of an office romance. I don't love that Nishino's messy past relationship was an affair with his married boss, but Hidaka has this nice way of telling stories that feel more grounded in reality. In both this and "Long Distance Relationship," which I loved and will talk about more in a second, there's a sharp divide between what the characters want in their personal lives, and what society and their workplaces expect of them.
Nishino would be openly gay if he could; he spends his time hanging out in the gay district and isn't shy about starting up relationships with people he's interested in. While we never see or learn anything further about his former boss, that guy was presumably closeted and only got married because of the heavy pressure to do so - in "Long Distance Relationship," even promotions are tied to things like marital status and whether the workers have established themselves as family men. I find this both sad and very interesting and wonder how true it is in Japanese society - and if that type of thing has been the case, whether it's changing at all in more recent years.
Regardless, Nishino has been attracted to his new employee/coworker, Kadowaki, since he first saw him walking home from a gay bar, but obviously didn't want to start up another office romance after suffering a career blow from the last one.
Even with somewhat limited interactions between the two of them, there is a good sense of Nishino and Kadowaki having a more balanced relationship than his previous one, with more potential for it to actually last, or at least not end as painfully.
In "Long Distance Relationship," prosecutor Hazawa and police detective Seo have been secretly dating for three years. Beyond the stigma of them both being men, there would presumably be conflict-of-interest issues related to their positions, if their relationship was ever revealed. So they essentially promise each other to keep it a secret forever - a proposal of sorts that is both really lovely and fairly sad. They make the most of it, though, and it's clear that they're deeply in love and happy together - and they can make things work in the long run.
Interestingly, these two characters also remind me a lot of the Blue Morning couple, both in their appearances and personalities. It feels like the earliest glimpse of Hidaka's later, more fleshed-out work.
The last story, "Right Or Left," is the least satisfying because it doesn't actually have a conclusion. It leaves the question from its title dangling: will Eiji continue running his parents' coffeeshop, prioritizing history and stability, or will he choose the long-haired, emotionally intense artist he's been in love with since they were young?
The art in this story is beautiful, though, and is probably the best example of how talented Hidaka is as an artist. And it touches on some of the same tough questions: what do you owe to your family? Is it worth giving up something safe for something wonderful but frightening? Should you pursue something you love (like art) even if you didn't have the talent to make it into a lucrative career? Is it better to just accept a marriage arrangement because it makes sense, even if you're in love with someone you can never marry?
Hidaka's one of my favorite mangakas, and I'm very glad I was able to get a copy of this earlier work.
After I read and absolutely loved the Blue Morning, Vol. 1 series, I've been on a fruitless quest to find some of Hidaka's other works that've been published in English. I finally stumbled across this and one other, which I'll be reading next - but I hadn't actually realized that this one was Hidaka's first manga. You'd think some of that clumsiness would show in the storytelling, particularly since the author's note is all about how Hidaka's editor helped a ton with the writing itself, but this collection of early stories really just demonstrates how impressive Hidaka's imagination is.
We start off with Hidaka's very first story, "Signs of Emotions," which I felt was indeed the weakest in the batch. That's not so much a flaw in the storytelling itself; I just couldn't get attached to Shibuya, who seemed like an absolute jerk who didn't deserve Mikami.
I was also a little confused by Tanigawa, although that's my fault for somehow not noticing the initial "sensei" in the dialogue - I was thinking he was an upperclassman, which also gave me a different response to Shibuya hitting on him while actively engaging in hooking up with Mikami. Realizing that Tanigawa was their teacher doesn't make Shibuya less of a jerk, but does make it more clear that he wasn't actually serious.
Shibuya also tells Mikami later on that he knows Tanigawa won't report them, because he's seen Tanigawa hooking up with a guy at school, too. Again, I initially read this as something Tanigawa was doing as a student, so it's harder for me to place this event in the context of the two stories that center around him: "Not Enough Time" and "Stay." The way his relationship with Yousuke unfolds, I can't really see them doing anything at Tanigawa's workplace...so I guess I can just leave that as something that wasn't part of Hidaka's initial plan while writing that first story.
The Tanigawa/Yousuke stories are excellent; I like how we get little glimpses of their high school relationship, and their different perspectives on that time. And while there's some lack of communication that leads to issues in their relationship, it's the reasonable kind of not-talking that actually happens in real life. Yousuke assumed Tanigawa was never serious about him, and Tanigawa's just...a disorganized, casual sort of person who didn't know how to go about chasing someone down if they decided to stop showing up one day.
I liked the resolution in their relationship once they did start talking things out (and once Tanigawa had matured enough to not let Yousuke go so easily), and I laughed out loud at Yousuke's irritation with Tanigawa's messiness. What a fun dynamic and a good balance between the two of them.
"Complicated and Easy" is an interesting glimpse of an office romance. I don't love that Nishino's messy past relationship was an affair with his married boss, but Hidaka has this nice way of telling stories that feel more grounded in reality. In both this and "Long Distance Relationship," which I loved and will talk about more in a second, there's a sharp divide between what the characters want in their personal lives, and what society and their workplaces expect of them.
Nishino would be openly gay if he could; he spends his time hanging out in the gay district and isn't shy about starting up relationships with people he's interested in. While we never see or learn anything further about his former boss, that guy was presumably closeted and only got married because of the heavy pressure to do so - in "Long Distance Relationship," even promotions are tied to things like marital status and whether the workers have established themselves as family men. I find this both sad and very interesting and wonder how true it is in Japanese society - and if that type of thing has been the case, whether it's changing at all in more recent years.
Regardless, Nishino has been attracted to his new employee/coworker, Kadowaki, since he first saw him walking home from a gay bar, but obviously didn't want to start up another office romance after suffering a career blow from the last one.
Even with somewhat limited interactions between the two of them, there is a good sense of Nishino and Kadowaki having a more balanced relationship than his previous one, with more potential for it to actually last, or at least not end as painfully.
In "Long Distance Relationship," prosecutor Hazawa and police detective Seo have been secretly dating for three years. Beyond the stigma of them both being men, there would presumably be conflict-of-interest issues related to their positions, if their relationship was ever revealed. So they essentially promise each other to keep it a secret forever - a proposal of sorts that is both really lovely and fairly sad. They make the most of it, though, and it's clear that they're deeply in love and happy together - and they can make things work in the long run.
Interestingly, these two characters also remind me a lot of the Blue Morning couple, both in their appearances and personalities. It feels like the earliest glimpse of Hidaka's later, more fleshed-out work.
The last story, "Right Or Left," is the least satisfying because it doesn't actually have a conclusion. It leaves the question from its title dangling: will Eiji continue running his parents' coffeeshop, prioritizing history and stability, or will he choose the long-haired, emotionally intense artist he's been in love with since they were young?
The art in this story is beautiful, though, and is probably the best example of how talented Hidaka is as an artist. And it touches on some of the same tough questions: what do you owe to your family? Is it worth giving up something safe for something wonderful but frightening? Should you pursue something you love (like art) even if you didn't have the talent to make it into a lucrative career? Is it better to just accept a marriage arrangement because it makes sense, even if you're in love with someone you can never marry?
Hidaka's one of my favorite mangakas, and I'm very glad I was able to get a copy of this earlier work.
March 9, 2011
I'm not going to bother with a real review, because all I need to sell the Unibrain on the book is this:
It's Aoshima and Muroi! Okay,Aoshima Hazawa is a DA, not a detective, and Muroi Seo wears glasses, but...but! They're so adorable and in love. Also:
Hee!
It's Aoshima and Muroi! Okay,
Hee!
October 12, 2008
I liked the stories in this. They where cute and nice.
July 11, 2023
This had a lot going for it initially…
It’s cutely illustrated, the cover art is great, the overall environment is fine looking
But I can’t help but feeling that in terms of relationship morals in this book, there are undertones of something almost toxic in nibs, tiny bits, like notes of cocoa in coffee.
There are five stories (I think) and each one has a bit of those nibs, and everytime I see them I feel disappointed tbh, cuz the main story plots are fine. They aren’t gonna win any awards, they’re not gonna ascend to the the sky or pay your bills but they’re ok
My main issue is with how the relationships in each of those stories are treated, almost feels non consensual and out of nowhere, on top of that there were moments where I was bored and just felt disconnected from the story
Especially the office trope one..which is fine for a story but for me it’s just not…fun to read someone talk about desk jobs, those type of jobs that require no outside connection with family cuz they’re so busy and have to meet a deadline, bloodshot eyes dealing with people who either degrade them or talk endlessly talk about dilbert comic panels, draining energy away like Colin Robinson from the show ‘what we do in the shadows’ (which is relatable to most people but it’s just not fun to digest)
.…aside from that, there are entertainingly tropey goofy moments, like before the smut happens the office papers or something will dramatically fly everywhere as the desk gets cleared off and one of them will say something equivalent to:
‘But the paperwork tho’
But..even when the goofy bl trope stuff is thrown in, the uncomfortable vibe of the relationships are still present, and it’s just not a joy to read either
I’m sorry to say but this one just didn’t vibe with me 😓 but I will say it’s lite enough to read and it’s good in variety, but it does have some moments that don’t feel too comfortable
2.5 out of 5, it presents 2, but I was unable to do halves…
It’s cutely illustrated, the cover art is great, the overall environment is fine looking
But I can’t help but feeling that in terms of relationship morals in this book, there are undertones of something almost toxic in nibs, tiny bits, like notes of cocoa in coffee.
There are five stories (I think) and each one has a bit of those nibs, and everytime I see them I feel disappointed tbh, cuz the main story plots are fine. They aren’t gonna win any awards, they’re not gonna ascend to the the sky or pay your bills but they’re ok
My main issue is with how the relationships in each of those stories are treated, almost feels non consensual and out of nowhere, on top of that there were moments where I was bored and just felt disconnected from the story
Especially the office trope one..which is fine for a story but for me it’s just not…fun to read someone talk about desk jobs, those type of jobs that require no outside connection with family cuz they’re so busy and have to meet a deadline, bloodshot eyes dealing with people who either degrade them or talk endlessly talk about dilbert comic panels, draining energy away like Colin Robinson from the show ‘what we do in the shadows’ (which is relatable to most people but it’s just not fun to digest)
.…aside from that, there are entertainingly tropey goofy moments, like before the smut happens the office papers or something will dramatically fly everywhere as the desk gets cleared off and one of them will say something equivalent to:
‘But the paperwork tho’
But..even when the goofy bl trope stuff is thrown in, the uncomfortable vibe of the relationships are still present, and it’s just not a joy to read either
I’m sorry to say but this one just didn’t vibe with me 😓 but I will say it’s lite enough to read and it’s good in variety, but it does have some moments that don’t feel too comfortable
2.5 out of 5, it presents 2, but I was unable to do halves…
July 30, 2017
I really love this mangaka. Her art style is beautiful and unlike many other artists' characters, hers characters all look very unique.
Even though this isn't my favorite of Shoko Hidaka's works, I still have to give this book 5 stars. For what it is, it's great; it's a collection of short stories that each give you just a tiny glimpse into the romantic relationships of different men. But in that way, each story feels like it's missing a little bit of something. That's most often a clear resolution. You just never feel like you're seeing quite the whole picture, because each story is so short and is just a small piece of a more complex tale that isn't written. But, such is the way of the short story! It is what it is.
Every story contains at least one love scene, but often more, and Shoko Hidaka's are some of the best. It's never just thrown in there for the sake of doing it and her art is really just exquisite in every respect.
Even though this isn't my favorite of Shoko Hidaka's works, I still have to give this book 5 stars. For what it is, it's great; it's a collection of short stories that each give you just a tiny glimpse into the romantic relationships of different men. But in that way, each story feels like it's missing a little bit of something. That's most often a clear resolution. You just never feel like you're seeing quite the whole picture, because each story is so short and is just a small piece of a more complex tale that isn't written. But, such is the way of the short story! It is what it is.
Every story contains at least one love scene, but often more, and Shoko Hidaka's are some of the best. It's never just thrown in there for the sake of doing it and her art is really just exquisite in every respect.
September 23, 2018
Meh. I don't think I liked this one even back when I was into yaoi. I remember I bought it at Yaoicon at least four years ago and read it and wasn't very impressed by it. Then I moved to Japan and put all my books and things in storage for a few years. Now I'm back and rereading the books I had in storage. I still feel "meh" about this one. All the stories are kind of cookie-cutter average, and none of the characters or situations are really all that memorable. A typical three-star read: you read it once and you're halfway between "I enjoyed that" and "I feel like I could have done something better with my time," but you don't see yourself rereading it again. In order for a book to qualify for a four star rating, it has to be one that I could see myself rereading sometime in the future, and I just don't see myself rereading this one ever. This is one I'm just going to unhaul the next time I get rid of a load of books.
March 31, 2022
Meh. I had bought this along with a lot of other Yaoi books probably a decade ago, thinking I would absolutely love them. Not the case. They just have a disingenuous queer voice to me, like straight females writing for younger straight females perhaps? I don't know what it is but I just don't care for the characters or the way the stories are laid out and the emotions and feelings these characters have come across as ridiculous to me. I did give this three stars because it was well written and the art was very nice, it's just not my thing. I will say I'm glad this is the last of these books that I had, and I will probably never pick one up again.
February 8, 2020
Manga con diferentes historias, hay:
- Relación entre dos estudiantes
- Relación entre dos ex compañeros de escuela.
- Un jefe y un subordinado
- Un dueño de una cafetería y un estudiante de arte
- Un fiscal y un policía (mi favorita)
El dibujo me gustó mucho y a pesar de ser historias cortas todas son entendibles y con trama Interesante.
- Relación entre dos estudiantes
- Relación entre dos ex compañeros de escuela.
- Un jefe y un subordinado
- Un dueño de una cafetería y un estudiante de arte
- Un fiscal y un policía (mi favorita)
El dibujo me gustó mucho y a pesar de ser historias cortas todas son entendibles y con trama Interesante.
December 30, 2019
Considering this is her first manga, it turned out really well. The art is great, and each story is unique and really well thought out; however, it still gets docked points for me for being a compilation when these really could do well in their own series or one-offs.
March 5, 2021
I didn't realize this was a collection of short stories until pretty much the end. I kept waiting for the stories to somehow be connected. It was confusing and you can tell it was his first book for sure. Hopefully he improved in later books, but I won't be continuing on with any more.
August 24, 2017
Strong three star book, good reading.
September 19, 2021
Middle of the road. Pretty good stories but like a lot of June Manga I find myself wishing they were longer.
January 16, 2024
could have been more developed! but still enjoyable
April 4, 2025
This is a short story collection and it was nothing groundbreaking but I just adore Shoko Hidaka. I’m biased lol
June 4, 2018
**3.75 stars**
I didn't see the point to a lot of the stories - they ended on a weird note...
Also, nothing stood out. The stories weren't memorable. However, I thought that it was okay enough overall, while I was reading the chapters.
Also, this is rated 16+ - I would say its closer to 18+ so keep that in mind if you aren't into more explicit scenes or if you wanted to gift this to someone.
I didn't see the point to a lot of the stories - they ended on a weird note...
Also, nothing stood out. The stories weren't memorable. However, I thought that it was okay enough overall, while I was reading the chapters.
Also, this is rated 16+ - I would say its closer to 18+ so keep that in mind if you aren't into more explicit scenes or if you wanted to gift this to someone.
May 17, 2010
Wish I still had this book! EPIC and CUTE!
October 9, 2010
4.5 stars
May 30, 2014
A few short stories that are simple and cute. Nothing real deep in this one. Just mellow fun.
September 28, 2024
Series of short stories. Kind of cute, kind of dated. The art and writing (or translation?) felt a bit rough. Rounding up for queer, but still that's only 4 stars.
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews