Fall in Love Like a Comic! Vol. 1

まんがみたいな恋したいっ! [Manga Mitaina Koi Shitai!] #1

by Chitose Yagami, Nancy Thistlethwaite (Editor)

Rena Sakura is a high school student with a secret: she's a professional mangaka. And although she's never been on a date, that doesn't stop her from drawing steamy shojo scenes for Chami magazine. But when the gorgeous Tomoya Okita finds out her secret, she finds herself asking him out to get some real-life experience in love!Rena asks Tomoya to be her boyfriend, hoping that gaining some experience in dating will help her improve her manga. Rena is positive that Tomoya is only dating her to help her out, but that doesn't stop her from falling in love...

Genres: Manga, Romance, Shojo, Graphic Novels, Comics, Young Adult, Comics Manga

188 pages, Paperback

First published December 19, 2002

About the author

name in native language: 八神千歳
blood type: A

Yagami-sensei's manga debut was in 2001 with Magical ☆ Project. Her favorite beverages are coffee and tea, and she likes drawing

Reviews

[Starbubbles · Rating 1 out of 5]

I have to be honest, I hated this. It's not that I haven't read the exact same story and actually liked this. I have, and this has been a repeat theme in many of the series I have read. Not the case here.

Then there was the art.
I have never been a fan of the squished in face on guys. I think it makes them look brutish.
I also found the poses and outfits of our lovely heroine to be beyond annoying and fairly typical of depicting extremely young girls. We all know what I'm talking about. It's the knees together, toes apart pose, with the barely there skirt (which apparently does get shorter), and classic pig tails that extrude from her scalp.

The greatest part of this was the characters themselves. I found them vapid. Vapidness would imply that there was any depth anywhere in here, and that's just not true. It would even be okay if they started stagnate and picked up momentum somewhere downstream and grew a little bit. Someone could have grown more mature, while the other could have that perfect veneer ripped off. Ah, that would have peaked my interest.

Instead I have this, a mangaka not quite understanding relationships, but somehow can fantasize enough to weave a "believable" story, but forget that her own stories involve love scenes. That would be key to remember when you convince your boyfriend to play the hero in these stories. Then, there is Okita. Never getting upset, never stating what he wants to do, just a go with the flow nub. Sure, he'll explain current happenings when tears are shed, but they did not reveal a deeper understanding of how he opperates.

[Koorihime-sama · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bought from Amazon, and I still own a copy.

APART OF THE GOODREADS 2012 READING CHALLENGE.

Review/Rating:

5 out of 5

Ease of Reading Text: 5 out of 5
Illustrations: 5 out of 5
Plot: 5 out of 5
Art Touch-Up: 5 out of 5
Translation: 5 out of 5
Design: 5 out of 5

Rena, a high school student, has a secret she keeps from almost everybody at school. However, when Tomoya finds out she’s a professional mangaka, she asks him out in order to improve her love scenes. But what will happen when she actually falls in love with Tomoya?

Side Story 1: Tomoya Okita: A Boy Like in the Comics: We all know that Tomoya is love with Rena, but how was he before having Rena? Was he always the shoujo bishie we all know?

Side Story 2: Magical Project: Debut manga of Chitose Yagami. Yuzu is currently going to magic school, but she is not any good at any of the spells. So, when she has to change her pet, Ro, into a human, she tries her hardest. However, he can only change if both of them want it.

This manga and the second volume to this series are the only ones I own by Chitose Yagami, and I have to say that I really love them. The artwork looks so amazing. I love how the manga-ka drew the characters (especially Tomoya) and the romance scenes. The kiss scenes looked very yummy and good. And for the Magic Project side story, Yuzu reminds me of Sakura from Card Captor Sakura. xD

However, the plot is very cliche in shoujo manga, but I still think it is pretty sweet. I usually like my manga with a lot of romance, kiss scenes, and/or smutty scenes; and this manga has most of that in it. Though because of this, it makes it hard to do a review on shoujo manga, since you can’t say too much or you will ruin everything for people. Anyways, I like how Tomoya teases Rena. It’s so cute since Rena usually “melts”. The characters are all pretty funny and energetic, but sometimes it is kind of annoying — not enough to stop reading though.

Overall, pretty much a simple and predictable manga, but it is still pretty good. ;) The side stories were also kind of cute; and I also love the freetalks since they gave tips on how to make manga. :D

Now for how VIZ did with bringing this manga into English. VIZ did an excellent job on this one, I hardly have any complaints. The only one is the translation for the “squueee” SFX. ;)

[VividlyVIVI · Rating 1 out of 5]

I have waited 15 years to publicly tear this manga apart.

Rena Sakura (very shoujo name) is a highschool student. And a professional shoujo mangaka who is serialized monthly. Also she's never had a boyfriend, which her adult male editor believes is limiting her writing ability, so he recommends she date someone.
Yeah.
But don't worry, because by page 29 she's landed the hottest boy in school, and by page 31 they make out.

Ta-dahhhhhh.

Now, anime/manga is full of superpowered teens and crazy circumstances, but even as a teenager I had a hard time suspending my disbelief to believe that the amazingly dense Rena can handle a monthly deadline all on her own, as well as her schoolwork. But that's the premise.

The love interest, Tomoya, has no real personality beyond "designated hot guy." He plays basketball and models, because that's what hot guys do apparently. He has no real motives for dating Rena beyond, "it'll be interesting." He just goes along with whatever.

Chitose Yagami can only draw 4 characters: hot guy, dorky guy, hot girl, cute girl. That's it. The designs, panels and toning are as sloppy as the writing, and there's not really any plot beyond, "omg, isn't Tomoya so hot? (Rena will use this in her manga somehow!)"

There's the typical shoujo romance drama beats:
- a jealous mean girl tries to pay some guys to rough up Rena (this plot arises and is resolved in 7 pages)
- Rena sees Tomoya with another girl and is heartbroken. It's his sister and she worried for nothing. Womp-Womp.
- Rena's manga gets a TV drama. Tomoya plays the lead, and has to kiss the lead actress. Rena gets sad and jealous. He reassures her with kisses and the lead actress is nothing but professional and nice (and also has her own hot boyfriend™)

Oh, and then there's a bonus story where a cute witch girl who looks like a badly xeroxed Cardcaptor Sakura turns her dog into a human and then professes her love for him and kisses him.
Yeah.

★☆☆☆☆ 1/5. Vapid and devoid of substance or anything original at all for that matter. It's like someone watered down every shoujo trope and bound them together.

[Nick · Rating 2 out of 5]

Overall Rating: D
Synopsis: Fall in Love Like a Comic! (should be Like a Manga) is a romantic comedy shōjo manga by Chitose Yagami. The story centers around Rena Sakura, a mangaka and high school student, and Tomoya Okita, a hot high school boy. Rena wants to get a boyfriend in order to write better romances, so she proposes that Tomoya be her boyfriend to help her. This leads to the inevitable "I'm actually in love with you" moment, where Tomoya declares his love for Rena. This leads to shenanigans as their relationship is tested by Rena's success as a mangaka, and Tomoya gets an acting role in a movie adaptation of her work.

You know those series where the male and female lead have a clear attraction, but never seem to get together? That's frustrating, but can be interesting. Fall in Love Like a Comic! is frustrating because the plot is about a mangaka making her work more believable by falling in love herself. If we apply this concept (you have to be in love to write a good romance), then I would have to recommend that Chitose Yagami fall in love. The romance between Rena and Tomoya feels forced and unbelievable.

Where I had been hoping to find a new twist on high school romance (a mangaka trying to find inspiration), all I got was a romance I didn't care about, and some half-decent jokes. The only thing humorous in the book is how many times Rena melts (literally her body is drawn as going all "melty" or “mero mero” when Tomoya holds her. In short, I recommend skipping this one.

For more manga and anime reviews, please check out Hobotaku.

[Elizabeth · Rating 2 out of 5]

You know.... I had almost completely forgotten that this short little series existed. It was until yesterday, when I was rereading The Gentleman's Alliance Cross when I noticed an ad for Fall in Love Like a Comic. A memory sparked and I remember reading both volumes out of boredom in Borders, way back when I was in high school (or was it the semester AFTER I graduated...?). In any case, this cliche shoujo barely left an impression on me, which can be either because of how short it is or how predictable, or both. Eh, I might as well add them to my records...

[Kat Hammock · Rating 5 out of 5]

This Manga is about a Mangaka named Rena who is a High school student and in need of inspiration to write better romance in her Mangas. The most popular boy in school, Tomoya agrees to be her boyfriend to inspire her drawings. Does it become more than just a fake romance? You'll have to read it to find out. The drawings and story have you laughing the entire time. Loved it. Can't wait for Vol. 2

[Mary · Rating 1 out of 5]

At least it's two volumes.

Some loli is some AMAZING fanfic-I mean, NOVELIST, who needs to experience randy times to write better stuff. Despite the fact that all her stuff has that in it anyways. And she's already popular.

How do I fall into these traps? Are preteens the ones who recommend the bad shit to me? Cuz they tend to like the creepiest shojo. No offense to y'all but come on.

[Marvelknight · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh my goodness!!! So Amazingly sweet!! The characters are well rounded and I love how the author developed the main character's friends. They made me laugh just as much as the main characters, I looked forward to what they would do and say when they appeared. They were the Pumba and Timon of the book.

[alicé · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ada tiga babak di cerita ini di mana Rena Sakura seorang komikus shoujo (istilah ini ngetop karena Nozaki-kun keknya), yang masih cimit ini sudah menerbitkan komiknya yang digandrungi pembaca remaja. Sampai suatu ketika draft naskah dia yang terbaru ketauan sama cowok keren, Tomoya Okita. Dari sanalah dimulai cerita romansa dua abege ini.

Interaksi dua tokoh utamanya lucu, mana si Okita ini tukang nyosor lagi. Ya amponnn, lu berdua masih SMP woy! Temanya sendiri soal komikus yang pacaran dengan cowok keren buat riset tulisannya, tapi dia berujung malah naksir sama obyek risetnya. Okita digambarkan jangkung menjulang dengan Rena yang cimit banget dan imut, ya ampun gue gemes banget liat Rena.

Di komik ini juga ada satu oneshot yang nggak terhubung dengan cerita Rena, judulnya Magical Project (ngingetin gue sama anime Magical Doremi di Spacetoon). Bercerita tentang penyihir cilik bernama Yuzu yang belajar mengubah serigala peliharaannya, Rou menjadi manusia. Sayangnya si Rou ini sulit diajak kerja sama dan bikin mereka jadi kayak kejar-kejaran. Cerita yang ini bener-bener nostalgia buat gue yang dulu selalu mantengin Magical Doremi.

[Gohan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pertama kali baca waktu SMP sepertinya. Minjam punya teman. Waktu itu ng tau kalo nih komik ada buku keduanya. Soalnya di terjemahan bahasa indonesia ini komik namanya Mangaka's Love. Baru buku keduanya yg judulnya fall in love like a comic.

Kesan waktu pertama kali baca, "nihh komik keren banget astagaaa.." aku sampai baca bbrp kali waktu itu.
Tpi skrng, ketika aku udah dewasa, trus baca ulang, aku kadang senyum2 sendiri mikir, 'kok aku bisa sejatuh cinta itu dlu sama komik ini?'. Ceritanya bagus sih, dibanding komik2 karangan Chitose Yagami yang aku udah baca, seri ini yang paling bagus menurut aku. Tpi setelah baca banyak komik beberapa tahun ini, aku ngerasa masih banyak yg lebih bagus dri komik ini, yang lebih realistis menurut aku.

Sekian. Terima kasih!

[Casper Lambert · Rating 3 out of 5]

I remembered reading and absolutely loving this story back in 2007 😂 lol been a while since those middle school days.

Needless to say, it’s not currently my cup of tea. I do have fond memories of this manga though, so I’m not regretting buying it when I came across a copy.

It’s definitely a short read with only two volumes, so the relationship is rushed and the characters aren’t as developed as I’d like. The art is more on the chibi side.

I’d definitely recommend to a younger audience or a shojo fan that’s looking for a quick read with a bubbly ending.

[Alyssa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Series Review: This seemed too short. I read it as a manga scan, which had the extra chapter listed three times. I can't remember where it was from, otherwise I would say.

[Eric · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was cute and silly.

[Samantha · Rating 2 out of 5]

Cute but nothing that grabs me.

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

A light sweet story <3

[May]

Not the style for me

[Solace Winter · Rating 2 out of 5]

Simple fluff, but it wasn't even the good kind of simple fluff. It just wasn't enjoyable.

[Irmapu · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cara baca

[Alejndro · Rating 5 out of 5]

this book is entertaining

[WinterBat · Rating 2 out of 5]

2 and a 1/2 stars

Pretty juvenile and rushed

Magical Project: low-key furry fantasy but cute

Bewildered Princess: standard, has been done before

[Rachel Feeck · Rating 3 out of 5]

Aka how to speed run a premise. Cute, light, over the top. Gotta love the 2000s art style, really takes me back to Kaichou wa Maid-Sama. FYI there's only two volumes in total.

[Sweetmusicwoman · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was adorable. I loved it!

[Elaine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Story is cute. Not a huge fan of the art. Probably will read the rest of the series.

[TreeSpright · Rating 4 out of 5]

It wasn't quite what I was expecting, but that's not a bad thing. It's more of a comedy than a romance and things happen very fast.

[Orchid · Rating 4 out of 5]

Since Fall In Love Like a Comic was only two volumes long I decided that I review them together instead of individually. Fall In Love Like a Comic was so good that it has now become one of my favorites.

What made it such a great read for me was that everything was tied up so neatly at the end with absolutely nothing left unfinished.

As I read more manga books I find that I am drawn more to the lighter shojo-ish ones...like Fall In Love Like a Comic. This manga was funny and even kind of sweet, especially at the end.

Usually I get very irritated when the female MC gets all mushy over a guy (I find boring and an original) and does stupid things, like think that he's cheating on her, but Rena's antics didn't really bother me at all in this book. Why, because that's just the way the character was meant to be, plus it was totally funny (especially since it just made me laugh).

Best part of Fall In Love Like a Comic, um, that would most definitely have to be the chemistry between Rena and Tomoya. They were just such an odd couple, but oh so cute together.

While I loved it, I do have one thing that I didn't like about this manga, or to be more precise made me a bit uncomfortable. Well that would have to be the type of manga that Rena the MC drew (kind of glad there weren't any samples of her manga. They probably would have scared me from being to risqué).

Final Verdict: Fall In Love Like a Comic was well worth my time, and I'm hoping I can find it somewhere so that I can own it (especially since it's only two volumes long). While it had a couple of mature elements (nothing too much worse then what's found in YA these days), I'd definitely recommend it to older teens.

Fall In Love Like a Comic volumes 1-2 earns 5 out of 5 pineapples.

[Thalia Medina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rena is a high school student who is a mangaka. (A person who makes manga) People in the manga are telling her that she needs to experiences the love that she creates in her manga. She starts to look for a guy that she can use to improve her mangas. She starts to date Tomoya as a plan to improve her mangas soon after she starts to catch feelings for him. She feels as if he is too good for her because he is one of the most popular boy in school. Girls express their love for him everyday even some of his older sister's friends have tired to be with him and he all shot them down. He was saying that he didn't want to rush into anything and wanted to find a girl that was interesting to him,funny, and passionate about something and works hard for it."

While I was reading this manga I felt as if the mangka was a teenage girl just like the girl in the book because I feel like they had to get some experience before doing this manga. As I read this I felt as if I was apart of the story looking at these two people fall in love so fast and cute. It was cute because Rena was only using him to improve her mangas but, in the end she fell for the boy who was so poplar with a boy, she had her doubts about him and was scared to fall in love with him and this is where I can relate to her because I was scared to fall for someone once, she started to open up to him as I did. I would recommended this book to any person who loves manga/anime who is into romantic stories.

[Katie (Katie's Corner Blog) · Rating 4 out of 5]

see full review @ Katie's Corner

Mini manga review has another sweet romantic comedy. I loved this story a lot. The characters are interesting and a lot of fun to read about. Especially Tomoya, sometimes I really wished he were real. He was just a perfect sweet boyfriend.

I really wish I could find similar manga to Rena’s works. What I saw, it was cuteness in every aspect. I believe Yagami sensei’s other works are going to be like that I’ll read them sometime soon and if I like them I’ll cover them here.

The final chapter was awesome, when I saw that small kid I fell in love with him. He’s absolute cuteness, but well he’s Romoya’s and Rena’s kid. I hope you’ll find some time to read this sweet story. I’m going out there to also fall in love like a comic. You don’t? enjoy it to its fullest and don’t forget to share your thought below! Stay tuned for more at Katie’s Corner and don’t miss your next favouirtie book or manga! Happy reading!

XOXO

Katie

[anenko · Rating 2 out of 5]

This volume was cute, and mostly harmless. There is very little plot, and the storyline is primarily focused on getting Rena and Tomoya to make out--which they do, frequently.

I don't enjoy tortured shoujo romances that go on and on (and on) because the hero and heroine are too cruel or stupid to deal with each other, but Rena and Tomoya's relationship is established as loving and stable very quickly. There are a few moments of doubt and jealousy, but the characters are already declaring their love to each other by the middle of the first volume. I wonder what direction the manga-ka plans to take this series in; cute make-out scenes are not enough to carry a series for me.

[Alysse Peery · Rating 2 out of 5]

Rena lives a double life as a normal high school girl and a mangaka artist drawing sexy love scenes. All seems to be going well until she accidentally bumped into popular high school idol, Tomoya. Rushing away from the encounter, Rena suddenly realized that she has lost her latest draft! Quickly rushing to school, she was surprised to se Tomoya waiting for her.

It is an overall cute story but quintessentially shoujo. It's very much what one may expect from a school romance shoujo story. If you like this kind of stuff then by all means read it if you wish but when reading it is was not something that really grabbed my attention.

[Genesis · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ok the reason I gave it 2 stars was because the reasons for this story were VERY cute and sweet , but was a little dumb. I mean who is a manga artist in middle school and dating in MIDDLE school. If it was in high school I would understand. The characters seem alright, but the main girl just seems TOO young. She reminds me of a kindergarten student or elementary kid. Don't get me wrong the plot, characters, and story line are GREAT! I DO think its cute , but its in middle school! Come on ... Does that make any sense?