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紳士同盟 クロス [Shinshi Doumei Cross] #1
The Gentlemen's Alliance †, Vol. 1
In return for a business loan of 50 million yen, the prestigious Kamiya family gave their daughter Haine away to the Otomiya family. Haine, now an Otomiya, is appointed to the student council of the exclusive Imperial Academy, a private school for the aristocracy. Even though Haine is of proper lineage to be on the council, she finds herself struggling to find her place among the many secrets of its elite members, especially those of the president who holds her heart--Shizumasa Togu, aka "the Emperor."
184 pages, Kindle Edition
First published February 15, 2005
64 people are currently reading
10572 people want to read
About the author
Arina Tanemura
185 books1,016 followersName in Japanese: 種村有菜 (Tanemura Arina)
Western Zodiac: Pisces
Arina Tanemura was born on March 12, 1978. She's the author of Full Moon O Sagashite, Time Stranger Kyoko, Kamikaze Kaito Jeanne, The Gentlemen's Alliance Cross, Sakura Hime Kaden, and more.
Her favorite hobby is Karaoke. One song that she sings is Smile, originally by Myco. She has two cats, named Riku and Kai. She has one elder and one younger sister and one brother. She's the type who hates to lose in anything. She also likes Ribon.
Western Zodiac: Pisces
Arina Tanemura was born on March 12, 1978. She's the author of Full Moon O Sagashite, Time Stranger Kyoko, Kamikaze Kaito Jeanne, The Gentlemen's Alliance Cross, Sakura Hime Kaden, and more.
Her favorite hobby is Karaoke. One song that she sings is Smile, originally by Myco. She has two cats, named Riku and Kai. She has one elder and one younger sister and one brother. She's the type who hates to lose in anything. She also likes Ribon.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 208 reviews
July 27, 2018
Check out more manga and graphic novel reviews @ Perspective of a Writer...
Arina Tanemura introduces her newest manga, The Gentlemen's Alliance †. The head of the prestigious Kamiya family sells his daughter for a paltry 50 million yen to the head of the Otomiya family. Haine now attends the exclusive Imperial Academy as a bronze and accidentally is appointed to the student council where she will face the emperor of the school, Shizumasa Togu, and her childhood crush.
I heard so much about this series that I have been waiting with bated breathe for my library to FINALLY get it in!! Talk about petitions to buy manga!! So I was super excited to get this off my TBR and onto my read shelf...
Up until this year when I started reading manga again I typically rate manga 5 stars that I love and then I have another shelf I throw all other rated manga onto because they were so rare! So I was flummoxed to get to the end of this manga and just find it eh. Yeah!! I know, what in the world does eh mean?! You tell me that! I know I didn't hate the manga...
The art was not my favorite, it's well drawn but at first I mistook which character was which because the girls all looked alike. The frames are VERY full and lush, which is not what I want in a contemporary. A ton is going on... this is good because the story is dense... but I also had trouble understanding what some frames meant because they were kind of just stuck there without reference. This is an old style of drawing that modern mangka don't use much anymore...
I didn't much like the main characters Haine and Shizumasa... She was running around throwing out the love word when she doesn't even know the kid!! I don't mind her thinking she loves him but to tell him boldly to his face, when she has to know MANY girls are telling his this everyday? Are you dim? And Shizumasa was even more obscure with his little random tantrums and jerking back and forth... I was intrigued why he felt the way he did toward her...
The side characters were quite good!! We had Maguri the gay VP who was Shizumasa's beard to keep the girls away... Maora the childhood friend of Maguri and obvious brains of the student council who stuck her fingers into all sorts of things not her business... The lovely Ushio who would cause any woman to doubt her sexuality!! LOVED Ushio, she was worth finishing the volume for!! And can't forget Toya, Shizumasa's servant and friend!! Oh, yeah and Kusame, Haine's adopted brother who doesn't like her to be on the student council!! There were also the heritics, which could turn into some seriously cool side characters if/when they return, especially their leader (Yukimitsu)!
The plot by comparison was bleh. It felt really random how and why things happened. It was kind of confusing how anyone got to the conclusions they did. It just all felt contrived. A lot of why I love manga is that it is visual but I still get to understand why characters are doing what they are doing - this manga obscures those reasonings, stealing a lot of enjoyment.
The chapter endings (i.e. where the twists come in) were better than the story or how we got to the twists... right now they won me over to stick with volume 2...
⋆ ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Authenticity
⋆ ⋆ ⭐⭐⭐ Tension
⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⭐⭐ Plot
⋆ ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Art
______________________
You can find this review and many others on my book blog @ Perspective of a Writer. See my manga and graphic novel reviews in a special feature called Saturday Morning Cartoons...
January 4, 2020
This was quite a disappointing read, in the sense of a story-line that at times didn't make much sense, as well as the behaviour of some of the main and side characters. There was also a fake sexuality trope that didn't go down well with me. A young girl having a crush on a student president seemed to be the perfect set-up for a cute contemporary. This was lacking in cuteness. The actual illustrations were OK.
June 8, 2013
I dislike Arina Tanemura's manga series, because most of them are so damn cheesy. But The Gentlemen's Alliance is an exclusion. I really, really, really enjoy this one.
Yes, from time to time the story is still cheesy and the characters filled with cliches, but as a whole The Gentlemen's Alliance works out quite well.
Yes, from time to time the story is still cheesy and the characters filled with cliches, but as a whole The Gentlemen's Alliance works out quite well.
April 10, 2012
I was excited to finally get a volume from my library, but it was highly disappointing.
First off, the art isn't the best. I don't like huge-ass eyes on my manga characters. I could handle it in Kitchen Princess because it had a good story to make up for it.
This has no good story. It's confusing from the outset, and the whole synopsis of the volume's "arc" is laid down in the first 3 pages. Usually everything is spaced out and the full details come out by the middle of the volume, and then things get kicked into high gear onwards. Not so for this.
Also, all of the pages were a pain to read because everything was so crammed in it hurt my eyes. I usually do not have this problem, but it's like this manga WANTS me to hate it.
Also, the heroine is completely stupid. She's a bubbly, hardworking girl who happens to have been a punk ("yanki") in years past? She's determined yet a hopelessly-in-love girl who happens to have kept her feelings for a boy she BARELY knows all this time? The female heroine is a walking contradiction! It flipping makes no sense!
And there are tons of other manga out there that have played the "outcast girl surrounded by bitchy aristocrats/talented people at a prestigious school" card way better than this is turning out to: Gakuen Alice, Kitchen Princess, etc. etc!!
Needless to say I stopped after 10 pages. Couldn't even finish one flipping chapter of this dumb piece of crap.
First off, the art isn't the best. I don't like huge-ass eyes on my manga characters. I could handle it in Kitchen Princess because it had a good story to make up for it.
This has no good story. It's confusing from the outset, and the whole synopsis of the volume's "arc" is laid down in the first 3 pages. Usually everything is spaced out and the full details come out by the middle of the volume, and then things get kicked into high gear onwards. Not so for this.
Also, all of the pages were a pain to read because everything was so crammed in it hurt my eyes. I usually do not have this problem, but it's like this manga WANTS me to hate it.
Also, the heroine is completely stupid. She's a bubbly, hardworking girl who happens to have been a punk ("yanki") in years past? She's determined yet a hopelessly-in-love girl who happens to have kept her feelings for a boy she BARELY knows all this time? The female heroine is a walking contradiction! It flipping makes no sense!
And there are tons of other manga out there that have played the "outcast girl surrounded by bitchy aristocrats/talented people at a prestigious school" card way better than this is turning out to: Gakuen Alice, Kitchen Princess, etc. etc!!
Needless to say I stopped after 10 pages. Couldn't even finish one flipping chapter of this dumb piece of crap.
July 30, 2010
Honestly, it depends. It depends completely on what type of story you gravitate towards, and while I did thoroughly admire Arina's art and some other things, I can't say this type of story is mine (though it may be yours). Shinshi Doumei Cross is a typical sugary, unapologetically cliche, shoujo manga with a rather overused type of heroine. I felt Arina tried too hard to portray Haine as a strong girl with a sensitive/romantic side - it just came off as annoying in the end, though she IS better than some of Arina's other heroines. (Good God.) There are a lot of contradictions that make her character inconsistent which may annoy some people. I do like that the author went into some depth with the characters' backstories and such, and some of the supporting cast are pretty good for side characters, but be warned there is barely a plot since it focuses mostly on Haine trying to get her crush to love her. Arina struggles to find a strong series of events that could make a decently convincing plot though she did better with that in other series. Overall, it's a non-fantasy story with a lot of cheese and fluff (and a fairytale feeling but at an academy) - best for romantics I guess. Compared to the array of shoujo mangas randomly out there, this is actually better than most, I guess I just am too hard to satisfy.
Read
August 11, 2022No clue what to even say about this.... It was so random 😭 Don't know if I will continue reading the series
January 22, 2020
1'5⭐
Lo mejor de este manga es el dibujo. Me encanta el estilo de Arina Tanemura, casa mucho con mis gustos. A pesar de ello, en ocasiones me ha parecido un poco caótico, las escenas demasiado llenas.
Sin embargo, en cuanto a trama y personajes, ha sido una gran decepción. Para empezar, la trama es confusa y liosa en la mayoría del tomo, no se acaba de ver hacia donde va la historia, porque básicamente vemos a Haine suspirando por el Emperador toodo el rato, y poco más.
Además, la construcción del "mundo" cojea bastante. El manga se ambienta en un instituto bastante elitista que clasifica a sus alumnos en "castas" a las que se accede en función de los méritos o el dinero donado por las familias. Evidentemente, la prota es de la casta más baja y el hombre por el que suspira de la más alta, porque la originalidad está sobrevalorada (ironía).
Este instituto está plagado de personajes que la autora te lanza a la cara uno detrás de otro sin pausa y la verdad es que he estado liada con quien era quien la mayor parte del rato. No se les da una presentación adecuada sino que a medida que pasan las páginas te va dejando miguitas de cada uno aquí y allí. El único pasado que se nos detalla (pero ya hacia el final del tomo, y creo que habría convenido un poco antes) es el de la prota. Pero menudo pasado. Resulta que su padre literalmente la vendió por cincuenta millones. Y sinceramente, a mí lo del tráfico de personas, por mucho que la familia que la acogió haya sido buena con ella, no me va.
Pero la gran y gigantesca pega de este manga ha sido su machismo. Literalmente, el médico del instituto, le dice sobre una alumna: "Con el gustazo que da forzar a una chica virgen y pudorosa". Y va a ser que no. No me da la gana leer cosas así.
Lo mejor de este manga es el dibujo. Me encanta el estilo de Arina Tanemura, casa mucho con mis gustos. A pesar de ello, en ocasiones me ha parecido un poco caótico, las escenas demasiado llenas.
Sin embargo, en cuanto a trama y personajes, ha sido una gran decepción. Para empezar, la trama es confusa y liosa en la mayoría del tomo, no se acaba de ver hacia donde va la historia, porque básicamente vemos a Haine suspirando por el Emperador toodo el rato, y poco más.
Además, la construcción del "mundo" cojea bastante. El manga se ambienta en un instituto bastante elitista que clasifica a sus alumnos en "castas" a las que se accede en función de los méritos o el dinero donado por las familias. Evidentemente, la prota es de la casta más baja y el hombre por el que suspira de la más alta, porque la originalidad está sobrevalorada (ironía).
Este instituto está plagado de personajes que la autora te lanza a la cara uno detrás de otro sin pausa y la verdad es que he estado liada con quien era quien la mayor parte del rato. No se les da una presentación adecuada sino que a medida que pasan las páginas te va dejando miguitas de cada uno aquí y allí. El único pasado que se nos detalla (pero ya hacia el final del tomo, y creo que habría convenido un poco antes) es el de la prota. Pero menudo pasado. Resulta que su padre literalmente la vendió por cincuenta millones. Y sinceramente, a mí lo del tráfico de personas, por mucho que la familia que la acogió haya sido buena con ella, no me va.
Pero la gran y gigantesca pega de este manga ha sido su machismo. Literalmente, el médico del instituto, le dice sobre una alumna: "Con el gustazo que da forzar a una chica virgen y pudorosa". Y va a ser que no. No me da la gana leer cosas así.
March 4, 2022
Es ist sehr sehr verwirrend
komische Lehrer Schüler Beziehung
ein Charakter ist sehr süß
komische Lehrer Schüler Beziehung
ein Charakter ist sehr süß
September 4, 2012
This manga is a great example of why people think manga is ridiculous. Haine is a girl from a poor family who wants to join the student council at her school and earn enough points to become a silver at her school! Yes, this particular school ranks its students based on how rich they are, from bronze to gold. The only gold-worthy student is the "Emperor," a student who basically rules the school. Haine is in love with him, and this is pretty much all she can seem to talk about. *Cue the large, shiny eyes and inner dialogue about how she MUST get on the student council to be oh so close to him!!!* Gasp!
Wow, I'm sorry, but I just don't understand the appeal of the shojo genre. And this is coming from a girl who loves pictures of Hello Kitty and makes jewelry based on the My Little Pony cutie marks because they're so gosh-dern cute! Seriously, even I can't handle the weird and confusing gushing of these books.
The plot is super awkward. The characters are annoying. The only saving grace for me is the artwork. I gave it 2 stars instead of 1 because I can see why some other might like it, but it's definitely not for me.
Wow, I'm sorry, but I just don't understand the appeal of the shojo genre. And this is coming from a girl who loves pictures of Hello Kitty and makes jewelry based on the My Little Pony cutie marks because they're so gosh-dern cute! Seriously, even I can't handle the weird and confusing gushing of these books.
The plot is super awkward. The characters are annoying. The only saving grace for me is the artwork. I gave it 2 stars instead of 1 because I can see why some other might like it, but it's definitely not for me.
April 10, 2013
ORIGINALLY POSTED AT CIRQUE DES GEEKS: http://cirquedesgeeks.dreamwidth.org/...
The Gentleman's Alliance Cross is very pretty! Whenever I think "shojo art", I think of something like this. (Other options include the art of Skip Beat! or CLAMP; that is what I know! I'm sorry!) All of the main female characters are large-eyed and lovely, with gorgeous costume design and fascinating hair - which has the disadvantage of sometimes making it really hard to tell anyone apart. There are some panels where I've actually had to sit and squint to work out who the hell is talking because I couldn't just couldn't tell, and sometimes the panels feel busy and cluttered. On the whole though: very pretty, and very much my style.
The story... Haine Otomiya is in love with Shizumasa Togo, Emperor of Imperial Academy, and is doing her best to earn her way to a ranking in school that means that she can actually see him. To that end she fights snake-bombing trouble-makers, "rescues" Togo from "kidnappers", joins the student council, attempts to reconcile the boy who convinced her to give up her delinquent lifestyle with the icy Emperor of Imperial Academy and change both him and the way the council operates for the better. I have no problem with the story, in theory - all of these elements can be interesting! It's just that they're put together in a way that I'm really... Not okay with.
For example: the leader of the snake-bombers (they do other things, but what sticks in my mind is that the DROP SNAKES ON AN ASSEMBLY, WHAT THE HELL GUYS.) is a dark-skinned man. Fine, okay - except that when he is reformed and stops raising hell at the school, his skin changes colour. His skin actually changes colour depending on his alignment. What.
As another example: Shizumasa, at the start of the manga, is secretly dating Maguri - one of the male characters. Except that no, actually, this is a one-sided relationship where Maguri is in love with Shizumasa and Shizumasa is using him so that none of the girls in school bother asking Shizumasa out. Okay, fine, that is could also be an interesting plotline - except that no, wait, he dumps Maguri so that the main character can be his fake girlfriend even though that makes no sense and will only cause more problems! Worst of all, the break-up scene is presented as something comedic - the characters are in chibi form, pulling faces. When the manga has an entire plotline about Haine trying to get Shizumasa to take her feelings seriously, this just feels cruel and disrespectful. Doesn't it defeat the point if you're telling you're audience to take one character's love and dedication seriously and laugh at another's?
(Plus, the manga somehow manages to make Maguri's relationship all about Haine and her issues! When that happened I did have a moment of "Well that is a sweet scene and in retrospect it makes sense with her issues... But why did the characters even think of that?)
Aside from that... I am bemused by the school's policy of "Boys wear ribbons and girls wear neckties, which they then swap once they start dating" because a) enforced heteronormativy is strange and confusing, and b) why would a school want to encourage dating rather than focusing on work? But then, nothing about the structure of Imperial Academy makes sense, really, especially considering that the student council RULE THE SCHOOL and also the rank system (which allocates students to different social and academics classes based upon, primarily, how much money a student's family donated upon enrollment.).
Moving on to the main point of the manga (at last! I know!): Haine! I find her really interesting in terms of her backstory; it's very rare (in my experience; if anyone has any recommendations please leave them in the comments!) to find a happy!bouncy!protagonist whose backstory is "So I was in a lot of emotional pain and made some stupid life choices because of it" - usually if a character has bad experiences in their backstory, it's not their fault? So this is something I really liked, as well as the fact that Haine owned up to her past and has tried to move past it. She is in the middle-ground of what I like in a shojo protagonist - she is adorable, hard-working, and Doing Her Best, but she's also ABSOLUTELY OBSESSED WITH THAT ONE MALE CHARACTER AND NEARLY EVERYTHING IN HER LIFE IS DEDICATED TO BENEFITING OR GETTING HER CLOSE TO THAT ONE GUY BECAUSE SHE LOVES HIM and if I never have to see that trope again it will be too soon. However, I can live with this, because Haine is not my favourite. USHIO, Ushio is my favourite, even though I'm fairly sure that her story arc is going to make me rage so hard that my head explodes. Ushio is Haine's gorgeously drawn best friend! Who is in love with Haine! And letting male characters use her body because she apparently doesn't care! ... If her story arc ends with any sort of pining forever for Haine, or going "Oh, I guess I'm NOT a lesbian, better settle down with whichever of these male characters has a name!" I will FLIP TABLES. I love Ushio and her dedication to Haine, and her deadpan manner, and just everything about her character and costume design.
BASICALLY: My primary interpretation of this manga is that I'm supposed to take away the message that Shizumasa is a terrible person, and the good end is that Haine realises this and starts dating someone nicer. I suspect that I might be wrong on that one. Shizumasa is actually the main reason I wasn't enjoying this manga (I don't like him! But everything and everyone revolves around him!), but I got the second one out of the library at the same time as I got the first one out, so I might as well read that too.
Verdict: The art is good and I like the secondary characters, but the lead male character and the heroine's obsession with him wore on me fast. Wouldn't specifically recommend it, but if it's in the library it's worth flicking through.
The Gentleman's Alliance Cross is very pretty! Whenever I think "shojo art", I think of something like this. (Other options include the art of Skip Beat! or CLAMP; that is what I know! I'm sorry!) All of the main female characters are large-eyed and lovely, with gorgeous costume design and fascinating hair - which has the disadvantage of sometimes making it really hard to tell anyone apart. There are some panels where I've actually had to sit and squint to work out who the hell is talking because I couldn't just couldn't tell, and sometimes the panels feel busy and cluttered. On the whole though: very pretty, and very much my style.
The story... Haine Otomiya is in love with Shizumasa Togo, Emperor of Imperial Academy, and is doing her best to earn her way to a ranking in school that means that she can actually see him. To that end she fights snake-bombing trouble-makers, "rescues" Togo from "kidnappers", joins the student council, attempts to reconcile the boy who convinced her to give up her delinquent lifestyle with the icy Emperor of Imperial Academy and change both him and the way the council operates for the better. I have no problem with the story, in theory - all of these elements can be interesting! It's just that they're put together in a way that I'm really... Not okay with.
For example: the leader of the snake-bombers (they do other things, but what sticks in my mind is that the DROP SNAKES ON AN ASSEMBLY, WHAT THE HELL GUYS.) is a dark-skinned man. Fine, okay - except that when he is reformed and stops raising hell at the school, his skin changes colour. His skin actually changes colour depending on his alignment. What.
As another example: Shizumasa, at the start of the manga, is secretly dating Maguri - one of the male characters. Except that no, actually, this is a one-sided relationship where Maguri is in love with Shizumasa and Shizumasa is using him so that none of the girls in school bother asking Shizumasa out. Okay, fine, that is could also be an interesting plotline - except that no, wait, he dumps Maguri so that the main character can be his fake girlfriend even though that makes no sense and will only cause more problems! Worst of all, the break-up scene is presented as something comedic - the characters are in chibi form, pulling faces. When the manga has an entire plotline about Haine trying to get Shizumasa to take her feelings seriously, this just feels cruel and disrespectful. Doesn't it defeat the point if you're telling you're audience to take one character's love and dedication seriously and laugh at another's?
(Plus, the manga somehow manages to make Maguri's relationship all about Haine and her issues! When that happened I did have a moment of "Well that is a sweet scene and in retrospect it makes sense with her issues... But why did the characters even think of that?)
Aside from that... I am bemused by the school's policy of "Boys wear ribbons and girls wear neckties, which they then swap once they start dating" because a) enforced heteronormativy is strange and confusing, and b) why would a school want to encourage dating rather than focusing on work? But then, nothing about the structure of Imperial Academy makes sense, really, especially considering that the student council RULE THE SCHOOL and also the rank system (which allocates students to different social and academics classes based upon, primarily, how much money a student's family donated upon enrollment.).
Moving on to the main point of the manga (at last! I know!): Haine! I find her really interesting in terms of her backstory; it's very rare (in my experience; if anyone has any recommendations please leave them in the comments!) to find a happy!bouncy!protagonist whose backstory is "So I was in a lot of emotional pain and made some stupid life choices because of it" - usually if a character has bad experiences in their backstory, it's not their fault? So this is something I really liked, as well as the fact that Haine owned up to her past and has tried to move past it. She is in the middle-ground of what I like in a shojo protagonist - she is adorable, hard-working, and Doing Her Best, but she's also ABSOLUTELY OBSESSED WITH THAT ONE MALE CHARACTER AND NEARLY EVERYTHING IN HER LIFE IS DEDICATED TO BENEFITING OR GETTING HER CLOSE TO THAT ONE GUY BECAUSE SHE LOVES HIM and if I never have to see that trope again it will be too soon. However, I can live with this, because Haine is not my favourite. USHIO, Ushio is my favourite, even though I'm fairly sure that her story arc is going to make me rage so hard that my head explodes. Ushio is Haine's gorgeously drawn best friend! Who is in love with Haine! And letting male characters use her body because she apparently doesn't care! ... If her story arc ends with any sort of pining forever for Haine, or going "Oh, I guess I'm NOT a lesbian, better settle down with whichever of these male characters has a name!" I will FLIP TABLES. I love Ushio and her dedication to Haine, and her deadpan manner, and just everything about her character and costume design.
BASICALLY: My primary interpretation of this manga is that I'm supposed to take away the message that Shizumasa is a terrible person, and the good end is that Haine realises this and starts dating someone nicer. I suspect that I might be wrong on that one. Shizumasa is actually the main reason I wasn't enjoying this manga (I don't like him! But everything and everyone revolves around him!), but I got the second one out of the library at the same time as I got the first one out, so I might as well read that too.
Verdict: The art is good and I like the secondary characters, but the lead male character and the heroine's obsession with him wore on me fast. Wouldn't specifically recommend it, but if it's in the library it's worth flicking through.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 11, 2021
Un mignon premier tome
Mots clés : shojo, romance, lycée, adolescent, manga, fiction contemporaine
Quand j’ai vu l’intégral de cette série à vendre sur vinted, j’ai foncé. Je me rappelle j’avais lu cette série à la bibliothèque municipale quand j’étais plus jeune et j’avais beaucoup aimé. L’histoire est restée dans mon esprit toutes ces années donc je suis super heureuse de pouvoir les relires. Le premier tome est donc une bonne introduction. On y apprend comment le système marche dans ce lycée et on découvre un petit peu les personnages. Il y a des moments que j’ai trouvé confus, ça manquait un peu de sens mais globalement, c’est un bon tome de shojo. Hainé, la personnage principle, me fait un peu penser à un mix de Torhu et de Arisa dans fruits basket. Il y a des passages un peu niais et peu réaliste évidemment, mais rien qui ne soit choquant. Je recommande cette série à tous les fans de shojo.
4/5
Mots clés : shojo, romance, lycée, adolescent, manga, fiction contemporaine
Quand j’ai vu l’intégral de cette série à vendre sur vinted, j’ai foncé. Je me rappelle j’avais lu cette série à la bibliothèque municipale quand j’étais plus jeune et j’avais beaucoup aimé. L’histoire est restée dans mon esprit toutes ces années donc je suis super heureuse de pouvoir les relires. Le premier tome est donc une bonne introduction. On y apprend comment le système marche dans ce lycée et on découvre un petit peu les personnages. Il y a des moments que j’ai trouvé confus, ça manquait un peu de sens mais globalement, c’est un bon tome de shojo. Hainé, la personnage principle, me fait un peu penser à un mix de Torhu et de Arisa dans fruits basket. Il y a des passages un peu niais et peu réaliste évidemment, mais rien qui ne soit choquant. Je recommande cette série à tous les fans de shojo.
4/5
November 18, 2022
As I accidentally reviewed the illustrations: This manga was just not all that special. The art was decent, but the gaps in the plotline had me feeling like I was trying to put a patch on a shredded semi-truck tire with duck tape and a hot glue gun (aka, not feasible).
April 2, 2018
Great start fo a series and Haine is really likable: Flawed and always optimistic!
August 18, 2018
Nicht für mich.
May 7, 2020
Beautiful, overly-busy art. Incoherent plotting and character motivations. Yep, it's a Tanemura manga!
September 15, 2018
Students attending the Imperial Academy are placed in a hierarchical order based on their parents' income and social standing. Haine is in the bronze class and is not even allowed to interact with the highest gold class - yet the gold class is reserved for the head of the school council, also known as the Emperor, who happens to be the one Haine has set her heart on. When chance allows for her to join the school council, she finds that now that she can finally speak to the Emperor, he does not seem very willing to do so.
I wish I could cover The Gentlemen's Alliance Cross with praise - yet if I try to describe it in a few words I'd come up with chaotic, illogical and terrible humour. From the time of its release, it has been my least favourite series (one-shots not included) by Arina Tanemura and has yet held that position. It's a bit of a modern take on Cinderella with a school for a backdrop that could have taken many routes - but it seems to have gone all over the place.
Let's start with my biggest peeve - where does this all take place? Judging by the names and clothing, it can only be Japan - or a pseudo-Japan? Because although it reflects our contemporary time in many ways, many of the social norms make no sense. Haine is given up for adoption in exchange for 50 million yen, the school's hierarchy seems absolute - you can't talk with people in higher classes and you can rise up in class if your parents pay enough money. Teachers barely seem present, it's like the students run the school in which gang fights are a thing. There's a lot of family abuse going on and people can be proclaimed dead without any investigation, there are forced marriages and just so many extremes. If this were a fantasy setting I wouldn't have minded - fictional worlds can have any rules. But in the setting in which it's presented, it just caused too much disbelief in me.
With that off my chest, let's go back to the beginning. Although the school's concept could have proven an interesting story, it's barely relevant. The plot consists of the characters' dilemmas - and boy are there many. There is not a single character with a normal life that isn't frightfully melodramatic. Let's look at Haine; she's cute but also an ex-yankee/gangster who can easily beat someone silly (why are there knife and snake fights at school again?). She became a yankee because she wanted to prove that she's not worth anything - because, you know, her dad sold her and all. In her mind, her new adoptive family doesn't really want or need her, she's just a burden - so what better solution than to roam the streets at night looking for trouble.
Of course, her whole adoption thing proves to have much more to it, her father's just another tortured soul trying to do the right thing. Her mum goes half insane over it which, once again, didn't make any sense! She's had her teeth knocked out during her yankee-time and whenever her now fake-teeth come out, she goes all strangely berserk - hello humour, you almost made me smile.
Anyway, Haine goes into depression-phase multiple times throughout the story. There are many would-be-climaxes that are either resolved too fast or just interrupted so it could be resolved in a later volume. And because Haine's problems aren't enough, the author made sure that every.single.character. has at least as many to whine over.
If this story would have been much shorter, less wanna-be-depressing and either in a fictional setting or one that makes sense in our world, this could have been a decent story. The council was quite a nice set of characters. I like how they were all pretty different and became great friends.
Shizumasa, the Emperor, starts off as your standard stand-offish main guy but he turns out to be pretty interesting. I feel as though he actually had a legitimate reason to be a jerk to everyone and you know, he's the first to get over himself. His backstory is by far the most interesting and it led to interesting conflicts - it was pretty easy to root for him and hope for a happy ending.
So, while I could try to look past the many, many flaws and read on for the good aspects and hope for a happy end - I can say the ending was a happy one for the characters, if not for me. It was utterly unsatisfactory and pretty much cheats its way past the main obstacle that stands between Haine and Shizumasa. Why resolve the story's main conflict if you can simply ignore it and they all lived happily ever after!
Despite all, I still find myself reading this from time to time. Although most of it is spent shaking my head, there must be enough good in it to make me reread it.
September 9, 2021
It was gay and then all of a sudden it wasn’t
August 2, 2012
I'd call this a messy shoujo manga. Messy art style, messy plot, messy characters.
Haine is a 15 year old who attends a very prestigious academy. She has her eyes on the Emperor of that academy, Shizumasa. She fell in love with the fairy tale he wrote as a child, and chases after him, even reforming herself from being a yankee which is a juvenile female gangster/delinquent. Soon she finds herself on the student council, and has to be his bodyguard from the Heretics, a group of student/delinquents. Can she win his love?
Okay, first of all, the art style is way too busy. Even for shoujo manga, there's a lot of linework, hyper-exaggerated eyes, and really detailed backgrounds. It doesn't work at all that well, and in many scenes it would be clearer if she just used simple backgrounds or even blank space.
Second of all, I refuse to believe Haine is a delinquent. The backstory makes sense, but both the character design and her personality don't mesh with that. She is an ex-gang member, and she would be cracking heads, often with the japanese equivalent of a baseball bat. She could reform, I grant that, but I can't see this bubbly girl who wears a maid costume while sweeping the school entrance and is naively cute to be one. A good example of a yankee is Arisu from Fruits Basket, Vol. 1. She's trying to go straight, but even then comes across as a wounded badass who clings to Tohru both to defend her and for her own healing. The big eyes especially work against this.
Third, the plot is weird. There are gold, silver, and bronze levels of students. Bronze=peons, silver=rich or working obsessively hard, gold=class president i.e. emperor. But all of the students are children of CEO's or heads of industry, which makes little sense to have a pecking order. She works a part time job to help out her parents because their business is going through a hard time, but they run a business which could loan her ex-father 50 million yen to adopt her. This is shoujo, not an epic fantasy, but even by shoujo standards there are a few weird plot holes.
So it's meh. I didn't really get into the main love interest either-he didn't really have much witty banter or room to shine with all the characters. Maybe it gets better in later volumes but for now pass.
Haine is a 15 year old who attends a very prestigious academy. She has her eyes on the Emperor of that academy, Shizumasa. She fell in love with the fairy tale he wrote as a child, and chases after him, even reforming herself from being a yankee which is a juvenile female gangster/delinquent. Soon she finds herself on the student council, and has to be his bodyguard from the Heretics, a group of student/delinquents. Can she win his love?
Okay, first of all, the art style is way too busy. Even for shoujo manga, there's a lot of linework, hyper-exaggerated eyes, and really detailed backgrounds. It doesn't work at all that well, and in many scenes it would be clearer if she just used simple backgrounds or even blank space.
Second of all, I refuse to believe Haine is a delinquent. The backstory makes sense, but both the character design and her personality don't mesh with that. She is an ex-gang member, and she would be cracking heads, often with the japanese equivalent of a baseball bat. She could reform, I grant that, but I can't see this bubbly girl who wears a maid costume while sweeping the school entrance and is naively cute to be one. A good example of a yankee is Arisu from Fruits Basket, Vol. 1. She's trying to go straight, but even then comes across as a wounded badass who clings to Tohru both to defend her and for her own healing. The big eyes especially work against this.
Third, the plot is weird. There are gold, silver, and bronze levels of students. Bronze=peons, silver=rich or working obsessively hard, gold=class president i.e. emperor. But all of the students are children of CEO's or heads of industry, which makes little sense to have a pecking order. She works a part time job to help out her parents because their business is going through a hard time, but they run a business which could loan her ex-father 50 million yen to adopt her. This is shoujo, not an epic fantasy, but even by shoujo standards there are a few weird plot holes.
So it's meh. I didn't really get into the main love interest either-he didn't really have much witty banter or room to shine with all the characters. Maybe it gets better in later volumes but for now pass.
April 10, 2010
Honestly, I didn't like it that much myself, but for those who find incredibly convoluted manga plotlines appealing (and when we're talking about manga series, which can sometimes be very drawn-out, there is actually an audience for this)this will have a lot of drama and twists to keep them hooked.
Follow this plot if you dare...Haine, the heroine, was coldly sold by her father into adoption to another family. This spurs her into a career of infamy as a yanki (juvenile delinquent) until an encounter with her crush inspires her to change her ways. She gets a job at the school to help her adopted family which has fallen into hard times, but ends up with a surprise "promotion" to student council bodyguard. And who is she sworn to protect most of all? Her crush, Shizumasa who rules the Student Council (and the school) as "Emperor". So far so good, but what follows is like a big mix of the most preposterous gimmicks from soap operas---mistaken identity, secret twins, boys masquerading as girls, love triangles, rivalries, rumors, conspiracies, and more. The cast of main characters (mainly student council members but also assorted family members and outside love interests) is numerous and a bit hard to keep track of, even with the sidebars profiling each one in Volume 1. Haine is scrappy and likeable overall, though her feelings for Shizumaya are about equitable to the soppiness Bella displays for Edward in Twilight--so be prepared.
Maturity (Vol. 1): Scant mild, cartoonish violence, no obvious fan service, sex, or nudity. Haine fantasizes about her crush once or twice, but it's all lead-up, nothing happens, we see nothing really. Two boys kiss in one scene but it's not what it looks like. Overall, all smoke, no fire--and not even much of that. It's more about the romance (and one-sided, unrequited romance at that as Shizumasa is standoffish towards Haine)than anything. Volume 1 acceptable for 11-12+
Follow this plot if you dare...Haine, the heroine, was coldly sold by her father into adoption to another family. This spurs her into a career of infamy as a yanki (juvenile delinquent) until an encounter with her crush inspires her to change her ways. She gets a job at the school to help her adopted family which has fallen into hard times, but ends up with a surprise "promotion" to student council bodyguard. And who is she sworn to protect most of all? Her crush, Shizumasa who rules the Student Council (and the school) as "Emperor". So far so good, but what follows is like a big mix of the most preposterous gimmicks from soap operas---mistaken identity, secret twins, boys masquerading as girls, love triangles, rivalries, rumors, conspiracies, and more. The cast of main characters (mainly student council members but also assorted family members and outside love interests) is numerous and a bit hard to keep track of, even with the sidebars profiling each one in Volume 1. Haine is scrappy and likeable overall, though her feelings for Shizumaya are about equitable to the soppiness Bella displays for Edward in Twilight--so be prepared.
Maturity (Vol. 1): Scant mild, cartoonish violence, no obvious fan service, sex, or nudity. Haine fantasizes about her crush once or twice, but it's all lead-up, nothing happens, we see nothing really. Two boys kiss in one scene but it's not what it looks like. Overall, all smoke, no fire--and not even much of that. It's more about the romance (and one-sided, unrequited romance at that as Shizumasa is standoffish towards Haine)than anything. Volume 1 acceptable for 11-12+
January 14, 2015
Hopefully this series will pick up because I'm in it for the long haul...
The first volume was very meh. The main character is bipolar... not clinically diagnosed, but clearly. It's always strange to me when manga-ka give female leads two crazy opposing personality traits. I'm sorry, but I have a hard time believing that someone who is ditzy and always happy was once a yanki - someone who was violent and gruff. I can understand a yanki going soft - someone who made a choice to change their life and become a better version of themselves...but I doubt that version of themselves is essentially a bimbo. I know her ditziness is supposed to be endearing and make her lovable, but it doesn't work on me. I find it annoying.
Then there was the "twist" with the main male lead...
A whole slew of characters were introduced in just this one volume that I had a hard time keeping them straight. So that was also slightly annoying. The warden looks like a cool dude though.
There are parts of this I think will make for an interesting read, and hopefully it WILL pick up and get more interesting and less annoying. But for now, I was definitely not impressed with the first volume. In fact, I'm actually a bit surprised anyone continued reading after this first installment. *shrugs* Oh well. On to the next (and with hope it'll be better)
The first volume was very meh. The main character is bipolar... not clinically diagnosed, but clearly. It's always strange to me when manga-ka give female leads two crazy opposing personality traits. I'm sorry, but I have a hard time believing that someone who is ditzy and always happy was once a yanki - someone who was violent and gruff. I can understand a yanki going soft - someone who made a choice to change their life and become a better version of themselves...but I doubt that version of themselves is essentially a bimbo. I know her ditziness is supposed to be endearing and make her lovable, but it doesn't work on me. I find it annoying.
Then there was the "twist" with the main male lead...
A whole slew of characters were introduced in just this one volume that I had a hard time keeping them straight. So that was also slightly annoying. The warden looks like a cool dude though.
There are parts of this I think will make for an interesting read, and hopefully it WILL pick up and get more interesting and less annoying. But for now, I was definitely not impressed with the first volume. In fact, I'm actually a bit surprised anyone continued reading after this first installment. *shrugs* Oh well. On to the next (and with hope it'll be better)
May 23, 2023
My disappointment is immeasurable. What a class act, introducing a gay couple as bait only to "reveal" that one of them was lying. As if pretending to be gay is easier than having girls chase after you.
July 12, 2007
Haine is a former Yanki (girl thug) who reformed after encountering and falling in love with Shizumasa Togu, the student council president (nicknamed "The Emperor") at her elite boarding school. In the first volume of this series, after a series of misunderstandings Haine is placed on the student council as the Emperor's bodyguard.
A very blah & typical start to what by the second volume is shaping into promising shojo series: girl likes boy, girl goes out of her way to attract boy's attention, girl does something clumsy that attracts said boy's attention but not in the manner she wanted.
A very blah & typical start to what by the second volume is shaping into promising shojo series: girl likes boy, girl goes out of her way to attract boy's attention, girl does something clumsy that attracts said boy's attention but not in the manner she wanted.
March 22, 2021
2021: I have mixed feelings about my re-read. The most of the relationships in here have drama surrounding them. While I enjoyed this reading, some of the relationships in here are, at best, problematic. I am looking at you Ushio × Senri (though it is implied they get officially together after she graduates), Ushio × Reki, and Makia × Kazuhito. They each have their own reasons for being problematic, and it is not addressed how they aren't exactly on the up and up.
2009: it's my latest obession series. great plot twists for poor haine.
2009: it's my latest obession series. great plot twists for poor haine.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 26, 2011
I love Arina Tanemura's art! She has awesome drawing skills.
Anyway, I haven't finished The Gentlemen's Alliance Cross, so I might edit this review in the future. But so far, it's a good 3-stars.
It's terrifically original!!
Now to be completely honest, I forgot most of what this series is about, so I MIGHT have to reread it. But I do remember that I was thinking of giving G.A.Cross a three star rating. The romance is a little blurry, but otherwise, this series was very very interesting.
I look forward to reading more!
Anyway, I haven't finished The Gentlemen's Alliance Cross, so I might edit this review in the future. But so far, it's a good 3-stars.
It's terrifically original!!
Now to be completely honest, I forgot most of what this series is about, so I MIGHT have to reread it. But I do remember that I was thinking of giving G.A.Cross a three star rating. The romance is a little blurry, but otherwise, this series was very very interesting.
I look forward to reading more!
August 19, 2016
As soon as I finished to read Full Moon, I started this manga of Arina Tanemura. The art is still great and awesome! The story is very different from Full Moon, which is a good thing because usually manga authors are always doing the same type of stories.
It is the story of Haine who is entering a very prestigious school and meet "the president" an elite member whom she has loved from childhood.
Haine is a cute and lovable character she seems to be a bit like Mitsuki, never letting herself down and always looking on the positive side even when her story is very dark and sad.
It is the story of Haine who is entering a very prestigious school and meet "the president" an elite member whom she has loved from childhood.
Haine is a cute and lovable character she seems to be a bit like Mitsuki, never letting herself down and always looking on the positive side even when her story is very dark and sad.
February 14, 2008
Another girly high school manga revolving around a girl who likes a boy who doesn't really pay any attention to her and is way out of her social group (but she's cute and nice and most everyone who gets to know her really ends up liking her...so really the same as every other girly manga ever written).
The series gets better after the first book or two (it's hard to remember since I read most of them online).
The series gets better after the first book or two (it's hard to remember since I read most of them online).
April 9, 2023
Weird. Messy. A very jarring pace.
I get that this is an old series so there'll be obvious faults and unfavourable mindsets but the fact a darker skinned character "turned white after seeing the light" could never sit well with me.
Don't know where this is heading to be quite honest, it's a silly bizarre story that could've been a fun angsty read but didn't exactly work out. A shame as Kamikaze Kaitou Jeanne was one of my favourite works by this author.
I get that this is an old series so there'll be obvious faults and unfavourable mindsets but the fact a darker skinned character "turned white after seeing the light" could never sit well with me.
Don't know where this is heading to be quite honest, it's a silly bizarre story that could've been a fun angsty read but didn't exactly work out. A shame as Kamikaze Kaitou Jeanne was one of my favourite works by this author.
June 28, 2015
Gave this bad boy a reread. It is really good and I can understand why I liked it so much back then.
Now I need to get Vol 3-11 -.-
Now I need to get Vol 3-11 -.-
January 7, 2024
Chaotic and a bit problematic but I can’t help loving it!
August 24, 2025
parental advisory:
Sexual suggestive themes.
This manga was serialized in the magazine Ribbon - a magazine for young girls yet it has scenes that aren't appropriate for children.
*Review in progress*
I finally got around to reading a full version of The Gentleman's Alliance Cross/Shinshi Doumei Cross volume 1.
Volume 1:
15 years old Haine Otomiya(original family name is Kamiya) is an ex-delinquent and student at the elite private school,"Imperial Academy" a school for the rich and wealthy.
When Haine's father's company starts dealing with financial difficulties he sells his daughter at the age of 10 in exchange for 50 million yen to the Otomiya family.
Her father never wanted a daughter so he didn't hesitate to get rid of her as soon as he could.
Itsuki Otomiya takes the request for adoption and lending money to the Kamiya most likely because of his concerns of Haine's safety and of course because he didn't have a child and he needed an heir.
Eventually Mr.Otomiya's son Kusame is appointed to heir which leads Haine to believe she isn't wanted once again.
As a result of this Haine becomes a delinquent during her Junior High years but after she meets the head of the student counsel "The Emperor" Shizumasa Togu - who wrote her favorite childhood book - for the second time who told her to live life how she wanted to she reformed from being a delinquent.
After she enrolled in the Imperial Academy she confessed to Togu hoping he would understand or accept her feelings.
After a series of nonsensical events she is appointed in the student counsel to be Togu's body guard.
She used this opportunity to become closer to Togu.
This story is quite simple so far - nothing complicated or complex but this volume was overall enjoyable.
It has some similarities to Vampire Knight and Shugo Chara which is I like.
This story also has some unconventional themes like the boys wearing ribbons with their uniform and the girls wearing ties and traditions such as the boys and girls swapping their ties and ribbons once they are in a relationship with each other.
It also has Tanemura and her team's signature screen tone and gothic x sweet lolita subculture inspired clothing styles.
However there are a few problems with various situations and scenes in this story.
The author admits in a side panel that she knows that she has readers in elementary school yet she still wrote sexually suggestive scenes in a manga meant for young girls.
Arina Tanemura creates manga for young girls but she has a tendency of drawing her girls in lingerie,drawing girls with their underwear peaking out of their clothes,fitted clothes and clothes that emphasizes their crotch area.
It's very inappropriate and unnecessary.
I noticed that the more she involved lolita fashion in her works the more her artwork became borderline ecchi with questionable relationships between younger and older characters and characters of the same gender.
Tanemura has fallen into the typical trend that many mangaka especially the women - tend to once they become too comfortable with the popularity they receive.
I didn't like her saying in the author's note section that she didn't care that her readers were uncomfortable by the school doctor sexually harassing Haine's friend Ushio Amamiya and trying to seduce her.
That scene was absolutely disgusting.
He also said that Ushio has done everything else but doesn't kiss anyone.
That wasn't necessary for him to state or joke about.
It's unfortunate that Tanemura once considered herself a fan of Lord of the Rings and is now associated with Sailor Moon and Disney's Frozen - two series with a large following of children.
I hope she reforms and learns why her readers disliked the doctor.
Second,it's strange that Tanemura had admitted to writing BL in private for her friend despite her saying doesn't like writing BL and is constantly insulting her character Maguri Tsujimiya and making him into a joke because he is gay and in love with Togu.
She is constantly baiting Ushio and Haine's relationship as something more than it is but she can't stand the idea of writing a gay male character.
I don't think that makes sense.
If she can be fine with sexualizing Ushio then she shouldn't complain about writing gay characters.
A boy liking another boy is fine but a 15 year old girl being sexualized isn't.
Sexual suggestive themes.
This manga was serialized in the magazine Ribbon - a magazine for young girls yet it has scenes that aren't appropriate for children.
*Review in progress*
I finally got around to reading a full version of The Gentleman's Alliance Cross/Shinshi Doumei Cross volume 1.
Volume 1:
15 years old Haine Otomiya(original family name is Kamiya) is an ex-delinquent and student at the elite private school,"Imperial Academy" a school for the rich and wealthy.
When Haine's father's company starts dealing with financial difficulties he sells his daughter at the age of 10 in exchange for 50 million yen to the Otomiya family.
Her father never wanted a daughter so he didn't hesitate to get rid of her as soon as he could.
Itsuki Otomiya takes the request for adoption and lending money to the Kamiya most likely because of his concerns of Haine's safety and of course because he didn't have a child and he needed an heir.
Eventually Mr.Otomiya's son Kusame is appointed to heir which leads Haine to believe she isn't wanted once again.
As a result of this Haine becomes a delinquent during her Junior High years but after she meets the head of the student counsel "The Emperor" Shizumasa Togu - who wrote her favorite childhood book - for the second time who told her to live life how she wanted to she reformed from being a delinquent.
After she enrolled in the Imperial Academy she confessed to Togu hoping he would understand or accept her feelings.
After a series of nonsensical events she is appointed in the student counsel to be Togu's body guard.
She used this opportunity to become closer to Togu.
This story is quite simple so far - nothing complicated or complex but this volume was overall enjoyable.
It has some similarities to Vampire Knight and Shugo Chara which is I like.
This story also has some unconventional themes like the boys wearing ribbons with their uniform and the girls wearing ties and traditions such as the boys and girls swapping their ties and ribbons once they are in a relationship with each other.
It also has Tanemura and her team's signature screen tone and gothic x sweet lolita subculture inspired clothing styles.
However there are a few problems with various situations and scenes in this story.
The author admits in a side panel that she knows that she has readers in elementary school yet she still wrote sexually suggestive scenes in a manga meant for young girls.
Arina Tanemura creates manga for young girls but she has a tendency of drawing her girls in lingerie,drawing girls with their underwear peaking out of their clothes,fitted clothes and clothes that emphasizes their crotch area.
It's very inappropriate and unnecessary.
I noticed that the more she involved lolita fashion in her works the more her artwork became borderline ecchi with questionable relationships between younger and older characters and characters of the same gender.
Tanemura has fallen into the typical trend that many mangaka especially the women - tend to once they become too comfortable with the popularity they receive.
I didn't like her saying in the author's note section that she didn't care that her readers were uncomfortable by the school doctor sexually harassing Haine's friend Ushio Amamiya and trying to seduce her.
That scene was absolutely disgusting.
He also said that Ushio has done everything else but doesn't kiss anyone.
That wasn't necessary for him to state or joke about.
It's unfortunate that Tanemura once considered herself a fan of Lord of the Rings and is now associated with Sailor Moon and Disney's Frozen - two series with a large following of children.
I hope she reforms and learns why her readers disliked the doctor.
Second,it's strange that Tanemura had admitted to writing BL in private for her friend despite her saying doesn't like writing BL and is constantly insulting her character Maguri Tsujimiya and making him into a joke because he is gay and in love with Togu.
She is constantly baiting Ushio and Haine's relationship as something more than it is but she can't stand the idea of writing a gay male character.
I don't think that makes sense.
If she can be fine with sexualizing Ushio then she shouldn't complain about writing gay characters.
A boy liking another boy is fine but a 15 year old girl being sexualized isn't.
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