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Good-Bye, Heron #1-6
さよなら、ヘロン [Sayonara, Heron]
俺たちは、恋人でもなく、友人でもなく、家族でもなければ、何者でもない。
これは、共犯だ―――
16才。高校の屋上で二人は出会った。
一人を好む草次と、明るく社交的な海風。
一見対照的に見えるが、家庭環境に恵まれず
心の奥底に色々なものを抱えた二人は、
出会ってすぐに自分達が同属であることを意識する。
唯一、一緒にいて楽だと感じる相手に出会い、
足りないものを補うように強く惹かれ合うが……。
学生時代から大人へ。
少しずつ変化していく二人の関係と、想いとは――。
Souji's life has been a series of dull events, with his parents endlessly quarreling, until he comes across Mika, a carefree student who lives each day as it comes.
They start a relationship which banishes heavy words like "love" or "devotion". They see each other occasionally, without making any promises and such.
But can an ordinary relationship make Souji say something like "I only got this far because you were with me" as Mika says "Who knows..."
これは、共犯だ―――
16才。高校の屋上で二人は出会った。
一人を好む草次と、明るく社交的な海風。
一見対照的に見えるが、家庭環境に恵まれず
心の奥底に色々なものを抱えた二人は、
出会ってすぐに自分達が同属であることを意識する。
唯一、一緒にいて楽だと感じる相手に出会い、
足りないものを補うように強く惹かれ合うが……。
学生時代から大人へ。
少しずつ変化していく二人の関係と、想いとは――。
Souji's life has been a series of dull events, with his parents endlessly quarreling, until he comes across Mika, a carefree student who lives each day as it comes.
They start a relationship which banishes heavy words like "love" or "devotion". They see each other occasionally, without making any promises and such.
But can an ordinary relationship make Souji say something like "I only got this far because you were with me" as Mika says "Who knows..."
207 pages, Paperback
First published April 25, 2014
3 people are currently reading
47 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
February 9, 2022
Gracias a este manga descubrí a Ymz.
Es un soft BL, así que si buscáis smut, wrong number ;) Sus historias son súper bonitas, con partes más oscuras, y nada típicas. Tiene un estilo muy interesante aunque es complicado seguir lo que ocurre por momentos, lo achaco a que los scans son lo que son y me gustaría que se publicaran sus trabajos en inglés o español.
Os la recomiendo si ya lleváis tiempo leyendo el género.
Es un soft BL, así que si buscáis smut, wrong number ;) Sus historias son súper bonitas, con partes más oscuras, y nada típicas. Tiene un estilo muy interesante aunque es complicado seguir lo que ocurre por momentos, lo achaco a que los scans son lo que son y me gustaría que se publicaran sus trabajos en inglés o español.
Os la recomiendo si ya lleváis tiempo leyendo el género.
February 22, 2024
This is a weird one. I read this via KU (trial periods, yay) as 6 individual chapters. I initially rated the the first two chapters at 3 stars, but it really started to grow on me as it went on, and I just bought the full volume.
(I will reread it very soon, but I'm trying to get my 99 cents worth out of this KU nonsense.)
Easy stuff first. The art style is very sketchy, and proportions are occasionally wonky. (It was their first published title.) It won't be everyone's cup of tea, but it worked for me.
Now... I think this is quite subtly done, and I don't recall ever coming across anything quite like it. Both characters have a sort of dissociative, guarded type thing going on. It takes quite a while to get a sense of the them, or what's going on, but here's my take.
(idk where people draw the line for "spoilers" in something as standardized as a romance plot, but I'll err on the side of caution and tag this.)
What I really liked about this is the sort of unlabeled, undefined, gradual change of their relationship. It felt really natural and realistic compared to the more clearly defined stages of relationships in standard romantic fare. At the same time, I do think that's also why it took me a while to warm up to this story. In the end I was really happy with it though.
(I will reread it very soon, but I'm trying to get my 99 cents worth out of this KU nonsense.)
Easy stuff first. The art style is very sketchy, and proportions are occasionally wonky. (It was their first published title.) It won't be everyone's cup of tea, but it worked for me.
Now... I think this is quite subtly done, and I don't recall ever coming across anything quite like it. Both characters have a sort of dissociative, guarded type thing going on. It takes quite a while to get a sense of the them, or what's going on, but here's my take.
(idk where people draw the line for "spoilers" in something as standardized as a romance plot, but I'll err on the side of caution and tag this.)
What I really liked about this is the sort of unlabeled, undefined, gradual change of their relationship. It felt really natural and realistic compared to the more clearly defined stages of relationships in standard romantic fare. At the same time, I do think that's also why it took me a while to warm up to this story. In the end I was really happy with it though.
March 31, 2015
I bought "Sayonara, Heron" because I was drawn to the cover, no doubt. And I am glad I did, because I really enjoyed reading it.
It's not quite a friends-to-lovers story - Souji and Mika have known each other since high school, but they deliberately haven't put a name to their relationship. Both come from not very happy families, and so they are reluctant to define whatever they have: first they just hang out, then they sleep together and in the end they live together, but with Mika going out to have fun - well, sex - with other people. But as is usually the case, at some point they have to figure out what's going on and what they want.
There wasn't a lot I didn't like - I didn't come to like the characters as much as I maybe could have (that's why this is getting four stars only), but the pacing and the switching POVs work very well to tell the story. The art isn't *pretty* pretty, but appealing, and I loved the panel construction of some of the pages. In fact, the manga is recommended by Hayakawa Nojiko, and ymz's style is somewhat reminiscent of her's (at least when it comes to the panel's).
So yeah, a somewhat melancholy and sad but beautiful story I am glad I got to read.
It's not quite a friends-to-lovers story - Souji and Mika have known each other since high school, but they deliberately haven't put a name to their relationship. Both come from not very happy families, and so they are reluctant to define whatever they have: first they just hang out, then they sleep together and in the end they live together, but with Mika going out to have fun - well, sex - with other people. But as is usually the case, at some point they have to figure out what's going on and what they want.
There wasn't a lot I didn't like - I didn't come to like the characters as much as I maybe could have (that's why this is getting four stars only), but the pacing and the switching POVs work very well to tell the story. The art isn't *pretty* pretty, but appealing, and I loved the panel construction of some of the pages. In fact, the manga is recommended by Hayakawa Nojiko, and ymz's style is somewhat reminiscent of her's (at least when it comes to the panel's).
So yeah, a somewhat melancholy and sad but beautiful story I am glad I got to read.
November 18, 2017
After Dear Green, I think I found my #2 favorite BL manga. Okay, no, I found another favorite BL mangaka, and that's ymz.
I read Happy Birthday (Tanjoubi) first, and love it so much, but that series are still ongoing and yet to have a tankoubon so I cannot find it on goodreads. After being mesmerized by Happy Birthday, I continue to read Sayonara, Heron and this story instantly being my #2 favorite of all time BL manga.
Sayonara, Heron is about two troubled child meeting each other on the rooftop. It's a cliche trope, actually, but instead of both being rebellious, they actually grew up as responsible adult (lol). Well, one, at least. What I really love is their dynamic. They live together after high school and university, but their relationship is weird somehow. They're not friends, not relatives, not lovers, also not a mere fuck buddy. They were dependent on each other and love each other, but acted mostly like an long time roommate. The story progress as how they slowly started to feel the change in their relationship and their struggle around the undefined relationship. But even until the end, they love each other without ever telling I love you or being lovey dovey. lol. I really love this kind of companionship love. It gives you warm feelings all over.
I read Happy Birthday (Tanjoubi) first, and love it so much, but that series are still ongoing and yet to have a tankoubon so I cannot find it on goodreads. After being mesmerized by Happy Birthday, I continue to read Sayonara, Heron and this story instantly being my #2 favorite of all time BL manga.
Sayonara, Heron is about two troubled child meeting each other on the rooftop. It's a cliche trope, actually, but instead of both being rebellious, they actually grew up as responsible adult (lol). Well, one, at least. What I really love is their dynamic. They live together after high school and university, but their relationship is weird somehow. They're not friends, not relatives, not lovers, also not a mere fuck buddy. They were dependent on each other and love each other, but acted mostly like an long time roommate. The story progress as how they slowly started to feel the change in their relationship and their struggle around the undefined relationship. But even until the end, they love each other without ever telling I love you or being lovey dovey. lol. I really love this kind of companionship love. It gives you warm feelings all over.
September 13, 2021
I wish I could go back and experience reading this once again. I want to hug both of them and just say that they deserve to feel safe and loved. The book left me feeling so empty and sad but also hopeful. Both the MC's deserve to be happy. The ambiguity of the entire thing just made it even more heart breaking. The part where Souji wished for Mika's happiness even if he isn't a part of it made me cry so bad. They found comfort in each other. The writing, the pace, the art, everything just felt like home. And even though they bonded because of their own trauma and the loneliness and emptiness they both experienced, but the way their relationship gradually changed and grew was beautiful.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 23, 2022
Ze wszystkich przeczytanych mang ta się pisuje na końcu. Niby spoko, ale jednak nie dla mnie
January 11, 2024
Chinese title: 再見了、蒼鷺 (unofficial)
This one got 神率 of 36.9% on Chil-Chil!
5⭐️
Being ymz sensei’s debut BL work, it was released 10 years ago. Unfortunately this manga was never published in Chinese so I was only to read the unofficial scanlation online recently…
The story has a soft and slow pace, like a foreign language arthouse film, a quiet river flowing gently. Even without too much drama the dialogues still touched my heart. I had to reread it immediately to better understand the two main characters and the dynamics between them.
The cover illustrates the melancholic vibe of the story, two friends being very close to each other for years, yet there’s still a distance between them. The storyline is somewhat vague and their relationship is quite ambiguous.
I’m not sure who’s the seme and the uke in this story, the dark haired boy 草次 (wild grass) and the light haired boy 海风 (sea breeze) both demonstrated their strong and fragile sides, no sex scenes are shown, I think they are equals.
They first met on the high school rooftop when they were 16. Having very different personalities, the dark hair boy is quiet and likes to be alone, whereas the light hair boy is talkative and likes to be surrounded by people.
It’s important to understand that both boys come from dysfunctional families that they are trying to run away from. The dark hair boy’s parents always argued in front of him and the light hair boy’s dad would hit him. They grew up not believing in love and happiness.
The boys enjoyed the peace and quiet atmosphere when hanging out with each other, both happy but a bit sad at the same time. It’s like they are each other’s missing piece, slowly healing their loneliness and emptiness from past trauma.
There’s definitely a special bond between them, something more than friends but different from lovers or family. They never put an official definition on their relationship because it doesn’t matter much as seen from their parent’s example. They wish to be listened, heard and understood, so they learned to protect themselves from the parents.
The two boys started living together after graduation, the dark hair boy works remotely from home whereas the light hair boy is works on temporary gigs. Eventually they seek more care and warmth from each other, a sense of belonging and reliance, so they can get through the unknowns in the surrounding.
The light hair boy became more wild once his dad passed away and would only come home when he needs money from the dark hair boy. Some may think he is a player because he sleeps with different girls, the dark hair boy is ok as long as he comes back at the end of the day. It’s an open relationship where they share a free space without being bound by anything.
One night the light hair boy drove the dark hair boy to the seaside and they walked in the darkness while holding hands. The dark hair boy confessed to the light hair boy and told him that his feelings won’t change even if the he leaves and go off somewhere else… Something started to change between them, do they seek the same thing from each other’s company?
One day the dark hair boy picked up light hair boy’s phone and spoke to his mom and shared their home address. This caused a chain reaction where they had an argument and the light hair boy ran away from home… He doesn’t understand why the dark hair boy would allow his painful past to resurface and wanted to end their relationship.
If you take what you have for granted, you don’t cherish what you have until it’s gone. Luckily the story came to a somewhat happy ending in the last chapter. The boys sort of reached a conclusion about each other’s importance and where to go from here.
我想要你好好看看我，
我希望你能夠回應我的心情，
你說過不相信「幸福」這個詞，
我希望你只因我而覺得幸福。
我希望能多看到你脆弱的一面，
我也希望你可以多把這樣的一面表露出來，
這和你所說的「回應你的心情」不是一樣的嗎？
雖然我很信賴你，但是你卻很沒有信用。
相信我吧，因為「我愛你」啊。
瞎說的啦，要是真能說出來就好了。
關於這句話的含義，我還沒有仔細思考過。
所以，讓我待在你身邊吧。
This one got 神率 of 36.9% on Chil-Chil!
5⭐️
Being ymz sensei’s debut BL work, it was released 10 years ago. Unfortunately this manga was never published in Chinese so I was only to read the unofficial scanlation online recently…
The story has a soft and slow pace, like a foreign language arthouse film, a quiet river flowing gently. Even without too much drama the dialogues still touched my heart. I had to reread it immediately to better understand the two main characters and the dynamics between them.
The cover illustrates the melancholic vibe of the story, two friends being very close to each other for years, yet there’s still a distance between them. The storyline is somewhat vague and their relationship is quite ambiguous.
I’m not sure who’s the seme and the uke in this story, the dark haired boy 草次 (wild grass) and the light haired boy 海风 (sea breeze) both demonstrated their strong and fragile sides, no sex scenes are shown, I think they are equals.
They first met on the high school rooftop when they were 16. Having very different personalities, the dark hair boy is quiet and likes to be alone, whereas the light hair boy is talkative and likes to be surrounded by people.
It’s important to understand that both boys come from dysfunctional families that they are trying to run away from. The dark hair boy’s parents always argued in front of him and the light hair boy’s dad would hit him. They grew up not believing in love and happiness.
The boys enjoyed the peace and quiet atmosphere when hanging out with each other, both happy but a bit sad at the same time. It’s like they are each other’s missing piece, slowly healing their loneliness and emptiness from past trauma.
There’s definitely a special bond between them, something more than friends but different from lovers or family. They never put an official definition on their relationship because it doesn’t matter much as seen from their parent’s example. They wish to be listened, heard and understood, so they learned to protect themselves from the parents.
The two boys started living together after graduation, the dark hair boy works remotely from home whereas the light hair boy is works on temporary gigs. Eventually they seek more care and warmth from each other, a sense of belonging and reliance, so they can get through the unknowns in the surrounding.
The light hair boy became more wild once his dad passed away and would only come home when he needs money from the dark hair boy. Some may think he is a player because he sleeps with different girls, the dark hair boy is ok as long as he comes back at the end of the day. It’s an open relationship where they share a free space without being bound by anything.
One night the light hair boy drove the dark hair boy to the seaside and they walked in the darkness while holding hands. The dark hair boy confessed to the light hair boy and told him that his feelings won’t change even if the he leaves and go off somewhere else… Something started to change between them, do they seek the same thing from each other’s company?
One day the dark hair boy picked up light hair boy’s phone and spoke to his mom and shared their home address. This caused a chain reaction where they had an argument and the light hair boy ran away from home… He doesn’t understand why the dark hair boy would allow his painful past to resurface and wanted to end their relationship.
If you take what you have for granted, you don’t cherish what you have until it’s gone. Luckily the story came to a somewhat happy ending in the last chapter. The boys sort of reached a conclusion about each other’s importance and where to go from here.
我想要你好好看看我，
我希望你能夠回應我的心情，
你說過不相信「幸福」這個詞，
我希望你只因我而覺得幸福。
我希望能多看到你脆弱的一面，
我也希望你可以多把這樣的一面表露出來，
這和你所說的「回應你的心情」不是一樣的嗎？
雖然我很信賴你，但是你卻很沒有信用。
相信我吧，因為「我愛你」啊。
瞎說的啦，要是真能說出來就好了。
關於這句話的含義，我還沒有仔細思考過。
所以，讓我待在你身邊吧。
December 24, 2023
Ciężko mi ocenić tą historie. Sama w sobie doprowadziła nas do nikąd. Nie potrafie znaleźć początku i końca a wszystko opiewa melancholia i depresyjna otoczka. Główni bohaterowie są nieszczęśliwi przez całą opowieść, ratuje ich tylko nitka nadzieji że będą razem przeżywać swoje rozterki a ich wzajemna obecność przyniesie im spokój. Odczuwam również wrażenie, że mamy kilka nierozwiązanych wątków, które jednak ciekawą czyetlnika i pozostawiają go z niedosytem - cóż przynajmniej tak było w moim wypadku. Na początku poczułam się jakbym mogła się utożsamić z bohaterami ale końcowo cóż, Ciężko powiedzieć. Pragnę również nakreślić, że nie jest to według mnie ani historia miłosna ani przyjaźń, to relacja której nie warto wciskać w ramy naszych standardów. Sama autorka mówi o przyjaźni, bohaterowie zaś o miłości ale nie zgadzam się z żadnym z tych.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 19, 2020
mysticpooman review:
Something about this is just so realistic it seems like something any of us can feel time-to-time 'not understanding' the pop culture definition of love.
These stories are refreshing as much as they are depressing. It gives you a different viewpoint of life, that passion isn't the only thing needed in love. We're conditioned to think of love as a constant feeling of euphoria even in reality there is also trust, attachment, communication, and also selfishness.
Love isn't the same for everyone, and there is also no need to call the thing that keeps you grounded, love. I'm glad these stories are relatable in that sense and make us reconsider what exactly we focus on when falling "in love."
Something about this is just so realistic it seems like something any of us can feel time-to-time 'not understanding' the pop culture definition of love.
These stories are refreshing as much as they are depressing. It gives you a different viewpoint of life, that passion isn't the only thing needed in love. We're conditioned to think of love as a constant feeling of euphoria even in reality there is also trust, attachment, communication, and also selfishness.
Love isn't the same for everyone, and there is also no need to call the thing that keeps you grounded, love. I'm glad these stories are relatable in that sense and make us reconsider what exactly we focus on when falling "in love."
January 4, 2024
Una relació ambigua entre dos companys d'institut que s'han fet costat perquè la situació familiar era complicada, que no es comuniquen, que no són honestos amb els seus sentiments i que tenen una por de l'abandonament terrible... han estat anys tenint una relació només física i ara estan en un punt que s'autoboicotegen per deixar anar amb el pretext que és el millor per l'altre. Molt de diàleg intern amb pensaments intrusius i negativitat perquè tots dos arrosseguen trauma, però la manera entretallada com es narra fa que sigui difícil de seguir. M'ha deixat força freda, amb la sensació que no hi ha cloenda i estan condemnats a viure infeliços :(
September 7, 2025
I didn't really get this one. There were places where the story felt disjointed and choppy, with uncomfortable transitions between scenes. There were also places where the words didn't make sense in the context of what was happening, which makes me wonder if the translation was off or if my copy was missing a page. There were also times when the language itself was stilted or felt unnatural. Overall it felt like an odd mix of vignettes that didn't really have a purpose.
June 7, 2020
Me parece que da una vibra muy oscura el manga, y deja con un mal sabor de boca. Parece que ninguno de los dos protagonistas quiere avanzar ni mejorar, porque han sido heridos en el pasado... Y su relación es lo único que los salva, pero pues la verdad es que me pareció una relación muy desesperada. Un "seamos infelices juntos".
December 25, 2023
Slow,dreamy,quiet...
May 17, 2025
Une histoire sympathique sans plus. Les personnages ne m'ont pas vraiment touchée... Un peu déçue, j'attendais plus de ce manga
February 17, 2019
3.5 stars
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews