Heat x Beat: I May Be an Omega, but I'm Going to Be an Idol!

Heat x Beat #1

by Ken Homerun

Asahi wants nothing more than to be an idol, and when he's chosen as the latest member of boyband B-Marks he's over the moon. Except for one little detail; Asahi is an omega, and one of the other members, Madoka, is an alpha. Insisting on staying unmated to remain loyal to their fanbase, Asahi agrees to a "friends with benefits" arrangement to appease their hormonal urges without commitment. At least, that's what he intends...

"Combined with its charming character designs, I think this one is going to be popular even with people who aren't usually omegaverse fans." — Lauren Orsini, Anime News Network

Genres: Manga, Omegaverse, Romance, LGBT, Boys Love, Fantasy, Yaoi

Kindle Edition

First published November 10, 2018

About the author

Associated names :
MINAMI Makoto

Name (in native language) : ホームラン 拳

Zodiac : Sagittarius

Blood type : AB

Manga-creating duo, famous for their Boys' Love comics.

The team is made up of MINAMI Makoto and her older sister Norikazu Akira who helped her come up with the design of their self portrait.

Place of residence: Tokyo

Likes: heat
Hates: the cold

Reviews

[Milo (if lost, return to hot fictional character) · Rating 4 out of 5]

i dont even know what to say in this review other than "it's an omegaverse". tbh i think that says enough.

it's decent. as decent as a popstar omega x alpha romance can be

[Amanda Leigh · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute take on Omega-verse. I liked how even though they still had heats etc, the whole story didn't revolve around that alone and I like that though omegas in this world were still kinda subject to prejudice, the author didn't strictly focus on this. The story was more about Asahi wanting to be an idol and I liked that. I also love Madoka lol.

[Michelle Easton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Adorable! Asahi and Madoka are so good together, and despite their instincts they manage to make things work despite their roles as idols. I’m so sad that this is a standalone but it’s such an amazing story.

[Xantababy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was very much surprised that they are underaged.

[Emily · Rating 3 out of 5]

This manga isn't "good" but it is a fun read

[Book busy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Eesh. I don't know folks this whole omegaverse workplace romance thing feels morally dubious to say the least. I feel like the characters who are omegas tend to always be quite infantilised and so it felt a bit odd watching this relationship unfold. I personally don't get the attraction of omegaverse as the implications of mating and primal attraction being the fuel behind a relationship is something I find unsettling. Still, it was a well illustrated manga so it gets a point in its favour for that.

[May · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really have no interest in the idol stuff.

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

where to read: inkr

So maybe I don't love idol romances as much as I thought I did because the last few have been flopping for me for the same reasons lol.

This is about an omega who wants to be an idol, but y'know omegas are hated on so it's hard. Then he gets put in a unit with an alpha that makes it worse for him. The alpha offers to be his mate to make it easier, but Asahi doesn't want to because an idol belongs to the fans. They agree to be sort of friends with benefits to help with the urges/heat, but it's hard to keep their feelings out of it.

This was fineeee. I mean the relationship was kind of cute. I didn't love how pushy the alpha was, but he wasn't a dick about it at least. The whole announcing their relationship in front of an audience thing happens in this one too which is so common and I hate it!! It bothers me so much that it's like at a concert instead of a press conference or interview or something. It's been a while since I read this so I could be misremembering but I'm pretty sure they cleared it with their manager so this one was at least somewhat acceptable. I still want to read the next one which I think is a companion and not a direct sequel. Maybe it'll be better idk.

[Yeollie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love Omegaverse so much. Are you in the mood for a romantic, green flags protagonists experience with only one set of ears and some of the prettiest boys you’ll ever see?

It’s poetic, really. The author’s name is Homerun, and that’s exactly what this manga was for me. I was losing my mind at midnight over Asahi’s collection of chokers. All in all, this story had such a good balance of plot, fluff, and drama. Plus, the timing in some scenes was just… golden. You’ll know the one I mean when you read it. The art was gorgeous.

Ken Homerun’s impeccable attention to detail in worldbuilding made this manga a joy to read. Their romance is raw and pure, aided by banter and cute moments. The love interests are green flags and I love that; although the mangaka isn’t afraid to dip their toes into the unsavory side of Omegaverse, as well. It might feel a little “plot convenient,” but if you don’t mind, Heat x Beat is their strongest piece (in my humble opinion).

Who is this manga for
This two-shot is a great choice for manga fans who are looking for an idol drama mixed up with an omegaverse! This is a Ken Homerun manga, so the pacing will be pretty snappy.

Check out the full review on the blog
https://yeolliestorytime.com/heat-x-b...

[Cassie Renais · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a real hodge-podge of ideas that don't really flow smoothly together. It's an omegaverse; the characters are animal-hybrids; it's an idol/entertainment industry plot - but none of these things seem to interact in any particular way? You could easily remove the omegaverse plotline and the furry thing, and it would be the same plot as a normal idols-aren't-allowed-to-date story. There were glimmers of emotional stakes, particularly in the way the MC wanted to honour and emulate a famous omega star whom they looked up to, but this subplot wasn't developed particularly well.

Overall, I didn't connect with the characters or the story at all. The ending felt rushed and didn't give the satisfaction that the preceding complications deserved. You can't have the major conflict be "oh no, people can't possibly find out!" only to resolve it by just announcing the secret with zero fallout.

[Jessica Walsh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Welcome back to the Omegaverse, a place where characters have a secondary gender aside from being male, female or otherwise. It’s a place where Alphas aggressively pursue Omegas and Omegas must hide away once a month thanks to going into heat. In this manga’s world, most entertainers are Betas because of the amount of people they have to juggle in performances and day to day life. So it isn’t really feasible for an Omega to become a popstar…

Read the full review at Well, Are They? A Queer Review Blog
https://wellarethey.blogspot.com/2024...

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

This manga has a lot going on- it's an Omegaverse BL with semi-anthropomorphic characters striving to become pop idols. It all works surprisingly well together. The lead's passion for singing, and ultimately for advocating for Omegas like himself, is strong and believable. His romance with his co-singer also ends up being very sweet, as the love interest ends up defying both the lead's (and the reader's) expectations for how an Alpha behaves. This is pretty much a one-shot, although there is a companion volume, and it never felt underdeveloped. I enjoyed this quite a bit.

[Eve Healy]

Spoiler-Included Reviews:

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[Camron Winger · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hm. I wanted to hate this book cause it wasn’t so focused on the heats between Omegas and Alphas, which I personally enjoy the most cause it’s such a fascinating aspect. But this was really good, I was surprised honestly. Glad the book was able to change my mind.

[Aurora · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was interesting from the omega’s POV of things, but the alpha was kind of lackluster and just sort of… there. I got the feeling I wish this hadn’t been a romance at all—I feel like that kind of weakened the theme of “this strong woman (omega) doesn’t need no man (alpha)!” 😅

[Rebecca · Rating 3 out of 5]

Despite feeling like the author got the news that this would be shorter than expected around chapter two, this was surprisingly fun.

[Autumn · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was super cute with some fun comedic moments. It has just a smidgen of spice and it does have a few darker parts with sexual harassment. But overall this was a fun well rounded oneshot.

[Lee · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.75

[Ayden Opsoyo]

its cute

[Reese · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like how this focused more on discrimination. It was a interesting way to take it

[Sunshine☀️ · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was cute. Not particularly life-changing or groundbreaking, but a cute time with a nice art style. I'll definitely be reading the companion.

[Hannah Stowe · Rating 2 out of 5]

an interesting story, something like the aboverse is an interesting backdrop for a story like this... I don't think it's for me

[Heidi · Rating 3 out of 5]

just okay..the art was really cute but the storyline was a bit boring

[Tsts · Rating 5 out of 5]

好突然就收尾了啊~
連ホームラン・拳都畫ABO了，ABO果然是目前不可忽視的主流之一XD (另一個是異世界)
比較可惜的是背景設定就很一般，霸凌一面倒的嚴重......ABO漸漸流於制式化了, 也許是因為"反正畫出來就能賣"的緣故吧. 出版社接二連三的出, 但用心經營的作品好少......
突然想起小時候(?)看的寿たらこ的SEX PISTOLS（1） (スーパービーボーイコミックス), 不管是劇情還是人物都是極品呀, 可惜連載好像斷斷續續的, 也沒有台版了.

[Yolotzin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not too different from the other one. Straight to the point. This one felt a little more angsty just cause Asahi took so long to decide to share he's an omega. Lol I do love the topic of 'why can't idols date?' cause yeah, they're human, they should. Work is work, but your private life is yours.

[xkdlaej · Rating 4 out of 5]

好甜好可愛，朝日雖然係omega但仍然不懼自身身體條件嘅限制，努力追夢。不過希望作者能夠拖長啲嚟畫，講更多朝日&圓點樣相戀嘅故事更加好。