Thanks very much to Edelweiss and Kodansha for giving me the ARC for this... on the same day my preorder for this arrived on my doorstep!! 😆 Oops!
I felt very mixed feelings about this. The fact that it's not your traditional BL didn't bother me... in fact, that was more of a relief for me, because I really, really don't like the male love interest in this. In general, stories where someone who is mostly downtrodden, kind, and suffering, is continually bullied, harassed, and picked on by other people, just isn't a fun reading experience for me. And I understand that these two -- Minoru the vampire and Yamadera his coworker -- will probably foster a different sort of dynamic as time goes on, but right now, Yamadera harasses and humiliates the already-suffering Minoru too much. I just can't like him as a character when everything about him screams edgelord, and not in a fun or sexy way, but in a "Holy shit, this guy needs to get a grip, he's very pathetic" kind of way. This guy genuinely seems to think he's The Joker from Joker.
Minoru, however, was the highlight of this book for me. This man has all of the old man moe points for me, I am immediately smitten! I love the fact that he is a 40 year old virgin, and the way he blushes cutely and can't talk to women. I appreciate the fact that he feels emotional at times and cries. I love that he's a great boss and coworker to his subordinates. I really love his wrinkles and the little vein that pops out on his forehead when he's stressed. I love his polite manner of speaking and his little fangs! I just think he is sooo moe. I totally have a crush. Minoru, please leave Yamadera, I would treat you right...!!
This ended on quite the cliffhanger. I hope that Minoru's life-saving actions help Yamadera change his behavior and attitude. As of now, though, I don't think I'm that interested in continuing. Yamadera's creepy, manipulative, and cruel actions don't appeal to me at all; he feels too much like a real-life incel to me. Also, I hate the fact that he vapes, it makes him seem even more like a loser than he already does. If this book was nothing but Minoru shenanigans, I would have been perfectly happy, but alas. Another almost-hit for me.
Der Manga ist so gut, endlich mal ein geiler Vampir-BL-Manga, bei dem der Uke kein heulendes "Omg plz dont bite me" Weichei ist, sondern genau das Gegenteil. Wobei ich glaube, dass der Jüngere am Ende definitiv nicht der Uke sein wird lol.
Der Vampir ist ein 40jähriger Angestellter (Minoru(, der mit allen Mitteln versucht, kein Menschenblut zu trinken, während sein jüngerer (omg Trigger: Agegap *augenroll*) Kollege Takumi heraus findet, dass er ein Vampir ist und mit allen Mitteln versucht selber einer zu werden. Als das nicht klappt, zwingt er Minoru dazu ihm bei der Suche nach der Vampirin zu helfen, die Minoru verwandelt hat. Dabei sind ihm alle Mittel recht :) er ist n klein wenig yandere. Das ist einfach so gut. Es ist endlich mal was anderes.
Honestly, who gives a fuck if this is a traditional BL or not? Give me a sick fuck as one of the lead characters, and I’ll be invested regardless!
First and foremost, it must be said: Yamadera is a fucking sociopath. I had no idea that picking this up, I’d be dealing with the handful that is Yamadera. He truly couldn’t give less of a shit about our main character Minoru and is only using him for his own gain (so he can turn into a vampire). He has no empathy for others, one might even say he’s looking forward to killing others as a vampire, and mostly is interested in becoming a vampire because he finds his human life boring. He finds vampire life appealing precisely because as a monster it would be “permissible” to act monstrous. Every interaction with Minoru is just manipulation on his part to get what he wants, and he’s willing to rub in Minoru’s face what Minoru wants most: blood. I was genuinely so surprised by it!
As for Minoru, he deserves to be freed from the pest that is Yamadera 😭 He’s truly a sweet and kind man, and he has this awful man coming in to ruin his life. He’s just trying to live his life normally, and try not to let his vampirism ruin everything, and here comes Yamadera to throw a wrench in his life. I’m so sorry for you, Minoru. Maybe things would’ve been different if you weren’t so socially awkward at times 😩 But I get it, Minoru. If I’d met a woman like that, I’d also be hung up on her 😔 My sweet sweet man! Besitos en la frente for you 💋
Anyway! I’m for sure looking forward to the next volume in this series 😂 Some of the girlies are mad because Sublime decided to publish this…but girl who cares if these men are queer? They’re worse! They’re codependent! And I love me some fucked up shit like that. I’m gonna eat good 😈
UM, what did I just read? Talk about ending on a big note.
Volume 1 was a weird hodgepodge of information so I'm really hoping we get more in volume 2 since we have some new characters. I know he'll be okay, but omg omg.
Das Ende war spannend und ich mag Herr Sayo, den 40-jährigen Vampir, aber leider mochte ich Takumi, den anderen Hauptcharakter, nicht sehr. Er war mir irgendwie unsympathisch, obwohl ich oft seine Art von 'I'm not afraid, I want what I want, Go For it' Charakter in anderen Manga mag.
We have two players in this story: Minoru the vampire and Yamadera his coworker. Minoru, is a really great person. I like sad but uber kind middle aged men. He is bad with women and but thoughtful of women. He is also kind to people at work. He doesn't want to be a vampire and does everything he can to resist drinking blood of others. Enter Yamadera, at work he has a specific persona which he quickly drops when he wants to manipulate Minoru. Yamadera is a psycho! I like it. When I was reading what he did and said to Minoru, I just kept thinking he is crazy.
I read some of the criticisms of this book and they are all true. But I think that is why I like this.
Vampire, BL, slow burn, what is not to like? Except es ist ziemlich anders als vorgestellt. Deepes Storytelling, vielschichtige Figuren, Panels, die bleiben. Ongoing Serie, zurzeit online lesbar, erscheint neu aber auch als gedruckter Manga. Manchen werfen dieser Serie Queerbaiting vor, debatable. Ich mag diese Geschichte.
Whoa i just wanted a vampire story, i was not expecting the ‘blood bag’ so to speak to be such a twisted, toxic individual but I am officially intrigued. Also that ending was criminal.
⭐️4 Minoru and Yamadera work at an office and are coworkers. One night Minoru goes out for drinks with Yamadera. Yamadera gets drunk and Minoru gets a taste of his blood. Turnes out that Yamadera knew about Minoru being a vampire and wanted to become one as well. Yamadera knows who bit Minoru and he wants to find her so he can be turned as well.
Yamadera is toxic as HELL, he is just using Minoru. Meanwhile Minoru is really sweet and wants to help everybody, Yamadera is blackmailing him basically. If that is not your thing, don’t read it
You get shown the thought process of Minoru, what he thinks of being a vampire and you get introduced into multiple characters, some of which are also vampires.
You have Izumi, which is a coworker of Minoru, who has a crush on him. You also have Merei, who is a vampire, the things she says explains a bit more about how a vampire works.
Together with Yamadera Minorua explores what a being a vampire is about. They are not close in a relationship, more a toxic exchange and thats all it is, an exchange. Blood for helping Yamadera finding that one lady who turned Minoru.
In the end Minoru also wants to find the lady just to get some answers. I really want to read the next part to see how it turns out, are they going to find her? Is their relationship going to start off or is Yamadera going to stay toxic as hell.
The only reason i rated this 4 stars and not 5 is because I didn’t know anything about Yamadera’s background, his life was boring and he likes urban legends so he wants to become a vampire, thats all. Also about Minoru i don’t know a lot, only that he’s a vampire, cant talk to people for shit and doesn’t understand being a vampire.
Uhu, das ist mal ein etwas anderer Vampir Manga, haha 😄 Sayo ist 40 Jahre alt, noch komplett unerfahren und hat einen relativ langweiligen Job und Alltag. Doch so einfach ist alles dann doch nicht.. denn vor zwei Wochen wurde er ermordet und wachte wieder als Vampir auf! Unglücklich mit seiner aktuellen Situation, versucht er den Drang, Blut zu trinken, zu umgehen und bedient sich hier und da ein wenig bei einem Tier. Eines Tages wird er von einem Mitarbeiter überrascht und durch gewisse Umstände kommt es dazu, dass er von ihm probiert. Und plötzlich ändert sich alles! Der freundliche und zuvorkommende Kollege zeigt plötzlich sein wahres Gesicht und will unbedingt ebenso ein Vampir werden.. und so beginnt die Geschichte des ungleichen Duos auf der Suche nach dem Vampir, der Sayo verwandelt hat. Tatsächlich kann ich den Dude (Yamadera) so gar nicht ab, Sayo hingegen ist so ein lieber Kerl 🥹 den will man einfach lieb haben, haha. Die Dynamik zwischen den beiden ist jedenfalls von ganz anderer Natur, als ich zuerst dachte. Die Charakterzüge kommen aber ziemlich gut zum Vorschein und man spürt die Gefühle auch sehr gut. Das Artwork ist richtig schön und detailliert. Der Plot fing sachte an, zum Schluss hin endete der Band aber auch direkt mit einem ziemlich fiesen Cliffhanger, der extrem neugierig macht und man will einfach sofort wissen, wie es weitergeht! 😱 Ich kann mir gut vorstellen, dass der Titel auch im deutschsprachigen Raum gut funktionieren würde - vielleicht kommt der ja irgendwann auch zu uns 😊
Sayo is a middle-aged office worker, well-liked but single, because women frighten him a little. Currently, he’s been having a unique problem. He was killed but he didn’t die. Instead, he got a thirst for blood he doesn’t understand and tries to unsuccessfully control. He’s completely clueless about what’s happening, until his young subordinate tells him he’s turned into a vampire.
Yamadera wants to become a vampire too, so he blackmails Sayo with his blood to finding the vampire who turned him. Sayo doesn’t want to, because he’s fairly sure the vampire is his first crush and doesn’t want to face her. He doesn’t want to be a monster and tries to deny what he’s become despite Yamadera goading him. When Sayo finally finds another vampire, Yamadera seizes the opportunity, but things take a nasty turn. Ending is a huge cliffhanger.
This was surprisingly dark, even though nothing truly bad happens until the very end. It’s not BL or romance of any kind. Sayo is nice and kind, Yamadera the true monster barely hiding. Despite the ending, this sort of works as a stand-alone too, albeit one with a shock ending. Art was good.
I received a free copy from Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.
• Plot: May I have a taste? Vol 1: MC Sayo is a manager and a vampire, and his employee/coworker, Yamadera, wants to become one too. Sayo meets other vampires along the way of trying to help Yamadera become one.
• What I Liked: Sayo's relationship with Yamadera is one of mutual use, but they’re gradually starting to care for one another sorta?
• What Didn’t Work for Me: His virginity is in question because of how he acts oddly around women when he resists wanting to bite people.
• Themes / Ideas: The younger guy Yamadera is more dominant than the older guy Sayo. It's like one being a reluctant vampire versus a human who wants to become a vampire.
• Who I’d Recommend It To: Those interested in vampires
• Overall Thoughts: There haven’t been any full-on Yaoi scenes, but there are some panels like forceful kissing and licking a leg before biting into it. The art style looks nice. This volume ended on an intense cliffhanger. Sayo seems to be a sweet older guy, whereas Yamadera is a kinda deviant & dark despite being younger. I don't know if this is supposed to become a male love male story, but it's hinting at it. They're not gay outright; both males seem to be attracted to women as well.
This volume ends at a really inconvenient point, where it feels like all the juicy stuff is going to start in the next couple of chapters. But, as an opening volume, it really sets the scene with the relevant characters and their dynamics.
I actually really like the character dynamics- Yamadera's not a good dude, but that's what makes him interesting. He's toying with Sayo because he doesn't' seem to know any better. But that just means his character has heaps of room to grow by interacting with the thoughtful, caring, and responsible Sayo. Similarly, Sayo has plenty to learn by spending time with the more carefree, selfish, and 'monstrous' Yamadera.
The art is good and consistent, and it's actually nice to read a BL that isn't packed with meaningless smut for once. It feels like the characters are taking their time, and if they ever get that far, the scene will feel well earned and more fun as a result.
Overall, I'm enjoying the series so far. It's hard to say how it will end up, so I might have to come back and edit this review later, but it's definitely got potential based on this opener.
Al juliol es publica en castellà el primer volum d'aquesta sèrie de 5 i oberta sobre un home tímid, verge, d'uns 40 anys acabat de transformar en vampir i un jove oficinista molt tèrbol obsessionat amb aquestes criatures. Tenia curiositat per la relació entre els protagonistes així com el punt de fantasia de la transformació en vampir. Més encara quan a Listadomanga es classifica com a BL, mentre que a Mangaupdate com a shounen ai, així que no sé ben bé què esperar-ne... Per ara em sembla un primer volum potentíssim, amb una trama inquietant, personatges complexos i misteriosos que amaguen secrets i un munt de possibilitats per a seguir explorant la història. Segueixo dubtant si fer-me la col·lecció perquè encara està oberta, m'ho hauré de rumiar!
This was pitched to me as the "Best probably-BL ever" ... and at first I was just really disappointed. HOWEVER the last chapter of this really turned me around and now I'm excited to continue.
PS: Part of me is worried that this will end with an and-they-were-roommates sort of vibe, the other really likes that their relationship is progressing so slowly. Slow romance for the win. And the actual plot of figuring out what makes you a monster or a human – and more importantly how to live as either – is also pretty nice.
Starts off with dark humor and proceeds to devolve into abuse, desperation, despair, and death. I am intrigued, I hope this can go places emotionally. It has so much potential, and I know the 8th volume just came out in the original Japanese, so I am hoping with all my might 🫣 🤞🤞🤞 I am nervous that this will just stagnate in the dynamic. I am eager to read more from the author.
The art is great. Our sweet hero is easy to love and root for. We love to hate the sociopathic subordinate. I wish there were more cats though. 🤔
Cw blood, violence, coercion, murder
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
A psychopath who wants to be a vampire verbally abuses a kindly 40 year old who never wanted to be a vampire. Every few pages the same scene plays out in which Yamadera finds a way to take advantage of Sayo's kind and timid nature. It's repetitive and unbelievable. There's literally no plot or character development in the whole volume. And just as frustrating, it's sold as BL/Yaoi to cash in on the genre's growing popularity, but there's not even a hint of BL content.
The story itself is such a refreshing twist to when someone discovers that is a vampire! Sayo is desperate to hide and hate being one, but then there's his coworker that is obsessed in turn into one, which Sayo thinks is crazy! But their dynamic only growns into something more complicated and somehow even codependent in ways. I'm hooked after this first volume and where the story is going!
I don't know how I feel about this one. The pace is all over the place and the plot seemed to finally come together at the end. Also the fact that this is not really a BL even though the cover is that graphics is also weird. It is supposed to be very subtext BL.
I just don't know. It's not your traditional BL (yaoi), which is maybe a good thing? The ending, as someone else stated, was criminal. I was unsure on reading another volume, but then they went and did THAT!?