Therapy Game Restart, Vol. 5

Therapy Game #7

by Meguru Hinohara

Shizuma accompagna Minato nella location scelta per realizzare il photobook del mix bar. Preso com’è dal lavoro, il giovane fotografo all’improvviso si rende conto di essersi dimenticato del compleanno del suo ragazzo, ma dove si trova non ha modo di comprargli un regalo per rimediare. Nonostante Shizuma lo tranquillizzi dicendogli di non preoccuparsi, lui è determinato a fare qualcosa di speciale...

Genres: Manga, Romance, LGBT, Yaoi, Queer, Contemporary, Comics

210 pages, Paperback

Published June 17, 2025

About the author

HINOHARA Meguru
Name (in native language): 日ノ原 巡

Reviews

[lyss · Rating 5 out of 5]

need shizuma. like... rn. hes just perfect UGH

[alex :) · Rating 4 out of 5]

one thing shizuma’s words and actions will never fail to do is give me butterflies. LOVE HIM. NEED HIM. NOW.

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

The birthday chapter is SO CUTE. Omg I almost cried they're so adorable. I cannot WAIT for next volume. Direct interactions with the director and Minato are going to be so juicy. Also I'm so here for a relationship between the director and Tatsumi. I feel like he'll be able to provide the director with the support they need, but Tatsumi's kind of terrible with words so I hope he doesn't cause any hurt even unintentionally.

[Faith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Super cute as always! I love Shizuma so much!! *cries*
Minato did annoy me a time or two but they communicated and it’s all squared away now so I’m happy (:

Also, I NEED another volume of Ikushima and Mito. I love them so much and I’ve been dying for more content of them.. I’m happy with the lil crumbs we get in this series but they’re so stinking cute together. I want more! (,:

[maria · Rating 4 out of 5]

Actual Rating: 4.5 stars!

[Rosa · Rating 3 out of 5]

The interaction with the dad was unsettling. I'm looking forward to read more about it.

[Fallon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love this couple 🫶🏻 Can’t wait to see more of them 🤭

[Kat · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such a great volume, and with so much going on. While Shizuma and Minato aren’t going to be moving in with each other after all, Minato’s desire to be the best version of himself not just Shizuma, but for himself as well, was very heartwarming. The extra birthday chapter was very fluffy and just topped things off in a wonderful way. Also, weird stuff is happening with Shizuma’s boss, but we have only got a taste of that. Volume 6 could not get here faster.

[Jack Reynolds · Rating 4 out of 5]

*Warning, there will be spoilers*

One of the main talking points in this volume revolved around gender. Not only do we get to see Minato in drag for the first time, but we get more background on Dr. Onodera and why their past has impacted how they compose themselves with their family. Not all of it is the most delicately translated, yet I do think the attitudes expressed here do correlate with Japan's evolving view on queer life, especially with trans and gender nonconforming people.

The bonus content with Shizuma and Minato being domestic was also plenty cute and I'll be eagerly anticipating more. The latter is now driven to build himself up as a photographer. Initially, it was to impress Shizuma's parents, but there's also an underlying edge of continuing to show his growth. The biphobia and concern over Shizuma cheating has not completely gone away, but I still like seeing how my new fave uke is willing to put in the work to make this relationship his most fulfilling. Shizuma's doing the same, and the further this series goes on, the more clear it is that Hinohara has fun with drawing the inner dom seme. I'll be curious to see where that conversation with the director goes.

P.S. I've now found the panel that it is my ship playlist icon. It'll live among my other faves from this volume, which rank up as all time ones.

P.P.S. The drama CDs are quite good.

[-moonprismpower- · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ughhh these two are so good together, it makes me sick!!!! Lol. I’m addicted.

And Tatsumi and director?!? I’m totally shipping them!!!!!

[Dee · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 ⭐

[Riki (˶˃⤙˂˶) · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 💫

Good as always! Super interested to see where the story with the director goes from here!

[Chelsea Chung · Rating 5 out of 5]

My favourite series of all time like the dynamic is too cute and I love every single character

[Remek · Rating 4 out of 5]

cieszę sie, że to nie jest jednak ostatani tom, wciągnąłem się XD

[chess · Rating 1 out of 5]

Dopo CINQUE volumi di giri in tondo, pretesti di trama inutili, cliché, drama senza senso e roba che più irrealistica di così non si può, ANCORA non concretizzano questa roba della convivenza??? Ma a me cosa me ne frega dei personaggi terziari dio santo, sarei qui per vedere loro due innamorati.
Decisamente non continuerò a seguire la serie.

[Shu Wei Chin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I will never tire of how Meguru Hinohara teases us. They bring us to the cusp of a miscommunication trope, just enough to make your stomach clench and your brain scream, and then dissolve it with the sweetest resolution that gives you butterflies and tingles all over.

[K · Rating 3 out of 5]

I actually finished this a few days ago but didn't get around to reviewing it, because I was...so disappointed by being disappointed in this volume.

Hinohara is still an absolute favorite mangaka...Therapy Game is still one of my top manga series...Shizuma in particular is a favorite character...and basically nothing of interest happened in this volume...

The author's note was kind of frustrating. She's basically admitting that she's just trying to drag out the moving in together portion of their relationship, and the presumed conclusion of the series, in order to just keep drawing them for as long as possible. That's okay, I guess, and understandable in some ways. But I've never been the type of reader who wants endless, pointless content of my favorites just to keep the world going for as long as possible. I'd rather have clean, clear, satisfying endings, and a story that I'll revisit over and over because it was handled so beautifully.

I wouldn't even mind, really, if this was a full volume dedicated to the really important bit that was kind of squashed in near the end: Minato making concrete plans to develop his photography career so he can be worthy of a re-introduction to Shizuma's family as his boyfriend/live-in partner/fiance, basically.

Those parts were great. I loved Shizuma looking weary and ragged at work because he'd just found out Minato was planning to make him wait three years before they can officially live together. I loved their conversations about it, and Minato explaining a bit more about his reasons for pursuing this path. Their communication has always been one of my favorite parts of this series.

Shizuma points out that his parents accepted their brothers' relationship with no problem, and that his mother likes Minato and would never object to them. Minato says he knows that, but he'd be devastated by the quiet, unspoken disappointment he'd feel from a family he wants so badly to be a full, contributing part of. He had a horrible family, and still has a lot of hangups about his mother, in particular. So it makes sense that he wants Shizuma's mother to love him like her own son, without feeling sad about grandchildren or viewing him as...a much less successful and settled version of his older brother.

This is all really good stuff. But a lot of this volume was taken up by an extended sex scene with Minato dressed like a woman, complete with fake breasts, and I'm just...not...interested in that. I did appreciate that it transitioned to less of a kink and more of a conversation about how Minato is still pretty biphobic and afraid Shizuma is going to cheat on him with a woman. (By now he should know his boyfriend way better than that.)

But there's a lot of self-hatred that Minato's still struggling to unpack, which seems to include things like his sexuality, his sense of overall self-worth, and being able to see his horrible mother in his own features every time he looks in the mirror. Which is all interesting, and worth exploring, but it gets kind of buried under other stuff in this volume, and doesn't seem to have been making a lot of progress in the last several volumes.

Their brothers also get thrown into random side scenes of making out, etc, just to keep them around and relevant I guess? I found the scenes, in this volume and the previous one, of Shizuma and/or Minato walking in on or hearing their lovemaking kind of unpleasant. And they don't really do anything else, like have conversations with their brothers about the whole situation...

There's also still a really strong attempt to do a spin-off with Shizuma's boss and his coworker, which is mildly cute but also not that interesting when the main storyline is still struggling to come to a decent conclusion. I didn't really understand the whole deal with her family - it was inserted too abruptly into the middle of another story to have time for proper development or explanations.

So yeah. I'm just sad I didn't love this. I really, really wanted to.

[Eponine821 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Series is going strong

I love this series and Minato is seriously my favorite character in this series, and possibly any other.
Now, to address some comments other readers made about the story being too slow. (Warning: Spoilers)
I just binged volumes 1-5 and I think the story is moving at a good pace. However, I am willing to admit that, if I’d just jumped into vol 5 without reliving the previous volumes, then I might have been disappointed. I think Minato’s reluctance to move their relationship too fast is absolutely the correct mindset. Minato is a seriously damaged person with intense trust issues. He’s trying really hard and making awesome progress, but he’s not there yet. And like Tatsumi said in a previous volume, Shizuma is pushy as hell. Minato never actually agreed to move in with Shizuma. He just expressed less reluctance and freely admitted that it was something he eventually wanted. So, it’s not fair to be mad at Minato for slowing down - not backing out, just slowing down. The three years bit was extreme, but that just demonstrates Minato’s low confidence in himself. It’s not always obvious because he has this mask of cockiness, but he doesn’t actually think of himself as all that “worthy”. Shizuma needs to focus more on helping Minato overcome his fears, than on his own (Shizuma’s) disappointment. But I think they negotiated a nice compromise in the end.

Also, I think the storyline with the Director (and Tatsumi) is shaping up nicely and I look forward to more from them both. I foresee romance in their future.

[tortie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I hesitated writing a review for this volume, let alone giving it a star rating, because my thoughts are so conflicting. I just feel like there’s something sinister about the way people’s bodies are being written about in this volume (and maybe for a while now in this series idk) even though point blank Shizuma is asked if he’s transphobic and he gives a very eloquent and explanatory “no.” I’m probably reading too hard into it, and there’s culture differences I’m sure, but I just didn’t like it. At all. The pair’s discussion of gender in the first chapter of this volume, and then the direction Shizuma’s boss’s storyline is going… both are making me give serious side eye.

On top of that, guess we’re further stalling the “moving in together” plot for an indefinite amount of time. Insane choice. Don’t understand why that has to be such a final or pivotal moment for the series, that it has to keep being pushed out.

I think this series has just lost a lot of its charm and good will, for me personally. There have been multiple moments in restart now that have soured my opinion on the series as a whole, and make me retroactively like the original series less. Which is sad. I’ll def still keep up with the volumes as they get released, but I’m burnt out and bitter. This series doesn’t do it for me anymore, and frankly I don’t know if they’re even a healthy couple that I want to last anymore.

[Susanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

This review is a bit spoilery, but I couldn’t help myself.

Argh! This was so good and so frustrating, because the men still didn’t move in together. Minato put it on hold, to be worthy of Shizuma according to some criteria Shizuma doesn’t really get but supports. The author says in the afteword that it’s deliberate, because they want to make most of the men being apart. I angrily disagree.

The start was promising though. Despite Minato forgetting Shizuma’s birthday, he makes the best of it, after being pushed by the Madam. There was good communication going on throughout too. Minato’s really come a long way there. And it didn’t ruin things when Minato put the moving in together on hold, although he again needed outsiders to point out that he needed to respect Shizuma’s needs too. It left things at a good place between them.

Another frustrating storyline concerns Shizuma’s boss. There appears to be some tragedy in her family’s past. And it may be she’s not who we think she is. All this threw me a bit (a lot) as it came out of the blue, but it’ll be interesting to see where it leads.

Ending is a small cliffhanger, again, but there’s a long and good bonus story about Minato’s birthday at the end, which almost makes up for it. I need more!

I received a free copy from Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.

[Natalie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Meguru Hinohara truly is my queen. She has me by the throat with this series! I remain captivated, and I fight the urge to reread this series AGAIN 💖😭💖 It’s so fucking good!

First of all, Shizuma is out here proving why he’s my #1 BL husband. He truly is so perfect 😩 He’s so sweet and understanding! First of all, there was his whole reaction to Minato cross dressing, but still reaffirming to Minato that he loves him as he is. Then there’s the whole conversation with Akira where he stands firmly in the fact that he’d love and support Minato if he actually wanted to transition. Finally, he’s accepting of Minato changing the timeline of them moving in together even though it made him sad as fuck. I adore this man with everything in my heart and soul 🥺 My one true husband right there. I wouldn’t let go of him either if I was Minato!

I also loooooved the little side plot line with Akira and Tatsumi. I really hope the mangaka is taking that somewhere because I’m all in 😩 I don’t need Akira getting in the way of my men, but that doesn’t mean Akira can’t get another man 👀

All the birthday stuff in this volume was so cute 😭 Both what was done for Shizuma’s and for Minato’s. They both love each other so much it makes me sick (I adore them 💖)

[Alissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Agh i love these two so much! I didnt realise this was an ongoing series either so now I can’t wait for volume 6, which has no release date 😓

The story started in therapy game when Minato (a gay, aloof photographer) and Shizuma (a previously straight veterinary student) have a drunken one night stand, which Shizuma forgets, offending Minato who decides to get revenge by making himself unforgettable, because Minato is a petty b*tch and proud of it. Except Shizuma is so earnest and sweet that guarded, troubled Minato can’t help but catch feelings.

Their story wrapped up beautifully in those two volumes so I was pleasantly surprised to see they get more story in Therapy Game Restart, which focuses on them actually figuring out how to be a couple together. This is an absolute delight because lets face it Minato was never going to slip into being in a relationship like a duck to water and seeing Minato learning how to handle his jealousy, Shizuma trying to balance vet work/life balance and this couple work through the difficulties of being an lgbt+ couple is everything i needed. Add in a nsfw scene every volume as a bonus and my cup is full. Love this series, love this couple, love the art and I think we may even be getting some trans issues in the next volume 🤔🧐💚 🏳️‍🌈 🏳️‍⚧️

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Every new volume I think how can a series be so perfect? The insane quality of the art, the characters, the story, everything is just perfect.

Minato looked so gorgeous in that dress oh my god! Like he’s obviously always stunning but it was such a treat to see him dressed up and I’m glad it didn’t affect him negatively the way he thought it would. The follow up sex scene was so loving too even if Minato definitely still lacks a little bit of confidence about Shizuma’s dating history being all women.

I’m very curious to see if/when Shizuma finds out what his mom said to Minato and I’m sad it makes him think they shouldn’t move in yet but I can see his pov on that and I’m glad Shizuma is understanding even in his disappointment.

I’m interested to see more of the director’s storyline too. To learn more about their personal life and also I think that moment with Tatsumi was super cute so hopefully we get something more on that front too.

[Vanessa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hai capito gli usi alternativi del set fotografico!
La scena della promessa è bellissima, ma spero che Minato non la tiri troppo per le lunghe col suo continuare ad aspettare il momento giusto, sennò questi andranno a convivere a 80 anni. Va bene essere in pensiero per le possibili opinioni della famiglia del proprio compagno, ma cerchiamo di non sprofondare in angosce inutili e deleterie.
Comunque, il focus sulla direttrice della clinica mi fa ben sperare in un approfondimento dei rapporti con il dottor Tatsumi. Sono proprio curiosa di vedere come verrà gestito il tutto, tenendo in considerazione i trascorsi del dottore che andranno, ovviamente, in contrasto con i sentimenti che sta iniziando a provare.

[Helen (they or he) · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's fucking crazy reading this as a transgender person because I kept thinking "how did this make me incredibly dysphoric in one issue by being so transphobic and then make me incredibly seen and accepted in another by being a good ally about transgenderism?" but then I realized that's just my life all the time and most people who are reading this won't be seeing what I'm seeing because they're cis. Anyway, my initial rating was 2 stars and then the literal next issue made me bump it into 4 stars. Just like the other series, Kamisama no Uroko (The Dragon's Betrothed) by the same mangaka, I don't need this series to continue, but I won't mind if it does. And unlike other reviewers, I WANT to see more of the director. Please let me see her more if this continues D:

[R. · Rating 2 out of 5]

It seems Minato has some surprises up his sleeve, though he wasn't off to a great start completely missing Shizuma's birthday during the photo shoot. On a whole, things are going well and in a direction both are happy with, though they have a few more twists and turns in their story before they'll be able to settle down together. Minato may have given Shizuma a scare there for a bit, but of course they're back to being adorable rather quickly and we even get to see the tables turned for Minato's own birthday at the end, conveniently framing both sides of this volume with the boy's own versions of celebrating.

[Zian B. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This volume was very adorable with Minato and Shizuma navigating both a photo shoot and Shizuma’s birthday. It was really sweet to see the Madam and all of the girls again, how they all interacted with Minato and Shizuma, and even seeing Itsuki and Shosei be a bit more involved with the plot in these chapters. Although, I really don’t feel comfortable about whatever is going on with Shizuma’s director and the father; it just felt odd then the uneasy implication of what exactly goes on made me queasy. Overall though, this was a great volume and I’m eager to read the next one.

Oh and lastly, everyone needs a partner like Shizuma in their lives.

[chenyishu · Rating 5 out of 5]

cái trauma từ quá khứ thật sự ảnh hưởng tới tâm lý, suy nghĩ của Minato quá nhiều 😭 tới mức mà chỉ vài hành động nhỏ của Shizuma cũng làm ẻm overthink tới mức nói nếu muốn làm với nữ thì để ẻm mặc đồ nữ chứ đừng ngoại tình với nữ. đọc tới đó mình kiểu.....????!!!!!! bức bối kinh khủng 😫 mong tới vol 6 ngoan xinh iu của mẹ không còn bị quá khứ kia giày vò nữa huhuhu

btw tr ơi Tatsumi của tôi thật sự là char được tác giả cho thành couple với thằng viện trưởng 😊 cay vô cùng WEI SHENME build cái nết của viện trưởng khắm vl

[Heather’s Reading Bubble · Rating 5 out of 5]

There’s a reason that Therapy game is so popular. Shizuma and Minato are fascinating characters both separately and together as a couple. They actually communicate with each other and work out their issues together. I also find the side plot with Shizumas boss to be very intriguing. I wasn’t in love with how the plot of Minato forgetting Shizumas birthday was resolved but it wasn’t enough to irritate me nor did it make me love the volume any less. Also the art as always is breathtakingly stunning.

[Guady · Rating 5 out of 5]

I finally got my hands on volume 5. I love Minato and Shizuma so much, I've missed them. Minato's insecurities about Shizuma leaving him for a woman kinda breaks my heart a little but it's so nice how Shizuma always reassures him that he won't go anywhere and that he loves him just as he is, he is such a green flag. I love their love.
Tbh, the director's dad gave me the creeps. I wonder what they want to talk about with Minato.