Love Stage!!, Vol. 3

Love Stage!! #3

by Eiki Eiki, Taishi Zaou

Izumi Sena is an average guy born into a family of famous celebrities. A college student and total otaku, he works hard every day with the goal of someday becoming a manga creator.

Genres: Manga, Yaoi, Romance, LGBT, M M Romance, Contemporary, Comedy

178 pages, Paperback

First published May 31, 2013

About the author

Japanese: 影木栄貴

Her real name is Eiko Naitou.

EIKI Eiki is a friend of ZAOU Taishi (TSUDA Mikiyo). She has published several solo manga, numerous yaoi doujinshi and one collaboration manga with Taishi Zaou. Eiki Eiki and Taishi Zaou go by the circle name Kodomo Keibitai and publish alone as well as with Zaougumi under the name Kozouya.

EIKI Eiki is the older sister of DAIGO (Daigo Naitou), the vocalist of J-rock band BREAKERZ, and her grandfather was the former prime minister (Mr. Takeshita) of Japan. One of her assistants was the very talented male yaoi artist UZUKI Jun.

Reviews

[Chesca (thecrownedpages) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Love Stage has potential, but then things get creepy half the time. The other characters are taking advantage of Izumi and it bothers me. He's so innocent and adorable, and I love him, but he's surrounded by manipulative men who "take care" of him in problematic ways.

[machinaheart]

I find it extremely hard to rate this manga (as a whole), because some topics are done well and some of the usual tropes that anger me quite a bit are wonderfully left out or explored in better, more realistic ways. (remarkable self-control for a BL character in a love scene for example), while others remain for comedic effect (snapping pics of Izumi while he sleeps just because he’s too cute. YIKES!).

The attempted gang rape in this volume is absolutely HORRIBLE! Izumi is being turned into a „damsel in distress“, icky by itself, but then the whole situation has no real weight behind it to further anything in the plot, not that such an atrocity should be used for that. Why is there a need to place him in such such a horrible situation when it has no real bearing on the story, except MAYBE to show us how enticing Izumi’s androgynous good looks are? And MAYBE to cement into the brains of everyone how all not traditionally male looking bodies are just objects, commodities? Thanks a lot! Izumi saves himself at least. A tiny, tiny glimmer of something different. But why put him in that situation in the first place? Just so that this TRAUMA helps him realise that he has feelings for Ryuma? Really? THAT was needed for this admission?!
(This volume has no star rating, because I CAN'T EVEN!)

[MaDoReader · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ayyy que monos son, y por fin Ryoma se salió con la suya ;P

[Keiko, the manga enthusiast ♒︎ · Rating 4 out of 5]

THEY DID. THE. DEED. ALSO, THE CONFESSION, MY BEATING HEART IS ONLY A TINY FRAGMENT OF THE ORIGINAL FORM (I've been hurt countless times, you know) but I swear this series could revive even a giant's heart!! ALSO IZUMI'S COURAGE, I WAS LIKE WHAT THE F IS HAPPENING? IS THERE AN EARTHQUAKE OF SOMETHING?! Turned out it was my body, shaking from laughing so hard. I sweeeeeear! Could it be more sweeter?! Still, gorgeous art style!! I feel like Ryouma, blood gushing from my nose. This is just so adorable and extreme at times, but note—ADORABLE!! And I just love how Rei is so supportive, lol, but Shougo's over-protectiveness is hilarious too! I'll turn into a mad woman, giggling on the corner!!

[Ale Rivero · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ya era hora de la declaración, jaja. Ahora toca ver cómo seguirá todo, ya veo dramones en el futuro.
Y ese final extra, quería ver más de eso, no me lo esperaba de Rei.
Me gustó bastante ver el lanzamiento a la fama de Izumi, y yo pienso como todo el mundo que es muy lindo.
Espero ver mucho más en los siguientes tomos sobre parejas formadas y que pueden formarse. Recomendable.

P.d. El dibujo me está gustando bastante.

[IzamaRi H. Fabela · Rating 5 out of 5]

Después de mucho debatirlo, Ryoma se descubre aceptando que está enamorado de Izumi sin importarle que sea hombre ni un otaku ermitaño, así que decide poner las cartas sobre la mesa y declararse esperando a que Izumi asuma lo que está pasando.

Pero para Izumi las cosas no son tan sencillas pues aún no puede superar el hecho de que ambos son chicos, pero lo que más le asusta es descubrir lo mucho que piensa en Ryoma últimamente pues no sabe cómo es en realidad una relación hombre-hombre.
Sus dudas no hacen más que sumarse al estrés que siente pues Rei lo ha obligado a debutar en el mundo del espectáculo, él, un otaku antisocial ahora deberá aprender a estar rodeado de muchas personas que siempre van a querer mirarlo y tocarlo. Y la púnica persona capaz de entender cómo se siente es Ryoma.
¡Esta vez, no me detendré!
De nuevo tango que comenzar la reseña de este manga pidiéndoles que se olviden un poco del genero de este manga, pues más allá de darnos una relación Yaoi, las autoras nos dan una historia de amor COMPLETAMENTE HILARANTE que estoy segura les sacará más de una risa.

Ahora si, en este tercer tomo las cosas comienzan a ponerse más “calientes” pues por fin Ryoma e Izumi están en el mismo plano y aceptan el amor que sienten el uno por el otro. Pero evidentemente las cosas no pueden ser tan sencillas y habrá algunos obstáculos que deberán enfrentar. Por ejemplo, ahora que Izumi es conocido Ryoma teme perderlo pues al igual que le sucedió a él, la gente está cayendo como mosca ante el encanto de Izumi y eso le preocupa mucho pues aunque es la estrella del momento se siente un poco inseguro sobre su nueva relación.

Izumi también tiene sus preocupaciones pero él las resuelve al más puro estilo absurdo de Izumi, es decir que se absorta leyendo manga Yaoi para intentar comprender como es una relación hombre-hombre. No puedo ni comenzar a explicarles lo mucho que me ha divertido esta escena pues si bien Ryoma intenta afrontar sus miedos de una manera más madura, tenemos la contra parte con Izumi siendo un niño completamente absurdo. Pero esto es precisamente lo que disfruto de ellos dos pues son dos caras opuestas de una moneda que de cierta manera logran completarse.

Además en este tomo las autoras nos confirman que entre Rei y Shogo hay un romance que muero de ganas de explorar pues siento que su historia va a ser más madura y directa, a diferencia de la historia torpe de Ryoma e Izumi.

[Shaya · Rating 4 out of 5]

Seguimos la historia de Izumu y Ryoma, la verdad que me gusta mucho como va creciendo la relación de estos dos protagonistas y Ryoma me parece muy bonio y achuchable porque que feliz se puede poner una persona con la minima muestra de amor de la persona que ama. Me a encantado

[Ramonna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bastante revelador. Hshahaja cada tomo es fav ✨

[Beth · Rating 3 out of 5]

There are ways that this story is, eh, a little old-fashioned. Do we really need Izumi to be sexually assaulted by a stranger for him to realize he's in love with Ryoma? The love scene in the latter part of this volume was really sweet. Although I'm not a huge fan of the weepy-drooly facial expressions that manga artists use to show that the person on the bottom is actually enjoying themselves.

Random thought: we haven't seen Ryoma actually singing in these first three volumes, though there is a scene somewhere talking about his chart-topping rivalry with Izumi's brother. Maybe at age 20-ish he's already at the point in his career where he's famous for being famous?

[Emi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Me sigue pareciendo divertidísimo. Lectura ligera y agradable. No me entusiasma que se utilice la violencia como recurso fácil, pero como todo acaba bien y en general es tan divertido y bonito, no se lo tendré en cuenta...

[Marker · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 estrellas porque Ryouma al fin logro tener a Izumi.

[H.K. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ryoma and Izumi are so darn cute together. This is becoming one of my favorite BL mangas.

[Ekene · Rating 4 out of 5]

I laughed and died several times with this volume. So far I would say the strongest

[Merel · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[tania (semi-hiatus til december) · Rating 3 out of 5]

i like this volume but there are some bl stereotypical elements that made me go 😪 i would recommend if you want to have a light read, without many thoughts behind the reading

[Sebastián Caballero · Rating 5 out of 5]

Este tomo de la serie resultó ser un mar de emociones para mí, y todo para finalizar dejándome muy feliz
YA QUIERO LEER EL OTRO

[Bontix · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tutto ciò che posso dire è: wtf?!
La scena con i teppisti è completamente assurda, se l'autrice voleva far capire a Izumi di essere innamorato di Ryoma poteva trovare un altro modo. Queste scene sempre ai limiti dell'abuso fisico iniziano seriamente ad irritarmi.
Questo terzo volume arriva alle 3 stelle solo perché ci sono state molte altre scene che mi hanno fatta sbellicare.

[♡Kayla♡ · Rating 3 out of 5]

If I'm remembering correctly, this is where the anime ends... which leaves me with some mixed feelings (much like this series so far). I'm excited to see completely new stuff, and not know exactly where the story will lead from here, however I personally felt the end of the anime was a good conclusion to Izumi and Ryouma's romance, so I'm not sure if I'll enjoy what comes next. I guess only time will tell.

[Judyth · Rating 3 out of 5]

~3/5
(Contains some spoilers.)

I really want to love this series. And I find it cute. The last couple volumes were really fun, and this one was as well.

I like how Ryoma just goes for it, he is unashamed of his love for Izumi. Even if he’s a little pushy at times, I mostly just enjoy it. And in this volume, Izumi realizes his own feelings for Ryoma. That leads to some sexy times, as well as some really cute moments. I love how Izumi just threw himself at Ryoma, and Ryoma tried to be respectful when he didn’t know what was going on. Izumi is kind of adorable at times, in the way that he relies on Ryoma, and Ryoma loves it.

My only real problem with this volume, is the attempted rape scene. The author tries to make a joke of it at one point, and that was distasteful to me, because it doesn’t change what the characters were doing. But it’s also used as an important moment where Izumi realizes his feelings for Ryoma, and I don’t like that he needed to be assaulted in order for that to happen. I guess I’m happy that he got himself out of the situation, instead of being saved, but otherwise it bothered me.

Aside from that, I enjoyed this volume. I like the romance between Izumi and Ryoma. I also enjoy Rei’s character a lot, and enjoyed the little glimpse we got between him and Shogo. The scene where Izumi asks Rei about gay sex had me laughing, too.

[Read more at my blog, Geeky Reading!]

[Meryem · Rating 2 out of 5]

Another series I'm not finishing. I have some (MAJOR!!) issues with Ryouma's character. I just think he is very pushy and has no concept of personal space, boundaries or consent. I have stopped watching a couple of anime series in the past for this exact same reason ( I honestly don't even remember their names, it was so long ago and I only watched like 2 episodes or something) And I really thought that this time it might be different, maybe they will address it properly and not just ignore it and make it seem ok. And there was a scene in the first volume I think where Izumi's older brother stopped an interaction between Izumi and Ryouma from going too far and he also warned Ryouma from hurting his little brother. But it was not addressed after that. It is too bad because I really liked the plot of this Manga and I was looking forward to reading it.

[Lör K. · Rating 2 out of 5]

Eiki Eiki has a serious problem with rape toned scenes within this manga. It makes me cringe away. Even when Izumi and Ryou are having sex, Izumi tells him to stop numerous times and he doesn't.

This is getting more and more fast paced, and the characters are losing the development they had and are actually getting worse as the series goes on.

I'm giving this series one more volume, and if it gets worse, in my opinion, I'm giving up on the rest of it. It's a shame, really, this had a chance at being a really good yaoi, but it's just getting more and more problematic.

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

1st. read: 8/5/13

[R E · Rating 5 out of 5]

This solidly entertaining and funny series continues with Volume 3, where 18 year old Izumi Sena, youngest son in a family of superstars, is wrestling with his feelings towards screen idol Ryoma Ichijo. Well paced and expertly drawn, just about every aspect of the Love Stage books works. Author Eiki Eiki and artist Taishi Zaou work in some of the more tenacious, if morally dubious, BL tropes, including male on male rape scenes, but they do so in a playful way that never crosses the series’ fun loving, PG rating philosophy. I say this knowing many people believe that any depiction of forced sex is indefensible.

But in Love Stage, such issues are treated within the context of issues faced by real life boys as they become adults. To this extent, this manga reflects real world problems faced by young people as they navigate sexual urges and sexual morality. Ryoma, specifically, understands that he shouldn’t place himself in situations with Izumi where his urges might get the best of him. On top of this, there is a layer of emotion and feelings the boys have to navigate in relation to their sexual selves, with Ryoma and Izumi facing separate challenges. Ryoma knows he wants Izumi, but Izumi, in this volume, isn’t clear whether his feelings warrant opening himself up to having sex with Ryoma.

Then there is the art. Taishi draws the characters in a macabre Disneyesque style, or perhaps in an abject style reminiscent of John Currin’s uncanny portraits. The result is that the style - as seen mostly in the faces and eyes - counteract any realistic reading of Love Stage. The emotions in the manga feel real, but they belong to characters that definitely aren’t real. But a central tenet of the uncanny is that something looks and feels real even as something tells us it isn’t. The art in Love Stage maximizes this uncanny sensibility by sending mixed signals. The artist knows how to draw bodies in space but also clearly understands body language. Her drawings are shouting at us that they are realistic representations of the human form that are expressing real feelings, even as their heads and faces deny this reality.

Of course, it’s a hallmark of manga to use this uncanny aesthetic, where big eyes and simplified faces fit themselves on to bodies that move as if in real space. But within this visual vocabulary there is room for a lot of variation. Taishi’s particular style is to amp up the cartoony heads - which in some panels veer to the grotesque rather than the cure- while mostly sticking to realistic figurative drawing. Her bodies are at times exaggerated, but look closely throughout this manga and you’ll see what I mean. (As a note, I’m only talking about the manga art here - one of my assistants showed me the anime version of Love Stage, where the art has a different feel aside from the fact that color changes our perception of the character design).

Given that there is room for variation within a visual visual language, Taishi does something interesting with Izumi’s character design. His body is clearly a real world physical type. I say this not only because I’ve seen people with Izumi’s look - the narrow rib cage and pelvis matched by the even narrower waist, the bubble butt, the arch of the lower back arched subtly more than average, the straight, almost stiff-backed posture - but also because I dated someone with this physique. Taishi takes the waif visual trope from shoujo and BL and brings to it a real world body with a distinct look and way of moving on the world. The result is a testament to her artistic skill because Izumi’s body, the way he holds himself whether standing, sitting or kneeling, is consistent throughout the manga.

It’s this commitment to a base line realism that makes the shift to chibi forms so funny in Taishi’s art. Author and artist are in lock step in Love Stage, with the written and visual narrative perfectly paced. I’m definitely looking foreword to Volume 4.

[Annie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reseña completa---> http://bit.ly/2y7CBET

¿De qué trata Love Stage? Nuestro protagonista se llama Izumi Sena , él es un otaku ermitaño que odia convivir con el mundo y es feliz dibujando manga, su gran sueño es ser Mangaka el problema es que es tan tan malo que ni el mismo se da cuenta de lo pésimo de sus dibujos. Todo esto no sería algo fuera de lo común si no es porque la familia Sena se compone de grandes talentos, el papá de Izumi es un famoso cantante de ópera, su madre una actriz y su hermano mayor miembro de una Boy band muy famosa, todos esperan que Izumi sea un talento artístico pero no saben que el más pequeño de los Sena busca su camino en otro mundo que no sea el del espectáculo y todo viene a partir de una mala experiencia que tuvo de pequeño y un trauma. Verán, hace 10 años el pequeño Izumi acompañaba a su madre a la grabación de un comercial, por cuestiones de #lavida resultó que la niña que haría de co estelar no pudo asistir así que la madre de Izumi ofreció a su hijo como reemplazo, Izumi, ya desde pequeño, era un niño delgadito y muy bonito, por lo que bien caracterizado podía pasar como una niñita y así fue, es ahí donde conoció por primera vez a Ryouma Ichijou. Debido a los nervios y estrés, Izumi termino bastante traumado de esta experiencia (entre que lo vistieron de niña, lo presionaron al máximo y se hizo pipí encima pues...ya comprenderán); así que nuestro joven protagonista ha decidido no tener nada que ver con ser actor o el mundo del espectáculo en general. Por otro lado Ryouma no ha podido olvidar los peculiares ojos de la niñita que conoció hace 10 años, y se ha quedado enamorado de ella, sin saber que en realidad es un hombre :v, así que cuando la oportunidad de un reencuentro se da el no duda en aceptarlo, sin saber que será el comienzo de una historia de amor, risas y mucho drama. En los tomos anteriores vimos el reencuentro de Ryouma e Izumi, de como nuestro adorable Ryouma se enteró que el amor de su vida en realidad es un hombre y que decidió seguir adelante cortejando y apoyando a Izumi, en el tomo anterior por fin nuestro pequeño Izumi se dio cuenta de sus sentimientos por Ryouma y ha decidido declararle su amor...¿Qué pasará?

[kuristina- tabreez · Rating 4 out of 5]

And that's a wrap, folks! With the end of chapter 15/this volume, that concludes the anime's adaption of the story. Everything to come, all following 4 volumes, are all uncharted waters! I'm so excited, yet so afraid. It makes sense that the anime would stop here, as this feels like a "good ending", but honestly, it's the start of so much more! I'm so happy that they didn't drag on and on with the romancing part, I wanted to see them get together so bad! Now we get to see them as a couple for more than half the series! I'm glad that they love each other so much. Izumi is kind of selfish, but I'm so, so happy for Ryouma, I love him, ahh. I have high hopes for all that's to come, and I just want to see Ryouma have more than he ever deserved. And for Izumi to be happy too and grow up some. Seriously though, that thing Ryouma did for Izumi? Goodness... Everything he does for him, honestly. What true love that is. (Also, was the gang rape in the anime too? Hmm...)

[Marianna Rainolter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dopo che Ryoma lo ha aiutato e baciato, Izumi si rende conto che forse è innamorato del ragazzo. Non riesce ad accettarlo mentre invece, in maniera eclatante e per smentire le voci sulle foto dei giornali, ecco che entra nel mondo dello spettacolo. E Ryoma non può accettare che tutti entrino così tanto in confidenza con il suo Izumi! Insomma i due dovranno trovare il modo di dirsi apertamente quello che provano e tutto accadrà a seguito di un paio di incidenti... Arriviamo in pratica alla conclusione dell’anime omonimo e quindi a quella che sembra essere la conclusione o quasi della storia di Izumi e Ryoma. Però vediamo che la carriera di Izumi è agli inizi così come la loro relazione quindi potrebbero esserci altre sorprese... La serie continua a divertire e questo volume più dei precedenti presenta delle scene alquanto piccanti forse anche dovute dopo tutta la tensione sessuale che si è creata finora... Ma il divertimento è il sorriso continuano a non mancare.

[Lou (Lou and Life) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This volume is where Izumi makes his debut as a celebrity and has to adjust to being famous. His relationship with Ryoma also develops further and we see the beginning of a new start for the pair. I really liked this volume. There was one problematic aspect of Izumi being almost sexually assaulted (not by Ryoma luckily, otherwise I would have disliked this volume), but the rest of the volume was really sweet and cute. I'm interested in what happens next to the characters. I liked this manga and I would recommend it!

[Sandra · Rating 3 out of 5]

Storymäßig passiert nicht soviel, aber immerhin kann man Izumi zu Gute halten, dass er sich gegen Vergewaltiger wehrt und ihnen richtig fett in die Eier getreten hat :D das ist wirklich richtig gut, die meisten in den BLS bleiben nämlich liegen wien toter Fisch und heulen.
Ansonsten ja... immer noch bissl fragwürdig das alles (Sexvorbereitung whomst, ne?), aber immer noch spaßig - schade dass sein großer Bruder und Rei nur nebensächlich in dem Manga behandelt werden, dafür aber dann Mainpair in der furchtbar mies geschriebenen Novel sind.
Ansonsten weiterhin hübsch gezeichnet.

[Mir · Rating 4 out of 5]

How nice! Our protagonists decide to act like grown-ups, making mature decisions and having some consideration for one another. I would have liked Ryomi to have a tad more self-control, but his failures are realistic and common ones.

I especially liked that both characters took time to think about their feelings on their own and come to a decision that they wanted to be together, rather than one pressuring or assaulting the other, which seems more common in romance.

[Bee (BacchusVines) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh, wow! A confession!!

I am really enjoying this series so far. I love Izumi and how much he struggles trying to understand his feelings. Ryoma is freaking my favorite kind of BL character. Stupid, loving, very passionate.

Curious as to what Izumi's token as a celebrity is going to be. An actor? Model? Maybe just Ryoma's arm-candy? Lol. I was not expecting to love this series as much as I am right now!