Hmm, I loved the format and the tone, and there's good stuff in here about being supportive, being open minded, and the validation that comes from finding your people. Buuuut there were still some things that made me feel squicky as a queer reader, which probably stems from the way Japanese culture reveres Yaoi/Yuri manga. So idk. Idk how to feel.
The book's pretty rife with gay stereotypes, but all things considered it isn't as cringe worthy as I feared, and it was often pretty funny. I do wish that Sakaguchi was more written to be bi/pansexual (listen, Gucchi, I remember the days when I too was "straight" and "randomly" obsessed with gay content for "no reason." We've all been there). I don't have any reason to think the series will be more nuanced than this, so I don't know if it's worth reading more of. It makes me sad that there won't be anymore My Brother's Husband, Volume 1 ;-;
This is the sort of book where every time you laugh, you feel kind of badly about it. I understand what the author was getting at, at yes, social stigma on the subject of who can read what IS stupid, but it isn't quite handled correctly.
So the tail-end of 2022 had me discovering a genre hitherto unknown to me :BL Manga. As I enjoyed the stories, some excellent and thought-provoking, others steamy for no particular reason other than titillation, I realized that I could call myself a low-key Fujoshi : a Japanese term for (straight) female fans of manga, anime and novels that feature romantic relationships between men. As a natural progression, I was intrigued to read about the Fujoshi’s male counterpart : a Fudanshi. And so I picked up this cute and humorously audacious read.
Ryo Sakaguchi is a high-school Fudanshi and is frustrated that he cannot pursue his passion openly for fear of being judged. His bewildered but non-judgmental best friend Nakamura tries to be as supportive as a non-BL fan can be but Ryo wishes he had a fellow Fudanshi fan to happily geek over “Semes and Ukes”, shipping wars and doujinshi circles. When he luckily stumbles upon such a person, Ryo is ecstatic and gets to do all the otaku things that his BL-loving heart could only dream of.
While the book is replete with sometimes unnecessary gay stereotypes, it also has its fun moments and Ryo is an adorable nut. I remember wishing that I could find a fellow BL fan who I could geek over without being eyed skeptically and when I did, it was fandom heaven. So I “get” Ryo and all his madcap quirks.
I don’t know if I will be picking up more books in this series but I might just out of affection for a fellow BL fan. Cute and relatable.
Had some fun moments but I did not enjoy it as mutch as I do with other manga series. The high school life of a Fudanshi volume 1 by Atami Michinoku get a 6/10 stars.
So this one is a tough one. On one hand, I feel like the mangaka could easily have made this a traditional manga (as opposed to the 4-panel style). Also, it’s a bit disappointing how much it relies on (harmful?) stereotyping despite its (positive) message that “anyone can like anything they want and that’s OK!”
(Do fujins in Japan *really* ship real people all the time???? Bc I’ve seen this be a recurring theme in humor manga with fujins... 😬)
I think the biggest disappointment, as other reviewers have mentioned, is that Gucci isn’t queer. While I like the message that you don’t need to be queer to enjoy BL, at the same time, M/M fiction is a way many queer people (myself included) were able to discover their sexuality/gender identity. It would have added a bit more depth and realism apart from the (bad) stereotyping if we could see a kind of character we don’t often get in manga. It would also make the homophobic bits a little more palatable, if Gucci was in denial about being bi/gay/pan.
Despite the failings, the characters are likable overall, though I do find myself cringing over the “Queen” flamboyant gay (maybe trans? It’s a bit confusing, at least in translation) character.
Honestly, I think Gucci’s best friend is my favorite character. I love his design and the fact that he stays friends with Gucci despite his tastes/questionable behavior.
The art is really nice and I adore the visual humor with all the little details on the covers of the various BL poking fun at genre staples or famous mangas.
I do kinda wish there was a translator’s note section, because I have not heard of a “circle” before and I wasn’t entirely clear on what that was, for example.
This series is absolutely better than Mabusasa, and I may read another volume.
This was simple and cute. As soon as I seen this cover and then read the synopsis, I knew this was something that I'd relate to.
The plot: Is basically about a guy in high school who's obsessed with media that portrays two males in love. Like I said, simple.
The Characters:
Sakaguchi- He is literally me. Like I tabbed so much in this first volume because I kept wanting to yell SAME so much. The charm so this story is because of him. I do think he can be straight and enjoy these things, but I do hope at the same time that they explore the possibility of a relationship between him and that crush he had on who ended up being that effeminate guy in drag that he thought was a girl.
Nakamura- I adored him. He is so accepting and the cover of the next volume with him excites me! He was so chill amongst a cast of characters that are so out there and I loved that about him.
Nishihara- Was such a princess, and exactly the kind of friend our main character needs and deserves.
Shiratori- Is such an interesting character, because he is so authenticity himself. I'm not sure if his sass vibes well with me but I am interested in seeing more of him.
Overall- This didn't necessarily blow me away but I do see myself picking up the next volume in the future.
"It's also rude to treat me like a perv-blocking wall!" "Don't you dare up the rating on this series!!"
Let me start by saying that I'm sick and feel terrible and quite sad/down, so I wasn't feeling up to reading a full book. Instead, I turned to this manga and I'm quite thankful I did! Reading this had me giggling like a school girl! It reminded me of my time on AarinFantasy (a bl focused forum), so it made me feel nostalgia while also laughing.
I love how Guuchi isn't ashamed of what he likes and dives in full circle. My heart swoons knowing that Nakamura, my favorite character, is so laid back about it. A lot of people would judge Guuchi for it, but Nakamura accepts it! It makes me so happy~
If you like BL, you'll like this series. If you don't, you may not understand more of the subtle discussions that take place, but I'd still recommend checking it out, it's a good read.
Comedy and school life, my two favorite things ♡ Then you have Guuchi expressing his love for something most guys don't like. It's so refreshing! I love this series ^_^
A Japanese manga about Fundanshi. What is a Fundanshi? I needed to learn that as well. There is a small class of people in Japan called Fundanshi. These are straight men who like reading Boys Love. They are straight. There are some guys who are even content creators who are Fudanshi. I find it very odd.
So, our main character sneaks around the manga store trying to sneakily buy BL. That is amusing and some of the best parts of the story. BL is mostly a genre for women. Through the story, our guy finally gets a girlfriend and he and she go shopping together for BL stuff and he finally feels he doesn't need to be ashamed to buy BL. He can say it's for his girlfriend.
An interesting story. Some people around the main character appear to be gay. Interesting. I'll go forward with this series.
I gotta make a comedy shelf or something. This isn't really romance either, but the books he likes to read are romance books. Nothing creepy or anything - just humor, there isn't a plot either. It picks apart the genre in a way fans can laugh at.
I watched this anime a few years back. The episodes were only 5 minutes long because it's just a bunch of short comics. The mangaka apparently started off on...pixiv? Or something. It's really a rather funny series, and I moved onto the second after finishing this.
I bought this an impulse and it was only cuz I heard it was going out of print, but only the first volume probably because of Covid. But I got it sometimes last year and I’ve just read it. I did read a couple chapters a few years ago but definitely didn’t remember while rereading. Overall it was so funny and relatable. I kept saying “lol that’s me”. I really enjoyed it. I’ll definitely pick up the rest of the series and read them. It’s not a serious series either which is good. It’s just comedy and it’s good. :)
Funny and silly, just what I expect from a yonkoma. I think I was hoping it would be MORE funny...
I shelved this in my manga-shoujo shelf, since I am not even sure what genre this is it. A plus is that this is not set in an all-boys school, so the MC forms a friendship with a girl based on their love for BL. Oh, and there is no romance, just the MC being a fanboy XD
Eh. Not quite my thing. The humor is often based a lot around stereotypes, and that combined with the short vignette format (it's not a 4-koma, but similar in feel) makes it hard for the characters to become more than gags. I don't find it offensive or anything, but not very funny. Reminds me a bit of "Merman in My Tub", but that one had a slightly better comedic timing.
I enjoy how this series reminds me of a cross between Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-kun and Genshiken — but there are some twinges of homophobia where the main character gets offended when people think he is gay because he loves BL. I just don’t care for those instances. It is still an enjoyable series, though!
He's your typical high school boy, except that he's a huge fan of BL manga, which skews how he sees his friends, often in amusing ways. Fanboy slice-of-life with gag tendencies, mostly arranged in short, 4-panel comics. It doesn't take much of anything seriously, and thus far, no actual plot has emerged. Fun in small doses?
I find this series so hilarious since I'm a fujoshi myself. I really liked the anime and glad they released the manga in the states. I will say that I like how Shiratori is more openly gay than he was in the anime. Hopefully, we get more volumes.
Definitely has more content than the anime, but I'm not sure if I found it as funny? I've started this one before and just didn't finish it so reading the same jokes multiple times might've made them less funny to me. Nothing really made me laugh out loud. Hopefully the next volumes are funnier.
A very fun four panel comic series. Each set of panels has a solid set up and punchline, but the story still flows well from four panel to four panel. Actually made laugh out loud a couple times. Really loved this one.
this was a fun read. i enjoyed it although it felt a bit repetitive but i'm sooooo reading the next volume just because it's funny. i'm also watching the anime just for the LOLs.