Toritan: Birds of a Feather, Vol. 1

Toritan #1

by Kotetsuko Yamamoto, Adrienne Beck (Translator)

Birdsong starts sounding like a love song when bird whisperer Inusaki meets a crow that sounds oddly like a handsome young man he knows!

Inusaki can communicate with birds—and some of them are real jerks! Tired of the incessant chatter, he spends most of his day tuning them out. That is until the day he meets an intriguing and strangely handsome crow he just can’t get off his mind!

Inusaki, a detective and unwitting jack-of-all-trades for his neighborhood, has the unenviable ability to communicate with birds…and hates it. Yet when he runs into a crow that knows his name, he can’t help but befriend him, naming him "Kuro." Later, when Inusaki seems to hear Kuro’s voice, he finds only the landlord’s son. Why do they sound so similar, and why can’t Inusaki stop blushing whenever Kuro the crow crosses his mind?!

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

226 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 2018

About the author

Japanese mangaka.


Associated names :
破壊ダー (嬉乃みどり)
Hakaider (URESHINO Midori)

Name (in native language) : 山本小鉄子

Zodiac : Capricorn

Blood type : A

Location: Osaka, but in a rural area
Likes: Professional baseball, Salmon
Dislikes: My stomach, sea urchin, salmon roe
Recent News: I’m gargling diligently

Circle: Hakaider
Doujinshi under pen-name: Ureshino Midori

Reviews

[Reading_ Tamishly · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is definitely one cute, weird read.

The plot:
Inusaki Nozomi is blessed with a gift of understanding the language of birds which he is not sure he should appreciate. He can actually communicate with birds.
He works as basically anything doing odd jobs for anyone as long as he can do them.
Then he comes across a crow who knows his name.
As much as the crow is some mystery to him, he has to figure out his weird feelings that he tends to get regarding a particular guy. He just cannot shake off the similar feelings that he used to get before meeting this guy.

...and the first book ends on a cliffhanger although we all will get to know who the mysterious guy is.

The first book consists of 12 chapters. The art style is amazing! The character development is good. The chemistry between the characters is remarkable.
The humour is on spot. Well, the romance is a bit of a slow burn but it totally gets me.

Overall, it's a very, very cute read with sweet characters.
It gets a bit frustrating in between regarding the obvious mystery but somehow it is still okay!

Will continue on with the series!

[nemo ☠️ · Rating 5 out of 5]

this is literally the cutest and most wholesome manga i have ever read and i need more updates NOW!!!! also i need someone (preferably kyoani) to make it into an anime NOW!!

basically: it's about a guy who can talk to birds. and it's m/m. AND IT'S SO GOOD

[jo · Rating 4 out of 5]

if kotetsuko yamamoto has no fans im dead

[Patty · Rating 5 out of 5]

I played myself. I didn’t look up when vol 2 comes out before starting this and now I’m annoyed I have to wait so long to see what happens next LOL. Absolutely loved this and I know I’ll be rereading this soon!

[Whitney (The Cover Collector) · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars.

[Jasper Sheeds · Rating 4 out of 5]

Homie is attracted to a bird lmfao

[Ray Flores · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5/5
Inusaki has the ability to communicate with birds and whilst this might sound cool, in reality is a burden for him because birds are not as cute as everybody think. Yet, when he meets a peculiar crow he names Kuro, he starts to feel different towards birds, especially him.

Inusaki calls himself a private detective: he does small chores and runs errands, and helps people in his neighborhood. He visits a café that has a few cute cats on a daily basis and that’s where our other guy comes into the picture: Kuroki Mitsuru is still a teenager but him and Inusaki are becoming more friendly after he finds out the guy got his heart broken.

Now, I know this sound weird but Mitsuru and Kuro are obviously the same, though Kuro “is just a crow”. Inusaki had a ‘crush’ on a bird and apparently, Mitsuru is starting to like him too.

As per usual, Kotetsuko-sensei’s works often have an age gap but this time it doesn’t seem weird at all. I loooove the way she draws cool, perfect, kind guys like Mitsuru and the fact that Inusaki is a good MC is just the cherry on top. I love the comedy side of this BL and it had me laughing out loud several times.

In a few words: another cute romance by one of my favorite mangakas that hopefully will have more volumes to it!

[Namratha · Rating 4 out of 5]

Inusaki has a very special ability: he can understand the language of birds. And while this sounds like something straight out of an early Disney flick-meets-Dr.Dolittle, Inusaki knows that sometimes, birds can be jerks. And foul-mouthed ones at that.
So no, our frustrated Inusaki is not much of a bird lover.

But one day he runs into a very self-assured crow who calls Inusaki by his name, seems quite companionable, and even helps him out with a difficult task. Naming his new feathered friend as Kuro, the bird-whisperer looks forward to Kuro’s unexpected visits. But many a time, he is puzzled because Kuro sounds a lot like his landlady’s handsome yet aloof son, Mitsuru.

Why does the stoic Mitsuru remind him of the lazy-charmed Kuro? And why does Insuki seem to be developing feelings for both, the human and the crow?!

Yet another bizarre BL manga that turned out to be a wholesome, funny, and endearing read. A tetchy Inusaki’s conversations with abusive pigeons, gossipy sparrows, and a dashing crow with oodles of charisma are hilarious. The reader quickly figures out the reason behind the similarities between Kuro and Mitsuru, but Inusaki’s obliviousness never grates on your nerves.

A very cute and startling (atleast for Inusaki) cliffhanger makes you look forward to the next instalment of this adorable series.

[Angela · Rating 5 out of 5]

So freaking sweet and wholesome and I just want vol.2 right this second so I can continue this feeling of pure giddy-ness!!!!!!n

[Bianca · Rating 4 out of 5]

Justo lo que mi kokoro necesitaba.

[Ruthsic · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rep: queer main characters

The main character of this manga, Inusaki is a bird whisperer, but he doesn't like birds much. Who would, when you can hear exactly what they are talking about, plus some of them can aggressively threaten you, too (pigeons are badasses lol). So Inusaki does odd jobs in his town (though, he is professionally a private detective), and sometimes he has to do jobs that concern birds; the birds usually are terrified on learning he, as a human, can speak to them. When he comes across a friendly crow, who later on helps him help a set of birds, he is surprised that the crow can put aside his instincts; he also finds the crow pretty cool (and imagines him as a cool older guy) and develops a crush on him. I know - even I snickered at that.

Meanwhile, he notices that his landlady's son (who also owns the cafe he frequents at) has a voice similar to the crow. And this quiet fellow, Mitsuru is popping up frequently in his life, so he is intrigued by the similarity. He also discusses his crush and heartbreak with him, and finds the latter's advice quite helpful. Now, so far, so good - but what the synopsis doesn't tell you is that Inusaki is 23 and Mitsuru is 17, so yeaaaaaahhhh, this romance already is has me noping out.

Which is a shame, because the story, and especially its protagonist, Inusaki, are entertaining and adorable. Honestly, Inusaki's interactions with birds alone was so funny, and enjoyable, I would be satisfied with that alone as the central storyline. The artwork is also nice, and the storyboard is brilliant at landing the jokes.

Received an advance reader copy in exchange for a fair review from SuBLime, via Edelweiss.

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lol this is so fucking weird. It's enjoyable tho and I'm giggling like an idiot at the ridiculousness of it all.

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5/5

["KayFey" · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am very pleased with this duology! My only beef is it was too short. Awaiting any new projects from this creator. Yamamoto-sensei makes a compelling story about a 20-something Japanese man who can understand birds, believable and mundane. He clearly hates his ability as he's privy to all the gossip, cursing, and private lives of every and any bird. The protagonist is only at peace when he is getting his morning coffee from his landlady at her cat café and when he is doing one of his many trades as a dog-walker. Eventually, his landlady's high school son starts to get close to him, with an astounding secret of his own!
**It says Parental Advisory, but I've read steamy romance manga that didn't get this. Maybe it's for the foul language from the fowls (See what I did there?)**

[Dani Fall · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5

[Siona Adams · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was sooooo cute. I wish there were more than 2 volumes, I could read this forever

[Jude · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thoughts on the Series : 2.5 stars, leaning towards disliking it. I love the bird premise and it can be mildly entertaining in that regard, but it was ultimately wasted potential. The main plot is the underwhelming romance. I don't like the MCs, and I hate their relationship.
Also, I just got bored reading this.
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V.1
3.5 stars. This was on the weird side, rather awkward at times, but I liked it overall and will check out v.2.
-I love the premise about the guy that hates his ability to talk to birds. It's the reason I picked up this manga.
-I liked the art fine, and the story had its funny moments.
-The characters are alright so far. Kuro the bird is my favorite. Also like the other birds. The two human characters are a bit on the dull side.
-And minor spoiler/heads-up regarding the romance, I dislike the age/life-stage difference. Could be worse, but it feels unnecessary to have the younger guy be an 18-year old finishing up high school, while the other one is a 23-year old working adult. Nope. At least it was tame compared to many other titles in the genre.

[Dylan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Probably a 3.5 stars. It's a cute, very slow paced romance manga. I'll be continuing it and seeing if it gets any better from here.

It's basically about a young man who does odd jobs around town. He can talk to birds! It's really cool, but totally secret! I like the comedy in the series. The birds are very sassy. There's an air of mystery to the book, too. Who is Kuro? Is he really just a crow? Why is our main character drawn to him?

I hope these questions will be answered soon, I assume they will. If you're in the mood for something different, give it a try!

[Kris · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely adore Yamamoto san, her characters are sweet, her stories engaging, and her art beautiful. This volume sets up the premise and I like that Inusaki is sooooo close to figuring it out, but can't quite mke that step to understanding. I also like that the birds, other than Kuro, aren't feathered people, their dialogue and behaviors are realistic for birds.

[小さな N (.❛ ᴗ ❛.)⊃ [_|_] ♡ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very cute with likable characters and an interesting and promising story. I'm definitely looking forward to reading volume 2!

[Emi · Rating 4 out of 5]

I discovered Kotetsuko Yamamoto through their Like the Beast series, which unfortunately has yet to be published in English (I hope for it, one day!). It was one of the first BL series I read that depicted a healthy gay relationship, in which both partners were consenting and clearly cared about the other (from what I remember, at least). As this is the series by the same person, I had high hopes and while the first volume is merely setting the scene, I wasn't disappointed!

There is an age gap, but it is established within this volume that the younger character (Mitsuru) has his 18th birthday, so they're both at least adults! The older character is in his early 20s, so the age gap isn't too substantial either.

The story is a weird concept, I honestly would have probably not picked it up had I not already had a good opinion of Yamamoto! Inusaki can understand and speak to birds in a Dr. Dolittle-like fashion, and is more of a cat person than a dog person (despite the 'Inu' in his name). That being said, he's often seen walking dogs in this book as part of his 'odd jobs around town' kind of job (though he's supposed to be a PI, it seems like he does odd jobs to make ends meet when he's not being hired as a PI), so I think he does earn the 'Inu' part of his name with that!

Due to the way a pigeon (?) spoke to him as a child, he's not a fan of birds (seems like it was probably traumatic, to hold onto that memory for so long! Poor guy), and his communication with them tends to be pretty rude and curt, like he's already made up his mind about the bird's personality/attitude before giving them a chance.

It isn't until he meets a crow that changes his perspective, the crow (whom he creatively names Kuro—which means the colour black in Japanese) surprises him by lending a helping hand when he's unable to climb a tree to return a baby bird to its parents, and being interesting to talk to whenever they meet. I think it's really funny that this leads Inusaki to 'catch feelings', but I think it's sweet and is possibly a display of demisexuality—as he clearly likes Kuro for his personality. It's weird, but cute.

He begins to notice that Kuro's voice sounds a lot like his landlord's son, Mitsuru (of whom I previously mentioned), getting excited at one point when Mitsuru calls out his name behind his back, expecting to see Kuro but instead finds himself facing Mitsuru. He later does realise he has feelings for Mitsuru, and tells Kuro—which is funny because, while it's not explicitly stated, it's shown to us readers that Mitsuru has memories from Kuro's perspective, which heavily hints at the fact that (somehow) he's actually Kuro. Is he some kind of werecrow? What about Inusaki's landlord, is it a bloodline thing like lycanthropy? Idk, it's given me a lot of questions I don't have answers to.

I do have the second volume, so I plan to read that shortly after posting that review to see if any of my questions have answers in that one!

Before I end this review: This volume, in particular, doesn't contain mature content, but there is an explicit content stamp on the front so I have to assume there will be later on. Having read Like the Beast, I am aware that Yamamoto's no stranger to drawing smutty scenes. I don't recommend reading this if you're not okay with potentially seeing that in a later volume!

[Bean · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is absolutely ridiculous and I love it. A pigeon says "f*ck" on the 4th page. Best Crow-mance book I read in 2021.

So first off I'm going to try and keep this spoiler free, I wont say anything about the ending or any big plot twists.

This book is wild and stupid and I loved every page.
Inusaki is aparently a detective but he does 0 detective work the entire book, he walks dogs and talks to birds, which is really funny because the speech bubbles suggest he is actually chirping and tweeting at birds, so this grown man is tweeting and chirping at birds in public and then eventually gets the hots for a crow who some how knows his name (which in the second volume is explained even more hilariously)
Birds are jerks and swear at Inusaki constantly and it was hilarious as well. Every bird in this book was just great. Especially the crow, which;
The way this grown man, Inusaki, gets flustered over the semi flirty words of a crow is hilarious, he literally like invites the crow into his room and gets all embarrassed about. A crow. Being in his room. Because the crow is hot.
Also the "plot twist" can be seen a mile away but I think knowing the plot twist from the beginning kinda just makes Inusaki's behavior more funny.

The actual romance was probably the only thing I took seriously in this book. It was cute, at first the love interest, Mitsuru, is shy and emo and eventually becomes caring which I did like and I did appreciate the chemistry between Mitsuru and Inusaki.

I don't want anyone to think I'm like trashing this book, some plot points are silly and I love that so much. If you read this without taking it so seriously I think you will really enjoy it. It is just a really fun time and I have read this book like 4 times at this point because it's just a good time 😁

[kuristina- tabreez · Rating 4 out of 5]

I definitely give this book a 3.5 star rating but we’ll settle for the 3 for now because I refuse to give it a full 4. My reason being that while the story is very original and very entertaining, it’s also cliché and doesn’t have much depth to it. I realize how redundant all of that is, but it’s true. Analytically read it and you’ll find out what I mean by that...
...was the start to my initial review immediately after finishing this volume. But after spending an entire day unable to finish my review, I kept thinking about it, not even entirely willingly. For as flat as the story and characters are, it’s still something that really stuck with me throughout my day, and honestly put me in a better mood to think about. Inusaki is SO cute, relatably about my age and so in an also relatable life situation where you’re doing your best but nobody quite takes you seriously, kids call you old, but you’re pretty okay or chill with most things now. Yeah, I definitely really like Inusaki. And Mitsuru reminds me a lot of Tobio Kageyama. I like him too. They make a super cute pair, and thank god Mitsuru did the thing AFTER his 18th birthday, HAHA. Which was also adorable, by the way. I can’t wait for SUBlime to release the next volume. I have to see where things go from here!
Oh yeah, and I love the little cat café theme and how Inusaki gets around cats. It helped to remind me that you’re definitely cuter when you’re happier/around something that makes you happy. And thankfully, this book did that to me the day I read it. Yay! I guess I’m keeping this one, huh?
I wish I could have made my review longer but a lot happened. I guess I’ll just have to read it again someday!

Added to my favorites because it makes me feel so good and has such a positive affect on me.

[R E · Rating 5 out of 5]

A quietly beatiful manga, Toritan features beautifully drawn artwork and gorgeous 2-page compositions that make the real world fall away.
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​​It’s about a 23 year old, Nozomi Inusaki, who secretly has the ability to understand the language of birds. As a result, he’s felt alienated from other people most of his life, at least until he meets Kuro, a crow who seems to get him. Mitsuru Kuroki is the quiet, too direct son of Inusaki’s landlady. Suddenly, Inusaki is experiencing new feelings - but are they for Kuro the crow or Kuroki, the boy about to turn 18?
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​​Yamamoto eschews titillating melodrama, of both the visual and narrative kinds, and tells this charming, Magic Realist-tinged story with careful attention to the nuances of daily life. But fear not - Toritan is neither slow nor boring. Far from it - through perfect pacing and intricately designed artwork, I felt like I was with Inusaki the whole time, experiencing both his confusion and dawning realization about who he’s really attracted to.
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​​I can not wait for Toritan volume 2 to hit my mailbox. (Note - although it says Mature on the back cover, nothing happens of an intimate nature than a kiss between two boys. Perhaps volume 2 will be more explicit, but I hope not (we have enough of those - they can be great fun, but come on, folks, let’s have some emotional range in BL). Volume 1 is a treasure on its own, and the manga has no need to be anything other than what is - a fascinating, beautiful tale of a young man in love).
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[K · Rating 3 out of 5]

This really is a weird little book, which I think all the other reviews also state. It's probably silly to always criticize inadequate development in short volumes like this, but there were a few things that didn't make a whole lot of sense: Inusaki's career, for one, which is supposedly a private detective, but all he does throughout the book is run odd jobs for people in his neighborhood. I don't understand the point of making him a detective when he doesn't actually detect anything. (Plus, he's pretty bad at putting clues together, considering his obliviousness when it comes to Kuro and Mitsuru.)

I don't actually have a single issue with Inusaki's crush on Kuro, but it'd make more sense if they actually spent time talking to each other or bonding in some way. It feels pretty shallow; I guess it's mostly due to the fact that Kuro's the first bird worthy of Inusaki's respect?

There are some hilarious bits in Inusaki's interactions with the birds, especially the first time he realized he could speak their language, as an innocent little child, and the harmless-looking pigeon immediately threatened him.

Very fun story; not a lot of substance. But I'm looking forward to hopefully having some gaps filled in during Volume 2.

[M.J. Lyons · Rating 3 out of 5]

MISSED CONNECTION: I was a 24-year-old guy in a black sports jacket, slacks and a white t-shirt, floppy long ash-blond hair, saving a baby bird that fell out of a tree. You were a crow.

Inusaki is a cat loving, coffee-drinking, errand running, old-lady-helping, bird-hating, twenty-something dumb bisexual. He can also talk to birds. He learned this as a child when, on a trip to the park…

Toritan: Birds of a Feather Vol. 1 is the misadventures of jack-of-all-trades-master-of-none Inusaki, a detective who does very little detecting, and instead spends his days running errands for his friends and neighbours; grocery shopping for little old ladies, dog walking, minor repairs.

He is utterly annoyed that he can talk to birds, and birds are typically astounded a human can speak to them and understand them. Why can he talk to birds? Who knows. Does he fall in love with a suave, coolheaded, unflappable crow who helps him save a baby bird? Absolutely.

Check out my entire review on my site: https://michaellyonswrites.wordpress....

[Mindi · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have to admit, my love for birds is 100% why I picked this one up. It's cute though, and as someone who loves crows, it immediately drew me in. It has a cozy, small town vibe too, so I definitely will be continuing with this one.

Inusake has always been able to communicate with birds, but due to a bad encounter with a pigeon as a child, he doesn't like them very much. He loves cats though, so he spends a lot of time at his landlady's cafe with her cats. Inusake calls himself a detective but seems to be more of a sort of helper to the town. He walks dogs and runs errands for people as a living. One day he meets a crow he names Kuro and strikes up an unexpected friendship with him. As the days go by and he has more encounters with the landlady's son, Inusake starts to realize that both of them oddly seem to have the same voice.

I can't wait to see where this one is going. And yes, I would totally date a crow. lol

[Online Eccentric Librarian · Rating 4 out of 5]

More reviews (and no fluff) on the blog http://surrealtalvi.wordpress.com/

Toritan is a cute style manga with clean illustration work and about what you would expect from this genre. There are lots of misunderstandings, secret confessions, and a sweet main character blithely going through life. The plot is very easy to follow with a focus only on the two main characters.

Story: At a young age, Inusaki discovered he could understand birds. Unfortunately, that first encounter was a bird rudely threatening to kill him! After that, he tries to avoid the avian set and instead focuses on the cats of his landlady while doing odd jobs around town for income. Then comes the day when a crow not only talks to him but also knows his name! At the same time, his landlady's 18 year old son Mitsuru seems to share a lot of eerie similarities with the mysterious crow. Is Inusaki falling for the crow...or is it Mitsuru that is causing the blushes?

The book is slow paced, which may put some off. And it mostly deals with Inusaki's odd jobs (walking dogs, fixing things) rather than any interactions with the crow "Kuro" or Mitsuru. Inusaki is your usual genki outgoing goof while Mitsuru is the typical quiet and thoughtful type. Of course, there's no doubt in our mind who the identity of the crow is - but the journey will be about Inusaki figuring that out.

The author has some fun with names - e.g., Inusaki having the word inu (dog) in his name but he loves cats and can talk to birds. Similarly, Mitsuru's last name is Kuroki - which has the word Kuro (Black) in it and is the same nickname that Inusaki spontaneously gave the crow. So when Inusaki calls Kuro, he's calling part of Mitsuru's name as well.

The artwork is very clean and well done. The story is easy to follow as a result, with the emphasis fully on Inusaki or Mitsuru throughout. There are 8 short chapters but the romance doesn't start until the very end. Because it has a nice heart at the center, I will look forward to continuing the story in volume 2. Reviewed from an advance reader copy provided by the publisher.

[Lexyloowoo · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was such an interesting story. One because I thought that this was the sublime manga that was about the guy who could talk to birds and the other dude who could talk to snakes. So that kind of made it funny and to because I wasn’t expecting to figure out so quick The big secret. I’m also intrigued by the fact that this is a two-parter. Because it doesn’t give everything away this really is like the kind of sword that stopped in the middle, and was like to be continued and not it. We finish the story you can have an extra little piece of plot, kind of manga if that makes sense. I wish that I had the second part to this. I will say though, if you are thinking that this is going to be a less appropriate Monga, like the other sublime titles are 90% then you are wrong because this is in the 10%. It’s very lighthearted and cute.

[Bianca · Rating 5 out of 5]

The ARC of this book was provided by the publisher via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.

This was manga with such a weard concept but honestly, it was an amazing reading experience. I finished it on the same day that I started reading because I could bare the feeling of what would happen next.
The drawing style is good and the birds are amazing (as the author I have a passion for bird especially crows), the couple has good chemistry and makes me want to read the volume right away.
I got interested in the "magical system" in this manga but honestly, I don't think this is something that the author will explore because this is a romance manga and it can work without an explanation.