Even Though We're Adults, Vol. 1

おとなになっても [Otona ni Natte mo] #1

by Takako Shimura, Jocelyne Allen (translator)

Ayano, an elementary school teacher in her thirties, stops by a bar one day and meets another woman named Akari. Sparks fly as the two chat, and before the night is over, Ayano even goes in for a kiss. Akari is intrigued but confused...especially when she discovers that Ayano has a husband! Both Ayano and Akari are about to find out that love doesn’t get any easier, even as you grow older.

Genres: Manga, Romance, LGBT, Queer, Lesbian, Yuri, Graphic Novels

168 pages, Paperback

First published October 11, 2019

About the author

Takako Shimura (native name: 志村貴子) is a manga artist primarily known for her manga works published in Japan which feature LGBT (especially about lesbian and transgender) topics. Originally from Kanagawa, she now resides in Tokyo.

Reviews

[The Artisan Geek]

17/12/20
Thank you Seven Seas for a copy of this manga!

I just recently started to read more yuri and I'm not really liking the tropes tbh... This one is about two women who meet at a bar and turns out one of them has a husband and unfortunately it wasn't all that interesting. There was no character development and the story line was kind of boring.

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[Rereader · Rating 2 out of 5]

While I knew cheating would be the main focus of this manga, and I absolutely HATE cheating, I wanted to give this a chance because I'm trash for yuri manga and the art was appealing. Unfortunately, I have quite a few problems with this first volume that soured my enjoyment of it.

Firstly, the way cheating is handled seems kind of...casual. I don't know how to describe it, but the only one recognizing what a problem this is and acting mature about it is Ayano's husband. Ayano just rolls with it and while she knows what she's doing is wrong, she still sees Akari and even tells her husband about her feelings for Akari. Akari is an absolute hot mess in terms of relationships, so there's that. Also, she made a comment about how every bi woman she's been with dumped her for a man and that didn't really sit well with me. Bisexual representation in media as a whole is still relatively rare, and good representation even rarer. I don't like how Akari's past relationships are putting them into the stereotypical boxes associated with bisexuality.

Second, the pacing of this "relationship" is lightning fast. Ayano meets up with Akari a few times and she's totally okay with telling her husband about her feelings for Akari? Yes, Ayano effectively got married because she liked her husband well enough but is now feeling unsatisfied in their relationship, but my dude--that's something you need to fix WITH YOUR HUSBAND, NOT BY CHEATING ON HIM.

Anyway, do I recommend this first volume? I guess, if you want a quick, drama-fueled read. Otherwise, if you're looking for a good start to a yuri series, I'd look elsewhere.

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm sorting out my feelings about this, because while I don't usually like romances where one of the involved is already in a relationship with someone else, this is really, incredibly well done.

[Tib · Rating 3 out of 5]

biphobic rhetoric, cheating

While I'm not the biggest fan of the cheating trope, and I'm definitely not here for the biphobia, I'm still kind of curious as to how this is going to play out?

Everything about this story is messy. The strong feelings these women have for each other happened in a page and a half (I honestly thought I was missing some pages that transitioned things smoothly, but alas, I was not), Shuri's distain for bisexual women, Ayano cheating on her husband with Shuri.

I don't know, I might continue with it, I might not. We'll see how long it takes my library to get volume 2.

[Heather · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kinda shocked by the boldness of the main character. I wasn't expecting it to play out the way it did. Reminded me of how much I loved Jenny/Marina before The L Word fired Marina. lol

[Chelsea 🏳️‍🌈 · Rating 1 out of 5]

The art is nice but that’s literally the only compliment I gave for this book. I wasn’t rooting for anyone, although I felt sorry for the husband.

It’s hard enough to get me to root for a couple when their having an affair. This book added in the really weird element where the married female character was shameless about it? Add to that, the woman she was interested in was biphobic and perpetuated the stereotypes that women “mature” and realize they only like women. That was great /sarcasm.

So, aside from the art style, there was nothing for me to love here. Sigh.

[a · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

I don't know why I pretend that I can read a book with cheating in any capacity and be interested in it lol.

[Mark · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ayano is a schoolteacher out for a drink. At the bar, she randomly meets Akari, another woman. Sparks fly, then sparks ignite, and then they fan the embers the next day. Next time they meet, however, it becomes clear that this situation is a whole lot more complicated. Is this love? And where does love fit into this world when one of you is already married?

Wow. Just... wow. Just, look, go read this book. Just don’t bother with anything else I’m going to write and pick it up and enjoy a masterclass in writing and art from an experienced mangaka and thank me after. Adult-focused yuri is rare enough, but for it to be this good is rarer still.

When Ayano and Akari meet it is simmering from the get-go. It is one of the most smouldering first chapters of any book I’ve read, a delicious combination of art and writing, and that’s with an arguably light amount of physical contact. It is jaw-dropping how well Shimura is able to express all this.

There’s a delightful inevitability about it that gets turned quickly on its head when the book upends expectations about who’s actually pushing this forward. Akari certainly makes the first move, but Ayano is no meek schoolteacher, believe me. It’s not the first time this book’s going to throw tropes out the window.

The whole evening is spread across the first section in both real time and a selection of flashbacks and it’s, again, brilliant how it never becomes hard to figure out where we are in this timeline. The art in this book is superlative.

Ayano and Akari are clearly super into one another, text messages fly... then the next time they meet Ayano’s husband is in tow and everything goes sideways. Akari is shocked and hurt that this little detail never came up, no surprise, but she’s also really weak to Ayano’s charms. She has a surprising amount of vulnerability, no matter what she claims to the contrary.

They’re both so interesting. Akari has had awful experiences with so many woman in this exact situation - bisexuality is addressed and that’s so unique in manga it deserves credit for that alone. She’s clearly not got the best track record and watching her get pummelled twice in this book is rough.

Ayano, however, is a non-traditional woman trapped in a traditional society. Her husband is doing nothing wrong, but he’s not doing anything right either. They have a good relationship, but they’re obviously friends more than lovers. The pressure on Ayano to have kids from her husband and his mother rings very true and it’s not hard to see her evening with Akari as an awakening that gets way out of hand.

In the hands of a lesser author this would be overwrought and predictable and very loud. These are adults and they behave like adults. When the perspective of a later chapter shifts to Ayano’s husband, it’s genuine how miserable the poor guy is. It’s not his fault, but his wife is drifting away from him and it hurts.

Plus, it’s not like we’re sure Ayano and Akari are having an affair just yet, minus the emotional one in their texts. They kissed, yes, but everything else is questionable. It’s a fine line between cheating and having a full on affair and, as it turns out, their lives don’t really allow for it to go that way just yet.

It all comes to a head at a very well realized public BBQ that, hey, Ayano’s husband might be insane for attending, but the guy is trying his best to figure things out (all three have a conversation and it’s so... real... in how confused the situation is). It’s an interesting overlap how both Akari and Ayano’s husband are so very good at making themselves miserable.

This is a book about adults in an adult situation trying to figure it out while trying to figure themselves out. There might be an infatuation here, there might be true love of the best sort, but it acknowledges that people will get hurt finding out and there’s no easy way to reach what you want. That’s so true to life that it hurts.

As somebody who is, obviously, not a lesbian, but went through hell to find their own happiness, this book resonates with me on a fundamental level because there are core truths to this story that the writer is dealing with in an amazing way.

There are, in fact, no negatives about this book, except that the second volume is not out this second and in my hands being read.

5 stars, and I would give it six if I could. If this stays on point it has the chance to surpass every other yuri manga I’ve read. It is about grown ass adults with actual problems and it is utterly fascinating in its down-to-earth handling of them. It’s one of those ‘oh right, this is why I’m reading manga’ books that just floored me from the start.

[Imanewreader ✨ · Rating 4 out of 5]

première revue sur goodreads !? let's go !

j'ai vraiment, sincèrement, beaucoup aimé ce premier volume ! j'adore lire des romances avec des personnages adultes qui doivent faire face à des problèmes d'adultes sans trop de sex ou bêtises d'enfants.

ici on y suit deux jeunes femmes qui se rencontrent dans un restaurant et se plaisent mutuellement. un est lesbienne (akari) l'autre est visiblement hétéro dans une relation (mariage) monogame (ayano). c'est mâture, dans le sens où des discussions prennent place et des décisions importantes doivent être prises.
hâte de lire la suite et découvrir comment ce triangle amoureux va évoluer !

[vv ♡ · Rating 1 out of 5]

ça ne m’a pas marqué, l’histoire va bcp trop vite y’a aucun setting. Mais bon c’est lgbt ✌🏾

[stav · Rating 2 out of 5]

read this at a coffeeshop with a friend who was reading the 11th issue of a sherlock inspired series and somehow i feel like she had more fun

[Rod Brown · Rating 3 out of 5]

A married bisexual woman kisses a lesbian outside a bar one night and messy angst ensues.

Engaging characters -- all in their thirties -- and an intriguing way of telling the story by constantly jumping ahead a bit and flashing back a little. Definitely looking for the next volume.



FOR REFERENCE:

Contents: Chapter 1. Unwonderful Unrequited Love -- Chapter 2. What Made You Like This? -- Chapter 3. Anxious -- Chapter 4. Goodbye, My Love -- Chapter 5. A Whole New World -- Afterword -- Next Issue

[Shae · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one is engaging, but ultimately not for me I think.

If you want the details, check out this video: https://youtu.be/hBu7ZIpFEDY

[Amber · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow.

I want volume two.

[Elaine L. · Rating 5 out of 5]

逛書店時並沒意識到這也是志村貴子老師的作品，明明這本跟Sweet Blue Flowers(青花)都有拿起來翻過，也覺得兩者的獨特封面畫作跟其他漫畫很不同，但這兩部的作畫風格差異還真不是普通大! 翻閱當下，覺得它稍潦草隨便的畫風不是很吸引人，就放回架上了。回家後才發現原來是很厲害的才讀過的作者新作，立馬上Kindle買電子書！很慶幸有發現，因為結果證明讀得欲罷不能，實在是太喜歡了!!

社會寫實向的百合故事，雖然有點酸苦地牽扯著心，但也不至於太晦暗無望。在關鍵處，還有那個神分鏡，還讓我心痛到掉淚了…🥺而且這次意外地沒有令人稍微討厭的主角之一。而且而且封面也太美了吧！比Sweet Blue Flowers成熟灑脫有個性!

啊我真的很愛這種對世間眾多容納，胸襟寬厚的作品，裡面連個真正壞心眼的角色都沒有呢。

[Cameron Sant · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read and skimmed a bunch of the reviews… a lot of people apparently have never met a married woman in her thirties having a bisexual* awakening like “Yes, Josh, Josh is great, but if I don’t touch another woman RIGHT NOW I WILL IMPLODE” and it shows. This is such a real phenomenon that I think is captured here really beautifully and sensitively, in this quiet kind of way that is trademark Takako Shimura.

* It’s unclear if the corresponding character actually is bisexual this early in the series

I suspect some of the problem is that Takako Shimura writes manga that explores LGBT issues, which is somewhat rare, in contrast with the more established niche genre of yuri romance, which usually attempts to be apolitical. (Also!! Where Ayano basically says “I’ve never liked a woman before, I just happened to fall for you” (a classic yuri sentiment to avoid characters having LGBT identities.) And Akari thinks “Is there a template somewhere? I’m so tired of hearing it.” THIS MANGA IS GOOD, PEOPLE)

Before I derailed myself I was trying to say that I expect people giving negative reviews were expecting a straightforward yuri romance manga instead of a manga exploring real-world issues, like the conflict that arises between women like Akari (a lesbian who knows what she wants, but is weak for troubled cuties) and women like Ayano (a woman whose late-in-life queer awakening is upending everything she thought she wanted in her life.)

This book is really about this woman exploring her queer sexuality despite her straight marriage, and even though this is bad behavior, I wish these reviewers would have some empathy for how the character is making messy choices as a result of being pulled between what straight society wants from her (particularly in Japan, where same gender marriage is not recognized at the time that I'm writing this) and what she herself wants. I really bristle at the idea that these reviewers are reducing this complex scenario to “ew, cheating trope, pass 😖.” (I’m empathetic to people not wanting to read about infidelity as a subject but. If you know you wouldn’t like this book from reading the back, why did you read the whole thing, let alone review it.)

Anyway. The art is beautiful. I thought the reveal of the nature of the relationships and some reversals of expectations in the first couple of chapters were really smartly executed.

Takako Shimura is a treasure and that’s all

(A four star read for me but we’re doing five stars for BALANCE)

[Ash Reads Books · Rating 3 out of 5]

I went into "Even Though We're Adults" with absolutely zero expectations or preconceptions - I picked it up at a local bookstore, flipped through it, saw cute sapphic art, saw that it was on sale, and decided to buy it. So I'm going to be honest - the whole "Sapphics are in great relationship but then Woman A finds out that Woman B is married" trope really isn't my thing. That being said, I really liked this book! The art is adorable and the plot is actually handled pretty well, in my opinion? This could have easily been a four star read for me if it weren't for two other things.

My first problem is that there's a solid couple pages in this book that are just... straight up biphobic. Shuri talks about how she doesn't trust bi women anymore because they always choose men over her, and that really rubbed me the wrong way. And Ayano, the (married) bi woman Shuri's in a relationship with, just goes with it? And then that's that, and Shuri's biphobia is never addressed. I understand that this is only Volume 1, and that this issue might be discussed in later books, but it was pretty uncomfortable to read - it's basically a three-page-long rant about how bi women are unfaithful, right in the middle of the book. It's basically only based on biphobic stereotypes.

Something else I didn't like was how Ayano is described as "pervy" or being "a pervy teacher" just because she's sapphic? This occurs a few times (always pretty unprompted), and I figured it might be a translation thing, so I looked it up - turns out there are other translations of this book where the word "pervy" is never used (often replaced with the word "sexy") so yeah, that's definitely a translation thing to me. It made me uncomfortable because every time Ayano is referenced as being perverted, it's always just when she's, like, kissing Shuri? So yeah, that was a no-go for me.

Other than these two things (which are pretty minor in the grand scheme of the book) I actually really liked "Even Though We're Adults." The art is beautiful, all of the characters seem like they're going to get full, developed arcs as the series goes on, and the plot isn't too bad either.

[khaz. · Rating 2 out of 5]

Me: I hate the cheating trope in books
Also me: read this one with cheating as a main plot

I'm a clown
Also I'm tired of biphobia in japanese's lgbt mangas but yeah this one is a no for me I'm rooting for the husband

[Alexie · Rating 1 out of 5]

1,5/5 ⭐️

Le scénario est terriblement mal écrit et l’intrigue n’a aucun sens. Nul, nul, nul !

[Hess · Rating 3 out of 5]

Combined review for volumes 1 and 2: I was underwhelmed by this series and have dropped it for now. This may just be a matter of personal taste, so please take my views with a grain of salt.

In terms of the pros: the art is beautiful, the story deals with real-life issues, and the protagonists are all consenting adults. I wish we had more yuri like this.

In terms of the cons: vols 1 and 2 left me emotionally disconnected. First, much of the focus is on the extended family, rather than the two leading ladies. I struggled to process why all of these people would be relevant to the story all at once. Sure, maybe later, when there's a real relationship causing real issues in the marriage... but so soon? That said, there were some interesting side characters here with real issues, and if you enjoy manga with an ensemble cast then this will be a huge plus for you.

Second, the infidelity is treated as 'not-real' because it is sapphic ( 0 _ 0 ) while I am confident this will change in later issues, it really put me off.

Third, I genuinely don't understand what draws these two ladies together. There's so little time spent on them that Ayano's decision to upend her whole life over Shuri just feels weird to me. Reading about Shuri's previous experiences with bi women was painful... but I am willing to let it slide because it may be a function of being gay in a cishet society rather than actual biphobia on Shuri's part. If anything, I would call the author's portrayal of Ayano's flippant disregard for what she's done a form of biphobia, though obviously, this could very well change in later volumes. Still, there's little here to redeem either character, and the best I can call this is messy.

When I compare this to the opening volume of If I could reach you I found the latter much more relatable.

Perhaps I will try the series again given the 5* reviews on future volumes, but for now it's a pass.

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ahhh messy messy, but I feel like that’s this author’s specialty. I totally didn’t realize this was the same author of wandering son! Their art style and story telling has really grown.

I feel so bad for the husband. Like it makes me so sad, because he’s not a bad person and they both seemed pretty happy in their marriage. I also feel bad for Akari :( Like I want to support the g/g romance, but this makes things difficult. Not down for the cheating aspect.

Lol I truly do not read descriptions when I read things. I just go into it and I’m like huh?? That’s what this is about?? Anyway, I think Shimura likes to write more realistic, messy stories so I can tell this is going to make me a little sad and uncomfortable like wandering son did.

[wati bogosse · Rating 5 out of 5]

Très surprise que ce manga soit aussi mal noté par ses lecteurs français ! Je m'estime particulièrement difficile en mangas, et j'ai beaucoup aimé, j'ai d'ailleurs hâte de découvrir la suite. Comme quoi, les goûts et les couleurs... 😅 Je souhaite sincèrement à cette série de trouver son public en France, ça serait dommage qu'elle soit annulée 🤞 J'avais pourtant peur d'être déçue, depuis le temps que j'attendais la sortie papier.

[Odyssée · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5
On est un peu perdu au début de l'histoire. La narration est inhabituelle. Je sais que certaines personnes sont déroutées par le fait que l'une des personnages ait déjà un mari, à titre personnel ça ne me dérange pas pour le moment, chaque histoire et chaque coming out est différent. Je ne sais pas encore sur quel pied danser concernant ce manga, il est déstabilisant. J'apprécie les dessins et cette narration "étrange" ne me déplaît pas . Je vais lire la suite pour me faire une idée.

[Bear Mcbearington · Rating 4 out of 5]

More drama manga about people in their 30s please.

[Tory · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dang. This is a heavy story but it’s presented in a very light way… I’m not sure who I’m supposed to be rooting for romantically here. Maybe no one. Relationships are complicated.

[Emily · Rating 1 out of 5]

Honestly, this was pretty awful. I couldn’t find anything to like about this book. The cover pulled me in and I didn’t think the cheating plot would bother me, but everything about this just felt icky.

After one kiss the two women are in insta-love and Ayano needs to confess her feelings to her husband? There wasn’t enough build up or spark to make this feel real or meaningful or anything. And the cheating is played off as nbd. Both women were unlikable. I’m all for queer rep in manga but this was just unpleasant, sadly.

[Jess · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cheating stories and love triangles are not my thing but this was recommended to me so I gave it a try and wow is it good. Adults trying to do the right thing but what is the right thing when your feelings say one thing and societal expectations say another? And because they're responsible, caring adults they're honest with each other about their feelings. I went in expecting to read one volume and be like "thanks but not for me" and instead I think I'm now invested enough to read the whole series.

[nelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

I.....
Are this type of mangas my cup of tea because most of my biggest crushed have been straight or/and taken women? Is this why I like this type of mangas so much? Am I calling myself out, somehow?
I gotta say I do love how maturely they act, like, it could've been way messier but it was just messy enough to empathize with all the characters to some extent.

[Nicole Mazzuca · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really like this series, an exploration of cheating as a married adult lesbian and the impact on the people involved, the partner, as well as the families of everyone. Gut punches galore. Recommend but nobody is necessarily a good person.

[Jillian -always aspiring- · Rating 3 out of 5]

2021 Read #62

I really liked this first volume, but I think my enjoyment of it as a whole will hinge on what direction the story takes from here.