Why I read it: Enemies to lovers!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Thoughts: This is the last of my BL manga reviews for now, and I honestly think this might be the best one of the lot. I unfortunately read it too close to the start and the disappointments that came after (Seaside Stranger, Senpai This Can't Be Love!, Deadlock) kind of soured me on my whole nostalgia-filled reading process, but just thinking about this title gets me revved up again!!
First off, the hilarious enemies to lovers situation does not get resolved until close to the end of the volume! And even then, they still bicker and tease each other, which is great. The characters, Shinobu and Hikaru, are suuuuuper into each other, but to go from arguing/teasing to complete sugary soulmate-y lovey-doveyness would have been a terrible switch-up.
Second off, the reason why the enemies to lovers sitch is so funny is because Shinobu is pulling off a real-life Clark Kent switcheroo: during the day he slouches, wears thick glasses, brushes his hair into, I guess, an unappealing/inconvenient style, and also acts like a total klutz; at night, he's super suave and sexy, confident, all slicked back and powerful.
Third off, even though Shinobu does initially get with Hikaru in an attempt to teach him a lesson or potentially obtain blackmail on Hikaru, whom he absolutely loathes and who loathes him, he eventually realises that he's in too deep and he's caught feelings. And what do Hikaru and Shinobu do about it once the jig is up? They communicate. There is betrayal and hurt, but they really do talk it through and agree to be together without the pretense. There is still room for growth (as evidenced by the fact that there's like two more volumes in the series), but they get a lot done in just one volume, with decent pacing to boot.
Fourth off, the steamy scenes are plenty steamy. Hikaru, who thought he was God's gift to women, is so needy and attention-seeking (I wonder why, genuinely) that he wants to become God's gift to men too, even though he's not actually sexually interested in men (until Shinobu), so Shinobu gets to crack the shell of a very snooty virgin, and it's pretty good. When Shinobu goes "I'm going teach you a lesson about your own body" and proceeds to introduce Hikaru to his own prostate: 10/10.
Fifth off, man, I love the art. Shinobu is a literal Clark Kent, and Hikaru is so pretty. I also love their individual personalities and insecurities and everything else about them.
So this manga is, to me, 10s across the board.
Would I read more: More from this author and more in this series, yes!!!
Would I reread it: Yes!