supplementary surprises

➹ — this manga has strangely become one of my favorites out there. the helplessness of shame and the stagnancy of guilt; there’s something so compelling about the way this spiraled downhill in spite of hope. a happy ending was in sight for mc multiple times, but he didn’t grab his lifeline and his would-be savior hesitated for just too long. in the end, it becomes a rather simple misfortune.

➷ — had high expectations that were unfortunately not met. even within cultural relativism, mc was not given enough justification to return to ml; it was more provocative as a non-romance. i can acknowledge that ml was an interesting character, but he failed to earn my sympathy which is regrettably a prerequisite for enjoying the ending.

➷ — weakest work by this author so far. cover/title promises potential themes that the story ignores entirely; the photography background had no role in the story. the plot twist was very interesting, but deserved a different setup. definitely not a bad short, but a letdown nonetheless

➷ — this story ended way too sincerely, to its detriment. incest manga like “camellia” or “how to kill a heart” are some of my favorites because of the horribly bitter aftertaste they leave you with. this one had the potential to be just as nauseatingly good, but it ended up being a genuine romance instead. disappointing, should’ve been a tragedy.

➹ deeeefinitely an acquired taste, but i LOVED it. this didn’t make me miserable in that satisfyingly angsty way, it was genuinely a miserable experience that i appreciate all the more for it. it’s a romance that’s not really for romance enjoyers, and instead centered the complexities of the individual characters and their conflicting natures.

➹ way back when i first read this i had definitely not been able to appreciate this for what it achieves. the character writing is fucking stellar, complicated only in a way that makes you hang harder to their words instead of shaking you off. my growing appreciation for complex and unnatural relationships definitely helped me see ‘moritat’ in a greater light than my younger, less mature counterpart.

➷ was kind of looking forward to an interesting read, but concepts + executions were weak. the story that intrigued me most was probably the first; shame it was a three-shot, because i would’ve paid good money to see a codependent seme-turned-uke tragedy.

➹ really good commentary on a/b/o-verse…the horrors that come with being alpha or omega. the horror of permanent mating, the horror of refusing it, the horror of being defined by the most lecherous of carnal desires.

there’re a lot of quotes worth mentioning, but i’m settling with this one: “you’re not [your surname]. you are us. you are you”

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