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Frustrating, slow, and not particularly well drawn, this manga still sticks with me because of the wonderful characterization of its main characters, Toshi and Kyuu. Kyuu grows up through the three volume series, and his homesickness is particularly well written. The mangaka doesn't shy away from sketching out everyone's complicated cowardice, from Toshi who won't tell Kyuu his feelings, to Kyuu who is afraid of appearing two-faced, to Kyuu's brother, Sumi, who can't stop running away.

Of Jaryuu Dokoro's stories, probably the sweetest. The title story puts its main character Monji in a friends with benefit situation with his friend Chiba and then surrounds Monji with unrequited love. There's a really important lesson to learn here about balancing selflessness with self-love. Monji puts himself second and Chiba first, and the great "twist" is that Monji's friendships save him A sensitive and realistic story about learning to love yourself.

Takaido's characters are filled with contradictory desires, but instead of picking between them, they often try to take all of them at the same time, and instead of rescuing them from their messes, Takaido lets them wallow. Refreshingly, sex in this manga is neither the focus nor the answer. Instead, it's more focused on the tangle of relationships: friendships, teacher/student, commitment and investment in an uncertain relationships. Thoroughly modern, funny, and readable.

Two stories, both about bizarre love triangles. In one, two schoolboys develop an unhealthy cat-and-mouse game of affections, which involves roping in third parties as bait. One of them manages, in a Psyche Delico kind of way, to rope in a third party who bites as well as he takes to being chewed. Dissonant climaxes with ambiguous resolutions, this is Psyche Delico at her frustrating second best -- nothing is quite Choco Vanilla Strawberry, after all.