A collection of oneshots: 2j4l2n
Touch Me Again
Seven years ago, Touda and Oshikiri crossed the friendship line once. Right after that incident however, they chose to pretend nothing had happened just so they could go on being best friends. But life is never so simple and seven years later, they begin to see the strains in their relationship show.Iki wo Tomete
Heavy Sugar no Iyagarase
Candied Lemon Peel
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- nuotatore nel cantero!*
Stars Spica Spectre
Kiji is paid a visit by the ghost of his dead friend, Osaka. Although Kiji sees Osaka, it is only an afterimage of his friend, as Osaka's spirit is actually in Spica, a star that is 260 light years away from Earth. As a result, everything Osaka says goes through a time lapse and Kiji only hears him after the afterimage disappears. This is a sad, poignant story about two men who never found it in themselves to confess to each other until it was too late.Ushi Meshi
touch IT again, again, again & again
I cannot breathe without U
lemon crush, bitter & sour
Spica no Su wa Sushouyu no Su
1 Volume (Complete)
Re-reading the 6th story "Stars Spica Spectre" made me cry all over again. Yamashita Tomoko is truly a genius mangaka who knows exactly how to tug at readers' heartstrings. I ended up looking for more and found Sankaku Mado no Sotogawa wa Yoru in the process-which become one of my all-time-favorite!
... Last updated 2 years ago
The first and sixth story were good, the rest is a bit meh. I am quite surprised at the raiting.
As omnom-sempai said, it's really about the first and 6th stories.
The 7th and 4th were sort of ok, but probably not worth reading again.
Sensei's art is also all over the place in these (or maybe it's just the cleaning?) so it was pretty hard to even want to pay attention to what was going on.
there's not even any real smut in most of them, and the stories are also weak... basically just read 1 and 6.
As you can see from its history when this book was released only its first and sixth stories got scanlated, while the rest was left unfinished for years until Dayment scans picked it up almost a decade later. Now that I've had the chance to read the whole thing it makes total sense - those two stories are definitely the standouts. I won't say I love them but they're certainly more digestible compared to the remaining oneshots, most of which verge from so-so to even annoying (talking about the second story here). Yamashita Tomoko's style has never really been my thing and her works can be pretty hit-or-miss for me, which is just what this 'hotpot' of a collection demonstrates.
I didn't find any of these particularly special. For me, they ranged from average to boring. The only stories where I somewhat cared about the characters were Touch Me Again, Candied Lemon Peel and Stars Spica Spectre (likely due to some relatable character traits):
Living with unsaid words attempting to avoid change, having a complex over a personal trait (one's own name), losing someone and missing out on having the conversations that mattered, and the sadness of loneliness
It's due to those that I even rated it a 7. Basically read if bored or don't, there's not much to miss here.
... Last updated 7 years ago
Both stories were written very well, well paced and they gave off a feeling of completeness. They both had a common theme of hindered communication.
The title story was refreshing and showcased the result of unexpressed feelings. But these characters do eventually succumb to their emotions and communicate their feelings to each other (albeit many years later).
However, the characters in Stars Spica Spectre were not so lucky. It had a beautifully melancholic atmosphere.
I only wish the rest of the oneshots in this volume were translated!
Also, the apartment in the title story here reminded me a lot of the apartment in the first story of Illumination.
... Last updated 13 years ago
What got me interested in this manga was the artfulness and later reading about Touda and Oshikiri I found my self relating to this story, It's sad that my ending wont be as grand as Touda and Oshikiri but I still found my self wondering what the out come could have been if we just came clean. I didn't realize there was a sec story until I went back to read the first one again(laugh out loud) ..after reading about Touda and Oshikiri I close my computer and sat in satisfaction. I didn't find the sec story to my liking maybe because the first was so lovey. Now almost 3 weeks later I can't stop my self from looking for more work by YAMASHITA Tomoko 😛 I'll keep checking back
It's all innuendo (and that even more in the 6th story) nothing's explicit yet we feel the angst.
I agree that the feelings are better expressed by the author's words than her drawings.
It's not a must read but it s very pleasant. I think that if there was a continuation these story could be perfect...
Since the 6th story's end is a closed end, I think it'd be better if it was another ending. Cuz the idea is awesome but it doesn't leave a sense of satisfaction.
Anyway you should still give a try to the 1st story, u.u
breath-taking, heart-wrenching, and just simply a brilliant piece of work.Yamashita Tomoko is truly a breath of fresh air to the mostly generic n overdone bl world.... her art is not gorgeous, but it's coherent and brings a certain charm to the rough and manliness of the characters (an aspect lost in many bl mangas). Despite having only 2 chapters translated, both stories are in its own right unique and heart wrenching. The aspect that makes her works unique is her story-telling, that profound emotional depth in her characters' monologue that resonates their feelings with the readers'. Though I do think she's more of a novelist than she is a mangaka
