Guess that is why I never joined the "waifu" craze.

I always expect bronze when I go to forums. The quoted sentence isn't mere gold, it's platinum!

last edited at May 10, 2019 5:28PM

Do they identify with Sakurako and indeed see this as some sort of "lesbian wish fulfillment story" which would imply Kasumi is the ideal object of interest? Is Sakurako the most likely point of self-insertion?

Yes.

Is there not going to be any more uploads here, it has been a while sense the last one?

^ From what I understood, we've caught up, so we have to wait until the next chapter is released for it to be translated and put here.

This downtime might be a good opportunity for Nezchan to stealthily delete the last 10 or so pages of comments while we all pretend nothing happened.

This downtime might be a good opportunity for Nezchan to stealthily delete the last 10 or so pages of comments while we all pretend nothing happened.

Oh, that wasn’t so bad compared to some of those those Citrus, Yuzumori-san or WDTFS? threads. There was even that “YagaKimi is a plotless SOL series” thing over in that otherwise sedate neighborhood.

Not to even mention the Master & Mel hentai.

last edited at May 15, 2019 2:19PM

This downtime might be a good opportunity for Nezchan to stealthily delete the last 10 or so pages of comments while we all pretend nothing happened.

I plan to make a video out of some of those pages as soon as my computer is fixed, just for the shits and giggles of all of us, so don't ruin that for us.

Oh, that wasn’t so bad compared to some of those those Citrus, Yuzumori-san or WDTFS? threads.

I have nothing to say about this, since I didn't participate there.

There was even that “YagaKimi is a plotless SOL series” thing over in that otherwise sedate neighborhood.

Ah, yes, I remember that damn troll.

Really not a fan of deleting comments. It's no better than censoring people or swiping something under the rug. Those debates might not be great, but they show what people cared about and how different viewpoints could spawn from the manga.

"Out of sight, out of mind" only works if you learn how to delete minds as well.

@BV Have you ever considered that making videos of people's comments is kind of insensitive and uncalled for? I personally don't give a hoot, but you may wanna get permission sometimes...

This downtime might be a good opportunity for Nezchan to stealthily delete the last 10 or so pages of comments while we all pretend nothing happened.

I plan to make a video out of some of those pages as soon as my computer is fixed, just for the shits and giggles of all of us, so don't ruin that for us.

Can I copyright strike the video? I always wanted to do that.

Do they identify with Sakurako and indeed see this as some sort of "lesbian wish fulfillment story" which would imply Kasumi is the ideal object of interest? Is Sakurako the most likely point of self-insertion?

Yes.

Besides looks I identify with Kasumi, and I'd love to have a Sakurako in my life.

Do they identify with Sakurako and indeed see this as some sort of "lesbian wish fulfillment story" which would imply Kasumi is the ideal object of interest? Is Sakurako the most likely point of self-insertion?

Yes.

Do they identify with Sakurako and indeed see this as some sort of "lesbian wish fulfillment story" which would imply Kasumi is the ideal object of interest? Is Sakurako the most likely point of self-insertion?

Besides looks I identify with Kasumi, and I'd love to have a Sakurako in my life.

Ohoho! Now we got two different viewpoints. Interesting.

Do they identify with Sakurako and indeed see this as some sort of "lesbian wish fulfillment story" which would imply Kasumi is the ideal object of interest? Is Sakurako the most likely point of self-insertion?

Yes.

Lol, succint.

Is Sakurako the most likely point of self-insertion?

Yes.

Lol, succint.

Well, it was either "yes" or "duh!"

As @rgv just demonstrated, the opposite viewpoint is very real. I can certainly understand why someone would prefer to have Sakurako as their partner.

This downtime might be a good opportunity for Nezchan to stealthily delete the last 10 or so pages of comments while we all pretend nothing happened.

I plan to make a video out of some of those pages as soon as my computer is fixed, just for the shits and giggles of all of us, so don't ruin that for us.

Can I copyright strike the video? I always wanted to do that.

I'll give you (and everyone else who participated in that war of words) a place in the credits, in exchange for not being copyrighted. Though, if you issued a copyright claim over the music, then I may or may not be fine with, depending on what music I use.

Is Sakurako the most likely point of self-insertion?

Yes.

Lol, succint.

Well, it was either "yes" or "duh!"

lol
I know, right? When you create a girl character who is so stunningly beautiful that normal humans wonder if she is a different species from them, who charms people at first sight and spends a great deal of time fending off the unwanted attentions of her besotted schoolmates (both boys and girls), it's safe to assume that the average readers are not expected to recognize themselves in her. ¯⧹_(ツ)_⧸¯

lol
I know, right? When you create a girl character who is so stunningly beautiful that normal humans wonder if she is a different species from them, who charms people at first sight and spends a great deal of time fending off the unwanted attentions of her besotted schoolmates (both boys and girls), it's safe to assume that the average readers are not expected to recognize themselves in her. ¯⧹_(ツ)_⧸¯

Yet from a more openminded perspective... Kasumi doesn't look any prettier than her mother or Sakurako or Moka etc. It's more a thing of preference really. And this shallow impression of outsiders (and sometimes an overly obsessed Saku) in the story ignores Kasumi's more human and familiar traits.

Lazy? Pretty common. Hates heat or cold to a ludicrous degree? I know dozens of people like that. A glutton? Foood's good.
These are all things one can easily project upon. On the other hand, what average reader has the perfect memory to remember an entire library's worth of books? Who can cook pretty much any meal they set their sights on to perfection? Who is talented in literally every aspect of housework? Who gets perfect scores on every test?

Both of these girls have larger than life traits and very relatable ones as well. That's why I even asked if Sakurako would really be the default for people who feel the need to self-insert or follow a rigid perspective.
There seem to be pretty much two ways to argue here:
1. Type
2. Relationship reasons

I know, right? When you create a girl character who is so stunningly beautiful that normal humans wonder if she is a different species from them, who charms people at first sight and spends a great deal of time fending off the unwanted attentions of her besotted schoolmates (both boys and girls), it's safe to assume that the average readers are not expected to recognize themselves in her. ¯⧹_(ツ)_⧸¯

By the conventions of the genre, they are a typical pairing. Romantic literature has been writing about couples like them at least since the rise of dime novels in the 19th-century.
The girl: she has plain looks and comes from a humble background, but she's honest, kind, sincere, hard-working and a good cook. Most likely, she's been doing household chores (for her sickly mom and little siblings) all her life.
The gentleman: he's devastatingly handsome and has high-class babes falling for him left and right. The most desirable studmuffin around. If he's wealthy, even better. The day he decides to settle down, any woman will be happy to be his bride.
Everyone would expect a guy like him to marry a rich alpha bitch, a beautiful heiress from a powerful and influential family. Yet the story always goes that he falls in love with the plain poor girl (because of her many virtues: she's kind-hearted, hard-working, etc. etc.) and ends up taking her as his wife.

Of course, this being a yuri manga, Kasumi is not a male hunk but a blonde goddess who looks like a supermodel or a movie actress. That detail put aside, the romance works out the same way. It could perhaps be said that a story like that it's not very realistic... but, then again, it doesn't need to be: it's a wish-fulfillment story, and there are a million versions out there of the same tale - in Western fiction, in Asian fiction, in wherever fiction. As fantasy stories go, this one has proved to have lasting popularity with audiences all round the world.

Everyone would expect a guy like him to marry a rich alpha bitch, a beautiful heiress from a powerful and influential family. Yet the story always goes that he falls in love with the plain poor girl (because of her many virtues: she's kind-hearted, hard-working, etc. etc.) and ends up taking her as his wife.

That's how it happens... but it's worth mentioning that there's usually a bit more depth in the male character. In most cases, hidden underneath the appearance of perfect coolness and classiness, he has a secret side nobody (or almost nobody) knows about -- and the "plain girl" MC is the one girl who sees through him and discovers his secrets. And the reason he picks her, instead of some airheaded rich bimbo, is that she understands and accepts that side of him and makes him feel comfortable about it. He can really "be himself" around her, so to say, as she is the only one who knows how to cater to the real him and make him happy.

This is how it works for Sakurako and Kasumi, too. As BugDevil accurately explained before, Kasumi is lazy, a glutton, fastidious and picky about lots of things, and Sakurako is the one person in the world who has proven she can take all that in stride, love her, pamper her and take good care of her. It's not just Sakurako who's lucky to have Kasumi return her feelings -- Kasumi, if asked, will happily tell that she is super lucky to have a Sakurako in her life.

As fantasy stories go, this one has proved to have lasting popularity with audiences all round the world.

Yeah, and there are 5,000 Corín Tellado titles with more than 400 million books sold all over the world to prove it!

And let's not forget mainstream shoujo manga: I do believe that 90% of the series out there follow the pattern you outlined.

Everyone would expect a guy like him to marry a rich alpha bitch, a beautiful heiress from a powerful and influential family. Yet the story always goes that he falls in love with the plain poor girl (because of her many virtues: she's kind-hearted, hard-working, etc. etc.) and ends up taking her as his wife.

That's how it happens... but it's worth mentioning that there's usually a bit more depth in the male character. In most cases, hidden underneath the appearance of perfect coolness and classiness, he has a secret side nobody (or almost nobody) knows about -- and the "plain girl" MC is the one girl who sees through him and discovers his secrets. And the reason he picks her, instead of some airheaded rich bimbo, is that she understands and accepts that side of him and makes him feel comfortable about it. He can really "be himself" around her, so to say, as she is the only one who knows how to cater to the real him and make him happy.

Oh, I agree. That's part of the formula. The plain girl will always win the heart of her love interest, but the readers need a plausible reason for this. Otherwise, suspension of disbelief becomes impossible.

The formula is as old as mankind, but it was massively developed and perfected in the 19th-century, when cheap romantic novels started selling really well among young women of the working classes. The MC was always a plain working-class girl (easy for the readers to identify with), her love interest was always an extremely desirable dreamboat, and her rivals were always high-class ladies: gorgeous, elegant, sophisticated, rich and snotty. Now, normally, if a handsome hunk is given the choice between a beautiful heiress and a chick who's poor and plain, odds are 99 to 1 that he will choose the former. The MC needed to have some good points to justify the fact that she was preferred to her competition. And these good points, as established by tradition, were:
- she's kind-hearted
- she's a hard worker
- she has homemaker skills
- she's a good Christian
Any normal 19th-century working-class girl could relate to these and think: "Hey, I'm like that, too!" On the other hand, the rival characters were all children of privilege and unreligious bitches... thus the fact that in the end the MC managed to win against all odds became more easy to believe.

The formula has evolved a little since that time, reflecting social changes (for example: religion isn't all that important anymore), but the basic lines remain the same. They are like an universal standard: you find them in romantic fiction all over the world. Even in yuri. So, you see, it's not surprising that Sakurako, who is kind and caring, a great cook, a hard worker and good at all household chores, wins her desired one's heart. :-)

last edited at May 17, 2019 10:36PM

The formula is as old as mankind, but it was massively developed and perfected in the 19th-century, when cheap romantic novels started selling really well among young women of the working classes. The MC was always a plain working-class girl (easy for the readers to identify with), her love interest was always an extremely desirable dreamboat, and her rivals were always high-class ladies: gorgeous, elegant, sophisticated, rich and snotty. Now, normally, if a handsome hunk is given the choice between a beautiful heiress and a chick who's poor and plain, odds are 99 to 1 that he will choose the former.

Only 99 to 1?
Like, one man in a hundred would choose the penniless girl?
You must be a hopeless optimist. ¯⧹_( ͡~ ͜ʖ ͡°)_⧸¯

The MC needed to have some good points to justify the fact that she was preferred to her competition. And these good points, as established by tradition, were:
- she's kind-hearted
- she's a hard worker
- she has homemaker skills
- she's a good Christian
Any normal 19th-century working-class girl could relate to these and think: "Hey, I'm like that, too!" On the other hand, the rival characters were all children of privilege and unreligious bitches... thus the fact that in the end the MC managed to win against all odds became more easy to believe.

The formula has evolved a little since that time, reflecting social changes (for example: religion isn't all that important anymore), but the basic lines remain the same. They are like an universal standard: you find them in romantic fiction all over the world. Even in yuri. So, you see, it's not surprising that Sakurako, who is kind and caring, a great cook, a hard worker and good at all household chores, wins her desired one's heart. :-)

Hehehe, my take is a bit different.

The way I see it, these two are lovers since chapter 1. When they first met, Sakurako was a baby lesbian who wasn't very clear about this sexxor thing, and Kasumi was a more fledged young lesbian who had a better understanding of how it works. Sakurako was smitten the moment she saw Kasumi: it was love at first sight, and Kasumi could tell (she's used to having that effect on people). Then, when they were buying furniture and Sakurako boldly suggested sharing a single bed, Kasumi agreed... and at that moment the deal was sealed and they both were clear on it: they were going to be, not only roommates, but also sekkusu furendo; they both wanted it, and they both were okay with the other as a partner.

Now, at this point, you could ask: why did Kasumi agree? Sakurako's reasons are evident, she was already head over heels for Kasumi, but what about Kasumi's reasons? Well, imo, Kasumi thought: "She's cute in a puppy-ish way, she seems nice, she's sunny and cheerful, and she clearly likes me. We are going to share a room for 3 years. I might as well agree to sleep with her. It will help ease tension, and prevent angst and dejection and all those tiresome things I don't want to to deal with 'cause I'm crazy lazy."

And it's in the 3 years that followed that Kasumi fell in love with Sakurako. Yes, because of all those things several commenters have mentioned already: Sakurako is a good cook, a good homemaker, a hard worker, a reliable woman with a good head on her shoulders, and, most of all, someone who understands Kasumi perfectly and can take care of all her needs, pamper her and make her happy. The formula of old romantic novels worked just peachy! Only thing is, they were already lovers, and having sex aplenty, when the falling-in-love development happened. This wasn't how they did it in those dime novels! Ah, modern times...

I already explained why Kasumi is just as relatable as Sakurako (if not more so in many aspects).

So why does Sakurako fall for Kasumi? Sure she is pretty, but there is more to it.
-She is hardworking (whenever she has to and feels its necessary)
-She is kind in her own way
-She appreciates Sakurako for her talents and doesn't reject her despite her weirdness (aka openminded)
-She shows affection in a way that most might not understand

Those are all things people would like to be loved for as well. So why would one not follow Kasumi's POV and think Saku is the one to desire? This really does make me wonder. Is it really just that "The pretty girl is the heroine" mentality? I can't see the anicent formula mentioned above apply to this story at all, sorry.

last edited at May 18, 2019 2:08AM

I cannot for the life of me see Sakurako as a hard worker. She doesn't need to study. She doesn't have a job (until recently). She doesn't need to go to cram school. We see on more than one occasion the reason she does things is to relieve boredom. Why does she help the teachers? She literally has nothing else to do. Why does she help everyone at the school festival in college? She has vast knowledge, so it is incredibly easy for her to help them out, and it doesn't take much time.

To compare, think about Superman stopping a run away truck. He just has to stand there. It is no effort at all for him. Would you really say it is hard work for Superman to stop a runaway truck? Would you really say anything Sakurako does is hard work, when nothing she does seems to take effort for her?

Didn't she get into college without any extra effort at all, when every manga and anime talks about how hard third years need to study? She probably could have gotten into Toudai, Stanford, or Harvard if she wanted to after a week in the library. Her teachers certainly thought she should try.

Then there's her sociability. By the old mechanic Kasumi is the one who should be popular, and I suppose she is in a way. She has a lot of admirers, but only few friends (most of whom seem to be through Sakurako). Sakurako by comparison is sociable enough for a con man or career politician. She knows everybody and, more to the point, everybody knows her and how capable she is. People ask her to help out, and she gets gratuity in various forms for it. We see it at the aforementioned college school festival, and in the first Valentine's day when all the girls in class begged her for chocolate, and all the things they gave her in return for white day. Sakurako is arguably the more popular of the two (because you can make an argument either way, but lets not, because who is more popular isn't important).

My point is, in what way did Sakurako get to where she is by hard work and effort, rather than natural talent and ability? And how is anyone supposed to identify with that level of capability?

last edited at May 18, 2019 2:14PM

The formula of old romantic novels worked just peachy! Only thing is, they were already lovers, and having sex aplenty, when the falling-in-love development happened. This wasn't how they did it in those dime novels! Ah, modern times...

Yeah, and, in the olden times, girls didn't fall in love with other girls either.

That too is a new twist of the old romantic novel pattern.

Don't encourage her Nene... lol