seems really obvious kyoko is her sisters ex girlfriend

That's a good theory, particularly when the sister reveals that the gifts Kyouko gave the main character are things that the sister gave Kyouko in the first place, as well as the fact that Kyouko and the sister aren't seeing each other.

Ya and the sis’ reaction to them. Could also be they were just friends and the sister is homophobic and avoided the friend after a confession, but it’s probably the former.
Am usually into this kind of thing but if kyouko did date the sister first and this is going to end up with kyoukoxmc endgame then I don’t think I’ll be into this as much. It seems wrong. Like kyouko trying to hold onto the sister through ruri is weird but like sure. But doing that if the sister is an ex seems like a step too far from unrequited love.

I'm not sure battan's writing style is ideal with this kind of genre. Like they excel at writing intense, realistic, complicated emotions, that it makes this seem uncomfortably real. But I guess it remains to be seen how it will turn out

that's the point though. This situation would be uncomfortable if it was real. Battan's writing is perfect for what this is meant to be regardless of genre

Hmmm. I don't know if I love the whole ~humans are flawed~ angle (read: making characters flawed with things like age gaps, cheating, smoking, rape, etc for the sake of "realism" instead of just giving characters more depth personality-wise) this is taking. I don't know if there's a more appropriate term for it (I feel like 'edgy' would be too harsh) but a lot of manga/anime are guilty of doing it without even making the characters 3-dimensional in the first place. I don't want to judge this manga so harshly so early into its run so hopefully I'm just jumping the gun here.

Well, that's thing people do in real life, I'm not sure why in a story grounded in reality a character couldn't have such flaws ?

Hmmm. I don't know if I love the whole ~humans are flawed~ angle (read: making characters flawed with things like age gaps, cheating, smoking, rape, etc for the sake of "realism" instead of just giving characters more depth personality-wise) this is taking. I don't know if there's a more appropriate term for it (I feel like 'edgy' would be too harsh) but a lot of manga/anime are guilty of doing it without even making the characters 3-dimensional in the first place. I don't want to judge this manga so harshly so early into its run so hopefully I'm just jumping the gun here.

This . Probably one of my favorite comments of all time. Compelety what I feel , just by adding some drama or making characters terrible you don't make it 'deep' . I really don't like that but yeah its a bit early for this manga.

Well, that's thing people do in real life, I'm not sure why in a story grounded in reality a character couldn't have such flaws ?

I don't think a story having elements like cheating, age gaps, etc inherently make it more realistic, though. For example, I see people say stories about messy divorces are more "realistic" or "deep" than stories with happily ever afters when really, both occur in real life. It's just the vibes I'm getting from the first chapter with the focus on the smoke vapor, the ashes, and the whole grooming your friend's younger sister thing. It's too early to say for sure though.

last edited at Feb 7, 2021 10:51PM

I'm not sure battan's writing style is ideal with this kind of genre. Like they excel at writing intense, realistic, complicated emotions, that it makes this seem uncomfortably real. But I guess it remains to be seen how it will turn out

that's the point though. This situation would be uncomfortable if it was real. Battan's writing is perfect for what this is meant to be regardless of genre

I mean "realistically portrayed lesbian child predator" in the context of a yuri manga is something that can go a couple of ways. As I said, it remains to be seen how the story will go.

Holy shit... But, little random, but I like Kanda's room. Tiny, but with good ergonomy.

Holy shit... But, little random, but I like Kanda's room. Tiny, but with good ergonomy.

I like how that's what you focus on.

.

last edited at Nov 8, 2021 10:22PM

Here we go again

I was literally about to say that.

pain
so much pain

this gon be good, im in

pg 28, "you too" -> "you two"

"realistically portrayed lesbian child predator without being specifically attracted to children" is a good summary of this so far, since the attraction is apparently based on her similarity to her sister. Unfortunately, that's not really something I'm comfortable reading. I actually do like age gap stories, even some that society might frown on like high school junior/senior x adult office worker (so something like 17 to 25). Still, 14 is just too young in general and ESPECIALLY when the character is completely sexually naive and relying on the older party to provide the moral and social context for sexual acts. That's a huge 'yikes'.

I don't resent the manga for existing or being written, but it's just too far off the course from why I read manga for me to want to continue reading it. I read manga to vicariously experience thrilling love stories (generally), not to gain insight into the makings of criminal-level child predators.

Oof

Though honestly I would only really be onboard with this if it was smoker-san and the sis who got together (or got back together? Maybe they used to date).

Even if next chapter is a time skip, I'm not into "I want to date your sister but she has a boyf so I'll date the younger sister". Especially 14, jesus

I liked how it ended though, this'll be interesting

DON'T TREAT ME LIKE A CHILD
I HATE YOU
SOB

Can't even pretend she's a 'mature' 14yo.
Then again she says Kyouko hasn't replied in a month so maybe groomer-san realized that too.

Moar fluffy Battan feels.

Having sex does not make you an adult. At times I get very angry when such lies are spread. Only maturity makes you an adult.

Oh... I thought only adultery made you an adult...

Oh, it's Battan. I'm in. I think Battan is a gifted story-teller and artist.

I like the way they utilize the kid's pov well as the vehicle for readers to gauge the situation i.e the intensity of Kyouko's gaze into Kanda's face. It doesn't take a scientist to figure out Kanda's experiencing jealousy for the first time. LOL her sulking is cute.

I can't wait for how this all plays out especially the age gap angle. For sure, this one is gonna be super angsty like Run Away with Me, Girl.

Having sex does not make you an adult. At times I get very angry when such lies are spread. Only maturity makes you an adult.

Oh... I thought only adultery made you an adult...

badumtss

Probably doesn't need to be said but since everyone is already saying everything else, I'll just say it. This art is AMAZING. I'll have to give it a reread to see if it's as mind-bendingly awesome and symbolic as An Easy Introduction to Love Triangles, but it's real good. The way the cigarette smoke divides panels and shifts the way the viewer (and Ruri) see Kyouko.

I've really liked the way Battan does faces and definitely no skimping here. The eyes and lips are super expressive. For this one especially, I think lips are going to be a big source of symbolism. Kyouko gave Ruri lipstick, finds out the lipstick was given to Kyouko by Ruri's sister, "touching someone you love and being touched back is adulthood," then the kiss between Kyouko and Ruri. I'm sensing a "Kyouko's still a child" theme coming up.

Anyway, art good, love the character designs, use of empty space and contrasting hues is excellent, definitely subscribing to this one.

seems really obvious kyoko is her sisters ex girlfriend

Something like that is deeply implied from the blurp alone. The question is not whether they were in a relationship that fell apart, but what happened and how it affects what is happening now. It seems kinda obvious at the moment, that Kyouko is not looking at Ruri, but at her former lover's/crush's face (she is looking "beyond" Ruri, they look like twins, Ruri looks like her sister when she is upset - they laying it down thick).

Nacchan looked very upset seeing her gifts back at home, but it can be either because Kyouko did something to her, or because she did something to Kyouko that she doesn't want to be reminded of. Personally, I would even lean towards the second option, since it fits the author's previous work's theme and would make for a more, hmm, convoluted story to tell.

At this point very little can be said even about the setting, let alone where the story will go but I'm always willing to look at more of Battan's art and it shapes up to be an interesting read, so I'm in for the ride. I hope not to be disappointed.

And a lot of people are jumping at "Kyouko being attracted to/wanting to date Ruri", which doesn't seem to be the case. She only kissed her when she was in a very unstable state, pushed her away immediately, and dropped all contact right after. From what we've seen she was more indulging in memories of her past, using Ruri as a "real-life photo" of Nacchan, everything else happened in a moment, rather than due to a premeditated scheme. The "we are kinda like lovers" talk was kinda sus, but I will stay my judgment until we see what will happen next.

edit: looks like it's a single volume/3(?) chapters story, so I should probably temper my expectations as to the routes it will take, especially since this chapter's pace was very leisurely.

last edited at Feb 8, 2021 7:44AM

I literally hate this artist's stories
but the art is so pretty

last edited at Feb 8, 2021 8:13AM

Having sex does not make you an adult. At times I get very angry when such lies are spread. Only maturity makes you an adult.

Yeah, honestly, that seems like a thing predators tell teens to groom them. I was an adult before I had sex, and in high school I had a friend who had sex before she was an adult (freshman, dropped out after she got knocked up), finding an appropriate partner and adulthood don't always coincide.

Some age-gap doesn't necessarily bug me (The two of them are pretty much like that, is fine, college studentxworking adult is fine), but this is a middle schooler + clearly working adult woman.

I really hope it becomes obvious the adult (Kyouko) is only messing with Ruri to get back at her ex (giving those gifts, for example, hints at that), versus actually interested in, and frankly grooming, this child.