Either this manga badly needs the "comedy" tag, or I'm missing something

"I guess the horrible adult was me all along."

Reality hits you hard, bro.

This isn't an indictment of the manga, just a point of confusion: why write and draw a character identically to a child while making her canonically an adult? It's an odd decision when you could just say she's a kid. It's not illegal, AFAIK. It feels like the same kind of 'implausible deniability' as incest stories that insist they're only step-relatives. You're not really broadening the target audience, just losing a bit of the strength of writing you get from being open and confident about the "weird" aspects.

This isn't an indictment of the manga, just a point of confusion: why write and draw a character identically to a child while making her canonically an adult? It's an odd decision when you could just say she's a kid. It's not illegal, AFAIK. It feels like the same kind of 'implausible deniability' as incest stories that insist they're only step-relatives. You're not really broadening the target audience, just losing a bit of the strength of writing you get from being open and confident about the "weird" aspects.

There are real life cases of "older than they look", some adults are tiny and I've heard that when you're that small it can be easier, and even more affordable, to shop for clothes that fit from kids selections, especially shoes.

In terms of this story and fiction though, the gap between physical appearance and real age creates it's own novel situation, for lack of better wording. I remember there was a comedy series awhile back where the MC was in kindergarten but he looked like a full grown man so the police kept arresting him for stuff like hanging out with his friends lol

There are real life cases of "older than they look", some adults are tiny and I've heard that when you're that small it can be easier, and even more affordable, to shop for clothes that fit from kids selections, especially shoes.

In terms of this story and fiction though, the gap between physical appearance and real age creates it's own novel situation, for lack of better wording. I remember there was a comedy series awhile back where the MC was in kindergarten but he looked like a full grown man so the police kept arresting him for stuff like hanging out with his friends lol

I mean, in this case its more that her appearance and behavior DON’T differ, just her actual literal age from both . Its definitely a deliberate decision (if either was changed this literally just Wouldn’t be the same story anymore) but idk the exact reasoning - it being “plausible deniability” seems rather *im*plausible though given what other actual age difference comics are allowed to exist lmao

This isn't an indictment of the manga, just a point of confusion: why write and draw a character identically to a child while making her canonically an adult? It's an odd decision when you could just say she's a kid. It's not illegal, AFAIK. It feels like the same kind of 'implausible deniability' as incest stories that insist they're only step-relatives. You're not really broadening the target audience, just losing a bit of the strength of writing you get from being open and confident about the "weird" aspects.

There are real life cases of "older than they look", some adults are tiny and I've heard that when you're that small it can be easier, and even more affordable, to shop for clothes that fit from kids selections, especially shoes.

In terms of this story and fiction though, the gap between physical appearance and real age creates it's own novel situation, for lack of better wording. I remember there was a comedy series awhile back where the MC was in kindergarten but he looked like a full grown man so the police kept arresting him for stuff like hanging out with his friends lol

I think she means that in this case there is no gap, she looks and think like a kid and that it is a missed opportunity not to simply label it lolicon.
Although for me, this isn't trying to be gap moe, just moe and it's in fact lolicon, since that's more of an aesthetic than anything age related. It tries to be extremely ridiculous and that's the comical aspect (I assume) basically the gag is that there isn’t a gap

last edited at Apr 12, 2026 11:54PM

Either this manga badly needs the "comedy" tag, or I'm missing something

My exact thoughts while reading the latest chapter.

This isn't an indictment of the manga, just a point of confusion: why write and draw a character identically to a child while making her canonically an adult? It's an odd decision when you could just say she's a kid. It's not illegal, AFAIK. It feels like the same kind of 'implausible deniability' as incest stories that insist they're only step-relatives. You're not really broadening the target audience, just losing a bit of the strength of writing you get from being open and confident about the "weird" aspects.

There are real life cases of "older than they look", some adults are tiny and I've heard that when you're that small it can be easier, and even more affordable, to shop for clothes that fit from kids selections, especially shoes.

In terms of this story and fiction though, the gap between physical appearance and real age creates it's own novel situation, for lack of better wording. I remember there was a comedy series awhile back where the MC was in kindergarten but he looked like a full grown man so the police kept arresting him for stuff like hanging out with his friends lol

That is all true, although I would contend that this doesn’t really have the feel of an “older than they look” story. Sakura doesn’t read like a grown woman who looks childish, she reads like an actual child claiming to be older than they are. It’d be one thing if she was just a bit childish, but everything about her feels like they’re at the level of an actual child. Her mannerisms, her personality, her interests, her appearance, her overall knowledge, even the ways that she interacts with the other characters. Heck, the last two chapters focused on her not knowing where babies comes from, and the rest of the cast finding her innocence too charming to tell her the truth.

And don’t get me wrong, I think there could be potential in the idea that she actually does have a mind on par with that of child’s, while still trying to live an ordinary adult life. The problem is that there is no Indication that that is the author’s intent, and combined with all the other factors I listed above, it just makes it feel like the author wanted to create an oneeloli love story without having to deal with any of the less savory elements inherent to those types of stories. Which is fine, but it does kinda give these stories a “painted over” feel.

last edited at Apr 12, 2026 6:20PM

This isn't an indictment of the manga, just a point of confusion: why write and draw a character identically to a child while making her canonically an adult? It's an odd decision when you could just say she's a kid. It's not illegal, AFAIK. It feels like the same kind of 'implausible deniability' as incest stories that insist they're only step-relatives. You're not really broadening the target audience, just losing a bit of the strength of writing you get from being open and confident about the "weird" aspects.

There are real life cases of "older than they look", some adults are tiny and I've heard that when you're that small it can be easier, and even more affordable, to shop for clothes that fit from kids selections, especially shoes.

In terms of this story and fiction though, the gap between physical appearance and real age creates it's own novel situation, for lack of better wording. I remember there was a comedy series awhile back where the MC was in kindergarten but he looked like a full grown man so the police kept arresting him for stuff like hanging out with his friends lol

That is all true, although I would contend that this doesn’t really have the feel of an “older than they look” story. Sakura doesn’t read like a grown woman who looks childish, she reads like an actual child claiming to be older than they are. It’d be one thing if she was just a bit childish, but everything about her feels like they’re at the level of an actual child. Her mannerisms, her personality, her interests, her appearance, her overall knowledge, even the ways that she interacts with the other characters. Heck, the last two chapters focused on her not knowing where babies comes from, and the rest of the cast finding her innocence too charming to tell her the truth.

And don’t get me wrong, I think there could be potential in the idea that she actually does have a mind on par with that of child’s, while still trying to live an ordinary adult life. The problem is that there is no Indication that that is the author’s intent, and combined with all the other factors I listed above, it just makes it feel like the author wanted to create an oneeloli love story without having to deal with any of the less savory elements inherent to those types of stories. Which is fine, but it does kinda give these stories a “painted over” feel.

Yeah it feels like a big "the characters depicted are actually 21 disclaimer." There are middle school characters written with more maturity in manga and her standard clothing and physical mannerisms don't even pretend.

last edited at Apr 12, 2026 6:44PM

Or the author has a thing for really childish adults.

She is a very poorly raised adult.

This isn't an indictment of the manga, just a point of confusion: why write and draw a character identically to a child while making her canonically an adult? It's an odd decision when you could just say she's a kid. It's not illegal, AFAIK. It feels like the same kind of 'implausible deniability' as incest stories that insist they're only step-relatives. You're not really broadening the target audience, just losing a bit of the strength of writing you get from being open and confident about the "weird" aspects.

There are real life cases of "older than they look", some adults are tiny and I've heard that when you're that small it can be easier, and even more affordable, to shop for clothes that fit from kids selections, especially shoes.

In terms of this story and fiction though, the gap between physical appearance and real age creates it's own novel situation, for lack of better wording. I remember there was a comedy series awhile back where the MC was in kindergarten but he looked like a full grown man so the police kept arresting him for stuff like hanging out with his friends lol

I think she means that in this case there is no gap, she looks and think like a kid and that it is a missed opportunity not to simply label it lolicon.
Although for me, this isn't trying to be gap moe, just moe and it's in fact lolicon, since that's more of an aesthetic than anything age related. It tries to be extremely ridiculous and that's the comical aspect (I assume) like, Did you think you shouldn't judge her based on her childish appearance? well, actually she does think childishly

Yeah, that about summarizes what I was getting at originally. Unrelatedly, it was a pleasant surprise to be randomly gendered correctly on a site that IIRC doesn't have any way to check pronouns lol

what a confusing comic... how old is she?? why is she in the workplace?? its normal for the adults to fawn over her????
i like it. what a beautuful reality

I didn't know Makima is into short women but I like it so far.

"older than she looks" my ass, she acts and looks like a child, and with the age gap too, might as well just tag it with lolicon
pretty cute series tho, reminds me of the pandemic days

I think Sakura is 17?

Starting in media res without any intention to fill in the reader based on context clues is ... a choice.
At first I thought, "Oh, somebody just forgot the Sequel tag, I should read Saaya and Sakura first", but, uh, that's not the case.

And that's just one odd decision of many (though I shan't touch a certain other discussion here without NBC-level PPE). Not really my cup of tea, but fwiw, make and scanlate more weird stuff. More often than not I end up liking the bizarre more than the mainstream pleb feed, so keep it coming.

Now I’m sad T^T

last edited at Apr 14, 2026 12:59PM

Genuinely how old is this lost child

Genuinely how old is this lost child

In the other manga she's seventeen:

https://dynasty-scans.com/chapters/saaya_and_sakura_a_story_about_a_woman_whos_popular_because_of_her_hunky_personality_ending_up_like_this_with_her_first_actual_love#4

And now they're holding hands?

That will get her pregnant for sure!

I feel like she's been adopted by the yakuza, and kept sheltered from the world.

Saaya messing with her just to make her blush and do cute faces is quite adorable.

I feel like she's been adopted by the yakuza, and kept sheltered from the world.

Her parents divorced when she was a child, and virtually abandoned her after the split. She'd only had sporadic adult supervision for most of her life, despite having no other physical needs.

Reading the other version of this and suddenly I not only understand the lack of the "Comedy" tag but am fully objecting to the "Wholesome" tag because this is some crazy predator stuff here