Ctrl + F'd the doujin page, and just based on that not including images, Alice x Marisa has slightly more representation. They are very close though, 154 vs 145.

It's pretty sad how Alice has fallen to the wayside in canon, when before it seemed like she was a more special character and had more relevance. I liked her a lot as a character, but I guess Zun didn't have more to add for her.

Damn this is really slow burn. I'm worried cause it keeps wavering between subtext and more explicit moments, but it's really sweet. I mean it's pretty generic in some ways, but that's managed to not bother me overall cause the character interactions are cute. This plot though, I swear I've seen this type of plot a hundred times already, especially in these serial-release, webcomic formats. Looking forward to seeing how it turns out.

Edit: I went to look up what the title meant, and found the chinese translation (我的世界不需要王子), which matches up with the google translation of the japanese title, and is quite gay. It's not what I was expecting, but immediately frames the story a certain way.

Also after a bit more thought, I realized even though the plot points on paper are basic, sooo basic (two sides who hate each other for no other reason than class differences, story tension from conflict/resolution of those matters, typical holidays as plot drivers for bonding), it's just still carried through quite smoothly. There's little choices and results that are just a tiny bit different from what you might expect/hope for that add some uncertainty to how things will end up. Characters, despite being in a large cast, are never forgotten (as far as I can recall) which adds to their presence and believability. So in summary I'm conflicted about the plot but loving it anyway.

last edited at May 9, 2020 7:53PM

This was wonderful. Nothing can top this masterpiece.

Though I can't agree that Yu's actions are "beneficial to the world", or at least it isn't as clean cut as that, and I felt Nagisa's event shows that pretty well, by recklessly targetting anyone who could be considered "bad", you leave a lot collateral damage, because those "bad" people are still important to someone...

That's the point in my eyes, is that caring about these "bad" people and about the impact their absence could leave on others, is completely typical of humans and social animals. It's a moral standard that we create/have based on our natures as social beings. Attachment, as I believe you are describing, has biological underpinnings, is by in large helpful, but when those attachments start to cause more harm to us than good, they start seeming downright irrational.

And Yuu is free of that moral standard. She is free of those attachments. She can see the world in black and white, uncomplicated by any other irrational attachments. In that world, other people are just bodies, who once dead, are masses of organs and flesh to be disposed of. The only justification for their continued existence is if they are "good". Therefore the "bad" must be eliminated. So how could Yuu have known their deaths could hurt others? They were bad people, and that'd be irrational to care about bad people. Just look at her conversation with Inui to see how clueless she is of why Inui would care so much about Shou being killed.

It's not the most ground-breaking fucked up motivation that exists, but I found the way Yuu embodies it brilliant. If we all thought the way she did, then we'd think it was beneficial to the world. That it's the only way to live. Of course humans don't actually operate like that, which is why everybody else gives her a wide berth. And that's why I say it could be considered beneficial, not that it necessarily is, but it is thought provoking nonetheless.

last edited at May 8, 2020 8:11PM

Hmm, it's a little hard for me to think Fuyo's completely neurotypical.

I re-read it once, upon which the story made more sense as my brain didn't process that Kei was a waitress the first read. Still curious about the first page. Is Fuyo dressed up as a judge in it? Not sure what judges look like in Japan. That looks like a gavel, and the hat looks like a graduation hat to an American, but I know its roots are of scholarly origin so maybe judges wear it too. It seems that the first page is of Kei being "judged" by Fuyo, but it is a little weird because it doesn't fit in with the water motif.

last edited at May 8, 2020 7:51PM

Finally someone who comes out and states what so many people don't sem to get. "I want to stay friends" does NOT mean "I don't love you, now get out of my life because you make me feel uncomfortable." No, it means "I freaking want to stay friends, wtf did you think I said?!"

Exactly! This was handled perfectly!

It's a little surprising this seems to be out of the ordinary as it's what I would expect from most reasonable, mature people who are friends.

@BV Well this is a fanwork so not sure about it explaining the labels another fanwork gave them lol.

There is a spinoff about how Mami and Kyoko met before the main series. Their senpai/kouhai relationship does end with them getting into a fight and Kyoko leaving the city, so it could be interpreted as them being "ex-GFs", just like how some people see Mifuyu and Yachiyo as ex-girlfriends.

I took a break from reading this the moment it updated, came back, and am now happy again with the most recent chapters.

last edited at May 7, 2020 12:29PM

I just watched it, and that was a feels trip all the way, from start to finish. Way more brutal than Beachside Bonds which at least had a fair amount of cute moments.

The link between the two events was pretty awesome though, seeing Yu's "development". What on earth was up with her magical girl outfit though, like some sort of fucked up harlequin. I really loved the idea behind her character, another character with a morally grey motive who does terrible things that could be considered beneficial to the world, but by normal human standards is morally reprehensible.

Also riverFlow I've found a YouTube video that has the English version of the Nagisa's Wish event in case you are interested in viewing it.

Oh no, I already got emotionally wrecked by this event, time to do it again even more brutally. XD Thanks for the link.

Event story has now been resolved, and I thought it was awesome. I'm missing some of the tie-ins with Nagisa's event, in terms of having personally experienced it, but I got filled in somewhat and it helped explain some parts of Yuu's story.

Blood sugar levels rising. I do wish though that the more personal meaning behind Ren's colored pencils could have been honored too.

I figured out the title was a ship name pun, but it still didn't make any sense to me. Karen doesn't mean anything in this series, so seems random.

Some details I liked. I've been looking through the wiki's page on Ren, so immediately obvious the first panel was from the memoria "Awake, but the Dream Continues". Another memoria reference on page 18 to "This is the Fragrance of Love". The plot also mirrors how the "The Diary I Wrote With You" event went, like Rika searching out Ren to make up with her and Rika calling Ren while they're only separated by a door. Main difference is that this time Rika bursts inside, which is a nice inversion of what happens during the event. This author did their research and/or are a big RikaRen fan which I appreciate a lot! Because of the use of canon content, it has a strong alternate universe feel to it.

Which leads me to my next thoughts, namely that I did like the story a lot, it's heart-wrenching, but I'm torn on whether I can see this as being in-character for them. Rika's thought process is very canon; this is exactly how she thought after she first made her wish. But I wonder if she would really be this cruel to Ren. She did decide to take things into her own hands with her childhood friend, by breaking things off, for that girl's supposed best interests, so makes sense she could do the same with Ren. I think I like to see her as a kinder person than that though. Would like to think that she's grown since she made her wish, since her time with Ren.

Either way, this Rika seems like a valid possibility too, and it was a lovingly made story, so I can only give props to the author.

Misc. appreciations: Rika thinking that Ren had the capacity to commit suicide, so of course she could be decisive; the dedication to drawing Hinano's sleeves and even paying enough attention to detail to show them bunched up when her hands are exposed (pg 21); uniform attention to detail; and finally, what magical girl story wouldn't be complete with a hearty reminder to believe in miracles.

last edited at May 6, 2020 9:28PM

Oh nooooo, this hit all the right twisted, tragic ending feels.

Oh noooo, classic misunderstanding/wrong timing. At least it's going somewhere though.

Page 29 killed me.

It's based on a true story. It's possible they never got back together.

Where does it say that it's based on a true story?

I usually dislike open-ended conclusions, but this one made sense. Well, besides the "still hung up on girl after three years" part ticked me off somewhat. This is a sweet story and the realism injected just in the simple details of going to a nursing school and becoming nurses was nice.

I liked this work overall, but the ending was too cruel for me to actually like it. It's nice how both characters accept their respective defeats, just the one-sided love juxtaposed with what that seems to say about Oshimi's self worth and flaws is too bitter.

Well how else is she going to make sure about her sexuality? It's not like everyone is born perfectly knowing it. That's why people experiment during their youth. I see it perfectly reasonable, especially after getting dumped and being at her lowest point, that she would go for something drastic, without really thinking it through, in the heat of the moment.

I didn't describe what I meant perfectly well, but I meant it less in the sense that the character is doing something to be sure about some aspect of themselves, and more that the author has them do something to showcase for the readers that this character is gay or that the relationship they're agonizing about is the true, destined one for them. I just think storywise there's other ways of going about conveying the same end messages of "Nanako and Yuri are meant for each other and will choose each other" + "Nanako is gay and that's okay".

I strongly dislike the "lesbian/bisexual female has to try sleeping with a guy to be sure about sexuality and/or rightness of a relationship" plot event. Like it makes for good drama, but I'm not so sure about the realism behind that. It seems particularly common in manga too. And when the author's notes clearly state she made this after seeing a couple on TV, so no personal experience or close gay friends, well that furthers the disconnect.

To be fair this was published almost two decades ago though so I'll give a pass for that, seeing how different times were then.

But this leaves a sour taste in my mouth nonetheless.

Loving Shamiko's character development from weak, living on 40,000 yen/month demon girl to the new confident boss who can do some awesome things with dream sludge cleaning.

She isn't actually confident though. She boasts and puts up a strong facade, the same way she did in the early chapters, only now she can get away with it, because her allies make up for her weaknesses.
You can tell her constant self-doubt. She still has a lot of growing to do.

I wouldn't make too much of a distinction between the two, putting up a facade vs truly believing in it inherently. In cases like this at least. For somebody who has no confidence to even have moments of believing in themselves or their actions, I think that's big.

Aw, cute take on gacha games.

I binge read the thirty or so chapters that came out recently in two days, and they're so good. Lot of story development, plot hasn't moved along as much as it could have in terms of main Dark Clan / Light Clan stuff, but pieces of it are there. It sort of seems there's still a lot of new elements being introduced.

Loving Shamiko's character development from weak, living on 40,000 yen/month demon girl to the new confident boss who can do some awesome things with dream sludge cleaning.

The goldfish really is inexperienced, choosing a Dark Clan person to try and persuade. Although, it's possible Ryo isn't part of the Dark Clan. At the very least, cat Sakura said something like Shamiko took on her sister's curse too.

Also, is this really still subtext? Shamiko and Momo have been doing some very suspiciously in-love things for each other...

I think I'm slowly coming to agree with Blastaar's hypothesis.

For the record, I'm 100% with White Rose's hypothesis.

To wit: that these two have been lovers since the moment Kasumi agreed to share a bed with Sakurako (that is, chapter one) and that their relationship is fucking blatantly obvious to the Japanese fans.

I think that, if you went to Japan and said that American readers claim there's no conclusive evidence that the two MCs are lovers, you'd get some really funny looks.

The "Yes, yes, Americans are crazy. I mean, look at how they're handling Corona-chan! There's no doubt, they're bonkers!" kind of looks.

But that's just my humble opinion, of course.

Wait does anybody actually call it Corona-chan there or is that part of the joke. XD

I read that hypothesis a while ago so perhaps it's been updated, but I also agree. That whatever their relationship status is explicitly, they are clearly meant to be in love. And perhaps the form of their love also looks different from how it is conventionally presented.

last edited at Apr 17, 2020 8:05PM

I got scoffed at for saying that Adachi is like a dog and Shimamura is like a cat. How can you not see Shima as a cat?? She's all aloof and indifferent at first, and then sort of vaguely starts closing the distance until one day she's there acting all tsuntsun while asking for head pats lol

I see the analogy. I mean Adachi has already been explicitly associated with a dog now and Shima is doing the vaguely closing distance part now. Maybe once we see her becoming that attached to Adachi, the analogy can be confirmed or disconfirmed lol.

Thanks by the way for the translation work! I imagine that part takes forever with light novels.

Damn this was a beautiful chapter. I wonder when the last time Shima thought this much and hard was or if she ever has. Her lack of words to express how she feels about Gon paired with the fleeting thoughts of Adachi, and her belief in her lack of kindness, her turmoil was striking given her usually indifferent demeanor. I'm very excited for what comes next in their relationship.

Also Yashiro seducing Shou, scandalous. Nice touch too showing Shima's actions with the call in the bonus chapter.