O Maidens in Your Savage Season

After watching the anime I just HAD to read the manga as it's well known that transitions from manga to anime is sometimes a rocky journey. Not so in this case as the author, Mari Okada, was heavily involved in both. Let me just say from the onset, Araburu Kisetsu no Otome-domo yo is not for the faint of heart. It deals with the risque topic of female sexuality and how young women see romantic relationships. This is not some fan servicey male fantasy, the author is female, her intensions far more complex. Its not about how men see women, but about how women see themselves.Her approach is fresh, authentic and sometimes too brutally honest for comfort. She softens the blows with outrageous humour and seemingly excessive hysteria. The manga feels like a sneak peak into the somewhat deranged mind of adolescent girl as all blood migrates from the brain and into other parts of the body. Somehow it felt nostalgic for me as I was reminded of the absolutely dumb things I did as a sexually awakening teenager. Totally embarrassing 😂 Okada-san treats all her characters with real affection, giving them a safe space in order to work out unfamiliar feelings and urges. You may be surprised to find that I found this manga and its characters wholesome. While some scenes are shocking, I never felt it was gratuitous. It felt like a wild roar from a tribe of savage maidens, exposing hypocrisy, destroying taboos and double standards, demanding people to see them as they are. Never once was promiscuity or 'ecchi' promoted, just an all too honest look at what makes women tick. Wise men will listen and takes notes. I'd like to think that young women would benefit from reading it, but I'm afraid it may be too real for comfort. It may best be appreciated by older women looking back nostalgically at something that was once a mystery to them. I felt Okada-san was very brave writing this manga and deserves 9/10