You who are gentle

"Yasashii Anata" is a sadly overlooked and grossly underrated gem of a love story. I have no idea why so few seem to have discovered it because it's a damn shame to miss out on it. If you like good stories, you really shouldn't. Perhaps its anonymity is because it's low key, it's mature, the art is of a more humble and simple kind--or perhaps it just drowns unnoticed in the flood of loud and flashy mainstream yaoi. Titles that rely solely on what they have to tell, have a hard time attracting attention when competing against aggressively marketed works by pop mangakas. Nishida Higashi isdefinitely no rookie in the business, but I guess her simplistic style makes her stuff kind of invisible amongst the colourful covers of the bestsellers. I just wish that more people would discover the hidden little diamonds that lurk in the background, and not just focus on the easy-chew stuff. Even if I'm delighted to see that the winds have been changing in recent years, giving room for a lot of fresh stuff and new reading experiences (not to mention fabulous art styles), the BL manga scene is still far too dominated by more or less superficial crowd-pleasers. (That also feed the tiresome and sad stereotypical portrayal of gay guys.) The best selling titles are mostly ones that lack in any true depth--light-weights that are designed for a quick and amusing read. On the other extreme, we have the explosive popularity of super dirty stuff. Don't get me wrong--I, too, read a lot of that type of BL. I don't hate it. (Most of it, anyway.) But I get tired of it really fast. I want variation. Some of the BL from recent years have both stories AND cuteness overload and/or smut--but it's still pretty rare to get it all in one package. (However, I've noticed that even the old long-running stereotypical series have begun to add a bit more serious themes. I'm overjoyed!) I'm a very picky reader, especially when it comes to my drug-of-choice-genre BL. When looking at my average ratings--I'm harsh in my judgments, to say the least. But all types of BL have their place in the assortment, and there are titles that I really appreciate, from all of them. When I want cutesy--I read cutesy. When I want smut--I go for smut. When I want storytelling--it's much harder to find. (Of course, there are many out there. Problem is--I've already read a considerable part of the ones available.) *** Very slight spoilers in the following parts of the review *** I recently stumbled over "Yasashii Anata" just by happenstance, when digging around for more BL with deeper stories. Based on the very sparse and generic info given on MAL, I didn't expect much, but I was SO wrong... After a pretty much paint-by-numbers take-off for a typical yakuza-BL, it developed into something entirely unexpected and became one of my all-time favourites. The plot isn't really anything of great magnitude and complexity--on the contrary, it's a pretty simple and clear-cut one. The theme and angle isn't really anything that hasn't been done before. However, what's different about this one, is how it gets to you. This has to be one of the most heartfelt love stories I have ever read. So low-key, yet so filled with emotion. Even if the setting and plot have bearing for the development of the story, the core here lies in the feelings and relationship between these two men, and how well the mangaka manages to portray that. You get it all; the initial magnetic attraction, the butterflies in your stomach when crushing on someone, overwhelming passion, and profound love. For a single volume story, it's pretty rare that you really get to know the characters this well, which IMO is proof of the talent of Nishida as a storyteller. She weaves in little stuff that makes you feel that the characters are real people, living real lives. Like how she uses something as unusual as a song as the very frame and spine of the story, or them sending cell phone pictures of the sky to each other. Those little things that just about anyone who has been in love, can relate to. She's also rather good at using the art as a plot device instead of just illustration. Aside from the fact that I think she has a very good feeling for constructing panels that tell whole stories by themselves, I really like her art style from an aesthetic point of view. I appreciate mangakas from many different styles, but you can't really go wrong with this clean, classic and uncomplicated art. It's realistic, tidy and pleasing to the eye. Nothing exceptional, just timeless and well drawn. What's more compelling to me, is the before mentioned talent for creating interesting panels and contents that give additional depth to the characters' personalities and feelings, the situations and the story progress. "A picture tells a thousand words", right? That is--if you do it right. Really good comic art shouldn't necessarily need any dialogue or text at all, to get the point across. I draw myself, so I pay a lot of attention to the art in the comics I read. A lot of the time, it's not very interesting from an artistic POV, no matter how skilled the artist is at actual drawing. There are pictures that accompany the dialogue. Period. The kind of art that gives you the gist; "oh, he/she's sad because his/her expression is sad", or; "they're interested in each other because they're blushing and glancing at each other", step-by-step progress that actually just drags stuff out and takes up valuable page space and so on. Planning a smart storyboard isn't that easy, but one would expect that a professional comic artist should master that... There's also the kind where it DOES tell a lot, but too obviously so--making it in-your-face. I'd much rather discover and interpret things myself. That makes for a much more interesting read. Then there are some mangakas, that have that knack for actual comic art--who don't need to plaster flowers, bubbles, and dreamy haze all over the pages in order to make the reader understand what the character is feeling. As for the characters--well, the guys are endearing and I really like them, but for me, their relationship dynamics are more important than their personalities. And this is EXACTLY what I want. These are two normal (well... except for their "profession", perhaps...) men who are equal and treat each other with respect. They are manly, they are built similarly--pretty much like most men are, they look like most men do. Good looking, but pretty normal. Pretty much like MEN in general are. So in other words--they are like GAY men in general are. There is none of that exhausting seme-uke trope crap (and by that I mean the stereotypical molds and roles, not the actual sexual positions) and that's soooo nice. The number of mangas that portray these realistic gay guys and real relationships are increasing in the genre, thank god. There is room for all kinds of personalities and relationship dynamics in BL, just as there is in real life, but when unhealthy, unequal and more or less degrading/abusive roles and clichés are a norm and standard in the genre--that's something that should be considered to be seriously disturbing. But these two guys are the exact opposite of that, and the way they are two people on equal footing in their relationship--should be an inspiration to all other BL-mangakas. (I wish...) I also appreciate how Nishida put in a quite real, but seldom explored issue that sometimes arises in life--how do you solve the problem if both are fixed on set sexual roles and reluctant to change? Actually, most gay guys I've known are versatile regarding batting positions, but obviously not everyone. So what happens when you get two people who prefer the same role? If it's just casual sex, it should be easy--just say "sorry, no thanks" and find someone more suitable. But if there's love involved, the matter is trickier. Solution; if you really love someone, then it's not such a big deal to adapt to the situation. In real life, that is. In BL it's more or less always a given who's a no-exception-bottom and -top. Period. No discussion, no hesitation, apparently it's just "obvious". There is no chance in hell that the set top would ever bend over for his BF. (That goes for 99 % of BL mangas). In the few stories where the issue even arises, it almost always turns into some kind of supposedly "funny" scene where one party is begging--only to be ridiculed. If someone is 100 % hell-bent on one position or the other, that's just fine--but please, ffs, all authors out there--at least in some way show that it's something that both parties involved are content, and in agreement with. Don't just treat it like it should be a given, based on looks, personality or demeanor. In this story, the set sexual roles the characters previously had had--becomes a tool to further depict their feelings for one another--that in the end, love (and mutual desire) proved to be of greater importance than who gets to be on top. "Yasashii Anata" isn't THE best BL work I've ever read, but it does rank very high for me because it got to me emotionally. The story of these two men engages me and touches me. My 10´s are reserved for very few works (although, I'd like to point out that I grade a work by the intention of the story. If it's smut, it's smut--if the intent is "porn", then it doesn't necessarily need any story at all--and can still be worth a 10--from the perspective of what the point of the work is meant to be. If it's meant to be porn and it's good porn--then it can be a 10. If the point is to tell a real story, then it needs to be a good story in order to deserve a 10) but I have no problem grading this work with an overall 9. I don't really have a single thing to complain about and the only reason I don't give it a 10, is because it would have been even better if it had had, say, two volumes--so that the plot could develop even slower and creep even deeper into your heart. I have absolutely no idea how the rating can be as low as 7,29 (as of the moment I'm writing this) when there is pop crap that scores close to 9. Absolutely incomprehensible. This story is low-key, pretty uncomplicated and in terms of plot--not very exceptional. But it's still one of the most engaging and touching love stories I have read in BL--and very, very beautiful in all its simplicity. If to compare it with other works and mangakas, the works of Hidaka Shoko comes to mind--the same type of gently and lovingly told tales, with the same type of soft and graceful art. So... if you are looking for something a little bit more mature (yet still crazy sweet), this might be something for you.