Otomental

STORY: It's the basic “girl decides when she gets to high school she's going to get a boyfriend” shoujo cliché. The good thing is the manga is very entertaining because of this. There's not too much going on with the plot after Otome achieves her goal. Instead, she faces many hiccups in her new relationship: jealous petty girls, childhood best friends who realize their feelings, and a grandmother ugly enough (in my opinion) to raise the dead. CHARACTERS: I adored Tokio! You could describe him as a tad brighter Luffy if he were training for the yakuza. His highest aspiration is to take over the high schoolas the premier gang leader. For his interests being so dark-oriented, he's a lighthearted guy. I love his humor! Not to mention his hairstyles are so cute. I'm still upset the mangaka spat on his love development. I feel he only acted that way toward the end to force himself to move forward. He's my favorite character. I liked Otome! She wasn't an annoying character with SCS (Shoujo Crying Syndrome) and stood up for herself. Her reactions to everything and everyone in the manga have me rolling with laughter. Also, the story of her parents is both funny and sad! Concerning Misao, I need her to choke on a pretzel or a lobster... Then, get the Heimlich maneuver because no need for death! She is EVERYTHING I hate about cliché love rivals (that show up in romance stories 9 out of 10 times). She was Satomi's childhood friend (I don't even remember if Satomi claimed her as his) and felt entitled to his love. Of course, this meant she had to hate Otome's guts and try to beat her up often (so thankful Otome never took any of her junk). I never once felt sorry for her. All of her so-called love was superficial and self-conceived. Satomi was so flat. I liked that he wasn't the norm for a gang leader since he bruised easily, but after that, he had no substance. Unless you count his pretty face and the fact he loves birds (they love him too). I suppose he was a semi-tsundere. I saw him act like a jerk 90% of the time and never truly saw the 'dere' part. Yes, he did try to save Otome once and become 'a better man', but I never felt any type of desire for their love past the struggle for a first kiss. RELATIONSHIP: Maybe I am just salty but Satomi could have shown his love for Otome more. Their relationship felt severely one-sided at times. In contrast, I loved the relationship Tokio and Otome had in only a few chapters. Initially, I thought Satomi was so wishy-washy, that Otome's love interest might change. The ending proved who it wanted her to be with. ART: I liked the art style in this. I find it cute and the eyes aren't too big. I liked Otome's hairstyle though it might not look as good on an actual person. The outfits in this mangas are very fashionable too. OVERALL: Otomental was a fun read and I find it a great way to pass some time. I only rate it a seven due to it subjecting me to the trash that was Misao, flat Satomi, and for my disappointment with the ending. Still, it had a wonderful story, humor, and characters!