Bitter Virgin

“If this were a nightmare, then this is the part when I would open my eyes.” Life. It can be cruel and even when it's not it will tests you. Sometimes to see how far you can go before you break, or even after that. That’s how it is for characters in this story. This manga shines light into things that happen more often than not to women and their families but that we don’t think about until it happens to someone we love. In case you’re wondering, it doesn’t just deal with a girl’s story into overcoming rape and pregnancy. It throws into a whirlwind everythingyou believed to be true, to be fair. You see the life of people you love crumble in front of you while you're defenseless to stop it. It’s about moving on and forgiving. And for some characters, it’s even about controlling your psychotic tendencies (you know who you are). Daisuke is your average guy who helps out in his mom in her restaurant. He wants nothing more than to get into a far away university and never look back just like his sister did. In the mean time he’ll study for his exam and go out with as many girls as he can. He goes through more girls than people change socks which makes him a little bit of a player. But there is one girl not even he will touch and he’s not sure why. Maybe because she cringes whenever any guy even looks her way. Aikawa Hinako. A delivery job and a stalker girl later he finds himself hiding out in a church. While he’s leaving Aikawa walks in and on the presumption that he is a priest on the other side of that thin wall she confesses, everything. Rape, abortion and a baby, how can one girl who’s barely lived been through so much. Through Daisuke’s eyes we get to see Aikawa, really see her. The way she acts, talks and smiles. Hides her pain from the world. We start to care for at the same time Daisuke does. Slowly she crawls into his heart and he starts to view the world differently and care for someone besides himself. Wants to protect her. He becomes more mature right before our eyes. Though the manga would have been from Aikawa’s point of view but instead we get Daisuke‘s. Which turns out to be a good thing. She is actually a well rounded character and doesn’t easily drown in her own misfortunes like some people would. But she is also very human about what happens to her and doesn’t just swipe it under the rug. While reading some scenes I found myself getting angry at Aikawa’s life. The way she was treated by people who were suppose to protect her from harm and believe her above all else. Anyone else. We also get rare glimpses into most of the characters mind. We experience them as people and see them for who they are, evil or not. Whether a role of villain or sidekick, it is played well. So well that sometimes it leaves you wondering how that person will react or what they’ll do. Every chapter is a cliffhanger in Bitter Virgin. It get’s a little frustrating but it’s nothing that takes away from the story, much. Had the art been bubbly and perfect, I don’t think it would have gone well with the story. As it is, it just emphasis the raw feeling the manga gives. The not everything is beautiful and imperfection has it’s gloriousness feel. The expression sometimes weren’t the best, one scene reminded me of Liar Game, which would have been enough to make me drop the manga but the story was too absorbing to just drop there. The characters have this haunted look that help relate them to what’s going on. As a result it gets an 8 in art. After all that’s said and done what makes this manga truly rare and priceless is that most of it is based events that happened to Kusunoki Tei, the author. Tei, went through something similar and I won’t tell you what part it is, you just have to read it to find out.

I have to admit, I've only just started reading this manga, and this is my first review. A manga like this, with such a taboo plot, doesn't usually hit this close to home. Not to me, but with my very dear childhood friend. This is captured perfectly, the step-father's attempts, the mother thinking the child is lying, then when the mother was backed into a corner, she had no choice but to kick him out and beg for forgiveness. Some of us have gone through things that happened in this manga, some can relate on another level, (for me it's the fear of men I have becauseI knew a molester like a neighboor, and my friend's brave struggles.) or just you want to see things from a new point of view. This stories struggles with a strong and brave heroine, who faces her fears every day no matter what, and the people who grow to care about her. This is a truly amazing manga.

Bitter Virgin is a really compelling Shoujo/Seinen, Slice of Life, Romance, Drama with a story that will blow you away. This manga deals with the terrible sorrows in life, so it’s definitely not for the fainthearted. Daisuke Suwa is just your ordinary teenage boy who has been living a simple life but doesn’t enjoy it one bit. Then he soon becomes involved with his classmate Hinako Aikawa, after unintentionally learning about her deep dark secret. The story really gets serious, right from the start, which is pretty uncommon for your average romance. Though what intrigues me the most about the story is the bittersweet relationship thateventually developed between Daisuke and Hinako and how Daisuke was always troubled by what he knows about Hinako. Sure the fact that Daisuke, constantly worries about the issue with Hinako, does get wearisome after a while; the new situations that crop up become further compelling parts of the story (like the matter with Daisuke’s sister). The characters of this manga generally cause a great deal of concern to those who read it. The story focuses on our two main characters; Daisuke a regular guy who ends up smitten over someone he would never consider and our heroine Hinako a girl who’s suffered a traumatic past. It’s really great how this manga gave an equal amount of focus on each of them, describing their thoughts and feelings when appropriate. Then there are other girls to consider (Kazuki & Yuzu), as they each make a huge impact on the overall romance, whilst another character makes an impact on the story. Although when it comes to the artwork, it really doesn’t have much of an impact on this manga. Sure the characters look great and so does the backgrounds but there’s really nothing special about it, as you can easily find a bunch of shoujo manga that look just as great. Overall Bitter Virgin is one of those tragic stories that will make you well-up with tears, but will still allow you to recover, with its endearing romance. Well there were a few annoying aspects about it, like the fairly unrealistic characters and how Daisuke kept on repeating the fact that she was ****ed and got ******nt. But apart from that, this was a good romance drama that can suck most people in. This mangaka managed to accomplish in 4 volumes what most manage to do in twice the amount and it had a decent ending to top it all off. ^_^

Bitter Virgin is a short, four-volume manga about a girl with a secret and the boy who learns of it. STORY - …Bitter Virgin isn’t actually about a bitter virgin. Quite the opposite, actually? To be honest, the shock value and tragedy of Aikawa’s secret faded relatively quickly for me (probably because of one too many episodes of Law and Order: SVU). The subject matter also reminded me a lot of those in Mondaiteiki Sakuhinshu (brought overseas as Confidential Confessions). Consequently, the story premise and flow felt rather typical and predictable in that romance drama sort of way. Nevertheless, Bitter Virgin is well told, andthere are enough surprising little twists and interesting literary elements to keep a reader engaged and guessing. It has all of the things that keep the romance genre going strong, despite the shared basic plot. What I found most interesting though, was the fact that, as the series progresses, the themes explored gradually shift from one type of tragedy to another, and eventually, it connected the two as interesting foils. The further into it I got, the less typical things felt. The emotional aspect of Bitter Virgin is very strong, particularly since Kei Kusunoki admits between chapters that she drew a lot of elements and inspiration from her own life and experiences. The story, while idealistic at times, still comes across as very heartfelt and sincere. Kusunoki also admits that her usual work is of the horror and comedic sort, and that this is her first romance, making it even more impressive. CHARACTER - Like the story, both protagonists come off fairly typical at the beginning. Aikawa is a meek and quiet girl, and Suwa is a headstrong and impulsive boy. And yet, I warmed up to both of them very quickly. Both have an endearingly earnest quality to them that makes them likable, and no matter how many times these character archetypes are used, as long as they’re well-written and well-presented, they will work. Both characters also grow a great deal in the short four volumes, and they become truly multi-faceted. For example, Aikawa is noted to be terrified of men, but shows a lot of unexpected courage and resilience when faced with female tormentors. Her feelings for Suwa develop very gradually throughout the series, and Kusunoki is careful to make her thoughts and emotions at least somewhat believable. Similarly, Suwa’s initial interest in Aikawa is fraught with pity rather than any real kind of attraction; the progression is interesting to follow, and the lengths to which he feels he needs to go to remain appropriate to Aikawa are also rather admirable. The supporting cast is also very strong, which I didn’t have expected at all. Suwa’s elder sister, in particular, in addition to being surprisingly headstrong and impulsive like her brother, becomes a startlingly significant role that contributes a great deal to the themes in the latter half of the story. Her presence contributes a unique perspective and forces those around her to consider many things in a difference light. Yuzu and Kazuki, Suwa’s classmates and respectively, his childhood friend and sudden girlfriend, are more predictable in their personalities, feelings, and eventual maturation, but both provide good support and drama and work well to round out the cast. Honestly, I didn’t find any of the characters particular irritating, which is a huge and thankful plus. ART - Even though the marketed genre is seinen, the series’ art is pretty standard josei. It’s clean, elegant, and pleasing to the eye, but of a more mature aesthetic than typical shoujo — proportions are more realistic and there are less tonal flourishes like sparkles and bubbles, though they aren’t completely absent. I didn’t think much of it initially, but the style really grew on me as I progressed through the story. Kei Kusunoki is fantastic at depicting the emotions of her characters, which is unsurprising for the genre, but considering that she usually works in other genres, it might be a bit more notable. The art really helps heighten the sense of drama and suspense in many scenes, though the panel layouts are occasionally haphazard and confusing, especially when the gutter space is inconsistent or cramped. Because of the emphasis on emotions, there are a lot of close-ups and headshots, and backgrounds are lacking on many of the pages. Even the backgrounds that are present are contained within tiny panels, and yet, there is never any confusion as to where the characters are located, so I guess it works out well enough in the end. OVERALL - Bitter Virgin is a good, quick read, and I would recommend it to anyone looking for a serious and emotional story. The characters are sincere and their relationships are sweet, if a little idealized. The story’s themes become less shocking and more meaningful and powerful as the series progresses. That the author drew a lot of inspiration from her own life experiences also helps tremendously in relaying the strong emotions the characters experience, so the package is very much worth the time. Sadly, Bitter Virgin hasn’t been licensed for release in the US or elsewhere overseas, but honestly, I think it could do pretty well anywhere. It’s a pretty universal story.