Don't Call Me Daddy

Read “Don’t Call Me Daddy” as both a sequel/prequel to another work (“Don’t Call Me Dirty”), and for Pride Month. Was as good as “Dirty”, I think, after considering some differences that balance out. I think “Daddy” has more emotional weight and satisfaction, while “Dirty” is able to impart its message and themes better. In this entry, we follow an older pairing that were supporting characters in Dirty. These two men were / are the guardians of Shouji, the main protag of Dirty, and there’s an angst of unrequited love and waiting decades for resolution. I think since we already knew who they were from thefirst story and have more context, it made it easier as a reader to connect emotionally; I was already invested by this time. While the themes were not as heavily explored as in Dirty with not judging people so shallowly, here a message could be made that it is never too late. Never too late to reconnect, to understand or make a change, or to find love. And with the older gentlemen, not only is it unique and refreshing not witnessing yet another romance during the springtime of youth, it also lands some solid hits to the feels. Another solid 8/10. I’d recommend, and go so far to say that readers would not have to read “Don’t Call Me Dirty” first, if not inclined. I feel both stand alone pretty well.