An Even More Beautiful Lie

Nothing else to really say, so I'll just jump right into it. Story: 5/10 The plot is rather cliche. Predictable, boy meets boy, there is an issue and one runs off in anger, issue is resolved, happily ever after. That being said, the plot isn't horrible, it does have it's sweet moments, and there are moments where it seems like another more developed plot is fighting to emerge, but never does. There are no really "heavy" scenes (which should be expected as this is rated 16+ not 18+). The ending is rather rushed, and the conflict resolved relatively quickly without much in the way of an explanationas to exactly how the resolution came about. Just in general, the plot wasn't very memorable at all. Art: 8/10 The art was perhaps the nicest thing about this manga. The lines are strong and dark and anatomy on the characters is generally done very well. The biggest problem I had with the art is that the consistency with the thickness of the lines and the darkness of the lines was a bit unpredictable. Character: 4/10 Although Yohito's backstory had some potential, the manga was really too short for that to develop and it seemed like it was pushed on the backburner completely. The drama with his father was almost an afterthought at an attempt to give the manga a story. Keiichiro's backstory, even less fortubately, was not mentioned at all. Yohito's shy and guarded personality (predictably) does a complete 180 at the end. All other characters (including Yohito's father) were just afterthoughts and were not developed at all. Enjoyment: 6/10 The good art cannot make up completely for the storyline (or lack thereof) so I find it difficult to rate it higher, unfortunately. After reading it once, it is one of the few manga I have not picked up again as there's nothing new to really "discover" plot-wise. Overall: 6/10 It's not bad, just forgettable. Characters are cliched and unmemorable, art is good, story is subpar. Overall, as much as it pains me, I can't really see any way to recommend buying this manga. Its a fairly fun (and short) read if you ever get the chance, but your money is better spent elsewhere. (If you're going to buy it.)