I Am Here!

This story, while it does have the annoying stereotypical "shy girl", is very touching and absolutely lovely! Story: (9) The story is very realistic and one that many people can relate to. It's not too complicated or complex, but is very interesting and encouraging for people who have the same problem. While a few parts are a bit exaggerated (Especially when she's practically invisable, even shy people aren't that unnoticed!), most of the story is very touching and realistic. Art: (9) The art was pretty good! Although in some parts I found some characters to be a little too similar, even to the point I wasn't sure whoit was until their name was said somewhere in the dialogue. The backgrounds are simple and keep the focus on the most important part: the characters. The characters were also pretty great! Nearly everyone was appealing to the eye and very handsome/pretty! Character: (8) I think this is almost the lowest point in the manga because of the stereotipycalness, if that's even a word. The main characters were pretty much: The shy girl who wants to become stronger and more confident (Hikage), the kind top student who is also very athletic (Hinata), and the handsome and popular boy who is actually very lonely and hides his kindness behind straightfoward and honest words (Teru). While those type of people really DO exist in real life, it's been over-used in so many manga and anime that I find it sort of annoying. The only reason I gave it an 8 was because of my irritation. But this is a very short manga so I can't expect excellent characterization. The way the relationships developed, however, was quite nice :) Enjoyment: (9) I really enjoyed this series! Not only because of how realistic it is, but because I could relate to it. I went through the same thing and did nothing, and I regret that. I live in a different place now, and because of what happened before became quite the out-going, straightforward girl... The story really touched me and made me want to go back in time and act as Hikage did :) Overall: (9) Lovely story, realistic (Yet somewhat stereotypical) characters, good art, and something that gives shy/loners a bit of hope. It's a good story, especially for the small amount of chapters it had! If you're looking for a good entertaining, yet short, series to read I'd recommend this one! :)

This manga is absolutely stunning. It is, in my opinion, extremely realistic overall, but there is also a slight hint of classic shoujo--shy girl, no friends, afraid to talk to everyone--and instead finds joy in her online friends who comment on her blog, Black Rabbit and MegaPIG. No doubt, Koko ni Iru yo is one of the most encouraging manga I have ever read. Even if it is just a manga, it, at least for me, gave me courage and lifted my spirits highly. ^^ Art: Such pretty artwork! In my opinion it was above average of most shoujo. The official color pages were colored amazingly andthe characters were very nice. And of course, the guys were total bishies. I've got to admit, I'm a big art freak--I usually can't read a manga with below average art. But I've got to say this mangaka's drawings are the best I've seen in a very long time. Characters: I think the main character, Hikage, was extremely well developed. She starts out as an anti-social person who just wants to fit in and gradually, with the encouragement of her online friends MegaPIG and Black Rabbit, she does. It doesn't happen automatically like in some manga, Hikage trying to fit in actually takes time and I thought that was great. The other two main side characters, Hinata and Teru, I also thought were very nicely portrayed. ^^ I love them both and honestly, it's really hard to hate any character. Enjoyment: I tried to stay up all night reading this but unfortunately I wasn't allowed to, heh~. I was so into Koko ni Iru Yo that I spent all my free time at school reading it. Because GOSH it's addicting. Most chapters left me hanging off my seat and wanting more. Story: VERY sweet. I can't even describe the cuteness of this manga~. It's good all the way up to it's last chapter and in my opinion it was the perfect length. It didn't drag, and yet it wasn't too short either. I was personally very pleased with the final pairing, and I know some might think otherwise, but for me the person who she ends up with made this manga very unique. ^^ This storyline is definitely at the top of my list. Overall: This manga will always be one of my favorites. Koko ni Iru yo made me smile the entire way through and was just amazing. You won't regret reading it, it's definitely one to pick up if you have time and a must-read. Don't judge a manga by it's cover, especially not this one. Ema Tooyama did a wonderful job on this series and everything turned out beyond my expectations.

There's something to be said about school dramas. In my opinion, a school drama must be connected to the real for the most part-- anything that is supposed to be imitating, and not mocking, reality should be connected to the real. Reality, where things are not black and white, requires that an author look at their characters and make judgments based on the characters they meet on a day to day basis. That's why I can't give this a good review. I just can't. Story: 2/10 I give this a 2 because this type of story is dry and uninteresting. A shy girl needs to pick between twoboys... that kind of thing is used everywhere. As a plot, I guess I could understand, a school romance could be said to be like this. however, when you look at the real, lonely characters don't often get this sort of lucky chance that the girl in this story gets. And maybe I'm just biased, after reading so many of these sort of tales, but the fact that there are so many of these has proven that this approach is old and tired. A good author can take something that's old and weave from it something new... I feel like nothing new has come out of this story. I can't give this more than a two... it isn't on par with other stories of it's nature. Art: 10/10 This manga is aesthetically pleasing. I think that this fact can draw in many, many readers. If you think the art is cute, you might think that the characters too are cute so on and so forth. Character: There are a couple of characters that I don't really like. Firstly, Sumino herself is kind of a faulty character in my opinion. I think that in an effort to make the reader feel bad for her, the author chose to make her pitiful. It's just not real... Even the shiest of people get angry, angrier than she ever does. Furthermore, her ascent into the sunlight did not seem like it took very long or took very much effort on her part. For someone who has the background her character had, I feel like it should've taken longer for her to be able to talk with other people in her class naturally. Truthfully, throughout the entire series she is ever growing, but I feel like that transformation takes longer. The bully, Ayu, is also kind of out of the real. She's not really cunning, but can make an entire school believe her with a few words. I actually don't like this about a lot of manga of this general ilk-- the bully character riles an entire school on the unsuspecting heroine, and she feels smothered. Truly, it can't be so. Because of how people are, not everyone will blindly follow a bully where she leads. Enjoyment: 5/10 I know that some people enjoyed this series... and for the most part, I can agree that it's alright. But I don't really enjoy the story that doesn't add anything to this age old formula: girl is alone, girl meets boy, boy has friends/enemies who also loves girl, girl must choose, girl is bullied for boy liking her, blah blah. As long as the story is interesting, I can keep reading in suspense. But I'm not really getting that feeling of mystery here. The only thing that is mysterious is we don't know what guy Sumino will pick. That's it. In my opinion, that's not really interesting. If she's going to come from the shadows into the light, why can't we learn more about her hardships? Why is the only mystery 'Which will Sumino choose?' Why isn't there like, 'How does Sumino deal with trouble between the friends she has who are girls?' or 'how will Sumino deal with a classmate who has been put into her previous position?' I mean, there's so much that could have been done, and nothing was done in this story. And so, I am forced to say that overall, I give this story... Overall: 5/10