Waruiko no Mikata

Waruiko no Mikata is a collection of 4 short stories revolving around love and attraction. I’ll start out first by saying that judging this manga based off the descriptions under the ‘synopsis’ section would be a huge mistake. The descriptions do not do the depth of the story justice, nor do they give a completely accurate portrayal of some of the stories. With that being said, hopefully my review will give you a better idea of why this is a great manga that you should read. I’ll discuss the plot and characters separately for each story but I will talk about the art in relationto the entire manga. 1. Waruiko no Mikata (8/10) This is an interesting story about Yuuko Asakura’s desire to become more intimate with her boyfriend Ryouji Matsuda. This story focuses less on falling in love and more on how to deal with your attraction once you are in a relationship. Both characters work well together and their chemistry made me laugh more than once. Yuuko’s desire to become more intimate with her boyfriend was oddly refreshing, especially since (in typical manga) even mentioning sex to a girl her age would make them completely lose it with embarrassment. I gave it an 8 because some of the situations the characters get in aren’t super realistic, especially when you consider the fact that they are both 15. These unrealistic settings are fairly easy to ignore because the manga is so amusing. If you don’t mind intimacy with someone you love as a central topic for a one-shot, then I definitely suggest you read this chapter. 2. Kono Otoko de Ii no ka? (9/10) In this story, Rin Sakuma is excited about visiting Tomohiro-senpai’s house because she thinks it will further their relationship. While there, she runs into his brother Kazumi and he takes an interest in her. Honestly, this story surprised me. Usually stories that involve love triangles don’t turn out well, but the author had the characters handle the situation with grace. All of the characters have distinct personalities and they all play off of each other well. I really love Rin as a character because she doesn’t let herself get pushed around. I gave it a 9/10 because Kazumi only talks to Rin for about 10 seconds before he starts liking her, but that may not bother anyone else. 3. Citrus Sweat (10/10) Don’t be fooled by the moderately weird title – this (in my opinion) is the best story in the entire series. Citrus Sweat is about Toku Erimi, a girl who goes to a party with her friends so she can try to score a boyfriend. While there, she gets stuck with Kageyama Shinichi and demands that he introduce her to a cute guy from his school to make up for taking her time during the party. The story has such a cute premise and the pacing is strong but steady. The characters are what make this story shine. There is so much character development in such a short time from both Toku and Kageyama that it’s almost unbelievable. I don’t want to say anymore because I might give some important plot points away, but even if you don’t want to read any of the other stories, you should definitely give this one a chance. 4. Zutto Kimi no Oujisama (8/10) The story starts with Natsuki acknowledging that she likes one of the most popular guys in her class. Her childhood friend, Keito, doesn’t like him at all and tries to convince her to give up. This story is probably the shortest and weakest when compared to the rest. It’s very short and kind of jumps around a little bit. The characters were nice but they didn’t stand out too much. I gave it an 8 because of the incredibly cute ending and the fact that none of the characters were annoying or stupid. I would suggest reading it just to finish out the series, but don’t expect anything mindblowing. Art for the Whole Manga (9/10) The art for the manga was very pretty, but also incredibly bold. There isn't a lot of ‘gray’ areas - the whole manga is filled with very vivid black and white lines. All of the characters were cute and the males were pretty dreamy. What I really like about the art is that the author draws all the characters differently to match their personalities. I gave it a 9 because some of the drawings of the eyes when they were supposed to be surprised looked crazy and out of place. Other than that the art was perfect. Even if one story doesn't suit your taste, I recommend trying all of them because they all have something different to offer to the reader. These stories are completely adorable and while I was reading them I was smiling (or laughing) the entire time. I tried to review it critically for anyone who looks for those things but if you are a casual manga reader DEFINITELY read this series because you’ll most likely enjoy it very much!