Boys Next Door Reviews

Rating: ♦♦

Aside from having one of the longest and hottest masturbation scenes that I’ve ever seen in a manga, I don’t have much to get excited about in this release. Don’t get me wrong, the sex scenes were graphic and all kinds of lovely. However, when I find myself skipping pages of plot to get to the smut, there’s something wrong.

My main issue is that the writing and the pacing are confusing. I had a hard time figuring out which character is which, what they were doing and, most importantly, why they were doing it. I don’t think that it was a translation issue. I think that part of the manga was crap to begin with.

There’s Chiga, who’s confused as to why his judo partner, Kokusai, is elected class president. Kokusai doesn’t seem to be popular–except for random stalkers and pervs on trains–or to have the qualities that would make a good class president. Even more surprising is that Kokusai picks Chiga as his running mate.

It’s obvious that Kokusai is unsuited to his position and that Chiga’s only role will be to keep Kokusai out of trouble. Of course, they’re going to end up in bed after this set up. It’s just a matter of convincing Chiga that he really wants what Kokusai has to offer.

I guess it’s not really a bad release; I just couldn’t find much about it that I really liked. Well, aside from that really hot masturbation scene.

Rating: ♦♦♦

Maybe I’m just not in the mood for sweetness, light and a happy ending this week. Normally, I’m a huge fan of Takanaga. Hell, I’m still pissed off at Drama Queen for the fact that they dropped the ball and we won’t be seeing the masterful The Tyrant Who Fell in Love.

While having some of the insanity that I’ve come to know and love from Takanaga, this one just didn’t pack an emotional punch. Still, a mediocre release from her is better than some of the stuff that gets released over here. I should be counting my blessings.

This is a sequel to You Will Fall in Love and features big brother Reiichiro and his search for love. After losing what he thought was the love of his life to his little brother, I think the poor guy is deserving of some love and affection.

Enter Jinna, an employee at the kimono shop that Reiichiro is now managing. Jinna isn’t too thrilled with Reichiro’s lack of management skills and tact. So, he decides to school Reiichiro in the arts of management, customer service and sweaty hot boysex.

It’s cute, sweet and up to BLU’s normal quality standards, but it just didn’t make me want to sing its praises. I think I may come back to this one when I’m in more of a fluffy romance kind of mood.

Rating: ♦♦♦

I had forgotten just how insane this series is. Between the illicit teacher/student relationship, cross dressing, magical youth and pirate treasure, it’s sometimes hard to follow. It’s worth it if you’re able to keep up, but be prepared to go between laughing hysterically and being utterly and totally confused.

We start off with Haruk and Tokio, who are just trying to steal some time away from the noisy and interfering Nakagami clan, to take their relationship to the next level. Of course, their plans are thwarted. This time, it’s their cousin coming for a visit that separates the lovebirds.

Hibari, heads up the cosmetics division of the Nakagami group and, having failed to secure Tokio’s father for his experiments, he’s set his sights on Tokio. It’s going to take all the talents of the Nakagamis, as well as Haruka’s love, to get out of this mess.

I’ve been waiting a long time for this release and am so happy to return to this form of insanity. I’m just hoping that I won’t have to wait for too long to get another volume from this artist!

Rating: ♦♦♦♦

Even a so-so Naono Bohra release is a damned sight better than a lot of the crap that gets released over here. Is this one of my favorites by her? No. However, I’m just happy that we have something by her over here.

For those of you who are not familiar with the awesomeness that is Naono Bohra, one of her trademarks is pairing an older man with a younger, making it work and making it hot as hell. The art is graphic without being over the top and the faces are expressive. Normally, she’s the master of angst, but this release doesn’t showcase her mastery of breaking your heart.

Norito is an average student, except for the fact that he attracts demons and the demons attack anyone who gets close to him. Leaving Norito to be a fairly lonely individual. One night, Norito comes in contact with Koma, a dog/wolf yokai (demon), who claims to be Norito’s protector due to a promise they made in Norito’s past life. He also claims to be hopelessly devoted to Norito. This is something that Norito tries to fight as he’s confused about this turn of events and would really like to be liked for who he is now–not who he was in a previous existence.

Koma’s got a way of working under Norito’s skin until the two of them find that they can’t be apart. Of course, this happiness can’t last. An evil from the past comes to fulfil a vow he made, and erase all existence of Koma.

This is a gorgeous release. There’s very little I can find to be picky about and, normally, I pick all of Media Blasters’ releases apart with a fine tooth comb. Run out and get this one. Then maybe we’ll be able to get more of her stuff released over here!