Syundei

If you like the first volume, here's more of the same. Except the sweet and pleasant crush seems a little more stalker-y and creepy at times, especially with a running gag about sniffing gym clothes. Otherwise its all comfortable fluff and tropes like love triangles, accidentally getting locked up together, or a nighttime bravery challenge in a supposedly haunted area of the school.

If a third volume ever comes along I will need it to do something about wrapping up the series or finally advancing the plot.… (más)

After hearing the buzz about Syundei's short graphic novel, 'Go For it, Nakamura!' I was offered the information (without asking) that I shouldn't read Syundei, as she had written really 'disgusting' books before.

Obviously, I pinpointed which book she had written was so 'disgusting' and ordered it on the spot. Total Eclipse is a short ghost story, a pulpy horror, and an uncomfortable gay romance. I like all of those things, personally. I would absolutely not recommend this book if you're not a horror fan or already a manga reader, since there's a bit of an access bar there.

If you are, Syundei draws in a Takahasi-reminiscent 1980s manga style that is just fantastically nostalgic and beautiful. The expressions are entrancing, the character designs are deceptively sweet; if well-done gore is a plus for you, there's a couple of good instances. If you like your romance to make you feel sick, then you are going to love this little thing.

What I don't like is that it should have been longer. The length of Total Eclipse says 'classic ghost story,' with some Turn of the Screw or Fall of the House of Usher vibes, but the author (in my opinion) tried to pack just a little too much plot, character development, and plot twists into that short story. I wish this was a three volume series; it isn't. It goes a little too fast for it to become a gristly, feel-bad favorite, but it is the kind of unique pick that I like to keep in display on my shelf, just in case someone needs a really, really good conversation piece and is willing to let me talk about the history of artistic homoeroticism. It doesn't have quite enough length to carry its weight, but on the other hand, neither does the average Twilight Zone episode.

I was to emphasize that this is a good book for horror fans and likely a bad book for romance fans. It came wrapped in that shrink wrap they used to put explicit manga in, so that was a blast to the past.… (más)