ssung's review
5.0
WHY. IS THIS BOOK. NOT COMING OUT. IN PRINT. WHY.
edit, June 2018: Well, what do you know. Kodansha gave it to us in print. I love you Kodansha! And I love the gambles you're making on the digital only debuts, too (I looovveee Kounodori and I wish that got the print edition too, but it's a hard sell, I think)
edit, June 2018: Well, what do you know. Kodansha gave it to us in print. I love you Kodansha! And I love the gambles you're making on the digital only debuts, too (I looovveee Kounodori and I wish that got the print edition too, but it's a hard sell, I think)
beorn_101's review
2.0
*Update I am finished the series, it was ok, but not great. Way to much emphasis on giving douche bag men a pass for being dicks.
I absolutely adored Princess Jellyfish, and I loved parts of this series, but it is no where near as good, or concise a story as Jellyfish. If you are debating between the two do yourself a favor and just read Princess Jellyfish. *
I started reading this series because I adored Princess Jellyfish. I quickly discovered this is a VERY different style story.
In many ways, Tokyo Tarareba Girls feels less hopeful, at least so far. It isn't about slowly finding place in the world, but rather feeling like the world and life is passing by you.
Core themes of this first volume include sadness over still being single in your 30s, and depression over spending every night with friends instead of with a significant other. This made me cringe a LOT, as I think the two things are not mutually exclusive. I also feel like it seems like the main characters wish they had settled on men they weren't in love with, as that is better then being alone, despite great female friends....
I appreciated that Higashimura ended the volume discussing how this didn't reflect her personal views, but rather was a depiction of experiences with convos she and her friends had, had, but didn't necessarily deeply believe.
The art style is great and feels like Princess Jellyfish, and I ma intrigued by some of the characters, but currently there is a real lack of people that I truly like in the story. I am hoping that as I read further this will change for the better.
I absolutely adored Princess Jellyfish, and I loved parts of this series, but it is no where near as good, or concise a story as Jellyfish. If you are debating between the two do yourself a favor and just read Princess Jellyfish. *
I started reading this series because I adored Princess Jellyfish. I quickly discovered this is a VERY different style story.
In many ways, Tokyo Tarareba Girls feels less hopeful, at least so far. It isn't about slowly finding place in the world, but rather feeling like the world and life is passing by you.
Core themes of this first volume include sadness over still being single in your 30s, and depression over spending every night with friends instead of with a significant other. This made me cringe a LOT, as I think the two things are not mutually exclusive. I also feel like it seems like the main characters wish they had settled on men they weren't in love with, as that is better then being alone, despite great female friends....
I appreciated that Higashimura ended the volume discussing how this didn't reflect her personal views, but rather was a depiction of experiences with convos she and her friends had, had, but didn't necessarily deeply believe.
The art style is great and feels like Princess Jellyfish, and I ma intrigued by some of the characters, but currently there is a real lack of people that I truly like in the story. I am hoping that as I read further this will change for the better.
denaiir's review
2.0
I tried this out because I loved that author's previous series Princess Jellyfish, however I'm not really enjoying this one so far. It's about a group of women in their 30's who make al the wrong choices and somewaht start freaking out that their lifes aren't going in the right direction. It could be funny except that the women are all quite annoying, and that I just kind of started rooting for them to fail. I hope this goes somewhere more fun, otherwise I will give up on that one soon.
rorycb's review against another edition
3.0
Blurbs on the book compares it to Bridget Jones's Diary and Sex in the City, and it almost literally is that with a Shojo Manga filter, something that a character in the book actually points out. The fixation of finding a husband seems strangely out of date for a story line, even with the book being set in 2014. I'm probably coming at this from the wrong point of view to be fair, and it's probably more of a Japanese societal expectation, though I guess it's still be a concern for western women. Like I said, what do I know?
The art is great, and the renderings of the characters, male and female, is lovely, and reminds me of Terry Moore's Stranger's in Paradise.
I feel I've been a harsh in my appraisal of this manga, because I enjoyed it well enough. It is telling though that the author's note about the creation, seems to address a few of my reservations about the story. Maybe there should have been a character more like her in there.
The art is great, and the renderings of the characters, male and female, is lovely, and reminds me of Terry Moore's Stranger's in Paradise.
I feel I've been a harsh in my appraisal of this manga, because I enjoyed it well enough. It is telling though that the author's note about the creation, seems to address a few of my reservations about the story. Maybe there should have been a character more like her in there.
yomellamojess's review
2.0
No me ha convencido del todo, no sé si seguir con la historia. No es una historia mala, pero a veces se me hace repetitiva y algo predecible.
El arte es muy bonito, está cuidado, pero las portadas no me gustan nada, aunque reflejan la esencia de la historia.
Tengo dudas y me da pena porque creía que podía empatizar con las protagonistas.
El arte es muy bonito, está cuidado, pero las portadas no me gustan nada, aunque reflejan la esencia de la historia.
Tengo dudas y me da pena porque creía que podía empatizar con las protagonistas.
madimoss's review
3.0
I LOVED the “Princess Jellyfish” manga and even enjoy the “Blank Canvas” collections, this one took me quite a while to get into. I enjoyed it, but my expectations were set really high.
I will be continuing the series though, just didn’t have enough time to really feel attached to any of the characters yet. I would’ve given it a 3.5/5 but there aren’t any half stars in this system.
I will be continuing the series though, just didn’t have enough time to really feel attached to any of the characters yet. I would’ve given it a 3.5/5 but there aren’t any half stars in this system.
gr_ace_'s review against another edition
emotional
funny
reflective
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
mehsi's review
1.0
I received this book from Netgalley in exchange of an honest review.
Wow, this was just so shitty that I wish I hadn't laid my eyes on it. I adore Akiko Higashimura's other manga: Princess Jellyfish (I should really get the rest of the volumes as I am super behind). I was kind of hoping that this one would be just as fun, just as wow. I was delighted when I spotted it on Netgalley as I have been hoping to read it for some time now.
Sorry if this review is a bit chaotic, I am really raging and fuming about all the crap. :|
However this was just the worst. Rinko? Terrible terrible character. All she and her friends do is drink through the night, complain about all the things (mostly men and sometimes work), make fun of things, whine, whine and whine. Oh and drink. Drink until fucking oblivion when Rinko sees talking food. Then again, maybe she doesn't necessarily need to be drunk for that, instead just be herself. That talking stuff was really not helping the terribleness of the manga.
And whine she does. Oh boohoo, I need to find a husband, because it is totally not normal to be 30 and single/not married. /sarcasm *rolls her eyes* But instead of actually doing an effort to find a cute guy she constantly drinks (funnily, apparently her friends have various forms of alarms, it is that the author added that the manga as clarification, otherwise I would have thought that there was only the fourth alarm until about 113 pages in when we finally get another alarm kind, but which also means drink drink drink until death). And no, I am not against drinking, but every night? Just because you had a shitty day? Which is apparently all of the days given that I don't really get a clear image on how the days go by. Alcoholism ahoy?
I am sure if she actually did a bit of an effort, maybe went to other places than karaoke or the pub, and maybe act a little less over the top dumb (and drunk), she could easily find a good guy. She is strong-willed, looks cute/nice, is smart. I know that there is a Rinko there, under all the stupidity and idiocy, who is a good girl, and who could easily get a ton of cute guys. And maybe she should gain some confidence because she bases her No one wants me on two guys and oh yes, that one party she went to. Girl, please, do you really think that you will find your dream guy that fast? There are tons of fish in the ocean, and unless you have actually tried more of them I don't want to hear you whine about it. Plus she keeps going on and on about how she can't find a guy. Gee, did you even try?
There is one time that they actually make an effort, but I will give you one guess on what happened. *snorts*
Then there is Key. An asshole. Truly. He instantly judges the ladies when he comes across them in the bar, calls them names, and also makes some very judgemental opinions known. Not to mention that when Rinko has to add him to the tv show she wrote, he acts like a total jackass. Telling her that her writing is boring. Sure, he does show he cares... somewhere... but sorry, I just wouldn't want him and Rinko getting together.
Then there is that time the girls called all Japanese men pedo, especially hinting at Hayasaka-san falling for someone who is a fucking adult, but 12/13 years younger than him. What the actual hell? And they keep going on and on about it. Such hypocrisy, because I know for sure that if they had a chance? They would take it with a 19 year old guy.
Oh, and who the hell buys a 500 euro dress. o.0 I am sure guys are also happy with cheaper clothes, they probably won't even notice. :P
But the art was pretty fabulous, so at least this wasn't a total loss. Too bad about the rest though.
I am not going to read this series further. Bah. I need some werewolf romance to get rid of the bad taste this one left.
Review first posted at https://twirlingbookprincess.com/
Wow, this was just so shitty that I wish I hadn't laid my eyes on it. I adore Akiko Higashimura's other manga: Princess Jellyfish (I should really get the rest of the volumes as I am super behind). I was kind of hoping that this one would be just as fun, just as wow. I was delighted when I spotted it on Netgalley as I have been hoping to read it for some time now.
Sorry if this review is a bit chaotic, I am really raging and fuming about all the crap. :|
However this was just the worst. Rinko? Terrible terrible character. All she and her friends do is drink through the night, complain about all the things (mostly men and sometimes work), make fun of things, whine, whine and whine. Oh and drink. Drink until fucking oblivion when Rinko sees talking food. Then again, maybe she doesn't necessarily need to be drunk for that, instead just be herself. That talking stuff was really not helping the terribleness of the manga.
And whine she does. Oh boohoo, I need to find a husband, because it is totally not normal to be 30 and single/not married. /sarcasm *rolls her eyes* But instead of actually doing an effort to find a cute guy she constantly drinks (funnily, apparently her friends have various forms of alarms, it is that the author added that the manga as clarification, otherwise I would have thought that there was only the fourth alarm until about 113 pages in when we finally get another alarm kind, but which also means drink drink drink until death). And no, I am not against drinking, but every night? Just because you had a shitty day? Which is apparently all of the days given that I don't really get a clear image on how the days go by. Alcoholism ahoy?
I am sure if she actually did a bit of an effort, maybe went to other places than karaoke or the pub, and maybe act a little less over the top dumb (and drunk), she could easily find a good guy. She is strong-willed, looks cute/nice, is smart. I know that there is a Rinko there, under all the stupidity and idiocy, who is a good girl, and who could easily get a ton of cute guys. And maybe she should gain some confidence because she bases her No one wants me on two guys and oh yes, that one party she went to. Girl, please, do you really think that you will find your dream guy that fast? There are tons of fish in the ocean, and unless you have actually tried more of them I don't want to hear you whine about it. Plus she keeps going on and on about how she can't find a guy. Gee, did you even try?
There is one time that they actually make an effort, but I will give you one guess on what happened. *snorts*
Then there is Key. An asshole. Truly. He instantly judges the ladies when he comes across them in the bar, calls them names, and also makes some very judgemental opinions known. Not to mention that when Rinko has to add him to the tv show she wrote, he acts like a total jackass. Telling her that her writing is boring. Sure, he does show he cares... somewhere... but sorry, I just wouldn't want him and Rinko getting together.
Then there is that time the girls called all Japanese men pedo, especially hinting at Hayasaka-san falling for someone who is a fucking adult, but 12/13 years younger than him. What the actual hell? And they keep going on and on about it. Such hypocrisy, because I know for sure that if they had a chance? They would take it with a 19 year old guy.
Spoiler
And lo and behold, Rinko went for it with Key... but I am sure she won't be calling herself a pedo, oh no.Oh, and who the hell buys a 500 euro dress. o.0 I am sure guys are also happy with cheaper clothes, they probably won't even notice. :P
But the art was pretty fabulous, so at least this wasn't a total loss. Too bad about the rest though.
I am not going to read this series further. Bah. I need some werewolf romance to get rid of the bad taste this one left.
Review first posted at https://twirlingbookprincess.com/
toritoot's review
5.0
I've made it a general rule for myself not to review individual volumes of manga/manwha series, because I just don't have the time or emotional strength for that, but I felt like I had something worthwhile to say about this book, so I'm writing a review for it.
I watched the Jdrama remake of this story sometime last year (before ever reading this book) and found it both enjoyable and frustrating. The leads made many poor decisions in respect to their love lives, and it got quite repetitive at one point. But despite finding myself wanting to bang my head against a wall a few times, I did still oddly enjoy getting a peak into these three women's friendship and love lives. I liked them in spite of themselves.
This book ended up being so much more of an enjoyable read than I expected after having watched the drama. I don't know if it's due to the difference between the written word and the television screen, but the story felt so much more Real and the characters were so much less annoying and frustrating. I sympathized them in the drama series, but I think I actually Connected with them in this book. Obviously, this is just volume 1, so there's plenty of time for the story and characters to devolve into something more akin to what the drama was for me. And if that happens, I won't be too disappointed, because I did enjoy the drama, after all. But if this volume is any indication of what the rest of the series is going to be like, then I'm really excited to read it.
I watched the Jdrama remake of this story sometime last year (before ever reading this book) and found it both enjoyable and frustrating. The leads made many poor decisions in respect to their love lives, and it got quite repetitive at one point. But despite finding myself wanting to bang my head against a wall a few times, I did still oddly enjoy getting a peak into these three women's friendship and love lives. I liked them in spite of themselves.
This book ended up being so much more of an enjoyable read than I expected after having watched the drama. I don't know if it's due to the difference between the written word and the television screen, but the story felt so much more Real and the characters were so much less annoying and frustrating. I sympathized them in the drama series, but I think I actually Connected with them in this book. Obviously, this is just volume 1, so there's plenty of time for the story and characters to devolve into something more akin to what the drama was for me. And if that happens, I won't be too disappointed, because I did enjoy the drama, after all. But if this volume is any indication of what the rest of the series is going to be like, then I'm really excited to read it.