A review by absentminded_reader
Masukara Burūsu by Io Sakisaka

3.0

Another anthology collection for Sakisaka. Not since Adachi have I encountered a mangaka who has done so many one shots. They are the labratory that she experiments in.

The first story, Mascara Blue, was excellent. I enjoyed the whole concept and how it was executed. It was the first storyline of Sakisaka's older work that felt fresh. She would have been doing manga for about 5-6 years professionally at this point. Her sequential paneling is masterful, especially in this first story. It is worth hunting down online to see for yourself.

The second story was alright. It was more typical, and I don't recall much about it, to be honest. But it was skillfully rendered.

The last story was a big disappointment. This was another forbidden love themed story

Spoiler

(Think The Crying Game)

, but Sakisaka worked so hard to hide the surprise that the reveal felt jarring. Not shocking, but more like "What the heck?". I had to go back and reread the story before continuing because the reveal came so far out of left field for me that I thought that I had missed something. Like her kissing cousin story, the story ended with the forbidden love being accepted, but it felt very superficially handled, likely because it was wrapped up too quickly. Perhaps others would read the story and spot the surprise right off from the beginning. At any rate, I didn't like the story and felt it ended without truly resolving any real issues (like why the hairstylist was ok with the reveal), but the art had moments that were notable.