I’ve always been a fool for teacher/student relationship stories, and when I read the summary of this one, decided to read it at once. When I began, the first thing that got my attention was the art style: Ougi-sensei has a very “free hand” style, as if the pens she used to draw were somehow floating over the paper, giving the illustrations a very fluid fashion; her landscapes are very detailed, while the other scenes may get a little bit sketchy sometimes.
The plot goes from light hearted moments, to dramatic and sad situations, dealing with stuff like bullying, loneliness and abandonment. The most striking part for me was the bullying, because I didn’t expect that such a topic would be treated due to the light note with which the plot started at the beginning; despite that, I think that the mangaka got it right, confronting the subject with seriousness and consideration.
To sum up, this is a great, solid story, and I absolutely recommend it.

I must confess that I read this manga just because I learned that the mangaka was none other than Yana Toboso (under another pen name), and me, being a mega fan of all kuroshitsuji related things, couldn’t help but see what this was all about. I must say that the first time I watched the cover; it didn’t appeal much to me, because most of the time I don’t like to read manga that has very girly ukes. Once I overcame the initial doubts, I really got into the stories: they have good love scenes, nothing very hard core; the plots are very easy to follow (some are kind of predictable), the characters are funny, as most of their situations, and each story (with the clear exception of Ma Cherie), is linked to the others through their characters. I think the only story that doesn’t fit with the cheery vibe of the book is Ma Cherie, which goes into a darker, more twisted plot; but maybe that is why that is my favorite story.
Wrapping up, I think it’s a manga worth reading to have a good time.

I came to read this story while my obsession with butlers was at full steam. The art was the first thing that caught my attention, with well drawn characters which is a must for enjoying the story in the most extensive way. The first story is my favorite, because it deals with a very tsundere uke, and a quiet but cool seme; the second one is about an emotional uke with a strange allergic reaction towards women, and a dual personality seme that changes in the blink of an eye.
The nature of the characters is very well defined, even when at times they may be a bit cliché. One of the main features of Amagi Reno’s mangas is that the story is solely centered in the dynamics between the focal couple, so the other characters (if there are any at all) don’t add much to the major development of the plot. I love the fact that both of the plots presented in this volume are easy to follow, with a good amount of funny moments, making this an extremely enjoyable reading.

This work from Yamato Nase-sensei (my favorite mangaka) is a clear example of her awesome style: sweet, funny and light-hearted. The plot is a simple “loves me, loves me not” story where we see Kunihara-sensei, who is the classic seme in denial, and Kakei, an innocent high school boy with a heavy crush on his teacher. The dynamics between them in the classroom are as realistic as you can get: the shifty eyes when the teacher looks at you, the lack of words when he asks you a question, the blush that appears on your face when he is standing close to you.
Unlike Yamato-sensei’s other works, in this manga we get the chance to catch a glimpse of the story from the seme’s point of view, making us his accomplices through the whole ordeal where Kunihara’s attitude towards Kakei is what gives the plot its foundation, trying to lead him into saying what he wants to hear.
In the end this is a lovely, light and enjoyable reading that will surely leave you with a smile.

Takuhai Cupid is a compilation of many stories, where we get a glimpse of the “romantic comedy with a fantasy twist” that is often characteristic of CJ Michalski’s works. The biggest difference that can be observed is that this time there is not a single shota story in the whole volume.
Through this volume one gets to see: two couples brought together thanks to heavenly mistakes (with heavy emphasis on the “heavenly” part), a gun that shots love beams (and no, there’s no relation with Sailor Venus whatsoever), a classic fairytale told in a completely yaoi style, an ice cream based love that is anything but cold, and a vagabond that is not exactly who he seems to be.
All of the stories have a light-hearted feeling mixed with sexiness, with the remarkable exception of the fourth tale where the drama takes the spotlight and even when all is resolved in a good way, the reader may be left with an uneasy feeling thanks to all the angst told through it.

This manga brings to mind how unreliable our own memories may possibly be. We see a couple that met long ago, a situation that Rin recalls but that in his memory is not related at all with his teacher, Takamura. The mangaka shows us a relationship that begins with blurred recollections, continues through a sexual liaison, develops with jealousy feelings, and consolidates thanks to the mutual understanding of what each member of the couple expects from the other one. The main source of estrangement and conflicts between the two characters is the lack of confidence that goes along with the inexperience of the first love.
Regarding the art, Takaku-sensei has a very fluid style, where every factor depicted seems to be frozen in the middle of a movement, giving the impression that at any moment said motion will resume gracefully.
Taken as a whole, this is a manga that gives you insight about how two persons deal with what love is all about.

This manga is one of my favorites art-wise by far, mainly because the contours of all the elements (whether characters or objects) are clearly defined. Everything is portrayed with clean lines, without abusing the application of textures and tones, which contribute to give every story a certain freshness one don’t find often in other works.
Regarding the main story, it shows love blossoming between an English teacher and his student in a very gentle way, both liking each other and Noah being the one that makes the first move. No story in this volume deals with too much angst, I think that Yamada-sensei depicts human emotions in its simplest forms, showing that it is not necessary to have many characters to narrate a good, solid tale. Each character has a very real feeling, as if it was someone you could stumble upon on the street, essentially as the mangaka doesn’t resort to unreal elements to describe their personalities.

Being this the third installment of the series, at first I had my doubts about how this one could measure up to the standards that the other two got me accustomed to, but after reading it, I wasn’t disappointed at all.
This work is another prove of how a great mangaka can keep the comedic elements going through a long story without them being dull or slow. This volume still deals with Hans and the Colonel’s story; yet most of the chapters introduce us other couples, both with old characters (like Commander Kingston and Miller), as well as with new ones. Their stories show us topics like getting out of the routine to revive love, changing to be a better person in the eyes of a loved one, falling in love with someone you shouldn’t, and finding time among duties on behalf of love.
As in the other volumes this one has lots of very intense love-making scenes, cute misunderstandings and hot guys in astounding uniforms.

Concerning this manga, I think it is even more entertaining and filled with funny moments than the first one. We meet again with Colonel Rosenberg and Hans, recently married, but the main characters yield the spotlight for others to present other situations. First we meet Kurt, the Colonel’s little brother, who is as selfish and prideful as him. Despite that, I think that his motives for being in the army make him somehow childish, innocent and insecure.
On the second story, we get to see the Colonel’s elder twin (who turns out to be his ‘evil twin’, somehow). This chapter deals in a light note with subjects as envy between siblings, and dealing with the differences that come to the surface once the dust of passion starts to settle down. The third chapter continues with this story; since there’s a ceasefire, the enemy tries to bully them another way, but the whole army ends up falling in love with someone from the other side. When Commander Kingston (from the rival army) gets love struck from the moment he watches the Colonel and makes his move to conquer him, it’s time for Hans to show him some manners. This one is by far my favorite part of this manga, because we get to see another side of Hans.
Chapter four shows the tortuous love story of another of Colonel Rosenberg’s subordinate, and the young Japanese soldier who finds the meaning of love with him. Chapter five is somehow an extra, which deals with Miller and his duties as the secretary of defense.
The final two chapters continue the story of Kurt and Heize, now that Kurt finally is a high ranking official; and show us the background story of how these two characters met each other.
As I said, I think this sequel is by far better than the first one, at least in what concerns comedy. Plot-wise, is not as structured as the first one, but still enjoyable and worth reading.

This manga is awesome! It was the first one I read from the great Mizukami-sensei. At first glance, I used to overlook his works when I saw them, mainly because the art from the front page just wasn't my cup of tea. After a while, I decided to give it a chance, and I must say that I was surprised with the contents.
About the main story, I absolutely love the characters. The Colonel is the one I like the most, because he is very extravagant, hot-headed, and selfish, yet he is very stupid, and has a forceful way of showing Hans he cares. I cannot help but wonder how someone as childish and dim-witted as him could get to the position of power he has in the military… But I don’t complain, because this just adds to the comedy content.
The secondary characters add to the plot (even if I think this plot is mainly focused on the violent love of the Colonel), Miller the most of all. He is kind of the Colonel’s assistant, but he acts as if he was his mother sometimes, always reprehending him when he doesn’t do his job, which is the case 99% of the time.
Over all, this is a fun story, filled with a good share of love scenes and a little bit of angst added to the mix.