Otomen

Otomen (Manga)
Publisher: Hakusensha
English Publisher: Viz Media
Genre: Shoujo, Romance, Comedy
Manaka: Aya Kanno
Rating: * * * *


A story about an almost perfect bishounen, Masamune Asuka. Good-looking, best in kendo and very well-mannered, Asuka is known to be the very cool manliest man in the whole school. But there is always a ‘but’ in everything. Despite his good-looks and manly exterior, Asuka loves sweet and cute things, cooking, baking, sewing, knitting and all other girly things, thus the title ‘Otomen’. Otomen is a pun of the Japanese word “otome” which means mistress or lady who is highly knowledgeable in traditional tea ceremony, flower arranging and other lady-like skills. And “men” refers to the English word of the same meaning. Therefore resulting to a man who excels in lady-like skills. This is accidentally discovered by his playboy classmate Tachibana Juta, who is secretly a manga artist. Juta encourages Asuka to just accept his "gifts" and live the way he wants. But then, Asuka meets Miyakozuka Ryo, the new student skilled in various martial arts. She was raised by her tough police officer father making her strong but lacking in lady-like skills. Asuka becomes attracted to her and is then determined to hide his girly hobbies to woe and protect her. Asuka becomes torn on keeping up his facade or embracing his special.

Through the course of the story, Asuka meets the silent and strong Tonomine Hajime, a rival in kendo and a person who possesses another special skill - make up artist. Similar to Asuka, he is having trouble keeping his girly habits away from kendo.

Another notable character is Yamato Ariake. An underclassman who has a very girly appearance which he despises. He admires Asuka's cool and manly personality. He trains very hard to be regarded as manly and strong rather than being a pretty boy.

And there is Kitora Kurokawa, Asuka's classmate. He is tall and mysterious who is very obsessed in the beauty of flowers. He is also an otomen like Asuka and Hajime, and plans to cover the whole school with all sorts of flowers.

The story is entertaining to read and informative in a way. It contains fun tips and trivia about cooking, baking, knitting and sewing as the story goes. With regards to the storyline, Kanno-sensei weaves the story and allows the past and the future events/situations to connect and develop the story. The art is definitely good, especially with the cute/cuddly things illustrated in the story as well as the sweet treats and desserts that Asuka really loves. This is definitely a wonderful manga. ^___^

Credits:
Wikipedia
leahleys.wordpress.com
kai-leahleys.blogspot.com