Nostalgia Department

A blog for media analysis, reviews, recommendations, videos, and more! We’ll be taking a look at everything from popular, mainstream media to hidden gems you should be checking out.

[rangerzath]

A Necessary Course Correction? A Retrospective on Remedy Entertainment's FBC: Firebreak

Last week, Remedy published its latest and final major update for FBC: Firebreak. In less than a year since release, Firebreak will no longe

While not the video game fans of Remedy asked for, FBC: Firebreak had some interesting ideas and concepts that could have turned into something more given enough time and resources.

[rangerzath]

Review: Flip Flip Slowly

While some manga can feel the pressure of rushing out its story, especially for a single volume series, Flip Flip Slowly does the opposite a

If you want to experience a slow burn romance of two people getting to know one another through books and long car rides, then take a drive with Flip Flip Slowly.

[rangerzath]

Manga Review: Play Me Softly

We’ve all had those friends we’ve fallen out of touch with. Not necessarily for negative reasons, but oftentimes because life just becomes b

Play Me Softly may only have one volume, but it's packed full of love. This is a sweet second chance romance between two people who rebuild a connection through music.

[rangerzath]

Manga Review: Hell's Paradise

I can count on one hand the number of stories that have gripped me in the first few pages. Some of my all time favorite series have taken me

Hell’s Paradise is brimming with action packed scenes, body horror, and a mystery that surrounds everything at its core, this manga really has something for everyone.

[rangerzath]

Most Anticipated Games of 2026

As we ring in the new year and update our calendars, it's time to look forward to what new video game titles will be released this year. Wit

My 2026 list of Most Anticipated Games is here! No, GTA 6 isn't on it, but countless other interesting titles are!

This is Xbox's 25th anniversary, so surely they're planning something big for 2026… right? 🤔

Check out the list here and see how it matches up to your own!

[thenostalgiadepartment]

As a long time Alien fan, when I first saw the teaser announcement for Alien: Earth, my biggest question was ‘how are they going to do that?’. Anyone who has watched the previous movies knows that if ONE of those xenomorphs made it to Earth it would be game over man.

Official Summary: When a mysterious space vessel crash-lands on Earth, a young woman and a ragtag group of tactical soldiers make a fateful discovery that puts them face-to-face with the planet's greatest threat. Release Date: August 12, 2025 Number of Episodes: 8 Genre: Horror, Sci-Fi, Thriller Where to Watch: Hulu

Alien: Earth takes place in the (hopefully never) far distant future where there is an arms race in technology between Cyborgs, Synths, and a new Hybrid by the major corporations that run Earth. 

In the very first episode Weyland-Yutani is in full swing “building better worlds” by bringing several new lifeforms, including a xenomorph back to Earth. We see a snapshot from the crew of the USCSS Maginot before we’re transported back to Earth to see a corporation named Prodigy taking dying children and transforming their consciousness into a synthetic body. This hybrid premise was interesting as it is a new take on the old cyborgs and synths we’ve seen across other Alien media.

In contrast to this peaceful time in the same episode we’re thrust out into the darkness of space where something has gone very wrong onboard the Maginot. The dark hallways of the space ship are illuminated in blaring red alarms alongside flashes of carnage and the image of something running towards the last bastion of survivors. 

At twenty-six minutes in, this is where the episode really felt like an Alien movie. That high level of suspense, dread, and terror washing over you as you watch the characters on the screen wondering how they are going to survive. These high tension moments are where this franchise truly excels. Alien: Earth taps into that strength from episode one. 

For being a television show the acting, set design, and both the practical and special effects are well done. The future technology is back with its beautiful retro-futuristic aesthetics of an analog time which is long forgotten. The use of an actual xenomorph live actor in specific scenes is a good choice, making for a balanced blend between practical and special effects depending upon the scene. For those who don’t know, this is how the first Alien movie was done: a human in a xenomorph costume.

Babou Ceesay does a terrific job acting as the cyborg Morrow, balancing both his calm side and the unhinged. He’s both man and machine, and sometimes these parts are incompatible. On the counter side to this is Timothy Olyphant as Kirsh who is the perfect calm foil as a synthetic. These two are my favorite hands down in the show. These characters are pillars which made me want to continue watching for the scenes with them in it. Even the hybrid actors do a great job acting like children in adult bodies.

There were several callbacks to the Alien series such as the logo itself on the poster being the same iconic egg ‘crack’ from the original Alien (1979). We see recreations of the “breakfast” scene from Alien (1979) along with the sleeping pods down to those familiar long dark hallways. All of these references and the overall atmosphere brings a wave of nostalgia, and to me feels very much a part of the universe with the rest of the Alien series. 

I was super on board with this series… at first.

Alien: Earth started to lose me midway through the season when the show started being less a show about the xenomorphs and more about the new synthetics. The kids in adult bodies being labeled smarter than super computers and yet never really “growing up and learning” started to become an anchor the show couldn’t pull itself away from. While I can appreciate the central story theme and plight of our main character and her family, this plotline’s pacing feels wildly erratic and disconnected from the events of the overall plot. 

Contrived story beats and egregiously inept characters started being the only things moving the story forward in the worst way possible. This undermines all the headway the show built up in the beginning.

Alien: Earth feels more akin to Alien (1979) and Aliens (1986) than the abomination that was Prometheus. Its aesthetics and atmosphere pay homage to what has made this franchise special. Despite some unfortunate turbulence with regard to the narrative, if you’re a fan of this franchise, I believe this show is still worth your time. You’ll feel right at home with the suspense and horror of a xenomorph or worse stalking you through dark hallways. 

Rating: ★★★☆☆

[thenostalgiadepartment]

As the seasons change and temperatures cool, we still want to cling to the stories which remind us of the fun and enjoyable parts of summer. Combine summer romance with hockey and childhood friendship to lovers and you have my full attention. From the summary, Snapshots in San Diego by Wendy Hawthorne captured me with these elements and a title which reminded me of a classic 90s romcom. 

Official Summary: Oliver Ever since his family moved in across the street from mine, Gareth Galloway has been my best friend. We used to believe we would play in the NHL together one day. He knows my secrets better than anyone else. Or, at least that’s how it was until an injury ripped me from his side on the ice in high school. We’ve managed to salvage our shared dream in what ways we could. He’s a professional hockey player for the San Diego Starbirds, and I’m a member of his team’s marketing department, selling his story to hungry and eager hockey fans online. Some would say we’ve made it, but for me, there’s still something missing before I can call this happily ever after. I want Gareth to be my forever, but the last thing I want is to risk rejection and ruin what remains of our friendship. Some days it already feels as if we’re drifting apart. I can’t lose him. Gareth I’ve been in love with my best friend Oliver Owen for years, but I’m notoriously shy. I play one of the world’s roughest sports, but I can’t manage to put my feelings into cohesive words. One desperate read through a self-help book later, I’ve realized I can’t keep harboring this secret any longer. I need to find a way to tell Oliver how I feel or risk losing him forever to some other guy who’s capable of saying the words he’s longing to hear. I just hope I’m not too late. Snapshots in San Diego is a best friends to lovers MM romance featuring photography and a deep bond forged through hockey. Published: September 30, 2025 Genre: Romance, M/M Romance, Sports Romance, Contemporary Romance

Snapshots in San Diego is about two childhood best friends Oliver Owen and Gareth Galloway. The two couldn’t be closer growing up as they followed the same dream to become NHL superstars as boys. However, after a tragic accident shatters their shared goal, the two find themselves starting to drift apart.

“So let me get this straight, Oliver…” Gareth takes a deep breath, ever the drama queen as he poses on a lounge chair by my backyard pool. “You want me to… cuddle the plushie?”

The book's opening line made me laugh, and it set the lighter tone for the story from the start. Anyone who’s a part of hockey fandom has seen some strange social media posts to promote a team. Those who haven’t will be left eager to find out more about what exactly Oliver’s asking Gareth to do. This really hooks the reader into wanting to find out more about these characters, and I found myself enjoying this opening far more than I usually do with books.

While this is a hockey story, the majority of the story takes place during the offseason. Hockey is a main component of Oliver and Gareth’s lives, but it’s a background element in this narrative rather than something in the forefront compared to other sports romance novels. 

With the dual point of view story, we’re able to see how both Oliver and Gareth view the situation they find themselves in and the roadblocks obfuscating their path. They’re both in love with each other, but they keep facing missed chances or cold feet when a confession opportunity presents itself. 

As a result, the central theme radiating throughout this story is miscommunication. To me, this plot element feels believably paced instead of frustrating because of Oliver and Gareth’s extensive shared history. There are truths they’re struggling to voice to one another. Even with people you are close with there can still be distance between you and the things you find hard to communicate because you don’t want to ruin a relationship. If you’re like me and always worry a miscommunication plot will drag on needlessly, this element doesn’t overstay its welcome with Snapshots in San Diego.

Hawthorne fleshes out each character's backstories, revealing more and more with each chapter. The characters feel well-rounded and compelling. While most stories can span a long length of time, I found it interesting that Snapshots in San Diego really feels like a snapshot of Oliver and Gareth’s life. Their struggles, fears, but also their happiness and what they enjoy in their down time take center stage.

On the romance side of things I’m happy to report that there was a good mix of spicy scenes within the narrative which made the payoff worth it. There is even demisexual representation included in this story which is something you don’t see often in this genre. This blended seamlessly with the overall narrative and its characters without feeling forced in. There is also no sudden switching happening between the characters, so if you’re not a fan of that in your MM romance books, rest assured this book doesn’t feature it.

The epilogue is especially enjoyable and had me grinning the entire time. It also introduced some new characters who we may see down the road? Snapshots in San Diego sets the stage for the author’s Hearts in Play series as its labeled book one. So we have more to look forward to!

Snapshots in San Diego is a great mix of comedy, angst, friendship, romance, and spice. For those looking to enjoy that last bit of summer romance before the leaves start to change, this is the book for you. And even if you’re not usually a fan of sports romance, there is plenty to enjoy with Oliver and Gareth’s relationship.

Rating: ★★★★☆

[thenostalgiadepartment]

Anyone who has ever been invested deeply into a story has thought about what they would do if they were in that same story. Whether you’d call the main character an idiot for trusting someone they shouldn’t, or tell your favorite side character not to do something because you already know it would lead to their demise. Would you change the story or let it play out as intended? The Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint answers those types of questions.

Official Summary: AT THAT MOMENT, MY LIFE TOOK ON A DIFFERENT GENRE. As a struggling office worker, Dokja Kim’s sole joy in life is an online novel so obscure that he’s its only reader. Then one day the story comes to an end…and so does the world. People all around the globe suddenly find themselves being massacred by horrific monsters or pitted against each other in sadistic scenarios straight out of the novel. However, only Dokja is aware that this is merely the first chapter of what is to come. Knowing that devastating plot twists are on the horizon, he can no longer afford to sit back as a reader—it’s time for Dokja to step up and write his own destiny!  Publisher: Ize Press Published: December 12, 2023 Genre: Action and Adventure, Fantasy Rating: T (Teen) Series Status: Releasing in English

Dokja Kim is your typical every day worker. For the past 10 years, he's been reading the webnovel called Three Ways to Survive the Apocalypse. After 3149 chapters, he's the only reader to have stuck with the series, reading and commenting on each and every chapter. For him Three Ways to Survive the Apocalypse has given him strength through the hard parts of his life. On the day the epilogue is scheduled to be released Dokja suddenly finds his world and the world of the webnovel have overlapped. 

Rather than your typical Isekai story where the main character is transported to a faraway land, Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint has Dokja’s own world expand with the addition of magical elements. Having these epic battles take place in subway tunnels and city streets made the story feel more ‘realistic’ as the story comes to life before a reader's eyes. This is an example of ORV’s many metatextual layers. 

While ORV isn’t unique with its use of giving video game skills to its protagonists, it’s the specific skill that Dokja is given that I found fascinating and very on brand with the series’ title. Instead of suddenly becoming overpowered physically, Dokja’s strongest skill is his knowledge of his favorite webnovel, its characters, and its plot. 

This is where Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint really shines its strength for me. If a reader had the knowledge of everything that would happen in advance, could they change the overall narrative? How would the narrative change? And would the reader want it to change? This predicament very much falls in line with the “butterfly effect.” Dokja is given very little time to find the answer to all of these questions but to stay alive he must make hard decisions. While I won’t spoil it in this review, I was extremely pleased with how the first volume played out.

Dokja himself is a very average character who encompasses the everyday worker. Despite his low self-esteem and struggles, he makes clear decisions on the direction he's going to take within the story. He isn’t a perfect golden boy hero, and I think that's what makes him a compelling lead. The world he finds himself in is messy as it deteriorates overnight into survival of the fittest. I also appreciated that Dokja isn’t going at all this alone, he has a small cast of characters around him which include characters from his favorite webnovel, which provides its own extra layer of interpersonal drama.

ORV’s art is outstanding and synergizes perfectly with the story. I appreciated the blend of fantasy with modern day elements. Each volume comes fully colored and it really heightens the intensity of each scene. 

As an avid reader, the story takes great care in relating all the thoughts anyone has had while following along with an epic story. The frustration you feel towards the main character after they make a questionable choice. How you loathe certain characters and wish the main cast would never interact with them. But also what defines a character? Is it ok for a character to be killed off because they are written on a page? Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint takes the relationship between reader and narrative and brings that front and center. This sets it apart from other action/adventure manhwa out there. ORV repeatedly breaks the fourth wall by simulating what you the reader would do in Dokja’s position. 

Once I started this series I couldn’t stop reading. Each volume keeps building on the intrigue left over from the last, leaving us more questions with every new page. The character development and internal struggles that each character goes through are diverse and feel genuine. Even the series’ title itself is clever. 

There is an anime adaptation that was announced back in 2024 in the works, and I have no doubt that this will help bring more eyes to Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint. 

Fans of stories like Solo Leveling will find enjoyment here, but I think even for fans who haven’t been pulled in by other action/adventure manhwa titles will find something to keep their interest. 

Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint is an excellent action story that will keep you on the edge of your seat, but more importantly it will leave you with lingering questions of what you would do if you were thrust into the world of your favorite media. 

Rating: ★★★★★

[thenostalgiadepartment]

Pride month might be over, but here are some LGBT manga recommendations you can pick up all year round!

[thenostalgiadepartment]

Remedy Entertainment is known for its heavy story driven games, diverse characters, and rich world building. As a company, Remedy has always tried to innovate in the gaming medium. As their first self-published game and first co-op First Person Shooter, FBC: Firebreak is a departure from their previous style of games. However, for new and current Remedy fans, this game is entertaining and worth your time. 

Official Summary: As the Bureau’s headquarters faces a deadly and prolonged siege by otherworldly forces, only Firebreak—its most adaptable response unit—has the skills and courage to restore order.‍ Developer: Remedy Entertainment Release Date: June 17, 2025 Genre: FPS

What is FBC: Firebreak?

It’s been six years since the Federal Bureau of Control was invaded by paranatural entities known as the Hiss. Stuck in lockdown, you must rise to the challenge to defeat the invading waves of Hiss while still managing your everyday tasks around the Oldest House. The Firebreak team is a special task force which wrangles both the Hiss and rogue Altered Items. 

This game takes place after the events of Control (2019) and is set in the strange world of the ever-shifting headquarters of the FBC: the Oldest House. For players being introduced to the universe for the first time, you may be interested in playing Control to learn about the context of events which led to the creation of the Firebreak unit. Even if you haven’t played Control, you can still experience what FBC: Firebreak has to offer. For fans already familiar with the universe, the continuation of the story is light with only some ambient dialogue and new Bureau documentation. However, this game still feels like a familiar romp through the Oldest House. 

Gameplay

For context, I’ve spent over 24 hours playing this game on Xbox Series X and have all but one achievement left (curse you elevator that needed repair). I’ve played most of my time either solo, with friends, or with randoms on every single setting and job. I have maxed out every single Crisis Kit and have unlocked every single strong trait. 

Gameplay wise this co-op shooter has you play in a team of three to take on one of five current jobs which are this game’s version of levels/missions. To assist you on these jobs, you can choose one of three Crisis Kits. Each kit consists of one tool, a special ability, and an ultimate which charges up over time and will unleash the power of an Altered Augment. The three Crisis Kits are:

The Splash Kit, which allows you to put out fires easier, heal your teammates with the power of a mobile water cooler, and spilling scalding hot tea on your enemies (and sometimes friends) with an altered teapot. 

The Jump Kit, allows you to power up generators quicker with your Electro-Kinetic Charge Impactor (it also doubles as a pogo stick for those that like to get airborne), a portable boombox which plays only the Finnish Tango and taunts all enemies, and the Garden Gnome which summons an aerial strike stronger than an AC-130 above unable to distinguish friend or foe in its destructive path.

The Fix Kit, which allows you to wield a large wrench to fix anything that may not be working during a mission. Just give that broken shower a smack and it will be working properly for your team in no time. This kit’s special ability is the swivel cannon which consists of an office chair with a cannon on top. This turret is great at providing covering fire… just don’t stand in front of it. This kit also comes with the Altered Augment Piggy Bank which requires a boop to the snoot before empowering every wrench swing with the ability to unleash a tornado of coins towards your enemies, creating some much needed personal space for you and your allies.

Before selecting your job, you can change several different settings to adjust the game's difficulty, rewards, and random effects. These options are Clearance, Threat, and Corruption.

Clearance has three settings which change how long the job will be, with three being the longest. Threat adjusts the difficulty of the job, ranging from Easy, Normal, Hard, and Extreme. Corruption is a three tiered option which adds a degree of randomness to the job. Corruption spawns random Altered Items which are seemingly mundane items empowered by the paranatural which debuff your gameplay in different ways. Examples of these debuffs include increased enemy health or hindered movement as you progress through a job. It's always best to grab a Black Rock Neutralizer and destroy the Altered Item before it catches you by surprise at the worst time. 

The jobs are straightforward with objectives on screen letting you know which tasks you will need to complete in each map. Objectives may involve destroying thousands of sticky notes, fixing some fans, or finding mannequins for a fussy ski-lift. Jobs aren’t all about fixing things, as you are assaulted by waves of Hiss which also can include strong elite enemies (like the special infected in Left 4 Dead).

While you start out with a base weapon ranging from a pistol, double-barrel shotgun, or submachine gun, you can choose to unlock different weapons throughout your play with various currencies. Lost Assets and Research Samples are items you find around the map which turn into currency if you survive the job. You can then use these assets to upgrade your tools, weapons, or unlock other perks or cosmetics. You can unlock additional weapons such as the bolt-action rifle, pump-action shotgun, and my personal favorite the machine gun (aka Helen Marshall’s weapon). 

The gameplay loop reminds me of Left 4 Dead, which any long time fan of co-op shooters will fondly remember. Back then we didn’t need high mobility moves, deep stories, or complex classes to enjoy the game. The goal of Left 4 Dead is to navigate the level, find some gas cans, turn on the generator, fight the horde, and make it to the chopper. FBC: Firebeak’s gameplay loop executes on this concept in the exact same way. The only difference is this time we get a Remedy flair to the missions, objectives, background story, and visual aesthetics. 

However, players who are used to fast-paced games like Apex Legends or Call of Duty will probably struggle if they try to compare FBC: Firebeak to those games. In my opinion, if fans of those games come to FBC: Firebreak with an open mind and try to experience the game for what it is, I think they’ll have a good time. 

Review

Overall I have enjoyed my time with FBC: Firebreak. I couldn’t wait to get back to the Oldest House since I finished Control, and this game let me walk those familiar halls once more. This is a relaxing shooter set in one of my favorite video game universes and has been a joy to play. I wish there was a little more story content, but I’ve appreciated the snippets of lore intermixed with the gameplay. Having played Control, I have several questions about what’s going on with Director Jesse Faden and everyone at the FBC, but it seems like I’m just going to have to continue to wait for Control 2 for answers. This game feels like an expansion of the universe but not a mandatory requirement bridging us to the next Control game. It’s also a perfect opportunity to introduce fans of FPS games only to the unique world of Control.

I’ve always been a fan of PVE shooters, but nowadays it seems most FPS games now focus on PVP combat systems. FBC: Firebreak is a refreshing shooter in this regard. The Crisis Kits feel distinct and fun to play with. Every kit feels important and synergizes with each other and the environment itself. In a coordinated group, having one of each Crisis Kit is invaluable and makes the job much easier, especially on harder settings. The option to pick the gun and grenade set up separate from your Crisis Kit allows additional flexibility. FBC: Firebreak is also the first game in a long while where I don’t feel that one kit is the best for every job or the one I have to play every match. This allows you to explore each kit to find out which one suits your playstyle best. 

Unlocking everything that I wanted to unlock didn’t take 60+ hours of gameplay. I was able to upgrade my weapon of choice and perks fully shortly into my time with this game (and this was before the recent progression updates). Now, going forward, I can jump into a game at any time and feel comfortable with my kit. Some people may feel disappointed there isn’t an infinite progression system, but for me, this isn’t a problem. I prefer mastering a game and having everything at my disposal as opposed to logging on and grinding out upgrades over time like a job. I just want to play the game.

Aesthetically, this game’s design and attention to detail is phenomenal. Each Crisis Kit looks like the Firebreak team has literally cannibalized anything and everything inside the Oldest House to create their kits and even their uniforms. The job sites feel familiar and immersive. 

While FBC: Firebreak is not without its fair share of bugs, Remedy has been actively updating and patching the game. Some of these updates include making it easier to unlock perks, making Lost Assets and Research Samples easier to identify, and matchmaking improvements. Some of my earliest complaints have been mostly alleviated by these changes.

However, one of my biggest issues stems from the collection of Lost Assets and Research Samples. There should be a message somewhere at the start of the match or in a tooltip that these items are team wide. This might not be a well known fact and the lack of knowledge may cause friction and griefing through friendly fire. Obviously this problem can be avoided by playing with friends or by playing solo. If you’re queueing up with random players, you may run into situations where your teammates are less than friendly players.

Another huge quality-of-life change would be to have to only use one perk slot for a strong trait instead of currently having to use two slots. This would allow players to try out different perks other other than the ones that feel mandatory such as Shower Thoughts and Iron Liver. 

One of the common complaints I’ve seen about the game is that players who haven’t played Control have no idea what they are doing because there isn’t an in-game tutorial. While I understand this opinion, there are text and video previews which explain each Crisis Kits’ abilities. You may need to do a few games before you learn your way around, but you’ll pick it up fast.

It's also worth noting that there is no in-game voice or text chat. While I don’t think in-game voice is necessary as most people hardly use a mic nowadays, it is a little odd not to have the option.

Unfortunately, I’ve seen a lot of negativity surrounding FBC: Firebreak. I think this is because people wanted it to be something that it was never marketed to be. Remedy was very clear from the beginning over what type of game FBC: Firebeak would be. FBC: Firebeak was never going to be Control 2 or Alan Wake 3, meaning it was never going to be the single player game we’re used to from Remedy. Fans who expected more than a co-op shooter set in the Control universe are going to be disappointed. This isn’t a story based game. It was never going to be, but that’s ok. This is a shooter set in the familiar Remedy Connected Universe, and it’s an addition which stands on its own. 

Conclusion

As for FBC: Firebreak’s future, Remedy has already shared a post-launch roadmap for the rest of the year which includes two more jobs: Codename Outbreak and Blackout which will respectively drop this fall and winter. The best part of all future content is that it will be free! 

Remedy has stated multiple times on their development streams that they are dedicated to free post-launch content that will never be FOMO in its design. Once it's in-game, it will stay in-game forever. No monthly rotating store, no daily quests, no temporary, limited time rewards. As someone who has a busy schedule, I cannot stress how great it is not to worry about something like this. I wish MORE companies would do this. It would make gaming much more manageable.

FBC: Firebreak breaks the mold by being a different type of game from Remedy, but it is no less deserving of your time. While you may not play this game every single day or every single week, you can still find hours of entertainment within the confines of the Oldest House. So grab some friends, select your kit, and I hope to see you at the firebeak.

Rating: ★★★★☆

[thenostalgiadepartment]

The breathtaking cover of Touch Within the Abyss immediately captured my interest and prompted me to purchase a copy. I almost found it impossible to believe this manga is the debut work of Moyori Mori. As I continued reading, I found myself swept up in a sweet and gentle story between two men who feel trapped by the world around them.

Official Summary: "If you knew the real me... you'd be disappointed." Hitman Chinatsu once failed to pull the trigger on his target and it cost him his brother's life. That day, the sole witness who took Chinatsu's trembling hand had clear eyes that stared right through him... straight into the abyss within. Five years later, a purse-snatching reunites Chinatsu with his savior: Kasumi, a young blind man searching for a way out of his own lonely world. Chinatsu knows better than to get involved with a potential witness, but he can't help but be drawn to Kasumi's radiant smile. If Kasumi knew the truth of their provenance, could he ever forgive the sins of Chinatsu's past? Publisher: Tokyo Pop Published: March 25, 2025 Genre: Romance, Drama, Psychological Rating: 16+ Series Status: Complete

Chinatsu is forced to follow in his father’s footsteps as a hitman. Haunted by his lack of resolve that caused the death of his brother, Chinatsu feels lost, adrift without meaning and purpose. He feels trapped within the confines of the metaphorical dark abyss he finds himself in. The only image which brings him comfort is the one of a blind boy who was there the day Chinatsu lost his brother.

Years later, Chinatsu meets the blind young man, Kasumi, again and the two start up an unlikely friendship. Chinatsu knows he shouldn’t get involved, but he feels drawn to Kasumi’s light.  

I cannot say enough about the beautiful artwork and the way it elevates the story. From Chinatsu’s character design alone, we can tell just how exhausted both physically and emotionally he is before we are given much information about his past. With dark rings around his eyes and a tight polite smile he forces at times, we the reader can fill in the gaps about the type of man he is. Kasumi, in contrast, has moments where his usual cheerful disposition slips and his own sadness and insecurities shine through.

The story’s slower pacing feels appropriate as both characters grow closer together and navigate their feelings alongside their fears and doubts. Both characters are haunted by loneliness and the weight of their responsibilities. The growing emotional connection between Chinatsu and Kasumi is gentle and sweet, and this same tenderness is reflected in how they treat one another. The affection these characters show each other was surprisingly heartwarming considering one of the characters is a hitman.

I appreciated the vulnerability in the depiction of Kasumi’s blindness, but at no point does he feel written as if he is an invalid. He has his own aspirations, dreams, places he wants to go, and selfish desires. He is very capable on his own, but he also lets Chinatsu dote on him. Life can still be enjoyed while living with a disability, and this theme really resonated with me.

Touch Within the Abyss by Moyori Mori captured me with its gorgeous artwork, touching story, and compelling characters. This is one of the most beautiful single volume stories I have ever read. If you are looking for a story that will tug on your heartstrings, this is a manga you shouldn’t pass on. 

Rating: ★★★★★

[thenostalgiadepartment]

Long have I underappreciated a short story. While growing up, I devoured any book I could get my hands on, never caring about its length. I had all the time in the world it seemed between being the passenger in a vehicle or staying up late at night secretly reading beneath a bookshelf light after bedtime. In adulthood, I lost a lot of the free time I took for granted. Between working a full time job and managing other responsibilities, my free time is something precious and hard fought. Sometimes that free time isn’t more than an hour or two before bed—the perfect time frame for reading a oneshot story.

As luck would have it, a short story crossed my timeline and provided a chance to show me how strong a short story could be.

Official Summary: Competition runs through my veins. I work hard, I play hard. Maybe I’m not headed for the NBA anytime soon, but I take my local basketball league seriously. So when the final game of the season is a rematch between my team and our cross-town rivals, I’m not going to let us experience another heartbreaking loss. Tonight’s game is about revenge. It doesn’t matter if Jason Alvarez, the other team’s captain, is sexy beyond belief and a little bit my type. He’s been my rival in every sense of the word since I started playing in this league. And it’s going to stay that way. The Rival is a MM rivals to lovers short story featuring a second chance romance. Published: June 10, 2025 Genre: Romance, M/M Romance, Sports Romance, Contemporary Romance

I haven’t read many rivalry stories, but I knew from the start I was going to enjoy this one. Wendy Hawthorne lays a solid foundation to the cross town rivalry over basketball, providing us just enough information without becoming overwhelmed by exposition. The reader is dropped into the shoes of Matthew Swanson, a competitive type-A personality starting point guard and team captain of the Westvale Wildcats. Matthew and his team are trying to reclaim the Alameda County men’s basketball league trophy after a heartbreaking loss the previous year to the Eastvale Eagles. Further, he's certainly not going to be second best to their captain Jason Alvarez. But victory on the court might not be the only thing on the line this year.

I immediately liked Matthew as a character. He feels fleshed out in a way I wasn’t expecting for a shorter story. We quickly learn how important basketball is to him despite never making it to the NBA. He’s worked hard to get to where he is on and off the court. Several of his lines made me laugh. 

Jason’s character in contrast is initially built up entirely from Matthew’s point of view. You can tell there is some embellishment and exaggeration in Matthew’s tale, just as anyone describing someone they don’t like would do. Still, even Matthew can’t deny Jason has some begrudgingly good attributes. As the story unfolds, we start to see that maybe Matthew didn’t know Jason as well as he thought he did.

The basketball part of this story is light but still impactful and not a forgotten element of the story overall. You don’t need to be a basketball fan to enjoy the story but anyone who’s ever played or watched sports can enjoy the intensity of the rivalry.

The author's tagline ‘spice and everything nice’ is an appropriate byline as she certainly turns up the temperature in this story with very steamy scenes. While spice can be enjoyable in its own right, it's the underlying story and the connection between the characters which elevates these scenes for me. We’re teased that maybe more is going on than our main character believes. This opens up all sorts of possibilities and depth into the characters feelings. I always love a good pining story, and it certainly feels that this relationship has that despite the seemingly accidental context the story brings. It's these layers woven within the story that really elevates The Rival beyond simply being an erotica story.

The Rival is the first book in the At Last series. The second book in this series is teased at the end of The Rival,  and I will be adding it to my TBR list. From the author’s page, the series will be about ‘stories featuring second chances at love, long-lost loves, pining, angst, and longing. Whether the forces keeping characters apart are internal or external, rest assured, these characters are full of gay longing and desire.’ These themes were certainly captured in The Rival and are all tropes I enjoy reading about.

For a debut work, this has been a fantastic snapshot of this writer's strengths. The characters are likeable, and I found the dialogue between them to be outstanding. I found myself both laughing at times and also getting unexpectedly emotional. 

No matter how busy you are this Pride month, The Rival is certainly worth taking time out of your schedule to read. I look forward to reading more of Hawthorne’s work in the future.

Rating: ★★★★★

[thenostalgiadepartment]

The Prince in the Basement is the latest graphic novel from Mira Ong Chua (MOC). Known for other graphic novels such as ROADQUEEN: Eternal Roadtrip to Love and Vampire Blood Drive, MOC offers a distinct art style and storytelling to fans of queer romance titles. Their kickstarter was successfully funded the same day it launched because fans couldn’t wait to get their hands on their new title.

Official Summary: Once upon a time, in a faraway kingdom… On the day of her coronation, the Princess awakens a forbidden secret that could ruin everything: an imprisoned Prince in the castle basement, bearing a face identical to hers. Claiming to be the true heir to the throne, he exiles the Princess and sentences her dearest husband-to-be to death. As the mysterious Prince lays claim to her kingdom, the exiled Princess sets out to take back her crown and rescue her beloved- who, while awaiting his fate, begins falling for the Prince, believing him and the Princess to be one and the same. Upon their reunion, both royal children find that their destinies are more deeply intertwined than they ever expected... Can the two find sanctuary in a world where only one of them was meant to exist? Published: Kickstarter launched January 14, 2025 Genre: Romance, Fantasy

My first introduction into Mira Ong Chua’s work was ROADQUEEN: Eternal Roadtrip to Love when it was being published by SevenSeas at the time. The character design, artstyle, and premise encouraged me to pick up the title. I hadn’t read something quite like ROADQUEEN before, and it inspired me so much I wrote my very first published review on the graphic novel. Since then, Mira Ong Chua is a comic artist whose work I eagerly follow. So when I heard about The Prince in the Basement, I couldn’t wait to get my hands on their latest graphic novel. 

The Prince in the Basement does not feature characters with traditional names. Characters in this story are referred to as their role in the story (i.e., The Princess, The Prince, The Witch, etc). For me this was an interesting and different story choice, and it gives The Prince in the Basement a fairy-tale quality. 

The story opens on the day of The Princess’s coronation, but the celebration is interrupted when she hears an unfamiliar voice heckling her from somewhere within the castle. She pursues this voice of doubt, following its echoes to a door that was always previously locked. Suddenly able to open the door, she heads into the basement to find a figure who looks exactly like her encased in a strange crystal, wielding her family’s sword. We’re left wondering who this Prince is, and why he’s been locked in the basement.

This story is often quite funny at times, especially during sections with The Prince. I enjoy how goofy the love interest is, sporting a ridiculous outfit which I thought is fitting for him. The dialogue between the cast of characters is complimented by beautiful, expressive artwork. The overall concept of the story drew me in from the very beginning and made me want to figure out the mystery of who The Prince is and why he looks exactly like The Princess. 

One of the most predominant themes throughout the story is learning to accept all parts of yourself. When you try to cut out these pieces to either conform to someone else's expectations (or your own) or society's norms, you are doing yourself a great disservice. Maybe you don't understand why you are different or why you can’t just accept things as they are. Through self-discovery and life experience you can learn to love all these different facets of your identity and being. I really resonated with this motif and I think other readers will feel the same.

While I did enjoy the story for the most part, the plot’s pacing feels uneven. The central, driving conflict of the story could have been resolved much sooner if the two main characters had just talked instead of fighting. I have no problem with characters misunderstanding each other, but I’m less of a fan of miscommunication plots that drag on for hundreds of pages. Part of me thinks this story would have flowed better if it was broken up into multiple volumes to let certain story beats settle before moving on to the next major arc. This is a bit ironic considering The Prince in the Basement is this comic artist’s longest graphic novel to date, clocking in at 425 pages in paperback. In my opinion, The Prince in the Basement tries to juggle too many plot threads for a single one shot, and this lessened my overall enjoyment of the story to a degree. 

However, by the end of the book, I did feel satisfied with the development of each character. Their arcs feel resolved with lessons learned. The story’s main romance at times feels complicated, but this feels appropriate given that the romance is interconnected with a major plot point. The romance features fantasy elements which some readers may not enjoy as much. Rest assured, this story has a happy ending, following fairy-tale tradition. 

If I had to choose only one thing I like the most about Mira Ong Chua’s work, it’s their art style. As someone who likes 90s anime aesthetic, I believe their art style captures this vibe with a modern spin. Their style is certainly distinct enough to pick out among a crowd of other graphic novel titles. The character design is excellent. Each character’s outfit reflects their personality, and the way their clothes and hair are drawn make it seem as if there’s physical movement despite ultimately being a 2D image. Flashbacks and other planes of existence are clearly denoted with black backgrounds and dark borders, contrasting with the main story sequences. There are a few page spreads which I always enjoy in a comic. The cover and title design is very eye-catching, and it’s one of the first things which immediately drew my interest. 

While the kickstarter is over, you can still purchase a physical and digital edition of The Prince in the Basement from Mira Ong Chua’s website as well as a digital only version from their itch.io page. 

Finding a story with interesting, heartfelt queer characters with a happy ending can sometimes be challenging, and Mira Ong Chua has crafted another graphic novel which hits these notes in spades. Mira Ong Chua tells stories which are lighthearted and fun without becoming too quirky or absurd. If you are looking for a well-rounded graphic novel to sink your teeth into this Pride Month check out The Prince in the Basement. 

A free copy of this graphic novel was provided by the author. 

Rating: ★★★★☆

[thenostalgiadepartment]

Gravity by Tal Bauer redefined the way I consume sports media, and my view of the sport of hockey. I enjoy all sorts of sports media, everything ranging from manga to movies. Hajime no Ippo is a boxing manga that made me appreciate a boxer's physical and mental journey, and Remember the Titans is a movie ANYONE can enjoy whether you like football or not because it not only tells a important and great story, it shows how sports brings people together.

Still, I have never had one blend the MM Romance genre with sports in such a flawless way as Gravity has done. 

Official Summary: C’est cela l’amour, et tu es mon rêve... Bryce: Hockey is my life. This game pulled me from my tiny Quebec hometown all the way to the NHL, and now? I’m the number one player in the league. Team capitane for the Montréal Étoiles. I’m shattering records and packing arenas every night, and I’ve promised my team: we’re going to win the Stanley Cup this year. But I’m keeping big secrets. I'm thinking dangerous thoughts, and dreaming about impossible things. Like how a man’s lips might taste, or how his body might feel in my arms. I can’t go there. I’ve got to focus. Team. Hockey. Cup. What my heart wants doesn’t matter. So why am I falling head over heels at the NHL's All-Star Weekend? I can’t do this. I can’t fall for Hunter Lacey. He’s a hockey player. We’re both in the NHL. He’s on a different team. And, oh yeah, he’s straight. Hunter: I’m a middle-of-the-road, nothing-special hockey player. Good enough to be drafted into the NHL, and I’ve been on the roster for the past two years, but I’ll never make the Hall of Fame. I’m just trying to keep my head up and get through each day, until this wild ride comes to an end. Deep thinking isn’t really my thing. Look inside myself? Lotta beer and burgers there. I never thought I’d be invited to the All-Star Weekend, but here I am. And there’s my hero: Bryce Michel, league superstar. Saying hello to Bryce turns into hours spent together on the ice, and then an invite to dinner, and then days at each other's side. I’m in heaven. He’s my hero, and this is the coolest— Then Bryce’s lips land on mine, and the world turns upside down. Published: August 12, 2022 Genre: Romance, M/M Romance, Sports Romance, Contemporary Romance

Bryce Michel is captain of the Montréal Étoiles, and this is the year they have a shot at the Stanley Cup. Touted as the best player in the NHL, Bryce already has a lot of expectations on his shoulders. He doesn’t want to focus on the intrusive thoughts that keep him up at night or the nagging feeling that despite his success, something’s missing in his life.

During the All-Star Weekend in Vegas, he meets his new team mate Hunter Lacey. Hunter has been a huge fan of Bryce’s since he started playing hockey, and he's shocked that Bryce even talks to him. Their gameplay together is perfect, magical even. They are in-sync on and off the ice. Suddenly Bryce feels that he can’t push away those thoughts any longer now that Hunter is right in front of him.

The story’s pacing is phenomenal, and the romantic relationship develops naturally. The dual point of view shifts throughout the book really help heighten the tension and convey the intimacy the two characters feel towards one another. The realistic fears and doubts each character undergoes feel real and genuine. These hardships are ones readers may have also shared in their own lives, and they are certainly ones we can relate to. We see the range of emotions from characters as they experience joy, happiness, and pain. 

The chemistry between the two main characters is perfect. Both Bryce and Hunter find their soulmate, the person who completes them, shares their passion, and unconditionally loves them. Perfection. This kind of connection is exactly what I want to read about in stories of this genre. These characters find parts of themselves that they hadn’t been able to explore in the past or weren’t even aware existed inside themselves.

Even with a large cast of characters making up the hockey team, Tal Bauer handles each player by giving them a distinct voice and makes sure to show their importance to each main character. The team camaraderie is a highlight of this story, and anyone who's ever played sports knows just how important the team dynamic is to ensuring victory and weathering low moments during a season. 

One thing to note for readers: since this story follows a Canadian hockey team, several characters, including Bryce, speak and think in regional Quebecois French. If you’re reading this book via Kindle, there is a built-in translator. If you have the paperback, you may have to use a search engine or have a friend nearby who can translate. Bauer doesn’t use anything which can’t be parsed via context clues. By the end, I suspect you will start learning the French terms of endearment used by both characters. While I don’t always appreciate having to stop and look up foreign language words and phrases, especially in the middle of intense scenes, the inclusion of French feels important to the story and adds another layer of authenticity to the narrative without becoming overbearing or distracting.

Tal Bauer is an outstanding author who deserves high praise for his writing and his storytelling skills. He excels at showing when two soulmates find one another and how this meeting changes their lives. Beyond just telling an excellent romance story, Bauer has a solid understanding of hockey in general and wields this knowledge expertly throughout the story to make you feel the same adrenaline the players experience. Sports fans will enjoy each moment of gameplay within these pages, bearing in mind that it is indeed a fictional story at the end of the day. Even readers who may normally feel inclined to skip the sports sections will find the games engaging. You won’t want to skip a second of this story.

This is one of those books I couldn’t put down once I started. Often when romance authors try to mix sports with a relationship, one or the other ends up taking the backseat. Either the sport is treated as merely an accessory in a character’s life (looking at you, Puck Drills…), or the relationship is described implicitly behind the scenes (Yuri on Ice, as much as I love the anime, is guilty of this). Gravity balances the best of both worlds and is an adult MM romance you shouldn’t pass on. 

Rating: ★★★★★

[thenostalgiadepartment]

Sports and a close family dynamic is a combination that had me picking up Puck Drills & Quick Thrills by Eden Finley and Saxon James. I was also curious about the dual authorship as I had not previously read a book that was written by two authors. With its catchy title and interesting relationship premise between a college professor and coach, I decided to dive in and see if this book lived up to my expectations.

Official Summary: WESTLY The fall from NHL superstar to domestic disaster was swift and painful. When I became the legal guardian of my five younger siblings, I had no idea what I was doing. One year later, I’m still lost. Coaching CU’s hockey team might be the only thing I’m excelling at. But when our star forward is failing math, I have to do what it takes to keep him on the team. Even if it’s going head-to-head with Jasper Eckstein. One minute I’m confronting the notorious hockey-hating professor, and the next I’m agreeing to be his date to his twenty-year high school reunion. I don’t know how that happened. JASPER My rules are simple. I don’t give extra credit. Ever. No matter how entitled jocks think they are, I refuse to give them special treatment. It's not because I hate them. It's not because a hockey player broke my nose in high school. It's fair. But when Westly Dalton bursts into my office like a hurricane, all my principles fly out the window. Suddenly I'm giving extra credit. And I have a date to my reunion. After one explosive night together, I want more, but his home life is a mess, and I don't want to get in the way. If all we can have is quick thrills, I’m okay with that. It’s not like I could ever fall for a jock. Published: October 6, 2021 Genre: Romance, M/M Romance, Contemporary Romance

Puck Drills & Quick Thrills is the fifth and final book of the CU Hockey series following hockey players, coaches, and professors of Colchester University. I haven’t read the previous books in the series, but I don’t feel as though any incoming reader will feel lost for skipping ahead. 

This book follows Westly Dalton, a former NHL star who canceled his contract to head home and raise his younger siblings after his parents died in a car accident. With five other siblings to take care of, Westley is struggling to stay afloat. To add to his already growing issues, his brother Asher is starting to fail math. In order to salvage his brother's grades and his hockey eligibility, Westley confronts Jasper Eckstein, the math professor, for assistance. Unfortunately for Westley, Jasper hates hockey players. 

I enjoyed the dynamic of the college professor and coach presented here up to a point. Usually the more common trope involves a student/teacher pairing, but I found it refreshing to have something different. I thought it might come with less drama (we’ll get to that shortly). Not to say there isn’t some initial drama and a slight age gap here, mind you. 

Jasper Eckstein is a likeable character despite his rocky introduction. The authors do a good job of fleshing out his character and explaining why he is the way he is. His particular backstory felt very believable as many people have adverse interactions with jocks in their youth that negatively color their perception of sporty people as adults.

Westley in contrast was a less fleshed out character despite his family drama playing an overbearing role in the narrative. The authors establish Westley’s previous party-boy lifestyle through exposition rather than showing it. The reader is told he had to make sacrifices for his siblings and feels torn between his past lifestyle and the reality of his current situation. The majority of his character development revolves around a back and forth, push and pull between wanting to go out and have fun and feeling incredibly guilty for having his own life. He constantly expresses self-awareness that he’s responsible for his siblings but also feels overwhelmed by becoming a parent overnight. This internal conflict became a bit tedious and repetitive at times, not really adding much to the story or showing personal growth. It was exhausting to read and drained any steam the romantic plot tried to build up.

In the first half of the story, Jasper and Westley’s burgeoning relationship was enjoyable. Some funny dialogue and clever lines kept the story light-hearted. However, as the story progresses, Jasper somehow becomes less and less a main character in a book that’s about his own relationship with Westley. This happens because Westley’s excessive family drama takes center stage in the back half of the book. Jasper and Westley still have private time together, but those moments weren’t enough to keep me engaged with the story.

I never thought as a romance connoisseur that I’d ever say there’s such a thing as “too many sex scenes” but this book managed to make me say it. These scenes felt repetitive and clunky. I don’t know if the authors may have swapped writing with POV shifts or for specific scenes, but there was a spectrum of quality between the sex scenes. Some felt more polished than others. 

If you are a hockey fan you won’t find any enjoyment with this story. There are far better sports romance novels which better involve the sport than Puck Drills & Quick Thrills. To me, it felt as though the authors simply wanted to use the sport for a catchy title and the initial conflicting dynamic between the main characters.

Further, if you’re not a fan of romance stories with overly rambunctious children playing a prominent role in the story, this story might not be for you. Writing children isn’t easy, and I feel as though the authors struggled with finding the individual voices of the large cast of children characters. There are several other stories out there that involve large families while still maintaining a cohesive story and romance. 

Overall this story had its moments, but it couldn’t carry those moments throughout the story. The ending seemed to especially drag as the story unfortunately overstayed its welcome. The authors were juggling too much at once. If you are looking for any of these specific tropes or dynamics, you might find Puck Drills & Quick Thrills worth borrowing from your local library or reading if you have a Kindle Unlimited subscription. 

Rating: ★★☆☆☆

[thenostalgiadepartment]

The meet cute is one of the most important parts of a story. It sets the tone for how two characters will interact throughout the rest. Whether they’re total strangers brought together by happenstance or they just happen to turn a specific way in a crowd and catch a special someone’s eye, the meet cute is the building block of any romance story. 

But what happens when the meet cute builds a rocky emotional foundation for a relationship? For me, Beautiful Things by Nao Inui has one of the shakiest starts.

Official Summary: After a tough breakup, Matsuoka finds solace in a surprising place—his ex-girlfriend’s wardrobe. Donning her outfits, he embarks on nightly escapades that garner a whirlwind of attention, not all of which is welcome. One perilous evening, Matsuoka is rescued from an assault by his unsuspecting co-worker, Hirosue.

Hirosue, an endearing klutz, is completely taken by Matsuoka’s disguised persona and falls head over heels. As Matsuoka thrives in the glow of Hirosue’s adoration, the weight of his secret looms large. How long can he keep his true identity hidden? And what will unfold when Hirosue discovers the truth?

Publisher: Seven Seas Published: December 17, 2024 Genre: Drama, Romance Rating: 13+ Series Status: Complete

Beautiful Things is about an office worker named Matsuoka who dresses up in women’s attire to alleviate stress from the work day. While he enjoys this freeing experience, one night some unwanted attention has him running for his life after he is nearly assaulted. In dire straits without his wallet, phone, or even his shoes, a stranger comes up and gives him some cash for a taxi ride home.

When going to work the next day, Matsuoka notices that the man who helped him that night, Hirosue, works at his same company. This is the meet cute in question from the introduction.

Originally Hirosue is painted as the “nice guy.” The quiet introvert who always does the right thing. At first he seems like quite the hero for Matsuoka in his time of need, but this does last. 

Hirosue begins to act in what I would consider extremely creepy, stalkery ways. I did not find this endearing or sweet as it was intended. He becomes pushy and forceful in wanting to get closer to “Eto”, Matsuoka’s female alter ego. While some may say Matsuoka is trying to conceal the fact he is a guy from Hirosue, Matsuoka never instigates any of the personal information sharing or meeting up. He’s just reacting to what’s happening rather than being proactive. He tries to be a decent person in the face of the strange situation he finds himself entangled in.

The drama that ensues is what you would expect from this kind of story. However, I did not appreciate a specific scene in the middle of this story that can’t be construed as anything other than sexual assault. The type of abuse exhibited by Hirosue, both emotionally and physically, is something that I hated reading and found extremely distasteful. These feelings are compounded by the fact that the story lingers on this period of time. This disaster causes Matsuoka to swear off crossdressing ever again. He even changes his entire appearance to distance himself from Hirosue and their past relationship.

When I first heard about this manga, I was excited to read it. The summary sounded like the type of drama I would enjoy reading: a person saving another from a bad circumstance which turns into a romance. But this wasn’t that story. Matsuoka should have just taken the cab and never looked back. He should have never tried to repay the favor. The meet cute isn’t a meet cute in this story. It’s the exact opposite. A red flag that should have been abided by. 

To add insult to injury, those who endure reading the entire story like I did will be faced with a conclusion that is ambiguous and frustrating. 

Beautiful Things by Nao Inui is the manga adaptation of the light novel Utsukushii Koto by Narise Konohara. While the art style is one of the few positive things about this manga, it is not enough to outweigh the amount of issues found within the story itself.

If you are in the mood for some romantic drama, please look elsewhere. This story is not worth your time.

Rating: ★☆☆☆☆

[angelswithouthearts]

Heya~! I read your review, and I have to say that I think you severely missed the point of this story or maybe misunderstood the premise of it.

Konohara Narise, the creator of this story, has, since the 90s, been known as the queen of angst. Beautiful Things is largely a story about unrequited love, of love twisted by circumstance between ordinary people pushed far beyond their comforts due to the intensity of their emotions. Angst is the journey. Hirosue and Matsuoka’s relationship was doomed from the get-go. Partly due to Mitsuoka’s lies, at the beginning at least, and then Hirosue’s inability to cut ties and him stringing Matsuoka along because he was so infatuated with Eto, and then because he doesn’t know whether he can ever be attracted to a man. In all of this, neither want to let go despite the many chances they’re given to let go. They make active choices to remain in each other’s orbits: Hirosue waiting for Eto, Matsuoka deciding to crossdress to meet with Hirosue over and over again, Hirosue pursuing Matsuoka without knowing what he wants, Matsuoka wanting a chance with Hirosue, asking Hirosue to sleep with him, to let him prove himself to Hirosue etc.

Hirosue’s “extremely creepy, stalkery ways” is not intended to be “endearing or sweet,” it’s supposed to be pitiful because he’s falling in love with someone who doesn’t exist. He is a man who rarely shoots his shot and when he does it’s for someone who is deceiving him, with initially good intentions later turned selfish. It’s pitiful because his strong emotions drive him to ask for things he would never ask for and when he senses resistance, he apologizes and withdraws his request. “Can I have your number? Maybe?” When he asks to see Eto after e-mailing back and forth, it’s because “something awful happened” and he finds her company comforting. He apologizes and promises not to ask for that again. Pitiful.

Hirosue was, until Matsuoka’s Eto-revelation, a wildly straight man eager to follow the beats set out for him by a strict society. He wanted the wife, the 2.5 kids, picket fence, the whole nine. Matsuoka, up until he broke up with his girlfriend, seems to have been the same, a wildly straight man setting himself up for success. Coming to accept that they’ve fallen in love with a man is a big part of the story as well. Matsuoka’s change of appearance, which amounts to a haircut and growing a goatee, was in part to reclaim his straightness, to go back to who he thought he had been before he started to crossdress—this is also when he starts to date a woman—and he keeps it, in part, to test Hirosue. The goatee becomes a prominent side-character in the sequel. The story continues in Precious Things (Itoshii Koto) from mainly Hirosue’s POV. There are also bonus stories.

Meet-cutes are rarely meet-cutes in Konohara’s stories unless it’s a romcom and even then there will be streaks of darkness in them (like in the light novel Don’t Worry Mama).

Finally, this story isn’t meant to be a manual for relationships or how to be a responsible and well-adjusted citizen. It’s a messy slice of life romance with the bitterness that may entail, not a cozy romance.

[thenostalgiadepartment]

Hello! Thank you so much for reading my review! It sounds like you are a long time fan of Narise Konohara’s work. It's always interesting to hear the distinct differences in how people interpret a particular story. 

Most readers seeking out a review will be new to the author and will most likely not know what the author is known for besides what the summary states. The tag line from Seven Seas for this particular manga noted that it was a bittersweet romance, but there was hardly anything to call sweet here. The story left me with nothing but a bitter taste. I think my biggest gripe about the summary was the “endearing klutz” description of Hirosue when there is nothing remotely endearing about him. He is basically just a reflection of the man who almost assaulted Matsuoka in the opening chapter. Not only does Hirosue sexually assault Matsuoka, but he destroys Matsuoka’s love for cross-dressing, the hobby that brought him nothing but joy in his busy schedule. Hirosue took advantage of Matsuoka trying to be a good person who tried to do the right thing at every turn. Being a good person ultimately brought Matsuoka nothing but grief and hardship. Again, this is hardly bittersweet. 

For me and others who are looking for something with a bit more romance in it, this manga certainly wasn’t it. I stand by my review of 1/5 stars. Beautiful Things is one of the worst BL manga I have ever read. Time is a valuable resource, and there are far more enjoyable BL manga to spend your time with in comparison.

[angelswithouthearts]

Sorry to insist with a response. I was left with a lot of thoughts after reading your response, starting with first-time readers not being familiar with the author thus seeking out a review. Shouldn’t a small introduction to the author be part of your review then if that’s who you’re writing for? Or are you referring to yourself as a first-time reader of this author? Either way, it seems you only read Seven Seas’s summary and no other review? There are loads of reviews of Konohara’s work out there. Long-form and short-form. This isn’t the first of Konohara’s works to be licensed in English. Or second, or even third. Her COLD-series (trilogy), Don’t Worry Mama, The Man Who Doesn’t Take Off His Clothes, and Castle Mango, are licensed in English, and they all have some of the bittersweetness mentioned in the summary for Beautiful Things (some more than others). My response is, in part, for the benefit of anyone reading your review.

As for what constitutes bittersweet: bittersweet doesn’t mean “in turns sweet, in turns bitter.” When it comes to the emotion, the sweet and the bitter coexist as one simultaneously, always. For example, Matsuoka and Hirosue had sweet times together, but those sweet times were always shrouded and tinged with bitterness as they unfolded due to the lies and impossibilities of their relationship should the truth come out, which is to say, their relationship, and all that surrounds it, is bittersweet. It’s not a misleading description, neither is “endearing klutz” because, from Matsuoka’s POV, that was his impression of Hirosue, and continues to be, despite everything.

You’re assigning a lot of intent to Hirosue that isn’t there. He isn’t a villain. He doesn’t know everything the reader is privy to. He doesn’t know what Matsuoka thinks or intends or even wants. None of what you listed are things he did intentionally, and some of the things (like Matsuoka not crossdressing anymore) are entirely Matsuoka’s own decisions. Suggesting that Hirosue is some sort of devil hellbent on making Matsuoka miserable is a severely misconstrued reading of the work. This isn’t a hero vs villain story, this isn’t good vs bad, it’s normal people doing above-average messy things, putting themselves in messy, confusing situations, miscommunicating like it’s their job, and unintentionally hurting each other.

Conflating Hirosue with the man who almost raped Matsuoka in the first chapter is yet another misconstruction of the severe variety. The first man approached Matsuoka (thinking Matsuoka was a woman) with the intent to drug him and rape him: this is implied by the fact that the man already had the drugs on him. When he discovered Matsuoka is a man, he became violent, and Matsuoka, fresh out of a drug-induced sleep, fled. Sex was the furthest thing from Matsuoka’s mind when he was approached by that man, he only saw a business opportunity since he recognized that man from another company.

Now, with Hirosue: Hirosue cut Matsuoka off after finding out the truth, he blocked Matsuoka, tried to move on with his life. Matsuoka called and messaged despite being blocked, and showed up at Hirosue’s place of work to talk, and then kept asking Hirosue out for dinner until the night they met Fukuda, and Hirosue got drunk. Matsuoka got Hirosue back to his apartment where Hirosue told him, in no uncertain terms, that he didn’t want to see Matsuoka again, “thinking about having to meet you tonight filled me with dread,” he wasn’t going to change his mind, they were done. Matsuoka begs Hirosue to sleep with him, just once, even if Hirosue sees it as a dare, “we have to at least try.” Hirosue isn’t into it until he, in his drunken stupor, sees Yoko Eto instead of Matsuoka and says her name. This is where the material sexual assault takes place (one could argue that the sexual assault began when Matsuoka decided they had to have sex even though Hirosue was too drunk to consent, and then proceeded to kiss and undress him, but we conveniently forget that part). Matsuoka doesn’t want to have sex anymore, Hirosue doesn’t listen. And then, the next day, this whole exchange happens!:

Hirosue doesn’t quite remember what happened, but he feels like he was in the wrong, that he has to apologize, and that he can’t blame it on being drunk. Matsuoka is the one to wave it off! It’s a messed up situation that is also later addressed in the sequel, but up until this point, they both play active parts in the mess. Sexual assault is not good. I think we’re all in agreement. But is the goodness or culpability of it the point of this scene in the story? No. It’s about the bittersweetness. It’s about technically getting what you asked for but not really at too high a cost. They’re constantly wishing on a monkey’s paw.

It’s completely fine if this is the worst thing you’ve read in the history of all things, but it seems to me that you don’t understand what you’ve read at all, even though a lot of it is pretty straightforward, mainly because you seem overly keen to assign morality to the story. I hope whoever reads your review in the future takes into account the severe and multiple misconstructions you have of this story, and decides to give it a fair chance.

[thenostalgiadepartment]

While I thought we were having a pleasant discussion about our differing interpretation of this manga, you have now crossed the line into attacking me personally. This is our first interaction and I hardly think that qualifies you knowing my tastes, my reading history, how I write my reviews, nor why I write reviews for some media over others. To say I “don’t understand anything” is wrong. You are simply disagreeing with me because I wrote a review which differs from your perception of this work. It’s fine to disagree with my review and my opinion, but you have since attacked my character.

It’s clear that you feel passionately about this author's works, but that does not excuse your behavior. At no point in time did I attack the author or demean their work or tell people not to check out their other works. I just said that I don’t recommend THIS particular manga. This review reflects my thoughts and opinions towards Beautiful Things solely. 

Reviewing a piece of media and being critical of it is not a personal attack on the creator. Writing a review allows me to sit back and reflect on what I just read/watched/played and organizes my reaction into clearer thoughts. I choose not to research authors before reading their works, including reading others’ reviews because I don’t want spoilers coloring my experience of a story. I don’t think reviews explicitly have to provide research on an author upfront. I’m not writing a book report for school. I’m not analyzing a creator’s entire catalogue, just one manga I happened to pick up because the cover and summary appealed to me. 

You are trying to invent these fictitious broader opinions about how I view BL manga or my morals when it comes to this genre. You once again do not know me, my tastes, my reading history, or my to-be-read catalogue. You’re making blanket statements about my relationship with manga simply because I wrote a negative review on a manga you happen to love. 

Sexual assault is an atrocious act. Matsuoka narrowly avoids being assaulted at the beginning of the manga only to fall victim to this later on. Regardless of what hoops you want to jump through to explain his behavior, Hirosue sexually assaults Matsuoka. Matsuoka revokes consent by saying ‘no’ throughout the scene to the point where Hirosue flips him over, covers his mouth, and continues assaulting him. It doesn’t matter if Matsuoka initiated the experience, it doesn’t matter if Hirosue was drunk, Hirosue intentionally silenced Matsuoka and assaulted him. There is nothing sweet about this scene, and I think even the mangaka is trying to show that. Matsuoka is injured physically after this which is shown plainly in several panels. Matsuoka down plays this in the interactions with Hirosue afterwards because that's all he can do in that situation. He’s a victim, but he’s still trying to be kind to Hirosue. This scene absolutely is important and crucial to the story as it shows Matsuoka’s breaking point and the destruction of his character. There is nothing romantic or bittersweet about it. It’s tragic.

To address your tags, BL is a genre labeling a manga as featuring two men in some type of relationship. It’s neither inherently wholesome or toxic. It’s just a label. 

You are a long time fan of Narise Konohara’s work and are clearly defensive of it. But being a fan of something does not excuse being disrespectful towards others. You’ve repeatedly slandered me in your responses. Your posts have nothing to do with protecting future readers, they have been nothing more than a personal attack on an opinion that happens to differ from your own.

I hope in the future you will converse with others in a respectful way and come to understand that people can have differing opinions. It is clear we both have conflicting perspectives on this story and are at an impasse. Have a good rest of your day.

[thenostalgiadepartment]

The meet cute is one of the most important parts of a story. It sets the tone for how two characters will interact throughout the rest. Whether they’re total strangers brought together by happenstance or they just happen to turn a specific way in a crowd and catch a special someone’s eye, the meet cute is the building block of any romance story. 

But what happens when the meet cute builds a rocky emotional foundation for a relationship? For me, Beautiful Things by Nao Inui has one of the shakiest starts.

Official Summary: After a tough breakup, Matsuoka finds solace in a surprising place—his ex-girlfriend’s wardrobe. Donning her outfits, he embarks on nightly escapades that garner a whirlwind of attention, not all of which is welcome. One perilous evening, Matsuoka is rescued from an assault by his unsuspecting co-worker, Hirosue.

Hirosue, an endearing klutz, is completely taken by Matsuoka’s disguised persona and falls head over heels. As Matsuoka thrives in the glow of Hirosue’s adoration, the weight of his secret looms large. How long can he keep his true identity hidden? And what will unfold when Hirosue discovers the truth?

Publisher: Seven Seas Published: December 17, 2024 Genre: Drama, Romance Rating: 13+ Series Status: Complete

Beautiful Things is about an office worker named Matsuoka who dresses up in women’s attire to alleviate stress from the work day. While he enjoys this freeing experience, one night some unwanted attention has him running for his life after he is nearly assaulted. In dire straits without his wallet, phone, or even his shoes, a stranger comes up and gives him some cash for a taxi ride home.

When going to work the next day, Matsuoka notices that the man who helped him that night, Hirosue, works at his same company. This is the meet cute in question from the introduction.

Originally Hirosue is painted as the “nice guy.” The quiet introvert who always does the right thing. At first he seems like quite the hero for Matsuoka in his time of need, but this does last. 

Hirosue begins to act in what I would consider extremely creepy, stalkery ways. I did not find this endearing or sweet as it was intended. He becomes pushy and forceful in wanting to get closer to “Eto”, Matsuoka’s female alter ego. While some may say Matsuoka is trying to conceal the fact he is a guy from Hirosue, Matsuoka never instigates any of the personal information sharing or meeting up. He’s just reacting to what’s happening rather than being proactive. He tries to be a decent person in the face of the strange situation he finds himself entangled in.

The drama that ensues is what you would expect from this kind of story. However, I did not appreciate a specific scene in the middle of this story that can’t be construed as anything other than sexual assault. The type of abuse exhibited by Hirosue, both emotionally and physically, is something that I hated reading and found extremely distasteful. These feelings are compounded by the fact that the story lingers on this period of time. This disaster causes Matsuoka to swear off crossdressing ever again. He even changes his entire appearance to distance himself from Hirosue and their past relationship.

When I first heard about this manga, I was excited to read it. The summary sounded like the type of drama I would enjoy reading: a person saving another from a bad circumstance which turns into a romance. But this wasn’t that story. Matsuoka should have just taken the cab and never looked back. He should have never tried to repay the favor. The meet cute isn’t a meet cute in this story. It’s the exact opposite. A red flag that should have been abided by. 

To add insult to injury, those who endure reading the entire story like I did will be faced with a conclusion that is ambiguous and frustrating. 

Beautiful Things by Nao Inui is the manga adaptation of the light novel Utsukushii Koto by Narise Konohara. While the art style is one of the few positive things about this manga, it is not enough to outweigh the amount of issues found within the story itself.

If you are in the mood for some romantic drama, please look elsewhere. This story is not worth your time.

Rating: ★☆☆☆☆

[angelswithouthearts]

Heya~! I read your review, and I have to say that I think you severely missed the point of this story or maybe misunderstood the premise of it.

Konohara Narise, the creator of this story, has, since the 90s, been known as the queen of angst. Beautiful Things is largely a story about unrequited love, of love twisted by circumstance between ordinary people pushed far beyond their comforts due to the intensity of their emotions. Angst is the journey. Hirosue and Matsuoka’s relationship was doomed from the get-go. Partly due to Mitsuoka’s lies, at the beginning at least, and then Hirosue’s inability to cut ties and him stringing Matsuoka along because he was so infatuated with Eto, and then because he doesn’t know whether he can ever be attracted to a man. In all of this, neither want to let go despite the many chances they’re given to let go. They make active choices to remain in each other’s orbits: Hirosue waiting for Eto, Matsuoka deciding to crossdress to meet with Hirosue over and over again, Hirosue pursuing Matsuoka without knowing what he wants, Matsuoka wanting a chance with Hirosue, asking Hirosue to sleep with him, to let him prove himself to Hirosue etc.

Hirosue’s “extremely creepy, stalkery ways” is not intended to be “endearing or sweet,” it’s supposed to be pitiful because he’s falling in love with someone who doesn’t exist. He is a man who rarely shoots his shot and when he does it’s for someone who is deceiving him, with initially good intentions later turned selfish. It’s pitiful because his strong emotions drive him to ask for things he would never ask for and when he senses resistance, he apologizes and withdraws his request. “Can I have your number? Maybe?” When he asks to see Eto after e-mailing back and forth, it’s because “something awful happened” and he finds her company comforting. He apologizes and promises not to ask for that again. Pitiful.

Hirosue was, until Matsuoka’s Eto-revelation, a wildly straight man eager to follow the beats set out for him by a strict society. He wanted the wife, the 2.5 kids, picket fence, the whole nine. Matsuoka, up until he broke up with his girlfriend, seems to have been the same, a wildly straight man setting himself up for success. Coming to accept that they’ve fallen in love with a man is a big part of the story as well. Matsuoka’s change of appearance, which amounts to a haircut and growing a goatee, was in part to reclaim his straightness, to go back to who he thought he had been before he started to crossdress—this is also when he starts to date a woman—and he keeps it, in part, to test Hirosue. The goatee becomes a prominent side-character in the sequel. The story continues in Precious Things (Itoshii Koto) from mainly Hirosue’s POV. There are also bonus stories.

Meet-cutes are rarely meet-cutes in Konohara’s stories unless it’s a romcom and even then there will be streaks of darkness in them (like in the light novel Don’t Worry Mama).

Finally, this story isn’t meant to be a manual for relationships or how to be a responsible and well-adjusted citizen. It’s a messy slice of life romance with the bitterness that may entail, not a cozy romance.

[thenostalgiadepartment]

Hello! Thank you so much for reading my review! It sounds like you are a long time fan of Narise Konohara’s work. It's always interesting to hear the distinct differences in how people interpret a particular story. 

Most readers seeking out a review will be new to the author and will most likely not know what the author is known for besides what the summary states. The tag line from Seven Seas for this particular manga noted that it was a bittersweet romance, but there was hardly anything to call sweet here. The story left me with nothing but a bitter taste. I think my biggest gripe about the summary was the “endearing klutz” description of Hirosue when there is nothing remotely endearing about him. He is basically just a reflection of the man who almost assaulted Matsuoka in the opening chapter. Not only does Hirosue sexually assault Matsuoka, but he destroys Matsuoka’s love for cross-dressing, the hobby that brought him nothing but joy in his busy schedule. Hirosue took advantage of Matsuoka trying to be a good person who tried to do the right thing at every turn. Being a good person ultimately brought Matsuoka nothing but grief and hardship. Again, this is hardly bittersweet. 

For me and others who are looking for something with a bit more romance in it, this manga certainly wasn’t it. I stand by my review of 1/5 stars. Beautiful Things is one of the worst BL manga I have ever read. Time is a valuable resource, and there are far more enjoyable BL manga to spend your time with in comparison.