Manga Musings: GE: Good Ending

So my latest read manga-wise has been to catch up on another of my 25 Days of Manga series, GE: Good Ending. Normally, while I don't avoid them per se, I don't tend to actively seek out harem series. They aren't always my favourite of genres, but having been given this as a request, I read a bit and actually enjoyed it.

Initially, Good Ending is a romance story about a regular if not wimpy high school boy, Seiji, who is in love with his upperclassman in the tennis club, Shou. Then in some odd twist, the class beauty, Yuki, decides to help him pluck up the courage to confess to his crush. This section is all rather simple and it's pretty easy to figure out where some of the plot is headed, but it's enjoyable nonetheless. However, as the series goes on, it develops into more and more of a harem series and for me that's when it starts to lose some of its initial sparkle.

My biggest issue with harems is that it always seems to be so wholly unbelievable and Good Ending is no different. Nine times out of ten, the central male is weak and generally naff, something that Seiji fulfils in pretty much every way. Initially, he's an incredibly cowardly and timid guy, and granted in that respect he does mature a little though not all that much. Throughout he suffers from what seems to be a crippling lack of self-confidence and indecision and as a result every little thing gets blown up out of all proportion. Frankly, I have no idea why all the girls seem to flock to him. I mean, Oonuma clearly has some kind of mental issues given her naivety, her history and the way she clings to Seiji like a limpet purely because he's kind to her. About the only thing our central protagonist has going for him is that he's nice and kind to pretty much everyone, but he's not THAT good a guy - especially when his dithering ends up being harmful - and this is where the central problem lies. While in the beginning, I was cheering Seiji on, willing him to overcome his shyness and win over his crush, as time went on I found myself getting frustrated and annoyed. There are only so many times that you can watch one guy hesitate and get into so many misunderstandings that set his relationships back two or three steps.

Girls like me?! Yeah, I know, Seiji. I'm having a hard time believing it too.

Outside of the harem aspect there are certain bits about the story that I do quite like. The history regarding Yuki's past relationship for example, I found quite engaging. For a seemingly long time, the mystery surrounding it kept the interest factor up, and I wanted to keep reading to find out just what happened. Then when all was revealed, the effect that past events had on her current love affair kept the whole thing fresh, and judging by the way things are going, her past will likely return once again. I do like that there are several plot threads running alongside each other at once, but this also works as a double-edged blade. There are certain aspects that feel tacked-on and unfocused; the main one that springs to mind is the whole photography aspect with Seiji. It's introduced as a way for him to move forward and seems like it will help to resolve his lack of motivation for the future as well as potentially adding to the list of females after the hapless teen. However, the whole thing seems pretty half-arsed, and it's fallen by the wayside only to reappear once or twice when it's convenient. Likewise, Touru coming back into the picture has been hinted at for a while but once again seems to have disappeared no doubt to return later on. Sadly, this lack of focus takes a little away from the otherwise well-woven plot threads, like dropping stitches while knitting and ending up with a nice yet rather holey sweater.

As much as I personally find Good Ending to have its fair share of problems, I still find it an easy read and when all is said and done, I do quite like it; it's just not one of the most incredibly amazing series out there. I'd say that if you like the harem genre, a dash of good humour and a few panty shots then it's worth checking this out.

Manga Musings: Onani Master Kurosawa

Myriad manga are set in the school environment and granted, a lot that I've come into contact with focus on cute high school girls. Onani Master Kurosawa however, is unlike anything I've ever read before. At its heart it's a coming-of-age drama that follows the titular Kurosawa as he matures from his anti-social beginning, looking down on everyone around him, to learning the importance of friendship and social contact. Where this manga differs is through is that the central themes, and eventual catalysts for his change are revenge and masturbation.

Kurosawa is a self-alienated boy who keeps very much to himself. He actively chooses not to interact any more than is absolutely necessary with his classmates, and - despite hiding it well from others - actively despises the one person who consistently attempts to reach out to him - a kind hearted otaku named Nagaoka. The only thing the boy actually cares about is his "Daily Duty", and every day after school he waits in the library until everyone leaves before retiring to the girls' bathroom where he proceeds to jack off while picturing one of his female classmates. Charming, right? Well it gets better as when he notices a girl being bullied, he decides to dish out his own form of justice where he steals their uniforms and leaves his sticky white calling card all over them.

Now, I'm no prude by any stretch of the imagination, but the scenes with Kurosawa jerking off in the girl's lavatory weren't pleasant. They were explicit without showing anything (other than a few... "stains" on the wall), mainly due to the blunt and coarse internal dialogue. I confess at this point I was on the verge of dropping Onani Master for its sheer grossness. But I felt I should give it more of a chance. Following his stunt with the bullies, the victim, a quiet and frankly nutty girl, Kitahara, approaches Kurosawa in the bathroom and says that she will keep quiet about his daily activities, if he'd perform the same, twisted vengeance on anyone else she so desires. Frankly, this didn't sound like it was going to get much better, since now it seemed to be a manga about manipulated wanky justice. However, shortly after, the story took a turn that made it far mroe interesting. Slowly, through his relationship with a girl in his class, Kurosawa begins to undergo a gradual transformation and what follows is a fairly impressive tale of love, atonement, and the importance of never being alone.

I personally think that the artwork is probably the most impressive aspect of Onani Master, which doesn't necessarily fly the flag for great story and characters. However, the art style is unlike anything I've seen in another manga. The main drawings look to have been drawn by pencil, and instead of using screentone, the shading has been created again by pencil. Then in an odd contrast to this very hand-drawn feel, the gradient tones appear to have been digitally added. It's an odd sort of effect, but at the same time it's oddly effective. This rougher, more sketchy style of artwork, complements the crude nature of the content - after all if a scene with a boy whacking off was crisp, precise and pristine, it would give off too much of a clinical vibe, and this is meant to be dirty. Dark, unsavoury, and dirty.

Certainly, if you can get over the initial parts with Kurosawa's vulgar, no-nonsense toilet exploits, then you may well enjoy this manga. Honestly, I'm glad that I did continue reading. It may not be one of my favourite series ever, but for a teenage tale with a twist, it was quite impressive. So if you have some spare time, it's only four volumes long, why not give it a go.