First, let’s start with the publisher’s blurb: “Shy Miwa has always dreamed of finding love, but living in small-town Japan made finding the right match difficult—especially since she likes girls! Even going away to college didn’t seem to help, until one day her outgoing classmate Saeko suggests they might as well start dating each other since it’s not like either of them has other options.
At first it seems like things won’t work out as their personalities clash and misunderstandings abound. But when their casual friendship starts to become something more, Miwa begins to wonder—can a pragmatic proposal lead to true love?”
With the premise sorted, what worked for me?
- I enjoyed the art style; I found it cute and expressive. Basically, if you like the art on the cover(s) you will probably like the art throughout.
- The work features LGBTQ representation and takes a more nuanced and mature look at love. The fact that the main characters are a bit older (ie in college, not high school) may contribute to this. The work also includes discussions of difficult subject matter (such as self-image, sex, and parental expectations) without being flippant or fetishizing. In short, it’s nice to see characters engage with these struggles without them defining said character or the story (you know, like actual people).
- The work provides some insight into being an LGBTQ ally (e.g. when the protagonists’ bandmates check-in with each other to try and make things as comfortable as possible for the leads).
- The work shows a side character deal with unrequited love in a (mostly) healthy way. This was refreshing change of pace compared to many other stories where pining and whining gets the girl (yikes).
By contrast, what didn’t work for me?
- The work doesn’t rise above some of the more common cliches of the genre (such as drunken confessions of love, issues that could likely be resolved if the leads just talked to one another, etc).
- The work makes reference to (seemingly important) events that happened outside the text, like a rock festival. This happened in volume 2 and I had to go back to volume 1 to make sure I didn’t miss something.
- The work’s antagonist (if you could call the character that) is little more than a footnote. Their motivations are only hinted at in volume 2 and they are all but absent in volume 3. It’s not that I wanted them to have more screen time, I just found it odd that the author introduced an antagonist without any real follow-through.
- Side-characters are underdeveloped in the first volume (ie they are only there to move the plot along). This gripe is addressed in volumes two and three, however.
Conclusion:
How Do We Relationship? is a fine tale of lesbian love that hovers around a PG-13 rating. While it doesn’t get especially steamy, I was more than satisfied by its exploration of relationships and romance. In short, if you’re looking for a fun, fast LGBTQ manga to read this Pride, this work is definitely worth a look.
Check it the first volume here.
You may also enjoy …
“My Lesbian Experience With Loneliness” by Kabi Nagata (you can see my review here)
“After Hours” by Yuhta Nishio
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