MANGA REVIEW: I HEAR THE SUNSPOT Vol. 1

In the immortal words ‘Somebody Touch Ma Spaghet’, I was imagining something along that border when I picked up my first Boy’s Love manga “I Hear The Sunspot” by Yuki Fumino. From outside looking in, it seemed like BL was all about getting in those pants with each other. You know what goes on in these parts of the town, you feel me? But what I got was completely different.

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Lets give it a little bit of introduction: IHTS is a BL that was released in 2016, I picked it up in 2018, and finally read it in 2019. I wasn’t delaying it per se, but I didn’t know what to expect. I have read enough YAOI doujin when they say, “Stop trying to do this on your own.” Instead it was a coming of age slice of life manga about a glutton and a Kaneki Ken ripoff. But you know how we do it here, so let me break it down.

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  Masturbation Joke, Perhaps?

ZE POZITIBEZ

STORY: IHTS is set up in college, and follows the protagonist Taichi as he stumbles(literally) to find a bishonen boi sitting all gloomy on the rooftop. The silent boy’s name is Kohei, and he has something going on with him. The meeting is actually pretty generic, but still came off as charming. The tone of comedy curved into drama, and I can welcome that smooth change. What follows is arc based chapters that further flesh out the main couple, as they deal with ignorant people, disabilities & social biases.

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The representation of Kohei’s deafness came across as faithful. Considering it was the backbone of the story, it was executed quite well. I can also understand why he’d feel alone, because Japanese society is very formal from what I know. See, media is just another way to shine light on the social norms. Agreed most of the time its exaggeration. But the levels to which people react to it is different. Comparing to Shoko’s bullying in ‘A Silent Voice’, I can see how people would react to Kohei’s at a college level. Both of them understandable, both of them agreeable.

And that is pretty much it I can say for the positive aspects of the book, but what does it do negatively?

ZE NEGATIBEZ

I feel like it’s a tradition now that I will find ton of problems with the first volumes, or at least these one-shot manga. IHTS is as generic as it gets. Maybe it is my fault that it is my first BL, but the focus of bloody book is all over the place. I can see how it would be about disability, but there is no need to squeeze in the romance, is it? From the first meeting, I knew where it would end up going. It wasn’t a bad turn of events, but it seemed so pasted on, it almost left a sour taste in my mouth. Even fujoshi would appreciate this book from afar and leave it there.

Second of all, what the hell is with this trope full of couple? Kohei being a lone wolf because people pity him. I mean, is it bad? Hell no! would you not respect and care for a person who had something as essential as his hearing taken away from him, from a bloody fever? Is that possible, please let me know. He broods alone, thinking he is ‘Master Understand’, and decides for everything without considering other factors. Taichi has other friends? Guess he was an outsider all along! I can go on for hours with his BS, but I don’t want to.

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  There he goes, the White Deaf Wolf...

The second half of the main couple is no good either. He is a bland protagonist and does fuckall to make himself likeable. He is a dork with a common sense. Is that a fetish? Doing right by Kohei is not something out of the ordinary, it is sensible. So, his whole side of feelings was messy at best. And dare I say, his side of the story was boring. Him with Kohei, good! Himself, BAD!!! Does anyone want to reflect on their own problems with their workplace with him? IS THAT WHAT I CAME TO THIS BL FOR?!

The secondary characters were actually interesting for an undeserving minute, but the story was never about them, now was it?

And the final issue with story I have is: the arcs. A baseball arc, really? All for establishing that Kohei didnt go out that much? And a Miho character THAT WAS AS GENERIC AS GIRLS IN THE FIRST CHAPTER. I don’t kid around when I say I was actually mad when I saw this development. It was repetitive, bland, and did nothing to further establish the main couple. It was just another gear in the machine to make for the argument they have later in the book. I was so sick of the book that I wanted to end it already.

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  Please let me Know the Difference

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  ... And contact me @rishabh_SSW on Twitter

Now let’s talk about the kiss. People, did you really shed a tear when that happened? Did you wet your pants? Did you drop your respective books to give your aching heart a rest? It was reminiscent to the kiss in Yuri on ICE, which was equally as manufactured for the reactions. I hated it. It was not constructed well. And it failed to communicate the feelings of the characters.

Also, the manga ended with an overly dramatic dialogue that was more confusing than endearing. [Just wanted to push my agenda a little more].

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  Do you know your way to the door because I want you to Get out with the BULLSHIT

ART: It’s not good. The art is sloppy, and not in the kind of ‘MY LESBIAN EXPERIENCES WITH LONELINESS’. The cover was beautiful, but the whole thing was pretty much unlikable. Taichi’s black hair and darker clothes as compared to Kohei’s light hair and equally white blanks of shirts made it really hard to invest myself in those characters. It straight up looked like first draft compiled into a paperback. And thus, it feels more amateur-ish than something that wanted to make a statement.

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  Is this Impressive People?

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  ITS A SINGLE SHOE!!!

FINAL THOUGHT: I HEAR THE SUNSPOT was an enjoyable but empty ride. I didn’t waste my time reading it, but it was nothing special. I have read better romance (Oh, MY SWEET ALIEN), and even better gay love manga (Beauty and the Beast Girl). I have also read overly dramatic pieces of crap (THE GODS LIE), so it ranks in the middle part of my manga collections. It’s a sweet book with broken focus and a goad bigger than it could achieve.

STORY: 6.5/10

ART: 5.5/10

PERSONAL THOUGHTS: 2/10; Didn’t get wet enough.

RECCOMENDATION: Pick It, but no rush.