 |
| Thanks to barnesandnoble.com for the image. |
EVERLASTING LOVE
JUNE MANGA/DMP BOOKS
CARTOONIST: Ryoko Chiba
ISBN: 978-1-56970-778-4; Drama/Romance; Rated “M” for “Mature Audiences 18+”
184 pp., B&W, $12.95; paperback w/dust jacket
Everlasting Love, a recent boys’ love or BL manga anthology, features tales of long-lasting friendships between young men that finally bloom into romantic love and passionate lovemaking.
The title story features two young men, Youji Suetsugu and Noboru, who have been friends since they were small boys. Youji has been lusting after Noboru for 20 years, showing up at the Noboru’s job and even sabotaging other relationships that Noboru attempts to have. Youji won’t take “no” for an answer. So is he determined or is he a stalker? And is Noboru finally falling for Youji’s advances?
The rest of the stories follow pretty much along the same lines. Each tale features a young man who has been secretly in love with a male friend for a long time, but can’t bring himself to say so. Usually, it’s up to the object of desire to finally be the one to make the first move and get real love started. The stories in Everlasting Love sometime come across as corny, but there is something about love winning in the end that is attractive. Like a flower miraculously blooming in arid land, seeing true love come to life between those meant to be together is positively romantic.
B+
