Kiss Blue vol.1 by Keiko Kinoshita review

Kiss Blue vol. 1

Author/Artist: Keiko Kinoshita

Publisher: Juné

Rating: M - 18 and above

Genre: Yaoi, Drama, Romance

Grade: D

*** Review originally appeared at The Journal of the Lincoln Heights Literary Society at http://liheliso.com/buzz/. Check it out! ***

Falling in love with your best friend that you've had since childhood is not a new concept in the world of romance. It is especially popular in the yaoieverse (yes I just made that word up, lay off!). In Kiss Blue vol. 1 it is the introduction to Tomosaka and Noda and their relationship.

Noda is an obvious womanizer and dates several women at one time. Tomosaka is single and is very sensible. He values his friendship with Noda above anything else. One day he realizes that the feelings of contempt he felt towards the women that came in contact with Noda are the feelings of jealousy. OMG! He's fallen in love with his best friend. Instead of putting a strain on their friendship Tomosaka becomes distant and doesn't spend as much time with Noda. Noda notices that Tomosaka is avoiding him and tries to smooth the situation. Noda kind of forces Tomosaka to recognize his feelings and confess them. They end up getting it on. Does their friendship end? Will Noda accept Tomosaka's feelings?

This is the first Keiko Kinoshita-sensei work that I've read. Kinoshita-sensei also wrote Little Cry Baby and You and Harujion. I really am apathetic towards this story. The art doesn't stand out, neither does the story. The falling in love with your childhood friend who happens to be of the same sex is the basis of so many yaoi stories it can get really tiring if you don't have a gripping tale. The characters don't have much personality and there really isn't much there to draw you into the story. The only things that I can say I liked about this manga is that it is just one story instead of a bunch of one shots or one longer main story with a shorter story at the end. Also, since this is a Juné release it is of a larger trim size and has a gorgeous dust jacket. Sadly I only recommend this story to those who don't mind kind of boring stories, or Kinoshita-sensei's art.