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A review by wolfgiselle
Girl Friends: The Complete Collection 1 by Milk Morinaga
3.0
I'm not much of a Yuri manga reader. In fact, I'd be hard-pressed to sit down and name even five. When I saw this one at the local used bookstore for cheap, I figured there was no time like the present to give one a shot.
The story starts with your typically smart but socially-awkward girl named Mariko. (Her introversion was relatable, at least.) She becomes best friends with a girl named Akiko. She's the more popular, more sociable girl who's into what you'd expect of your stereotypical teenage girl: fashion, makeup, boys, etc. I was never, personally, into all that stuff – despite being a girl myself. And I still lack an interest. Which means that whenever the story got to points that involved long detailed conversations about such things or shopping trips (can't forget all the shopping trips), my mind would glaze over a bit.
Now this manga is cute, don't get me wrong, but its biggest problem is nothing much happens in it. The premise, as I said, is simply one shy girl becoming friends with a not-quite-shy girl with whom she starts developing a bit of an obsessive crush. I say obsessive because this girl kisses her friend when she's drunk and unconscious, thinks about her nearly 24/7, gets jealous and upset over the slightest hint she's ever been with someone else, and even claims to have lost her virginity to her boyfriend at the time because her friend had lost hers to a boy the previous summer and she wanted to be like her. Like...WHAT?
Mariko's slight craziness aside, I can relate to having a crush on your best friend and being afraid to tell them or ruin your friendship. That was one of the plot points that kept me engaged and reading. I wanted to see where it went. The situation, of course, hasn't been resolved yet. I'll have to get the next omnibus to get the rest of the story, but I give the book kudos for at least making me invested enough to want to know what happens next in their relationship.
The other female character Akiko (the more outgoing one), was my favorite. This shocked me a little because I'm a lot more like Mariko in personality. She's so down to Earth, though - so likable. I feel bad for her because her friendship with Mariko is going through so much drama. And all because she's incapable of handling or dealing with her crush – or communicating to Akiko that she even has one. Akiko is just one of those genuinely nice people it's almost impossible to hate, even when they're sometimes a little pushy or clueless.
The artwork was pretty detailed for what it was and really fit into its cute vibe. I'd recommend this book to people who like Yuri and are curious about it but want something easy to digest with no overcomplicated plots.
The story starts with your typically smart but socially-awkward girl named Mariko. (Her introversion was relatable, at least.) She becomes best friends with a girl named Akiko. She's the more popular, more sociable girl who's into what you'd expect of your stereotypical teenage girl: fashion, makeup, boys, etc. I was never, personally, into all that stuff – despite being a girl myself. And I still lack an interest. Which means that whenever the story got to points that involved long detailed conversations about such things or shopping trips (can't forget all the shopping trips), my mind would glaze over a bit.
Now this manga is cute, don't get me wrong, but its biggest problem is nothing much happens in it. The premise, as I said, is simply one shy girl becoming friends with a not-quite-shy girl with whom she starts developing a bit of an obsessive crush. I say obsessive because this girl kisses her friend when she's drunk and unconscious, thinks about her nearly 24/7, gets jealous and upset over the slightest hint she's ever been with someone else, and even claims to have lost her virginity to her boyfriend at the time because her friend had lost hers to a boy the previous summer and she wanted to be like her. Like...WHAT?
Mariko's slight craziness aside, I can relate to having a crush on your best friend and being afraid to tell them or ruin your friendship. That was one of the plot points that kept me engaged and reading. I wanted to see where it went. The situation, of course, hasn't been resolved yet. I'll have to get the next omnibus to get the rest of the story, but I give the book kudos for at least making me invested enough to want to know what happens next in their relationship.
The other female character Akiko (the more outgoing one), was my favorite. This shocked me a little because I'm a lot more like Mariko in personality. She's so down to Earth, though - so likable. I feel bad for her because her friendship with Mariko is going through so much drama. And all because she's incapable of handling or dealing with her crush – or communicating to Akiko that she even has one. Akiko is just one of those genuinely nice people it's almost impossible to hate, even when they're sometimes a little pushy or clueless.
The artwork was pretty detailed for what it was and really fit into its cute vibe. I'd recommend this book to people who like Yuri and are curious about it but want something easy to digest with no overcomplicated plots.