mirimangarecs

ONESHOT MULTI-FEATURE (L -> R)

stalks - aoi aki

a newly hired gardener discusses plants and love with a mysterious young man in the greenhouse

air fish in love - fumika minami

an office worker who constantly daydreams about ocean creatures falls in love with a woman who might be just as weird as him

a pocket full of holes forgets everything - someya minoru

cw: attempted suicide

a man plagued by chronic forgetfulness fails to propose to his girlfriend and begins to think the worst

the sound of something new - aoi haru

the heroine is a man - lee na; danpung sae, kang dayun

having spent 10 years as a weak side character in a remote territory, ainé is convinced she’s finally run into the protagonist: a heroine disguising her gender in order to take up the mantle of her lost family. however, none of ainé’s predictions are coming true, and the protagonist seems to be falling in love with her instead

the couple: i adore their stoic unrequited x oblivious dynamic. ainé is the funniest person in the world. she’s quirky, naive, and has complete faith in her mystical visions of the future. while a lot of isekai fl’s act strangely, ainé’s otherworldly personality comes off as completely natural. and while we as readers get to experience certain meta-narrative tropes, i always enjoy taking that perspective away and looking at her in-universe through the ml’s eyes. screen-time is shared generously and tego’s point of view is compelling and exciting

story & setting: having inherited the “eyes of truth” in her new body, ainé wants nothing more than to help the story she sees come true, but unseen forces know more about her power than she does and seem to be hiding a devastating secret. it’s a satisfying, unique take on the isekai convention and i absolutely inhaled the story

piccolina - ootsuki ichika

a yakitori stand owner struggles to get closer to a gorgeous club bunny regular as she’s guarded by her entourage of identical coworkers

the couple: really fantastic. their relationship is built on the mutual respect they share for being so devoted to their chosen professions, and they have such natural and easy chemistry

story & setting: i love it so much. akira is always focused and respectful while interacting with houka, and his earnest admiration for her career is so refreshing. it’s a pure love story. they invented romance

what a wonderful world! - asano inio

a collection of vignettes focusing on a group of ordinary people in a neighbourhood in tokyo

story & setting: a high-school girl is kidnapped by a bear, a bully is haunted by the apparition of his victim, and a mysterious epidemic slowly robs humans of their ability to feel. reading asano’s work always leaves me feeling queasy, repulsed, and uncomfortably humbled

the art: beyond the easily recognizable style, i was taken away by the artful panelling and wordless environmental storytelling

mail - housui yamazaki

a private detective intercepts the messages left behind by dangerous spirits and exorcises them with his spiritual gun

story & setting: episodic short horror stories guided by the twilight zone-style narration of akiba. 3 volumes gives us enough time to begin exploring his backstory & mysterious powers, but cuts off abruptly in order for yamazaki to move onto their next project, kurosagi corpse delivery service

the art: the first chapter is more experimental, with akiba adopting a schlubby, almost columbo-like persona, but he quickly takes a page from jojo’s book and learns to use mascara and lip plumper. it’s stylish, mature, and disquieting, with fantastic atmosphere

a timid lady was turned into an ugly cat, but on the verge of fainting is picked up by the most fearsome military duke - ootori, ema okadachi

having just had her marriage arranged to a fearsome military captain, a noble daughter is cursed by her malevolent half-sister to turn into an ugly cat, only to be rescued and adopted by her fiancé

the couple: it’s still early days, but i was impressed by the amount of depth their relationship achieved in only a few chapters. it sets up her desire to make things right with him, and his desire to find her after she’s accused of running away

story & setting: please don’t be biased because of the long novel-style name. it’s really everything you need to get started. i honestly think this has the legs to get officially picked up and receive a more truncated title

the art: i’m reminded of marielle clarac in a few ways, not least because of the extremely charming chapter art

the falcon princess - coin, han ryui; SWE

after fleeing the destruction of her castle in a war that has scattered the royal heirs, a timid princess wakes up inside the body of a carrier falcon and begins to fight for the sake of her kingdom

the couple: really fantastic if you enjoy devoted knights x their liege. while they begin as a quarrelling bird and master, the personal and romantic development is extremely well written. i appreciated how much both of them shared their screentime/pov’s and took on equally important responsibilities within the narrative

story & setting: it’s a well-grounded historical fiction that eschews fantasy elements (bar the obvious pivotal plot point) in favour of pure military strategy and royal intrigue. without committing to specifics, it’s set somewhere in the early modern period, distinguishing it from the glut of vaguely-romantic and victorian themed rofans. as well, the decision to have the story take place exclusively in military encampments and active battlegrounds forces a lot of unique situations

happily ever afterwards - jeongseo, hwang dotol

a devoted fangirl is reincarnated as a princess in the happily-ever-after of a rofan novel and swears to make her favourite tragic character happy (by marrying him). however, after losing his position and being exiled as a traitor, he won’t be won over so easily

the couple: they have become a foundational sunshine x tsundere couple to me. i love how her earnest kindness and honesty allows them to build their relationship slowly over time, even when he’s wallowing in angst

story & setting: the political intrigue got deeper than i anticipated, but it still kept its levity and charm throughout several high-stakes arcs. my only complaint is that it wasn’t a few chapters longer; the ending felt a bit abrupt

the art: sometimes the quality can vary, but i love the simple and sketchy style. the couple always looks gorgeous, and the artist definitely knows how to draw unique character designs, too

peony gets the full shoujo girl treatment with the chapter art and it makes my heart so happy

(no spoilers, just gushing over the ml)

daily reports about my witch senpai - mochida maka

an office worker notices his witch colleague always remains kind while being treated like a doormat by ungrateful people, and reaches out to support her when she needs it

the couple: extremely sweet. i appreciated how it took time to build the relationship with platonic friendship and support before kicking off the romance as he gives her the boost she needs to stand up for herself

story & setting: a modern supernatural slice-of-life similar to “the invisible man and his soon-to-be bride”. witches and magic simply exist, which makes them extremely useful in many ways, and vulnerable to abuse in others

the art: sketchy, fluffy, magical

we meet again: a second chance at love - uchiya

a down-on-her-luck career woman reconnects with her unrequited high-school crush… as the nude model in his art class

the couple: they’re very funny- scenes are over the top, dramatic, and loaded with rapid development. while he comes off as extremely eccentric, his moments of down-to-earth communication turn him into a real romantic possibility

story & setting: after being fired from her accounting job and forced to work odd jobs to get by, she finds herself at her lowest: stripped naked in front of the man who broke her heart in highschool. he, on the other hand, is oddly insistent that they reconnect. rife with misunderstandings, drama, and mismatched emotions trying to get on the same page

the invisible man & his soon-to-be wife - iwatobi neko

in a supernaturally diverse world, a blind woman working as a secretary for an invisible-man boss is the only one who can find him anywhere, sparking a sweet love story

the couple: she’s kind and uplifting, he’s mature and romantic. their relationship reminds me of “odette” in a lot of ways, another one of my favourites

story & setting: episodic entries into the lives of the employees keeping a small detective agency running. a lot of care has gone into giving the cast backstories and personal issues that make sense for their unique races and really maximizes the concept of such a diverse world. the bits of lore and worldbuilding are fantastically interesting

i’m not the final boss’s lover - WHYNOTME; KEN

a woman is dropped into the world of an rpg and toils for the benefit of the hero, but when she’s left for dead, she finds herself allied with the game’s final boss

the couple: they have a strong bond, personally and as military commanders. she covers all his weaknesses in ways that seem too good to be true, and he provides her the social cover and opportunity to be more than a support character. prepare for a slow burn/denial- real relationship development plays second fiddle to the overarching plot

story & setting: while being a fan of classic jrpg’s isn’t a prerequisite, i feel like those readers may get more out of its references and tropes. the world itself isn’t very exciting; it’s just a functionally blank canvas for the subversion of mayer’s character archetype and jun’s game-breaking meta-knowledge manipulation

north snow love story - hwiyo

after the peace between humans and yokai is shattered, a snow woman existing on the outskirts of society by hiding her identity is suddenly proposed to by a notorious yokai-hunting general

the couple: they really suit each other, with cold personas and unpleasant rumours threatening to consume them unless they join forces. she’s just as if not more competent than him, and her pragmatic wisdom makes her super refreshing as a lead

story & setting: fictionalized historical korean ambience with an emphasis on court drama and intrigue. agreeing to marry him to avoid the suspicion that comes with being unmarried, she’s drawn into national politics and supernatural conspiracies to protect their marriage

friday’s secret meeting at the atelier - hamada sakura

a depressed, ditzy office worker stumbles into a job as a nude model for an artist with an… unusual motif 🎣

cw: suicidal ideation, tasteful nudity

the couple: he’s a narcissistic eccentric, she’s a passively suicidal airhead. they’re the funniest people in the world. the way she plays the oblivious straight-man to his absolutely pathetic crush brings tears to my eyes

story & setting: without any strong desire to live, she’s willing to strip naked for a stranger in exchange for a fish dinner. believing her to be his fated muse, he’s not willing to let her die. they gradually bring new meaning and purpose into each other’s lives

the reasons we fall in love - ma2

a series of interconnected stories surrounding the lives and relationships of a group of employees

the couple(s) they’re all honestly really strong, but i’m especially invested in the petite x gentle giant couple. the way she knows exactly what she wants (muscles) and is ready to get it is too funny. also, chapter 10’s drama……

story & setting: the way that they all know each other and are involved in each other’s stories has the potential for so much mess but also it keeps the somewhat disconnected episodes flowing nicely!

call the name of the night - mitsuboshi tama

a young girl born with the powers of the night is sent to live with a magician doctor in order to gain control of her magic

the characters: this is a stacked cast of amazing characters. mira’s relationships with others are so precious and she fights for them so hard

story & setting: i know it’s tacky to compare magical fantasy to ghibli but i really feel like this one deserves it. dangerous magic, clever inventions, and overcoming deeply personal trauma and fears to do brave and wonderful things

the art: magical, charming, enchanting