Eien no Shichigatsu Hot

Although Ootsuki Miu's works usually walk the line of going just a little too far with the seme/uke dichotomy for my taste (you know what I mean, those pairings where the physical, emotional, everything contrast is so startling and so obviously modeled after the most maudlin of female archetypes versus anything-that-has-more-testosterone, it seems rather insulting to all parties in general). This particular work, however, was rather endearing in the sappy sort of way that I am still a sucker for. The interaction between Tachibana and Ryuusuke is by turns, delightfully playful, sweet, sexy(followed quickly by crack-ish moments, oddly not out odf place), and there is, over all, a strong plot element of the sense of what is suppressed. The drama caused by Ryuusuke's tangled feelings and obligations is perhaps, a might overplayed but that is a common flaw that can be overlooked in the suspension of disbelief that comes with yaoi territory. Also a familiar element is the heterosexual counterpart that is a little too conveniently and cleanly removed from the plot, but ah, anything for a happy ending, no?

The character design is pleasing in a Ootsuki-san's fairly distinctive way (the eyelashes are a somewhat amusing dead give away as to who is playing catcher in the pairings). The extra, unrelated one-shot story is also, in and of itself, a good short paneled look into a beginning that started with too much intense gazing.

Worth a read! Also, if you feel up for it and can comprehend the language, you might want to check out the corresponding drama CD. The NC-17 scenes are not, perhaps, the best I've come across (although this may just be my taste...I suppose looking more objectively, the very high tenor that Ryuusuke's very good seiyuu Shimano Hiro gives to the character (when hot under the collar) is rather in line with the character's design in the manga). The crack-ish interactions between the two are excellently portrayed by Konishi Katsuyuki (with a younger, higher voice than many of his other roles) and Shimano Hiro.