The basic story is seen through the eyes of Yuko, a young schoolgirl with a
crush on her hunky but disinterested sempai (Could be he's gay? K-chan says in
her notes that she normally draws yaoi after all. Just some speculation...
^_^). Yuko can be a bit overdramatic, prone to crying rivers of tears and
having little baby chicks dance around her head, but she's likeable enough and
the reader can sympathize with her plight. A side character and constant
annoyance is Takashi, always teasing her, meddling in her affairs, and
seemingly constantly smiling. At odd moments he will turn serious, and one
wonders if Yuko's efforts are misplaced in her lofty pursuit of the sempai.
The story isn't that long though, and all love triangles are resolved quickly.
Overall the story was sweet, simple, and well drawn. Anyone interested in some
light almost angst free shoujo goods might be interested in this one. As a
bonus for those that like the art, there are plenty of sketches at the !
end of the mange of various characters, all very well drawn. I really admire
the clean lines, natural poses and vivid expressions utilized. She says at the
end that this was a one-shot, too bad. I think I would have liked to see the
back-story and characters fleshed out a bit more, but it works well enough on
its own.
--reviewed by
Jan Onna
"Be Mine" by K-chan is an endearing and sweet story of a sixteen year old
high school student named Yuko, who has a crush on the school heart-throb
and, at the same time, is the object of affection of another young boy who
has been trying to befriend her.K-chan's Yuko is adorable and sweet with
many faces and an entertaining personality. The only disappointment I found
is that there isn't enough of this charming story ^0^ Maybe K-chan will
change her mind and create a sequel. I love shoujo stories and this one is
so cute. ^0^
I do love her art style as well. There is an absence of backgrounds in the
frames, but "Be Mine" certainly doesn't lack a variety of facial
expressions, body poses and clean use of various screentones. The art style
is light and feminine consistent with the feel of the story. Even the SD
images are adorable and humorous. The text is typed and easy to read, save
for a few handwritten frames that were appropriate with the expressions of
the character. There were a few grammar typos, but I didn't notice it until
after the second time I read through it. The doujinshi is a full 8-1/2 x11,
there are five pages of drawings following the story and the cover is a
full color portrait of Yuko. In short, "Be Mine" is one of my doujinshi
treasures and if you like shoujo manga, you might very well like this one too.
--reviewed by
Rence
The cover of "Be Mine" by K-chan, an original shoujo doujinshi and
collection
of pictures, gives you an excellent indication of what you will find
inside.
The cover is simple, yet adorable, a reflection of the story.
"Be Mine" is about a girl who's too busy chasing one boy to notice the
very
special one right under her nose. The story is simple, but a little bit
rushed (as the author mentions herself), making it a little difficult to
understand the first time through. However the gorgeous drawing style,
minimalistic use of backgrounds and interesting use of screen tones,
caries
the story along and makes it definitely worth the second read through to
fully understand it.
Although there are quite a few mistakes in the dialogue, "Be Mine" is a
great
first venture into shoujo doujinshi by K-chan, and most certainly worth a
look at for the art alone. I certainly hope she feels adventurous enough
to
try her hand at this type of storytelling in the future, because I know
I'll
certainly be looking forward to it.
--reviewed by
Rae
ANTHOLOGY 00
