W Juliet (Manga)

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Name: W Juliet
Type: Manga

Author:Emura

Books: 14
Genre: Romantic comedy, slice of life, drama, gender bender
Age Rating: 13+

Review:
Ito Muira is an aspiring actress in the drama department who accidentally finds out that the new girl, Makoto Amano, is actually a man.

This was the weirdest manga ever. I mean, I enjoyed it well enough, and it was pretty funny, but it was...weird. The plot was super simple and yet the author kept trying to make things more exciting using old mermaid legends, a random time-traveling bit, and frequent, seemingly needless competitive contests between the characters. I felt that the books dragged on across too many books, and started getting tired and bored of reading them at some points. They could easily have been condensed into 6 or 7 volumes.

As for the romance, I was more interested in the side relationships of Miura's brothers and her classmates. I didn't dislike the two main characters; they were a bit odd, yes, but I did have fun reading about their story. The problem was that their character development was a bit slow, and as people, they lacked a certain depth. In many ways, the minor characters were more interesting albeit a tad cheesy. Their actions were also predictable, even in the random scenes where nothing made any sense.

I had a hard time deciding whether to give this series 2 stars or 3, because it made me laugh more than once, and I did enjoy reading it overall, but I've read better. There was nothing truly offending about the book, but I felt the romance between Ito and Makoto progressed far too quickly when it could have been developed over a period of time across the 14 books (this would have helped the pace and keep the reader's interest a little better). And the idea that they take on the characteristics of the opposite gender is a bit disconcerting.

Mature Content:

• Sexual References- Mild sexual tension between characters
• Makoto sleeps over at Ito's house even though he is a boy without her family's understanding. Nothing ever happens
• There are several boys who have "set their sights" on Ito and want her to be their girlfriend
• Homosexuality-- One of Ito's female classmates has a crush on her
• Nudity- Some girls lift up Makoto's shirt to confirm his gender (he is wearing fake breasts and a bra) 
• Makoto unintentionally walks in on Ito while she is swimming naked
• Magic- Mermaids and mermaid lore (including magic) is used in one volume, and in another, the characters travel through time
• Profanity- Use of the words"hell" and "damn"

Personal Note: 
This might actually make a better Anime.