Only the Ring Finger Knows

Rating:
Summary: Wonderful Manga
Review: "Only the Ring Finger Knows" is based off of a novel series written by Kannagi Satoru (sadly THEY aren't translated and this book is a one-manga series, but that set aside), and done by the wonderful artist Odagiri Hotaru. Between the two, they bring you the story of Fujii Wataru and Kazuki Yuichi and the rings that brought them together. When Wataru and Yuichi accidently switch rings -identical ones, except for being different sizes- Wataru, whose POV the story is mostly told from, finds his path continuously crossing Yuichi's and slowly the poor, confused boy finds himself falling in love with Yuichi.

I bought this book on a whim, seeing as I've never been a huge fan of the 'bishounen' (I prefer artwork that's more... softer? Eh, something like that) style. I liked how it ended, meaning, I KNEW they're going to get together, but I didn't see how they ended up together. It get's 4 (out of 5) stars on the surprise alone! ^__^ But that aside, it's a fantastic series and I wish I could read japanese JUST so I could read the novels.

Rating:
Summary: wonderful artwork and interesting plot
Review: first of all, this manga was published under the yaoi series, which is kinda of stretching it... so fellow buyers beware. this is strictly shounen-ai territory. heck, there isn't any groping at all, other than a few really beautiful kisses... heh heh heh.

non-yaoiness aside, i really, really enjoyed this manga. the plot is not strictly typical and i think both characters are well portrayed; although for the most part it's shown through the eyes of wataru. this highschool student's life takes a rather drastic turn when his fate became entertwined with that of the older, uber-cool and nearly perfect school idol yuichi kazuki. readers basically know that there's more to it than meets the eye, but the authors were able to entice readers with tasty tidbits along the way but still retaining the suspense (if i can label it that) until the very end. it helps that both wataru and kazuki are believable, both showing unique characteristics and quirks that added to their appeal. in fact, i can't really say which of them i find more appealing; the normally hot tempered, straightforward (albeit sweet) and understandably bewildered wataru or the cool and collected kazuki who behaves cryptically only towards wataru. i also appreciate the way the authors manage to make wataru seem confused by kazuki without relegating him to the category of weepy, spineless ukes (he's really spunky) and the understated way they portray unguarded moments in kazuki... one can't help but sympathize with the situation faced by these two.

now on to the art... i really like the way odagiri draws the manga. it's soft, beautiful and strangely calming without being too shoujo-ish. although both kazuki and wataru are slender and beautiful, they never seem girlish. it's a very tricky line to tread, and the illustrator manages it phenomenally. i adore the way she draws the eyes, for a single look really conveys a multitude of meanings in the way she handles them. the background art is neither too detailed nor opulent but it fits the overall look very well.

what i regret is the fact that this is a single volume manga, which is based on i think a series of novels by kannagi. i really wanted to see the continuation of this manga, and unless the novels are translated and published here, the further adventures of both wataru and kazuki remained a mystery for us english readers.

all in all, a very satisfying read and money well spent.

Rating:
Summary: Awesome and Funny!!
Review: I bought this manga from Amazon, and when it arrived a month later I was filled to the brim with excitement. I read the book within 2 hours and by the end of it I thought it was one of the best, if not the best, Boys' Love manga I've ever read. I call it a BL manga instead of yaoi because the most the characters ever got to being intimate was sharing a kiss. The storyline is great and filled with all the ingredients a BL manga ever needs - extremely pretty boys, lots of humor, fluffy love. I definitely recommend it for everyone from yaoi fans to those who have yet to discover the yaoi fandom. It's a must-have!

Rating:
Summary: Absolutely Brilliant
Review: I was browsing for Gravitation and Eerie Queerie mangas and i keep seeing this book Only The Ring Finger Knows. So I took my chance and bought it. Got the package and I was really glad that I bought it.
The story is wonderfully written. The graphics are well drawned although the two main characters looks almost the same but other than that its almost perfect (in my opinion).
The story is about Wataru, a Junior, whose not really well known in his school was shocked to discover that his ring was paired up with Kazuki, the popular boy in school. But the question is will Kazuki return the feeling that Wataru feels about him? Just read the book and find out how the story ends.
I was gonna give it a 5 Star but.....it only has 1 volume...I cant get enough of these two character.

Rating:
Summary: Beautiful Artwork and Story
Review: I was looking at manga to buy a couple of months ago, and the spine caught my eye. The feeling I had in my was "oooh, pretty ... " I picked it up and found that the cover contained two pretty boys. ^_^ Score!

The artwork is very lovely and elegant, and the quality is quite consistent throughout the whole volume. Nothing really explicit happens but it's not unresolved angsty bishounen love either. DPM rates it young adults 16 + but I don't feel that the rating should be that high. I guess it's better to be safe than sorry.

The story also kept me reading each page eagerly, and my stomach flipped for a few scenes in the book. (Eh, that's a good thing.) I really liked the main characters in the story. They're not bland, and you really grow to love them despite the short one volume-ness of the manga.

It's not just a one time deal either. You won't get tired reading it over and over again. Although you might want to wait a little bit before reading it again, just so you can thoroughly enjoy it. It is also printed in traditional Japanese format for fanatics like myself. (Other people might prefer to read manga from left to right though.)

I'm extremely glad I picked it up. The manga is a little bigger than the standard sizes (ie: Tokyopop or Viz size you get, but I like that. Bigger book = bigger pictures. I'm shallow. I know. x.x However, that makes the price a little steeper, and other fans will know that we're indulging in an already very expensive hobby. Maybe the publisher can work on that.

The dust jacket is very pretty, and is also identical to the cover of the japanese tank. (I really like how they did that as opposed to messing around with pictures and making their own cover.)

ONE BIG COMPLAINT: Sometimes I would get confused (especially near the end during a conflict) as the translations seemed to be a little off. A little complaint would be how they bolded many of the words on many of the pages. At first, I liked how they put emphasis on the words to enhance the text and feelings, but now I find it a little annoying. (seeing as they were quite frequent.) I suppose the readers should be allowed to interpret the text in their own way. (unless the words were bolded in the japanese version, which I highly doubt.)

Overall it's a really great manga. ^_^ I'm disappointed that there wasn't any more, but I'm working on finding the novel the manga was based on so I can read it. (That is proving to be a difficult search, but it's okay since I'm not fluent in Japanese yet. Hopefully I can find the novel either way.)

Rating:
Summary: From a yaoi manga-ka
Review: There's been a yaoi boom the past year, have you noticed? And recently, some raunchy titles such as Selfish Love and Golden Cain have made their debut in the states. Well, I bought this book thinking it would be another bathroom-time book. (Not that I mind such romantic smut, mind you. ^_^) Not only did it have a PLOT, it had a plot that WORKED. I mean, out of all the short manga stories I'e read, this is by far the best--be it straight, yaoi, or any other thing. This was BEAUTIFUL, quite possibly one of my favorites to date, and the storyline was cute. I looove this book, and I bought one for my lover, too! I'd reccomend this to ANYONE!

Rating:
Summary: Surprised
Review: This book really surprised me. Of course, when I first got this with Desire as a set, I was totally shocked at the very high quality of DMP books. Definitely worth every penny!
But what surprised me was the plot of this story. At first it was good and stuff, and it was interesting, and I really liked it... however, it was just a bit too Gravitation reminiscient. At least, that's what it seemed like. But as I got deeper into it ('specially the end) that quickly faded away. The ending was a very nice surprise (ha ha, I'm not spoiling it!), and made me love this book all the more.
So, in conclusion, this book was absolutely gorgeous and loveable, and if you like shounenai/yaoi/boys' love, you will, without a shadow of a doubt, like this book. Hopes that you buy it! ^^


~> Becca

Rating:
Summary: A definite surprise!
Review: This was definitely a good manga in disguise for me. I was browsing through the yaoi manga, trying to find something that wasn't rated above 16+ but that I hadn't read before, and lo and behold, I stumbled upon this. If you pick this up, be prepared for a wonderful manga.

This is a one-volume manga - something that is actually rather disappointing - so don't look for anything more. Don't let that turn you away, though! Even though I would very much enjoy another few volumes of this, even the one was brilliant. Even if you dislike by homosexual relationships, I would still recommend this - the yaoi title is very misleading, because it's definitely shounen-ai, with a definite emphasis on love.

The artwork is lovely - it's somehow the classic bishounen style and yet is so new and awe-inspiring that some pages you could look at for ten minutes without moving (especially if you're a shounen-ai lover like me!). It is the same sort of effeminate bishounen that tend to be common, so some people might be put off by that, but again, don't be misled! The true beauty of this manga is not solely in the beautifully rendered artwork but also in the storyline.

Yes, this was a novel before it was transformed into a manga, and it shows in the wonderful plot. The story might sound a bit silly and immature, but it's very serious and almost heart-wrenching in places. It's got quite a bit of angst in it as well, from beginning to end, but it's a feel-good story that you really can't pass up. Each page and each line flows very well together, and almost all of it is told from Wataru's point of view, which lends the manga a first-person feel.

Indeed, the characters make this manga one that you simply cannot put down. They are so realistic and likeable despite their flaws - or perhaps because of them. Their emotions and thoughts and actions are so wonderful to piece together and try to explain and figure out - which you naturally do with regard to every character, especially Kazuki (as he is the object of Wataru's attention). Kazuki's contradictory nature and Wataru's awkward, defiant confusion draw you in almost immediately, and there are hints and little occurrences littered all throughout the manga that keep you intrigued and interested until the very end.

It's left in its original, unflipped format; however, the translation does seem to be a bit off in a few places, namely where they have removed the suffixes and attempted to translate them into English instead. It's also a bit larger than most other manga - about an inch is added to both height and width - but this is actually a plus in that it gives us bigger images. The yaoi label would probably be more accurate as shounen-ai, as there are only three kissing scenes, which are actually rather chaste in comparison to other shounen-ai and yaoi manga. It's a bit overrated as well - 16+ is a little over the top.

Only The Ring Finger Knows is full of sweetness and angst that's bound to leave you overflowing with glee at the end. The bittersweet storyline is original and far above and beyond that of most manga. With only one volume, it's well worth the buy just for the stunning characters and the lovely storyline. This is a manga that no-one should be without.

Rating:
Summary: A Unique Style of Manga, but with flare to spare!
Review: What can I say? From the moment I noticed this book sitting on the bookstore shelf, I knew I had hit the jackpot. I realized (from reading the last couple pages), that it was based after an actual novel. You'll notice that when you read the manga!

Instead of the usual fast-paced, same old shonen ai plot line, the mature novel of the story can be seen. Istead of reading a manga, it kind of feels like a book, but in a much more interesting way!

Art: The art and expressions are amazing!!! Not to girly, but not extremely macho either.

Transitions: Compared to the usual manga, the transitions are very well done! This book flows instead of containig choppy events.

Emotion: I must say I was suprised to fine a pang of sadness hit me while reading about Wataru's realization that Kazuki got his ring from a girl. Never before has a manga, and few novels ever pulled even some emotion from me, but this manga did!

With last words, it's such an enjoyable, mature manga, as well as being from a series called "Yaoi Series". It will become a classic, even if you've read it once of a million times!

Read it! You'll enjoy "Only The Ring Finger Knows"!

Rating:
Summary: Angsty Boy Love at its Best
Review: Yaoi fans will be thrilled with the recent releases of English translations, after relying so long on 1) fan translation (at best) 2) raw Japanese yaoi (no clue about story dialogue etc.) 3) years of Japanese classes just to get the Sound Effects right.

Only the Ring Finger Knows isn't strictly Yaoi, but don't let that stop you. The story and dialogue is worth the trade in for the few explicit scenes that would have pushed this into Yaoi category.

The story is sweet and angsty, and the dialogue translation conveys that sweet/painful boy love crisis that's so satisfyingly painful and enjoyable to read. Snarky fights? Denial brigade? No silly weepiness? o yeah!

Plus, the art. Clean lines, gorgeous modern eyes (a mix of Chi-Ran and Takakura Row - but sharp and spare, reminiscent Higa Sakia) and lush jaw lines. The boys are in high school, so the clothes are mostly school uniform, but the 3rd and 4th parts has modern street casual black that is quite droolworthy. The school uniforms with loosened tie and collars, and black pants are worth a dozen explicit scenes. And if you're a fan of long and lean lines, bony but sexy arms (even the elbows are a turnon in this volume), this is the style for you.

This is one where even the side chibi versions are cute (pretty) rather than cute (ridiculous).

Definitely one of the best selections out there, at the tail end of 2004.