I like how this manga is really down to earth with everyday-life in and outside of work for our Shima Kousaku. What I have read so far was quite simple and yet relatable. Agreed with what have been said in the first comment, Nippon is probably one of the few countries where they will concoct you a story with a salaryman or an unemployed protagonist, I like that the ordinary people can be the lead for a change. Nevertheless, it also comes with the price of no idealizing outcome, sometimes hard to digest.

This gekiga will probably appeal more to older readers because of its episodic slice of genre atmosphere. Anyway, if one day publishers in France decide to translate any of the Shima Kousaku volumes, I'll glady buy them. Et c'est pas si souvent que j'en arrive à vouloir acheter des bandes dessinées de manière générale...

It is so refreshing to have a seinen manga, or gekiga would be more accurate, which doesn't only depicts gorgeous slim women scantily dressed so eager to arouse them males, or whose solely purpose are to be mistreated by them in every possible way...
Bref, I applaude Hirokane sensei for drawing different kind of ladies, is to say average, young, old, pretty, chubby, not so good-looking etc... On that subject, it's the first time I've seen in a seinen that the protagonist (which I find quite charming by the way) doesn't rebuff vehemently an unattractive miss. He had sex with the plain-looking girl in his car, I was quite surprised cause I was so ready for him to reject her, so glad I was so wrong about that. He didn't whine about how she was so so and such or even worse, yokatta!! A real man, by all mean he is!! Please marry me Shima-san, you are so my type, no wonder women throw themselves at you like that... Now that I think about it Kousaku-kun sounds strange to say, Kousaku-chan fits more.

It's like he can't refuse these women advances no matter what. But fortunately, it stays relatively light compared to these gratuitous sexplicit false mature ones, and it doesn't occur every chapter, thank goodness.
The guy kind of remind me of James Bond even if I have never watch any of the movies. Indeed, every woman or so can't seem to resit his charms and thus end up making bold moves at him.

... Last updated on April 10th, 2017, 6:10pm

... could you have a comic book about the life of a salaryman.
And it's a good one. Just recently, ive started to read seinen manga, and this looked interesting.
The protagonist has morals, but he's not selfrightous. It's good insight into the life of a man who has to live, work, and try to advance in the real world.

(I also rec Bartender. Better art, more intimate stories)
It's not earth shaking, and not everything ends up well, but that's life.

... Last updated on October 20th, 2011, 11:26pm