i absolutely loved the main story (yakuza), and i agree about the second being just okay.

the art was simple but nice and the best part was that they both ACTED LIKE MEN. when i first got into yaoi, it was surprising how so many mangas feminize the ukes, which is freaking annoying in my opinion (if you don't like boyxboy relationships, just draw straight manga, geesh.)

anyway, the story was really heartwarming. and the reactions were very realistic for manga standards. i thought it was very well done, one of my favourites. (:

... Last updated on May 21st, 2009, 4:27pm

*sigh* I can't get enough of good yaoi like this. Really, It's hard to come by but when you find it, it just has more potential. A manga like this one puts other yaoi mangaka's to shame.

You know how hard it is sometimes to tell if the Seme is really in love with the Uke? Well, Ryu is one of my favorite Semes. His proclamations of love towards Naoki are noticeably honest from the very beginning. Naoki is not your regular Uke. He's not feminine but in fact he's much stronger than Ryu and I have a soft spot for strong ukes like him.

The art, as always, very clean and pretty. It's not hard to fall in love with the characters because they have so much debth. Usually such short mangas are paced horribly and tend to be too fast but this one devolped quite nicely without giving me a whiplash. ^_^

It's a very good read and I sincerely recommend it. It would be a pity to skip.

Characters: 10/10
Art: 10/10
Plot: 10/10

I'm not sure if my description contains any spoilers but just in case...

@danseuse

Yaoi is an alternative genre in the shoujo/josei demographics. And to be honest, I prefer BL when they femininize the art, it attracts more female readers that way. I write BL, and its tricky to write/ draw because different fujoshi want different things.

Anyway, the feminine uke thing shouldn't surprise you since the uke is like the female (LOL) protagonist in a regular shoujo or josei comic.

But yes, I agree with ukes not always acting too much like women, and I don't like whiny uke either.

About Tightrope:

Isaku Natsume is an interesting yaoi mangaka, for the reason that she draws in a shonen/shojo hybrid type style, and she pulls it off too. Very unique indeed.

Her characters are attractively manly with bishonen characteristics (like in Ayano Yamane's work! YES!)

Natsume is also very good at writing modest BL romances (which is difficult since... y'know, the hawt man-schmecks is just so fun to draw.)

I recommend this work, I do. I mean, its typical yakuza (Japanese gangster) BL, but its a good, pleasant read.

The picture already had me hooked. The summary just got me excited. The story itself made me squeal, laugh, have a nosebleed, and just go awwwww... Not lying. It is just the right manga for you to just wanna own and keep by your side forever and ever. No, I am not overexaggerating, read and you'll find out, seriously!

I'm so lucky i stumble in this manga. The first Isaku sensei's works i read. I instantly get hooked by that. Like addiction, i read all her story (english anyway) straightway! and just can't stop whining... How can she make a great story like this that??!!

i'm an artist too and sensei just the perfect sensei for me

anything I say about this author is likely to be biased because I am so absolutely in love with her and her characters. She just knows how to get to that perfect balance of drawing a clear line between seme uke, keeping a standard bishounen style yet still preserve their roughness and masculinity.
if you're looking for a serious yakuza story, this is not one of them (sth like acid town would be more appropriate). However, if you are looking for something light and fun, with a perfect childhood friends love story, an icy uke with balls, and an overall good-hearted cool seme then this is a must-read

AWESOME!! I dont know what to say... it just too cute!! the end OMG i love it XD

@fujoshi66
So what is your idea of fun? Seme rapes uke? Seme forces uke? We have different standards in dealing with yaoi, and that doesn't mean that YOUR standard is right. So don't ever tell off people who enjoys this kind of manga BECAUSE THAT IS OUR STANDARD OF FUN: NO FORCING, JUST WAITING FOR THE RIGHT TIME FOR THE PARTNER TO ACCEPT. And stop calling people idiots just because your opinion is not the same as them.

I have taken a liking to Natsume Isaku's work. Even on her other manga, I see readers comment how her sex scenes aren't sexy enough... And maybe it's just me, but I think I like them because of the way her Uke reacts. I'm not a big fan of tsunderes... but I kinda like her Uke (._. ) Sensei's manga are usually short and simple without much stuff happening in there. Umm... It's a shounen-ai like yaoi (if that makes sense ^^"). The story in this one is a bit clichéd (maybe) but hey, clichés aren't bad if they are done right. I haven't read tooooo many yaoi manga.... so I personally like this series.

Anyways, the following would be a reply to Fujoshi66 (it would be evident even without me saying it).

Let's begin with Sensei's characters not being hot. Yeah, maybe. But this isn't meant to be a manga with hot characters. It's just a fun, short and sweet yaoi. And I had no problem in recognising the uke throughout the story. He looked pretty much the same to me. Or maybe I'm not observant enough? Whatever it may be, I personally like the art. I didn't think so highly when I first saw Sensei's manga (considering how picky I am about art), but I eventually came to think that it's quite good. She can work a bit more on it though (like some scenes where the fighting goes on). Anyways, moving on... This is a comedy yaoi so the characters trying to act bad need not be taken seriously. I don't laugh out loud when I read a comedy manga unless it's worth it, but that doesn't mean I don't consider it funny. There's always that smirk on your face or the internal, creepy laugh. Though I did giggle at some parts in Tight Rope.

And then, I didnt find any problem with the way the uke reacts. He did say he liked the Seme but not in a sexual way. Maybe he considered him as a very important part of his life until he discovers his own feelings. I've read so many shoujo with annoyingly denying female leads that this isn't even a big deal. And come on, Tsunderes always act like this. Same goes for the childish Seme thing. I don't mind reading it once in a while. Not every Seme is Seme-like (again if that makes sense ^^").

Moving on, about why the seme didn't want to be the next yakuza boss.


So there it is, I'm not saying this is the best one out there, but it's pretty nice if you're into short and light reads. Not everything needs to be super dramatic or deep. It isn't very mature to call others 'idiots' or question their intelligence just because they like something you don't. Everyone has the right to chose what they prefer. There are times when we run into people with different tastes that is weird to us. Even if it's the most trashy story in the world, there might be someone who likes it. And that definitely doesn't mean that that person is an idiot. It's fine to express your views, call a work bad but its not at all fine to fire at others. That just ruins the very purpose of a community. Well, I'm not here to teach morals. But I did get a bit turned off when I read the comment. I'm not trying to be rude here so no need to take this too personally. So yeah, that's pretty much all I had to say.