I picked this up after a lot of recommendations. I had to force myself to get through the first four volumes (each time wanting to give Hatsumi a punch in the face for her to grow some kind of backbone), then I gave up and skipped to the end...and she does not grow AT ALL. I don't really find it funny either. It has a lot of abuse in it. I couldnt continue after the attempted gang rape (and what did she do she said sorry afterwards!!)

I guess if you like drama, relationships grounded upon sexual abuse and abuse in general, alright looking guys and if you can relate to the characters and situations, then it might be for you. But it wasn't a manga for me.

... Last updated on July 3rd, 2008, 9:08pm

i had to force myself to finish reading it after... i think the first chapter... if that........ i hate not finishing things. but.. i almost wish i hadn't finished it. the good "brother" deserved so much better! he was too good for her! i'm almost glad he didn't have to be with her.. but.. i still wish he would be more happy.. and live a better life filled with happiness.. and i'm not saying his choice was terrible, it will probably be great for him in the long run.. i just wish he didn't have to go through all that pain to get there. this manga made me so angry. i hate that freaking loser who thinks he is better than everyone else and then thinks he can force himself on any girl he would like and gets away with it... and i really hate that he does. ugh... that's disgusting. in my opinion he felt no love towards her, only lust, because he is a dirty pig that.. ugh.. i most certainly do NOT like him. don't read this. it sucked. it was terrible... *sighs*.. okay.. i think i might be done ranting... or not.. but i should probably stop. anyway.. please do not read it unless you want to waste your time then feel extremely frustrated with the characters. .. just please. don't read it. (by the way, i don't have anything against this manga author/artist/s style or anything, this story just happens to really.. "grind my gears"...)

End of it! lol

well i think this is a really good manga!!!! well i read it all !! hahaha
the guys are hot .. the story is good enough! and i just love tachibana and hatsumi together!!



The only thing is that hatsumi was all the time -Idunno what to do- (annoying) but she is a nice character after all..
Asuza gooooooooooshh i loooove him, im sorry but i can't hate him,no one can
ah btw i was like

and this manga is really Funny!!!

but damn, i guess im still a lill annoyed about the end

... Last updated on November 7th, 2008, 7:23am

I love the general plot... a bit too sadist to tell the truth, but I like a good drama. The character had a lot of potential, there were time that my heart felt so heavy, and I even felt the pain Hatsumi felt every time she was being abused but... DUH! Who wants to be abused f-o-r-e-v-e-r? GROW UP GIRL! GROW STRONGER!
What's the point of passing through so much pain if you don't grow with it? Every character ends up the same as they were before... only more tortured and hurt in the end.
I wish I were a mangaka to write a doujinshi ending for this series... one where everybody grow up and learn to face life with the head held up straight!

...and, personally, it made me feel sorry for being born a woman! >.<'

... Last updated on May 17th, 2008, 12:50pm

Aaaah.. nice manga. A much better work than Tokyo Shonen Shoujo, but they both had stuff I had to be careful about reading like I'd get scolded for it.. eheh.
Hatsumi's, Ryouki's and Subaru's antics were hi-larious.

i have been reading disappointing ending reviews for this manga, so what i did was read the last 2 chapters and then started reading from chapter 1 onwards. i don't know what's all the fuss with the ending, he was always there for her! alright he was too passionate, but there are guys out there who are like that. in the first half of the 54 chapters, i thought if i were that guy i'd do her and slap her a little too BUT LOVE HER...& he did! add to that, he was faithful, and for crying out loud, she wasn't abused as in "abused." and it didn't last for very long, just hints once or twice. i think in fact he was good for her since he can say/verbalize to people what she can't & he can solve her problems or help one way or the other. her personality just suits him! i don't get it why reviews describe the guys in such exaggerated manner, for me they were just plain male with that certain role to play. what was bad about the story was the unrequited love...overall, entertaining.

If you dislike characters who are dense, brainless, lack conviction, then this manga is not for you. I was seriously irritated at Hatsumi. Other characters in the story are also annoying but Hatsumi is far more annoying because it is her choices that makes the story revolve in an irritating, unconventional, unrealistic manner. All throughout the story, I wanted to throw things at Hatsumi.

Maybe it's just that I can't stand those series where "hot" guys pursue an ordinary/boring girl in a variety of overly interesting ways, but this series left a bad taste in my mouth. The girl is utterly useless, practically one of those cardboard cutouts with a hole for a face, behind which other girls---the readers, I guess?---can pose. Not that anyone should want to be in her position, ever. Apparently the guys she knows express hate and love in similar ways, namely attempted rape, sexual harassment, and harassment in general. It's impossible to build sympathy for the characters, as one spends most of one's time baffled as to their ridiculous behavior and the rest marveling at the ugliness of the art.

Perhaps calling it ugly is unfair--it's not terrible, but inconsistent and unremarkably shoujo, especially in the first few volumes. I had expected the work to be a fluffy shoujo with a love triangle thrown in, had expected mindless entertainment and perhaps enjoyment. That, needless to say, did not happen. Hot Gimmick has all the clichés and contrived plot lines typical of shoujo romance series, but none of the refreshing innocence that balances those series out. Just... silly people. Really really silly. If you're a master of suspending disbelief and that sort of thing floats your boat, go for it, but if not, avoid it like the plague.

It gets one extra point, though, 'cause I liked the brother

... Last updated on April 15th, 2008, 1:53pm

I like the whole rich guy falls for not-so-rich girl story but in this case the rich guy has moments of total asshole-ness that makes no sense and the girl is just an absolute doormat who is a shame to all womankind. I don't suggest reading this manga if you don't like guys who are abusive and girls who are unassertive, unrealistic, and stutters all the time.

I get why people would understand Hatsumi falling for Ryouki for 'being there' for her blah3, but to me the negative aspects of how he treats her up to this point is just disgusting (Domyoji from hana yori dango was spoiled too but Ryouki is no where near as redeemable -- but this may have to do with the fact that the storytelling of HYD is much better and unfolded through many more volumes). Hatsumi is just the typical shy female protagonist who forgives everything, stands up for barely anything, and has conviction in nothing (I really hope this changes in the end, but no 'strengthening' of her personality has occurred in SEVEN whole volumes).

I'm finishing vol 7 right now and I want to just give up reading this manga but I only got a little over 4 more volumes. I think I'll stick it out because the drawing is pretty consistent and nice (has weird faces sometimes) and there are really sweet tender moments in between all the absurdity and cliches.

Here's hoping that some kind of satisfactory ending is in store for me.


To those who are thinking of reading this because of the love-triangle, read Hana Yori Dango, Vampire Knight, or Parfait Tic instead.

I almost let this one pass because of previous comments but after giving it a chance i realize some people just did not understand it well. Here we have a stupidly dense girl who cannot make up her mind on how she should feel about a person, i swear it is the only thing that will annoy readers because her denseness goes on almost to the end. Some commented that Ryoki was mean and could not understand why she would develop feelings for him, i disagree because he was always there for her. Yes because he is an only child, has a weird family for example and had no previous experiences in relationships he goes about things the wrong way but his feelings and actions are quite pure....lets call it a child who bullies the girl he likes. I for one could not stand the Asuza kid no matter how nice he may have acted at times since it just seemed to convenient. Lets not even talk about the "brother" because although he is nice and adores his "sister" i still do not get a loving relationship that could have develop from those two. Overall this is pack with drama and misunderstanding almost to the very end which can sometimes make you frustrated but it was nice about the end.