just had the chance to read this while on a break from nana… first of all, i adore the art a lot🥹🫶🏻!! the outfits and everything were just so ahhhh!! really do love yazawa sensei’s sense of style♡.
for me, i read this in my mid-20s (i’m actually born on the same year this came out!😂) so i definitely think if i were to read this during my teens, i’d have a completely different opinion.
my thoughts after finishing in my mid-20s:

my (probable) thoughts after finishing in my teens:

and the ultimate endgame:

towards the end, i’d say i see yukari’s character development and i’m here for it♡. but my fav character’s got to be miwako! she’s just soooooo cuteeeeeee!!! (read gokinjo monogatari, and i’m waiting to meet baby miwako!)

... Last updated on July 27th, 2023, 2:36am

Art is not bad (and mean more an British "not bad" than anything else *g*). Objects are drawn good, faces have not very much distinguished features and the range of expressions are limited. But overall OK.

The story is good, the characters have noticeable own personal motivations and own goals.
I really like the story. It's not happy story, a story that could happen in real live. Even the one main character is only 18, the story is very mature (well it's Josei after all). The Ending is appropriate and good but the last 11 pages are completely unnecessary. On the last 11 pages you can read what happens 10 years after this story. It seams that the author is weak-willed and dare not to let a strong ending standing alone. The 11 pages didn't destroy anything, they are only unnecessary. What happens in 6 months or 10 years is simply a different story.

I give a penalty point to the author for two reasons: first, i didn't like the meta-talking. This thing when characters begin to talk about how many panels they have left for this chapter, or complaining that they have not enough appearance in the manga and there like more.
Second and more importantly: the author is recycling old characters from old stories.This happened in this manga also. I thing it's boring. Arashi, Miwako and Hiroyuki were a love-triangle in a other manga. In volume 4, out of the blue and without a real connection to main story, the author begins something like "and now we continue the story of this 3 Lovers". I could almost follow what and why they say things to each other but some hints could only readers of the old manga understand. It is a very bad style for storyteller if you begin a side story which don't connect to the main story (OK, there is a connection in the way that the 3 were side characters in the main story but this lame), the outcome of this side story has no influence on the main story what ever. If you think as a marketing chef this is a very good move to get some readers interested in the old manga. For a Storyteller this is only very, very bad style.

Besides this penalty point(s), i can only recommend this manga.

Art is great! I mean Yazawa-Sensei just have this thing on her drawings that makes it so gorgeous. It's not cute, it's bizzare, Beautiful.

Story was as my subject say, Makes my heart clench so much! It was so full of drama that almost every chapter tears keep rolling down my eyes. Well, maybe because I sometimes see myself on Caroline, but I know it's not just that. The story just appeals to me so bad that I'll probably never forget about it my entire life

I gave a 9 because of it's bittersweet ending. I mean, i love bittersweet ending but Coraline have been through a lot of hardship the entire manga so I hope for a better ending for her. But I guess. It's too late to hope now

There was a Japanese movie made based on this and trust me, it was so much more amazing! She actually ends up with the right guy in it! haha The manga was okay (the art=amazing!) but the movie made it SO much better! ^^

An extremely strong, gripping manga that truly captivates the reader's attention for the entire ride. 5 volumes felt short, but at the time very fitting for the story it tells. The heart-wrenching nature of the ending is not for everyone, and certainly wasn't for me: it left me with a tremendous bittersweet and sad feeling. However, I can understand the logic behind it, and it does not take away from the quality of this masterpiece.

I've never been one for drama (more often that not I find the genre more tedious than meaningful) but Yazawa Ai's work is an exception every time. Wonderfully written with highly engaging art...The characters come alive through their story and you really feel like you're witnessing a section of each character's life. Also, I agree whole heartedly with every word of eylookturkey's review below. I couldn't have said it better myself.



This a series I haven't forgotten and will never forget.

... Last updated on January 23rd, 2011, 2:20am

This is the only manga that's ever had me in tears. It's hard to extract tears from this face, you see - only very happy moments manage that (like the ending of Shrek II, for example...). The characters are, as another reviewer stated, immensely flamboyant, but something about each of their personalities rings as genuine. The main character, in particular, showed so many parallels with my own actions that I felt embarrassed and ashamed as I was reading her realizations of those bad habits.

Simply:
Intensely emotional, unpredictable, realistic, "Paradise Kiss" is a bittersweet symphony of youth and the complexity of reality, played sensationally by a crew of needle-toting misfits and their muse.

Paradise Kiss is a good series. The mangaka is talented, the story is interesting and full of human flaws. The best thing? The mangaka actually ended the story before it became ridiculous. Five volumes with a great story intact.

A thousand times better than Nana.

i didn't like it at first because it was too fast paced, but i'm glad i didn't give up on it. in my opinion, the plot is very unique compared to the other mangas out there. although i enjoyed the manga, i was disappointed that things didn't go the way i wanted, but the ending did seem to work out better the way it did.

I love this, it's bitter sweet but a beautiful story and coming from an art school I can totally relate to Yazawa's misfit cast -- which is why I love her works so much. If you're a fan of Nana I would definitely read this.