Asterisk (TORINO Shino)

Description

Youichi Sawa is a college student vexed by his crush on Nanao, his tutoring student and promising ballet dancer. Sweet but arrogant, Nanao has a girlfriend, and Yoichi decides to keep his feelings a secret. But, when Nanao asks Youichi to have sex with him, he is powerless to refuse.

What started out as only a physical relationship slowly grows into a ten year story of love, heartbreak, and reunion.

Official English Translation

Type

Manga

Related Series

N/A

Associated Names

Asutarisuku

アスタリスク (鳥野しの)

Groups Scanlating

Entwined Trees Scans

Latest Release(s)

c.3.5 + Epilogue (end) by Entwined Trees Scans 7 years ago

c.4 by Entwined Trees Scans 8 years ago

c.3 by Entwined Trees Scans 8 years ago

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Status in Country of Origin

1 Volume (Complete)

Completely Scanlated?

Yes

Anime Start/End Chapter

N/A

User Reviews

N/A

Forum

0 topics, 0 posts

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User Rating

Average: 7.2 / 10.0 (84 votes)

Bayesian Average: 6.95 / 10.0

12%

25%

27%

15%

Last Updated

October 17th, 2021 3:17am PDT - 4 years ago

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Genre

Adult Drama Romance Sports Yaoi
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Categories

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Category Recommendations

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Recommendations

N/A

Author(s)

TORINO Shino

Artist(s)

TORINO Shino

Year

2017

Original Publisher

Shodensha

Serialized In (magazine)

On Blue 2nd Season (Shodensha)

Licensed (in English)

Yes

English Publisher

futekiya

Activity Stats (vs. other series)

Weekly Pos #758

(-28)

Monthly Pos #1733

(-145)

3 Month Pos #2274

(-1114)

6 Month Pos #4610

(-279)

Year Pos #7875 (No change)

List Stats

On 63 reading lists

On 68 wish lists

On 203 completed lists

On 1 unfinished lists

On 102 custom lists

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User Comments [ Order by usefulness ]

It's complicated

by nn_user
1 month ago

Rating: 9.0 / 10.0

There's a lot of negatives that could be said about Nanao, arrogant, insensitive, conceited, cruel, among others --- I'd say it boils down to immature and single-minded. What can you really expect from a teenager with that kind of high-stake goal?

Sawa isn't stupid, he knows pretty well what he's getting into (even though he's also very young when it all starts), he doesn't make even one demand on Nanao, not a single promise is broken. A lot of what's hurting him is also what's drawing him to Nanao in the first place. Even so, I still understand very well that he's disappointed and heartbroken by all of it. Calling it quits was the right thing to do, the way he did it though felt cruel as well.

Talk about flawed characters with unlikeable traits, but I still found them very relatable even in their respective cowardice. I thought the years they spent apart was a good amount of time to make it believable that they actually grew (up), changed, and built their own lives, and I was satisfied with the ending.

(although I would have also been fine with them not ending up together).

I found this to be pretty exceptional among the yaoi that I've read; no simple misunderstanding to clear up and no easy answers, people and their relationships are complicated, and love doesn't conquer all. There's a lot for a one volume manga, but I thought the artist conveyed it all really well. There is zero fluff and it stings a bit reading it but I enjoy it every time.

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Strikingly realistic

by bobaja
5 years ago

Rating: 7.0 / 10.0

This isn't some overarching romance where the two are madly in love and overcome odds. This is a very real (IMO) sense of two individuals on very different paths who cross over for a moment where the magnetic and charismatic personality of one of the individuals draws in the other.

Nanao is extremely talented and determined. He's got a goal and is determined to get there, which can at times make him a bit childish and even verging on cruel. Youichi is meek (as others have said); however, he recognizing the damaging nature of their relationship and deals with it in a braver way than many of the meek bottoms do in other yaoi, so I appreciated that.

Youichi breaks off their relationship and cuts off contact with Nanao when he realizes how damaging their relationship is (both to him and for Nanao's future). Not a lot of meek yaoi folks do that in such a determined manner. He also calls Nanao on his spoiled brat thoughtless cruelty in the later chapters which is where I disagree with LingFei. This isn't a single moment. Youichi has no intention of a relationship rekindling until he recognizes the difference and his own permissiveness which Nanao used to his advantage. They both own up to their faults, so while I do agree it has a number of cliches, Torino handles them far more gracefully than I generally see them managed.

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Not a Single Space Wasted

by FeyFujoshi
7 years ago

Rating: 10.0 / 10.0

How do I even deal with this? It has left me completely shattered. It’s truly powerful. It’s Torino sensei’s 11th book but her first BL, and in her own words, a romantic couple as well without she didn’t quite know what to do. The fabulous artwork just adds to the masterpiece that it already is. The actions of the characters take into account their age and social position as do the dialogues as well. Furthermore, there is a straight male ally, a powerful character for me, who gives the right advise even if it’s unwanted and hurtful.
One comment that I will make is in regard to the rash actions that both the main characters take and the time they spend apart from each other; this was done with such restraint and care that I almost chocked on my tears. You see, Torino-sensei was able to depict the truth of, I would argue, most queer relationships in general: you don’t always chose the things you do because you want to, but rather because you have been told, “we all have desires and feelings, but that doesn’t mean we should act on them” as way of closing off a happy future. A queer future.
Definitely looking forward to more yaoi works in the future. And, I ardently hope that there are because we need them.

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Ok I guess

by LingFei
7 years ago

Rating: 5.0 / 10.0

I prefer this authors other work, "Ohana Holoholo" over this manga. Mainly because Ohana was refreshingly different from other LGBT dramas as it focused more on the relationships OTHER THAN the main romantic pair.
In Asterisk, its the same tired old trope- one guy is the playboy with a devil-may-care attitude and the other is the meek, obedient little puppy obeying everything the playboy demands. A few chapters showing the meek guys unrequited or painful love for the playboy, one moment of actually manning up and leaving a pathetic relation, then the playboy suddenly comes to his senses- anti-climatic groveling (more like the "I've come to my senses, I am no longer the idiot who can trample over your feelings) and soon they make up.....
Meh!

... Last updated 7 years ago

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Not sure how to feel

by OmNom
7 years ago

Rating: N/A

I get the idea behind this story but its execution leaves a lot to be desired imo. In the end neither main characters truly won the audience over, which is fine with me if there's a proper reason for this, but that's not the case here and I just feel indifferent towards everything even with all the drama and heartbreaks and so on. Similarly, the art is very expressive but can be a bit wonky and sloppy at times. This manga just hasn't reached its full potential I think.

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