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Forum - View topicREVIEW: My Dress-Up Darling GN 1 & 2
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MFrontier
Posts: 11431 |
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I like exploring the ins-and-outs of cosplay in a cute, fanservicey, romcom.
Marin is definitely the glamorous type of character that lends herself to plenty of opportunities for the author to show off her fine figure and skin, but she's utterly fun and charming on top of that, and relatable in her commitment to what she loves. Gojo is also really likeable. |
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harminia
 Posts: 2004 Location: australia |
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I was reading this review like "i am 100% sure i have seen this review before" but it turns out that was because it's a reworked version of the spring manga guide review Rebecca did. Glad I'm not going crazy
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Princess_Irene
ANN Reviewer
 Posts: 2612 Location: The castle beyond the Goblin City |
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You are not, and you have a great memory! It was reworked to add in volume two for people who didn't read the manga guide, but we're going to avoid that going forward. |
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Redbeard 101
Oscar the Grouch
Forums Superstar  Posts: 16939 |
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I know this thread is damn near a year old, but the volumes 3 & 4 review doesn't seem to have a discussion thread attached to it for some reason. As in I can't even create one. Odd. So I'll just have to post my thoughts on that review from July here for now.
All in all I am enjoying this series. It's a nice slice of life mixed with some comedic moments, and it seems to really dive into the cosplay hobby earnestly. I fully expected the romance angle to start at some point, but so far it seems to continue to take a back seat to the actual cosplay elements. I agree vol 3 & 4 were more tech heavy. I could see where all the discussion on the various methods of photography, lighting, effects, makeup, taping eyelids, etc might seem like an info dump. It was a little bit. I still found it rather interesting, and it was certainly relative to the core story of cosplay. It also showcased some of the strengths with Shinju and Juju. Since Shinju takes all of Juju's photos it made sense for her to be knowledgeable on the subject. Wakana continues to be socially awkward at times, but that makes sense as well given his history and social issues. He's at least earnest and not just a doormat. I also really like the flashback parts where he's younger and talking with his grandfather. All too often we hear about an MC's history and how they got interested in whatever the core topic of the story is. Here we're seeing interactions he had when he was younger. We can see where his love of the hina dolls comes from. I also honestly really like Marin. Yes the overuse of slang is a bit annoying. The thing is she (so far) seems like an actually really nice person. She may fit into the ditsy character mold, and Wakana in the typical socially awkward male role, but they're both genuinely nice people. For me that helps me ignore some of the typical character tropes they might have. My biggest complaint is the T&A fanservice. This isn't a rant on T&A itself as I happen to enjoy my trashy T&A titles. The problem here is most of it is so out of place. Sure, some of the body measurement bits were to be expected. They might be a tired trope but those parts at least made some sense in the story. Not saying there aren't other ways to properly get the girl's measurements, but given the comedy aspects of the story those parts at least make sense. The handful of cleavage and pantie shots, and other lingering angles or physical comedy gags, outside of those moments do not however. The overall tone of the manga just doesn't vibe with them. With titles like say Highschool DxD or Testament of Sister New Devil you know right away they're equal parts T&A and action. For another example Monster Musume and Yuuna and the Haunted Hotsprings make it clear they're about T&A harem comedy. My Dress Up Darling is trying to tackle it's core topic in a more serious manner though, and the T&A parts are not constant and obviously not a core aspect of the story. So they stand out more. When Wakana shows up at Marin's place and we get the lingering views of her chest and obviously implied nipple shots. The "behind her" shots of Juju laying in bed conveniently given us pantie shots up her nightshirt. It's moments like those that just seem out of place and take away from the story and charm. It would be one thing is the manga was trying to be more of a T&A romcom, but it's not. It's taking the material seriously and most of the story is rather charming and earnest. That's what makes those moments stand out even more and seem more out of place. Much as the dynamic between Juju and Shinju's actual figures. Of course the pint sized older sister would have the big breasted younger sister. That gimmick is hardly new, and I do agree that it seems at some point Fukuda decided to give Shinju more actual depth and development. The thing is while the story might tackle some aspects of her figure at her age in a serious manner, there's still too many lingering body shots and T&A moments that take away from any serious parts and overall tone of the story. I'd happily take more tech heavy info dumps on the actual mechanics of cosplay over the pointless T&A bits. Keep some of the changing clothes, measurements, etc bits that at least make some sort of sense. Just leave the lingering cleavage and pantie shots and similar parts on the floor. They detract from the tone. I'm still rather enjoying the story, and I do want to see what eventually happens with Marin and Wakana. I mean I am sure I can easily guess having read more then 3 manga in my life. They're both genuinely nice characters though so I do hope they get some sort of HEA. |
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