Mask Danshi: This Shouldn't Lead to Love
The surprisingly sweet BL high school romance with a rough start.
Disclaimer: This is a review of a mature 18+ series. This series is not suitable for minors. Also please note that there is non-consensual touching in the beginning of the series.
You know… I don’t often get embarrassed buying BL or mature manga but this series really tested me since the blurb on the back had me wanting to hide my face. With a quote that read “Hey, guess what? They say the mouth is a guy’s second hole,” I was ready to go incognito just to bring this up to the check-out table. I did put my embarrassment aside since Mask Danshi: This Shouldn't Lead to Love by Mitsuru Sangou is one of Animate International‘s first foray into publishing physical books. I just couldn’t help but to be curious about the BL series they’re publishing. Is it worth buying or should you skip this?
Genre: Boys love, drama, slice of life
Age Rating: Mature 18+
Publisher: Animate International
Status: Ongoing, one volume published in English
Synopsis:
The story follows introverted Sayama, a high school boy who wears a face mask everyday to school and keeps to himself. Many of his classmates learn to ignore Sayama but he does catch the eye of the most popular boy in class, Saikawa who is curious about why Sayama wears a mask everyday. Despite Sayama becoming irritated by Saikawa’s interest in getting to know him, Saikawa isn’t turned off and becomes more attracted to the gloomy and potty mouth Sayama.
When Sayama fails another exam, he is left with no other choice but accept Saikawa’s help but under one condition…. Sayama has to let Saikawa do whatever he wants with his mouth. This mostly leads to inserting his fingers inside Sayama’s mouth but these two boys eventually do drop the questionable sexual antics and decide to be more honest and sincere with one another.
Favorite Things:
Communication: Mask Danshi: This Shouldn't Lead to Love much like other high school series does have it’s share of miscommunication but this one also has that added sexual tension as well. I do have to admit, once the two leads were able to talk things out I was able to enjoy this first volume more. Their conversation was honest and the reader is able to see how these two boys truly care about each other.
Opposites Attract: If you’re a fan of this trope, then I think you’ll enjoy the dynamic between Sayama and Saikawa. Sayama is the introverted loner who is also a really bad student, and Saikawa is the beautiful and popular boy who’s also charismatic and happens to get good grades.
Things To Watch Out:
Non-Consensual: I find that with a lot of Japanese manga, the consent isn’t very clear which can definitely make readers feel very uncomfortable. I was pretty uncomfortable with the beginning when we would see Saikawa force his fingers into Sayama’s mouth just to tease him. Even the first kisses seemed very forced in an uncomfortable way. The leads do eventually talk things out and their relationship becomes consensual and quite sweet, but I did want to make it clear that the first half of volume 1 may leave some of you feeling uncomfortable. If you want to stick it out, then things do get better and I’ve heard that the character development for the two boys is really good in the following volumes.
Rating: ★★ / 5
While this isn’t my favorite BL I’ve ever read, it also wasn’t the worst. This first volume did have a rocky start but the latter half was quite sweet and touching. I do see myself picking up volume 2 whenever that comes out because I want to see how their relationship progresses.