Creative Staff
Story/Art: Junko
Translation/Adaptation: David Rhie
Lettering: Hiriko Mizuno
Editing: Ajani Oloye
Kodansha Comics Edition Cover Design: Phil Balsman
What They Say
Hi there! It’s Kae again. When I go to school every day, it feels like I’m walking into a real-life dating game. Four of the hottest guys in my school are with me everywhere I go!
The school festival is coming up and I’ve been put in charge of making the boys outfits for a cosplay café. Do you know what this means? That’s right, I get to see them all in costume! I have lived for this day, and this day alone. I’m brimming with excitement to go full throttle Fujoshi on those boys! But Wait! Last night, before the festival, Igarashi-kun was acting kind of weird, wasn’t he? And now, it’s the day of the day of the event and crazy things keep happening to me with these four beautiful boys! My heart won’t stop pounding! This is way too real for me. I want to go back to my fantasies!!
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
In the second installment of Junko’s Kiss Him, Not Me!, the tension between Kae and he quartet of interested classmates continues to build in a delicious, though sometimes slightly annoying way.
While we got a preview of Nanashima’s fickle temperament in the first manga, it is generally calm and sweet Igarashi who suddenly becomes jealous in an explosive and, admittedly, very whiny exhibition that pits all of the boys against one another. Of course, when Igarashi sees that his childish behavior not only upsets Kae, but puts her in danger at the school festival, he apologizes to everyone, retracting his statement that he no longer wanted to be friends with his romantic competition.
This volume is just as full of beautiful bishounen as the previous volume, adding a couple of new faces into the cast, both short and long term—though one has a surprise you’ll likely believe if you’re a fan of this genre of story. Bishounen aren’t the only pretty things populating the pages of Volume 2, though. Thanks to a school festival there are some fantastic, detailed, gorgeous costumes that give Junko a real chance to show off her design chops. From military uniforms to princess costumes(on darling Shinomiya) and a maid cafe, all of the bases are covered.
Junko continues to lace her general page style with soft full page spreads that scream “Love Me!”, and I can’t help but admit that… I do love them… every single one of them.
Finally, Junko once more leaves a glossary of terms at the end of the book for those new to (or just a little rusty on) the genre and it’s slang just a little rusty.
In Summary
All Is not well in paradise as feelings begin to grow stronger among Kae’s suitors, but her ever sweet disposition and the boys’ need to see her happy sews peace in the wake of discontent. Kiss Him, not Me vol. 2 is another exceptionally cute installment in this adorable series, with a delightful new kink to tie up chapter #8. I’m most certainly going to keep reading, are you?
Content Grade: A
Art Grade: A
Packaging Grade: A-
Text/Translation Grade: A+
Age Rating: 13+
Released By: Kodansha Comics
Release Date: December 15th, 2015
MSRP: 10.99
