There’s nothing like inaugurating a new apartment.
Creative Staff
Story/Art: Iwasaki Yuuki
What They Say:
In a quiet apartment…unease lingers in the air.
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
Originally serialized in Comic Bavel from the January 2020 installment, Neighbor is a twenty-page story from creator Iwasaki Yuuki, who has about ten or so other works on the service. It’s my first time reading their work and the first time I’ve seen the horror tag on titles I’ve looked at. It’s actually incredibly tame compared to their other works according to the readers but it works as a good easing you into the idea of the supernatural stuff when it comes to hentai. I’ve seen my fair share of horror hentai anime and there are some good projects out there so I’ll be exploring this creator some more. Their work here provide for some really nice character designs and managed the page count well for both story and the actual hentai elements.
In it, we’re introduced to Eiko as she recently moved into a new apartment and hasn’t quite finished unpacking everything yet. She’s settling in well as her boyfriend comes to visit, showing up for the first time since she got into the place. There’s some mild frustration over that but he’s talking up the place nicely and even joking of moving in, which eases her a bit. The problem comes in that he realizes that the next door neighbor is one of “those” types who don’t like any kind of noise and keeps rapping on the wall or banging on it to get people to be quiet. Eiko’s kind of adjusted to that already but her boyfriend, who is nameless in the story, sees it as a challenge. Because dude’s gotta be a dude, right?
With it having been a bit since the two have been together, they get down to business pretty quickly as she helps him off before he can’t help it any longer and just wants to experience all of her. The gimmick of it is that he keeps doing all of this against the adjoining wall, making every sound she makes carry through it as well as just the sound of her body being pressed against it. Eiko does try to get him to stop but he’s in a groove and trying to make a point at the same time. It’s unfortunate he doesn’t listen to it as it’s the only part that frustrates when it comes to being a good partner. That said, it works for the story and they ratchet things up well with some really good positions and beautiful artwork. Eiko’s well designed and there’s a good sense of erotica about the whole thing, especially knowing someone is listening from the other side – until they move to the patio.
In Summary
It’s all fun and games until the supernatural horror element arrives, putting a different spin on the book after the fact. Iwasaki Yuuki’s story is pretty good here with some standard but smoothly executed character work to get us to like the characters and engage in their situation honestly. The horror element is well-played when it deals with it and I really liked their character artwork throughout. Our dude du jour is just your standard young salaryman, so much so that he’s unnamed so you can believe it’s you, but Eiko is where all the attention is and their deliver well there. With good backgrounds, a good sense of flow for the layout, and some hot action that’s a little on the tame side, Neighbor is a great intro to Iwasaki’s works.
Content Grade: B+
Art Grade: A-
Text/Translation Grade: B+
Age Rating: 18+
Released By: FAKKU
Release Date: January 2020
MSRP: FAKKU Subscription
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