Forum - View topicREVIEW: Kiss Him, Not Me GN 1
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BodaciousSpacePirate
 Subscriber Posts: 3018 |
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The only real issue I (personally) have with Kae's weight loss isn't how much or how fast she loses weight - it's that she manages to emerge from her bedroom with a perfectly toned, taut body and perfect complexion after losing so much weight in such a short period of time. It takes more than just "not eating" to turn a plain-looking overweight person into an effortlessly-gorgeous-even-after-staggering-out-of-bed skinny person.
It's certainly a lot better than how most shoujo handles weight, but after a while it becomes clear that the author would rather be funny than realistic about this sort of stuff... which is perfectly fine, unless "comic-relief depictions of overweight women in anime and manga" is your particular hot-button issue.
It's a bit more complicated than that. spoiler[Although one of the boys realizes he likes her for who she is, and another never really thought her weight was that big a deal in the first place, the other two are so bothered by her weight gain that they push her into a harmful situation. To me, this felt very similar to something like "I'd love you more if you got a nose job" in tone, and it's hard for me to like a reverse harem series when half of the boys behave like that.] ...but oh my god, is the art in this series beautiful, or what? Look at that cover; that's the worst illustration in the entire volume! If none of the stuff I mentioned bothers you, and you like reverse harem shoujo, then go buy this! |
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DigitalScratch
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Her revealing her otaku nature actually happens much sooner than you think it does. Once that happens, the boys attempt to understand, or at least support, her hobbies. They don't become otaku but they don't shun her for it. Personally I have a love-"really irks me" feelings for this series. On one hand it's funny for a girl to be surrounded by hot guys, but what she really wants is for them to be into each other. Plus the arts not bad and there are genuinely funny moments, and the MC is a decent character. On the other hand, the fact that the boys primarily became interested in her after she lost weight and improved her appearance really bugs me. I just can't support a relationship with any of them since it comes off as too shallow. They're really nice and not sleaze balls at all, but if I were her I'd pick a guy who would gladly participate in my hobbies and not just tolerates them. There is a future character who joins the cast who I think would be the best match for the MC. She's a fellow fujoshi and genuinely connects with the MC. Plus her love for her isn't based on any physical changes, as she looked up to her even when she was chubby. |
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harminia
 Posts: 2016 Location: australia |
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I haven't read that chapter in a while so I can't remember the details completely, but yeah, spoiler[I think from Nana and Shinomiya were kinda bothered by the weight gain; to me they're the less endearing characters because they were mean to Kae beforehand and only liked her once she lost weight... So yeah from their end it's definitely more towards a "I like you if you stay thin and beautiful" thing, but I believe they become more understanding later, or are at least on their way there in recent chapters...]
Mutsumi actually shares hobbies with Kae (he's in the same club) and later whenspoiler[Kae and Shima go on a fujoshi pilgramage he gets into it. He actually enjoys the series they're into and gets involved in the conversation whilst the other boys are just kinda like "ehhh...". ] But I'm biased.. But out of the group, Shima is probably one of the better characters to pair with Kae, because like you said, she liked her when Kae was big, and they have so much in common (except for when they had that fight over who should be seme/uke...) |
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Merida
 Posts: 1945 |
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Funny how male otaku in similar series never seem to have to become "gorgeous" first in order to acquire an adoring harem.
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DmonHiro
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Uhm... why would have two gorgeous and popular guys care about her when she looked like that? That part is completely realistic. |
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Lili-Hime
 Posts: 569 |
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TBH I don't think this has much as much to do with male sexism as it does female fantasy. Manga and anime are largely made up of self-insert fantasy. Female fantasy can include the desire to be the most beautiful / hottest girl around and attract guys. From what I see, guys don't fantasize about being the most handsome too much. Male targeted harem manga/anime usually deals with the guy being special in some way (like Tenchi being a prince) so that's why all the girls want him. Should also be mentioned that there are several reverse harem manga/anime where the female protagonist is kind of 'plain jane' looking, or even passes when crossdressing as a boy (Ouran, Fruits Basket, Fushigi Yuugi, Vampire Knight, etc.) So it's a bit unfair to characterize shoujo manga as conforming to male sexism by making the protagonist a gorgeous girl. It's funny to see two whole pages of comments upset about the boys only noticing the girl when she loses weight and ignore the other issue with the whole concept... highlighting the fujoshi fantasy of appropriating gay male sexuality for personal gratification. This would come off as far, far more creepy if the genders were reversed; if it was an ecchi series where a yuri fanboy kept trying to get girls to make out in front of him. Last edited by Lili-Hime on Mon Oct 26, 2015 6:35 am; edited 1 time in total |
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Ali07
 Posts: 3333 Location: Victoria, Australia |
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Are there similar series to this? And, by that, I mean series where the protagonist is fat? Honestly, the only series I've come across in manga and anime with a fat protag is Accel World. The only times I've seen a harem where the lead is not considered to be the most handsome of guys...it's usually something that is said, but the character design doesn't really back that up. |
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Merida
Posts: 1945 |
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That's exactly what i meant. This is an escapist fantasy, so why should looks matter? But as you mentioned, it's probably more important for girls to be desired for their looks by a bunch of hot guys than to just be desired by a bunch of hot guys because why not? And no, i don't think there are a lot of (if any) harem series with fat male leads (who turn handsome all of a sudden), but that's pretty telling in and on itself since the look of the lead simply doesn't seem to matter much at all. |
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killjoy_the
 Posts: 2463 |
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I remember I stopped reading one manga with that premise at some point. Can't for the life of me remember the name, but I know there was something about taking revenge in it, because the guy was bullied by women when he was fat. |
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Cutiebunny
 Posts: 1755 |
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Why is anyone reading this expecting a realistic story? It would be one thing if the story were historically accurate or 'based on real events'-garbage, but it's a light, fantasy story. Kae emerging from her room after a couple days, miraculously toned and no longer needing glasses should have indicated that.
I love this manga, and I'm saying this as a woman who was very similar to Kae while in high school. Even then, I recognized how absurd it was that many of the boys in school were so shallow as to not date the girls they actually got along with because they didn't have model-like looks, and I like that this manga portrays that, albeit in a comical light. |
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Merida
Posts: 1945 |
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I'm not expecting realism, i was just wondering why a fantasy reverse harem story would require the female lead to become pretty first before the gorgeous guys flock to her. Had she been magically teleported to a world where gorgeous guys adore fat girls instead, now that would have been fantasy with a capital F: 
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Cutiebunny
Posts: 1755 |
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Name one reverse harem anime/manga or otome game where the main girl is not skinny and cute/hot. I honestly can't think of one off the top of my head. To a certain extent, maybe...Escaflowne? I never thought Hitomi was attractive, but that's because Nobuteru Yuki likes to give his characters noses that would make Cyrano de Bergerac look normal. I agree that it would be awesome to have a reverse harem situation where, other than her personality, the girl is not attractive. I just don't know how well that would sell in Japan. When it comes to reverse harem properties, people seem to buy into the fantasy that they can be the cute or hot girl that is portrayed, and that's part of the fantasy package they're selling. |
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Quark
 Posts: 710 Location: British Columbia, Canada |
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Because being pretty is part of the fantasy. When I was in high school and fantasizing about guys that I liked, I was never fat and homely. The weight had always magically disappeared first and my face and hair were...better. A fantasy where I was super hot was way more fun than a fantasy where I was still boring, dumpy me. The fact that there are so many stories where the MC goes through a physical transformation makes me think other women might feel the same way. Anyway, this manga sounds hilarious, and is getting added to my 'to read' list. |
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Actar
 Posts: 1074 Location: Singapore |
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Must every thread even remotely related to gender/sexuality turn into a debate on social issues? I know that it's a hot-button topic, but that's really not the point of the manga at all.
Yes. Wanted to point this out as well. Konata is a great example of a female otaku who's not a fujoshi. Y from Jinrui wa Suitai Shimashia is a fujoshi. |
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lebrel
Posts: 374 |
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1. It's not an ecchi series; so far it doesn't break a G rating. She never tries to "make" the guys do anything, she's just watching and viewing the world through "yaoi goggles" (as American fans would say). And she's interested in seeing the guys become a couple, not just make out (although she is interested in that). 2. Have you heard of Yuri Danshi? It's about a delusional yuri fanboy who ships the girls around him (and keeps getting dissapointed by the fact that all the little tokens of affection he witnesses between the girls never mean they're a couple), and who subsequently make friends with a couple of other fanboys. (Later in the series there are a bunch of yuri fangirls too.) |
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