Otome Obsession: Dreamy Days in West Tokyo Overview

Dreamy Days in West Tokyo

*Publisher: Voltage Inc.

*System: iOs Game for iPad

*Free Prologue and First chapter per character

          The game follows a female protagonist, our main character (MC for short or in my case Tamara), as she returns to the shopping district in west Tokyo after a ten year absence. She is now sixteen years old and excited for the move back to her childhood neighbor. To liven up her new home she explores the district’s shops, getting flowers for her room and getting “thank you” cakes from the local bakery. The MC thusly is reunited with her childhood friends, Haruki Tanemura, Ryuzo Hatta, Ichigo Sato, Takeshi Yuno, Rihito Hatsune, and her landlord Johji Chakura. The five boys have drastically changed over the ten years in appearance and some in attitude. As the Five o clock bell tolls for the shops to open each boy asks for the MC to join them.

Haruki Tanemura is the son of the district’s florist, and works at the shop after school and his karate club activities. The MC remembers him as the peacekeeper of the group and not much has changed since. In present day he is a hard worker, handsome and dangerously popular with the girls of the district. So much so that the girls in the MC’s class are not friendly on her first day of school. Yet Haruki seems oblivious to the other girls’ attention and focuses on the MC.

Ryuzo Hatta is the son the districts produce store. He has adopted a “thuggish” look, more akin to the Japanese’s Bosozuku (Japanese motorcycle gangs like AKIRA), which unnerves the MC along with his loud demeanor. Yet when the MC works with him at his store and is later invited to dinner with his family, she sees the kind fatherly side of him from when they were children. A year older than most of his friends (2 years older than Rihito) Ryuzo feels responsible for them and their actions and is usually the moral compass of the group. However he does come off as a little dense

Ichigo Sato is the son of the district’s cake shop owner which is devilishly ironic because he does not like sweet things. The MC remembers him as the pushy, mean little boy who always teased her mercilessly. Nothing has changed in Ichigo’s regard of the MC, he still teases her about her weight and her tomboyish nature. Yet at times when the MC gets caught in the rain, Ichigo has no problem walking her home under an umbrella.

Takeshi Yuno is the grandson of the district’s bath house owner. Happy Waters is a place of pride and unlike his friend Ichigo Takeshi works diligently to keep the bath house in good condition. However Takeshi comes off a bit rude to the MC, as he spends a lot of time reading the latest Shonen Hop (Shonen Jump! Of course), and is quiet and blunt. This isn’t different from what the MC remembers, as he used to be quiet and often in his own little world. She also remembers him to be a fast runner and wonders if he is on the school’s team.

Rihito Hatsune is the son of the Piano Teacher and wildly popular with the women in the district. His angelic face is deceiving as it masks a devilish flirt. Of all the characters Rihito seems to be the one each of his older peers are worried about and rightly so. He kisses the MC on their first reunion and swears to have her previous memories change the more they encounter each other. Why? Because the MC remembers him as a girl. Rihito or Richy as she affectionately called him was like her little sister because of how fair and delicate he was. Now Rihito “You can still call me Richy” has a thing for older girls.

Johji Chakura is the MC’s landlord and owner of the Black Ship Café below her apartment. 10 years older than the MC she is drawn to his maturity and easy going mannerisms. However when Johji makes a tuna sandwich for the MC she feels strangely nostalgic.

The Appeal This was my very first introduction into Otome games and rightly so, high school romance with promises of a shojo manga story, it almost had me at “Hello”. The boys and man (Johji) on surface have sparkling personalities.

The Drawback The main cast is in high school and there will be some limitation to how deep the story can delve into the romance, especially with a rating of 12+.

But I am hopeful, the other bad trait is that I am a hopeless completion-ist, in meaning that whenever I get a task I have to finish it all the way through, so here is a promise to all my readers. I will finish the games ever single one I bought and I hope you stick around for the cheers and tears.

Next Week: Ryuzo Hatta Review (Part 1)

Update: Longer than Expected Hiatus, 50 Book Challeges, and more!

It's been a long time since I've written, reviewed, or even posted and for that I am sorry ^_^. But I'm back with new books, new projects, and new ideas!

First is MANGA MONDAYS, where I indulge my inner otaku and review manga from my own personal library.

Second is OTOME OBSESSION which are posted on WEDNESDAY. I've recently been playing VOLTAGE iOs games and have become a bit crazed. *Walk-Throughs are posted per request*

With that said I've decided to ass my first challenge/event/movement/experience. Fifty Shades of Grey The Movie will premier worldwide Valentine's Day Weekend. Whether you believe it's filthy smut, or the embodiment of female sexuality in mainstream media, the truth is that it will be big. To prepare my Nerdy/Quirky mind I've created a list of Erotica books to get us all in the squishy mood. The goal is to read all of them before Ana Steele walks onto the silver screen.

Enjoy and see you all Tomorrow!

50 Books to 50 Shades of Grey

Part One

1.) Pride and Pleasure - Sylvia Day

2.) Seven Years to Sin - Sylvia Day

3.) Scandalous Liaisons - Sylvia Day

4.) Pleasure of the Night - Sylvia Day

5.) Bared to You -Sylvia Day

6.) Reflected in You - Sylvia Day

7.) Entwined with You - Sylvia Day

8.) Blush - Opal Carew

9.) Addicted - Zane

10.) The Sisterhood of APF - Zane

11.) Slow Surrender - Cecila Tan

12.) Exit to Eden - Anne Rice

13.) Belinda - Anne Rice

14.) Topping from Below - Laura Reese

15.) This Man - Jodi Ellen Malpas

16.) Beneath This Man - Jodi Ellen Malpas

17.) This Man Confessed - Jodi Ellen Malpas

18.) Henry and June - Anais Nin

19.) Rush - Maya Banks

20.) Fever - Maya Banks

21.) Burn - Maya Banks

22.) Because You Are Mine - Beth Kery

23.) The Harlot - Saskia Walker

24.) The Libertine - Saskia Walker

25.) Jezebel - Saskia Walker

Manga Monday: X-Day by Setona Mizushiro

In response to the Columbine High School Massacre of 1999, Setona Mizushiro penned X-Day. The story centers on four individuals and their desire to blow up their school. Mizushiro focuses on why a person, or a group would want to destroy an institution, yet not in an accusatory tone. The two volume manga is very sympathetic towards its main characters. Personally the manga is in my home library because of its intention to talk about people battling depression as people and that their desires might be monstrous but does not make them monsters.

The story begins when 11, Polaris, Mr. Money, and Jangalian meet in the school’s online chatroom. They instantly bond over their mutual aversion towards the school as a symbol of their angst, and later meet up in a different chat room. There is where they first discuss blowing up the school, but it is filed away as they all become close friends online. Yet when one of them tries to commit suicide, they are forced to meet each other face to face and their discussion of blowing up the school turns into a plan. X-Day is when their plans will come fruition, but until then they plan and try to live through their depression, anxiety, abuse and insecurity.

Each character has their own reasons for their misfortune. 11 is semi-popular, a senior, and a former member of the track team. 11 is trying to keep hold of a mask of happiness and aloofness which hides a growing insecurity of being easily replaced on the team and in romantic relationships. Polaris feels restricted by the school’s uniform and adopts a mousy personality. Polaris fades into the background and is tired of being overlooked. Jangalian is trying to avoid unwanted and psychotic romantic advances, and Mr. Money wants to be useful to somebody, anybody. They all feel a level of adversity to their peers but no murderous intent. Instead they focus their grievances on the school itself holding it as the symbol of their struggles and misery. They do not want to hurt anyone yet want to be rid of the symbol. So each character struggles more with living until X-Day arrives.

Mizushiro shows complex character development with their struggles between destruction and perseverance. Unfortunately the story is only two volumes long, nine chapters in total with the last two having an urgency to wrap up the story. Polaris and Jangalian make a huge mistake with dire consequences, yet instead of elaborating on the subject, the issue is wrapped up with a slap on the wrist and a wag of the finger. It did not seem to fit with all the other issues that were presented and it seemed more that there was not enough time to explore it.

X-Day has no anime adaptation, but I you like the story I suggest watching Shitsuren Shokoraite roughly translated to Heartbroken Chocolatier. It’s a Japanese Live Action dramatization of Mizushiro’s manga of the same name.

Pick up X-Day at a Half Price Bookstore or any other second hand booksellers. I was owned by the defunct TOKYOPOP Publishings, which also owned: Marmalade Boy, Peach Girl, Kare Kano, Saint Seiya, Paradise Kiss, and Sailor Moon.

The two volume manga is 3 out of 5 stars for presenting sympathetic characters, engaging story-line and beautiful artwork.