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Strawberry Panic, Vol. 02 (2008)

by Sakurako Kimino(Favorite Author)

4.01 of 5 Votes: 4

ISBN

1933164891 (ISBN13: 9781933164892)

languge

English

genre

Graphic Novels & Comics

publisher

Seven Seas

series

Strawberry Panic (manga)

review 1: I actually couldn't finish this one. I forced myself through the first volume and just couldn't get through this as the writing never improved. I admit this is my first yuri, but it wasn't the yuriness of it that bothered me. In fact, I thought that bit cheesy and soft-core and plan on seeking out other yuri novels to understand the genre. No, the bit that bothered me was the story. It was all over the place. Character after character is introduced with short jumps back to people introduced earlier and seem to be the main characters. Its really unclear and makes it really hard to connect to any character. I couldn't cheer for any particular couple for the competition or to get together because I felt I didn't know them well enough and they were all too shallow. I might hav... moree liked Amane if she were fleshed out better and in longer story periods.As it were, I never got drawn into the story. I spent half the time flipping back and forth trying to see if I missed something and trying to figure out who was being talked about. A little less "hand gently touching her face" and "the darkness in her past was lurking just behind her" and more focus on narrowing down characters would've made all the difference.
review 2: I can't figure out if this series is meant to be just a parody of the Class S genre or if it's supposed to be taken seriously, as all the sudden Angst of Doom in this volume would suggest. It doesn't help that the action is confused and rushed, with too many undeveloped characters competing for attention, or that the two main couples in this volume seem completely arbitrary - I still have absolutely no idea why they are supposed to be attracted to each other, let alone why they are declaring eternal love.All the couples are girl/girl. For all that, Strawberry Panic feels completely un-lesbian. I don't know how else to put it, except that it feels like unconvincing fake lesbianism created to be nonthreatening and titillating to homophobic men, who get off on the idea of schoolgirls kissing and feeling each other up but are scared of actual gay people. It leaves me feeling vaguely icky.The sole reason this gets two star, not one: the art and character design are really, really pretty. less

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