Girl Friends: The Complete Collection 1

*=After completionAnyone who can appreciate a good romance story will enjoy Girl Friends, even if they do not specifically love shoujo-ai/yuri.*This is the pinnacle of the genre, in yuri romance for slice of life manga. This is the masterpiece of its era and is likely not going to be dethroned from most highly rated and best critically received yuri for a long time.Most of my thoughts are unchanged. I am mostly just following up with the review to assure people that this is well worth it all the way to the end.Story:When it comes to school & slice of life manga, it often feels as if there is not much of a story, just a setting that you let characters loose in. What I can say is that unlike many shoujo-ai, Girl Friends takes a much more "true to life" approach, on the girl/ girl romance. The approach is fresh, interesting and helps the audience relate. The only complaint here is the amount of small talk involved can sometimes be too much.*Story is solid, my only nitpick is petty... I wished that there was more. It's usually the hallmark of a good story. (Unless there is a case of a rushed ending or unresolved plot lines) Might be a little spoiler-ish under, skip to art if you want nothing to do with it:In this case I would love to see Morinaga pick these characters back up some time for a sequel exploring their college life and coming out story.Art:The art is as good as what you would expect out of a, decent manga series. Morinaga Milk's art style and character designs are top notch.*I have to say that the art really remained very consistent all the way through to the end, and a few panels where the quality was buffed up for a dramatic moment. Over all I have to again compliment the artist very pretty character design, nice backdrops and everything inbetween.Characters:The main character Mari, is one of the most emotionally complicated (different from other means of making a complex character) and troubled character I have ever seen. Emotional complexity comes from trying to understand why you feel the way you do, it's feeling having a contradiction between the way you feel and the way you rationally think would be the best way to feel, it's questioning your own motivations and intentions in the interactions you have with others. To some it might seem melodramatic but, that is the essence of creating great internal struggle, which is relatable in multitude of different ways.The other characters are more, for the everyday interactions, kind of like a lucky star sort of thing but they are fun, unique, and amusing. At some point during the manga the main character changes to Akiko, the person of Mari's feelings. Akiko stood out quite a bit as an eccentric, but when the main focus becomes centered on her perspective she starts to come to life, as a well fleshed out character. Her time in the spotlight is just beginning but there is much hope for good things in the future.*I was right about Akko, she was awesome, as she was a much more confident character. That had to "catch up" to Mari in terms of figuring out her feelings for the sake of continuity, but once she did, Akko was much more sure of herself compared to Mari. She would made decisions on how she felt and stuck to them, as well didn't mind putting herself out to get to the truth. The character dynamic, by the end is the most satisfying romantic interaction that I have read.Enjoyment:Emotional drama and self-torment in a realistic setting is a very gripping read. This isn't something everyone enjoys but for the target audience, this series will be pure bliss. The small talk sections may be boring for some however, but it is forgivable. This manga will hook you in and have you honestly caring about its characters, which is a good measure to its enjoyment.Overall :If you are the type to enjoy the things mentioned above, you will love this, especially if you also have a love for shoujo-aiFan for life. I will read everything Morinaga, Milk makes for a long time just to hope that she can do something like this again.

Stars 4.5Series: CompleteFormat: PrintI bought and read this two part omnibus in 2006. After rereading Strawberry Panic (ugh), I was worried that it wouldn’t hold up to a reread. I should have trusted Milk Morinaga. Wonderfully cute story well worth buying. It is a long one with this volume alone at 496 pages of yuri goodness. It gets pretty steamy in volume 2, so be wary of that when reading this. You mostly get Mari’s POV with scenes of just Akko occasionally, but later in volume 1 you do get Akko’s POV. I do enjoy that even though Mari and Akko change classrooms and are no longer in the same class as Tama and Sugi, those two side characters don’t disappear. The artwork is beautiful and the characters expressions are clear. Again, Seven Seas translation is smooth and they keep the honorifics and original manga format (which is good if only to keep the artwork flow smooth.) Consent is SO MUCH better in this series compared to Strawberry Panic. There is one instance where one character kisses another in their sleep, but that character instantly feels bad and guilty about it and later confesses and apologizes for it. The characters in Strawberry Panic seemed to delight in doing that and people pushing it further than that.The reasons this didn’t get a full five stars from me is that one of the side characters routinely takes off her shirt and it feels a little bit like fan service. Also a teacher that gets married but doesn’t seem to like her husband? That kinda bothered me. There is a side character that constantly bemoans that she wants and can’t get a boyfriend but I remember girls like that in high school (even see/hear it as an adult) and it isn’t obnoxious.It looks like this series, in omnibus form at least, is still in print and easy to get. It is also available as an ebook if that is how you would prefer it. (Which is legit and understandable, the books are about 2 inches thick.) I HIGHLY RECOMMEND THIS SERIES!!!

Although it was used already, I enjoyed every chapter. Can’t get enough of these two. ; ^ ;

Milk Morinaga's epic yuri manga is, frankly, the Greatest Love Story Ever Told. The slow-burning romance between High-Schoolers Mari (shy, bookish) and Akko (brash, confident) unfolds with astonishing precision and tenderness, offering a constantly affecting window into the worlds of teenage girls and of first, young love. While there's little in the way of grand drama (one chapter hinges on nail polish), the story is utterly captivating thanks to Morinaga's supreme storytelling skill and gorgeous art. Funny, moving, occasionally erotic and endlessly romantic - you might as well order volume 2 along with this, as there's no way you're not going to be able to follow it right to the end!

This will be a review covering volumes 1 and 2. Saves making two reviews!I'm still relatively new to the Yuri genre and so haven't seen nearly as many great, lengthy story based Yuri as I'd like. However Girl Friends was my first, and I'm so glad it was.The relationship development between the two main characters was paced absolutely perfectly - it had me begging for things to develop further (in a good, invested sense) while not being so slow that things come to a standstill. The pacing is actually what makes me worry that I will not find another Yuri as good as this one. How can you find better than perfection?The characters are extremely likable (even the minor ones!) Akko and Mari may even be two of my favourite characters in Manga because I just... really liked them! None of the facial expressions or panels came as a disappointment artistically.The main reason I may seem so excited about this series is because for me personally it struck all the right chords. So much so that during a majority of this story I had cold hands and severe second-hand butterflies. Makes me yearn to go back to times where I had the chance to develop relationships like this.Sometimes the story does have to divert to (actually pretty cliché) girl talk such as make up, perfumes, dieting etc. But it probably needs this to give it variety and break the chain of romance elements (and to be realistic really!) However there is more than enough to the romance elements to make it very worth it. I would not deduct anything because of it.I have read the story from start to finish twice so far and now that I have it in book format, I will absolutely be reading it from start to finish a lot more for the foreseeable future. It will be a difficult task for any future story to beat this one for me!

I am very impressed with the quality of the art and the writing - the story is steadily building upwards - and its been well worth buying this -It is also my first ever Manga Comic - I have made the easy conversion to the Japanese style of reading and I enjoying this bookI will be buying Volume 2 without question - I recommend this Book to anyone who wants a little escape from the humdrum of reality

This was best Yuri i've read, it drags you into the love of 2 cute girls and path how they finally come together. Tugs at your heart at times and you will not want to put it down. I love yuri manga, and from such a great author, a must buy, i highly recommend it. You will full in love with it.Yuri is Girl Love if you want to know.Enjoy.

Cute girls meet, become friends, close friends and eventually one of the protagonists finds herself having romantic feelings for a member of the same sex. Probably my favourite of the Yuri manga I have read. Not particularly deep or serious but pleasant enough to reread. Cute but excellent art. Personally I think it's the best of Milk Morinaga's catalogue.