Before I get into explaining what this amazing manga is about, I just wanna gush a little bit about this manga. I might say that a certain manga is great or one of the best I've ever read, but I think Oishii Kankei is a little different than other manga that I compliment so heavily. Not only is it a very enjoyable read, but also I finished the story feeling uplifted and motivated to work hard on my own life, and that's a sign of fantastic storytelling. Of course, there are other elements involved in storytelling but to me, I think the most important part is using your own thoughts and experiences and conveying them in a way to the reader that makes he/she/they see something in a new light. And Makimura does this by introducing characters of varying backgrounds, make them struggle and emerge stronger, and with a more resilient will to live life their own way.
Without further ado, here's an introduction to the series:
Title: [おいしい関係 ] - Oishii Kankei (A Delicious Relationship) by Makimura Satoru
Status: Completed; 10 volumes (started in 1993)
Genres/Elements: Cooking, Josei, Romance, Comedy, Drama
Summary: Momoe, ever since she was small, accompanied her father, a gourmet, to eat a variety of high-class dishes. Because of this, she developed very sharp taste buds, and unparalleled ability to discern ingredients and critique food. Everything in Momoe's sparkly, sheltered life started to crash when her beloved father dies. Instead of attending college, she decides to find a job. Eventually, Momoe ends up at a French bistro called Petit Lapin, where she encounters a very familiar taste in the dishes she eats, and asked to be employed there. From there, Momoe starts her journey to become a cook, and discover her own dreams...
Additional Comments:
- Kind of an FYI thing: Josei, literally means "woman" in Japanese, but it is also a category for manga aimed towards an older female audience. There are a lot of different types of stories within the josei category, but josei typically means there will be some adult topics involved(like marriage, sex, work, the harsh reality of life, and other things adults are concerned about).
In-depth (spoiler-free woo-hoo!) review:
- Characters: As I've mentioned before, the characters are flawed, so you might not like some of them, but by the end, you can see that they have grown as people, and are trying to become better versions of themselves. I especially liked how Momoe, the heroine, grew because during her struggles, you can see how she tries to think of a solution and tackle the problem head-on. Even though she is introduced as a rich, pampered girl, Momoe clearly becomes capable of taking care of herself, and dealing with difficulties whether in her love life or her profession. Just overall, she demonstrated a tough mentality (kind of reminds me of Maya from Glass Mask) that I don't really see in many manga with a female main character, or in stories in general. Her optimism and bright personality were other aspects that I admired about her as well, and I think we could all learn from her simplicity and straightforwardness. :) Also, I was genuinely surprised at the development of Oda, the male lead. He seems like another one of those straight-laced, stoic characters, but he really opens up and becomes really sweet towards the end (like a human bean).
- Romance: So if you want a whole series dedicated to romance, look elsewhere because this one mainly focuses on a woman's effort to become recognized as a cook. Jk, but seriously...the romance really starts in the later part of the story. I don't know what you would call it...a slow-burner, I guess? But I think it's sweet nonetheless.
- Setting: The settings do shift quite a bit throughout the story, but in general the main setting is just a restaurant...lol, or a kitchen. Oh, and this isn't just some street-vendor-type of cooking, but French cuisine lol. Very high-class and fancy~ Later in the story, it embodies this feeling, although in the beginning it was just at a bistro (very casual-feeling).
- Story/Writing/Pace: For a decently long series, I don't think I felt bored with the story at all. Maybe the occasional food explanations and workplace drama made me skim pages, but for the most part, I was hooked! I also thought the pacing was really good; I felt time was passing as I was reading this (since the characters age as well), and the development of Momoe's skills were at a reasonable pace. The interactions between the characters were natural, and the background stories for some of them made me feel very compassionate for them. I want to add that being able to peek in on Momoe's thought process really made me appreciate her as a character even more.
- Art: The art was very cute! It's easy to read, and easy to recognize what is drawn (instead of like, "is that supposed to be an arm or what?"). The characters look very lovely, and there is quite a bit of cute fashion in this as well (I've just found out the author also wrote Real Clothes, which I suppose is like a fashion version of Oishii Kankei lol)! The food also looked pretty good as well!
- Cooking: Not a cook or food enthusiast at all, but I think I learned a few things about French cuisine after reading this lol. This series made me really appreciate the effort put into cooking. Of course, I don't know how accurate any of the information about the food or cooking techniques are, but I can assure you that the main focus of this series is definitely on cooking. xD
- Other: Basically a theme of this story is YOLO, so go out and do the things you want to do, and really appreciate certain aspects of your life rather than taking it for granted. :) Also, I appreciate that Momoe didn't suddenly want to become a world-class chef or something, and that she was really satisfied with just making people happy with her cooking. Sometimes it's the simple things that count. ^_^ And that just adds to the "real" aspect of this story even more.
Wow, hope that wasn't intimidating to read lol.
Overall, I give Oishii Kankei a 4.70/5.00 stars! I took off some points because I wanted to see a little bit more romance at the end, and a few other things I can't say because I would spoil it. ^_^;;;
Really hope you take the time to try reading Oishii Kankei! Or watch the drama versions of it: My Name is Kim Sam-Soon, Oishii Kankei, and Sweet Relationship.
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