Rumspringa no Joukei

AnnaSartin Dec 24, 2019

9

I really love this story, and totally get why it was number 1 on the 2019 'Kono BL ga Yabai!' list. 1980s America was an interesting choice for a BL, but the vast fields of the Amish countryside and small Pennsylvania town suit it perfectly. Good art, interesting characters, and a compelling story of two men who are trying to figure out how to overcome the personal obstacles holding them back from their dreams. One has fallen low and grown cynical after giving up on his childhood dream of becoming a dancer, while the other, a wide-eyed innocent, is trying to figure out how to balance his strict religious upbringing with his desire to see and experience the world outside of the Amish community where he grew up. Oz must decide whether or not he's had enough of prostituting himself and hiding from his past failures and find a way to gather the courage needed to try pursuing a dancing career again. The other, a gentle youth named Theo, must think long and hard about the sacrifices he will be forced to make if he chooses to live his life as an Amish man - as well as the things he will have to sacrifice if he does not. He doesn't need to be Amish to have God in his life, but if he parts ways with the community where he grew up, he will never see his family again.  Both men get a chance to experience the other's world, growing as individuals as well as a couple, and in the end, they break down the barriers holding them back. They freely ride off into the sunset together, ready to stand and face both the joys and failures that inevitably await them in life, and I could feel their excitement, fear, and determination - as well as their love.  This was certainly worth the read and I look forward to checking out more of this author's work in the future. ~ Review written for the 2019 Secret Santa event

Ponyo18 Jul 22, 2020

6.8

I guarantee that this might be a good manga. Why 'might', you ask? Because I dropped it. Not because I didn't like the story but rather I couldn't handle second-hand embarrassment.

iloveSleep Mar 25, 2021

8.8

Imma rant!😖 This was immaculate, astonishing, fucking amazing....😍😍 it was so realistic to me.. this is how I would picture life in the 1980s, even though I think there would be discrimination against people who are viewed as "different" but I'm happy the story didn't show that at all. it didn't venture off the plot and it didn't forced a happy ending, it came naturally. the chapters are so fucking long, I had to take breaks reading them cause my eyes would start hurting. This reminded me of that bl/yaoi manhwa I read called "stigma" so similar even the main characters could relate to each other.🧐🧐 so, Theo grows up with a very religious family and when he finally left on a "special day" called "ramspringa" he met Oswald who was a ballet dancer but had to give up on his dreams because he just kept getting rejected. oswalds dad died in the Vietnam war and he just felt lonely, but when Theo came into the picture it was like a whole new world was opening..  Oswald was a waiter but he had a side job where he would sleep with men for money... I could have just said he was a prostitute... but oh well😭😭  The second hand embarrassment wasn't strong but it was present... Theo walked in on Oswald having sex, and the same thing happen when Theo was havin sex with Oswald💀💀 If the word dumb was a person it would have been Theo 😂  he's so naive, so very innocent to the world... the story shows how he grows and came to fall in love with Oswald.. The emotions was so overwhelming, u probably think I'm over exaggerating... and I might be but let me tell u... this was a job Well done 👍🏾 it's a✨8/10✨For meI'm not gonna talk about the other characters, I would be spoiling it😩 👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾listen to me!! Go read it...👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾