Irresistible Mistakes · Reviews

Irresistible Mistakes

The Walk of… Shame?

Now, this is a welcome change! You know how most otome games err terribly on the side of chastity? Well, not this one. This one starts with a supremely drunk and perfectly ill-advised one night stand. I love the premise. Obviously, the MC is beyond embarrassed by her own behavior, and since the other party must be someone from work, she is also mortified because she will a) see this person again and b) totally not remember who it was. Which is hilarious, since she comes across all the possible candidates, and, not knowing who she slept with, doesn’t know what to do with herself around them.

Now, again, we have the sticky issue of consent, or, more to the point, its absence in this story. Reader, I am aware, as mentioned here. At this stage, I guess, if you’re into otome games at all, you will have resigned yourself to the circumstance that consent just isn’t a thing that’s gonna happen here. As did I. Apparently, the MC did have a good time, though, so, er, okay.

It’s also funny that she worries quite a bit about what the men in question might think of her. You know, those men who did the exact same thing she did? Nice double standard you’ve got there, Voltage/Japan/world.

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Reviews · Star-Crossed Myth

Christmas Special: Star-Crossed Myth

In order to preserve some holiday spirit, all we need is a handsome man to take us back to that magical time. How about my favorite boys, the gods from the stars? I mean, honestly, you didn’t think I would somehow not give you a review of my beloved Zodiac boys’s Christmas stories? Because there are several. The first reviewed set, Twelve Loves, covers your second or first Christmas with your god, depending on whether you pick one from the first series (Leon, Scorpio, Teorus, Dui, Huedhaut, Ichthys) or the second one (Karno, Zyglavis, Aigonorus, Krioff, Tauxolouve, Partheno). They are three chapters each. The second set, 12 Temptations for short, are tiny and often sweet one-chapter stories, set in what I assume is the year thereafter.

So, on this last day of Christmas, here are your gods.

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Era of Samurai · Reviews

Era of Samurai: Code of Love

For Honor

This is where it all started. Before I discovered the gods from the stars, my first love in this newly discovered world of otome games were the brave men of the Shinsengumi, a group of samurai in 19th century Kyoto. It’s a funny thing how I got there. Apparently, my browser had realized that I had started to learn Japanese, and in a well-targeted ad, it showed me the title picture of this particular set of stories. I have to say, I do love it when the algorithm gets stuff right. And here we are, one year and countless stories later, and yet I’ve never written about the Shinsengumi.

The truth is, I needed a break. After reading a few of the stories, I was desperate for something more frivolous, more light-hearted. The stories of the Shinsengumi are good. They are very good. But because of their very nature, they have a capacity for tragedy unmatched by titles set in the modern world, for example. Death is possible every time the men set foot outside the compound; and when they come back alive, there’s still no guarantee that they will be healthy in body and mind. If, like me, you get emotionally invested in characters, that really takes a toll.

But it’s been a year, and I thought I’d pay a visit to my favorite samurai (I know, they are technically ronin, themselves). Maybe with some light-hearted holiday fluff? But first, obviously, I owe you an introduction.

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Reviews · Star-Crossed Myth

Star-Crossed Myth: Tauxolouve

Nothing Lasts Forever

I have made my way through most of the zodiac now, with only four gods left whose stories I haven’t read. Since it is December, I thought it fitting to choose Tauxolouve, called “Lou” by his friends (“Louie” by his mother), as the next one. From his interactions with everyone else, I must deduce that he falls in the “Smooth Operator”, womanizer category. These are not necessarily my favorites, but they do tend to turn out quite a lot tamer than what we were led to believe. Also, so far, almost every god has had some sort of dark-ish secret, so I’m looking forward to finding out what that might be.

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Kings of Paradise · Reviews

Kings of Paradise: Randoh Shun

Make the Pain Go Away

Shun is the obligate womanizer that we have come to expect of these stories. He believes in keeping things light and easy with women, because serious relationships are a chore. We know the type; to me, it’s one of the most satisfying, since they obviously fall the hardest. There is evidently usually a tragic love story in their past, where their pure love was betrayed, and now they protect themselves by allowing themselves to love again. Fortunately, this is also what the MC of this story has concluded, so they’re on the same page. Or are they?

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