Shino Yuzuru and Seryou Touji, two popular high school students, both unable to form lasting romantic relationships. One of the two, Seryou, has the weird habit of going out with whoever asks him out first at the beginning of the week. This ‘relationship’ always lasts till the end of that week. This week this happens to be Shino, after he jokingly proposed they should start dating. Shino is his first boyfriend, but they’re not actually a couple in love. Or are they?
Seven Days is a manga written by Tachibana Venio and illustrated by Takarai Rihito. It was released in 2007 and has thirteen chapters in total. Takarai Rihito is also known for other manga such as Kakemakumo, Kashikoki and Ten Count. Most of the manga she illustrates for are shounen ai or yaoi. Tachibana Venio has exclusively written for the shounen ai and yaoi genres.
The illustrations by Takarai Rihito are well done. She is one of my favorite shounen ai mangaka, because of her unique drawing style. The story itself is well written as well and doesn’t focus too much on the all too common ‘but I can’t be in love with a guy!’ aspect. Unfortunately a lot of shounen ai manga focus a little too much on the ‘absurdity’ of falling for someone who is the same sex as yourself, which can be annoying and boring. Seven Days does focus on it for a brief moment, but luckily not for very long.
The genres of the manga are romance, school Life, shounen ai and slice of Life. It’s an easy manga to read and doesn’t have any dramatic scenes that make you cry. The storyline is somewhat predictable, as it is a love story and it’s clear from the beginning what characters might end up together.
The personalities of the two main characters complement one another well. Seryou tries to be kind and thoughtful towards the person he dates, even if he is bothered by something. He doesn’t speak up. Shino on the other hand speaks his mind quite a lot and notices when Seryou is holding back, which bothers him. His friends call him ‘a waste of a pretty face’, because he’s not the kind prince people expect him to be.
Although the storyline isn’t entirely original, this is still a very nice manga to read, in my opinion. The characters’ interaction is fun to see, as they are very different people. Takarai Rihito’s illustrations fit the story well and look good. It’s not a very long story to read, but definitely fun while it lasts. If you’re a shounen ai fan I would definitely recommend this manga!
Mangaka: Tachibana Venio & Takarai Rihito
Released on: 1th of September 2007
Volumes: 2
Rating: 80/100
