It’s hard to hide who you are when a cute neighbor won’t stop hitting on you…
About Don’t Stop Even if I Say So
Don’t Stop Even if I Say So is manga series by Tamaji Ura, published in English by Takeshobo. In it, we meet Soma Hayashi, an office worker who is secretly gay. He would love to have sex with a man, but without a way to do so, buries his desires deep within himself. That is until he keeps crossing paths with his neighbor, Yoshitaka. Yoshitaka is a young and hot college student, who seems to be sending signals to Hayashi. Except, Hayashi is too shy and embarrassed to notice. When a drunken night ends with the two fooling around, Hayashi can’t decipher what Yoshitaka is looking for and what he wants either.
My Thoughts
What happens when the safeguards we’ve enabled to protect ourselves turn out to be the very same things causing our destruction? That seems to be theme explored in Don’t Stop Even if I Say So, whether intentional or not. Hayashi has known for almost his entire life that he has been “different.” He’s even tried dating and sleeping with women, but fails because he knows he’s attracted to men. Instead of pursuing men, he decides that he will just be “forever alone.” But soon the desires he hides are bursting at the seams.
Enter in the young and hot neighbor, Yoshitaka. As a reader, it’s crystal clear that Yoshitaka has been flirting with Hayashi since their first encounters. Hayashi is too busy trying to repress all desires, he’s missing the big flashing signs. As their relationship starts turning physical, Hayashi think’s Yoshitaka is mocking him in some way, and is too afraid to let go and go with the flow of what is happening. Had Hayashi not been zoomed into his “forever alone” thoughts, he may have been able to let go sooner.
What I appreciate about Don’t Stop Even If I Say So, is that the story goes beyond the physical for the both of them. Their physical connection starts highlighting the things they both have to work through, in order to make sense of their wants between them. We focus a lot on Hayashi, because his lack of experience has him questioning Yoshitaka’s motives and their relationship. But there is a moment where we learn more about Yoshitaka and why he’s approaching Hayashi the way he is.
Overall, this story was so refreshing and such a fun pairing of two completely different people. The fact that it takes place over two volumes makes it the perfect length and allows for the characters to be fleshed out and more dimensional. This was the debut story for Tamaji Ura and I hope we got more coming soon!
Where to Buy Don’t Stop Even if I Say So
Don’t Stop Even if I Say So
Mangaka: Tamaji Ura
Publisher: Takeshobo
Don’t Stop Even if I Say So, Volumes 1-2 are available now on BookWalker.
Thank you BookWalker for a copy to review!
