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Monday, 05 March 2007 |
 | | ▪ | PUBLISHED BY: | | TOKYOPOP | | | ▪ | ART/AUTHOR: | | MAKI MURAKAMI | | | | ▪ | FORMAT/COLOR: | | JAPANESE FORMAT/ BW | | | ▪ | PAGES: | | 187 | | | ▪ | RATED: | | 16+ | | | ▪ | RELEASE DATE: | | 02/13/2007 | | | ▪ | REVIEW DATE: | | 03/06/2007 | | | ▪ | REVIEWED BY: | | HOLLY ELLINGWOOD | | |
At last, the long awaited sequel to the smash shonen ai hit Gravitation has arrived. Gravitation EX picks up right where the first manga series left off. Just when you thought everything had calmed down for handsome writer Eiri with his tragic past and hyper rock star Shuichi, life throws them a new curve. They thought they could finally live happily ever after but a trip back to New York changes everything. There they encounter another member of the family of the man Eiri killed to defend himself. It is a death that still haunts him with guilt. But when that person comes to live with them in Japan, the strain it puts both on Eiri and his relationship with Shuichi may prove to be too much. He begins to doubt his self worth and his hidden streak of self-loathing comes to the fore, devastating his composure and forcing him to push everyone away. Shuichi tries to save his lover from himself, but others close to them move in to steal the opportunity to let their romantic intentions be known! Things for Eiri and Shuichi just got a whole lot harder.
The sequel to one of the most popular yaoi series starts off at a run and then hits warp speed. A lot happens in this first volume. Not only does Eiri’s past come back to bite him, his return to his old destructive self will lead to a tragedy no one could foresee. If that weren’t enough, both men receive advances and not form each other! Ryuichi decides it’s time to let Shuichi knows how he really feels about him, and Tohma moves in on Eiri despite being married to Eiri’s sister!
This romantic comedy hits a lot of dramatic tones but it still has moments of quirky off-the-wall and over-the-top humor with Shuichi’s antics. And not just his, there’s still the crazy gun toting manager, explosions, and even an insane motorcycle chase and more in the bizarre kinetic action contained in the first volume. With all the angst, there is also the adult humor still at large in the series. The way the first volume is written, new readers can pick up the story with no problems while longtime Gravitation fans can read it and it will feel like you’re right back with the people fans came to love in the first manga series.
Gravitation EX, like its predecessor, is a hyper romantic adventure with all kinds of comedy and a fair share of angst. Unlike many yaoi, this is a story that goes for a lot of plot and in depth character development over any gratuity or erotic love scenes. That’s not to say there aren’t some romantic and intimate moments with the couple, but it isn’t as explicit as most shonen ai. By focusing on the story and the development of the characters and their increasingly entangled relationships, readers are provided with an exhilarating and engrossing thrill ride into the lives of the people of Gravitation.
Extras in this first volume include a full color front page and a character list with brief information on the main players/cast of the story.
IN SUMMARY:
Gravitation EX picks up where Gravitation left off and gives readers more than one new curve for the beloved couple of Eiri and Shuichi to deal with. It’s exciting, funny, and has angst ridden romance written all over it. It is a worthy sequel to one of the most enjoyed shonen ai series in manga today.
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