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Love on the Other Side - A Nagabe Short Story Collection
A manga anthology of poignant short stories from Nagabe, the bestselling creator of The Girl From the Other Side.
Love comes in many forms. A magnificent bird comforts a struggling girl; a vampire waltzes with a young lady at night; a blind girl lives with a "monster" of whom there is more than meets the eye. This six-story manga collection by masterful manga creator Nagabe explores fascinating relationships that refuse to be confined.
Love comes in many forms. A magnificent bird comforts a struggling girl; a vampire waltzes with a young lady at night; a blind girl lives with a "monster" of whom there is more than meets the eye. This six-story manga collection by masterful manga creator Nagabe explores fascinating relationships that refuse to be confined.
216 pages, Paperback
First published July 25, 2019
23 people are currently reading
763 people want to read
About the author
Nagabe
39 books919 followersPlease also see ながべ.
He studied Fine Arts at Musashino University. At first, he was more interested in illustration, printmaking, and painting than in manga. However, when he considered the best way to make a living from his art, he decided to focus on the world of Japanese comics and trained himself, rather than the usual approach of working for several years as an apprentice to an experienced manga artist.
He was still a student when his first work, The Boss Is an Onee, was published. He soon attracted attention for his distinctive drawing style, his fantastical and melancholic plots, and his use of fantasy characters and anthropomorphic animals.
He studied Fine Arts at Musashino University. At first, he was more interested in illustration, printmaking, and painting than in manga. However, when he considered the best way to make a living from his art, he decided to focus on the world of Japanese comics and trained himself, rather than the usual approach of working for several years as an apprentice to an experienced manga artist.
He was still a student when his first work, The Boss Is an Onee, was published. He soon attracted attention for his distinctive drawing style, his fantastical and melancholic plots, and his use of fantasy characters and anthropomorphic animals.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 227 reviews
September 3, 2020
I'm a fan of Nagabe's work.
I read "The Wize Wize Beasts of the Wizarding Wizdoms", enjoyed it, and then expected to be just as pleased with the next book I'd bought, "Love on the Other Side". Unfortunately I was not.
As a disclaimer; I understand the book was drawn and written by adults from a different country. I can't judge the story by Japan's standards, and can only do so by my own Western ideals. I do not believe however that this disqualifies my thoughts or opinions. Proceed with this in mind.
"Love on the Other Side" is a collection of short stories the author has drawn over the years now sold as a single book. The art, as always, is fantastic. Nagabe is skillful with ink and storytelling, their works are easy to follow and interesting to look at. This is one of the reasons why I bought the book in the first place.
My second reason was that I enjoy relationships explored between humans and non-humans. Specifically I bought the book in hopes of reading about different dynamics and forms of love between them - especially since the English localised blurb sells the collection as something with "Love (that comes) in many forms".
This came from a misinterpretation of the English title perhaps, but I understood "different forms of love" to mean there would be a range between platonic, familial, and sexual/romantic love rather than just one theme. To a degree, the circumstances of love are different but all (with the exception of perhaps one) are framed romantically. I would have still enjoyed this, if it wasn't for a recurring dynamic throughout the stories.
Out of the 6 stories, only 2 don't involve very young children. The stories, "The Wolf Man and the Girl-Wolf", "Emergency Rations", and "The White King" were the ones to make me the most uncomfortable. Below I'll explain them as simply as possible.
Trigger warnings for child grooming and potential beastiality, also heavy spoilers:
Before I begin, if you are someone who believes "fiction doesn't impact reality", or that "artists should be able to draw what they want", then you probably won't agree with me. I disagree with these two sentiments, and I believe artists, writers, and publishers have a social responsibility not to promote unhealthy dynamics or behaviours. A monster and a young child falling in love would never happen, because monsters aren't real. What is real however are adults who take advantage of children and coerce them into "loving relationships", regardless of malicious intent or not. I am a fan of Nagabe, but the implications of elements in these shorts did raise my eyebrows and I question the thought processes that went behind the creation of such "love" stories. I also wonder how these things slipped under so many people's radars.
In the stories I mentioned above, there are adult-coded animals who are paired with a young child. In the "Wolf Man" story, the adult male raises a child by himself. He teaches her how to speak, how to dress, how to eat - how to act like a human. At one point he tells the child that he loves her, which at that point can be taken as familial. The story ends with the wolf man proposing to her as an adult where he admits he always intended to marry her, waiting until she was an "appropriate age". She tells him that they "(had) always been mates" and ends with them looking outside to a sunny day. It's framed very romantically, but I couldn't help but feel uncomfortable with the idea. I don't think because he is a wolf this type of dynamic should be overlooked, or excused. He is an animal only in appearance and otherwise acts very human. In real life terms, this is considered child grooming and an abuse of power. If you ignore that an adult man married a child he raised, I suppose it could be quite romantic :)
"Rations" has a very similar dynamic, with the exception that the animal man is raising a child who cannot speak to become his "emergency rations". He becomes attached to her and decides not to eat her at the end, and I thought that was fine. He does say however, "In blissful ignorance, you've fallen for me" which definitely has romantic connotations. She is a child who cannot speak, and he is the parental figure. Even if it's more of a mistake on his part, the two are framed then as romantically involved rather than as a child and their caregiver. She is more a pet than anything else to him.
Lastly, "The White King" is a "love" story between again, a young child, who is bullied for being albino, and an adult white lion who lives at a zoo. Every night the orphaned child visits the lion and speaks with him in his enclosure. Eventually the two run away together after confessing they've fallen for each other. Had the lion not been so realistic, I might have ignored this one. Apart from being able to speak with the child, he is a lion through and through - walking on all fours, chewing on bones left in his enclosure, talking about how he hunted in the wild. It was one step away from being complete implied beastiality had the lion not been able to speak.
Now I'm aware that sensitive matters can be artistically expressed in fiction as a form of exploration, and that these relationships were between humans and furries...but the media we consume indirectly informs our relationship with the world and how we act, what we consider acceptable, what we consider immoral, etc... so for many of these stories to be centred around adults and children in a romantic sense (animal or not) makes me upset.
I don't really know how to proceed from here as a fan of their work, and I would like to still read the other series they've published but...this is something that's always going to be in the back of my mind now.
If you've read all of this and still want to check the book out for yourself, by all means. The art is still. beautiful and the other stories are interesting or cute. If you think I'm reaching, well, you're entitled to that opinion. I know what I read though.
I read "The Wize Wize Beasts of the Wizarding Wizdoms", enjoyed it, and then expected to be just as pleased with the next book I'd bought, "Love on the Other Side". Unfortunately I was not.
As a disclaimer; I understand the book was drawn and written by adults from a different country. I can't judge the story by Japan's standards, and can only do so by my own Western ideals. I do not believe however that this disqualifies my thoughts or opinions. Proceed with this in mind.
"Love on the Other Side" is a collection of short stories the author has drawn over the years now sold as a single book. The art, as always, is fantastic. Nagabe is skillful with ink and storytelling, their works are easy to follow and interesting to look at. This is one of the reasons why I bought the book in the first place.
My second reason was that I enjoy relationships explored between humans and non-humans. Specifically I bought the book in hopes of reading about different dynamics and forms of love between them - especially since the English localised blurb sells the collection as something with "Love (that comes) in many forms".
This came from a misinterpretation of the English title perhaps, but I understood "different forms of love" to mean there would be a range between platonic, familial, and sexual/romantic love rather than just one theme. To a degree, the circumstances of love are different but all (with the exception of perhaps one) are framed romantically. I would have still enjoyed this, if it wasn't for a recurring dynamic throughout the stories.
Out of the 6 stories, only 2 don't involve very young children. The stories, "The Wolf Man and the Girl-Wolf", "Emergency Rations", and "The White King" were the ones to make me the most uncomfortable. Below I'll explain them as simply as possible.
Trigger warnings for child grooming and potential beastiality, also heavy spoilers:
Before I begin, if you are someone who believes "fiction doesn't impact reality", or that "artists should be able to draw what they want", then you probably won't agree with me. I disagree with these two sentiments, and I believe artists, writers, and publishers have a social responsibility not to promote unhealthy dynamics or behaviours. A monster and a young child falling in love would never happen, because monsters aren't real. What is real however are adults who take advantage of children and coerce them into "loving relationships", regardless of malicious intent or not. I am a fan of Nagabe, but the implications of elements in these shorts did raise my eyebrows and I question the thought processes that went behind the creation of such "love" stories. I also wonder how these things slipped under so many people's radars.
In the stories I mentioned above, there are adult-coded animals who are paired with a young child. In the "Wolf Man" story, the adult male raises a child by himself. He teaches her how to speak, how to dress, how to eat - how to act like a human. At one point he tells the child that he loves her, which at that point can be taken as familial. The story ends with the wolf man proposing to her as an adult where he admits he always intended to marry her, waiting until she was an "appropriate age". She tells him that they "(had) always been mates" and ends with them looking outside to a sunny day. It's framed very romantically, but I couldn't help but feel uncomfortable with the idea. I don't think because he is a wolf this type of dynamic should be overlooked, or excused. He is an animal only in appearance and otherwise acts very human. In real life terms, this is considered child grooming and an abuse of power. If you ignore that an adult man married a child he raised, I suppose it could be quite romantic :)
"Rations" has a very similar dynamic, with the exception that the animal man is raising a child who cannot speak to become his "emergency rations". He becomes attached to her and decides not to eat her at the end, and I thought that was fine. He does say however, "In blissful ignorance, you've fallen for me" which definitely has romantic connotations. She is a child who cannot speak, and he is the parental figure. Even if it's more of a mistake on his part, the two are framed then as romantically involved rather than as a child and their caregiver. She is more a pet than anything else to him.
Lastly, "The White King" is a "love" story between again, a young child, who is bullied for being albino, and an adult white lion who lives at a zoo. Every night the orphaned child visits the lion and speaks with him in his enclosure. Eventually the two run away together after confessing they've fallen for each other. Had the lion not been so realistic, I might have ignored this one. Apart from being able to speak with the child, he is a lion through and through - walking on all fours, chewing on bones left in his enclosure, talking about how he hunted in the wild. It was one step away from being complete implied beastiality had the lion not been able to speak.
Now I'm aware that sensitive matters can be artistically expressed in fiction as a form of exploration, and that these relationships were between humans and furries...but the media we consume indirectly informs our relationship with the world and how we act, what we consider acceptable, what we consider immoral, etc... so for many of these stories to be centred around adults and children in a romantic sense (animal or not) makes me upset.
I don't really know how to proceed from here as a fan of their work, and I would like to still read the other series they've published but...this is something that's always going to be in the back of my mind now.
If you've read all of this and still want to check the book out for yourself, by all means. The art is still. beautiful and the other stories are interesting or cute. If you think I'm reaching, well, you're entitled to that opinion. I know what I read though.
July 23, 2023
What did I just read?!?
I have been working my way through Nagabe's "The Girl From the Other Side" series and have really enjoyed it. The artwork is beautiful and the story fascinating.
In "Love on the Other Side" the artwork is still beautiful, but all (except 2) of the stories left me feeling a little hinky (ok, a lot hinky). The first line of the description on the back of the book says "love comes in many forms" and I guess I just assumed it would be cute stories about parental love, family love, friendship, loving your pets, etc with a little romance sprinkled in on the side. But what I ended up reading left me completely uncomfortable because almost every story deals with romantic love - and the romantic love that is portrayed is between an adult and a child. I don't have any issue with there being monsters vs. humans. To me, at least, that is just part of the fantasy story, but I do take issue with the dynamic between an older adult who has all the power and a young innocent child being romantically involved. This book could be used as a tool for grooming children.
Just...no.
This book makes me question the relationship (which I have always taken to be a loving parent child one) between Teacher and Shiva in "The Girl From the Other Side", and that makes me really sad.
I have been working my way through Nagabe's "The Girl From the Other Side" series and have really enjoyed it. The artwork is beautiful and the story fascinating.
In "Love on the Other Side" the artwork is still beautiful, but all (except 2) of the stories left me feeling a little hinky (ok, a lot hinky). The first line of the description on the back of the book says "love comes in many forms" and I guess I just assumed it would be cute stories about parental love, family love, friendship, loving your pets, etc with a little romance sprinkled in on the side. But what I ended up reading left me completely uncomfortable because almost every story deals with romantic love - and the romantic love that is portrayed is between an adult and a child. I don't have any issue with there being monsters vs. humans. To me, at least, that is just part of the fantasy story, but I do take issue with the dynamic between an older adult who has all the power and a young innocent child being romantically involved. This book could be used as a tool for grooming children.
Just...no.
This book makes me question the relationship (which I have always taken to be a loving parent child one) between Teacher and Shiva in "The Girl From the Other Side", and that makes me really sad.
August 14, 2020
Lovely artwork (the reason I picked it up) and very fairy-tale-esque stories. But... kind of all the worst parts of fairy tales? Weird power dynamics, disability curses, literal child grooming. I also disagree that these short stories show "love in many forms"... unless that's supposed to mean physical forms? But all these stories have the same general dynamic: some sort of monster/animal creature that reads like an adult, and a child-like waifish human.
"Midnight Waltz" was my favorite of the collection and "See You Tomorrow, Daisy" was alright, too. The rest left me feeling a bit uncomfy. Especially "The Wolf-Man and the Girl-Wolf"-- I didn't like that one at all. 1.5 stars
TW: child grooming (lots of talk of "mates"), gore, bullying, implied bestiality?
Thank you so much to the publisher for providing me with this eARC via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review!
"Midnight Waltz" was my favorite of the collection and "See You Tomorrow, Daisy" was alright, too. The rest left me feeling a bit uncomfy. Especially "The Wolf-Man and the Girl-Wolf"-- I didn't like that one at all. 1.5 stars
TW: child grooming (lots of talk of "mates"), gore, bullying, implied bestiality?
Thank you so much to the publisher for providing me with this eARC via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review!
April 30, 2021
Definitely wish I had read some reviews for this before buying it from the discount bookstore...now I know why I found it there. The art was very cute, but the stories were WEIRD and some were downright disturbing. Firstly, there is not a single female 'monster' in here...every monster was male, and usually an older, mature, often PARENTAL figure. The love interests are humans, all but one are female, and nearly all are depicted as younger...some are literally children. One of the monsters is a regular lion (completely normal lion with all the normal lion traits, except he can also speak) who talks about mating/copulating with the young albino boy character. Blech. No. I understand kinks, but between consenting adults...not this borderline pedophilia, definite child grooming, pretty much bestiality stuff. This book is going straight in the bin, don't want anyone else unknowingly picking this up like I did.
March 21, 2021
When I heard about this collection by Nagabe, I was eager to check it out as I await the next volume of his brilliant Girl from the Other Side. The stories here are not related to that series, though they all bear the same visual style and whimsical pacing. Each of the six stories in this volume takes a ridiculously mismatched pair of outcasts and, through them, explores different facets of friendship and love. Like some scenes in The Girl from the Other Side, there are moments of odd, unsettling tension, but a foundation of innocence and striving to do what’s best for someone else. The “side” of love in focus in the stories is mostly not romantic; this is more a contemplation of the many ways two people (creatures) might interact, and the complexities and uncertainties of negotiating any friendship. The interactions we see tend toward the mundane and everyday, which is part of what makes some scenes unsettling, as it seems like the two characters we’re watching should be in a huge, epic story, not a calmly awkward dinner scene. It’s also unsettling because I don’t believe Nagabe intends these stories to be a statement on ideal love—just meditations on the good and strange ways love works itself out in an imperfect world.
As with The Girl from the Other Side, so here I felt obvious echoes of “beauty and the beast”—and then the final story, “Those Without Eyes,” actually is a grim retelling of the beauty and the beast story. Parts of it are very grim, in fact, and it’s immediately followed by the final page in the book, where Nagabe cheerily tells us, “Thank you for reading!” :) This author is an enigma, and I am intrigued by any story he tells.
As with The Girl from the Other Side, so here I felt obvious echoes of “beauty and the beast”—and then the final story, “Those Without Eyes,” actually is a grim retelling of the beauty and the beast story. Parts of it are very grim, in fact, and it’s immediately followed by the final page in the book, where Nagabe cheerily tells us, “Thank you for reading!” :) This author is an enigma, and I am intrigued by any story he tells.
November 9, 2020
I love The Girl From the Other Side manga series. This collection left me feeling dirty. This collection of "love stories" all feature child characters in love/romantic relationships with animal/monster characters who are clearly older/wiser/more powerful/the adult, including a clearly pedophilia story with grooming ending with the characters getting married. I'm really upset by this collection most especially because now I am questioning the relationship of Shiva/Teacher from The Girl From the Other Side. As a father/daughter relationship, it is sweet and heartwarming. If it turns out to be romantic, I'm going to be very, very, very angry. I'm already really angry. I am not certain I will read any more Nagabe. This was disgusting. It is literally going in the trash; I'm not even donating it.
March 31, 2022
furries AND grooming?! PICK A STRUGGLE
July 16, 2025
If you want to read a bunch of weird perverted pedophiliac fantasies then this book is for you.
The love really is on the OTHER side and by that I mean I was SO uncomfortable reading this book. A lot of them feature inappropriate relationships and feature a child/minor with an adult or some beast. I'm all for different creatures, but if you bring a child into that that is a big NO. There was one story that was nice, but the rest made me really uncomfortable and it was weird to continue. I did finish the book, but I felt like I just read a weird pervert's pedophiliac fantasy.
The Wolf story appalled me the most. It made me so disgusted by what I was reading I think I even made a disgusted face the whole time I was reading that one. I picked this book up because I love the manga The Girl From the Other Side and the art is really cool. And while the art is awesome in this book, I am not a fan of the stories at all. If I could put zero stars I would. Disgusting.
And like many others, I now question how the manga The Girl From the Other Side is going to end. If it's going to be like anything from the "love" of this book, oh my god, I am going to be SO disappointed and disgusted. I thought this book would feature different relationships on different kinds of love like family love, friend love, boyfriend/girlfriend, or LGBTQ+ love, but nope. It instead was like let's bring on the adults and children love. Gross.
Update: Thankfully the manga The Girl From the Other Side did not turn into a pedophiliac story, but it did leave the reader with a lot of unanswered questions that pissed me off.
The love really is on the OTHER side and by that I mean I was SO uncomfortable reading this book. A lot of them feature inappropriate relationships and feature a child/minor with an adult or some beast. I'm all for different creatures, but if you bring a child into that that is a big NO. There was one story that was nice, but the rest made me really uncomfortable and it was weird to continue. I did finish the book, but I felt like I just read a weird pervert's pedophiliac fantasy.
The Wolf story appalled me the most. It made me so disgusted by what I was reading I think I even made a disgusted face the whole time I was reading that one. I picked this book up because I love the manga The Girl From the Other Side and the art is really cool. And while the art is awesome in this book, I am not a fan of the stories at all. If I could put zero stars I would. Disgusting.
And like many others, I now question how the manga The Girl From the Other Side is going to end. If it's going to be like anything from the "love" of this book, oh my god, I am going to be SO disappointed and disgusted. I thought this book would feature different relationships on different kinds of love like family love, friend love, boyfriend/girlfriend, or LGBTQ+ love, but nope. It instead was like let's bring on the adults and children love. Gross.
Update: Thankfully the manga The Girl From the Other Side did not turn into a pedophiliac story, but it did leave the reader with a lot of unanswered questions that pissed me off.
December 2, 2024
I picked this up after enjoying Nagabe's other short comic collection, The Wize Wize Beasts of the Wizarding Wizdoms. This one leans closer into horror themes, including several stories in which children are at risk of being dismembered and eaten by monstrous beings who control their physical space. The majority of the stories are of a relationship between a child and a nonhuman creature, whether that is a just a large animal (a lion, a massive crow), a half-human/half-animal, or a creature composed mostly of claws, teeth, and darkness. It's honestly too unsettling for my personal preference but the stories are striking.
June 4, 2023
its cute I love it. Gives me warm fuzzy feel good vibes.
My favs are Midnight Waltz (LOOK AT THAT ADORABLE VAMPIRE AAAAH! I WANT MORE OF HIM HE'S SO CUTE!! I want expanded lore) and Those Without Eyes (I wanna hug him too TTATT)
It's all cute. I think people put too much thought into the work here. Its all stories of coming to understand one another and learning to love.
At this point I should just read The Girl from the Other Side already
My favs are Midnight Waltz (LOOK AT THAT ADORABLE VAMPIRE AAAAH! I WANT MORE OF HIM HE'S SO CUTE!! I want expanded lore) and Those Without Eyes (I wanna hug him too TTATT)
It's all cute. I think people put too much thought into the work here. Its all stories of coming to understand one another and learning to love.
At this point I should just read The Girl from the Other Side already
November 16, 2023
3.5 stars
This was a manga short story collection of which I have mixed feelings. The art is a simple, but effective, style that works equally well in light and dark shading to convey happiness, sorrow, and fear. Out of the 6 stories, the last two were definitely the best, and both had me feeling quite emotional. There were elements in some of the stories that made me a bit uncomfortable, especially in the 3rd story, but overall I found this quite unique. While I completely understand why so many of the reviews on this are negative, I think that this stems from an interpretation of this collection as a romantic one, and I don't necessarily think they were all meant to be read that way. While some definitely tiptoed that line (hence some of my discomfort), others felt more like friendship or familial love. The author doesn't provide any commentary on the stories, so the reader is free to interpret this as they see fit, making it a manga that won't work for everyone. But for me, it was worth the read if only for the last two stories, and the last one especially.
This was a manga short story collection of which I have mixed feelings. The art is a simple, but effective, style that works equally well in light and dark shading to convey happiness, sorrow, and fear. Out of the 6 stories, the last two were definitely the best, and both had me feeling quite emotional. There were elements in some of the stories that made me a bit uncomfortable, especially in the 3rd story, but overall I found this quite unique. While I completely understand why so many of the reviews on this are negative, I think that this stems from an interpretation of this collection as a romantic one, and I don't necessarily think they were all meant to be read that way. While some definitely tiptoed that line (hence some of my discomfort), others felt more like friendship or familial love. The author doesn't provide any commentary on the stories, so the reader is free to interpret this as they see fit, making it a manga that won't work for everyone. But for me, it was worth the read if only for the last two stories, and the last one especially.
January 7, 2022
This is, no question, a very odd book that in no way will work for everyone, even if you like The Girl From the Other Side. The stories get stronger as the book goes on, with "The White Lion" being my favorite.
July 7, 2020
Plot - 5 ☄
Character - 5 ☄
Writing Style - 5 ☄
World Building - 5 ☄
Art - 5 ☄
Cover - 5 ☄
Love come in many form...
Character - 5 ☄
Writing Style - 5 ☄
World Building - 5 ☄
Art - 5 ☄
Cover - 5 ☄
Love come in many form...
August 11, 2020
2.5 stars? I’m not sure this book was so weird. Some stories were cute and others were kinda gross.
December 6, 2025
It was a solid read but compared to the other works of this author not really hitting for me
December 20, 2021
As a lover of monsters, I hoped that this would show, as hinted in the title, several different forms love could take between a human and their monster friend. After the first story, I had high hopes, and when the second started I thought, "Oh, how lovely, a more friendly, perhaps father-son dynamic". I was very wrong.
There were a few stories in the book that were nice, but the remainder were unquestionably problematic. Every story in this book seems to end on a romantic note, which itself would not be bad, but more then once it's shown to be between an adult monster, and a human child, which is quite honestly pedophilia. Some of these instances of pedophilia even include an animal. Sapient animals, but animals all the same.
Don't misunderstand me, I love stories about monsters with animal like qualities (claws, fangs, even fur), but, as a very poignant example, there is one child--perhaps ten years old-- in the story that falls in love with a lion. Not only is the child shown to be confused by the idea of "mating" with said lion, it's brought up in a very...romantic, manner. Like it's a nice, sweet thing, for them both to look forward to.
If the human paramours in question were at least adults, then I would be more lenient. But this is simply not the case.
Read the reviews, all the ones that mention child-grooming, bestiality, it's all true. I'm really disappointed, and, like in the case of the boy and his lion, outright disgusted. The art is lovely, I have thought previously that I could be a fan of this author, and I've been wanting to get into "The Girl from the Other Side", but, now...I'm scared to.
There were a few stories in the book that were nice, but the remainder were unquestionably problematic. Every story in this book seems to end on a romantic note, which itself would not be bad, but more then once it's shown to be between an adult monster, and a human child, which is quite honestly pedophilia. Some of these instances of pedophilia even include an animal. Sapient animals, but animals all the same.
Don't misunderstand me, I love stories about monsters with animal like qualities (claws, fangs, even fur), but, as a very poignant example, there is one child--perhaps ten years old-- in the story that falls in love with a lion. Not only is the child shown to be confused by the idea of "mating" with said lion, it's brought up in a very...romantic, manner. Like it's a nice, sweet thing, for them both to look forward to.
If the human paramours in question were at least adults, then I would be more lenient. But this is simply not the case.
Read the reviews, all the ones that mention child-grooming, bestiality, it's all true. I'm really disappointed, and, like in the case of the boy and his lion, outright disgusted. The art is lovely, I have thought previously that I could be a fan of this author, and I've been wanting to get into "The Girl from the Other Side", but, now...I'm scared to.
July 25, 2021
Fiabe dolci e un po' cupe, due mondi completamente differenti che si abbracciano.
Nagabe riesce a creare delle fiabe si poche pagine con un impatto enorme.
Nagabe riesce a creare delle fiabe si poche pagine con un impatto enorme.
November 20, 2023
This collection has helped secure Nagabe as one of my favourite manga creators, these tales were weird, tender, whimsical, tense, curious, and often left me feeling heartwarmed by the end. And those already fan of
The Girl from the Other Side
series will find an abundance of beasts inside and similar art style and storytelling they've come to enjoy.
March 6, 2021
[rating = A-]
These were short little snatches of life and of lives colliding in interesting and fantastic ways. Always mixing the animal world (talking usually) with the human realm, each story is about finding friendship, companionship in odd places, odd circumstances. Hunter/prey relationships are changed and illusions are toppled. I really enjoyed the art style (as I liked his previous series) and the stories fit surpassingly well. I only wish they could have been longer, so the joy of reading them could have continued.
These were short little snatches of life and of lives colliding in interesting and fantastic ways. Always mixing the animal world (talking usually) with the human realm, each story is about finding friendship, companionship in odd places, odd circumstances. Hunter/prey relationships are changed and illusions are toppled. I really enjoyed the art style (as I liked his previous series) and the stories fit surpassingly well. I only wish they could have been longer, so the joy of reading them could have continued.
August 15, 2021
Raccolta di storie su vari tipi di amore. Non sono niente male ma tutte molto simili tra loro - ripetono tutte lo schema e la morale della coppia umano-mostro e del non farsi ingannare dalle apparenze.
August 4, 2020
Some of the stories I enjoyed, others made me uncomfortable.
The art as always is stunning.
The art as always is stunning.
August 29, 2020
4,5.
Nagabe is the king of monsterfuckers.
Nagabe is the king of monsterfuckers.
November 23, 2020
Disturbing but also lovely in its own strange way
March 31, 2021
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Como en todos los recopilatorio hay historias que gustan más y otras que menos. La verdad es que no han ido por donde yo me esperaba (Creía que sería algo más mundano y realista) pero aun así, con los toquecitos de fantasía ha habido varias muy bonitas.
Hasta mañana, Daisy
Se puede decir que esta era el tipo de historia que estaba buscando, algo un poco más mundano con animales. La verdad es que ha sido una historia sencilla muy buena para empezar.
El hombre lobo y la lobezna humana
Me ha gustado que est historia jugara un poco con el concepto de hombre lobo y aun que al inicio la idea de la lobezna me ha gustado, después la historia ha tomado un rollo romántico que no me ha acabado de convencer.
Ración de emergencia y festín
Esta ha sido justo los que prometía, una historia paternal sobre un depredador y una chiquilla.
Vals de medianoche
Otra que ha sido justo el toque necesario. Con un vampiro y una humana que disfrutan bailando, los comentarios de los animales, el hecho de que sea de la familia Drácula y toda la reflexión que hay junto a la historia de amor, super dulce y preciosa.
El rey blanco
Aun que en esta historia hay una reflexión muy bonita sobre ser diferente, el final semi-romántico no me ha convencido nada. Hubiera encontrado más plausible una bonita historia de found-family o amistad.
Aquellos a los que no veo
Y para terminar, otra de las que me ha gustado. Una historia que parece inspirada por La bella y la bestia, con alguna escénica que se le parece. Una protagonista de diez y un final precioso.
Youtube|Instagram|Twitter
Como en todos los recopilatorio hay historias que gustan más y otras que menos. La verdad es que no han ido por donde yo me esperaba (Creía que sería algo más mundano y realista) pero aun así, con los toquecitos de fantasía ha habido varias muy bonitas.
Hasta mañana, Daisy
Se puede decir que esta era el tipo de historia que estaba buscando, algo un poco más mundano con animales. La verdad es que ha sido una historia sencilla muy buena para empezar.
El hombre lobo y la lobezna humana
Me ha gustado que est historia jugara un poco con el concepto de hombre lobo y aun que al inicio la idea de la lobezna me ha gustado, después la historia ha tomado un rollo romántico que no me ha acabado de convencer.
Ración de emergencia y festín
Esta ha sido justo los que prometía, una historia paternal sobre un depredador y una chiquilla.
Vals de medianoche
Otra que ha sido justo el toque necesario. Con un vampiro y una humana que disfrutan bailando, los comentarios de los animales, el hecho de que sea de la familia Drácula y toda la reflexión que hay junto a la historia de amor, super dulce y preciosa.
El rey blanco
Aun que en esta historia hay una reflexión muy bonita sobre ser diferente, el final semi-romántico no me ha convencido nada. Hubiera encontrado más plausible una bonita historia de found-family o amistad.
Aquellos a los que no veo
Y para terminar, otra de las que me ha gustado. Una historia que parece inspirada por La bella y la bestia, con alguna escénica que se le parece. Una protagonista de diez y un final precioso.
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December 8, 2025
3.5 🌟
Il tratto di Nagabe è incredibile, perfetto per creare quell’atmosfera inquietante e fiabesca.
Le storie più forti per me sono “Banchettando con la scorta di emergenza”, “Valzer di mezzanotte” e “Invisibile” (che è anche una perfetta chiusura di volume), mentre “La donna lupo e il lupo umano” è proprio un peccato per il finale.
Il tratto di Nagabe è incredibile, perfetto per creare quell’atmosfera inquietante e fiabesca.
Le storie più forti per me sono “Banchettando con la scorta di emergenza”, “Valzer di mezzanotte” e “Invisibile” (che è anche una perfetta chiusura di volume), mentre “La donna lupo e il lupo umano” è proprio un peccato per il finale.
September 8, 2020
Video Review: https://youtu.be/Q5FxHo3cBe4
August 2, 2025
4 stelle perché la storia del leone bianco mi ha turbato non poco...
July 2, 2021
I’m giving this two stars, one for the art and the other one for the one story that I liked in this book. If it wasn’t for those two things I wouldn’t have given it any stars, giving it stars to begin with feels weird actually.
I really enjoyed Midnight Waltz, I loved the character design and the fact that it wasn’t a story about a relationship between an adult and a child :D
The strange reoccurring power dynamics of a huge monster man and a small, weak, child were making me so uncomfortable. These stories could have been the same and much better if the human characters were adults. This whole book just felt way too focused on some weird fetish that I really don’t want to know more about. I feel really weird about reading TGOTOS now since the story is another monster man and ‘helpless’ child. I am so scared of it turning out like this book.
It even feels wrong to own this book. I can’t really believe it was able to be published in this day and age. It just feels so predatory and I don’t think I’ll be reading it again. I was actually trying to convince myself by the third story involving an adult and a child that they weren’t all about romance and that it could also be about friendship or family kind of love, but I was so wrong.
I really wish this book could have been about consenting adults and not children. This could have been so much better and I’m so disappointed :(
I really enjoyed Midnight Waltz, I loved the character design and the fact that it wasn’t a story about a relationship between an adult and a child :D
The strange reoccurring power dynamics of a huge monster man and a small, weak, child were making me so uncomfortable. These stories could have been the same and much better if the human characters were adults. This whole book just felt way too focused on some weird fetish that I really don’t want to know more about. I feel really weird about reading TGOTOS now since the story is another monster man and ‘helpless’ child. I am so scared of it turning out like this book.
It even feels wrong to own this book. I can’t really believe it was able to be published in this day and age. It just feels so predatory and I don’t think I’ll be reading it again. I was actually trying to convince myself by the third story involving an adult and a child that they weren’t all about romance and that it could also be about friendship or family kind of love, but I was so wrong.
I really wish this book could have been about consenting adults and not children. This could have been so much better and I’m so disappointed :(
August 8, 2022
This is such a gorgeous collection of short stories from Nagabe. As with “The Girl From the Other Side”, Nagabe explores the different facets of love through the pairings of different creatures. I was a bit worried from the western based reviews that said this was pedophilic, gross, etc. but I honestly couldn’t really see that? Except for maybe one of the stories, none of the stories felt explicitly romantic. A lot of people seemed surprised by the themes in this despite them being literally the same ones explored in Nagabe’s other work, the only difference is that here, we get maybe 15-20 pages of story whereas in TGFTOS, we have gotten a whole series so it’s strange to see a lot of picking and choosing here.
If you’re not easily turned away by difficult subject matter, this is a lovely collection of metaphors of the different aspects of love coupled with gorgeous art (as always).
(I will not be discussing further my opinion of this collection so if you did not enjoy it for whatever x reason, please do not bother commenting to argue/debate with me☺️)
If you’re not easily turned away by difficult subject matter, this is a lovely collection of metaphors of the different aspects of love coupled with gorgeous art (as always).
(I will not be discussing further my opinion of this collection so if you did not enjoy it for whatever x reason, please do not bother commenting to argue/debate with me☺️)
March 11, 2021
Wasn’t a huge fan of this one. The stories were interesting and different but man, that Wolf one was just not okay. Wolf-man raises girl-wolf, when she becomes an adult asks her to marry him???? Uh. No thanks.
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