New York New York
New York, New York

Edit

What would you like to edit?

SynopsisBackgroundAlternative TitlesPictureChapters/VolumesPublishing DatesRelationsTypeExternal Links  

Well, I just finished bingeing this manga, and I would have to say this is one of the best yaoi/shounen ai manga I have ever read.

Story (9):

Most yaoi manga I have read are pretty cliched when it comes to the story. If you take the basic premise, it's not that original. But original stories are hard to write and I think this one grabs the reader's attention by the way it tells the story. It may be a love at first sight kind of thing, but there's so much more to this story. It brings up many issues in the gay community, HIV/AIDS, cheating, abuse, ... acceptance, etc. etc. Neither was I alive during the period of American history where people were blatantly less tolerant of gays nor do I identify with the LGBT community, but this story shows a lot about that side of life and those who accept and those who do not and I'm glad I got to see some form of it even if it's not super accurate.

This story did have a lot of drama in it and sometimes I felt it was too much and I often went, "Oh my god, really?", so that's why I didn't give a 10, but overall, it was nicely done.

Art (6):

I typically stay away from this kind of art, especially in yaoi manga since I just don't like it that much. I was able to get past it most of the time and read the story. There were times where it wasn't that nice or it looked weird, but the story made up for it. Overall, this art style is not my cup of tea, so 6.

Character (8):

The characters were overall very strong in this story and I love the couple (although there were multiple times where I was so mad at Kain and wanted to punch him. Dear god he was aggravating, but overtime it got better). Mel is just so sweet and I love him dearly for being able to be the kind of person he was despite all the shit he'd been through. The side characters were good and memorable too, and I appreciated that a lot. There's a lot of stories where no one else but the two main characters are relevant.

Enjoyment (10):

I thoroughly enjoyed this story despite the high amounts of drama and Kain being an ass (seriously) and I cried a couple times. I read it quite fast since it was fast paced and kept me on my toes. I think I'd read it again at some point. I loved how the story didn't just end after they got together (Is that a spoiler? It's a yaoi, come on guys, what do you expect?) and went through their whole life.

So overall 9 for this one. It's not perfect and the art could be better, but I just loved this story so much. New York New York is definitely a favorite of mine now and I'm so glad I found it! Would recommend!

Initially I intended to abandon this manga because of my first impression of the characters during the first few chapters being that they(Mel and Kain) seemed too flat and I grew gradually indifferent towards Kain's impulsive and irrational character. HOWEVER, as I gave it more patience and understanding Ragawa has somehow showed time and again the blissful feeling of having someone beside you through the rough times. The journey of Kain and Mel's romance is a thrilling story in which they endeavor through tragedy and despair in the big city of New York. This manga also deals with the struggle with same-sex relationships as well ... as the hardships with coming out to your family and friends. Even as the couple face many challenges in their relationship, the concept of love being unbound is brought up again over and over. The characters are definitely dynamic and the storyline and dialogue are realistic like none other. New York New York has enlightened me about other types of manga; how not every relationship is pure at the start and even certain things like infidelity are repetitive in relationships. This is a must read and I will regard this as my favorite manga so far.

First things first, if you do not like BL or aren't even interested in it or perhaps have not given it a chance, don't let this turn you away!!! If you're in for one of those dramatic, psychological trips then this is for you. A big trigger warning to those who are affected by some minor gore, self-mutilation, bigotry and sexual/phsyical abuse though.

I read a lot of BL/Yaoi manga, and by far this one was incredibly touching and realistic to me. It's quite rare to find a realistic Yaoi that covers a lot of the true struggles of being a homosexual. What's interesting about this ... one is that they decided to take the setting to an American state, New York. As a youth, I often find it difficult to get into manga that are made in the 90s, and it starts of incredibly cheesy. However, once you get past that the story just takes you in full blast and you're left wanting to read more, and more.

CHARACTERS: 8
ART: 9
The characters are incredibly varied and it may be easy to find the main guy (Kain Walker) to be incredibly rude and unrelatable. However, to truly accept him you have to have an open mind and to realize that the setting is in 90s New York, and this guy is a cop that is going through a whole lot of internal struggle. Aside from the main character, the supporting characters are still very much dynamic and go through their own development alongside the main characters'.

The art can be a little difficult to adjust because it IS again, a manga from the 90s. However, looking at it objectively, the details put in to this manga are freaking out of this world. It is like you're in New York, it is like you're running up along the east coast of America. The manga-ka does an exceptional job in adding a lot of emotion in to their work even through the background details.

STORY: 10/10
Alright, without spoiling too much, this story covers a lot of the culture that is going on in New York at the time: STDs, the new and upcoming rights of homosexuals and transsexuals, crimes and murders, dysfunctional families (and seemingly functional ones but aren't so perfect after all) and a whole lot of psychological stuff.

All in all, I've only read a handful of BL that covers the lives of gay couples in such a raw way. [SPOILER sort of] I especially do like how the story covers their whole life from their meet-up to the end, oh man I honestly have only read around three BL that do this and cover it spectacularly [SPOILER end]

Highly recommended to those who wish to read some manga who are in for a novel type of set-up. Most certainly the story's development is something you do not want to miss :)