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9/10

Male yandere done right. MALE YANDERE DONE RIGHT. Finally, a male character who doesn't come across as overly possessive like in shoujo manga and edgy like in shounen manga. This manga doesn't hide its tragedy, even from the very first chapter.

Yugo, our protagonist, is a kind, well-hearted guy with a massive crush on a girl in his school called Shiina. So when she first dies, he makes it his mission, dare I say purpose of life, to save her from tragedy. But every reset comes at the cost of Shiina's memories of him. His dedication to Shiina is beyond love, bordering on obsession. He holds ... no regard for his own safety or life as he tries to protect her time and time again, burning every failure into his brain like a brand.

The manga fully understands the gravity of how watching your love interest die dozens of times, some right in front of you, others found about second hand, affects the human psyche. How the line between true love and unhealthy attachment is actually quite thin. With each death, with each reset, you can see Yugo's sanity being chipped away. How saving Shiina became his only reason for living. And that is the manga's best quality by far.

The balance between the light-hearted, more romcom-esque moments and deep, psychological breakdowns of the protagonist is also well done. The relationship between the love-sick Yugo and the mature, blunt Shiina feels extremely natural. Even though the world is working against them, I find myself rooting for their happiness.

All of this is to say, please give this manga a shot if you like a protag that's constantly losing his sanity for the sake of love and/or tragic tales that involve time travel.

Wait, this isn't Shounen-Ai? Were my first thoughts after getting through the first 5 or so chapters. I honestly wasn't expecting much after reading the synopsis and seeing the cover art, but I ended up reading through it quickly, wanting to know where the story would head to next.

Kouno, our main character, transfers to an all boys school, for reasons that haven't been revealed. Although the students are acting strangely, unable to take their eyes off him, and those around him attempt to drop hints about his upcoming situation, he dismisses them as strange occurrences. He quickly comes to the realization that he's a candidate ... for the school's strange tradition, becoming a princess. What is this princess work, you may ask? It's similar to a bar host, the manga describes. They provide moral support to their fellow students, and receive benefits. Tempted by amenities and money, Kouno happily accepts the offer. Shihoudani, a beautiful boy with long locks and a quick wit, and Mikoto, with a sharp tongue and a hot-blooded attitude are his sidekicks in this wacky adventure.

I'm unsure if the original was written ambiguously or the translation was done poorly, but the first 3-4 chapters were a bit difficult to understand. The author wrote the first chapter with the thought of making it obvious that something fishy is happening, and the other characters act like they were dropping obvious signs, but it was portrayed rather poorly. It was more much confusing than it should have been! The chapters themselves are long, which can be attributed to the large amount of dialogue.

One thing this manga does well is that it clearly distinguishes its heavy comedic undertones from the more serious, mellow, moments. It was a breath of fresh air for the characters to argue that crossdressing shouldn't be taken as hurtful to masculinity. Embracing what is perceived as being 'exclusive' to the opposite gender is actually a point of pride is a unique take on the genre.

The art itself is fairly standard for a shoujo manga. It's nothing praiseworthy, but it conveys the tone and emotion well whenever it needs to, and isn't particularly lacking in any areas. The fonts chosen are a bit hard to make out at times, but it isn't illegible. The only complaint I have is that not enough is conveyed through the art in comparison to the dialogue. There are often bubbles of text filling up the screen, which makes me wonder, "Why did the author decide to write a manga instead of a novel?". At times, the composition falls flat, with the character being placed weirdly, or having too much negative space in a panel, which can be attributed to the lack of backgrounds.

Without a doubt, the part where Princess Princess truly shines is in its comedy and character interaction. If the art and story don't appeal to you, the dialogue certainly will. The comedy caught me off guard in the best way possible, and the jokes land well. The banter between Kouno, Mikoto, and Shihoudani is natural and shows off their chemistry. Each have their own aspirations, goals, and distinguished personalities. However, I wish we got to see more of Mikoto. Since they were marketed as a trio, naturally the expectation was that they'd all be main characters, but he was heavily sidelined after the first volume. Even Sakamoto felt more like a main character than he did.

All in all, I'd say Princess Princess is a worthwhile read, if you're looking for a manga focusing on crossdressing boys that blends comedy and seriousness well.