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| Daikihi and young Rin: a heartwarming picture of a father and his daughter |
~Konnichiwa~
Nadeshiko-chan
here and since yesterday was father’s day, I’ll be reviewing Bunny Drop by
Unita Yumi, a manga with one of the best yet worst father: Daikihi. I have very
mixed feelings on this josei and to be honest I’m not quite sure I’d recommend.
Oh yeah, by the way, this was my very first josei! And it sure was memorable.
Anyway, lets begin my explanation of this odd little manga:
Daikihi is a
30-year-old bachelor and an overgrown teenager of a man He’s just found out that
his grandfather is dead and travels back to his hometown for the funeral. When
he arrives, Daikihi and his family are shocked to discover that the old man had
an illegitimate love child. On top of that, it was with a much younger woman,
she’s in her 20s I believe. Rin is the name of this child and catches Daikihi’s
attention since she’s a rather quiet little girl and obviously completely
helpless: she doesn’t know anyone in the family, her mother abandoned her after
the death of the grandfather, and she must cope with the death of her father at
such a young age. Daikihi seems to be the only one sensitive to this little
girl’s feeling and is outraged when he sees how his family only sees her as an
embarrassment, not wanting anything to do with her. In a fit of angry
spontaneity, he declares he’s going to take care her himself. The first 6
volumes are adorable, Daikihi and Rin making an adorable father-daughter
pairing, Daikihi being rather immature for a parent and Rin being pretty mature
and independent for a 6 year old. It’s really funny and rather heartwarming
watching Daikihi try to figure out parenthood and the proper way to raise Rin;
Rin really becomes a big part of his life and he admits that all the sacrifices
he’s makes for her are definitely worth it. Daikihi’s relationship with Yukari
Nitani, a single mother, also keeps the manga interesting for those romantics;
plus they also have the adorable friendship between Rin and Yukari’s son Kouki.
In fact in volume 5, the manga fast-forwards to when the two are in high
school, and you can see the Kouki definitely wants to be more than friends. You
can’t help but root for Kouki as he tries to win Rin’s heart, realizing the
mistakes he made in the past.
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| Childhood friends Rin and Kouki, aren't they precious? |
But then you read
volume 7 and 8 come, and cute little josei becomes chillingly disturbing. Try
to guess what sick twist Unita Yumi came up with? Have Rin fall in love, not
with Kouki, or even the smart boy from her class, no, she has Rin fall in love
Daikihi! What the heck?! And like an idiot, I kept reading, I hoping that maybe
because Daikihi was the first stable thing in her life, she only thought she
was in love with him because of the drama going on with Kouki and meeting her
mother. But that’s not the case; at some point, even Kouki’s and her mother are
supporting her! At least they made it slightly less disgusting by revealing
that Rin isn’t actually the grandfather’s daughter, but rather his adopted
daughter; Rin’s mom had gotten pregnant and he had volunteered to help raise
Rin. But this only makes it slightly less disturbing though since we still have
the huge age difference and the fact that Daikihi is practically Rin’s father!
What made me even madder was that Daikihi, noble, kind-hearted father-figure Daikihi,
actually accepts her feelings! They get together after her graduation, I felt
so sick and disappointed in both in them. This adorable manga became something
so creepy.
I don’t really
think Rin loves Daikihi romantically, nor do I believe that Daikihi really
loves Rin romantically. I feel Rin, after the abandonment of her mother and
death of her “father” grew too emotionally dependent on Daikihi, so as
graduation and such came, she became scared of leaving him and all the new
changes she’d have to face; she took the concerns she had about Daikihi getting
older and romance as a way to stay with him, to have things stay exactly as
they were. Then there’s Daikihi, who never really says he loves Rin and even
tells her that she can leave him for a younger boy whenever she wants, not to
worry about him. Never says “I love you”, just that he’ll be with her. He just
doesn’t look like he really see her as a lover, I think he’s just worried about
Rin and doing what she wants or something, I’m not really sure.
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| Teenage Kouki and Rin |
Anyway, because
of the creepiness of volumes 7-10, I can’t really recommend this manga. And I
know what you’re thinking, if I thought it was so disturbing, why I would read
all 10 volumes. Well technically I only read to 9, but anyway I’m stubborn and
was idiotically hopeful that something was going to change. But when I got to 9
and Rin tells Daikihi she wants them to have a baby and make them as happy as
Daikihi made her, I realized it was futile and stopped. . I’ve recently
discovered they’ve made into a drama and to be honest I’m a little curious; I’ve
done a little research and I think its about their original father-daughter
relationship, which I love and would love to see as a drama adaption. I’m a
little hesitant though, worried they’ll thrown in some creepy wedding between
them at the end. If I end up watching it I’ll post, but anyway the first 4
volumes of the parent-child relationship are adorable and I highly recommend
reading those and stopping. Volumes 5-6 are okay since you think Kouki will
eventually win Rin’s heart and you could read those chapters, but it’s not as
enjoyable when you know Rin’s going to choose her father-figure over her
childhood friend, whom she shared her first kiss with and whom she even admitted
was her first love. Anyway the arts okay, having a rather unique style compared
to other shoujo and josei mangas, so I think you’d have fun reading those first
few volumes. But don’t be foolish like me and keep going, it’ll only bring
disappointment, anger, and sickness.
You have been
warned.
~Nadeshiko-chan
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