TRIGGER WARNING: NON-CON/SEXUAL ASSAULT, VIOLENCE, HOMOPHOBIA

Where to begin with this one? The Song of Yoru & Asa was a surprise right from the jump. Little did I know that not only would we be diving into the spicy scenes right from Chapter 1, but they would be *cue the choir of angels* FULLY UNCENSORED. This manga is not for the faint of heart. With loads of graphic sexual content, plenty of curse words, scenes of abuse, etc, it proves to be a very in-your-face kind of story. For that reason I felt it was incredibly important to provide trigger warnings for this title. While plenty of readers will love the bold and unapologetic tone of The Song of Yoru & Asa, there are those within the BL community who understandably need and deserve the heads up. The warnings given above are not to be taken lightly - the non-con/assault aspect is very graphic and would be disturbing to some readers. At Yiggybean we take these elements seriously and will always do our best to provide warnings on potentially problematic content. 

At the heart of our story are our two lead characters, Asaichi - vocalist of a band and a dedicated skirt-chaser, and Yoru - former vocalist of a popular band now serving as support bassist for Asaichi's band. Initially everything about Yoru rubs Asaichi the wrong way - especially the way everyone is constantly praising him. Things really come to a head after a mishap during a post-performance night of debauchery when circumstances lead Yoru to proclaim his feelings for Asaichi. While in other BL titles this might be the turning point where two star-crossed lovers begin to discover their feelings for one another, such is not the case here. Asaichi is, to put it mildly, disgusted by Yoru's declaration and lashes out at him angrily every chance he gets. Things begin to shift, if only a little, when Yoru's old band reunites for a one-night-only performance. Asaichi, dragged to the performance by his fellow bandmates, finally gets to hear Yoru sing - the sound of which fills him with a lust so consuming that he can't help but give in. But where does this mix of disgust, desire, and envy towards Yoru take Asaichi? And why does Yoru have feelings for Asaichi in the first place when they hardly know each other?

I was honestly surprised by how art-heavy The Story of Yoru & Asa is! Many of the pages held as many as eight individual panels and very few held less than five. This volume was truly laborious to create as, in addition to the unusually high number of panels on each page, it is loaded with gorgeous art that spares no detail. Story-wise I also have to give Harada high marks. The story is interesting, detailed, and elements that didn't make sense to me early on were explained perfectly by the end of the volume. 

All together I would say I loved The Song of Yoru & Asa and it definitely gains a permanent spot on my personal bookshelf. I acknowledge, however, that it is absolutely not for every reader. If this one sounds up your alley, it's available now!

TLDR;

Lock your door, pull the blinds.... this one is Team After Dark!

Publisher: KUMA

Release Date: 3/22/22

Page Count: 212

Age Rating: 18+