If you love nothing more than the idea of hot salarymen smoking cigarettes plus smoking each other’s poles, Deux Press has a manga for you. Maybe the only manga for you, at least in English. Cigarette Kisses may *seem* like bad BL trash, but let me subvert your expectations: it’s good BL trash. Totally different thing! It’s not really that trashy though, it’s actually a serious drama, with gay sex. Let’s go with that.
The story is a love triangle romance drama starring Yusuke and Soji, childhood friends who are now salarymen coworkers in their mid 20s. They nearly became something more, but a few years ago out of nowhere Soji announced he was getting married – and Yusuke has been emotionally crushed ever since and barely able to speak to Soji, even though they see each other in the company smoking room. Another childhood friend of theirs who was recently hired, Masahito, long harbored feelings for Yusuke and now sees an opportunity to make his move.
This is the only Nase Yamato story I’ve read that is both serious and doesn’t feature little shota ukes, and it’s my favorite of the three of hers I’ve read so far for both of those reasons. The other two don’t really have much substance either character or story-wise (Take Me to Heaven and Pet on Duty), although I do always enjoy her art. It’s maybe even *too* pretty for a story like this. The paneling is still a bit crowded but it’s not as obnoxious or over-filled word bubbles this time, maybe this story gets to breathe since it’s a more quite and serious drama.
I really liked Soji and Yusuke as characters, and it was a real page-turner watching them unload their baggage from the past and present and waiting for their walls to come down. They felt like real people wrestling with the weight of tough decisions and what-ifs, and unsure if it’s too late for a second chance.
Masahito’s role at first was as a sort of instigator and to push and pull the wedge between Soji and Yusuke. As the story went on I actually started to ship them, since Soji was being kind of a butt and Masahito and Yusuke seemed like they’d be a good couple. They’d both liked Yusuke for so long, might he make an even better partner? At least he’s honest with himself and didn’t marry a woman out of the blue despite having feelings for a guy for so long.
There’s a decent amount of sex in here, which surprised me given that the other two books of hers I’ve read are a one-sex-scene ordeal. I wouldn’t say they’re especially explicit scenes, and I’m biased towards sex facial expressions which she likes to draw.
It has a good ending, maybe a little overly convenient. I have a feeling if I read it again I’d be more critical of certain character decisions, but it’s hard to be too judgmental in yaoi sometimes.
Although you see the characters smoking a lot, no one smokes after sex in this of all books. For the record no one does anything fetishistic with cigarettes either like put one in their ass or jerk someone off while holding one. It’s mainly just an excuse for the three characters to be in close quarters and forced to talk or be close. She manages to make them look hot doing it, even though I’ve never been a smoker and think it’s a gross habit. I’m pretty much the only one of my friends who doesn’t smoke though…and my Lord, going on roadtrips with six smokers who have to stop every 45 minutes for a 20 minute smoke break, it’s a wonder we aren’t still at a gas station somewhere in East Jesus. Then one would quit for a few weeks and they’d all try to quit, and then one would start again and they’d all start again…I guess because smoking is a social thing.
Oh actually, talking about cigs that reminds me of this actual ad that was in the back of some BLU book. This title (Bondz) really has nothing to do with cigarettes, at least not anything more than just characters who smoke which is pretty common in BL, and makes it all the more puzzling. Maybe whoever was doing the ads just saw the cover and thought that pun was really really really funny and just HAD to use it and Stu Levy was like “nyuk nyuk nyuk, genius my peasant, genius!” Idk.
Anyway – Cigarette Kisses is a pretty decent one, and Nase Yamato does a great job with a story and character types that aren’t usually in her wheelhouse. It’s a fairly engaging and angsty drama with pretty art, and fast to read too. And even if you don’t think smoking is at all sexy (like me), she makes impossibly pretty boys in Yaoi World look hot doing it.
TL:DR: Nase Yamato usually prefers to draw shota-esque ukes in more lighthearted stories, so I was surprised to see that she can actually whip out a decent serious drama with adult characters. This is a love triangle story with three childhood friends who later become coworkers at the same company and, having to see each other in the smoking room at work every day, are slowly forced to confront and unravel unspoken feelings from the past. Yamato’s style of paneling and layout can feel overly tight in places but it’s not nearly as bad as her other work I’ve read, and I’m a sucker for her super pretty men which somewhat makes up for it.