Paradise Kiss

In happier news I was finally able to finish Paradise Kiss today at long last I was able to track down a moderately priced English copy of the 5th and final volume in the series and it arrived and was read today. I quite liked the ending for me it was realistic, happy and yet bittersweet and the characters were matched up how I would have liked them to.

As usual if you haven't read it then here be spoilers.

It is by the creator of the more famous Nana, Ai Yazawa, and follows Yukari "Caroline" Hayasaka, a student trying to study hard to get into university who is brought into the world of fashion, modelling and design reluctantly by several members of the Paradise Kiss group. Eventually she finds herself falling in love with modelling and sacrificing her studying for this new passion much to her severe mother's chagrin. Worse still she falls for the charms of seductive, bisexual Jōji "George" Koizumi, a sadist who treats the women he likes meanly. He is an eighteen-year-old attending Yazagaku fashion school where he is a fashion designer who only designs clothes he likes rather than opening up to designing what the market needs. He is a bastard child and has a wealthy father and a rather relaxed outlook on life. He is cold and patronising and considers Yukari too dependent and immature.
Rounding up the cast are fellow fashion students Miwako Sakurada who looks and occasionally acts like a child, her boyfriend the punk Arashi Nagase who is jealous, overprotective, insecure, cynical and yet humorous, cross dresser and transgender Isabella Yamamoto whose real name is forbidden 'Daisuke' and who is supportive and kind, Yukari's classmate and Miwako and Arashi's former friend Hiroyuki Tokumori who Yukari has a crush on and who is in love with Miwako, and Kaori Asō a former fashion student who won a scholarship abroad and who is close friends with George.

The numerous love and plot twists are what kept me hooked on this manga, I found the relationships and personalities of the characters very realistic and it was much more important to me than the plot of whether they would win the fashion show and whether Yukari would chose her education or modelling. Even the supporting cast had the memorable moments and the humour was very tongue in cheek. It is a highly entertaining series and one I think most people could relate to.

I feel Yukari and George staying seperate in the end was best because as a couple their relationship was too fiery, they did not share the same goals ultimately and they fought more than anything. Yes their love was there and sincere but it was not enough to keep them together. I think if George could stop treating women in such a misyognist manner that he would work best with Kaori who is so obviously devoted to him. Going to his father to plead him to pay for his former mistress' lifestyle so that George can be free really is a sign of her love. It's a pity that she accepted that George just couldn't make women truly happy.

As for Yukari and Hiroyuki I feel they are meant to be especially when it becomes obvious that he has feelings for her too he just doesn't believe she could like him. It's interesting given how Yukari thinks he would never look at her but consider that she is a gorgeous, thin model dating another gorgeous model it's no surprise that Hiroyuki doesn't think he stands a chance.
Of the men Hiroyuki for me was the most loveable, he's kind, forgiving, understanding, sincere and smart and gives great advice. Although he is jealous of Arashi and Miwako and feels that Arashi took Miwako from him, which he did, he does ultimately forgive me and accept his offer back into their life, and he helps heal their relationship rather than take the opportunity to ruin it by giving Arashi advice on how to deal with their problems.

I feel the manga ended were it should have and though I'm sad to see it end it might have dragged if it had gone any further and it was nice to see how they turned out grown up.