Netorare Girlfriend (Adult Content)

When reviewing a product, there is often a struggle in the reviewer’s mind. A reviewer is inherently a person, often incapable of removing their own outlooks and biases when covering content. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, some people like to follow reviewers who think and have similar tastes to themselves, but, for a review to be truly helpful beyond a select few, one has to consider who the product is aiming for. Never let it change your own thoughts on the product but know that you need to address certain attributes so that you can help people to make an informed decision. After all, even if I were to give something a bad review, someone else may want to still experience it based on my descriptions and analysis. That’s why writing this review has proven to be a challenge as I genuinely had no clue what someone might look for in a work such as Netorare Girlfriend. Even in other works that I have disliked, I could often tell what the target demographic desired. Power fantasy, incest, schadenfreude etc. I may not care for these things but I can at least understand why someone might find them appealing. Netorare Girlfriend confused me so much that I had to, for the first time since I began covering this content, do research into what exactly it is that people are looking for when it comes to netorare. Armed with this knowledge and my own opinions, it is time that we finally take a look at the work that provoked this necessity.

We are introduced to a young couple, Mizuki Suzumori and Souta Kazami, who started out as childhood friends and started dating six months prior. They promise to take the next step after graduating and to attend the same university together. Souta studies at a cram school during the summer while Mizuki, a track and field athlete, goes to a summer training camp in order to earn an athletic scholarship. Things seem to be going well until Souta receives a mysterious DVD addressed to him. Curious, he plays the DVD and sees Mizuki sitting on the lap of an older man, her couch. She then begins to tell the story of what’s been happening at her camp, a story that will change the trajectory of their lives.

When it comes to the story, the most interesting thing to me is that of the perspective and it is also this that caused me such great confusion. Once Mizuki starts explaining what has happened, it seems almost like she’s speaking to us, the reader. It took me a little bit to realise that we were, effectively, Souta. Of course, this is accompanied by visual flashbacks to the past. Mizuki’s memories? Souta’s imagination? It doesn’t matter. We see what she went through and what ultimately happened. Why this perspective? Why are we put in this position? After researching what people look for in this type of media, I began to understand the meaning of this decision but I can’t say that I find it enjoyable. The second, shorter, chapter is an epilogue showing what happened after their graduation. I can’t say that it added too much to the experience except to further my hatred of a particular character.

Speaking of, let’s take a look at them. Souta is a non-entity throughout most of this story because we are experiencing his perspective, almost like playing a video game in first-person. He seems sincere in his love for Mizuki and is determined to work hard to go to university with her but his few scenes later on do not paint him in a particularly great light. For all intents and purposes, Mizuki is the main character of the story as she tells us about her experience at the training camp. Considering the direction she goes in, I’ve seen some express deep anger towards her but I do not. Instead, I feel sympathy and pity for her. She’s a victim in this tale, even more so than Souta. Her actions later on are, in my opinion, not her own and are simply the product of her experience. Now that we’ve looked at the two victims, it’s time that we look at the person behind all of this, the couch Iijima. To describe him as a contemptible man is far too kind to him. He takes pleasure in both breaking Mizuki as well as making Souta suffer and we quickly learn that they are not his only victims. Just when I thought I couldn’t hate him more, we get to the epilogue chapter where it reveals several more of his despicable actions, solidifying him as a disgusting human being whose existence is a blight on mankind.

With regards to the art, it’s a mixed bag. Mizuki’s character design is very attractive with a toned, hourglass body and large expressive eyes and Souta’s, while a little more typical of a high school student with glasses, is pleasant as well. Couch Iijima, on the other hand, is both intentionally and, perhaps, unintentionally ugly. With unpleasant eyes, a malicious grin and an unappealing body, he is an eyesore. However, I did also note that he is the only one, at least as far as I noticed, who goes off-model at times. While it’s possible that this is intentional, since this does result in him looking even uglier, I suspect that it isn’t. Background art is somewhat infrequent, usually making use of negative spacing and patterns which turned out to be surprisingly effective, perhaps even more so if the imagery we’re seeing comes from memory or imagination. Panels have some dynamism with blending and diagonals and characters often stretching beyond the confines of the borders.

Writing this review for Netorare Girlfriend has been cathartic in a way, allowing me to process the story, the intent behind it and what appeal it might have for some people. I can’t say that I enjoyed it because I didn’t but I can say that it is more memorable than some other works I’ve read. It will probably appeal to fans of netorare as it seems to have a following and even an anime adaptation! However, you won’t find me recommending it anytime soon. I can only hope, even with my own attitudes and thoughts, that I have fulfilled my purpose in giving you the facts you need to decide whether Netorare Girlfriend is for you.

You can read the title for free on doujin.io.