Like Pieces of a Puzzle (Adult Content)

A lot of the adult content that I've been covering so far feature relationships between a boy and a girl, something I'll confess is due to my tastes. However, in an effort to highlight the diversity of content that doujinshi has to offer, I thought it was time that I take a look at some of the other types of relationships that are often explored in this medium. Just to briefly give some background, I've read some manga featuring same-sex relationships such as the Year 24 Group classic Heart of Thomas and the explicit yaoi Crimson Spell while the yuri manga Girl Friends by Milk Morinaga is one of my favourite manga of all time! However, I think it's fair to say that I'm still relatively inexperienced in this area, particularly when it comes to doujinshi, so, with all that being said, let's take a look at Like Pieces of a Puzzle by Toukibi.

Set in a fantasy world, Like Pieces of a Puzzle introduces us to Johann, a human that possesses magical power and lives a relatively isolated lifestyle as a pharmacist, and Gureth, a mixed-race human and ogre who makes a living as a professional explorer. Turns out that Gureth is heading out to a poisonous swamp and Johann is concerned for him, despite his ogre blood making him resistant. However, Johann's concern only grows once he learns that the swamp has a plant species called Arousing Ivy, causing his imagination to run wild with what could be happening to Gureth.

One thing that did bother me about Like Pieces of a Puzzle is that we see very little in the way of Johann and Gureth falling for each other, instead starting with a clear interest in each other but hesitant to make the first move. While I was a little disappointed at this, there was still some charm in seeing them bond over being social outcasts, in Johann's case due to his red eye revealing his magical affinity and in Gureth's case being his ogre heritage, and seeing them get together was ultimately pleasant, even if the work as a whole feels a little rushed in its pacing.

While Johann and Gureth are clearly the main characters, it's worth pointing out that, even within this short work, a few others stood out as being noteworthy. Johann's mentor only appears briefly but she managed to elicit a strong chuckle from me within that timespan. There is also a member of Gureth's expedition team, who as far as I can tell is unnamed, who is sexually assertive, making advances on Johann while under the misconception that he's a woman but, upon learning that he's a man, continues unabated, telling him "I'll show you how great I am when I take you to bed." It's actually during this exchange when Johann ends up feeling hurt by something Gureth says in his defence.

With regards to the artwork, Like Pieces of a Puzzle is a little bit of a mixed bag for me. The character and backgrounds are pleasant in their designs although perhaps feeling a little too typical at times for my liking. The use of panels also comes off as a little standard although they do get more dynamic once we reach the sex scenes. However, I do have to draw attention to the frequent use of effects like sparkles, negative spacing, speed lines etc., which contribute nicely to the presentation. However, I will say that there were a few speckled patterns that did prove a bit too intense for my liking (take a look at Gureth's shirt in the example image for what I mean).

The only extra is a bonus scene that was drawn because the mangaka, Toukibi, wanted to draw nipple play but couldn't integrate it into the main story. It's only three pages but it's nice that it was included.

Even as someone who has very limited experience with yaoi, Like Pieces of a Puzzle felt very standard to me. The cast of characters are fine even if the rushed pacing leaves plenty of character development to the side and the artwork serves its purpose with only a few standout moments, most of those within the sex scenes near the end of the story. If you're looking for your next yaoi title, you could do worse than Like Pieces of a Puzzle but you could probably also find better.