Photo by Nicole. Morishita, Volume 1 and 8 Cover Art, A Sign of Affection, Kodansha USA.
A Sign of Affection – Information
Author of Story: Suu Morishita
Chapter Count: 12 volumes / 58+ chapters (digital)
Status: Ongoing
Content Warnings
These content warnings do not reflect the contents of the review below; only the literary work itself.
- Ableism, systemic ableism
- Mature content
Spoiler Disclaimer
This recommendation post may contain small plot spoilers for review purposes. Any major spoilers are hidden by default and are able to be revealed via click or tap.
A Sign of Affection – Plot Summary
A Sign of Affection is an extremely wholesome and very sweet love story between two college students. The story follows the cute female lead, Yuki Itose, who has been deaf since birth.
She is comfortable with signing, reading lips when she can, and using writing or texting to communicate with her peers and family.
The main love interest in this story is Itsuomi Nagi, a follow student with a passionate interest in travel and language. These two characters first meet early in the story while commuting by public train, and quickly develop a friendship afterwards (thanks to the help of Yuki’s close friend, Rin Fujishiro).
Readers will follow these two students as they learn more about each other and develop their relationship during their every day activities! This story has easily become one of my favorite fluffy romance mangas, as it is an incredibly sweet, passionate story with adorable characters and a beautiful art style.
So, let’s get started with this A Sign of Affection manga review!
Why I Enjoyed A Sign of Affection
Plot:
A Sign of Affection, while still ongoing, tells such a heart-warming story. I cannot give it enough praise!
The series feels like a fluffy slice-of-life romance without any major conflicts or drama, other than typical relationship building (and the challenges they face together). It makes you really want to root for the main duo and see their relationship blossom.
Therefore, if you’re looking for a more easygoing romance with fast-paced developments, this romance could be the perfect pick.
Morishita, Volume 1 Cover Art, A Sign of Affection, Kodansha USA.
It’s no spoiler that Yuki and Itsuomi become at item…in fact, this romance is a bit fast-paced, allowing readers to quickly enjoy the blooming relationship between the two characters, rather than a slow build-up to a long-awaited confession (which is usually my preferred genre of romance).
Regardless of the speedier pacing, the characters are incredibly sweet and accommodating for each other—and the author is sure to put in many cute, fluffy, heart-warming romantic scenes that’ll make you kick your feet.
These two characters work so well together, even though they are very different. They are eager to learn and discover more about each other, without any unnecessary drama.
I really love the way romance is portrayed in A Sign of Affection; it’s so incredibly cute and sweet. The characters’ interactions are so soft and heartwarming, even for a college-aged romance.
It feels exciting, sincere, and a little innocent, but can still come across as pretty mature and rather intimate in some scenes. I think the author did a great job at blending the maturity of a college-aged romance with the fluffiness often found in shoujo romance.
The romance itself feels so meaningful and emotional—it really draws you in to the characters’ feelings. You can feel the love! I absolutely loved this sweet shoujo manga, and I can’t wait to see how Yuki and Itsuomi’s relationship develops even more.
As for other characters in the story, readers do get to see some interesting side-character romances. I really enjoyed this blend of different relationship dynamics and the support they provide to the main characters!
I often don’t find myself extremely interested in side character stories, but in this series I felt that they were really interesting and helped create a more fulfilling story.
Besides the lovely romantic concepts shown throughout the story, I also love how sign language and Yuki’s daily life experiences are portrayed in this story. A Sign of Affection does a wonderful job of normalizing this aspect of the story, while still lightly acknowledging the challenges Yuki has to face.
For example, although it would be nice if sign language were a much more commonly learned and encouraged language, the supporting characters in this story don’t all know sign language.
Yuki’s family and friends, such as her friend Rin who we see often in the story, comfortably communicate with Yuki via text or writing, and I personally feel like that is a very realistic take on the story’s setting.
While this story doesn’t dive super deep into Yuki’s experiences growing up as a deaf individual, or the Deaf community in general, I think this is perfectly fine.
There are other stories that dive deeper into these topics, such as The Moon on a Rainy Night, which focuses on what equality actually means for those who are deaf or hard of hearing.
Image by Nicole. Morishita, Inner pages of A Sign of Affection Volume 7, Kodansha.
A Sign of Affection simply takes that representation, and normalizes it within a sweet, fluffy romance—which is arguably just as important!
However, because of this particular setting, readers do get to see communication in all types of ways. This manga makes reading and understanding the dialogue perfectly smooth, even with sign language or other forms of non-spoken communication being used throughout each page.
You don’t need to know sign language to enjoy this story; but the language is able to be appreciated well through a visual representation!
I want to emphasize that this doesn’t take away from the story at all, and I actually really loved seeing the character’s hands being used frequently in the story.
We are easily able to differentiate between the characters’ thoughts, spoken words, signed dialogue, texts, and even how Yuki interprets sentences through lip-reading.
I am so impressed by those who worked on A Sign of Affection and how they made it so wonderful to read with a variety of communication formats!
A Sign of Affection uses one of two types of sign language that can be found in Japan, called Signed Japanese. Signed Japanese is a type of sign language that matches the grammar of a written sentence, as opposed to Japanese Sign Language, which uses a different grammar structure and requires a lot more expressive aspects to communicate more effectively.
The differences and history of these signed languages is very interesting, I highly recommend looking into it more! (Here’s a great resource from one of my favorite Japanese language learning resources, if you’re interested!)
Although A Sign of Affection touches on the topic in a more lighthearted manner, I think that having this sort of representation in mediums such as manga is an incredibly important and inclusive way of reaching the hearts of all readers.
It gives people who are deaf or hard of hearing a character to relate to, and also provides a very lovely story that can sometimes be a little educational, showing readers the challenges people may face in a world that is unfortunately designed primarily for able-bodied people.
This valuable representation was possible thanks to the dedicated efforts and studies that the author and others who collaborated on this manga took upon themselves!
Characters:
The two main characters of this manga have such sweet, lovely personalities that compliment each other very well.
Yuki is a cute, shy, and curious young lady who is eager to discover more of the world around her. Itsuomi is a friendly go-getter, who is great at getting along with others and easily takes life in whatever direction he chooses.
I love the connection between these two. It is refreshing to see a love story between two young adults that is so respectful and full of healthy communication!
You’ll quickly fall in love with both of these characters and their personalities. Yuki, for example, is so cute and often expressive. She enjoys fashion, works hard in college, and wants to see more of the world. Her character seems a bit innocent for her age, but I think that is why Itsuomi is a good fit for her.
Morishita, Volume 4 Cover Art, A Sign of Affection, Kodansha USA.
Itsuomi recognizes the struggles Yuki has and meets her needs in a way that doesn’t dehumanize her. He doesn’t baby her, but instead supports her where she needs him. I think that Itsuomi will be the perfect partner to help open up Yuki’s world to new experiences!
I really like Itsuomi’s character. He is always respectful towards Yuki and makes sure she is okay with his actions or questions. He treats her so gently, respectfully, and with a lot of consideration. Yet, he’s also very straightforward, unafraid of speaking his true feelings, and willing to initiate intimacy.
In my opinion, he’s one of the best-written “perfect” male leads I’d read yet—and by “perfect,” I mean that he is a character that doesn’t have many flaws to fix or super deep character building. Although that may sound a little boring, I find these types of characters nice to read on occassion, too.
In fact, if his character did need a lot of growth and development, I think he may not have fit the needs of the story well. The romance would no longer be soft, fluffy, and easygoing…instead, it may have been a drama.
Therefore, I think his character is designed to be just right for the story’s romance and Yuki—he’s considerate of her needs without making a big deal of out of them, and treats her like a normal person (not a fragile porcelain vase).
I know there is a lot of discussion out there about these characters, especially Itsuomi and the secondary male lead, Oushi. However, I’ll save my thoughts on those topics for the in-depth review portion, which you can read futher below (it contains spoilers).
Art:
The art style of this manga is absolutely gorgeous! It is very fitting for a shoujo (sweet, fluffy, and romantic) while still feeling suitable for a relationship between two adults.
Many different aspects, such as clothing, settings, and characters in A Sign of Affection are drawn so well. I was so excited to find out that this story was written by the same author of the manga Like a Butterfly, which was another great read with an extremely cute art style!
The characters are just so… pretty! I really love all of the character designs in this manga. Itsuomi is drawn to look like a handsome, mature, and friendly character, while Yuki is a shy but very beautiful young woman (personally, my favorite character design in the series is a side character named Shin).
I have absolutely no complaints about the art for this series, and can’t praise it enough.
Additionally, I’ve said this before in a few other reviews (including the Like a Butterfly review), but I really like when manga artists let the art speak for itself. What I mean by that is the use of “silent” panels, where dialogue is not used.
Oftentimes dialogue doesn’t even feel necessary in these instances because the characters are conveying emotion through their actions or facial expressions.
It makes you feel as though the characters can really understand each other, and it feels much more special. I personally feel that the author of this series is especially skilled in portaying these moments!
Any Cons?
Personally, I really enjoyed A Sign of Affection. I think the romance was lovely, fluffy, and sweet. The characters were all so cute, lovable, and likable in their own ways.
The art is gorgeous, and overall I thought the story was engaging. Unfortunately, not everyone will agree (and that’s okay), for reasons such as these:
Some individuals may find this romance boring, as not much happens outside of the romance itself. If you want a more involved story or something with a lot of depth, this manga may not be the best pick for you! Those looking for an easygoing romance filled with fluff will likely really enjoy it.
Morishita, Volume 3 Cover Art, A Sign of Affection, Kodansha USA.
Unfortunately, many readers seem to think Yuki is uninteresting. While I would like to wholeheartedly disagree, I have to admit I would like to see some deeper characterizations for her in the future!
As she is now, she is simply a cute young woman who has fallen in love for the first time. Yuki seems to be very interested in learning new things, so I hope we get to see her flourish in future volumes!
And lastly, I see mixed opinions on Itsuomi. Many find him too perfect, which is understandable, yet others dislike his overly touchy personality, which confused me as a long-time reader of manga (the things I’ve seen in shoujo absolutely do not compare to Itsuomi patting Yuki’s head, haha).
Regardless of my own opinions, I wanted to let new readers know of potential drawbacks!
Despite these few cons, my opinion on this manga series is overwhelmingly positive, and I have really enjoyed it so far.
More In-Depth Review (Warning: Spoilers!)
Welcome to the in-depth portion of the review. I really love this series, and wanted to talk just a little more about the manga’s characters and their relationships.
A Sign of Affection has a great romantic story that develops very well. I usually prefer slow burn romances, but surprisingly enjoyed how the main characters of this manga take interest in each other very quickly.
They pursue each other very early in the story, but the relationship builds and blooms in a very appropriate, patient way. They take things slow and make sure to learn about each other step by step.
Itsuomi is very respectful of Yuki, always making sure she’s in agreement with the situation. He gives a genuine effort to learn sign language as well as communicate with Yuki from the start.
There’s still a lot to learn about him since this manga is ongoing, but I have gotten nothing but good vibes so far! I adore his character and how he treats Yuki.
But, of course, I must address the Itsuomi vs Oushi topic that often comes up in discussions about this series. Here’s my take:
Let’s start with Yuki’s long-time friend, Oushi Ashioki. Clearly, this character has a thing for Yuki and he’s a sweet (also a bit tsundere) character, but it’s easy to see that he isn’t a great match for Yuki.
He frequently expresses a need to protect Yuki, such as telling people not to do certain things around her because she’s deaf. While the notion may not necessarily be with ill intention, I personally think it isn’t right to baby another grown adult to that extent. He’s also a bit possessive.
While I do like his character and appreciate the growth he experiences, I just don’t think he is right for Yuki. He seems like he would tie her down, instead of letting her try new things and experience life.
Although he isn’t the right one for Yuki, Oushi’s character is still important. I think he serves as a necessary contrast to Itsuomi, who treats Yuki like the adult she is, yet with a romantic sort of compassion necessary for her character.
I have seen some readers say that Itsuomi is too touchy. However, in my own opinion, this seems to just be part of his outgoing personality. He often asks Yuki if she is okay with his actions many times—and she never seems bothered.
Yuki is a grown woman, and if she didn’t like Itsuomi’s advances, she would make it known.
The important thing to note is that she doesn’t do that. Yuki is romantically interested in Itsuomi from the start. Therefore, I’ve never considered his character creepy or anything of that sort.
I was surprised to see this reaction from other readers, but I can understand why they may think that way.
Personaly, I think it is just another reason why Itsuomi fits well into Yuki’s life. He’s courteous to her, but not overbearing or overprotective. He opens up her world in a positive way, and I can’t wait to see their development build even more!
Final Thoughts
Overall, I think A Sign of Affection is an amazing read with a lovely story. It is perfect for readers who want a soft, fluffy romance with a slightly older cast (college-aged).
Even if you are intimidated by the slightly different portrayal of dialogue, please give it a try. It’s a really beautiful story about love and communication, portrayed amazingly with gorgeous art and lovable characters! It has easily become one of my favorite mangas.
I was so pleased to see the anime adaptation of this story too, as it turned out very beautiful. Check that out as well if you’d like!
Disclaimer: Any images used for this blog are for illustrative purposes only, are not owned by me, and are under ownership of the artist or publisher.
Images Credit: Morishita, Suu. A Sign of Affection. Kodansha USA, 2021.
