Eda, Cover Art, Bonnouji, Media Factory Comics.
Bonnouji – Information
Author of Story: Aki Eda
Chapter Count: 3 volumes, 36 chapters
Status: Completed
Content Warnings
These content warnings do not reflect the contents of the review below; only the literary work itself.
- Smoking
- Alcohol
- Suggestive, mature, or explicit 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.
Bonnouji – Plot Summary
Bonnouji is a very chill, slice-of life type romance that is easy to enjoy. It starts with Ozawa Michiyo, age 26, returning home from work one day. She decides to stop by her neighbor’s unit to ask to use the restroom. The elevator she uses to go up to her unit was broken, and she was desperate! Luckily her neighbor, Oyamada Zenji, lets her inside his home.
This is when she discovers his unique room, filled with tons of collectables and hobby items. Apparently, his brother sends him tons of eccentric items as he tries many new things. Some items are useful, some are collectibles, and some are just weird!
After spending that afternoon together talking about Ozawa’s recent breakup of her 5-year relationship, and opening boxes delivered from Oyamada’s brother, the two neighbors form a unique friendship.
Why I Enjoyed Bonnouji
Bonnouji is a simple slice-of-life style manga that doesn’t have a ton of plot or action, but it’s still interesting somehow. It’s fun to see the weird items that will be shown in Oyamada’s room, and it’s nice to see the two main characters become good friends.
The items are also often humorous, and it’s nice to see adults in a more laid-back setting. Not every adult character needs to be extremely hardworking or have dramatic life goals, haha!
These two form such a nice relationship, too. Oyamada serves as a nice support for Ozawa while she recovers from her break up, and gives her something fun to look forward to every day. However, it’s obvious from the start that he likes her! Oyamada himself realizes he likes her very quickly, and doesn’t take too long to act on it.
Eda, Volume 1 Cover Art, Bonnouji, Media Factory Comics
The romance in this manga is very unlike the shoujo manga I typically recommend, which usually takes many chapters of pining and hesitation. It feels very mature when the characters realize their feelings quickly and act on them without a whole 20-chapter long push-and-pull plot. However, the main characters of Bonnouji are still a little shy or embarrassed, which keeps the romance exciting.
It feels refreshing to read a simple, adult relationship story without constant misunderstandings, tons of hesitation, annoying second-lead characters that get in the way, and so on. These characters are old enough to understand their own feelings, and date normally.
It might lack that first-love sort of excitement, but I still enjoyed this more mature aspect of the manga. Even the side characters who are friends of the main two act realistically by teasing Ozawa and Oyamada, or even being a bit jealous of their successful relationship (but not in a childish manner, obviously).
This manga also feels like it contains a bit more realism than most romances I recommend on my site, as it doesn’t over-romanticize each scene and instead lets you enjoy the awkwardness of falling in love similarly to how it happens in real life.
And, like I said earlier, you don’t have to wait very long before romance begins to happen so if you enjoy speedier romances, Bonnouji is a great choice.
Because of the awkwardness of the two main characters’ growing feelings, in addition to the strange objects in Oyamada’s room, this manga becomes pretty comedic. The story’s humor is simple, but effective. The timing of the jokes are pretty good, too.
It becomes even funnier when Oyamada’s friend, Shimamoto, gets involved. His character’s personality feels like it is designed completely for comedic purposes. He brings the sort of humor people are used to in slice-of-life mangas. I really liked his goofy personality, and glad he was a part of the story.
Oyamada is definitely my favorite character from this series. His sense of humor is so funny to me, and he’s also extremely nonchalant about the weirdness of his room. He’s got a very calm personality, and makes a really nice match for Ozawa. He also seems much more impressive and cute than you might think from the first impression.
Eda, Volume 3 Cover Art, Bonnouji, Media Factory Comics
You can immediately tell he’s a good guy, too! It always made me chuckle when the author drew his very ordinary looking character among all the strange items in his room. He just looks so hilariously innocent while surrounded by bizarre objects.
In the end, Bonnouji is a relaxed manga with a very casual and occasionally silly plot. Readers wanting a short, relaxed romance story between adults with some good humor in it will likely enjoy this series. You can enjoy it and finish it quickly with only 36 chapters; and the ending is pretty well-timed too, in my opinion.
Any Cons?
Not many cons for this one! The manga itself is slowly becoming a little dated, but it doesn’t affect the story at all; therefore Bonnouji will still be enjoyable for years to come. The art style isn’t the most polished, but it sort of fits the vibe of the story anyway.
Plus, plenty of detail goes into Oyamada’s room, so things stay interesting. However, I know a lot of readers really care about art style, so if you’re not a fan of simpler or plainer styles, you might not like this manga.
The only other con I can think of is that some readers may find it boring or uneventful. However, I did mark it as slice of life, which can often be a pretty relaxed genre.
Nonetheless, if you’re looking for a love story between two adults with a more eventful story, maybe try Matcha Made in Heaven. Otherwise, if you’re alright with a more relaxed and calm story, you’ll be fine with this manga!
Final Thoughts
Bonnouji is a short and enjoyable romantic comedy with relatable adult characters and a pretty unique premise. The humor is great, the romance is mature and often wholesome, and the characters are silly and likable.
This manga is a great choice for readers who want a short adult romance with an easygoing, slice-of-life style plot.
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: Aki Eda, Bonnouji, Media Factory Comics, 2010.
