About:
Warning:
This review will contain spoilers for the manga and anime series Spend Wisely. While the manga may vary slightly from all other forms of media, it may have similar story elements and could be considered spoilers.
Content Warning: There may be references to financial abuse, age gap, sex work, mentions of death, extortion, child abandonment, noncon, overwork, excessive drinking, violence, sexual assault, power imbalance, exotification, and experience gap, as they appear in the manga.
Synopsis:
Manami Godai is a loan shark, no better than a financial gangster. Unfortunately, as much as he would like to be, he’s not really cut out for this job. His main problem? His attraction for those he’s supposed to extort for money. Too many times, he’s fallen for someone, and they’ve run away without paying him a dime. Not to mention his soft heart, often letting those he feels sorry for forgo making payments if they’re sorry enough. This has resulted in Manami being in debt to those above him. Determined to pay off his own debt, he fully intends to get payment from his biggest debtor: the Kanekura family.
The father, who was the principal debtor, had disappeared, leaving behind his two sons, whom Manami intends to extort for the remainder of his debt. When Manami and his right-hand man find the Kanekura household, they find a humble shack in disrepair and an unkempt yard. Manami’s heart is already stirring, feeling for the people here, but he holds firm and tries to get in contact with those who live there. There are supposedly two brothers and their grandmother living there, and upon first contact, Manami meets the younger brother.
The young man is cute but far too young for Manami’s liking. It’s not long after, however, that he meets the older brother, who couldn’t be any closer to Manami’s type. While he needs money, he wants Makoto Kanekura, and after some gangster-level coercion on his part, he gets just that. And he makes Makoto an offer he can’t refuse: every time they have sex, Manami will take off $300 from the debt. Makoto, an upstanding and honest guy, still intends to pay back the debts with cash, but he can’t help coming to Manami time and time again for more.
The pleasure he gets from Manami is priceless.
Review:
I have to admit, after reading My Dearest Patrolman / My Dearest Cop by Niyama, I’m a sucker for any of their titles. None have quite reached the peak BL that is My Dearest Cop, but this is a pretty solid title. Niyama‘s art style has always been pretty messy and inconsistent, and this is no exception. Still, it has that down-to-earth and expressive style that really speaks to me. We’ve got the manly gangster power bottom with Manami, paired alongside a heart-on-their-sleeve, sweetheart top, Makoto. Their dynamic is so adorable, and they look great together. If you love Niyama‘s style, you’re not going to be disappointed here, for sure.
As with all of Niyama‘s other titles, the humor in this one is pretty great. I wouldn’t call it a title that will have you cackling out loud or anything like that, but for a story with a dark topic, this is very lighthearted. Even in the first smut scene, where Manami is extorting Makoto, Makoto is mentally preparing himself to be the bottom in the scenario. But he ends up being equally relieved and shocked to find that Manami is bottoming. Despite being a horrific setup, it’s presented in such a funny and lighthearted way that I really enjoyed it. I do feel compelled to clarify that sextortion is terrible, no question about it, but I personally don’t mind noncon/dubcon content, so this didn’t bother me. It is worth mentioning for those who would be bothered by it, especially when it is depicted humorously.
I also find it hilarious that the big bad in all of this, the man pushing Manami for money, is ultimately his brother, who wants Manami to fail so Manami can work an upstanding job. They have a bizarre relationship, with the older brother weirdly touching Manami, but it’s still so funny. I love when a character comes from a family of gangsters or mafia members, only to be immensely doted on and loved. The majority of the story builds it up like Manami is going to be harmed or extorted if he isn’t able to make the money, which spurns Makoto on to save Manami from himself. Similarly, we get a lovely reveal that Makoto’s father did leave to find better work rather than abandoning the family, another unexpected reveal that emphasizes the series’s lighthearted tone. It’s a really nice change of pace from the darker BL work out there.
Unfortunately, as much as I love the main story and Niyama‘s work in general, the extra story, Magic Banana, provided in this series is not my favorite. I’d say the art quality for the extra is far better than what is in the series itself, which is nice, but the content is not the best. It’s a completely separate story with main characters that are not at all related to Manami and Makoto. This, instead, follows Ryotaro Suwa, a researcher and scientist obsessed with bananas. It’s all good so far. I love an on-the-nose setup like that, and I was all ready for some cute smut. Unfortunately, though, this gives me icky vibes. Our younger top, Ryu, lives on what appears to be a secluded island but is called a “jungle boy.” I don’t think this was intended to be racist, but it definitely comes off as such at worst and exotification at best. It’s a shame because I like the dynamic between these two, but it’s so uncomfortable. I could’ve really done without this story. Thankfully, you can skip it entirely without missing anything from the main story, but it’s still unfortunate that this exists all the same.
Results:
As much as I love Niyama, I must admit that this title is just alright. I wouldn’t say it’s amazing, and if you are coming from My Dearest Cop to this, you might be disappointed. It still has that lighthearted feel I’ve come to adore from Niyama‘s work, but the extra story and the weaker storyline make this a weaker title overall. I highly recommend picking this title up if you are a huge Niyama fan like me, but I would not recommend this if you are just trying out their work. There are much stronger titles out there.
Have you read Spend Wisely? If so, what do you think? Do you agree with my assessment? Do you not? Let me know, and comment below!