From Stalked to Hopelessly In Love
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Warning:
This review will contain spoilers for the manga and anime series Healing Paradox deeper. 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 obsession, excessive drinking, stalking, overwork, divorce (not between the main couple), child abandonment, breakups (not between the main couple), and blood, as they appear in the manga.
Synopsis:
This is the sequel to Healing Paradox, and it is recommended that you read it before proceeding with this title.
Kazuma and Naoto are now together. Well, they spend a lot of their time together, anyway. Unfortunately, their relationship status is a bit ambiguous. There is no question that Kazuma loves and adores Naoto – perhaps even a bit too much – but Naoto can’t help feeling like this imbalanced relationship might not even be a real relationship at all. So, in a drunken stupor, he ends up getting some advice from his coworkers. Thankfully, he keeps the identity of his lover a secret. Unfortunately, the advice he receives isn’t good:
He isn’t in a relationship, from the sounds of it. He’s just in a friends-with-benefits situationship.
Kazuma loves Naoto. There is no question about it. But how much does Naoto love Kazuma? Maybe more important than that, though, is how much Naoto’s coworker loves Naoto? And is he willing to fight an obsessive stalker like Kazuma for him?
Review:
As with the previous entry in this series (Healing Paradox), the art is pretty sketchy, but I genuinely don’t care in the best way. I would argue that it is more consistent and cleaner this time around, which isn’t surprising since this is the second time with these characters. However, what I really want to discuss in this entry, which I didn’t get to in the previous one, is the artistry during the sexy scenes. In the second chapter of this entire series, there is a scene where Kazuma is on his knees… giving service, we’ll say, and there is a row of three transition panels that will make your toes curl. The smut in this entire series is so good, and if you are a degenerate like me, it may be worth reading this series for that alone.
However, what I especially like about this sequel is how we see the changes this relationship has brought about in Naoto. We saw hints of that in the first one, and Kazuma’s entire goal has been to mold Naoto mentally and physically so they can’t be apart from each other. The previous volume was primarily focused on getting Naoto to accept Kazuma, so we didn’t really get to see the full extent of Naoto’s change. That is not the case here. As the title suggests, we get much deeper this time around into how Naoto has been changed.
Naoto becomes jealous. He now craves Kazuma and finds himself experiencing the same desperate and obsessive attraction he receives. It makes the relationship feel so much more even and intensely intimate. If you thought the chemistry before was intense, you haven’t seen anything yet. I love it so much this time around that I would call this one a favorite over the other. Bite marks, scratch marks, and scars are all physical representations of the powerful love these two have developed for each other.
In all honesty, I don’t have much more to say about this one. I’ve been praising it non-stop with good reason, and there is very little to complain about, whether on the story or art front. If I had to choose one thing, there is a secondary “love interest” that appears and tries to kink-shame Naoto into believing Kazuma’s aggressive marking during sexy time is wrong. I understand why he exists. The whole foundation of this relationship is the abnormal and dangerous obsession Kazuma has with Naoto. Anyone looking from the outside in can see that this is a toxic time bomb, and Kazuma is the dangerous one, but that’s the problem. No one realizes that Naoto’s intense love has grown to match Kazuma’s. I still dislike the whole kink-shaming secondary love interest, but he plays an important role in establishing how much Naoto’s perception of love and intimacy has changed. Even when I try to think of something negative, it turns into a positive.
Results:
This is a sexy, smutty, chemistry-riddled bomb of awesome. I feel like it’s been so long since I’ve felt so intensely about a BL manga, especially in a positive way. If you can’t tell, I highly recommend this one. The previous entry in the series is good, but this is much better. So, if you liked the first, you’re going to love this one. If you didn’t like the first, I’m not sure that you’ll enjoy this one any better, but you’ll be missing out on some delectable sex scenes. I can’t recommend it enough.
Have you read Healing Paradox deeper? If so, what do you think? Do you agree with my assessment? Do you not? Let me know, and comment below!
