I read ‘Sweat and Soap’ by Kintetsu Yamada so you don’t have to
If you think you’ve been to the most interesting side of Kindle Unlimited, no you haven’t. There’s a whole world of questionable subject matter and outrageous titles to be found within the manga and graphic novel shelves. That’s right! There’s manga on KU too! This is how I found ‘Sweat and Soap’ by Kintetsu Yamada and you know I had to give it a whirl. It’s what we do here.
Some other interesting titles we’ve taken for a test drive include:
Actually, I can’t give myself too much credit for finding ‘Sweat and Soap’. As if I was trawling through pages and pages of KU titles (a hobby of mine, actually, but in this instance, it wasn’t necessary), because my Kindle had the audacity to suggest this title to me. Right there on the homepage, bold as brass.
I mean, they’re not wrong when they said “similar titles we think you’ll be interested in” becuase I was interested. Very.
Here’s the summary:
“In an office romance, there's a fine line between sexy and awkward... and that line is where Asako -- a woman who sweats copiusly -- met Koutarou -- a perfume developer who can't get enough of Asako's, er, scent. Don't miss a romcom manga like no other! HEAVEN SCENT Asako's living her dream, working at the toiletry maker Liliadrop. But she has a secret: The reason she loves the company so much is that she's ashamed of her body odor, and their soap is the only thing that's ever helped her. So when the company's lead product developer, a perfuming genius, approaches her in the lobby and wonders what "that smell" is, she's terrified--but could it be that he likes it? That he likes her? And most surprising of all, she might just like him back...”
Right. So we’re rocking a sweat fetish. Cool? Cool.
First off, the art work is actually really great. It’s the kind of style I like in my manga (the seminal text, the one I will compare everything to because it’s PERFECT is ‘Fruits Basket’. That’s the bar when it comes to artwork, among other things).
‘Sweat and Soap’ has a very accessible style to it, and I think that helped put me at ease because I have to warn you that the storyline escalates fast. It goes from a bit of boundary crossing and secret sniffing to full on groping and quickies in the supply cupboard.
This series is described as a romcom, and I guess that fits. It has some romance and some comedy, but you also have to get your head around the fact that the premise is some dude Asako works with really really REALLY loves that she sweats a lot.
I will admit, it is sweet in very salty way (see what I did there). Although much like a lot of titles that push the concept harder than other aspects of the story, it fails to give us something fully formed. The characters are fun, a little pervy, and almost cute. But the depth of the emotional connection is shallow at best, and the motivation and overall arc is quite one-note and cliche.
To be too critical of this title, however, isn’t necessary. You know what you’re getting yourself into, it doesn’t try to be something its not and most will see it for face value and find it entertaining. I’m interested to see how the story continues to take shape as it has 11 volumes in total! I won’t be reading all 11 (or will I? Never say never) but I think I might try volume 2 at least, just to see how it continues to hold itself.
It’s not without its problems, but I really liked the artwork, and I thought the story did carry forward in an entertaining way. It was easy to follow (props to the translation) and I could see the potential for a deeper exploration of the characters and their motivations.
‘Sweat and Soap’ is a bit out there, but I ended up giving it 3 stars because it delivered what it promised, but it isn’t going to be something I recommend people when they ask me what manga to try… You know?
Written by Sarah
